M6:605 — ای دل بی‌خواب ما زین ایمنیم / چون حرس بر بام چوبک می‌زنیم

Translation: O our sleepless heart, we are safe from this (slumber) / For like a watchman on the roof, we strike a stick. Meaning: Rumi asserts that his heart is ever-vigilant and protected from sleep, because he actively maintains its wakefulness, much like a night watchman beats a stick on a roof to stay alert and ward off slumber.

This luminous couplet belongs to those exceptional passages in the Mathnawi where Rumi, with striking immediacy, engages in an explicit spiritual flirtation with the Divine. It speaks of the pangs of separation, the yearning for union, and the elevated station of love.

I have often stated that Rumi, unlike some other mystics and poets, is not one to complain about the world and its crookedness. Rather, he is a narrator of the soul's journey and its spiritual stations. In this beyt, he articulates with profound clarity and certainty his stance on wakefulness and vigilance in the path of love. He declares: "O our sleepless heart, we are safe from this (slumber)." This means our heart is not of those that might fall asleep while awaiting the Beloved, thus failing to remain safe from heedlessness. This heart is perpetually watchful and awake. This is no mere descriptive phrase; it is the proclamation of a mystical station, the station of the "Sufi, child of the moment," who is ever-present in the 'now' and never allows the dust of the past or the dreams of the future to veil the present moment.

The metaphor of "like a watchman on the roof, we strike a stick" offers a vivid and tangible image. 'Haras' (حرس) is the plural of 'haris' (حارس), meaning guard or watchman. In olden times, watchmen would beat a stick on the roof or elsewhere at night, both to keep themselves awake and to announce their presence, thus ensuring security. Rumi, through this simile, conveys that the wakefulness of his heart is not a passive or natural state but an active, willed, and continuous vigilance. We ourselves, by striking the stick, cultivate and sustain this wakefulness. This 'striking of the stick' symbolizes the mystic's constant striving and struggle to maintain 'presence of heart' (hudur-i qalb) and to guard the inner sanctuary against the onslaught of heedlessness (ghaflat) and spiritual slumber.

Indeed, Rumi distinguishes himself from those bewildered and oblivious lovers. He reveals a secret: that wakefulness in love is not a mere gift but the fruit of rigorous and continuous watchfulness. This profound meaning resonates in other verses of the Mathnawi, where he speaks of the importance of spiritual contemplation (muraqaba) and self-reckoning (muhasaba). The sleepless heart is one that never for a moment forgets the Beloved, and with every 'strike of the stick,' it renews its covenant with wakefulness and presence.

Key takeaways

• The paramount importance of constant wakefulness and vigilance of the heart in the divine path of love.
• The active striving and continuous struggle required to maintain 'presence of heart' and guard it.
• The station of the 'mystic, child of the moment,' who does not lose the present moment to heedlessness.
• Distinguishing oneself from passive lovers who might fall asleep while awaiting the Beloved.