When I closed my eyes, I found myself among a few hundred students seated before a teacher of majestic presence. As I shifted my position, I put my hand on my head and was surprised to feel a twisted lock of hair at the top of my head. Then I remembered that I was Chinese. Suddenly, I remembered many other things as well.
Excerpt from The Drop That Became The Sea, by Yunus Emre (Threshold Books, 1989)
Today for some reason I'm crying a lot again. I have also suffered a major relapse: my obsession makes itself conspicuous again, overshadowing everything else! And I really thought I'd outgrown that! But I suppose that would be too simple, such a sudden change after being stuck for so long. Hz. Mevlâna says: "There is that in me that has to be told 50 times a day, Stop hunting, step on this net". I suppose that's how it is, the relapse is something that says to me: Stop hunting, it doesn't work the way that you imagine.
An illustrated description of the sequence of events in Sema, the central ritual of the Mevlevi Sufi order.
Al-Mudhill: The Humiliator; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.
Al-Muhsi: The Appraiser; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.
Al-Muhaymin: The Guardian; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.
Al-Mughni: The Enricher; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.
Al-Muizz: The Bestower of Honors; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.
Al-Mu'id: The Restorer; from Asma al-Husna -- The Most Beautiful Names of God, published by Threshold Society.