A New Person

This is a meeting point where the paths of those influenced by the teachings of the 13th-century Sufi Sheikh Rumi and the 20th-century mystic Osho intersect, embracing their inherent meaning and choosing to experience it.

We were captivated by Osho's approach, which fused the Sufi tradition with Zen and Buddhism, questioning humanity's journey through the dream of existence, and were captivated by Rumi's love for the beloved.

As we followed these two paths, our aim to share experiences related to Sufism, Buddhism, Tao, and Zen, with the idea of ​​embracing existence, love, tolerance, peace, awareness, and all things human, transformed our longing for A New Life and A New Human into the cry of a bird in the mistletoe.

In Rumi, humanity is a unifier, encompassing the mortal and the immortal, good and evil, the divine and the human within itself. Humanity is the manifestation of immortality in this realm, living the evolutionary journey within a mortal body. Humanity is the fruit of the tree of existence.

In one of his quatrains, he exclaims:

“Form emerged from formlessness. It is the bee that weaves the honeycomb of existence. What brings the bee into being is not the wax or the honeycomb. We are the bee; form and multiplicity are merely the wax we manufacture. Form and matter came into being from us, not we from them; wine became intoxicated from us, not us from wine.”

Rumi again exclaims:

“Murat, you are. Why are you running here and there? It means you. But you, never say ‘I,’ always say ‘you.’ If the eye sees honestly, you become ‘That.’ And they become ‘You.’

Rumi has united the essence of existence, that is, creative power, with the essence of humanity. Humanity’s honor and obligation, pleasure and suffering, stem from this unity. This unity has made humanity the purpose of existence. Existence gains its meaning through humanity. The Creator observes His work through humanity, for humanity is the eye and mirror of God. To understand what He is, humanity must understand where it comes from. This honor of humanity is not free. The responsibility and suffering that come with this honor are also great. Like humanity's honor, its responsibility and suffering are the greatest responsibility and suffering of existence. Rumi's struggle is to transform the human being, who submits to things, into a creative self who subjugates things.

According to Rumi, such an understanding is the lot of a human being who is aware of their separation from the Creator's power. "God has revealed the secrets of His greatness in humanity. When you truly prostrate yourself before humanity with your soul, heart, and body, whichever way you turn becomes a Kaaba for your heart."

Thus speaks the great Rumi:

“O you, who are a copy of the book of God,

O you, who are a mirror to the beauty of the Sultan,

There is nothing in the world outside of you.

Whatever you desire, seek from yourself, seek from yourself...

Whatever you seek, you are, you.” Fîhi Mâ Fîh., p. 121.

To grasp the greatness of Rumi, it is enough to listen to his words, which he uses to describe how powerful a being the human being truly is, a statement that embraces all cultures and transcends all ages: “Come to yourself, speak a brand new word so that the world may be renewed! Your word must be such that it transcends the limits of the world itself. What is the limit, what is the measure? It must not know!”

Since goodness is the ability to overcome and defeat evil, goodness and peace in existence, according to Rumi, necessitate the existence of evil and struggle. Humans achieve their privilege and value among other members of the family of existence by resolving the conflict between opposing elements of their existence with the necessary balance. In a sense, this contradiction in human existence is a prerequisite upon which human value rises.

Rumi states that the divine trust that the heavens and the earth hesitate to shoulder, but that man courageously undertakes, is that man is a responsible being endowed with reason and will. Therefore, according to Rumi, the criterion that determines each human being's value is their success in demonstrating fidelity to the divine trust entrusted to them.

According to Rumi, a person's primary duty and responsibility in this world is to know the truth of their own existence. If a person fails to recognize the truth of their own existence, no matter what skills and knowledge they possess in this world, they are neglecting their primary duty, according to Rumi, and therefore cannot be considered to have performed a worthy deed. He explains this with the following example:

"For example, if a Sultan sends you to a village for a specific task, and you go and complete hundreds of tasks and then return without completing them, you are essentially considered to have done nothing. Humans, too, came to this world for a task, and that is their purpose. If they cannot accomplish it, they have done nothing." Fihi Ma Fih, p. 23

In Rumi, humans constitute the final and complete link in the chain of existence. By their very existence, humans embody both worlds and are composed of the unity of soul and body. Humans derive their privilege within the family of existence from their soul, mind, and heart, which can directly connect with the Source. In this respect, Rumi equates knowing one's own truth with knowing one's Creator, and knowing one's Lord with knowing oneself. The unique privilege mentioned for the human species exists potentially in every human being. However, what makes each person valuable or worthless, according to Rumi, is how they construct their heart. Because, according to Rumi, a human being is nothing more than their heart.

And on top of all these truths, Osho says in modern terms:

“The ancient concept of humanity was materialistic or spiritual, moral or immoral, sinner or saint. It was based on division and separation. It created a schizophrenic humanity. Humanity’s entire history has been sick, unhealthy, and insane. Five thousand wars have been fought in five thousand years. This is utterly insane; it is unbelievable. It is foolish, unwise, and inhumane. When you divide people in two, you create sorrow and hell for them. It can never be healthy, it can never be whole; the rejected other half will keep taking revenge. It will keep finding ways and means to defeat the half you imposed upon it. You will become a battlefield, a civil war. That was the situation in the past.” In the past, we couldn't become real people; we could only create humanoids. The humanoid resembles a human, but is completely crippled, paralyzed. It hasn't been allowed to blossom in its entirety. It is half, and because it is half, it is always in pain and tension; it cannot celebrate. Only a whole person can celebrate. Celebration is the fragrance of wholeness. Only a tree that lives whole can blossom. Man hasn't blossomed yet. The past was very dark and gloomy. It was the dark night of the soul. And because it was repressed, it became aggressive. When something is repressed, man becomes aggressive, losing every soft quality. It has always been this way until now. We have reached the point where the old must be set aside and the new heralded.

"My approach is to build a bridge within each individual so that you can become one whole.

Don't be against your body; it is your home.

Don't be against your consciousness, for without it, your home, even if well-decorated, would be empty. Together, they create beauty, a fuller life.

Symbolically, I chose Zorba for the body and Buddha for the soul. Every word I say—whether about Zorba or Buddha—automatically implies the other because, for me, they are inseparable. It is simply a matter of emphasis. Zorba is only the beginning. Sooner or later, if you give Zorba full expression, you must think of something better, something higher, something greater. This doesn't happen through thinking; it emerges from your experiences. Buddha became a Buddha because he lived a Zorba life.

The search for Buddha began with Zorba. Not everyone becomes a Buddha, and the primary reason for this is that Zorba has not been lived. From your body, from your physical Enjoy your existence." Osho