A Post Script & Parting Shot
for Patti Simpson Rivinus

 

(August 3, 1933 - May 4, 2011)

By Doug Marman

When I first saw Patti, in 1973, she seemed larger than life. It wasn't because she was giving a talk to thousands of people. And it wasn't the fascinating experiences she shared about her time as personal assistant to the founder of Eckankar, Paul Twitchell, and the unique training she went through working for him.

It was the ease in her voice. The simple way she had of saying the most amazing things. It was her honesty, her sense of humor. She wasn't trying to be anything but who she was, and somehow she made that seem grand.

In other words, she loomed so large because she wasn't trying. She was just being who she was. In fact, she seemed to enjoy making fun of herself:

"...to my knowledge, I have never made the same mistake twice. Actually, that is not really such a remarkable feat, considering how many mistakes are available to us without our needing to repeat any. And I say, with some chagrin, that while I may not hold the record, I have accomplished a respectable volume of work in that category."

 

 

If God (- for Rumi)

Photo and Poem by Tim Bellows

 

If God
   were sun

and light
   were love,

I’d climb
   like vines,

grow leaves
   sky high,

drink rays
   and bloom

and shine
   and shine.

It Is What It Is: The Personal Discourses of Rumi

New Translation and Commentary by Doug Marman

It Is What It Is: The Personal Discourses of Rumi brings you across time to sit at the feet of one of the world's greatest spiritual teachers. Jalal al-Din Rumi lived over 700 years ago, yet his voice still echoes around the world today. Rumi's discourses have long been recognized as a key to unlocking the depths of his wisdom.

This new translation, with all new commentary, brings one of the most difficult of Rumi's manuscripts to life. You can now experience the impact of listening to Rumi as he shares his universal and timeless teaching.

Rumi says: “These words are for the sake of those who need words to understand. As for those who understand without words, what use do they have for speech? The heavens and earth are words to them. . . .Whoever hears a whisper, what need do they have for shouting?”

Rumi is not using words to just explain, but to move us beyond the need for explanations. He describes that moment when truth reveals itself directly to us like an open book. His tales and metaphors are luminous, beckoning us to new states of consciousness.

This is more than just a book. It is designed to be a personal study program with Rumi. This includes free access to Internet discussions on each discourse, so that you can interact with others, hear their insights, ask questions, and share your own realizations from what Rumi says. This provides a more complete learning experience.

ISBN 9780979326059 / 370 pages / $19.75