In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, as the narrative returns to the tale of Zayd, Rumi describes Zayd's ultimate spiritual state as one of complete annihilation (*fana*) of the ego. Having attained profound spiritual vision, Zayd's individual identity has entirely vanished. To illustrate this condition, Rumi employs the metaphor of a star that is rendered invisible when the sun rises. Just as a star remains in the sky but its light is completely effaced by the overwhelming brilliance of the sunlight, Zayd's individual self and outward senses have been subsumed by the absolute "light of our Sultan's knowledge." Rumi emphasizes that in this state of divine absorption, any worldly attachment or pursuit other than "love for the most beautiful God" is perceived as "soul-wrenching agony." Consequently, the spiritual seeker is urged to relentlessly strive through the darkness of worldly existence to discover this divine "Water of Life."

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## Original content
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گفت پیغامبر صباحی زید را 
کیف اصبحت ای رفیق با صفا
گفت عبدا مؤمنا باز اوش گفت 
کو نشان از باغ ایمان گر شکفت
گفت تشنه بوده‌ام من روزها 
شب نخفتستم ز عشق و سوزها
تا ز روز و شب گذر کردم چنان 
که ز اسپر بگذرد نوک سنان
که از آن سو جملهٔ ملت یکیست 
صد هزاران سال و یک ساعت یکیست
هست ازل را و ابد را اتحاد 
عقل را ره نیست آن سو ز افتقاد
گفت ازین ره کو ره‌آوردی بیار 
در خور فهم و عقول این دیار
گفت خلقان چون ببینند آسمان 
من ببینم عرش را با عرشیان
هشت جنت هفت دوزخ پیش من 
هست پیدا همچو بت پیش شمن
یک بیک وا می‌شناسم خلق را 
همچو گندم من ز جو در آسیا
که بهشتی کیست و بیگانه کیست 
پیش من پیدا چو مار و ماهیست
این زمان پیدا شده بر این گروه 
یوم تبیض و تسود وجوه
پیش ازین هرچند جان پر عیب بود 
در رحم بود و ز خلقان غیب بود
الشقی من شقی فی بطن الام 
من سمات الجسم یعرف حالهم
تن چو مادر طفل جان را حامله 
مرگ درد زادنست و زلزله
جمله جانهای گذشته منتظر 
تا چگونه زاید آن جان بطر
زنگیان گویند خود از ماست او 
رومیان گویند بس زیباست او
چون بزاید در جهان جان و جود 
پس نماند اختلاف بیض و سود
گر بود زنگی برندش زنگیان 
روم را رومی برد هم از میان
تا نزاد او مشکلات عالمست 
آنک نازاده شناسد او کمست
او مگر ینظر بنور الله بود 
کاندرون پوست او را ره بود
اصل آب نطفه اسپیدست و خوش 
لیک عکس جان رومی و حبش
می‌دهد رنگ احسن التقویم را 
تا به اسفل می‌برد این نیم را
این سخن پایان ندارد باز ران 
تا نمانیم از قطار کاروان
یوم تبیض و تسود وجوه 
ترک و هندو شهره گردد زان گروه
در رحم پیدا نباشد هند و ترک 
چونک زاید بیندش زار و سترگ
جمله را چون روز رستاخیز من 
فاش می‌بینم عیان از مرد و زن
هین بگویم یا فرو بندم نفس 
لب گزیدش مصطفی یعنی که بس
یا رسول الله بگویم سر حشر 
در جهان پیدا کنم امروز نشر
هل مرا تا پرده‌ها را بر درم 
تا چو خورشیدی بتابد گوهرم
تا کسوف آید ز من خورشید را 
تا نمایم نخل را و بید را
وا نمایم راز رستاخیز را 
نقد را و نقد قلب‌آمیز را
