M1:226 — آنک از حق یابد او وَحی و جواب / هرچه فرماید بود عین صواب

Translation: He who receives wahy (revelation/inspiration) and response from God, Whatever he commands is the very essence of truth and correctness (ayn-e sawāb). Meaning: This verse asserts that the words and commands of an individual who receives direct inspiration and revelation from God are entirely truthful and without error.

In the Masnavi, we frequently encounter narratives where the protagonists perform actions that appear strange, and at times, contrary to conventional norms or ethics. One of the most prominent among these is the story of Khidr and Moses, also alluded to in the Quran. Khidr engages in deeds that Moses finds intolerable and repeatedly protests—from scuttling a boat to slaying a young boy. Ordinary people, and even many exegetes, are baffled by the secret wisdom behind these actions, raising fundamental questions: Can one take a life without just cause? And if so, why is this decree not universally applied?

Rumi, however, offers his own profound answer here, opening a window into esoteric knowledge. He states, immediately following this beyt, that "The boy whose throat Khidr cut, / The common folk cannot grasp the secret thereof." This beyt (M1:226) is the key to understanding such enigmas. Rumi asserts unequivocally: "He who receives wahy (revelation/inspiration) and response from God, / Whatever he commands is the very essence of truth and correctness (ayn-e sawāb)." This means that one who has an open, direct channel to God, receiving divine revelation and inspiration without mediation, commits no error in speech or action; whatever such a person commands is ayn-e sawāb, the absolute truth and correctness itself. Our understanding of the rectitude of these commands lies beyond our cognitive horizon, for we lack access to the source of that divine inspiration.

This principle is not confined solely to the story of Khidr. Rumi considers this rule universal, stating elsewhere (M1:227), in explanation of the actions of these divine saints and deputies: "He who grants life, if he takes it, is rightful; / He is a deputy, and his hand is God's hand." One who possesses the right to bestow life also possesses the right to take it. Such a person is not a murderer, but an agent and deputy of God. Just as we do not call Azrael a killer, for he is merely executing a divine command, by the same token, the actions of those who receive direct inspiration from God stem not from self-will but from absolute obedience to the divine injunction.

I wholeheartedly subscribe to this view. Rumi's perspective on the status of inspiration and wahy applies not only to Khidr but also, implicitly, to Rumi himself. With the word "Listen!" (Bishnav!) at the very beginning of the Masnavi, he positions himself as the "Tongue of God," instructing the listener: "If you have not become the Tongue of God, then be an Ear." Rumi repeatedly emphasizes that his words originate from wahy-e del (revelation of the heart), which he equates, in a different idiom, with wahy-e Haqq (divine revelation). Thus, this beyt is not merely a justification for Khidr's actions; it explicates an epistemological and ontological principle in the Masnavi: that there are individuals directly connected to ultimate Truth, and their words and deeds are an interpretation of an infallible divine will, even if they appear strange to us outwardly.

Key takeaways

• The commands and actions of divine agents, though outwardly perplexing, stem from divine revelation and command.
• One who has a direct connection to God, whatever they say or do, is the essence of truth and rectitude (ayn-e sawāb).
• Limited human intellect and common understanding are incapable of grasping the hidden wisdom of divine deputies' actions.
• Saints and prophets are executors of God's will; their hand is God's hand, and their function is a divine mission.
• Rumi perceives himself as a recipient of a form of wahy-e Haqq (divine revelation), making his words infallible.