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

Dharma Reflections, Poems and Prose / By /

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. …

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LOVE IS STRONGER THAN DEATH

Poems and Prose / By /

 

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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THE LIMITS OF SITTING MEDITATION

The Buddha, Spiritual / By /

The Limits of Sitting Meditation

 

I was having a cafe latte with Reza in the funky Barrel coffee shop in the top end of Totnes high street, just a few minutes walk from my home. For years, I sat in the corner window seat reading beloved French philosophers, Nagarjuna, a continental novel, scribbling down a poem, people watching or having a lengthy conversation on every issue under the sun with people who dropped in to share a seat at the same table. …

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THREE SHORT REFLECTIONS AFTER VISITING ISRAEL

Political / By /

 

1. Last month, I got back from Israel. I’ve been going there for 15 years, and twice a year for several years. Along with Stephen Fulder, Tovana (the Israeli dharma organisation) and a growing network of people dedicated to the dharma, we have been and continue to be part of a dharma journey together. …

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APPLAUSE FOR REPORTERS

Political / By /

 

I regularly watch television documentaries especially on international issues. I experience a level of interest much stronger when I have walked the earth of that country, felt its presence through my senses and listened to the voices of the people. In some places, such as Jerusalem and Nablus, the main Palestinian town of the West Bank. I know the streets and shops. There is a certain intimacy when watching a television documentary filmed in such places. …

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