Relish is needed for devotions to bear fruit.

Excerpt

He performs the devotions and acts enjoined by law, Yet derives not an atom of relish from them. Outward devotion is sweet to him, spirit is not sweet, Nuts in plenty, but no kernel in any of them. Relish is needed for devotions to bear fruit, Kernels are needed that seeds may yield trees. How can seeds without kernels become trees? Form without soul is only a dream.

Source Masnavi, Book II, Story XV, §4 · 📖 Read the full passage

✨ To meditate on today

According to Rumi, the Persian Sufi poet, God explains to the prophet Shu‘aib (Jethro) that a man can perform every devotion without tasting its joy, like a nut without a kernel: it is the joy of the heart that makes prayer bear fruit, as the kernel turns a seed into a tree. Today, before a prayer or a duty, take a moment to put your heart into it and find a reason for joy in it.

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