Shams said to me, “What is the difference between hot and cold?”

Shams said to me, “What is the difference between hot and cold?”

I asked him if he was serious and he said, “Yes, I am, Rumi.”

And I said, “Shams, you know the difference between hot and cold.  What do you think it is?”

“I don’t think, Rumi.  I know what it is.  It’s how I feel about it.”

“Shams you could say that to almost any—“

“Yes you can!  You certainly can.  And you know what, Rumi? ”

“Know what, Shams?”

“You should practice that.  You should practice the understanding that life is hot or cold or tepid or medium, or large or small, according to how you believe!  You ask me what is hot and cold.  It’s different from your hot and cold.”

“But we’re the same!  Everybody’s the same!”

“You just have to realize that it all comes from a condition.  You.”

“What do you mean, Shams, a condition?”

“You fill yourself—or did—with books about holiness.”

“That matters to me, Shams.”

“I didn’t ask, Rumi, if it mattered to you.  I said that’s what you do.  I don’t read books.  I fill myself with entirety.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means everything, Rumi!  Because I don’t want to be limited, especially by somebody else’s idea of what my life should be!”

“Are you implying—“

“Yes, I am.  I’m not just implying it, I’m daring you.”

“So, who... who is it that made my—“

“Whoever you gave permission to make your life the way that you believe you’re living your life.”

“I need to think about that.”

“That’s a good answer, Rumi.  The world needs to think about it.  the world needs to realize that the world is the world that it is because people think it is, or they agree with it, that’s the way it is.  It is not.  Everybody has an idea of what life is.  And then everybody knows what life is, Rumi.  And when you know, you know it’s not what you think you know.  But how do you get there from here?”

“I have a feeling you’re going to tell me, Shams.”

“No, I’m not!  It’s not about being told how to do something because then you believe me!  And you’re right back where you started from.”

“Well, how, how does that happen?”

“It happens because you are fortunate and someone brings it up to you, and then you think about it, and you make a decision:  Does this feel right, or is it crazy?  I’m told all the time that I’m crazy.”

“But, Shams, it does feel true.  You don’t see life like anybody sees life.”

“Well, thank you!  I don’t entrap myself.  I don’t limit myself.  That’s why I own nothing, and I’m a part of everything.  You see?  And that’s why I can love you so unconditionally and deeply as I do, and that’s why I’m never going to stop.”

--Jelaluddin Rumi

And I didn’t.  I never stopped.  It’s something that’s not—what’s the proper nomenclature—it’s not an option.  It wasn’t an option for me, because you’re dealing with an ego personality, an ego false self.  You’re dealing with something that isn’t real, but somebody believes that it is real.  Everybody does.  And I tried to take their hand, and I tried to lead them inside:  Look what’s here!  And they ran away!  Or they clawed at me, or they spit at me or they punched me.  All because I remembered something that they forgot.

-Shams of Tabriz