I appreciate this quote from Kabir, the 15th century Indian poet and mystic, offered by a participant from our recent series on “Engaging Shadow.” In particular, the stirring and the invocation to find a center. The stirring of the human psyche that seeks attachment and certainty so easily. The invocation, and remembering that there is a center to find, perhaps more inhabited with uncertainty.
Friend, please tell me what I can do about these
ever-changing dramas I keep spinning out?
I gave up my fashionable clothes & had a robe made,
but I noticed the cloth was well-woven.
I traded the fine cloth for worn burlap
But I still threw it elegantly over my left shoulder.
I tried to forget my sexual longings
And now I feel angry a lot.
I gave up rage and now I feel greedy all day.
I worked hard at dissolving the greed
And now I am proud of myself.
When the mind tries to break its link with one thing
It clings to another thing.
Kabir says, Listen, my friend, there are very few who find the center.