Discourses of Rumi

338 V DISCOURSES OF RUMIeating, the child in her womb is still nourishedand continues to grow. The human being is alsocarrying that secret.“We offered the Trust to the heavens,The earth and the mountains,But they refused to carry it, and were afraid;Yet humanity carried it. Surely they are sinful,And very foolish.”But God does not leave us in sin and foolishness.Out of our physical life comes companionship,families, and a thousand familiar friendships.If this Trust that humanity carries also producesfriendships and knowledge, what is sostrange in that? What rises from a person afterdeath? Look in their secret heart. Their secretheart is like the root of a tree—although hidden,its influence appears in the leaves and branches. Ifa branch or two is broken when the root is whole,they will grow again, but if the root is damaged,neither bough nor leaf remains.A farmer from the country came to visit andstay in the house of a friend in town. The town’sperson offered their friend halvah, which theguest ate with gusto. The farmer said, “O friend,night and day I eat carrots. Now that I have tast-