M6:1801 — هست آن یخ زان صعوبت یادگار / یادگار صیف در دی این ثمار

Translation: That ice remains a relic of that harsh cold; these fruits in winter are a relic of summer. Meaning: This verse uses natural examples to illustrate how every phenomenon, even after its originating cause has passed, preserves a trace or memory of that origin, much like ice enduring from winter or fruits available in winter as a memento of summer.

Here, Rumi offers a profoundly subtle reflection on the wisdom inherent in creation and the persistence of beings. He had previously argued that every part and every limb of our body—indeed, every entity in existence—emerges from non-being and grows because of a particular ladhdhat (pleasure, satisfaction, or utility) that the entire organism derives from that part's function. If it had no function, if it did not contribute to survival, it would perish. This is precisely the principle of growth and survival that we recognize in contemporary biology.

However, the more acute point he makes is this: after the initial ladhdhat or the originating condition passes, the part itself remains. This part no longer speaks of the "joy" and "happiness" of that moment of birth and growth, but Rumi insists that you must be a "teller of tales" (afsānejū) and discern the history of the matter.

To elaborate on this, he provides several striking examples. He mentions that cotton grows in summer; summer passes, but the cotton remains. Or he gives the example of ice: ice forms in the cold of winter (shatā); winter passes, but the ice remains, often stored for use in summer. This is where our current beyt comes into play: "Hāst ān yakh z-ān soʻūbat yādegār / Yādegār-e sayf dar dey in thamār" This ice that we see is a memento (yādegār) of the difficulty and hardship (or intense cold) of winter that brought it forth. Similarly, the fruits (thamār) we hold in the month of Dey (deep winter) are themselves mementos of the summer season and its sunshine.

What is Rumi's message? He wants to convey that nothing comes into being without wisdom and without a cause. Everything that exists holds a story and a tale of a hidden blessing and a hidden ladhdhat. Our body parts have not grown without reason; every tooth, every hand, every eye, narrates a vital function and an organism's "joy" in its own existence. This perspective portrays the world not as accidental and aimless, but as full of meaning and purpose. This is Rumi's deep insight, who, independently of the sciences of his time, arrived at such truths through his inner vision. Here he demonstrates how nature itself narrates the story of creation and persistence. Even in apparent absence, a sign of previous presence remains; this is why, in our mystical understanding, the beloved's absence is precisely their presence mirrored in memory and the heart.

Key takeaways

• Every existing phenomenon, even after the original cause vanishes, retains a memory or relic of that origin within itself.
• In Rumi's view, nothing in the world appears without wisdom and cause; every existence is a narrative of a hidden 'pleasure' or function.
• The world is replete with meaning and purpose; our insight must look to the history of phenomena to grasp their underlying wisdom.
• Just as ice is a relic of winter and fruit a relic of summer, every 'part' in our body is a reminder of a 'blessing' that enabled its existence.