The Chains of Craziness (Mathnawi verses)
Ibrahim Gamard
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With Sunlight's pleasure and gratitude come this week's
verses
from Rumi's Mathnawi, selected by Abraham Sarmad Brody and
translated by Ibrahim Gamard:
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The Chains of Craziness
Mathnawi II: 1372-1385
(Regardless of) whether you are straight(1) or crooked,
keep
crawling(2) toward Him. Don’t crawl backwards.(3)
Although there may be danger to (your) life in the
presence of
kings,(4) nevertheless, those with (strong) aspiration
cannot tolerate
(being distant) from Him.(5)
Since the King is more sweet than sugar, it is more
delightful that
(your) life should go(6) to that sweetness.
O blamer,(7) may you have safety! (And) O seeker of
safety, you
have weak handles.(8)
My soul is a furnace (and) is happy with the fire. For
the furnace,
it (is) sufficient that it is the house for the fire.
In regard to love, there is something burning(9) -- just
like the
furnace. Whoever is blind to this(10) is not a “furnace.”
When your provision becomes a provision without (need)
of
(worldly) provision,(11) you will find everlasting life, and
death will
go (away).(12)
(And) when your longing sorrow obtains increasing
joy,(13) the
garden of your soul will obtain roses and lilies.
That which is frightening to others is your safety.(14)
Because of
the river, the duck (is) strong, but the domestic hen(15)
(is) weak
(and helpless).(16)
O doctor! I’ve become crazy again.(17) O beloved! I’ve
become
melancholy (from yearning).
The rings of Your chain possess (various) manners.(18)
Every
single ring gives a different (kind of) craziness.(19)
The gift of every ring is a different way (of
acting)(20) -- so I
have a different (kind of) craziness every moment.(21)
Therefore, “craziness is of (various) modes” has become
a
proverb(22) -- especially in (regard to) the chains of this
Glorious
Emperor.(23)
A craziness such as this has broken (my) shackles,(24)
so that all
the crazy people(25) will offer me advice.
-- From “The Mathnawî-yé Ma`nawî” [Rhymed
Couplets of
Deep Spiritual Meaning] of Jalaluddin Rumi.
Translated from the Persian by Ibrahim Gamard
(with
gratitude for R.A. Nicholson's 1926 British translation)
(c) Ibrahim Gamard (translation, footnotes, &
transliteration)
(1) whether you are straight: Nicholson translated,
“Whether you be
straight (righteous)...” Also means upright, just, good,
truthful,
sincere.
(2) keep crawling: this word means to make short sliding
movements on one’s bottom, as do small children and
cripples.
(3) Don’t crawl backwards: “Don’t crawl backwards toward
the
body.... not toward the world, ego [nafs], and desires. When
you
incline toward Him, you will be acting rightly and you will
discover
the stage of true companionship [SuHbat-é Haqîqî] (with
God).”
(Translated here from a Persian translation of Anqirawi’s
17th
century Turkish commentary on the Mathnawi)
(4) there may be danger to (your) life in the presence of
kings:
means that a king could become unpredictably infuriated by
someone
and order that he be beheaded.
(5) those with (strong) aspiration cannot tolerate (being
distant)
from Him: means that the lovers of God, while having great
reverential awe toward God [taqwŕ-- sometimes translated as
“fear of
God”], cannot resist their overpowering yearning and
attraction to
ever greater nearness to the Lord of Majesty.
“But those who have found the stage of love (for God)
and who
possess strong spiritual determination cannot abstain from
[approaching closer to] the Real King. And they never fear
for their
own lives and cannot bear distance from His Presence.”
(Anqirawi,
Commentary)
(6) it is more delightful that (your) life should go:
Nicholson
translated, “‘tis better that life should go (as a
sacrifice)...” “It
means:
“In regard to the True King [= God], Who is symbolized by
the
sweetest sugar and enjoyment, if one completely sacrifices
(his) life
to the sweetness and enjoyment of (Divine) Beauty, it will
become
more delightful and exquisite, and he will discover the
stage of
becoming the essence of enjoyment and (of becoming) pure
sweetness.” (Anqirawi, Commentary)
(7) O blamer: Nicholson translated, “O blamer (of
lovers).” “(It
means), O you who blame the lovers [= of God], may you be
safe.”
