M6:581 — گر ز بی‌سویت ندادست او علف / چشم جانت چون بماندست آن طرف

Translation: If from His placeless realm He has not given you fodder, Why has your soul's eye remained fixed upon that side? Meaning: Rumi questions why, if nothing has come to us from God's placeless essence, our spiritual eye constantly yearns towards it. This inherent yearning is proof of a prior connection and sustenance.

This profound and richly meaningful verse is one of Rumi’s most direct expressions of humanity’s innate pull towards the eternal, boundless Beloved. He addresses the seeker, asking: If the Placeless, the Directionless God, has never bestowed upon you spiritual sustenance, or “fodder” for your existence, from His realm of no-where, then why does the eye of your soul remain perpetually fixed upon “that side”? Why does it constantly turn towards Him, consumed by His sweet madness?

Here, Rumi emphasizes the fitra, the innate disposition of humankind, which, as it were, speaks of a pre-existence with the Beloved. This unconscious inclination towards God serves as evidence that our souls have, in the past, received nourishment and sustenance from that placeless, directionless domain. Were it not so, the eye of our soul would never be drawn in that direction. Just as a cat, once fed from a certain hole, instinctively returns to it, or prisoners, knowing that freedom lies beyond a gate, constantly gaze at that door, these are analogies to explain this primordial pull.

We have come from Him; once, we were companions, existing with Him in the realm of the unseen and beyond nature. Now, having descended into this world of alienation, we have not forgotten our true home. This ache of yearning and the soul’s involuntary impulse to connect with the Divine is conclusive proof of that primordial bond. Rumi, as he notes elsewhere, interprets the evolutionary and intensifying trajectory of beings thus: God is not merely the Origin of origins (mabda al-mabadi) but also the Goal of goals (ghayat al-ghayat). This means everything that appears in existence holds a hidden love within its essence, drawing it towards its source and ultimate destination—the Divine Essence. We are infatuated with Him, and the quest for revival, for true life, testifies that our nature was not mere dust seeking life, but had already drunk from the fountain of life before.

This Beloved is a “majestic” (محتشم) one, possessing both power and love. Influenced by Ash’arite thought, Rumi sometimes depicts God as a “bloodthirsty lion” (شیر نر خون‌خواره), before whose infinite majesty and power there is no recourse but submission and contentment. Yet, this power is mingled with a “sweet melancholy” (خوش‌سودا) that renders souls sleepless and foodless, calling them towards Him. This fervor and divine madness are signs of that sustenance, that “fodder,” which, unknowingly, has reached our very being from the placeless source.

Key takeaways

• Humanity's innate inclination towards God is proof of our soul's prior connection with the Divine essence.
• If no spiritual sustenance had come to us from God's placeless realm, our soul's eye would not constantly turn towards Him.
• This natural disposition towards God-knowledge is the 'fitra,' which, unobstructed, gravitates towards the Truth.
• Rumi perceives the Beloved as both immensely powerful ('bloodthirsty lion') and loving and gracious ('sweet melancholy'), uniting majesty with affection.
• The soul's yearning for the Divine is akin to a cat returning to its food source or a prisoner gazing at the door of release.