*The Truth stands before me, On my left is a blazing fire, and On my right, a cool flowing stream.*
*One group of people walk toward the fire, into the fire, And the other towards the cool flowing waters. No one knows which is blessed and which is not.*
*But just as a just as someone enters the fire, That head bobs up from the water, And just as a head sinks into the water,* That face appears in the fire.
*Those who love the sweet water of pleasure* And make it their devotion are cheated by this reversal.
*The deception goes further- The voice of the fire says: “I am not fire, I am fountainhead,* Come into me and don’t mind the sparks.”
~ Rumi
Question: I was reading a few of Rumi’s poems and came across this one. Need some clarity.
Answer:
All experience is to the experiencer.
All perceptions are to the perciever.
The ego perceives liberation as the fire of death.
The ego experiences hot channels of lava as cool flowing water.
– Based on my Question and Answer sessions on various e-forums.
Dated: 9th June,’14
