M6:56 — آن جهان جز باقی و آباد نیست / زانک آن ترکیب از اضداد نیست

Translation: That world is naught but lasting and flourishing, For its composition is not of opposites. Meaning: Rumi posits that the spiritual, non-material world is inherently eternal and perfect, unlike the material world, because it is not composed of conflicting opposites that would lead to its decay.

This verse, without a doubt, is a key to understanding Rumi's fundamental distinction between 'this world' and 'that world.' 'That world' (ān jahān) that the Masnavi speaks of is not a geographical location, but a realm beyond multiplicity and materiality, a world whose existence draws solely from essential oneness. In describing 'this world,' Rumi emphasizes that our realm is one of numbers and opposites (ʿālam-i adād va aẓdād). Everything we perceive here is composite, meaning it has arisen from the juxtaposition of parts that may even be in conflict with one another. From the perspective of ancient philosophers, especially Aristotle, every composite being is inevitably subject to decay and disintegration; it is the very nature of composition that paves the way for dissolution and disappearance. But 'that world' of which Rumi speaks is simple (basīṭ), unified, single-element (tak-ʿanṣurī), and for this reason, it carries with it the attribute of permanence (baqā) and flourishing (ābādī).

I have often emphasized that Rumi likens this invisible world to a 'sea.' A sea that is waḥdān, meaning unique and unified. In that sea, 'there is no pair or spouse' (juft u zavjī nīst); multiplicity has no place, and consequently, opposition (taẓādd) has also departed from it. For there to be opposition, there must be two or more things for conflict to arise between them. But in the sea of unity, even the 'jewels' (gawhar), 'fish' (māhī), and 'waves' (mawj), according to Rumi, 'are nothing but waves'; that is, all the undulations and determinations are of that one sea and have no duality with it. This is the zenith of Rumi's monotheistic expression, reflected in this verse and similar ones.

Therefore, when Rumi says 'That world is naught but lasting and flourishing,' he refers to a world liberated from the internal strife and contention of opposites. Absolute peace reigns there; a peace that arises not from the victory of one opposite over another, but from the very absence of opposition. This flourishing is not in the sense of external prosperity, but rather an inner, existential flourishing; the world of the soul (jahān-i jān) and the supernatural (māvarā-ye ṭabīʿat), whose composition is not of conflict, must necessarily remain, and since it has no decay, it is prosperous. That is the abode of that pure, uniform spirit that Rumi describes, and without a doubt, this is a very important teaching throughout the Masnavi.

Key takeaways

• Rumi's spiritual world is eternal and perfect due to its essential unity and absence of opposites.
• This world stands in stark contrast to the material realm, which is composed of conflicting, perishable elements.
• "That world" refers to the spiritual, unseen realm, likened to a unified sea devoid of any duality.
• The lasting nature and prosperity of this transcendent world stem from absolute peace and the absence of internal strife.
• Rumi uses this verse to articulate one of his most fundamental monotheistic principles: the pure unity of the divine cosmos.