What Is Tasawwuf (Sufism)? [From The Islamic Perspective]

What is Tasawwuf (Sufism)? [From The Islamic Perspective]
By Khalid Baig
[Condensed from writings of Maulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi]

"Verily, he who has purified the heart is successful and he who has despoiled it has lost."A lot of people have misunderstandings about tasawwuf. Many think that it is something beyond Qur'an and Sunnah. Errant Sufis as well as the superficial ulema, although on the opposite ends of the spectrum, are together in holding this mistaken notion. Consequently the first group has shunned the Qur'an and Hadith while the second group has shunned tasawwuf. Actually, although the term tasawwuf, like many other religious terms in use today, evolved later, the discipline is very much part of the Shariah. The department of the Shariah relating to external deeds like salat and zakat is called fiqh while the one dealing with the internal feelings and states of the heart is called tasawwuf. Both are commanded in the Qur'an. Thus while commanding Salat and Zakat, the Qur'an also commands gratefulness and love of Allah and condemns the evil of pride and vanity. Similarly, in the books of hadith, along with the chapters on Ibadat, trade and commerce, marriage and divorce, are to be found the chapters on riya (showoff) takabbur, akhlaq, etc. These commands are as much a mandatory requirement as the ones dealing with external deeds.

On reflection it will be realized that all the external deeds are designed for the reformation of the heart. That is the basis of success in the hereafter while its despoiling is the cause of total destruction. This is precisely what is known technically as tasawwuf. Its focus is tahzeebe akhlaq or the adornment of character; its motive is the attainment of Divine pleasure; its method is total obedience to the commands of the Shariah.Tasawwuf is the soul of Islam. Its function is to purity the heart from the lowly bestial attributes of lust, calamities of the tongue, anger, malice, jealousy, love of the world, love of fame, niggardliness, greed, ostentation, vanity, deception, etc. At the same time it aims at the adornment of the heart with the lofty attributes of repentance, perseverance, gratefulness, fear of Allah, hope, abstention, tauheed, trust, love, sincerity, truth, contemplation, etc.

To diagnose and treat the diseases of the heart normally requires the help of an expert mentor or Shaikh. Here are the qualities of a good Shaikh.

1. He possesses necessary religious knowledge.

2. His beliefs, habits, and practices are in accordance with the Shariah.

3. He does not harbor greed for the worldly wealth.

4. He has himself spent time learning from a good Shaikh.

5. The scholars and good mashaikh of his time hold good opinion about him.

6. His admirers are mostly from among the people who have good understanding of religion.

7. Most of his followers follow the Shariah and are not the seekers after this world.

8. He sincerely tries to educate and morally train his followers. If he sees anything wrong in them, he corrects it.

9. In his company one can feel a decrease in the love of this world and an increase in the love for Allah.

10. He himself regularly performs dhikr and shughal (spiritual exercises).

In searching for a Shaikh, do not look for his ability to perform karamat (miracles) or to foretell the future. A very good Shaikh may not be able to show any karamat. On the other hand, a person showing karamat does not have to be a pious person --- or even a Muslim. Prominent Sufi Bayazid Bistami says: "Do not be deceived if you see a performer of supernatural feats flying in the air. Measure him on the standard of the Shariah."

When you find the right Shaikh, and you are satisfied with his ability to provide spiritual guidance, you perform baya or pledge. This is a two-way commitment; the Shaikh pledges to guide you in light of Shariah and you pledge to follow him. Then the Shaikh will give his mureed (disciple) initial instructions. They include the following:

1. Perform repentance for all the past sins and take steps to make amends, e.g. if any salat has been missed so far in the life, you start making up for it.

2. If you have any unmet financial obligations toward another person make plans to discharge them.

3. Guard your eyes, ears, and tongue.

4. Perform dhikr regularly.

5. Start a daily session of self-accounting before going to bed. Review all the good and bad deeds performed during the day. Repent for the bad ones and thank Allah for the good ones.

6. Perform muraqaba-maut (meditation over death) every night before going to bed. Just visualize that you have died. Reflect upon the pangs of death, the questioning in the grave, the plain of Resurrection, the Reckoning , the presence in the Court of Allah, etc This helps bring softness to the heart and break the tendency to commit sins.

7. Develop humility. Even if you observe another individual committing the worst of vices you should not despise him/her, nor should you consider yourself nobler. It is very much possible that the perpetrator of the vice may resort to sincere repentance while the one who despised the sinner become ensnared in the traps of nafs and Shaitan. One has no certainty regarding one's end. One, therefore has no basis for regarding another with contempt.

The essential idea of tahzeebe akhlaq is to bring our natural faculties in a state of balance. The three basic faculties are anger, desires, and intelligence.

Anger:

When in equilibrium it results in valor, forbearance, steadfastness, the ability to restrain anger, and dignity. Excess will result in rashness, boastfulness, pride, inability to restrain anger, and vanity. A deficiency will result in cowardice, disgrace, and feeling of inferiority.

Desires:

Equilibrium here results in chastity, generosity, haya (decency), patience, and contentment. Its excess leads to greed and lust. The other extreme results in narrow-mindedness, and impotence, etc.

Intelligence:

Equilibrium here makes man wise, sharp-witted and one with great insights. Excess here makes one deceptive, fraudulent and imposture. Its lack results in ignorance and stupidity with the consequence that such a person is quickly misled.

A person will be considered as having a beautiful seerah (character) only when these faculties are in the state of balance and equilibrium. Internal beauty varies with people just as external beauty does. The possessor of the most beautiful seerah was Prophet Muhammad, Sall-Allahu alayhi wa sallam. The beauty of our seerah is based on its closeness to his seerah.

Happy Eid Al-Adha/Festival of Sacrfice & Happy Thanksgiving!

In America, Eid al-Adha or Eid-Qurban will be on Friday, November 27, 2009.

