M6:6 — بوک فیما بعد دستوری رسد / رازهای گفتنی گفته شود

Translation: Perhaps, hereafter, permission may arrive, That speakable secrets may be spoken. Meaning: At the outset of Book Six, Rumi expresses his hope that, by divine permission, he may be able to articulate deeper mysteries that have hitherto remained veiled in allegory.

At the opening of the sixth, and final, book of the Masnavi, Rumi addresses Husam al-Din Chalabi and, in this couplet, unveils a profound secret. He states: "Perhaps, hereafter, permission may arrive, / That speakable secrets may be spoken." This clearly indicates Rumi's conviction that what he had articulated in the preceding five books was not the entirety of the "secrets"; rather, he had largely operated at the level of "subtle, hidden allusions" (kināyāt-e daqīq-e mostattar). He yearns and hopes that in the future—specifically, within this very Book Six—"permission may arrive" (a divine mandate, not a human one) to enable him to express the "speakable secrets" with a "closer, more direct articulation."

This notion of "permission arriving" is crucial. It does not imply Rumi's fear of revealing secrets, but rather that the utterance of these truths is not solely his to command; it is a gift that must be granted, an authorization that must come from the unseen. This itself points to a quasi-prophetic state in Rumi, which I have often emphasized: Rumi regarded himself as the "Tongue of God," not merely a poet or commentator. He believed his words constituted "revelation of the heart" (waḥy-e del), and thus, their utterance was subject to the will of the source of that revelation.

Thus, this anticipation and hope signify Rumi's deep humility before the fount of grace, and indeed, the boundless richness that he still held concealed within his soul. He means to convey that the Masnavi, in all its depth, is like an island in the ocean of meaning, but that ocean still holds untold secrets which, perhaps now, might be granted permission to emerge. These "secrets" are, of course, not of the intellectual or philosophical kind, to be unraveled by dialectic and argument; rather, they are truths of intuitive vision and inner experience, comprehensible only through "gnosis" (ʿerfān) and "secret-knowing" (rāz-shenāsī). The gnostic is one who 'smells'—who recognizes the fragrance of truth—and for whom these secrets are familiar.

However, Rumi immediately poses a vital question: If "permission" is granted and "secrets" are spoken, will every listener grasp them? "A secret shares itself only with a secret-knower; / A secret is no secret in the ear of a denier." This is a pivotal point in understanding mystical literature. Profound truths, even when articulated in the most explicit terms, will appear as ordinary and meaningless utterances to the unqualified and the "denier." Russian, to someone who doesn't understand it, is merely meaningless sounds. Therefore, being a "secret-knower" is an essential precondition for understanding the "secret," and this condition is contingent upon a "chest torn to pieces by separation" (sīneh sharḥe-sharḥe az ferāq) and genuine seeking.

Nevertheless, Rumi ultimately emphasizes that even with the awareness of the difficulty for all to comprehend these secrets, "the divine invitation is present" (daʿwat wāred ast az kerdgār), and it is his duty to speak. Like Noah, who preached for nine hundred years without regard for the "acceptance or rejection" of the people. He must convey what he has received, for the articulation of truth, irrespective of the audience's reception, is a divine imperative, a form of 'compulsion by the Almighty' (jabr-e jabbārī).

Key takeaways

• At the start of Book Six, Rumi expresses hope for divine permission to articulate deeper, previously unstated secrets.
• This 'permission' signifies Rumi's humility and the divine origin of his words, aligning with his self-perception as the 'Tongue of God'.
• The mentioned secrets are intuitive and experiential truths, transcending mere 'subtle, hidden allusions'.
• Understanding these secrets requires the listener to be a 'secret-knower'; they remain concealed from the uninitiated.
• Rumi's duty is to convey truth regardless of audience reception, akin to Noah's unwavering call.