دستها ببریده اصحاب شمال 
وا نمایم رنگ کفر و رنگ آل
وا گشایم هفت سوراخ نفاق 
در ضیای ماه بی خسف و محاق
وا نمایم من پلاس اشقیا 
بشنوانم طبل و کوس انبیا
دوزخ و جنات و برزخ در میان 
پیش چشم کافران آرم عیان
وا نمایم حوض کوثر را به جوش 
کاب بر روشان زند بانگش به گوش
وان کسان که تشنه بر گردش دوان 
گشته‌اند این دم نمایم من عیان
می‌بساید دوششان بر دوش من 
نعره‌هاشان می‌رسد در گوش من
اهل جنت پیش چشمم ز اختیار 
در کشیده یک‌دگر را در کنار
دست همدیگر زیارت می‌کنند 
از لبان هم بوسه غارت می‌کنند
کر شد این گوشم ز بانگ آه آه 
از خسان و نعرهٔ واحسرتاه
این اشارتهاست گویم از نغول 
لیک می‌ترسم ز آزار رسول
همچنین می‌گفت سرمست و خراب 
داد پیغامبر گریبانش بتاب
گفت هین در کش که اسبت گرم شد 
عکس حق لا یستحی زد شرم شد
آینهٔ تو جست بیرون از غلاف 
آینه و میزان کجا گوید خلاف
آینه و میزان کجا بندد نفس 
بهر آزار و حیاء هیچ‌کس
آینه و میزان محکهای سنی 
گر دو صد سالش تو خدمتها کنی
کز برای من بپوشان راستی 
بر فزون بنما و منما کاستی
اوت گوید ریش و سبلت بر مخند 
آینه و میزان و آنگه ریو و پند
چون خدا ما را برای آن فراخت 
که بما بتوان حقیقت را شناخت
این نباشد ما چه آرزیم ای جوان 
کی شویم آیین روی نیکوان
لیک در کش در نمد آیینه را 
کز تجلی کرد سینا سینه را
گفت آخر هیچ گنجد در بغل 
آفتاب حق و خورشید ازل
هم دغل را هم بغل را بر درد 
نه جنون ماند به پیشش نه خرد
گفت یک اصبع چو بر چشمی نهی 
بیند از خورشید عالم را تهی
یک سر انگشت پردهٔ ماه شد 
وین نشان ساتری شاه شد
تا بپوشاند جهان را نقطه‌ای 
مهر گردد منکسف از سقطه‌ای
لب ببند و غور دریایی نگر 
بحر را حق کرد محکوم بشر
همچو چشمهٔ سلسبیل و زنجبیل 
هست در حکم بهشتی جلیل
چار جوی جنت اندر حکم ماست 
این نه زور ما ز فرمان خداست
هر کجا خواهیم داریمش روان 
همچو سحر اندر مراد ساحران
همچو این دو چشمهٔ چشم روان 
هست در حکم دل و فرمان جان
گر بخواهد رفت سوی زهر و مار 
ور بخواهد رفت سوی اعتبار
گر بخواهد سوی محسوسات رفت 
ور بخواهد سوی ملبوسات رفت
گر بخواهد سوی کلیات راند 
ور بخواهد حبس جزویات ماند
همچنین هر پنج حس چون نایزه 
بر مراد و امر دل شد جایزه
هر طرف که دل اشارت کردشان 
می‌رود هر پنج حس دامن‌کشان
دست و پا در امر دل اندر ملا 
همچو اندر دست موسی آن عصا
دل بخواهد پا در آید زو به رقص 
یا گریزد سوی افزونی ز نقص
دل بخواهد دست آید در حساب 
با اصابع تا نویسد او کتاب
دست در دست نهانی مانده است 
او درون تن را برون بنشانده است
گر بخواهد بر عدو ماری شود 
ور بخواهد بر ولی یاری شود
ور بخواهد کفچه‌ای در خوردنی 
ور بخواهد همچو گرز ده‌منی
دل چه می‌گوید بدیشان ای عجب 
طرفه وصلت طرفه پنهانی سبب
دل مگر مهر سلیمان یافتست 
که مهار پنج حس بر تافتست
پنج حسی از برون میسور او 
پنج حسی از درون مامور او
ده حس است و هفت اندام و دگر 
آنچ اندر گفت ناید می‌شمر
چون سلیمانی دلا در مهتری 
بر پری و دیو زن انگشتری
گر درین ملکت بری باشی ز ریو 
خاتم از دست تو نستاند سه دیو
بعد از آن عالم بگیرد اسم تو 
دو جهان محکوم تو چون جسم تو
ور ز دستت دیو خاتم را ببرد 
پادشاهی فوت شد بختت بمرد
بعد از آن یا حسرتا شد یا عباد 
بر شما محتوم تا یوم التناد
مکر خود را گر تو انکار آوری 
از ترازو و آینه کی جان بری

