M6:663 — بعد از آن این دو به بیهوشی روند / والد و مولود آن‌جا یک شوند

Translation: After that, these two proceed into a state of unconsciousness; There, the parent and the child (or cause and effect) become one. * Meaning:* This verse describes the pinnacle of mystical experience, where dualistic distinctions, including those between cause and effect, dissolve into a state of ecstatic unity and unconsciousness of separation.

This verse unveils a profound truth and one of the Masnavi's peaks of knowledge: the moment of complete union and the dissolution of dualities in mystical experience. The phrase "After that, these two proceed into a state of unconsciousness" (بعد از آن این دو به بیهوشی روند) is crucial. It implies a preceding condition: after the mutrib (spiritual guide/music) and sharāb (divine wine) have exerted their full effect, the mind transcends ordinary distinctions. This "unconsciousness" (bihūshī) is not mere insensibility or lack of awareness; it is the very essence of a higher consciousness, one where multiplicity reverts to unity and forms disappear. This is the "effacement" (muḥw) that Mawlana repeatedly emphasizes, as opposed to "grammar" (naḥw) which deals with distinctions and analysis. Muḥw signifies vanishing and annihilation.

"There, the parent and the child become one" (والد و مولود آن‌جا یک شوند) is the pinnacle of Mawlana's philosophical and mystical expression. Vālid and Mawlood can be interpreted as parent and child, or more profoundly, as cause and effect. In this state of ecstasy and union, there is no longer a distinction between the creator and the created, or between the cupbearer and the one who drinks the wine. All roots and branches, origins and outcomes, merge and become one. This is the "unity" in which not only do two things coalesce, but the very concept of duality itself ceases to exist. This oneness is the result of that extreme proximity where even the veil of confusion is lifted. As Mawlana says later, "Extreme proximity is the veil of confusion" (غایة القرب حجاب الاشتباه). That is, the intensity of closeness itself becomes a veil, making distinction difficult; but at this mystical apex, this difficulty leads to the complete dissolution of distinction. There is no longer a place for "this" and "that"; for "these two" are no longer two, they have become "one."

I have often stated that Mawlana teaches us that the world is a mirror of unity, if only our eye is "soul-seeing" (jān-bīn) and not "body-seeing" (tan-bīn). Here, this unity becomes so profound that even fundamental contrasts of life, such as "joy and sorrow," reconcile in a grand harmony: "When joy and sorrow made peace" (چون که کردند آشتی شادی و درد). This is not a negation of joy or sorrow, but a transcendence of their categorization; it is reaching a station where even these two opposing poles of human experience are absorbed into a single, transcendent reality. In this realm, the musicians do not merely sleep, but "our departure awakened the musicians" (مطربان را ترک ما بیدار کرد); that is, this unique and exhilarating experience not only leads the mystic to ecstasy but also purifies the spiritual guides themselves, bringing them to a deeper realization. This is the ultimate vusūl (union) that the Masnavi promises.

Key takeaways

• "Unconsciousness" in Mawlana's mysticism signifies a state of transcendent awareness where mental distinctions collapse.
• The unity of "parent and child" (walid and mawlood) refers to the dissolution of boundaries between cause and effect, and creator and created, in the experience of oneness.
• Extreme divine proximity leads to a point where apparent distinctions (linguistic homonymy) yield to inner unity (unity of meaning).
• In this mystical station, even fundamental life opposites like "joy" and "sorrow" achieve reconciliation and integration.
• This union is the result of the profound influence of the spiritual guide (mutrib) and divine intoxication (wine) upon the seeker.
• "Unconsciousness" in this context indicates muḥw (effacement) and annihilation in the Divine Essence, rather than absence or unawareness.