Eid Al-Adha/Eid Qurban in Persian/Farsi, or Festival of Sacrifice commemorates Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his own favorite son, Ishmael, at God's command (according to Biblical teachings and in Judeo-Christian traditions, Abraham's other son, Isaac was commanded to be sacrificed). At the end of Hajj (Muslims' annual Piligrimage to Mecca), the three days Festival of Sacrifice is commemorated throughout the Islamic world by prayers, visiting families and friends, exchanging of Eid-Mubaraki greetings and gifts, and sacrificing an animal; traditionally a goat, lamb, or a cow, and then distributing the meat to the poor and needy families as an Islamic act of generosity and charity donation.
"And Abraham said [after being saved from the fire]: ‘Verily, I am going to my Lord. He will guide me!’ ‘My Lord! Grant me (offspring) from the righteous.’ So We gave him glad tidings of a forbearing boy. And, when he [his son] was old enough to walk with him, Abraham said: ‘O my son! I have been seeing in a dream that I am offering you in sacrifice [to Allah]. So look what you think!’ He said: ‘O my father! Do that which you are commanded, Insha Allah, you shall find me of the patient. Then, when they had both submitted themselves [to the will of Allah], and he had laid him prostrate on his forehead, We called out to him: ‘O Abraham! You have made the dream a reality.’ Verily, thus do We reward the good-doers. Verily, that indeed was a manifest trial. And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice [a ram]; And We left for him [a goodly remembrance] among the later generations. Peace be upon Abraham!" Quran 37:99-112.

Both Thanksgiving and Eid al-Adha Focus on Family, Sharing
By Nihad Awad

Many American Muslims will eat their turkey a bit late in the day this year because Thanksgiving falls on the same day some Muslims fast until sunset in observance of the Day of Arafah, the spiritual peak of the annual pilgrimage (Hajj) to Mecca.Arafah is a hill called "Mount of Mercy" and its surrounding empty plain near Mecca. On this climax of the Hajj season millions of pilgrims of all races and backgrounds, including thousands of Americans, will assemble for supplication to God. This is a physical representation of universal equality and the unity of humankind.

American Muslims have a double blessing this year. They are marking both events, Thanksgiving and the end of Hajj, with activities that stress sharing with others and the importance of family to people of all faiths.The New Jersey chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) called on Muslims in that state to volunteer at a soup kitchen as a way to celebrate Thanksgiving and the end of the Hajj.
CAIR's Cincinnati chapter is giving food packages, including turkeys, to needy families.Thanksgiving week, the Muslims Against Hunger Project is organizing special "Muslims Serve" days to recall the ultimate sacrifice the Prophet Abraham was prepared to make and to offer thanks for God's many blessings.Hajj and Thanksgiving were also combined in a New Jersey food giveaway for the needy on Sunday in Plainfield, N.J., at the Center of Islamic Enlightenment.

In Mississippi, scores of Muslim volunteers gave up their free time to feed the hungry and homeless in areas particularly hard hit by the national recession.

Muslim university students in North Carolina this year donated food to groups that feed the hungry. While in California, Muslims joined Jews, Buddhists, Baha'is, and Catholics at an interfaith Thanksgiving celebration in a synagogue. Muslims in Iowa, along with representatives of nine other faith traditions, attended the annual Inter-Religious Council Thanksgiving Prayer Service in Cedar Rapids.

In Georgia, Christians, Muslims and Jews came together to share a pre-Thanksgiving dinner. Proceeds from the dinner went to a local food bank.

On Friday, Muslims in America and worldwide will celebrate the holiday of Eid al-Adha, or "festival of the sacrifice." "Eid" also commemorates the Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ishmael at God's command. The holiday is celebrated with prayers, gifts for children, distribution of meat to the needy, and social gatherings. You may hear the greeting "Eid Mubarak," or "have a blessed holiday."

And you know Thanksgiving and Eid al-Adha are now sharing the same spiritual and social space when Best Buy, for the first time, puts a "Happy Eid Al-Adha" in its "Black Friday" newspaper insert.As with Thanksgiving, Eid al-Adha is a time when everyone counts their blessings and offers thanks for friends and family, even if circumstances may not be the best in any particular year."The first to be summoned to paradise on the Day of Resurrection will be those who praise God in prosperity and adversity," said the Prophet Muhammad.Just as Thanksgiving is a time of family and friends, so too is Eid al-Adha. The Prophet Muhammad told the early Muslims, "[T]hey are days of [eating] and rejoicing with one's family."

The Quran, Islam's revealed text, urges those who reach physical and spiritual maturity to pray: "My Lord! Grant me the grace that I may thank you for the favors that You have bestowed on me and on my parents, and that I may do good deeds that will please You."

So this year, despite a weak but recovering economy and other domestic and international troubles, let us all count our blessings and demonstrate true thankfulness by sharing whatever we have with those in need.

The Great Persian Sufi of India, Amir Khusro

Amir Khusro Dehlavi (1253-1325)

I wonder what was The Place where I was last night,
All around me were half-slaughtered victims of Love,
Tossing about in agony.
There was a nymph-like beauty
With cypress-like form and tulip-like face,
Ruthlessly playing havoc with the hearts of the lovers.
God himself was The Master of Ceremony in that Heavenly Court.
O Khusrau
Even Prophet Muhammad was shedding light
like a candle,
In The Place where I was last night. 

کافر عشق | شعر از امیر خسرو دهلوی 


کافر عشقم مسلمانی مرا در کار نیست
هر رگ من تار گشته حاجت زنار نیست
 از سر بالین من برخیز ای نادان طبیب
 دردمند عشق را دارو به جز دیدار نیست
 ناخدا در کشتی ما گر نباشد گو مباش
 ما خدا داریم ما را ناخدا در کار نیست
 خلق می گوید که خسرو بت پرستی می کند
آری آری می کنم با خلق ما را کار نیست

I am a pagan and a worshiper of Love
The creed of Muslims I do not need.
Every vein of mine has become taunt like a wire,
The Brahman’s Girdle I do not need.
Leave from my bedside, you ignorant physician!
The only cure for the patient of love
Is the sight of his beloved
Other than this, no medicine he needs.
If there is no captain in our ship, let there be none
We have God in our midst, the captain we do not need.
The people of the world are saying:
Khusrau worships idols!
So he does, so he does,
The people he does not need!



O Khusrau
What you need to do is
To concentrate deep, like a Hindu does:
He even burns himself as an offering to God. 




O Khusrau
The River of Love
Runs in strange directions:
One who jumps into it drowns,
And one who drowns, gets across! 






Day and night, I see an empty bed, and cry
Calling for my Beloved, I remain restless for ever.
With my beautiful face all adorned,
I went to the Beloved,
I saw His Face, and forgot all about my own beauty. 




I, Khusrau,
Play the game of Love with my Beloved:
If I win, The Beloved’s mine,
Defeated, I’m Beloved’s! 




Khusrau spends the eve of his wedding
Awake with his Beloved
The body belongs to his, but heart to the Beloved:
The two becoming one.




The dervish who caught
 the scent of HIS Reality
Can wave the baskets of Love
even though his hands are cut off. 




