M6:463 — هین سوار توبه شو در دزد رس / جامه‌ها از دزد بستان باز پس

Translation: Hark, mount the steed of repentance and reach the thief, Reclaim your garments back from that thief. Meaning: This verse urges one to immediately embrace repentance (tawba) as the means to confront the thief who steals one's spiritual essence and time. Through tawba, one can recover all that has been lost.

This verse is a powerful summons from Rumi to awaken and stand firm against the thieves of our spiritual life and time. Who, then, is this thief? Undoubtedly, Rumi does not refer to an external bandit, but rather to our own heedlessness (ghaflat), our sins, our worldly attachments, and the endless, meaningless games of life. These forces, like a hidden thief, continuously plunder our moments, our spiritual capital, and our very essence. As I have discussed, a human being spends "half a life chasing captivating desires and half vexed by enemies," often becoming like "a small child lost in the game." This is the thief that tears us from our true selves.

To Rumi, the path to liberation lies in mounting the "steed of repentance" (markab-i tawba). Philosophically speaking, repentance is a "second-order action." This means it is an action that reflects upon another action performed by the human being. Animals are capable only of first-order actions; their lives are driven by instinct and immediate reactions. But human beings, by virtue of their intellectual and spiritual maturity (bolūgh), possess the unique capacity to observe their own deeds, regret them, rebel against themselves, and consciously change course. This capacity for remorse, for shame, for resistance against one's lower self, and ultimately for repentance, is the hallmark of true maturity. It signifies an exit from the realm of animality and childishness. These second-order actions are, in essence, a gateway out of heedlessness, offering an elevated perspective on the game of life.

Rumi marvels at this steed of repentance, calling it a "wondrous steed" (ʿajāyib markab ast), for it can instantaneously transport one from the depths of earthly lowliness to the heights of the heavens (dar falak tāzad ba yak lahza ze past). It seemingly defies time itself, granting the soul an unparalleled elevation. Repentance, in this sense, is a fresh birth, a spiritual regeneration that transforms the individual. But perhaps the most astonishing property of tawba is its alchemical power: it can transmute bad deeds into good ones. The more sins and shortcomings one has, provided they are followed by sincere repentance, the more those misdeeds are transformed into merits, like the alchemist's stone turning waste into gold. In this realm, the repentant soul becomes the true winner, for "indeed, good deeds obliterate evil ones" (Quran 11:114).

Yet, Rumi issues a stern warning: this thief of heedlessness is not content merely with stealing our garments and spiritual wealth; it lurks, ever ready to steal the "steed of repentance" itself. This implies that the thief works to obstruct the very act of repenting. It does so by burdening us with such a colossal weight of sins and plunging us so deeply into heedlessness that we lose the courage even to admit our faults. The first step of repentance is an honest confession of error. But if these errors become too immense, too numerous, the human capacity for confronting them diminishes, leading instead to self-justification, excuses, and denial. In this manner, the steed of repentance is prevented from ever setting forth. This is precisely what the tale of the simple-minded man and the cunning thief illustrates: the thief first steals the man's ram, then cunningly tricks him into stripping off his clothes to retrieve a fictional bag of gold from a well, ultimately stealing his clothes as well. Greed and a lack of foresight (ḥazm) bring calamity upon a person. One must, therefore, flee to God for protection from this trickster, whose guile is known only to the Divine, and who changes forms like an elusive thought.

Key takeaways

• Repentance (tawba) is the means to reclaim spiritual capital and time stolen by heedlessness and sin.
• Tawba is a second-order action, signifying human maturity and liberation from animality and childishness.
• The steed of repentance possesses miraculous speed, elevating the soul from the lowest depths to the heavens in an instant.
• Repentance is an existential alchemy, transforming bad deeds into good and enriching the repentant sinner.
• The thief of heedlessness actively seeks to steal the very 'steed of repentance' by making sins so burdensome that one loses the courage to confess or repent.
• The initial step of repentance is an honest confession of error; heedlessness prevents this essential acknowledgment.