(Anqirawi, Commentary) The implication here is that those
who
blame, criticize, accuse, revile the true lovers of God will
face the
consequences of Divine Justice. There is also a word play
between
“blame” [malâmat] and “safety” [salâmat].
(8) you have weak handles: in the oldest manuscript of
the
Mathnawi, a variant to this was added in the margin.
Nicholson
commented that Anqirawi’s commentary had this variant,
“which
gives poor rhyme.” (Commentary) However, Nicholson did not
mention that Anqirawi also wrote about the above reading,
which he
interpreted: “O seeker of safety, you yourself are a weak
rope, for
you have been clutching at a very weak rope. But those
lovers who
have declared renunciation of safety have grasped ‘the most
trustworthy handhold’ [= a phrase from Qur’an 2:256] While
Anqirawi wrote that the word “`urŕ” is said to mean a rope,
Nicholson wrote that it literally means “stays or handles”
(footnote)
and he translated, “O seeker of safety, thou art infirm.”
The meaning
here is that the one who seeks safety (apart from true
safety in God’s
Grace) is in danger of falling and becoming broken and
injured.
(9) something burning [sôzîdanę-st]: “literally, ‘there
is a
burning’, i.e. the true lover is consumed in the fire of
Divine Love.
Súzídaní, meaning ‘that which is, or ought, to be burned’,
has yá-yi ma`rúf
[=the “î” of an abstract noun] and therefore would not make
a correctrhyme
in this verse.” (Nicholson, Commentary)
“It means that, in the same manner that a furnace is the
place for
fire, and it burns night and day, the lover is also
necessarily like a
furnace, burning in the fire of love...” (Anqirawi,
Commentary)
(10) Whoever is blind to this: a word play between
“furnace” [kűra]
and “blind” [kűr].
(11) a provision without (need) of (worldly) provision:
“i.e. faqr ú
faná” [= spiritual poverty and mystical annihilation].
(Nicholson,
Commentary) The word for “provision” [barg] means provision
for a
soldier, traveller, or guest; it also means riches or
wealth. However,
its literal meaning is “leaf.” Nicholson translated this
same phrase in
I: 2237-- “the provision of leaflessness (spiritual
poverty).” And he
explained: “Barg-i bí bargí denotes the grace of spiritual
poverty and
selflessness, and the riches which God bestows on the
spiritually
poor. Rúmí is fond of this phrase...” (Commentary)
“It means: When your strength and food has become
powerlessness and lack of provision, then your soul will
obtain
purity by means of helplessness and nothingness, and it will
take
pleasure from spiritual poverty [faqr] and annihilation
[fanâ].... and
your soul will always travel in the world of
everlastingness.”
(Anqirawi, Commentary)
(12) and death will go (away): there is a word play
between
“provision” [barg] and “death” [marg].
(13) when your longing sorrow obtains increasing joy:
Nicholson
translated, “When the pain (of love) has begun to increase
your
(spiritual) joy...” “Just as your sorrow and pain have
become the
cause of your (spiritual) enjoyment, and have begun to
increase your
joy and happiness, the garden of your soul will become
filled with
roses and lilies. It means that you will have reached the
stage in
which your soul will be surrounded by spiritual states and
lordly
secrets [asrâr-é rabbânî].” (Anqirawi, Commentary)
(14) That which is frightening to others is your safety:
Nicholson
translated, “That which is the dread of others is your
safety
(safeguard).”
(15) the domestic hen: “The duck represents the Divine
spirit in
man, while the hen is an emblem of his carnal nature.”
(Nicholson,
Commentary) “It is about the issues and questions regarding
the
(various) kinds of trials and misfortunes and strict
discipline in the
path of God-- which the multitude of men are afraid of....
But the
lovers, like a water bird, become strong in facing the sea
of trials and
misfortunes. And their spirits and hearts acquire strength
and power
from those sorrows.” (Anqirawi, Commentary)
(16) is weak (and helpless): “The multitude of men...
quickly
become weak and powerless, and die of grief and pain.”
(Anqirawi,
Commentary)
(17) I’ve become crazy again: “The connection of this
verse with its
previous verse is this:.... the followers of ego and the
intellect, who
resemble the domestic hen in weakness, are afraid of this:
that they
might lose control of intellect and understanding, and
become
crazy.... Therefore in this connection, Mawlana [Rumi]
negates the
partial intellect from himself-- by means of love for God--
and goes
into craziness.” (Anqirawi, Commentary) Here, Anqirawi
interprets
that Rumi became stronger by the torrent of the river, like
a duck, and
became drowned in the ocean of love. Therefore, his partial
intellect
became negated (the very thing feared most by the multitude
of
people). The partial intellect is the particularization of
the Universal
Intellect, or Universal Reason.
