M6:752 — زو قیامت را همی‌پرسیده‌اند / ای قیامت تا قیامت راه چند

Translation: From him they always asked about the Resurrection, / 'O Resurrection, how far is the road to Resurrection?' Meaning: People questioned the Prophet about the timing of the End of Days, unaware that he himself was the living embodiment of the Resurrection.

This stirring couplet from the Masnavi confronts and deconstructs the common, superficial understanding of qiyāmat (Resurrection or the End of Days) as a purely temporal, external event. In my view, this represents one of the Masnavi's deepest insights: qiyāmat is not something that will arrive in a distant future; rather, it is an internal event, a state of being that is actualized within the spiritual masters, and preeminently, within the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). It is for this reason that Mowlana emphatically states:

“Muhammad was a hundred Resurrections in cash, for he dissolved in the annihilation of all binding and loosing. Ahmed is a second birth in the world; he was a hundred Resurrections openly.”

He himself was a hundred immediate, present Resurrections. That is to say, the resurrection of the dead, the awakening of the slumbering, and the revival of history and souls, all flowed forth from his very being. So when people inquired of him, 'When is qiyāmat?' or 'How far is the road to qiyāmat?', their questions were fundamentally misplaced. They were asking the very embodiment of Resurrection, 'How far is the road to Resurrection?' This is akin to asking the ocean, 'Where is the water?' or the sun, 'When will the light come?'

The Prophet's response, conveyed through his 'language of state' (zabān-i ḥāl), was essentially: 'Who asks the Gathering about the Gathering?' How can one possibly inquire about the timing of the Gathering from the Gathering itself? 'I am the Resurrection,' he implicitly declared. 'Look at me, and you will see the Resurrection.' 'I am the one who raises the dead and awakens dormant souls.' This resonates deeply with the Sufi concept of 'second birth' (zāda-yi ṣānī), encapsulated in the dictum: Mūtū qabla an tamūtū—'Die before you die.' This refers to a voluntary, conscious death, not a natural one, leading to a new life and an inner resurrection. The recurring cycle of death and rebirth in nature, manifest in autumn and spring, constantly demonstrates the essence of qiyāmat. However, Mowlana elevates this natural example to the plane of human existence and internal transformation.

This profound insight is not exclusive to the Prophet; the awliyāʾ (spiritual saints) also, in Mowlana's words, possess 'within them a hundred Resurrections in cash.' They are living examples of qiyāmat. The least of their 'hidden miracles' (karāmāt-i khafī) is that anyone who sits near them is embraced by the warmth of their presence and the light of the Resurrection within them. They are like blazing furnaces, warming those around them. The existential influence and transformative power of these mystics constitute a form of resurrection in themselves, rather than ostentatious, overt miracles. Therefore, qiyāmat is not a deferred event; it is immediate and present, residing in awakened hearts and in the very being of the spiritual guides.

Key takeaways

• In Mowlana's view, qiyāmat (Resurrection) is an internal, transformative event, not merely an external, temporal occurrence at the end of the world.
• The Prophet and the spiritual masters embody the Resurrection; they possess a 'hundred Resurrections in cash' within their very being.
• Asking 'when?' or 'how far?' about qiyāmat reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of its true nature, as one cannot question the Resurrection itself about its timing.
• The Sufi principle of 'voluntary death' (mūtū qabla an tamūtū) paves the way for experiencing this immediate Resurrection and 'second birth'.
• The transformative and illuminating impact of the spiritual masters on those around them constitutes a 'hidden miracle' and an ongoing resurrection.