Growing Up

Little by little, wean yourself.
This is the gist of what I have to say.
From an embryo, whose nourishment comes in the blood,
Move to an infant drinking milk,
To a searcher after wisdom,
To a hunter of more invisible gain.Think how it is to have a conversation with an embryo.You might say: ‘The world outside is vast and intricate.There are wheat fields and mountain passes,
And orchards in bloom.
At night there are millions of galaxies and in sunlight
The beauty of friends dancing at a wedding.’
You ask the embryo why he or she stays cooped up
In the dark, with eyes closed.
Listen to the answer!‘
There is no ‘other world’.
I only know what I’ve experienced.
You must be hallucinating.’
From Rumi’