What do you think?
Rate this book
Doorkeeper of the Heart: Versions of Rabi'a
Rabia al-Adawiyya was an unconventional Muslim woman from Basra known as "the First of Sufis", the original Sufi poet-saint, a predecessor to Rumi and Hafiz. Rabia's passionate verses and witty teaching stories are designed to incite us to illumination. Thanks to the interpretations of Charles Upton, this may be the world's most accessible and meditative book on Rabia.
96 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
5 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 17, 2022
This book presents the life of perhaps the most inspiring woman in the history of Islam, Rabia al-'Adawiyh (ca. 717–801 CE), a former slave girl from Basra, Iraq, and author of the infamous line, “I love God: I have no time left in which to hate the devil.” Her influence was pivotal on the whole Sufi movement, and the whole notion of Islam as a path of love.
For Rabia, the most important line in the Quran was “He loves them and they love him” (5:54). This, she felt, was the real cornerstone of Islam. She thought the ultimate judgment of God was that all were loved, not that good and bad people must be separated into heaven and hell. That message seemed clear in the Quran’s verse 2:115—“Wherever you turn, there is the face of God.” Having no fear that she might be labeled a heretic, she reportedly carried a torch and a bucket of water through the streets of Basra, announcing that she would burn down paradise and extinguish the fires of hell (Upton, 48). In a love poem for God she declared,
… I would never stop serving You, even for a single moment—
if it were up to me.
But you put me under the power of one of your creatures—a man.
This is why I came to your service late. (p. 10)
With Rabia, the vast poetic tradition of regarding Allah as a cherished lover begins, as in a poem often ascribed to her:
O God, the stars are shining;
All eyes have closed in sleep:
The kings have locked their doors.
Each lover is alone, in secret with the one he loves
And I am here too: alone, hidden from all of them—with You. (p. 66)
It also seems that Rabia was the first Muslim poet to treat wine as a symbol of spiritual love:
Cup, Wine, and Friend make three:
And I, thirsty with love, am Four …
The Cupbearer hands to each, one after another
The cup of unending joy (p. 3)
Refusing all offers of marriage and even of patronage, she preferred to live independently, spending her days in conversation, mainly with her female friends, though she also hosted discussions with male scholars and preachers. In choosing this way of life, it seems she was less devoted to chastity than to autonomy. She reportedly wrote,
I set up house for you in my heart
as a Friend that I could talk with,
gave my body to someone else
who wanted to embrace it.
This body, all in all, is good enough for embracing—
but the Friend who lives in my house
is the lover of my heart. (p. 4)
As she began teaching and attracting disciples, a group of religious men came to challenge her. They accused her of presumption, explaining, “All the virtues have been scattered on the heads of men. The crown of prophethood has been placed on men’s heads. The belt of nobility has been fastened around men’s waists. No woman has ever been a prophet.” Rabia answered, “All of that is true, but egoism and self-worship and ‘I am your Lord’ have never sprung from a woman’s breast. ... All these things have been the specialty of men.”
For Rabia, the most important line in the Quran was “He loves them and they love him” (5:54). This, she felt, was the real cornerstone of Islam. She thought the ultimate judgment of God was that all were loved, not that good and bad people must be separated into heaven and hell. That message seemed clear in the Quran’s verse 2:115—“Wherever you turn, there is the face of God.” Having no fear that she might be labeled a heretic, she reportedly carried a torch and a bucket of water through the streets of Basra, announcing that she would burn down paradise and extinguish the fires of hell (Upton, 48). In a love poem for God she declared,
… I would never stop serving You, even for a single moment—
if it were up to me.
But you put me under the power of one of your creatures—a man.
This is why I came to your service late. (p. 10)
With Rabia, the vast poetic tradition of regarding Allah as a cherished lover begins, as in a poem often ascribed to her:
O God, the stars are shining;
All eyes have closed in sleep:
The kings have locked their doors.
