The soul spreads its wings and opens toward the heights,
while the body, with its claws, strikes and clings to the earth.
In Rumi’s works, the longing to reach the Origin or the primal Source of existence is one of the deepest and most meaningful mystical themes. This yearning is expressed through poetic metaphors, mystical narratives, and philosophical allusions. In Rumi’s thought, the Origin represents the Absolute Reality, the Divine Essence, or the Eternal Beloved—toward whom the human soul, by its very nature, feels an innate desire to return. This longing is the very driving force of the mystical path and the essence of the human soul’s spiritual movement throughout Rumi’s writings.
All my days my thought is this, and all my nights my speech:
why am I heedless of the state of my own heart?
Blessed be the day when I take flight toward the Friend,
and for the air of His courtyard, I spread my wings.
From where have I come—what was the purpose of my coming?
Where shall I go at last—will you not show me my homeland?
I remain in utter wonder: for what reason did He fashion me?
What was His intention in shaping me thus?
I did not come here of my own accord, that I should return by myself;
He who brought me here will take me back to my homeland.
I am a bird of the garden of the divine realm, not of the world of dust;
for a few days they have made a cage of my body.
At the opening of the Masnavi, Rumi portrays a profound allegory of the yearning to return to the Origin through the story of the reed flute (Nay-nāmeh):
Listen to the reed how it tells its tale,
complaining of separations.
Here, the reed symbolizes the human soul, separated from its Source and lamenting the pain of that separation. This separation is the source of all suffering, while the longing for reunion is the driving force of the spiritual journey.
While most poets begin their works with the name of God, Rumi opens his Masnavi with the word “Listen”—an invitation to attend to the voice of the human soul, which he understands as a divine emanation and a reflection of God’s own reality.
The Human Being: An Exile from the Eternal Realm
In Rumi’s view, the human being is a creature who has come from the “sacred realm” and is now a stranger in the material world. The soul seeks to return to its “first home” or the “ancient Beloved.” This theme appears frequently in his poetry, as in the well-known verse:
Whoever remains far from their origin
seeks again the days of reunion.
This couplet clearly points to humanity’s God-seeking nature, which is always striving to return to the Source.
Love for the Origin as the Force of Movement
From Rumi’s perspective, love is the power that plants the longing for union in the heart. Love not only reveals the destination but is also the means of reaching it. He writes:
This cry of the reed is fire, not mere air—
whoever does not have this fire, let them be nothing.
It is the fire of love that fell into the reed;
it is the boiling of love that entered the wine.
The reed is the companion of anyone cut off from the Beloved;
its veils have torn away our own veils.
Who has seen a poison and an antidote like the reed?
Who has seen a confidant and a lover like the reed?
The reed tells the tale of a path drenched in blood;
it recounts the stories of Majnun’s love.
From Rumi’s perspective, it is only love that can tear away the veils and lead the human being to the vision of the Origin.
Annihilation in the Origin (Fanāʾ)
The longing to reach the Origin ultimately leads to the concept of annihilation in the Divine Essence. Using the metaphor of the drop and the ocean, Rumi shows that the human soul, on the path of perfection, must dissolve into the infinite sea of the Divine:
When the drop goes to the sea, it becomes the pearl;
the drop becomes an ocean in my ocean.
Turn toward the heart of one who has a heart and take your place;
the drop enters the sea and becomes a pearl.
Here, reaching the Origin means the disappearance of the “self” and its dissolution into the totality of Divine existence.
From these thousands of “I” and “we”—oh wonder, what am I?
Listen to the uproar; do not put your hand over my mouth.
You are the Origin—who am I? An image in your hand;
whatever You show, I become—an examining mirror.
An Analysis of Rumi’s Journey toward Divine Unity
You are bound to place, yet your Origin is placeless;
close this shop and open that one.
Do not flee the six directions, for within directions
there is a dead end—utterly checkmated.
In the vast realm of mystical poetry and spiritual literature, few voices resonate as powerfully as that of Jalāl al-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī (604–672 AH), the Persian-speaking poet, Islamic scholar, and Sufi mystic. His writings—especially those focused on the soul’s yearning to reach its Creator—have transcended cultural and religious boundaries and have touched hearts for centuries. This analysis explores Rumi’s profound understanding of the spiritual journey toward Divine unity, examining the metaphors, teachings, and wisdom he employs to express this ineffable path.
