It is said that
the main purpose of understanding other religions/traditions is to gain new
perspectives on one’s own religion. Of course, this works much better after one
has understood one’s own tradition at some level of depth. To me, this has been
the main benefit of reading Rumi. For example, one of the ideas about Jesus
Christ that touched me very deeply (that the greatest miracle of Jesus is
himself) was triggered by reading Rumi (see Miracle).
Recently, I
came across the following words from Rumi (From the story ‘Moses Learns a
Lesson’ from the book ‘Rumi: Tales to live by’). "I have bestowed on
everyone a way of believing and worshipping according to his understanding and
temperament. Praying and worship is a kindness I have bestowed on my creatures
so they may be tied to me with chords of love. The Hindu worships me in his own
way, and the Jew in his. Let them pray any way they know. Do not seek rules or
methods of worship, but love me however you can!"
Considering
that there are so many divisions in Christianity that often fight among
themselves based on differences in rules and methods of worship, and thereby creating
distractions that lead away from the core of Christianity, this is indeed a
highly useful perspective!
