The Ego, the Riddle and Humanity - Prose of Ramadhan Part 78

The Riddle of Me (Ramadhan Verses 78)

I was whole,

A complete ego

Unto myself.

Then love came

And ravished my mind -

Love drew open each veil,

Unlocking each door,

Turning each page,

And freeing my soul

From its cage.

I was whole,

But I was wholly unhappy.
When love came

Love gave me light,

Love gave me hope,

Love gave everything to me.

Solving each riddle

Of this world,

The greatest of all

Being the Riddle of Me.

It is the nature of the ego to say that we, each Adam and Eve on earth is complete unto ourselves. But we never are. We need people and interaction. We need smiles and laughter, and family dinners. We need to taste sweet victory and bitter defeat at the bowling alley. We need to share our worries and disappointments, as we prop each other up as a friend or family.

It is the nature of what I do that I spend many hours in solitude. But what I write comes from people I meet and talk to. And I am not particularly sociable. If there is goodness at all that you find in this almanac, it is solely because of my friends and family, and the examples of many people out there, past and present, whose struggle and courage showed me how to live a life as a good person. And behind the curtain of humanity, I sense the thread that connects us all to the Loving God, the One and Only God, He who is worshipped by everyone, whatever religion that they worship in.

Alone, our ego will convince us of our independence. That we need no one and nothing. That in the pursuit of our self-interest is the source of all happiness. But together, you and I, and the cat named Moses, we are greater than the sum of our parts. My happiness is being in your company. So thank you, sunshine, for dropping by today. And believe me, I need you.

God bless you, pet.

wa min Allah at-taufiq.