Çeviri
(Mersad al-‘ebad men al-mabda’ ela’l-ma'ad) A Sufi Compendium by Najm al-Din Razi, known as Daya
Persian Heritage Series
Edited by Ehsan Yarshater
Number 35
The Path of God’s
Bondsmen
from Origin to Return
' (Mersad
al-‘ebad men al-mabda’ ela’l-ma'ad)
A Sufi Compendium by Najm al-Din Razi, known as Daya
Translated from the Persian, with introduction and annotation
by
Hamid Algar
Professor of Persian and Islamic Studies, University of California,
Berkeley
Caravan Books
Delmar, New York
1982
Contents
Transcription Notes vii
Acknowledgements ix
Preface by E. Yarshater xi
Introduction by Hamid Algar 1
Prologue 25
Contents 29
First Part 33
First Chapter: The Utility of Composing This Work 34
Second Chapter: The Reason for Writing the Book 38
Third Chapter: The Manner and Method the Book is
Written 51
Second Part 59
First Chapter: The Creation of Spirits and the
Degrees of Knowledge 60
Second Chapter: The World of Dominion 70
Third Chapter: The Different Realms of
Kingship and Dominion 80
Fourth Chapter: The Creation of the Human Frame 94
Fifth Chapter: The Attachment of the Spirit to
the Frame 110
Third Part 123
First Chapter: The Veils That Cover the Human Spirit 124
Second Chapter: The Wise Purpose for
Attachment of the Spirit to the Frame 132
Third Chapter: The Need for Prophets 149
Fourth Chapter: The Abrogation of Previous Religions 153
Fifth Chapter: The Cultivation of the Human
Frame 179
Sixth Chapter: The Refinement of the Soul 190
Seventh Chapter: The Purification of the Heart. 201
Eighth Chapter: The
Adornment of the Spirit 220
Ninth Chapter: The Need for a Shaikh 235
Tenth Chapter: The Conditions and Attributes of the
Shaikh 243
Eleventh Chapter: The Conditions, Attributes, and
Customs of the Mond .
255
Twelfth Chapter: The Need for Zekr 268
Thirteenth Chapter: The Method of Zekr 271
Fifteenth Chapter: The Need for Seclusion 279
Sixteenth Chapter: Visions Deriving from the Unseen 286
Seventeenth Chapter:
The Witnessing of Lights 294
Eighteenth Chapter: Unveiling and its
Varieties 304
Nineteenth Chapter: Manifestation of the Divine
Essence 310
Twentieth Chapter: Attaining to the Divine Presence 324
Fourth Part
First Chapter: The Return of the Oppressive
Soul 334
Second Chapter: The Return of the Inspired
Soul 349
Third Chapter: The Return of the Foremost Soul 359
Fourth Chapter:
The Return of the Most Wretched
Soul 376
Fifth Part
First Chapter: The Wayfaring of Kings 395
Second Chapter: Kings and Their Conduct 411
Third Chapter: The Wayfaring of Ministers and
Deputies 433
Fourth Chapter: The Wayfaring of Different Classes of
Scholar 445
Fifth Chapter: The Wayfaring of the Holders of
Wealth 460
Sixth Chapter: The Wayfaring of Farmers 471
Seventh Chapter: The Wayfaring of Merchants 476
Eighth Chapter: The Wayfaring of Tradesmen and
Craftsmen 482
Conclusion 494
Bibliography 499
Name, Place, and Subject Index 507
Index of Qur’anic Verses 530
Listing of Volumes in Bibliotheca Persica 532
The transcription system used here for Persian and for Arabic
elements in Persian, aims for simplicity and accuracy, and has been jointly
adopted by Corpus Inscriptionum Iranicarum, Encyclopaedia Persica, The Persian
Heritage Series, The Persian Studies Series, Bibliotheque Persane, and Meisterwerke
der persischen Literatur.
Note:
The more familiar and commonly used proper names and titles when not
an integral part of the name, and other commonly known words have been
anglicized without diacritics for the sake of simplicity (e.g., shah, Isfahan,
Turkman, khan, etc.)-
To Professor Ehsan Yarshater, for accepting this translation, for
inclusion in the Persian Heritage Series, and his patience in the face of a
delay that saw the original deadline for completion fade into oblivion; to Mr.
Hasan Zowqi, of the Bongah-e Nasr va Tarjoma-ye Ketab, Tehran, for his kindness
in providing me with proofs of Dr. Riyahi’s edition of the Mersad before
its publication; to two cherished friends and colleagues—Dr. Abdulhadi Hairi,
for reviewing the translation in accordance with the regulations of the
series, and Dr. Assad Busool, for his assistance in identifying the source of
Traditions quoted in the work; to Florence Myer, for the characteristic
punctiliousness she devoted to the typing of a long and difficult manuscript.
Hamid Algar
The present volume is a translation for the first time in a Western
language of one of the major works on Islamic mysticism. The author, Najm
al-Din Razi, an acknowledged Sufi master of the thirteenth century, lived at a
time when the Islamic Middle East was going through a turbulent period of its
histroy, marked by many disruptions and calamities, culmina- dng in the Mongol
invasion. Despite this grim background, or perhaps partially because of it, the
period witnessed a flowering of mystical thought and practice and a flourishing
of Sufi writings. It was in this period that major systematizations of
speculative Sufism and elaborations of Sufi ritual and practice were worked
out.
Razi, who like Ghazali adhered to the Sunnite branch of Islam and
followed the Ash’arite theology, focused his attention on the exploration and
analysis of the visionary states experienced by the Sufis in the course of
their mystical journey. In elaborating his system in the Mersad, Razi
strikes a middle course between those mystics who concentrated on ecstacy and
spiritual raptures and neglected or made light of religious observances and
rituals, and the ascetic Sufis who emphasized worship through meticulous or
excessive performance of religious duties. He particularly stresses the
necessity of having a mentor (pir, shaikh) and the proper regard for the
rules and rites of Sufi hospices (kanegahs).
The Mersad has been one of the most successful as well as one
of the most popular treatises on Sufism. It offers a systematic exposition of
Sufi doctrine and practice as it has evolved by the seventh century of Islam.
The translation, ably rendered and annotated by Professor Algar, is
based on the critical edition by Dr. Mohammad Amin Riahi (Tehran, 1973). It is
hoped that its publication will further promote a knowledge of Islamic
mysticism.
Ehsan Yarshater
i
Sufism, the inner dimension of Islam, began, it is said, as "a
reality without a name.” Its beginnings are coterminous with those of Islam
itself, for it is firmly rooted in the Qur’anic revelation and the exemplary
person and model of the Prophet Mohammad, upon whom be peace. Yet the word
Sufi does not occur in the text of the Qur'an, nor did it exist in the lifetime
of the Prophet and his companions. It emerged, rather, in the process of a
historical elaboration that made explicit and differentiated what had
previously been implicit and undifferentiated; the inner and outer dimensions
of the religion each attained a separate identity within the subsuming
framework of its total structure. The early elaboration of Sufism is parallel
and complementary to the establishment of the discipline of jurisprudence and
the emergence of the law schools; both phenomena occurred at approximately the
same time, the second and third centuries of the Islamic era (eighth and ninth
centuries of the Christian era).1 In this period, lines of mystical
affiliation grew up; an expository literature was written; a technical
vocabulary was elaborated; paraliturgical practices were formalized;, and
distinct institutional forms came into being.
The stages of this process cannot even be sketched here; suffice it
to say that numerous channels of development converged in the seventh century
of the Islamic era (thirteenth century of the Christian era) to produce one of
the richest and most brilliant epochs in the history of Sufism, almost as if
all that had gone before constituted a preparation for what has been termed
"a fresh flowering or second youth” of Islam.2 This flourishing
of Sufism took place against a somber background of barbarian invasion—the Crusaders
descended on the Islamic world from the west, and the Mongols from the east—and
it may almost be re-
■See Victor Danner, “The Necessity for the Rise of the Tenn Sufi,” Studies
in Comparative Religion, spring 1972, pp. 71-77.
2By Martin Lings, in his introduction
to R. W. J. Austin’s translation of Ebn 'Arabi Sufis of Andalusia
(London, 1971), pp. 11-12.
garded as a kind of compensation for the political disasters of the
period. From the Islamic west arose the supreme master of Islamic theosophy,
Ebn Arabi (d. 638/1240), whose career embraced Cairo, Damascus, and Konya,
where he gained a number of disciples who assured the dissemination of his
teachings throughout the eastern Islamic world. Several Sufi orders emerged in
Egypt, including the Badawlya of Ahmad al-Badawi (d. 674/1276) and the Sazellya
of Abu’l-Hasan Sazeli, who died in 656/1258, the same year as the Mongol
conquest of Baghdad, and whose order, with its numerous derivatives, continues
to dominate the spiritual life of North Africa down to the present day.
Anatolia witnessed the career of Mowlana Jalal al-Din Rumi (d. 672/1273), who
composed some of the greatest literary monuments of Sufism in the Persian
language and founded an order that enriched the cultural life of the Turkish
people for almost five centuries. In India, the Cesti order arose under the
auspices of Mo'In al-Din Cesti (d. 633/1236), and the Sohravardi order, brought
to the subcontinent by Baha al-Din Zakarlya MoltanI (d. 665/1267), began to
take firm root. And finally in Central Asia we encounter the figure of Abd
al-Kaleq Gejdovani (d. 616/1220), the spiritual ancestor of the Naqsbandi
order; several important shaikhs of the cognate Yasavi order; and, most
important, the Kobravi order to which was affiliated Najm al-din Daya Razi,
author of the present work.
The founder of the Kobravi order, Najm al-Din Kobra, was born in
540/1145-1146 in the city of Karazm to the south of the Aral Sea; although he
traveled for many years in other regions of the Islamic world, he spent the
major part of his life in his birthplace and died there. He was in a sense the
patron saint of Karazm, and it was there, and in contiguous regions of Central
Asia, that his order initially spread. He began his career as a scholar of prophetic
Tradition (hadls) and theology (kalam), traveling wide in the
cultivation of these disciplines. His interest in Sufism was awakened in Egypt,
where he became a morld of Shaikh Ruzbehan al-Wazzan al-Mesri, who had
been initiated into the Sohravardi line. After a number of years in Egypt, he
went to Tabriz to pursue his studies of kalam, but came instead under
the influence of a certain Baba Faraj Tabriz!, who persuaded him to abandon
his concern with the external religious
sciences and devote himself fully to the Sufi path. He then spent
some dme in the company of two other preceptors, Ammar b. Yaser and Esma‘11
al-Qasrl, before returning to Shaikh Ruz- behan in Egypt. Ruzbehan evidently
regarded Kobra by then as fully mature, for in about 540/1145 he sent him back
to Karazm with full authority to initiate and train his own disciples.
Kobra swiftly gathered a large following in Karazm, including an
extraordinary number of individuals who attained prominence in their own right
as gnostics and writers on Sufism. He is, in fact, frequently designated in the
traditional literature as vali-taras, the "manufacturer of saints.”
Among the foremost disciples of Kobra we may mention Majd al-Din Bagdadi (d.
616/1219), Sa‘d al-Din Hamuya (d. 650/1252), Baba Kamal Jandi, Seyf al-Din
Bakarzi (d. 658/1260), Razi al-Din All Lala (d. 642/1244), and Kobra’s
namesake, the author of this book, Najm al-Din Daya Razi.
The major emphasis in the writing and teaching of Najm al- Din Kobra
was on the analysis of visionary experience that unfolds itself to the
wayfarer on the Sufi path, and the morphology of man’s inner being. He examined
the differing significances of dreams and visions; the degrees of luminous
epiphany that are manifested to the mystic and their origins; the various
classes of concept and image (kavater) that engages the Sufi’s attention
and their significance; and the nature of the heart, the spirit and the
"mystery,” as well as the interrelation between these subtle centers of
cognition (lata’ef). He transmitted these emphases to his followers,
including Daya, who as we shall see enlarged upon the terminology and
classification of his master in one respect.3
Najm al-Din Kobra died during the Mongol conquest of Karazm in
618/1221; according to the traditional accounts, he refused an invitation by
the Mongols to leave the city before
’The life and work of Najm al-Din Kobra have been exhaustively
examined by Fritz Meier in his long introduction to Kobra’s Fawa’ih al-Jamal
wa Fawatih al-Jalal (Wiesbaden, 1957). The late Marijan Mole published
several of Kobra’s briefer works under the title "Traites Mineurs de Nagm
al-Din Kubra,” Annales Islamologiques, Cairo, IV (1963), 1-78.
they proceeded with their massacre of the inhabitants, and died at
the head of a band of his followers while engaged in hand-to- hand combat with
the attackers. He is reputed to have been buried at the site of his kanaqdh
(hospice) outside the city. His tomb, located in what subsequently became known
as Kohne- Urgenj, became a center of pious visitation, and is said to retain
this function even under Soviet rule.4 Various disciples perpetuated
his line, and even took a kind of revenge on the killers of their master by
presiding over their meek conversion to Islam. Seyf al-Din Bakarzl established
a well-endowed kanaqdh in Bokhara, some time between 644/1246 and
651/1253. Berke Kan, the fifth ruler of the Golden Horde, came to it to
proclaim his acceptance of Islam.5 Another disciple, Sa‘d al-Din
Hamuya, initially took refuge in Syria from the Mongol invaders but later
turned eastward again and set up his kanaqdh at Bahrabad in Khorasan.
The direction of the kanaqdh was inherited by his son, $adr al-Din
Ebrahim, who in 694/1295 presided over the conversion to Islam of Gazan Kan
the Ilkhanid, ruler of another branch of the Mongol empire.6
Other members of the Kobravi line continued to cultivate the
analytical and speculative interests of Najm al-Din Kobra. For example, ‘Aziz
al-Din NasafI, a morid of Sa‘d al-Din Hamuya, wrote an important treatise
on the Sufi concept of the Perfect Man, the dominant theme of all Sufi
anthropology.’ Rokn al-Din ‘Ala al-Dowla SemnanI (d. 736/1336), connected
■To the references concerning his tomb assembled by Meier (pp.
60-62), we can add the following information: that invisible winged dogs are
popularly thought to guard Kobra’s tomb; and that stone troughs placed at
either side of the entrance to the tomb are filled by pilgrims piously desirous
of slaking the dogs’ thirst (G. P. Snesarev, Relikty Domusul'manskikh Verovanii
i Obryadov u Uzbekov Khorezma, Moscow, 1969, pp. 269, 322).
5On the life and writings of Bakarzl,
see Sa’Id NaflsI, "Seyf al-dln Bakarzl,” Majalla-ye daneskada-ye
adablyat, II; 4, Tir, 1334/October, 1955, 1-15; Iraj Afsar, Sargozast-e
Seyf al-dln Bakarzl, Tehran, 1341 S./1962. The wealth of his kanaqdh
is attested by the documents assembled by O. D. Chekhovich, Bukharskie
Dokumenty XIV v., Tashkent, 1965, and his role in the conversion of Berke
is described by Jean Richard in “La Conversion de Berke et les Debuts de
1’Islamisation de la Horde d’Or,” Revue des Etudes Islamiques, XXXV
(1967), 173-178.
’Rashid ad-Din Fadlullah, Tdrlkh-i Mubdrak-i Ghdzdnl, ed.
Karl Jahn, London, 1940, pp. 76-80.
’Aziz al-Din NasafI, Ketab al-ensdn al-kdmel, ed. Marijan
Mole, Tehran & Paris, 1962.
by two links of the initiatic chain with Razi al-Din Ali Lala,
further elaborated the analysis of man’s subtle centers begun by Najm al-Din
Kobra and Daya, and formulated a critique of the theosophy of Ebn Arabi that
had much influence on Indian Sufism, particularly in Naqsbandi circles.8
The major works of these writers have been published and made the
object of scholarly analysis; far less well known is the subsequent history of
the Kobravi order, both in its Central Asian homeland and in more distant
regions. Badr al-Din Samarqandl, a morld of Seyf al-Din Bakarzi,
traveled southward to India and established a branch of the Kobraviya that
came to be known as the Ferdowsiya.9 Its most important figure was
Ahmad Yahya Maneri (d. 772/1371), author of a celebrated collection of letters
on Sufi topics and respected by the Togloq sultans of Delhi.10 It is
not known how long the kttnaqah at Bahra- bad survived; it probably
disappeared by the fifteenth century at the latest.
The most long-lived and prolific line deriving from Najm al- Din
Kobra was that descending by way of Razi al-Din Ali to Ala al-Dowla Semnani;
one of its derivatives, the Zahabiya, is still to be found in Iran, although in
very attenuated form. Ali Hamadani, a morld successively of two of
Semnani’s followers, Taqi al-Din Aki and Mahmud Mazdaqani, introduced the
Kobravi order to Badaksan and Kashmir. He was buried in Kottalan (present-day
Kolab, Tajik S.S.R.) in 786/1385. He called himself a “second Ali”—not in a
reincarnatory sense, but in the sense that he possessed the same fullness of
perfection as the Prophet’s cousin, who was the first link in the initiatic
ancestry of the Kobravi order and, according to a tradition frequently quoted
by Kobravi authors, the gate to the city of knowledge that was the Prophet.11
Eshaq al-Kottalani, successor
8See Mokalabdt-e 'Abd al-rahman-e
Esfara'eni va 'Ala al-dowla Semnani, ed. Hermann Landolt, Tehran &
Paris, 1972, and the copious bibliography given on p. 33 of his introduction.
’See J. S. Trimmingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam, Oxford, 1971,
p. 56; and Aziz Ahmad, An Intellectual History of Islam in India,
Edinburgh, 1969, p. 43. According to the latter, the Ferdowsiya was restricted
to the area of Behar.
"The maktubat of Maneri were published at Lucknow in
1911.
"Concerning Hamadani, see J. K. Teufel, Eine
Lebensbeschreibung des Scheichs ‘Ali-i Hamadani, Leiden, 1962.
of All Hamada ni, was murdered by emissaries of the Timurid ruler
Sahrok in about 826/1423, but before dying he appointed as his successor
Mohammad Nurbaks. The majority of the followers of Kottalani accepted Nurbaks,
but a minority disputed his succession and gave their loyalty to one Abdollah
Bar- zesabadi.12 This schism gave rise to two separate derivatives
of the Kobraviya, each with its own name, but having in common an abandonment
of Sunnism for Shi'ism. One was the Nur- bakslya that survived into the Safavid
period, although its history under the Safavids is in many respects obscure;
the other came to acquire, at a date and in a fashion unknown, the designation
of Zahabiya, and has survived down to the present in Iran, where its major
center is Shiraz.13
Given this ultimate choice of Shi'ism by a relatively well- studied
branch of the Kobraviya, as well as expressions of devotion for the Twelve
Imams found in the writings of Najm al-Din Kobra himself, it has been assumed
that the Kobravi order was a proto-Shi'ite order from its inception.14
This conclusion by no means follows, however, since pious sentiments toward the
family of the Prophet and especially the Twelve Imams—primarily but not
exclusively associated with Shi'ism—are frequently encountered in other Sufi
orders, including those of militantly Sunni affiliation such as the
Naqsbandlya.15 Then too, there is the fact of the persistence of the
Kobraviya as a purely Sunni order in Central Asia and elsewhere. Here we can
assemble only disparate pieces of evidence, but they suffice to prove that the
Kobraviya flourished for many centuries in strictly Sunni environments. From
the fourteenth century onward, radiating
■’Marijan Mole, "Les Kubrawiya entre Sunnisme et Shiisme aux
Huitieme et Neuvieme Siecles de I’Hegire,’’ Revue des Etudes Islamiques,
XXIX (1961), 124-128.
■’Richard Gramlich, "Die schiitischen Denvischorden Persiens,” Abhandlun-
gen fiir die Kunde des Morgenlandes, XXVI, 1 (1965), 14-26.
■’This view was first put forward by that gluttonous appropriator of
Sunni gnostics, Nurollah Sustarl (d. 1019/1610), in his celebrated Majales
al-mo’menin (II, 72-75 of the 1375/1955 Tehran edition). It has been
resurrected in recent years by S. H. Nasr and others on the basis of
inconclusive evidence contained in Mole’s article, "Les Kubrawiya entre
Sunnisme et Shiisme.”
■’See the brief remarks contained in Hamid Algar, "Some
Observations on Religion in Safavid Persia,” Iranian Studies, VII, 102
(winter-spring 1974), 287-290.
from its center in. Bokhara, the Naqsbandlya became the dominant
order in Central Asia and ultimately displaced the Kobraviya even in Karazm.
There remained, however, areas of Kobravi concentration, such as the small town
of Saktari near Bokhara; the shaikhs of Saktari produced an important corpus of
late Kobravi literature, and their line persisted until at least the early
seventeenth century.[16]
Somewhat to the south, we encounter in late nineteenth-century Afghanistan the
figure of Mian Faqirollah, a renowned Kobravi saint and the author of a work
much read in that country, Qotb al-ersad.[17]
There appears also to have been a considerable transmission of the Kobravi
order itself—not the derivatives listed above—to India, although the Kobravi
line frequently became intertwined with others, multiple affiliation to
numerous Sufi orders being a common feature of Indian Sufism. Thus, Taj al-Din
al-'Osmani (d. 1050/ 1640), known primarily as a Naqsbandi, was also affiliated
with the Kobraviya, and wrote a treatise on the methods of spiritual
realization used by the Kobravls.[18]
The Kobraviya was transmitted eastward from Central Asia to China and struck
root among the Muslims of Kansu, although not much is known of its history
there.[19]
Finally, there are traces of the Kobraviya in Turkey, although no lasting
implantation took place.[20]
The Kobraviya derives its importance in the history of Sufism not so
much from its longevity and the ubiquitousness of its branches, whether Shi'ite
or Sunni, as from the influence exerted by its analytical theories and
literature. The most influential and widely read of all Kobravi writings was,
without doubt, the present work, Mersad al-‘ebad. We now turn to an
examination of the career of its author, Najm al-Din Daya Razi.
II
Abu Bakr Abdollah b. Mohammad b. Sahavar al-Asadi al-Razi, commonly
known by the laqab, or sobriquet, of Najm al-Din, combined with the
further title of Daya21 and the toponymous designation of Razi, was
born in the year 573/1177 in the city of Ray, one of the major centers of urban
life and culture in preMongol Iran.22 Even before the disasters of
the Mongol conquest and the sacking of Ray, the vitality of the city was being
sapped by continuous disputes between various Saljuq princes, all of whom
claimed rule over it, as well as by incessant clashes between the followers of
different schools of law—Hanafi, Safe'i, and Shi'ite. This turmoil may have
incited Daya to leave his native city, for a number of allusions to the
instability of the age and the evil of fanatical attachment to one school of
law are to be found in his work.23 It was, in any event, the habit
of both scholars and Sufis to travel widely throughout the Islamic lands, and
according to the autobiographical sketch with which he prefaced his celebrated
commentary on the Qu’ran, Daya left Ray in 599/1202-03, visiting in turn Syria,
Egypt, Hejaz, Iraq, and Azerbaijan.24 In the present work he also
mentions having been in Cairo and Damascus in the year 600/1204.25
He recounts too, certain memories of Mecca, but these may relate to his second
hajj, performed shortly before his flight to Anatolia.26
Some time thereafter, he traveled eastward to Karazm, passing
through Nishapur, where he recounts having met Shaikh Mohammad Kuf, one of the
more renowned Sufis of Khorasan in that age.27 At an unknown date,
he arrived in Karazm and, according to the testimony of all sources, became a morld
of his great namesake, Najm al-Din Kobra.28 It may be supposed that
21The word Daya literally means
“wetnurse”; its application to the author of the Mersad derives from the
idea of the initiate on the Path being a newborn infant who needs suckling to
survive; see pp. 222-226 of the text. We shall use this element of the name to
refer to the author.
!!For the date of Daya’s birth, see
Fasiii Khfi, Mojmal-e Fast hi, ed. Mahmud Farrok, Tehran, 1339 S./1960,
If, 262.
“See pp. 43, 261 and 454.
“Daya, Bahr al-haqa‘eq, ms. Hasan Hiisnii Pasa
(Siileymaniye), 37, ff. 3a-3b.
“See p. 429.
“See p. 279.
27See p. 130.
“See, for example, Abd al-Rahman Jami, Nafahat al-ons, ed.
Mahdi Tow- hldlpur, Tehran, 1336 S./1948, p. 435.
he had journeyed to Karazm for precisely this purpose. Kobra, however,
delegated the task of his spiritual training to one of his morids,
Shaikh Majd al-Din Bagdad!, to whom Daya constantly refers with great
reverence as "our shaikh.” Majd al-Din —who came not from Baghdad but from
the small village of Bag- dadak near Karazm—was the preceptor of the celebrated
Sufi poet Attar, whom he initiated at his kanaqah in Nishapur, and the
author of several important works marked by the same emphases as those of
Kobra.29
It is remarkable that there is, by contrast, not a single mention
of Najm al-Din Kobra anywhere in the writings of Daya. Doubtless this is
explicable in part by the deep impression made on Daya by Bagdad!, an
impression that could well have effaced all effective memory of Kobra. It may
also be connected with the circumstances under which Bagdad! met his death.
According to the ninth/fifteenth-century hagiographical compendum, Abd
al-Rahman Jami’s Nafahat al-ons, Bagdad! once boasted to his followers
as follows: "I used to be an egg on the edge of the river, and Najm al-Din
(Kobra) was a hen who took me under the wing of his training. Now I have
emerged from the egg and become like a duck; I enter the water while my shaikh
still stands on the bank.” Kobra, who came to know of this arrogant metaphor
through the intuitive light of his sanctity, uttered the imprecation: "May
he die in the river!” Penitent and ashamed, Bagdadi abased himself before
Kobra, who duly forgave him, but prophesied that Bagdadi would still die in the
river, and that all of Karazm would ultimately follow him to destruction.30
Majd al-Din Bagdadi was indeed drowned in the Oxus on the orders of the ruler
of Karazm, in the year 607/1210. While Sufi tradition sees in his drowning the
inevitable result of Najm al-Din Kobra’s imprecation, the immediate cause for
his death is reputed to have been a secret liaison with Torkan Katun, the
mother of the Karazmsah.31 Karazm was, moreover, inhospitable
terrain for Sufis, as a result of the prominence at court of the philosopher
Fakr
’’Concerning Bagdadi, see Jami, Nafahat al-ons, pp. 424-430;
and Ye. E. Bertel’s, "Chetverostishiya Sheikha Madzhd ad-Dina
Bagdadi," in Sufizm i Sufiiskaya Literature, Moscow, 1965, pp.
335-339.
’’Jami, Nafahat al-ons, pp. 425-426.
s'Ibid„ p.
426.
al-Din Razi, from whose maleficent influence Baha al-Din Valad, the
father of Jalal al-Din Rumi, is also reputed to have fled. It is therefore
conceivable that the murder of Majd al-Din Bagdadi should have been no more
than a particularly violent instance of the Karazmsah’s aversion to the Sufis.
In any event, Daya’s silence concerning Kobra—a silence that must have been
deliberate—may be interpreted as a sign of resentment at Kobra’s fatal
imprecation.
Whether because of the death of Majd al-Din Bagdadi or because of
his anticipation that Kobra’s prophecy of general disaster would also be
fulfilled, Daya left Karazm before the Mongol conquest and resumed his
wanderings in western Iran. No security was to be had there, however, and in
618/1221, after a return visit to the Hejaz, Daya fled from the advancing
Mongol armies to the haven of Anatolia, abandoning his family, by his own
admission, to be massacred in the Mongol sack of Ray. Traveling via Hamadan,
Erbil, and Diyarbekir, he reached Kayseri in central Anatolia in Ramadan
618/October 1221.32
Anatolia was an obvious place- of refuge for him. It was not only,
as Daya writes, a land where orthodoxy prevailed, untainted by the heresy of
Mo'tazelism and philosophy, and a branch of the great Saljuq dynasty reigned;33
it was also, thanks to Saljuq pauonage, a center for the cultivation of Persian
literature—Persian being the court language of the Saljuqs despite their
Turkish origin and environment—and a point of attraction for Sufis from the
western and eastern extremes of the Islamic world. Ebn Arabi traveled three
times to Anatolia, visiting Malatya, Sivas, and Konya; in the last city he
acquired one of his most influential disciples, $adr al-Din Qonyavi (c. 673/
1274), whose lectures on the teachings of Ebn Arabi inspired the celebrated Lama'dt
of Fakr al-Din ‘Eraqi (d. 688/1289). Another disciple of Ebn Arabi, Arif al-Din
Soleyman from Tlemcen in Algeria, is known to have resided in Konya for many
years. From the Islamic east there arrived in Anatolia four years before Daya
another migrant from Karazm, Baha al-Din Valad and his son, Jalal al-Din Rumi,
who was later to make of Konya
“See p. 49.
“See pp. 42-43.
one of the principal poles of spiritual attraction in the Islamic
world. Finally, we may mention Owhad al-Din Kennani, who stayed for some time
in Kayseri and Konya.34 The appearance of Daya in Anatolia was not,
then, an isolated phenomenon, and he is reputed to have encountered there $adr
al-Din Qonyavi, Jalal al-Din Rumi, and Owhad al-Din Kennani.35
An encounter he himself records took place soon after his arrival in
Anatolia. In Malatya, Daya met Shaikh Sehab al-Din Abu IJafs ‘Omar
al-Sohravardi (d. 632/1234), nephew of Abu Najib al-Sohravardi, the founder of
the Sohravardi order. The younger Sohravardi had elaborated a certain fusion of
Sufism with another initiatic tradition, that oifotowwa—the ideal of
ethical manliness that inspired a series of chivalrous sodalities. He placed
this fusion in the service of the Abbasid caliph al-Naser le Din Allah, who
employed it in order to restore the political authority of the caliphate by
binding the prominent and powerful to himself with an allegiance that
transcended mere political loyalty.36 When Daya met Sohravardi, he
had just completed a mission to Ala al-Din Keyqobad, the Saljuq ruler of
Anatolia, on behalf of al-Naser, and was on his way back to Baghdad.
Ebn Bibi’s history of the Saljuqs of Anatolia confinns the meeting
in Malatya between Daya and Sohravardi. But whereas Daya’s account clearly
implies that the Mersad was written after the meeting with Sohravardi in
order to be presented to Keyqobad, Ebn Bibi writes that the book was already
written and dedicated to Keyqobad before Daya came to Malatya.37 The
’’Concerning the cultural and religious life of Saljuq Konya, see
Osman Turan, Selfuklular Tarihi ve Turk-Islam Medeniyeti, Istanbul,
1969, pp. 210 ff; and Claude Cahen, Pre-Ottoman Turkey, New York, 1968,
pp. 252-258.
’’Daya’s acquaintance with Qonyavi and Rumi is reported by Jami in
an anecdote that has him leading them in prayer (Nafahat al-ons, p.
435); the anecdote is repeated by a wide variety of later sources. The ayptic
and silent meeting that took place between Daya and Owhad al-DIn KermanI could
have occurred either in Anatolia or later in Baghdad (Manaqeb-e Owhad
al-din, quoted in Riyahl’s introduction to the Mersad, p. 43).
’“See Herbert Mason, Two Statesmen of Mediaeval Islam, The
Hague, 1972, pp. 123-125; and Angelika Hartmann, an-N&sir li-Din Allah
(1180-1225), Politik, Religion, Kultur in der spdten Abbasidenzeit, Berlin,
1975, pp. 111-121, 233-254.
S7Ibn Bibi, Histoire des
Seldjoucides d'Asie Mineure (Turkish text), ed. M. Th. Houtsma, Leiden,
1902, p. 226.
role of Sohravardi would have been, then, merely to recommend to
Kayqobad an already complete work, not to suggest to Daya that he present
himself to the Saljuq court, thus indirectly inspiring the composition of his
work. The discrepancy between the two accounts probably stems from the fact
that the Mersad exists in two distinct recensions. The first was
completed soon after Daya’s arrival in Kayseri in Ramadan, 618/October 1221,
and was intended as “a gift to true seekers and veracious lovers”; the second
was completed in Sivas, in Rajab, 620/ August 1223, and was dedicated to
Keyqobad. Daya naturally made no mention of the first recension in the version
he prepared for Keyqobad, wishing to present his work as exclusively inspired
by the desire to present the monarch with a suitable gift. It is probable,
then, that Daya composed the work before his meeting with Sohravardi, but
decided to revise it and dedicate it to Keyqobad at the suggestion of
Sohravardi.38
Despite the bright expectations Daya evidently had of his sojourn to
Anatolia, and the encomium to Keyqobad that concludes the Mersad, he
was severely disappointed. In the Mar- muzat-e Asadi dar mazmtlrat-e
Da’itdi, composed in Erzincan three years after the second recension of the
Mersad, he wrote this of his misfortunes:
Three years I wandered in that land [Anatolia], up hill and down
dale, residing for a time in each city, casting the coin of life’s hours at
every footstep I took. In its markets I saw all goods eagerly bought but the
goods of religion; every trickster and charlatan found a customer, but the
people of certainty found none; the market was sluggish and sales were slow for
the masters of the Law and the Path, whereas those wed to instinctual nature
and shamelessness enjoyed ever-increasing esteem. People rushed eagerly to buy
donkey beads, but would not deign to look at the lustrous pearl. I found no one
in that realm able to tell musk from dung, or the sincere from the swindler.
However much I tested both the high and
58The difference between the two
recensions is largely one of style, the second being more ornate and prolix
than the first. See Riyahi's introduction, pp. 62-63.
the low, I saw that the whole garden was
planted with celery. When I thus discovered there was no host in the house, I
fully detached my heart from the realm . . . and gladly, without any regret,
turned my back on the whole herd.39
Daya’s new destination was Erzincan, a city ruled by a petty Turkish
dynasty, the Mengiigeks, but still inhabited by a largely Armenian population.
As for the Muslims of Erzincan, they also failed to win his approval, and he
composed fourteen lines of verse in condemnation of them, calling them in the
first “a people void of all humanity, with the seed of vileness sown in their
souls.”40
the prospect of a new patron, Ala al-Dln Da’ud, the Mengii^ek ruler.
He was renowned for his interest in Persian letters, and it was to him that the
great poet Nezaml Ganjavl (d. 605/1209) had dedicated his didactic poem, Makzan
al-asrar. Daya now composed the second work of his Anatolian sojourn, the Mar-
muzat-e Asadi dar mazmurat-e Da’udl (The Symbolic Expressions of Asadi [an
allusion to one element of Daya’s name] concerning the Psalms of David). The
second half of the title refers to the fact that each chapter of the book is
introduced by a quotation from the Psalms; it is, however, at the same time a
skillful reference to the name of the Mengu^ek ruler. The work has been
described as “a special edition” of the Mersad, in that much of the
material from the Mersad is incorporated in it— with, however, the
strictly Sufi portion diminished and the sections on kingly power greatly
expanded.41
than the Mersad and seems not to have exercised much influence;
only a single manuscript survived. It is of some interest as a statement of
traditional Persian views of kingship modified by a Sufi coloring.
After a series of provocations offered to the Saljuqs, Da’ud was
overthrown by Keyqobad in 625/1228, and Erzincan was
^Marmuzat-e Asadi dar mazmurat-e Da'udl,
Tehran, 1352 S./1973, ed. Mohammad Reza Safi'i Kadkani, p. 5.
wIbid., p.
6.
■'See Hennann Landolt’s English introduction to the work (p. 10),
where he also makes an interesting comparison between the Mazmflrat and
Gaza It’s .Nasi hat al-molilk, which was in some sense a royal edition
of Klmiya-ye sa'adat.
incorporated in the Saljuq realm. Daya must have left Erzincan
several years earlier, however, for in 622/1225 we find him traveling from
Baghdad to Tabriz on a diplomatic mission for the Caliph, al-Zaher be Amr
Allah. In Tabriz he met Jalal al-Din Karazmsah, son of the monarch who had put
Majd al-Din Bag- dadl to death. Fleeing westward from the Mongol onslaught,
Jalal al-Din was seeking to organize resistance to the invaders. The Mersad
contains several exhortations to Muslim rulers to stand firm against the
Mongols, so it is probable that Daya looked upon him with favor, despite his
father’s misdeed.42 turned to Baghdad in the company of Qazi Mojlr
al-Din, the Karazmsah’s ambassador, to find the Caliph dead.43
Nothing further is known of Daya’s worldly career; it is possible
that he continued in the service of the caliphate. He died in Baghdad in
654/1256, two years before the city was conquered and sacked by the Mongols
from whom he had fled thirty-five years earlier.44 Remarkably, Daya
seems not to have left any successors, although al-Yafe‘I mentions a certain
Demyatl as having been his morid.^ He was buried in the Soneyziya cemetery,
in the Kark area of Baghdad, near such luminaries of early Sufism as Ma'ruf
KarkI and Joneyd Bagdadl.46 stands.
During this final phase of his life, which lasted approximately
three decades, Daya turned to writing in Arabic. Shortly before his death, he
completed an Arabic version of the Mersad, entitling it Manarat al-sa’erin
ela ’llah wa maqamat al-ta’erin be ’llah (Light Towers for Those Voyaging
to God, and the Stations of Those Flying with God). In the preface to this he
reversed the argument used to justify the composition of the Mersad in
Persian and declared his wish to benefit those who knew only Arabic. The work
attained some fame, although never as much
’“See
pp. 40-41 and 383.
’’Mohammad b^Ahmad al-NasawI, Sirat al-soltan Jalal al-Din
Mankubarti, ed. Hafiz Ahmad Hamdi, Cairo, 1953, p. 280.
■"See
Jami, Nafahat al-ons, p. 435.
’’Abdollah
al-Yafe'I, Mer'at al-janan, Hyderabad, 1339/1921, IV, 136.
’“Louis Massignon, "Les Saints Musulmans Enterres a
Baghdad," Opera Minora, Beirut, 1963, p. 180.
as the Mersad; curiously enough, it was translated into
Persian for the Ottoman Sultan, Bayazld II.47
Far more important than this reworking, yet again, of the Mersad
was the Arabic commentary upon the Qur’an that Daya composed in Baghdad.
Indeed, it is to be regarded as one of the chief monuments of Sufi exegesis,
and an edition of it must count as one of the major desiderata of Sufi studies.
There has for long been much confusion surrounding this tafsir, partly
because it is referred to by several different names, and partly because two
Kobravls in addition to Daya had a hand in its composition. It is known
variously as al-Ta’wilat al-najmiya, ‘Ayn al-hayat, and Bahr
al-haqa’eq; the last of these three designations appears to be the
earliest. Kobra himself began with the composition of a tafsir, but did
not proceed far beyond the opening chapter of the Qur’an. The work was then
taken up by Daya, who was overtaken by death before he could complete the commentary;
he reached surat al-najm (sura 53). Then came a later Kobravl, Ala
al-Dowla Semnani, who wrote a long and important preface on the principles of
Sufi exegesis, and finally brought the tafsir to its completion. The
work, then, may be regarded in a sense as a joint Kobravl enterprise, but it
has always been ascribed to Daya, who did indeed write the major portion of it.48
Its fame spread very swiftly. An anecdote in Aflakl’s Mana- qeb
al-rarefin, a collection of Mevlevr biographies, relates how it
was first introduced to Anatolia: a certain Sehabal-Dln Maq- buli of Tabriz
presented a copy to ‘Aref CelebI (d. 719/1319), head of the Mevlevi order; he
in turn passed it on to others, and caused copies to be made.49 manuscripts
of this commentary found in Turkish libraries testifies to the popularity it
enjoyed. At about the same time, the
,7See Fritz Meier, "Stambuler
Handschriften dreier persischer Mystiker: Ain al-qudat al-Hamadani, Nagm ad-Din
al-Kubra, Nagm ad-DIn Daya,” Der Islam, XXIV (1937), 36-38.
’“See Mohammad Hoseyn al-Dahabi, at-Tafsir wa 'l-mojasserun,
Cairo, 1381/ 1961, I, 59-65; Henry Corbin, En Islam Iranien, Paris,
1972, III, 175-176, 276, n. 90; Mojtaba Mlnovl’s introduction to Daya, Resdla-ye
'esq o 'aql, ed. Taqi Tafazzoli, Tehran, 1345 S./1966, pp. 30-32; and
Siileyman Ates, I^ari Tefsir Okulu, Ankara, 1974, pp. 139-160.
’’Ahmad AflakI, Manaqeb al-'drefin, ed. Tahsin Yazici,
Ankara, 1967, II, 933.
important Shi'ite gnostic and writer, Heydar Amoli, praised Daya’s
commentary as being "without like or peer,” and declared that he had
taken it as a model for his own Qur’an commentary, al-Mohit al-a'zam.50
Large sections of Daya’s commentary were incorporated in Ruh al-bayan,
the great work of the Turkish Sufi Esma'il Haqql Borusawi (d. 1136/1724), and
also the last specimen of this genre to be written, Ruh al-ma‘ant by
Sehab al-Din al-Alusi (d. 1270/1854). Since both later commentaries have been
printed, Daya’s work is partially accessible.
Before passing finally to some salient points of interest concerning
the Mersad, let us briefly review the lesser writings of Daya. Probably
in his youth, Daya wrote a brief allegory in Persian called Resalat
al-toyur (Treatise of the Birds), a theme more celebrated in its treatment
by Avicenna and Attar.61 Then he produced a short treatise in
exposition of the celebrated utterance of Abu’l-Hasan KaraqanI, “the Sufi is
uncreate,”52 and a longer piece on the respective virtues of love
and intellect, with preference going to the former. This last work, variously
entitled Me'yar al-sedq fi mesdaq al-‘esq (The Criterion of Veracity
concerning the Touchstone of Love) or simply ‘Esq o ‘aql (Love and
Intellect), bears great similarity to certain sections of the Mersad; it
was probably a preliminary essay for part of that work, although the date of
its composition is unknown.53 Three other brief treatises have also
been attributed to Daya, but the ascriptions are probably inaccurate.54
Ill
The key word in the title of Daya’s masterpiece, Mersad, rendered
here as “path,” is drawn from Qu’ran, 89:14: "Verily thy Lord watches over
the path” (enna rabbaka la be ’l-mersad). The divine vigilance implied
here is generally taken as referring to God’s omniscience of men’s deeds, but
it is plain that Daya takes it in a slightly different sense, that of a
protective and
’"Corbin, En Islam Iranien, III, 175.
“A synopsis of this work in German by Hellmut Ritter is given as an
appendix to Meier’s article, “Stambuler Handschriften,” pp. 39-42.
’’Meier, “Stambuler Handschriften," p. 38.
“See MinovT’s introduction to Resala-ye 'esq o'aql, pp.
33-34.
“See Riyaht’s introduction to the Mersad, p. 53.
guarding vigilance. The word mersad occurs in the text of the
work also, as a synonym of jadda-ye mostaqlm (straight path; see p. 36
below), which further clarifies the sense in which Daya uses it. The second
part of the title, men al-mabda’ ela ‘l-ma‘ad, "from origin to
return,” is to be found in the titles of many works that purport to treat in
comprehensive fashion both cosmogony and eschatology and all that lies between.
We may mention the poem of Sana’!, Seyr al-‘ebad ela al-ma‘ad;[21]
a work by Nasir al-Din Tusi entitled with the Persian equivalent of mabda’
and ma'ad, Agaz va anjam; the Resdla-ye mabda’ va ma’ad of Shaikh
Ahmad Serhendi (d. 1034/1624);56
by the celebrated Shi'ite sage, Molla §adra Sirazi (d. 1050/ 1640).57
The comprehensiveness promised in this title of the work is amply
fulfilled in its text It deals, in a systematic manner, with the origins of the
various realms and orders of creation, prophethood and the different
dimensions of religion, the ritual practices, mores, and institutions of
Sufism, the destinations that await different classes of men in the hereafter,
and the fashion in which different professions and trades may come to yield
spiritual benefit and heavenly reward. Thus it provides a full conspectus of
Sufism, combining exposition of doctrine with description of method. It is
unique in this respect, excelling earlier expository texts which lack the
degree of elaboration, systematization, and explicitness that characterized the
Sufism of the seventh/thirteenth century. The Mersad can indeed be
regarded as a summation of the historical elaboration of Sufism down to the
period of this "second flowering.”
A particular virtue of the book is its clear demonstration of the
Qur’anic origins of Sufism. The numerous quotations from the Qur’an found in
Daya’s work are not to be regarded as mere ornament, nor even as scriptural
proofs adduced in support of various statements. Rather, they bear witness to
the fact that
“’Contained in Masnaviha-ye Hakim SanS’i, ed. Mohammad TaqI
Modarres Razavl, Tehran, 1348 S./1969, pp. 181-316.
’“Published at Delhi, n.d.
’’See S. H. Nasr, “§adr al-Din Shirazi,” in A History of Muslim
Philosophy, ed, M. M. Sharif, Wiesbaden, 1966, II, p. 935.
for Daya, as for other Sufis, the Qur’an constitutes a well-
structured, seamless, and coherent universe. The coherence of the Qur’anic
universe is not immediately apparent; a process of ta’vil, of esoteric
exegesis, is required to perceive and uncover it. In his celebrated Qur’an
commentary, Daya has left behind a great monument of ta’vil, and the Mersad
also contains important elements of Sufi exegesis. The Qur’anic verses encountered
throughout the book are the loom on which it is woven, a particular sense for
each verse being implied by the context in which it occurs.
Another prominent feature of the book is the frequency with which it
draws parallels between the inner and the outer worlds, particularly with
reference to processes of growth and development (the progress of seed, tree,
branch, and fruit; the emergence of the hen from the egg; the refining of
sugar and the baking of bread, to name but a few examples). This also should
not be taken as a mere literary device. For characteristic of the Sufi world
view is a belief in the morphological affinity of all orders of being: form and
meaning, higher and lower, microcosm and macrocosm, world and hereafter. Daya
says in his commentary on the Qur’an: "Verily all that God created in the
world of form has its like in the world of meaning; all that He created in the
world of meaning—this being the hereafter—has its true essence in the world of
reality, which is the uttermost unseen. Know too that of all that God created
in all the worlds, a specimen and sample is present in man.”58 It
follows, then, that inner and unseen processes may be accurately described in
terms of their outer counterparts.
The "originality” of Daya lies generally in his systematization
and elaboration of what went before. There is, however, one respect in which he
appears to be an innovator—the enumeration and description of the subtle
centers of perception (lata’ef). He added to the fourfold scheme known
to earlier Sufis—heart, spirit, intelligence, mystery—a fifth element, the
"arcane” (kdfi). Two other elements were added later by another
Kobravl, Ala al-Dowla Semnani, who, as we have seen, also acted as the cul-
minator of Daya’s work in taking his Qur’an commentary to its
conclusion.[22]
Apart from the dominant religious interest of the work, it also
offers much historical information. Daya’s recurrent condemnation of the
hellenizing philosophers, although typical for Sufism and akin to numerous
utterances of Gazali, Sana’!, Attar, and Rumi, doubtless owes some of its vigor
to the ascendancy of Fakral-DinRaa in K'arazm and the hostility manifested by
that philosopher to the Sufis. In this connection, his denunciation of Kayyam
and scornful quoting of some of the notorious quatrains is one of the earliest
proofs that Kayyam the philosopher and mathematician was also Kayyam the poet.
The awestruck mention of the Mongols at various points in the work gives some
indication of the apocalyptic impact of that barbaric onslaught on the Muslim
world. Finally, the fifth part of the book is rich in incidental information on
social and administrative history: the rapaciousness of the king’s appointees
when left to their own devices, the venality of the judiciary, the duties of
king and minister, the qualities expected of a pious merchant, and so forth.
This part is in itself deserving of detailed analysis as a document of
Perso-Islamic political philosophy, couched in distinctively Sufi terms.
The literary importance of the Mersad is considerable: it
ranks among the masterpieces of Persian literature, and certain sections—particularly
the narrative of the creation and appointment of Adam—bear comparison with the
best prose written in Persian.[23]
Daya’s choice of illustrative verses—both those of his own composition and
those of his predecessors—is judicious, and makes of his work an incidental
anthology of Sufi poetry, particularly quatrains.
Ever since its composition, Daya’s work has enjoyed a continuous
and wide popularity in the Islamic world that has far transcended the confines
of the Kobravi order. The broad diffusion of the work is attested to by the
abundance of manuscript
copies to be found in the libraries of Iran, India, Central Asia,
and Turkey, an abundance that stands in contrast to the rarity of many early
works on Sufism restored to prominence in recent times by the labors of
Orientalists. Quotations from the Mersad are to be found in a wide range
of later Persian works on Sufism, and its unacknowledged influence is visible
in still more numerous writings.[24]
The Mersad appears to have reached India in the lifetime of its author,
for the early fourteenth-century historiographer Baran! lists it among the
Sufi works that became popular in Delhi thanks to the ascendancy of the Cesti
order.[25]
About two centuries later, in Ebn ‘Omar Mehrabi’s Hojjat al-Hend, a polemic
against Hinduism, we find extracts from the Mersad being placed in the
mouth of a parrot instructing a princess in Islam.[26]
Daya’s arguments concerning the inadequacy of Brahmanic mysticism must
have aroused particular interest in India. The Mersad exercised great
influence in Turkish Anatolia, the land of its composition, in both the Persian
original and a much-read Turkish translation made in the ninth/fifteenth
century by one Qasem b. Mahmud Qarahesari and dedicated to Sultan Morad II.[27]
Finally, we may note that the Mersad was known also in China. Among the
Sino-Muslim manuscripts brought from Kansu to Europe in 1909 by the d’Ollone
mission, together with several Naqsbandi works, was a copy of the Mersad
containing marginal glosses in a North Chinese idiom written in the Arabic
script.[28] In
short, the influence of the Mersad permeated virtually the whole of the
Islamic world, with the exception of its Arab
and African regions. Western scholarship, by contrast, has paid
little attention to this important work.66
The Persian text of the Mersad was first published in Tehran
in 1312/1894 by Abd al-Gaffar Najm al-Dowla, and then again in.1352/1933 by
Hoseyn Sams al-‘Orafa Ne'matollahl, one of the most celebrated Iranian Sufis of
recent times. Both printings were unreliable, since the editors were evidently
unaware of the existence of two recensions of the Mersad, and the texts
they produced were an arbitrary melange of the two. A new edition, based upon a
critical examination of numerous manuscripts, was prepared by Dr. Amin Rlyahl
and published in Tehran in 1352 S./1972. The text of Dr. Riyahl, upon which
this translation is based, represents chiefly the second or “royal” recension,
although in some parts he has used the first recension as the basis for his edition.
I have striven to make this translation of Daya’s masterpiece as
close to the original as is compatible with comprehensibility. The syntactic
complexity of many sentences, atypical for Persian, the frequency of multiple ezafa
constructions, and the parenthetic insertion of Qur’anic verses or fragments of
verses all present particular problems; the reader must judge how felicitously
the translator was able to solve them. It should be bome in mind that the
stylistic qualities of the original— reflected to some degree, I hope, in the
translation—addressed themselves to an esthetic and spiritual sensibility
different from that of the modern world, so that the translation is, in a
sense, an invitation to transpose oneself to the realm of an archaic sensibility.
It is a commonplace of Sufism that true knowledge of the Path is to
be had from men, not from books; books can at best be a temporary substitute
for the presence of a living preceptor. But the traditional Muslim audience for
which Sufi writings were
“Apart from Meier’s bibliographical article ("Stambuler
Handschriften”), we may mention the chapter “Doctrine des photismes chez Najm
Razi,” in Henry Corbin’s L'Homme de Lumiere dans le Soufisme Iranian,
Paris, 1971, pp. 154- 163; a brief notice of the Mersad by R. C. Zaehner
in his Hindu and Muslim Mysticism, London, 1960, pp. 180-183; and some
passages from the work translated in A. J. Arberry, Classical Persian
Literature, London, 1958, pp. 248-253, and Cyprian Rice in The Persian
Sufis, London, 1964, pp. 91-97.
destined at least enjoyed some acquaintance with the Qur’anic source
of Sufism and lived, if less intensely and consciously, in the same conceptual
universe as the Sufi masters. Such will not be the case with most readers of
this translation. I have therefore added to the translation notes that not
merely clarify references and allusions and identify the sources of
quotations, but also seek to elucidate the meaning of terms and phrases whenever
necessary. I have thus sought to be not merely the translator of Daya’s work
from Persian to English, but also, in some measure, his interpreter to a new
audience.
