An incredibly interesting quote accredited to Sufi poet and mystic Jalauddin Rumi is written inside the CD booklet of Enigma’s The Cross of Changes.
I tried to find Him on the Christian cross, but He was not there; I went to the Temple of the Hindus and to the old pagodas, but I could not find a trace of Him anywhere.
I searched on the mountains and in the valleys but neither in the heights nor in the depths was I able to find Him. I went to the Ka’bah in Mecca, but He was not there either.
I questioned the scholars and philosophers but He was beyond their understanding.
I then looked into my heart and it was there where He dwelled that I saw Him; He was nowhere else to be found.
In addition to being a huge fan of Enigma’s The Cross of Changes’ sessions, I too am a huge fan of Rumi’s quote, and more so today than ever. I’m not sure that any one particular religion or religious practice is at all necessary for true happiness and a deep life. If anything, religion is simply a tool that is only useful in that it awakens us to the beauty and life that already available to each one of us and surrounds us all. Religion is incurably temporary. Once we catch a glimpse of what it points towards, it begs to be discarded. Should we hold onto it long after it has served its only true purpose, we only slide back into a state of being that ushers us away from the simple joy of living real life with friends and neighbors. Religion is actually helpful in that it teaches us how to not be religious; its helpfulness is only found in its uselessness. True spirituality and honest peace is realized when we are awakened to this resounding truth living deeply within each of us: All that life, friendship, love and unity has to offer can only be realized when we take off our training wheels and ride our own bike on two wheels. Training wheels were meant to be temporary; their point is to teach us all how to ride … really, really ride!