M6:3149 — آن عداوت اندرو عکس حقست / کز صفات قهر آنجا مشتقست

Translation: That enmity in him is a reflection of the Truth, / For it is derived there from the attributes of (divine) Wrath. Meaning: The animosity one perceives in another is not an independent evil, but rather a reflection of either God's attributes of wrath or, more profoundly, a projection of one's own inner flaws.

This verse, emerging from the story of the Lion and the Rabbit in the sixth book of the Masnavi, offers a profound lesson in both psychoanalysis and ontology. Mowlana depicts a lion that, seeing its own reflection in a well, mistakes it for another lion, leaps in, and perishes. This parable is the key to understanding the beyt.

I have emphasized for years that much of the enmity and rancor we perceive in others, and from which we suffer, is in truth nothing but a projection of our own faults and shortcomings. The 'other' here acts as a 'mirror' (آینه) — a mirror that shows us our own ugliness. When you see your face's ugliness in a mirror, you should not criticize or break the mirror; rather, you should attend to your own correction. This verse explicitly states: "That sin in him is of the same kind as your crime; / You must wash that disposition from your own nature." Meaning, what you deem a sin or fault in another is akin to the transgressions within your own disposition; thus, you must cleanse yourself of it.

Yet, Mowlana goes a step further, attributing this 'reflection' to the 'reflection of the Truth' (عکس حق). This means that even this apparent enmity and wrath, observed in nature and human relations, is ultimately 'derived' (مشتق) from the divine attributes of Qahr (Wrath/Might). Just as divine manifestations are sometimes جمالی (beautiful) and sometimes جلالی (majestic), what we perceive of wrath, indignation, and power in the world is a partial reflection and a shadow of these eternal attributes. Thus, this 'reflection' can be both an echo of divine wrath and an echo of our own faults. These two interpretations are not contradictory; they are complementary. The world is God's shadow, and forms should not be taken as ultimate realities; one must pass from form to meaning, and from shadow to source.

As I have explained before, Mowlana, unlike Hafez who sometimes laments the world's crookedness, stating "A new world must be built, and a new humanity," sees the world as perfect in its essence. If there is crookedness or distortion, it stems from 'us,' who, with our 'crooked perception' (کژنگری), see the world as distorted. "A crooked hair can veil the heavens; / What if all your parts become crooked?" This verse, in the same vein, emphasizes that the root of enmity and imperfection must be sought not in others, but in ourselves and in our connection to the 'Origin' (اصل). As Mowlana advises: "Practice seeing the origin, O you with crooked sight!"

Key takeaways

• The enmity we perceive in others is often a projection of our own inner flaws and imperfections.
• Mowlana views the world as a mirror for the human soul; the ugliness we see in the world and its people reflects our own inner ugliness.
• The 'reflection of the Truth' implies that even divine attributes of wrath are echoed in this world, albeit imperfectly and as shadows.
• Mowlana's aim is self-correction, not complaining about the world or others; the fault lies in our 'crooked perception,' not in existence itself.
• Just as the lion attacked its own reflection in the well, we should not attack appearances and shadows, but seek the origin and source within ourselves or beyond mere forms.