M4:51 — باز در بستندش و آن درپرست / بر همان اومید آتش پا شدست

This couplet describes a key stage in the spiritual path as Rumi sees it. The lover, representing any seeker of God, has been granted a single, captivating glimpse of the Beloved (M4:43). Since that moment, the door to union has been consistently shut in his face.

Far from extinguishing his desire, this rejection intensifies it. The memory of that one opening—that initial taste of grace—transforms him into a dar-parast, a 'door-worshipper,' whose entire existence is now oriented toward that closed door. The initial hope (umīd) acts like fuel, making him ātish-pā, 'fire-footed'—restless, impassioned, and relentlessly active in his search.

In the context of the story, this state of agitated longing is precisely what God uses to bring about the lover's salvation. His frantic energy will soon cause him to flee from the night watchman, a flight that, paradoxically, leads him right into the Beloved's garden. The closed door and the subsequent suffering are not signs of failure but necessary catalysts for the journey.