In conclusion, just as Daya intended his work to fulfill purposes
peculiar to his own age, let it be permitted to the translator to express the
hope that the Mersad in English garb will meet certain needs of the
present time. I hope first, that it will serve to refute the pseudo-Sufis of
the present age who wish to detach Sufism from its Qur’anic roots, and that it
will offer, as Daya puts it, a “touchstone” against which to strike their
claims; second, that it may reintroduce modern-minded Muslims to the inward
dimension of their religion and to the riches of Sufism that they all too
frequently neglect or deny; and finally that it may provide students of
comparative religion with a comprehensive, authentic, and coherent account of
Sufism.
From God is success, and upon Him reliance.
Hamid Algar
Zu’l-hejja 1399/October 1979
In the Name of God, the
Compassionate,
the Merciful
Praise without end and laudation without limit to that Monarch from
Whose munificence the existence of all beings results, and Whose existence is
praised and magnified by their excellence—“there is naught but celebrates His
praise”;1 that Lord Who, out of the creativity of His nature and the
artistry of His wisdom, inscribed, with the pen of generosity, the impress of
souls on the leaf of nonbeing; Who concealed the Water of Life that is gnosis
in the darkness of the createdness of the human state—"in your own selves
too are signs; will ye not then see?”;2 Who enabled the distraught
and thirsty wanderers in the desert of the search to tread, like Alexander,3
ness of human attributes with the foot of sincerity; and Who, in His
uncaused grace, brought those like Kezr*
burned with the fire of love to the fountainhead of the Water of
Life that is gnosis—“is he who was dead, to whom We gave life, and a light to
walk by among men, like him who is in the darkness and comes not forth
therefrom?”5
■Qur’an, 17:44.
zQur’an, 51:21.
’Alexander was depicted in the legend evolved by medieval Islam as
the archetype of the seeker after illumination. His progress through the world
was seen as inspired not so much by a lust for conquest as by a desire for
mystical knowledge, his outer journey serving as the mirror and support of the
inner journey; an attempt was made to identify him with the figure designated
as Zu’l-Qarnayn (The Two-Homed One) in Qur’an, 18:83 ff. His goal, the Water of
Life, signifying ma'refat/'erfan (gnosis; direct cognition of reality),
was found concealed in a region of utter darkness on the fringe of the earth.
The source of illumination is analogously to be found hidden in the tenebrous
densityof man’s corporeal state. Daya makes frequent reference and allusion to
these components of the Alexander legend, which is one of the favored themes
of Persian narrative poetry. It has been treated with particular mastery by
Nezaml of Ganja (d. 605/1209; a prose translation of his version by H.
Wilberforce Clarke, Book of Alexander the Great, appeared in London in
1881), Amir Kosrow of Delhi (d. 725/1325), and ‘Abd al-Rahman Jami (d.
898/1492). The works of these three inspired a host of imitations not only in
Persian but also in Turkish and Urdu, so that the theme of Alexander as the
spiritual seeker became part of the literary patrimony of all the Muslim East.
See the article "Iskender-Name” by Orhan §aik Gdkyay in Islam
Ansiklopedisi, V, 1088-1090.
■Keir: the ubiquitous and immortal personification of the initiatic
principle, generally identified with the unnamed figure encountered by Moses
and mentioned in Qur’an, 18:65-82. He appears also in the Alexander legend as
the supreme guide on the path, who finally conducts him to the Water of Life.
’Qur’an, 6:122.
Salutations without number and plaudits without bound to those
sanctified spirits in unsullied frames, the one hundred and twenty thousand and
more instances of prophethood and repositories of manly nobility, who were
wayfarers on the paths of Truth and exemplary guides in the lands of the
Law—“these it is to whom We have given the Book, and authority and prophethood,”[14]
of the caravan of saints, Mohammad the Chosen One, may God bless and
give abundant peace to him and his family, his wives and goodly, pure
descendants, his righteous successors, rightly guiding and rightly guided, and
all of his companions.
O brothers in God’s guidance, and companions in the reverential
fear of Him! May God enable us all to rise from the depths of the human state
to the summit of His servitude, and grant us that we slough off the attributes
of the human domain and don those of the divine domain. Know that the purpose
and essence of all creation is the existence of man, and all that partakes of
existence throughout the twin realms does so by virtue of his existence. If one
possesses clear and total vision, he will recognize that all of existence is
man.
Thou art the height and depth of this world.
I know not who thou art; all that is, thou art.[15]
The purpose of the existence of man is knowledge of the essence and
attributes of God Almighty. Thus when David asked: “O Lord, why didst Thou
bring forth creation?” the Almighty answered: “I was a hidden treasure, and I
desired to be known; thus I brought forth creation, that I might be known.”[16]
True
knowledge of God can be attained only by man, for although the
angels and the jinn are his partners in the worship of God, man was set apart
from all other beings by accepting the burden of the Trust of this knowledge.
“We offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they
refused to bear it, being afraid thereof, and man accepted to bear it.”9
By the heavens are meant their inhabitants—the angels; by the earth, its inhabitants—the
animals, jinn, and demons; by the mountains, their inhabitants—the wild beasts
and birds. Noneof these was fit to bear the burden of the Trust of knowledge,
for out of all creation it was only man whose soul desired to be a mirror to
the beauty of the Divine Presence and to manifest all of His attributes, both
passively and actively.10 This is the meaning of the saying that
“God created. Adam in His own image.”11
The essence of the soul of man is the heart, and the heart is like a
mirror, with the two realms of creation enclosing it like a pericardium. It is
in this mirror that all the attributes of the beauty and splendor of the Divine
Presence are manifested. Thus He said: "We will show them Our signs upon
the horizons and in their souls.”12
Men
and jinn have their being for the sake of the mirror; Throughout the twin
realms, every gaze falls on the mirror.
The
heart is the mirror of that imperial beauty, And these twin realms are the
cover of that mirror.13
When the soul, inherently disposed to the state of mirrorhood, is
nurtured and brought to perfection, it will observe in itself the manifestation
of all the divine attributes. It will know itself and the purpose for which it
has been created, and thus realize the
’Qur’an, 33:72.
10It has been suggested that this
passage of the work, with its evocation of the "burden of the Trust,”
served to inspire the following line in the Divan of Hafez (ed. Mohammad
Qazvlnl and Qasem Gam, Tehran, n.d., p. 125): The heavens were unable to bear
the burden of the Trust; the task fell to the lot of this crazed one.
"Tradition recorded by Bokart, Moslem, and Ebn Hanbal.
‘“Qur’an, 41:53.
13A quatrain presumably composed by
Daya himself.
meaning of the saying that “he who knows his self knows also his
Lord.”14 It will come to recognize its own nature and to understand
the mystery on account of which it has been ennobled and •preferred. This
feeble one says:
O thou copy of the script divine!
O thou mirror of the royal beauty!
Naught in the world lies outside of thee;
Ask of thyself thine every desire, thou art it!15
But for the soul of man to reach the perfection of the degree that
is lustrous mirrorhood, many paths and perilous places must be traversed, a
task fulfilled only by following the highway of the Law, the Path, and the
Truth.16 As iron is extracted from the mine and treated with
numerous subtle stratagems in water and fire, passing from the hand of one
craftsman to another in order gradually to become a mirror, so too man is the
mine from which the iron for this mirror is extracted. “Men are mines, like
mines of gold and silver.”17 The iron must be carefully brought
forth from the mine of man’s being and then tempered until, passing gradually
through a series of degrees, it attains the rank of mirrorhood.
The reed thou seest standing tall on the shore Grows and sprouts
from stem to stem.18
“A saying variously attributed to the Prophet and All b. Abu Taleb
(see Foru- zanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 167); it is of almost universal
occurrence in Sufi literature.
‘“Although this quatrain is here identified as Daya’s own
composition, it is frequently ascribed in other works to Baba Afzal al-Din
Kasim (d. 654/1256 or 664/1265), a prolific writer on mystical and
philosophical themes in both Arabic and Persian. The same is true of several
other quatrains quoted in this work.
‘“This triad of Law, Path, and Truth refers to the outer dimension
of religion, its inner aspect, and the center which vivifies and lies at the
heart of both of these. The concern of the Law is with man’s bodily frame; that
of the Path with his heart; and that of the Truth with his spirit (see third
part, chapters five, seven, and eight).
‘’Tradition recorded by Bokari, Moslem, and Ebn Hanbal.
18An Arabic verse of unknown origin.
This book concerning wayfaring on the road of religion and
attainment of the realm of certainty, the training of the human soul and the
knowledge of the divine attributes, has been composed in five parts and forty
chapters, which shall presently be set forth, God Almighty willing.
List
of Parts and Chapters
. First Part: Introduction to the book,
containing three chapters, the first explaining the utility of composing this
work on the sayings of the men of the Path, and the means of traveling the
Path; the second, concerning the reason for writing the book, particularly in
Persian; and the third, treating of the manner and method in which the book is
written.
Second Part: Concerning the origin of
created beings, and containing five chapters: the first, expounding the
creation of spirits and knowledge of the stages through which they pass; the
second, describing the world of Dominion and the degrees of all that it
contains; the third, concerning the appearance of the different realms of
Kingship and Dominion; the fourth, explaining the beginning of the createdness
of the human frame; and the fifth, setting forth the origin of the attachment
of the spirit to the frame.
Third Part: Concerning the life of man,
and containing twenty chapters: the first, concerning the veils that cover the
human spirit as a result of attachment to the bodily frame, and the tribulations
that spring therefrom; the second, concerning the attachment of the spirit to
the frame, the wise purpose implicit therein and the benefits thereof; the
third, concerning the necessity of the prophets, upon whom be peace, for man’s
cultivation; the fourth, concerning the reason for the abrogation of all
previous religions and the sealing of prophethood with Mohammad, upon whom be
peace and blessings; the fifth, concerning the training of the human frame in
accordance with the code of the Law; the sixth, concerning the refinement of
the human soul and the knowledge thereof; the seventh, concerning the
purification of
the heart in accordance with the code of the Path, and the knowledge
thereof; the eighth, concerning the adornment of the spirit in accordance with
the code of the Truth, and the knowledge thereof; the ninth, concerning the
necessity of a shaikh for man’s training and wayfaring; the tenth, concerning
the station of shaikhhood, its conditions and attributes; the eleventh, concerning
the conditions, attributes, and customs of the morid; the twelfth,
concerning the need for zekr, and the special properties of the zekr
of la elaha ella’llah; the thirteenth, concerning the method of uttering
zekr, its conditions and customs; the fourteenth, concerning the need
of the morld for transmission of zekr by the shaikh, and the
property of such transmission; the fifteenth, concerning the necessity of seclusion,
and its conditions and customs; the sixteenth, concerning certain visions
deriving from the unseen, and the difference between dreams and visions; the
seventeenth, concerning the witnessing of lights and the degrees thereof; the
eighteenth, concerning unveiling and its varieties; the nineteenth, concerning
the manifestation of the Divine Essence and attributes; and the twentieth, concerning
attaining to the divine presence, with neither absorption nor separation.
Fourth. Part: Concerning the return of
the souls of the felicitous and the wretched, and containing four chapters.
God Almighty said: 'And among them some wrong their own souls; some follow a
middle course; and some are foremost in good works, by God’s leave.”1
And again, “None shall fall into the fiercely blazing fire but the most
wretched one, who calls the Truth a lie and turns away.”2 The first
chapter is concerning the return of the oppressive soul, which is the
reproachful soul; the second, concerning, the return of the soul that follows a
middle path, which is the inspired soul; the third, concerning the return of
the foremost soul, which is the tranquil soul; and the fourth, concerning the
return of the most wretched soul, which is the commanding soul.
Fifth Part: Concerning the wayfaring of
different classes of men, and containing eight chapters: the first, concerning
the
’Qur’an, 35:32.
’Qur’an, 92:16.
wayfaring of kings and the lords of command; the second, concerning
the state of kings, their conduct toward each group of their subjects, and
their solicitude for the people; the third, concerning the wayfaring of
ministers, men of the pen and deputies; the fourth, concerning the wayfaring of
the different classes of scholar—experts in the law, preachers, and judges; the
fifth, concerning the wayfaring of the possessors of bounty and the holders of
wealth; the sixth, concerning the wayfaring of farmers, village headmen, and
peasants; the seventh, concerning the wayfaring of merchants; and the eighth,
concerning the wayfaring of tradesmen and craftsmen.
The Introduction to the
Book Containing Three Chapters, in Accordance with the Blessed Saying of God
Almighty: Ye Shall Be Three Bands1
First Chapter:
God Almighty said: “So We have made the Qur’an easy by thy tongue,
that thou mayest give glad tidings to the Godfearing and warn a stubborn
people.”2 The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: ‘A word of wisdom
is the lost property of every wise man.”3
Know that discourse concerning the Truth and exposition of wayfaring
on the Path bring forth the promptings of longing and the urgings of desire in
the inner beings of those disposed to the search, and kindle the sparks of the
fire of love in the hearts of the sincerely devoted, particularly when such
discourse arises from the vision of sincere lovers and those who have attained
realization.
He whose heart is full of love’s fire. Every tale that he tells will
be alluring.
Seldom now do you hear the tale of a lover, So hearken unto it, it
is most sweet.4
Even the neglectful and unaware may awaken through the auspicious
effect of such discourse, for one cannot know what key will unlock the door to
the felicity of the search. It has been said that "at times the ear will
love before the eye,”5 and indeed it was through the door of the ear
that the auspicious effect of such discourse came to those who said: “Our Lord!
We have heard a caller calling us to belief, saying 'believe in your Lord,’ and
we have believed.”6
2Qur'an, 19:97.
3 A Tradition of slightly different
wording—"a word of wisdom is the lost property of every believer”—is
recorded by TermezI and Ebn Maja.
*A quatrain presumably of Daya's own composition.
5The second half of a line of verse by
the Arabic-writing Persian poet, Bassar b. Bord (d. 167/783). See Ebn Kallekan,
Wafaydt al-a‘ydn, ed. Ahmad Farid Refa'I, Cairo, 1367/1948, III, 22.
6Qur'an, 3:193.
sown in the soil of hearts by the hand of the divine summons,
"am I not your Lord?”7 It then remained to be seen which fortunate
ones would be enabled to nurture that seed, for the eternal realm of love is
not bestowed on every monarch and king.
Not every Solomon is given the kingdom of His search;
Nor every soul and heart the charter of His sorrow.
Those who seek relief are deprived of His pain, For it is a pain not
given to those desiring relief.
While no man is free of the tribulation of aspiring to such love,
nonetheless the searching hand of every aspirant cannot reach the skirt of
majesty of this auspicious fortune. “Religion is not by aspiration.” This
feeble one says:
When my heart was smitten with the charms of his face, My body
became thinner than a hair on his head.
Not every hand may reach out to touch him—
Who even am I? A nobody in his domain!
A further purpose in the exposition of wayfaring is the refutation
of those evil ones of bestial aspect who worship their own passions and devote
all their energies to the utmost enjoyment of bestial, animal and predatory
pleasures and lusts. Being content like beasts and cattle with what the
passing moment offers them, they are barred from the joys experienced by men of
God and the enjoyments of those who draw near to Him. Out of all the
perfections of religion and the degrees of the people of certainty, they
content themselves with the mere form of prayer and negligent, careless
fasting, polluted by endless impurities. Let them not say tomorrow, like the
rest of the rueful band, “we were unaware of these auspicious matters. ‘If we
had heard or understood, we would not be among the people of the flames.’”8
Joneyd—may God sanctify his cherished spirit!—was once asked how the
sayings and narratives of the shaikhs profited the
’Qur'an, 7:171. This question, addressed to men’s souls in
pre-etemity, and the answer bala ("indeed Thou artl”), constituted
a pact of fealty to God binding on men for all time.
“Qur'an, 47:10.
morid. He replied that they strengthened
his heart, made steadfast his foot of exertion, and renewed his fidelity to
the search.9 They then asked him if he was sure his answer was from
the Qur’an. He affirmed that it was, and recited: ‘All that We relate to thee
of the tidings of the Messengers is that whereby We make firm thy heart.”10
It has been said too that “the words of the shaikhs are the armies of God upon
earth,” in the sense that they afford assistance to seekers on the path. If,
for example, some luckless wayfarer is deprived of the guidance of a perfect
shaikh, and during his search, ascetic practice, and inner combat, Satan
wishes to bar his way by inciting him to doubtful or innovative practice, he
may then hold fast to the words of the shaikhs and strike the coin of his state
against the touchstone of their trenchant speech. Thus he may escape from the
grasp of satanic temptation and the whisperings of his soul, and return to the
road of the straight path, and the highway of the upright faith.
For on this path, highway robbers are numerous—demons in human and
jinn form—and if the traveler goes forth without guide or escort, he will soon
be cast into the valley of doom. Shaikh Abu Said b. Abu’l-Keyr, upon whom be
the mercy of God, said that the morid should each .day relate or listen
to an amount of discourse of the shaikhs equivalent to one thirtieth of the
Qur’an.11 For as has truly been said, one delights in frequent
remembrance of what one cherishes.
“Abu'l-Qasem Joneyd (d. 297 or 298/910 or 911): one of the most
prominent early Sufis of Baghdad, and the first to produce a systematic account
of Sufism in written form. The literature of Sufism is replete with references
to him, often with the honorific epithet seyk al-ta'efa (The Elder of
the Group); two recent studies are Ali Hasan Abdel-Kader, The Life,
Personality and Writings of Al- Junayd, London, 1962, and Siileyman Ate§, Ciineyd-e
Bagdadi, Hayali, Eserleri ve Mektuplari, Istanbul, 1970.
'“Qur’an 11:120.
"Abu Sa’id b. Abu’l-Keyr (d. 440/1049): one of the earliest
Sufis of Khorasan, and the first notable mystic to have expressed himself in
Persian. The origins of the Sufi hospice (kdnaqdh) are closely
associated with him, and to him are attributed the first Persian Sufi
quatrains. The main source for his life is the biography written by his
grandson, Mohammad b. al-Monavvar, Asrar al-tow- hid fi maqamat al-seyk. Abu
Sa'id, ed. Zablhollah §afa, Tehran, 1348 S./1969, now available in French
translation (Mohammad Achena, Les Etapes Mystiques du Shaykh Abu Sa'id,
Paris, 1974). See too R. A. Nicholson, Studies in Islamic Mysticism,
Cambridge, 1921, pp. 1-76.
For these reasons, certain travelers on the Path and wayfarers in
the world of Truth, who have amassed a quantity of this auspicious fortune
while voyaging along the highway of rectitude, have conformed to the precept
that “the purifying due shall be rendered on everything,”[17]
and obeying the injunction to grant everyone his right, they have regarded it
as incumbent on their generosity to give the deserving their due. Thus they
have bestowed a draught from the fountainhead of the Water of Life that is
gnosis on the thirsty wanderers in the desert of the search, so that pain may
be added to their pain, longing to their longing, and thirst to their thirst.
I am like sand, and drink in the water of Thy grief;
The more I drink, the greater is my thirst.
Second Chapter:
Concerning the
Reason for Writing the Book, Particularly in Persian
God Almighty said: "We have sent no messenger save with the
tongue of his people that he might make all clear to them.”1 The
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: ‘Address people in accordance with their
degree of intelligence.”
Know that although many books have been written concerning the
Path, both detailed and concise, and in them many matters and truths set
forth, most of them are in Arabic, and they benefit men of Persian tongue but
little.
'Tis of the ancient grief one must tell the new. beloved, And in her
tongue that one must make address.
To say la taf'al and efal is of little use;
If thou art with Persians, ’tis kon and makon thou
must say.2
For some time a group of truth-desiring seekers and sincere morids
has been demanding of my feeble self a compendium in Persian, notwithstanding
my lack of means and inability. Such compendia have already been penned, in
accordance with the capacity and need of every class. They desired, however,
one that should be slight of girth and rich in content; set forth the beginning
and end of creation, the start of wayfaring and the finish of voyaging; and
treat of the goal and the destination, the lover and the beloved. It should be
a world-displaying goblet,3 and a mirror to God’s beauty; it should
both benefit the deficient beginner on the path and profit the perfect adept
drawing near to the goal.
‘Qur’an, 14:4.
2A quatrain of unknown origin. La
taf'al and ef'al: “do not” and "do” in Arabic; kon and makon:
"do” and "do not” in Persian.
3An allusion to the miraculous goblet
owned by the legendary Iranian monarch Jamsid, a vessel that enabled its
possessor to survey the entirety of creation. One of the most common motifs in
Persian poetry, it generally corresponds in Sufi symbolism to the purified
human heart that reflects the manifestation of the divine attributes in
creation (Seyyed Ja'far Sajjadi, Farhang-e mostalahat-e 'orafa va
mota^avvefa, Tehran, 1339 S./1960, pp. 130-131).
While I was in the lands of Iraq and Khorasan, never long settled
before departing once again, the hindrances of misfortune and calamity robbed
me of the leisure and opportunity to undertake the completion of such a work.
For each day some new disaster would emerge, and bring distraction to my heart
and confusion to my mind. It was as if that region were the homeland of
disaster, just as the Prophet, upon whom be peace, once said, pointing to the
east, “thence shall come disaster.”[18]
Yet we did not quietly accept those disasters; did not bow our heads
to heavenly decree and divine destiny; did not come forth with patience and
submission; did not offer thanks for religion and Islam; did not say,
"some evils are lesser than others.” Instead, we showed ingratitude for
the blessing of Islam until the ineluctable and awesome blows of "if ye
are thankless, My chastisement is surely terrible”[19]
descended on those lands and their people. Through the sinister effect .of the
licentiousness of the frivolous and the oppression of the tyrannical, and in accordance
with God’s custom—"and when We desire to destroy a city, We command its
men who live at ease and they commit wickedness therein; thus is Our word
proved true against them, and We destroy them utterly”[20]—ruination
was visited upon those lands and their inhabitants.
All the oppression that heaven works is, in short, Less than we
deserve, if the truth should be told.
Never did I show gratitude for His bounty, So inevitably He cast me
into trouble and toil.
It was in the year 617 (1220) that the godforsaken army of the
Tartar infidels, may God forsake and destroy them, conquered all those lands.
The confusion and ruin, the killing and seizure of captives, the destruction
and burning that were enacted by those accursed creatures had never before been
witnessed in any age, whether in the lands of the infidels or the realm of
Islam, nor had they ever been recorded in any book of history. They re-
semble only the catastrophes that shall ensue at the end of time,
foretold by the Prophet, upon whom be peace: "The hour shall not come
until you fight the Turks, a people with small eyes, red faces and slight, flat
noses, whose countenances are like the skin drawn tight over a shield.” This
saying of his is indeed a description of these accursed infidels. He then
added: ‘And anarchy shall be rampant.” When asked, "what shall that
anarchy be?” he replied, “killing, killing abundant.”[21]
In truth, this event is none other than that which the Messenger of God, upon
whom be peace, foresaw with the light of prophethood more than six hundred
years ago. Could killing be more extensive than this, that in the city and
province of Ray alone, where this feeble one was born and spent his youth, it
has been estimated that they killed and took captive about five hundred
thousand people?[22]
The calamity and disaster inflicted by those damned, accursed ones
on all of Islam and the Muslims are more than can be expressed in words; and
this event is, moreover, too famed throughout the world to need description.
But if, God forbid, feelings of honor and jealous concern for Islam do not
arise in the breasts of kings and sultans to whose care the protection of Islam
and the Muslims has been entrusted—“the prince is a shepherd for his subjects
and accountable for them”[23]—if
the magnanimity and manly courage of the faith do not lay hold of their souls
so that they join in union and gird on the belt of obedience to the command of
"go forth, light and heavy laden, and struggle in God’s way with your
possessions and your selves;”[24]
if they do not sacrifice their lives, their riches, and their king-
doms in order to repel this catastrophe—then one must fear that
Islam will be totally destroyed, and that it will be overthrown in those few
lands where it remains unvanquished.
O kings of the world, hasten forth
To save some remnant of the faith.
Islam is lost, and you are unaware;
Unbelief engulfs the earth, and you slumber on.
It is to be feared as a present danger that the name and trace of
Islam that still survive will also vanish, thanks to our ill- omened and useless
disputes, so that no sign of religion will remain, and it will withdraw behind
the veil of dignity. “Islam began as a stranger, and again shall become a
stranger as it began.”11 O God, awaken us from the sleep of the
neglectful; O God, take us not to task for our evil deeds; give no dominion
over us to those who are without compassion for us; "burden us not beyond
what we have the strength to bear; pardon us, forgive us, and have mercy upon
us; Thou art our Protector, so help us against the people of unbelief.”12
When the ferocious conquests of those accursed and godforsaken ones
began, this feeble one stayed patiently for almost a year in the lands of Iraq,
and in the hope that the morning of salvation might dawn after the somber night
of catastrophe and disaster and that the sun of good fortune might rise again,
endured all kinds of severe hardship and tribulation. For I was loath to
abandon my children and womenfolk, to part from my friends and dear ones and to
leave house and home behind; and neither was it possible to bring forth from
those lands all my dependents and following, nor did my heart permit me to expose
them to destruction and perdition. Finally, when the catastrophe passed all
bounds and the disaster exceeded all limits, when life itself was endangered
and the knife cut through to the bone, it became necessary to declare that
“necessity renders permissible the forbidden.” Obeying the command of “O ye who
believe, guard your own souls; he who is astray cannot
"A Tradition (Moslem, Termezi, Ebn Maja, Daremt, Ebn Hanbal).
l2The final phrases of this
supplication, included within quotation marks, are taken from Qur'an, 2:286.
harm you,, if ye are rightly guided,”131 was compelled to
abandon all of my kith and kin; profiting from the adage that “he who has saved
his head has truly profited,” and conforming to the principle that “flight from
the unendurable is a custom of the prophets,”14 I had to depart and
entrust my dear ones to calamity.15
When no disaster threatened, dearly did he cherish him;
But when he saw disaster coming, he left him to his fate. Know then
that in times of trouble
There is none who will stand by you, none!
One night in the year 618 (1221), this feeble one left his abode in
Hamadan with a group of cherished darvishes, and confronting extreme peril set
out on the road to Erbil. Soon the news caught up with us that the accursed
infidels—may God destroy and abase them!—had reached Hamadan and beleaguered
it. The people of the city strove to defend it as best they could, but when
their power to resist was exhausted, the infidels triumphed and captured the
city. They martyred many men, took captive numerous women and children, and
wrought utter destruction. Most of my kinsfolk who had been in the city of Ray
were martyred.
Hail rained down upon my garden;
Not a
leaf remained on the rosebush.
“To God we belong, and to Him we shall return.”16
Then we severed all hope of returning to our accustomed homeland and
dwelling, and saw religious and worldly interest alike to dictate that we
should settle in a land inhabited by the
■’Qur’an, 5:104.
’■Purportedly a Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadls-e Masnavi,
p. 191.
’’Daya’s self-concern, ill-concealed by his invocation of Qur’an and
Tradition, may have inspired these lines in the first chapter of Sa’di's Golestan:
See that one devoid of honor
Who will never see good fortune’s face.
For he chose ease for himself
And left wife and child in hardship.
(Golestan, ed. Mohammad Alt Forugi,
Tehran, 1316 S./l 937, p. 30).
’’Qur’an, 2:156.
People of the Sunna and the Community, and free of the blight of
heresy, deviation, and fanaticism;[25]
a land adorned with security and justice, where goods were cheap and the means
of livelihood abundant, and a pious, learned, just, equitable, and discerning
monarch ruled, who might appreciate the true value of men of religion and grant
the accomplished their due.
Whenever we inquired after such a place among the perspicacious and
experienced, who were well acquainted with the conditions of every land and
clime, they replied unanimously as follows:
"In our time, the region answering this description and the
land possessing this property is the country of Rum, for it is both adorned
with the persuasion of the People of the Sunna and the Community and
embellished with justice and equity, security and prosperity. Praise be to God,
the king of that realm is a perpetuator of the line of Saljuq, a living memory
of that blessed dynasty to the shadow of whose blessed baldachin the people of
Islam owe every instant of ease, peace, security and tranquillity they have
ever enjoyed. The virtuous and pious works performed in the auspicious age of
those God-fearing, religionnurturing kings—may God illumine the proofs of
their piety!— were never witnessed in any other age: raids and conquests in the
lands of unbelief; the capture of citadels and castles from the heretics;[26]
the building of colleges and hospices, mosques, small and great, and their
pulpits, bridges, caravanserais, hospitals, and other pious foundations; the
honoring and patronage of the scholars of religion; the cherishing and
veneration of ascetics and devout men; the care and compassion shown to all the
subjects of the king—these and other means of drawing nigh to the presence of
God. the Glorious had never before been seen. This truth is too well known and
celebrated to need prolonged
exposition, for throughout the lands of the Arabs and the Persians,
in Turkestan, Fargana, Transoxania, and Karazm, in Khorasan, Gur, Garjestan and
Gaznl, in India, Kabul and Zabol, in Sistan and Kerman, in Kuzestan and the two
Iraqs,[27]
in Diyarbekir, Armenia and Syria, on the North African coast[28]
and in Egypt, in Rum and elsewhere, the monuments of their virtue and
that of their vassals are manifest, and the tongues of the people of Islam
resound with pious prayer and joyous encomium for that blessed dynasty. May God
the Monarch Almighty make of their compassion, mercy, and tender care for their
subjects a means for their advancing to high degree in the hereafter and for
drawing nigh unto Him; and may He perpetuate the blessings of just rule and
the cultivation of religion in their blessed house until the end of the world,
by His grace and generosity.”
When matters became thus clear to my feeble self, I realized that the
means of obtaining tranquillity and peace and cultivating the life of the
heart, of disseminating learning and summoning men unto God, and of serving in
fit fashion men given to pious retreat, were to be found and had only in that
land, in the refuge provided by the rule of that blessed dynasty to pray for
whose welfare was a tradition I had inherited from my ancestors and
forefathers, and to whose bounteous generosity I and all the people of Islam
are indebted. Thus I considered it my duty to set out without delay for that
blessed land; to settle in the sanctuary of that realm—may it enjoy daily
increase and protection and immunity from the evil and cunning of the
unbelievers; and to busy myself with prayer for the welfare of that victorious
state— may God strengthen it! Auspicious fortune aided me, divine grace
befriended me, and limping and stumbling I managed to reach the frontier of
this blessed realm in the company of a few dear followers.
By happy chance we were met in the city of Malatya by a hundred
thousand species of auspicious favor and good fortune in the shape of the
arrival of the shaikh of shaikhs, the foremost scholar of the world, the pole
of the age, perpetuator of the line of shaikhs supreme, the shining meteor of
the community and the faith, ‘Omar al-Sohravardl, may God profit Islam and the
Muslims by granting him long life, and may his blessed breath and visage never
be far from us![29] We
counted this as great good fortune and wondrous favor, and considered it an
auspicious omen. When we were honored by being received into his presence,
that great one waxed eloquent in gratitude for the aid, assistance, and
generosity he had received from the monarch of Islam, the sultan of sultans,
may God perpetuate his rule and elevate his dignity and repute! In the presence
of both elect and commonalty, he described some part of the virtues and noble
features of that one of pure lineage and sanctified spirit.
In the midst of his discourse, he turned to this feeble one and
said:
Since you have been compelled to leave behind your accustomed
homeland and your well-loved dwelling place, and have been constrained to lose
both time and tranquillity—‘it may happen that ye will hate a thing which is
better f ory ou’[30]—settle
in this blessed realm; tarry in the sanctuary of this kingdom; and apply the
principle of ‘when you find pasture, alight.’ Although the world is not fitting
to be a place of habitation, and treacherous life is of short duration, yet
spend what remains of life in the refuge afforded by the auspiciousness of
this monarch, who is young in fortune yet mature in wisdom, this sultan who
nurtures religion as a true servant of God. ‘If your choice be correct, then
cleave to it.’ Although it is the custom of the Sufis to seek seclusion,
isolation, and solitude for the sake of God’s fear, to avoid the company of
kings and sultans and to abandon all
intercourse, nonetheless one may not shun completely this divinely
supported king who has both a full share of learning and a generous amount of
the fruits of ascetic combat, and who loves the possessors of learning and the
people of the heart. Nor may one deprive oneself and the people of the benefits
and advantages derived from attending on his presence.
He spoke for a while in this manner, and then sought in the Qur’an
for a sign confirming the rightness of his proposal. Then, with his blessed
hand, he penned a few words to the lieutenants of the king,23 and
turning to me, he said: ‘After drawing a sign from the Noble Qur’an and
consultation with God the Glorious, I see the matter to be as I said.”
This feeble one regarded the order of that great one as the order of
God, and I Was unable to disobey his command. Then, without delay, he stood up
like the rising sun and departed like the wind, while my wretched self, with an
eye full of tears and a heart full of fire, heavy laden like a cloud returning
from the ocean shore, set out for the royal presence of lofty elevation. Doubly
was I laden, with the pearls of wisdom I had gathered from that ocean, and with
the sorrow of separation. But the messenger of felicity gladdened me with the
tidings of a hundred thousand bounties, and the impending good fortune of
attaining the royal presence mended all hurt and damage.
A voice then addressed my inmost heart, reminding me that those who
enter the presence of kings and sultans must bear with them some gift
reflecting their own state, although falling short of the lofty disposition of
kings. Now I was indigent and without means, and that majesty was of truly
exalted rank. Hence I replied: It has been said that—
The
remedy for lovers is, I know, the forsaking of remedy, But still in my lack of
remedy I fret and tear out my soul.
However exalted is the monarch’s rank, it cannot exceed that of
25A1-Sohravardi’s letter of recommendation for Daya is referred to in
the Avamer al-'ald‘iya of Ebn BlbT.
Solomon, and however indigent I may be, I cannot be less than an
ant. Let me then prepare for that king of Solomonic degree a gift befitting an
ant, and offer excuse for my impotence with these two lines of verse:
O King! to carry a hundred souls into thy presence as gifts Would be
less even than taking caraway seeds to
Kerman.24
But thou knowest that it is the custom for ants To bear a locust’s
leg to Solomon’s court.25
Then, however much I longingly sought a gift, sallying repeatedly
forth into the battlefield of reflection, diving into the ocean of meditation,
and inspecting both worldly possessions and provisions for the afterlife, I
could find no clue of anything that might speak for me in that presence.
I inspected my establishment from end to end
And my foot did not stumble on so much as a potsherd.
When I had totally despaired, I addressed to all things the verse,
“they are enemies unto me; not so the Lord of the Worlds,”26 and in
my impotence and confusion, with humility and abasement, I turned to the
presence of Him Whose generosity is absolute and Who alone is deserving of
worship. I took the basket of supplication in the hand of high endeavor and
went forth to beg in accordance with daily habit. Forthwith His bounteous
majesty, in accordance with His generous custom— "call upon me, and I
shall answeryou”27—opened the gates of His treasury of liberality,
and showing me every kind of bounty proclaimed: "Take all thou desirest
of these guarded and hidden treasures, and grieve thy heart no more.” This
feeble one re-
“'“Taking caraway seeds to Kerman”: a proverb having the sense of
taking something as a gift to a place where it already abounds; cf. English
"coals to Newcastle.”
“The references to Solomon, the ant, and the locust’s leg have the
sense that Islam sees in Solomon a prophet-king whose rule extended over all
animate creation. On the occasion of a review of his subjects, when every order
of being offered some form of gift, the ant could find nothing to present to
Solomon except the leg of a locust that had been severed in the crush.
““Qur’an, 26:77.
“’Qur’an, 40:60.
plied: "O Lord! If I should take worldly bounties, it would be
to no purpose, for the monarch already possesses such riches in boundless
measure, and they are, moreover, of no consequence in the lofty view of that
auspicious one. If I should take with me deeds performed in obedience to
religion, again it would be to no end; for, God be praised, he has storehouse
upon storehouse filled with such deeds, and the ship of his lofty intent is
heavily laden with the cargo of worship and obedience. Should I take with me
various of the sciences, they too would be of.little benefit, for learning and
the learned are plentiful in his presence, and he possesses hundredweight upon
hundredweight, nay camel train upon camel train, of the different kinds of
knowledge.”
When God in His grace perceived the loftiness of my intent, He
caressed me with thousandfold generosity and liberality and said: "O Ayaz
to Our Mahmud!28 O devoted slave at the threshold of Our mastery! O
lover illumined by the light of Our beauty! ‘There are hidden gems of knowledge
unknown to all but those who know God; if they are spoken of, none denies them
except those arrogant toward God.’29 There are unpierced jewels in
Our treasury, never touched by the jeweler’s file and hidden in virginal state
behind the veil of the unseen—‘whom neither man nor jinn hath touched.’30
Take as gift a necklace of these precious jewels, a band of these virginal
lustrous-eyed houris, and present them to that servant whom We have chosen,
that monarch whom We have raised up; who in Our Potiphar-like presence is like
Joseph raised to honor from the well, and who shows the patience of Job in the
beneficial afflictions with which We try
Z8Ayaz: a trusted and devoted servant
of Sultan Mahmud of Gazna (d. 421/ 1030), celebrated for valor, intelligence,
and beauty? The relationship between Ayaz and his master was often celebrated
in Persian poetry (notably by §a'eb [d. 1087/1677] in his narrative poem Mahmud
o Ayaz), and became one of the stock archetypes of love. The sense here is
that Daya is a beloved slave of the divine majesty; mahmud, in addition
to being the name of Ayaz’s master, also has the sense of ‘‘deserving of
praise”; there is therefore a double entendre in the phrase hairat-e
mahmudt-ye ma.
!9A Tradition related on the authority
of Abu Horeyra by two early Sufis, al- SolamT (d. 421/1021) and al-KalabazT (d.
390-1000). See Siileyman Ates, Siilemi ve Tasamufi Tefsiri, Istanbul,
1969, p. 17.
’“Qur’an, 55:56.
him;31 the shadow of the name of Our essence,32
andthe manifestation of the meaning of Our attributes; succorer of Our saints
and vanquisher of Our enemies; the personification of loftiness in affairs both
religious and temporal;33 support of Islam and the Muslims; the
pride and perpetuator of the house of Saljuq, Abu’l-Fath Keyqobad b. Keykosrow
b. Qelej Arslan, may God exalt his rule, make prosper his worldly and religious
concerns, give victory to his armies and allies, and strengthen the proof and
evidence of his piety! For no other commodity is so eagerly sought in the
marketplace of conviction, and no other rare novelty fetches the same price in
the shop of innermost truth!”
This bounty and inspiration were bestowed upon me in the city of
Kayseri in the blessed month of Ramazan in the year 618 (1221), at the time
when the gates of divine compassion were flung open, the universal feast of
generosity lay ready, and the summons of “where are the needy and the
supplicant?”34 had been sounded. Seizing the advantage that the
season afforded, I entrusted the reins of my pen to the hand of direction from
the world of the unseen, so that whatever precious jewel arrived in the depths
of my heart as a gift from that world might be drawn by the tongue of the pen
on to the thread of expression, and placed on the tray of the written page.
Then I might take it as a gift to the royal presence, saying the while, “O
mighty prince, affliction has visited us and our people; we come with merchandise
of scant worth.”35
After renewed consultation of the Noble Qur’an and request-
5lThe implicit comparison of the
Saljuq ruler, Keyqobad, to Joseph and Job is a delicate and skillful reference
to the sufferings and misfortunes he endured at the hands of his brother,
Keyka’us. Upon the death of his father, Keykosrow, in 607/1210, Keyqobad was
imprisoned for a period of seven years, first in Malat- ya and then in Harput.
In 616/1219, Keyka’us died, and he was released and brought to Konya as
monarch. See ‘‘Keykubad I” by Osman Turan, Islam Ansiklopedisi, VI,
646-666.
“The name of God's Essence is Allah; and there is a Tradition that
"the sultan is the shadow of Allah upon earth.” The Tradition is recorded
by Ebn Kozeyma, Ebn No'eym and al-Deylaml, but regarded as weak by al-Beyhaql
in his So'ab al-iman.
’’This phrase is a rendering of Keyqobad’s title, Ala al-Donya
wa’l-dln.
“A Tradition, recorded with a slightly different wording by Moslem
and Ebn Hanbal.
“Qur’an, 12:88.
ing the aid of God Most Glorious, I adorned and embellished this
bride from the unseen with the auspicious titles of that religion-nurturing
monarch, that justice-dispensing sultan, whose baldachin is the sky, and whose
banner, the stars, the pride and perpetuator of the line of Saljuq, may God
multiply his glory and extend the shadow of his rule over east and west!
Abundant thanks to the Lord of the World
That I have entrusted a jewel to a knower of jewels. He will know,
looking upon it with the gaze of his soul,
The toil my soul endured, to nurture his soul.
Our hope of the uncaused grace and boundless generosity of God, the
Monarch Exalted and Almighty, is that He will guard and protect our speech and
our hand from error and fault, mistake and shortcoming; open to our heart and
our tongue the door to the hidden treasures of the unseen; permit us to reach
our aim by traveling the highway of following the Master of the First and the
Last;36 make our work a source of benefit in this world and
intercession in the hereafter for ourselves and our readers; and render it
acceptable to the hearts of men and pleasing to their gaze, if God the
Glorious so wills. He is sufficient unto us, and upon Him is our reliance. “O
Lord, make not our hearts to swerve after Thou hast guided us, and give us
mercy from Thy presence, for truly Thou art the giver.”37
56I.e., the Prophet. ’’Qur’an, 3:8.
Third Chapter:
Treating of the Manner and
Method in Which the Book is Written
God Almighty said: ‘‘He it is Who originates creation, and then
causes it to return.”1 The Prophet, upon whom be peace and
blessings, said: "People die in the state in which they lived, and shall
be resurrected in,the state in which they died.”
Know that according to this verse and this Tradition, three states
were established for man: the beginning of his creation, known as origin; the
period of his worldly existence, known as life; and the obligatory severance by
the spirit of its attachment to the body, or its voluntary separation from the
attributes of the body, and this state we call return. The book, then, is based
on these three: origin, life, and return, and God willing, a part containing
several chapters will be devoted to each, so that some account may be given of
the various states of man at each successive stage, within the confines of
this brief treatise. Thus, in the part treating of origin, the beginning of the
creation of spirits and bodily shapes, and of the realms of Kingship and
Dominion,2 will be described. In the part concerned with life, the
training of man, his traveling and wayfaring through the stages of the human
condition, the lights of spirituality, the transmuting of characteristics and
the transforming of attributes, his different states as he proceeds along his
journey, and the need for the means of spiritual training and progress—all
these matters will be set forth. In the part devoted to return, the return of
the souls of the felicitous and the wretched and the manner in which each group
is brought back shall be expounded, all this in accordance with the method of the
prophets and saints.
A section concerning the wayfaring of various classes of men will be
added, so that all may derive profit and benefit from the book. Another part
has been written by way of introduction, so that the book consists of five
parts and forty chapters, as listed and described above. In choosing the number
five, we wish to
'Qur’an, 30:27.
“Concerning Kingship and Dominion, see p. 70 no. 1.
partake of the blessedness and auspiciousness inherent in it, for it
is the number of the pillars on which Islam is based: "Islam is built on
five pillars: bearing witness that there is no god other than God and that
Mohammad is His Messenger; the regular performance of prayer; the payment of
the purifying due; the fast in the month of Ramazan; and pilgrimage to God’s
house for those possessing the means.” This is a sound Tradition, reported by
Abdollah the son of 'Omar, may God be pleased with both of them.3
The number forty was chosen for the chapters in order to partake of the
blessedness of the figure, which has a certain property with respect to the
training of man. Thus God said: ‘And We appointed with Moses thirty nights, and
We completed them with ten, so the appointed time of his Lord was forty
nights.”4 Similarly, the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said:
"Whoever worships God sincerely for forty days, the springs of wisdom
shall well up from his heart to his tongue.”5 At the beginning of
each chapter we have quoted a verse from the Qur’an and a Tradition of the
Prophet, suitable to its contents, in order to hold fast thereby to the Book
and the Sunna.
The description that we shall give of the origin and return of man,
of his excellencies and deficiencies in the course of his training and his
traveling through all states and stations, may serve as a touchstone against
which aspirants to the Path and the Truth, the wayfarers and gnostics, can
strike the coin of their state. If they find within themselves some sign and
indication of the stations we describe, they will be fortified and may hope
that their feet are planted on the highway of the Truth and that they are
progressing along the straight path. If, on the other hand, they find no such
indication, they will not be deceived by the wiles of Satan and the oglings of
the soul; they will expel all arrogant fancies from their minds, and set their
feet on the path of true search, refusing to be deceived by stale verbiage.
Chase out empty passion from thy head!
Lessen thy conceit, increase thy supplication!
’This important Tradition is found in Bokarl, Moslem, TennezI and
Nasa’I. ’Qur’an, 2:51.
5A Tradition recorded by Ebn No'eym,
and Sa’Id b. Mansur in his Sonan.
Love is thy master, and when thou reachest the goal, He, none other,
will silently direct thy deeds.[31]
This book has been named, in accordance with its contents and
purpose, THE PATH OF GOD’S BONDSMEN FROM ORIGIN TO RETURN, and is dedicated to
Sultan Keyqobad, may God appoint him as one of His elect servants, cause him to
tread the path of guidance, and destroy his enemies as He destroyed Samud and
'Ad.[32]
When the devoted morid, the enamored seeker, studies this
work with sincerity and care, not out of fancy and frivolity, and comprehends
the principles it contains, he will perceive who he is, whence, how, and for
what purpose he has come; whither and how he shall go; and what his goal and
destination are.
O soul! The heart of lovers everywhere is sorely troubled By this
stage which lies ahead for all.
The sword of fate has felled into the bowl of annihilation The heads
of countless wise and troubled souls.
It will become clear to him for what wise purpose the pure, exalted,
and luminous spirit has been shrouded in its lowly, tenebrous frame of clay; to
what end the spirit is then separated and severed from the frame; why the
outward form decays; and for what reason the bodily frame is restored at
resurrection to serve as garment for the spirit. Then he will leave the
category of "they are like cattle; nay, more misguided”;[33]
attain a truly human degree; and be delivered from the veil of forgetfulness
described in the verse, "They know but the outer part of the present life,
and of the hereafter they are heedless.”[34]
With joyous yearning he will set his foot on the path of wayfaring, so that all
his gaze perceives his foot will pursue, for the fruit of gazing is faith, and
that of pursuing is gnosis.
i uc iviunriei aria,
iviuuiuu, tree duuk. is vv
until
Philosophers, atheists, and materialists are deprived of both these
stations, and hence wander in bewilderment. One of these pretended men of
learning, who is known and celebrated among them for scholarship, wisdom and
perspicuity, by name 'Omar Kayyam, in the extremity of his confusion while
wandering in the wilderness of misguidance, finds himself constrained to say in
one of his quatrains, thus confessing to his blindness:
In this circle of our coming and going Neither beginning nor end is
visible.
None in the whole world can tell us truly Whence is our coming and
whither our going.
And again:
Why did the Maker adorn the forms of creation
And then cast them down to decay and decrease?
Should the forms be ugly, whose fault is it?
And if pleasing they be, why cause their ruin?10
That blind wanderer—"it is not their sight that is blind, rather
the hearts within their breast”11—is unaware that God Almighty has
servants who through following the Master of the First and the Last have
traversed the entirety of creation. They have passed beyond "the distance
of two bowstrings,” and arriving at
'“This attack on Kayyam (d. 562/1131), author of the excessively
renowned quatrains, repeated later in the work, is of interest as one of the
earliest indications that Kayyam, the mathematician and philosopher, was also
a poet (see Mohammad 'All Forugi’s preface to his edition of the Roba'iyat
[Tehran, 1321 S./1943], p. 16); and also as a decisive refutation of claims,
ancient and modern, that Kayyam was in reality a Sufi. The great Sufi poet
Attar (d.c. 617/1220) denounced Kayyam, in terms very similar to those used by
Daya, in his Elahlnama (ed. Hellmut Ritter, Istanbul, 1940, p. 272). In
his study of Kayyam entitled Dami ba kayyam (Tehran, 1345 S./1966), the
modern writer 'All Dasti takes note of Daya’s hostility to his hero, and in
order to exact a kind of posthumous and imaginary vengeance mocks Merfad
al-'ebad as “a dark forest of hearsay, fable, and fantasy,” and stages a
fictitious debate before Keyqobad in which Daya is decisively worsted (Dami
ba Kayyam, pp. 265-286; English translation by L. P. Elwell-Sutton, In
Search of Omar Khayyam, London, 1971, pp. 216- 225).
the station of "or closer” have lost their beings.12
They have anointed the eye of vision with the collyrium of “his gaze swerved
not nor strayed;”13 and studying the verse "He beheld the
supreme signs of his Lord,”14 they partook of the manifold light of
“God guides to His light whomsoever He wills.”15 Then, in that
light, from the station of “he sees by Me,” 16 they witnessed the
beginning of the world of Command, whence the spirits proceed, and saw how
each object emerges from the obscurity of nonbeing onto the plain of being, and
ever shall emerge until the end of the world. They comprehended the mystery
inherent in the being of each, and looking out from the window of pre-eternity
onto post-eternity, they perceived the end and destination of each class of
being, and like a compass traced out the circle of preeternity and
post-eternity. Repeatedly they passed from being to nonbeing, and from nonbeing
back to being; first they were nonexistent beings, and then existent nonbeings;
and at times neither existent nor nonexistent. Behind this veil many mysteries
are concealed, perceptible only to those free of attachment, for such matters
are not within the reach of every passion- polluted intellect. Most men think
them mere absurdities, while each is one of the hidden mysteries of the world
of the unseen, and only the gaze of the people of that world may alight upon
them. As the proverb has it, "The language of the dumb is known only to
their mothers.”
When I joined in unison with the sorrow of thy love,
A hundred times or more to non being I repaired.
l2“The distance of two bowstrings or
closer” (Qur’an, 53:9): the distance of the Prophet from the divine presence at
the end of the Me'raj, the ascension from Jerusalem to heaven that took place
shortly before the Hejra. The expression has been taken by Sufis to mean the
utmost proximity to God, with opposite attributes meeting in obedience to
divine command (Sajjadl, Farhang-e mostala- hdt-e 'orafa va motasawefa,
p. 311). The Me'raj was also taken by the Sufis as a model for the spiritual
journey; the earliest example is furnished by Bayazld Bastaml (d. 261/875); see
his Me'rdjndma in Farid al-DIn ‘Attar, Tazkerat al-owliya, ed.
Mirza Mohammad Kan Qazvlnl, Tehran, 1346 S./1967, I, 160-164.
•’Qur'an, 53:17.
HQur'an, 53:18.
•’Qur’an, 24:35.
•’Part of a long hadis qodsi: “My servant continually draws
nigh unto Me through supererogatory works until I love him. And when I love
him, I am to him an ear, an eye and a hand. He hears by Me, sees by Me and
strikes by Me.” See Forurzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, pp. 18-19.
Then far beyond nonbeing I passed and traveled on.
A mystery I already was; now I am mystery consummate.17
Where are these lost and sightless ones? If there were left in them
any desire to search for vision, the scales of egoism could soon be lifted from
their truth-perceiving sight, with dominical18 aid and the
instrumentality of the Path, and on condition of submission. Then they would
be delivered from the blindness described in the verse “Deaf, dumb, and blind,
and they understand not,”19 and instead constantly proclaim: “Were
the veil to be lifted, my certainty would not increase.”20
It was my aim that both elect and commonalty should be seated at the
beneficial banquet of this book, and that none of the differing groups and
classes of men should be without a share in the station of those drawn nigh
unto God, or fail to taste the libations of His saints. All should attain this
good fortune without abandoning their crafts and trades, their normal garb and
clothing, thus causing affairs to be neglected and the essential needs of men
to remain unfulfilled. In the fifth part of the book, the wayfaring of each
class will therefore be described, for there is no group whose craft and trade
cannot lead to either paradise or hell, or to the presence of God. All three
paths lie open at the foot of everyone. The straight path is that road which
leads to God; the road to paradise is on its right, and that to hell on its
left. God said: "Ye shall be three bands: Companions of the Right—what
are the Companions of the Right? Companions of the Left—what are the Companions
of the Left? and the Foremost: the Foremost, those are they brought nigh unto
God.”21
I7A quatrain by Daya. The last line
contains a pun: razi, here translated as "a mystery,” might also be
the adjective of place, Razi, thus constituting a signature to the poem.
