Within the Curtain of Blood: The Dichotomy of Love and Intellect in a Ghazal by Rūmī
Dördüncü Uluslararası Ankara İnsan ve Toplum Bilimleri Kongresi, Ankara, Turkey, 22 - 23 February 2025, pp.91-95, (Full Text)
- Publication Type: Conference Paper / Full Text
- City: Ankara
- Country: Turkey
- Page Numbers: pp.91-95
- Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to analyze the way Mawlānā Djalāl al-Dīn Rūmī compares love (eshq) and intellect (aql) in one of his mystical ghazals. Since the early centuries of Islam, religious scholars held intellect in high regard, while sufis saw love as the more effective guide to attain unity with God. The Sufi predilection for love over intellect was amplified by Persian mystics, namely Aḥmad al-Gazzālī, Sanāʾī and ʿAṭṭār, who consistently emphasized the limits of intellect and the primacy of love. It was in Rūmī’s works that this approach reached a zenith, buttressed by Rūmī’s depth of thought and skill in poetry. Rūmī’s particular ghazal discussed in this paper provides a thought-provoking glimpse into his perspectives on the nature of love and its superiority over intellect. Rūmī implies that there are two separate realms of existence. The material realm is readily perceptible by intellect but its overtness obscures the far more magnificent presence of the spiritual realm, which is only accessible through love. As a result, those who have embraced the path of divine love, experience great inner joy, although they may appear to be in suffering to outsiders. Interestingly, Rūmī goes so far as to criticize proponents of intellect, not just for their lack of vision but also for their insincerity. To him, intellect is not merely an inadequate means for reaching the greater truth, but actually an impediment that must be discarded.