M6:3219 — چون به یک دکان بگفتی عمرم / این عمر را نان فروشید از کرم

Translation: If your name is Omar and you come to a city like Kashan, no one will sell you flatbread, not even for a hundred dangs. When you declared your name 'Omar' in one shop, they said: 'Sell this Omar bread, out of generosity.' Meaning: Rumi's parable depicts a person named 'Omar (symbolizing a superficial discord) entering a city whose inhabitants (symbolizing the hidden unity of existence) are sensitive to this name, illustrating how a misunderstanding or apparent duality can prevent one from receiving true spiritual sustenance.

In some instances, the Masnavi employs highly tangible and, indeed, humorous parables to elucidate complex mystical truths. The tale of the man named Omar who travels to the city of Kashan is one such example. We know that in Iran's history, cities like Qom, Kashan, and Sabzevar were bastions of Shi'ism during a period when the majority of the population was Sunni. Rumi harnesses this historical backdrop to convey a profound truth of the unity of existence.

Imagine a city where all shops, all merchants, all people, in a fundamental sense, are 'one.' This 'oneness' transcends mere outward unity; it is as if a single soul flows through all. Now, a man named 'Omar (a name historically unwelcome to Shi'ites in that context) enters this city and asks for bread from a shop. The shopkeeper, on account of this name, directs him to another shop, and the story repeats: 'Sell this Omar bread, out of generosity,' yet no bread is sold. Why? Because in that city, all shops and their inhabitants are, in reality, 'one.' If one refuses to give bread, no one will.

This parable is deeper than a sectarian dispute. It is a symbol of humanity's encounter with the singular truth of existence. If one approaches this unified sea of being with a 'name' or 'mindset' (symbolizing duality and a fragmented perception), one remains deprived of spiritual sustenance. This 'name Omar' can symbolize prejudices, preconceptions, or viewpoints that are incompatible with the unity flowing through the cosmos. Rumi uses the term ahwal, or 'dichromatic,' for this state. The ahwal man sees multiple shops, while in truth, they are all one.

The remedy? Rumi states: 'But if in one shop you had said 'Ali,' you would receive bread from here, without being sent away and without sorrow.' If you had spoken the name 'Ali' (symbolizing alignment with that unity or true self-knowledge), you would immediately receive bread and not be redirected. However, Rumi himself states elsewhere: 'So the living, standing Imam is that Wali, whether from the lineage of Omar or from Ali.' This indicates that Rumi looks beyond outward names to the 'truth' and 'meaning' of each name. The crucial point is to attain that singular vision, not merely to change a name from 'Omar' to 'Ali.' If the illumination of 'non-dichromatic vision' (singularity of sight) had shone upon that man's heart, he would have understood that in the realm of truth, there is no difference even between Omar and Ali. The important thing is to reach a station where one 'sees the Beloved pervading the arena of both worlds' and perceives the entire world filled with divine manifestations.

This story is, in fact, an exposition of human wandering in this 'Kashan full of fear and hope' (this material world). The person who is ahwal and sees truth as dual is constantly sent from one place to another—from one doctor to another, from one school of thought to another. But when the eye of the heart opens and perceives unity, one is saved from this 'being sent from place to place' and from aimlessness, as if one has found one's 'home.' This is the meaning of liberation from weariness and the filling of the soul's stream with pure water of knowledge, not with debris.

Key takeaways

• Unity of Existence: The city of Kashan, with its seemingly many shops, symbolizes the hidden unity of being.
• Deprivation of Spiritual Sustenance: Incompatible outward identities (the name 'Omar') prevent the reception of 'bread' (spiritual capital and sustenance).
• Dichromatic Vision (Ahwali): The failure to perceive the unity of existence leads to constant wandering and deprivation.
• Liberation from Aimlessness: By understanding the interconnectedness of the world and the truth of names, one is saved from perpetual redirection and meaninglessness.
• The Primacy of the Inner over the Outer: Rumi emphasizes the inner meaning of identity and perspective, beyond superficial names and differences.
• The Truth-Seeing Eye: Opening the eye that perceives the entire world as full of divine manifestations is the key to peace and union.