On Christmas Day – A Quotation for All Seasons
Ibn Arabi
On this Christmas morning, I came across a quotation from a poem written over eight hundred years ago by Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi, a Sufi scholar born in Murcia, Southern Spain, then part of Muslim Andalusia:
There was a time when I used to reject those who were not of my faith.
My heart has grown capable of taking on all forms.
A pasture for gazelles, a convent for Christians.
A temple for idols, a Kaaba for pilgrims.
A table for the Torah, the book of the Quran.
My religion is love. Whatever path the caravan of love shall take, that path shall be the path of my faith.
Which makes me wonder what we’ve learned in eight hundred years.
My thanks to Haitham Haqqi, who quoted it in an article in Al Araby Al Jadeed.
I can think of nothing more to add, except to wish all my readers, regardless of faith, a happy and peaceful day.