My dear heart, never think you are better than others. Listen to their sorrows with compassion. If you want peace, don't harbor bad thoughts, do not gossip and don't teach what you do not know.
There is a community of the spirit. Join it, and feel the delight of walking in the noisy street and being the noise. Drink all your passion, and be a disgrace. Close both eyes to see with the other eye.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the unity of spiritual connection and the importance of embracing one's passions and experiences, even if they lead to social disapproval.
Rumi's quote invites us to recognize that there exists a shared spiritual community that transcends societal norms. By immersing ourselves in this community, we can experience the joy of life more deeply, even if it means embracing our passions despite the judgments of others. The metaphoric 'noise' represents life’s vibrancy, while 'seeing with the other eye' suggests a deeper perception beyond the superficial. Ultimately, it encourages living fully and authentically.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a graduation speech, one might use this quote to inspire students to embrace their individuality and passions.
More from Rumi
All quotes →The Law of Wonder rules my life at last, _x000D_ ...I burn each second of my life to Love _x000D_ Each second of my life burns out in Love _x000D_ In each leaping second Love lives afresh.
Lovers have heartaches _x000D_ That can't be cured by drugs _x000D_ Or sleep, _x000D_ Or games, _x000D_ But only by seeing their beloved.
Every fragile beauty, every perfect forgotten sentence, you grieve their going away, but that is not how it is. Where they come from never goes dry. It is an always flowing spring.
Whatever you keep hidden in your heart, God _x000D_ manifests in you outwardly. Whatever the root of _x000D_ the tree feeds on in secret, affects the bough and _x000D_ the leaf.
Come on sweetheart let's adore one another before there is no more of you and me
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On why I don't trust democracy without extremely powerful systems of accountability and recall What seems to be generosity is often only disguised ambition - which despises small interests to gain great ones.
True freedom is not advanced in the permissive society, which confuses freedom with license to do anything whatever and which in the name of freedom proclaims a kind of general amorality. It is a caricature of freedom to claim that people are free to organize their lives with no reference to moral values, and to say that society does not have to ensure the protection and advancement of ethical values. Such an attitude is destructive of freedom and peace.
The most persistent sound which reverberates through man's history is the beating of war drums.