M6:1379 — در خیال او ز مکر کردگار / جمله صحرا فوق چه زهرست و مار

Translation: In his fancy, due to the Maker's guile, All the vast desert above the well is poison and snake.

Meaning: This verse describes humanity's inverted perception, where, due to a divine stratagem, reality is seen in reverse: expansive opportunities appear dangerous, while actual perils are mistaken for safe havens.

This verse vividly portrays the phenomenon of 'inverted perception' (vārūne-bīnī) in humans, which is one of the deepest teachings of the Masnavi. Here, Mawlana unveils a subtle yet powerful 'guile' (makr) that the Creator has woven into the fabric of the world; a guile that blinds our eyes, making what is real appear non-existent and what is non-existent appear real. This is not born of deception, but rather of a 'divine blinding trick' (cheshm-bandī-ye Khudā) and 'the magical divine art' (sehr-e sanʿat-e ilāhī) that plunges humanity into heedlessness.

I have often stated that this world, as many Sufis describe it, is like a 'well' (chāh) and a 'prison' (sejn) of nature; a well in which the human soul is confined. The majority of people, through this very divine blinding, have become so inverted in their perception that they do not seek death and liberation from this well, but rather flee from it, striving to remain in this well for as long as possible. Their 'inclination' (raghbat) is to stay in the 'well' of life; a place they mistakenly deem safe, peaceful, and even 'paradise.' In their view, the 'vast desert' (sahrā-ye farākh), which symbolizes expansiveness, freedom, and an infinite space for the soul to breathe, appears full of 'poison and snakes' (zahrast-o mār) and life-threatening dangers. Consequently, instead of utilizing this open space and escaping from the well, they seek refuge in its depths.

However, and this is a crucial point that must be emphasized, this image of the 'well' and 'prison' should never lead to devaluing this world and its potentials, or to 'kicking it away.' This is one of the 'misleading images' (tasāvir-e rāhzanī) that has become prevalent in Sufi literature. This world, as the Great Prophet said, is 'the farm of the Hereafter' (mazraʿat al-ākhirah); a farm where we sow seeds and harvest their fruits in the next world. How can one be an enemy of their own farm? How can one abandon it or sell it cheap? This world, according to Imam Ali (AS) in Nahj al-Balagha, is 'the marketplace of God's saints' (matjar-e awliyā Allāh). No merchant destroys their own marketplace; rather, they cultivate it and profit from it. Our life, our body, our soul, our intellectual and physical capacities – these are all capital in this very farm and marketplace that we must value and utilize to their fullest. Kicking these away is akin to kicking away our own fortune.

Therefore, although this world may appear as a confinement and prison compared to the vastness of the otherworldly realm, this simile merely conveys the difference between these two domains, not to prove the worthlessness of this world. The truth is, contrary to what the inverted perception of humanity sees, 'the bottom of the well is full of snakes, scorpions, and vipers,' while 'outside, in the vast desert, there is expansiveness and the possibility of breathing.' One who, in their fancy, takes refuge in the well, ultimately dies there, deprived of true expansiveness and life. This divine blinding causes humans to see 'profit as loss' and 'loss as profit,' and this, truly, is the ultimate heedlessness.

Key takeaways

• The verse points to humanity's 'inverted perception,' where worldly opportunities are seen as dangers, and actual perils as safe havens.
• This phenomenon stems from a 'subtle divine guile' that blinds human eyes to truth, plunging them into heedlessness.
• Humans mistakenly perceive staying in the 'well' of the world as life and peace, fleeing the expansive 'desert' of liberation.
• The Sufi imagery of the world as a 'well' or 'prison' is misleading if it leads to devaluing life itself.
• In the correct Islamic view, the world is 'the farm of the Hereafter' and 'the marketplace of God's saints,' meant to be valued and cultivated.
• The metaphor of the world as a prison is solely to highlight its narrowness compared to the vastness of the unseen realm, not to condemn earthly life.