Book Review: Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak.

Have you ever read a book and felt like it was very timely? Did you also feel like everyone in your circle should read it too? This is the point where we say, ‘yeah, me too’ in unison.

This book simply has that effect. That sharing effect where you meet someone and you’re like, “have you read Forty Rules of Love?”, “You haven’t? Oh my, you should read it. I think you’ll love it.” “Let me send it to you.” That has been me lately, just dropping this book in people’s inboxes because I think people should read it. The amount of wisdom in that book is so intense and it only makes sense if it’s passed on. It has two stories wrapped up in one.

It’s the story of Ella Rubinstein, a dedicated wife (housewife), whose life revolved around her marriage, her 3 children and dog. She was living an ideal life as they had built their marriage around this shared vision and had attained most, if not all, of their dreams. However, her and her husband had never connected on any deep level, and because they had been married for so long (20 years to be exact), it didn’t bother her, because then, there were more important things than passion and love in a marriage, such as understanding, affection, compassion and that most godlike act a person could perform, forgiveness. Love was secondary to any of these.

And now that her children were grown and did not need her as much as they once had, she realized that she had too much time to spare and no one to spend it with. That’s when she pursued the possibility of a getting a job, and she landed a part-time job with a literary agent. For her first assignment, she was to read Sweet Blasphemy, a historical novel centered on the life of the famous mystic poet Rumi, by an unknown European author. And this is how her relationship with Aziz began and before she knew it, she was head over heels and more aware of what she was missing in her life.

On the other hand, it’s also the story of Shamz of Tabriz, an unknown unconventional and wandering dervish full of scandals and surprises, who shared a remarkable bond with Rumi, the most revered spiritual leader in the history of Islam. He played a significant role in the transformation of Rumi from a local cleric to a world-famous poet and mystic.

“God” I whispered in a dark, damp room, “all my life I traveled the world and followed Thy path. I saw every person as an open book, a walking Qur’an. I stayed away from the ivory towers of scholars, preferring to spend time with outcasts, expatriates, and exiles. Now I am bursting. Help me to hand this wisdom to the right person. Then Thou can do with me as Thou wish.”

It wasn’t death that worried me, for I didn’t see it as an end, but dying without leaving a legacy behind. There were many words piled up inside my chest, stories waiting to be told. I wanted to hand all this knowledge to one other person, neither a master not a discipline, I sought an equal – a companion.

Shamz had seen the worst and best in humanity, and with this he compiled a list inscribed in his soul, one he called The Basic Principles of the Itinerant Mystics of Islam. To him they were universal, dependable, and invariable as the laws of nature. Together they constituted The Forty Rules of the Religion of Love, which could be attained through love and love only.

          Earth – The things that are solid, absorbed, and still

1. How we see God is a direct reflection of how we see ourselves. If God brings to mind mostly fear and blame, it means there is too much fear and blame welled inside us. If we see God as full of live and compassion, so are we.
2. The path to the truth is a labor of the heart, not of the head. Make your heart your primary guide! Not your mind. Meet, challenge, and ultimately prevail over your nafs with your heart. Knowing your ego will lead you to the knowledge of God.
3. Each and every reader comprehends the Holy Qur’an on a different level in tandem with the depth of his understanding. There are four levels of insight. The first level is the outer meaning and it is the one that the majority of the people are content with. Next is the Batm – the inner level. Third, there is the inner of the inner. And the fourth level is so deep it cannot be put into words and is therefore bound to remain indescribable.
4. You can study God through everything and everyone in the universe, because God is not confined in a mosque, synagogue, or church. But if you are still in need of knowing where exactly His abode is, there is only one place to look for Him: in the heart of a true lover.
5. Intellect and love are made of different materials. Intellect ties people in knots and risks nothing, but love dissolves all tangles and risks everything. Intellect is always cautious and advises, ‘Beware too much ecstasy,’ whereas love says, ‘Oh, never mind! Take the plunge!’ Intellect does not easily break down, whereas love can effortlessly reduce itself to rubble. But treasures are hidden among ruins. A broken heart hides treasures.
6. Most of the problems of the world stem from linguistic mistakes and simple misunderstandings. Don’t ever take words at face value. When you step into the zone of love, language as we know it becomes obsolete. That which cannot be put into words can only be grasped through silence.
7. Loneliness and solitude are two different things. When you are lonely, it is easy to delude yourself into believing that you are on the right path. Solitude is better for us, as it means being alone without feeling lonely. But eventually it is best to find a person, the person who will be your mirror. Remember, only in another person’s heart can you truly see yourself and the presence of God within you.
8. Whatever happens in your life, no matter how troubling things might seem, do not enter the neighborhood of despair. Even when all doors remain closed, God will open up a new path only for you. Be thankful! It is easy to be thankful when all is well. A Sufi is thankful not only for what he has been given but also for all that has been denied.
9. Patience does not mean to passively endure. It means to be farsighted enough to trust the end result of a process. What does patience mean? It means to look at the thorn and see the rose, to look at the night and see the dawn. Impatience means to be so shortsighted as not to be able to see the outcome. The lovers of God never run out of patience, for they know that time is needed for the crescent moon to become fall.
10. East, west, south or north makes little difference. No matter what your destination, just be sure to make every journey a journey within. If you travel within, you’ll travel he whole wide world and beyond.
11. The midwife knows that when there is no pain, the way for the baby cannot be opened and the mother cannot give birth. Likewise, for a new self to be born, hardship is necessary. Just as clay needs to go through intense heat to become strong, Love can only be perfected in pain.
12. The quest for Love changes us. There is no seeker among those who search for Love who has not matured on the way. The moment you start looking for Love, you start to change within and without.
13. There are more fake gurus and false teachers in this world than the number of stars in the visible universe. Don’t confuse power-driven, self-centered people with true mentors. A genuine spiritual master will not direct your attention to himself or herself and will not expect absolute obedience or utter admiration from you, but instead will help you to appreciate and admire your inner self. True mentors are as transparent as glass. They let the Light of God pass through them.
    