'“Dominical: this word and the corresponding substantive
"dominicality” will be used throughout the book to render rabbarii
and robubiyat respectively. The adjective rabbani refers to the
divine attribute rabb ("Lord”), signifying the Creator as the
solicitous and watchful sustainer of all being. Robubiyat is the
abstract noun designating that quality.
19Qur’an, 2:171.
20A saying variously attributed to AU
b. Abu Taleb and 'Amer b. Abd al-Qeys Tamlml, an early ascetic. See Badl'
al-Zaman Foruzanfar’s notes to his edition of Jalal al-DIn Rumi’s Fihe ma
fih (Tehran, 1330 S./1952), p 272.
21Qur’an, 66:7-9.
The shaikhs have said that “the paths to God are as numerous as the
breaths of men.” By breaths are intended the livelihoods, crafts, and trades of
men, in the exercise of which they breathe. These paths may be compared to the
roads that lead to the Ka'ba. From every place, point, and direction where men
live throughout the world, a road goes forth toward the Ka'ba: ‘And from
whatsoever place thou goest forth, set thy face toward the Sacred Mosque.”22
To depart and go forth is the first major condition for performing the hajj.
Once it is fulfilled, one must set one’s face to the Ka'ba, for although prayer
may be valid if the direction of the Ka'ba cannot be established, hajj cannot
be. The third condition is to traverse the distance separating oneself from the
Ka'ba. When these three conditions have been fulfilled, it is possible to
perform the hajj.
Similarly, each class in its trade and craft must first depart from
the pleasures of the soul and all selfish interest. It must turn fully toward
God in all things, and regard it as a duty to traverse the distance that being
constitutes. Only thus may it hope to reach the Ka'ba of attainment:
“Wheresoever ye turn, there is the face of God.”23
Keep not the company of thyself, thy companion is a brigand;
Cut loose from self, for in selfhood lies calamity.
Thou didst ask: “What is the distance from me to him?” O friend, thy
self is the measure of that distance.
A description of the proper conduct of each class of men shall be
set forth concisely at a suitable point, God willing. Obscure expressions,
unfamiliar words, and phrases caused artificially to rhyme will be avoided, so
that both neophyte and adept may profit from the work, and both elect and
commonalty be satisfied. This, in accordance with the prayer, "O Lord,
expand for me my breast; ease my task for me; unloose the knot upon my tongue
that they may understand my words.”24
And peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
2!Qur’an, 2:149-150.
’’Qur’an, 2:115.
’’Qur’an, 20:25.
Concerning
the Origin of Existent Beings, and Containing Five Chapters, in accordance
with the Blessed Fivefold Nature of the Daily Prayer
First Chapter:
Expounding the
Creation of Spirits and the Degrees of Knowledge Thereof
God Almighty said: "Indeed We created man in the fairest of
shapes, then caused him to descend to the lowest of the low.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: "God
created spirits four thousand years before He created bodies”— or, according to
another version, "two thousand years.” This Tradition explains the verse
just quoted in the sense that God first created human spirits and then
corporeal frames and fleshly bodies.2
Know that the origin of all creation and all beings consists of the
spirits of men, and the origin of the spirits of men is the pure Mohammadan
Spirit, may peace and blessings be upon its possessor.3 Thus the
Prophet said: "The first that God Almighty created was my spirit”—or,
according to another version, "my light.”4 Since the Prophet,
peace be upon him, was the choice essence of all beings and the fruit of the
tree of creation—"were it not for thee, I would not have created the
heavens”5—he was also of necessity the origin of all beings. For
creation is like a tree, and the Prophet is the fruit of that tree, and the
tree originates in truth from the seed contained within its fruit.
Thus, when God wished to create existent beings, He first
'Qur’an, 95:4-5.
2Ajsam va ajsad: the first word denotes bodies with respect to volume and dimension,
and the second bodies with respect to fleshly composition.
’The Mohammadan Spirit (also known as the Supreme Spirit) is
authoritatively defined by Sarif JorjanI (d. 816/1413) as follows: “The human
spirit as a locus for manifestation of the divine essence with respect to its
dominicality; none may wander near it, nor tarry. God alone knows its true
ground. It is the First Intellect, the Mohammadan Reality, the Unitary Soul,
the Reality of the Names. It is the first existent created by God in His form;
it is the supreme viceregent, and the very substance of light” (Ketab
al-ta'rifat, Beirut, 1969, p. 118).
'Tradition reported on the authority of Hasan b. All; see
Foruzanfar, Aliadis-e Masnavi, pp. 113-114.
5A hadis qodsl; see Foruzanfar,
Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 172.
brought forth the light of the Mohammadan Spirit from the effulgence
of the light of the unity of His essence, in reference to which the Prophet
said: “I am of God, and the believers are of me.” According to certain
traditions God Almighty looked upon the Mohammadan Light with the gaze of love,
so that shame overcame it, and drops of sweat appeared from which He aeated the
spirits of the prophets, upon whom be peace and blessings. Then, from the light
of the spirits of the prophets, He created the spirits of the saints; from the
light of the spirits of the saints, the spirits of the believers; from the
spirits of the believers, those of the sinners; from those of the sinners,
those of the hypocrites and the unbelievers. Then, from the light of the
spirits of men, He created the spirits of the angels; from the spirits of the
angels, those of the jinn; from those of the jinn, those of the devils,
rebellious spirits,6 and demons,7 in accordance with the
different degree and state of each. From the residue of their spirits He then
created those of the different animals. Next, He brought into being the world
of Dominion and all that pertains to it: animal souls, the vegetable and
mineral realms, and compound and simple elements, as shall be set forth in the
second and third chapters, God willing.
These degrees and stages of creation may be compared to the process
whereby a sugar merchant extracts raw white sugar from the cane; boils it a
first time and obtains white sugar candy; a second time, and obtains white
sugar; a third time, and obtains brown sugar;8 a fourth time, and
obtains caramel; a fifth time, and obtains black cube sugar;9 and
finally a sixth time, after which only dregs will remain, exceedingly dark and
black, these being known as treacle.
From the first stage of raw sugar to that of treacle, lucency and
whiteness gradually decrease until only darkness and blackness remain. He who
is unaware of the art of the sugar merchant will not know that he obtains these
several and different prod-
‘Rebellious spirits (marada): plural of mared (cf. Qur’an,
37:7) or marid (cf. Qur’an 22:3, 4:117). The rebelliousness of this
class of evil spirit is said to consist of its desire to leam surreptitiously
the designs of God.
’Demons (abalesa): plural of Eblls, the proper name of the
devil. ’Literally, "red sugar” (sekar-e sork).
9Sekar-qavdleb-e siyah.
ucts from the same sugar; he will deny the fact and say that black
treacle could never have emerged from the white, translucent sugar. He will not
know that blackness and darkness were inherent in the particles of the sugar.
My friend and I both drank of the same wine;
His cheek turned red, mine turned yellow.
It is in truth necessary for the raw white sugar to contain darkness
and blackness within the particles of its being, so that even in its original
state it may have, by virtue of those attributes, some share of the properties
that are inherent in darkness and blackness, a share proportionate to its
needs. When it reaches the state of sugar candy, the sugar candy is thereby
enabled to obtain its share; so too the white sugar, and all succeeding states
and stages. Each takes a share of the whiteness and lightness, the darkness and
blackness, inherent in the particles of the raw white sugar, one proportionate
to its capacity, and leaves the rest. Finally, in the treacle, only a small
amount of whiteness and lightness remains, and all else is darkness and
blackness, just as in white sugar candy there had been only a small amount of
darkness and blackness, and all else was whiteness and lucency. In the same way
that the visual sense cannot perceive darkness and blackness in the sugar candy
even though they are present, so too it cannot perceive whiteness and lucency
in the treacle, even though they are present.
This difference of degree in light and darkness, whiteness and
blackness, in each of these types of sugar is necessary, for each type
possesses a certain perfection on its own plane, and there is inherent in each
a certain property deriving from the difference of degree and not found in the
other types. Where one in particular is to be employed, another may not be
used. Thus, when sugar candy is thought to be useful, the physician will not
prescribe white sugar; nor will he prescribe sugar candy when white sugar is
called for. None may take the place of another, and it is therefore clear that
each on its own plane has a perfection lacking in all others. Thus God says:
“He Who has made good all that He created.”10
'"Qur'an, 32:7.
Know that in this similitude the raw sugar represents the pure
Mohammadan Spirit, which is in truth the Adam of Spirits; in the same way that
Adam, upon whom be peace, is the father of man, so too the Prophet Mohammad is
the father of spirits. This is the meaning of his saying: "We are the
first and the last.”11 That is, "although our form was the last
in that it followed on other forms, our spirit was first because it preceded
all other spirits.” The spirits of the prophets, upon whom be peace and
blessings, emerged from the Mohammadan Spirit, like the sugar candy from raw
sugar. The spirits of the saints were then extracted from those of the
prophets, like white sugar from sugar candy; those of the believers from those
of the saints, like brown sugar from white sugar; those of the sinners from
those of the believers, like caramel from brown sugar; and those of the unbelievers
from those of the sinners, like black cube sugar from caramel. In the same way
the spirits of angels, jinns, and demons were then extracted until there
remained only a residue corresponding to treacle. From that which was subtle
and clear in this residue the animal and vegetable spirits were fashioned, and
from that which was dense and dark the compound and simple elements were
formed.
There occurs to us now an extremely subtle truth deriving from the
unseen world, which probably none has hitherto expressed, namely, that the
darkness and blackness inherent in the raw sugar serve as vehicles,
respectively, for heat and density. Therefore wherever darkness and blackness
are found in greater quantity, in the different kinds of sugar candy, white
sugar, caramel, black cube sugar, and treacle, there too heat and density will
be greater. Thus white sugar is one degree hotter and denser than sugar candy,
and similar differences separate the rest from one another.
Now heat is an attribute of fire, and fire is the substance of love;
density is an attribute of earth, and earth is the substance of lowliness and
abasement. Rebellious pride and striving for loftiness and elevation are the
properties of fire. Hence Satan rebelled in pride and said: "I am better
than him.”12 For he indeed
1'Tradition recorded by Bokari,
Moslem, Nasa’i, and Daremi.
12Qur’an, 7:12. The words of protest
uttered by Satan when commanded to prostrate himself before Adam.
was of fire, while the properties of earth are vileness and abjection.
Hence the animals whose origin is earth are of abject disposition and lowly
aspiration, seeking out only perishable and earthly sustenance. All
oppressiveness (zolm) arises from the attributes of fire, and all
ignorance (jahl) arises from the attributes of earth. When both reach
their limit, there come into being extreme oppressiveness (zalumi) and
extreme ignorance (jahuli), these words being emphatic in form.13
These two attributes of darkness and blackness, even though inherent
in the raw sugar, were not evident in it, nor in the sugar candy and the white
sugar; they became fully manifest only in the treacle, a residue remaining from
the sugar, in which there was but little lucency and whiteness. Conversely,
lucency and whiteness were evident in their plenitude in the sugar candy, in
which there was but little darkness and blackness.
Similarly, heat, the substance of love, was present in small
quantity in the sugar candy of luminous spirits, and likewise density, the
leavening for humility and servitude. But since these two attributes had not
attained perfection in luminous spirits, they were unable to carry the burden
of the Trust of Knowledge. Conversely, in the treacle represented by the water
and clay of animal form, clarity, luminosity, and spirituality were present in
small quantity, but since they had not attained perfection, the animals too
were incapable of bearing the burden of the Trust of Knowledge.
Therefore a combination was needed of the two worlds, spiritual and
corporeal, a combination that should possess in perfect degree the means of
love and servitude and of knowledge and cognition. It would thereby be enabled
manfully and ardently to bear the burden of the Trust on the shoulders of its
soul. This bearing of the burden is none other than the twofold fealty of man14
mentioned by God Almighty: “We offered the Trust to the heavens, and the earth,
and the mountains; but they
l,Zalumi
and jahull: each word is fonned of an Arabic particle on the emphatic
paradigm of fa'iil and the Persian abstract noun ending -I. Zaliim
and jahul are drawn from Qur’an, 33:72, where they refer to the
qualities of man that have caused him to accept the burden of the Trust.
■Twofold fealty (velayat-e dorang): that is, a fealty to be
exercised in both the material and spiritual domains.
refused to bear it, being afraid thereof, and man accepted to bear
it—he is indeed extremely oppressive and ignorant.”15 Extreme
oppressiveness and ignorance are necessary attributes of the human state, since
the burden of the Trust cannot be borne except with the strength of extreme
oppressiveness and ignorance, even though it may be perceived with spiritual
light and clarity alone.16 The angels saw the Trust with their
spiritual light and clarity, but being without the strength of corporeal attributes,
they were unable to lift up its burden. The animals had the strength and
capacity of corporeal attributes, but being without the spiritual light and
clarity needed to perceive the honor of bearing the burden, they did not accept
it. Since man was the combination of the two worlds, spiritual and corporeal,
he was ennobled with the task of bearing the burden. This is the inner meaning
of God’s saying: “Truly We have ennobled the sons of Adam.”17
As for the knowledge of the essence of the spirit, earlier writers
have accomplished little more than a preliminary description. Nonetheless, let
some account be offered here. Again a comparison with sugar is appropriate:
Know that just as there are seven attributes inherent in sugar—whiteness,
blackness, lucency, darkness, subtlety, density, and sweetness—so too there are
seven attributes inherent in the spirit, which is a subtle essence proceeding
from God’s dominicality and peculiarly honored by the possessive adjective
“My” in the Qur’anic phrase "of My spirit.”18 These attributes
of the spiritare luminosity, love, knowledge, forbearance, familiarity,19
permanence,20 and life.
“Qur’an, 33:72.
^Zalumi (extreme oppressiveness) is
derived from the triliteral root ZLM which has the sense of darkness as
well as that of sin, transgression, and cruelty. This sense is contained within
zalumi, man being dark in that he is fashioned of clay, and his darkness
being providentially necessary for his bearing the burden of the Trust.
’’Qur’an, 17:70.
“Qur’an, 15:29. The verse reads in full: “When I have shaped him
[Adam] and breathed in him of my spirit, fall ye down in prosttation,” this
command being addressed to the angels. Man is “peculiarly honored” in that it
was only he who was thus directly created and given the breath of life by God. See
below, p. 110.
“Familiarity (ons): primordial familiarity with the Creator.
The word ensan (man as theomorphic being) is sometimes related
etymologically to the root of ons. See below, p. 124.
’•Permanence (baqa): permanence or “abiding” in God after the
effacement of separative consciousness.
Further attributes arise from each of these: hearing, vision, and
speech from luminosity; yearning, seeking, and sincerity21 from
love; will and cognition from knowledge; dignity, modesty, endurance, and
tranquillity from forbearance; pity and compassion from familiarity;
steadfastness and persistence from permanence; and intelligence,
understanding, and other modes of perception from life. Other attributes are
also derived from them, both before and after the attachment of the spirit to
the bodily frame, a description of all of which would result in prolixity.
All originate in the seven principal attributes of the spirit, each
of which corresponds to one of the attributes of sugar. Thus, luminosity
corresponds to whiteness and love to blackness, as has already been explained;
knowledge to lucency; forbearance to darkness; familiarity to subtlety;
permanence to density; and life to sweetness. The attribute corresponding to
that the trace of which is least evident in the sugar will also be least evident
in the spirit.
Thus, if it is desired that such an attribute reach the fullness of
manifestation, one must take it, as it were, to a mine22 where it is
present in perfection. For example, if one wishes the attribute of blackness,
which is slight in sugar candy, to attain perfection, the sugar candy must be
mixed with treacle, which may be considered as a mine of blackness. Then the
sugar candy too will become black to the same degree as the treacle. Similarly,
when it was desired to perfect the attribute of love in the spirit, which
corresponds to blackness in the sugar candy, the spirit was attached to the
bodily frame, which is a mine of blackness, so that the quality of love might
there be nurtured to perfection. This is one of the mysteries of the attachment
of the spirit to the bodily frame. Since the angels lacked this attachment to
the corporeal and tenebral frame, their seed of love was never nurtured to
perfection, that it might bear the fruit of “He shall love them and they shall
love Him.”23
21Sincerity (fedq): the
congruence of outward action with inward state (Jor- janl, Ketab
al-ta'rifat, p. 137).
22“Mine” appears to mean here the
unalloyed source of an attribute, where nothing other than itself is visibly
present.
23Qur’an, 5:57.
It is possible that someone might now pose the following question:
“You have said that blackness, darkness, and density were inherent in the sugar
that is the light of the spirit of Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings.
You have also explained that the spirits of men need these attributes so that
each may serve in its proper place as a means for the knowledge of God.
Furthermore, you have said that the Mohammadan Spirit emerged from the
effulgence of the light of the unity of the Essence. Can it then be said that
these attributes are inherent in the light of the unity? If you reply
affirmatively, then it is established that need exists within the unity. If
your reply is negative, then whence came to the pure Mohammadan Spirit that
which was not present in the light of the unity?”
The answer is threefold. First, although the sugar of the pure
Mohammadan Spirit emerged from the sugarcane of the effulgence of the light of
the unity, it nonetheless bore the imprint of createdness, which is an
attribute absent from the light of the unity. All that is created is without
exception subject to the darkness of the created state, for light as such is an
attribute exclusively of divinity—“God is the light of the heavens and the earth”24—while
darkness as such is an attribute exclusively of the created state. Thus the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “God fashioned creation in its darkness.”25
It is therefore fitting that blackness, darkness, and density should be among
the attributes of the created state and the properties of createdness.
Second, the Essence in Its unity, may It be glorified and exalted,
possesses the attributes of favor and wrath, and it may be said that all the
luminosity and clarity present in spirits derives from the effulgence of the
attribute of favor, and all blackness and darkness from the effulgence of the
attribute of wrath.
Third, we compared darkness in the sugar with the attribute of the
fire of love in the spirit, and there can be no doubt that the seed of love was
sown in the disposition of the spirit before all other attributes.
“Qur’an, 24:35.
“First part of a tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal, BeyhaqI,
andTabaranl. Itis cited in its entirety on p. 326.
We imbibed the wine of love for Thee, together with milk; We were
reared on love for Thee in infancy.
Nay, ’tis falsely I speak; how might it be thus?
For we were nurtured together with love for Thee in pre-eternity.
It is certain that love is the foremost among all the attributes of
the spirit, since the love it possesses is derived from the honor of “He shall
love them.”26 If “He shall love them” did not precede “they shall
love Him, ”27 none would have the temerity to boast of love. The
rope of love was unwound by the expansion28 of “He shall love them.”
Thou has made me daring with Thy lip.
For else, how might my wretched self be meet for Thee?
“He shall love them” is thus an attribute of uncreatedness, and
“they shall love Him” likewise savors of the uncreated state. What other
attribute of the spirit could then vie with love, for it alone is linked to
uncreatedness?
In this there are many mysteries which books are incapable of
expounding: ‘And the harvests that ye reap, ye shall leave them in the ear,
except a little, whereof ye shall eat.”29 All the exalted host of
cherubim and spirit beings could not. speak of love, for they were unable to
bear its burden. Love and suffering were born in the same household, while love
and joy are strangers to each other.
Shaikh Abdollah Ansari,30 may God’s mercy be upon him,
“Qur’an, 5:57.
’’That is, both in the order of things and in the Qur’anic verse to
which reference is made.
“Expansion (enbesdt or bast): God’s manifestation of
Himself through the workings of His attributes, as contrasted with contraction (enqebdi
or qabi), the nonmanifest state of the essence in its immutable
transcendence.
“Qur'an, 12:47. Words spoken by Joseph in interpreting the dreams of
the king of Egypt.
’’Shaikh Abdollah Ansari (d. 481/1088), an early and renowned writer
on Sufism in both Arabic and Persian, whose shrine at Gazorgah outside Herat is
still a place of visitation. Particularly celebrated are his Mandzel
al-sd'erln, a depiction of the stages on the Path, and his Mondjat,
supplications composed in a mixture of rhymed prose and verse. The passage
quoted here appears to have been taken from Ansari’s Eldhlndma, although
its wording diverges somewhat from that of the original (see Rasd’el-e ^dja
'Abdollah Ansari, ed. Vahid Dast- gerdl, 3rd ed., Tehran 1349 S./1970, p.
171).
said: “Love knocked at the door, and suffering answered: ‘I am a
slave to him who scorned his own being.’ ” Wretched is the son of Adam who, in
his extreme oppressiveness and ignorance, took upon himself the burden that the
inhabitants of both worlds shunned, and thus elected suffering eternal and
forfeited the joy of this world and the next! My feeble self has composed these
verses:
Love it is that steals youth’s pleasure;
Love too that steals eternal joy.
Though love for the heart is the Water of Life, From the heart it
steals the Water of Life!
Second Chapter:
Describing the
World of Dominion/MalakuP and the Degrees of All That It Contains
God Almighty said: “So glory be to Him, in Whose hand is the
Dominion/maiaAuZ of all things, and unto Whom ye shall be returned.’’2
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “The first that God created
was the intelligence.”
Know that as the origin of the world of spirits was the pure
Mohammadan Spirit, as explained in the previous chapter, so too the origin of
the world of Dominion was the Universal Intelli-
'The world of Dominion ('alam-e malakut) (cf. Qur’an, 6:75,
7:175, 23:88, 36:83): one of the multiple realms of creation, generally coupled
in a contrasting pair with 'alam-e molk (numerous Qur’anic references,
but see especially 57:2, 67:1, 85:9, 43:85, 45:27), the world of Kingship, that
is, the material or phenomenal world. Malakut is sometimes translated
as the “angelic realm," but this is misleading, since the derivation of malakut,
like that of molk, is from malek, “king," not from malak,
“angel." Moreover, while the angelic beings belong to malaktlt, it
is a realm which also embraces the immutable spiritual verities (haqa’eq)
and the heavenly entities (the Pen, the Preserved Tablet, the Balance, and the
Throne). Malakut is frequently identified with 'Siam al-geyb, the
hidden or suprasensible world (as contrasted with 'alam as-sehSda, the
manifest or sensible world); with 'Siam al-amr, the world of Command,
that is, supraformal manifestation (see n. 7 below); and with 'Siam
al-mesSl, the world of archetypal images. It may then be said to contain
within itself all these significances. See the extract from Daya’s commentary
on Qur’an, 6:75, quoted by Esma'Il Haqql (d. 1137/1725) in his Ruh al-bayan
(new ed., Istanbul, 1389/ 1970), III, p. 56; and SajjadT, Farhang-e
moslalahSt-e 'orafS va motasavuefa, p. 387.
A great contemporary of Daya who may have exercised some influence
upon him, Shaikh Molly' al-DTn b. Arabi (d. 638/1240), established a schema of
Five Divine Presences (al-haiarSt al-elSheyat al-kams), in which malakut
occupies the fourth rank, coming immediately before nSsut, the
corporeal world of formal manifestation. See A. E. Affifi, The Mystical
Philosophy of Muhyid Din Ibnul Arabi (Lahore, 1964), pp. 13ff.
In the present work, Daya uses the word malakut in a dual
sense: to indicate the inward aspect of created beings, the souls by means of
which they subsist, and also to designate the realm of suprasensible being that
contains all those inward aspects. Both senses can indeed be deduced from the
Qur’anic occurrences of the word. Since it is impossible to render both senses
with a single English equivalent, the word will be retained in the original
for the first sense, and translated as "Dominion" for the second.
gence. Dominion is the inward aspect of the world,3 while
its outward aspect is Kingship. In truth the malakut, or inner aspect,
of everything is its soul, that whereby it subsists, and all souls in turn
subsist by virtue of the divine attribute of sustaining and self-subsistent.4
Thus He says: “in Whose hand is the Dominiori/ malakut of all things.”
Nothing subsists of and by itself except the pure Essence of God, may His glory
be exalted. The malakilt of everything is in conformity with its nature,
as He has said: “Have they not looked upon the Dominion/malakut of the
heavens and the earth?”5 The malakut of the heavens is suited
to the heavens, and that of the earth, to it.
Although the inward aspects of things that make up the world of
Dominion are of many kinds, they all belong to two categories. One pertains to
the world of the spirits, both the higher spirits such as those of men and
angels, and the lower spirits such as those of the jinn, demons, and animals,
and the vegetable spirit. The origin and source of this category is the Moham-
madan Spirit—may peace and blessings be upon its possessor— as was previously
explained.
The other category pertains to the world of the souls,6
and it too embraces both higher and lower. The higher includes the heavenly
souls, such as those of the stars, spheres, and divisions of the zodiac, while
the lower comprises the souls of terrestrial bodies. These latter consist, in turn,
of simple and compound bodies. Simple bodies are the four elements, the natures
and properties of which constitute their malakut. Thus the nature of
water is wetness and coldness, and its property is the quenching of thirst; the
nature of fire is dryness and heat, and its property burning; the nature of
earth is dryness and coldness, and its property the causation of growth; and
the nature of wind is wetness and heat, and its property the bestowal of ease.
’Jahan: the world in the sense of the
planet earth, as opposed to 'Slam, meaning world in the sense of
sphere, plane, or realm of being.
’Qayyumi: a noun formation from qayyum
(see Qur'an, 2:255, 3:2, 20:111). This attribute is always coupled with that of
hayy, "living"; the two are sometimes thought to form a
single attribute. See al-Gazall, al-maqfad al-asna, ed. F. A. Shehadi
(Beirut, 1971), pp. 142-143.
5Qur’an, 7:184.
6"Souls” (nofus)
designates in this context the inner natures of sentient beings, that by means
of which they subsist.
Compound bodies are of two kinds, solids and plants. The malakut
of solids, such as stones, also consists of their natures and properties. The malakut
of plants, however, is constituted by the vegetable soul as well as by their
natures and properties. The origin of this category is the world of the
intelligence. If the various kinds of malakut, both spirit and soul, are
found united in the vegetable realm, it is because the malakut of plants
is called both the vegetable spirit and the vegetable soul. The vegetable
realm is intermediate between the animal and the mineral realms. It contains
growth, an animal property found in beings endowed with spirit and not in
minerals, and its malakut is therefore called the vegetable spirit. At
the same time, the vegetable realm partakes of the properties of the mineral in
that it lacks sense perception. It is therefore reckoned among the beings
endowed with soul, and its malakut is thus also called the vegetable
soul.
In every type of malakut, spirit or soul, higher or lower, an
attribute of other species of malakut is to be found. Thus attributes
of the malakut of the soul are to be found in that of the spirit, and
those of the malakut of the spirit in that of the soul. In each type,
however, the attributes of one malakut will predominate, and the type
will be known by virtue of these dominant attributes. A detailed description of
this would lead to prolixity.
Now all of creation is divided into two categories: Kingship and
Dominion, which are also called Creation and Command.7 God Almighty
has mentioned both together in this verse: “Surely your Lord is God, Who
created the heavens and the earth in six days—then rested upon the throne,8
covering the day with the night it pursues urgently—and the sun, and the moon,
and the stars, subjugated to His command. Verily His are the creation and the
command. Blessed be God, the Lord of the Worlds.”9
The world of Command consists of the antithesis of bodies, for it is
not subject to measurement, division, or decomposition.
’Creation (kalq) and command (amr): both these terms,
like molk and malakat to which they respectively correspond, are
of Qur’anic derivation.
’Concerning the meaning of the Throne, see n. 25 on p. 84.
’Qur'an, 7:54.
Further, it came into being directly upon the command of “be.”10
The world of Creation, by contrast, consists of bodies, subtle and
opaque, that are susceptible to measurement and decomposition. Although it too
was created by the command of “be,” its creation was through the employment of
means and extended over a period of days: “Who created the heavens and the
earth in six days.”
The world of Command includes both the malakut of spirits and
that of souls, for God said: “They will ask thee concerning the spirit; say,
‘the spirit is from my Lord’s command.’”11 He made mention too of
“the sun, and the moon, and the stars, subjugated to His command.” The human
spirit, however, has been uniquely honored through the possessive adjective in
the phrase “of My spirit.”12 Hence the nobility of man: “Truly we
have ennobled the sons of Adam, and carried them forth on dry land and sea.”13
You have doubtless heard the outer meaning of this verse, but listen now to its
inner meaning, for the Qur’an has an outer and an inner aspect: “The Qur’an has
an exterior and an interior.”14 God says in this verse:
We have lifted up the son of Adam, and carried
him by Our grace across dry land and sea. The dry land is the world of bodies,
or Kingship, and the sea is the world of Dominion. Land and sea cannot lift up
man, for he bears the burden of Our Trust, that burden which land and sea could
not bear: “They refused to bear it, being afraid thereof.”15 When
man took up the burden, how then might land and sea have borne both him and the
burden together? Since he is carrying Our burden, despite all his impotence
and weak-
,0'‘Be” (kon): the creative
fiat: "His Command, when He desires aught, is to say to it, ‘be,’ and it
is” (Qur’an, 36:82).
"Qur’an, 17:85. That is, the spirit belongs to the world of
Command or Dominion.
12See p. 65, n. 18.
"Qur’an, 17:70.
"A Tradition quoted by Abu Taleb al-Makkt (d. 386/996), with a
somewhat fuller wording and on the authority of 'Abdollah b. Mas'ud, in Qut
al-qolub (Cairo, 1381/1961), I, 284.
"Qur'an, 33:72.
ness, it is more fitting that We should carry him, with Our power
and strength and generosity. We are both lover and beloved; that which passes
between Us and man passes not between Us and other than man, nor between man
and other than Us.
If the heart surges up in desire for a gypsy,[35]
Offer it a hundred Turks[36]
and it will pay no heed.
None may intervene between Lover and Beloved, for none but the Lover
can bear the burden of the belovedness of the Beloved, and none but the
Beloved the burden of the loverhood of the Lover. The Lover cannot dispense
with the Beloved, nor the Beloved with the Lover. Yet the desire of the Beloved
for the Lover precedes that of the Lover for the Beloved, for it is the charms
and enticements of the Beloved that arouse the Lover. The Lover had no desire
for the Beloved before his own existence, whereas the Beloved desired the
Lover even before the Lover came into being. Thus Karaqani[37]
says: “He desired Himself when He desired us.”
Thou, the pre-eternal candle; my heart, the moth bemused by Thee.
For the world, Thou art its soul; for me, my beloved.
From the tumult of the tip of Thy twisting tress, Madness struck my
maddened heart.[38]
Even though in reality there is neither strangeness nor duality
between Lover and Beloved,
There is no strangeness between us; Thou art us, and we are Thee.
Thou art the top of the garment, and we are its hem—
for the warp of the garment of love is “He shall love them” and its
woof, “they shall love Him”;[39]
moreover, the thread of this alluring discourse was unwound by “I desired to be
known”[40]—
nonetheless our lips are compelled to silence on this point. The vehemence and
vigor of Moses were needed to say: “Truly this is none other than Thy trial.”[41]
Even he was chastised with the blow of “thou shalt not see Me,”[42]
and when the angels on Mount Sinai impudently taunted him by saying, “O son of
menstruating women, what does dust seek of the Lord Supreme?” he drew in his
tongue and fell silent. He did not answer them saying: “Ye ask me, ‘what does
dust seek of the Lord Supreme?’ Why ask ye not Him, ‘What does the Lord Supreme
seek of dust?’ We were content with our station of dust, and at first desired
pardon of God. We threw the ragged cloak of inauspicious remoteness from Him
over the shoulder of safety, and in the corner of tranquillity drew the skirt
of submission over the foot of intent. We recited
the saying ‘true resoluteness is caution,’24 and were
conscious that the proximity of kings, although yielding numerous benefits,
gives rise to limitless misfortune:
The sultan in his greatness is naught but a sea;
And nearness to the sea is fraught with peril.25
We feared lest our capital be lost, and gain be unattained, and
considered that the downfall of dust was to be found in water— ‘O would that I
were dust.’26 Yet He, with His uncaused grace and without our will,
brought us forth from the corner of ill-fortuned obscurity, set us apart
through the honor of being kneaded ‘by My hand,’27 and cast over the
head of our being the robe of honor of inhalation ‘of My spirit.’28
He seated us on the throne of His viceregency—‘He it is Who has made you His
viceregents on earth’;29 and placed on our heads the crown of ‘He
shall love them’;30 and commanded all the sublime host to prostrate
themselves before our throne, addressing us before the worlds of Kingship and
Dominion as ‘those We have chosen from among Our bondsmen.’31 If we
were to recount all the instances of our belovedness of God, who would have the
strength to hear? Does aught, in the manifest or hidden world, from one horizon
to the other, have the treasure that is in the court of our pride?”
Such
coquetry must I bear for Thy love’s sake, That it would be an error to say Thou
lovest me.
’’Supposedly a Tradition (see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi,
p. 74), but according to al-Maydani's Majma' al-amsal (Cairo, 1379/1959)
p. 175, a saying of one Aksam b. §eyfi.
25An Arabic verse by Saheb b. Abbad
(d. 385/995). See al-Ta‘alebi, Yatimat al-dahr (Cairo, 1376/1958), II,
p. 107.
26Qur’an, 78:40. "The unbeliever
shall say (on the Day of Judgment), ‘would that I were dust!’”
27A reference to the hadis qodsi:
“I kneaded the clay of Adam with My hand for forty days.” (Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e
Masnavi, pp. 197-198).
28Qur’an, 15:29.
29Qur’an, 6:165.
’“Qur'an, 5:57.
’■Qur’an, 35:32: "Then We caused to inherit the Book those We
have chosen from among Our bondsmen.”
Let union with Thee pitch tent on my head, Or let me lose my head
for the sake of the error!32
Let us return to our discussion of the verse, “and carried them
forth on dry land and sea.” Dry land is the world of Kingship; sea, that of
Dominion. In the same way that wherever land is to be found it is on the face
of the seas, so too the world of King- ship floats upon that of Dominion. The
verse means, then, “We carried man over the worlds of Kingship and Dominion,”
in the sense that “We created both of these from the effulgence of the light of
his spirit and intelligence.” Thus all that is endowed with spirit—angels,
jinn, demons, and animals—draws its life from the effulgence of the light of
his spirit; and all that is endowed with soul—the stars, the spheres, the
firmament, the earth, the elements, the minerals and plants—derives its substance
from the workings of his intelligence.
The relationship of the intelligence to the spirit is like that of
Eve to Adam, who was taken from his left rib. A subtle truth is implied by this
comparison. Since women proceeded from the left of Adam, the Prophet, upon whom
be peace and blessings, said: “Consult them and oppose them.”33 That
is, “consult them concerning your affairs and then do the opposite of whatever
they say, for such will be the proper course.” Women are taken from the left
rib and are therefore crooked, and the straight and true opinion will be the
opposite of that which they hold.
Now the intelligence also proceeds from the left of the spirit. One
should consult it concerning the knowledge of the essence and attributes of the
Creator, may His glory be exalted. Whatever its perception may attain and its
understanding comprehend of the essence and attributes of the Creator, know
that God Almighty’is exalted above it and free of its taint. He is not
]!This quatrain, the authorship of
which is not established, is tobefoundalsoin the Savaneh of Ahmad Gazall
(d. 520/1126), ed. Hellmut Ritter (Istanbul, 1942), p. 13; and the Tamhidat
of his pupil, ‘Eyn al-Qozat HamadanI (d. 526/1132), in Ahvdl o dsdr, ed.
Aflf ‘Oseyran (Tehran, 1338 S./1959), p. 236. "Coquetry” (ndz)
means, in Sufi poetry, the beneficial afflictions to which the seeker is subjected
by the interruption of manifestation and withdrawal behind the veil.
”A Tradition of dubious authenticity; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e
Masnavi,
pp. 30-31.
such that the intelligence might penetrate to the depths of His
essence and attributes. Rather, His essence may be known through Him alone.
Thus it has been said: “I knew my Lord through my Lord, and had it not been for
the Grace of my Lord, I would not have known my Lord.”
There is a strange and subtle truth which now occurs to us. The
Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The first that God created
was the Pen; the first that God created was the Intelligence; the first that
God created was my spirit.”34 All three statements are true, and all
three are the same. Many are confused by this mystery and wonder at it. When
he said, “the first that God created was the Pen,” the Pen intended is not an
ordinary human pen, but the Pen of God, a pen befitting His might and glory,
and identical with the pure Spirit and Light of Mohammad. When God Almighty
created the Mohammadan Spirit and looked upon it with the gaze of affection,
shame overcame it and caused it to split in two. The intelligence was the half
that fell away from the spirit.
It is for this reason that wherever intelligence is present, there
too will be shame; and wherever intelligence is absent, shame too will be
lacking. This is the inward meaning of the Tradition that-"shame is a
branch of faith.”35 One half of the Pen of God was the Spirit of the
Prophet, and the other half, the Intelligence of the Prophet. Though in
appearance they were three, in reality they were the one Pen and its two
halves. The Pen was in the hand of God’s power, and He wrote with its nib all
that He desired in the worlds of Kingship and Dominion. He made of the Pen an
oath by which He swore: “By the Pen and that which they write,”36
and He lauded His Own majestic self for manifesting His power: “Is not He Who
created the heavens and the earth able to create the like thereof? Yes, indeed;
He is the Creator Supreme, the All-knowing. His command, when He desires aught,
is to say to it, ‘be,’ and it is. So glory be to Him, in
“Only the first of these three Traditions is well-attested; it is
recorded by Daremi, TermezT, and Ebn Hanbal.
“Tradition recorded by Moslem, Bokarl, Abu Da'ud, Termezi, Nasa’I,
Ebn Maja, Ebn Hanbal, and Malek.
“Qur'an, 68:1.
Whose
hand is the Dominion of all things, and unto Whom ye shall be returned.”37
May God’s peace and blessings be upon our master Mohammad and all
his family.
“Qur'an,
36:81-83.
Third Chapter:
Concerning the
Appearance of the Different Realms of Kingship and Dominion
God Almighty said: “Surely in the creation of the heavens and the
earth, and the alternation of night and day, and the ship that runs on the seas
with profit to men, and the water God sends down from heaven, therewith
reviving the earth after its death, and His scattering forth in it of all
manner of crawling thing, and the turning about of the winds, and the clouds,
subjugated between heaven and earth—surely there are signs for a people having
understanding.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “God created
the soil on Saturday, the mountains rooted therein on Sunday, the trees on
Monday, evil on Tuesday, light on Wednesday; He scattered forth the beasts on
Thursday; and He created Adam on the evening of Friday, at the end of one of
the hours between afternoon and night.”2
Know that God Almighty has created numerous different worlds,
extending from the beginning of the world of spirits to the end of the world of
bodies, including this world and the hereafter, and Kingship and Dominion. In
each world He has created spiritual and corporeal classes of beings, each class
comprising different types imbued by Him with distinctive properties.
Thus He has created numerous different types of the class of being
known as angel: the cherubim,3 the spirit beings, the bearers of
the throne;4 the angels pertaining to each of the seven spheres,
each sphere having its separate type; the scribes, the
■Qur’an, 2:164.
2Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal,
Moslem, Abu Da’ud, Termezt, Nasa’I, Ebn Maja, and Daremt.
’Cherubim (karrubi): the angels mentioned as moqarrabun
(“those drawn nigh to God’s throne”) in Qur’an, 4:172, and given the name of karrubiyun
by most exegetes.
’Cf. Qur’an, 40:7: "Those who bear the Throne, and those round about
it proclaim the praise of their Lord”; and 69:17: “and the angels will be on
the sides [of the skies rent asunder], and eight will on that day bear the
Throne of thy Lord above them.”
immaculate5 and the noble recorders;6 and the
angels of the air under whose sway come the clouds, the rain, thunder,
lightning, and the wind. According to a certain Tradition, every raindrop is
entrusted to an angel so that it may fall precisely where God has ordained.
Then there are the angels appointed over the seas; those of the earth; the
guardian angels of the night and the day;7 the angels of the circles
and gatherings of pious remembrance; the angels of the wombs; the angels who
infuse passing thoughts into men’s inward beings; those who repel Satan from
the sons of Adam; those who protect children; Monkar and Naklr who interrogate
the newly buried dead;8 those who bear glad tidings; those who bring
torment; the angels of death who seize men’s spirits; the angels of life who
blow upon the trumpet of Resurrection;9 the angels to whom men’s
daily sustenance is entrusted; those who bear messages; those who have two,
three, and four pairs of wings;10 those who are the treasurers of
Paradise; Rezvan, the gatekeeper of Paradise; those who are the servants of
Paradise; those who are the treasurers of Hell; the angels of punishment;11
the guardians of Hell and those entrusted with its supervision;12
those who are entrusted with the seven planes of
“These two types of angel, the “scribes” and the “immaculate,” are
mentioned in Qur’an, 80:12-16: “Whoso wills shall remember it [revelation],
upon pages high-honored, uplifted, purified, by the hands of scribes noble and
immaculate.” Safara (scribes) and barara (immaculate) are in
apposition; yet Daya appears to regard each as a separate type of angel.
“The “noble recorders” are mentioned in Qur’an, 82:10-12:
"There are over you watchers, noble recorders, who know what ye do.”
7Cf. Qur’an, 6:61: “He is the
All-powerful over His bondsmen, and He sends guardians over you.”
“Monkar and Naklr are mentioned only in Tradition, not in the
Qur’an, although 40:50 (“They shall say, ‘did not your messengers bring you
the clear signs?’ They shall say, 'Yes' ”) has been taken to refer to the
sepulcral interrogation. The names of both angels are derived from the root NKR,
having the sense of “unknown,” a derivation justified by their unfamiliar and
awesome aspect.
“Cf. Qur’an, 6:73, 18:99, 20:102, etc.
10Cf. Qur'an, 35:1: "Praise be to
God, Who created out of nothing the heavens and the earth, Who made the angels
messengers with wings, two, three or four pairs.”
"Zabaniya: cf. Qur’an, 96:18.
12"The guardians of Hell": (mdlekdn):
cf. Qur’an, 43:77: “They shall call, ‘O guardian (malek), let thy Lord
have done with usl’ He shall say, 'Ye will surely tarry.”’ Malek is
generally taken to be a proper name designating a single.angel who is the
guardian of Hell; Daya, however, uses the word in the plural.
the firmament and the descending degrees of Hell;13 the
angels who hold in their hands the veins of the soil and the mountains; the
angel who bears upon his shoulders the cow, the fish, and the world;14
and the Spirit,15 who occupies a rank separate from that of all the
other angels. In addition to all these there are still further angels, in the
heavens and on earth, in this world and the hereafter, and the number and
nature of each class is known to God Almighty alone.
The angelic realm is thus one of the different realms of creation,
containing numerous types of angel each with its separate and distinctive
attribute and property. Behold now the types and classes of being found in the
other realms: men; animals, terrestrial and marine; the various classes of
jinn, devil, demon,16 rebellious spirit,17 ghoul and nasnds;1&
the inhabitants of Jabalqa
“"Planes" (albaq): cf. Qur’an, 67:3: "He Who
created the seven heavens one upon another (lebaqan)."
"Descending degrees" (darakat): cf. Qur’an, 4:145: “The
hypocrites shall be in the lowest depth (dark) of the Fire; no helper
wilt thou find for them."
“According to a cosmological notion of apparently pre-fslamic
Iranian origin, the world is bome on the horns of a cow which in turn stands on
a fish swimming in the cosmic ocean.
“The Spirit (rilii): cf. Qur’an, 70:4, 78:38 and 97:4, in
each of which verses occurs the phrase, "the angels and the Spirit.” The
Spirit is generally taken to mean Gabriel, the angel of revelation.
“See p. 61, n. 7.
,7See p. 61, n. 6.
'■SNasnas: a mythical being combining
human and demonic features. "The nasnas is an animal found in the
deserts of Turkestan. It has a tall and upright stature and broad fingernails.
It is extremely fond of humans, and whenever it sees a human, it will stand in
his path and gaze upon him. If it meets a solitary traveler, it will carry him
off and take seed from him, so it is said" (Nezaml ‘AruzI [d. c.
550/1155], Cahar maqala, ed. Mohammad Qazvlnl [Tehran, 1334 S./1955],
pp. 14-15). According to other accounts, the nasnds was born of the
union of a demon and a human being, inhabits the Yemen, and speaks Arabic (Zakareya
b. Moliammad Qazvlnl [d. 682/1283], ‘Aja’eb al-makluqat [Tehran, n.d.],
p. 384). The widely traveled nineteenth-century Sufi, Zeyn al-‘Abedin SIrvanI,
wrote that "although the masses of mankind are in truth all nasnds,
it is said that the nasnas is a type of savage bereft of the gift of
speech, frequently encountered in the [East] Indian archipelago, and not
without some share of beauty" (Hada'eq al-siydha, ed. Fazlollah
'Alavl [Tehran, 1389/1969], p. 539). This last description foreshadows the modem
usage of the word to mean orangutang.
and Jabalsa;19 Gog andMagog,20 and other
classes of creature mentioned in stories. Then there are the different types
of houri21 and serving maids, the youths22 and boys23
of Paradise; the various kinds of plant and animal; solids and minerals; bodies
subtle and dense, simple and compound; the elements; different kinds of light
and darkness; essences and accidents; colors, natures, dispositions,
properties, attributes, consequences, forms, shapes, images, meanings,
mysteries, subtle essences, and immutable truths; the outer senses, such as
hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch; the inner senses such as the
intellect, the heart, the secret, the spirit, and the hidden;24 the
human faculties such as die imaginative, the conceptual, the reflective, the
recollective, the memorizing and the regulatory, as well as common sense; and
then a further category of faculties such as the attractive, the retentive, the
digestive, and the excretive, as well as other practical faculties, the
detailed description of which can be found elsewhere.
'’Jabalqa and Jabalsa: two mythical cities situated, respectively,
at the extreme east and west of the earth. Jabalqa has been identified with
the realm of archetypes ('Siam al-mesal), situated to the east of the
world of spirits and constituting an isthmus between the seen and the unseen.
Jabalsa is similarly situated to the west of the world of bodies, ft is also
said of Jabalqa that it is the point where necessary and contigent existence (vojub
and emkan) converge, and that it comprises the immutable archetypes (a'yan-e
sabeta) of all things. Jabalsa is, by contrast, the field of manifestation (majla)
of the divine names, where the archetypes take on substantial and
differentiated form. Whatever rises sunlike in its essence from the orient of
Jabalqa will set in the Occident of Jabalsa, in the darkness of the world of
forms. The two mythical cities are, then, the poles that encompass created
being. See the numerous references in Henry Corbin, Terre Celeste et Corps
de Resurrection (Paris, 1960).
20Gog and Magog: two peoples mentioned
in the following Qur'anic verses: "O Zu’l-Qarneyn! Gog and Magog are doing
corruption in the earth; so shall we assign to thee a tribute against thy setting
up a barrier between us and them?” (18:94); and "There is a ban upon any
city that We have destroyed; they shall not return until Gog and Magog are
unloosed and swarm down from every slope” (21:95-96). On the basis of these
verses, Gog and Magog have been considered to be two ferocious and savage
peoples who toward the end of time will break out of their enclosed dwelling
places on the edge of the world to wreak havoc and destruction. Concerning
Zu’l-Qarneyn and his possible identification with Alexander, see n. 3 to the
prologue.
2'Cf. Qur’an, 44:54, 52:20, 55:72,
56:22.
22Cf. Qur’an, 44:54, 52:20, 55:72,
56:22.
22Youths (gelmdn): cf. Qur'an,
52:24.
23Boys (woldan): cf. Qur’an,
56:17, 76:19.
MFor a discussion of these five inner
senses, see p. 134, n. 9.
Then there are the supernal entities, such as the Throne,25
the Footstool,26 the Tablet,27 and the Pen;28
the divisions of the zodiac,29 the spheres, the planets both moving
and fixed, and the mansions of the moon;30 the Frequented House;31
the Lote Tree of the Extremity;32 the Distance of Two Bowstrings;33
and Nonlocality, as well as different classes of being and types of creature.
“The Throne ('ars): cf. Qur'an, 7:54, 10:3, 13:2, and twenty
other mentions. The Throne is regarded as the “stable center" of the
divine names from which their manifestations emerge; it is also the equivalent
of the universal soul (nafs-e kolliya) that encompasses all things. It
therefore stands at the center of the cosmos and embraces it simultaneously.
Its terrestrial counterpart is the Ka'ba, while in the microcosm it corresponds
to the heart. See Sajjadl, Farhang-e mostalahat-e 'orafa va mota^awefa,
p. 274, and p. 203 below.
“The Footstool (korsi): cf. Qur’an, 2:255. On the basis of a
Tradition, the Footstool is said to be the threshold of the Throne and to
encompass the seven heavens. According to Daya’s tafsir, it corresponds
in the microcosm to the inner sense designated as the serr (“mystery”).
See the passage quoted by Haqqi, Ruh al-bayan, I, p. 404. Finally, the
Footstool has been identified as the locus of divine command and prohibition
(Sajjadl, Farhang-e mostalahdt-e 'orafa va motafavvefa, p. 326).
27The Tablet (lowh): cf.
Qur'an, 85:22. The Tablet is generally understood to be the heavenly archetype
of the Qur’an, or alternatively, undifferentiated manifestation. Daya’s tafsir
suggests the additional sense of “the heart of the Prophet and of his heirs,
the saints enamored of God” (quoted in Haqql, Ruh al-bayan, X, p. 396).
28The Pen (qalam): cf. Qur'an,
68:1, 96:4. The Pen represents the efficient cause of differentiated
manifestation, the means whereby forms are traced out in the book of the
cosmos, the Tablet; it is identified by Daya with the Moham- madan Spirit and
the Universal Intellect (see above-, p. 78). In his tafsir of Qur’an,
68:1, Daya further suggests that the Pen may refer to God's knowledge of
particulars (quoted in Haqql, Ruh al-bayan, X, p. 103).
29Cf. Qur'an, 85:1, 15:16, 25:61.
”Cf. Qur’an, 10:5, 36:39.
’’The Frequented House (beyt al-ma'mur): cf. Qur’an, 52:4.
The Ka’ba frequented by pilgrims; its heavenly archetype, the Throne; or its
microcosmic counterpart, the heart (Daya, quoted in liaqql, Ruh al-bayan,
IX, pp. 185-186).
’The Lote Tree of the Extremity (sedrat al-montaha): cf. Qur’an,
53:13-18: “For indeed he [the Prophet] saw him [Gabriel] once more, by the Lote
Tree of the Extremity, when there covered the Lote Tree that which covered; his
eyes swerved not nor strayed. Truly he beheld some of the supreme signs of his
Lord.” These verses refer to the Me’raj of the Prophet, his ascent to heaven
from Jerusalem through the different realms of being. According to certain
traditions, the Lote Tree, which is the abode of Gabriel, is situated in the
seventh heaven, to the right of the Throne. It also marks the boundary of the
knowable, for beyond it stands naught but that which is absolutely hidden (al-geyb
al-motlaq), and the frontier between unity and multiplicity (Daya quoted in
liaqql, Ruh al-bayan, IX, p. 225).
’’The Distance of Two Bowstrings (qaba qawsayn): cf. Qur’an,
53:9: ‘And he was the distance of two bowstrings or closer.” The distance of
the Prophet from the divine presence at the end of the Me’raj. See above, p.
55, n. 12.
