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

Download a Free Copy of Shake Like A Mad Drum

Download A Free Kindle Copy September 10-14, 2015

Shake Like A Mad Drum: The Eternal Friendship of Rumi and Shams

 Jelaluddin Rumi is the best-selling poet in the world today, and his works are more relevant now than in the 13th Century when he wrote them.  His greatest inspiration was a vagabond named Shams of Tabriz, of which little is known, until now.

In Shake Like a Mad Drum, Shams of Tabriz speaks about his life, his adventures, and how meeting Rumi changed both of their lives.  Rumi tells us how his friendship with Shams jeopardized his reputation as a great scholar and also forced him to rethink his core beliefs.  It was Shams who led Rumi to seek God beyond books and dogma, and discover God within himself.  In their friendship, they found a new way of looking at life and at themselves.  Now they share these experiences that we may expand our perspective of God, and in so doing, discover a life of joyful adventure.  

This book is a channeled work by spiritual teacher John Windwalker, and his student Jamila Hammad, who served as scribe. For more information visit us at www.RumiShams.com.

Shake Like A Mad Drum: The Eternal Friendship of Rumi and Shams is available at Amazon.com. Download A Free Kindle Copy September 10-14, 2015

I dreamt on the evening last a meeting with the greatest of souls

I dreamt on the evening last a meeting with the greatest of souls.

I wore my humbleness like some tattered robe and yet the welcome was so great I could not see for the light that blinded my old weary eyes.

I called out to the darkness that was sunlight: “Beloved is that you?”

“I have always been your beloved,” came the reply. “Perhaps not the beloved you expected.”

“Then who are you?”

“Open your eyes.”

“You are the living legend. I know of you.”

“Living, yes.  I have no need for legends.”

“This is a dream.”

“Is it?”

“I am dreaming. I thought I was dreaming of my beloved.”

“Here I am.”

“But you are the greatest of the great.”

“Is not your beloved?”

“Oh yes, but he wears a different face.”

“Oh, it is the face that is important?”

“No, not just the face.”

“The clothes then?”

 “No.”

 “Then what is important my child?”

“It is that we have history. We have a deep abiding love.”

 “And we have none?”

“None that I can recall.”

“Have you seen your mother and father lately?”

 “I have not. They died many years ago.”

 “Mine have never died.”

“Is that so?”

 “Yes. They are the same parents that bore you.”

 “Oh, then you are my brother?”

 “In a sense.”

 “Then brother can you tell me where my beloved resides?”

 “You know the answer to that, Rumi. Forever in your heart”

-Jelaluddin Rumi

Channeling messages from another soul was never my goal

Channeling messages from another soul was never my goal nor even on my radar when I began my spiritual practice 32 years ago.  Back then, I had had enough of my dysfunctional ego personality and I longed to live a genuine life as my true self, as the soul I Am.  So I dedicated my life to establishing a relationship with my Soul by listening to my still, small voice within.  This intent listening is what is called a meditation practice, and so I have practiced every single day these past 32 years.  In time I became a teacher, helping others to learn how to meditate and to develop their own spiritual practice.

After 15 years of such devoted practice, the opportunity to channel simply presented itself, and it was as natural as breathing.  One icy winter's eve while about to begin a meditation with then-student Jamila, God's poet Jelaluddin Rumi came to me in a perfectly clear vision, and spoke to me as if we were old friends.  He spoke to me throught thought, and I could hear and verbally recite his every word.  I, in turn, audibly spoke each word as I received it.  Jamila began to write  verbatim longhand on her notebook every word that was spoken. When Rumi introduced me to his friend and teacher, Shams of Tabriz, it was just as clear and as easy as channeling Rumi.  Afterwards, I was awestruck. I asked Jamila if what happened really happened. She read the entire message back, word for word. Yes, it happened. It's still happening.

I embraced channeling reverently and with humility.  Soon after I began channeling Rumi and Shams to Jamila, we were also blessed with the company of Ascended Masters and Archangels who also had things to say.  The messages usually contain specific comments on our current life situations that expand into broad, universal teachings.   Jamila and I now sit on 15 years’ worth of amazing material, much needed by the world.  We have culled those messages into the book, Shake Like A Mad Drum, which tells the story of the friendship between Rumi and Shams, and also overflows with stories and information illuminating the true source of living a genuine life. We have also created a blog called In the Embrace of the Masters, which contains the universal teachings from the Ascended Masters and Archangels.  We have created this blog and also the website www.RumiShams.com to continue to share these messages with the world.

Over the years many people have come to me wanting to learn how to channel, but I do not teach the art of channeling.   Although we all to some degree

possess the ability to do so, channeling demands years of dedicated meditation  and spiritual practice silencing one's ego personality and entering a trance state of deep calm and complete neutrality. It takes years of devoted practice.

There is also a very important element of safety first when opening up to the worlds unseen.  In such realms, there are ascended beings with messages of unconditional love, but there are also those with intentions that are less than loving and who misrepresent themselves in order to manipulate and create mischief.  For the person about to reach out into energies and dimensions unseen and awe-inspiring, the art of channeling demands that the channeler has taken steps to be energetically protected, is absolutely aligned with their higher soul-self and is immovable in practicing total and complete neutrality before and during contact.

I am forever grateful to Rumi and Shams for believing in me, for choosing me and Jamila as messengers, and for their steadfast help, support and encouragement in bringing forth soul in everything we do.

-John Windwalker