I have become You and You have become me
I manifest as body, You are The Spirit
Let no one say after this union:
that You are different and I am different!

Amir Khusrau Dehlavi
Written by Iraj Bashiri Known as the "Tuti" (songbird) of India, Amir Nasir al-Din Abu al-Hassan Khusrau ibn Amir Saif al-Din Mahmud Dihlavi is India's foremost Sufi poet using the Persian language as the medium of his poetry. His father, Saif al-Din Mahmud was one of the chiefs of the Lachin tribe of the Karakhitais of Kush, Transoxania. During the Mongol invasion, Saif al-Din moved his family away from Kush and settled in India. There, he had married the daughter of Imad al-Mulk, an Indian nobleman. Amir Khusrau is the fruit of that marriage. He was born in Patiali, in the district of Etah, Uttar Pardesh, in 1253. Although he became an orphan at the age of seven, he managed, due to the high status of his family, to elevate himself and become a major figures at the courts of Indian sultans. Amir Khusrau died in 1325. Amir Khusrau spoke Persian fluently and was familiar with Arabic, Hindi, and Sanskrit. From his early days, he was attracted to Persian literature, especially the poetry of the poet of Ganja, Nizami. Emulating the poetry of Nizami, he himself, over the years became one of the most celebrated Sufi poets of his day. Additionally, Amir Khusrau was a born musician. He mastered the art of Indian music at a very early age and went on to perfect it. His invention of the sitar, an instrument with three-strings, testifies to his dedication to the art. Like musician poets Rudaki and Farrukhi before him, Amir Khusrau adapted to the life at court and distinguished himself in the circle of the dignitaries as a grand poet. His prestige became even more noticeable when Shaykh Muslih al-Din Sa'di recommended him as a worthy candidate for a position originally offered to himself at Prince Muhammad's court. It is related that one day, Saif al-Din Mahmud took his three sons to the presence of the chief of Sufi poets Shaykh Nizam al-Din Muhammad ibn Ahmad Dihlavi popularly known as Nizam al-Din Auliya of the Chishtiyya order. Nizam al-Din took a particular interest in Amir Khusrau who himself, following the advice of the Shaykh became one of the major figures of the order. 


Nevertheless, Amir Khusrau never publicized his writings unless they had been read and sanctioned by the Shaykh. In fact, their lives mirror each others, both in mundane success and in spiritual ascension. Living in a milieu suffused with turmoil and intolerance, they shared the same tendency towards tolerance and struggle to rise above petty conflicts. And both rebelled against the confines of narrow orthodoxy to redefine the limits of philosophical profundity and devotional spirituality.

Altogether Amir Khusrau has written several multi-volume works, a collection of lyrics, and three prose works. His multi-volume collection the Panj Ganj (five treasures), with the following specification:

1) Tuhfat al-Saghir: Youthful melodies, sonnets and odes composed when he was between sixteen to nineteen years of age.
2) Wasat al-Hayat: poems composed when the was between the ages of twenty and thirty-four.
3) Ghurrat al-Kamal: middle age poems collected at the request of his brother. A brief biography of the poet introduces the collection.
4) Baqiyya-i Naqiyyah: miscellany or old-age poems in praise of kings of India
5) Nihayat al-Kamal: Amir Khusrau's last poems.

His other multi-collection, referred to as Samaniyyah Khusraviyyah (eight Khusravi Mathnavis), includes:

1) Duvalroni Khizirkhan: deals with the love of Khizir Khan for the daughter of the Raj of Gujarat. The love story composed on request of Khizir Khan is prefaced with a brief history of the spread of the Islamic faith in India under the Ghurid dynasty.
2) Taj al-Futuh is composed in honor of the ascension to the throne of Sultan Jalal al-Din Firuz.
3) Noh Sepehr: a mathnavi in nine chapters composed in honor of Qutb al-Din Mubarak Shah Khalaji.
4) Tuqluq Namah composed on the occasion of the establishment of the Tuqluq dynasty of Delhi by Ghiyas al-Din Tuqluq Shah.
5) Matla' al-Anwar: A treatise on Sufi thought along the line of Nazami's Makhzan al-Asrar.
6) Shirin wa Khusrau: An imitation of Nizami's mathnavi of the same name. A scene in which the king invites the learned of the realm to his palace and discusses philosophical points with them is original to Amir Khusrau.
7) Majnun-i Layli: Also a poor imitation of Nizami's mathnavi of the same name.
8) A'ina-i Sikandari: A continuation of Nizami's mathnavi of the same name. Amir Khusrau, however, deals mostly with Alexander's post-conquest train of thought and his death.
9) Hasht Bihisht: A response to Nizami's Haft Paikar.

امیر خسرو دهلوی، طوطی خوش زبان هند

گم شدم در سر آن کوی مجویید مرا
او مراکشت شدم زنده مپو یید مرا
بر درش مردم و آن خاک بر اعضای من است
هم بدان خاک درآید و مشویید مرا
عاشق و مستم و رسوایی خویشم هوس است
هر چه خواهم که کنم هیچ مگویید مرا
خسروم من : گلی ازخون دل خود رسته
خون من هست جگر سوز مبویید مرا


جان برلب است عاشق بخت آزمای را دستوریی خنده لب جان‌فزای را 
مطرب بزن رهی و مبین زهد من از انک
بر سبحه‌ی نست شرف چنگ و نای را
نازک مگوی ساعد خوبان که خرد کرد
چندین هزار بازروی زور آزمای را
ای دوست عشق چون همه چشم است گوش نیست
چه جای پند خسرو شوریده رای را



شفاعت آمدم ای دوست دیده‌ی خود را
کزو مپوش گل نو دمیده‌ی خود را
رسید خیل غمت ورنه ایستد جانم
کجا برم بدن غم رسیده‌ی خود را
بگوش ره ندهی ناله‌ی مرا چه کنم
چه ناشنیده کند کس شنیده‌ی خود را
چنین که من ز تولب می‌گزم کم ار گویی
که مرهمی برسانم گزیده‌ی خود را
به چاه شوق فرو مانده‌ام خداوندا
فرو گذاشت مکن آفریده‌ی خود را


ای صبا بوسه زن ز من در او را
ور نرنجد لب چو شکر او را
چون کسی قلب بشکند که همه کس
دل دهد طره‌ی دلاور او را
رو سوی سر و تا فرو بنشیند
زانکه بادیست هر زمان سر او را
دل مده غمزه را به کشتن خلقی
حاجت سنگ نیست خنجر او را
چون بسی شب گذشت و خواب نیامد
ای دل اکنون بجو برادر او را 




