M6:616 — هین گلوی صبر می گیر و فشار / تا خنک گردد دل عشق ای سوار

Translation: Oh Rider, seize and press the throat of patience, So that the heart of Love may find solace. Meaning: This verse speaks to Love's fierce demand for the annihilation of patience, indicating that Love seeks the complete surrender of the lover, including their fortitude, to soothe its own ardent heart.

This verse stands as one of Rumi’s rare and emphatic declarations where he tears the veil of modesty and speaks with audacious frankness to the Beloved. He had, in the Divan-e Shams, expressed a lament, though he quickly corrected himself, attributing his words to a distraught state. Here, however, the tone is far more direct and unreserved. Rumi addresses "Love" itself, not merely the "Beloved." He describes Love as a bloodthirsty and demanding entity that always seeks to crush and take sacrifice, and in this instance, its target is patience (sabr).

Who is this savār (rider)? Is it the Beloved? Or is it an embodiment of Love that has taken the reins of existence? In any case, the verse’s outcry suggests that Love strangles patience, suffocating it. In essence, Love grants the lover no respite for patience or endurance. Rumi explicitly states elsewhere: “My patience died the night Love was born; it passed away, may those present be blessed with longevity.” This implies that love and patience cannot coexist; with the birth of love, patience perishes. Yet here, he says Love presses and chokes—as if allowing patience to live, only to witness its moment-by-moment suffering.

What is the purpose of this pressing and choking of patience? "So that the heart of Love may find solace." Love's heart is inflamed and restless, and its coolness is attained only through the lover's burning and sacrifice, even through the obliteration of their patience. This is a paradoxical relationship: for Love's heart to become 'cool' (xunak), the lover must 'burn' (suzad). This burning encompasses the lover's entire being, even their strongest virtues, such as patience.

In the verses that follow, Rumi asks: "Unless I burn, how will its heart find solace?" He then adds: "Oh, our heart is its family and abode / Burn your own house, burn! Who could tell you it is unlawful?" Here, he addresses the Beloved, asserting that his entire existence is Yours. You are the owner, and You can do whatever You wish with it. In the realm of Love, the 'lawful' (yajūz) and 'unlawful' (lā yajūz) of jurists have no place. This testifies that Rumi, in the station of Love, transcends superficial laws and conventional norms. Love not only discards patience but, in a sense, removes all restrictions to achieve its desired solace. This is the ultimate surrender and annihilation of the lover before the force of Love.

Key takeaways

• This verse reflects Rumi's decisive and unreserved tone in confronting Love, where he casts aside all modesty.
• Love is personified as an active, 'bloodthirsty' force that chokes patience, rather than merely disregarding it.
• The death of patience coincides with the birth of Love; patience and love cannot coexist.
• The purpose of 'choking patience' is to achieve the 'solace of Love's heart,' which is attained through the lover's burning.
• In the realm of Love, legal judgments of 'lawful' (yajūz) and 'unlawful' (lā yajūz) are irrelevant; the Beloved's ownership over the lover's existence is absolute.
• It signifies the lover's ultimate surrender to the Beloved, even to the abandonment of their strongest existential traits.