Poems and Prose

Her Silent Retreat

I do smile when I hear that some people prefer the partner of a teacher to sit retreats with other teachers rather than with their partner. It is a well intentioned thought. There is the possibility of mixing roles up roles. I regard the two roles of teacher and partner sitting the retreat as grist for the mill, raw material for practice. The two partners should agree together whether it is suitable for one partner to be the teacher and the other partner to be the practitioner. In my experience, this agreement and application works very well. Love is powerful – effortlessly embracing perceived differences. …

THE GUEST HOUSE – the Buddha probably inspired Rumi’s great poem

THE GUEST HOUSE –

BY RUMI AND THE BUDDHA

Rumi, the 13th century Muslim poet from a Persian family, has deservedly won a place in our hearts for his sublime capacity to nourish the depth of our being with his perceptive insights into love, sensuality, spirituality and intimacy with the immediate world.

His poems strike a chord in the depths of our meditative being. Not surprisingly, insight meditation teachers delight to read Rumi’s poems to spiritual practitioners. One of his best loved poems is The Guest House. The Buddha used the same analogy around 1700 years earlier in two talks entitled The Guest House.

The words of the Buddha probably inspired Rumi to write The Guest House.

THE GUEST HOUSE
by Rumi

This being human is a guest house. …

LOVE IS STRONGER THAN DEATH

 

Love is stronger than death,

and empty gaps in the years

and the grooves of personal history,

so the kaleidoscope of countless perceptions

rest in an enduring fragrance that fills our being

while upholding a precious dedication.

 

Love is stronger than the fears, …

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