Who might describe them, for in truth none but God, almighty and
exalted, is aware of their subtleties? “None knows the armies of thy Lord
except He.”34
According to certain Traditions, there are eighteen thousand
different worlds,35 while others give the number as seventy thousand
or three hundred and sixty thousand. All, however, are subsumed in the two
worlds of Creation and Command, or Kingship and Dominion, as God Almighty said,
praising His creation thereof: "Verily His are the Creation and the Command.
Blessed be God, the Lord of the Worlds.”36
As for the degrees and stages of Kingship and Dominion, the first
degree of Dominion consists of two parts: spirits and souls. Among the spirits
the first degree is that of the human spirit, as was explained in the previous
chapter; then come in descending order the angelic spirits, the spirits of the
jinn, those of the demons, those of the animals, and the vegetable souls which
are also called the vegetable spirit.
As for the degree of souls, their origin and beginning is the
universal intelligence; then, after the degrees of the differentiated
intelligences, come the souls of the Throne, the Footstool, the Tablet, and the
Pen; those of the spheres and the divisions of the zodiac; those of the fixed
and moving planets; those of the centers, such as the ethereal center which is
the center of fire, the air which is the center of wind, the ocean which is the
center of water, and the land which is the center of earth; those of minerals;
those of compound bodies; and those of simple bodies and elements.
This, then, is a concise exposition of the stages and degrees of
what in the different worlds pertains to Dominion.
All this is unveiled to those wayfarers endowed with insight
“Qur'an, 74:31.
“For an account of the concept of eighteen thousand worlds and its
occurrence in various texts, see Mohammad Parvin Gunabadi, "Hejdah hazar
'alam,” in Yadndma-ye 'Allama-ye Amini, eds. Seyyed Ja'far Sahidt and
Mohammad Reza Haklmi (Tehran, 1352 S./1973), pp. 21-33.
“Qur'an, 7:54.
who attain the station of Showing: “We shall show them Our signs
upon the horizons and in their souls.’’37 If the degrees appear to
them in other than their proper order, this is not on account of any error in
the world of unveiling, but rather because of an error in the gaze of the soul
in the perception of matters relating to the unseen world, or an error of the
reflective faculty, which is like an ambassador passing back and forth between
the unseen world and the seen. For that which is unveiled to the gaze of the
spirit in the world of the unseen is not subject to variation or error,
particularly since the gaze of the spirit is strengthened with the aid of God’s
light. Thus it has been said: “Beware of the intuitive vision of the believer,
for he gazes forth with God’s light.”38 Now the soul is subordinate
to the spirit and dependent on it for the perception of those matters relating
to the unseen world that are within its reach; hence fancy and imagination may
intervene, and variation, excess, and deficiency come to affect perception.
Moreover, as has been explained concerning these matters relating to the unseen
world and their degrees, each group of men, the People of the Path and the
People of Wisdom, has a different method and teaching in accordance with its
mode of vision:
Those who look on Thy fair face,
When they gaze in from the horizons, See their own image in the
mirror,
And thus arise these many different signs.39
As for the degrees of creation of the worlds comprising King- ship,
the following has been related in a Tradition: “When God desired to create this
world, He created a substance upon which He gazed with an awesome gaze, causing
it to melt. From awe of the Compassionate, it split into two halves, one fire,
the other water. He caused the fire to pass over the water, and smoke
’’Qur’an, 41:53.
’"Tradition recorded by Termezi.
’’Two lines of verse from the poet Anvart (d. 565/1169-1170) (Dtuan,
ed. Sa'Id NafisT [Tehran, 1337 S./1958], p. 487). Although Anvari was not a
Sufi poet, Daya's quotation of his verses implies a mystical interpretation:
the "horizons” signify the manifestation of the attributes in phenomenal
creation, and that toward which they "gaze in” consists of human souls
(cf. Qur’an, 41:53).
arose. He created the heavens from the smoke, and the earth from the
froth on the surface of the water.” In this manner did He create the heavens
and the earth.
The degrees and stages of earthly creation are stated in concise
form in the Qur’anic verse quoted at the beginning of this chapter and
expounded in detail by the Prophet, upon whom be peace, in the Tradition
following the verse. God created the earth on Saturday, which was the first of
days pertaining to this world, for days are the result of time, and time is the
result of the rotation of the spheres. When He created the heavens and caused
them to revolve, the first of the days appeared, and He called it Saturday. On
Sunday He created the mountains, on Monday the plants and trees, on Tuesday
pain and evil, on Wednesday the lights, on Thursday the different species of
animal, and on Friday, after the afternoon prayer, in the last hour of the day,40
He created Adam, upon whom be peace. These stages constitute the outer meaning
of the Tradition; now hear its inner meaning.
Know that a beam from the effulgent light of the spirit of the
Prophet—upon whom be peace—passed through the degrees of malakut
constituted by the spirits until it reached the last of beings, namely the malakut
of simple elements. Another beam from the effulgent light of the spirit of the
Prophet, a beam which we have called the Intelligence, passed through the degrees
of malakut constituted by the souls, until it too reached the malakut
of the elements. These two beams may be compared to a compass describing a
circle: When the compass reaches the end of its revolution, the two arcs
composing the circle will be joined and become one. When those two subtle
essences, the Spirit and the Intelligence, circled the worlds of the malakut
of spirits and the malakut of souls, they joined each other at the final
degree of the malakut of the elements. All that was pure in those
essences had been expended, as we explained in the comparison with sugar.
Treacle-like dregs remained, from which He created the substance referred to by
the Prophet, upon whom be peace: "He created a substance upon which He
gazed with an
"It should be recalled that the Muslim day ends at sunset.
awesome gaze, causing it to melt.” He then divided that substance
into two through the effect of His awe-inspiring gaze: half of it became fire,
and the other half water. He then gave fire dominion over water, so that smoke
arose from water. With the smoke, fire began striving upward on account of its
extreme subtlety and fleet-footedness, while water remained abased because of
its density and sluggishness.
Now hearken to this subtle point: that when God Almighty made that
substance the object of His gaze, the part that derived from the effulgent
light of the Mohammadan Spirit separated from the part that derived from the
Intelligence, and the gaze of the Almighty nurtured it with longing. It aspired
again to ascend, while the part that derived from the listless intelligence
remained stationary on account of its deficiency. The reason for this is that
the Mohammadan Spirit has various attributes, as has already been explained.
Among these are love and light: love is a burning fire, while light is
listless. Thus the subtle essence that, arising from the Mohammadan Spirit,
passes through the degrees of spirits consists of Love, while that from which
the Intelligence arises before passing through the degrees of souls consists of
light. Between Love and Intelligence there is dispute and conflict, and they
can never be reconciled. In every abode where Love alights, Intelligence will
quit the. dwelling; and wherever Intelligence sets up house, Love will withdraw
from view.
Love came and plundered Intelligence;
Convey, O heart, these happy tidings to the soul.
Know that Love is a Turk from the steppe,41 And
plundering is not strange in a Turk.
Intelligence wished, through metaphor, In a phrase to describe his
cheek,
But the light of his cheek put forth a tongue of flame, And burned
both Intelligence and the phrase.
n“A Turk from the steppe:” literally,
"alien Turk” (tork-e ‘ajami). The expression lork-e 'ajami
appears to have originated in the Abbasid period as a designation for Turkish
military slaves that had not been fully assimilated into the Muslim-Arab
environment. See al-Ya'qubl, Ketab al-boldan, Leiden, 1892, p. 255.
Now when Love had traversed numerous veils and passed through the
degrees of malakut constituted by the spirits, it became separated from
its beloved until, in the malakut of the elements, it encountered the
subtle essence of the Intelligence. It smelled the fragrance of familiarity,
for the Intelligence had come from the same homeland. Even though one had been
a king there and the other a mere doorman, because of previous acquaintance and
a common homeland, the yearning of “love of homeland is a part of faith”42
stirred in Love’s nature, and it cried:
The wind wafts the fragrance of Muliyan’s stream;
The wind wafts too the beloved’s perfume.43
In the extremity of its longing for the beloved, it laid its arm
around the neck of listless Intelligence, reciting the while:
In memory of thy lip, I kiss the ruby in the ring;
When that is out of reach, on this I plant my kiss.
When union grants me not thy hand to kiss
My devotion I offer, and on the ground plant my kiss.
But at this point the palate of Love’s soul tasted again in memory
the pleasure it had had from the gaze of the true beloved, and ardor consumed
it. It loosed its embrace from the neck of Intelligence, and then declared:
“The substance became two halves. One half was Intelligence, cowardly
Intelligence, which melted in fear and became water. The other half was Love,
which was nurtured by the gaze of the Beloved and overcome by longing. The fire
of Love sent forth flames, and caused fire to appear. As there is opposition
between water and fire, so too between Intelligence and Love.” Thus Love could
not be reconciled to Intelligence; it rejected it and abandoned it, and set
its face toward the true Beloved.
KA Tradition of dubious status; see Foruzanfar,
Ahadis-e Masnavi, pp. 97-98.
“The first line of a famous poem by Rudaki (d. 329/940), composed,
according to the traditional account, at the urging of the courtiers of Najr b.
Ahmad the Samanid who were anxious to return to Bokhara after a prolonged
absence. Upon hearing the poem and its evocation of the charms of Bokhara, such
as the streams of Muliyan, Na?r is recounted to have immediately set out
homeward. The second hemistich usually begins yad-e yar ("the
memory of the beloved”; see Osori Rudaki [Stalinabad-Dushanbe, 1958], p.
125); Daya gives it, however, as bu-ye yar ("the perfume'of the
beloved”). See Nezami 'Aiuzi, Cahar maqala, pp. 59-66.
Intelligence has naught to do with Love; put it to flight without
ado!
What dost thou want of that spidery, faint-hearted one? Intelligence
may never draw nigh unto Love;
What seeks the rabble of the camp in the king’s presence?
The supernal world, consisting of the spheres, the stars, and so
forth, was fashioned from the part of the substance that aspired to ascend;
while from the part that remained abased were created the land, the mountains,
the sea, and other things in the manner set forth above. Then the subtle
essence which had arisen from the Mohammadan attribute of love was conducted
through the malakut of spirits, and then brought forth from the gate of
substance and caused to pass through the forms and attributes of both Kingship
and Dominion, so that not a single particle of being, in either of these
realms, should remain without one of the mysteries of love being implanted in
it. Thus not a single particle remained empty of the love of its Creator,
enjoying a degree of love in accordance with its capacity, and by means of this
love each particle with its very being praises and glorifies God Almighty:
"There is naught but proclaims His praise, but ye understand not their
praising.”44
If Thy lovers are drawn up in review,
Every particle of being will be found in the ranks.
The peacock and the fly will be together in one place, When the hawk
of Thy sorrow begins to hunt.
It is as if God were to say: “O angels, do not boast of your praise
and glorifying, nor venture forward self-assertively, saying, ‘We proclaim Thy
praise and call Thee holy.’45 Is there aught or anyone that does not
praise Our glorious majesty? All that is in the heavens and earth proclaims the
praise of God: He is the Almighty, the All-wise.’46 Our glorious
majesty is too sublime and magnificent for anyone to be able to praise and laud
Us as We deserve. Whatever praise and laudation thou seest coming forth from
the denizens of heaven and earth and from every particle
^Qur’an, 17:44.
“Qur’an, 2:30.
“Qur'an, 57:1.
of created being, all derives from the ray of Our divine praise of
Our own majesty. ‘Glorified and Exalted be thy Lord, theLord of Glory, above
that which they describe.”’47
It is by means of the mirror of the Mohammadan Spirit which cast its
reflection on the particles of created being that all are engaged in praise and
laudation. Everyone imagined that his utterance of praise was a property of his
servitude to God and was unaware of the origin of all praise. When it was the
turn of the Paragon of Being,48 he traversed the realms of Kingship
and Dominion, nurturing them as he progressed. Then like a fruit he settled on
the branch of the tree of creation, this being expressed in the Qur’anic
phrase, “the distance of two bowstrings.”49 His truth-perceiving eye
was opened by the workings of the mystery of “or nearer,”50 and the
Divine Majesty addressed him, saying: “O Mohammad, give praise unto me, like
the other beings and the angels.” The Prophet, upon whom be peace, perceived
that all the praise of His Majesty that created beings could accomplish was
but borrowed, while his code required that “the borrowed is to be returned.”51
Thus, in accordance with the order “God commands you to deliver trusts back to
their owners,”52 he returned the loan entrusted to him, saying: “The
stammering tongue of created being is unfit to praise Thy uncreate Essence—‘I
cannot enumerate Thy praise.’ Only Thy attributes are fit to praise Thy
Essence: ‘Thou art as Thou hast lauded Thyself to be.’ ”53
Thus not only the angels who are mere infants and novices in the
school of Adam—“O Adam, teach them their names”54—and are unaware
even of their own names, but also their teacher Adam, together with all his
offspring, all stand beneath Mohammad’s banner of laudation: “On the Day of
Resurrection,
'’Qur’an, 37:180.
"Le., the Prophet.
'“Qur’an, 53:9 (see p. 55, n. 12).
““Qur'an, 53:9.
“'A Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 218.
“’Qur'an, 4:58.
““These two phrases are part of a Tradition recorded by Moslem, Abu
Da’ud, Nasa’I, TermezI, Ebn Maja, Ebn Hanbal.
“'Qur’an, 2:33.
Adam and all his offspring shall stand beneath my banner, and I take
no pride therein; and in my hand shall be the banner of praise, and I take no
pride therein.”55 Thus it becomes clear that Mohammad was the seed
of creation and its fruit, and the tree of creation is in truth none other than
his being.
Verily a rare bird art thou, that both realms are full of thee, And
ne’er hast thou spread thy wings nor quit thy nest.
Imagine the different types of malakut to be the roots of the
tree, corporeal bodies to be its trunk, the Prophets, upon whom be peace and
blessings, to be its branches, and the angels to be its leaves. As for the
fruit of the tree, it escapes all description and cannot be set down by the
two-tongued pen on two-faced paper.
Many a tale did Kaqani write;
When his pen reached here, its head was broken.56
Thus just as the tree is contained within the fruit, so too the
fruit is contained within the tree, and not a single particle of the tree is
without the presence of the fruit. The seed of the tree is drawn from the
effulgence of the Light of Unity, and there is no particle of the tree and its
fruit which is without the effulgence of the Light of Unity. The hidden meaning
of “We are closer to him than the jugular vein”57 and “He is with
you wherever ye are”58 becomes apparent from this, and the true
sense of “God is the Light of the heavens and the earth”59 stands
manifest.
Know that God Almighty has created, in the world of form and image,
a form for all that He has brought forth in the world of meaning. Now the form
for all the realms of Dominion is the person of Mohammad, upon whom be peace,
and the form for the effulgence of the Light of Unity is the affirmation of
unity: “There is no god other than God.” The profound cause for the
’’Part of a Tradition recorded by Daremi.
56 A line from the poet Kaqani (d.
595/1199) (Divan, ed. ‘All Abd al-Rasuli [Tehran, 1316 S./1937], p.
717).
’’Qur'an, 50:16.
’“Qur'an, 57:4.
’’Qur’an, 24:35.
sending of the Prophets was the sowing of the seed of that affirmation
in the soil of hearts: “This world is a tillage for the hereafter.”[43]
Hence it was that the Prophet said: “I have been commanded to fight men until
they say: ‘There is no god but God.’ ”[44]
What is meant by this if not the scattering of the seed of Unity on the soil of
men’s hearts? “Hast thou not seen how God has struck a similitude? A good word
is as a good tree—its roots are firm, and its branches are in heaven; it gives
its fruit every season by the leave of its Lord. Thus God strikes similitudes
for men, that haply they may remember.”[45]
Fourth Chapter:
Concerning the Beginning
of the Creation of the Human Frame
God Almighty said: “I am about to create a man from clay.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said, narrating
the words of God Almighty, the Exalted: “I kneaded the clay of Adam with my
hands for forty days.”2
Know that when it was desired to fashion the human frame from the
four elements of water, fire, wind, and earth, they were not kept in the stage
of simplicity, but instead carried down through degrees of descent. The first
degree was that of compoundness, for the element while at the stage of
simplicity is still close to the world of spirits, as was explained. When it is
desired to bring the element to the stage of compoundness, it must leave
simplicity behind and advance to compoundness, thereby distancing itself one
degree from the world of spirits. When it comes to the vegetable stage, it must
leave behind compoundness and solidity, thereby becoming a further degree
remoter from the world of spirits. When it leaves the vegetable for the animal
realm, it descends another degree; and when it abandons the animal for the
human state, it descends one more degree. There is no degree lower than that of
the human person, and “the lowest of the low” consists thereof.
Our words here refer only to the elements which descend through
changing states to these low degrees of remoteness from the world of the
spirits; for if you consider the malakut of matter, which after passing
through several stages reaches the state of man, it is a question of degrees of
ascent, not descent, for with each stage the malakut comes closer to the
world of spirits, not more distant from it. Our words concern the form of the
elements, which belongs to the world of Kingship, and not their inner aspect,
which belongs to the world of Dominion.
'Qur’an, 38:71.
“Tradition; see p. 76, n. 27.
In the sense intended here, then, the human frame is situated at a
lower degree than all creation, and it is truly described as “the lowest of the
low.” God’s words, “then We caused him to descend to the lowest of the low,”3
refer to the attachment of the spirit to the frame. Thus it is clear that while
man’s spirit is the supreme apex of creation, his frame is the lowest of the
low. The meaning of this verse will now be apparent:
Thou art the height and depth of this world;
I know not who thou art; all that is, thou art.4
The shaikh of this feeble one, the spiritual monarch of the age,
Majd al-Dln Bagdad?—may God be content with him—said in a collection of his
writings: “Glory be to Him Who in His power joined together the nearest of the
near and the farthest of the far.”
The providential wisdom implicit in the human frame being the lowest
of the low and the human spirit the highest of the high is that since man has
to carry the burden of the Trust, he must possess the strength of both worlds
in perfect measure. There is nothing in either world that is endowed with his
strength and thus fitted to bear the burden. The strength must be derived from
attributes, not from form, and the strength that the human spirit possesses, as
the highest of the high, naught else has in all the world of the spirits,
whether angel, demon, or other being. Similarly, the strength that the human
soul possesses, as the lowest of the low, naught else has in all the world of
the souls, whether savage beast, predator, or other being.
The four elements from which the human frame was fashioned were
created out of the residue of the spirits, corresponding to the treacle in the
comparison we made in the first chapter with sugar and its boiling by the sugar
merchant. In the same way that the attributes of raw white sugar persist in
treacle, so
3 A phrase taken from Qur’an, 95:5:
"then We caused him to descend to the lowest of the low."
'Verse taken from the Sahnama of Ferdowsl previously quoted
on p. 26 above. See too p. 26, n. 7.
’Concerning Majd al-Dln Bagdad!, see the introduction to this
translation, pp. 9-10, and the sources cited there.
too something of each attribute that characterized the spirits
remained in the residue constituted by the elements; this we explained in the
chapter treating the appearance of the different realms. The subtle essence of
each attribute passed through the different classes of being so that not a
single particle remained without some slight share in the attributes of the
world of spirits. The four elements, even though they were the most distant of
beings from the world of spirits, nonetheless contained within them something
of the pure attributes of that world. Indeed, that part of the existence of the
elements which is capable of survival belongs itself to the world of spirits.
Similarly, although in the kneading of the clay of Adam all satanic,
predatory, bestial, vegetable, and mineral attributes were present, his clay
was nonetheless set apart by the honor conveyed by the words, “with My hands,”
and there was bestowed upon him, for each of these reprehensible attributes, a
jewel-like shell containing one of the attributes of divinity. Now under the
influence of the gaze of the sun, granite becomes the receptacle for garnet,
ruby, emerald, turquoise, and agate, like the shell enclosing the pearl.6
See how through the properties of “I kneaded the clay of Adam with My hands,”
in a period of "forty days,” each of which according to a certain tradition
was equivalent to a thousand years, the water and clay of Adam became the
shell of a noble pearl. This honoring of Adam was before the inhalation of the
spirit, and it was the auspicious fortune of the bodily frame that it was to
be the palace of God’s viceregent. He labored on it in His own divine person
for forty thousand years, and who knows what treasures He secreted in it?
When monarchs in the world of form desire to construct a palace,
they set their servants to work, and consider it an indignity to dip their
hands in the clay. But when the builders come to the place where the monarch
wishes to store his treasure, he sends away all his servants and retinue, dips
his own hands in
’Precious stones were traditionally supposed to result from the
prolonged suffusion of rocks and mountains with sunlight, in the same way that
pearls were believed to form within the shell from rainwater penetrating to the
depths of the ocean. There is in both cases the notion of a pure element
descending and penetrating a grosser one in order to form a jewel in its very
heart.
the clay, fashions the place according to the amount and dimension
of the treasure, and then installs it himself.
So too when God Almighty was creating the different classes of
being, pertaining to this world and the hereafter, to heaven and hell, He
employed various intermediaries at each stage. But when it was time to create
Adam, He said: “I am about to create a man from clay,”7 that is, “I
myself shall fashion Adam’s dwelling of water and clay.” This caused confusion
to some, and they said, “He created the heavens and the earth’;8
didst Thou not create all?” He replied: “There is a distinction here, for I created
all else with the command ‘be,’ for ‘Our command to aught, when We desire it,
is “be,” and it is’;9 whereas Adam I shall create directly Myself,
without intermediary, for I shall conceal within him the treasure of
knowledge.”
He then ordered Gabriel to go and pick up a fistful of earth and
bring it to His presence. Gabriel, upon whom be peace, went to comply with His
command. But the earth said, "O Gabriel, what wouldst thou do?” He
replied, “I shall take thee to the presence of God that He may fashion a
viceregent from thee.” The earth then pleaded with Gabriel, saying, “By God’s glory
and splendor, do not take me, for I have not the strength to bear the burden of
being nigh unto Him. Rather I have chosen extreme distance from Him so that I
may escape the awesome blows of His wrath. For there is much danger in
nearness—'and the sincere are in great peril.’”10
Those close to the monarch are the most distraught, for they know
the full measure of his wrath.11
When Gabriel heard these pleadings and invocations, he re-
’Qur’an, 38:71.
“Qur’an, 10:3, 11:7, etc.
“Qur’an, 16:40.
10Part of a Tradition (see Foruzanfar,
Ahadts-e Majnavi, p. 53), the full text of which is as follows: ‘All men
shall perish except the learned; all the learned shall perish except those who
act in accordance with their knowledge; all those shall perish except the sincere;
and the sincere are in great peril.”
"Half of a quatrain probably composed by Abu Sa'Id b.
Abu’l-Keyr. See Mohammad b. Monavvar, Asrar al-towhid, p. 311.
turned to the Divine Presence and said: “O Lord, Thou art the more
knowing: the earth withholds obedience.” God then sent Michael,12
but again the earth pleaded and invoked the Divine glory and splendor. So too
did Esrafil13 go and return empty- handed. Then God Almighty
commanded ‘Ezra’!I,14 saying, “If the earth will not come in willing
obedience, then seize it with force and coercion and bring it.” ‘Ezra’Il went
and forcibly plucked up a fistful of earth from the ground. According to a
certain tradition, he picked up forty cubits of earth from the ground, brought
it to the Divine Presence, and then set it down between Mecca and Ta’ef. Love
came swiftly rushing to the spot:
The earth for Adam’s frame was still unsifted, When love came and
laid hold of his heart.
This wine I drank when still a suckling infant— Nay, rather the wine
and the milk were mingled.
The first honor that was bestowed on the earth was this, that it was
summoned to the Presence by several messengers, and yet it disdainfully
refused, saying, “we comprehend not this mystery.”
My words were all ma fa'll and fa'elat;
Far removed was I from all talk of Kingship’s secret.15
Truly, such is the normal rule: He who is the foremost in the denial
of love will be the most exalted in loverhood when he falls prey to love; and
the converse is also true.
For a time I denied the love of idols; But my denial cast me to
ruin.
'■Michael, mentioned in Qur’an, 2:98, is seen in Tradition as
fulfilling various roles: assisting and encouraging Gabriel, the angel of
revelation; leading the other angels in prostration before Adam, also in
conjunction with Gabriel; and lamenting eternally the necessity for Hell.
'’Esrafil, the angel of resurrection who will rouse the dead from
their tombs with his trumpet on the Last Day.
"'Ezra’Il (also spelled Azra’Il), the angel of death who takes
men’s souls at the appointed hour.
i5Mafa‘il, fa'elat: paradigms representing two of the feet in Perso-Arabic prosody. The
line is quoted from the work of Mojlr al-Din BeylaqanI (d. c. 586/ 1190).
All the angels were meanwhile biting the finger of surprise with the
tooth of astonishment and asking themselves, “What mystery is this, that lowly
earth is summoned to the Almighty Presence with such honor, and then, despite
its utmost lowliness and abjection, treats Him, for all His might and majesty,
with arrogance and disdain? And He, for all His wealth and utter freedom from
need, and despite His jealous honor, does not forsake the earth, nor summon
another in its place, nor reveal the mystery to anyonel”
I have grieved beneath the weight of heaven and earth; My grief is
unquenched, and my beloved, unmatched.
A gazelle, for example, can be tamed by men, But not thou, for all
my thousand stratagems.[46]
Divine grace and wisdom then addressed the mystery of the angels,
saying: “Truly I know that which ye know not.”[47]
What know you of the tasks I intend for this fistful of earth, from preeternity
to post-etemity?
A love which has possessed me, from before eternity; A task which
lies before me, beyond eternity.
You are to be excused, for you have never had any concern with love.
You are dry ascetics, living withdrawn in the secluded shrine of sanctity; what
might you know of those who run ardently back and forth to love’s ruined
temple? How might the seekers of safety savor the joys of those who court
reproach?[48]
The afflicted know the pain of a wounded heart, Not the lighthearted
with their empty laughter.
Thou hast no share in the qalandar’s19 secret, But
the mystery of his ways is known to the libertine.
"Be patient for a few days while I wield My power on this
fistful of earth, and cleanse the rust of the darkness of created- ness from
the mirrorlike visage of its primordial state, and then behold the images of
manifold color that appear in its mirror. The first image will be such that all
will have to fall before it in prostration.”
Then from the cloud of generosity the rain of love poured down on
the dust of Adam, turning it to clay, and with the hand of His power God
fashioned a heart of clay within the clay.
From love’s dew Adam’s dust turned to clay;
The world fell into tumult and disarray.
The lancet of love pierced the vein of the spirit;
A drop of blood fell, and they called it the heart.20
The entire exalted host, cherubim and spirit beings, gazed on the
scene in wonder: God the Almighty and Glorious worked for forty days and nights
on fashioning the clay of Adam, and just as the potter who wishes to make an
earthenware pot rubs and molds the clay in different ways, adding to it as he
proceeds, so too did God Almighty knead Adam’s clay: "He created man from
clay like baked earthenware.”21 In each particle of the clay He
secreted a heart, which He then nurtured with the gaze of His grace, and His
wisdom addressed the angels, saying: "Look upon the heart, not upon the
clay.”
aQalandar:
an untranslatable term with a wide range of meaning. Its most common sense is
one who deliberately offends against social and religious norms in order to
approach God by his own obscure path. Qalandars also came to form a Sufi
order in Turkey, while elsewhere they fell swiftly into open anti- nomianism and
debauchery. See Mortaza §anaf, “A’In-e Qalandan," Armagan, LIII
(1350 S./I971), pp. 15-21.
20A quatrain of Afzal al-Din Kasani.
See Mosannafat, eds. Mojtaba MlnovI and Yahya Mahdavi (Tehran, 1337
S./1958), II, p. 764.
2lQur’an, 55:14.
If I fix my gaze on the stone, It yields the burnt heart that it
holds.
According to certain traditions, the Divine Power was exercised on
Adam’s clay for forty thousand years in accordance with perfect wisdom, between
Mecca and Ta’ef. Mirrors were affixed to him on both the outside and inside, to
the number of the divine attributes, each one being a manifestation of a separate
attribute. It is generally believed that a thousand and one mirrors were put in
place, to correspond to a thousand and one attributes. Now even though the
possessor of beauty may have gold and silver ornaments in abundance, in her
view nothing has the same value as a mirror. For gold and silver ornaments are
subject to damage which the beautiful one cannot set aright; but if the
slightest dust alights on the face of the mirror, immediately and with the
utmost care she will wipe it clean with the sleeve of generosity. Moreover,
even if she has a thousand hundredweights of gold jewelry, she can do little
with it but store it in her dwelling, or use it to adorn her hands and ears.
Hence she turns away from it all, and remains face to face with the mirror—
We are infatuated with thee—and thou, with the mirror; Our gaze is
fixed on thee—and thine, on the mirror.
When the mirror glimpsed thy beauty and thou, thine own fairness,
Thou wert enamored of thyself; still more was the mirror.22
Love for thy face it was that thus sharply Parted me from men and
turned me toward thee.
In each beauty-displaying mirror that was placed in Adam’s being was
set too a beauty-perceiving eye, so that as God might behold Himself in the
mirror, through a thousand and one apertures, so too Adam might behold Him with
a thousand and one eyes.
When thou lookest upon me, my whole body becomes a heart;
22Two lines taken from a poem by
KaqanI (Divan, p. 393).
When I look upon thee, my whole heart becomes an eye.23
Here love becomes reversed. If the beloved desires to flee from the
lover, he lays hold of his skirt with a thousand hands. The beloved protests,
saying: "First you fled from me, yet now you would seize me,” and the
lover replies, "Yes, I fled then so that I would not have to seize you
today.”
I reared like a stallion all unaware
That the lasso tightens when pulled.24
Then I was dust, and sought to shun you; now I am a heart, and will
not release you. If then I loved you not so much as a grain of dust, today I
would make amends and love you with a thousand hearts—
Behold this wonder that I who have not a single heart Love thee with
not less than a thousand.
Thus did the frame of Adam lie for forty thousand years between
Mecca and Ta’ef, and each moment some delicate jewel, some noble essence from
the hidden treasuries of the unseen, was implanted within his being. All the
precious contents of those treasuries were buried in Adam’s clay, until when it
was the turn of his heart, the clay for it was brought from the soil of
Paradise, soaked in the water of eternal life, and nurtured in the sunlight of
three hundred and sixty divine glances.
Heed now the subtle truth inherent in this figure of three hundred
and sixty. Adam’s clay was kneaded for forty thousand years, and forty thousand
years is equivalent to three hundred and sixty thousand times forty days. Upon
completing each thousandth period of forty days, Adam’s clay became deserving
of one divine glance, and when three hundred and sixty thousand such periods
had been completed, it became worthy of three hundred and sixty glances.
25The first line of a quatrain of
uncertain attribution.
’’Part of a poem by the poetess Rabe'a b. Qozdari (fl. fourth/tenth
century). See Zablhollah §afa, Ganj-e sokan (Tehran. 1339 S./1960). I;
p. 54.
One glance from the friend, and happiness by the hundred thousand;
I wait upon the time when that one glance is given.
Now when the heart reached this stage of perfection, there was a
jewel in the treasure house of the unseen that was hidden even to the gaze of
the treasurers and guarded by God Himself in His own divine person. For He
proclaimed: “There is no treasury worthy of this jewel other than Our presence,
or the heart of Adam.” And the jewel was the jewel of love, secreted within the
shell of the Trust of knowledge that had been offered to all the worlds of
Kingship and Dominion. But none was deemed a fit treasury for housing the
jewel, or a proper treasurer for guarding it. Only the heart of Adam was fit to
be treasury, for it had been nurtured by the sun of the divine glance; and only
the soul of Adam was worthy to act as treasurer, for it had been nourished
several thousand years on the effulgent light of the attributes of Majesty of
the Unity of the Essence.
I became enthralled by that idol on the day That Adam was lying
between Mecca and Ta’ef.
Strange it is that several thousand kindnesses and favors were
lavished on Adam’s heart and soul by God’s uncaused grace, both in the seen and
the unseen worlds, and none of it was confided to the cherubim, so that they
all remained ignorant of Adam’s true nature. One by one they passed by Adam and
said: “What strange image is this, now being adorned? What creature of
manifold hue, about to emerge from the veil of the unseen?” Adam meanwhile
said softly to himself: “Even if you do not know me, I know you. Wait until I
raise my head from sweet sleep, and I shall recite your names one by one.” For
among the jewels that had been buried within him was the knowledge of all
names: ‘And He taught Adam all the names.”25
However much the angels examined the form of Adam, they were unable
to discover the compendium of mysteries that he in truth was. But Eblis the
cunning was once walking around Adam, and gazing on him with his one squint
eye, saw his mouth
“Qur’an, 2:31.
to be open. He said to the other angels: "Wait here, for I have
found the means to loosen the knot of our problem. I will enter this hole and
see what I discover within.” When he descended the hole and explored the being
of Adam, he found it to be a small world in itself, and beheld there a replica
of all that he had seen in the great world without. He found his head to be
like the heavens with their seven layers; and in the same way that there are
seven moving stars in the seven heavens, he found seven faculties in the seven
layers of the human head: the imaginative, the conceptual, the reflective, the
memorizing, the recollective, and the regulatory faculties, together with
common sense. As there are angels in heaven, so too there were the senses of
sight, hearing, smell, and taste in the head. Furthermore, EblTs found Adam’s
body to be like the earth: As there are trees, plants, flowing streams, and
mountains on the earth, the body had long hairs on the head, corresponding to
trees; short hairs on the body, corresponding to plants; veins, corresponding
to flowing streams; and bones, corresponding to mountains.
As there are four seasons in the macrocosm—spring, autumn, summer,
winter—so too he found four humors in the microcosm —heat, coldness, wetness,
and dryness, these being inherent in the yellow bile, black bile, phlegm, and
blood, respectively.
In the macrocosm there are four winds, those of the spring, autumn,
summer, and winter. The spring wind fecundates trees, brings forth leaves, and
causes verdure to grow; that of the summer ripens the fruit; that of the autumn
dries it; and that of the winter causes it to fall. So too in Adam there were
four winds: the attractive, digestive, retentive, and excretive faculties. The
attractive faculty draws food toward his gullet, and gives it to the digestive
to be ripened and matured. It then passes to the retentive faculty, which
extracts all possible benefit from it, and is finally expelled from the body
by the excretive faculty. In the same way that the absence of one of the four
winds of the macrocosm would cause the ruin of the world, so too the absence of
one of the four winds of the microcosm would render impossible the stability of
the human frame.
In the macrocosm there are four kinds of water—salt, bitter,
fetid, and sweet—and each of these was also found to be present in
Adam. Each was set in a certain place in accordance with divine wisdom. Salt
water was placed in the eye, for the eye contains tallow and tallow is
preserved through salt water.26 Tallow serves to protect the eye;
the eye to protect the white of the eye; the white of the eye to protect the
black, of the eye; and the black of the eye to protect the pupil. The pupil is
the locus of vision, and vision is the cause of sight.
Bitter water was placed in the ear to forbid access to insects;
fetid water in the nostrils so that what formed in the nose might be evacuated
by the nostrils; and sweet water in the mouth, to keep the mouth sweet and the
tongue fluent in speech, as well as to accompany food on its way down the
gullet. Much providential wisdom may be observed in the case of each, and it
would take long to enumerate.
There are other examples of how all that is in the macrocosm is to
be found also in the microcosm, but a complete exposition would lead to
prolixity.
When, then, Eblls traversed the entirety of Adam’s bodily frame, he
perceived an indication of the macrocosm in all that he saw. But when he came
to the heart, he saw it to be like a pavilion, with the breast in front of it
like the square erected before a royal palace. However much he sought a way to
gain access to the heart he was unable, and said to himself: ‘All that I have
previously seen was easy; it is here that the difficulty lies. If one day this
person should cause us some misfortune, it may have its origin here; and if God
Almighty has some task planned for this frame, or secreted something within it,
it is here that it may be hidden.” With a hundred thousand such thoughts, he
turned back from the heart’s threshold in despair.
Since Eblls was not admitted to the court of Adam’s heart and the
hand of rejection was laid upon him, he was rejected by all the world. It is
for this reason that the elders of the Path have said: “Whoever is rejected by
one heart is rejected by all hearts;
!fIt was traditionally believed that
the eye was fashioned of a substance akin to tallow.
and whoever is accepted by one heart is accepted by all hearts.”
This is true on condition that the heart in question is truly a heart, for most
men cannot distinguish between the heart and the soul.
A heart it is wherein in time of trouble
Ye find naught but God.[49]
When Eblis emerged from Adam’s frame disappointed and dismayed, he
said to the angels: “There is no cause for alarm. This person is hollow; he
needs food and is subject to lust like other animals; we may soon gain mastery
over him. But in his breast I found a pavilion with neither door nor roof, and
there was no way of entering; I know not what it can be.”
The angels said: “The difficulty is still unsolved; we have not come
to the root of the matter.” So they went back to the presence of God Almighty
and said: “O Lord! Thou it is that solves all difficulties, that loosens all
knots, that bestows all knowledge! Thou hast labored for some time in Thine
own divine person on this fistful of earth, created from it a whole world, and
hidden countless treasures therein. Yet Thou hast told us nothing of the whole
affair, nor confided in any of us; tell us now what is to be the outcome.”
The Almighty addressed them, saying: “ ‘I am about to make a
viceregent on earth.’[50] I
am creating a deputy for My majestic presence on earth, a task which is not yet
complete. That which you see is his dwelling, his abode, and the seat of his
throne. When I have completed it and seated him on the throne of viceregency,
fall in prostration before him. ‘When I have fashioned him and inhaled in him
of My spirit, fall ye down in prostration before him.’”[51]
They said to each other: “Our difficulty has but grown. He now
orders us to prostrate ourselves before him and calls him
His viceregent. We never knew that any but He was worthy to receive
prostration. We knew Him, Almighty and Exalted, to be without helper or
partner, without like or peer, without consort or offspring; we knew not that
any was worthy to be His viceregent and deputy. Let us go and circumambulate
this Ka'ba, and leant well the nature of this dwelling.”
They came and walked around Adam’s frame, all gazing upon it with
care. They said: “We see here naught but water and clay. The beauty of
viceregency is not to be observed in him, nor can we remark any worthiness to
receive prostration.” But from the unseen an indication came to their souls:
The beloved is not to be seen with the eyes of others; ’Tis with my
eyes my cherished one should be seen.
They said: “This person cannot be of any account because of his
form. Perhaps his worth derives from his attributes; let us then examine them.”
Upon close examination they saw Adam’s frame to be made of the four elements:
earth, wind, water, and fire. They then found that the attribute of earth was
immobility and that of wind, mobility, and that earth was thus in opposition to
wind. Similarly, they found that water was abased and fire exalted, and that
these two were in opposition to each other.
They looked again and found the humor of earth to be dry, that of
wind to be wet, that of water to be cold, and that of fire to be hot, and all
were thus in opposition to each other. They then said: “Wherever two opposites
are joined, naught but corruption and transgression can arise. ‘If there were
within them a plurality of gods, other than God, both would decay.’30
And if it is true of the macrocosm that it is subject to corruption because of
the opposition of the elements and their attributes, it will be even truer of
the microcosm.”
Again they returned to the Divine Presence, and said: “‘Wilt Thou
make upon earth one who will cause corruption and bloodshed?’31
Wilt Thou bestow the viceregency upon one who will give
’’Qur’an, 21:22. "Both” refers to the heavens and the earth.
’'Qur’an, 2:30.
rise to corruption and bloodshed?” It is related in tradition that
their words were not yet finished when a flame-leapt forth from the pavilions
of Splendor and Majesty and set fire to some of their number.
Know that the lamp kindled by God
Burns whoever would blow out its flame.
The substance of Adam’s viceregency, drawing on the capital of
corporeal being, has inspired these verses in my feeble self:
All thou hast seen of us is but our shadow;
Our substance lies beyond creation’s twin realms.
We are without we; this is our resource for the task;
We nurture others, and He nurtures us.
The first seeker of reproach in the world was Adam; or, to tell the
truth, it was none other than God the glorious Himself, for the first objection
was that made to Him: "Wilt Thou make upon earth one who will cause
corruption and bloodshed? ’ ’32 Here lies a wondrous indication that
the foundation of love is the courting of reproach.33
Better for love to be in the company of blame;
Safety’s for the ascetic held back by his shame.
The soul of Adam silently addressed the Majestic Presence, saying:
“With the rope of reproach we have lifted the burden of the Trust onto the
shoulder of our soul; we have sold safety and bought reproach. We fear the
blame of no one; let them say what they will, for it matters not.”
“Let them rip my fur cloak to pieces
If it be for thy sake, nimble rogue!”
Be alone in thy love, and pay men no heed;
The beloved is thine, so dust on the world’s head!
Honor enough were it for Adam that God Almighty created
1!Qur’an, 2:30.
’’See n. 18 above.
the heavens and earth and all therein in six days and nights— “He
created the heavens and earth in six days”34—and did not bestow on
them the honor of "with My hands,”35 even though they formed
the macrocosm. But to the creation of Adam, the microcosm, He assigned no less
than forty days, and He bestowed on him too the cloak of honor of "with
My hands,” so that the unaware might realize that he has a distinction in the
Almighty Presence which no other being enjoys. Moreover, through the property
of "with My hands,” a mystery was secreted in Adam’s nature upon which
all other beings were dependent for their creation. All these honors pertained
to his frame, the microcosm corresponding to the macrocosm. But consider the
special dignity bestowed on his spirit by the Almighty, for “I inhaled in him
from My spirit”!36 Compared to the infinitude that the realm of the
spirit thus acquired, this world, the hereafter, and all therein appear to be a
mere microcosm.
When the two are joined together, spirit and frame, and brought to
perfection, who knows what felicity and auspicious fortune He will shower down
on them! Wretched is he who, deprived of perfection, looks upon his own self
in contempt, uses the potentialities of the human degree, the noblest part of
creation, to gain bestial pleasures, the vilest part of creation, and thus
remains ignorant of his own true worth!
Thou
art the offspring of two worlds, Passed from one nursemaid to the next.
First of all by innate nature, last by frame;
Such art thou, waste not thyself in game.37
“Qur’an, 7:53, 10:30, 11:7, 57:4.
“Part of the hadis discussed on p. 76, n. 27.
56Qur’an, 15:29.
“A line from the Sahnama of Ferdowsl (IV, p. 276).
Fifth Chapter:
Concerning the
Beginning of the Attachment of the Spirit to the Frame
God Almighty said: “When I have fashioned him and inhaled in him of
My spirit, fall ye down in prostration before him.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “The
creation of one of you is that he is a drop of sperm for forty days, collected
in his mother’s womb; then a drop of coagulated blood for another forty days;
and then a formless lump of flesh for a further forty days. Then God sends an
angel, instructing him to write four words concerning the child’s destiny: his
sustenance, his deeds, his life span, and whether he will be wretched or
blessed. When the angel has written, the spirit is inhaled into him. If one of
you should perform deeds like the people of Paradise, so that only a span
separates him from it, but fate has decreed otherwise, his deeds shall end
like those of the people of Hell, and Hell he shall enter; and if one of you
should perform deeds like the people of Hell so that only a span separates him
from it, but fate has decreed otherwise, his deeds shall end like those of the
people of Paradise, and Paradise he shall enter.”2
Know that when the fashioning of the bodily frame was completed,
and it was time for the spirit to be joined to the frame, just as God Almighty
had permitted none to share in the kneading of Adam’s clay, performing the task
in His own divine person, so too He now undertook to inhale the spirit in His
own divine person.
Note here the indication of a subtle truth, and the proclamation of
noble good tidings. It was as if God were saying: “I am sending the spirit from
the highest degree of the world of spirits to the lowest degree of the world of
bodies in the protective company of My unique inhalation. For the journey is
long, and both friend and enemy are plentiful along the route, and it is
necessary that the spirit should not be engrossed with friend
'Qur’an, 15:29.
’Tradition recorded by BokarT, Moslem, Abu Da’tid, Termezi, and Ebn
Maja.
and enemy at each stage and stopping place, thereby forgetting Me
and being deprived of the taste of the intimacy it enjoyed in My presence.
Robbers along the road are numerous, both envious enemies and jealous friends.
But if the spirit is accompanied by the trace of My inhalation, it will not
permit the taste of My intimacy fully to depart from the palate of its soul,
nor be completely enthralled by friend and enemy at every stage.
“I shall, moreover, cause the spirit to pass through three hundred
and sixty thousand worlds, both spiritual and corporeal, relating to both
Kingship and Dominion, and in each of them I have placed some provision for it,
and buried some treasure on its account, so that on the day when I send it to
be my viceregent in the lowest, corporeal realm, it will take these provisions
and treasures with it to earth. I have informed none of these hidden treasures—
‘I have not caused them to witness the creation of the heavens and the earth’3—I
alone have buried them, and I alone know what I have buried, and where, and
how, and how each is to be retrieved.
"I shall be at each stage the guide and helper of the spirit: I
shall display all things to it, and bestow upon it all the hidden treasures
that may profit it on its passage through each separate world, withholding that
which will benefit it upon its journey of return to My presence. I shall show
it the talismans that I have made on this path to ward off the gaze of the
intruder and prevent the access of false claimants to the presence of the
treasure, and teach it how to open these talismans, so that the journey of
return will be easy for it. Then too I shall instruct it in all that will
benefit or harm it along the way.
“It is some time since I sent forth into the world the cry of ‘I am
about to make a viceregent on earth’;4 friend and foe, acquaintance
and stranger, are all awaiting his arrival. When I dispatch the spirit as my
viceregent and bestow deputyhood upon it, it must therefore be with all manner
of dignity and honor. I have thus ordered the cherubim to prostrate themselves
before the spirit when it mounts the throne of viceregency. All
’Qur'an, 18:52.
’Qur'an, 2:30.
must behold the signs of dignity and honor I have bestowed upon it,
and perceive thereby the magnitude of its rank.”
Then the pure spirit of Adam, having passed several thousand years
in successive forty-day periods of prayer in the retreat of the secluded shrine
of sanctity; having been honored with the gaze of grace, in the station of
immediacy; and having learned the customs and norms of viceregency, the
conditions and conventions of deputyship from God, the Overlord—for unless the
deputy and viceregent of a king has spent a lifetime in the king’s presence
being trained in the practice and customs of rule, he will not be qualified for
deputyship or viceregency—then was his pure spirit seated on the unique mount
of "I inhaled in him.”[52]
Intelligence ran along at his stirrup;
Love made its way to his shade.
The trappings on his bay mount’s neck were moonlight, And the tress
of his black standard was dark night.[53]
Clothed in a cloak of honor that was inscribed “of My spirit,” it
was borne through all the spiritual and corporeal domains, and at each station
and stopping place, they brought forward the essence and choice part of the
buried treasures that were hidden there, and sent them with it as it proceeded
on its way. Finally it was seated as viceregent on the throne of the bodily
frame in the kingdom of humanity, and immediately the entire exalted host,
cherubim and spirit beings, fell prostrate before the throne—"and the
angels prostrated themselves, all with one accord.”[54]
Gabriel was then appointed chancellor at Adam’s court, and Michael as
treasurer, and all the other angels were also given some post.
It was found desirable to lay the foundation of punishment, to hoist
someone onto the scaffold, so that throughout the realms of Kingship and
Dominion none should dare to claim viceregency or to oppose that of Adam.
Eblls, that arrogant, black-fortuned
one, who in his inquisitiveness had once made stealthy and illicit
entry into Adam’s frame, gazed with the eye of contempt upon the domain of his
viceregency, and desired in vain to make a breach in the treasurehouse of his
heart, was therefore seized on the charge of robbery and bound with the rope of
wretchedness. When it was time for all the angels to prostrate themselves,
Eblis was unable to do so, for he had in reality been bound with the rope of
wretchedness on the day that he entered the workshop of the unseen without
permission.
It is related in a certain Tradition that when all the creatures are
gathered together on the Plain of Resurrection, one of the lights of God,
Almighty and Glorious, will manifest itself and all will desire to fall down in
prostration. Whoever prostrated himself before God while still in the world
will then enter prostration; but those who prostrated themselves before idols,
worldly desires, and the passions, will be unable to do so, for their necks
will have been bound with the rope of wretchedness on that day when they failed
to prostrate themselves before God. That rope cannot be seen today with the
outer eye; but whoever has his inner eye open will see it and not fail to sever
it with the scissors of repentance and the seeking of forgiveness. For if he
does not sever it today, he will be brought to the marketplace of resurrection
bound in chains and fetters, and the sense of the verse “Behold the fetters on
their necks, and the chains”8 will be fulfilled.
The neck of Eblis the cunning was then bound on that day, for he out
of all the angels had acted impudently and illicitly entered the workshop of
the unseen, thereby contravening the divine command: “Do not enter the
dwellings of the Prophet unless it be permitted to you.”9 His neck
was tied with the rope of wrath so that he was unable to prostrate himself
before Adam — ‘And they prostrated themselves, except Eblis, who refused and
was arrogant.”10
People imagine that his refusal and arrogance began at the
“Qur'an, 40:71.
“Qur’an, 33:53.
'“Qur’an, 2:34.
time of prostration. It was indeed then that the outer form of his
refusal and arrogance became apparent, but this was only the tree coming to
fruit, for the reality of his refusal and arrogance had been sown like a seed
in the soil of his wretchedness on that day when he flouted the norms of
courtesy and entered the workshop of the unseen without permission. When he
emerged, he was arrogant and said: ‘A hollow creature, incapable of selfrestraint.”
He looked on himself with the eye of grandeur, and on the viceregent of God
with the eye of contempt. That seed was nurtured with the passage of time, and
bore the fruit of his refusal and arrogance on the day of prostration. Of
necessity, then, they dragged him onto the scaffold of accursedness with the
rope of wretchedness: "My curse is upon thee until the Day of Judgment.”11
They left him on the scaffold of chastisement, there to remain until the coming
of the Hour. Rather, he will not be taken down for all eternity, to serve as
warning example for all who might dare to show disrespect for God’s viceregent
anywhere in his realm. Whoever follows EblTs in this earthly kingdom shall be
placed with him in one rank and sent down to Hell: "Truly I shall fill
Hell with thee and with all of those who follow thee.”12
It is related that when the spirit entered the frame of Adam, it
immediately explored all the domains of the body and found it to be an
exceedingly gloomy and fearsome abode, founded on four contradictory principles
and thus incapable of permanence. It saw it to be dark and cramped, full of
several thousand insects and noisome creatures such as snakes, scorpions, and
serpents, different kinds of raging beast such as lions, tigers, leopards,
bears, and swine, and other animals such as donkeys, cows, horses, mules, and
camels. All these were in conflict with one another, and all too were attacking
the spirit, inflicting injury on it and vexing it in manifold ways. Then too,
the soul turned on it in its exile, like a dog, and fell on it like a wolf.
The pure spirit that for many a millennium had been nurtured with a
hundred thousand delicate cares in the proximity of the Lord of the Worlds was
now struck with terror by all these perils.
uQur’an, 38:78.
izQur’an, 38:85.
It knew for the first time the value of the intimacy it had enjoyed
in the presence of the Almighty, and realized how great was the blessing of
union in which it had been constantly immersed without knowing its pleasure and
true value. The fire of separation leaped up in its soul, and the smoke of
exile rose up to its brain. It exclaimed:
Yesterday, wine, pleasure, and the idol’s face;
Today, sorrow, exile, separation from her.
O revolution of days! to you both are as one, So bring back
yesterday, I renounce today!13
The spirit forthwith turned its back on that abode of terror, and
desired to return along the path that had brought it:
My resolve is firm to quit this place;
Coming was without sense; broken be the leg that brought me!
When it desired to return, it looked around for the mount of the
inhalation that had brought it, for it had not come on foot, but mounted. It
could not find the mount, and its heart was shattered. Then it was told: “It is
this shattering of thy heart that was Our aim.” Upon hearing this, its heart
was straitened and it gave a deep sigh. Now it was told: “It is on account of
this sigh that We have brought thee here.” The steam of the sigh mounted to
Adam’s nose, like the smoke of a fire to the hole in the roof, and immediately
he began to sneeze. Thus motion stirred in him: He opened his eye, and saw the
spacious width of the world of form and witnessed the brightness of the sun.
