M1:1733 — قافیه اندیشم و دلدار من / گویدم مندیش جز دیدار من

Translation: I think of rhyme, but my Beloved / Tells me: 'Think of nothing but My vision.' Meaning: This verse conveys Mowlana's conscious decision to set aside formal poetic concerns like rhyme and linguistic embellishment, as his Divine Beloved instructs him to focus solely on beholding Him, allowing no other thought to occupy his mind.

This couplet, without a doubt, offers one of the essential keys to understanding Mowlana's unique method of composing the Masnavi, a method he himself explicitly unveils. Here, Mowlana candidly states, "qāfīyeh andīsham" (I think of rhyme), meaning that as a poet, his mind naturally inclines towards the selection of rhymes and the adornment of words. However, he is immediately confronted with a command from his "del-dār" (Beloved) who tells him: "mandīsh joz dīdār-e man" (Think of nothing but My vision). This is a clear prohibition; a prohibition against any thought that is not the vision of the Beloved, and naturally, the consideration of rhyme falls under this comprehensive injunction.

I have consistently emphasized over the years that Mowlana's style in the Masnavi is "natural" and "un-crafted." He does not force himself into artifice or the embellishment of linguistic form; rather, his words flow like a spring gushing from the heart of a mountain. This couplet serves as a testament issued by Mowlana himself on this very point. He is not pursuing "craftsmanship," as Hafez was. Hafez, with his long and fruitful life, left behind only about 450 ghazals; ghazals that he spent hours and days "enameling" (mīnāgarī), carving and polishing them to reach their rhetorical perfection. The multiple and sometimes differing versions of a single ghazal by Hafez attest to his continuous revisions aimed at achieving that unparalleled subtlety. But what of Mowlana? Over fourteen years, he composed sixty thousand verses of poetry—25-26 thousand verses in the Masnavi and 35 thousand in the Divan-e Shams. This immense volume of creation could only be achieved by setting aside "rhyme-thinking" and surrendering his heart to the "vision of the Beloved."

I do not consider this a weakness, but rather Mowlana's strength and distinguishing characteristic. This disregard for outward form allows him to transcend "word and letter and sound" and speak directly with his "Beloved": "lafẓ o ḥarf o ṣowt rā bar ham zanam / tā ke bī īn har seh bā to dam zanam" (I will shatter word and letter and sound / So that without these three, I may converse with You). He seeks that "breath" (dam) which even Gabriel is unaware of, and Adam does not comprehend. This indicates that Mowlana's goal is not merely to convey an intellectual or philosophical message; rather, he wishes to transmit the pure and unmediated experience of vision—an experience that ordinary language is incapable of expressing, and which language must sacrifice itself for, to make way for intuition. The Masnavi is not a book with predefined introductions and arrangements, but a "travelogue of the soul" that flows according to ḥāl (spiritual state), and this couplet is the fundamental manifesto of that natural and unmediated current.

Key takeaways

• The Beloved calls Mowlana to disregard rhyme and focus solely on His vision.
• This couplet is the core manifesto of the Masnavi's 'un-crafted' and 'natural' composition style.
• Mowlana consciously sacrifices superficial linguistic beauty for direct divine inspiration and intuition.
• Mowlana's prolific output contrasts sharply with Hafez's meticulous polishing of ghazals.
• The ultimate goal is to transcend 'word and letter and sound' for unmediated union with the Beloved.
• The Masnavi manifests spiritual 'state' (ḥāl) and ecstasy, not literary contrivance or planning.