Rumi's Poem: 'When I Die'

'I know that the day will come 

when my sight of this earth shall be lost, 

and life will take its leave in silence, 

drawing the last curtain over my eyes.

Yet stars will watch at night,

and morning rise as before,

and hours heave like sea waves 

casting up pleasures and pains.' 

                                          -------Tagore, 'Last Curtain'.

“We have indeed decreed that death shall be ever-present among you: but there is nothing to prevent Us from changing the nature of your existence and bringing you into being anew in a manner as yet unknown to you.”--- (HQ, 56: 61)

Born on 30 September 1207 and died on 17 December 1273, Hazrat Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi (ra) is among the greatest saints of medieval Islam. One of the finest minds of the last millennium, Rumi’s works have truly travelled far: from the Persian-Islamic world, finding its admirers among human communes around the world,the writings are widely-read  today. Rumi means many things to many different people, and attempts are also being made to ‘secularize’ Rumi by declaring him a ‘new age poet’ in the West today; yet the fact remains that Rumi famously counselled everyone to ‘sacrifice your intellect at the feet of the Prophet.’  

His greatest work, the ‘Masnavi’ is, in many ways, a commentary to the Qur’an in the Persian language; explicitly  acknowledging at the very beginning that the Book is an exploration into the heart of Faith- in terms of unveiling the mysteries of attainment to the Truth and of certainty. Almost eight centuries after his lifetime, Rumi continues to speak to every generation through his spiritually-infused writings and poems, reminding us about the human condition through the parables and images of everyday life. Indeed Rumi’s words are quintessentially rooted in Zikrullah, in order for us to remember God and to reform our individual and social morals, and to benefit from the Divine promises for the truly devout in the life to come.

Reproduced Below is a poem from The Dîwân-é Kabîr (also known as "Kulliyat-é Shams" and "Dîwân-é Shams-é Tabrîz"; Ghazal 911):

When I Die

when my coffin

is being taken out

you must never think

I am missing this world

don't shed any tears

don't lament or feel sorry

I'm not falling

into a monster's abyss

when you see

my corpse is being carried

don't cry for my leaving

I'm not leaving

I'm arriving at eternal love

‘Shaqqul Qamar’: Miracle of Islam

'The Hour draws near; the Moon is split. Yet whenever the disbelievers see a sign, they turn away and say, ‘Same old sorcery!’  (Surah Qamar, 54: 2-3)

In the Islamic sacred tradition, this verse of the Qur’an is generally associated with a special miracle of the Holy Prophet of Islam (sa), known widely as the event of “Shaqqul Qamar”, or the ‘splitting’ of the Moon. There are several Ahadith that confirms the miracle. The authenticity of these traditions are beyond reproach as the transmission chains and channels pertaining to them go all the way to the great companions of the Holy Prophet (sa), such as Ibn Abbas, Anas bin Malik, Abdullah bin Masud and others. The traditions on the subject can be seen in all the major collections of Ahadith: Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, etc. 

For instance, in Sahih Al Bukhari, one can read several traditions being reported on Shaqqul Qamar:

1.  Narrated Abdullah bin Masud: "During the lifetime of the Prophet the moon was split into two parts and on that the Prophet said, 'Bear witness (to thus).'"

2.  Narrated Anas:  "That the Meccan people requested Allah's Apostle to show them a miracle, and so he showed them the splitting of the moon."

3. Narrated Ibn 'Abbas: "The moon was split into two parts during the lifetime of the Prophet." (Volume 4, Book No:56,  Traditions: 830-832)

4. Narrated Anas bin Malik: "The people of Mecca asked Allah's Apostle to show them a miracle. So he showed them the moon split in two halves between which they saw the Hiram' mountain."

5. Narrated 'Abdullah: "The moon was split ( into two pieces ) while we were with the Prophet in Mina. He said, "Be witnesses." Then, a Piece of the moon went towards the mountain."

6. Narrated 'Abdullah bin 'Abbas: "During the lifetime of Allah's Apostle the moon was split (into two places)."

7.  Narrated 'Abdullah: "The moon was split (into two pieces)."  (Volume 5, Book No:58,  Traditions: 208-211)

Hadhrat Ali (ra) is reported to have affirmed to have heard the account from several persons that once a number of polytheists came to the Prophet Muhammed (sa), and said, 'If you claim to be a prophet, split the moon which is now in the sky into two parts.'