ای باد برقع برفگن آن روی آتش‌ناک را
وی دیده گر صفرا کنم آبی بزن این خاک را
ریزی تو خون برآستان من شویم از اشک روان
که آلوده دیده چون توان آن آستان پاک را
زان غمزه عزم کین مکن تاراج عقل و دین
مکن تاراج دین تلقین مکن آن هندوی بی باک را
تا شمع حسن افروختی پروانه وارم سوختی
پرده دری آموختی آن امن صد چاک را
جانم چو رفت از تن برون و صلم چه کار آید کنون
این زهر بگذشت از فسون ضایع مکن تریاک را
گویی بر آمد گاه خواب اندر دل شب آفتاب
آندم کز آه صبح تاب آتش زنم افلاک را
خسرو کدامین خس بود کز شور عشق از پس بود
یک ذره آتش بس بود صد خرمن خاشاک را 





مجموعه اشعار امیر خسرو دهلوی
Click on above link to read Amir Khusrau's poems in Persian/Farsi







یکی از چهره های بزرگ شعر و ادب سرزمین هندوستان، امیر خسرو دهلوی است. او در سال 651 هجری در شهر دهلی دیده به جهان گشود. در همان کودکی پدر خود را از دست داد و در دوره جوانی به خدمت نظام الدین اولیا عارف پر آوازه دهلی پیوست و به سیر و سلوک عرفانی پرداخت. پس از چندی به رسم شاعران دیگر، در پی یافتن ممدوحی بر آمد.در خدمت یکی از همین ممدوحان بود که در جنگی در سال 683 اسیر گشت و دو سال در بلخ زندانی بود. پس از آزادی به هندوستان بازگشت و در آنجا به مدح جلال الدین خلجی پرداخت و به امیر خسرو معروف گشت. امیر خسرو در سال 725 در تنهایی و اندوه درگذشت و در کنار آرامگاه پیر و مرشد خود شیخ نظام الدین اولیا به خاک سپرده شد. امیر خسرو به جز شاعری، نویسندگی و مورخی هم می کرد.او توانایی خود در نثر را در کتاب اعجاز خسروی کاملا نشان داده است. آثار فارسی امیر خسرو که اکثرا به تقلید از آثار نظامی بود عبارتند از: دیوان که شامل 5 بخش مجزاست و هر بخش به قسمتی از زندگی او تعلق دارد.
خمسه به تقلید از پنج گنج نظامی
مطلع الانوار به تقلید از مخزن الاسرار
شیرین و خسرو در برابر خسرو و شیرین مجنون و لیلی به تقلید از لیلی و مجنون
هشت بهشت به تقلید از هفت پیکر
آینه اسکندری به تقلید از اسکندر نامه مثنوی خضر خان در موضوع عشق های خضر خان پسر علاالدین و دختر امیر گجرات

Rumi's Philosophy and the Bosnian Paradigm

RUMI’S PHILOSOPHY AND THE BOSNIAN PARADIGM
By Nevad Kahteran

The Bosnian paradigm is positioned in this essay in a manner diametrically opposite to current prevailing perceptions of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We seek to provide a proper response to the current situation and the central issue: Are we to focus on our differences, or on what we have in common in Bosnia? It is my intention to demonstrate that this is not the true face of traditional Bosnia, but that the Bosnian tradition, rightly understood, can serve as a model not only of, but also for inter-religious relations in Europe and the world at large. As a result, I not only adhere to, but resolutely promote the idea of Bosnia as a microcosm – a paradigm – of world relations over the centuries, or as shedding light on the context of evolving cultural pluralism. In this regard, the war waged from 1992 to 1995 between competing ethno-religious particularisms, styled the “war against Bosnia,” which is just euphemism for what’s happened, is only its Frankenstein appearance. Support for the Bosnian model and paradigm is thus not only a question of choice, but one that makes up or breaks up the image of the modern world, enhancing or undermining our confidence in the unity of that world.

Unfortunately, given the world’s tunnel vision and the herd instinct that has characterized this part of the world over the past fifteen years or so, along with the absence of any genuinely critical spirit or open, critically structured mode of thought, relevant literature and periodicals in this field, we are facing a situation in which grotesque criteria have been set that are entirely foreign to the Bosnian identity: “standards” of a depraved nature far from what one would hope might be the rule nowadays. However, the link between education and philosophy is certainly not limited only to the western tradition, and in this regard Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has for centuries – indeed, for a millennium and more – been a natural bridge between East and West, could play a crucial part, particularly on account of its Islamic component and an honest interpretation of Islam in the EU. However, like the rest of the world we are going through a crisis of value orientation, and the question now is what stance we should adopt towards the social complexities of the globalized world. As I see it on the basis of my best insights into this matter, in this age of conflictual relations between differing world views, it is nonetheless a propitious moment increasingly to reach for Rumi’s model of thought, since he stands for what is common ground for all of us in holding dialogue and extensive mutual understanding, creating a promising cross-cultural dimension not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also world wide. Over and over again, the words of this Muslim genius instil hope in us in these dark times in which we are living. First, we need Rumi’s ney (the reed flute) to distract attention from the ever-louder beating of the drums announcing the supposedly inevitable clash of civilizations, and once again to illumine the relationships between human beings in this global world of ours. For every word that came from his lips is filled with love and the desire for peace, since he speaks straight to the heart, transcending all boundaries of time and space. Even now, eight centuries after his birth, Rumi is still building bridges of understanding between the Islamic world and the West, and his work is a shared foundation for coherent dialogue and sustainable peace. As formerly, in Rumi’s day, now too we are feeling almost the same chaos and confusion, unrest and conflict wherever we turn and, instead of raising awareness of the need for mutual understanding, religious fervour is being misused in the so-called clash of civilizations, paving the way for the emergence of U-turned religion. Are we really ready and able to listen to one who is undoubtedly among the greatest teachers of universal love and peace and to instil it in our education curricula as the spiritual inspiration for the 21st century? Mawlana Jalaladdin Muhammad Rumi himself, also known as Mevlevi, Hudavandigar, and Molla-i Rum, along with epithets such as Balkhi, Rumi and Konavi, anticipated such needs as we now have with these lines: I silently moaned so that for a hundred centuries to come,
The world would echo in the sound of my hayhā
It would turn on the axis of my hayhāt.

