Poetry of Rumi
#7
Walk to the well.
Turn as the earth and the moon turn,
circling what they love.
Whatever circles come from the center.
Rumi, aka the “drunken Sufi”, was known for finding exultation and bliss in the act of spinning, dancing, poetry, and music. Sufism, the mystical form of Islam that stresses an inward connection with Allah and abstains from materialism. It’s said that Rumi would spin while reciting poetry, as a form of meditation during prayer, which became the basis for the Whirling Dervishes.
Whirling Dervishes are followers of Sufism who perform an act where they become closer with Allah, and the world around them, by spinning for up to hours at a time. By spinning, the Dervishes become intoxicated by the feeling, reaching a religious ecstasy, focusing on taking in what’s around them, how they’re feeling at a given moment, as well as their connection with Allah.
Here in the seventh poem, we see Rumi talking about how spinning brings a follower closer to Allah and the nature around them. The poem gives visuals of how spinning can make someone closer with the “center” of the earth and “the well”, or instead oneself.