M6:3377 — گر برد این اسپ را از دست من / من یقین دانم نخواهم زیستن

Translation: If he takes this horse from my hand, I know for certain I shall not live. Meaning: This verse expresses a man's profound, existential attachment to a specific horse, declaring that its loss would unequivocally mean the end of his own life.

This verse, emerging from the depths of Emad-ul-Molk's tale in Book Six of the Masnavi, is the cry of a man whose very existence is intertwined with that of a horse. Here, Rumi portrays a profound, perhaps universal, psychological state: the intensity of human attachment to a specific object or phenomenon, to such an extent that one finds life meaningless without it. This is no mere affection; "I know for certain I shall not live" is an absolute decree, an inner compulsion stemming from the intensity of his devotion. He not only fears dying, but he knows for certain he will not live. This is akin to the concept of 'effacement' (maḥw) that Rumi speaks of elsewhere: "Effacement is needed here, not grammar, know this." It is as if his being is effaced in the being of this horse, having lost its existential independence, and in a way, he has mortgaged his essential 'formlessness' (bī-ṣūratī) to this material 'form'.

Key takeaways

• The intensity of human attachment to worldly affairs can reach a point where one perceives it as one's very existence.
• This verse illustrates a state of inner 'certainty' (yaqīn), not of divine knowledge, but of the compulsion of attachment.
• The man in this story embodies those whose 'soul is mortgaged' (jānam rahn) to a material object, viewing its loss as the end of life.
• This intense worldly attachment stands in stark contrast to Rumi's teachings on 'light-heartedness' (sabuk-rūḥī) and freedom from worldly ties.
• This verse serves as a mirror for contemplating the nature of our own attachments: is there anything whose absence would render our lives meaningless?