The Roots of Christian Mysticism Session 24
Summary of Muriel Maufroy's
"Rumi and Sufism" talk, The London Christian Meditation
Centre, St Mark's, Clerkenwell, 23 May 2006
The Sufi Tradition
A quotation from the tenth century speaks to us today:
“Today Sufism is a name without a reality but formerly it
was a reality without a name.”
It is always difficult to find one’s way to the Sufi tradition.
If someone says, “I am a Sufi” they are not. A lot of
people pretend to be Sufis. True Sufis do not advertise themselves.
An example of a true Sufi would be the artist Cecil Collins.
To define Sufism is difficult. It is generally seen as mysticism
within the Islamic tradition. But this is very controversial as
a definition. Many Sufis will say there is no need to be a Muslim.
Some even say that Sufism existed before Islam. It is best to think
of it as the core of every religion. Sufism is a way of talking
about God poetically rather than dogmatically. Another definition
of Sufism might be “ the creed of love.”
John of the Cross uses Sufi vocabulary. Both he and Teresa of Avila
were influenced by Sufism which was very active in Spain during
the fifteenth century. At this time up until 1492 Spain was an extraordinary
centre of culture and religious tolerance. Jews, Muslims and Christians
all lived together peacefully sharing their knowledge. The place
in Spain which most shows the influence of the Sufism of the time
is the Alhambra. Here you can get a flavour and a fragrance of Sufism.
Perfume is often mentioned in Sufi poetry and one poet described
perfume as the “presence of the absence”.
Separation and longing is at the heart of Sufism. At the beginning
of Rumi’s main work, The Masnavi, which is in six books he
says:
“Listen to the reed of the flute, how it a long complaint
makes:
It, explanation of the tale of separation, loud and faint makes..
“Ever since the time that I was torn away from the reed’s
bed
My cries have caused men and women..many a sigh to shed.
I want a chest that has been ripped wide apart by separation
So that of the deepest of longings..I can give an explanation.
Anyone who is staying far from where he came, his real Self:
Is always yearning to be returning to the same…his real
Self.”
The healing of this separation is one of the many different aspects
of Sufi stories. A contemporary Rabbi said:
We are all born with the knowledge that we have forgotten something.”
There is a great deal of apparent diversity within Sufism. Some
masters use music, others use silence. Some are kind others harsh.
Some are both. You cannot put Sufism into a neat category. This
in itself is a teaching. It depends on each circumstance and each
person. Sufism and indoctrination are incompatible. An ancient Sufi
said to his disciple:
If you stumble on a stone this stone is your teacher.”
Sufi teaching is indirect. The words of a wise man may not reach
his disciple at the time only later. This indirect way of teaching
demands the participation of the student. Sufi stories are fine
psychological tools which imprint new patterns in the brain. They
are not parables. They will have an effect on a person when the
time is right. It is important to read the stories that you don’t
like and the ones that don’t make sense as well as the ones
that you like and that do make sense. The integration of stories
is not an intellectual understanding but an intuitive knowledge,
an “Ah ha” moment. Sufi stories may offer entertainment.
They also nourish you in a way you are not conscious of at the time.
Rumi’s story of the Greeks and the Chinese
Both groups said that they were the best painters. The Sultan
decided to organise a competition to see who was the best. He gave
each group a house facing the other. The Chinese said we need a
hundred colours. The Greeks said we just need to remove the rust.
The Greeks started cleaning the walls. At this point in the story
Rumi gave the key to its meaning:
From the multiplicity of colours there is a way to the colourless…
After giving the key he went on with the story. The painting of
the Chinese was reflected in the Greeks’ house. The Greeks
are the Sufis and the walls of their house the heart which has been
purified. We can only understand this story if we remember that
in the thirteenth century a mirror was not made of glass.
Rumi’s idea is that the heart is with God or rather the heart
is God. The shock technique is another Sufi technique. The purpose
of this technique is to prevent us from settling into safe mental
constructs. We must move from multiplicity to oneness. This is the
goal of the Sufi journey.
Rumi
He was born in 1207 in what is now Afganhistan. When he was 13
years old his family decided to leave because his father who was
also a great mystic was having problems with other scholars. Soon
after they left their city was razed to the ground. The family travelled
for 9 years ending up in Mecca finally settling in Anatolia. Here
Rumi’s mother died and he married. Konya, Anatolia where they
settled was in the Persian Empire and adjacent to Byzantium which
was in decline. Konya became a cultural centre at this time encouraged
by the then Sultan. Rumi’s father was invited to be the great
spiritual man. When he died Rumi took his place. He was 24 years
old and married with two children. He also had an adopted daughter
Kimya who is the subject of Muriel’s book, Rumi’s Daughter.
He had been taught by his father. Rumi himself died in 1273.
Rumi had a great spiritual friendship with a man called Shams who
also features in Muriel’s book. On first meeting Shams Rumi
and he shut themselves away together for forty days and nights.
After this Rumi stopped teaching and spent all his time with Shams.
Rumi had originally been against music and poetry but with the advent
of Shams all this changed. Rumi’s students were furious. Shams
had stopped Rumi’s intellect for a while. He had transmitted
wisdom heart to heart. Shams had been wandering around praying for
guidance as to who he should transmit the teaching to. Once he had
transmitted it to Rumi he disappeared. This story is recounted in
Rumi’s Daughter from the point of view of Kimya. Rumi tried
to find out where Shams had gone and sent his son to Damascus where
Shams was found and brought back. One evening when Shams and Rumi
were together somebody knocked at the door. Shams said he was going
and he was never seen again. Rumi went mad whirling all over the
place. Rumi had started writing poetry again after the first absence
of Shams and eventually after his second disappearance he wrote
his long poems and the very ecstatic Divans which were really his
crying and pain for Shams. After 13 years he discovered that what
he was looking for in Shams was in himself. It was then that he
wrote his most famous work The Masnavi.
There are three main themes in Rumi’s Daughter:
1) What you perceive and what is are two different things
2) A sense of tolerance
3) Love and separation and the relationship
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