M6:185 — تا حروفش جمله عقل و جان شوند / سوی خلدستان جان پران شوند

Translation: So that its letters may all become intellect and soul, And fly towards the paradise-garden of the soul. Meaning: This couplet expresses Rumi's aspiration for the Mathnawi: he wishes its words, through the spiritual grace of Hesamoddin, to transcend mere language and transform into essences of intellect and soul, guiding the reader's spirit towards its true celestial home.

This couplet is a profound prayer from Rumi to Hesamoddin Chalabi, expressed at the height of praise and gratitude. I have consistently emphasized that Rumi viewed the Mathnawi not as a self-crafted work, but as a current from the unseen world that manifested through Hesamoddin. Rumi considered himself merely a reed-flute (ney) into which Hesamoddin breathed, or a mountain that echoed his voice. This is not humility, but a deep ontological insight.

Here, Rumi regards the entire Mathnawi as a "form" (ṣūrat), a body potentially containing truth, yet needing a "soul" (rūḥ) to become actualized and enlivened. This animation, in Rumi's words, is the work of Hesamoddin. He had previously asked Hesamoddin in earlier verses: "Give the Mathnawi a spacious theater, endow the forms of its parables with soul." This request for "giving soul" to the "forms of the Mathnawi" sets the stage for the present couplet.

Rumi then describes the result of this ensoulment in this very verse: when Hesamoddin breathes life into these forms, "its letters may all become intellect and soul." This statement is exceptionally significant. Letters, outwardly, are merely written symbols, lifeless shells. But Rumi's aspiration is for these letters to transcend their outward state and transform into "intellect" (ʿaql) and "soul" (jān) themselves. This means the Mathnawi's words are no longer mere signs of meaning, but meaning itself, and indeed, life-giving agents. This is precisely where the miracle of divine speech in Sufism occurs; language reaches a point where it is no longer a "hint" but a "presence." It is the very breath of a Messiah, flowing through the words of the saints, that gives life to the dead.

These ensouled letters are then capable of causing the reader to "fly towards the paradise-garden of the soul." This means an ascent towards the true origin and abode of the spirit, which is the heavenly garden of gnosis and union. This flight is not the flight of words, but the flight of the reader's soul, which, aided by this living language, is liberated from the world of forms and ascends towards formlessness—the paradise-garden of the soul. This is precisely the "joy" (ṭarab) that the Mathnawi bestows upon its reader; not sorrow, but the lightness and flight of the spirit. This profound impact of language on the soul is made possible by the presence and companionship of Hesamoddin; the man through whom the Mathnawi, "with him" and "by his grace," transformed from form to soul.

Key takeaways

• Rumi views the Mathnawi as a body needing Hesamoddin's ensoulment to come alive.
• Through Hesamoddin's breath, the Mathnawi's letters transcend mere symbols to become 'intellect' and 'soul' themselves.
• The Mathnawi's words are not just signs of meaning, but meaning itself, capable of enlivening and inspiring the soul's flight.
• This spiritual flight moves from the realm of 'form' to 'formlessness,' reaching the 'paradise-garden of the soul'.
• Rumi sees Hesamoddin's role as manifesting the divine breath that animates and empowers the words.
• The Mathnawi evokes joy and lightness in the soul, rather than burdening it with sorrow.