Each lover is alone, in secret with the one he loves
And I am here too: alone, hidden from all of them—with You. (p. 66)
It also seems that Rabia was the first Muslim poet to treat wine as a symbol of spiritual love:
Cup, Wine, and Friend make three:
And I, thirsty with love, am Four …
The Cupbearer hands to each, one after another
The cup of unending joy (p. 3)
Refusing all offers of marriage and even of patronage, she preferred to live independently, spending her days in conversation, mainly with her female friends, though she also hosted discussions with male scholars and preachers. In choosing this way of life, it seems she was less devoted to chastity than to autonomy. She reportedly wrote,
I set up house for you in my heart
as a Friend that I could talk with,
gave my body to someone else
who wanted to embrace it.
This body, all in all, is good enough for embracing—
but the Friend who lives in my house
is the lover of my heart. (p. 4)
As she began teaching and attracting disciples, a group of religious men came to challenge her. They accused her of presumption, explaining, “All the virtues have been scattered on the heads of men. The crown of prophethood has been placed on men’s heads. The belt of nobility has been fastened around men’s waists. No woman has ever been a prophet.” Rabia answered, “All of that is true, but egoism and self-worship and ‘I am your Lord’ have never sprung from a woman’s breast. ... All these things have been the specialty of men.”
January 18, 2011
Rabi'a writes the MOST BEAUTIFUL POETRY. Seriously. And it is, of course, very meaningful too, and surprisingly relevant, too, considering it's about 1300 years old.
November 5, 2019
i wrote an essay on this one. the essay was trash. i didn't understand the poetry very much but i liked it :)
September 7, 2009
I asked my library to order this book and thankfully they did, though it took a couple months to find. It is a very short introduction to a history of Rabi'a, a female Sufi mystic who lived 500 years before the famous Sufi poet Rumi. The book gives an outline of her life, and a few legends about her, and compares her to some of the Christian mystics. The versions of Rabi'a are the poetry, miracle stories, and dream fables written either by her or her followers, especially Hasan of Basra. The end of the book also features three poems by Jennifer Doane, "in the Spirit of Rabi'a", as well as a Bibliography.
I liked it when they said "If Rumi is the Ocean, Rabi'a is the Well. If Rumi has sheer ecstatic energy and compacted multidimensional meanings, Rabi'a has virgin clarity and undistracted focus."
I enjoyed these poems and stories#1, 17, 21, 22, 26, 33, 47, 57, 59, and 66.
I liked it when they said "If Rumi is the Ocean, Rabi'a is the Well. If Rumi has sheer ecstatic energy and compacted multidimensional meanings, Rabi'a has virgin clarity and undistracted focus."
I enjoyed these poems and stories#1, 17, 21, 22, 26, 33, 47, 57, 59, and 66.
September 17, 2019
I have so many questions about Rabi'a's life and this was a great text to keep exploring them. Charles Upton's comparisons between Rumi and Rabi'a and Christianity and Islam felt out of place -- but the beauty in his "Biographical Legends" makes up for that! Besides, the best part of the text were the actual poetry!
June 20, 2009
Short biography of Rabi'a with several sayings and teachings ascribed to her. Really thought-provoking, and wish it was a longer book!
December 13, 2013
Skip the introduction and read the rest!
February 4, 2025
“O God, Take away the words of the devil
That mix with my prayer–
If not, then take my prayer as it is, devil and all.”
—
“I spun some yarn to sell for food
And sold it for two silver coins.
I put a coin in each hand
Because I was afraid
That if I put both together in one hand
This great pile of wealth might hold me back.”
—
“The source of my grief and loneliness is deep in my breast.
This is a disease no doctor can cure.
Only Union with the Friend can cure it.
I was not born to the Grief of God–
I only grieve to be like those
Who are pierced with the Love of God–
I would be ashamed for my love
To appear less than the grief of others:
Therefore I grieve.”
