Rumi: “Today, like every other day, we wake up empty and frightened . . .”

By Mevlana Jelaluddin Rumi
(1207 – 1273)

English version by Coleman Barks

Today, like every other day, we wake up empty
and frightened. Don’t open the door to the study
and begin reading. Take down the dulcimer.

Let the beauty we love be what we do.
There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the ground.

— from Open Secret: Versions of Rumi, Translated by Coleman Barks / Translated by John Moyne Amazon.com