Desire
I desire you
more than food
or drink
My body
my senses
my mind
hunger for your taste
I can sense your presence
in my heart
although you belong
to all the world
I wait
with silent passion
for one gesture
one glance
from you
In The Love Poems of Rumi
Deepak Chopra, Ed.
I love the passion that pours out of this poem, that feeling that this person wants to "see" as badly as he would want to find a doctor if he was having a heart attack. I love the sense of angst, the sense of longing, the sense that this person has had a glimpse, maybe briefly, maybe veiled, maybe as confusing as clarifying, but he had that glimpse...and wants it again. No, it's more than that; the glimpse was enough to convince her that all the teachers had been right and now she is jealous and wants the whole package; no more glimpses, she wants the whole, clear, unobstructed view.
But i also feel a bit sad because i see the futility of her wait. The sense of separation between the seeker and the sought is obvious, is hanging there in the air right in front of her face — but she doesn't see it. She's blind.
This seeker still see himself as separate from the sought. This seeker still sees something outside of himself that can give a sign, a gesture, a glance. He is blind, deaf, and dumb and doesn't realize that with each breath the sign has been given, with each sunrise admired the glance has taken place, with each movement of his own body the gesture has been made. He doesn't see that the seeing, the glancing, the gesturing, are it.
As long as there is a difference between the seeker, the seeking, and the sought...no glimpse can be had. Don't just sit there and wait. No bus will ever show up. Don't just sit there and hunger. You're belly is already full! You are what you seek, it's really just that simple.
Here's the other side of the coin from the same book:
Dying To Love
Die Die!
Die in this love!
If you die in this love
your soul will be renewed
Die Die!
Don't fear the death
of that which is known
If you die to this temporal
you will become timeless
Die Die!
Cut off those chains
that hold you prisoner
to the world of attachment
Die Die!
Die to the deathless
and you will be eternal
Die Die!
and come out of this cloud
When you leave the cloud
you will be the effulgent moon
Die Die!
Die to the din and the noise
of mundane concerns
In the silence of love
you will find the spark of life
In The Love Poems of Rumi
Deepak Chopra, Ed.
We spend entire lives running away from the silence, frantically seeking that din and noise that keeps us isolated, keeps us separate, keeps us alone. We think that being alone means being separated from all the others in this world. But that's not true — being alone means continuing to believe that you are separated from all those 'others,' believing that you are separate from anything, believing that what you are is an isolated bag of skin with an individual identity separate from everyone else, believing that you are alone 'in here.'
In that silence, though, you can see that this is not the case. You are not alone, never have been alone, never will be alone, because what's 'in here' is the same as what's 'out there.' Give up those fantasies of individuality and never be alone again. Sit in that silence, walk in that silence, stand in that silence, grocery shop in that silence, repair your car in that silence, ... live in that silence... and you will never be alone again.
No comments:
Post a Comment