I admire Rumi greatly but will not repeat what I wrote in my review of the collection of his works entitled “Open Secret”. I do think that collection is slightly superior to “Daylight”, but the concept of 365 passages, one per day, along with Rumi’s sublime enlightenment, make this a very enjoyable and thought-provoking read. I also liked how these passages were taken in order from about a third of Rumi’s “Mathnawi”; the result is a more authentic taste of the man’s work, as well a variation from the passages from Rumi that are usually extracted from his writings in modern Western texts. Have a look below and see what you think.

Quotes:
On acceptance:
“It’s not necessary to burn a new blanket
on account of a flea;
nor would I turn my back
on you because of superficial faults.”

And:
“Water says to the dirty, ‘Come here.’
The dirty one says, ‘I’m so ashamed.’
Water says, ‘How will you shame be washed away
without me?’”

On beauty:
“Everything that is made beautiful and fair and lovely
is made for the eye of one who sees.”

On being challenged:
“The unbeliever supposes he has hurt me;
but no, he has wiped the dust from my mirror.”

On faults in others:
“Many of the faults you see in others, dear reader,
are your own nature reflected in them.
As the Prophet said,
‘The faithful are mirrors to one another.’”

On friendship:
“How will you know your real friends?
Pain is as dear to them as life.
A friend is like gold. Trouble is like fire.
Pure gold delights in the fire.”

On individuality, wow I love this one:
“Conventional opinion I the ruin of our souls,
something borrowed which we mistake as our own.
Ignorance is better than this; clutch at madness instead.
Always run from what seems to benefit your self:
sip the poison and spill the water of life.
Revile those who flatter you;
lend both interest and principal to the poor.
Let security go and be at home amid dangers.
Leave your good name behind and accept disgrace.
I have lived with cautious thinking;
now I’ll make myself mad.”

On the journey to self-knowledge:
“I’m the devoted slave
of anyone who doesn’t claim
to have attained dining with God
at every way station.
Many inns must be left behind
before you reach your home.”

On karma:
“The world is the mountain,
And each action, the shout that echoes back.”

On living in the now:
“My friend, the sufi is the son of the present moment:
To say ‘tomorrow’ is not our way.”

On language:
“To be one of heart is better than to have a common tongue.”

On perseverance:
“But gentle flames are not enough for iron;
it eagerly draws to itself the fiery dragon’s breath.
That iron is the dervish who bears hardship:
under the hammer and fire, he happily glows red.”

On riches:
“If an artful enemy takes your wealth,
a thief will have robbed a thief.”

On self-improvement:
“The lion who breaks the enemy’s ranks
is a minor hero
compared to the lion who overcomes himself.”

On thinking too much:
“Your thinking is like a camel driver,
and you are the camel:
it drives you in every direction under its bitter control.”

On transience:
“Though in the world you are the most learned scholar of the time,
behold the vanishing of this world and this time!”

And:
“Little by little God takes away human beauty:
little by little the sapling withers.
Go, recite ‘To whomever we give a length of days,
We also cause them to decline.’
Seek the spirit;
don’t set your heart on bones.” ( )