For Rumi, in fact, every human being is an index of the entire universe: he believed that the human being is the microcosmos of the macrocosmos. It should be noted that this doctrine was expressed at a time when the Mongol terror was ruling the world, and it was in such times that this man emerged, to breathe into people’s ears the song of life, the meaning of eternity, and the evidence of existence. It was a principle of love as communication with the truth, a call for peace and unity, which is the slogan of today’s globalization processes. Indeed, like Eva de Vitray Meyerovitch, I am now deeply convinced that authentic Islam may best be presented to the West through Rumi’s teachings and philosophy. How else, after all, are we to understand his invitation: Come, come whoever you are
Wanderer, worshipper, lover of living, it doesn’t matter,
Ours is not a caravan of despair
Come, even if you have broken your vow a thousand times
Come, yet again, come, come.

In Europe, and in particular over the past thirty years or so in the United States, the universal dimension of Mawlana’s message is always emphasized through his teachings of the universality of Islam. He advocated pluralism and drew attention to the beauty of diversity without undermining the essence of the religious tradition to which he belonged, a point that is worthy of underlining in this age of U-turned Islam. Furthermore, any religious community (and not only the Muslim umma) that disapproves of unity in diversity and diversity in unity will lapse into fundamentalism, whereas the true response to this contrast lies in fact in the recognition of the equality of all and the realization that we are all equally helpless before God. Mawlana, then, demonstrated that religious belief and democracy may be complementary, and it is this critical pedagogy of his of which we are in such desperate need today, and not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, as we continue to advance and evolve the democratic process. With this doctrine of his he touches every rational soul, yet it is abundantly clear that it derives from the profound notion of tawhīd, since Rumi did not construct his theology of tolerance and inclusive spirituality by departing from traditional Islam, but by immersing himself deeply in it. Bosnia and Herzegovina has long been heir to the tradition of this kind of universalist, inclusivist education and upbringing on the tenets of Rumi’s openness and philosophy of Love, where Love has metaphysical and ontological status.

For instance, the first Mevlevi tekke, built by Isa-beg Ishaković at Bentbaša in Sarajevo, was founded as long ago as 1462. The authentic, indigenous Islamic component has thus always been imbued with the tenets of teachings in line with a global civilization of love and peace, which is our present-day idea of modern and postmodern education – despite the obstacles we encounter on our path at this time. The point is whether you focus more on similarities or on differences. If one emphasizes and insists on differences, which certainly exist – it would be unreasonable to deny it – there really is no chance of hearing one another and of constructive action, since in this frame of mind one is more inclined to pick up the worm-eaten fruit that long since fell from the Abrahamic monotheistic tree common to Judaism, both eastern and western Christianity and Islam; instead of plucking the succulent fruits from the tree itself, they cling to its broken branches. If, on the other hand, you are more concerned with similarities, of which there are far more than there are differences, particularly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, you go beyond those differences and avoid the insanity of the present reciprocalities, the national folly of the cult of ethnicity, national parochialisms and the tunnel vision image of the world that has been with us since Dayton, the most blatant expression of which is now the ghetto-school – two schools under a single roof, on the pretext of preserving the pupils’ national identity. At the same time, these same champions of their own ethnos do little or nothing to preserve and present in the proper manner that which is truly of value in their tradition, making it absolutely plain that it is a matter of nothing more than ideological dictate.

Rumi and Iqbal

RUMI AND MUHAMMAD IQBAL
Prof. Natalia Ilyiniçna Prigarina

Related in-depth study materials on Iqbal:

• Allam Iqbal Cyber Library (all works by Iqbal in English, Farsi & Urdu)
• Allama Iqbal Site
• International Iqbal Society

The great poet of the East Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) mentions Rumi in his poetic works in different ways. Rumi is the character of some poems, or even of the chapters in his masnavis, he is the guide for the celestial spheres in Javid-nama. Iqbal quotes Rumi's lines and periphrases them, he refers to his sayings, or presents his whole ghazal, etc. He makes use of Rumi's style in the titles of chapters of his masnavis. In contrast to Hafez, who is never mentioned by name in Iqbal's Persian poetry (though he is quoted 55 times in the different way), and 4 times only in his Urdu poems, Rumi's name appears in the Iqbal's Persian poems around 70 times - in the second place after the Prophet Muhammad, and 23 times in the Urdu collection. The Indian scholar Vazir al- Hasan Abidi mentioned in his article that from 119 Qur'anic quotations used in Iqbal's poetry 98 coincided with those used in Masnavi-ye Maanavi.

The problem of Rumi's influence upon Allama Iqbal (1877-1938) seems to be clear enough for the majority of scholars dealing with Iqbal's activity as a poet and philosopher since the times of R.Nicholson. It is universally recognized that Iqbal like none other in the 20-th century succeeded in presenting the greatness of Rumi and his importance for the spiritual life of people of both the East and the West. Rumi's name is one of the well known names of the Oriental sages in the civilized world. "However, the ingenious interpretation of Rumi by Iqbal remains unsurpassed", as A. Shimmell puts it. It is a well-known fact that Muhammad Iqbal considered himself to be a follower of Jalaluddin Rumi in his main philosophic concepts, namely of Self (Khudi) and Love. Iqbal's concept of the Perfect man also owes some important ideas to Rumi. The concept of human and Divine personality and the concept of the Muslim nation are presented in Iqbal's poems written in Persian, Asrar-e Khudi (The Secrets of the Self, 1915), and Rumuz-e Bikhudi (The Mysteries of Selflessness, 1918). In the Introduction to the Asrar-e Khudi Iqbal claims Rumi to be his spiritual guide who saved him from frustration and hopelessness, and gave him the belief in the creative power of human personality. Moulana Rumi's message provided Iqbal, as he confessed, with a new life and the ability to create a philosophy, which fitted the urge of Indian Muslims of the time. The picture of the interrelation is, one would think, quite impressive and definite. Particularly, there are still some considerations concerning Divan-e Shams and Rumi's prose. A.Schimmel wrote about it: 'As to the influence of the Divan, it cannot be traced as easily as that of the Mathnawi'.
One of the most significant notions used by Iqbal as a term in his philosophy of Love and Perfect man is the word a:r(e)zu:. Iqbal would use it in the meaning of the inner force, the stimulus of love. In his Stray reflections dated 1910, Iqbal wrote: "The superb Rumi born to the Muslim world at a time when enervating modes of life and thought and an outwardly beautiful but inwardly devitalizing literature had almost completely sucked up the blood of Muslim Asia and paved the way for an easy victory for the Tartar was not less keenly alive than Nietzsche to the poverty of life, incompetence, inadequacy and decay of the body social of which he formed a part and parcel. See with what unerring insight he describes the corroding disease of his society and suggests the ideal type of Muslim manhood:

Di. sheikh ba: chera:ghhami:
gasht gerd-e shahr Kaz da:m-o-dad malu:lam-o-ensa:nam a:rzu:st.
Zin hamraha:n-e sost-ana:ser delam gereft Shi:r-e khoda:-wo-Rostem-e dasta:nam a:rzu:st!
Goftam ke ya:ft mi:nashavad joste-i:m ma:
Goft: A:n ke ya:ft mi.nashavad a:nam a:rzu:st.

