--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you are irritated by every rub, how…" description: "\"If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?\" — Rumi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg" --- # If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be… ![“If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?” quote by Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg) > “If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?” [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑irritation prevents personal growth; inner peace requires letting go of minor annoyances. **In simple terms:** Being irritated stops self‑improvement. Key Takeaway Release minor irritations to grow. Themes self‑improvement inner peace mindfulness personal growth Mood contemplative serene Type spiritual self‑help When to use this quote - self‑help - spiritual practice - coaching sessions Key Concepts meditation journaling conflict resolution stress management Questions to Reflect On - What small annoyances cloud your judgment? - How can you cultivate calm in daily life? A Different Perspective Irritation can be a sign of deeper issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Irritated Rub](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/irritated-rub-3847435/) [Mirror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mirror/) [Mirror Polished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mirror-polished-3990007/) [Polished](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polished/) [Rub Mirror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rub-mirror-3990006/) ## Related quotes > [If you are irritated by every rub, how will you be polished?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-will-you-be-polished/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [A mind now clouded by the illusions of the innate darkness of life is like a tarnished mirror, but when polished, it is sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nichiren/a-mind-now-clouded-by-the-illusions-of-the-innate-darkness-of-life-is/) [Nichiren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nichiren/) > [“What sort of person says that he or she wants to be polished and pure, then complains about being handled roughly?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/what-sort-of-person-says-that-he-or-she-wants-to-be-polished-and-pure/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Everyone sees the unseen in proportion to the clarity of his hear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/everyone-sees-the-unseen-in-proportion-to-the-clarity-of-his-hear/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [The garden of the world has no limits except in your mind. Its presence is more beautiful than the stars with more clarity than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/the-garden-of-the-world-has-no-limits-except-in-your-mind-its/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Let Go of Your Worries Let go of your worries and be completely clear-hearted, like the face of a mirror that contains no images.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/let-go-of-your-worries-let-go-of-your-worries-and-be-completely-clear/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [The one who has a good friend doesn't need any mirror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/the-one-who-has-a-good-friend-doesn-t-need-any-mirror/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [The world is a mirror, an imaging of Love's perfection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/the-world-is-a-mirror-an-imaging-of-love-s-perfection/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“When I am with you, we stay up all night. When you're not here, I can't go to sleep. Praise God for these two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/when-i-am-with-you-we-stay-up-all-night-when-you-re-not-here-i-can-t-2/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [No mirror ever became iron again; No bread ever became wheat; No ripened grape ever became sour fruit. Mature yourself and be secure from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/no-mirror-ever-became-iron-again-no-bread-ever-became-wheat-no/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [We can't find the truth listening to our own voice's echo. We can find ourselves only in someone's mirror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/we-can-t-find-the-truth-listening-to-our-own-voice-s-echo-we-can-find/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Who then is free? The wise who can command his passions, who fears not want, nor death, nor chains, firmly resisting his appetites and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/who-then-is-free-the-wise-who-can-command-his-passions-who-fears-not/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [It's always the paragraphs I loved most, the ones I tenderly polished and re-read with pride, that my editor will suggest cutting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liane-moriarty/it-s-always-the-paragraphs-i-loved-most-the-ones-i-tenderly-polished/) [Liane Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liane-moriarty/) > [The frivolous work of polished idleness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mackintosh/the-frivolous-work-of-polished-idleness/) [James Mackintosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mackintosh/) > [I love to eat an apple after a meal, just to cleanse my teeth - they always look polished afterwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-zeta-jones/i-love-to-eat-an-apple-after-a-meal-just-to-cleanse-my-teeth-they/) [Catherine Zeta-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-zeta-jones/) ## More by Rumi > [The love religion is all that is written here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/the-love-religion-is-all-that-is-written-here/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [And so it is, that both the Devil and the angelic Spirit present us with objects of desire to awaken our power of choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/and-so-it-is-that-both-the-devil-and-the-angelic-spirit-present-us/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [We began as mineral. We emerged into plant life, and into the animal state, and then into being human, and always we have forgotten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/we-began-as-mineral-we-emerged-into-plant-life-and-into-the-animal/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [There is a morning inside you waiting to burst open into light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/there-is-a-morning-inside-you-waiting-to-burst-open-into-light/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Sometimes