—
“In love, nothing exists between breast and Breast.
Speech is born out of longing,
True description from the real taste.
The one who tastes, knows;
The one who explains, lies.
How can you describe the true form of Something
In whose presence you are blotted out?
And in whose being you still exist?
And who lives as a sign for your journey?”
—
“I love God: I have no time left
In which to hate the devil.”
—
“O Lord,
You neither open to me the door of Your mansion
Nor Let me rest in my own house—
Either invite me in at Mecca
Or leave me alone at Basra!
Once I wanted You so much
I didn’t even dare walk past Your house—
And now
I am not even worthy to be let in.”
—
“O God!
If I adore You out of fear of Hell, burn me in Hell!
If I adore You out of desire for Paradise,
Lock me out of Paradise.
But if I adore You for Yourself alone,
Do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.”
—
“My soul, how long will you go on falling asleep
And waking up again?
The tie is almost here when you will fall into so deep a sleep
That only the Trumpet of Resurrection
Will have the power to wake you.”
—
“How long will you keep pounding on an open door
Begging for someone to open it?”
That mix with my prayer–
If not, then take my prayer as it is, devil and all.”
—
“I spun some yarn to sell for food
And sold it for two silver coins.
I put a coin in each hand
Because I was afraid
That if I put both together in one hand
This great pile of wealth might hold me back.”
—
“The source of my grief and loneliness is deep in my breast.
This is a disease no doctor can cure.
Only Union with the Friend can cure it.
I was not born to the Grief of God–
I only grieve to be like those
Who are pierced with the Love of God–
I would be ashamed for my love
To appear less than the grief of others:
Therefore I grieve.”
—
“In love, nothing exists between breast and Breast.
Speech is born out of longing,
True description from the real taste.
The one who tastes, knows;
The one who explains, lies.
How can you describe the true form of Something
In whose presence you are blotted out?
And in whose being you still exist?
And who lives as a sign for your journey?”
—
“I love God: I have no time left
In which to hate the devil.”
—
“O Lord,
You neither open to me the door of Your mansion
Nor Let me rest in my own house—
Either invite me in at Mecca
Or leave me alone at Basra!
Once I wanted You so much
I didn’t even dare walk past Your house—
And now
I am not even worthy to be let in.”
—
“O God!
If I adore You out of fear of Hell, burn me in Hell!
If I adore You out of desire for Paradise,
Lock me out of Paradise.
But if I adore You for Yourself alone,
Do not deny to me Your eternal beauty.”
—
“My soul, how long will you go on falling asleep
And waking up again?
The tie is almost here when you will fall into so deep a sleep
That only the Trumpet of Resurrection
Will have the power to wake you.”
—
“How long will you keep pounding on an open door
Begging for someone to open it?”
February 4, 2021
I love Rabi'a poems. "The Holy Water" and "It Acts Like Love" are some of my favorites. There were no titles in this translation of her works and it doesn't include some of the others I have read. For interested persons Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West (Ladinsky) has more of her poetry along with some of the other mystic saints of the world. In this one, I could have done without the miracle stories. The simple wisdom of a slave sometimes is so much more valuable than that of ten scholars. Rabi'a exemplifies that...
I don't want the House,
I want the Lord of the House.
What could I do with the Kaaba if I had it?
It's the most famous idol in the world.
God isn't inside it, He isn't outside of it-
The truth is, He doesn't need it.
I don't want the House,
I want the Lord of the House.
What could I do with the Kaaba if I had it?
It's the most famous idol in the world.
God isn't inside it, He isn't outside of it-
The truth is, He doesn't need it.
May 10, 2019
I love diving in and out of this beatiful book.
February 4, 2023
"How long will you keep pounding an open door ... Begging for someone to open it?"
March 6, 2023
Not a very good book because he basically took every random poem he could find attributed to Rabia and put it in a book. I recommend Rkia Cornell's Rabi'a From Narrative to Myth.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews