M6:3858 — خر کجا ناموس و تقوی از کجا / خر چه داند خشیت و خوف و رجا

Translation: What concern has a donkey with honor and piety? What does a donkey know of awe, fear, and hope (in God)?

Meaning: Mowlana, using the metaphor of a donkey, critiques individuals who, submerged in their base desires, are devoid of moral and spiritual virtues such as honor, piety, and the awe of God, and thus lack the capacity to comprehend them.

This couplet appears amidst one of Mowlana’s sharpest and most revealing critiques of the moral corruption prevalent in his era, a critique that even extends to the Sufi lodges, the khanqahs. I have always emphasized that Mowlana is not a poet who merely recounts anecdotes aimlessly; everything he narrates serves as a mirror reflecting a deeper truth.

In this particular story, after a beardless youth (amrad) is assaulted in a khanqah and complains about his insecurity in society, Mowlana turns to criticize those whose intellect (aql) has fallen captive to lust (shahwat). He employs the harshest terms, likening such individuals to a 'donkey.' What does a donkey know of honor (namus)? What of piety (taqwa)? What comprehension does it have of divine awe (khashyat), which is accompanied by humility, or the fear of God (khawf), or hope in Him (raja)? These attributes are all human characteristics that only a sound intellect and an awakened heart can grasp and adhere to.

Mowlana's critique here has two dimensions: On one hand, it points to the peak of corruption that had infiltrated even religious environments such as khanqahs. I have mentioned before that Mowlana referred to khanqahs as 'azab-khaneh' (bachelors' lodges) and bitterly lamented that a place meant for spiritual purification should become so defiled. If such impiety occurs in the khanqah, which is supposed to be the refuge of the people of the Path, then what of the streets and markets? On the other hand, this couplet offers a profound insight into the deterioration and loss of 'reason' (aql). In Mowlana's view, when 'lust' (shahwat) overwhelms 'reason' (aql), human beings fall from their rightful station and transform into four-legged creatures; beings driven solely by instinct, incapable of understanding anything beyond their animalistic needs. This is not merely a rebuke, but the diagnosis of a deadly spiritual illness that empties the human soul of higher meanings.

Key takeaways

• Mowlana explicitly likens humans enslaved by lust to 'donkeys,' utterly devoid of understanding spiritual and moral virtues.
• This couplet critiques the collapse of reason when overwhelmed by base desires, leading to humanity's fall from its true station.
• It reveals the depth of moral corruption that had infiltrated even religious centers like khanqahs.
• It serves as a reminder that attributes like honor, piety, awe, fear, and hope are exclusive to humans with awakened reason and heart.