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## English translation
The Prophet said one morning to Zayd, "How have you awoken, O pure-hearted companion?" He said, "As a believing servant." He asked him again, "Where is the sign, if the garden of faith has blossomed?" He said, "I have been thirsty for days; by night I have not slept because of love and burnings, until I passed beyond day and night as the tip of a spear passes through a shield. For beyond that side all religious communities are one; a hundred thousand years and one hour are one. Pre-eternity and post-eternity are united there; intellect has no way to that side, because of utter loss." He said, "Bring a keepsake from this road, suited to the understanding and intellects of this land." He said, "When people see the sky, I see the Throne with those upon the Throne. The eight Paradises and seven Hells are visible before me like an idol before an idol-worshiper. One by one I recognize people, as I distinguish wheat from barley in the mill: who is of Paradise and who is a stranger is plain before me like snake and fish. For this group, the day when faces whiten and faces blacken has now appeared. Before this, though the soul was full of defects, it was in the womb and hidden from people. 'The wretched is the one wretched in the mother's womb'; from bodily marks their state is known. The body, like a mother, carries the child-soul; death is the pang and convulsion of birth. All the departed souls are waiting to see how that insolent soul will be born. The dark ones say, 'He is from us'; the fair ones say, 'He is very beautiful.' When the soul is born into the world of generosity, the dispute of white and black no longer remains. If it is dark, the dark ones take it; if Roman-like, the Romans take it from among them. Until it is born, it is one of the world's problems; rare is the one who knows the unborn, unless he sees by the light of God, for he has a path inside the skin. The original water of semen is white and pleasant, but the reflection of the Roman or Abyssinian soul gives color to the form made in the best stature and carries this other half down to the lowest of the low. This discourse has no end; drive on again, lest we remain behind the caravan. On the day when faces whiten and faces blacken, Turk and Hindu will be distinguished from that group. In the womb Hindu and Turk are not visible; when it is born, one sees it as wretched or mighty. Like the day of Resurrection, I plainly and openly see all men and women. Shall I speak, or shall I hold my breath?" Mustafa bit his lip, meaning, "Enough." "O Messenger of God, shall I tell the secret of the Gathering and make Resurrection manifest in the world today? Let me tear away the veils, so that my jewel may shine like a sun, so that through me an eclipse may come upon the sun, and so that I may show the date palm and the willow. I will reveal the secret of Resurrection, the genuine coin and the coin mixed with counterfeit. I will reveal the severed hands of the people of the left, the color of unbelief and the color of the family. I will open the seven holes of hypocrisy in the light of the moon without eclipse or waning. I will reveal the coarse cloak of the wretched and make heard the drum and kettledrum of the prophets. Hell, the Gardens, and the Barzakh between them I will bring plainly before the eyes of unbelievers. I will reveal the Pool of Kawthar in its surging, whose water strikes their faces and whose sound reaches their ears. Those who run thirsty around it I will reveal this very moment. Their shoulders rub against my shoulder; their cries reach my ear. The people of Paradise before my eyes willingly draw one another into embrace. They visit one another's hands and steal kisses from one another's lips. This ear of mine has grown deaf from the cries of 'Ah, ah' from the base ones and from the shout 'Alas for regret!' These are indications; I speak from the depths, but I fear offending the Messenger." He kept speaking like this, intoxicated and devastated; the Prophet twisted his collar. He said, "Take care, draw back, for your horse has grown hot. The reflection of God's 'He is not ashamed' has struck, and shame has gone. Your mirror has leapt out of its sheath. When do mirror and balance tell falsehood? When do mirror and balance hold their breath for anyone's offense or shame? Mirror and balance are noble touchstones. If you serve them for two hundred years and say, 'For my sake conceal the truth; show excess and do not show deficiency,' it will tell you, 'Do not mock your beard and mustache.' Mirror and balance, and then deceit and advice? Since God fashioned us for this, that truth may be known through us, if this is not so, what are we worth, young man? When shall we become the mirror of beautiful faces? But draw the mirror into the felt, for the theophany split Sinai's breast." He said, "After all, can the sun of Truth and the sun of eternity fit in an embrace? It tears apart both deceit and embrace; before it neither madness nor intellect remains." He said, "If you place one finger on an eye, it sees the world as empty of the sun. One fingertip becomes a veil for the moon, and this became a sign of the King's veiling: that one point may cover the world and the sun be eclipsed by a speck. Close your lips and look at the depth of the sea; God has made the sea subject to humankind. Like the springs Salsabil and Zanjabil, it is under the command of the noble inhabitant of Paradise. The four rivers of Paradise are under our command; this is not by our power but by God's command. Wherever we wish, we keep them flowing, like magic under the will of sorcerers. Like these two flowing springs of the eyes, they are under the command of the heart and the order of the soul. If it wishes, they go toward poison and snake; if it wishes, toward reflection. If it wishes, toward sensible things; if it wishes, toward clothed things. If it wishes, it drives toward universals; if it wishes, it remains imprisoned in particulars. Likewise all five senses, like reed-pipes, have been made permitted to the heart's wish and command. Whichever direction the heart points them, all five senses go, dragging their skirts. Hand and foot are openly under the heart's command, like that staff in Moses' hand. If the heart wishes, the foot begins to dance, or flees from deficiency toward increase. If the heart wishes, the hand enters calculation with its fingers so that it may write a book. The hand remains in a hidden hand; it has set the body's inward outside. If it wishes, it becomes a snake against an enemy; if it wishes, a helper to a friend. If it wishes, a ladle for eating; if it wishes, like a ten-maund mace. What does the heart say to them? How strange: strange union, strange hidden cause. Perhaps the heart has found Solomon's seal, for it has twisted the bridle of the five senses. Five outer senses are at its disposal; five inner senses are commanded by it. There are ten senses and seven limbs, and more; count what cannot be put into speech. Since, O heart, you are a Solomon in lordship, put the ring upon peri and demon. If in this kingdom you are free of deceit, three demons will not take the signet from your hand. After that, the world will take your name; the two worlds will be subject to you like your body. But if the demon carries the signet from your hand, kingship is lost and your fortune has died. After that, 'O regret!' O servants, is decreed for you until the Day of Calling. If you deny your own deceit, how will you save your soul from balance and mirror?"

