Consciousness, Literature and the Arts
Archive
Volume 13 Number 2, August 2012
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Striking a Spiritual Chord: Mystical Reflections in the Poetry of Rumi and Kabir
by
DEI Deemed University, Dayalbagh, Agra, India
Scientific and technological innovations have helped man in attaining the ‘unattainable’, but at the cost of creating a spiritual vacuum and a sense of ennui in man. Though the scientists gloat over their tremendous achievements, a fear, that, despite their numerous inventions, the world is moving towards destruction and annihilation, gnaws at their heart. No wonder, the renowned astrophysicist, Stephen Hawking posed a very relevant and pertinent question, “In a world that is in chaos politically, socially and environmentally, how the human race can sustain another hundred years?” The answer lies in bringing about a spiritual awakening among mankind.
Today, though man enjoys all the physical comforts, he suffers from a deep anguish of the soul. As a result, the struggle for life is assuming desperate proportions and the negative tendencies hold sway over the heart of man, advancing him towards destruction and disintegration. We need a cultural and educational revolution to develop individuals integrated in body, mind and spirit. The need of the moment calls for perfection in the system of education by adding to it the knowledge about the spiritual and mystic sense of life. Spirituality is vital to the well-being of man as it brings purpose and meaning to life. As we develop spirituality, we experience a sense of awe, a sense of connection to all of life and a deep reverence for the Divine. This connection is both a sense of relationship to the Creator as well as a relationship to all people and to Mother Earth.
In this context the study of creative literature assumes tremendous importance. All creative literature is the reflection of truth and beauty which is in the world, but “which remain unnoticed until brought to our attention by some sensitive human soul, just as the delicate curves of the shell reflect sounds and harmonies too faint to be otherwise noticed (Long,2)”. In this science and technology-ridden world, it is believed that literature is a mere play of imagination but nothing could be farther from truth as the twenty-first century concerns about ecological disaster, moral and spiritual degradation rampant in the world have all been addressed by creative writers from time immemorial. My attempt here is to make a critical assessment of the contribution made by the Persian mystic, Rumi and the Indian mystic Kabir towards the inculcation of the mystic consciousness
At the outset, it becomes imperative to define the word “ mysticism”, owing to its varied interpretations. However, despite the differences mysticism, in general, refers to a direct and immediate experience of the sacred – both transcendental and immanent – on the part of one who has developed an insight into the hidden processes of life. To make the concept more specific and precise, it is apt to quote the Indian spiritual leader, Meher Baba on the nature of mysticism.
Spiritual experience invokes more than can be grasped by mere intellect. Mysticism is often regarded as something anti-intellectual, obscure or confused or impractical and unconnected with experience. . . . .There is nothing irrational in true mysticism when it is, as should be, a vision of Reality. It is a form of perception absolutely unclouded, and so practical that it can be lived every moment of the life and expressed in every day duties. Its connection with experience is so deep that in one sense, it is the final understanding of the experience. When spiritual experience is described as mystical one should not assume that it is something supernatural or entirely beyond the grasp of human consciousness. All that is meant is that it is not accessible to limited human intellect until it transcends its limits and is illumined by direct realization of the infinite (Baba,20).
Rumi (1207 – 1273) and Kabir (1440 – 1518) were like ordinary people, but unlike common people with unregenerate feelings, they had an inkling that the true life imperatives go beyond the social economy calculus and political power. For these mystic poets, the mystery of life is one unified whole and that pure spirit guides the destiny of man invisibly. Ascent to the sublime purity through self-probing is the corner-stone of mystical approach in Rumi and Kabir .
Rumi, the great Persian poet, was born as Jallaudin Balkhi, in Balkh, Afghanistan on September 30, 1207. His father, Bahauddin Walad, was a theologian, jurist and a mystic. In 1244, Rumi developed mystical friendship with Shams of Tabriz and dictated the six volumes of Masnawi to Husam, his helper. Rumi was a man of transcendental power and his verse speaks with the universal voice of the human soul and is replete with zeal, spirituality and passion. Rumi’s Masnavi is not a pedantic exposition of the universal mysteries: instead it abounds in fables and parables through which he explains spirituality, metaphysics and mystic experience. Rumi communicates in a lucid manner the nature of true Supreme Being who created higher and lower regions, the supreme importance of Ibn-ul-waqt(the living master), the need for discarding old customs, rituals and traditions, path of love, relevance of moral virtues, which must be the product of intuition and meditation.
