M6:1692 — ترک خندیدن گرفت از داستان / چشم تنگش گشت بسته آن زمان

Translation: The Turk began to laugh at the story; / His narrow eye became shut at that moment. Meaning: This verse portrays human heedlessness: how, engrossed in the world's deceptions and jests, one loses sight of their true spiritual capital and squanders precious opportunities.

This verse unveils a deeply profound and poignant allegorical tale. Here, Rumi recounts the story of the cunning tailor who, while ostensibly sewing a garment for a Turk from Khata, surreptitiously steals fabric from him. How does he achieve this? Not through force, but through the stratagem of 'jest' (lāgh), 'fable' (afsāne), and 'humor' (shukhi). The simple-hearted Turk, laughing intensely at the tailor's antics, closes his eyes so completely that he fails to notice valuable sections of his exquisite Istanbul satin being pilfered and hidden beneath the tailor's thigh.

I interpret this narrative not merely as a moral lesson, but as a profound ontological account. Rumi intends this story to reveal the tragic destiny of many humans. The 'Turk' symbolizes us, humanity; individuals who, as Rumi puts it, have grown 'fat on heedlessness and jest.' We treat life as a joke, dismiss time lightly, and resort to any means to remain oblivious to our existential reality. It is as if we constantly implore this world and its devilish companions: 'Come on, tell another joke, entertain me, distract me from myself, rob me, but let me remain in my heedlessness.'

The 'common tailor' (darzi-e ʿāmm) or the 'tailor of time' is fate itself, the deceptive 'wheel of fortune' (charkh-e falak). It sews the fabric of our lives, yet in the process, it perpetually steals from it. And the 'Istanbul satin,' our primary capital, represents our fleeting life and irreversible opportunities, which are plundered under the veil of heedlessness. This 'narrow eye' that shuts with laughter is a symbol of human insight, rendered inoperative by trivial amusements, plunging us into complete unawareness.

Rumi explicitly extends this allegory to his audience: 'O you, who have become a fable and are effaced from existence, how many more fables will you test? Is there any fable more laughable than you? You yourself are the most laughable fable!' This startling address presents a picture of the heedless human who pursues the world's fables and jests, while having themselves become a ridiculous fable. You 'stand on the brink of your decaying grave,' while 'sunk in the grave of ignorance and doubt,' ceaselessly pursuing 'the jests and tricks of fate.' These 'old children,' even if they have lived a hundred years, remain in their naiveté and inexperience, for they have learned nothing from the world's games. They sit before this 'cursed companion-wheel,' begging for more jests and entertainment, unaware that in its game, fate sometimes bestows gardens only to later sweep them away.

I believe this verse is Rumi's warning about the bitter end of such heedlessness: 'Life thus comes to an end, empty-handed.' If our lives are spent in false amusements and fruitless laughter, we will depart the world empty-handed and devoid of capital; much like the child who loses his clothes in the street and returns home impoverished at dusk. This story is a profound reminder that the truth of life is no jest, and our most precious capital is squandered in heedlessness.

Key takeaways

• Human heedlessness, fueled by trivial amusements, leads to the squandering of life's precious capital.
• The world and time, like a cunning tailor, distract us with stories and jests, making us forget our true essence.
• The closing of eyes due to laughter symbolizes the blinding of insight against the world's deceptions.
• Those who spend their lives in heedlessness remain 'raw children' even in old age.
• The ultimate outcome of such heedlessness is to depart life empty-handed and full of regret, as life's true capital is plundered.