Discourses of Rumi

314 V DISCOURSES OF RUMIer turning that is spiritual, since all needs arefulfilled by You.” Therefore bring your needs toHim constantly, and never be without His remembrance,for the remembrance of God is strength,feathers and wings to a bird of spirit.Through remembrance of God, little by littlethe inward heart becomes illumined and detachedfrom the outward world. Just as a bird that triesflying to heaven, even though it never reaches thatgoal, yet every moment it rises farther from theearth and outsoars the other birds. Or forinstance, some musk is in a jar, but the mouth ofthat jar is too small, and when you reach in youcannot remove the musk. Still, your hand is perfumedand your nostrils are fulfilled. So it is withthe remembrance of God: although in thismoment you do not attain the Essence of God,still it leaves its mark on you, and you gain thegreat benefits that go with that mark.