Don’t regret matters of the past
August 27, 2015
Watch out that you don’t regret matters of the past.
You are a Sufi, so don’t mention the name of the past.
You are the ‘child of the moment’* during youth and old age,
As long as the present moment doesn’t pass away.
(adapted from The Quatrains of Rumi,
translated by Ibrahim Gamard and Rawan Farhadi, p. 547)
(*Note: the translation states ‘son of the moment,’ but since it is not limited to just males I adapted the translation to the gender-neutral ‘child’ instead. I share this for students of Sufi literature, since the term ‘son of the moment’ is more widely used in translations of Sufi writings.)
* * *
The importance of living in the present moment is acknowledged by most, if not all, spiritual traditions. Therefore, it should not be surprising that Jalaal ud-Diin Rumi offers a quatrain affirming such. Although this premise is commonly known, many people struggle to genuinely do so without the baggage of the past and (contrived) future. To this end, Rumi offers some encouragement and simple guidance to do this thing many of us “know” yet struggle to do.
Often we “live” in the present through the veils of the past. We look at present situations in the context of what was formerly pleasurable and unpleasurable, shaping how we approach and engage what is presently before us. We often do this not fully cognizant of this dynamic. Thus, a person who likes apples -- translation: apples were pleasant before and so now “I like” them -- will see an apple in the present moment and want it. Why: because the present apple is being viewed through past pleasurable experiences with apples. Yet, the present apple, despite its appearance, could be rotten and putrid inside. If we move through the lense of the past, we will only come to realize this by taking a bite of the apple, most often ignoring perceivable signs (i.e. it’s soft, has a slight odor) that we should proceed with caution before eating the apple.
For most people, unpleasant experiences -- especially ones in which we were harmed -- tend to be more impactful in viewing the present through veils of the past. In terms of mental attachments, we tend to grasp more strongly to impressions of unpleasant experiences. We tend to be more determined and closed-minded in seeking to not re- experience (past) pains as compared to the more open approach toward (past) pleasures. When Jalaal ud-Diin Rumi mentions Watch out that you don’t regret matters of the past, he is, in part, speaking to this more closed-minded determination avoid a repeat of pains. Since these are the stronger of mental attachments, if we can restrain the influence of these, we can restrain the less powerful influences of pleasant impressions. Just being sad or disappointed by past pains is enough to firmly place veils of the past over our perception of the present; and once we start looking through these veils, it is exceeding difficult to shift to a more expansive and liberated sight.
Therefore, if you are a Sufi -- are on the path that draws one toward (realization of) the Beloved -- don’t mention the name of the past. Merely mentioning the past can place veils of the past over our perception, and even more strongly when there is a regret. Mentioning is not limited to expressing such to others: to engage a memory of a past pain is a form of mentioning within one’s own mind. Also, matters of the past had a specific context in Jalaal ud-Diin Rumi’s time: these explicitly included one’s actions, activities (engaged or drawn into, and including mental activities), and possessions. Not only do veils of the past cloud our perception of the present, they become the fodder by which we project expectations and preferences upon the future: a moment of time that actually does not exist although we project its manifestation.
The past and future are clear dangers to one seeking the Beloved because, just as these veil and distort our perception of the present, they do the same to our ability to receive revelation of the Beloved:
Sobriety savours of memory of the past;
Past and future are what veil Allaah from our sight.
Burn up both of them with fire! How long
Wilt thou be partitioned by these segments as a reed?
(adapted from Masnavi i Ma’navi, translated by E.H.
Whinfield, p. 52)
The revelation of the Beloved -- whereby It reveals Itself to us, or even the “lesser” revelations of Its divine attributes don’t happen in the past or the future. When such happens within the realm of time, such occurs in the present moment. This is inferred, in part, in the phrase You [the Sufi] are the ‘child of the moment’ -- which maybe a more suitable translation is child of the presentpresent moment. And Jalaal ud-Diin