Essay
Two
Universal Men:
Mevlana
Celaleddin RUMI/Seb-i Arus &
Arthur C. CLARKE/Birthday
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| Dervish
designed by Pelin Bali. |
Sir
Arthur C. CLARKE is at his office
in Colombo, December 2005. |
by Bircan ‹NVER
December 17, 2005, Istanbul
http://www.lightmillennium.org
http://www.isikbinyili.org
E-mail: bircanunver@lightmillennium.org
Mevlana Celaleddin RUMI and Arthur C.
CLARKE: Two Universal Men who have
made it their lives’ landmark and
touchstone to spread the Earth's past,
present, and future universal values.
These two universal men who will light
the way for all times have something
in common: Mevlana Celaleddin RUMI (1207
- 1273) left this world on December
17, 1273 which He defined as "Seb'i
Arus."* And Arthur C. CLARKE
was born on December 16, 1917, a day
before the 644th anniversary of RUMI's
passing.
Let's
take a look at these important dates
on which these two universal values
have met: There is a difference of exactly
710 years between their comings into
the world. Mevlana united with his GREAT
SACRED LOVE, ALLAH on December 17,
1273 in Konya at the last breath
of the Seljuk Empire, twenty-six years
before the Ottoman Empire was founded
After exactly 644 years, just at a time
when the caldron of WWI was boiling,
CLARKE opened his eyes to the world
on December 16, 1917 in the town
of Blenheim in England.
This date which follows one after another one, when two universal
values met brings to mind universal coincidences
as much as the ìuniversal languageî described
in the book titled The Alchemist which has been written with inspiration again from Mevlana. When
this universal language is construed,
I have been thinking for a while that
the continuity has been carried on from
Mevlana to Clarke and that there is a
universal connection between them.
After we, as Light Millennium (http://www.lightmillennium.org),
had organized an event with Prof. Dr.
Talat HALMAN and her daughter Defne HALMAN,
titled ìRumi: Soaring to Ecstasyî on November
18, 2005 at the Turkish House, I had asked
Prof. Halman for a copy of his speech
to be e-published on the Web site of the
Light Millennium. When I was working on
that text to be published, I suddenly
realized this connection.http://lightmillennium.org/2005_15th/thalman_rumi_p1.html
Since that day, my mind gets caught on this universal coincidence
or language from time to time. And with
the need of transferring those thoughts
into writing I compose these lines.
* * * * *
On one hand, Mevlana who had left the
Earth 732 years ago, but whose values
are embraced by mindful people all around
the world with a need more than ever in
our age and who lives among us effectually
more than ever today. On the other hand,
Sir Arthur C. Clarke who lives on one
of the most beautiful and poor islands
of the Earth since 1956 like an ordinary
citizen in Colombo, Sri Lanka, having
made Hector and Valeri Ekanayake and their
three daughters his own family.
This island has been exposed to a civil war between Singhalese
and Tamils since mid-1950s; and despite
its natural beauty, marvelous culture,
myths and legendaries it has been left
as one of the poorest islands of the world.
Yes, the world only will be saved from the chaos of today when
the Earth and Universe raise this kind
of great people not in every 710 years, but 710 of them
in every year. It will only be possible
to get rid of the biggest catastrophes,
especially the ones ìcaused by the hands
of human for human, for the Earth and
Universeî through the rising of the values
of again people and humanity; it will
then be possible to protect the Earth
and humanity.
Mevlana had left the seeds and universal values, emphasizing that
the whole humanity and Earth is a family,
to us and to the universe 732 years ago.
Today, 732 years later, just take a look at where we have arrived
as a result of WRONG POLITICS= ADMINISTRATION=
COMMERCE= PRODUCTION structure founded
on all around the world!!!
The progress in the areas of technology, science, medicine, communication
and transportation unfortunately have
turned into not the progress of humanity,
but as a result of wrong doings and bad
administrations along the ages, into a
weapon and threat against the majority.
Because what owns, uses, and manages all
these sources, what guides the whole humanity
like its own chess gameís pieces is unfortunately
even less than 1% of the whole population
of the Earth.
What we, the Earth, and the whole humanity should take on is very,
very big: To turn this 1% into 99%!
In Iraq, in the Middle East, and all around the world, chaos, wars,
pain, disasters, big lies, big frauds
in all levels are continuing as if theyíre
in a race with each other. Meanwhile,
there are the Iran and Korea scenarios
driven before us that to stage these scenarios
will be much worse than dynamiting lava
in the center of the Earth.
* * * * *
Mohamed ELBARADEI, who received the 2005 Nobel Prize (IAEA International
Atomic Energy Agency, December 10, 2005),
in the interviews he gave regarding his
prize says about the war scenarios prepared
against especially Iran: ìEither the humanity
will be saved altogether or we will sink
to the bottom altogether.î (CNN International,
Johathan MANN, December 10, 2005).
Yes, El-Baradei, too, must be one of the
intellectual grandchildren of Mevlana.
As long as there emerge EL-Baradeiís, and the common consciousness
of claiming the Earth develops, it will
be possible for us to become a whole as
a family around the universal value and
purposes as Mevlana had visualized. It
will then be possible to carry the humanity
toward the future, toward 3-5 million
years ahead, and toward other planets.
It so will be possible to carry on the
existence of humanity at those places
by satisfying the spiritual and mental
needs beyond the basic needs of human,
developing capability, skills, and equipments
as Sir Arthur Clarke envisions. And as
EL-Baradei has emphasized, ìWe still have
a chance.î
* * * * *
At the point where we have reached today since 732 years before,
we, as the whole humanity, are at the
borderline of existence-destruction in
terms of humanity values, the distribution
of sources, and equality at the level
of right to live.
For this reason, letís give hand to hand,
head to head, and concentrate on this
issue to make the Earth and humanity catch
the ìGOLDEN AGEî in the next 732 years,
in parallel to Mevlana and Clarkeís visions
and values, to make this the MUTUAL DREAM
of 7 billion people. Only then we can
put an end to the threat at the borderline
of existence-destruction altogether.
On the days of Mevlanaís 732nd
Anniversary of the Seb-i Arus* and Clarkeís
88th Birthday, I, with all
my heart, wish the light and values they
have spread replace the darkness originating
from human.
_ . _
Translated from Turkish by Figen Bing¸l
*Seb-i Ar¾s:
Seb means ënightí in Persian
Ar¾s means ëbrideí in Persian
ìSeb-i Ar¾sî literally means the ìnight
of the brideî suggesting the wedding night.
Mevlana used this phrase for his own death
night. He likened the night he would unite
with God to a joyful wedding night.
--With our thanks to Kenan Kilimci.
RUMI: SOARING TO ECSTASY (VEC'DE YUKSELIS
- English)
http://lightmillennium.org/2005_15th/thalman_rumi_p1.html
Media Release (English) http://lightmillennium.org/events/thalman_mrelease_nov15_04.html
Below essay e-distributed over the
Internet in Turkish on December 17, 2005.
For
Turkish verrsion:
http://www.isikbinyili.org/docView.php?d=article&id=31
-2006- Egogram
of Sir Arthur C. Clarke
Note: In the original
text, both dates were stated as December
17, but Sir Arthur's Birthday is actually
on December 16. The original content is
revised on this page.
© Bircan ‹nver, ISIKBINYILI/LIGHT MILLENNIUM,
December 17, 2005, Istanbul. English version,
March 2006, New York.
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