(18) The rings of Your chain possess (various) manners:
“The
intended meaning of the chain is the Divine Attributes.
Because every
Divine Attribute requires another Attribute [to be connected
to].”
(Anqirawi, Commentary)
(19) Every single ring gives a different (kind of)
craziness: “The
mystic’s reason is distraught by the infinite variety of
aspects in
which God reveals Himself, each aspect forming, as it were,
a new
link in the chain that enthrals him.” (Nicholson,
Commentary) “(It
means): ‘O True Beloved,... every Attribute of Your
Attributes gives
a different kind of craziness.’” (Anqirawi, Commentary)
Crazy
people used to be bound by chains to protect them from
harming
themselves or others.
(20) The gift of every ring is a different way (of
acting): “i.e.
diverse mystical experiences.” (Nicholson, Commentary)
(21) I have a different (kind of) craziness every moment:
“(It
means): ‘For me, therefore, a kind of veil for (my)
intellect occurs
every moment because of those Attributes. Since the ecstasy
of that
Attribute covers and surrounds my intellect.’” (Anqirawi,
Commentary)
(22) “craziness is of (various) modes” has become a
proverb:
“Among the lovers (of God) it has become an expression about
being
hidden by love and being drowned by (spiritual) yearning.”
(Anqirawi, Commentary) “Here the proverb al-junúnu funún is
applied to spiritual love as the concomitant of gnosis. In
view of the
following Story, it may be mentioned that ‘Dú ’l-Nún [=the
sufi
Master described, in the story which immediately follows, as
becoming crazed by love] took a very important step in the
development of Súfism by distinguishing the mystic’s
knowledge of
God (ma`rifah) from traditional or intellectual knowledge
(`ilm) and
by connecting the former with love of God (mahabbah)’.”
(Nicholson, Commentary)
(23) Glorious Emperor [mîr-é ajal]: means God. Nicholson
translated, “this most glorious Prince.”
(24) has broken (my) shackles: Nicholson translated, “has
broken
the bonds (of my reason)...” “(It means): ‘My craziness is
such that it
has broken the shackles of (my) intellect.’” (Anqirawi,
Commentary)
(25) the crazy people: “i.e. the vulgar, who are devoid
of reason
(`aql-i ma`ád) and ignorant of the Truth. Cf. the Stoic [=
an ancient
Greek and Roman school of thought} doctrine that every fool
is
mad.” (Nicholson, Commentary)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
gar tô bâsh-î râst w-ar bâsh-î tô kazh
pęsh-tar mę-ghazh ba-dô, wâ-pas ma-ghazh
pęsh-é shâh-ân gar khaTar bâsh-ad ba-jân
lęk na-shękęb-and az-ô bâ-himmat-ân
shâh chűn shîrîn-tar az shakkar bow-ad
jân ba-shîrînî raw-ad khwash-tar bow-ad
ay malâmat-gar salâmat mar to-râ
ay salâmat-jô tow-î wâhî 'l-`urŕ
jân-é man kűra-st bâ âtesh khwash-ast
kűra-râ în bas ke khâna-yé âtash-ast
ham-chô kűra `ishq-râ sôzîdanę-st
har ke ô z-în kűr bâsh-ad kűra nęst
barg-é bę-bargî to-râ chűn barg shod
jân-é bâqî yâft-î-wo marg shod
chűn to-râ gham shâdî-afzűdan gereft
rawZa-yé jân-at gol-o sűsan gereft
ân-che khawf-é dîgar-ân, ân amn-é to-st
baT qawî az baHr-o morgh-é khana sost
bâz dęwâna shod-am man ay Tabîb
bâz sawdâyî shod-am man ay Habîb
Halqa-hây-é silsila-yé tô Zű funűn
har yakę Halqa deh-ad dîgar junűn
dâd-é har Halqa funűnę dîgar-ast
pas ma-râ har dam junűnę dîgar-ast
pas funűn bâsh-ad junűn, în shod maSal
khâSa dar zanjîr-é în mîr-é ajal
ân-chon-ân dęwânagî be-gęsest band
ke hama dęwân-agân pand-am deh-and
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