M6:1257 — چون درینجا نیست وجه زیستن / بر چنین خانه بباید ریستن »

Translation: Since in this house there is no means of living, Upon such a house, one must ‘rīstan’ (defecate upon it, deem it a privy). Meaning: Rumi, through the voice of a beggar, asserts that a house utterly devoid of life-giving substance or purpose holds no value for living and is fit only for defilement. This is a stark metaphor for the profound worthlessness of an empty inner life.

I wish to delve into verse M6:1257 of the Masnavi, situated within a profoundly wise narrative. Rumi, as is his custom, often interweaves several stories to illuminate a single point, and this verse is a prime example. He had earlier begun the tale of an old woman, intent on adorning herself for a party, yet finding nothing of worth within her being to display. This served as a poignant metaphor for an empty inner self, a soul devoid of merit. Following this, he introduces the story of a dervish who approached a house seeking bread, fat, flour, and water, only to be met with the homeowner's sarcastic replies: “This is neither a bakery, a butcher, a mill, nor a river.”

When the beggar, empty-handed and disillusioned, returned, his reaction was startling. He hiked up his robe, intending to “defecate” (rīstan) in that desolate house. Here, Rumi employs a remarkably stark and explicit word. When the homeowner cried out, questioning his actions, the beggar replied: “Be silent, grim one, that I may relieve myself in this ruin, Since here there is no means of living, upon such a house one must ‘rīstan’.”

This verse, and indeed the entire tale, though humorous, carries a biting and profoundly ethical message. Rumi interprets this empty house as an allegory for the “house of the heart” and the “house of the mind.” A house where no knowledge is found, no good deeds, no virtuous intention, no spiritual excellence, and no inner insight; such a being is utterly hollow and devoid of substance. At this juncture, Rumi, with decisive and forthright tone, asks: “What good is such a being?” Such a person, he implies, will only produce base and contemptible acts, serving no other useful purpose in this world.

Rumi’s aim with this analogy is to awaken and instill a certain dread. He wants humanity to look within and examine whether they, too, are empty-handed and skill-less. Are they, too, like that house where no “means of living” exists? This is precisely the “self-knowledge” that Rumi, at the outset of the Masnavi, declares to be the “root of the root of the root of religion.” As he states: “What kind of bird are you, and with what are you eaten?” If you possess no art or skill, you will find no admirer. If one is neither a hunting falcon, nor a colorful peacock, nor a sweet-singing nightingale, nor a message-carrying hoopoe, then what purpose do they serve? Rumi, through this “instillation of despair” and “dread,” seeks to compel us towards introspection, to liberate us from inner emptiness and destitution. Yet, as always, behind this bleak portrayal, Rumi conceals a hope: that this very dread might be the genesis of a quest to find a genuine “means of living.”

Key takeaways

• The empty house symbolizes the hollow inner self and mind of a human being.
• A human existence devoid of knowledge, virtue, and insight is deemed worthless and useless.
• Through this sharp imagery, Rumi aims to awaken and prompt self-knowledge, urging individuals to overcome inner emptiness.
• The explicit term 'rīstan' conveys the ultimate worthlessness and defilement of a meaningless existence.