دفتر اول - بخش ۱۵۸ - پرسیدن پیغمبر صلی الله علیه و سلم مر زید را که امروز چونی و چون برخاستی و جواب گفتن او که اصبحت ممنا یا رسول الله / Book One - Section 158 - The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, asking Zayd, 'How are you today and how did you awake?' and his answering, 'I awoke as a believer, O Messenger of God'

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گفت پیغامبر که اصحابی نجوم 
ره‌روان را شمع و شیطان را رجوم
هر کسی را گر بدی آن چشم و زور 
کو گرفتی ز آفتاب چرخ نور
کی ستاره حاجتستی ای ذلیل 
که بدی بر نور خورشید او دلیل
ماه می‌گوید به خاک و ابر و فی 
من بشر بودم ولی یوحی الی
چون شما تاریک بودم در نهاد 
وحی خورشیدم چنین نوری بداد
ظلمتی دارم به نسبت با شموس 
نور دارم بهر ظلمات نفوس
زان ضعیفم تا تو تابی آوری 
که نه مرد آفتاب انوری
همچو شهد و سرکه در هم بافتم 
تا سوی رنج جگر ره یافتم
چون ز علت وا رهیدی ای رهین 
سرکه را بگذار و می‌خور انگبین
تخت دل معمور شد پاک از هوا 
بین که الرحمن علی العرش استوی
حکم بر دل بعد ازین بی واسطه 
حق کند چون یافت دل این رابطه
این سخن پایان ندارد زید کو 
تا دهم پندش که رسوایی مجو

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## English translation
The Prophet said: “My companions are stars, candles for wayfarers and missiles against devils. If everyone possessed that eye and power by which he could take light from the sun of the heavens, what need would there be of a star, O lowly one, to point him toward the sun’s light? The moon says to earth, cloud, and shadow: ‘I was human, yet revelation is given to me. Like you, I was dark in my nature; the sun of revelation gave me such light. I have darkness in relation to the suns, but I have light for the darknesses of souls. I am weak for this reason, so that you may be able to endure the radiance, for you are not a man for the shining sun. I mixed honey and vinegar together so that I might find a way to the suffering liver. When you are freed from illness, O captive, leave the vinegar and eat honey. The throne of the heart has been made flourishing and purified of desire; see that “the All-Merciful established Himself upon the Throne.” From now on, after the heart has found this relation, God will rule the heart without intermediary. This discourse has no end. Where is Zayd, so that I may counsel him: do not seek disgrace?’”

دفتر اول - بخش ۱۶۱ - گفتن پیغامبر صلی الله علیه و سلم مر زید را کی این سر را فاش‌تر ازین مگو و متابعت نگهدار / Book One - Section 161 - The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, telling Zayd, 'Do not reveal this secret more openly than this, and maintain obedience'