The opening lines of Masnawi stress upon the need to strive for attaining oneness with the divine being. This life has to be engaged in untiring and ceaseless efforts to return to the original abode from where the human spirit has descended. Rumi states, ‘ O man! Hear the flute which in wistful tones complains of being separated from its native place, the reed bed” (1). As a critic of social life and as a mystic, Rumi points out the dependence of human beings on abstract scientific knowledge, whereby they are deprived of the bounteous mystery of life, vouchsafed by God to them. The scientific principles do not help in understanding the life flux “ as logic is far too coarse to make the subtle distinctions of life demands”( Lawrence:468). It is the knowledge gained through mystical experience that serves as a surer guide to truth. Verse 3947 states “The knowledge that flashes on your heart becomes your comrade and is a blessing; but the knowledge that beats your brains and body is a burden”.
God resides in human body, but people in general, are unaware of this divine presence. Though human beings come on this earth as “trailing clouds of glory”’ but very soon the divinity present within gets submerged under the veneer of worldly desires, as a result of which the prayers are also directed not towards divine communion but material gains. Rumi has a word of caution in this regard in verse 3883, “ A great many people there are who perform prayers but they keep their hearts fastened on the reward as a recompense of these prayers. But is, in sooth, a hidden sin”. What is of significance to the human race engages the deep attention of the mystics. Deploring the human tendency of acquisitive materialism leading to rampant exploitation of nature and human beings, Rumi elaborates on the positive impact of the virtue of contentment by drawing upon an analogy from the world of nature. Rumi says in verse 29, “ The greedy are never satisfied, their eyes are ever on their prey. That explains their discontent. Look at the shell which receives one drop of rain and feels satisfied with it, closes its mouth and produces the pearl.”
In the patriarchal set up, women have been struggling to ameliorate their condition as they have been placed in a subordinate position to men and quite often are treated as ‘ objects’ .Feminists have been protesting against the inferior treatment meted out to women . However, Rumi accords a venerable and exalted status to a woman, associating her with the principle of creation and nurturance. Verse 2815 exhibits Rumi’s glorification of a woman, “Woman is God’s creation; she is not beloved. She is, so to say, ‘creator ; she is not created’. A woman is to be associated with creativity and finer graces of life but, unfortunately, this venerable aspect has receded to the background in the prevalent cult of speed and mechanization.
Most of the religions of the world have degenerated into mere dogmas and rituals. Old religious customs and creeds that have outlived their significance do not help in one’s spiritual ascendance. Rumi compares such customs with stale lifeless bread only retaining its form and grossness and dry thistles which scratch eater’s palate and lips. Making the comparison in verses 4554-56, Rumi says, “ It is like the green thistle which a camel eats, from eating which he gains a hundred benefits and deliciousness, but when their greenness goes away and they have become dry, if that camel eats those very thistles in the forest, they would tear into his palate and lips”.
Being a man of transcendental powers, Rumi’s verse is imbued with mystical overtones. He exhorts people to realize their ultimate aim in life and strive towards attaining divine vision as according to Rumi, “This world is negation. Search for that purpose in the real, permanent existence. Your form is void, seek your essence”(243). In this regard Rumi attaches tremendous importance to Ibn-ul waqt ( the living master) as a true master can only lead his disciple towards the path of salvation. It is necessary to search for the true master instead of wasting time in visiting holy places as the process of achieving salvation becomes easy if one comes in contact with a true saint. A true seeker should search for the true master and have love and dedication towards him. Rumi states in Persian couplet “Chunke kardi zate Murshid ra qabul/ Mam Khuda dar zatash amad ham rasul.”[ As you have accepted a particular personality as your Murshid i.e. master,you should consider that both god and prophet are present in him.](Maharaj,41).
