M4:50 — هر کسی را هست اومید بری / که گشادندش در آن روزی دری

Rumi uses this couplet to generalize the lover's specific plight into a universal principle of the spiritual path. The story's protagonist had a single, transformative encounter with his beloved, a moment when a "door" opened. That door was then shut, leaving him with only the memory of that initial grace.

This beyt, along with the ones surrounding it, explains the psychology of the seeker (sālik). The spiritual path often begins with a moment of profound insight or connection—a taste of the divine reality. This initial opening, Rumi suggests, is a deliberate act by God to "stain the lips" of the seeker, creating a powerful thirst. The subsequent closing of that door is not a punishment but a necessary part of the path, designed to transform passive desire into active, relentless seeking. The memory of that first opening becomes the fuel for the long journey, keeping the seeker moving through periods of hope (rajāʾ) and despair (yaʾs), always oriented by the scent (bū) of that first encounter.