Sad but True

This is a quote from the Persian poet Rumi [Jelal al-Din Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks, The Essential Rumi, Harper Collins Publishers]. On the surface it might seem horrible to pray for muggers and thieves, but the underlying message is quite wise in my opinion.

A certain preacher always prays long and with enthusiasm
for thieves and muggers that attack people
on the street. “Let your mercy, O Lord,
cover their insolence.”
He doesn’t pray for good,
but only for the blatantly cruel.
Why is this? his congregation asks.

“Because they have done me such generous favours.
Every time I turn back towards the things they want.
I run into them. They beat me and leave me nearly dead
in the road, and I understand, again, that what they want
is not what I want. They keep me on the spiritual path.
That’s why I honour them and pray for them.”

Those that make you return, for whatever reason,
to God’s solitude, be grateful to them.
Worry about the others, who give you
delicious comforts that keep you from prayer.
Friends are enemies sometimes,
and enemies Friends.

I found this quote while reading A Path with Heart by Jack Kornfield. In it Jack uses the quote to show how our difficulties and suffering in life are actually good for us. That we shouldn't push them away and hide from them, but that we should honor our mistakes and grow from them. If we push away all of the difficult feelings and emotions we have in life, then we are really just pushing away life itself. We need to use our mistakes and pain and suffering to learn the way to true happiness, but only through acknowledging them can we begin to learn that path.