Why Do You Stay in Prison When the Door Is So Wide Open?

There is a line from Rumi that echoes louder the older you get:

“Why do you stay in prison when the door is so wide open?”

You read that at 18 and it sounds pretty.
You read it at 30 and it burns.
You read it after betrayal, addiction, heartbreak, or waking up in a system that feeds on your soul — and suddenly it’s a scream.

This world teaches you to obey cages.
To fall in line.
To fear risk.
To forget your instincts.
To numb your heart until it stops calling for anything real.

We decorate our prisons:
– Paychecks as shackles
– Likes as illusions of love
– Degrees as certificates of worth
– Dead relationships as anchors
– Empty routines as proof we “belong” to something

But Rumi saw through all that.
He saw the invisible bars we build around ourselves.
And he didn’t yell “Break the walls.”
He whispered, “The door is already open.”

That’s what haunts me.

He didn’t say the door might open someday if you suffer enough, or if you earn enough, or if God decides you’re worthy.

He said: You’re free.
Right now.
The prison was a story.

So why do we stay?

Because it’s warm in there.
Because we’re told the outside is chaos.
Because our trauma made prison feel like home.
Because no one taught us how to walk toward light when darkness is all we’ve ever known.

But the door’s still open.

Your voice isn’t too small.
Your story isn’t too broken.
You are allowed to leave anything that kills your spirit — even if the world calls it “success.”

This line isn’t just about systems or governments or jobs.

It’s about the inner tyrant.

The one that says:

“Who are you to want more?”
“It’s too late.”
“You’ll die alone if you leave.”
“Just stay where it’s safe.”

But you weren’t born for a cage.

And you know it.

Somewhere in your ribs, something still beats with truth.
Maybe quiet. Maybe tired. But alive.

That’s the key.
That’s the way out.
That’s the part of you that Rumi was writing for.

Not the part that fits in.
The part that remembers.

So I ask you like he did —
Why do you stay in prison, when the door is so wide open?

Leave.

Even if you’re scared.
Even if you stumble.
Even if no one follows.

You’re not crazy for wanting out.

You’re awake.

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