A couple of comments.
These sayings of Mohammad are nice. How did they escape inclusion in the Quran? Who was the living teacher that he relied on?
The Commanding Self sounds similar to the Freudian “ego” although, in places, it sounds like it could be the “id”. Some would argue that the id is where our real essence lies, while the superego tries to make us good citizens.
I hold to the Jungian neo-gnostic developmental ideas wherein the ego is viewed as emerging from (created from) the unconscious matrix which is governed by the Self (envisioned as God). When Rumi talks of returning “home”, I read it as turning to the unconscious psyche (dreams, fantasies, etc) in order to discover one’s “true” or larger Self.
In alchemy the ego is symbolized by the sun, the unconscious by the moon. The goal is achieved through the marriage of sol et luna, the mysterium coniunctionis. The lapis philosophorum is born of that union.
As a (neo)gnostic, I am happy to submit to a process of self-discovery. However, “I” (my ego) does not submit to God any more than “I” (as woman) would submit to man. For me, and I am certain also for Rumi, God is a friend and an equal. Neither submits to the other.
Submission is easy. A partnership of equals is what is really really hard.
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Posted by Arizona on 02/15 at 01:06 AM
Segovious,
I agree that in order to submit, we need to shatter idols within ourselves (commanding/secondary self). But to submit (surrender) to God also means to serve Him/Her. And to serve God is to serve mankind, to be educationally and socially productive. Submission is an active process, both internally (struggle against secondary self) and externally (to serve humanity). A Sufi (sorry I forgot his name) said that the way is none other than service. Before Prophet Buddha found his spiritual path, he had to go outside his cage (the palace) and see reality. Prophet Muhammad didn’t contemplate at Cave Hira all the time either. He came back to serve his people.
Rumi said in WHISPERS OF LOVE (translated by Kabir Helmiski) that to love God is to serve God.
Lover whispers to my ear,
“Better to be a prey than a hunter.
Make yourself My fool.
Stop trying to be the sun and become a speck!
Dwell at My door and be homeless.
Don’t pretend to be a candle, be a moth,
so you may taste the savor of Life
and know the power hidden in serving.”
In this poetry he also speaks about becoming “fana” in total surrender, but…maybe we should save the “fana” stuff for some other time. 
peace,
Matahari
Posted by on 02/15 at 07:01 AM
Submission to a sufi has a deeper aspect. True submission has much less, if not anything, to do with obeying a teacher in order to achieve some aim. Real submission is the result of a change in being when the seeker actually enters the Work. From thereon, his journey is in the hands of a higher impulse.
Whether one looks to episodes in the life of Mohammed or various mystics, they have little to do with what befalls their interior lives. The dervish has made himself a willing vessel or channel. This connects as well to the Gurdjieffian notion that the higher one’s development, one may then be subject to less laws, but much more tightly bound to those left and may be called upon for higher service.
Posted by on 02/16 at 06:59 AM
Bravo!
Just remember what one wise man said “A healer is never welcome in his own town.”
In Light and Truth
∴ Mar Didymos
Posted by ∴ Mar Didymos on 02/17 at 03:10 AM
well, as regards ‘the other cheek’ there are many opinions. particularly the idea that using left hand for any purpose (including that of beating somebody) was considered har.. not kosher 
in the ancient jewish world.
Posted by andrew on 02/20 at 07:14 AM
Absolutely beautiful post. one of the best from this blog. i really loved it.
blessings,
Sadiq
http://mysticsaint.blogspot.com
Posted by Mysticsaint on 04/13 at 01:19 AM
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Submission
I thought I’d talk about submission - in both the religious sense and in a developmental one. In fact the two senses are in essence exactly the same but in religions the emphasis on it has been misunderstood.
What is the aim of esoteric developmental systems? Quite simply to subdue the lower nature and rise to something higher. In different conceptions this practice (ie the mystical training) is given differing names and has slightly different emphasis: in Zen the practice is conceived of as achieving ‘no mind’, in Sufism it is the ‘Commanding Self’ (which is seen as a false self - ie the personality - masquerading as the real) which must be overcome.
Based on these conceptions there are widely different methods used to achieve this: stilling the body in unusual postures, contemplation on certain themes or even as in the Malamati tradition the deliberate bringing of unjustified condemnation on oneself (ie to rein in the false self). By the way, this is often why debate is not useful as a tool in this area as it is essentially a platform for the Commanding Self. Abstinence from debate - especially when one feels most like shouting ‘Prepare For the Hammer of the Righteous’ - can be useful in this regard and things like this are things we can all do as duties to ourselves (if we wish - or should I say, if our real self wishes) without having necessarily following any specific path or teaching.