Much Before Paulo Coelho, Rumi Understood The Generous Power Of The Universe

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 18 July 2023 In 2006, one Rhonda Byrne wrote a book 'The Secret'. It was about the power of the subconscious. The book influenced the entire world, esp, those who love to read books on pulp philosophy written by the Brazilian Paulo Coelho and Ayn Rand. The predominant concept of the book, ' The Secret ' is the benevolence of the Universe and affirmations. Paulo Coelho wrote that if one earnestly asks the Universe to help and intervene, things happen miraculously. Shah Rukh Khan made it famous in a film that hit the marquee a few years ago. But the point is: Is the whole phenomenon of a benevolent Universe something unique and did no one before Rhonda Byrne, Paulo Coelho or Louise Hay touch upon this subject? While reading Lesley Wines' ' Rumi: A Spiritual Biography' (Lives and Legacies), I stumbled upon a statement made by the legendary Reynold A Nicholson of Cambridge who translated Rumi's Persian poetry into sublime English. He said that Rumi's Turkish poetry, written towards the fag-end of his life, talks about the power and benevolence of the Universe. Nicholson quoted Rumi's early Turkish couplet, "En Met Biz Kin Unt Ep/ Re' Lip Phiken En' Kep" (Universe in its own way/ Listens when you pray). This was a revelation to me because in Persian poetry, Rumi talks of the Cosmos only as the shadow of the kingdom of the Almighty, accruing no divinity to it (Universe) but towards the end of his life, say circa 1266 till he passed away in 1273 CE, he was intrigued by the cosmic benevolence and wrote about that. In fact, Rumi's exhortation, ' Repeat and get ' has the seeds of Cosmic Munificence. Though the advanced understanding of consciousness and subconsciousness may not have taken place in Rumi's times, he was aware of the idea of consciousness or spirit (the essence of existence) because elsewhere, Rumi wrote that even those not believing in any god, religion or divinity can pray and get what they want! Who should such people pray to? He (Rumi) must have had the generosity of the Universe on his mind while stating that. Not disparaging Paulo Coelho, Rhonda Byrne or Louise Hay and their popular philosophy of the magnificent Universe and its enigmatic ways, one must say that the same was already understood and written by Jalaluddin Rumi Balkhi nearly a millennium ago. ---- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/paulo-coelho-rumi-universe/d/130236 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism