Translated by Coleman Barks
The Essential Rumi

COMMENTARY:

Allahumma Salli Ala Sayidina Muhammadin wa ala ali sayidina Muhammad.

Dear brothers and sisters,

It is very difficult to explain the poetry of big saints(waliullah) as their poems reflect the state they are in at that moment. However, shall we not express our feelings about their poems? Of course, we will do it humbly as much as we can understand from it. We will ask to our hearts where Allah and His Rasul and our inner Qur’an is. They will help us understand the meanings within these lines inshaallah.

Maulana Jalaluddeen Rumi(K.S) is questioning the condition of the soul within the body and the world (dunya)here. If one reads Qur’an , It will be seen that Prophet Yusuf (Joseph A.S) had been put in to a well and also in prison. Prophet Yusuf( A.S) was a very beautiful man. He was so beautiful that his beauty being trapped in the well and in the prison, is similar to one’s beautiful soul being trapped in the body and this world.

Human’s soul is sacred and it is trapped in the human mind. Because it is the mind perceiving everything(all elements), and it is the mind (Aql) tying  us to this world. That is why the mind is called “Aql” in Arabic language. “Aql” means the tie. We(nafs) desire what we perceive of this world and our desires become a chain or a carcan on our neck bonding us to this world.

Qur’an [Al-Yasin 36/8]: Lo! We have put on their necks carcans reaching unto the chins, so that they are made stiff-necked.

Qur’an [Al-Yasin 36/9]: And We have put a bar in front of them and a bar behind them, and further, We have covered them up; so that they cannot see.

Qur’an [Al-Yasin 36/10]: The same is it to them whether thou admonish them or thou do not admonish them: they will not believe.

Qur’an [Al-Balad 80/12-13]: (12).And what will explain to thee the path that is steep?(13). (It is:) freeing the bondman;

The bondman or slave who is going to be freed in here is firstly the person’s own soul. How could man do this?

Qur’an [Al-Yasin 36/11]: Thou canst but admonish such a one as follows the Message and fears the (Lord) Most Gracious, unseen: give such a one, therefore, good tidings, of Forgiveness and a Reward most generous.

If man does not enlighten his mind with the divine message of Allah (God) and does not follow and obey Allah and His Rasul(Messenger), He will not be able to free his neck from this illusion. Rumi (K.S) realises this reality and explains to us that he does not belong to this world. He was only sent here for a reason and he knows that the One who sent him here, shall take him back again, because there is no other to return to. He trusts (tawakkul) in Allah in his journey and knows that his Rabb(lord) is the only ONE who can take him out of this prison.

Qur’an [Al-Shuara 26/36]: Now whatever ye have been given is but a passing comfort for the life of the world, and that which Allah hath is better and more lasting for those who believe and put their trust in their Lord.

Because Rumi(K.S) knows that there is no other place to return but HIM(La ilahe illallaHU).

Qur’an [Al-Bakara 2/46]: Who bear in mind the certainty that they are to meet their Lord, and that they are to return to Him.

How does Rumi(K.S) know that? Because the Qur’an in Rumi’s heart, reads the verses below from his outer Qur’an:

Qur’an [ Al-Hud 11/ 4] : To Allah is your return, and he hath power over all things.

Qur’an [Al-Yunus 10/4 ] : Unto Him is the return of all of you; it is a promise of Allah in truth……..

Qur’an [ Al-Zuhruf 43/14]: And to our Lord(Rabb), surely, must we turn back!

Qur’an [Al-Mumin 40/3]: The Forgiver of sin, the Acceptor of repentance, the Stern in punishment, the Bountiful. There is no God save Him. Unto Him is the journeying.

Qur’an [Al-Qaf 50/43]: Verily it is We Who give Life and Death; and to Us is the Final Goal

Qur’an [Al-Alaq 96/8]: Verily, to thy Lord is the return (of all).

Qur’an [Al-Maide 5/18] “…… and to god belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all that is between: and unto him is the final goal (of all).”

Qur’an [Al-An’am 6/94]: Now have ye come unto Us solitary as We did create you at the first, and ye have left behind you all that We bestowed upon you, and We behold not with you those your intercessors, of whom ye claimed that they possessed a share in you. Now is the bond between you severed, and that which ye presumed hath failed you.

Qur’an [ Al-An’am 6/60] :  It is He Who doth take your souls by night, and hath knowledge of all that ye have done by day: by day doth he raise you up again; that a term appointed be fulfilled; in the end unto him will be your return; then will he show you the truth of all that ye did.

Qur’an [ Al-An’am 6/108]: Revile not ye those whom they call upon besides Allah, lest they out of spite revile Allah in their ignorance. Thus have we made alluring to each people its own doings. In the end will they return to their Lord, and we shall then tell them the truth of all that they did.

Qur’an [Al-An’am 6/164] : Say: shall I seek for (my) Cherisher other than Allah, when He is the Cherisher of all things (that exist)? every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself: no bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another. Your goal in the end is towards Allah: He will tell you the truth of the things wherein ye disputed.

Qur’an [Al-Zumar 39/7]: If ye reject (Allah), truly Allah hath no need of you; but He liketh not ingratitude from His servants: if ye are grateful, He is pleased with you. No bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another. In the End, to your Lord is your Return, when He will tell you the truth of all that ye did (in this life). For He knoweth well all that is in (men’s) hearts.

 Now we will look at these lines :

“All day I think about it, then at night I say it.
Where did I come from, and what am I supposed to be doing?”

Why does Rumi (K.S) need to state day and night here. He says he is thinking about it all day and then he says this in the night. There is a saying in English “Truth dawned upon him”, yes that is certainly a true word. Dawn comes after the night. Allah is telling us this in the Qur’an :

Qur’an [Al-Fajr 8/1]: (I swear) By the Dawnn

What is the importance of the night here? Something is happening at nights? Rumi states in another poem:

Your Deepest Thirst
Stars burn clear
all night till dawn.
Do that yourself,
and a spring will rise in the dark
with water your deepest thirst is for.

What is collected as data during the day time is being digested within our selves during the night. Some people are sleeping less at nights compared to the majority of the people in the world. They reflect upon what they observed during the day and they harvest this towards the morning.  What is Qur’an telling us about the nights? Lets review the VeRsES (ayats) below to see What Allah is telling us about the nights in the Qur’an:

Qur’an [ Al-Zumar  39/9]: Is one who worships devoutly during the hour of the night prostrating himself or standing (in adoration), who takes heed of the Hereafter, and who places his hope in the Mercy of his Lord - (like one who does not)? Say: “Are those equal, those who know and those who do not know? It is those who are endued with understanding that receive admonition.

Qur’an [ Al-Fussilat  41/38]: But if they are proud, yet those with your Lord glorify Him during the night and the day, and they are not tired.

Qur’an [Al-Dhariyat 51/17]: They used to sleep but little of the night,

Qur’an [Al-Muzammil 73/6]: Truly the rising by night is most potent for governing (the soul), and most suitable for (framing) the Word (of Prayer and Praise).

Qur’an [ Al-Insan 26/26]: And part of the night, prostrate thyself to Him; and glorify Him a long night through.

Qur’an[ Al-Sajda 32/16]: Their limbs do forsake their beds of sleep, the while they call on their Lord, in Fear and Hope: and they spend (in Charity) out of the sustenance which we have bestowed on them.

Qur’an [ Al-Kasas 28/71-73]:

71.Say: See ye? If Allah were to make the night perpetual over you to the Day of Judgment, what god is there other than Allah, who can give you enlightenment? Will ye not then hearken?

72. Say: See ye? If Allah were to make the day perpetual over you to the Day of Judgment, what god is there other than Allah, who can give you a night in which ye can rest? Will ye not then see?

73. It is out of His Mercy that He has made for you Night and Day,- that ye may rest therein, and that ye may seek of his Grace;- and in order that ye may be grateful.

Qur’an [ Al-Yunus 10/67]: He it is That hath made you the night that ye may rest therein, and the day to make things visible (to you). Verily in this are signs for those who listen (to His Message).

Qur’an [Al-an’am 6/60]: It is He who doth take your souls by night, and hath knowledge of all that ye have done by day: by day doth He raise you up again; that a term appointed be fulfilled; In the end unto Him will be your return; then will He show you the truth of all that ye did

Qur’an [Al An’am 6/96]: He is the Cleaver of the Daybreak, and He hath appointed the night for stillness, and the sun and the moon for reckoning. That is the measuring of the Mighty, the Wise.

Qur’an [ Al-Naml 27/86]: Have they not seen how We have appointed the night that they may rest therein, and the day sight-giving? Lo! therein verily are portents for a people who believe.

Qur’an was sent down during a Blessed Night:

Qur’an [ Al-Furkan 44/2-4]:

2. I swear by the Book that makes manifest (the truth).

3. We sent it down during a Blessed Night: for We (ever) wish to warn (against Evil).

4. In the (Night) is made distinct every affair of wisdom,

Qur’an [ Al-Kadr 97/1-3]:

1.We have indeed revealed this (Message) in the Night of Power:

2.And what will explain to thee what the night of power is?

3.The Night of Power is better than a thousand months.

We are a human being, we all need to sleep but if this carries on whole night and morning every day, we will miss the blessings of the night. Our Truth will not dawn upon us in the morning. Our hearts are also going to be sleeping day and night, may Allah forbid! Those who are at this state are in heedlessness in this world even during the day time. They will be sleepwalking during the day time as well. Their hearts will be sealed and they will not be able to see the signs of Allah around them.

The sleep represents that they would prefer to sleep rather than thinking and pondering about the Creator and the meaning of their creation. These are the people covering the Truth within their own essence by the veils of their heedlessness. That is why the punishment has been coming to those who were sleeping(heedless) at nights as mentioned on the verses below:

Qur’an [Al-Araf 7/4]: How many towns have We destroyed (for their sins)? Our punishment took them on a sudden by night or while they slept for their afternoon rest.

Qur’an [Al-Araf 7/97]: Did the people of the towns feel secure against the coming of Our wrath by night while they were asleep?

If our life is in a tube lying between the kitchen and the toilet, we will be sleeping in this tube, unaware of the treasures put in to us by our Creator. Dear brothers and sisters, best thing in life is to have less need. If you follow a simple life style and save time for your self by cutting the bonds between you and some of your needs, you will free your selves from your bondages, then this will give you more time to think about your own self, your creator and the meaning of this life. Otherwise, you will think and follow the illusion of this life day and night and the biggest bounty, “the mind-Aql” given to you by Allah, will be wasted during your life term. We need to observe, collect, reflect upon, practice and progress on the path of the beloved ONE. If we keep doing that, we hope that Laylat Ul Qadr (Night of the power, destiny) will find us one day, inshaallah.

Qur’an [Al Hashr –Exile,banishment 59/21]:

If We had caused this Qur’an to descend upon a mountain, thou (O Muhammad) verily hadst seen it humbled, rent asunder by the fear of Allah. Such similitudes coin We for mankind that haply they may reflect…

Subhanaka allahumma wa bihamdika Ashadu anla illa anta vahdaka. La sharika laka. Astagfirke wa atubilaika…

With Salaam(Peace) and Love

Barbaros Sert

Basildon-UK