“Praise be to God,” he said, and the divine address reached him, saying,
"Thy Lord will have mercy on thee.” 14 The sweetness of those
words reached his soul and a degree of tranquillity arose within him.
But whenever he thought of the joy of proximity to God and
,3A quatrain by Anvan (Divan,
p. 608).
HAn allusion to the fact that it is
recommended for the one who sneezes to exclaim, "Praise be to God!” and
for the one who hears him to respond, “May God have mercy upon thee!”
(Tradition recorded by al-Katib al-Bagdadl.)
intimacy with Him, and recalled the spacious breadth of the world of
spirits and the bounties that God had given him without intermediary, he
wanted to break the cage of his bodily frame and rend his garment of water and
clay.
That captive nightingale known as the soul
Has not the strength to shatter its cage.
In the same way that children are distracted with brightly colored
objects and the noise of bells, with sweetmeats and fruit, so too Adam was
distracted by being appointed teacher to the angels, by receiving their
prostration, by being conducted around the heavens, by mounting the pulpit, and
all the other well-known means recounted in Tradition. Thus it was hoped that
the fire of his desire for the beauty of the Divine Presence might somewhat
abate, that he might grow attached and accustomed to something new, and that
his terror would depart from him.
Yet he proclaimed silently all the while:
Never, O chosen idol of mine,
Shall thy love quit my heart, nor thine image, mine eye. If after my
death thou shouldst come seeking,
Thou wilt find love for thee still in my rotting bones!
Then the divine address was heard: "O Adam, enter Paradise and
live there in joy, eating and resting as thou desirest, and keep the company of
whomever thou wilt—'O Adam, live thou and thy mate in Paradise, and eat
plenteously there, as ye desire.’”15
Yet still Adam persisted:
May my heart never be able to part itself from thee, Nor to become
familiar with other than thee!
Should it cut loose from thy love, whom might it love?
And should it leave thy dwelling, where might it go?16
“Qur'an, 2:35.
“This quatrain has been attributed to Najm al-DIn Kobra. See
Bertel’s, "Chet- verostishiya Sheikha Nadzhm ad-DIna Kubra,” in Izbrannye
Trudy: Sufizm i Sufiyskaya Literatura, p. 326.
Since Adam’s fear did not diminish and he formed no new attachment,
Eve was created of his own self and placed beside him so that he might form
intimate attachment to his own kind: ‘And He made thereof its pair, that he
might find tranquillity therein.”17
When Adam gazed on the beauty of Eve, he saw a ray of the beauty of
God; and through his contemplation of Eve it became apparent to him that “all
that is beautiful proceeds from the beauty of God,” and he experienced the joy
of that beauty anew.
O rose, thou art like the face of a loved one,
And O wine, thou art as if pressed from her being.
O cruel fortune, thine enmity grows with each moment— Yet withal
thou resemblest the friend.
Then Adam began, in accordance with this fragrant perception, to
embrace his mate, and as he discovered the pleasure of that proceeding, the
attribute of passion gained mastery over him, the foremost of the animal
attributes and the thickest of all veils. The other animal attributes, such as
taking pleasure in eating and sleeping, also overcame him; the veils were increased,
and his intimate attachment to the Divine Presence was lessened. For in the
measure that the human soul takes delight in animal pleasures and passions,
becoming attached to them, the attachment to God that dwells in the heart will
decrease.
Indeed, so attached did Adam become to Paradise and its pleasures
that when the temptation of the Tree came upon him —“approach not thisTree”18—Eblis
was able to deceive him with a promise of the kingdom of Paradise: “Shall I
guide thee to the Tree of Immortality and a kingdom that fadeth not?”19
Adam chose immortality and the kingdom of Paradise in preference to God’s
pleasure, and in the extremity of his greed, at Satan’s behest, he abandoned
the commands of the All-compassionate One.
■’Qur'an, 7:188.
■’Qur’an, 2:35.
■’Qur’an, 20:120.
The jealous wrath of God forthwith fell upon him. “O Adam, We did
not create thee for the sake of carnal enjoyment and animal pleasure. ‘Did ye
think that We created you to no purpose, and that ye are not to be returned
unto us?’20 Now that We have left thee for half a day in Paradise
and placed the veil of pleasure before thee, thou hast begun to forget Us and
become preoccupied with and attached to other than Us, acting with disobedience
and eating from the Tree. If We leave thee there for a whole day, .We fear thou
wilt forget Us entirely, exchange intimacy for estrangement, and no longer
remember Us and the grace We have shown thee.
The friend that was once constant in fidelity And cared only to seek
our pleasure,
Is now a distant stranger, and none might think He had ever in his
life with us made acquaintance.
"O Adam, go forth from Paradise! And Eve, be parted from him!
‘Get ye down from here, together!’21 O crown, leave the head of
Adam, and O precious garment, abandon his body! O houris of Paradise, beat the
two-faced tambourine22 for Adam to the tune of ‘Adam rebelled
against His Lord and erred.’23 We will cast the stone of reproach
against the bottle of safety; pour the oil of Adam’s self-worship on the soil
of abasement and servitude; and strike the blade of his intent against the
rock of trial and testing.”
This is the abode of reproach, the square of destruction; The path
for gamblers risking their all.
A qalandar one must be, with a split hem to one’s cloak, To
pass by the peril, nimbly with cunning.24
Z0Qur’an, 23:116.
21Qur’an, 2:38. The plural form of the
imperative verb in this verse refers to the descendants of Adam, present in
potentiality within his loins.
!!It appears that tambourines were
often beaten totheaccompanimentof taunting verses when it was desired to
humiliate someone. For an example from the Saljuq period, see Ravandl, Rahat
as-sodur, ed. Muhammad Iqbal (London, 1921), p. 161.
“Qur'an, 20:121.
“Concerning the concepts of "reproach” and qalandar, see
p. 99 n. 18 and p. 100 n. 19.
Adam was cast forth into the abode of terror that is the world, and
separated from his mate and companion:
No friend, no companion, no mate: Grievous pain, rare sorrow, happy
state!
When he had wandered distraught for several days in this state and
found none to aid him, he turned back to lamenting his ancient sorrow; and the
teacher of the unseen world again inscribed the alphabet of his first love on
the slate:
Once more on the slate of love I have written;
Write thou, O idol, on the slate of enticement.
Then we may recite, to the master of love, For a few days more our
love and enticement.25
Adam unrolled anew the carpet of lamentation and began to recite:
"O Lord, we have wronged ourselves.”26 God said to him: "O
Adam—
Thou comest to Me when all else fails;
I am thy Beloved on the day of misfortune.”
He answered: "O Lord, this distraught wandering was needed for
me to know the value of Thy grace and to be truly grateful for Thy sovereignty.
It was fitting that I should be humiliated and abased so that I might discern
the extent of the nobility and dignity Thou hast bestowed upon me, and know
what favors were conferred on this fistful of dust by Thy divine grace: how I
was raised from low to high degree, honored by being created in utmost
solitude, and separated from other than Thee by Thy jealous pride—‘be thou
Mine, and I shall be thine.’27 Today, then, I have returned in my
frailty to Thy gate of generosity, and even though my tongue of excuse is
struck dumb, still I say—
In patience I bore two, three days without Thee, But hear my hundred
fine, alluring excuses.
“Two lines from the poetry of AnvarlfDivan, p 528).
“Qur’an, 7:22.
27Part of a hadis qodsi.
Beloved, Thy grief casts me down to disaster;
Come to my aid, before I depart and I vanish!”
It is related that Adam was left for four hundred years thus
lamenting and pleading, wandering and distraught, with his eye bathed in the
blood of his heart. His Almighty Lord, in His splendor and glory, then
addressed Adam’s yearning soul, his wounded heart, saying: “I created thee from
a fistful of earth, exalted thee in power and dignity above the cherubim, and
caused all to envy thee and fall in prostration before thee. I exposed My
glorious presence to the reproach of ‘Wilt Thou make upon earth one who shall
cause corruption and bloodshed?’28 and on account of thy friendship
made an enemy of AzazIl.29 I mounted him on the scaffold of
accursedness before thy throne of viceregency, and because of his refusal to
prostrate himself before thee even once, I made his seven hundred thousand
years of prostration before Me like scattered dust, and with the blow of
‘depart from here’30 drove him forth from My proximity.
“Yet thou hast been ungrateful for all these blessings, ignored My
claims upon thee and not known thine own true worth. Thou hast taken thine
enemy to be thy friend, looked upon thy friend as thine enemy, and made us both
the subject of talk among friend and foe alike. When the might of Our wrath
strikes out in accordance with ‘if ye are ungrateful, truly My chastisement is
severe,’31 thou shouldst receive the first blow with patience, without
even wrinkling thy brow—‘Patience, when the first blow falls.’”
On the day when thy fortune suffers decline, Patience it is thou
hast to display.
When evil enters the account, it’s all for the good; No man’s foot
in the stirrup may constantly stay.
But Adam persisted and again hoisted the banner of frailty, and with
the pen of pleading inscribed the form of excuse on the
“Qur’an, 2:30.
“AzazIl: the name of Eblls before his fall from the archangelic
hierarchy. ’"Qur’an, 15:34.
’'Qur’an, 4:7.
page of shortcoming. With heart enflamed and weeping eye, the tongue
of his soul spoke thus:
Should Thou draw back Thy shade from my head, My wails of lament
will start once again.
Should Thou reject and drive me from Thee
I’ll be like one sleeping in the realm of the waking.32
"I confess that we are all frail, and Thou alone art mighty;
that we all fade and pass away, and Thou alone remainest; that we are all
helpless, and Thou alone art our helper; that we are all friendless, and Thou
alone art our friend. Cast not down that which Thou hast raised up; break not
that which Thou hast fashioned; humiliate not that which Thou hast ennobled;
cause not grief to that which Thou hast nurtured in joy. Thou raised us up;
sustain us, then, and abandon us not to ourselves. Forgive us for this
rashness, for Thou planted this seed, and Thou moulded this clay.”
If the fruit be a thorn, Thou sowed the seed;
Or if the garment be silk, Thou sewed the cloth.
When Adam’s pleadings exceeded all bounds and his words reached this
extremity, the auspicious sun of ‘Adam received words from his Lord and He
turned to him in forgiveness”33 rose over the horizon, and the true
morning of auspicious union dawned after the dark night of sinister separation.
Divine grace addressed Adam in his servitude, saying:
Return, and be more than once thou wert;
What thou wert not before, be now.
In time of war thou wert beloved, an equal to the world;
See what shall now be thy rank, in time of peace 1
"That which is past, is past, and amity is restored between
us.” He commanded that the herald of "God has chosen Adam”34
S2A quatrain written in Razi dialect,
i.e., the dialect of Daya’s native city, Ray. Since few examples of this
dialect are extant and it cannot be reconstructed in its totality, the
translation—particularly of the second line—is tentative.
“Qur’an, 2:37.
“Qur'an, 3:33.
should supplant the cry of ‘Adam rebelled against his Lord and
erred,”35 and the worlds of Kingship and Dominion resounded with the
declaration: "Then did his Lord choose him; he repented and was guided
aright.”36
God’s generosity sought excuse for Adam’s crime from both friend and
foe, saying, “ ‘he forgot; We found in him no deliberate intent,’37
so draw in henceforth, all of you, the tongue of condemnation, place the seal
of courtesy on the lip of silence, and wipe the rust of denial from the face of
the mirror.”
The beloved has been reconciled; ’tis thus it should be!
Her infidelity has turned to faith; ’tis thus it should be!38
Praise be to God for affliction;
To the vile it brings pain, but to the noble, redemption!
“What meant these various workings of Our will? Only that We were
training Adam in the task of viceregency and bringing to perfection the point
of his love through affliction. ‘Trial is appointed over the prophets, and
then the saints; and the trial is in proportion to the rank of each.’ ”39
May God’s peace and blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
“Qur’an, 20:121.
“Qur’an, 20:122.
“Qur'an, 20:114.
3BA line from a poem by Sana’I (Divan,
ed. Modarres Razavl [Tehran, 1320 S./1941], p. 612).
“This quotation is probably intended as a Tradition, although I have
not been able to identify it positively as such.
Concerning
the Life of Man and Containing Twenty Chapters, the Number Twenty Being Chosen
Because of the Blessing Inherent in These Words of God Almighty: “If There Be
Twenty Patient Ones from among You, They Shall Conquer Two Hundred”1
‘Qur’an, 8:65.
First Chapter:
God Almighty said: “By the declining day! Truly man is in a state of
loss, except those who believe and perform good deeds.”2
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “God has
seventy thousand veils of light and darkness.”3
Know that when the spirit of man was taken from the intimate
proximity of the Lord of the Worlds and attached to the bodily frame, the dark
abode of the elements and the terror-filled realm of this world, it was caused
to traverse all the worlds of Kingship and Dominion. It had bestowed on it the
choice essence of each world to accompany it as it proceeded, and was given,
too, awareness of all that remained behind in each world, whether beneficial or
harmful, that it might attract benefit and repel harm, for the human spirit is
inherently disposed to attract benefit and repel harm. When it had traversed
several thousand different worlds, both spiritual and corporeal, and finally become
attached to the bodily frame, there had come into being seventy thousand veils
of light and darkness. For its sight of each object in the multiple worlds of
creation, although later a source of perfection, now had the effect of a veil;
and the sum of these veils robbed it of the contemplation of the worlds of Dominion,
the observation of the beauty of the unity of the Essence, the taste of direct
discourse with God and the nobility of nearness unto Him. From the supreme
zenith of nearness it fell to the lowest nadir of nature.
I was content with thee; fate disapproved.
I was happy with thee; destiny dissented.
We spited the envious, and our night passed
In discourse fragrant like wine-mingled musk.
’Qur'an, 103:1-3.
3Similar tradition recorded by Moslem,
Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
But when morning dawned, it sundered our union;
Remains any joy untarnished by fate?4
Within a few brief days after being joined to the frame, the pure
spirit that for many millennia had been ennobled with un- trammeled nearness in
utter exclusion of all other became separated by so many veils that it totally
forgot those blessings: “They forgot God, and He forgot them.”5 Now,
however much it reflects, it can recall nothing of that world; but if it were
not for the sinister effect of those veils, it would not be so forgetful, exchanging
the intimate familiarity once enjoyed for the solitude of its present state and
the abandonment of the true beloved.
Were we not parted from those that we love The fates could never lay
hold of our souls.
The name of man (ensan) is derived from that intimate familiarity
(ons) which he once enjoyed in the divine presence. It has been said
that “Man is called man because he is an intimate (anls) of God.” When
God Almighty refers to man’s past, He speaks of him as ensan: “Has there
come to man (ensan) a period in time when he was a thing unmentioned?”6—when
he was, that is to say, in the enclosed shrine of sanctity and had not come
into this world. God also says: “We created man in the fairest of forms,”7
that is, in the world of spirits.
When he reached this world and forgot that intimate familiarity, he
received another name in keeping with that forgetfulness, and it was mostly by
this name that God now addressed him: "O men (ndso)!"&
that is, “O forgetful one (ndsen)!" in the hope that he might then
recall the days of his intimacy. It has also been said that “men are called men
(naso) because they are forgetful (ndsen) of God.” It was because
of man’s forgetfulness that the Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and
blessings, was
■•These two lines of Arabic verse have been attributed to Moslem b. al-Walld
(known by the sobriquet of §arl' al-Gawani).
sQur’an, 9:68.
6Qur’an, 76:1.
’Qur'an, 95:5.
8A form of address occurring many
times in the Qur’an (e.g., 10:57, J0:108, 22:1).
commanded, “Remind them of the days of God”;9 that is,
“Remind those who are preoccupied with the life of this world of the days of
God Almighty, when they were in the shade of His presence and the station of
nearness; then love and affection may stir in their hearts and they will aspire
to return to their original abode and true homeland—‘that haply they might
remember,’10 ‘that haply they might return.’”11 If love
for the true homeland stirs in the heart, it is the very essence of faith, for
“love of the homeland is a part of faith.”12
If man aspires to return by the path whence he came, he has reached
the degree of certainty; if he attains his original homeland, he has reached
the station of beneficence;13 if he passes beyond that homeland, he
has reached the limit of the threshold of gnosis; if he does not tarry there
and instead enters the forecourt of the palace of union, he has reached the
rank of direct vision; and as for what lies beyond, it is outside the
boundaries of speech and the realm of description.
But if that love does not stir and man does not aspire to return,
and he instead gives his heart to the world, it is a sign of lack of faith:
“But he inclined to the world and followed his passions; and his likeness is
that of a dog.”14 Whoever remains within the veils and does not
yearn to remove them is doomed to eternal loss: “By the declining day! Truly
man is in a state of loss.”15 God swears an oath in these verses
that the human spirit, because of its attachment to the bodily frame,
inevitably suffers the calamities of loss, and that only those are exempt who,
by means of faith and good deeds, deliver the spirit from such misfortune and
from the veils to which the bodily attributes give rise, thus enabling the
spirit to return to its primal abode.
’Qur’an, 14:5.
,0A phrase concluding seven verses of
the Qur’an (2:221, 14:25, 28:43, 28:46, 28:51, 39:27, 44:58).
"A phrase concluding eight verses of the Qur’an (3:72, 7:168,
7:174, 30:41, 32:21,43:28,43:48,46:27).
“Tradition; see p. 89, n. 42.
'’Beneficence (ehsan): the spiritual station described by the
Prophet as “worshipping God as if thou saw Him; for if thou seest Him not,
verily He seeth thee” (Tradition recorded by Moslem). See also below, pp. 294
and 298.
“Qur'an, 7:176.
■’Qur’an, 103:1-2.
The attachment of the human spirit to the frame and the calamities
that arise therefrom may be compared to the sowing of a seed. If man sows a
seed and nurtures it, it will increase a hundred or seven hundredfold, and even
if he does not sow it, he can benefit from it in some way. But if he sows the
seed in the ground and then fails to nurture it, the property of soil is such
that it will cause the seed to decay and negate its inherent usefulness. Now
the seed of the human spirit, before being sown in the soil of the frame, was
given the capacity for hearing the word of God, as is evidenced by the covenant
of ‘Am I not your Lord?”16 when man showed himself able to give
positive answer. The sowing of this seed took place in order that the vision,
speech, and hearing of man might increase a hundred or seven hundredfold; but
if the seed be not watered with faith and nurtured with good deeds, it will
suffer loss and decrease, and its powers of true vision, hearing, and speech
will be lost. Only when watered with faith and nurtured with good deeds will
the seed prove fertile and strive upward from the soil of unredeemed humanity
to the world of God’s servitude, escape the abasement of loss, and, in
proportion to the aid and nourishment received, attain the high degrees of
salvation that are the gardens of Paradise.
If, by virtue of lowly aspiration and foolish disposition, it contents
itself with being mere foliage on the tree and does not seek to become fruit,
it will join the people of Paradise with its different degrees—"most of
the people of Paradise are fools.”17 But if it reaches the station
of fruit, which is the rank of gnosis, then it will join the People of God and
His Elect. And if—God forbid— the seed of the spirit is not watered with faith
and nurtured with good deeds, it will rot in the soil of unredeemed humanity and
take to itself the nature of earth, joining the category of "but he
inclined to the world and followed his passions.”18 Then will man be
in a state of eternal loss, "abiding therein eternally.”19
'“Qur'an, 7:171. Concerning the primordial covenant, see p. 35, n.
7.
'’Part of a Tradition the remainder of which states that “most of
the people of Hellfire are women" (Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p.
103).
'“Qur’an, 7:175.
,9A phrase occurring twelve times in
the Qur’an.
When a child first enters existence, the veils of his vision are not
firmly fastened, for he has but recently emerged from the Divine Presence, and
the taste of intimacy lingers on in him. As soon as he leaves the womb of his
mother, he begins to weep in the pain of separation from the celestial world,
and whenever longing overcomes him, he laments and complains, as if his
afflicted heart and desolate soul were saying to God, the possessor of glory:
The heart on which Thou gazed is still struck by grief;
On account of Thy love, it still moans and laments.
The fire in my heart still blazes strong;
The tears from my eye still pour down.20
Each moment the child is charmed and distracted with some different
object suited to the vision of his senses and attractive to his nature, so that
he forgets the other world and forms attachments to this one. But when he is
alone again, he will dream of the world he left behind, like the elephant
remembering India, and resume his weeping and lamentation. This occurs most frequently
at night, for during the day his gaze is distracted with sense objects, whereas
at night such distraction decreases, and weeping and lamentation
correspondingly increase.
Night has come, and I turn back to my grief,
And my eye, as wonted, turns back to its weeping.
My heart’s blood pours down from each eyelash— A spit, with a piece
of my liver impaled on its tip.21
The affectionate mother then again puts her breast to the mouth of
the child; the sweet taste of her milk reaches his palate and he gradually
becomes attached to it, forgetting his original attachment. Indeed, until
reaching maturity, the child is constantly occupied in forming attachments to
the world of the senses and forgetting the world of the unseen.22 It
is for this rea-
20A quatrain from Anvari (Divan,
p. 610).
21This quatrain has been attributed to
Abu Sa’Id b. Abu'l-Keyr.
22Daya’s great contemporary, Jalal
al-Dln Rumi (d. 672/1273) expounds in his Flhe ma flh, p. 186, a similar
concept of gradual detachment from the unseen: “Man’s growth from infancy
until maturity is made possible only by neglect [of the unseen]; otherwise he
would never develop and grow."
son that the young of all other species are reared in a brief space
of time, soon learning how to provide for themselves, attaining the perfection
of the species to which they belong, gaining in strength and completing their
bodily development. But the child of man takes fifteen years to reach maturity,
and forty to attain perfection. Time must elapse before he can come to provide
for himself, for he is intimately acquainted with another world and has tasted
the pleasure of its modes of being, and his soul is burdened by separation
therefrom. He cannot acquaint himself with this world or become habituated to
it until gradually, over a long period, he dissociates himself from the world
above and accustoms himself to the world below; until he forgets the pleasure
of the modes of the unseen and perceives the pleasure of the modes of the
senses. Only then will he become entirely of this world, for as long as he is
in a two-hued world of the unseen and seen, his growth will be slight and he
will not attain perfection. Once he has completely forgotten the other world,
he will concoct innumerable tricks and stratagems for attracting profit and
repelling harm, such as no animal or demon could invent. Animals are unaware of
another world; they are completely of this world and devote all their attention
to their immediate needs. With extreme concupiscence, they busy themselves in
extracting the utmost sensual pleasure, and are soon nurtured to attain the
perfection of their species.
The gazelle eats its morsel in trembling and fear; Hence the absence
of flesh on its tail and its flank.
To make our meaning clear: When the human spirit is made to traverse
the worlds spiritual and corporeal, of Kingship and Dominion, becomes attached
to the bodily frame, and begins to employ the instrument of the body for
various acts, then each breath that issues from it gives rise to the veils of
remoteness and darkness, and deprives the spirit of its acquaintance with the
world of the unseen, so that it becomes entirely unaware thereof. Sometimes a
thousand heralds will tell it that it once inhabited a different world, but it
will not accept or believe in their words.
A certain group, however, namely those upon whom the gaze
of God’s grace has fallen, will preserve within them the trace of
that intimate familiarity they once enjoyed in the presence of the Almighty.
Even though they do not know of themselves that they once inhabited a different
world, nonetheless when a truthspeaking herald so informs them, the trace left
in them by the light of his truthfulness will join the trace of that intimate
familiarity preserved within them. The two will recognize and embrace each
other, for they share the same homeland; the effect of their affinity and their
coming together will be transmitted to the heart, and all will then admit the
truth.
In short, whoever bears within him a trace of that intimate
familiarity bears also the seed of faith, and sooner or later he will be able
to have faith. But whoever has severed all connection with that familiarity
and has closed the door of his heart to the world of the unseen, for him faith
will be impossible: "Equal it is to them if thou wamest them or dost not
warn them; they will not believe. God has sealed their hearts and their
hearing, and over their sights is a cover, and for them there shall be a mighty
chastisement.”23
There are some of God’s bondsmen from before whose eyes He lifts up
the veil so that they can perceive all the stations, spiritual and corporeal,
through which they have passed. It happens, too, that some are protected from
forgetfulness at the time when the spirit is attached to the bodily frame; this
is in order to demonstrate the power of God and to establish His proof. Those
thus protected remember and can vividly see all the stations they traverse from
the beginning of their attachment to the bodily frame: the different realms of
creation through which they pass, their arrival in the loins of their fathers,
their entry into the wombs of their mothers, and finally their coming into this
world.
Thus Shaikh Mohammad Kuf,24 may God have mercy upon him,
used to relate in Nishapur that he had once been in the presence of Shaikh All
Mo’azzen when he said: "I remember that I was
“Qur’an, 2:6-7.
“It appears that Shaikh Mohammad Kuf was a contemporary of Daya and
known to him. He is also mentioned in Tohfat al-barara, the major but as
yet unpublished work of Daya’s preceptor, Majdal-Dln Bagdad!.
coming from the world of nearness to God into this world. My spirit
was being passed through the heavens, and when I arrived at each heaven, its
inhabitants would weep over me, saying, Another wretch is being dispatched from
the station of nearness to the world of remoteness; brought down from highest
to lowest; carried from the spacious expanse of sanctity’s enclosure to the
world’s constricted abode!’ They were much sorrowed and pitied me greatly, but
the address of the Almighty reached them, saying, ‘Do not imagine that I am
sending him to that world to abase him. By Our own divine might, if during his
life in that world he once fills the bucket of an old woman at a well, it will
be better for him than a hundred thousand years of proclaiming Our exaltation
in the enclosure of sanctity. Draw over your heads the cloak of ‘each party is
happy with what it possesses,’25 and leave My divine work to Me.
‘Truly I know that which ye know not.’”26
Peace be upon Mohammad and all his family.
“Qur’an,
23:54.
26Qur’an, 2:30.
Second Chapter:
On the Wise
Purpose for Attachment of the Spirit to the Frame and the Benefits That Flow
Therefrom
God Almighty said: "I created jinn and men only that they might
worship Me,” that is, "know Me.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s blessings and peace, said:
"This world is the tillage for the hereafter.”2
Know that as the soil of the world was made fitting to have sown and
nurtured in it the seeds of different kinds of grain and fruit, so that one
might be multiplied a hundred or seven hundredfold—"like a grain from
which grew seven ears; in each ear were a hundred grains; and God gives
increase to whomever He wills”3—so too the essence of the world was
made fitting to be the tillage of the hereafter, and to have sown in it the
seed of good deeds, so that each might be multiplied ten, a hundred, or seven
hundredfold—‘A good deed is multiplied by ten like unto it, and then seven
hundred times.”4 Indeed, it is possible that a yield may be gathered
without limit or reckoning, for "the patient receive their reward in full
measure, beyond all reckoning.”5
Similarly, the soil of the human frame was prepared in such a way
that when the seed of spirituality was sown in it by the husbandry of the
divine inhalation, and nurtured with the sunlight of God’s grace and watered
with His law, there should grow from it the fruits of nearness and knowledge in
such abundant
'Qur'an, 51:56. The gloss of "worship Me” as “know Me" is
found in almost all Sufi commentaries. Daya himself, in commenting on this
verse, says: “‘I created jinn and men only that they might worship Me’ because
the pearl of knowledge of Me is contained within the shell of worship of Me.
Knowledge of Me is of two kinds: knowledge of My attributes of beauty and
knowledge of My attributes of splendor. Each of these two has a particular
manifestation, and worship embraces both manifestations” (passage quoted in
Haqqi, Ruh al-baydn, IX, pp. 178-179).
Tradition; see p. 93, n. 60.
’Qur’an, 2:261.
'Apparently a Tradition, close in wording to Qur’an, 6:61
("Whoever performs a good deed shall receive tenfold reward”).
’Qur’an, 39:10.
measure that no creature might encompass them with his imagination,
understanding, or intellect, nor speech penetrate their profundity, beyond that
which God Himself said: "I have prepared for My righteous servants that
which no eye has seen, nor ear has heard, nor has crossed the heart of any
man.”6
When it is desired to cultivate a seed in the world of form to reach
perfection as fruit, countless different causes and instruments must be
present, such as the soil in which the seed is sown, the sky which gives rain
and sunlight, both needed to nurture the seed, and the air, which establishes
an equilibrium between the coldness of the soil and the warmth of the sun. Then
too men are required to sow the seed, and a pair of beasts to pull the plough;
iron, wood, and rope to make the plough; and a blacksmith, carpenter, and
ropemaker to produce each of these. Numerous other people must in turn be
constantly at work so that these three can perform their tasks: bakers and
butchers, grocers and cooks, spinners and weavers, washers and sewers, all of
these requiring still others to busy themselves in order that they may devote
themselves to their tasks: millers and muleteers, shepherds and merchants,
horse dealers and camel drivers. Each group of men thus stands in need of the
others in order to perform its functions. Finally, a just and capable monarch
is required to maintain equilibrium among his people, to repel evil and prevent
the oppression of the weak by the strong, and to protect and preserve his
subjects so that all may busy themselves with their tasks in security and
tranquillity.
Indeed, when you examine the matter with care, you see that all that
the world contains—the firmaments and the stars; the heavens and the earth; the
sun and the moon; simple elements and compounds; plants and animals; angels,
jinn, and men; artisans, tradesmen, and merchants; scholars, heads of craft
guilds, and kings; ministers, agents, and armies—all must be constantly at work
for a single seed in the world of form to be sown, nurtured, and yield fruit.
When the seed of spirituality is to be cultivated, and is brought
6A kadis qodsi, recorded by
Bokarl, Moslem, Termezi, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
forth from the unique granary of “of My spirit,” sown in the soil of
the human frame by the husbandry of “I inhaled in him, ’ ’7 and
nurtured to perfection as fruit, this being the station of knowledge, see then
what numerous causes and instruments are needed for the goal to be reached. If
you look to the core of the matter, you will see that this world and the
hereafter, the eight paradises and seven hells and everything that lies
between, all are needed for nurturing the seed so that the fruit of knowledge
may ultimately attain perfection. Thus God said: “I created jinn andmenonly
that they might worship Me”—that is, "knowme.”8
The spirit, therefore, even though it experienced the taste of
nearness to God in the world of spirits, had a degree of knowledge appropriate
to that world, and enjoyed there discourse with God and the vision and
contemplation of Him, was nonetheless destined to attain the perfection of
these stations and the completion of these felicities through attachment to the
frame and being nurtured there. For the instruments and causes, external and
internal, needed for the perfection of knowledge were to be found only in the
frame: the soul, heart, spirit, mystery, and arcane;9 inner means
of perception and other faculties relating to the human state; and the five
outer senses—hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch.
The spirit had possessed in the world of the unseen a light whereby
it perceived the universals of that world, and it had enjoyed there a degree
of intelligence consonant with its station. But it did not have the other means
of perception, relating to both the unseen and the seen, that make it possible
to perceive the universals and particulars of both worlds. Those means were to
be had only here, in the bodily frame, and it was through them and other
instruments that the spirit would become fit for true knowledge—namely,
knowledge of God’s essence and attributes. For God said, “and I desired to be
known.”10
’Qur'an, 15:29.
aQur'an, 51:56.
9The soul, heart, spirit, mystery, and
arcane: in this pentad of “inner means of perception" (modrekat-e
bateni), the intelligence should properly take the place of the soul, as it
does in Daya’s more careful list on p. 139. The Kobravl order paid considerable
attention to the morphology of man’s inner being, and Kobra
himself discusses the nature of the intellect, the spirit, the
heart, and the mystery, as well as the interrelation of these four, in his
major work, Fawa'ih al-Gamal wa Fawatih al-Galal (ed. Fritz Meier
[Wiesbaden, 1957], pp. 168-174). Heart, spirit, and intelligence can all be
deduced from Qur’anic texts; they are discussed by Daya in detail in the
seventh and eighth chapters of this part. As for the mystery (serr),
tentative and sometimes contradictory definitions are offered by earlier Sufi
writers. Abu Nasr al-Sarraj (d. 378/988) describes it as “that which is
inaccessible to the enticements of the soul; that which God has caused to
remain hidden and of which He alone has awareness” (Ketab al-loma', ed.
R. A. Nicholson [London & Leiden, 1914], p. 226). Al-Qoseyri (d. 465/1074)
says of the mystery: "It is most probably a subtle essence (latifa)
lodged in the bodily frame like the spirit; the Sufis regard it as being the
locus of witnessing, in the same way that the spirit is the locus of love and
the heart is the locus of gnosis ... it is more subtle than the spirit, just as
the spirit is nobler than the heart . . . the word ‘mystery’ is also applied to
that which passes between man and God during spiritual states (ahval)
and is sealed and protected" (al-Resalat al-Qosayriya, ed ‘Abd
al-Hallm Mahmud [Cairo, 1385/1966], I, p. 251). Kobra himself regarded the
mystery as occupying the third place in man's inner perceptions, coming after
the heart and the spirit, and he defined it as the place where divine power and
spiritual aspiration (hemmat) meet and coalesce (Fawa’ih al-Gamal wa
Fawatih al-Galal, p. 174). Faced with this multiplicity of definition,
Sehab al-Din Abu Flats ‘Omar al-Sohravardl (an acquaintance, as we have seen,
of Daya) suggested that the word serr in its Sufi sense does not occur
in the Qur’an, and that the mystery cannot therefore be something independent;
it is merely an attribute, either of the heart or the spirit according to
circumstances ('Awaref al-ma'aref, in the margin of-Ehya' 'oltlm
al-din [Cairo, n.d.], IV, pp. 237-240). Daya, however, was of an opposite
opinion, and found a reference to both the mystery (serr) and the arcane (kafi)
in Qur’an, 20:7: “If thou makest utterance aloud, verily He knows the secret (serr)
and what is more hidden (kafi)." Commenting on this verse, he says:
"the secret/mystery is, in the terminology of the people of realization, a
subtle essence between the heart and the spirit. It is the source of the mysteries
of spirituality. Now the arcane/hidden (kafi) is a subtle essence
between the spirit and the divine presence; it is the locus for the descent of
the lights and mysteries of dominicality. . . . The arcane is more hidden than
the mystery; that is, it is more subtle, more precious, more exalted, more
noble and closer to the divine presence than the mystery. It is alluded to in
God’s saying, ‘and He taught Adam the names, all of them,’ and it is the inward
meaning of the Prophet’s saying—peace be upon him: ‘God created Adam and
manifested Himself in him’ ” (quoted in Haqqi, Ruh al-bayan, V, 367).
Identifying “mystery” (serr) in its Sufi sense with this Qur’anic
occurrence of the word, Daya obviously concluded that the word kafi must
also refer to an inner means of perception, translated by us as “arcane.” He
appears to be the first Sufi to use the word in this sense. Ala al-Dowla
SemnanI expanded the fivefold schema of Daya to a sevenfold one, adding qaleb
(bodily frame) and akfa (super-arcane), establishing a complex series of
correspondences between the seven subtle essences (lata'ej), seven major
prophets, seven layers of Qur’anic meaning, seven heavens, etc. (see Henry
Corbin, Eri Islam Iranian [Paris, 1972], III, pp. 278-355). From SemnanI
the concept of a sevenfold inner world of man passed into the general patrimony
of Sufism. We may finally note that Corbin suggests as a translation for serr
“surconscience" and for kafi “transconscience” (L'homme de
lumiere dans le soufisme irrnien [Paris, 1971], 163).
'“Part of a hadis qodsi previously quoted on p. 75.
Knowledge is of three kinds: rational, meditative, and visionary.
Rational knowledge belongs to all men: Muslim and infidel; Christian, Jew, and
Mazdean; heretic, philosopher, naturalist, and materialist. All have a share in
it, for all have the intelligence in common and all are agreed on the
existence of God. The difference between them relates to the attributes of
divinity, not to its essence. Among the people of Islam there is also dispute
concerning the attributes, while all are agreed on the essence. Thus God says:
“If thou ask them, ‘who created the heavens and earth?’ truly they will say,
‘God.’”11 Similarly, those who worshipped idols used to say,
"We worship them only that they might bring us closer to God.”12
This kind of knowledge does not bring salvation unless the gaze of
the intelligence is reinforced by the light of faith, so that prophecy is
accepted and the injunctions and prohibitions of the Law are fulfilled; for it
is by these means alone that the seed of the spirit may be nurtured to
fruition.
Rational knowledge is dependent on the perceptions of the outer
senses and the inner faculties as well as the gaze of the intelligence. The
outer senses first look upon the sensible world, and then the gaze of the
intelligence is exercised through use of the inner faculties. The intelligence
immediately judges that the created object perceived by the outer senses has a
creator, and as it progressively surveys all the species of creation, it discerns
in them the precision of God’s power and the excellence of His creativity. It
deduces that such an act of creation can only have proceeded from one who is
all-powerful, eternally living, all-wise, all-knowing, all-hearing, all-seeing,
everlasting, and endowed with speech and will.13 Thus, he whose gaze
is more
’■Qur'an, 31:25, 39:38.
12Qur’an, 39:3.
■’Of the attributes listed here, “everlasting” (baqi) is
designated by As'arl kalam as fefa salblya (a “negative
attribute”), i.e., one that negates a certain defect or imperfection; while the
remaining eight form the category of the Sefat al-ma'am or the fefat
al-kamal ("attributes of meaning or perfection”); they are neither
identical with the essence nor hypostatically separate from it. See Sa'd al-Din
TaftaZni, Sark al-‘aqd‘ed (Delhi, n.d.), pp. 37 ff., and Ali Arslan
Aydin, Islam Inan^lari ve Felsefesi (Ankara, 1964), p. 181. This listing
of attributes by Daya, despite the intrusion of “everlasting” among the fefat
al- kamal, may be regarded as one of the several proofs of his As'arl
affiliation contained in this work. See too p. 315, n. 17 and p. 483, n. 4.
direct and whose intelligence more lucid, whose veils are fewer and
whose acts of self-denial and meditation more abundant— he it is who will be
able to deduce more from the different classes of creation, and whose proofs
and evidences for the divine unity will be clearer.
But know that it is not for the sake of this kind of knowledge that
the spirit was sent to join the frame: For this kind consists of the search for
proofs, and much dispute arises on the basis of proofs—the unbelievers, the
heretics and the philosophers, all who hold to unbelief, hold to it by virtue
of a proof. When proofs are contradictory, there is no reason to accept one
rather than another except preference. If one happens to accord preference to
the side of truth, then the result is no more than the affirmation of the
Creator by means of rational proofs. The spirit left this stage in the
knowledge of God behind it even before its attachment to the frame, for what
it today hears by way of rational proof, it then heard directly from God
Himself. For He said, ‘Am I not your Lord?” and the spirit answered,
"Indeed Thou art.”14 "Hearing is not the same as seeing,”15
and there would have been no need for the spirit to come to this plane simply
in order to exchange seeing for hearing, and vision for statement. This is what
is referred to in the expression: “Here is the foot; why look for the
footprint?”16
As for meditative knowledge, it belongs to the elect among men, and
is attained in the following way: When the seed of the spirit, sown in the soil
of the human state, is nurtured on the Path with the ordinances of the Law—as
shall be explained, God willing, in the chapter on the adornment of the
spirit—and when the human tree reaches the stage of fruit giving, then the property
that was inherent in the seed will become apparent in the fruit in multiple
form, in addition to things not found in the seed. Thus from each apricot seed
that is planted will grow verdure, the trunk of a tree and its branches,
leaves, blossom, unripe and ripe fruit. Only one seed will have been planted,
but it will yield
“Qur’an, 7:71.
15A Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
I6A conjectural translation of this
proverb, which is not to be found in any of the standard collections of Persian
proverbs. The Turkish translator of the Merfad omitted it in his
version, presumably because of its obscurity.
a thousand exactly like itself, in addition to the skin of the apricot,
the leaves, branches, roots, and trunk of the tree that were not originally
present in the seed. Each of these will have a property absent in the others:
Thus the skin of the fruit will have a property lacking in the kernel, and the
kernel a property lacking in the skin. The seed profits only the mouth, but the
tree and its fruit profit not only the mouth, in superior measure, but also the
eye, for “verdure gives increase to sight.”[55]
The sense of smell is likewise profited by the pleasing perfume of its blossom;
the hand, by its branch, from which a stick may be fashioned; and the foot, by
its wood, from which.clogs may be made. The tree contains many other qualities,
properties, uses, and benefits which were not present in the seed except in
potentiality.
In the same way, the tree of the body has grown from the seed of the
spirit, and put forth in one direction the branches of the soul and its
attributes, and in another direction those of the heart and its attributes. The
leaves of the outer senses appear; the roots of the inner faculties reach down
into the soil; the blossom of the mystery[56]
unfolds; the unripe fruit of the arcane[57]
springs forth; and the mature fruit of knowledge becomes manifest. Thus the
spirit, when it reaches the station of fruithood, has acquired different tools
and instruments that it did not previously possess. Among these are the outer
and inner means of perception. The outer senses—sight, hearing, smell, taste,
and touch—are those by means of which we perceive the manifest world, called
the world of Kingship, with all its multiplicity of number. That which cannot
be perceived by these five senses is called the world of Dominion, the unseen
world with its numerous degrees and stages. This world is perceived by five inner
means of perception: the intelligence, the heart, the mystery, the spirit, and
the arcane.
In the same way that none of the five outer senses can interfere
with the functioning of another, hearing being unable to perceive the visible,
and sight to perceive the audible, so too none of the five inner senses can
interfere with the functioning
of another: the intelligence cannot perceive that which is visible
to the heart, nor the heart that which is comprehended by the intelligence, for
the gaze of the intelligence has a property peculiar to itself. So it is, too,
with the other inner senses. Thus when those who surveyed the rationally
comprehensible with the gaze of the intelligence wished to survey the world of
the heart, the mystery, the spirit, and the arcane, again using their fettered
intelligence in ignorance of that which the heart beholds and the other degrees
of perception, inevitably their intelligence fell into the trap of philosophy
and heresy.
But when the possessor of true felicity enters by the gate of “enter
houses by their doors,”20 he will nourish the seed of the spirit in
accordance with the Law until all his senses attain perfection. He will then
perceive, through his outer and inner senses, all the three hundred and sixty
thousand realms that constitute the worlds of Kingship and Dominion. Whereas in
the world of the unseen he knew only the universals of that world, he now knows
both the universals and particulars of the seen and the unseen worlds. He sees
every atom in each of these worlds to be a manifestation of one of the divine
attributes containing within it one of God’s signs; he removes the veil from
the face of the manifestation, and the beauty of God’s signs is displayed to
him:
In all things is a sign of His inscription, Showing that He is but
One.21
This is the threshold of the world of certainty, as He, said: “Thus
do We show to Abraham the Dominion of the heavens and earth, that he may be
among the certain.”22 Then the pure essence of God may be known in
its unity, and the attributes of divinity may be contemplated with the eye of
certainty. This is the station described by a certain great one when he said:
“I gazed upon naught without seeing God in it.”23 Now this is a
“Qur’an, 2:189.
2'A much-quoted line of the celebrated
Arabic poet, Abu Eshaq Abu’l-’Atahlya (d. 221/836).
22Qur’an, 6:75.
2SA saying of one of the earliest
Sufis, Mohammad b. Vase' (Attar, Tazkerat al-owliyd, I, p. 55).
noble station and the degree of God’s chosen, but the spirit was not
sent to this world as a seed merely for the sake of such knowledge, which is
like mere blossom on the tree of humanity. For the elect among the elect, to
whom has been vouchsafed both supreme capacity and proper training, are not
left at the stage of blossom; instead they are carried on to that of true
fruitfulness, this being visionary knowledge.24 The profound reason
for the creation of all beings was this knowledge, for God said: “I brought
forth creation that I might be known.”25
Visionary knowledge is like a secluded virgin dwelling in the unseen
world, from whose visage no groom from among the prophets or saints has been
permitted to lift the veil of dignity. She has been constantly concealed
beneath the domes of honor and hidden behind the curtain of jealousy, so that
the outsider’s intrusive eye might not fall upon her perfect beauty, and she
might be safe from the crowd’s baneful gaze: “The evil eye is a reality.”26
Kindle, in thy might, a fire on the path to her abode,
Lest some meddling intruder make his way down
the road.
Cover
her moonlike face with her hair
Lest
every vulgar wretch see her visage so fair.27
The moon fell into sore trouble and affliction because the crowd’s
finger was pointed at it, and their luckless gaze fixed upon it. When the sun
observed this, it drew over the multitude the veil of "be distant, shed
light,”28 so that if the pupil of the eye should desire rashly to
gaze upon it, it would sever the head of
“Visionaiy knowledge (ma'rejat-e sohudi): sohtid has the
literal sense of witnessing through immediate presence, and the technical
sense in Sufism of “viewing all things as proofs of the divine unity; the
counterpart of seeing God in all things, it is seeing God’s outwardness in all
things" (JorjanI, Ketab al-ta'rifat, p. 229). It seemed, however,
convenient to translate sohudi, the adjective derived from sohtid,
as "visionary." Concerning sohtid, see also the seventeenth
chapter of this part of the book, and n. 1 on page 294.
“The remaining part of the hadis qodsi quoted on p. 147.
“Part
of a Tradition.
27A quatrain quoted, with some
adaptation, from Sana’I (Divan, p. 578).
!*"Be distant" (dur bas):
an allusion to a jeweled mace, called dur bas, that was carried in front
of kings to clear their path of all lesser mortals.
that gaze with the sword of the rays. Thus it remained safe from the
evil eye, and while the gaze of the inquisitive visited affliction on the
moon, the sun unsheathed the sword of its rays against all that could see (for
the unseeing perceive naught of the sun but its warmth).
To resume: If the shaikhs have up to now fastened the veil of
jealousy on the virgins of the unseen world, instead of throwing back the
covering of dignity with the hand of speech, so that the beauty of knowledge
has remained hidden, it was because they did not perceive in every group of men
the virility of servitude, and found the generosity of high intent only in some
men.
Hoseyn b. Mansur had a sister who laid claim to manly intent on the
Path, and was also beautiful. She would come to Baghdad with one half of her
face covered by a veil and the other half exposed. A great one came to her and
asked: “Why do you not cover your face entirely?” She said: "Show me a
man, that I may cover my face. In all of Baghdad there is only half a man, and
that is Hoseyn. If it were not for him, I would leave this half uncovered
also!”29
If then today the moon of gnosis emerges from the halo of dignity,
it will be safe from the baneful gaze of all who might point at it the finger
of wonder, for they themselves are so rare as to be objects of wonder. If the
sun of unity, dispensing with the sword of jealousy, rises from behind the
Mount Qaf of duality, it will be untroubled, for those avid watchers have set
like the Slmorg behind the Mount Qaf30 of exile—“Islam began as
“Hoseyn b. Mansur, better known as I.fallaj (d. 309/922), possibly
the most celebrated of all the early Sufis. His theopathic utterances earned
him condemnation and death, but also posthumous repute among many Sufis as a
martyr of the Path. His life and teachings have been studied extensively by
Louis Mas- signon, albeit with a certain Christological bias. See above all La
passion d'al- Hallaj (Paris, 1922). I am not aware of any source in which
the present anecdote concerning Hallaj’s sister is to be found.
’“The Simorg: a phoenixlike bird originating in the pre-Islamic
mythology of Iran, but adapted to various symbolic purposes in Sufi expression.
The most celebrated appearance of the Slmorg in Sufi literature is in Attar's
poem, Manteq al-teyr, where it figures as a symbol for the Perfect or
Universal Man (ensan-e kamel' (see n. 52 below). Mount Qaf: the mountain
on the extreme edge of the world that is the nesting ground of the Simorg, as
well as the towering frame of that tenebrous region where the Water of Life is
found.
a stranger and shall become again a stranger, as it began.”31
And if the secluded virgins of the unseen were to pronounce the removal of all
veils, there would be none to reproach them, for those nobles who used
everywhere to boast of their virility have departed for the heights: “On the
heights—glory be to God—are men vanished and gone.”32
It is as if they were all eunuchs, For not one is left of their
stock.
Visionary knowledge is, then, the knowledge of the elect among the
elect, those who are the choice essence of all creatures and the foremost of
all beings; the two realms and the two horizons are dependent upon them, and
their existence is in truth the point at the center of the circle of pre- and
post-eternity.
I have composed a verse in this sense:
Before being was, there was naught but I and thou; Love’s substance
and result, together, I and thou.
“Today and yesterday,” “late and early,” these are now;
Then neither late nor early, naught but I and thou.
The essential benefit deriving from the attachment of the spirit to
the frame is then the true essence of this species of knowledge. For human
spirits were, like the angels, aware of the attributes of God’s lordship, but
there was interposed between them and the attributes, concealed behind the
covering of dignity, several thousand veils of light. If a single one of these
veils were to be lifted, all the angelic spirits, including Gabriel, the spirit
of sanctity, would cry out: “Were I to approach a finger’s breadth, I would surely
be burned!”33 Such is the property of the rays of light shed by the
luminous veils. Whenever the
’'Tradition recorded by Moslem, TermezI, Ebn Maja, DaremI, and Ebn
Hanbal.
S2An adaptation of Qur’an, 7:46: “On
the heights shall be men who know all by their marks," a verse generally
understood to relate to the Day of Judgment.
’’Words uttered by Gabriel when proclaiming his inability to
accompany the Prophet beyond the Lote Tree of the Extremity (see p. 84, n. 32
above) into the most immediate presence of God at the climax of the Me'raj. Cf.
Rumi, Mathnawi, ed. R. A. Nicholson (London, 1925), I, p. 66 (1. 1066).
attributes of divinity are manifested in their immediate reality,
vision and visionary knowledge will result, and the figurative being of the spirit,
beholding the reality of that vision, will proclaim: “The Truth has come and
the false has vanished; truly the false was destined to vanish.”34
Who, then, has the capacity to partake of such knowledge?35
The spirit is in itself exceedingly delicate and unable to receive
the reflection of the manifestation of the attributes of divinity, and the same
is true of the angels. As for the animals, they were not given the fivefold
inner senses—the intelligence, heart, mystery, spirit, and arcane—that they might
perceive the lights of that manifestation.
Hence the limitless wisdom and boundless power of God decreed that
when Adam’s clay was being kneaded by the hand of His might, there should be
fashioned within his inner being— that treasurehouse of the unseen world—a
heart like glass, dense yet utterly translucent. This glass was then placed in
the niche of his dense, dark body, and a lamp fashioned in the glass of his
heart: “The lamp is in a glass.”36 This lamp is known as the
mystery, and in it was inserted the wick of the arcane. Then the oil of the
spirit, taken from the blessed tree of “of My spirit,”37 not from
the orient of the world of Dominion nor from the Occident of the world of
Kingship,38 was poured into the glass of the heart. It was an exceedingly
pure and luminous oil, for it almost gave light to the lamp even before fire
had touched it: “Its oil nearly gives light, though the fire hath not touched
it.”39 On account of the extreme luminosity of the oil of the
spirit, the glass of the heart also attained utmost luminosity: “The glass is,
as it were, a gleaming planet.”40 The reflection of the luminosity
of the glass fell upon the inner space of the niche and illumined it, this
“Qur’an, 17:81.
55Compare the similar passage in the Lama'al
of ‘EraqI concerning the annihilating effects that follow upon the removal of
the veil of the attributes (Kolliyat, p. 391).
“Qur’an, 24:35.
“Qur’an, 15:29.
“See p. 83, n. 19.
“Qur’an, 24:35.
“Qur’an, 24:35.
illumination constituting the intelligence, while the inner space of
the niche itself, having received the reflection of the glass, came to form the
human faculties. The rays that penetrated through apertures from within the
niche to the outside were called the five outer senses. Until these instruments
and means of perception had attained perfection in this fashion, the secret of
"I was a hidden treasure”41 could not become apparent—or, to
express it differently, the lamp and all that pertained to it were needed for
the manifestation of God’s light. Until the lamp came into being, even though
the manifestation of God’s ethereal fire had encompassed all the particles of
creation— “Does He not encompass all things?”42—it was nonetheless
concealed—“I was a hidden treasure.”43 For the light of that fire
to manifest itself, the lamp was necessary with all that pertained to it.
