Relativity in the Mathnawí
By: Fraidoon Warasta (link)
“And it may be that you dislike a thing while it is good for you, and it may be
that you love a thing while it is evil for you, and God knows, while you do not know.”
Quran: 2,216
“ Hence there is no absolute evil in the world: evil is relative. Know this truth also.” Mathnawi: 4,65
In Sufism, the perception of the reality of phenomena as they are, is a part of gnosis – spiritual knowledge( Bínesh-Ma‘rifat). The attainment of this spiritual state or stage[1] requires clear observation and perception of subjects without any prior knowledge , prejudice, justification, approval, disapproval, or rejection. This state of awareness is also called “Musháhada”, which literally means “witnessing”. We can only discover and enjoy the beauty of life’s phenomena by witnessing when all activities of our mind have ceased . Witnessing is a state of heart which transcends our mental and intellectual abilities. It only occurs when there is LOVE. A deep understanding of actuality (that which is truly real) and the abandoning of all imaginary notions (the things we wish for) are important parts of witnessing, since the actuality (that which is truly real) gives clear evidence of the facts in our daily lives, whereas the desire for the things we wish for is absolutely imaginary.
Many Sufi Masters believe that verse 17 of Súra 53 - Súra an-Najm (“the Súra of the Star”) - where God says: “The eyes did not waver, nor go blind” refers to this profound state of contemplation or witnessing which the Prophet Muhammad experienced during his Mi’ráj (“Ascension”, the Prophets mystical ascent to the Highest Station in Heaven, i.e. to the Ultimate Divine Presence), when the reality of all phenomena became clearly manifest to him. Up until the time of the Mir‘áj, the Prophet had always longed to become able to discover and witness the reality of all phenomena. So he had been praying incessantly, asking God to reveal the profundity of the issues of life to him, in these words: “O God, show me things as they are in reality.” (Alláhumma, ariní’l-ashyá’ kamá híya) .
Every object or phenomenon conceals a profound hidden meaning which we mostly do not see, as our mental abilities are limited by our prior knowledge of matters, events and people. We use this prior knowledge, which acts as a veil, to classify things as right or wrong. Yet the truth of things may be the opposite of what we believe.
Mawlana Rumi clarifies this extensively to make us understand that every object or phenomenon should be seen in its relation to its direct or exact opposite, its antithesis . This spiritual-philosophical analysis in the Mathnawí is one of the most captivating aspects of Rumi’s teaching. Through his teaching, he unravels various mysteries in a truly fascinating and inspiring way.
He declares that since all aspects of Life are interrelated, we simply cannot establish the goodness or badness of life’s issues with absolute certainty. In the Mathnawí he states that certain factors create a barrier between us and the profundity of life’s phenomena:
Our assumptions and speculations:
When self-interest appears, virtue becomes hidden: a hundred veils
rise from the heart to the eye.
Mathnawí:1, 334
The way we consider right as right and wrong as wrong depends on the way we think. This way of thinking leads us to make approximative assumptions about the reality of subjects. In other words: our speculations and the way they work make us determine the goodness or badness of matters. But in truth, these wrong speculations, which stem from our minds, prevent us from seeing the face of reality, and the power of our judgmental attitude generates a delusive, distorted and deceitful image of actual facts.
Our feelings and thoughts:
If you are narrow-hearted from being engaged in combat,
you believe the whole atmosphere of the world to be narrow;
And if you are happy as your friends would desire, this world
seems like a garden of roses to you.
Mathnawi:4,2371,2372
O brother, you are your very thought;
as for the rest of you, you are only bone and fibre.
If your thought is a rose, you are a rose-garden;
and if it is a thorn, you are fuel for the bath-stove.
Mathnawi:277,278
Our feelings also play an essential role in labelling things as “good” or “bad”. Mawlana declares how our feelings and thoughts affect our views of all things. When we are in an unpleasant frame of mind, in a state of anger for instance, we evidently will send out negative vibrations, which could poison not only ourselves but others as well, and thus change our views.
The way our mind works plays a fundamental and vital part in the shaping of our views, because in reality we are what we think and the way we think creates our lives. Wrong thoughts generate wrong views, which in turn produce wrong actions, resulting in sorrow and suffering.
Our views:
You held a blue glass before your eye: for that
reason the world seemed to you to be blue.
Mathnawi: 1,1329
The glasses of diverse colour make that Light
seem coloured like this to our eyes.
When the many-coloured glasses have gone,
then the colourless Light astonishes you.
Accustom yourself to look at the Light without
the glass, so that when the glass is shattered
you may not be blind.
Mathnawi: 5,989,990,991
In most cases it is man who determines in his own mind what is right or wrong. If we look through a blue glass everything will seem blue to us. The blue glass in this verse symbolizes our view, which is formed by our wrong thoughts. These wrong views will lead to more frustration and unhappiness.
Factual realization:
To the snake, snake-poison is life, but to man it is death.
The sea is as a garden to the water-creatures;
to the creatures of earth it is death and a painful brand.
Consider likewise, o man of experience, examples of this
relativity from a single individual to a thousand.
Mathnawi:4,68,69,70
The wars of mankind are for the sake of Beauty;
the leafage without leaves is the sign of the Túbá tree.[2]
The angers of mankind are for the sake of Peace;
restlessness is always the snare for Rest.
Every blow is for the sake of fondness;
every complaint makes you aware of gratitude
(due for benefits received).
Breathe the odour all the way from the part to the Whole, o noble one;
Breathe the odour all the way from opposite to opposite, o wise one.
Assuredly wars bring peace; the snake-catcher sought
the snake for the purpose of friendship.
Mathnawi: 3, 989, 990, 991, 992 and 993
If you properly understood this injustice shown
towards you by the people in the world, it is
a hidden treasure of gold.
The people are made to be so evil-natured towards you,
that your face may inevitably be turned to the Other Side.
Mathnawi: 5, 1521-1522
Bad events may bring about good things, and disastrous events may yield favourable results in the end. By measuring and analyzing these events with our conditioned and limited minds, we hide the facts.
There is no doubt that when all activities of our mind come to a halt and the mind reaches the inner realm of passive stillness, a transformation will take place, enabling us to enter a state in which we understand the relativity of phenomena.
Another illustration is distinguishing an arid desert from a green rose garden: if there is no man on earth to distinguish, judge or compare these two things, the arid desert will simply be a desert and the rose garden will simply be a rose garden.
That world is nothing but everlasting and flourishing,
because it is not composed of contraries.
Mathnawi: 6, 56
This world, indeed, is the prison of your souls:
oh, go in that other direction, for there lies your open country.
This world is finite, and truly that other is infinite:
image and form are a barrier to that Reality.
Mathnawi: 1, 525 and 526
Unbiased detachment from concepts such as liking and disliking, categorizing things as good or bad, as beautiful or ugly, as positive or negative, will help us to see things clearly, as they really are. This liberation from attachment is the first step towards transcending duality or multiplicity (Kathtrat). Going beyond the world of opposites means entering the world of Lá Makán – literally meaning “No Place” or “No Space”[3] – or ‘Adam – “Non-existence” or “Non-Being”, where all phenomena are absorbed in the Oceans of Unity (Wahdat).
Text written by Fraidoon Warasta
With the cooperation of Wazi Dayers
22/03/2009
Essex, UK
[1] In Sufi terminology, a clear distinction is made between “state” and “stage”. “State” (hál) denotes a temporary condition, whereas “stage” or “station” (maqám) refers to a permanent level of attainment.
[2] Túbá Tree: a tree in Paradise.
[3] I.e. “the Placeless Realm”, the place of the deity, where there is no space and time, a state beyond our conception.