coitus interruptus

The ravishing moon last night upon me shone:

"Not tonight," I told her, "go away."

As she left, I heard her say, "Well done, moody one,

You don't even open the door when riches come."

#1655: From Rumi's Kolliyaat-e Shams-e Tabrizi

Search word: moon

Last night I listened in to a live broadcast of the Australian Chamber Orchestra playing, among other things, pieces that included the oud and an Egyptian percussion instrument resembling a tambourine. These pieces were an "East and West" collaboration and were enchanting, a divine manifestation of what "Eurabia" could mean if the best from the West and from the Middle East can merge.

I'm continuing to pursue the moon in Rumi and I find him in one of his lighter moods. Last night the ravishing moon shone on me also as I listened to the music. It just happened to be placed strongly and centrally within the frame of my front window, reflecting softly off surrounding clouds and creating a magical sight. For the Arabs, after the fierce heat of a desert day, the moon must have been such a sweet relief at night. The oud player, Joseph Tawadros, commented on how the music is meant to lead to ecstasy and then he joined with the orchestra in the final piece, a composition of his called "Existence". As the momentum mounted and the magic of the moment intensified, I was gripped with anticipation. Then suddenly, silence. The live broadcast was cut off. A technical glitch stood between the radio listeners and final ecstasy.

It was not I who told the moon to "go away", things just panned out that way. The ABC put on some other ACO recorded music and returned to broadcast an encore which provided a sense of closure, after all, to the evening's entertainment. Mystical, musical ecstasy so resembles erotic ecstasy. Sometimes we goof up and it just doesn't work out as hoped. We can always look to a next time, however, shrug it all off and move on. As Rumi and his love goddess do in this quatrain.

Many women, when questioned, cite "a good sense of humour" as the greatest quality to be found in a good lover, partner or husband. What greater riches can there be besides laughter? To know, as Rumi knew, to treat divine love so lightly is to have that great gift, that great treasure, the one that She so scornfully pretends he's turned his back on.