In the world of spirits, the oil of spirituality was formless and
incapable of receiving the luminosity of fire. In the world of animality, both
niche and glass existed, but not the lamp, the oil, and the wick, and it too
was therefore incapable of receiving the luminosity of fire. Therefore a union
of these two worlds was fashioned, in the shape of Adam. His body was made the
niche; his heart, the glass; his mystery, the lamp; his arcane, the wick; and
his spirit, the oil. Then the fire of the divine light manifested itself in its
immediate reality to the lamp in. the niche, a mystery alluded to by the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, in his saying: "God Almighty created Adam and
manifested Himself in him.”44 And God Almighty and Glorious has
said in explanation of this matter: “God is the light of the heavens and the
earth; and the likeness of His light is a niche wherein a lamp is set; the lamp
is in a glass; the glass is, as it were, a gleaming planet, lit from a blessed
olive tree, neither of the orient nor of the Occident; its oil nearly gives
light, though
"Part of a hadis qodsi quoted on p. 147. ’’Qur'an,
41:54.
’’Part of a hadis qodsi quoted on p. 147. ’’A Tradition of
dubious authenticity.
the fire hath not touched it. Light upon light; God guides to His
light whomsoever He wills.”45
The meaning of these words is as follows. The light of the lamp is
from God’s light, and it falls upon the light of the oil of the spirit: “God
guides to His light whomsoever He wills.” There is here an indication that
although everyone possesses both niche and lamp, not every lamp is lit with
God’s light, although lit with the light of the oil of the spirit.
The glass of everyone’s heart has, however, a certain luminosity
derived from the light of the spirit, which is known as the intelligence, and
the reflection of that luminosity illumines the inside and outside of the niche
with the human faculties and the outer senses. Thus a group of distraught and
deprived wanderers whose entire trust is placed in the intelligence and the
objects it perceives have come to imagine that their lamp is lit with real
light. They are unaware that the light they perceive in themselves is derived
from the reflection cast by the light of the oil of the spirit, and is thus
only a figurative light: “Its oil nearly gives light, though the fire hath not
touched it.” The meaning of “nearly gives light” is that the oil desired to
illumine, but failed to do so. The lamp of this group of men is extinguished by
the fire of God’s light, and of this they are unaware, for only he whose lamp
was once lit with real light and who experienced it can be aware, so that he
will be conscious of its extinction. God Almighty has made mention of these two
groups, those whose lamp is lit with the reality of God’s light, and those
whose lamp is deprived of that light, in the following verse: “Is he who was
dead, whom We brought back to life and to whom We appointed
’’Qur’an, 24:35. It should be noted that this “anthropological"
interpretation of the Light Verse is not intended by Daya to exhaust its
meaning. In his tafstr, he suggests a different set of meanings for the
various elements in the verse, identifying the lamp with the Footstool (see p.
84, n. 26) and the glass with the Throne (see p. 84, n. 25); the whole
constitutes “a simile coined by God Almighty for the sake of mankind; each
group of men, commonalty and elect, will comprehend it in accordance with its
station and capacity" (quoted in Ilaqqi, Ruh al-bayan, VI, p. 157).
The “anthropological” interpretation is clearly destined for the elect. It
corresponds essentially to Gazali's celebrated commentary upon the same verse,
the Meskat al-anwar (Cairo, 1343/1924); English translation, W. H. T.
Gairdner, The Niche for Lights (London, 1924).
a light whereby he might walk among men, like he whose likeness is
one in darkness, never emerging therefrom?”46
This, then, is the description of visionary knowledge, to the degree
that it is at all capable of being confined within the fold of expression and
the retreat of indication. He who knows it, knows it; and he who is ignorant of
it, is ignorant of it. Whoever is living by that light will comprehend and
perceive our words and be chastened thereby (“that he might warn all who
live”),47 while those who are dead to that light, even though you
recite into their ear a thousand times what we have written, will be unable to
hear a single word; for “Thou shalt not make the dead to hear.”48
Know then that the reason for the attachment of the spirit to the
bodily frame consists in the matters set out above. Had it not been for this
attachment, the spirit could not have acquired those means of perception of the
seen and unseen worlds that enable it to receive the manifestation of the
attributes of divinity and to be the oil in the lamp for the knowledge of the
divine essence and attributes. If a hundred thousand intelligent ones should
attempt to describe the luminous and igneous nature of the lamp, all they say will
be but figurative. The true description is that furnished by the wick and the
oil, for both sacrifice their beings in order to experience the visionary
knowledge of light and of fire.
O candle, why smile thus vainly to thyself?
Dost thou resemble my heart’s burning in aught?
A fire that mounts up from the soul
Is different from one tied on by a string.49
What a strange mystery is this, that all these different means are
needed for the oil of the spirit to be able to sacrifice its being. The wick
too is but a means for the spirit to change its figurative
“Qur’an, 6:123.
’’Qur’an, 36:70.
“Qur’an, 27:80, 30:52.
“By “one tied on by a string" is meant the flame at the end of
a wick.
being into true being, and to make visible and manifest its own true
being as fire which was invisible and hidden.
In reality, in the same way that the oil was enamored of the fire,
in order to turn figurative into true being, so too the fire was enamored of
the oil in order to reveal the hidden treasure. This is the mystery of “He will
love them and they will love Him,”50 and the true meaning of "I
was a hidden treasure and I desired to be known.”51 All of this was
the beneficial result of the attachment of the spirit to the bodily frame, that
creation came to know God’s pure Essence in its unity and to recognize all the
divine attributes.
To know is to see; to see is to attain; to attain is to taste; to
taste is to be; to be is not to be; and not to be is to be.
No night hast thou laid eyes on Solomon;
What knowest thou then of the birds’ tongue?52
If the spirit had not attained its various means of perception
through attachment to the bodily frame and acquired various instruments,
talents, and faculties for perceiving the unseen and the seen, it would never
have reached this station in the knowledge of the Unity of the Essence and the
attributes of the Knower of the Unseen and Seen. Since the angels did not have
the characteristics and attributes acquired by the human spirit when it was
attached to the frame, they were unfit for the task of viceregency and
deputyship, unable to bear the burden of the Trust, and incapable of being a
mirror for the beauty and splendor of God. Thus none would ever have discovered
the treasure of “I was a hidden treasure.”
’“Qur’an, 5:57.
^Hadis qodsi; see p. 26, n. 8.
’’Verse quoted from the Seyr al-'ebad of Sana’I (in Masnaviha-ye
Sana'i, ed. Mohammad Taqi Modarres Razavl [Tehran, 1348 S./1969], p. 229).
“The birds’ tongue”: Solomon is credited with having known the speech of the
birds; cf. Qur’an, 27:16: "And He said: ’We have been taught the speech of
the birds (manteq al-teyr).'” Sufi lafstr generally identifies
the birds with “spirits that speak of truth/reality while in the body, by way
of symbol and mystery” (Haqql, Ruh al-bayan, VI, 331). See too Rene
Guenon, “La Langue des Oiseaux,” in Symboles /ondamenlaux de la Science
sacree (Paris, 1962), pp. 75-79, for a suggested correlation between the
birds and the angelic order.
No path led to thy dwelling; I cut out the path.
In the mirror of affliction I cast my steady gaze.
A happy and joyous life I wasted down to ruin;
None is to be blamed, for I incurred the blame.
Peace be upon our master Mohammad and upon all his family.
Third Chapter:
Concerning the
Need for Prophets, Upon Whom Be Peace, for Man's Cultivation
God Almighty said: “Those it is whom God has guided: follow then
their guidance.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The prophets
are leaders and the scholars are masters.”2
Know that when God Almighty sealed the talisman of the worlds of
Kingship and Dominion by wedding man’s spirit to his frame, He fashioned it so
strongly and closed it so firmly with different locks that no man or angel can
open it by his own efforts and deliberations, however much he may try. For the
talisman is sealed with the lock of seventy thousand veils of light and
darkness, and if the talisman could be opened, the spirit would never remain in
the prison of this world—‘This world is a prison for the beliver.”3
When a monarch imprisons someone, he always closes the door of the prison so
firmly that the prisoner cannot open it. God set His supreme talisman in place
in his own divine person and permitted none to see it: “I did not cause them to
witness the creation of the heavens and the earth, nor their own creation.”4
He possesses the true power of opening, and the key is in His command: “He has
the keys of the heavens and the earth.”5 Only He may open the locks
on this talisman, or one to whom He entrusts the key.
When God Almighty wished Adam’s progeny to exist in the world, He
first created Adam out of dust, with neither mother nor father, and then
created Eve out of Adam, her father, but without mother, in order to
demonstrate His power. He then entrusted to Adam and Eve as His deputies the
task of creating Adam’s progeny. They joined together, and He caused offspring
to come forth from them.
‘Qur’an, 6:90.
2 A Tradition recorded by Deylaml.
’A Tradition recorded by TermezI, TabaranI, and Ebn Habban.
’Qur’an, 18:52.
’Qur’an, 39:63, 42:12.
Similarly, when He wished to open the supreme talisman of all
created being, to free the human spirit from confinement in the fetters of the
frame and to bring it back to the world of nearness with all the benefits it
had acquired on its journey, He chose in each age and epoch one from among His
creatures whom He exalted over all His bondsmen and honored with the gaze of
His grace:
One day on my wretched self thou cast a gaze;
All that I ever gained, from that gaze it came.
The seed of this felicity had been sown in the world of spirits, in
the station of immediacy. The spirit won the fruit of acceptance and
unhindered nearness, and hence the Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings,
said: “The spirits are armies prepared for battle.”6 In the
primordial age, the spirits were arranged in four ranks, like armies drawn up
in lines. The first rank was that of the spirits of the prophets, upon whom be
peace, standing in the station of immediacy; the second rank was that of the
spirits of the saints; the third, that of the spirits of the believers; and the
fourth, that of the spirits of the unbelievers. The spirits in the first rank
were nurtured in the station of immediacy with the intimate gaze of God
Almighty, and thus were enabled to act as the Adam of the age in opening the
talisman of the world of form. Through their guidance, all men may leam how to
open the talisman—“Those it is whom God has guided; follow then their
guidance.”7
The divine intention in this verse is the following: “I have taught
the prophets in My divine person, without intermediary, the science of opening
talismans. For many years they received the radiant light of My gaze in the
station of immediacy, and thus became worthy for the door of their hearts to be
opened by the workings of My divine attraction, descending from the unseen. We
taught them the secret art of the talisman in the school of ‘the Compassionate
One, taught the Qur’an,’8 for 'those it is to whom We gave the Book
and wisdom and prophethood.’9 But as
’Tradition recorded by Bokari, Moslem, Abu Da'ud, and Ebn Hanbal.
’Qur’an, 6:90.
“Qur'an, 55:1-2.
“Qur’an, 6:89.
for those who first received the affluence of Our grace in the world
of spirits from behind the veil of prophetic spirits, they cannot today
approach Our presence without intermediary nor open unaided the talisman We
have set. ‘This is the custom of God that has been in past ages; and thou shalt
find no changing in God’s custom.’10 Let them serve, then, as
apprentices in the shop of the prophets and diligently observe the command of
‘this is my path, the straight; follow it, then, shunning all others, for they
would lead you astray from His path.’11 ‘Dost thou wish for union
with the bride? Attend then to the broker.’”12
They must first learn the alphabet of the Law at the school of
divine legislation, for each commandment of the Law is a key to one of the
locks on the supreme talisman. When you faithfully fulfil a commandment in the
proper manner, one of the locks enclosing the talisman will be opened and a
breeze from the exhalations of divine grace will be wafted to your soul: “God
sends His exhalations to you in the days of your life; will ye not receive
them?”13 Receiving them is by heeding the commandsand prohibitions
of the Law. Each footstep taken on the road of adherence to the Law is a means
for approaching God Almighty, for traveling one stage on the path that leads
back to the world whence man came: “There is naught that brings men nigh unto
Me as performing that which I have made incumbent upon them.”14 When
you plant your feet on this path with sincere intent, God’s sustaining grace
will come forth apparently to greet, but in reality to aid you: "Whosoever
approaches Me a hand’s breadth, I shall approach him a cubit; whoever approaches
me a cubit, I shall approach him a span; whoever comes to me walking, I shall
go to him running.”15
If thou should plant thy foot firmly on the path of loverhood,
'“Qur’an, 33:62.
"Qur’an, 6:153.
’’Apparently a proverb indicating the necessity of recourse to
intermediaries.
’’Tradition generally quoted with a slightly different wording
(“your Lord" instead of “God”); see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi,
p. 20.
"Opening part of a hadis qodsi, generally recorded with
a slightly different wording. See Zeyn al-Dln al-Haddadl, al-Ethafat
al-saniya be'l-ahadis al-qodsiya (Cairo, 1388/1968), p. 149.
’’Fusion of two hadis qodsi, recorded by Moslem and Ebn
Hanbal.
The beloved will come to thee at the first step thou takest.
Since the lock on the talisman of man’s being cannot, then, be
opened except with the key of the Law, know it to be truth that the Law needs
such as will bring and proclaim it, these being the prophets, upon whom be
God’s blessings.
There are certain other aspects of the matter that are to be set
forth, God willing, in the chapter concerning the need for a shaikh, where it
will be shown that if there is need for a shaikh, there is even greater need
for a prophet.
And God knows best concerning the truth.
Fourth Chapter:
Concerning the Abrogation
of Previous Religions and the Sealing of Prophethood with Mohammad, upon Whom
Be Peace and Blessings
God Almighty said: “Mohammad was not the father of a man from among
you; rather, he was the Messenger of God and the Seal of the Prophets.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “I have been
granted excellence over the other prophets in six things: the earth has been
made a mosque for me, with its soil declared pure; booty has been made lawful
for me; I have been given victory through the inspiring of awe at the distance
of a month’s journey; I have been given permission to intercede; I have been
sent to all mankind; and the prophets have been sealed with me.”2
Know that God Almighty, in His uncaused grace, has severed the
relation of the Prophet to Adam and his progeny, and attached him instead to
the world of prophethood and messengerhood: “Mohammad was not the father of a
man from among you.” Mohammad was not of you and your world; rather he was the
Messenger of God and the Seal of the Prophets. The whole world is illumined
with his light; water and clay have no claim on him. Adam himself subsists
through Mohammad; do not imagine Mohammad to be a dependent of Adam.
Think not that we are of the race of Adam,
For when Adam still was not, already then we were.
Without the distraction of ‘eyn and sin and qaf,
of body or heart,
We and Love and the Beloved, all in intimate union.3
'Qur’an, 33:40.
2Tradition transmitted by Moslem,
TermezI, and Ebn IJanbal.
s'Eyn, sin
and qaf: the letters that make up the word esq, "love."
A quatrain by Afzal al-Din KasanI (Mosannafat, II, p. 770).
Should a falcon leave the arm of its royal master to hunt its prey
and alight to rest for a moment on the wall of some old woman’s abode, it does
not thereby become the old woman’s property. However long it tarries, when it
hears the drumbeat or trumpet blast, it will fly back to the arm of its royal
master.4
When for a moment I come nigh to the candle of thy cheek, I
surrender my soul like the moth in despair.
And on
that day when this cage I must quit, Back to my master’s arm I will fly like
the falcon.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “What bond is there between
me and this world? I am like a rider on a summer’s day who dismounts to rest in
the shade of a tree, then mounts again and departs.”5 His meaning
was this: “How vast is the gulf between me and this world! I am he to whom was
displayed, at the station of the Lote Tree, all that the treasury of the unseen
contained, all the gems and jewels of the worlds of Kingship and Dominion, and
I did not look upon them even from the corner of my eye of lofty intent—‘when
there covered the Lote Tree that which covered it, his eye swerved not, nor
strayed.’6 In that game of hazard, I played and lost the coin of
existence, and flew through the gate of nonbeing back to the primal nest of ‘or
nearer.’”7
Our shaikh,8 may God be pleased in him, has said:
I was a falcon flown down from on high To snatch some prey up to the
heavens.
Yet none did I find here to share in the secret and I left once more
by the door that I came.
And again:
On that day when union’s goal is reached
’A figure already employed by All b. ‘Osman Hojvlrl (d. 465/1073?)
in Kasf al-mahjub (Samarkand. 1330/1912), p. 12.
’Tradition recorded by TermezI and Ebn Maja.
6Qur’an, 53:16.
’Qur’an, 53:9.
8I.e., Majd al-Din Bagdad!, concerning
whom see Introduction, pp. 9-10.
And
the bird flies forth from its cage, The spirit shall hear the king’s clarion
call, “Return!”9 and fly back to the royal master’s arm.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, further intends in the tradition
just quoted: “I severed my connection with this world and the hereafter and all
eight paradises on that day when I fashioned this genealogy, that ‘I am of
God.’10 All ties that related me to the created state were sundered
and there remained only my line of descent from God. All parentage and descent
shall be severed, except my parentage and descent.’11 And to others
God says: ‘On that day no parentage shall there be between them, nor shall they
be asked concerning it.’12
“I have moreover borne off the contested ball of primacy in every
field. With respect to the primordial nature of man, I was the first shoot to
grow on that tree, for ‘the first that God created was my light.’131
will be the first, too, to emerge from the dust on the Plain of Resurrection,
like a pearl from its shell—I shall be the first yielded up by the earth on the
Day of Resurrection.’14 And if you seek in the station of
intercession, you will see that I am the first to succor with my intercession
those submerged in the sea of their sins—‘I am the first intercessor, and the
first to be caused to intercede.’15 If you speak of primacy and
leadership on the bridge of §erat, know that I shall be the first to place my
foot on that sharp, narrow path—‘I shall be the first to cross the §erat.’16
If you wish for the one who shall occupy the foremost place in Paradise, know
that I shall be the first for whom the gates of Paradise are opened so that I
may behold what lies within—‘I am the first for whom the gates of Paradise
shall be opened.’17 If you look for the leader of all lovers, the
paragon of
’"Return!" (erje'i): taken from Qur'an, 59:27:
"Return unto thy Lord (O tranquil soul) well-pleased and well-pleasing."
'“Beginning of a Tradition that continues “and the believers are of
me.” See above, p. 63.
"Tradition.
'’Qur'an,.23:102.
13Tradition previously quoted on p.
63.
"Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
'’Part of a Tradition recorded by Moslem and Dareml.
'“Tradition recorded by Nasa’I.
'Tradition recorded by Dareml.
devotees, know that I am the first devoted lover to gain the
auspicious fortune of union with the Beloved—‘I am the first to whom the Lord
manifested Himself.’18 How strange, that all of this should be mine,
while my own self is lost to me—‘as for I, I speak not of L’ ”
When that moonlike visage appears, who am I that I might be I?
For once without self, with her I am then happy. If I seem to have
substance, know that it is her,
And if she seems to have shadow, know that it is me.19
That which you have heard concerning the Prophet, upon whom be peace
and blessings, having no shadow, is true for two reasons: first because the
Prophet was, from one point of view, the sun—“a summoner to God, with His
permission, and a lightgiving lamp”20—and the sun has no shadow;
and second because he was, from a different point of view, the monarch of
religion, and the monarch is the shadow of God—“the monarch is God’s shadow
upon earth”21—and a shadow has no shadow. Insofar as he was
concerned with men, he was a light-bestowing sun, and the first and the last of
mankind were created from his light. When he turned to the Almighty Presence,
he became the shadow thereof, so that those wanderers in the wilderness of misguidance
who wished to take refuge in God might find shelter in obedience to his
auspicious person. “Whoever obeys the Prophet obeys God.”22 And
whenever he turned to himself, he fled from himself and took refuge in God’s
shadow—“I have a time with God which neither cherub nor prophetic messenger can
attain.”23
For a few days like a shadow I pursued him, Content with his shadow
for it was his shadow.
1’Tradition of dubious authenticity.
'’Quoted from a poem of Sana’I (Divan, p. 678).
“Qur’an, 33:46.
21An alleged Tradition, previously
quoted on p. 49. See also p. 49, n. 32. 22Qur'an, 4:79.
25A Tradition much beloved of Sufi
authors; see ForOzanfar, Ahadls-e Masnavl, p. 39.
Today it is as plain to me as the sun
That no shadow will he cast over my strivings.24
Even though the Prophet was a sun for all mankind, he was nurtured
by God’s shadow: “I am lodgedin my Lord’s presence”; he ate from the spread of
“He feeds me”; and he drank from the goblet of “He gives me to drink.”25
Jamal al-Dln Abd al-Razzaq says:
Thy food, “I am lodged in my Lord’s presence,”
Thy sleep, “my heart slumbers not.”
The twin realms lie beneath thy feet;
Thou has passed the limit of “two bowstrings.” The people of the
world are the dust of thy feet,
The sons of Adam stand beneath thy banner.
Peacock-like angels are thy messengers,
The leaders of the cherubim are thy devotees.
No acts of worship can we offer for sale;
From us, naught but sin, and from thee, intercession.26
Even though each of the prophets, upon whom be peace and blessings,
was the leader of his people’s caravan—“those are Our messengers, some of whom
We have caused to excel others”27— and all were chosen by God, some
enjoying preference over others, so that they might each guide a people along-
the path of religion through the gate of certainty to the Plain of Resunce-
tion, nonetheless the Prophet Mohammad was the caravan leader who first stepped
forth from the concealment of non- being and led the entire caravan of creation
out onto the plain of being—“We are the last and the foremost.”28
And when it is time for the caravan to return, he who was once the vanguard
shall then bring up the rear: “The prophets have been sealed with me.”
’’Quoted from a poem of Anvari (Divan, p. 601).
25These three phrases taken together
form a Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, and Ebn Hanbal.
26Although attributed here to Jamal
al-Din Abd al-Razzaq Esfahani, this poem is not to be found in his printed Divan.
2’Qur'an, 2:253.
28Tradition recorded by Bokarl,
Moslem, Nasa’I, and Dareml.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, says: “ ‘I have been
granted excellence over the other prophets in six things.’29 The
first is that for each prophet a certain mosque was appointed wherein he might
pray, all other places being deemed unfit. When my turn came, the entire
surface of the earth was made a mosque for me, so that I and my people may pray
wherever we desire.”
What meaning is contained in this distinction? A mosque is a place
of prostration, and the length and breadth of the realm of the earlier prophets
had been such that they were able to sanctify only a single mosque with the
alchemy of the light of prophethood, and could not transform the soil of this
world into the celestial paradise. Then too, they each nurtured beneath the wing
of their prophethood only those few individuals who constituted their
community, and each of them was assigned to a single people.
Moreover, the effectiveness of the alchemy of their prophethood had
not attained that state of perfection which would have made licit and pure the
impure property of the unbelievers captured as booty. In addition, no prophet
before Mohammad had been fully delivered from the veil of the self in order
then to devote himself to intercession for others; indeed, each of them will be
constantly proclaiming his selfhood on the Day of Resurrection. Furthermore,
the power and might of each of the prophets had been such that only when they
confronted an enemy were they able to repel him, but when the enemy receded
they were unable to rout him. Finally, the strength of the prophethood of each
was such that although in his own lifetime he led his own people, the need
arose after his death for another prophet to lead them.
But when the turn of prophethood came to Mohammad, upon whom be
peace and blessings, the beloved of pre- and posteternity, the alchemy of his
prophethood was of the utmost strength, so that its workings were able to
penetrate and transform the earth that had been Satan’s fief and disdained by
the
’’Parts of the Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
All-Compassionate One—“God did not look upon the worldafter creating
it, in repugnance”30—into the house of God and a series of mosques
for the bondsmen of the All-Compassionate One— "the earth has been made a mosque
for me.” Dark earth was raised to the degree of pure water (“with its soil
declared pure”) and the impure booty of the infidels was turned into pure and
licit property ("Booty has been made lawful for me.”) The banner of
intercession was placed in his capable hands—“I have been given permission to
intercede”—and every nation that shall be until the end of the world was made
part of his people: “I have been sent to all mankind.” Finally, all enemies
within the radius of a month’s journey were routed, being struck with awe of
his blows and fear of his might: “I have been given victory through the
inspiring of awe at the distance of a month’s journey.”31
As in the beginning, the sermon of prophethood was pronounced to
the heavens in his name: "I was a prophet when Adam was still between
water and clay”32—so too in the end the coin of the seal of
prophethood was struck in his name. It is indeed not strange that he should be
the seal of the prophets, for as we have previously shown, Mohammad, upon whom
be peace, was both the seed of the tree of creation and its fruit, while the
other prophets were the branches and leaves of the tree. Now leaves will sprout
forth on a tree only as long as the fruit has not appeared, and once it has
appeared, no more branches or leaves will grow. The fruit is the sealing of
all, and thus prophecy was sealed with Mohammad, upon whom be peace.
Now the Jews and Christians might ask us: “What proof is there that
Mohammad was a prophet? And even if it be established that he was a prophet,
why must his religion abrogate all others, and why is it necessary that each
people should abandon the religion brought by its own prophets and follow him?
Each prophet has a book from God; why then should all books other
’“Presumably intended as a Tradition; I have not been able to
identify its source.
’'“With its soil declared pure,” etc., are all parts of the
Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
”A Tiadition frequently quoted by the Sufis in illustration of the
pre-eternal connection of the Prophet with the institution of prophethood.
than his be abrogated, and all religions vanish and yield to his?
Why is it not fitting that, as in the age of other prophets, each people should
follow its own religion, with each book and religion remaining in force?”
The answer to be given them is twofold, one rational and the other
relating to inner truth. The rational reply is that we should say to them: “The
same question applies to you. In the light of what evidence did you recognize
Moses and Jesus, upon both of whom be peace and blessings, to be prophets,
without seeing either them or their miracles?” Their answer can be only one of
two things: either “The accounts of their miracles have come down to us by
tradition;33 tradition is a source of knowledge, and miracles are a
proof of true prophethood”; or “The matter is confirmed for us by our heart,
through the light of faith, and we have no need of further evidence.”
To this we then say: “Our evidence is exactly the same, for accounts
of the miracles of Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings, have come down
to us by tradition. As for confirmation by the heart, springing from the light
of faith, it is in truth we who possess it, for we believe in all of the
prophets and their books, not like you who believe in some and not others. The
Jews refuse to believe in Jesus, upon whom be peace and blessings, and his
book; and the Christians refuse to believe in Moses, upon whom be peace and
blessings, and his book, while yet calling Jesus the Son of God and the third
part of the trinity. ‘Verily God is exalted above that which the transgressors
say concerning Him.’34
“Furthermore, the miracle of each prophet is confined to his own
age; when he departs, he takes the miracle with him. But the special property
of the religion of Mohammad is that one of his miracles, namely, the Qur’an,
has survived him and will remain until the end of the world. The miraculous
nature of the
’’Tradition (tavator): more exactly, that which is current
and universally accepted without query or investigation; "that which is
established through currency on men’s tongues and cannot be imagined to have
originated from a conspiracy to lie” (JorjanJ, Ketab al-la'rifat, p.
74).
’’This sentence is close to Qur’an, 17:43: “Glorified and most
exalted be God above that which they say concerning Him.”
Qur’an is to be seen in the fact that it has defeated all the
efforts of the eloquent, whether among the Arabs or other peoples, to produce
its like, and this indeed was his challenge: ‘Say: If men and jinn united to
produce the like of this Qur’an, they would be unable, even if they aided each
other.’35
“What miracle could be greater than this, that despite numerous
enemies and adversaries in east and west, eloquent rhetoricians among the
Arabs and other peoples, the People of the Book, and the philosophers and
materialists who regard the world as eternal, deny the resurrection of the
body, and consider the Qur’an to be the word of Mohammad—that despite all of
these he delivered a powerful challenge and prophesied that for more than six
hundred years none would be able to defy it? And in truth none has been able to
produce a book like the Qur’an, either separately or with the aid and
assistance of others.”
The truthfulness of this prophecy is in itself a manifest miracle,
and an indication of how all else that the Prophet has foretold shall come to
pass in due time. Thus he foretold in particular the coming of the accursed
Tartar unbelievers—may God destroy them—when he said that resurrection would
not come until his people should fight against a tribe of the Turks with small
eyes, broad noses, and wide faces like the skin drawn tight over a shield, and
there would be much killing.36 This has indeed come to pass. Nor may
we yet rest secure, for there are further indications contained in the
Traditions of the Prophet that have not yet come to pass. O God, we ask of Thee
forgiveness and well-being, protection in affairs of religion and the world,
and an end to our lives in a manner pleasing unto Thee, by Thy generosity and
bounty.
As, then, the People of the Book have accepted Jesus and Moses as
prophets because of accounts of their miracles handed down by tradition, so too
they should more readily accept the prophethood of Mohammad, were it not for
their obstinacy; for his age is closer at hand, accounts of it are more
plentiful and trustworthy, and the miracles constituted by the Qur’an and his
foretelling of events are as plain as could be desired.
’’Qur’an, 17:88.
’Tradition quoted in full on p. 40.
The faith of the Jews and the Christians, even in the previous
prophets, is by way of imitation of their mothers and fathers, without any
clear proof, and is not the result of the gaze of the intelligence; nor is it
confirmed by the light of the heart. As it is said in the Qur’an: “We found our
fathers adhering to a religion, and we follow them in guidance.”37
Similarly, the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said, “Every child is born in his
primordial disposition; it is his parents who make of him a Jew, a Christian,
or a Magian.”38 A religion that is taken on authority from mother
and father without the light of faith or the gaze of intelligence has no value
and is the opposite of true religion.
Now as to the query why, if the prophethood of Mohammad is
established and accepted, his religion must abrogate all others, our answer is
this: “Since you have admitted his claim to prophethood to be true, you must
regard him as truthful of speech and accept his book. Now in the glorious
Qur’an, which is his Book, it is said: ‘He it is Who sent His messenger with
guidance and the religion of truth to make it prevail over all religion, though
those who assign partners to God may be averse’;39 for all that is
in the books of other prophets is in his Book, and all that is in their laws is
contained within his Law, while the virtues of religion that are contained in
his Book and his Law are absent from their books and laws. Therefore, all other
religions and books are abrogated by his. This abrogation does not mean that
they are declared totally false and untrue, or that belief is not to be reposed
in them; rather it means that the truths contained in different books and the
mysteries scattered in various laws have been gathered together in the Qur’an
and the Law of Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings—‘neither wet nor
dry, but contained in a Book perspicuous.’40 There is then added to
this totality the perfection of the blessing of religion that derives only from
the path of Mohammad: ‘I have completed My blessing upon you and approved Islam
for you as religion.’41 Thus while other peoples follow the guidance
of a single prophet and bene-
“Qur’an,
43:22.
“Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, and Ebn Hanbal.
“Qur’an,
9:34.
■‘“Qur’an,
6:59.
■“Qur’an,
5:4.
fit from submission only to a single auspicious figure, this people
of Islam follows the guidance of all the prophets and benefits from obedience
to all of them, for ‘those it is whom God has guided; follow then their
guidance.’”42
The relationship of the prophethood of Mohammad, upon whom be peace
and blessings, with that of the other prophets may be compared to the
relationship of the sun with the stars. When religion in the beginning had not
yet reached perfection, men were, so to speak, in the night of religion, and
each people in each age found its way through this night by the light of a
different star of prophethood—“and by the star they are guided.”43
When religion attained the perfection of “this day I have perfected for you
your religion,”44 the sun of Mohammad’s being rose over the entirety
of mankind (“We did not send thee save for all mankind”45), the
night of religion was changed into the day of religion, and God’s attribute of
"Master of the Day of Religion”46 became apparent. Now clearly
the guiding function of the stars lasts only so long as the sun has not
risen—“When day has broken, no need for a lamp.”47 When the monarch
of all the stars displays his beauty, he severs the head of the beams they emit
with the sword of his own rays.
Whenever the sun rises, the moon gathers up its dice.
A further comparison may be drawn with a king who wishes to conquer
the world and to establish the signs of his justice and the laws of his rule in
all the lands of the earth and among the peoples of every clime; who desires to
benefit and profit all his subjects with his regal bounty and generosity, his
might and splendor. He sends to each land and each people a messenger equipped
with a letter suitably composed, containing threats
“Qur'an, 6:90.
’’Qur’an, 16:16.
“Qur’an, 5:4.
“Qur’an, 34:28.
“Qur’an, 1:4. The expression malek yawm al-din in this verse
is generally understood in the sense of “Master of the Day of Judgment,” i.e.,
the day on which men’s practice of religion (din) will be judged: Daya
takes it, however, in another sense, which is clear from the context.
47An expression originating with the
early Sufi Abu ’1-Hasan Nuri (d. 295/ 907); see Kasf al-mahjub, p. 233.
and menaces, promises and enticements. The messenger addresses
himself to each group in accordance with its intelligence and capacity,
summoning some to the royal presence with persuasion and gentleness and
bringing others by force and coercion. For dispositions vary: If the one who
requires coercion is summoned with gentleness, he will not appreciate it; and
if the one who deserves gentleness is brought by coercion, he will remain
deprived of all blessing. Thus God Almighty addressed the Prophet: “If thou
wert harsh to them and hard of heart, truly they would disperse from around
thee.”48 But concerning others He said: “Be harsh with them.”49
Thus each messenger set out in a certain direction and addressed himself to a
certain people in a manner suited to their state, gradually expounding to them
the monarch’s laws so that they might accustom themselves to his service,
become submissive to his commands and desire to behold the beauty of his
countenance.
In the fullness of his regal grace, the king then desired that all
mankind should partake of his utmost munificence and liberality; that whereas
in the beginning each group had enjoyed a share in one form of his munificence
and served him in some fashion, now all should partake of the whole of his
munificence, serve him in numerous different ways, turn toward the presence and
be ennobled by proximity to him. He therefore dispatched another messenger,
this time to the whole world, drew up another writ in which were assembled all
the laws contained in previous edicts, and summoned all men to his presence by
means of this messenger and his writ. He laid upon men duties of perfect
service they had not yet bome and conferred upon them a degree of proximity
earlier messengers had not conveyed. In order to prepare men to receive this
final and perfect writ, it had been necessary in the beginning to send numerous
messengers, for in their initial state of estrangement they would not have been
able to offer perfect service, to receive all the laws of the monarch’s rule,
to attain the supreme degree of proximity, and to be worthy of waiting and
attending upon his presence or fit to act as his viceregent and deputy.
“Qur’an, 3:159.
“Qur'an, 9:74.
Thus too did God Almighty desire to cast the gaze of His divine
grace on this handful of dust and to ennoble every man with his
viceregency—“and He made you viceregents upon earth.”50 In each age
and to each people He sent a messenger, with a book wherein He expounded the
ordinances of His law in a manner suited to the capacities of that people.
There too He set forth some of the virtues of religion so that each people
might perform some species of worship and partake of one of the degrees of
religion; leave the estrangement of misbelief for the intimacy of religion; and
quit the darkness of instinctual nature for the light of the law.
Then He chose Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings, from
among all the prophets, exalting him above them. He sent to him the glorious
Qur’an in which He gathered together all the ordinances that had been scattered
in previous books ("neither wet nor dry but contained within a Book perspicuous”)51
and dispatched him as messenger to all mankind— “We did not send thee save for
all mankind”52—so that while earlier prophets had called men to
Paradise, he might call them to God—“a summoner to God, with His
permission”—and be a leader and a guiding lamp to His presence—“and a
light-giving lamp.”53 It was his mission too to convey to all men
the degrees of religion which were to attain perfection through him; to complete
for them the blessing of religion (“I have completed My blessing upon you”);
and to guide them to Islam, that most lofty degree which is the object of the
pleasure and approval of God: “I have approved Islam for you as religion.”54
For in truth the perfect religion in the sight of the Almighty is Islam—“Truly
the religion in the sight of God is Islam”55—and any religion other
than that of Islam is rejected—“Whoever desires other than Islam as religion,
it will not be accepted from him, and in the hereafter he will be among the
losers.”56
’“Qur’an, 6:165.
51Qur'an, 2:59.
“Qur’an, 34:28.
“Qur’an, 33:46.
’’Qur’an, 5:4.
“Qur’an, 3:19.
’“Qur’an, 3:85.
Now as for the other answer to the objections of the Jews and the
Christians, that relating to inner truth: know that the purpose for the
creation of all beings is the existence of man, that the purpose for the
existence of man is knowledge, which is what God Almighty has designated as the
Trust, and that man alone has proved able to bear the burden of the Trust. Now
knowledge is contained within religion, and the greater man’s share in
religion, the greater will be his share in knowledge, while he who does not
partake of religion will have no part of knowledge. It is only generic man57
who is capable of bearing the full burden of religion and its perfection, not
one human being among others, in just the same way that only a tree can bear
fruit, not its component branches. When a single branch sprouts up from the
ground, no fruit will appear on it; but when it has grown into a tree, fruit
will appear on every branch.
The human person is one throughout the world, and each individual
is like a member of that person. The prophets, upon whom be peace and
blessings, are the chief members of that person, namely, those indispensable
for life, such as the head, the heart, the liver, the spleen, the lungs, and so
forth. Among them Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings, acts as the heart
of the human person, and the heart is the essence of its being, for it is that
place wherein the lights of the spirit are made manifest as well as having a
corporeal aspect.
Even though the heart cannot engage alone in that practice of
religion which yields the fruit of knowledge, and needs the aid and assistance
of all the other members, nonetheless it is within the heart that knowledge,
the fruit of religion, appears, and it is the heart that partakes fully
thereof, while each of the other members receives a limited share befitting its
state.
The heart has. a further property which is not shared by any other
member, namely, it has a soul peculiar to itself in addition to that soul
whereby the life of each member is sustained. The form of the heart is made of
the essence of the world of bodies, and its soul is made of the essence of the
world of spirits. All
’’Generic man (ensan-e motlaq): i.e., the whole human tace
considered as a single being; humanity as an interrelated and hierarchically
organized whole.
subtle material in the world of bodies, both simple and compound,
was taken and made into nourishment for the vegetable realm; all subde material
in the vegetable realm was taken and made into nourishment for the animal
realm; all subtle material in the animal realm was taken and made into
nourishment for man; all subtle material in this nourishment was taken and made
into the human body; and all subtle material in the body was taken and made
into the form of the heart. Similarly, human spirits were made from the subtle
material of angelic spirits; angelic spirits were made from the subtle material
of the spirits of the jinn; and the spirits of the jinn were made from the
subtle mateiial of the various components of the world of Dominion. All subtle
material in the human spirit was taken and made into the soul of the heart.
The heart thus came to be the essence of the two worlds, corporeal
and spiritual, and hence too the locus for the manifestation of gnosis. It is
for this reason that God said, “He inscribed belief in their hearts.”58
No other part of man was fit to receive the divine inscription, nor worthy of
being “held between two fingers of God.”59
Since the Prophet Mohammad, upon whom be peace and blessings, held
the place of the heart in the human person, and the other prophets represented
the other members, it was he who was found fit for “He revealed to His servant
what He revealed,”60 this being for the Prophet that which “He
inscribed belief in their hearts” was for the generality of men; and it was he
who was honored with the proximity of “or closer,”61 this being for
the Prophet that which “between God’s two fingers” was for the generality of
men.
Thus in the same way that in gnosis all the members are subordinate
to the heart, so too in prophethood all the prophets are subordinate to
Mohammad. It is for this reason that he said:
58Qur’an, 58:22.
’’Allusion toa Tradition: “Verily theheartsof theChildren of
Adamareallheld between two fingers of the Compassionate One; He turns them as
He wills as if they were but a single heart" (recorded by Moslem, Ebn
Hanbal, and Nasa’I).
60Qur’an, 53:10.
’’Qur'an, 53:9.
“Were Moses and Jesus to be alive, they would have no choice but to
follow me.”62 Although all the prophets were engaged in the
cultivation of religion, it was in the age of Mohammad’s prophethood—may peace
and blessings be upon him—that the perfection of religion was manifested.
God Almighty, in the perfection of His divine wisdom, entrusted the
true essence of religion to each of the prophets in turn that they might exert
themselves in its cultivation. So too wheat passes through the hands of many
people before it becomes bread, each of them exercising his trade upon it: one
will clean the wheat; one turn it into flour; one make the flour into dough;
one form the dough into lumps; one flatten the lumps; and one place them in the
oven. It is at the hands of this last that bread attains perfection, although
the tasks of the others are also necessary.
From the age of Adam to the time of Jesus, each of the prophets
kneaded the dough of religion in a different fashion, but it was to Mohammad,
upon whom be peace, that the glowing oven full of the fire of love belonged.
When the dough that had been kneaded by more than a hundred and twenty thousand
embodiments of prophecy was handed to him— “They it is whom God has guided;
follow then their guidance’ ’63—he closed on it the door of the oven
of love, and the bread of religion was baked to perfection in the twenty-three
years of his prophethood: “Today I have perfected your religion for you.”64
Then he brought it forth from the oven of love and hung over the door of his
shop a proclamation saying, “I have been sent to the red and the black.”65
Those who had been starved in the famine of “an interval between the
messengers”66 spent freely of their selves and their goods in
purchasing the bread—“Strive with your goods
“Tradition.
“’Qur’an, 6:90.
“’Qur’an, 5:3.
“Tradition. The word “red” in early Arabic usage might refer either
to Persians and Greeks, the Arabs regarding themselves, like the Africans, as
“black"; or to the Arabs themselves, in which case “black" would
designate only Africans. See Bernard Lewis, Race and Color in Islam (New
York, 1971), pp. 8-9. Irrespective of the precise sense of the color
designations, the Tradition yields the sense that the Prophet’s mission was
universal.
““Qur’an, 5:21.
and your selves in the path of God”67—and that well-baked
bread of religion, longed for in vain by countless thousands of peoples, became
the object of delight to those of auspicious fortune who “were the best of
peoples raised up for mankind.”68
Although the prophets, upon whom be peace, had labored on this bread
ever since wheat had existed, each had been able to contribute only his own
share, giving thereof to his people by way of sustenance, so that each group
partook of the object of his labor. The first to work upon the bread was Adam,
upon whom be peace, and since in his age the bread was still at the stage of
wheat, it was wheat that he ate. He was reviled on this account in the world of
Dominion, and they said, 'Adam has rebelled.”69 What was the meaning
of this? Until then, the wheat had been in the hands of the angelic peasants
and tillers who had sown it in the soil of Paradise and continued to cultivate
it, as food for Adam, until God Almighty came to fashion his water and clay
between Mecca and Ta’ef. When the creation of Adam was completed, his
sustenance had also been nurtured to perfection, and it was desired to test
him to see whether he could recognize the sustenance intended for him. He was
addressed: ‘Adam, enter Paradise and eat all thou desirest, but approach not
that tree.”70 In accordance with this command, he did not approach
the tree, but his soul would not accustom itself to any other food and
constantly inclined to the fruit of that tree.
In the same manner, if a bag of barley were placed at some distance
from a horse and a pile of straw in front of it, and it were then told to eat
of the straw and not to approach the barley, it would of necessity eat the
straw, but at the same time constantly desire and incline toward the barley.
Only the halter placed on its leg would prevent it from approaching the barley,
until someone should come and remove the halter.
Even though the bounty of all eight paradises had been placed before
Adam, it appeared to him as mere straw when compared to that wheat, and he was
restrained only by the halter of “ap-
“’Qur’an, 8:72.
68Qur’an, 3:110.
“Qur’an, 20:121.
’“Qur’an, 2:35.
proach not that tree.” When Eblls came and said to him: “Shall I
guide thee to the tree of immortality and a kingdom that fadeth not?”71
Adam replied: “I already know of that tree, and have no need of thy tutoring,
for I am not an angel that I might need thee as teacher. Rather, in the school
of ‘He taught Adam all the names’721 learned the nature and name of
that tree. Thou perceivest truly that it is the tree of immortality and the
means for attaining an eternal kingdom, but thou speakest out of enmity and
crooked intent, in order to cast me into disobedience. I desire the tree with
my whole heart and soul, but I am held back by the halter of God’s command.”
Eblis had recourse to an oath, and swearing that "unto you I am a sincere
well-wisher,”73 he loosened the halter of God’s command from Adam’s
foot.
Adam regarded him with simplicity of heart, not imagining that
anyone would swear a false oath by the greatness and glory of God. In his utter
purity of heart he was deceived by the mere mention of God’s name and
attributes. Such is the mark of lovers, that they are not to be deceived by
love of this world and the hereafter, but only by the beloved: “We were
deceived through our infatuation with God.”
God’s reproach against Adam was not on account of the wheat, for it
was for his sake that the wheat had been created, and even though the angels
had cultivated it, it was not they who were to consume it, but Adam. His
reproach was rather because Adam had eaten of it at the behest of Eblis. Hence
the cry went forth in the world, ‘Adam has rebelled.”74 Numerous
providential and mysterious purposes of God were contained in this revolt of
Adam, but they were hidden in the world of the Unseen, and the angels were
unaware of them.
Their view of the matter was this: “We have been cultivating this
tree for several thousand years until it has finally attained so graceful a
shape as to adorn all eight paradises with its beauty. Now this raw infant has
come and rebelliously broken
’■Qur'an, 20:120.
’’Qur’an,
2:31.
’’Qur’an,
7:20.
’’Qur’an,
20:121.
off a branch in his childish desire; he has eaten of its fruit and
destroyed the tree. We had correctly foreseen this outcome when we said, 'Wilt
Thou create one who will cause corruption therein?’75 Now his
corruption has become manifest, for if he had not eaten that wheat, each grain,
once sown, would have yielded another tree.” They knew not that a grain sown
becomes a tree, and a grain eaten, a man. This is a great mystery, not within
the reach of everyone’s understanding.
The meaning of all this is as follows: Adam was reviled because
until his time the wheat of religion had been under cultivation and none had
partaken of it. It was necessary for Adam to take charge of the wheat, and then
for the prophets following him, for it finally to be passed to the masterly
hands of Mohammad when the time arrived for baking. All nurtured themselves on
it, for as the proverb says, “Whoever busies himself with clay will eat
thereof.”76 Adam worked with wheat, and ate wheat; those who worked
with flour, ate flour; and those who worked with dough, ate dough. Finally it
fell to Mohammad and his followers to eat the baked bread when it was brought
forth from the oven of Mohammadan love.
Then the bread of religion that had been baked in the fire of love
was placed at the shop door of Mohammad’s summons, and a crier proclaimed that
whoever should desire to eat of that bread and be beloved of the Divine
Presence should come to the door of Mohammad’s shop: “Say: 'If ye love God,
follow me that God too may love you.’ ”77 If the other prophets
should wish their bread to be baked, they too must come to his shop on the morrow
of resurrection, for “all men will need my intercession on the Day of
Resurrection, even Abraham.”78
The cultivation of religion was, then, possible only through generic
man: Each of the prophets was a member of that man, and each kneaded the dough
as was meet until it was the turn of Mohammad, the heart of the human person,
to take it into his
“Qur'an, 2:30.
76See 'Alt Akbar Dehkoda, Amsal va
hekam, Tehran, 1338 S./1960, IV, p. 1966. ’’Qur’an, 3:31.
’’Tradition; source unknown.
hand. Then did religion attain its perfection, no longer needing the
attentions of any craftsman. Never had it reached the perfection of “this day
I have perfected for you your religion”79 before the age of the
Prophet, upon whom be peace. Any addition to perfection is to be accounted a
decrease, and for this reason the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “If
someone introduces into our religion what is not a part of it, it is to be
rejected.”80 He also said, “Beware of all that is introduced into
religion, for it is innovation, and innovation is misguidance.”81
Religion has many attributes, each of which required one of the
prophets to nurture it to perfection. Thus Adam brought to perfection the
attribute of pure devotion to God; Noah, that of summoning men to God; Abraham,
that of intimate friendship with God; Moses, that of discourse with God; Job,
that of patience; Jacob, that of sadness; Joseph, that of sincerity of purpose;
David, that of recitation of God’s word; Solomon, that of gratitude; John, that
of fear; and Jesus, that of hope. Similarly, all the other prophets brought a
certain attribute to perfection, and although they were simultaneously
nurturing other attributes, the cultivation of one particular attribute was
foremost in them.
Now the pearl in the diadem of all these attributes and the supreme
gem in their necklace was the attribute of love, and it was this attribute of
religion that Mohammad, upon whom be peace, nurtured to perfection, for he was
the heart of the human person, and the cultivation of love is the special task
of the heart.
Since the perfection of religion consists in the perfection of love,
the dignity of “God will bring forth a people whom He loves and who will love
Him”82 was as a cloak of honor tailored to the stature of Mohammad’s
people, and the nobility of “radiant faces gazing on that day upon the face of
their Lord”83 was as a candle lit for those who, mothlike, had
immolated the substance of their being. Whereas the people of Moses had been
given
’’Qur’an, 5:4.
’“Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
’’Tradition recorded by Moslem, Abu Da'ud, Nasa’I, Ebn Maja. DaremI,
and Ebn ETanbal.
’’Qur’an, 5:57.
’’Qur’an, 75:22.
quail and manna, and that of Jesus a heavenly spread—“let them eat
and take pleasure therein”84—it was enough for these ragged drinkers
of dregs, these roofless profligates, to imbibe the wine of vision that the
cupbearer of “their Lord gave them to drink”85 poured from the
goblet of His beauty down the throats of their being. It is true that from the
effects of that wine there arises the tumult of “I am the Truth’ ’86
and ‘ ‘ Glory be unto me! ”;87 but to destroy the house of being
was a cloak that fitted only these distraught gamblers, and to lose life on
the flame of vision was possible only for these broken-winged moths. The two
worlds have been farmed out to other peoples, but the pavilion of God’s majesty
is erected in the courtyard of these indigent beggars—“I am with those whose
hearts are shattered on My account.”88
God Almighty has inspired a verse in this beggar:
He said: “Not every heart may look on our love; Not every soul is a
shell for its pearl.
Thou art not alone in thy longing for union, But it is not a cloak
that fits every figure.”
Since the perfection of religion was dependent upon the perfection
of the attribute of love, and that attribute reached perfection by means of
the Prophet Mohammad, upon whom be peace, the heart of the human person,
therefore he was the Beloved of God and the Seal of the Prophets. Whoever
desires religion in its perfection and the rank of beloved of God, let him
place his head on the path of imitating the Prophet, for “Say: ‘If ye love God,
then follow me that God may love you.’”89
Since perfection was reached with this religion of Islam, all other
religions became abrogated, in the same way that whenever water is to be had,
ablution with soil is not permitted.90 We
“’Qur'an, 15:3.
“Qur'an, 76:21.
86The celebrated utterance of Hallaj;
see ‘Attar, Tazker at al-owliya', I, p. 122.
“7An utterance of Bayazid Bastaml that concludes: “and
how sublime is my rank.” See Aiiar, Tazkerat al-owliya, I, p. 134.
22
K hadis qodst:
al-I4addadi, al-Ethdfdt al-samya, p. 136.
“’Qur’an, 3:31.
’"Ablution with soil (tayammom): When water is not to be
had, a token minor ablution may be made before offering prayer by dusting the
palms of the hands with soil.
have explained how, in the time of earlier prophets, it had been
necessary to eat wheat, flour, and dough; now that the bread had been baked,
the eating of these was abrogated. Indeed, all the prophets, upon whom be
peace, will come tomorrow to the door of this shop and obtain bread from our
baker, for ‘Adam and all who come after him shall stand under my banner on the
Day of Resurrection; yet I take no pride therein.”91 Yet the
Prophet, in the breadth of his powers and the loftiness of his intent, is not
contented with the mere baking of the bread of religion, not satisfied with
saying, “I am the master of the sons of Adam,” for again he adds, “yet I take
no pride therein.”
What truth is indicated here? An extremely profound truth and a
subtle allusion, for the Prophet says in effect: ‘All this baking of bread,
this mastery, leadership and standard bearing, is the benefit men derive from
me, for ‘We have not sent thee save as a mercy to all the worlds.’92
All this is then a cause of pride and boasting for them, that they have a
commander, a leader, an intercessor, a paragon, a model, and a guide such as
me. My share in all this is in sharelessness; my fulfillment in nonfulfillment;
my wish, in wishlessness; my being, in nonbeing; and my wealth and my pride, in
poverty: ‘Poverty is my pride.’”93
This feeble one says:
Neither Khorasan nor Iraq is our wish,
And of the friend not union, not parting, we seek.