Once he discovered an ideal object for the Muslim society, Iqbal never ceased to follow the idea, which was stated in these words. These lines are used by Iqbal as the epigraph to his first Persian masnavi 'The Secrets of the Self (Asrar-e Khudi, 1915). The term ar:rzu:- is discussed in the huge passage in Chapter 2:

Life is preserved by purpose:
Because of the goal its caravan-bell tinkles. .
Life is latent in seeking,
Its origin is hidden in desire (a:rzu:)
Keep desire alive in thy heart,
Lest thy little dust become a tomb.
Desire is the soul of this world of hue and scent,
The nature of every thing is faithful to desire.
From the flame of desire the heart takes life,
And when it takes life, all dies that is not true.
When it refrains from forming desires
Its pinion breaks and it cannot soar.
Desire is an emotion of the
Self,/ Is the restless wave of the Self s sea. Desire is a noose for hunting ideals,
A binder of the books of deeds.
Tis desire.that enriches Life,
And the intellect is a child of its womb.
We live by forming ideals (objects - takhli.q-e maqa:sed).
We glow with the sunbeams of desire. 

The concept of desire was developed in the collection of Persian verses, and in Bal-I Jibreel. What are then Rumi's ideas concerning this subject? In Masnavi the word a:rzu: occurs 32 times including the title of a chapter and a footnote. It is worth mentioning that it doesn't have the single meaning as it does in Iqbas case, where the word is always used with a positive connotation. In Rumi, its semantics differs according to the context of the bayt (or widely, of the story itself) in which the word appears. Sometimes Rumi uses the word in the meaning of a simple wish: [1]"At night because of the pain in my back and the (pangs of) hunger in my belly I am always wishing to die" . "I have a comely daughter of very high estate, she was desiring (a:rzu mibud u:ra:} (to marry) a true believer" . Sometimes it has the meaning of the 'ardent desire' to which Iqbal's use of the word could be compared: "Afterwards they said: 'We desire to follow thy leadership (in prayer) O, holy friend". In some contexts the desire is regarded as the way to achieve an object, and God is He, who is supposed to help the pious man to carry out the intention."Thou bestowest thy bounty (even) on strangers: Every ardent wisher (gams) his desire [a:rzu:] from Thee"; "Patience brings the object of desire \a:rzu:\ not haste. Have patience - and God knowest best what is right" ; "Since thou wishest it so, God wishes it so: God grants the desire [a:rzn:]of the devout". But these are practically all the examples of neutral or positive use of the word in the Masnavi. The basic corpus of examples - 23 out of 32 - gives quite a different understanding of the word in Masnavi. It has the semantics of the desire to possess, mostly unreasonable, immoderate or wanton “Sweetmeat is what children long for"; "desire for half of an unripe grape" "The eater of clay has a desire for clay" Desire is often directed to the impertinent affairs, is vicious , leads to the vain hazard.

Man even does not understand the fallaciousness of the cherished desires, because it is hidden from him by a veil. So desire is the most dangerous side of human life: 'This world is a trap, and desire is its bait" . There appear more definite signs of danger: "Be not a friend to (sensual) passion and desire since it leads you astray from the way of God". The apprehension of the object of desire is obstructed by the absence of the means of expression - the story of angur and uzum (grape - in Persian and Turkish). The spiritual desire is higher than the desire for the carnal and mundane. The fear of God ties the hands of desire, and the conclusion is: [P]"Flee from the traps, quickly turn your face (towards God)", "Abandon desire, in order that He may have mercy (on you): You have found by experience that such (renunciation) is required Him". What's more, in Fihi ma'fihi there is a definition of the notion 'desire' given in the comprehensive discourse: "We said: The man had the desire to see you. He kept saying, 'I wish I could have seen the Master'. The Master said: He does not see the Master at this moment in truth because the desire, which filled him, namely that he might see the master, was a veil over the master. So he does not see the Master at this moment without a veil. So it is with- all desires and affections, all loves and fondness which people have for every variety of thing -father, mother, heaven, earth, gardens, palaces, branches of knowledge, acts, things to eat and drink. The man of God realizes that all these desires are the desire for God, and all those things are veils. When men pass out of this world and behold that King without these veils, than they will realize that all those were veils and coverings, their quest being in reality that One Thing". To make it clear, Arberry comments on this passage in the following way: "The report that a certain man desired to see Rurni leads to a discussion of the true nature of desire, that all human cravings spring from the one overriding desire, to see God. Mundane desires are veils over God's beauty to save man from the annihilation which would follow the unveiled epiphany of the Divine".Therefore it is obvious that the meaning of the notion a:rzu: in the Masnavi is just opposite to the Iqbal's use of the term: While Iqbal considered a:rzu: as an inalienable part of Divine and human love, Rumi regarded a:rzu: as a veil concealing the Divine essence and creating phantoms in person's life. The next step is to return to the beginning of our discussion - to the lines of Rumi's ghazal quoted above, and hence to the Divan-e Shams. To start with, one thing is worth mentioning: Divan contains three ghazals with the radif a:rzu:st: with the matla' "Benma:y rokh ke ba:gh-o-golesta:nam a:rzu:st/Bogsha:y lab ke qand-e faravainam a:rzu:st , "Sa:qi va sardehi: ze lab-e ya:ram a:rzu:st /Badmastii: ze nargis-e khumma:ram a:rzu:st" and "Ey chang pardeha—ye: sipa:ha:nam a:rzu:st/V-ey na:y na:la-ye khosh-e su:za:nam a:rzu:st". In only these three ghazals the word a:rzu: is repeated 56 times, it is 24 times more than in all the Masnavi! Even if we concentrate only on these examples, we could find what we are looking for. The ardent passion to see the Beloved's face expressed with the rare poetic force was enough to induce in Iqbal his romantic quest for the Perfect man, which is the goal of Creation. Of course A.Schimmel is right to notice that the saying about Iqbal as 'Rumi of the age' (Rumi-ye asf) needs 'a grain of salt', "For Iqbal lacks the strong overwhelming experience of love which transformed Jalaloddin into a poet". But Iqbal was passionate as well, and his passion was different from Rumi's one because of the appeal of his time.

