The King Inside

And without further ado, the second one:

The King Inside

There are people with their eyes open
Those hearts are shuts. What do they see? Matter.

But someone whose love is alert,
Even if the eyes go to sleep,
He or she will be walkng up thousands of others.

If you are not one of those light-filled lovers,
Restrain your desire-body’s intensity.
Put limits on how much you eat
And how long you lie down.

But if you are awake here in the chest,
Sleep long and soundly.
Your spirit will be out roaming and working,
Even on the seventh level.
Muhammed says, I close my eyes and rest in sleep,
But my love never needs to rest.

The guard at the gate drowses.
The king stays awake. You have a king inside
Who listens for what delights the soul.

That king’s wakefulness
Cannot be described in a poem.

Taken from Coleman Bark's A year with Rumi, daily readings, June 17th, p195.