To no wish can I be joined, I am free of all wish; Such and such
alone, this is my wish.
O Mohammad, we ask, what mystery is this that you do not boast of
the command and leadership of the prophets, but take pride instead in poverty?
“This is because our path is founded on love and affection, and it can be
traveled only in a state of nonbeing, while command, leadership, and
prophethood are all part of being—”
’’Tradition recorded by DaremI, Ebn Hanbal and Termezl.
’’Qur’an 21:107.
’’Tradition universally quoted in Sufi texts; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e
Masnavi, p. 23.
Only the lightly laden may travel this path;
Lighten thy burden of self, then tread the path.
A hundred times daily thou wilt be slain on the path; But breathe
not a hint of desire for requital.
When a party of infidels broke the lip and the tooth of the Prophet,
upon whom be peace, with the stone of affliction, he was about to part his lips
in prayer for them.[94] He
had not yet moved his lips when the heavy rock of “Thou hast naught to do with
the affair”[95]
was cast at his feet. How strangel None had treated Noah in this manner, yet he
said: "My Lord, leave not a single inhabitant upon earth from among the
unbelievers!”[96]
Immediately a storm arose throughout the world and destroyed all mankind.
Truly Noah was the manifestation of the attribute of wrath, and the path he
trod was in accordance therewith— “Say: ‘Each acts according to his
disposition.’”[97]
Mohammad, upon whom be peace, was the manifestation of the attributes of grace
and of love, and the path he trod was that of concern for the well-being of
others. Thus, after they had stoned him, he said: "O God, guide my people,
for they know not.”
Whence sprang this conduct? From the path of self-diminution and
nonbeing that had been laid out before him, so that he might lose his being in
nonbeing.
Unless thou become less and then less again, Never can thou join the
ranks of the lovers.
For as long as figurative being persists, it is impossible to partake
in full of the presence of true being; only insofar as you sacrifice figurative
being for the sake of true being can you have any share therein. Thus firewood
comes to partake of its being as firewood by means of fire, but only insofar as
it sacrifices its
own firewood being to the being of the fire, and it partakes fully
of its own being only when it sacrifices it completely to the being of the
fire. Then it is transformed from firewood, with density, darkness, and
lowliness, into fire, with subtlety, luminosity, and elevation. If there is
anything left of its own firewood being, smoke will be seen to arise as a sign
of longing for the fire. For the firewood, having once tasted the fire, is no
longer content with its own firewood being and wishes to become totally
transformed into the fire being.
O
Lord, what place is there now for desire
For today He is both rival and cupbearer?98 Come, O
cupbearer, pour out more wine, Fora trace remains yet of our being.
Thus whatever fire the wood encounters while in this state it
encounters for its own sake, and it can give nothing of it to others.
The
true worth of thy burning is hidden from the raw; Burn then for me, already
burned a hundredfold!
But once the firewood has entirely sacrificed itself to the fire, it
will desire its own being and any fire that it may encounter only for the sake
of other firewood.
There is a great mystery contained within this allegory. The one
hundred and twenty thousand and more instances of proph- ethood have sacrificed
the firewood of their human nature to the fire of love and the manifestation of
God’s attributes, but some half-burned fragment has remained from each, so that
on the morrow of resurrection smoke will arise from them, proclaiming their
selfhood.
But as for Mohammad, upon whom be peace, he has immo-
"The cupbearer (saqi) represents in Sufi poeuy "the
superabundant source of grace that intoxicates all the particles of existence
with the wine of conjunctive being (hasti-ye eiafi) [i.e., a being that
derives from God without intermediary]’’ (anon., Mer‘at-e 'ossdq, p.
155). The rival (kartf) is he who competes for the attention of the
cupbearer; the wayfarer on the spiritual path.
lated, mothlike, the entirety of his being on the candle of the
glory of the unity of the Essence, and sacrificed all of his Mo- hammadan being
to the fiery tongue of love that leaps forth from that candle. He cries out
instinctively, “My peoplel My people!”99 and the tongue of the
candle has become his tongue. Severing all relation to the sons of Adam, he
proclaims: “Mohammad was not the father of a man from among you; rather the
Messenger of God and the Seal of the Prophets.”100
This feeble one has composed the following verse:
We are those who have voided their selves of all being;
Who have set light to all their being;
Who in the nights of union before thy candlelike cheek, Have like
the moth lost all their being.
What you have heard concerning Mohammad, upon whom be peace, being
shadowless, is because he had become entirely transmuted into light—“O people,
a light has come unto you from your Lord”101—and light has no
shadow. When the Prophet had been delivered from the shadow of his self, the
whole world took refuge in his light, for ‘Adam and all who come after him
shall stand under my banner on the Day of Resurrection; yet I take no pride
therein.”102 The Mohammadan Light had marked out the first boundary
of being, for “The first that God created was my Light”;103 now it
marked out the boundary of eternity, for “There is no prophet after me.”104
After the sun of Mohammad’s ascendancy had risen, the stars of
sanctity of the earlier prophets departed, the night illumined by their
religions yielded to day, and the verse of their prophethood became abrogated
by that of “Master of the Day of Reli-
"Allusion to a long Tradition, recorded by Bokarl and Moslem,
in which the Prophet foretold his intercession on the Day of Judgment and his
plea to God: "My people, O Lord, my peoplel”
'““Qur’an, 33:40.
'“'A phrase close in its wording to Qur’an, 5:17: ‘A light has come
to you from God and a perspicuous Book”; and also to 4:174, “O people, a proof
has come to you from your Lord, and We have send down to you a perspicuous
light.”
'“Tradition: see n. 91 above.
'“’Tradition; compare with the Traditions quoted on p. 78.
'“‘Tradition recorded by Bokarl and Ebn Hanbal.
gion.”105 For there is no use to be had of a lamp in the
daytime: “Once the day has broken, no need for a lamp.”106 Wretched
is that blind and unseeing one who is deprived of all light when it exists in such
plenitude!
The sun has long since risen, O idol;
If it shines not on me, ’tis my misfortune.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, may be thought of as saying: “Even
though the sun of my form shall set in the Occident of ‘every soul shall taste
death,’ the sun of ascendancy of my religion shall remain until the end of the
world, through the medium of pious and truthful scholars—‘There will constantly
be a group of my people adhering steadfastly to the truth.’107 What
need henceforth for prophets, for each of the scholars of my religion shall be
equal to a prophet? ‘The scholars of my people are like the prophets of the
Children of Israel.’”108
Religion has an outer and an inner aspect. The former is preserved
by the knowledge cultivated by God-fearing scholars and the latter is
cultivated and maintained by shaikhs who have themselves traveled on the Path
and guide others on it, for “The shaikh among his following is like the prophet
among his people.”109 God Almighty in His generosity has made
incumbent upon Himself the preservation of religion by means of these two
classes, for He says: “We it is Who have sent down the Remembrance, and We it
is Who shall preserve it.”110
"sQur’an, 1:4. See n. 46 above.
'“’See n. 47 above.
'“’Tradition recorded by Bokari and Nasa’I.
'“’Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
'“’Tradition recorded with a slightly different wording (“the shaikh
in his household is like the prophet among his people”) by Ebn ETabban.
"“Qur’an, 15:9.
Fifth Chapter:
Concerning the
Cultivation of the Human Frame in Accordance with the Code of the Law
God Almighty said: “He prospers who purifies himself, invokes the
name of his Lord, and prays.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “By Him in
Whose hand my soul is held, the faith of none of you is steadfast until his
heart is steadfast; his heart is not steadfast until his tongue is steadfast;
and his tongue is not steadfast until his deeds are steadfast.”2
Know that God Almighty has opened a path from the malakut of
spirits to the heart of His servant, laid down another path from the heart to
the soul, and made a third path from the soul to the bodily frame. Thus every
gracious aid that comes to the spirit from the world of the Unseen is passed on
to the heart; then some part of it is given to the soul by the heart; and
finally some trace of it is bestowed by the soul on the bodily frame, causing a
suitable deed to appear there.
If, conversely, some dark and carnal deed should appear on the
bodily frame, a trace of its darkness will affect the soul; then blackness will
be transmitted from the soul to the heart; and finally a covering will come to
the spirit from the heart, veiling its luminosity like a halo around the moon.
Through this veiling, the path connecting the spirit with the world of the
Unseen will become partially closed, so that it will be unable fully to contemplate
that world and the gracious aid it receives will decrease.
As that dark deed increases on the bodily frame, so too will the
trace of darkness afflicting the spirit. The veils covering it will multiply,
and its vision, hearing, speech, and knowledge will correspondingly diminish,
so that if it is not cured by the
‘Qur’an, 87:14.
Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
ordinances of the Law, it is to be feared that—God forbid—the phrase
“God sealed their hearts”[98]
will be descriptive of its state, and that it will acquire the attribute of
“deaf, dumb and blind; so they understand not.”[99]
This interrelation of bodily frame, soul, heart, and spirit resembles
a talisman with its parts, spiritual and corporeal, locked in position one over
the other by God Almighty. The key for unlocking this talisman is the Law. The
Law has an outer and an inner aspect. Its outer aspect consists of bodily
deeds, these forming the key for opening the talisman of the bodily frame. The
key has five teeth: prayer, fasting, the purifying tax, pilgrimage, and
uttering the testimony of faith. For the talisman of the bodily frame has been
secured with the five locks of the five senses and can be opened only by this
five-toothed key— “Islam is built on five pillars.”[100]
As for the inner aspect of the Law, this consists of deeds of the heart and
spirit and is called the Path. It will be described in the chapters concerning
the cultivation of the soul, the heart, and the spirit, God Almighty willing.
The Path is the key to the talisman of man’s inner being, and enables him to
attain to the world of Reality.
Men are of two kinds: the prophets, upon whom be peace, and the
peoples who follow them. The prophets first had the gate to the talisman of
their inner beings unlocked by the key of the Path, coming from the world of
the Unseen. The gracious aid of God’s munificence came to their spirits, for
they were prepared to receive it, and the talisman was opened; its effect then
reached their hearts and their souls in succession, and finally came to the
form of their bodily frames, causing the form of the Law to appear there. Thus
God said: “Thou knewest not what was the Book, nor faith; but We made thereof a
light whereby We guide whomsoever We will of Our bondsmen.”[101]
The form of the Law was then made the key to unlock the talisman of
other men’s bodily frames, so that a door was opened
onto the world of the Unseen. Once they have gradually opened the
talisman of form with the key of the Law, they receive the key of the Path to
unlock the talisman of their inner beings. But, until they use the key of the
Law in the proper manner, with obedience to its commands, they cannot escape
the talisman of form. Proper use of the key of the Law consists in making each
member engage in the deed ordained for it, and in abstaining from deeds that
have been forbidden. Then the teeth of the key will fit exactly into the locks
of the talisman, and it will immediately be opened. But if some teeth fit and
others do not, or slip after entering the lock, the talisman will never be
fully opened. To the degree that the teeth of the key fit straight into the
lock, it will be partially opened; the signs of straightness and rectitude will
appear on the tongue, from the tongue go to the heart, and from the heart reach
the world of the Unseen, so that the light of faith appears from that world in
the heart. As this straightness and rectitude increase in the bodily form,
through deeds performed in accordance with the Law, the lights of faith will
reach the heart from the world of the Unseen in greater measure— “that they
might be increased by faith added to their faith.”7 When the form of
the bodily frame has been cultivated to perfection through the ordinances of
the Law, faith too will attain perfection in the heart. All this is plain from
the Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
As for the fact that the five pillars of the Law are the five teeth
of the key for unlocking the talisman of the five senses, this is because man
has suffered certain afflictions and veilings of his vision as a result of the
five senses, so that he has reached the level of the animals and beasts, or
descended even lower. If he remains in this lowly degree and the talisman is
not opened to deliver him from bestial attributes, then God’s saying “They are
like the beasts, rather more errant,”8 will apply to him.
Now the animals and beasts partake of the world below by means of
their five senses. The first of these is sight, which pertains to the eye; all
desire to look upon what is pleasing and good. The second is hearing, which
pertains to the ear; all desire
’Qur’an, 48:4.
’Qur’an, 7:178.
to hear pleasant sounds, and they fear and shun unpleasant sounds.
The third is smell, which pertains to the nose; all desire to smell pleasant
scents. The fourth is taste, which pertains to the palate; all desire to eat
something pleasant. The fifth is touch, which pertains to all of the body. The
animals desire, with all of their bodies, to enjoy to the utmost their bestial
pleasures and passions, and are unaware of any other world, for they lack the
means whereby they might have some share in the world above and the hereafter,
or eternity.
To man too the five senses have been given, but he has received
also the ability to partake of other worlds through means that are lacking in
the beasts. If he occupies himself completely with the enjoyments of the
bestial world, he will become totally unaware of those other worlds, and be
like the animals or worse. For since they are by nature deprived of those
worlds, they cannot know or perceive the fact of their deprivation, and they
will escape the torment of seeing the deprivation and loss that arise from the
squandering of high fortune. But man will on the morrow perceive his
deprivation and be called to account for his wastage of good fortune; he will
see members of his own species engaged in the auspicious enjoyment of “When
thou seest, then thou shalt see bounty and a great kingdom”;9 and he
will suffer the torment of deprivation and the chastisement for disobedience.
The beasts suffer neither of these, and it is for this reason that it is said,
“rather more errant.”10 If, on the other hand, man were totally to
abandon bestial and animal enjoyment, he would be unable to cultivate his
bodily frame and would be thus deprived of the benefits arising therefrom.
The Law was therefore sent to him so that every action he undertakes
in bestial pleasure and animal enjoyment may be in accordance with divine
command, not with instinctual nature. For from instinctual nature comes naught
but darkness, and from divine command naught but light. When man performs an
action in accordance with nature, he sees himself and not God, and this is
darkness and a veiling; but when he performs it in accordance with command, he
sees in it only God and not him-
9Qur’an, 76:20.
'"Qur’an, 7:178.
self, and this is light and an unveiling. Further, all darkness and
blackness that appear on the frame because of actions inspired by nature result
from conforming to the desires of the soul; they are to be removed by means of
the acts of worship enjoined by the Law that run counter to the desires of the
soul.
Each pillar of the Law also acts as a reminder to man of his
original homeland and of his coming here from that world, and guides him too on
his journey of return to the true abode, which is the proximity of the Lord of
the Worlds. Saying "no god but God” makes him aware of the world where
naught stood between him and the Divine Presence. Longing for that world and
yearning for that state will awaken in him and he will desire to return to
them. He will detach his heart from this world, bestial pleasures will become
bitter to the palate of his soul, and he will direct himself toward the Divine
Presence. Thus one tooth of the key of the Law will have fitted into the lock
of the talisman and opened one part of it.
Prayer informs man of his original state in two ways: through the
forms and motions of prayer, and through the attribute of orison inherent in
it. The shape, forms, and motions of prayer both inform him of his coming to
this world and indicate to him how he might return to the other world. Standing
erect, bowing, prostradon, and sitting to bear witness all have significance in
this respect. The position of sitting to bear witness reminds man of his
contemplation of the Almighty and his presence with Him before coming here.
Prostration is a reminder that when man came to this world, he first joined the
vegetable realm, for the plants are all in prostration—“The plants-and the
trees prostrate themselves.”11 They have all bowed their heads to
the ground in prostration, for the head is that part which draws nurture to the
body, and the plants draw in nurture by way of the root. Bowing is a reminder
to man that he progressed from the vegetable to the animal realm, for animals
are all in a state of bowing with their backs bent. Standing erect is similarly
a reminder to man that he advanced from the animal to the human realm, for all
men stand erect. Hence it can be said that you have come from bowing and
prostration to an upright stance.
1'Qur’an, 55:6.
In the motions of prayer there is a further indication, namely, that
upon uttering the takbir of consecration,[102]
you should turn away from all worldly desires and accidents. Furthermore, upon
raising your hands you should cast away both this world and the hereafter for
the sake of your lofty intent, and recite a takbir over the bestial and
animal world.[103]
When you say “Allaho akbar,” you should know that nothing is great in
the face of God’s greatness, and averting your gaze from all that appears to be
great to the soul and the passions, direct it instead to the greatness of God.
It is for this reason that the Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said:
“The first takbir is better than the world and all it contains.”[104]
Then in the course of the prayer you should journey away from yourself. First
leave the erect posture of man, which is the form of haughtiness, arrogance,
and egoism, and come to the bowing of animals, which is the form of modesty,
humility, and meekness. Then proceed to prostration, which represents the
impotence, abjection, abasement, and lowliness of the vegetable state, and
finally sit to bear witness, thus returning to your original presence with God
Almighty and contemplation of Him: “Prostrate thyself and draw nigh.”[105]
O heart, ’tis by the door of abasement thou should enter; Else how
might thou conquer love with bold glances?
Once you have entered by this door, you may mount again the ladder
you once descended, for “Prayer is the believer’s ascension.”[106]
Where is the path that brought me, O soul? I would return, for
things fare ill, O soul.
At each step I see a thousand traps, O soul;
Love is forbidden to the unmanly, O soul.
The attribute of orison inherent in prayer causes man to advance
from the animal degree and carnal desire to the angelic state; detaching him
from the discourse of men and the deceit of the devil, it joins him to orison and
discourse with God. It recalls to him the taste of that discourse when God
asked him, ‘Am I not your Lord?”[107]
for “Man in prayer is engaged in intimate discourse with his Lord.”[108]
Prayer, together with the other pillars of Islam, has numerous other mysteries
and benefits inherent in it which, if they were all to be expounded, could not
be contained in countless books. Here some indication has been made, so that
our brief account should not remain entirely without mention of these benefits.
As for fasting, it calls man’s attention to that period when he
resembled the angels and had not been veiled from God by the possession of
animal attributes, for eating is a property of animals and not eating is an
attribute of angels and of God Almighty. By means of this indication contained
within fasting, man may abandon animal characteristics and acquire characteristics
of God, for “fasting is Mine, and I bestow reward for it. ”[109]
That is, “fasting is exclusively Mine,” for it is only God Almighty Who in
truth is exalted above all need of food while all else stands in need thereof.
Although the angels do not eat animal food, their proclamation of God’s
transcendence and holiness is food for them, and everything else also has a
type of food suited to its nature. “I bestow reward for it”: that is to say,
“The reward for other acts of worship is Paradise, but the reward for fasting
is the acquisition of My characteristics.” For unlike all other acts of
obedience and worship, the form of fasting conforms to the Almighty Presence,
since it is the abandonment of food, and God Almighty is exalted above all
need of food. It was revealed to Jesus, upon whom be peace and bless-
ings: “Hunger, and thou shalt see Me; cut loose from other than Me,
and thou shalt be joined to Me.”20
As for the purifying tax, it purifies the soul of animal attributes
and adorns it with the attributes of God, for it is an animal attribute to
accumulate and not to give to others. Man is obliged to accumulate, but if he
gives nothing to others he will remain polluted by the animal attribute. God
therefore orders man to pay the purifying tax in order that he might cleanse
himself of that pollution—“Take an offering from their property whereby thou
shalt cleanse and purify them”21—and adorn himself with the
attributes of God, for munificence and generosity are the attributes of God
Almighty. “He who gives and fears God, who affinns the truth of that which is
fairest, him shall We cause to attain ease.”22 Fearing God and
affirming the truth are attributes of servitude, while giving is an attribute
of divinity.
As for the pilgrimage, it is an indication of return to the Almighty
Presence, a conveyance of tidings of union with God Almighty. “Proclaim the
pilgrimage among men; they shall come unto thee on foot.”23
This feeble one says:
O cupbearer, pour out the pure wine with joy— We are all drunk, pour
out the wine!
“There is none among us not ruined and ravaged”— Cry out the message
to this ruined hamlet!
God thus addresses man: “O thou who art established in the city of
humanity, who hast taken up residence in the house of animal nature, all
unaware of the Ka‘ba of Our union! For how long wilt thou remain in thy bestial
abode, with thy feet bound with repugnant satanic and animal attributes, thy
arm hung in embrace around the neck of My enemies—‘Your wives and offspring
are an enemy unto you’24—and thyself caught in Satan’s sack of
deceit, through worldly bliss and its trappings?
wljadls qodsi.
21Qur’an, 9:104.
“Qur’an, 92:7.
2’Qur’an, 22:27.
“Qur'an, 64:14.
‘Arise, and in manly fashion cast off these fetters and halters; bid
farewell to wife and offspring, to kith and kin, to household and property.
Recite to all the verse of ‘Truly they are enemies unto me, save the Lord of
the Worlds,’25 and averting thyself from all, place thy foot on the
path with the sincere direction of ‘I have set my face to Him Who has created
the heavens and earth.’26 In purity of conviction form the intention
of ‘I am going to my Lord Who shall guide me’;27 step outside the
stages and stopping places of worldly approval, of caprice and passionate
nature; and cross the desert of the concupiscent soul.
“When thou hast reached the place of consecration that is the heart,
perform a total ablution with the water of repentance; divest thyself of the
garment of the human state; and clothe thyself in the ehram2s
of Our servitude. Cry out labbayk29 in love; ascend the
Arafat30 of gnosis; climb the Mount of Mercy31 of Our
Grace; and place thy foot in the enclosed shrine of Our nearness. Stand firm at
the Sacred Waymark32 of Our servitude; proceed to the Mena33
of the death of desire; sacrifice at that place of
“Qur'an, 26:77.
“Qur’an, 6:79.
2,Qur’an, 37:99.
2aE(irdm:
the state of consecration formally assumed by the pilgrim on his approach to
the sacred territory surrounding Mecca, or the garment, consisting of two
pieces of seamless white fabric, that is the outward sign of that state.
21
Labbayk: “I
answer Thy call"; part of the formula unceasingly repeated by the pilgrim
as he draws near to Mecca: “I answer Thy call, O God, I answer Thy call; I
answer Thy call, O God, I answer Thy call; I answer Thy call, O God, I answer
Thy call; I answer Thy call, O Thou without partner, I answer Thy call; Thine
is all praise and all bounty, and Thine is the kingdom; O Thou without partner,
I answer Thy call.”
50Arafat: The valley to the east of
Mecca, dominated by a mountain, where the pilgrims gather on the ninth day of
the pilgrimage month and remain standing from noon to sunset invoking God's
praise and beseeching His mercy.
’’The Mount of Mercy (Jabal al-Ralima): the mountain
dominating the valley of Arafat, so called because of the farewell sermon
delivered there by the Prophet in the last year of his life.
’’Sacred Waymark (Mas'ar al-Hardm): a roofless mosque at
Mozdalefa, where the pilgrims proceed after the rite of standing at Arafat. Cf.
Qur’an, 2:198: "and when ye pour down from Arafat, make remembrance of God
at the Sacred Waymark.”
’’Mena: a town almost halfway between Mecca and Arafat where the
pilgrims, arriving from Mozdalefa, ritually stone three pillars that mark the
site of Satan’s temptation of Esma'll, and sacrifice an animal. Daya indulges
here in a three- part word play, Mena, maneyat, (death) and mond
(desire), all of which appear to derive from the same Arabic triliteral root,
MNY.
slaughter the beast that is thy carnal soul; and then turn to the
Ka'ba of Our union—‘Leave thyself and come.’
“On arriving, perform the circumambulation with the intention of
making Us the pivot of thy being instead of thine own self; renew thy covenant
with Us34 at the Black Stone, which is the symbol of thy heart and
God’s oath. Then proceed to the station of Abraham, which is the station of the
spirituality of Our friendship.35 There perform a prayer of two rak'ats
by way of greeting the station and as a sign that thou dost not serve Us out of
hope of paradise or fear of hell, like a journeyman, but out of the compulsion
of love, like a lover.
“Then come to the door of the Ka'ba of Our union, leave thy self
cleaving to that door like a ring, and come forth without self. For fear and
separation arise from selfhood, and safety and union from selflessness. Recite,
then, the verse of ‘He who enters it shall be safe.’”36
O heart, leave thy heart, then go to that dear presence; Leave thy
head, then enter her court of union.
Approach her door in utter solitude;
Leave thy self at the door, then enter.
All five teeth of the key constituted by the five pillars of the Law
MI.e., the primordial covenant
contracted by man when he acknowledged God as his Lord. See p. 35, n. 7.
5SThe station of Abraham (Maqam
Ebrahim): the place facing the northeastern corner of the Ka'ba where Abraham
is said to have prayed, and where now the pilgrim performs two rak'ats
(units of prayer) after completing his circumambulation of the Ka'ba.
"The station of the spirituality of Our friendship (kellat)": station
(maqam) in its second occurrence has its technical Sufi sense of “a
stable spiritual state, achieved by man’s own strivings [in contradistinction
to an exercise of divine grace]” (Sajjadi, Farhang-e moftalakat-e 'orafa va
motasavvefa, pp. 380-381). As for friendship (kellat), this is in
allusion to the epithet of Abraham, "Friend of the Compassionate One” (Kalil
al-Rahman); cf. Qur’an, 4:125: "and God took Abraham as a friend.”
’’Qur’an, 3:97. This whole passage, elucidating the inner meaning of
the pilgrimage rites, invites comparison with the discussion of the pilgrimage
in Hojvln’s Kasf al-mahjub (pp. 384-388); the similarities in content
and wording are such as to make it probable that Daya was drawing directly on
the work of his predecessor. Concerning other esoteric interpretations of the
pilgrimage, see Fritz Meier, “Das Mysterium der Ka'ba,” Eranos-Jahrbuch,
XI (1944), 187-214.
will then fit exactly into the lock of the five senses; the
corporeal and spiritual talismans will be opened; and the aim will be attained.
This is an indication of some of the modes of worship pertaining to
the outer form of the Law, and of the benefits inherent therein. As for the
inner truths of the Law, all the layers of heaven and earth would not suffice
for the recording of their description, and they are to be comprehended by
vision, not by speech. Understand this hint, and do not demand clear statement.
May God’s peace and blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
Sixth Chapter:
Concerning the
Refinement of the Soul and the Knowledge Thereof
God Almighty said: “By a soul and Him Who ordered it, inspiring it
with knowledge of lewdness and godfearing—truly he prospers who refines it, and
he fails who corrupts it.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “Your
most hostile enemy is your soul, enclosed between your two sides.”2
Know that the soul is an enemy with the appearance of a friend. Its
guile and deceit are unbounded, and to repel its evil and subjugate it is the
most important of tasks. For it is the most hostile of all enemies, more so
than demons, infidels, and the life of this world. It has been said that
"there is no believer without four enemies,”3 and of the four
the soul is the greatest enemy. Hence the Prophet said: “Your most hostile
enemy is your soul, enclosed between your two sides.”
Thus, to train the soul and restore it to a state of rectitude, and
to advance it from the attribute of commanding to the degree of tranquillity,
is a great task. The perfection of human happiness lies in the refinement of
the soul, and the completion of man’s wretchedness lies in abandoning the soul
to the demands of instinctual nature. Hence God Almighty said, after invoking
a multiple oath: “Truly he prospers who refines it, and he fails who corrupts
it.” For the refinement and training of the soul yields knowledge of the soul,
and knowledge of the soul leads to knowledge of God: “He who knows his soul
knows his Lord.”4 This knowledge is the summit of all felicity. Here
a subtle point arises: Until you know the soul, you cannot train it, but until
you bring the soul to perfection, you cannot gain that
'Qur’an, 91:10.
2Tradition recorded by BeyhaqI.
’Tradition; source unknown.
’A Tradition universally quoted in Sufi literature (Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e
Masnavi, p. 167). For an explanation of its sense, see Gazall, kimiya-ye
sa'adat, ed. Ahmad Aram (Tehran, 1319 S./1940), pp. 9-10.
true knowledge of it which results in the knowledge of God. A
complete explanation would fill numerous books, but here some useful indication
will be given, clear and concise, if God, Unique and Almighty, so wills.
Know that the soul, in the usage of the People of the Path, consists
of a subtle vapor arising from the fleshly form of the heart. It is that which
the physicians call the animal spirit. From it arise all reprehensible
attributes, as God Almighty says: “Truly the soul commands unto evil.”5
As for the locus of the soul in man, know that it encompasses all
the parts and sections of the human frame, like the oil that is contained in
all parts of the substance of the sesame seed. The soul of other animals has
the same relation to the body with respect to outward form, but the human soul
has certain attributes lacking in the soul of animals.
One of these is the attribute of permanence. The human soul has been
given a taste of the world of permanence, so that it might remain after
separation from the bodily frame and abide permanently in heaven or in
hell—“abiding therein eternally.”6 Animal souls, by contrast, have
no taste of the world of permanence and are annihilated on quitting the body.
As for the human soul’s acquisition of a taste of the world of
permanence, know that permanence is of two kinds: one that always was and is,
this being the permanence of God Almighty and Exalted; and the other, that once
was not, then came into being and shall henceforth subsist, by virtue of God’s
permanence. This is the permanence of spirits, of the world of dominion, and
of the hereafter. In the beginning, it was not; then God Almighty created it,
and He too shall maintain it to all eternity.
The human soul has been given a taste of both kinds of permanence.
It gained a taste of God’s permanence when Adam’s clay was being molded, for
one of the precious jewels that God in His divine person secreted in that
abject soil was permanence
5Qur'an, 12:53.
6A phiase occurring twelve times in
the Qur’an.
everlasting. As for the taste of the permanence of spirits, it was
placed in the soul when the spirit and the frame were joined in union, by the
workings of “I inhaled in him of My spirit.”7
Their joining resembles that of a man and a woman from whose union
twins are bom, one male, resembling the father, the other female, resembling
the mother. From the marriage of the spirit and the frame, two children were
born, the heart and the soul. The heart was a boy, resembling his father, the
spirit; and the soul was a girl, resembling her mother, the earthly frame. All
praiseworthy lofty and spiritual attributes were present in the heart, and all
reprehensible and lowly qualities in the soul. But since the soul was the
offspring of both spirit and frame, it too had something of the permanence and
praiseworthy attributes that pertain to spirituality. It was in this manner
that the human soul gained permanence, in contrast with the souls of animals,
which are bom of the elements and the heavenly spheres, without any trace of
spirituality, and are necessarily destined to annihilation, like their mother
and father.
Even though in the beginning it was the soul of Adam alone that
arose from the marriage of spirit and frame, nonetheless there were contained
within his soul the particles of the souls of his offspring, in the same way
that the particles of the bodily existence of his progeny were contained within
his earthly frame. Later, in the age of “When thy Lord drew forth their
descendants from their loins, from the sons of Adam,”8 every
particle of progeny that was brought forth from the loins of Adam was the
particle of the earthly frame of one of his offspring. Within this particle
was contained too the particle of that offspring’s soul. The particles were
then drawn up in different ranks, corresponding to those of the spirits, in
such manner that each spirit faced the particle to which it was bound by some
affinity, and gazed upon it. The particle was thereby enabled to hear the
address of ‘Arn I not your Lord?”9 and made fit to give affirmative
answer. The bringing forth of the particles from the loins of Adam had this
beneficial result, that they were touched
’Qur’an, 15:29.
’Qur’an, 7:172.
’Qur’an, 7:172.
by the rays of the spirits. God Almighty could have addressed His
question to them even in Adam’s loins, but since the gaze of the spirits had
not fallen upon them, they would have been unable to hear the address and give
answer.
God then sent forth the particles in the loins of Adam so that He
might preserve them until the end of the world through His Divine Grace,
keeping them in the loins of fathers and the wombs of mothers, passing from
loin to loin and womb to womb. At the time of generation the particle is divided
into two halves, one being contained in the sperm of the father, the other in
the sperm of the mother, and these are then placed in the loins of the father
and the breast of the mother. Thus God said: “issuing between the loins and the
breastbones.”[74]
When conjugal union takes place, the two halves join in the womb of the mother
and intermingle: “We created him from a drop of mingled sperm, in order to test
him.”[75]
The drop of sperm then becomes a drop of coagulated blood, and this in turn
becomes a formless lump of flesh, each change being accomplished in a period of
forty days. When three periods of forty days have been completed, the lump of
flesh has become fit to receive the spirit which gazed on it, when still a
particle, in the world of spirits:[76]
“Then We made of it another creation.”[77]
As the particle which is the origin of the child’s bodily frame is nurtured in
the womb, so too, in parallel fashion, is the particle of the soul that is
contained in it. Similarly, when the child enters existence and reaches
maturity, his soul will also attain perfection, thus becoming capable of bearing
the obligations imposed on him by the Law.
If the Law were to be addressed to him earlier, he would be unable
to bear its obligations, whether formally or inwardly, for his nurturing would
be still incomplete. As for the formal aspect of his obligations, he would be
unable to fulfill the conditions of prayer, fasting, and pilgramage, for these
are bodily deeds and require corporeal strength. As for the inward aspect of
his obligations, until both the bodily frame and the soul have attained
perfection, the heart, which is the seat of the intellect, the
source of faith, and the object of God’s gaze, is not fitted to receive the
manifestation of the lights of the intellect and of faith and of God’s gaze,
for its formation is still incomplete. Even though these lights gradually and
continually appear in the heart, it will become properly and fully receptive of
them only upon reaching maturity, when the intellect appears. This will be
described in the chapter on the training of the heart, if God Almighty wills.
Now that you have learned in summary fashion what the soul is,
listen to an indication of the means for its training and refinement. Know
that the soul has two essential attributes, inherited from its mother, and that
all other reprehensible attributes have their origin in these two and result
from their action. These two essential attributes are passion and anger, and
both derive from the properties of the four elements which are the mother of
the soul. Passion is a downward inclination and tendency, and thus God says,
“by the star when it declines,”14 that is, "when it descends.’,’
It is also said that this verse refers to the return of the Prophet, upon whom
be peace, from his ascension, and his descent to the lower from the higher
world. This downward inclination and tendency is a property of water and
earth. Anger, by contrast, is self-exaltation, arrogance, and dominance, these
being the attributes of wind and fire. The two essential attributes of passion
and anger are, then, inherited by the soul from its mother. They are also the
substance of which hellfire is made and from them are derived the degrees of
hell. Nonetheless, they must of necessity be present in the soul so that
through passion it may attract benefit and through anger repel harm. Thus its
being survives and is nurtured in the world of generation and corruption.
These two attributes must, however, be maintained in a state of
equilibrium, for their deficiency would cause deficiency to both soul and body,
and their excess cause deficiency to intellect and faith. Indeed, the
refinement and training of the soul consists in restoring the attributes of
anger and passion to a state of equilibrium, and the balance in which they are
to be weighed is
‘’Qur’an, 53:1.
the code of the Law, observed in all matters. Then both soul and
body will remain healthy, and intellect and faith will advance; and each of
these will be used in its proper place, according to the command of the Law. In
obedience to the Law, man should earnestly fear God, and not strive to seek
dispensation,15 for the Law and the fear of God are a balance which
maintain the attributes in a state of equilibrium, preventing some from prevailing
over others. Disequilibrium would be the state of animals and beasts of prey,
for in animals the attribute of passion prevails over that of anger, and in
beasts of prey the attribute of anger prevails over that of passion. Of
necessity, animals are therefore given to greed and lust, and beasts of prey to
conquest, wrath, and dominance, to killing and hunting.
The two attributes of passion and anger must then be maintained in
a state of equilibrium, to avoid descent to the animal and bestial station, and
to prevent the emergence of other reprehensible attributes. For if passion
crosses the boundary of equilibrium, cupidity, greed, expectation, vileness,
abjection, lust, miserliness, and treachery will appear. Equilibrium of passion
consists in exercising the property of attracting benefit only to the extent of
essential need, and only at the time of need. For if the soul desires more than
it needs, cupidity will emerge; and if it desires before the time of need,
greed will arise. If it desires to provide for the future, expectation will
appear. If it desires something lowly and abominable, vileness and abjection
will result. If it desires something elevated and pleasurable, lust will arise.
If it desires to preserve something, miserliness will result. All this belongs
to the category of profligacy, and “Truly He loves not the profligate.”16
And if the soul fears that spending may cause it to suffer poverty, cowardice
will arise. If the attribute of passion is, by contrast, deficient and
subjugated in man’s original disposition, effeminacy, neutrality, and lowliness
will result.
^"Dispensation” (rok^at): "that which the Law has
made conditional on contingencies; that which may be omitted in case of
adequate excuse; that which takes into account conditions that may furnish an
excuse” (Jorjani, Ketab al- ta'rifat, p. 115). An example of such
"dispensation” is the provision of the Law whereby the traveler may
postpone his fast in the month of Ramadan to a time when he has reestablished
residence.
16Qur’an, 6:141.
If the attribute of anger passes the bounds of equilibrium, evilness
of temper, arrogance, hostility, irritability, violence of disposition,
obstinacy, tyranny, instability, mendacity, pride, boastfulness,
self-exaltation, and rebelliousness will arise. And if anger cannot be
expressed, rancor will appear in man’s inner being. If the attribute of anger
is, on the other hand, deficient and subjugated ab initio, lack of zeal,
pride and honor, sloth, lowliness, and impotence will result. And if the attributes
of passion and anger are both dominant, envy will emerge, because by virtue of
the dominance of passion one will desire anything likable he sees in the
possession of another, and by virtue of the dominance of anger he will not wish
that person to enjoy its possession. Envy means that you desire to have what
another possesses, and do not desire him to possess it.
Each of these reprehensible attributes is the origin of one of the
degrees of hellfire, and when they gain mastery and dominance over the soul,
its nature inclines to sinfulness and lewdness, to killing, plundering, and
the inflicting of injury, and other kinds of corruption.
The angels, looking with angelic glance at the malakut of
Adam’s frame, observed all these attributes and said: 'Art Thou fashioning one
who shall cause corruption and bloodshed?”17 They did not know that
when the elixir of the Law was applied to these reprehensible
attributes—animal, bestial, and satanic— they would all become praiseworthy
attributes—angelic, spiritual, and divine. Hence God Almighty said in answer
to the angels: “Truly I know that which ye know not.”18
The effect of the alchemy of the Law19 is not, then,
totally to
'’Qur’an, 2:30.
‘“Qur’an, 2:30.
l9The use of the word "alchemy”
in connection with religion derives from a real and not figuiative affinity
between the two pursuits, for both have the purpose of redemption and
transmutation. It might even be said that alchemy encroaches on the sphere of
religion, in that it seeks to achieve not merely an outer transformation in
the mineral realm, but also an inner one in man’s spiritual realm, the former
process serving as a support for the latter. The occurrence of the word
"alchemy” in conjunction with the Law is particularly significant, for the
function of the Law is seen by Daya to lie in the establishment of an ideal
equilibrium among the human attributes, just as Jaber sees the purpose of the
alchemical work to be the attainment of an analogous equilibrium (mizan)
in metallic substances. See S. H. Nasr, Science and Civilization in Islam
(Cambridge, Mass., 1968), pp. 261-267.
efface the reprehensible attributes, for that would result in
deficiency. It is here that the philosophers have fallen into error, for they
have imagined that attributes such as passion, anger, and lust must be
completely destroyed. They have toiled for years to attain their goal, and
succeeded only in diminishing the reprehensible attributes. From the resulting
deficiency, other reprehensible attributes have in turn arisen, so that the
negation of passion has resulted in effeminacy, neutrality, lowliness, and
abjection, and deficiency of anger in lack of zeal, apathy in religion, lack
of pride and of honor, and cowardice.
The property of the Law and the alchemy of religion is to restore
each of these attributes to a state of equilibrium so that each is exercised in
its proper place. Religion acts in such fashion that it prevails over the
attributes, causing them to be submissive to it like a horse to its rider, and
directing them wherever it wills. If the attributes were to prevail over
religion so that it became their captive, borne off in whatever direction the
soul desired, they would come to resemble a rebellious steed, helplessly
casting itself and its rider into a pit or running into a wall, causing them
both to perish.
Therefore, whenever through the effect of the elixir of the Law and
of the fear of God the attributes of passion and anger are restored to a state
of equilibrium in the soul, so that it can no longer exercise them except in
accordance with the Law, praiseworthy attributes appear within the soul:
shame, generosity, liberality, courage, forbearance, modesty, manliness,
contentment, patience, gratitude, and other laudable characteristics. The soul
will quit the station of commanding and come to that of tranquillity,20
and become a mount for the pure spirit. Traversing the stages and stopping
places of the lower and higher worlds, Boraq-like21 it will bear the
spirit to the elevation of the Highest of the High, to the lofty degree of the
distance of Two Bowstrings,22 and thus become fit to receive the
summons of
2“"Tranquillity" (mofma’eniiagl):
a noun formed from motma'emia, ‘‘tranquil," an epithet applied in
Qur'an, 89:27, to the soul that has advanced in its work of refinement.
2lBoraq: the mount that bore the
Prophet from Jerusalem to heaven during his Me’raj.
22Qur’an, 53:9. See also p. 55, n. 12,
and p. 84, n. 33.
“return to thy Lord, well-pleased and well-pleasing.’’23
This feeble and powerless one says:
Once bestial temper turns from thy soul
The bird of thy spirit returns to the nest.
The vulturelike spirit strives to ascend,
Alights on the king’s arm, and turns to a falcon.
The spirit, when returning to its proper world, has need of the
Boraq of the soul, for it cannot go on foot. When it came to this world, it was
mounted on the Boraq of the inhalation: “and I inhaled in him of My spirit.”24
Now, when it is to leave for the other world, it needs the Boraq of the soul to
convey it to the extremity of the realm of the soul. The soul, in turn, has
need of the two attributes of passion and anger in its journeying, for it
cannot move either upward or downward without them.
The shaikhs—may God sanctify their spirits—have therefore said:
“Were it not for passion, none would travel a path to God.” For passion and
anger are like two vultures for the Nemrod25 of the soul. Their prey
is in the upper world, and when he mounts them, they begin to ascend, taking
the Nemrod of the lowly soul with them to high station.
The manner of this is the following: When the soul becomes assured,
gains mastery over the two attributes of passion and anger, and experiences the
taste of the summons “return,”26 it will cause passion and anger to
turn away from the lower to the higher world, so that the object of their
desire will be nearness to God Almighty, not the pleasures of the animal and
bestial
“Qur'an, 89:28.
“Qur'an, 15:29.
“Nemrod: the tyrant who tormented Abraham and ordered him cast on
the fire. Although Nemrod’s name does not occur in the Qur'an, 2:258 is
generally regarded as referring to him: "Hast thou not seen the one who
disputed with Abraham about his Lord, because God had granted him rule?” In the
legend adapted from Judaic sources, Nemrod decides to scale the heavens and
attempt deicide. Two vultures (or eagles) bear his litter aloft before he is
cast down to death and disgrace (see Sa’alebi, Qesaj al-anbiya [Cairo,
1325/1907], pp. 45-49).
“Qur’an, 89:28.
world. When passion desires to ascend, it becomes all love and
affection; and when anger strives upward, it becomes all zeal and high
aspiration. The soul turns to the Divine Presence with love and affection, and
in its zeal and high aspiration refuses to stop at any station or to pay
attention to aught but the Almighty Presence. These two instruments, passion
and anger, thus become the most complete means for the spirit’s union with the
Presence.
Earlier, when still in the world of spirits, the spirit was without
these instruments, and was like the angels, satisfied with its own station. It
was content to perceive a single light and glow from the candle of the Majesty
of Unity—“naught from Us but has an appointed station”27—and dared
not step beyond its own station, saying with Gabriel, "Were I to advance
the breadth of a fingernail, I would be burned.”28 But when the
spirit became acquainted with earth, the soul was born as the offspring of its
union with the four elements, and from the soul were bom two other children,
passion and anger. Passion was extremely ignorant, anger extremely oppressive.29When
the soul faced downward, these two, ignorant and oppressive, cast it to
destruction, and the spirit which was their captive perished together with
them. Now when divine grace attached itself to the soul as companion, and the
wild steed of the soul was summoned to the upper world and the Almighty
Presence with the lasso of the attraction of “return to thy Lord,”30
the spirit, being an intelligent rider, wished like Gabriel to draw in the
reins when he reached his appointed station. But the wild steed of the soul
became like a mad moth with ignorance and oppressiveness, or passion and anger,
as its two wings, and it hurled itself on the candle of the Majesty of Unity.
It said farewell to figurative being and put its arm around the neck of union
with the candle, so that the candle transformed its figurative moth being into
its own true candle being.
This feeble one says:
27Qur’an, 37:164.
2SSee p. 142, n. 33.
’’Concerning these qualities, see p. 64, and also p. 64, n. 13 and
n. 16.
30Qur'an, 89:28.
O thou seated by the side of the candle, Content with a single ear
of com from its harvest!
Like the moth, place thy soul in thy palm, Then put thine arm around
the neck of the candle.
Until the soul has completed its work of ignorance and oppressiveness,
it is not possible to know it fully: what it is, for what purpose it has been
created, and what task it is to fulfill at each station. When its work is seen
to have attained perfection, and when in its mothlike madness it reaches the
light-shedding candle—“I will be for him his hearing, his sight, and his
tongue: through Me he shall hear, through Me he shall see, and through Me he
shall speak”31—then shall the truth of “He who knows his soul knows
his Lord”32 be realized. That is, whoever knows his soul to be the
moth knows God to be the candle.
Were it not for Thee, we would not know passion;
And were it not for passion, we would not know Thee.
God’s peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
^Hadls
qodsi; see al-Haddadi, al-Ethafat al-saniya,
p. 149. ’Tradition; see a 4 above.
Seventh Chapter:
Concerning the
Purification of the Heart in Accordance with the Code of the Path
God Almighty said: “Truly therein is a reminder for him who is
possessed of a heart, or gives ear and witnesses.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “There is
in the body of the son of Adam a piece of flesh which, if it be sound, causes
the rest of the body to be sound; and if it be corrupt, causes the rest of the
body to be corrupt. This piece, of flesh is the heart.”2
Know that the relationship of the heart to the body is like that of
God’s Throne to the world. In the same way that the Throne is the place of
manifestation for the repose of the attribute of compassion in the macrocosm,
so too the heart is the place of manifestation for the repose of the attribute
of spirituality in the microcosm. There is, however, this difference, that the
Throne is unaware of the manifestation of the repose of the attribute of
compassion, so that it is incapable of progressing to become the place of
manifestation for the repose of other attributes; whereas the heart is
possessed of awareness and is capable of so progressing.3
The Throne has been set apart by the manifestation of the repose of the
attribute of compassion because it is the extremity of the world of bodies. It
is an expanse that faces on the one hand the world of Dominion and on the other
hand the world of bodies. When God Almighty’s sustaining grace reaches the
world of bodies, it is through the attribute of compassion. It is
'Qur’an, 50:37.
“Tradition recorded by BokarT, Moslem, Ebn Maja and Dareml.
’This and the following paragraph are based on Qur'an, 20:5
("and the Compassionate One reposed upon the Throne”). While seeking to
avoid the twin dangers of anthropomorphism and abstractionism, Sufi
commentators have explained the verse as indicating the "centrality” of
the attribute of compassion; like the Throne that is its locus, it is
simultaneously the motionless core of creation and also the "substance”
that flowing forth ceaselessly from the Throne encompasses, penetrates, and
sustains each atom of the cosmos. See Haqqi, Ruh al-bayan, V, pp.
263-265. Concerning the Throne, see p. 84, n. 25.
for this reason that one says, in supplication, “O Thou Whose
compassion encompasses the world,” for all of creation benefits from the
attribute of compassion, whether friend or stranger, animate or inanimate.
It has been said that “compassionate” (rahman) is a special
name and a general attribute, while “merciful” (rahim) is a general
name and a special attribute. The name “Compassionate” cannot be applied to any
other than God, and all creatures benefit from the attribute “compassionate”:
“There is naught in the heavens and earth but comes to the Compassionate as
bondsman.”4 The word rahman is formed on the paradigm fa‘lan,
indicating emphasis. Conversely, the name “merciful” can be applied to anyone,
for it is a general name, but none benefit from the attribute “merciful” except
the people of mercy: “truly God’s mercy is nigh unto the beneficent.”5
When some part of the grace of the attribute of compassion is
dispatched to the world of bodies, the first body to receive it is the Throne,
for it is the closest of all bodies to the world of Dominion. One of its faces
is turned toward the world of Dominion, and it is by means of this that it
receives God’s grace. It is also by way of the Throne that the grace is
distributed, for the Throne is connected with all corporeal beings by a series of
channels that conduct the sustaining grace to each class of being. This flow of
grace is continuous and makes possible the survival and permanence of all
beings; were the sustenance it provides to be interrupted for a single moment,
nothing could remain in existence. This is the inner meaning of “Everything
shall perish but His face.”6 Since the Throne was fitted to receive
the sustaining grace of the attribute of compassion, it was honored with “the
Compassionate reposed on the Throne,”7 although unaware of this high
fortune.
Similarly, one face of the human heart is turned to the world of
spirituality, and the other face to the world of the bodily
^Qur'an, 19:94.
’Qur'an, 7:55.
6Qur’an, 28:88.
’Qur’an, 20:5.
frame. It is for this reason that the heart is called qalb,a
for it contains within itself two worlds, corporeal and spiritual, and
constantly turns from one to the other. All sustaining grace received from the
spirit is distributed by the heart; delicate veins connect it with each member
and serve as channels for the grace of the spirit. Thus all grace received by
the heart is distributed by it in such manner that each member receives a
fitting share. Were the sustenance of that grace to be severed from the heart,
even for an instant, the bodily frame would stop functioning and all life would
cease. Likewise, if its sustenance were to be severed from a member on account
of some obstacle in the veins that are the channels of grace, the member would
be unable to move and would be paralyzed.
It is thus clear that the relation of the heart to the microcosm is
the same as that of the Throne to the macrocosm. The heart, however, has a
property and a nobility that the Throne does not possess, for the heart is aware
of receiving the effusion of the grace of the spirit, while the Throne has no
such awareness. For the grace of the spirit reaches the heart in the form of
attributes, and the attributes of the spirit bestow upon the heart life, knowledge,
and intelligence, so that the heart is able to perceive grace. In like manner,
the light of the sun, which is also its attribute, may pour into a room. The
room will then be illumined with the flowing light of the sun, and light will
appear in it, so that it acquires the attributes of the sun with respect to
luminosity.
By contrast, the grace of the attribute of compassion comes to the
Throne only as action and power, not as an attribute. The Throne is sustained
thereby, and bestows upon all beings a trace of the action and power it has
received, sustaining them in turn. Life does not appear in them, however, nor
does knowledge or gnosis, which are the attributes of God. Similarly, when the
sun pours down the attribute of luminosity on a mountain, the mountain acquires
the attribute of luminosity. But when the
“The Arabic triliteral root QLB from which qalb is derived
has the sense of "turning, revolving, inverting.” This etymological
explanation of the word qalb —one strengthened by the hadis
quoted on p. 219—had already been offered by Najm al-Din Kobra; see Meier’s
introduction to Fawd'ih al-Jamal wa Fawatih al-Jalal, p. 168.
mountain in turn bestows this light upon the ruby and agate within
the mine, through its own workings and effects, the ruby and agate do not acquire
the sun’s attribute of luminosity, and react instead to the workings of the sun
by acquiring the attributes of ruby and agate, respectively.9
Furthermore, when the heart is purified in accordance with the code
of the Path, it has the capacity to become the place of repose of the attribute
of compassion, in the same way that it is the place of repose of the attribute
of spirituality. Indeed, when through nurturing, purification, and direction
toward God it reaches perfection, it becomes the locus for the manifestation of
all the attributes of divinity. Naught but the heart in all creation, including
the Throne, is capable of supporting the rays of the manifestation of a single
light from a single divine attribute. When the manifestation touched Mount Sinai,
the mountain was shattered.10
It is related of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, that he stretched
out the tip of his little finger and laid the tip of his index finger across it
and said: “This was the amount of the manifestation of God’s light when Mount
Sinai was shattered” —that is, the amount of half the tip of a little finger.
