M6:740 — مرد بالغ گشت آن بچگی بمرد / رومیی شد صبغت زنگی سترد

Translation: The man became adult, that childhood died; / He became Roman-like, the dark (Zangi) complexion was erased. Meaning: This verse speaks of a transformative death, illustrating the passage from one state of being to another, like the dying of childhood for the attainment of adulthood, or the shedding of a dark complexion for the embrace of a bright one.

This verse, M6:740, is a crucial exposition of what Mawlana refers to as 'transformative death' (marg-e tabdili). It is emphatically not the physical death that leads one to the grave, but rather a profound metamorphosis that carries an individual from a state of darkness into the realm of light. As Mawlana states just prior to this beyt: 'It is not a death that takes you to the grave, / But a transformative death that leads you to light.'

I find this example exceptionally lucid. When a child reaches adulthood, in essence, 'childhood' within that individual dies. That entire existential phase, with all its characteristics, concludes, making way for a new, mature existence to be built upon its vestiges. This is not an annihilation of the past but a reconstruction, a transcending. We have all observed individuals who, despite reaching forty or fifty years of age, still cling to childish traits like irritability and petulance; these individuals have not truly 'died' from their childhood and thus have not attained a new self. True maturity, true adulthood, is precisely this dying to the traits of infancy.

Similarly, the example of 'He became Roman-like, the dark (Zangi) complexion was erased.' Here, 'Roman' (Rumi) refers to a fair complexion, akin to that of Turks or Greeks, while 'Zangi' denotes a dark complexion, referring to people of African descent. The meaning is that impurities and darkness are shed, giving way to lightness and brightness. This metaphor has a long lineage in Persian literature; Manuchehri, for instance, employed it to describe the transition from night to day. It is imperative, however, not to interpret this through the lens of racial judgments prevalent in Mawlana's era, but to grasp the spirit of the metaphor, which speaks to the radical change from one state (darkness) to another (lightness).

This 'death' is precisely what Plato referred to when he said, 'Philosophy is the practice of dying,' though I would reframe it as 'Mysticism is the practice of dying.' Mysticism teaches us how to die to what we currently are, so that we may be born into another, more exalted existence. Any effort, any ascetic practice, any worship, remains incomplete and keeps a person confined to their former state until it culminates in this 'dying' and 're-birth.' This is the secret of the spiritual journey: a transformation from the core of one's being, not merely a superficial alteration of states. This encapsulates the meaning of spiritual struggle, where Mawlana asserts: 'Unless you die, your struggle is incomplete.'

Key takeaways

• True maturity, both physical and spiritual, entails 'dying' to a prior stage and being born into a new one.
• In mysticism, 'transformative death' is a process of shedding impurities and darkness, enabling the human spirit to move towards light.
• Individuals who retain childish traits in adulthood have, in essence, not yet 'died' from their stage of infancy and have not achieved full maturity.
• This internal transformation is not an annihilation of the past, but a rebuilding and elevation upon existing foundations.
• Much like Platonic philosophy, mysticism is a practice for this kind of 'dying'—a passage from the present self to the transcendent self.