The Fundamental Longing
At the heart of Rumi’s spiritual philosophy lies the concept of divine longing—an innate desire within every soul to return to its source. This theme is perhaps most eloquently expressed in the opening verses of the Masnavi:
Listen to the reed how it tells its tale,
complaining of separations.
Since they cut me from the reed bed,
men and women have cried out in my lament.
I want a breast torn open by separation,
so that I may tell the pain of longing.
This metaphor of the reed, cut from its original reed bed, symbolizes the separation of the human soul from the Divine Essence.
It is the fire of love that fell into the reed;
it is the boiling of love that entered the wine.
The reed is the companion of whoever is cut off from the Beloved;
its veils have torn away our own veils.
Who has seen a poison and an antidote like the reed?
Who has seen a confidant and a lover like the reed?
The reed tells the tale of a path drenched in blood;
it recounts the stories of Majnun’s love.
The sweet sound of the reed is the cry of longing:
If I were paired with a companion of my own lips,
like the reed I would tell all that can be said.
Whoever is cut off from true companionship
becomes mute, though he may have a hundred melodies.
This is a spiritual nostalgia that Rumi considers a fundamental condition of human existence. Separation is not viewed as punishment, but as a necessary journey of awakening—one that allows the soul to recognize its divine origin and to seek it consciously.
This world itself is the prison of your souls;
hurry—go to that place which is your open plain.
This world is limited, while that one is boundless;
before that meaning, form and image are but a barrier.
Stages of the Spiritual Journey
Rumi describes several stages in the soul’s journey toward the Creator, each accompanied by distinct spiritual experiences and challenges.
Awakening to Separation
The first stage involves becoming aware of one’s spiritual exile. This awakening is often accompanied by a deep sense of estrangement from the material world and a growing awareness of an inner emptiness that worldly pleasures cannot fill. Rumi describes this state as a necessary unease that propels the seeker forward:
O rare stranger, how do you dwell in this land?
O companion of fortune, how do you remain in this intoxication?
How can you abandon sovereignty because of separation?
O flower of felicity, how do you live among thorns?
This seemingly paradoxical teaching shows that the very feeling of separation becomes a doorway to divine connection. The pain of spiritual longing functions both as motivation and as a means of transcendence.
O birds who are now separated from your cage,
reveal your faces and say where you are.
Your ship is stranded upon these broken waters;
rise from this sea, you who are like fish, even for a moment.
Purification and Readiness
After awakening, the seeker must undergo the process of purification. Rumi emphasizes the necessity of emptying oneself in order to create space for the Divine presence:
We were all one essence, expansive,
without head or foot—we were that very Head.
We were a single jewel, like the sun,
without knots, pure and clear like water.
When that pure light took form,
number appeared, like the shadows of battlements.
Destroy the battlements with a catapult,
so that all division may vanish from among this group.
This stage involves recognizing and releasing attachments, ego-driven desires, and limiting beliefs that obstruct the path to divine unity. Rumi often uses the metaphor of polishing a mirror—removing the rust and dust of worldly attachments so that it may clearly reflect the Divine light.
I will lament so deeply, I will raise such colors of sorrow,
until I scrape from the mirror every stain of denial.
The heart drives onward upon the steed of Your love,
and with every step this steed passes leagues beyond the realm of the soul.
The Role of Love in Divine Unity
For Rumi, love is not merely an emotion; it is a force that draws the soul toward its Creator. He presents love as both the path and the destination:
This fire of love cooks us;
each night it leads us to the tavern.
It seats us among the people of the tavern,
so that it may make us know nothing but the tavern.
The Struggle Between Soul and Body
In the conflict between soul and body, the soul longs to fly upward on its wings, while the body clings with its claws to the transient world:
The soul spreads its wings toward the heights,
while the body strikes its claws into the earth.
Each Seeking Its Own Origin
Both soul and body yearn to return to their own origins:
The body’s desire is for greenery and flowing water,
for its origin came from these.
The soul’s desire is for life and the Ever-Living,
for the soul’s origin is the placeless realm.
The soul’s desire is for wisdom and knowledge;
the body’s desire is for gardens, fields, and vineyards.
The soul longs for ascent and honor;
the body longs for livelihood and the means of fodder.
This love transcends conventional understanding and represents a cosmic attraction operating at the deepest level of reality. Rumi teaches that by nurturing and following this love, the seeker naturally moves toward divine unity. When the soul shows the way but the body does not accompany it, the soul ultimately departs without the body:
I am going toward the garden and the rose-bed;
if you do not come, then do not—I am going.
