Monthly Archives: November 2013
Rubá’í of the Day
401
Man, like a ball, hither and thither goes,
As fate’s resistless bat directs the blows;
But He, who gives thee up to this rude sport,
He knows what drives thee, yea, He knows, He knows!
Rubá’í of the Day
400
My body’s life and strength proceed from Thee!
My soul within and spirit are of Thee!
My being is of Thee, and Thou art mine,
And I am Thine, since I am lost in Thee!
A Cosmic Thought for Thanksgiving
Shall we not have reason to conclude, that other planets besides our own are inhabited by living creatures? All the planets resemble our earth; like it enjoy the light and genial warmth of the sun, have the alternation of night and day, and the succession of summer and winter: but what end would all these phenomena answer unless the planets were inhabited? Considering them as so many peopled worlds, what a sublime idea we conceive of the grandeur of God, and the extent of his empire! How impossible to fathom his bounty, or penetrate the limits of his power! His glory, reflected from so many worlds, tills us with amaze, and calls forth every sentiment of awe, veneration and gratitude. Supposing that his praise is celebrated in all the worlds which roll above and round us, let us not be surpassed in our adoration, but in holy emulation mingle our hymns with those of the inhabitants of these numerous worlds, and celebrate the Lord God of the universe with eternal thanksgiving!
–Christoph Christian Sturm in March XXX, of Reflections on the works of God, as translated by Robert Balfour (1810), p. 167; courtesy of Wikiquote
Rubá’í of the Day
399
Bring forth that ruby gem of Badakhshan,
That heart’s delight, that balm of Turkestan;
They say ’tis wrong for Mussulmans to drink,
But ah! where can we find a Mussulman?
Rubá’í of the Day
398
Was e’er man born who never went astray?
Did ever mortal pass a sinless day?
If I do ill, do not requite with ill!
Evil for evil how can’st Thou repay?
Rubá’í of the Day
397
We buy new wine and old, our cups to fill,
And sell for two grains this world’s good and ill;
Know you where you will go to after death?
Set wine before me, and go where you will!
Rubá’í of the Day
396
“Take up thy cup and goblet, Love, ” I said,
“Haunt purling river bank, and grassy glade;
Full many a moon-like form has heaven’s wheel
Oft into cup, oft into goblet, made!”
Quote for the Week
What is the Sufi’s belief regarding the coming of a World Teacher, or, as some speak if it, the “Second Coming of Christ?” The Sufi is free from beliefs and disbeliefs, and yet gives every liberty to people to have their own opinion. There is no doubt that if an individual or a multitude believe that a teacher or a reformer will come, he will surely come to them. Similarly, in the case of those who do not believe that any teacher or reformer will come, to them he will not come. To those who expect the Teacher to be a man, a man will bring the message; to those who expect the Teacher to be a woman, a woman must deliver it. To those who call on God, God comes. To those who knock at the door of Satan, Satan answers. There is an answer to every call. To a Sufi the Teacher is never absent, whether he comes in one form or in a thousand forms he is always one to him, and the same One he recognizes to be in all, and all Teachers he sees in his one Teacher alone. For a Sufi, the self within, the self without, the kingdom of the earth, the kingdom of heaven, the whole being is his teacher, and his every moment is engaged in acquiring knowledge. For some, the Teacher has already come and gone, for others the Teacher may still come, but for a Sufi the Teacher has always been and will remain with him forever.
–Hazrat Inayat Khan, Vol. I, The Way of Illumination Section I – The Way of Illumination, Part III : The Sufi; courtesy of Wikiquote
The Chequer-board of Nights and Days 