M6:350 — آن زمان کز سوختن وا می‌جهد / هم‌چو هندو شمع را ده می‌دهد

Translation: At that moment, when it escapes from burning, Like a Hindu, it rejects the candle with all ten fingers. Meaning: This verse describes the instant when a person, after a bitter and damaging experience, finally grasps its true nature and decisively rejects it, much like a moth, having been burned, pushes the fire away.

Mowlana, in this verse, which stands as a climax in the tale of the moth and the fire, paints a vivid picture of the human journey of repentance (tobe) and return from error. The moth, a symbol of the heedless individual or a seeker still midway on their path, repeatedly ventures towards the fire, mistaking it for light. Yet, each encounter brings only burning and lamentation. This cyclical movement of advance and retreat signifies the perennial act of repenting and then breaking that repentance, a predicament for those lacking steadfastness and trapped in stagnation.

What Mowlana conveys here with the phrase "ده می‌دهد" (de-mi-dahad – gives ten, i.e., rejects with all ten fingers) is a critical moment, a turning point. This expression, used by Mowlana frequently in the Masnavi, denotes a decisive act of rejection, disdain, and complete dismissal. It is not merely a temporary retreat; it is the culmination of a profound and painful realization. When the moth (symbolizing the wavering seeker) finally comes to its senses, when intellect prevails and memory functions, it grasps that what it had perceived as 'light' (nur) is, in fact, 'fire' (nar) – destructive and consuming. At this juncture, it pushes the candle away with all ten fingers, rejecting it with its entire being.

This insight is the fruit of a bitter experience: "Any form you admit into your heart / You will, from regret, eventually reject." Every attachment, every alluring pleasure, ultimately reveals its bitterness, leading to remorse and rejection. Those moth-like individuals who mistook fire for light and repeatedly burned their wings in pursuit of desire eventually awaken only after being scorched and wounded. This ultimate regret, this decisive rejection, signifies a newfound awareness. Before, forgetfulness (nesyān) and greed (tama') drew them towards the fire, but now, from the heart of burning, they have learned a profound lesson.

Indeed, human beings traverse various stages of spiritual journey. Some dwell in utter heedlessness, others at the level of prayer and intercession, and a select few reach the state of the 'self-less' whose prayers emanate not from themselves but from the Divine. However, this moth that 'gives ten' resides at a lower, yet crucial, stage – one where bitter experience has become its teacher. Through immense pain, it has opened a path to knowledge. While this mode of knowing is not the way of the prophets, who make requests by divine command and walk a straight path, for many of us, this "giving ten" after being burned is the first step towards awakening. Mowlana describes this act as "like a Hindu," which may allude to a specific mode of rejection or severance, but what remains clear is the decisiveness of this 'no'.

Key takeaways

• "Giving ten" signifies a definitive rejection and turning away from something after realizing its burning truth.
• The process of repentance and turning from error often results from a bitter, painful experience that leads to awakening.
• Heedlessness and greed repeatedly draw individuals to harmful paths until pain becomes a guide to recognition.
• What initially appears as light and allure may in essence be fire and destructive.
• This verse illustrates that for seekers midway on their path, awareness often arises from suffering and being 'burned'.