“This longing you express is the return message.”
Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī aka Rumi was a 13th-century Persian poet whose poems I have found to be deeply insightful and inspiring. Here is a recitation of Rumi’s poem “Love Dogs” recited by American poet and popular interpreter of Rumi, Coleman Barks at a Mythic Journeys conference.
One night a man was crying Allah! Allah!
His lips grew sweet with praising,
until a cynic said, “So!
I’ve heard you calling our, but have you ever
gotten any response?”
The man had no answer to that.
He quit praying and fell into a confused sleep.
He dreamed he saw Khidr, the guide of souls,
in a thick, green foliage.
“Why did you stop praising?” “Because
I’ve never heard anything back.”
“This longing you express
is the return message.”
The grief you cry out from
draws you toward union.
Your pure sadness
that wants help
is the secret cup.
Listen to the moan of a dog for its master.
That whining is the connection.
There are love dogs
no one knows the names of.
Give your life
to be one of them.
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