The day is dark without its light for me;
I go in search of a shining candle.
My soul has already departed and goes ahead;
the soul keeps saying, “I go without the body.”
The scent of apples reached me from the garden of the soul;
I became intoxicated—I am going to eat the apple.
The Distinct Qualities of Rumi’s Love
The love of which Rumi speaks has several defining characteristics:
- It is unconditional and all-embracing
- It transcends rational understanding
- It requires complete surrender
- It leads to the transformation of the lover
Reason, in explaining it, lay helpless like a donkey stuck in the mud;
the explanation of love and loving is love itself.
When the pen rushed to write,
upon reaching love, it split itself apart.
Or:
Know the turning of the heavens to be from the wave of love;
were love not there, the world would grow cold and lifeless.
Obstacles and Challenges
Rumi acknowledges that the path toward divine unity is accompanied by challenges. He identifies several major obstacles:
The Ego (Nafs)
The greatest obstacle is the ego, or the lower self, which Rumi often portrays as a veil standing between the seeker and God. He emphasizes the necessity of transcending ego-centered awareness:
There is a light within the crimson veil,
higher than sight, illusion, and even spirit.
If you wish to bind yourself to that light,
rise up and tear away the veil of the ego.
Intellectual Pride
Although Rumi himself was a great scholar, he warns against relying solely on rational understanding:
Reason is the chain of travelers on the path, my son;
break the chain—the way is clear, my son.
Reason is a shackle, the heart a deceiver, and the soul a veil;
the path lies hidden beyond all three, my son.
This shows that while intellect has its proper place, direct experience of the Divine requires going beyond conceptual knowledge.
Ways of Drawing Near to God
Rumi offers several practical methods for the spiritual seeker:
Remembrance (Dhikr)
Continuous remembrance of God—through prayer, meditation, and contemplation—aligns the seeker’s awareness with divine reality:
Engage so deeply in the remembrance of God
that you forget yourself;
and within prayer you become two—
like the two strokes of the letter dāl (د) in the word “prayer.” (دعا)
Spiritual Companionship
Rumi emphasizes the importance of companionship and spiritual guidance:
Whoever prays to be freed from love—
may that prayer be rejected by heaven.
If love diminishes for a time on the path of love,
that very lack is itself pure gain.
Others ask for delay from death;
lovers say, “No, no—let it come swiftly!”
The sky is made from the smoke of lovers—
blessings upon the one who kindled this smoke.
Sacred Music and Dance
The practice of samāʿ (spiritual music and sacred listening) and whirling meditation—hallmarks of the Mevlevi tradition inspired by Rumi—represent a means of attaining ecstatic unity with God through movement and music:
When love places its hand upon my neck, what can I do?
I draw it close to my breast, even in the midst of samāʿ.
When every particle is filled with the sun’s radiance,
all begin to dance—without cry or lament—this is samāʿ.
The Nature of Unity
Rumi’s description of divine unity is paradoxical—it is both a return to the original state and an entirely new mode of being. He suggests that in true unity, the seeker’s individual identity is transformed, not annihilated:
I died as mineral and became a plant;
I died as plant and rose to animal.
I died as animal and became human—
why should I fear? When did dying ever make me less?
This evolutionary view of spiritual growth shows that union with God represents the fulfillment of human potential, not its destruction.
Contemporary Relevance
Rumi’s teachings on drawing near to the Creator remain deeply relevant today. In an age marked by excessive materialism and spiritual impoverishment, his emphasis on inner transformation and divine love offers a meaningful alternative to both religious fundamentalism and secular materialism.
His universal message transcends specific religious frameworks while preserving profound spiritual authenticity. This universality has sustained his influence across cultures and faiths, making his wisdom accessible to seekers from all backgrounds.
Rumi’s teachings on attaining closeness to the Creator present a comprehensive spiritual framework that addresses both the theoretical and practical dimensions of the mystical journey. His emphasis on love as the primary means of approaching God, his recognition of the challenges along the path, and his practical guidance for overcoming obstacles continue to inspire and guide spiritual seekers today.
His poetry and teachings remind us that the longing for divine unity is not merely a religious aspiration, but a fundamental aspect of human consciousness. In Rumi’s vision, every soul carries within itself both the capacity and the destiny to return to its divine origin—transformed through the journey of love.