Religion for Peace

Ibn Arabi, Rumi & Tabrizi, Waves of the ocean of Divine Unity: Ghulam Rasool Dehlvi

Both Rumi and Tabrizi regarded all faith traditions and all parts of the earth as waves of the ocean of the divine unity.

East, west, south, or north shows no improvement. No matter what your destination is, just be sure to make a journey within every journey. If you’re moving in there, you ‘re going to explore the entire world and beyond.
— Shams Tabrizi

Ibn Arabi, Rumi & Tabrizi, Waves of the ocean of Divine Unity: Ghulam Rasool DehlviO

ne of everyone’s long-cherished dreams is to fly around the world. Growing up, I have always been interested in the various cultures, different customs of faith and indigenous tribes.

But what I come to realize now, after visits to different parts of the world, is that the creator of this universe has created a multicultural environment in which a vast spectrum of religions, customs and cultures co-exist in perfect harmony; where you can find a masjid (mosque) and a mandir (temple), a church and a synagogue, or a Buddhist, Jain or Sikh temple in one block.

The divine unity encourages us to be open to the wider world ‘s rich experiences of plurality. It invites us to reflect on the call of Ibn al-Arabi in his poetic expression in Tarjuman al-Ashwaq (translation of the desires):

“My heart is capable of every form; it is a pasture for gazelles and a monks’ convent, a temple for idols and a Kaaba for pilgrims, and the Torah and Qur’an tables. I follow the religion of love everywhere the caravans go. Love is my religion, and My rule is love.

Only Rumi and Tabrizi viewed all religious practices as waves of the ocean of divine unity, and all parts of the world. Islam sees all prophets as one, as the Quran clearly states: “We make no distinction between his messengers and one another.”

Nevertheless, despite the fact that the unity of existence (Wahdatul Wajud) is embedded in all living traditions; they differ only in the external practices which they have carried with them. In his Masnavi Rumi reminds us of the everlasting reality. He states that the Muslim praying in an open-handed mosque, and a Christian making the sign of a cross in a church and a Jew praying in a synagogue, all transform to the same maker. “If we are trapped in the traditional formalities and overtaken by appearances, we categorize them as Muslims, Christians, Jews and others on the basis of their values and the worship houses they attend. However, in God’s eyes, they are all His creations, no matter what their faith or creed is,” he wrote.

Once, when Rumi was whirling in his spiritual ecstasy during the Mevlevi Sema (Turkish Sufi music with whirling) a drunkard appeared among the whirling dervishes. He couldn’t contain himself, and repeatedly lurch and hit Rumi. Rumi’s disciples who witnessed this started scolding him during the whirlpool. Yet Rumi, who saw this himself, displayed absolute courage, resilience and tenderness. He said: “Brother, he’s the one who’s drunk the wine, but you’re the ones who got the divine drunk. Why would you scold him? Remarkably, Rumi never even responded to the slanders, and his jealous rivals branded against him with grim accusations.

Then Rumi claimed that there are two human archenemies that hold them away from being human. Another is covetousness and the other, rage. “Greed and rage make a man squint-eyed; the heart is transformed so that it departs from rightness,” he said.

Show More

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CAPTCHA ImageChange Image

Back to top button
Translate »