In Book Four, Section 114 of the Masnavi, Rumi explores the story of the Prophet Abraham (Khalil) and the Angel Gabriel (Jibril) to illustrate the highest degree of absolute reliance on God (*tawakkul*). When Abraham is about to be cast into the fire, Gabriel offers his assistance. Abraham famously refuses, declaring that he does not need an intermediary or guide when dealing with the Divine. This narrative highlights the profound Sufi principle that the most elevated spiritual state involves seeking God directly and exclusively, perceiving even the highest angels as unnecessary intermediaries between the lover and the Beloved.

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من خلیل وقتم و او جبرئیل 
من نخواهم در بلا او را دلیل
او ادب ناموخت از جبریل راد 
که بپرسید از خلیل حق مراد
که مرادت هست تا یاری کنم 
ورنه بگریزم سبکباری کنم
گفت ابراهیم نی رو از میان 
واسطه زحمت بود بعد العیان
بهر این دنیاست مرسل رابطه 
مؤمنان را زانک هست او واسطه
هر دل ار سامع بدی وحی نهان 
حرف و صوتی کی بدی اندر جهان
گرچه او محو حقست و بی‌سرست 
لیک کار من از آن نازکترست
کردهٔ او کردهٔ شاهست لیک 
پیش ضعفم بد نماینده‌ست نیک
آنچ عین لطف باشد بر عوام 
قهر شد بر نازنینان کرام
بس بلا و رنج می‌باید کشید 
عامه را تا فرق را توانند دید
کین حروف واسطه ای یار غار 
پیش واصل خار باشد خار خار
بس بلا و رنج بایست و وقوف 
تا رهد آن روح صافی از حروف
لیک بعضی زین صدا کرتر شدند 
باز بعضی صافی و برتر شدند
هم‌چو آب نیل آمد این بلا 
سعد را آبست و خون بر اشقیا
هر که پایان‌بین‌تر او مسعودتر 
جدتر او کارد که افزون دید بر
زانک داند کین جهان کاشتن 
هست بهر محشر و برداشتن
هیچ عقدی بهر عین خود نبود 
بلک از بهر مقام ربح و سود
هیچ نبود منکری گر بنگری 
منکری‌اش بهر عین منکری
بل برای قهر خصم اندر حسد 
یا فزونی جستن و اظهار خود
وآن فزونی هم پی طمع دگر 
بی‌معانی چاشنی ندهد صور
زان همی‌پرسی چرا این می‌کنی 
که صور زیتست و معنی روشنی
ورنه این گفتن چرا از بهر چیست 
چونک صورت بهر عین صورتیست
این چرا گفتن سال از فایده‌ست 
جز برای این چرا گفتن بدست
از چه رو فایدهٔ جویی ای امین 
چون بود فایده این خود همین
پس نقوش آسمان و اهل زمین 
نیست حکمت کان بود بهر همین
گر حکیمی نیست این ترتیب چیست 
ور حکیمی هست چون فعلش تهیست
کس نسازد نقش گرمابه و خضاب 
جز پی قصد صواب و ناصواب

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## English translation
I am the Khalil of this time and he is Gabriel —
In tribulation I do not want him as guide.

He learned no courtesy from noble Gabriel,
Who asked Khalil: "What is God's desire for you?"

"What is your wish, so that I may help you;
Otherwise I will flee and unburden myself."

Abraham said: "No — go from between us;
After direct vision, the intermediary is a burden."

For this reason the messenger exists in the world as a bond —
A link for believers, since he is their intermediary.

If every heart were a direct receiver of hidden revelation,
What need for letters and sound would exist in the world?

Though he is annihilated in God and without a head,
Yet my work is more subtle than that.

His deed is the deed of the King — but
Before my weakness, what seems evil appears as good.

What is pure grace for the common folk
Becomes wrath for the noble and delicate ones.

Much tribulation and pain the common people must endure
Until they can see the distinction.

For these intermediary letters, O intimate companion,
Are thorns — thorn upon thorn — to the one who has attained.

Much tribulation and pain and standing were needed
Until that pure spirit could be freed from letters.

But some became deafer from this sound,
While others became purer and more elevated.

This tribulation came like the water of the Nile —
For the fortunate it is water, and blood for the wretched.

Whoever sees the end more clearly is the more fortunate;
He works more earnestly, for he has seen greater reward.

For he knows that this world is a sowing
For the Resurrection and the harvest.

No contract was ever for its own sake alone,
But for the station of profit and gain.

There was never a denier, if you look carefully,
Whose denial was for the sake of denial itself —

But rather to overpower the rival in envy,
Or to seek superiority and to display oneself.

And that superiority is itself in pursuit of another desire.
Forms without meaning give no taste.

