M1:1474 — اختیار و جبر ایشان دیگرست / قطره‌ها اندر صدفها گوهرست

Translation: Their (the mystics') free will and determinism are of another kind; Drops within shells become pearls.

Meaning: This verse suggests that for divine saints and mystics, the conventional understanding and experience of free will and determinism undergo a profound transformation. This change is akin to an ordinary raindrop transmuting into a precious pearl within an oyster shell, fundamentally altering its essence.

The problem of free will and determinism is, without doubt, one of philosophy and theology's most ancient and intricate knots—a knot that has preoccupied human minds for centuries, with few ever truly unravelling it. Mowlana Jalaluddin, our great mystic, explicitly states that this debate will continue until the Day of Resurrection and cannot be resolved by pure intellect:

Between determinists and advocates of free will, The debate continues until the Resurrection, O father.

This position is remarkably close to that of Immanuel Kant, the great German philosopher. In his 'Antinomies,' Kant demonstrated that pure reason can powerfully support both sides of this contradiction (determinism and free will), and thus is incapable of definitively resolving it; there is an 'equilibrium of proofs' at play. Mowlana, precisely four centuries before Kant, pointed to this very intellectual impasse, believing that God Himself maintains this debate in the world for a higher purpose.

But what is Mowlana's solution to this dilemma? He unlocks this problem not with the key of logic and philosophy, but with the key of love and mystical experience:

That which resolves the debate is nothing but love, For it becomes the succour beyond all discussion.

It is here that our discussed verse unveils the truth: “Their (the mystics') free will and determinism are of another kind; / Drops within shells become pearls.” The 'their' here refers to 'divine saints and possessors of mystical experiences'; those who have accessed the core of existence through immediate, experiential knowledge (ilm-i ḥuḍūrī), not merely acquired, conceptual knowledge (ilm-i ḥuṣūlī). For them, the conventional notions of free will and determinism, over which philosophers contend, lose their ordinary meaning and transform into a different quality. This is an existential transformation, not merely an intellectual one.

The simile, “Drops within shells become pearls,” is vivid evidence for this claim. An ordinary raindrop is simply water; yet, if by divine grace and destiny, this very drop finds its place within an oyster shell and undergoes a specific process, it transforms into a precious pearl, possessing entirely different value and essence. The nature of the water doesn't change, but its container, context, and process yield a wondrous outcome. Similarly, the free will and determinism of the saints are no longer our simplistic, earthly free will and determinism; rather, they are intertwined with and transmuted by the 'light of union' (nūr-i wiṣāl). It is this experience of divine union that imparts a new dimension to these concepts, elevating them from their ordinary state to an unparalleled gem.

In other words, the problem of free will and determinism is an 'existential' issue, not merely a theoretical one. As long as humans fail to know themselves and merely attempt to address it through logical and mental games, they will remain trapped in an endless whirlpool. This knowledge is an intimate understanding, not a distant one; it is an existential grasp achievable only through lived mystical experience. When the heart opens and the tablet of the conscience is cleansed of the dust of mental concepts, the truth of free will and determinism manifests itself to the mystic's soul as it truly is.

Key takeaways

• The problem of free will and determinism is an existential knot that cannot be untangled by pure reason but demands lived experience.
• Both Mowlana and Kant recognized the intellectual impasse in resolving free will and determinism, where arguments for both sides carry equal weight (equilibrium of proofs).
• Mowlana's solution to the dilemma of free will and determinism lies in 'love and mystical experience,' rather than philosophical or logical disputes.
• For divine saints, the concepts of free will and determinism are transformed, acquiring a transcendent nature, much like a drop's metamorphosis into a pearl within a shell.
• True understanding of free will and determinism is attainable through 'immediate, experiential knowledge' (ilm-i ḥuḍūrī) and 'self-knowledge,' not through 'acquired, conceptual knowledge' (ilm-i ḥuṣūlī) and mental reflections.