We held a concert over the weekend and my job was to take care of the musicians. It was a pleasure. We had great conversations. Someone asked me what I thought about the Penn State rape scandal. I said that there were victims of sexual abuse all around us. The problem is we are so afraid of sex, we don't say anything. I feel like so many of us are "walking wounded," due to rape and other types of violation.
Thich Nhat Hanh talks about a fortress that only trusted ones should be allowed to enter, using the "forbidden city" as a metaphor. This refers to the heart, but he also notes that there are certain parts of the body which should not be touched unless there is total love.
As a part of the concert, it was my honor to read a selection from Rumi's Mesnavi in English - someone else recited in Persian before me. This quote speaks of the longing which sometimes can lead us to allow our fortress walls to be violated:
"Listen to the reed how it tells a tale, complaining of separations -
Saying, 'Ever since I was parted from the reed-bed, my lament hath caused man and woman to moan.
I want a bosom torn by severance, that I may unfold (to such a one) the pain of love-desire.'
Everyone who is left far from his source wishes back the time when he was united with it."
The longing is really the desire to be returned to your state of oneness with God. It is a desire for healing.
No comments:
Post a Comment