In Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, the story of the lover who knocks on his friend's door serves as a profound allegory for the annihilation of the ego (*fana*) as a prerequisite for divine union. When the lover answers 'It is I' (*manam*), the beloved refuses to open the door, explaining that there is no room for two 'I's' in the house of love. Only after a year of separation and spiritual burning does the lover return and answer, 'It is you, O ravisher of hearts!' (*ham toyi*), allowing the door to finally open. This narrative illustrates that the human ego and self-assertion are barriers to experiencing the ultimate reality, and spiritual maturity requires transitioning from duality to absolute unity with the Divine.

The Metaphor of the Lover at the Beloved's Door in the Masnavi

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This node represents Section 144 of Masnavi Book One. It sequentially follows Section 143 and precedes Section 145. The original Persian text and English translation are to be added.

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## Original content
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گفت شیر ای گرگ این را بخش کن 
معدلت را نو کن ای گرگ کهن
نایب من باش در قسمت‌گری 
تا پدید آید که تو چه گوهری
گفت ای شه گاو وحشی بخش تست 
آن بزرگ و تو بزرگ و زفت و چست
بز مرا که بز میانه‌ست و وسط 
روبها خرگوش بستان بی غلط
شیر گفت ای گرگ چون گفتی بگو 
چونک من باشم تو گویی ما و تو
گرگ خود چه سگ بود کو خویش دید 
پیش چون من شیر بی مثل و ندید
گفت پیش آ ای خری کو خود خرید 
پیشش آمد پنجه زد او را درید
چون ندیدش مغز و تدبیر رشید 
در سیاست پوستش از سر کشید
گفت چون دید منت ز خود نبرد 
این چنین جان را بباید زار مرد
چون نبودی فانی اندر پیش من 
فضل آمد مر ترا گردن زدن
کل شیء هالک جز وجه او 
چون نه‌ای در وجه او هستی مجو
هر که اندر وجه ما باشد فنا 
کل شیء هالک نبود جزا
زانک در الاست او از لا گذشت 
هر که در الاست او فانی نگشت
هر که بر در او من و ما می‌زند 
رد بابست او و بر لا می‌تند

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## English translation
The lion said, “O wolf, divide this; renew justice, old wolf. Be my deputy in apportioning, so that it may become clear what substance you are made of.” He said, “O king, the wild ox is your share: it is large, and you are large, huge, and swift. The goat is mine, since the goat is middle-sized and intermediate; fox, take the hare, without error.” The lion said, “O wolf, what did you say? When I am here, do you speak of ‘we’ and ‘you’? What sort of dog is a wolf, that he should see himself before a lion like me, peerless and unmatched?” He said, “Come forward, you ass who has valued yourself.” He came before him; the lion struck him with his paw and tore him apart. Since he saw in him no brain or rightly guided judgment, he stripped the skin from his head as punishment. He said, “Because he saw me and did not rid himself of selfhood, such a soul must die miserably. Since you were not annihilated before me, beheading came to you as grace. Everything is perishing except His Face; when you are not in His Face, do not seek existence. Whoever is annihilated in Our Face, ‘everything is perishing’ is not his portion. For, in the ‘except,’ he has passed beyond the ‘no’; whoever has not become annihilated in His ‘except’—whoever knocks at His door with ‘I’ and ‘we’—is rejected from the door and keeps weaving in the ‘no.’”

دفتر اول - بخش ۱۴۳ - امتحان کردن شیر گرگ را و گفتن کی پیش آی ای گرگ بخش کن صیدها را میان ما / Book One - Section 143 - The Lion Testing the Wolf and Saying, 'Come Forward, O Wolf, Divide the Prey Between Us'

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دفتر اول - بخش ۱۴۴ / Book One - Section 144

In Rumi's Masnavi, the story of the lion, the wolf, and the fox hunting together serves as a profound allegory of the human ego (*nafs*) in relation to the Divine. When the lion tests the wolf by asking him to divide the prey, the wolf's partition based on size and personal ownership reflects the ego's insolence (*bi-adabi*) and its failure to recognize the absolute oneness of the divine presence. By asserting a division between 'me' and 'thee' (*ma o to*), the wolf demonstrates a dualistic self-existence that must be annihilated. This metaphor underscores the spiritual danger of ego-assertion and highlights the necessity of absolute self-effacement (*fana*) before God.

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