## Original content
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زید را اکنون نیابی کو گریخت 
جست از صف نعال و نعل ریخت
تو که باشی زید هم خود را نیافت 
همچو اختر که برو خورشید تافت
نه ازو نقشی بیابی نه نشان 
نه کهی یابی به راه کهکشان
شد حواس و نطق بابایان ما 
محو نور دانش سلطان ما
حسها و عقلهاشان در درون 
موج در موج لدینا محضرون
چون بیاید صبح وقت بار شد 
انجم پنهان شده بر کار شد
بیهشان را وا دهد حق هوشها 
حلقه حلقه حلقه‌ها در گوشها
پای‌کوبان دست‌افشان در ثنا 
ناز نازان ربنا احییتنا
آن جلود و آن عظام ریخته 
فارسان گشته غبار انگیخته
حمله آرند از عدم سوی وجود 
در قیامت هم شکور و هم کنود
سر چه می‌پیچی کنی نادیده‌ای 
در عدم ز اول نه سر پیچیده‌ای
در عدم افشرده بودی پای خویش 
که مرا کی بر کند از جای خویش
می‌نبینی صنع ربانیت را 
که کشید او موی پیشانیت را
تا کشیدت اندرین انواع حال 
که نبودت در گمان و در خیال
آن عدم او را هماره بنده است 
کار کن دیوا سلیمان زنده است
دیو می‌سازد جفان کالجواب 
زهره نه تا دفع گوید یا جواب
خویش را بین چون همی‌لرزی ز بیم 
مر عدم را نیز لرزان دان مقیم
ور تو دست اندر مناصب می‌زنی 
هم ز ترس است آن که جانی می‌کنی
هرچه جز عشق خدای احسنست 
گر شکرخواریست آن جان کندنست
چیست جان کندن سوی مرگ آمدن 
دست در آب حیاتی نازدن
خلق را دو دیده در خاک و ممات 
صد گمان دارند در آب حیات
جهد کن تا صد گمان گردد نود 
شب برو ور تو بخسپی شب رود
در شب تاریک جوی آن روز را 
پیش کن آن عقل ظلمت‌سوز را
در شب بدرنگ بس نیکی بود 
آب حیوان جفت تاریکی بود
سر ز خفتن کی توان برداشتن 
با چنین صد تخم غفلت کاشتن
خواب مرده لقمه مرده یار شد 
خواجه خفت و دزد شب بر کار شد
تو نمی‌دانی که خصمانت کیند 
ناریان خصم وجود خاکیند
نار خصم آب و فرزندان اوست 
همچنانک آب خصم جان اوست
آب آتش را کشد زیرا که او 
خصم فرزندان آبست و عدو
بعد از آن این نار نار شهوتست 
کاندرو اصل گناه و زلتست
نار بیرونی به آبی بفسرد 
نار شهوت تا به دوزخ می‌برد
نار شهوت می‌نیارامد به آب 
زانک دارد طبع دوزخ در عذاب
نار شهوت را چه چاره نور دین 
نورکم اطفاء نار الکافرین
چه کشد این نار را نور خدا 
نور ابراهیم را ساز اوستا
تا ز نار نفس چون نمرود تو 
وا رهد این جسم همچون عود تو
شهوت ناری براندن کم نشد 
او بماندن کم شود بی هیچ بد
تا که هیزم می‌نهی بر آتشی 
کی بمیرد آتش از هیزم‌کشی
چونک هیزم باز گیری نار مرد 
زانک تقوی آب سوی نار برد
کی سیه گردد ز آتش روی خوب 
کو نهد گلگونه از تقوی القلوب

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## English translation
You will not find Zayd now, for he has fled; he sprang from the row of shoes and cast off his shoe. Who are you? Zayd did not even find himself, like a star on which the sun has shone. You will find from him neither form nor trace, not even a straw on the road of the Milky Way. The senses and speech of our forefathers were effaced in the light of our Sultan's knowledge. Their senses and intellects within are wave upon wave: all are present before Us. When morning comes, it is time for audience; the stars, hidden, have gone about their work. God gives back awareness to the unconscious ones, ring after ring, rings in their ears. Stamping feet and waving hands in praise, coquettishly saying: Our Lord, You have brought us to life. Those shed skins and scattered bones become horsemen, raising dust. They charge from nonexistence toward existence; at resurrection, the thankful and the thankless alike. Why twist your head and pretend not to see? Did you not twist your head away from the beginning in nonexistence? In nonexistence you had planted your foot, saying: Who will ever uproot me from my place? Do you not see your Lordly Maker's craft, how He pulled you by the forelock until He drew you into these many states that were not in your thought or imagination? That nonexistence is always His servant: Work, O demon; Solomon is alive. The demon makes basins like reservoirs; it has no courage to refuse or answer. Look at yourself, how you tremble from fear; know that nonexistence too remains trembling. And if you lay your hand on offices and ranks, that too is from fear, the soul-straining struggle you make. Everything other than love for the most beautiful God, even if it is eating sugar, is soul-wrenching agony. What is soul-wrenching agony? Coming toward death and not plunging a hand into the Water of Life. People have both eyes fixed on dust and death; they hold a hundred doubts about the Water of Life. Strive until the hundred doubts become ninety. Travel by night; if you sleep, the night will pass. In the dark night seek that day; bring forward the intellect that burns away darkness. In the ill-colored night there is much good; the Water of Life is paired with darkness. How can one lift one's head from sleep after sowing such a hundred seeds of heedlessness? Dead sleep and dead morsels have become companions; the master slept and the night-thief set to work. You do not know who your enemies are: the fiery ones are enemies of earthly existence. Fire is the enemy of water and its children, just as water is the enemy of fire's life. Water kills fire because fire is the enemy and adversary of water's children. Beyond that, this fire is the fire of lust, in which lie the root of sin and stumbling. Outward fire is cooled by water; the fire of lust carries one to hell. The fire of lust is not soothed by water, because it has hell's nature in torment. What remedy is there for the fire of lust? The light of religion: your light extinguishes the fire of the unbelievers. What kills this fire? God's light. Make Abraham's light your teacher, so that this body of yours, like firewood, may be delivered from the Nimrod-like fire of the nafs. Fiery lust is not diminished by indulging it; it diminishes inevitably by being left ungratified. As long as you lay firewood on a fire, how will the fire die from firewood-carrying? When you withhold the firewood, the fire dies, for taqwa carries water toward the fire. How could fire blacken a beautiful face that applies rouge from taqwa al-qulub?