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    Fire – The things that damage, devastate, and destroy

14. Try not to resist the changes that come your way. Instead let life live through you. And do not worry that your life is turning upside down. How do you know that the side you are used to is better than the one to come?
15. God is busy with the completion of your work, both outwardly and inwardly. He is fully occupied with you. Every human being is a work in progress that is slowly but inexorably moving toward perfection. We are each an unfinished work of art both waiting and striving to be completed. God deals with each of us separately because humanity is a fine art of skilled penmanship where every single dot is equally important for the entire picture.
16. It’s easy to love a perfect God, unblemished and infallible that He is. What is far more difficult is to love fellow human beings with all their imperfections and defects. Remember, one can only know what one is capable of loving. There is no wisdom without love. Unless we learn to love God’s creation, we can neither truly love nor truly know God.
17. Real filth is the one inside. The rest simply washes off. There is only one type of dirt that cannot be cleansed with pure waters, and that is the stain of hatred and bigotry contaminating the soul. You can purify your body through abstinence or fasting, but only love will purify your heart.
18. The whole universe is contained within a single human being – you. Everything that you see around, including the things you might not be fond of and even the people you despair or abhor, is present within you in varying degrees. Therefore, do not look for Sheitan outside yourself either. The devil is not an extraordinary force that attacks from without. It is an ordinary voice within. If you get to know yourself fully, facing with honesty and hardness both your dark and bright sides, you will arrive at a supreme form of consciousness. When a person knows himself, he or she knows God.
19. If you want to change the way others treat you, you should first change the way you treat yourself. Unless you learn to love yourself, fully and sincerely, there is no way that you can be loved. Once you achieve that stage, however be thankful for every thorn that others might throw at you. It is a sign that you will soon be showered in roses.
20. Fret not where the road will take you. Instead concentrate on the first step. That’s the hardest part and that’s what you are responsible for. Once you take that step let everything do what it naturally does and the rest will follow. Do not go with the flow. Be the flow.
21. We were all created in His image, and yet we were each created different and unique. No two people are alike. No two hearts beat to the same rhythm. If God had wanted everyone to be the same, He would have made it so. Therefore, disrespecting differences and imposing your thoughts on others is tantamount to disrespecting God’s holy scheme.
22. When a true lover of God goes into a tavern, the tavern becomes his chamber of prayer, but when a wine bibber goes into the same chamber, it becomes his tavern. In everything we do, it is our hearts that make the difference, not our outer appearances. Sufis do not judge other people on how they look or who they are. When a Sufi stares at someone, he keeps both eyes closed and instead opens a third eye – the eye that sees the inner realm.
    

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    Wind –The things that shift, evolve, and challenge

23. Life is a temporary loan, and this world is nothing but a sketchy imitation of Reality. Only children would mistake a toy for the real thing. And yet human beings either become infatuated with the toy or disrespectfully break it and throw it aside. In this life stay away from all kinds of extremities, for they will destroy your inner balance. Sufis do not go to extremes. A Sufi always remains mild and moderate.
24. The human being has a unique place among God’s creation. “I breathed into him of My Spirit,” God says. Each and every one of us without exception is designed to be God’s delegate on earth. Ask yourself, just how often do you behave like a delegate, if you ever do so? Remember, it falls upon each of us to discover the divine spirit inside and live by it.
25. Hell is in the here and now. So is heaven. Quit worrying about hell or dreaming about heaven, as they are both present inside this very moment. Every time we fall in love, we ascent to heave. Every time we hate, envy, or fight someone, we stumble right into the fires of hell.
26. The universe is one being. Everything and everyone is interconnected through an invisible web of stories. Whether we are aware of it or not, we are all in a silent conversation. Do no harm. Practice compassion. And do not gossip behind anyone’s back – not even a seemingly innocent remark! The words that come out of our mouths do not vanish but are perpetually stored in infinite space, and they will come back to us in due time. One man’s pain will hurt us all. One man’s joy will make everyone smile.
27. This world is like a snowy mountain that echoes your voice. Whatever you speak, good or evil, will somehow come back to you. Therefore, if there is someone who harbors ill thoughts about you, saying similarly bad things about him will only make matters worse. You will be locked in a vicious circle of malevolent energy. Instead for forty days and nights say and think nice things about that person. Everything will be different at the end of forty days, because you will be different inside.
28. The past is an interpretation. The future is an illusion. The world does not move through time as if it were a straight line, proceeding from the past to the future. Instead time moves through and within us, in endless spirals. Eternity does not mean infinite time, but simply timelessness. If you want to experience eternal illumination, put the past and the future out of your mind and remain with the present moment.
29. Destiny doesn’t mean that your life has been strictly predetermined. Therefore, to leave everything to fate and to not actively contribute to the music of the universe is a sign of sheer ignorance. The music of the universe is all-pervading and it is composed of different levels. “Your destiny is the level where you will play your tune. You might not change your instrument but how well to play is entirely in your hands.”
30. The true Sufi is such that even when he is unjustly accused, attacked, and condemned from all sides, he patiently endures, uttering not a single bad word about any of his critics. A Sufi never apportions blame. How can there be opponents or rivals or even “others” when there is no “self” in the first place? How can there be any one to blame when there is only one?
    

