M1:611 — بادِ ما و بودِ ما از دادِ توست / هستی ما جمله از ایجادِ توست

Translation: Our breath and our very being are from Your giving; Our entire existence originates from Your creation. Meaning: This verse asserts that all aspects of our being, from the breath of life to our fundamental existence, are gifts from God, stemming entirely from His creative act.

This couplet embodies one of Mawlana's most profound monotheistic insights, which he expands upon throughout the Mathnawi, particularly in his commentary on the Reed's Tale. I emphasize here that the "ney" (reed) is not merely a musical instrument; it symbolizes our state of "nē" – meaning "no" or "non-being." In a precise ontological sense, we are non-existents who have donned the garb of being. Indeed, by choosing the symbol of the reed, Mawlana acknowledges his own essential annihilation (fanā-ye dhātī) and that of all contingent beings (mumkin al-wujūd).

When he states, "Our breath (bād) and our very being (būd) are from Your giving (dād)," it means that both the "breath" that bestows life upon us and the "existence" that forms our foundation are entirely gifts from God. By ourselves, we are "hollow" – ontologically hollow, not morally. We must be filled by His Being to achieve any actualization; otherwise, in ourselves, we are naught.

Mawlana articulates this truth clearly in another verse that echoes this meaning: "We are non-existents, yet manifest as beings / You are the Absolute Being, our very existence." This particular couplet under discussion serves as an elucidation of this central statement. He further employs the simile of the "lion on the flag" (shīr-e ʿalam) to explain the unity of divine acts (tawhīd-e afʿālī): "We are all lions, but lions on a flag / Our attacks are by the wind, moment by moment." We seemingly perform actions, but like a lion on a flag, our movement and attack stem from the "unseen wind" of the Divine. This wind, like the existence of God, is invisible, yet it is the source of all our movements and actions.

It is crucial to note that Mawlana's words here are by no means an assertion of determinism (jabr). He himself, to dispel this very misapprehension, states later: "This is not determinism; this is the meaning of Divine Omnipotence (jabbārī) / The mention of Omnipotence is for supplication." This means it is an acknowledgment of God's absolute power, not a negation of our free will. We are contingent beings, and for our existence and actions, we are dependent on the Absolute Being. This is tawhīd-e afʿālī, which holds a paramount place in our mysticism. Our entire existence is from His creation, from His bestowal, not from our independent essence.

Key takeaways

• Our very existence and even our breath are pure gifts and bestowals from the Divine.
• Ontologically, we are hollow, requiring to be filled by the Absolute Being of God.
• Our movements and actions, like the flag moved by the wind, ultimately originate from the hidden Divine power.
• This statement is not determinism (jabr) but an acknowledgment of God's absolute Omnipotence (jabbārī), to be humbly recognized.
• Our entire being stems from God's continuous "creation" (ījad), not from an independent essence of our own.