This opening couplet establishes the ghazal's central theme: a radical, ecstatic transformation brought about by the arrival of divine Love. The speaker presents a series of stark antitheses to describe this change, moving from states of spiritual death and sorrow to life and joy: "I was dead, I became alive; I was weeping, I became laughter." This is not a gradual process but a sudden, complete reversal of being. The cause of this metamorphosis is revealed in the second line: the coming of the "fortune of Love" (dolat-e 'eshq). The term dolat is key, meaning not just fortune but also sovereignty or empire. Love arrives like a conquering king, establishing its rule over the speaker's soul.

The most profound turn occurs in the final phrase, where the speaker doesn't just receive fortune but becomes it: "I became an everlasting fortune" (dolat-e pāyandeh shodam). The self is no longer a passive recipient of a temporary state but is alchemically fused with the eternal, dynamic power of Love itself. This couplet sets the stage for the dialogue that follows in the ghazal, where a divine voice tests the speaker (beyt 3-9), prompting further stages of this transformation. The initial claim of becoming "everlasting fortune" is the explosive premise that the rest of the poem will explore and justify.