M6:3159 — داد داد حق شناس و بخششش / عکس آن دادست اندر پنج و شش

Translation: The giving and generosity of one who knows the Truth (God) and bestows, Is but a reflection of that original giving within the realm of five and six (the sensory/spatial world).

Meaning: This verse asserts that human generosity and bestowal are merely faint reflections of the boundless and original giving that emanates solely from God, the ultimate source of all benefaction.

This verse emerges from Mowlana's psychological exploration of projecting one's own flaws onto others, within the broader narrative of the Lion and the Rabbit. However, here, Mowlana transcends mere introspection and moves towards an ontological understanding. I have often emphasized that the cosmos, from Mowlana's perspective, is a realm of shadows and reflections; what is primordial and eternal resides beyond the forms and shapes of this material world.

Here, Mowlana addresses one of the noblest human attributes: 'giving' (dād) and 'generosity' (bakhshesh). He states that the generosity extended by a 'truth-knower' (ḥaqq-shenās)—that is, a human being endowed with insight into the origin and reality of existence—while undoubtedly beautiful and praiseworthy, is nonetheless a mere 'reflection' (ʿaks) or emanation of that original 'giving' that flows from the primal source, the Divine Essence itself. The phrase 'panj o shesh' (five and six) refers metaphorically to this world of multiplicity and matter; a world constrained by the five senses and the six spatial directions. Everything that manifests in this limited, material world is but a shadow of a reality that lies beyond these bounds.

This is a fundamentally important point. Mowlana is not suggesting that human generosity is valueless; on the contrary, he attributes it to the 'truth-knower,' a person of high spiritual stature. Yet, simultaneously, he teaches us not to be deceived by appearances, but to shift our gaze from the 'reflection' to the 'origin.' Human generosity, however vast, even if it outnumbers the sands of the desert (as he states in the following verse: Gar bovad dād-e khassān afzūn ze rīg / To bemīrī-o ān bemānād mordeh-rīgh - 'Even if the giving of base people is more than sand, you will die, and that will remain as inheritance'), is ultimately transient, fading with the giver's death. Divine giving, however, is infinite, selfless, and eternal. Hence, Mowlana urges in the subsequent verse: ʿAks ākhar chand pāyad dar nazar / Asl-bīnī pīsheh kon ay kaj-negar - 'How long does a reflection last in sight? Practice seeing the origin, O distorted-gazer.' This is a call to abandon a skewed perception that focuses on transient shadows and to direct one's attention to the enduring source.

This ontological perspective extends beyond the projection of negative attributes (as discussed in previous verses regarding enmity and resentment). It even attributes positive qualities to their ultimate origin. This means that not only might the flaws we perceive in others be reflections of our own, but also the perfections we find in ourselves or others are, in fact, reflections of the Absolute Perfection of God. This is a profound Tawḥīd-e Afʿālī (unity of actions) that returns every existence and perfection to God. Sustenance (rizq), in this view, is not merely money or food; a long life, good friends, noble thoughts, and a healthy family are all manifestations of this 'giving of the truth-knower' that appear in the material world as 'reflections.'

Key takeaways

• Human acts of generosity, even from the 'truth-knower,' are mere reflections of God's boundless giving.
• The 'five and six' refers to the transient material world, where all manifestations are non-original and fleeting.
• Mowlana invites the reader to 'origin-sight' (asl-bīnī), urging them to move beyond contemplating 'reflections' (appearances).
• True value and permanence reside in that which originates from the Absolute Source, not in what manifests in the ephemeral world.
• This verse highlights Tawḥīd-e Afʿālī (unity of actions): every perfection in the world is an emanation of divine absolute perfection.