you hear a voice through the door calling you... This turning toward what you deeply love saves you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/sometimes-you-hear-a-voice-through-the-door-calling-you-this-turning/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“You’ve so distracted me, your absence fans my love. Don’t ask how. Then you come near. “Do not…” I say, and “Do not…,” you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/you-ve-so-distracted-me-your-absence-fans-my-love-don-t-ask-how-then/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [There is something to be said for anyone who sits alone with dignity and silently begs for God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/there-is-something-to-be-said-for-anyone-who-sits-alone-with-dignity/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Tis easy to break an idol, very easy: to regard the self as easy to subdue is folly, folly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/tis-easy-to-break-an-idol-very-easy-to-regard-the-self-as-easy-to/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Today, let us swim wildly, joyously in gratitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/today-let-us-swim-wildly-joyously-in-gratitude/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [I have no name for what circles so perfectly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/i-have-no-name-for-what-circles-so-perfectly/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [What draws friends together does not conform to the laws of nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/what-draws-friends-together-does-not-conform-to-the-laws-of-nature/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [We are born of love. Love is our mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/we-are-born-of-love-love-is-our-mother/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Water, stories, the body, all the things we do, are mediums that hid and show what's hidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/water-stories-the-body-all-the-things-we-do-are-mediums-that-hid-and/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [If your heart isn't yet illumined Be awake always, be a seeker of the heart, Be at war continually with your carnal soul. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-your-heart-isn-t-yet-illumined-be-awake-always-be-a-seeker-of-the/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“I came back to You because I could not find the kind and decent things I found in You anywhere else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/i-came-back-to-you-because-i-could-not-find-the-kind-and-decent/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) [Explore all 1,818 Rumi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) ## More Inspirational quotes > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We talk to God--that is prayer; God talks to us--that is inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-emilie-cady/we-talk-to-god-that-is-prayer-god-talks-to-us-that-is-inspiration/) [H. Emilie Cady](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-emilie-cady/) > [You cant be controlling in improv.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-walsh/you-cant-be-controlling-in-improv/) [Matt Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-walsh/) > [The man who can master his time can master nearly anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/the-man-who-can-master-his-time-can-master-nearly-anything/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Just understand that the good that you want is already here. All you have to do is get in harmony with it. And you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/just-understand-that-the-good-that-you-want-is-already-here-all-you/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the men to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-want-to-build-a-ship-don-t-drum-up-the-men-to-gather-wood/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [Obviously, if you don't love life, you can't enjoy an oyster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-clark/obviously-if-you-don-t-love-life-you-can-t-enjoy-an-oyster/) [Eleanor Clark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-clark/) > [It's not the method, it's the mindset.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gilbert/it-s-not-the-method-it-s-the-mindset/) [Andy Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gilbert/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. It's just this sense that you got something to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lehrer/it-s-a-hard-thing-to-describe-it-s-just-this-sense-that-you-got/) [Jonah Lehrer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lehrer/) > [Too much familiarity breeds contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/too-much-familiarity-breeds-contempt/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [We never really perceive what color is physically!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josef-albers/we-never-really-perceive-what-color-is-physically/) [Josef Albers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josef-albers/) > [Politics is not an issue whether you like or dislike , but every citizen must involve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khem-veasna/politics-is-not-an-issue-whether-you-like-or-dislike-but-every/) [Khem Veasna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khem-veasna/) > [God reveals Himself through surprises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/god-reveals-himself-through-surprises/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) [Browse all 114,561 Inspirational quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rumi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-will-your-mirror-be-polished/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Inspirational" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-will-your-mirror-be-polished/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b88/rumi-56_inspirational_if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-wi_2880582.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you are irritated by every rub, how will your mirror be polished?” — Rumi", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Rumi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you are irritated by every...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-will-your-mirror-be-polished/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/if-you-are-irritated-by-every-rub-how-will-your-mirror-be-polished/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```