M6:3198 — هم از آن خورشید زد بر روزنی / لیک از راه و سوی معهود نی

Translation: The very Sun cast its light upon a window; But not by the accustomed way or direction. Meaning: This verse conveys that the light of divine truth, like the sun, shines upon the world through the hearts of purified servants and mystics, but this radiance does not necessarily follow conventional, material, or logical pathways.

This verse, at its core, carries one of Rumi's most profound and fundamental teachings: the breaking of conventional mental frameworks and the acceptance of trans-natural and unaccustomed possibilities within the mystical worldview. I insist that we must think differently; a mind enslaved by purely natural, material, and scientific mechanisms is incapable of grasping this truth. These mechanisms are only one possible path, not the only one for events to occur, and they represent only one possible world, not all possible worlds.

Rumi teaches us here that a servant, within the furnace of divine proximity, can become so incandescent that they acquire divine attributes, as if "filled with God." This echoes the sacred Hadith Qudsi: "My servant draws near to Me until I become his tongue, his eye, and his hand." This is precisely what I have emphasized in discussions of Wahy (revelation), asserting that the Prophet's speech is, in essence, God's speech flowing through his tongue. This proximity is neither temporal nor spatial; it is an existential unity that brings the unified servant to the station of "I am fire, I am fire," just as iron in a forge becomes so fused with fire that it takes on all of fire's attributes.

The "window" (rowzan) here is a metaphor for the heart of the mystic or the existence of God's saint (Wali). This window does not borrow its light from the sun as a deposit, nor does it shine like a distant star; rather, it is "radiant from itself" (darakhshān az khwad ast). This means the manifestation surges from within the window itself, because its being has been so purified and polished that it has transformed into a source of light. This is not about borrowed light, but a light that has illuminated its very essence.

The emphasis on "not by the accustomed way or direction" (līk az rāh o sūy-e ma'hūd nī) is key to understanding this verse. It means the connection between God and the human soul is "unconditioned, beyond analogy" (ittiṣāl-i bī-takayyuft, bī-qiyās); it is without 'how' or 'form,' beyond mechanics, fields, or energy. This is a different kind of reality, and to perceive it, "eyes must be washed, one must see differently." This shift in perception necessitates spiritual purification (ṭahārat-e nafs) and inner refinement (tahdhīb-e bāṭin) so that the dust is cleared from the eyes and unclouded truths are revealed. Therefore, even if clouds cover the sky, the light of this Sun continues to gush forth from unaccustomed paths, because there is an "affinity" (ulfat) and connection between the window and the Sun that transcends the path of air and the six directions.

Rumi provides an unparalleled allegory of the "tray" (ṭabaq) and "fruit" to elucidate this truth: "Fruit grows from the very essence of this tray / Apples grow from this basket, beautiful and distinct." He states that praising God's saint is praising God. And the fruits that grow from this fertile being (like the Quran from the Prophet or the Masnavi from Rumi) are not things that were merely placed on the tray, but have grown from the tray itself. This tray has become so immersed in divine light and so fused with it that it has transformed into an apple-bearing tree. It is here that we understand the Quran is the product of the Prophet's being, and the Masnavi is the product of Rumi's being; it is not that something was given to them from outside, which they merely presented. The tray and the tree have become one.

Rumi then moves to analogies of changing names based on changing effects. If "bread" causes diarrhea (iṭlāq), it should no longer be called bread, but "Mahmoodah" (scammony). And if "dust" brightens the eyes, it is no longer dust, but "kohl." These analogies demonstrate that when a human being is so transformed and refined that divine effects emanate from them, they are no longer merely "human"; their name and reality have changed.

Finally, Rumi alludes to the station of fanā (annihilation): "His being has perished, oh mischievous eye, do not call him 'he' / In such a divine stream, how can a dry clod remain?" The unified servant no longer possesses an independent "being"; he has been annihilated within the Divine Existence. The Sun of truth is so radiant that the crescent moon vanishes before it, and this is the "domination" (Qahhāriyyat) of Truth that tolerates no independent beings in opposition to itself, "until it extinguishes all forms of being."

Key takeaways

• Divine manifestations are not limited to material causes and accustomed paths; truth also manifests through "unaccustomed ways."
• The being of a unified servant, like iron in a furnace, becomes so infused with divine truth that it exhibits God's attributes.
• The "window" (the mystic's heart) does not merely borrow light from outside, but itself becomes a source of light, its essence having been divinely illuminated.
• The connection between God and the human soul is unconditioned, spaceless, and quality-less; understanding it requires a transformation and purification of one's perception.
• The manifestations and fruits of God's saint (like the Quran or Masnavi) are not merely given to them by God, but grow from their very being, a product of their union with the Divine.
• The name and reality of things and humans are tied to their effects and manifestations; a being that displays divine effects is no longer merely "human" but has reached the station of fanā.