M6:1855 — کان جهان هم‌چون نمکسار آمدست / هر چه آنجا رفت بی‌تلوین شدست

Translation: That world is like a salt-marsh; whatever enters it becomes devoid of distinct hue. Meaning: This verse describes how, in the realm of true meaning and spiritual reality, all differences and multiplicities dissolve into a profound unity, much like objects losing their unique color in a salt-marsh.

Here, I address a crucial point Mowlana makes regarding the world of meaning. He likens this world to a "salt-marsh" (namaksār). A salt-marsh is a realm where anything that falls into it loses its original color and distinct characteristics, transforming into salt; every diversity within it converges into unity. Mowlana states elsewhere (Book Two): "When a dead donkey falls into the salt-marsh / it sets aside both donkey-ness and deadness." No "donkey" remains, nor "deadness"; there is only salt. This metaphor symbolizes a world where multiplicity is transmuted into unity.

This salt-marsh is not limited to the realm of physical bodies. Although the earth of the grave performs the same function for bodies, rendering diverse people ("khalq-e rangārang") "uniform in their graves," Mowlana goes a step further, speaking of a "salt-marsh of meanings" (namaksār-e maʿānī). This is a higher realm where even the differences and variations of meanings are dissolved, and all become a single hue—that is to say, colorless. This is the very principle of "formlessness" (bī-ṣūratī) that I have repeatedly emphasized: this world of forms has emerged from the formless, and colors have arisen from colorlessness.

This world of meaning also possesses a significant characteristic: "From pre-eternity to post-eternity, it is in a state of newness" (az azal ān tā abad andar novīst). This means it is perpetually new and never grows old. Oldness arises from time, and time has no dominion in this realm; azal (pre-eternity) and abad (post-eternity) here signify supra-temporal ranks. In this stratum, weariness (malāl) finds no path, for weariness springs from repetition, deterioration, and oldness. Gnostics (ʿārifān) are those who continuously perceive themselves and the world in a state of renewal, and thus, weariness does not settle upon their souls: "Every moment a new form and a new beauty / so that through new seeing, weariness may perish." This renewal is both in our perception of the world, which witnesses a fresh creation at every instant, and in our will to break habits and renew our inner states.

Thus, Mowlana's salt-marsh symbolizes unity, colorlessness, formlessness, and continuous rebirth; these are the core tenets of his mystical gnosis. The world of forms is the realm of coloration and multiplicity, but that world is the realm of colorlessness and unity.

Key takeaways

• In the realm of meaning, differences and multiplicities vanish, and all things converge into unity, like objects losing their color in a salt-marsh.
• This 'salt-marsh of meanings' is the domain of 'formlessness' (bī-ṣūratī) from which all colors and forms arise, yet it remains colorless and formless itself.
• The world of meaning is perpetually new and never ages, transcending time and its limitations.
• Understanding this constant renewal of the world frees one from weariness and depression; malāl (weariness) is the result of perceiving oldness and repetition.
• To experience this renewal, one must both refresh one's perception and actively exercise free will by breaking habits.