Rumi endeavoured to propagate the message of divinity in Persia, the Indian mystic Kabir made efforts to make humanity understand the divine purpose of this life and the futility of religious dogmas, rituals and bigotry. Recognizing the importance of a person who is involved with the divine spirit, Kabir says:
Katha Keertan Răti Din, Jake Udyam Yeh |
Kah Kabir Taa Sadhu Ki, Ham Charanan Ki Kheh || (Lal, 134)
[Rituals like singing devotional songs engage the attention of the people, day in and day out, but Kabir strives only to achieve divine communion]
If Kabir pays obeisance to the divinity-immersed person, he also says that he belongs to a God-resplendent land in which there is joy all the year round, with the presence of divine love like the undefiled lotus, shedding celestial light for all. This thought is clearly expressed in the couplet:
Ham Baasi Ka Des Jehan, Bărah Măs Bilaas |
Prem Jhire Bigse Kanwal, Tej Punj Parkaas || ( Lal,132)
[Kabir says he belongs to a place where there is happiness all the year round. Divine love is showered everywhere and celestial light is spread all around in the form of lotus clusters.]
According to Kabir, the soul of a true knowledge seeker remains integrated with God’s universe while the knowledge acquired for the sake of social position and public acclaim lands him/her in an unmitigated mess. If one is content with what he/ she possesses and stops hankering after the ‘ El Dorado’, the vision of Thomas More’s ‘Utopia’ and Shelley’s ‘ Golden Millenium’ and Gandhi’s ‘ Swaraj’ will certainly be translated into a reality. It is this desire to amass wealth in excess of what one needs that lies at the root of the social malaise and is the canker eating away the vitals of every society. Kabir has a word of caution and advice in this regard :
Wealth of elephants, of revenue, all the kinds of mines
of wealth and gems :
When the wealth of contentment is won, all other wealth
is as dust. (Shah,225).
The marauding and predatory instincts gaining foreground in the present world and thereby wreaking havoc on humanity have to be annihilated. People, who recite the name of God five times a day and read holy books, but embark on a trail of blood and gore, will definitely not be spared from the wrath of God as Kabir says:
Do not kill poor Jivas : there is one life in all.
Murder will never be forgiven, though one hear
A million Puranas. (Shah, 204).
It is imperative to realize the fact that there is one life in all and should form the corner stone of all the policies formulated by the governments of the world. However, it is really unfortunate that people are unaware of the oneness that exists among all human beings. Human beings in their mad pursuit of material gains fail to realize the divinity present within. Kabir wrote:
Kasturi Kundali Base, Mrig Dhoonde Man Măhin |
Aise Ghat Main Peer Hai, Dunia Năhin Jăni || (129)
[A deer wanders here and there in search of the sweet fragrance called Kasturi, which very much resides in its own body .In the same manner people are unaware of the divinity present in their own selves]
The idea expressed is that God resides in human body, but people, in general, are unaware of this divine presence. In matters of spiritual upliftment and also in terms of secular success, one should cultivate the spirit of sacrifice and power of endurance. One should abjure pride and wayward impulses and make complete surrender to the will of God. Gaining expertise in intellectual and mechanical skills will not help in achieving divine communion. One has to annihilate one’s ego and inculcate the humble aspect. The worldly wise is clever and astute but is an alien to the universe of spiritual love, which effaces the self. As Rumi says in verse 660, “ The road to divinity does not lie through sharpening of your wits and intellect. The favour of that King does not hold the hand of anyone save the humble”.
A fruitful study in mystic lore is to understand the relationship between the ensouled body and the inscrutable working of the terra firma. By cogitating over the living relationship between man and his habitat, both Kabir and Rumi have drawn moral lessons of deep import. Drawing upon the analogy of the date tree , Kabir has stressed upon the significance of philanthropy and generosity which should be the cardinal principles in a person’s life. To quote Kabir:
Badha Hua To Kya Hua, Jaise Pedh Khajoor |
Panthi Ko Chhăya Nahin, Phal Lăge Ati Door || (139)
[Date tree is very tall but it is of no use, as the traveller can get neither the shade nor the fruit, which is hung so high. A great person is useless if he does not work for the welfare of other men.]
This thought holds tremendous significance in the present world where the state rulers amass huge wealth filling up the coffers to the brim, without giving a thought to the poverty- stricken multitudes. Magnanimity, generosity and welfare of mankind are to be the cardinal principles of one’s life on this earth. If an individual works only with the selfish, vested interest and not with the object of ‘universal love’ but to be loved alone then his/her life is insignificant and meaningless.
The mystic sense of life enables man to live more adequately, which is not possible, otherwise. Both Rumi and Kabir exhorted their followers to develop the faculty of ‘inner knowing’. Kabir lays emphasis on this aspect in the following couplet:
Padhnă Gunană Chături, Yeh To Baat Sahal |
Kăm Dahan Man Basi Karan, Gagan Chadhăn Muskal || ( Lal,135).
