Discourses of Rumi

discourse 19Rumi said: Someone said to Taj al-Din Quba’i,“These doctors of divinity live amongst us anddeprive the people of their religious beliefs.” Tajal-Din Quba’i answered, “They do not liveamongst us and take away our beliefs. God forbidthey could ever be one of us. If you put a goldencollar on a dog, do you call it a hunting dogbecause of that collar? The quality of being ahunting dog is something specific in the animal,whether it wears a collar of gold or wool.”No one becomes a scholar by virtue of robeand turban. Scholarship is a virtue in its veryessence, and whether that virtue is clothed intunic or overcoat, it makes no difference.Thus, in Mohammed’s time, the hypocritesused to put on prayer-robes to lure Muslims awayfrom the Faith. How could they lead astrayMuslims until they dressed up as Muslims, themselves?If a Christian or a Jew criticized Islam,who would listen to them?