Whom do You see in Your Cup?

My favorite poet, Mevlana Jalalludin Rumi once said, When you look in your cup, whom do you see? Is it you or God? This is a paraphrase of a very beautiful poem. I was struck deeply by this when it was read to me. Hence the lack of a direct quote. In any case, the message, I hope, has been effectively transferred.


When you look in your cup, you gaze at the reflection, whom do you see? Is it yourself, staring back, or is it God smiling back? To me, this means a world of thoughts and love. If you see yourself, you can be several things, oblivious, ungrateful, preoccupied, or simply ignorant. If you see God, you are aware, grateful, and knowledgeable.


Sure, I may have used some synonyms to describe these two states, but each word hold different weight and hence different meaning and feeling, each word is deliberate and necessary.


When you see yourself in your cup, you don't realize who delivered this sustenance, this blessing to you? You may think, "I work for a living, I earned the money I used to buy this tea, I thank myself for being proactive and hardworking." You are so incredibly mistaken. I am sorry, just take a step back, look up at the sky and think, did your hard work make the sky as beautiful as it is? Do you bring the sun up and down, the moon around?


No, not at all. You do nothing of your own accord.


When you realize that everything in your life, your success, your wealth, your tea, is because God blessed you with it, then you will see your Lord and Master in your cup, then you will smile as He smiles at you, and you will know that God is happy with you and provided you with a sip of His love. Or perhaps, God is testing you now with the blessing he gave you, so use it wisely, be grateful, be generous, and always show compassion, as your Master is endlessly showing it to you.


How egotistic are we? To presume that a bum on the street deserves the life he or she earned, that as we walk in our fine business attire across the Monroe St. bridge, passing beggars in this city of progress and capitalism, that we think they are the weak ones who could not make it in a city of opportunity, that maybe if they just got a job they would not be in such a predicament. It's disgusting sometimes, to actually realize this is how we think. No! Do not be that person. Sooner or later, you might be there and you will know the course of events that led you there, and you will realize that no matter how hard you worked, it may have all been to teach you how to be grateful.


I am not saying that even if you work hard you will one day be begging for alms, but I am saying that you need to be grateful. For everything in your life, for everyone, for God.


May God have mercy on us all, Ameen.


[Tuesday, January 19, 2010]