M6:3486 — چونک تقصیر و فسادی می‌رود / آن حیات و ذوق پنهان می‌شود

Translation: When deficiency and corruption take their course, That life and inner zest become hidden. Meaning: Rumi conveys that when one yields to fault and depravity, the authentic inner life and spiritual vitality within them recede and disappear. This verse warns that sin and heedlessness lead to spiritual death.

This verse from Rumi unveils a profound psychological and mystical truth, one I have emphasized repeatedly: that our true life, the quality of our inner being, is deeply contingent upon our actions and intentions. Rumi declares, "When deficiency and corruption take their course, / That life and inner zest become hidden." This means that whenever a human being steps onto the path of negligence, sin, and deviation, that "life and zest"—the primary capital of their existence—becomes concealed. This concealment does not imply complete annihilation but rather inaccessibility and obscurity; it is as if the light of their being succumbs to darkness.

As I have noted elsewhere, when you possess a resolve and feel an inclination to perform a good deed, you must honor it and act upon it immediately. Do not procrastinate or say, "Later." For then, "the devil arrives and becomes an obstacle and a barrier." In that very moment of good intention, you attain a certain "life and zest"; it is as if you are newly alive. But the inverse is equally true: when you move towards "corruption," this life and zest are taken from you; you die, and spiritual vitality departs. This is the same warning Rumi gives about the temptations of Satan at the moment of death, who, with a "pitcher of water" or hollow promises, plunders one's faith. Indeed, our life, in every moment, hinges on our choices.

This "deficiency and corruption" does not merely refer to major sins; it can encompass any neglect or shortcoming in spiritual and ethical duties that gradually erode that inner essence. This world, in Rumi's words, is often a "rotten nut"; it has a deceptive appearance but an empty kernel. One who gazes upon it with "current sight" (superficial and immediate) will be deceived, but one who sees with "ultimate sight" (far-sighted) remains safe from its "weak" deception. This verse invites us to trust our "own sight" and not allow "base people" to blind us, for "that guide you chose for the journey / you yourself will see is blinder than you." True sight is seeing the consequences of one's actions and understanding that every deficiency and corruption comes at the cost of our inner life and zest becoming hidden.

Key takeaways

• Our true life and zest reside not in material things but in the quality of our actions and intentions.
• Every deficiency and act of corruption comes at the cost of our spiritual essence and inner joy becoming hidden.
• Rumi advocates for immediate action on good intentions, before temptations and procrastination block the path.
• This world, with its deceptive appearance, can be a 'rotten nut' that saps our inner vitality.
• We must rely on our 'own sight' and foresight, rather than being guided by the 'blind'.