Discourses of Rumi

FIHI MA FIHI V 321It is the same with doctors: they want illness toexist, since they could not display their medicalskill unless people were sick. But they do notapprove of illness, otherwise they would nevertreat it. Similarly, bakers want people to be hungryso they can ply their trade and earn a living,but they do not approve of hunger, otherwise theywould not sell bread.This is why commanders and cavalry wanttheir king to have an opponent and an enemy.How else can they show their bravery and lovefor the king? The king would never muster them,having no need. But they do not approve of theking’s enemy, or they would not fight. Therefore,we should respect the evil desires within ourselves,because God loves those who are gratefuland obedient to His Law, and this means nothingwithout the existence of those desires within us.Yet, we should not approve of those evil tendencies,but struggle hard to overcome theirinfluence.Hence, we can see that God wills evil in onerespect, but does not will it in another. Our opponentssay, “God does not will evil in any way