Rumi’s wisdom on the right work
I found myself strangely moved by this quotation from Rumi’s wisdom on the right work, read out by Sarah Clive as she was rounding off her storytelling course last weekend.
The Right Work
There is one thing in this world that you must never forget to do. If you forget everything else and not this, there’s nothing to worry about, but if you remember everything else, and forget this, then you will have done nothing in your life.
It’s as if a king has sent you to some country to do a task, and you perform a hundred other services, but not the one he sent you to do. So human beings come to this world to do particular work. That work is the purpose, and each is specific to the person. If you don’t do it, it’s as though a priceless Indian sword were used to slice rotten meat. It’s a golden bowl being used to cook turnips, when one filing from the bowl could buy a hundred suitable pots. It’s a knife of the finest tempering nailed into a wall to hang things on.
You say, “But look, I’m using the dagger. It’s not lying idle.”
Do you hear how ludicrous that sounds? For a penny, an iron nail could be bought to serve the purpose. You say, “But I spend my energies on lofty enterprises. I study jurisprudence and philosophy and logic and astronomy and medicine and all the rest.” But consider why you do those things. They are all branches of yourself.
Remember the deep root of your being, the presence of your lord. Give your life to the one who already owns your breath and your moments. If you don’t, you will be exactly like the man who takes a precious dagger and hammers it into his kitchen wall for a peg to hold his dipper gourd. You’ll be wasting valuable keenness and foolishly ignoring your dignity and your purpose.
As a Baha’i, I felt this one with particular force: “It’s as if a king has sent you to some country to do a task, and you perform a hundred other services, but not the one he sent you to do.”
Technorati Tags: Baha’i, Bahai, Rumi, spirituality, work
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6 comments
Yes, this is very moving. But how do you find out what your right work is? I’m running out of time and I still don’t know.
thank you so much for this Barney, its beautiful! It’s like the universe sent me exactly what i needed to hear today.I hope you are well, thanks again.San.
Sanisha, when I heard it on Sunday morning, it was just what I needed to hear.
Tess, I’m not sure how you find out hat your right work is. As one who is still waiting to work out what he’ll do when he grows up (I’m almost 60), I have the same question as you. I guess it is not always something obvious and simple - perhaps the whole of life is a kind of work?
In my experience, the best thing you can do is ask the Big Man himself directly…though His answer may not necessarily be what you want to hear :).
I sincerely believe that I was called to become a teacher; I love what I do, unfortunately, I have not become rich & famous for what I do, which is what I wanted in the first place!
Having said that, I am financially secure, my children are an absolute joy to me, and I found a wife I worship & adore, all this by ‘doing as I am told’.
And I ride a biiiig motorbike!
I’m always slightly envious of those who have a clear vocation and who love what they do. Actually, it’s silly to be envious. It’s something to celebrate that Toby, who (from what I saw at the blogging course) is a gifted teacher, loves what he does. The world needs many more gifted and dedicated teachers. And the world should recognize and reward their contribution to human flourishing and well-being.
I seem to have a shifting vocation. I love what I do for a time, and then I feel the need to move on. However, pretty much everything I’ve learned through all the different jobs I’ve had have been (and continue to be) really valuable. The only exceptions are the months I spent pretending to be an articled clerk to a chartered accountant and my time in Customers Accounts at Henry Wiggin & Co.
A very good story. I know what my thing to do is: go through all the Ruhi-books!
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