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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Not doing the work God sent you for is the equivalent of "using a _____ bowl to cook turnips in.
(a) Iron.
(b) Silver.
(c) Gold.
(d) Jeweled.

2. Those who do not wake to the truth, according to Rumi, are those who do not embrace the beauty of __________.
(a) Nature.
(b) Lessons.
(c) God.
(d) Light.

3. Rumi uses the metaphor of being sent to do a task by a King, and forgetting in the poem "The _____ Work".
(a) Hard.
(b) Real.
(c) Easy.
(d) Fun.

4. The "___" is an illusion, according to Rumi, and this is why this part needs to be removed from the experience.
(a) Correctedness.
(b) I.
(c) Truth.
(d) Lesson.

5. Rumi describes a ______ that wakes up one day to discover that he is "the entire vineyard, and the orchard too."
(a) Ferret.
(b) Bird.
(c) Snake.
(d) Worm.

Short Answer Questions

1. Rumi suggests that human beings are like "some weird kind of ______ that wants to stay melted in the furnace."

2. Rumi gives a definition for what we are, "You are the strange business. You have the energy of the ______ in you."

3. Rumi states "This _____ began in some other tavern. When I get back around to that place I will be completely sober."

4. From talking to a ______ to eating cabbage broth, Rumi says that the tasks of everyday life bring a person into a spiritual realm.

5. Rumi relishes things like walking, meditation, and fasting as they help to bring a person into ____________.

Short Essay Questions

1. What are some of the ways a person will be able to bring themselves into the present moment, according to Barks?

2. What is the profession of Rumi when Barks introduces him at the beginning of this book?

3. What happens when you fast, according to the narrator of the poem, in one of Rumi's writings?

4. What happens with Joseph's shirt when he gives it to his brothers to help their father?

5. What does Rumi have to say about the road to Mecca when he is describing the idea that some mysteries aren't meant to be known?

6. What is the story of Ramahrishna that Rumi tells at the start of this section of the book?

7. What should a person do with their life instead of acting from fear, according to the writings of Rumi?

8. What does Rumi realize about his friend Shams when he doesn't believe that he is actually dead?

9. What does Rumi do when he is so impressed with the depth of the knowledge of Shams?

10. How does breathing help to calm a person, according to Barks' thoughts at the beginning of the section?

(see the answer keys)

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