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    Fire – The things that damage, devastate, and destroy

31. If you want to strengthen your faith, you would need to soften inside. For your faith to be rock solid, your heart needs to be as soft as a feather. Through an illness, accident or loss, or fright, one way or another, we all are faced with incidents that teach us how to become less selfish and judgmental, and more compassionate and generous. Yet some of us learn the lesson and manage to become milder, while some others end up becoming even harsher than before.
32. Nothing should stand between yourself and God. Not imams, priests, rabbis, or any other custodians of moral or religious leadership. No spiritual masters, not even your faith. Believe in your values and your rules, but never lord them over others. If you keep breaking people’s hearts, whatever religious duty you perform is no good. “Stay away from all sorts of idolatry, for they will blur your vision. Let God and only God be your guide. Learn the Truth, my friend, but be careful not to make a fetish out of your truths.”
33. While everyone in this world strives to get somewhere and become someone, only to leave it all behind after death, you aim for the supreme stage of nothingness. Live this life as light and empty as the number zero. We are no different from a pot. It is not the decorations outside but the emptiness inside that holds us straight. Just like, it is not what we aspire to achieve but the consciousness of nothingness that keeps us going.
    

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    Void – The things that are present through their absence

34. Submission does not mean being weak or passive. It leads to neither fatalism nor capitulation. Just the opposite. True power resides in submission – a power that comes from within. Those who submit to the divine essence of life will live in unperturbed tranquility and peace even when the whole wide world goes through turbulence after turbulence.
35. In this world, it is not similarities or regularities that take us a step forward, but blunt opposite. And all the opposites in the universe are present within each and every one of us. Therefore the believer needs to meet the unbeliever residing within. And the nonbeliever should get to know the silent faithful in him. Until the day one reaches the stage of Insan-I Kâmil, the perfect human being, faith is a gradual process and one that necessitates its seeming opposite: disbelief.
36. This world is erected upon the principles of reciprocity. Neither a drop of kindness not a speck of evil will remain unreciprocated. Fear not the plots, deceptions, or tricks of the other people. If somebody is setting a trap, remember, so is God. He is the biggest plotter. Not even a leaf stirs outside God’s knowledge. Simply and fully believe in hat. Whatever God does, He does beautifully.
37. God is a meticulous clockmaker. So precise is His order that everything on earth happens in its own time. Neither a minute later nor a minute early. And for everyone without exception, the clock, the clock works accurately. For each there is a time to love and a time to die.
38. It’s never too late to ask yourself, ‘Am I ready to change the life I am living/ An U ready to change within?’ “Even a single lady in your life is the same as the day before, it surely is a pity. At every moment and with each new breath, one should be renewed again. There is only one way to be born into a new life: to die before death.”
39. While the parts change, the whole always remains the same. For every thief who departs this world, a new one is born. And every decent person who passes away is replaced by a new one. In this way not only does nothing remain the same but also nothing ever really changes.
40. A life without love is of no account. Don’t ask yourself what kind of love you should seek, spiritual or material, divine or mundane, Eastern or Western….Divisions only lead to more divisions. Love has no labels, no definitions. It is what it is, pure and simple. “Love is the water of life. And a lover is a soul of fire! The universe turns differently when fire loves water.”

These rules of love are really the truth. And if all humanity just lived by them, I think the world would definitely be a better place. You have to read the book so that you can put the rules into context. It’s more fun that way because the stories surrounding them are so deep and thought provoking. The ending also caught me off-guard, it wasn’t what I was anticipating, so it has some element of surprise too. Ps. The rules on their own still communicate the message if you’re not up to reading the entire book.

If you want to read it, you can either buy the physical book at a TBC store next to you (I saw they’re stocked) or download the e-book here – Forty Rules of Love by Elif Shafak it’s in .pdf. Thank me later 🙂

Happy Reading Snippers!

Signing Off ~~~ *Kawi*