 I'd like to quote here Alam Khundmiri, in my opinion, one of the most profound scholars of Iqbal's philosophy: "That which to Rumi was a passionate longing (italics mine. - N.P.) appeared in Iqbal's vision as the next stage of human evolution" [...] and he was in agreement of his contemporary revolutionary humanists, that a "new human order needs a new type of man".

Buika, Afro-Spanish Jazz & Flamenco

** Concha Buika (nacida en Palma de Mallorca, España ), es una de las cantantes más singulares del panorama de la música española actual. Buika, su familia proviene de Guinea Ecuatorial, creció entre gitanos y su música mezcla el flamenco con el soul, el jazz y la copla.. **

**Born in 1972 into a family from Equatorial Guinea, Concha Buika grew up alongside a Gypsy community on the Spanish island of Majorca. Hailed by the Spanish and European press as a new flamenco star, and a remarkable newcomer on the world music scene, she is blessed with a remarkable voice described as a blend of Tina Turner, Lola Flores and Sarah Vaughan. Buika mixes soul, jazz and funk with raw flamenco to telling effect, and her previous album, Mi Niña Lola, achieved gold status in Spain, while she toured major venues throughout the world, including the Rex in Paris, the Vienne and Montreux Jazz Festivals, a small tour of Mexico, concerts in Montreal, Miami and New York, as well as London’s Saddlers’ Wells Theatre... **

Buika-Falsa Moneda

Buika-La niña de fuego Buika- Live concert in Madrid

Samvel Yervinyan, the Most Passionate Violin Virtuoso

Samvel Yervinyan, the most passionate violin virtuoso

The Armenian born Samvel Yervinyan's Violin has a passion and sadness that will deeply touch your heart and soul. While he's universally known as "Yanni's Violonist"--he has been touring the world with Yanni since 2003--, Samvel Yervinyan is a world class act on his own. For complete biography and his upcoming album, please visit

Samvel Yervinyan's Official Web site.

Samvel Yervinyan-Persian Night

Watch Samvel Yervinyan's live performance Samvel Yervinyan-Open Your Window Samvel Yervinyan-Chardash

A Tribute to Hindustani Classical Music Instrumentalists

"The roots of the Indian music can be traced back to the Vedic period, when the celestial creator of the universe, Brahma was said to have handed down music to the world through his son, sage Narada, to usher in an era of peace and solace among humanity. It is also significantly influenced by Persian music.Music is one of the oldest forms of art, which has been reflecting the richness of Indian culture and tradition throughout ages. Instruments typically used in Hindustani classical music include the Sitar, Sarod, Tanpura, Bansuri, Shehnai, Sarangi, Santoor, and Tabla.."

Rumi's Original Poetry Recitations in Persian/Farsi

If you've ever wondered how Rumi's original poems would sound in his native language, then please watch and enjoy the following extraordinary recitations by Mr.Bahman Sharif(Moride-e Molanaبهمن شریف- مـُـرید مولانا ) [pictured left]. His emotional and soul-wrenching recitations are a must-listen, even if you don't speak Rumi's lengua materna, Farsi/Persian. It's simply mesmerizing to actually hear and feel Rumi's longings for Shams Tabrizi and the spontaneous poetic outpourings in his own original words. There is a sadness in Mr. Sharif's voice that's simply devastating...he truly and masterfully captures Rumi's poetic longing for Shams of Tabriz.

Persian Sufi Chill Out Music & Rumi Poetry

The following clips are from Persian sufi musician Bahram-Ji and the famous Dutch Keyboard player Maneesh de Moor's extraordinary ambient music album, Call of the Mystic. The lyrics are based on Rumi's mystical poetry and the music carries an urban vibe rooted in meditation and powerful mystical connections. "Imagin Rumi's beautiful poetry translated into music tunes streaming along deep mystical chants!"

Rumi and Nietzsche

Nietzsche, Rumi, and the Terrible Secret

by Llongsword
http://www.darkage.ca/blog

The other day, I purchased another volume of Coleman Barks' translation of Rumi's poetry, The Essential Rumi. I devoured all 365 pages in one sitting, and am now reading it once again. It was in the course of reading the book that I came to realise that Nietzsche had borrowed heavily from Rumi for some of the main themes of his Zarathustra. A quick check of the indexes of some main commentaries on Nietzsche in my library make no mention of any connection with Rumi (although it is known that Nietzsche was familiar with the poetry of another Sufi, Hafiz). Even a quick scan of the section headings in Thus Spoke Zarathustra displays a pattern of themes that mirrors the main themes of Rumi's poetry. One passage in Nietzsche's Thus Spoke Zarathustra even comes close to a direct plagiarism of Rumi. It occurs in the last half of the section entitled "On the Vision and the Riddle" which some people believe to contain the key to unlock the meaning of the entire book. Here, Zarathustra comes upon a young shepherd struggling with a huge black snake that, while he was sleeping, has crawled into his mouth and has affixed itself in his throat. Now, compare this section from Zarathustra with Rumi's poem "Jesus on a Lean Donkey".

Jesus on a Lean Donkey

Jesus on a lean donkey,
this is an emblem of how the rational intellect should control the animal-soul.

Let your spirit be strong like Jesus.
If that part becomes weak, then the worn-out donkey grows to a dragon.
Be grateful when what seems unkind comes from a wise person.

Once, a Holy Man, riding his donkey, saw a snake crawling into a sleeping man's mouth!
He hurried, but he couldn't prevent it.
He hit the man several blows with his club.
The man woke terrified and ran beneath an apple tree with many rotten apples on the ground.

"Eat! You miserable wretch! Eat!"

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"Eat more you fool!"

"I've never seen you before! Who are you? Do you have some inner quarrel with my soul?"

The wise man kept forcing him to eat, and then he ran him. For hours he whipped the poor man and made him run. Finally, at nightfall, full of apples, fatigued, bleeding, he fell
and vomited everything,
the good and the bad, the apples and the snake.

When he saw that ugly snake come out of himself, he fell onto his knees before his assailant.
"Are you Gabriel? Are you God? I bless the moment you first noticed me. I was dead and I didn't know it. You've given me a new life. Everything I've said to you was stupid! I didn't know."

