M6:1556 — بر نشست او نه پشت خر سزد / پشت تابوتیش اولیتر سزد

Translation: For his mount, a donkey's back is not befitting; Rather, the back of his coffin is more apt.

Meaning: This verse refers to a person who has attained such a state of annihilation (fana) in the mystical path that they are utterly detached from animalistic life and worldly attachments. Their physical body is no longer a living being fit for a common mount, but is instead only worthy of being carried on a coffin.

This verse emerges from the tale of the Qadi (judge) and a frail individual, whose state Mowlana describes with astonishing originality. The Qadi, observing this person who appears alive but is utterly devoid of animalistic vitality and worldly attachments, refuses to pass judgment. With profound wonder, he declares that this man's mount should not be the back of a donkey, a symbol of daily life and carrying earthly burdens, but rather the back of a coffin, which symbolizes complete disregard for the physical world and readiness for the unseen realm.

I interpret this as an artistic hyperbole, showcasing the pinnacle of Mowlana's poetic mastery. Through this expression, he vividly portrays the depth of this mystic's spiritual annihilation (fana) and inner lifelessness. This person is so emptied of self and so connected to the Divine that his body no longer bears the burden of worldly life; he has transcended ordinary existence. The Qadi, describing such an individual, remarks: "Many a dead one you've seen in a grave / But see the grave in the dead one, you blind!" (M6:1560). This implies that while we typically place the dead in a grave, this person is so spiritually deceased that a grave is, as it were, contained within him. This distinction between 'animal life' and 'divine life' is crucial; one who lives by divine life might appear as a moving corpse in the eyes of the world.

Such seekers on the path of truth, those Sufis who are annihilated from a hundred directions, in reality, 'kill' their ego a hundred times a day in the path of love. They even yearn for more wounds from the righteous lance of God: "Slain by the taste of the righteous spear / He burns, begging, 'Strike another wound!" (M6:1558). Such a person not only fears no death but, as Mowlana says, "By God, due to love, the one killed by the hand of the Beloved / Is more eager for a second slaying than the self-loving soul!" (M6:1559). This verse and its surrounding couplets lead us to a deep understanding of this state of fana, where the boundaries of worldly life and death dissolve, and the seeker comes alive with a different kind of existence. It is for this reason that the Qadi sees him as outside the sphere of conventional judgments, for he is no longer subject to the laws of this world.

Key takeaways

• Mystical annihilation (fana) describes a state where the seeker is devoid of animalistic life and worldly attachments, rendering their body as if dead.
• Mowlana employs hyperbole and novel poetic expressions to vividly portray the profound spiritual states of mystics.
• This verse highlights the distinction between 'animal life' and 'divine life'; one living by divine life may appear deceased to worldly eyes.
• Worldly judgments are inadequate for understanding the states of mystics, as they have transcended the norms and laws of this world.
• True seekers not only fear no death but, in the path of divine love, are eager for repeated 'deaths' and complete annihilation (fana).