M6:2334 — در ندارم هم تو داراییم کن / رنج دیدم راحت‌افزاییم کن

Translation: I, who have nothing, grant me wealth, You! I have seen suffering, increase my comfort, You! Meaning: This verse is a dervish's confession of utter human poverty and powerlessness before God. It states that all human possessions are but illusions, and only the Divine can bestow true spiritual wealth and authentic tranquility.

I interpret this verse as an exquisite expression of human existential need and humility. It speaks of a dervish who, in his state of 'unconsciousness' (بیه‌شی), is utterly 'nothing' (هیچ), and in his state of 'consciousness' (هوش), is thoroughly 'entangled' (پیچ). That is to say, in pure unawareness, he lacks any independent being, and in awareness, he is caught in life's sufferings, anxieties, and complexities. This condition is a confession of absolute powerlessness, as the dervish says: "Place no other nothingness upon this nothingness / Do not name this entanglement 'fortune'." Oh Lord, do not inflict further non-existence upon our already existing non-existence, and do not call our perplexity 'good fortune' or 'destiny'.

In such a state, the dervish looks upon himself and recognizes his inability to manage his own affairs. If he had control, he would cultivate and order himself in the best possible way, but he lacks such power. Yet, he wonders how, despite all this helplessness, a sense of 'self-admiration' (معجبی) still persists within him. Where does this self-admiration come from, when his hands are empty of the power to 'tie and untie' (حل و عقد), to manage affairs? It is here that the veil of illusory possession is lifted.

Therefore, the plea, "I, who have nothing, grant me wealth, You!" is not a material request but an existential cry. I, who possess nothing but the "illusion of possession" (وهم دارایی), oh Lord, bestow upon me "true wealth" (دارایی حقیقی). True wealth is far beyond material possessions; it is a wealth that emanates from the Divine Presence, filling every void and need. This 'having nothing' is not an optional poverty but the inherent indigence of a contingent being. It is our very nature of non-existence, as Rumi states elsewhere: "We are but non-beings, and our existences are manifest from You / You are the Absolute Being, and You are our very existence."

Similarly, the request, "I have seen suffering, increase my comfort, You!" arises from these very complexities and worries that engulf a person in their state of consciousness. This suffering is not just external hardship but that inner 'entanglement' that keeps a person anxious. The dervish does not seek comfort through an increase in his own power but understands it to be entirely within the hands of divine might. This type of request is not based on desert but on pure divine mercy and grace. This is a naked supplication; the dervish even lacks the tears in which to stand naked, let alone seeing eyes. He reaches a state where he says, "If I lack even tears, grant me tears, grant me eyes like the Prophet's, eyes that shed tears." This is the ultimate expression of poverty and dependence.

Key takeaways

• The verse confesses humanity's inherent poverty and inability to manage its own affairs.
• Worldly and egoistic possessions are but 'illusions of possession'; true wealth emanates from God.
• Human suffering and inner 'entanglements' drive one to seek comfort and ease solely from the Divine source.
• Human dependence on the Divine persists both in states of 'unconsciousness' and in 'consciousness' fraught with anxiety.
• This prayer is not based on desert, but is a naked supplication rooted in divine mercy and grace.