--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While still in the cage of your being…" description: "\"While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away.\" — Rumi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg" --- # While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit… ![“While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away.” quote by Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg) > “While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away.” [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. Recognize the inner potential before it vanishes, acting while inspiration remains alive. **In simple terms:** Notice your inner spark before it fades. Key Takeaway Act while inspiration is present. Themes spirituality self‑awareness impermanence Mood reflective contemplative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - creative work - personal growth - meditation - decision making Key Concepts Sufism inner potential Questions to Reflect On - How do you capture fleeting inspiration? - What prevents you from acting on inner urges? A Different Perspective The spirit may be fleeting; timing is crucial. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cage/) [Fly away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fly-away/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) ## Related quotes > [It's really sad how a bird flies away and never looks back for the one it left behind..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/it-s-really-sad-how-a-bird-flies-away-and-never-looks-back-for-the/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [A man of supreme folly: his life flies away while he is merely hoping to enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/a-man-of-supreme-folly-his-life-flies-away-while-he-is-merely-hoping/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [As a bee without harming the flower, its colour or scent, flies away, collecting only the honey, even so should the sage wander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gautama-buddha/as-a-bee-without-harming-the-flower-its-colour-or-scent-flies-away/) [Gautama Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gautama-buddha/) > [Make the most of time, it flies away so fast; yet method will teach you to win time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/make-the-most-of-time-it-flies-away-so-fast-yet-method-will-teach-you/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [To do something that will just fly away is kind of special. Every time somebody tell you they love you, that "I love you"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-buckley/to-do-something-that-will-just-fly-away-is-kind-of-special-every-time/) [Jeff Buckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-buckley/) > [When I was young I used to smother myself with olive oil mixed with a dash of vinegar to keep the flies away and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-beacham/when-i-was-young-i-used-to-smother-myself-with-olive-oil-mixed-with-a/) [Stephanie Beacham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-beacham/) > [My life flies away like a dream: Why should I stay behind?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-golding/my-life-flies-away-like-a-dream-why-should-i-stay-behind/) [Julia Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-golding/) > [Paint the flying spirit of the bird rather than its feathers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-henri/paint-the-flying-spirit-of-the-bird-rather-than-its-feathers/) [Robert Henri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-henri/) > [Oh, bird of my soul, fly away now, For I possess a hundred fortified towers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/oh-bird-of-my-soul-fly-away-now-for-i-possess-a-hundred-fortified/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [Wings of Love long only to fly away from all directions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/wings-of-love-long-only-to-fly-away-from-all-directions/) [Rumi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rumi/) > [“Thus, when you cry out, 'Greedy! Greedy!' to the bird that flies away with the big crust, you know now that you ought not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-barrie/thus-when-you-cry-out-greedy-greedy-to-the-bird-that-flies-away-with/) [J.M. Barrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-barrie/) > [Sometimes happiness is like a bird. The sweeter it sings, the faster it flies away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ngetich/sometimes-happiness-is-like-a-bird-the-sweeter-it-sings-the-faster-it/) [Patrick Ngetich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ngetich/) > [“The bird of youth flies away and doesn't come back. Fly, boy, fly!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-granado/the-bird-of-youth-flies-away-and-doesn-t-come-back-fly-boy-fly/) Alberto Granado > [You just go a little crazy, you know. Sometimes. And why? Well only because your soul is just too big for you, it flies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-joybell-c/you-just-go-a-little-crazy-you-know-sometimes-and-why-well-only/) [C. JoyBell C](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-joybell-c/) > [“Why is it that when Robert Redford-cum-Denys Finch Hatton flies away in the golden glow out of Africa, he is pursuing his destiny? And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-morris/why-is-it-that-when-robert-redford-cum-denys-finch-hatton-flies-away/) Holly Morris ## 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 Bird quotes > [And I have been very blessed, having coached some of the greatest that have ever played the game. But if I had to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-auerbach/and-i-have-been-very-blessed-having-coached-some-of-the-greatest-that/) [Red Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-auerbach/) > [Some minds corrode and grow inactive under the loss of personal liberty; others grow morbid and irritable; but it is the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/some-minds-corrode-and-grow-inactive-under-the-loss-of-personal/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [Set the bird's wings with gold and it will never again soar in thesky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/set-the-bird-s-wings-with-gold-and-it-will-never-again-soar-in-thesky/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [“He unfixes the metal notch and slips his hand around the body of the bird. Feels its heat, its small heart beating. He stares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-schuyler/he-unfixes-the-metal-notch-and-slips-his-hand-around-the-body-of-the/) Nina Schuyler > [I would rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-would-rather-learn-from-one-bird-how-to-sing-than-to-teach-10-000/) [e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Surely, God could have caused birds to fly with their bones made of solid gold, with their veins full of quicksilver, with their flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/surely-god-could-have-caused-birds-to-fly-with-their-bones-made-of/) [Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/) > [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/) [Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/) > [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/) [Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/) > [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/) [Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/) > [When they started to drain a swamp where birds and fish had lived, for a new housing development down the road from his apartment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maile-meloy/when-they-started-to-drain-a-swamp-where-birds-and-fish-had-lived-for/) [Maile Meloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maile-meloy/) > [The bird with the thorn in its breast, it follows an immutable law; it is driven by it knows not what to impale itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-mccullough/the-bird-with-the-thorn-in-its-breast-it-follows-an-immutable-law-it/) [Colleen McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-mccullough/) > [Real like sucks the life out of losers. if you want to fuck with the eagles, you must learn how to fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/real-like-sucks-the-life-out-of-losers-if-you-want-to-fuck-with-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If we studied birds ,maybe we could learn to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/if-we-studied-birds-maybe-we-could-learn-to-be-free/) [Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/) [Browse all 4,802 Bird quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rumi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-behold-the-spirit-bird-before/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bird" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-behold-the-spirit-bird-before/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/086/rumi-56_bird_while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-be_1211299.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“While still in the cage of your being behold the spirit bird before it flies away.” — 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": "While still in the cage of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-behold-the-spirit-bird-before/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rumi/while-still-in-the-cage-of-your-being-behold-the-spirit-bird-before/#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 } } ] } ```