In Book 3 of Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, the dispute over the slaughtered cow reaches a shocking climax when Prophet David delivers his divinely inspired judgment. Instead of penalizing the idle man who slaughtered the cow, David abruptly commands the plaintiff—the original owner of the cow—to surrender all his wealth, and eventually his wife and children, to the idle man. The plaintiff vehemently protests this apparent injustice, tearing his garments, while the townspeople also begin to blame David, remaining entirely unaware of the hidden truth of the case. Rumi uses this dramatic reversal to illustrate the severe limitations of outward human perception in distinguishing the oppressor from the oppressed. He emphasizes that the true oppressor is the tyrannical inner self ($$nafs$$), and that divine judgment, though appearing unjust to the ignorant masses, operates on an infallible awareness of hidden spiritual and historical realities.

Prophet David's Judgment Against the Plaintiff in the Masnavi

In Book 3 of Jalaluddin Rumi's *Masnavi*, Prophet David's retreat into seclusion (*khalwat*) serves as a vital pedagogical and theological mechanism for uncovering truth. Faced with a legal dispute over a slaughtered cow where external evidence is insufficient, David withdraws to his prayer-niche to seek divine guidance. Rumi uses this seclusion to showcase that while standard legalistic frameworks rely on outward proofs, true justice sometimes requires direct spiritual inspiration (*wahy* or *ilham*). Through this retreat, David receives a divine revelation detailing the hidden history of the case—specifically, that the plaintiff had previously murdered his own master—which subsequently forms the basis for his unconventional and seemingly unjust public ruling.

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## Original content
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در فرو بست و برفت آنگه شتاب 
سوی محراب و دعای مستجاب
حق نمودش آنچ بنمودش تمام 
گشت واقف بر سزای انتقام
روز دیگر جمله خصمان آمدند 
پیش داود پیمبر صف زدند
همچنان آن ماجراها باز رفت 
زود زد آن مدعی تشنیع زفت

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## English translation
He shut the door and went with haste
toward the prayer-niche and answered prayers.
The Truth showed him what it had fully shown;
he became aware of the fitting retribution.
The next day all the adversaries came
and lined up before the Prophet David.
The same tale unfolded once again,
and the claimant swiftly hurled his harsh reproaches.

دفتر سوم - بخش ۱۰۹ - در خلوت رفتن داود تا آنچ حقست پیدا شود / Book Three - Section 109 - David going into seclusion so that the truth may be revealed

In Book 3 of Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, the narrative of the idle man advances to a legal and spiritual confrontation before Prophet David. After the idle man slaughters a cow that wandered into his house, the original owner acts as the plaintiff, demanding justice for his lost property. When David demands a coherent defense, the idle man offers no conventional legal justification. Instead, he recounts his seven years of public and tearful prayers for effortless sustenance. He argues that the cow's sudden arrival was an undeniable divine answer to his supplications, and his act of slaughtering it was merely a demonstration of gratitude to the 'Knower of the Unseen.' This confrontation introduces a profound conflict between outward societal laws governing property and the protagonist's subjective interpretation of divine providence.

The Dispute Before Prophet David Over the Slaughtered Cow in the Masnavi

In Book 3 of Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, the trial over the slaughtered cow reaches a turning point when the idle man tearfully implores God to illuminate Prophet David's heart with the truth. Deeply moved by this plea, David pauses the legal proceedings, asking the plaintiff for time so he can seek divine guidance in seclusion. Rumi uses this narrative pause to explore the concept of prophetic wisdom and spiritual pedagogy. David explains that his retreat into prayer is not born of ignorance—asserting that his soul receives God's guidance without intermediary—but is instead a method 'to teach people the way.' He characterizes his delayed judgment as a 'stratagem' (khud'a), a deliberate and indirect approach designed to gradually expose the hidden truth without violently breaking the rules of divine secrecy. The passage concludes with a metaphysical moment where a divine presence gently restrains David, prompting him to cease speaking of such profound mysteries and to proceed into his spiritual seclusion.

Prophet David's Pedagogical Retreat and Divine Stratagem in the Masnavi

In Rumi's *Masnavi*, the physical withdrawal of prophets and saints to mountains and caves (*'uzlah* or *khalwah*) is reframed not as an act of fear, self-preservation, or permanent escape from society, but as a strategic spiritual and pedagogical tool.

### Key Aspects of Seclusion as Guidance:
* **Active Guidance vs. Passive Escape:** Rumi asserts that these spiritual guides are already spiritually elevated and do not need to hide from the public. Their retreat is intended to serve as an example to inspire detachment (*inqita'*) from worldly distractions in others.
* **Refinement and Return:** Seclusion is a temporary state of spiritual cultivation. The ultimate purpose of the retreat is to return to the community with renewed spiritual strength to guide humanity, rather than absolute concealment (contrasting with the absolute anonymity of the *Awliya' Akhfiya'*).

The Purpose of Spiritual Seclusion (Uzlah) and Retreat of Prophets and Saints in the Masnavi

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Ganjoor

## Original content
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گفت داودش خمش کن رو بهل 
این مسلمان را ز گاوت کن بحل
چون خدا پوشید بر تو ای جوان 
رو خمش کن حق ستاری بدان
گفت وا ویلی چه حکمست این چه داد 
از پی من شرع نو خواهی نهاد
رفته است آوازهٔ عدلت چنان 
که معطر شد زمین و آسمان
بر سگان کور این استم نرفت 
زین تعدی سنگ و که بشکافت تفت
همچنین تشنیع می‌زد برملا 
کالصلا هنگام ظلمست الصلا

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## English translation
David said to him: "Be silent, go, let it be—
release this Muslim man from claim upon your cow.
Since God has veiled it over you, O youth,
go, be silent; know that God is the Concealer."
He said: "Woe is me! What judgment is this? What justice?
Will you establish a new religious law on my account?
The fame of your justice has spread so far
that earth and sky have been made fragrant by it.
Such oppression was not done even to blind dogs;
by this transgression, rock and mountain swiftly split."
In this manner he kept publicly hurling reproaches:
"Al-ṣalā! The time of oppression is al-ṣalā!"

دفتر سوم - بخش ۱۱۰ - حکم کردن داود بر صاحب گاو کی از سر گاو برخیز و تشنیع صاحب گاو بر داود علیه السلام / Book Three - Section 110 - David passing judgment on the owner of the cow that he should give up the cow, and the reproaches of the owner of the cow against David, peace be upon him

Prophet David's Seclusion and Divine Revelation in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, after establishing his spiritual authority through deceptive sermons, the vizier employs a new psychological tactic: he abruptly ceases his preaching and enters a strict seclusion for forty to fifty days. This strategic withdrawal is specifically designed to cast a burning longing among the Christian disciples, who become profoundly desperate due to the separation from his guidance. By feigning intense ascetic discipline and claiming he is not permitted to come out, the vizier artificially inflates his perceived spiritual necessity. The disciples, begging for his return, compare themselves to abandoned orphans and to fish writhing on dry land. Through this narrative event, Rumi illustrates how the vizier expertly manipulates their devotion, deepening their blind emotional dependency to set the stage for their ultimate devastation.

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