M6:3236 — چشم ازین آب از حول حر می‌شود / عکس می‌بیند سد پر می‌شود

Translation: When the eye is cleansed by this (inner) water, it is freed from the apprehension of squinting; then it sees reflections, and its basket fills. Meaning: This verse highlights the importance of unified vision and liberation from perceptual error. When the inner eye is freed from double-sightedness, what previously appeared as mere images or imagination transforms into reality, yielding tangible results.

In this verse, Mowlana, through a profound allegory, delves into one of his most crucial mystical teachings: the unified vision (waḥdat-bīnī) versus pluralistic perception (kathrat-bīnī). This couplet continues the tale of a stranger named ‘Omar’ in the Shi’ite city of Kashan, attempting to buy bread. He is repeatedly sent from one shop to another, remaining deprived, for he fails to grasp that all bakers, in their Shi’ite ‘unity,’ refuse to sell bread to ‘Omar.’ Had this stranger changed his name to ‘Ali,’ he would have immediately received bread. This allegory symbolizes the bewildered wanderings of the ‘double-sighted’ (aḥwal) human in the world of nature, which Mowlana refers to as the ‘dusty Kashan.’

An aḥwal is one who is double-sighted, perceiving one thing as two, losing the unity amidst multiplicity. Such a person, in this ‘Kashan full of fear and hope,’ is constantly directed from one shop to another, from one doctor to another, from one school of thought to another, never reaching their intended destination. The root of the problem lies in their own perception. But when the ‘illumination of non-aḥwali (single-sightedness) shines upon the heart of the Kashani,’ meaning when the light of unified vision settles upon their heart and the eye is ‘freed’ from double-sightedness, then the name ‘Omar’ can transform into ‘Ali,’ and the wandering comes to an end.

Now to the verse: ‘چشم ازین آب از حول حر می‌شود’ (The eye, from this water, is freed from apprehension). This ‘water’ is not physical water, but the water of insight and unified vision. When the inner eye drinks from and is cleansed by this water, it becomes ‘ḥurr’—free—from ‘hawl,’ meaning the anxiety, fear, and bewilderment arising from double-sightedness. That is, the pluralistic and aḥwal perception vanishes. This liberation is a necessary condition for the correct apprehension of truth.

Following this liberation, something wondrous occurs: ‘عکس می‌بیند، سد پر می‌شود’ (it sees reflections, and its basket fills). The one whose eye is freed from double-sightedness now sees images that they previously considered mere reflections or fantasies. But this time, these very ‘images’ yield fruit, and their ‘sad’—their basket—fills with apples. This is a profoundly mystical experience, beautifully articulated by Mowlana: ‘This image turned into reality. Rather, it was reality, and you were seeing it as an image.’ Mystical experiences, which appear as fantasy or illusion to others, are in fact reality itself, clothed in the garment of imagination. Existence has levels, and truth can manifest in various forms. One must have an eye that is a ‘king-recognizer’ (shāh-shenās) to recognize the King in every guise.

Mowlana continues: ‘پس به معنی باغ باشد این نه آب / پس مشو عریان چو بلقیس از حباب’ (So, in meaning, this is a garden, not water; so do not strip naked like Bilqis from the bubble/illusion). When water yields fruit, it is no longer mere water; it is, in true meaning, a garden manifested in the form of water. Here, Mowlana refers to the story of the Queen of Sheba (Bilqis), who, in Solomon’s palace, mistook the glass floor for water and lifted her skirt (‘fa-kashafat ʿan sāqīhā’). Solomon reminded her, ‘This is glass, not water.’ Mowlana warns us not to be deceived by appearances, and not to strip naked from the ‘bubble’ of illusion like Bilqis, mistaking reality for a mirage. This verse is an invitation to a deeper gaze, to perceive the garden of truth beyond the appearance of water, and to be freed from the wanderings and deprivations of the ‘Omar-named’ in the Kashan of this world.

Key takeaways

• Unified Vision vs. Pluralistic Perception: The remedy for bewilderment and the path to genuine meaning in life.
• Freedom from Aḥwalī (Double-Sightedness): A prerequisite for correct perception and liberation from cognitive error.
• Transformation of 'Image' into Reality: Mystical experiences are not mere fantasies but reality itself, garbed in another form of existence.
• Truth Beyond Appearance: Fruit-yielding water is, in truth, a garden, not merely water; one must not be deceived by superficiality.
• End of Wandering: Attaining a unified vision of existence brings an end to fruitless searches in the 'Kashan of the world.'