[It is easy to gain expertise in reading, analysis and cleverness in worldly affairs. It is difficult to curb lustful desires and achieve divine communion.]
The world is engaged in a mad pursuit of materialism , commercialism and developing intellectuall skills and scientific innovations with little thought to be spared for the development of spiritual aspect. Kabir stresses upon the necessity of curbing one’s carnal and material desires and striving for the attainment of Ultimate Reality. Self criticism is an essential exercise in knowing oneself. When a person succeeds in attaining self knowledge, he/ she will be certainly uplifted from the morass of vain materialism. To quote Kabir:
Kahe Kabir Aap Thagaiye, Aur Nă Thagiye Koye |
Aap Thage Sukh Upajey, Aur Thage Dukh Hoye || ( Lal,115)
[Kabir says self-criticism is better than criticism by others. Self-criticism gives rise to happiness but criticism by others brings only sorrow.]
In their own mystic-intellectual way, Rumi and Kabir sought to understand the psycho-somatic processes so that their followers may know that without one’s self-sustaining and self-broadening efforts, they just cannot see God’s presence in the world. In the context of the present day debate on the ecological imbalance in the modern world, the under noted couplet of Kabir is of tremendous significance:
Maati Kahe Kumhaar Kau, Tu Kyă Roonde Mohi |
Ek Din Aisă Hoyega, Main Roondogi Tohi || ( Lal, 114)
[Soil tells the potter, why do you knead me? A day will come when I will knead you.]
This refers to the rapacious actions of powerful men running giant industrial complexes and changing the terrestrial profile by trespassing into nature’s domain. Who knows that the havoc-creating tidal waves did not arise in the South-East Asian region on account of terrific scientific explorations and explosions? According to a section of eminent geologists and ecologists, the underground nuclear explosion in the Pacific Ocean region may have been a major factor in generating seismic tremors, which led to the rise of Tsunami waves in 2004.
The world, having lost its equilibrium, has fallen into a quagmire of lust, revenge, fundamentalism and terrorism with no sign of redemption in sight. This situation has arisen because we have forgotten that spirituality is our true essence and this life time is but the physical experience of our deeper reality. The words of French philosopher, Pierre Chardin come looming large on the horizon, “we are not physical beings having a spiritual experience, but spiritual beings having a physical experience” (Shelton, 19). Spirituality is not something extraneous to us. It entails a reverent attitude towards all things and this way of perception induces a feeling of interconnectedness and interdependence among all things. However, modern academically oriented professional depends on logical, analytical and rational approaches and no doubt, for good reasons these approaches have successfully ushered in most of life changing improvements but man has been left spiritually starved and out of balance.
In order to combat this spiritual degradation, these mystic poets have exhorted people to be God-oriented and develop a sense of feeling for God’s presence in the visible firmament. The mystic argument propagated by these mystics is that the creative labour done in consonance with God’s design gives satisfaction to the soul. A.N.Whitehead observes that ‘subjective ways of feeling are not merely of the data as alien facts, they clothe the dry bones with the flesh of a real being, emotional, purposive, appreciative, and its being understood in terms of the prophet Ezekiel’s remark as ‘the breath of feeling’, we are able to sense the working of a living process”(Whitehead 85).It is the study of mystic literature that can induce values of humanism, secularism and democracy and advocate the principle of ‘Fatherhood of God and Brotherhood of Man’, thereby, ushering in a better world order.
Works Cited
Baba Meher .Discourses. Sufisim Reoriented, 1967.
Lal, Barsane. Kabir Padavali. Hathras: Vishnu Printing Press, 1952.
Lawrence, D.H. Phoneix II. London : William Heinemann Ltd, 1968.
Long,W.J. English Literature.Calcutta: Radha Publishing House,1985.
Maharaj, Huzur Soamiji. SarBachan( prose) trans. R.S.S. Agra:RSSabha, 2005.
Rumi. Masnawi. trans. M.G.Gupta. Agra: M.G.Publishers,1997.
Shah, Ahmad. trans. The Bijak of Kabir. New Delhi : Asian Publishing House, 1981.
8. Shelton, Alan. “Find Your Purpose”. The Times of India. 18 Nov 2007: 19.
9. Whitehead, Alfred North. Process and Reality – An Essay in Cosmology. New York: The Free Press, 1979.
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