M6:3708 — آدما معنی دلبندم بجوی / ترک قشر و صورت گندم بگوی

Translation: O humankind, seek my beloved meaning; abandon the husk and form of the wheat. Meaning: In this verse, God addresses Adam, urging him to look beyond the literal appearance of prohibitions to grasp their deeper, intended spiritual significance.

This verse, voiced by Mowlana, is in fact God's address to Adam. Here, God unveils the secret behind His prohibition, saying, 'O Adam, grasp my true intention behind that outward prohibition.' That wheat, or whatever forbidden fruit it was, was merely a 'form' (sūrat), a husk (qeshr). The wheat itself was not the point; rather, it was the beloved and inner meaning (maʿnā-ye delband) hidden behind it. God was saying: 'Abandon the husk and form of the wheat,' meaning, transcend the appearances of this world, detach yourself from your egoistic desires (havā-ye nafs) that cling to forms.

My intention with that prohibition was that you should not follow your lower self; turn your back on those intense cravings (meil-e shadīd) that pull you this way and that. This prohibition was an invitation to ponder the nature of desire and craving. What makes a person long for something? One day an apple, another day wheat, another day wealth or status. These are all 'forms' that captivate you. I ask you to go beyond these forms and develop a 'longing for the formless' (shawq be bi-sūrat). This is the path that emerges from the heart of that prohibition.

The very insight that 'form comes into being from the formless' (sūrat az bi-sūrat āyad dar vojud), to which Mowlana frequently refers, is applicable here. Wheat is a form that contains the quality of 'nourishment' (ghazāʾiyat) or 'satiation' (sīr-konandegi). This 'nourishment' is the formless essence residing within the form of wheat. To clarify this point, Mowlana refers to a miracle reportedly experienced by Abraham the Friend (Khalīl): where sand turned into flour. Mowlana states, in the following verse: 'Since sand became flour for Khalil, know that wheat is deposed, O noble one!'

This story demonstrates that 'wheat' is not inherently essential; it is merely a vessel or a form for that formless quality of nourishment. God is capable of bestowing this quality upon any form He wishes—be it sand, wheat, or anything else. Thus, wheat is 'deposed' (maʿzūl), meaning it does not hold the primary or essential position; it is merely a form. This principle teaches us to seek the formless essence, not the mutable and perishable forms. This verse invites us to move beyond 'form-seeing' (sūrat-bīnī) and reach 'meaning-seeking' (maʿnā-jūyī)—that is, to discover the formless through form.

Key takeaways

• The ultimate goal of religion is to transcend appearances (husk and form) to grasp God's inner, beloved meanings.
• The divine prohibition in the story of Adam and the wheat was not about the object itself, but a lesson in controlling egoistic desires and abandoning worldly attachments.
• True reality resides in the 'formless'; 'forms' are merely mutable manifestations of that boundless existence.
• Understanding the inner meaning of things (the beloved meaning) elevates humanity beyond fascination with worldly desires, leading to a longing for the formless.
• The power of nourishment and satiation (the formless essence) can manifest through any form (be it wheat or sand); thus, the form itself holds no inherent essence.