M6:3749 — صورت شهری که آنجا می‌روی / ذوق بی‌صورت کشیدت ای روی

Translation: The form of the city you journey toward / the delight of the formless has drawn you, O traveler. Meaning: This verse explains that the attraction to any perceptible form fundamentally stems from an underlying, formless delight; it is this inner pull that guides one toward an apparent, material destination.

This verse presents one of the most pivotal insights of the Masnavi: the distinction between ṣūrat (form) and bi-ṣūrat (formless), and the attractive force of the formless in the dynamism of existence. Here, Rumi clarifies that every movement a human being makes in the world of forms, even if it has a material appearance, fundamentally arises from the pull of a dhawq-i bi-ṣūrat (formless delight). We do not go to the form of a city unless it is in anticipation of a formless pleasure or experience that we seek there; a delight that is, in itself, neither spatial nor temporal. This inner yearning, directly or indirectly, compels our action.

We can extend this point to other examples: the form of a beloved (ṣūrat-i yār) that we approach is for the sake of a uns-i bi-ṣūrat (formless companionship) that we seek in their presence. The beauty we perceive in a friend is itself a form of a higher formless reality, and the intimacy we find with them is a form of an even more exalted intimacy. Thus, our journey is always from form to meaning, and from particular meaning to more universal meaning. In truth, humanity is perpetually in pursuit of the Formless, even if unconsciously. In a sense, we are all seekers of God and perfection, for absolute perfection and the absolute Formless is none other than God. This continuous journey from coarse and crude forms toward finer and more subtle forms ultimately culminates in reaching alṭaf al-laṭāʾif (the Most Subtle of Subtleties) and bi-ṣūrat-i muṭlaq (the Absolute Formless).

The error in this pursuit lies when the form-seeker seeks perfection from another form. Rumi calls this the ʿayn-i ḍalāl (essence of error): "If a form seeks perfection from another form / that would be the very essence of error." This is akin to a needy person extending their hand to another needy person. As we read in the prayers of the Sahifa Sajjadiyya: "How can a needy one ask of another needy one?" This worldview is deeply intertwined with Rumi's concept of tawḥīd afʿālī (unity of divine acts). Creation, he asserts, is based on God's karam (grace) and jūd (generosity), not His ʿadl (justice), because even capabilities themselves arise without prior deservingness.

Therefore, Rumi emphasizes that God must be sought in supplication and ifnā-yi khwīsh (self-effacement), not through tafakkur (intellectual deliberation) and conceptual constructs. "From thought, naught but forms shall arise before you." As long as you are engaged in forming concepts, you will not grasp the formless truth. To receive the emanation of the formless, one must empty oneself of ṣūrat-sāzī (form-making). As Rumi beautifully illustrates with a parable, God revealed to His Prophet to tell the community to "dig holes" for rain to fall. These empty holes symbolize our emptied selves, ready to receive the divine rain of grace. This empty bowl must be held up to be filled. Thus, in this world of forms, some grasp the 'head' of forms and some the 'tail,' but he who loses all finds all, and from abasement (kamāmat), rushes towards the Whole, to merge like a drop into the ocean of the Formless and become formless himself. This is the pinnacle of the spiritual journey.

Key takeaways

• Every attraction that draws humans toward forms originates from a formless, eternal yearning for something beyond.
• The ultimate goal of all human endeavors and desires in the world, even seemingly material ones, is the discovery of the formless and unmarked meaning, which ultimately leads to the Divine Essence.
• True perfection is not found in one form within another, but through connection to the Absolute Formless; seeking perfection solely among forms is the essence of error.
• To comprehend the formless and receive divine grace, one must abandon mental and intellectual form-making, preparing oneself like an empty vessel to receive (the principle of "digging holes").
• Creation is founded on God's grace and generosity, not justice, as the very capabilities of beings stem from His grace.