Therefore you ask, "Why do you do this?" —
For form is the oil and meaning is the light.

Otherwise, what is the purpose of saying "why"?
Since form would be for the sake of form itself.

Asking "why" is a question about benefit —
Except that asking "why" exists for this very reason.

Why do you seek benefit, O trustworthy one,
When the benefit is this very thing itself?

So the patterns of heaven and the people of earth —
There is no wisdom if they exist for this alone.

If there is no Wise One, what is this order?
And if there is a Wise One, how can His act be empty?

No one creates the image of a bathhouse and henna
Except in pursuit of right or wrong intention.

دفتر چهارم - بخش ۱۱۴ - گفتن خلیل مر جبرئیل را علیهماالسلام چون پرسیدش کی الک حاجة خلیل جوابش داد کی اما الیک فلا / Book Four - Section 114 - Khalil Saying to Gabriel, Peace Be Upon Them Both, When He Asked Him, 'Do You Have a Need?' Khalil Answered Him, 'As for You, No'

In Book 1 of Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, the fable of the lion and the prey beasts serves as a profound allegorical debate between the Islamic concepts of *tawakkul* (absolute trust in divine providence) and *jahd* (personal exertion or effort). The beasts argue that since God is the ultimate provider and destiny is preordained, human effort is a form of spiritual agitation that challenges the divine decree; therefore, they advocate for passive surrender. The lion, representing the spiritual master or the active intellect, counters this by arguing that God provided humans with limbs and faculties, and failing to use them is an act of ingratitude. He cites the Prophetic tradition to 'trust in God, but tie your camel', presenting a synthesis where human effort is not contradictory to, but rather the practical manifestation of, true trust in God.

The Debate Between Trust (Tawakkul) and Exertion (Jahd) in the Masnavi

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Concept of Absolute Reliance on God (Tawakkul) in the Story of Khalil and Gabriel

In Book Three of the Masnavi, Rumi introduces the metaphor of the merchant's ship to illustrate how humans must act under uncertainty. A merchant loading cargo onto a ship does not know whether they will safely reach their destination or drown in a shipwreck. Despite this risk, they proceed with the journey on trust (*tawakkul*).

Rumi argues that if a merchant refused to embark until they had absolute certainty of their safety, they would never engage in trade and would remain destitute. Similarly, in the spiritual realm, individuals cannot wait for absolute foreknowledge of their ultimate destiny (salvation or damnation) before acting. Instead, they must exercise faith, embark on the spiritual journey, and exert effort (*jahd*) while relying on *tawakkul*.

The Metaphor of the Merchant's Ship and Tawakkul (Trust) under Uncertainty in the Masnavi

In Book 3 of the *Masnavi*, Rumi expounds on the spiritual principle that persistent seeking inevitably leads to finding (expressed in the Persian proverb *juyandeh yabandeh ast*). Grounding this idea in the Quranic verse 'Whoever does an atom's weight of good shall see it' (Quran 99:7) and prophetic sayings, Rumi uses several earthly analogies to show the certainty of cause and effect in spiritual endeavors: knocking repeatedly on a door until it opens, waiting patiently on someone's street, digging a well daily until clean water is reached, and sowing seeds to eventually reap. Through these metaphors, Rumi reassures spiritual seekers that sincere, continuous effort is never wasted and will ultimately culminate in divine union.

The Principle of Diligent Seeking (Juyandeh Yabandeh) in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, during the philosophical debate between the lion and the beasts over exertion (*jahd*) versus passive trust (*tawakkul*), the lion argues that worldly striving is not inherently evil. To illustrate the proper relationship a believer should have with the material world, the lion uses the metaphor of water and a boat. He explains that 'water inside the boat destroys the boat,' representing worldly attachment and greed entering the heart. However, 'water beneath the boat supports it,' symbolizing wealth and earthly means acting as necessary vehicles for spiritual advancement when kept outside the heart. The lion extends this with the metaphor of a sealed jar: just as a jar floats safely because it is sealed and filled with air, a believer's heart remains steady and buoyant atop the turbulent 'water of the world' as long as it is sealed against worldly desires and filled with the 'air' of divine poverty (dervishhood).

The Metaphor of the Boat and Worldly Detachment in the Masnavi

In Book 1, Section 49 of the Masnavi, Rumi contrasts the concepts of **Tawakkul** (trust in divine providence) and **Jahd** (human exertion) through the tale of a man fleeing the Angel of Death. The man's frantic effort (jahd) to escape to India actually fulfills divine destiny, as Azrael was originally commanded to take his soul there. Rumi uses this irony to demonstrate the futility of trying to outmaneuver fate through mere physical exertion and advocates for the spiritual superiority of trust and surrender to God's will.

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