M6:3492 — خلق در زندان نشسته از هواست / مرغ را پرها ببسته از هواست

Translation: People sit imprisoned because of their desires (hawā); The bird's wings are tied because of these very desires (hawā). Meaning: This verse illustrates how selfish desires and worldly cravings (hawā) act as an invisible prison, preventing human beings from achieving spiritual freedom and ascent, much like bound wings keep a bird from flying.

In this verse, Mowlana unveils one of the most profound and foundational teachings of the Masnavi: hawā is the primary cause of all bondage, and the ultimate impediment to true flight and freedom. The hawā spoken of here is not, of course, the atmospheric air; rather, it refers to base desires, worldly cravings, selfish inclinations, and what Sufi literature terms the nafs-i ammārah (the commanding self). This hawā stands in direct opposition to ḥabl-Allāh (the rope of God), the divine cord that the Quran enjoins us to grasp. Mowlana beautifully explains: "What is the rope of God? It is the abandoning of hawā."

Understand that Mowlana does not conceive of a prison merely in its physical sense. He states, "People sit imprisoned because of hawā." This prison is a prison of the soul, a prison of consciousness. It is a confinement that prevents individuals from perceiving truth. Of course, the material consequences of these very desires can indeed lead to actual jails; one who steals out of greed or harms another due to personal urges will eventually find themselves in a worldly prison. But the root of all these is hawā.

For this reason, Mowlana traces the roots of corruption and moral decay back to hawā. "Shame has departed from the modest due to hawā," meaning immodesty and transgressions originate from succumbing to desires. He even speaks of the fish being fried in a pan, attributing it either to the fisherman's hawā or the fish's own desire for bait. Crucifixion and hanging, the wrath of the police and enforcers, and even the flames of hellfire—all, he declares, are the consequences of this same hawā. Here, Mowlana alludes to a very deep point I have often emphasized: Heaven and Hell are not static, pre-fabricated entities; they are continuously being made. "It is we who open the doors of Heaven; it is we who open the doors of Hell." With every good deed, with every renunciation of hawā, a Heaven is constructed; and with every sin and surrender to desire, a fire in Hell is kindled. The Quranic verse "Its fuel is men and stones" (وقودها الناس و الحجاره) carries this profound meaning.

This prison and bondage of hawā is so deep and imperceptible that sometimes an individual does not even feel their entanglement within it. Mowlana says, "He who was born in the pit and in black water / How can he know the grace of the plain or the torment of the well?" One who has been born and lived in the mire and darkness of hawā does not comprehend its suffering until they emerge from it and taste the flavor of freedom. This is spiritual awakening. The bird, too, is a symbol of the human soul whose wings are tied by hawā; it can neither soar nor return to its original nest. "Wings are tied" signifies that its capacity for movement and perfection has been stripped away.

Mowlana's message is unequivocal: true freedom is liberation from hawā. The flight towards one's origin, as expressed in the fourth verse of this very book, "Everyone who remains far from their own origin / will seek again the time of reunion," necessitates breaking this cage and undoing these bonds. Only by abandoning hawā can one escape the prison and unfurl the soul's wings for ascension to higher realms. Otherwise, we will remain in the self-made shackles of our desires, never tasting the true essence of life and the delight that comes from forsaking hawā and receiving from the "Fountain of Tasnīm."

Key takeaways

• Selfish desires (hawā) constitute the true prison of the human soul, not merely physical walls.
• Every good deed and every renunciation of hawā constructs a Heaven; every sin and surrender to hawā fuels a flame in Hell.
• Unawareness of one's imprisonment by hawā is the deepest level of captivity; spiritual awakening begins with this realization.
• The bird symbolizes the soul, whose wings are bound by hawā, preventing its flight towards perfection.
• True freedom is liberation from the egoic self and a return to the divine origin and source.