After an invigorating week on the road, I spent an extra day in the
charming little burg of Belleville, Ontario. My wandering feet brought me
to a local bookstore...and then to the shelf where I found "The Teachings
of Rumi" by Andrew Harvey. It had been some years since I rummaged
through what was a rather large and intimidating collection of Rumi's
writings...but this small paperback appealed to me. After reading it
through, that day, and applying significant portions of what I found to
challenges in my work and life, I knew that it was fate that had taken me
to this book.
I'll share with you one of the many things that Rumi wrote about Love, as
it seems appropriate to this thread as it winds down:
Only Love Can Explain Love
Being a lover shows itself in pain of heart;
No evil is comparable to this pain in the heart.
The suffering of lovers is different from all others;
Love is the astrolabe of the mysteries of God.
Whether love comes from earth or from heaven,
In the end it draws us to the Beloved:
Whatever I say to explain or describe Love
When I arrive at Love itself, I'm ashamed of my words.
The commentary of words can make things clear--
But Love without words has more clarity.
My pen was rushing to write its thoughts down;
When it came to Love, it broke in two.
In speaking of Love, the intellect is impotent,
Like a donkey trapped in a bog:
Only Love itself can explain Love,
Only Love can explain the destiny of lovers.
The proof of the sun is the sun itself:
If you want proof, don't turn your face away.
--from the Mathnawi
--"Richard Charles Holloway" <learnshops@thresholds.com>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>