Everyone | Rumi Poem

This poem hints at being with others while feeling a quiet emptiness and recognizing that true connection comes from within. It looks at the inner journey of the soul and the contrast between everyday interactions and the deeper awareness that lies beyond appearances.

Mawlana Jalaluddin Mohammad Balkhi, popularly known as "Rumi", is a 13th-century Sufi poet. Today, he is recognised as one of the greatest poets who ever lived, due in part to how his words seem to speak to the Divine.

Photo by Ken Cheung.
Translation by Coleman Barks.

Transcript

When you are with everyone but me,

You are with no one.

When you are with no one but me,

You are with everyone.

Instead of being so bound up with everyone,

Be everyone.

When you become that many,

You are nothing.

Empty.