If you don’t know who Rumi is, then you probably want to read this and know a little bit about this outstanding Persian poet. Rumi was born in 1207, in the city of Balkh, now known as Afghanistan. At that time, Iran, Turkey and Afghanistan weren’t separate countries. They were all part of an entity known as the Persian Empire. Rumi settled in Turkey for most of his life, which was known as Konya, back then. He was a genius theologian and a brilliant scholar. In his late thirties, he met a wandering and wild holy man called Shams. In Rumi’s own words, after meeting Shams, he was transformed from a studious scholar to an impassionate seeker of love and truth.

Rumi is one of the most widely read poets in America, now. His poetry is diverse. It is deeply philosophical and mystical, with poems about passionate love and desire. The reason why he is famous in the west may go back to the fact that he embraced universality in his work.

Below are 15 of my most favorite, soul-recharging Rumi quotes. Yes, I actually have them written down in a notebook and I thought it’d be cool to share the inspiration they give me with everyone.

• “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
  and right doing there is a field.
  I'll meet you there.”

• “Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.”

• “When someone is counting out
  gold for you, don't look at your hands,
  or the gold. Look at the giver.”

• “My lips got lost on the way to the kiss -
  that's how drunk I
  was.”

• “The lion is most handsome when looking for food.”

• “The cure for pain is in the pain.”

• “These pains you feel are messengers. Listen to them.”

• “Two there are who are never satisfied -- the lover of the world and the lover of knowledge.”

• “Start a huge, foolish project, like Noah…it makes absolutely no difference what people think of you.”

• "People of the world don't look at themselves, and so they blame one another."

• “A servant wants to be rewarded for what he does. A lover wants only to be in love's presence, that ocean whose depth will never be known.”

• “The Water said to the dirty one, “Come here.”
  
  The dirty one said, “I am too ashamed.”
  
  The water replied, “How will your shame be washed away without me?”

• “The intelligent desire is self-control; children want candy.”

• “When someone criticizes or disagrees with you, a small ant of hatred and antagonism is born in your heart. If you do not squash that ant at once, it might grow into a snake, or even a dragon.”

• “Dance, when you're broken open. Dance, if you've torn the bandage off. Dance in the middle of the fighting. Dance in your blood. Dance when you're perfectly free.”

Enough said. Just go dance.