In an age of deeply embedded bigotries and clashes, he stood for a universal spirituality, opening his doors to people of all backgrounds.
Instead of an outer-oriented jihad – defined as “the war against infidels” and carried out by many in those days just as in the present – Rumi stood up for an inner-oriented jihad where the aim was to struggle against and ultimately prevail over one’s ego, nafs.
How could they be so certain of the superiority of their truths when they knew so little, if anything at all, about other cultures, other philosophies, other ways of thinking?
As a storyteller I am less interested in generalizations than in undertones and nuances. These may not be visible at first glance, but they are out there, lurking beneath the surface, durable and distinct.
So it’s not possible to forget everything. What we call the eyes may succeed in forgetting all of what they’ve seen in life, but it’s impossible to stop thinking about having been seen. If there are no witnesses a person can forget the past. If they are witnesses everything changes. Their every look is an accusation, their existence an obstacle to forgetfulness.
When I asked him about this, he said one should keep the intellect satisfied and yet be careful not to spoil it.
Petite-Ma retained a most special place in Asya’s heart. She loved her dearly. Unlike some others in the family, Petite-Ma had always been capable of loving without suffocating. She would never nag or nitpick or sting. Her protectiveness was not possessive.
If you’re telling me I should accept things as they are... that nations like obedient good wives, should also give up their dreams, their fantasies... then your grasp of international relations – and women for that matter – is weaker than I thought.
There is only one way to be born into a new life: to die before death.
Without understanding our past, how can we hope to shape our future?
No one should try to philosophize on the nature of humanity until they had worked in a public toilet for a couple of weeks and.
While some people were passionate believers and others passionate non-believers, she would always remain stuck in between.
The water that scares you rejuvenates me. For me I can swim, and swim I shall.
It had been the wisest thing for the five of them to start living together in Leila’s flat and share the costs. They were more vulnerable on their own; together, they.
If you have no interest in their answers, then do not ask questions.
From a man getting ready to die, he had turned into a man falling in love at a most unexpected time. Suddenly all the pieces that he thought he’d long ago put into place had to be moved. Spirituality, life, family, mortality, faith, and love- he found himself rethinking their meanings again and not wanting to die.
Matrimony might be a fleeting folly that tricked you into believing that it would be forever, but it was harder to appreciate the humor when you were not the one who ended it.
Cartography is another name for stories told by winners. For stories told by those who have lost, there isn’t one.
Each time Kostas pushed her on the swing, watching her fly away from him, up into the air, laughing and kicking her legs, Ada would shout, ‘Higher, Daddy, higher!’ Struggling with the fear that she might flip over or the metal chains might break off, he would push her harder, and then, as the swing came back, he would have to move out of the way to make space for her. And so it still was, this back and forth, with the father ceding space to his daughter so she could have her freedom.
When you step into the zone of love, language as we know it becomes obsolete. That which cannot be put into words can only be grasped through silence.