1Cademy - The Lions Argument for Exertion (Jahd) in the Masnavi

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دفتر اول - بخش ۴۲ - بیان توکل و ترک جهد گفتن نخچیران بشیر / Book One - Section 42 - The Beasts Explaining Trust and Abandoning Exertion to the Lion
دفتر اول - بخش ۴۳ - جواب گفتن شیر نخچیران را و فایدهٔ جهد گفتن / Book One - Section 43 - The Lion Answering the Prey and Speaking of the Benefit of Exertion
دفتر اول - بخش ۴۷ - ترجیح نهادن شیر جهد را بر توکل / Book One - Section 47 - The Lion's Preference for Exertion over Trust
دفتر اول - بخش ۴۵ - ترجیح نهادن شیر جهد و اکتساب را بر توکل و تسلیم / Book One - Section 45 - The Lion's Preference for Exertion and Acquisition over Trust and Submission
دفتر اول - بخش ۵۰ - باز ترجیح نهادن شیر جهد را بر توکل و فواید جهد را بیان کردن / Book One - Section 50 - The Lion Again Preferring Exertion to Trust and Explaining the Benefits of Exertion

Concept

The Lion's Argument for Exertion (Jahd) in the Masnavi

In Jalaluddin Rumi's Masnavi, responding to the prey animals' plea for passive reliance on divine providence (tawakkul), the lion presents a vigorous defense of personal exertion (jahd). He argues that God has equipped humans with faculties and tools, which act as divine indications for action. To illustrate this, the lion uses the metaphors of a ladder and a spade: one must climb the ladder "step by step" to reach the roof, and a servant handed a spade by his master implicitly understands he is meant to work. The lion asserts that actively using one's God-given abilities—such as hands and feet—is a profound form of gratitude for these blessings, whereas passive necessitarianism or fatalism (jabr) is an ungrateful denial of them. He concludes that true trust in God must be coupled with active effort, summarizing his philosophical stance with the directive to first "sow, then rely on the Compeller."

Updated 2026-05-16

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