Couplet 737-739

ما چو چنگیم و تو زخمہ میزنی

We are like Sarangi (stringed instrument) and you hit with sticks

زاری از مانے تو زاری میکنی

We are not crying, it is you who is crying

ما چو نایم و نوادر ما ز تُست

We are like flute and the sweet sound is of yours

ما چو کوہیم و صدا در ما ز تُست

We are like mountains and the echo is from you

ما چو شطر بخیم اندر بُرد و مات

We are like chess in losing and winning

بُرد و مات ما ز تُست اے خوش صِفات

O’ with beautiful attributes, our loss or gain is with you

              Maulana Rum digresses here towards Allah and starts describing the contents of oneness of Allah (توحید). The connection develops from the content of just previous couplets, where crying was termed as natural and beyond one’s control. Now the same content is being stressed and discussed that similar is the position in all other actions as well, because our control is merely imaginary, whereas, the real controller of our actions is Allah only. And we are without any control in this whole creation and hence he says that O, Allah, our position is like a sarangi (a stringed musical instrument) and You are hitting with sticks to produce sweet sound. Thus You are the creator of our actions and therefore, apparently actions are being performed by us but these are effectively from You only. In this regard, if we crying (زاری), it is effectively from You because of being Creator. These are attributed to Allah merely being the Creator of the actions but these are being acted upon by the servant (human being). As a logic for reason in this couplet, زاری می کنی is said as has been narrated from a Hadith that Allah will ask one of His servants at the day of Qayamah:

استطعمتک فلم تطعمنی

I asked food from you, but you didn’t give

            Similar question will be raised for water and clothes, then the servant puts forward that You are above all these things. The meaning of this was then declared that so and so servant of Mine asked you for food, water or clothes and if you have given him then, you would have got here. In this Hadith, the action of asking food, which is an action of the servant, was attributed figuratively towards Allah. Likewise, Quran (75:18) says:

So when We have recited it [through Gabriel], then follow its recitation.

Here, recitation by Gabriel has been attributed towards Allah and on similar lines, Maulana states زاری می کنی. Same context is mentioned in another example that we are like flute and the sweet voice that come from it is from You, like the sound of flute is from the one who plays it. In the third example, it is said that we are like mountains and the echo that is produced is from You, like the echo from mountains is actually from the one who calls. The fourth example is that our example is like chess, where the loss or win depends on the moves of the player and similarly, our loss and win i.e. those actions which define our being dominating or being dominated are from You only in view of Your being the Creator, as discussed above.

               The objective of Maulana in these couplets is teachings of meditation of Tauheed and the gist is that one should keep remembering that complete actions, movements, gestures, changes etc. of our and all other creatures are effective from Allah only.