دفتر اول - بخش ۱۶۲ - رجوع به حکایت زید / Book One - Section 162 - Return to the Story of Zayd

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, Section 158 depicts the initial stage of Zayd's mystical transformation, where he responds to the Prophet Muhammad's inquiry by describing his profound spiritual awakening. Zayd explains that his intense love and nightly vigils have allowed him to transcend temporal boundaries, uniting pre-eternity (*azal*) and post-eternity (*abad*). This transcendence grants him a direct, unmediated vision of the unseen (*ghayb*), enabling him to perceive the Divine Throne (*Arsh*), the eight heavens, and the seven hells as clearly as physical objects. This visionary state represents a crucial stage of spiritual realization, serving as the prerequisite experience of cosmic awareness that precedes his ultimate self-annihilation (*fana*).

Zayd's Vision of the Unseen in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, the Sufi concept of *Mahv* (محو), or spiritual annihilation, describes the necessary effacement of the individual ego, worldly attachments, and intellectual pride in the presence of divine reality. Rumi establishes this concept notably by contrasting *Mahv* with *Nahv* (grammar or theoretical knowledge) in the allegory of the grammarian and the boatman. While partial intellect is useful for material matters, navigating the ocean of divine truth requires shedding one's ego completely. This state of spiritual annihilation allows the seeker to transcend limited human perception, acting as a foundational prerequisite for understanding more profound spiritual states discussed throughout the text.

The Concept of Spiritual Annihilation (Mahv) in the Masnavi

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Huggingface Model Summary

Zayd's Spiritual Annihilation in the Masnavi

## Original content
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این سخن پایان ندارد خیز زید 
بر براق ناطقه بر بند قید
ناطقه چون فاضح آمد عیب را 
می‌دراند پرده‌های غیب را
غیب مطلوب حق آمد چند گاه 
این دهل زن را بران بر بند راه
تگ مران درکش عنان مستور به 
هر کس از پندار خود مسرور به
حق همی‌خواهد که نومیدان او 
زین عبادت هم نگردانند رو
هم باومیدی مشرف می‌شوند 
چند روزی در رکابش می‌دوند
خواهد آن رحمت بتابد بر همه 
بر بد و نیک از عموم مرحمه
حق همی‌خواهد که هر میر و اسیر 
با رجا و خوف باشند و حذیر
این رجا و خوف در پرده بود 
تا پس این پرده پرورده شود
چون دریدی پرده کو خوف و رجا 
غیب را شد کر و فری بر ملا
بر لب جو برد ظنی یک فتی 
که سلیمانست ماهی‌گیر ما
گر ویست این از چه فردست و خفیست 
ورنه سیمای سلیمانیش چیست
اندرین اندیشه می‌بود او دو دل 
تا سلیمان گشت شاه و مستقل
دیو رفت از ملک و تخت او گریخت 
تیغ بختش خون آن شیطان بریخت
کرد در انگشت خود انگشتری 
جمع آمد لشکر دیو و پری
آمدند از بهر نظاره رجال 
در میانشان آنک بد صاحب‌خیال
چون در انگشتش بدید انگشتری 
رفت اندیشه و گمانش یکسری
وهم آنگاهست کان پوشیده است 
این تحری از پی نادیده است
شد خیال غایب اندر سینه زفت 
چونک حاضر شد خیال او برفت
گر سمای نور بی باریده نیست 
هم زمین تار بی بالیده نیست
یمنون بالغیب می‌باید مرا 
زان ببستم روزن فانی سرا
چون شکافم آسمان را در ظهور 
چون بگویم هل تری فیها فطور
تا درین ظلمت تحری گسترند 
هر کسی رو جانبی می‌آورند
مدتی معکوس باشد کارها 
شحنه را دزد آورد بر دارها
تا که بس سلطان و عالی‌همتی 
بندهٔ بندهٔ خود آید مدتی
بندگی در غیب آید خوب و گش 
حفظ غیب آید در استعباد خوش
کو که مدح شاه گوید پیش او 
تا که در غیبت بود او شرم‌رو
قلعه‌داری کز کنار مملکت 
دور از سلطان و سایهٔ سلطنت
پاس دارد قلعه را از دشمنان 
قلعه نفروشد به مالی بی‌کران
غایب از شه در کنار ثغرها 
همچو حاضر او نگه دارد وفا
پیش شه او به بود از دیگران 
که به خدمت حاضرند و جان‌فشان
پس بغیبت نیم ذره حفظ کار 
به که اندر حاضری زان صد هزار
طاعت و ایمان کنون محمود شد 
بعد مرگ اندر عیان مردود شد
چونک غیب و غایب و روپوش به 
پس لبان بر بند و لب خاموش به
ای برادر دست وادار از سخن 
خود خدا پیدا کند علم لدن
پس بود خورشید را رویش گواه 
ای شیء اعظم الشاهد اله
نه بگویم چون قرین شد در بیان 
هم خدا و هم ملک هم عالمان
یشهد الله و الملک و اهل العلوم 
انه لا رب الا من یدوم
چون گواهی داد حق کی بود ملک 
تا شود اندر گواهی مشترک
زانک شعشاع و حضور آفتاب 
بر نتابد چشم و دلهای خراب
چون خفاشی کو تف خورشید را 
بر نتابد بسکلد اومید را
پس ملایک را چو ما هم یار دان 
جلوه‌گر خورشید را بر آسمان
کین ضیا ما ز آفتابی یافتیم 
چون خلیفه بر ضعیفان تافتیم
چون مه نو یا سه روزه یا که بدر 
هر ملک دارد کمال و نور و قدر
ز اجنحهٔ نور ثلاث او رباع 
بر مراتب هر ملک را آن شعاع
همچو پرهای عقول انسیان 
که بسی فرقستشان اندر میان
پس قرین هر بشر در نیک و بد 
آن ملک باشد که مانندش بود
چشم اعمش چونک خور را بر نتافت 
اختر او را شمع شد تا ره بیافت

