Tag Archives: Rumi

Like a Reed, Open Yourself to God’s Breath

By Robin Bates | Published: July 15, 2012

Rumi says that Ramadan is a time when, by emptying our bellies, we open up a path to spirit.

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Drought Is a Form of God’s Joy

By Robin Bates | Published: July 8, 2012

If we look at a drought through God’s eyes, Rumi tells us, we will see green corn. The same holds for relationships.

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A Knowledge Born of Suffering

By Robin Bates | Published: February 5, 2012

Rumi’s poem “The Lame Goat” has offered solace to those suffering from physical and emotional setbacks.

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A Temple Built of Compassionate Action

By Robin Bates | Published: September 18, 2011

In “The Far Mosque,” Rumi reminds us that we are princes in waiting who will step into our spiritual kingdom through compassionate action.

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The Powerful Urge for Freedom

By Robin Bates | Published: March 7, 2011

  I am in awe of the protesters in Tunisia and Bahrain and Egypt and Libya and Iran and Yemen and the Sudan and elsewhere in the Middle East. Their yearning for freedom is so great that, day after day, they put their lives on the line. I pray particularly for those in Libya and […]

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Moving beyond August Madness

By Robin Bates | Published: August 16, 2010

Alexander Pope, taking his cue from the Roman poet Juvenal, knew what a crazy month August could be. In The Dunciad the end of civilization occurs in August, coinciding with the rise of the “dog star” Sirius: Now flam’d the Dog Star’s unpropitious ray, Smote ev’ry brain, and wither’d every bay [poet]; Sick was the […]

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The Holiness of Ramadan Fasting

By Robin Bates | Published: August 8, 2010

A Ramadan poem by Rumi.

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When It’s Hard to Pray

By Robin Bates | Published: July 11, 2010

Spiritual Sunday I’ve been thinking about why it’s sometimes hard to pray for help. Perhaps it’s because asking for help seems an affront to our prideful self sufficiency. Perhaps it’s because we fear that we are not worthy to receive it. I think of how Coleridge’s ancient mariner is so filled with self-loathing that he […]

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Rumi’s Poetry and Weddings

By Robin Bates | Published: October 28, 2009

Rumi           Rumi seems to be everywhere these days and has been for a while.  This past weekend I was at the wedding of Micah Vote, the son of a family friend, and a Rumi poem served as the foundation of the ceremony.  Here it is: May these vows and this marriage be blessed. May it […]

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