The Holy Man replied,
"If I had explained what I was doing, you might have panicked and died of fear.
Muhammad said,
'If I described the enemy that lives inside men, even the most courageous would be paralyzed.
No one would go out, or do any work. No one would pray or fast, and all power to change would fade from human beings,'

So I kept quiet while I was beating you, that like David I might shape iron, so that, impossibly, I might put feathers back into a bird's wing.
God's silence is necessary, because of humankind's faintheartedness.
If I had told you about the snake, you wouldn't have been able to eat, and if you hadn't eaten, you wouldn't have vomited.
I saw your condition and drove my donkey hard into the middle of it, saying always under my breath, 'Lord, make it easy on him.'
I wasn't permitted to tell you, and I wasn't permitted to stop beating you!"

The healed man, still kneeling, said
"I have no way to thank you for the quickness of your wisdom and the strength of your guidance.
God will thank you."

I do not believe that this can be coincidence. The recurrence of other themes, metaphors, allegories familiar from Rumi in Zarathustra leads me to believe that not Zoroaster, but Rumi is the pattern and model for the plan of Nietzsche's book. I won't attempt to highlight all these by way of argument and demonstration except for one further example -- the section in Zarathustra called "Of The Three Metamorphoses", which begins with the sentence

"I name you three metamorphoses of the spirit: how the spirit shall become a camel, and the camel a lion, and the lion at last a child".
Now, it strikes me in retrospect that it's rather odd for a Northern European to use animal imagery that is more common in Middle Eastern prose and poetry, and in fact the symbolism of the camel and the lion are recurring images in Rumi's poetry too. (William Blake, for example, uses the imagery of the ox and the lion for the same). And there is, once again here, the homage Nietzsche pays to Jesus (which his translator, R.J. Hollingdale, overlooked in this case despite noting others): "unless ye become as little children...." But the broader plan of Zarathustra seems to track rather closely to the poetry of Rumi, even in its tempo. I mentioned this to a friend this morning. "Does it matter?" he responded. Perhaps and perhaps not. Except that if Nietzsche actually stood on Rumi's shoulders for some of the principal themes of his work, and actually lived off the capital of Rumi's inspiration and vision, this should be acknowledged. Nietzsche has been charged with plagiarism by others in other instances. In other respects, take for example the theme of Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil. There are precedents even for this in Rumi, which I've drawn attention to earlier,

"Out beyond the ideas of wrong-doing & right-doing
There is a field
I'll meet you there
When the soul lies down in that grass
the world is too full to talk about.
Ideas, language, even the phrase, 'each other'
doesn't make any sense."
Yet, at the same time, if we compare the allegory of the black snake in Nietzsche and in Rumi, there are significant differences, and those variations may provide the key to unlocking other, more puzzling aspects of Nietzsche's (and Rumi's) vision (but which may also belong to what Rudolf Steiner also called Nietzsche's more "pathological" or morbid character, the "decadent" side that Nietzsche freely confessed to in Ecce Homo). In Nietzsche's version, there is a significant switch in emphasis or accent away from the saviour and onto the man saved -- the one who actually undergoes the dreadful struggle with the black snake and triumphs, and who then stands revealed or transformed as Zarathustra's overman -- the transhuman ideal. In Rumi, on the other hand, the saved man falls down and grovels at his saviour's feet. Nietzsche tended to find such gestures distasteful. There are other differences in the allegory and the riddle that invite reflection and that beg to be meditated upon. Does it matter? Perhaps. Perhaps not. But just as some people hold "On the Vision and the Riddle" to be the key section to understanding the whole of Thus Spoke Zarathustra, others hold "Jesus on a Lean Donkey" to be the key to Rumi, and particularly to that dark unspeakable secret of existence that Rumi sometimes alluded to in his poems. For just one example, in the poem "Enough Words?" -- and not just in this poem -- a verse reflects back on the poem,

"I can explain this, but it would break
the glass cover on your heart,
and there's no fixing that".
No healing and consolation apparently for those who know the dark secret. But apparently Nietzsche's "overman" is one who is strong enough for the knowledge of the dark secret of existence. This terrible secret is already alluded to in the very earliest epic to come down to us from Iraq's antiquity, The Epic of Gilgamesh, where the shade Gilgamesh's great friend, Enkidu appears to Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh pleads with the shade: "Speak, my friend, speak! Tell me the law of the earth which you have seen!" The reply from the dead Enkidu: "My friend, I cannot tell you, for if I proclaimed to you the law of the earth which I have seen, you would sit and weep." (And, in some ways, the friendship of Rumi and the mysterious, wild Shams is a parallel to that between Gilgamesh and Enkidu). Did Rumi know this "law of the earth" which he was loathe to reveal? Apparently, the "black snake" is this same "law of the earth", and even Mohammad shrinked from revealing it, as Rumi's poem recounts,

"If I described the enemy that lives
inside men, even the most courageous would be paralyzed. No one
would go out or do any work. No one
would pray or fast,
and all power to change would fade
from human beings".
Rumi adds in agreement,

"God's silence is necessary, because of humankind's
faintheartedness. If I had told you about the snake,
you wouldn't have been able to eat, and if
you hadn't eaten, you wouldn't have vomited."
In Nietzsche's "On the Vision and the Riddle", the value of "courage" is unfolded at length and probably precisely with Rumi's poem and the image of the black snake in mind. But this courage is required for what Nietzsche himself interprets or gives as the dark secret of existence -- the eternal recurrence of same, which also makes its first appearance in this section. For Nietzsche, the eternal recurrence is the most terrible thought imaginable, one which only the very strongest natures could endure and bear without losing heart and the will to live. But I do not think this is Rumi's secret knowledge nor Muhammad's "enemy". Castaneda's don Juan also speaks of "the enemy" as Rumi does. But I will not speak of that here. Whether these are the same as "the law of the earth" I do not know. The enemy is only addressed by don Juan apparently late in Castaneda's apprenticeship, is directly demonstrated to him (which he calls "the flyer"), but then is dropped completely from his narrative without further ado. There's no doubt, though, that the very darkest of the secrets of existence, emblemised by the black snake, is alluded to in Rumi's poem. The secret is alluded to obliquely in other poems. Apparently Muhammad also knew the terrible secret that, if it were known, would apparently cause men to abandon themselves to nihilism -- to abandon hope, prayer, and even life itself. Would anyone truly want to know this secret then if even "God" won't speak of it?