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## English translation
This discourse has no end; rise, O Zayd: put a bridle on the Buraq of speech. Since speech, when it exposes the fault, tears the veils of the Unseen, the Unseen is what God desires for a time. Drive away this drum-beater; block his road. Do not gallop; pull in the reins: concealment is better. Each person is better pleased with his own imagining. God wants those who despair of Him not to turn away even from this worship. With hope they are ennobled, and for a few days they run at His stirrup. That mercy wants to shine on all, on bad and good, through universal compassion. God wants every lord and captive to remain in hope and fear, watchful and wary. This hope and fear exist behind the veil, so that behind this veil they may be nurtured. When you tear the veil, where are fear and hope? The pomp and splendor of the Unseen become manifest. A young man beside the stream formed a suspicion that our fisherman is Solomon. If it is he, why is he alone and hidden? If not, why does he have Solomon’s features? He remained two-minded in this thought until Solomon became king and firmly established. The demon left the kingdom and fled from his throne; the sword of his fortune shed that devil’s blood. He put the ring on his own finger, and the armies of demon and peri gathered. People came to watch; among them was the one who had held that fancy. When he saw the ring on his finger, thought and conjecture left him completely. Fancy exists only when the thing is hidden; this searching is for what is unseen. The image of the absent one grows great in the breast; when he is present, his image departs. If the sky of light has not rained, neither has the dark earth grown without it. “They believe in the Unseen” is what I require; for that reason I closed the window of the perishing house. When I split the sky open in manifestation, how could I say, “Do you see in it any rift?” So that in this darkness they may spread out their searching, and each one may turn his face toward a side. For a while affairs are reversed: the thief brings the constable to the gallows. Thus many a sultan and high-aspiring one becomes, for a while, the slave of his own slave. Service in absence is fair and pleasant; keeping faith in absence, in servitude, is pleasing. Who is there who praises the king in his presence, such that in his absence he would be shamefaced? A fortress-keeper at the border of the realm, far from the sultan and the shadow of sovereignty, guards the fortress from enemies and does not sell it for boundless wealth. Absent from the king at the frontier, he keeps faith as though present. Before the king he is better than others who are present in service and lay down their lives. Thus half an atom of guarding the task in absence is better than a hundred thousand in presence. Obedience and faith are praiseworthy now; after death, in open vision, they are rejected. Since the Unseen, absence, and covering are better, bind the lips; silent lips are better. Brother, withdraw your hand from speech; God Himself will make knowledge from His presence manifest. The sun’s face is its own witness: O thing whose greatest witness is God. No, I shall say it, since in expression God, the angels, and the learned are joined: “God bears witness, and the angels and the people of knowledge, that there is no lord but the One who endures.” When God has borne witness, what is the angel, that he should share in witnessing? Because the rays and presence of the sun cannot be endured by ruined eyes and hearts. Like a bat that cannot bear the sun’s heat and cuts off hope from it. So regard the angels, like us, as helpers who manifest the sun in the sky: “We received this radiance from a sun; like a caliph, we shone on the weak.” Like the new moon, or the three-day moon, or the full moon, each angel has perfection, light, and rank. From wings of light, three or four, each angel has that radiance according to its degrees, like the wings of human intellects, among which there is much difference. Thus the companion of each human being in good and evil is the angel that resembles him. When the bleary eye could not bear the sun, the star became its candle so that it might find the way.

