M6:1412 — هرکه مستوحش بود پر غصه جان / کرده باشد با دغایی اقتران

Translation: Whoever is desolate, his soul full of grief, / Must have associated with deceit. Meaning: This verse suggests that inner turmoil and profound sorrow in a person's soul are a direct consequence of associating with or harboring deceit and falsehood.

This verse, situated within Rumi's expansive intellectual framework, lays before us a profound ontological and psychological principle. It is imperative to state unequivocally that Rumi is here speaking of cause and effect. He asserts that every sorrow, every desolation, every deep anguish that seizes the human soul has a cause; and that cause is nothing other than association with "dāghā-yi" (دغایی). What is this "dāghā-yi"? This term can be understood as deceit, falsehood, treachery, or even ill-temper and impatience.

Here, Rumi is discussing the virtue of ṣabr (patience), specifically patience in the spiritual struggle (mojāhede) with oneself and with the difficulties of the world. He states that those who possess a dignified exterior and a righteous life have attained it through perseverance and effort. Conversely, those who are destitute and naked are living proof of their impatience. It is precisely in this context that this verse appears, asking: what has one done if one's soul is filled with desolation and grief? The answer is immediate: "He must have associated with deceit." In other words, such a person has undoubtedly allied themselves with deception, dishonesty, or impatience. This is an inviolable law. The human soul, if it were in its perfection, would not become desolate and grief-stricken unless it had strayed from its origin and allied itself with something untrue.

This "dāghā-yi" can also be interpreted as ill-temper or malevolence. Rumi teaches us that the world is a mirror that reflects us back to ourselves. If we perceive the world as crooked, it is because we ourselves have become crooked. If grief and desolation have overcome our soul, this stems from an imperfection or crookedness within us; from a place where we have connected with dishonesty, disloyalty, or impatience. This association can be with a difficult companion, or with an undesirable trait within ourselves. The key point is that the origin of grief and desolation is not external; rather, it is our internal product. We ourselves, through our choices and characteristics, invite this desolation and grief into our souls. Rumi never laments "loneliness" (tanhāyi), for loneliness implies the fundamental absence of a companion; instead, he speaks of "separation" (judāyi), meaning a beloved was present but has now departed. This verse also refers to a situation where the Beloved is present, but we, through our own "dāghā-yi," have deprived ourselves of union with Him and have fallen into this unwanted separation. Therefore, the path to liberation from this grief and desolation lies in rectifying the inner "dāghā-yi" and returning to truthfulness and loyalty.

Key takeaways

• The source of inner grief and desolation invariably lies in a flaw or untruth within oneself.
• A soul full of sorrow is the result of "associating with deceit" (dāghā-yi), meaning aligning with falsehood, disloyalty, or ill-temper.
• Rumi here points to a law of cause and effect: undesirable emotional states are products of our own choices and characteristics.
• This verse emphasizes that liberation from sorrow is found not in changing the external world, but in rectifying one's inner self and returning to truth.