What does "rushy bed" mean in this context? The poem 'The Song of the Reed' by Rumi includes the lines: > Hearken to this Reed forlorn, > Breathing, even since 'twas torn > From its rushy bed, a strain > Of impassioned love and pain. (From _Rumi, Poet and Mystic 1207–1273_ , translated by Reynold A. Nicholson.) What is meant by "rushy bed"?

Reeds (typha, or reedmace) and rushes (bulrush) are often confused, although they belong to different botanical families. In particular, typha (reedmace) is often misnamed as bulrush. Since both plants grow in water, you will often see them intermixed in streams and along riverbanks. So, a "rushy bed" is simply a bed of bulrushes (or typha).

Note also that a _reed_ is a rustic musical instrument. So the _reed_ in the poem would be made from the stem of a bulrush (or more properly, reedmace or typha), taken from its _rushy bed_.

!Typha, or reedmace \(reedmace\)
Typha, or reedmace (Wikipedia)

!Bulrush
Bulrush (Wikipedia)

> Reed (noun)
>
> 1.4 (literary) a rustic musical pipe made from a reed or from straw.
> ‘as if thy waves had only heard the shepherd's reed’

Oxford Online Dictionary