دفتر اول - بخش ۱۶۰ - بقیهٔ قصه زید در جواب رسول صلی الله علیه و سلم / Book One - Section 160 - The Rest of the Story of Zayd in Answer to the Messenger, Peace and Blessings Be Upon Him

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi* (Book 1, Section 161), the Prophet is metaphorically depicted as the moon reflecting the blinding light of the Divine Sun. Rumi explains that ordinary humans lack the spiritual capacity to withstand the direct, unmediated intensity of divine revelation. By reflecting this light in a moderated, gentler form, the Prophet acts as an intermediary, enabling seekers to receive guidance without being overwhelmed. This metaphor illustrates the Sufi concept of prophetic mediation (*wasitah*), where the spiritual guide or prophet serves as a bridge between the absolute divine light and human limitations.

The Metaphor of the Prophet as the Moon in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, the Prophet Muhammad delivers a profound discourse on the necessity of spiritual intermediaries for seekers who cannot yet bear the direct light of the Divine. Rumi illustrates this concept using astronomical metaphors, comparing the Prophet's companions to guiding "stars" and the prophet or saint to the "moon." Just as the moon receives light from the sun and reflects it in a gentler, more endurable form for those in darkness, spiritual guides transmit overwhelming divine revelation in a capacity that ordinary human souls can tolerate. Rumi further uses the medical metaphor of mixing "honey and vinegar" to describe how spiritual teachings are intentionally blended with worldly or relatable forms to cure the spiritually ailing. Once the seeker's heart is purified and "freed from illness," they can eventually dispense with these intermediaries and experience unmediated communion with God.

The Metaphor of Spiritual Intermediaries as the Moon and Stars in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, Prophet Noah's warning to his rebellious people serves as a profound exposition on the Sufi concept of fana, or the complete annihilation of the ego. Noah declares to his detractors that his individual self has perished ('I am not I') and that he now exists entirely through the Divine. Echoing a famous Hadith Qudsi, he states that God has literally become his hearing, perception, and sight. Rumi emphasizes this hidden divine majesty by contrasting the prophet's outward human frailty—likened to a humble 'fox'—with the immense spiritual power of a 'lion' concealed within. The passage culminates by explaining that a heart perfectly purified of worldly attachments and ego-driven images becomes a flawless mirror, fully capable of reflecting the hidden realities and 'forms of the Unseen.'

Noah's Discourse on Spiritual Annihilation (Fana) in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, the conclusion of the 'Tale of the Roman Envoy and Caliph Umar' vividly illustrates the central Sufi concept of *fana* (spiritual annihilation or the transcending of the ego). Overwhelmed by the divine wisdom and presence of Caliph Umar, the Roman envoy completely loses his worldly identity and forgets his diplomatic mission. Rumi employs a series of alchemical metaphors to describe this transformative elevation: just as a flood merges seamlessly into the sea, lifeless bread becomes living tissue when consumed by a human, and dark firewood turns into radiant light when sacrificed to fire, the earthly soul is elevated only when it annihilates itself in the divine presence. The passage emphasizes that true spiritual liberation requires escaping the 'cage' of the ego and worldly fame, suggesting that associating with spiritually awakened guides transforms a spiritually dormant seeker into one endowed with true divine sight.

The Spiritual Annihilation (Fana) of the Roman Envoy in the Masnavi

In Book 3 of Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, the climactic reunion between the exiled servant and his master, Sadr-i Jahan, vividly illustrates the Sufi concept of spiritual annihilation ($$fana$$) in the divine presence. Rumi explains that while the lover's yearning is loud and visible, his journey is fundamentally driven by the hidden, silent attraction of the Beloved. When the servant finally gazes upon Sadr-i Jahan, the sheer spiritual intensity of the encounter overwhelms his mortal capacity. His soul seemingly flees his body, causing him to collapse like dry wood. He grows entirely cold and becomes utterly unresponsive to physical stimuli or worldly remedies, such as incense and rosewater. This profound paralysis represents the complete stripping away of the ego and individual consciousness. In this state of true encounter, the lover is reduced to nothingness, demonstrating that the ultimate presence of the Divine completely nullifies the self until the Beloved personally descends to revive the seeker.

The Lover's Annihilation upon Encountering Sadr-i Jahan in the Masnavi

In Book 3, Section 224 of the Masnavi, when Prophet Solomon summons the wind to answer the gnat's complaint, the gnat immediately flees. Rumi uses this flight to symbolize the spiritual concept of *fana* (annihilation of the ego): just as the weak gnat cannot coexist with the powerful wind, the finite human ego or individual selfhood is utterly dissolved and cannot persist when confronting the overwhelming manifestation of the Divine presence.

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