There are, however, certain of God’s servants who attain perfection
of the heart after purifying and training their hearts through following the
Master of the First and the Last; and then the oceans of light of the
attributes of beauty and splendor11 of
’This somewhat obscure passage appears to mean that the heart,
imbued with the attribute of compassion, is able to endow with it the microcosm
at the center of which it lies, in addition to further attributes. The Throne,
by contrast, endows the macrocosm with the attribute of compassion alone,
without any additional attribute; at the most it merely elicits the inherent
attributes of things.
'“See Qur’an, 7:143: "When his Lord manifested Himself to the
mountain, He made it as dust, and Moses fell in a swoon.”
"The divine names and attributes are frequently divided by Sufi
writers into the two categories of beauty (jamal) and splendor (jalal),
these two qualities forming “poles” of complementarity within manifestation. To
the category of beauty belong, for example, merciful (rahim),
oft-forgiving ('aftiw), loving (wadtid); while to that of
splendor belong just ('adl), vengeful (montaqem), wrathful (qahhar),
etc. The duality of beauty and splendor is to be found in the teaching of so
early a Sufi as Zu’l-Ntin Mesri (d. 245/859); see Annemarie Schimmel, Mystical
Dimensions of Islam (Chapel Hill, 1975), p. 44.
God Almighty and Exalted will be made manifest to their hearts
several times in the course of a single night and day. This they will be able
to support through God’s grace.
What, now, is the heart; wherein lies its purification; how is it to
be trained, and how to attain perfection?
Know that the heart has an outer form described by the Prophet, upon
whom be peace, as a lump of flesh. The possession of this lump of flesh is
common to all creatures, including the animals. It is shaped like a pine cone
and is situated on the left of the body, beneath the breast. The fleshly heart
of man has, however, a spiritual animus within it which the heart of animals
does not. Furthermore, this animus of the heart, when brought to the station of
purity, is seen to contain within it another heart, derived from the light of
love and not possessed by everyone. Thus God said: "Truly therein is a
reminder for him who is possessed of a heart.”[78]
That is, the one who has a heart enjoys familiarity with God. God did not
affirm that everyone possesses a heart, for what is intended here is the true
heart, which we call the heart of the animus or simply heart. Thus it has been
said:
The vein of the spirit was pierced with love’s lancet tip;
A drop fell down, and they called it the heart.[79]
The heart may be in a state of soundness or corruption. Soundness
of the heart consists in its purity and corruption in its impurity; and purity
of the heart lies in the health of its senses, and impurity of the heart in the
illness and sickness of its senses. For the heart has five senses, like those
of the bodily frame, and as the soundness of the bodily frame consists in the
health of its five senses, by means of which it perceives all the manifest
world, so too is the case with the heart. When it is in a state of health, it
perceives with its five senses the entirety of the unseen world—inner essences
and spiritual realities. The heart has an eye with which it beholds visions of
the unseen; an ear with
which it listens to the speech of the inhabitants of the unseen, and
the speech of God; nostrils with which it smells the perfumes of the unseen;
and a palate with which it perceives the taste of love, the sweetness of faith,
and the savor of gnosis. And as the sense of touch is distributed among all the
members of the bodily frame, so that it may through all of them gain benefit
from tactile objects, so too is the intelligence present throughout the heart,
so that it may in its entirety gain benefit from all in- telligibilia by means
of the intelligence.
If the senses of the heart are healthy, then the soundness of the
heart itself and the salvation of the body are secure. But if the senses of the
heart are sick, then corruption of the heart and ruin of the entire body will
ensue. Thus it is that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “There is in the
body of the son of Adam a piece of flesh which, if it be sound, causes the rest
of the body to be sound; and if it be corrupt, causes the rest of the body to
be corrupt. This piece of flesh is the heart.”14 God Almighty
expresses the same truth in the Qur’an, that whosoever maintains the senses of
the heart in a state of health will gain salvation and the lofty degrees of
Paradise: “Save he who bringeth to God a sound heart.”15 Conversely,
if the senses of a heart are diseased, the possessor of that heart has been created
for hellfire: “Truly We have created for hellfire many of the jinn and
mankind: they have hearts whereby they do not understand, eyes whereby they do
not see, and ears whereby they do not hear.”16 And elsewhere in the
Qur’an God says, “Deaf, dumb, and blind—they comprenend not”;17 and,
“It is not their sight that is blinded, rather the hearts within their
breasts.”18 There are many similar verses in the Qur’an.
The purification of the heart consists, then, in the health of its
senses, and its training in turning toward the Divine Presence and repudiating
all other than God.
■’Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
liQur’an, 26:89.
16Qur’an, 7:178.
"Qur’an, 2:166.
■’Qur’an, 22:46.
O heart, cast away life for the friend’s sake!
Nay, what is life? Let it be both worlds!
Let me not say, “this cast away, or that”; Whatever be dear to you,
that cast away.
Thus when Abraham, upon whom be peace, looked upon other than God,
he called himself sick—“He gazed at the stars and said, ‘I am ailing.’”19
When through God he was cured of that disease—“When I ail He cures me”20—he
turned toward the Divine Presence and repudiated all other than God, saying: “I
am free of that which ye associate with God; I have set my face to Him Who has
created the heavens and the earth.”21
Know further that the heart has different aspects, each containing
numerous wonders and countless truths for the exposition of which many books
would not. suffice. Emam Abu Hamed Gazali—may God sanctify his spirit—has
composed a book on the wonders of the heart without encompassing even a tenth
of them.22 Here, a brief indication of each will be given, God
willing.
Know that the heart in man is like the heavens, and his body like
the earth, for the sun of the spirit shines on the earth of the bodily frame
from the heavens of the heart, illumining it with the light of life. As the
earth has seven climes and the heavens have seven spheres, the bodily frame has
seven members and the heart seven aspects, corresponding to the seven spheres
of the heavens—“and He created you in stages and aspects.”23 And as
each clime of the earth has a certain property, causing certain species to
flourish in it that are not found in the other climes, so too each member of
the human body has a certain property, from which proceeds a certain kind of
act that does not proceed from the other members. Thus vision proceeds from the
eye, hearing from the ear, speech from the tongue, grasping from the hand, and
walking from the foot, none being able to perform the
■’Qur'an, 37:88.
20Qur’an, 26:80.
’■Qur’an, 6:79.
22This book—Ketab sarh 'aja’eb
al-qalb—is part of the great theologian and mystic’s masterpiece, Ehya’
'olum al-din (it is to be found on pp. 2-47 of Vol. Ill of the undated
Cairo edition).
23Qur’an, 71:14.
function of another. Similarly, as each sphere of the heavens is the
seat of a planet, the seven spheres being the seat of seven planets, each
aspect of the heart is the mine for a different kind of jewel—“Men are mines,
like mines of gold and silver.”24
The first aspect of the heart is called the breast, and is the mine
in which is found the jewel of Islam: “He whose breast God has expanded unto
Islam enjoys a light from his Lord.”25 When it is deprived of the
light of Islam, the breast becomes a mine of darkness and unbelief—“but he
whose breast was expanded unto unbelief”26—and the seat of satanic
whisperings and the enticements of the soul—"who whispers in the breasts
of men.”27 Of the aspects of the heart, it is only the breast that,
being as it were the skin of the heart, can thus become the seat of
whisperings and enticements, for these have no access to the interior of the
heart. For the heart is God’s treasury and resembles the heavens, where
whisperings and enticements have no access: “We have guarded them against every
accursed devil.”28
The second aspect of the heart is called qalb, and is the
mine of faith—“He inscribed faith in their hearts.”29 It is the seat
of the light of the intellect—“They have hearts whereby they comprehend”30—and
also of vision—"It is not their sight that is blinded, rather the hearts
within their breasts.”31
The third aspect is the pericardium, which is the mine of affection,
love, and compassion toward mankind—“he smote her
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 28.
25Qur’an, 39:22. In treating the
breast (sadr) as an aspect of the heart and not merely as its casing,
Daya follows an earlier Sufi who also concerned himself with the morphology of
the inner being—al-Hakim al-Termezt (d. c. 320/932). See his Bayan al-farq
bayn al-sadr wa'l-qalb wa'l-fo'ad wa'l-lobb, ed. Nicholas Heer (Cairo,
1378/1958), pp. 40-46.
“Qur’an, 16:106.
27Qur’an, 114:5.
“Qur'an, 15:17.
“Qur'an, 58:22. The expression "the mine of faith” is also used
by al-I4akim al-Termez.I (Bayan al-farq, p. 53), which further suggests
that Daya was drawing on his work.
“Qur’an, 22:46.
’■Qur’an, 22:46.
heart with love”32—and the love of mankind does not pass
beyond the pericardium.
The fourth aspect is called the fo’ad, and is the mine of witnessing
and the seat of vision—"The fo’ad did not lie concerning what it
saw.”33
The fifth aspect is known as the grain34 of the heart,
and is the mine of love for the Divine Presence. It belongs to the elect who
have no room in them for the love of any created being. Thus it is said:
1
have no room for the desire of another;
My head has no room for the thought of another.
The sixth aspect is known as the core35 of the heart, and
is the mine of unveilings of the unseen and of God-given knowledge.36 It
is the source of wisdom, the treasure house of divine secrets, and the seat of
knowledge of the names—“and He taught Adam the names, all of them.”37
In the core of the heart, species of knowledge are unveiled in which the angels
have no share.
This writer says:
O thou whose grief snatched reason from my heart, Whose pain put up
for sale the dwelling of my heart!
That
mystery denied all the angels sanctified Thy love softly whispered in the ear
of my heart.
!!Qur'an, 12:30. The noun sagaf
(“pericardium”) is nearly identical with the verb sagafa (“he smote with
love”).
33Qur’an, 53:13. No word suggests
itself as a translation for fo’ad, which is conventionally rendered as
“heart” but is here merely an aspect of the heart, its organ of vision. See
Daya’s commentary on the verse in question (in Ifaqqi, Ruh al-bayan, IX,
pp. 22-223), and al-TermezI, Bayan al-farq, p. 62 (“know that the fo’ad
is the locus of vision; it sees, while the qalb knows”).
’’Grain of the heart (habbat al-qalb): this fifth aspect of
the heart, like the sixth and seventh aspects, is not suggested by any Qur’anic
verse, nor, to my knowledge, is it mentioned by Daya's predecessors in the
analysis of the heart.
35Core of the heart (soveyda):
literally, “small black (spot).”
’’Concerning "God-given knowledge" ('elm ladonni), see
p. 246.
’’Qur'an, 2:31.
The seventh aspect is called the blood38 of the heart,
and is the mine for the appearance of the lights of the manifestation of the
divine attributes. This is the hidden meaning of “We have ennobled the sons of
Adam,”39 for this nobility was not conferred on any other species of
being.
The perfect purity of the heart lies in its attaining complete
health and soundness, and quitting entirely the misfortune of the sickness of
"in their hearts is a sickness.”40 The sign of the heart’s
health is that each of the aspects we have enumerated should engage in its
proper function of worship; be defined by the properties of the truths
inherent in it, in accordance with divine command and the path of obedience;
and observe the conditions and customs of servitude in the manner appropriate
to it.
The bodily frame has been commanded to prostrate itself on seven
members: "I was commanded to prostrate myself on seven members.”41
Likewise, the heart must prostrate itself with all seven of its aspects. Its
prostration consists in averting its gaze from all created beings; turning away
from the enjoyments of this world and the hereafter; directing itself with all
its being to the Divine Presence; asking of God nothing but God; and placing
its head on the threshold of servitude, with all seven aspects.
O heart, thou art prostrate a thousandfold before
His cheek;
No true prayer is the body’s prostration.
In the beginning, the heart passes through infancy and is afflicted
by illness. It does not attain its true attributes until by training it reaches
maturity and is fully cured and restored to health. The heart may be trained
through the inner meaning of the Law, and this it is that they call the Path.
Its health may be secured by judicious treatment and the use of medicines, the
’“Blood of the heart (mohjat al-qalb): Gazali speaks of a
"black blood” in the ventricle of the corporeal heart as being the source
of the spirit Ehya' 'olurn al-din, HI, p. 3).
’’Qur’an, 17:70.
’“Qur’an, 5:55.
’’Tradition recorded by Daremi, and, with a somewhat different
wording, by Abu Da’ud, Nasa’I, Ebn Maja and Ebn Ifanbal.
code of the Qur’an being replete with the exposition of such
treatment and the description of such medicine: “We send down from the Qur’an
that which is a cure and a mercy for the believers.”42
There are differences among the skilled physicians of the heart in
their methods of treatment. Each of them begins treatment in a different
fashion, but none of them steps outside the code of the Qur’an. Some strive for
the refinement and transformation of morals, treating each attribute of the
soul—each reprehensible attribute—with its opposite, so that the attribute
become praiseworthy. For it has been said, “Cure is effected by opposites.”43
Thus, when they desire to remove the attribute of miserliness, which
is a form of illness, and to transform it into the good health of generosity,
they treat it with lavishness and munificence. They cure the attribute of
anger with endurance, forbearance, and the suppression of wrath, and transform
the attribute of greed with asceticism, abandonment of the world, solitude, and
withdrawal. So too, gluttony is cured with hunger and a decrease in food, and
lust with the abandonment of pleasure and an abundance of ascetic striving and
exercise. Each attribute is thus cured with its opposite, just as the physician
of the bodily form repels heat with cold portions, and coldness with warm
electuaries.
This method is reasonable and appropriate, but whole lifetimes are
spent in changing a single attribute, and even then it is not transformed in
its entirety. For the attributes are essential to man’s nature—“there is no
changing God’s creation”44—and each attribute must exist in its
proper place. The purpose is not totally to remove the attributes.
It is here that the philosophers fell into error. They devoted their
lives to transformation of the attributes; without considering it necessary to
follow the prophets, they imagined that the gaze of the intellect was enough to
effect the cure. They were
“Qur'an, 17:82.
“See Nasr, Science and Civilization in Islam, p. 220.
“Qur'an, 30:30.
unaware of any of the faculties of the heart that we have enumerated
except the intellect, and fancied that the intellect is everything, although it
is itself subject to the harmful influence of the reprehensible and bestial
attributes. It is only when these attributes are transformed into praiseworthy
and angelic attributes that man attains perfection. The philosophers wished to
accomplish the transformation by means of the gaze of the intellect, saying:
“We who are endowed with knowledge and intellect, what need do we have of
following the prophets? Only the ignorant and weak of intellect stand in need
of the prophets.” They did not know that man has other faculties beyond the intellect,
a thousand times nobler than the intellect, such as the true heart, the
mystery, the spirit, and the arcane.45 These faculties can be
neither conceived nor nurtured by the intellect, for the intellect is in the
first place incapable of perceiving its own state, and is itself ill and sick.
It has been said that “The sight of the ill is itself sick,” and also that “The
physician who would cure others is himself ill.” In truth, the philosophers all
need the lawgiving physician to prescribe the correct cure for each of them,
in accordance with the code of the Law. When the eye of vision of some of the
people of misguidance was closed with the blindfold of wretchedness, they were
deprived of seeing the properties of the Law and the profound reason for the
sending of the prophets. Thus they looked upon the Law with scorn and derision
and became arrogant on account of the pleasure they took in the wandering gaze
of the intellect. Of necessity, God Almighty says with respect to their
intellect and its gaze: “God derides them, leaving them to wander in their
insolence.”46
Then there are those who devote their lives to the transformation
of attributes and to ascetic striving in accordance with the code of the Law.
But if for a single instant they neglect to keep watch on their soul, it will
immediately leap forth, shake off the bridle, and head for its familiar
pastures. Indeed, the more tightly the dog of the soul is chained, the hungrier
it becomes, and whenever it is freed from the bonds of ascetic exercise, its
lust and greed will be seen to have increased. This is the case with all the
attributes. If one wishes to proceed in this fashion
’“Concerning the mystery and the arcane, see p. 134, n. 9, ’“Qur’an,
2:15.
with the stations and attributes of the heart, a lifetime will not
suffice to wayfare truly in one station or attribute, for as soon as one begins
to nurture one attribute, another will suffer loss. The task cannot be achieved
merely through ascetic striving.
Once Hoseyn b. Mansur saw Ebrahim Kawwas47 and asked him,
“In what station are you wayfaring?” He answered, “I have been mortifying my
soul for thirty years in the station of reliance.” Hoseyn said, “So you have
spent your life on the cultivation of your inner being; but how far have you
advanced to effacement in God?” The lovers have one path, and the ascetics
another.
Not this alone, another tongue do we have;
Not heaven and hell alone, another place do we have. Drunkenness and
dissipation—such is love’s capital;
Devotions and asceticism—to another world they belong.48
The path of our shaikhs—may God sanctify their spirits and be
pleased with them—consists in striving first to purify the heart, not to
transform the attributes. For once purity of the heart has been achieved and
true direction to God has been attained, the heart becomes receptive to God’s
sustaining grace. From the effect of this grace, in a single instant,
transformations will occur in the attributes of the soul that a whole lifetime
of ascetic striving and exercise would fail to produce. And since this state
is attained through God’s grace, it will observe the limit of equilibrium and
the path of correctness; whereas that which is attained by ascetic striving and
exercise differs in its results and must be struck against the touchstone of
the Law to prevent disorder, mischief, and harm from occurring.
The condition for the purification of the heart is that it should
’’Ebrahim Kawwas (d. 291/904): an early Sufi noted for his exacting
practice of reliance on God (tavvakol) on solitary journeys through the
desert. See the references to him in Benedikt Reinert, Die Lehre vom
tawakkul in der klassis- chen Sufik (Berlin, 1968), especially pp. 167-170
and 200-203. Daya's anecdote of his meeting with Hoseyn b. Mansur .Hallaj is
derived from Hojvlrl, Kasf al-mahjub, p. 221.
’“Quatrain by Abu Sa'Id b. Abu’l-Keyr; see Mohammad b. Monavvar,.Asrar
al-towhid, p. 339.
first achieve complete outward detachment, through abandonment of
the world, withdrawal, and isolation from men and from all that instinctual
nature is accustomed to, and the renunciation of power and property. Then it
will reach the station of separation, that is, separation of the inner being
from all objects of love and desire other than God.
Then the true nature of the affirmation of unity will become
apparent, this being the inward meaning of “Know that there is no god but God.”49
For affirmation of the unity has several stations, pertaining to faith,50
certainty,51 beneficence,52 vision,53 and
essence.54 Until all these have been assimilated, it is impossible
to attain unicity,55 and until unicity has been assimilated it is
impossible to attain oneness,56 which is the shore of the ocean of
unity.57 A description of these stations would be prolix.
None of these stations of the affirmation of unity is to be attained
through the transformation of characteristics, but only through purification of
the heart and directing it toward God.
’’Qur’an, 47:19.
50Faith (iman): i.e., the
initial assent of the heart and the tongue to the elementary doctrines of
religion; the first stage of belief (Jorjani, KetSb al-ta'rifat, P- 41).
“'Certainty (iqan): ‘‘knowledge of the essence of a thing
after gazing upon it and deducing conclusions” (Jorjani, Ketab al-ta'rifat,
pp. 41-42).
“’Beneficence (ehsan): see p. 126, n. 13.
““Vision (’ayan): the common sense of this word, which does
not appear to be part of the technical vocabulary of Sufism, is immediate and
untramelled perception by means of the physical eye.
“’Essence (’eyn): what is intended here by Daya may be ‘eyn
al-yaqin, the ‘‘essence of certainty,” defined by Jorjani as "that
bestowed by witnessing and unveiling” (Ketab al-ta'rifat, p. 166).
““Unicity (vahdaniyat): it would appear that what Daya
intends by this term is equivalent to vahediya'l—i.e., unity in
multiplicity; the unity that is perceptible behind the multiplicity of the
attributes and their manifestation. See Titus Burckhardt, Vom Sufitum:
Einfilhrung in die Mystik des Islam (Munich, 1953), pp. 60-61; and Mir
Valiuddin, Qur'anic Sufism (Delhi, 1959), pp. 96-97.
““Oneness (validat): unity in its mathematical sense; God’s
being "when naught else was” and His being known only to Himself
(Valiuddin, Qur’anic Sufism, pp. 93-96).
“’Unity (ahadiyat): the state of abstract unity, utter
unknownness and unknow- ability; being nonmanifest, totally hidden and devoid
of all attribute (Valiuddin, Qur'anic Sufism, pp. 91-93).
When the morid55 has, in accordance with his
capacity, completed the tasks of outward detachment and inner separation, let
him proceed, for the purification of his heart, to the practice of continuous
retreat and constant zekr.59 In retreat his outer senses will
cease functioning and his heart will be severed from the harmful influence of
sense objects, for the darkness and veils that surround the heart derive
largely from the operation of the senses on sense objects.
All harm comes to the heart from the eye’s gaze; When the eye saw
her, the heart was ensnared.
When the harmful effect of the senses has been checked, there still
remain satanic whisperings and urgings of the soul to darken and disturb the
heart. Their path can be blocked by the constant practice of zekr and
the expulsion of stray thoughts,60 as will be explained in the
chapter on the need for the invocation of la eldha elld'lldh,61
God Almighty willing.
Once delivered from the tribulations of the soul and of Satan, by
the light of zekr and the expulsion of stray thoughts, the heart may
turn to its own states and experience the taste of zekr, for the tongue
now passes the task of zekr on to the heart. The property of zekr
will begin to remove from the heart all the darkness and veiling that had
afflicted it as a result of the workings of Satan and the soul and had become
rooted in it. When the darkness and veiling decrease, the light of zekr
will shine upon the jewel of the heart, and trembling and fear will arise in
the heart—“The believers are those whose hearts tremble when God
MMorid:
one who embarks on the Sufi path under the guidance of a shaikh. We have chosen
to retain the word in its original instead of translating it as
"disciple,” because the morid is concerned with the application of
his will (eradat) to the practice of a spiritual method, whereas the
word disciple implies the intellectual assimilation of a doctrine. See p. 255.
59 Zekr:
the remembrance and invocation of God, persistently ordained throughout the
Qur’an. Because of the multiple reverberations of meaning of the word, and
because it is one of the quintessentially Islamic terms that resist successful
translation, we have chosen to use zekr also in its original.
60Stray thoughts (kavater):
concerning kavater and their varieties, see p. 281 and p. 281, n. 9.
61Third Part, Twelfth Chapter.
is invoked.”62 Later, when the heart is watered with zekr,
all hardness departs from it, and softness and gentleness appear— “Then their
hearts and skins are softened to the invocation of God.”63
When one persists in zekr, the monarch of zekr
conquers the realm of the heart and expels from it all that is not the remembrance
of God and the love of God, appointing the mystery64 to be guard
over the heart.
The mystery sat holding the curtain at the heart’s door, Denying
entry to all but His remembrance.
When the monarch of zekr has settled in the realm of the
heart, the heart gives him its trust and affection, shying away from all
others: “Those who believe and whose hearts find assurance in the invocation of
God; is it not in the invocation of God that hearts find assurance?”65
As long as the monarch finds in the heart the memory and love of any creature,
he knows that the heart is still afflicted by darkness and sickness, and that
these must be removed by the lustration of la elaha ella’llah and the
potion of negation of all other than God. Only then does the heart become able
to receive the impress of the Word, and the adornment of the jewel of zekr.
No thought will remain other than God, all else will be burned, and the light
of zekr and the jewel of the Word66 will take the place of
all fixed impressions. Shaikh Majd al-Dln67 says, may God sanctify
his blessed spirit:
If the heart be aware of the world’s good and evil, Its arm is too short
to touch and to change them.
One heart there was, a thousand thoughts filling it;
Now, naught but la elaha ella’llah!
Then it is that the monarch of love sends down his royal
“’Qur'an, 8:2.
“’Qur'an, 39:23.
“’Concerning the mystery, see p. 134, n. 9.
““Qur’an, 13:30.
““By the Word is meant la elaha ella’llah ("there is no
god but God”). Seep. 93, n. 62.
“’Concerning Shaikh Majd al-DIn Bagdad!, see introduction, pp. 8-9.
standard to the city of the heart, to be planted at the juncture of
the paths of the heart, the spirit, the soul, and the body. He commands the
lieutenant of longing to bind the libertine soul with the rope of pain, to
place the noose of seeking on its neck, and to bring it to the execution place
of the heart. There, at the foot of the royal standard of love, he severs its
passion-filled head with the sword of zekr and impales it on the tree of
sincerity. Those satanic thieves that were the accomplices of the soul will
hear of this, and seeing the royal chastisement thus inflicted, will evacuate
the city of the body and betake themselves from the kingdom.
When the sovereign’s standard enters the city Turmoil and tumult are
seen there no more.
All the libertine rabble—the reprehensible attributes of the
soul—will then in their powerlessness take up knife and shroud and entering by
the door of surrender and servitude say: “'O Lord, we have wronged ourselves’;68
if thou art a butcher, then kill us; and if thou art a king, then forgive us
and spare us.”
Again I have come to thy door, my hands steeped in blood; Here is my
head, and here the sword—do what thou wilt!
The monarch of love causes all the libertine rabble to repent of
their sinfulness and impurity, covers their shoulders with the cloak of honor
of servitude, and appoints them as commanders of the guard at the court of the
heart. For they have now been reformed and reconciled, and it was this that was
sought of them.
The beloved has been reconciled; ’tis thus it should be!
Her infidelity has turned to faith; ’tis thus it should be!69
Once the city of the body has been purified of the turmoil of the
satanic libertines and the tumult of the rabble, it is fit to become the court
of the beauty of the eternal besoughtness.70 Like-
““Qur’an, 7:22.
“’Line from a poem by Sana’I previously quoted on p. 122.
’“Eternal besoughtness (samadiyat): a noun formed from the
attribute famad, it is mentioned here because of its juxtaposition to ahad
(see n. 57 above) in Qur’an, 112:1-2. Concerning the inner relation between
these two attributes, see Ifaqqi, Ruh al-bayan, X, 538.
wise, once the mirror of the heart is cleansed of the rust of
instinctual nature, it becomes fit to receive the rays of the sun of the beauty
of the oneness.
Then the monarch of love will be appointed lieutenant, and the
minister of intellect will be made doorkeeper at the heart’s door. The city of
the heart will be adorned with ornament, with the pearls and the jewels of
certainty, sincerity, reliance, truthfulness, nobility, generosity, manliness,
liberality, munificence, shame, courage, chivalry, and other praiseworthy
attributes and desirable characteristics. What do these preparations mean? That
the true monarch is coming to the secluded pavilion of the heart, and that the
original beloved is revealing her beauty from behind the veil of splendor. Once
more the footman of la elaha clears the court, this time even of the
praiseworthy attributes, for jealous honor will not permit others to be
present. The heart, burning for long with love’s flame and abiding like Jacob
in the breast’s house of sorrows, is now about to illumine its eye with the
beauty of Joseph, and transform its house of sorrows with that same beauty into
a rose garden. It will abandon sorrow for joy, oppression for good fortune, and
exchange the wretchedness of separation for the splendor of union.
I saw thy cheek, and not a trace of sorrow remained;
Other than servitude to thy face, no path remained.
To my heart I then said, “Now request thy desire,” But the heart
answered, “No desire has remained.”
At this station the heart has attained its true nature as heart, and
recovered its original health and purity. Those attributes of the soul which
could not have been transformed by whole lifetimes of dry ascetic striving
have been totally transmuted by the alchemy of zekr, watchfulness of the
heart, and its direction toward God, and they have lowered their heads in
submission. For here the taskmaster was not the heart or the spirit, causing
some of the attributes to submit to the exclusion of others. Rather, it was the
imperious monarch of “all faces shall be humbled before Him, the Living, the
Self-subsistent”71 that cleared the court of the heart from the
tumult of intruders and
’'Qur’an, 20:111.
made it His unique throneroom, for “The earth does not contain Me,
and the heavens do not contain Me; only the heart of My believing bondsman
contains me.”72 Then the command of God prevails over all the
members and attributes—“God has full power over His affairs”73—and
no member or attribute is able to function in accordance with instinctual
nature, but only in accord with God’s command and indication: "I shall be
his hearing, his sight, his tongue and his hand; by Me he shall hear, by Me he
shall see, by Me he shall speak, and by Me he shall strike.”74
At this station the heart becomes the place of manifestation for all
the attributes of God. Since the attributes of God are of two kinds, those of
favor and those of wrath,75 the heart becomes the place of
manifestation for both, and God Almighty will manifest Himself in the heart at
times with the attributes of grace, and at other times with the attributes of
wrath. Thus the heart will be continually subject to the alternating
manifestation of these two classes of attribute. For this reason the Prophet,
upon whom be peace, said: “The heart of the believer is held between two of the
fingers of the Compassionate, and He turns it as He wills.”76 He
mentioned God with His attribute of compassion, not with His attribute of
divinity, because the heart is the place of repose of the attribute of
compassion, as we said at the beginning.
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and all his family.
^Hadis qodsi recorded by Tabaranl.
’’Qur'an, 12:21.
1‘-Hadis qodsi akin to that quoted on p. 55, n. 16.
’‘‘■‘Favor (lot;) and wrath (qahr):
two alternative designations for the "poles” in the divine attributes (see
n. 11 above), favor corresponding to beauty and wrath to splendor.
’“Tradition previously alluded to on p. 203.
Eighth Chapter:
Concerning the
Adornment of the Spirit in Accordance with the Code of the Truth
God Almighty said: “They will ask thee concerning the spirit; say,
‘the spirit is of my Lord’s Command.’”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “Spirits are
like armies drawn up: Those that are familiar to each other join together; and
those that are unknown to each other come into conflict.”2
Know that the human spirit belongs to the world of Command, and is
set apart by a proximity to God that no other creature enjoys, as was explained
in preceding chapters.3
The world of Command consists of a world which is subject to neither
amount, quantity, nor measure, by contrast with the world of Creation, which is
subject to these. The name of Command was given to the world of spirits
because it came into being upon the command “be!”4 with neither
temporal delay nor material intermediary. The world of Creation also came into
being upon the command “be!” but through the intermediary of matter and the
extension of days—“He created the heavens and the earth in six days.”5
In God’s saying “Say, ‘the spirit is of my Lord’s command,’ ”6 there
is an indication that the spirit arose from the Ad/and the nun of the
summons kon,7 in all its wondrous nature, with neither matter
nor substance. Its life it derived from the attribute of “He, the living,”8
and its subsistence from His attribute of self-subsisting.9 The
spirit is itself the matter
‘Qur’an, 17:85.
’Tradition quoted in part on p. 150 above.
3See Second Part, Fifth Chapter.
’Cf. Qur’an, 36:82: “His command, when He desires aught, is to say
to it, ‘be,’ and it is.”
“Qur'an, 7:53, 10:3, 11:7, 57:4.
“Qur’an, 17:85.
7Kaf and nun:
the letters that make up the word kon, "be.”
’Qur’an, 2:255.
’Self-subsisting (qayyum): the attribute joined with living (hayy)
in Qur’an, 2:255.
from which the world of spirits is derived, and the world of spirits
in turn is the origin of the world of Dominion, and the world of Dominion is
the source of the world of Kingship. The world of Kingship subsists, in its
entirety, by the world of Dominion; the world of Dominion subsists by the world
of spirits; the world of spirits subsists by the human spirit; and the human
spirit subsists by God’s attribute of self-subsisting. “Glorified be He in
Whose hand is the Dominion of all things and to Whom ye shall be returned.”[80]
Whatever comes into being in the worlds of Kingship and Dominion
does so by means of an intermediary, with the exception of the being of man,
for first his spirit came into being upon the command "be!” without any
intermediary, and then his bodily form was kneaded, also without intermediary:
“I kneaded the clay of Adam with My hands for forty days.”[81]
And when it was time for the marriage of the spirit to the bodily frame, man
was honored with the immediacy of “I inhaled into him,” and singularly ennobled
with the relation of “of My spirit,”[82]
as if God wished to say, “the spirit is alive with My life.” As the calling
into being of the spirit proceeded from God’s command, so too did God relate
the existence of the spirit to His command— “of my Lord’s command”; and because
the coming into being of the life of the spirit was from the divine attribute
of lifebestowing,[83]
this too He related to Himself, saying, “of My spirit.” Herein lies a great
subtlety.
The perfection of rank of the spirit lies therefore in its being
adorned with the dominical attributes, in order to be worthy of God’s
viceregency. There are different views concerning this adornment. Some
wayfarers are of the opinion that until refinement of the soul is achieved,
adornment of the spirit is unattainable; while another group has said that
without the adornment of spirit the refinement of the soul is unattainable, as
was explained in the chapter on the purification of the heart.
Our shaikhs—may God sanctify their spirits!—are of the view that
even if a whole lifetime be spent on the refinement of the soul, it will never
be fully refined, and man will never be able to proceed to the adornment of the
spirit. But if man, having first bound his soul in the fetters of the Law,
turns to the purification of the heart and the adornment of the spirit, then,
in accordance with the saying "Whosoever approaches Me by a span, him I
will approach by a cubit,”14 God’s favors will go forth in generosity
to greet him, and the effects of His rapture-bestowing grace and the effusion
of the bounty of His divinity will be continuous: “Whosoever comes to Me
walking, to him I will go running.” In a single instant, the soul will be
refined to a degree that it could never attain in a lifetime of ascetic struggle:
‘A state of rapture bestowed by God is equal to the deeds of man and jinn.”15
Now in its earliest state, the spirit is like an infant and stands
in need of training in order to become worthy of adornment. For the spirit,
while in the spiritual realm, has as yet no attachment to the human body; it
resembles the infant in its mother’s womb that requires a form of nurture
appropriate to that place, and has a degree of knowledge and cognition
appropriate to its station. The infant is, however, deprived and unaware of
the varied foods and the different sciences and branches of knowledge that it
may acquire after birth. So too the spirit, in the spiritual realm, received
from God the Glorious a form of nurture that would sustain its life in
accordance with its capacity and aspiration at that station. It had a spiritual
awareness of the generalities of the sciences and knowledge, but was deprived
of the varied foods of “I sleep in the presence of my Lord, Who feeds me and
gives me to drink”16 and unaware of the science and knowledge
'‘‘■Hadis qodsi, recorded by Moslem.
15This dictum is frequently regarded
as a Tradition (see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 119). It is,
however, quoted by Gazali (Ehya' “olum al-din, IV, p. 58) without any
ascription, and by Abd al-Rahrnan Jami (d. 898/1492) as the utterance of
Abu’l-Qasem Nasrabadi (d. 366/977) Nafahat al-ons, ed. Mahdi Towhidipur
[Tehran, 1336 Sh./1947], p. 248). “State of rapture” (jazba): "God’s
drawing His bondsman near to Himself through His pre-eternal grace; His
providing him with all that he needs in traversing the stages of the Path
without any effort on his part” (Sajjadi, Farhang-e mostalahdt-e 'orafa va
motafsavveja, p. 132). The translation "state of rapture" appears
appropriate because the root meaning of jazba is a "pulling"
of "drawing”; the one who receives a jazba is drawn away from
himself to God and becomes “enrapt.”
16Tradition already quoted in part on
p. 157.
of the manifest realm, for such is to be had only by means of the
human senses, the bodily faculties and the attributes of the soul.
And when the spirit was joined to the bodily frame, it was like an
infant proceeding from the womb to the cradle that will swiftly perish unless
it receives suitable sustenance. The kind mother places the infant in the
cradle and binds its hands and feet to prevent it from moving as nature impels
it and breaking or bending its limbs. She will withhold from it the foods of
this world to which it is still a stranger, for its stomach does not yet have
the strength to digest them, and nurture it instead with the food of the world
that was its abode for nine months, a sustenance to which it has been
accustomed, namely, milk. After a time, when it has become accustomed to the
air of this world, she will gradually begin to nurture it on the delicate foods
of this world, and thus strengthen its stomach. It will then be prepared for
coarser food that will help it to move, gain strength, and perform strenuous
tasks.
So too with the infant of the spirit. When it is fully joined to the
cradle of the bodily frame, the hands and feet of its activity must be tied in
the swaddling bands of the commands and prohibitions of the Law, so that it
does not move in accordance with animal nature, destroying itself or bending
the limbs of its spiritual attributes (that is, transforming them into lowly attributes).
Then the spirit is given the milk of purification and adornment from
the twin breasts of the Path and the Law, for this milk is a food from the
world where it resided for several thousand years, a food on which it was
nourished there. Thus its heart, which corresponds to the infant’s stomach, is
strengthened and made ready to consume the various foods which are connected
with the exercise of viceregency in the manifest realm—“and He made you
viceregents on earth”17—and which give the spirit the strength to
bear the burdens of the Trust. Those foods will not then harm it, but rather
strengthen and nurture it.
Just as the infant drinks milk at the breast of its mother or '’Qur’an,
6:165.
wetnurse, receiving from them the sustenance without which it would
perish, so too the infant of the spirit drinks the milk of the Path and of
Truth from the nipple of the mother of prophethood, or the wetnurse of
sainthood,18 receiving from the prophet or the shaikh—who stands in
place of the prophet—that sustenance without which it would perish.19
When we spoke of the infant of the spirit being fully joined to the
cradle of the bodily frame, we meant the time of maturity when the signs of intelligence
begin to appear. The progress of the spirit, from the time that it joins the
infant in the mother’s womb, by virtue of the divine inhalation, to the point
when it reaches the limit of maturity, is like that of the infant that before
birth has some of its members fully developed but not others, and then, with
its members fully developed, emerges from the chorion into the hands of the
midwife. For the attachment of the spirit to the bodily frame is gradual. As
long as the bodily frame lies within the mother’s womb, the spirit’s attachment
to it is only with respect to life, motion being a result of this; its attachment
to the senses is still incomplete, for it does not see with the physical eye
nor hear with the physical ear. When the frame emerges from the womb, the
spirit’s attachment to the senses is completed, and later it also forms a
gradual attachment to the human faculties.
Similarly, the spirit does not form full attachment to any part of
the human frame that is the locus for a certain human attribute until after
the attribute has appeared there. Thus, greed, anger, passion, and the other
attributes each have a definite place and locus, and until it appears there,
the spirit does not form a full attachment to that place and locus.
The last attribute to appear in man, enabling him to be held
responsible and accountable for his actions, is that of passion. It
'“Sainthood (velSyat): the quality, state and powers of a vali,
the "friend” or "protege” of God (cf. Qur’an, 10:62). It is defined
by JoqanI as "the abiding of God’s bondsman in God after effacing the
awareness of self” (Ketab al-tS'rifat, p. 275). Sainthood is an
unsatisfactory translation, however convenient; its inadequacy should be
constantly kept in mind.
19We would recall here that the
sobriquet Daya has the.meaning of wetnurse. See introduction.
is when passion appears and the spirit becomes attached to that
attribute and its locus that the spirit fully emerges from the chorion of the
unseen into the manifest world. If the spirit is fortunate, it will immediately
be delivered into the hands of the midwife of prophethood; in the cradle of the
Law its hands and feet will be tied in the swaddling bands of command and
prohibition; and it will be suckled at the twin breasts of the Path and the
Law.
The nurturing of the spirit lies in this, that it gradually sunder
all attachments it has formed as a result of its union with the bodily frame,
by means of the senses, the human faculties, and other attributes. For each of
these has become for the spirit a source of veiling and remoteness from the
Mighty Presence; everything to which it has become accustomed and attached,
through the inclination of instinctual nature, is a fetter on its foot, and a
chain around its neck; it has caused the spirit to become a stranger to God,
and deprived it of the taste of witnessing His beauty. When each of these
attachments is sundered, a veil, a bond, a shackle is removed; a degree of nearness
is attained; and the zephyr of auspiciousness wafts to the nostrils of the
spirit’s soul the scent of familiarity with the Divine Presence. Then will the
spirit exclaim—
The zephyr has brought me a scent
From the city where a dear, one abides.
The wind has come with the scent of her tress, And renewed our love
unaging.
O wind, thou bearest the scent of friendship;
Do not frequent strangers, I beg of thee!
The infant of the spirit is thus nurtured by two mothers: on the one
hand, it drinks from the breast of the Path the milk of the severance of
attachment from all that is familiar to instinctual nature; and on the other,
it drinks from the breast of the Truth the milk of intimations[84]
from the unseen world, of flashes and rays from the lights of the Divine
Presence. The spirit is thus
“between a garden and a pool”21 until, through the effect
of the intimations it receives and the manifestations of spiritual lights, it
is set free from the bonds of corporeal attachment and delivered from the
prison of bodily attributes. Then it arrives at the frontier of the primordial
state, becomes fit to hear the address of “am I not your Lord?” and is enabled
to answer “Yes.”22
Now when the spirit has emerged from the garment of humanity and
become safe from the harmful effects of fantasy and imagination, there is
displayed to it all that the worlds of Dominion and Kingship contain; it
contemplates the clear signs of God in all the atoms of the universe and in the
mirror of the soul.
In this state, even though the spirit looks out through the window
of the senses, it observes a trace of God’s signs in all that it looks upon,
and it is for this reason that a certain great one said: “I looked upon nothing
without seeing God in it.”23 Now love is purified and emerges from
the veil of the letters that form the word "love.” The spirit becomes
devoted to love, and love mingles with the spirit. All duality disappears
between love and the spirit, and unity appears, so that however much the spirit
seeks itself, it finds only love.
So much have I pined for love of the moonface
That I have lost my own self in the loving.
Thus, if the life of the frame be on account of the spirit, now the
life of the spirit is on account of love.
If thou seest me still living, O worshipper of coquetry, Think not
that a soul quickens my body.
I live on love alone, not through a soul,
For my soul I abandoned to seek thee.24
’■"Between a garden and a pool”: a cliche in Arabic poetry
signifying the simultaneous enjoyment of two pleasurable states.
’’Qur’an, 7:172.
’’Saying of Mohammad b. Vase' already quoted on p. 139.
’’This quatrain has been attributed to Majd al-Dtn Bagdad!. See Ye.
E. Bertel’s "Chetverostishiya Sheikha Madzhd al-Dina Bagdadi,” in Izbrannye
Trudy: Sufizm i Sufiyskaya Literatura, p. 338.
At this station, love has taken the place of the spirit and acts as
its deputy in the bodily frame. The spirit has become the moth circling the
candle of the beauty of eternal besoughtness;25 and with its two
pinions of extreme oppressiveness and extreme ignorance,26 acquired
from its attachment to the four elements (this being its gain from the
attachment), it begins to fly around the pavilions of the court of unity,27
reciting with the groans of an intoxicated lover:
Thy fair cheek is a candle—I am a moth;
Thy grief is my heart’s kinsman—I am a stranger.
A chain of ringlet tips rests on thy neck;
On my neck hang it—I am a madman.28
At this station, in accordance with God’s promise, “whoever
approaches Me by a span, him I will approach by a cubit,”29 the
dominical30 favors will go forth to greet the spirit and admit it to
the feast of expansion;31 they will begin exchanging with the spirit
the tenderness and affection of "He shall love them and they shall love
Him,”32 and start amorous discourse and communion. A reproachful
address shall go forth with this intent:
O
love, if thou would draw nigh to my abode, Thou must each moment prefer shame
to honor.
If
thou would be given the thread of light, Then like the candle set fire to thy
mouth.
When heavy draughts of the wine of reproach of “We shall cast upon
thee a weighty saying”33 reach the palate of the spirit, and its
effects assault all part of the spirit’s being, the spirit is
“Eternal besoughtness: see p. 217, n. 70.
26Conceming these two attributes, see
p. 64, n. 13.
27Unity: see p. 214, n. 57.
28Another quatrain attributed to Majd
al-Dln Bagdad). See Bertel's “Chetvero- stishiya,” p. 337.
^Hadis qodsi previously quoted on p.
222.
“Dominical f rabbani): pertaining to the divine name
"lord” (rabb), which indicates God’s solicitude for His creatures.
’'Expansion (enbesat): see p. 68, n. 28.
’2Qur’an, 5:54.
’’Qur’an, 73:5.
overwhelmed by the wine34 and sets its face to nonbeing.
From the flourishing settlement of being it turns to the ruined tavern of
effacement.35
Last night, an old man came to the tavern, they say,
His tears in intimate discourse with the goblet.36
His hand turns wine to honey, the idol temple becomes a mosque—
See the wondrous deeds an aged sinner performed!37
The spirit is kept for a time at this purgatorylike station, intermediate
between the paradise of the world of the dominical attributes and the hell of
the world of being, and with the wine of witnessing all remaining traces of the
attributes of existence are effaced from it. You have heard that Joseph, upon
whom be peace, was detained for five hundred years at the gates of paradise
and not admitted so that the pollution of worldly kingship might be fully
removed from him. The same matter is also indicated in God’s saying: “We
removed all impurities from their breasts.”38
Now during this confinement of the spirit, through the dominance of
its yearning for the Divine Presence and the effect of
’’Wine has various senses in Sufi symbolism: the effacement of the
self in the essence (Sajjadl, Farhang-e mostalahat-.e 'orafa va motafawefa,
p. 232-233); the overpowering assault on man of divine love; a rapturous state (jazba);
the state evoked in man by the onset of manifestation (Sajjadl, Farhang-e
mostala- hat-e 'orafa va motafawefa, pp. 232-233; anonymous, Mer’at-e
'ossaq, p. 173).
35The tavern has likewise several
different meanings: the purified inner being of the gnostic; the gathering
place of those afflicted with longing for the divine beloved; the presence of
the shaikh who dispenses the wine of love; or the Sufi hospice (Sajjadl, Farhang-e
moftalahat-e 'orafa va motafawefa, pp. 392-393, anonymous, Mer'al-e
‘ossaq, p. 147).
Effacement (fana): "the falling away of reprehensible
qualities, just as the counterpart of effacement, abiding (baqa) is the
existence of praiseworthy qualities. In reality effacement is of two kinds:
one, that which we have just described, which is attained by an abundance of
ascetic striving, and the other nonawareness of the worlds of Kingship and
Dominion through immersion in the magnificence of the Creator and the
witnessing of God.” (JotjanI, Ketab al-ta‘rlfat, p. 176.)
36The goblet (sorahi): the
station of intimacy (ons) (Sajjadl, Farhang-e moftalahat-e 'orafa va
motafawefa, p. 248).
37Poem attributed to Nezaml Ganjavl
(d. 605/1209); see Ganjina-ye Ganjavi (Tehran, 1313 S./1934), p. 229.
38Qur’an, 7:44.
intimations from the unseen, various wondrous deeds39
will be made manifest in man’s outer and inner being: “He lavished upon you His
outward and inward bounty.”40
If the wayfarer in this station looks upon these bounties with the
eye of approval, he will be distracted from Him Who bestowed the bounties; but
if he sprinkles on the eye of the soul the dust of subordination to prophetic
example, and adorns himself with the decoration of “his eye swerved not, nor
strayed,”41 he will become fit to contemplate the supreme signs.42
“It is here that the tears are shed”; this is that threshold where the
blood of a hundred thousand sincere devotees was spilled on the soil of trial,
but not a ripple appeared in the water.43
Many are the wayfarers of true intent and seekers smitten with love
who have become irremediably drunk in the tavern of the spirit, with the goblet
of wondrous deeds! They tasted the pleasure of the wine, and in their
drunkenness fell into pride and arrogance, never again seeing the face of
sobriety and awareness.
He drank no wine, nor entered the tavern;
But swooned as he read the grape’s bill of sale.44
They remained behind the veil of “the men of wondrous deeds are all
veiled,” making those wondrous deeds their idol of the moment. They put on the
girdle of attachment to wondrous deeds, averted their face from God, and turned
toward men. May God protect us from such deficiency after abundance!
’’Wondrous deeds (karamat): “the appearance of an
extraordinary phenomenon at the hands of one who does not claim prophethood and
is a practicing believer” (JorjanI, Ketab al-ta'rifat, p. 193). We
deliberately refrain from translating the word as miracle, since the
"miracle” (mo'jeza) is restricted to prophets and its purpose
differs from that of karamat..
’’Qur'an, 31:20.
’’Qur'an, 53:17.
’2Cf. Qur’an, 53:18: "Verily he saw the supreme
signs of his Lord.”
”Cf. the Tradition, "The sincere devotees are in great peril”
quoted on p. 97.
”A line apparently inspired by a sentence of almost identical
wording in the letters of 'Ayn al-Qozat HamadanI (Maktubat, ed. 'All
NaqI Raiavi [Beirut, 1969], I, 300).
O thou whose dwelling is the qebla of the fortunate,
To whom are turned all the hearts of the joyous!
Should one today avert his face from thee, What eye will be left him
to behold thee tomorrow?
As for those who enjoy the fortune of “those to whom goodness has
proceeded from Us, they are far removed therefrom,”45 in the bounty
of wondrous deeds their eye is fixed upon the Bestower of bounty, not the
bounty itself, and they give thanks for the bounty by looking upon its
Bestower, so that in accordance with “if ye are thankful, truly I shall
increase you,”46 they become fit to receive the bounty that is the
being of the Bestower of bounty.
May my heart never be able to part itself from thee!
Nor to become familiar with other than thee!
Should it cut loose from thy love, whom might it love?
And should it leave thy dwelling, where might it go?47
The duty of servitude incumbent on the spirit at this station is to
hold fast to this threshold; to draw in the skirt of aspiration from all other
than God; to divorce triply, with utter disdain, this world and the hereafter;
not to content itself with the lofty degrees and the bliss of all eight
paradises; and to appoint the verses this weak one has composed as its litany
of the hour: .
As long as we shelter in the emperor’s shade,
Creation’s twin realms are the slaves at our court.
The garden’s flowers and its houris are but thorns on the path,
For our goal and our dwelling are beyond all creation.
If there are displayed to the spirit the stations of the one hundred
and twenty thousand and more instances of prophethood, it should pay no
attention to any of them and spurn them, and in Mohammadan fashion not stop
until it reaches the lane of poverty. If it is addressed a thousand times,
"O bondsman, what
“Qur’an, 68:101.
“Qur’an, 14:7.
47 A quatrain previously quoted on p.
116.
is thy desire?” it should answer: “The bondsman has no desire, for
desire has its face turned toward being, and we are knocking at the door of
nonbeing.” This path is a protracted one, and if one waits for a thousand years
unnoticed at the threshold, one must not weary nor turn away from the court.
Draw not away from his dwelling, O heart filled with pain, Though I
know this desert is no place for thy foot.
Sever
thy head of suffering over the soil of his threshold, For the forecourt in the
palace of splendor is no place for thee.
At this station, all the prophets and saints stand perplexed and
helpless, for it is not possible to advance from here with the foot of
humanity, nor to carry off the ball with the arm of virility.
Union with the friend is a treasure, for which men stand in wait,
But all hangs on fortune and whom it befalls.48
Now, from the quiver of striving every arrow of endeavor has been
loosed, and none has hit the target of acceptance. One must drop one’s shield
like the rose, and lift up one’s hands in supplication like the plane tree,
not draw one’s dagger like the willow, nor cast one’s shield upon the water
like the water lily. One should be silent with ten tongues like the lily, close
the eyes like the narcissus, bow the head in humility like the hyacinth, and
with burned heart, exhale musk-scented breath like the tulip.
For this is the station where the beloved displays her coquetry and
the lover’s entreaty reaches its utmost. All the ties the spirit once had it
has lost at love’s backgammon; and now that it is bankrupt and wretched, its
hand is dipped in blood and it must lose its own life:
Lose thy life, for union with him is not given for mere words;
“A line from the poetry of Sayyed Ifasan GaznavT (d. 556/1161): Div.an,
ed. Modarres Razavi (Tehran, 1328 S./1949), p. 48.
The drunkards are not given milk to drink from the Law’s goblet.
Where the carefree drink wine together Not a sip is given to the
self-worshipper.
Whenever the breeze of the exhalation of God’s favors is wafted by
His grace to the nostrils of the spirit, it exclaims like Jacob, with heart
aflame and passionate sigh, “Verily I feel the breath of Joseph, though ye call
me dotard.”49
When the Joseph of the garden comes to the meadow, The scent of
Zoleyka comes to my nostrils.
My heart, groaning like Jacob, exclaims—
‘Alas! I smell the scent of the shirt.”
The spirit is so overcome by the yearning and anxiety of love that
it tires of its own selfhood and becomes satiated with its own existence; it
attempts to destroy itself and cries out like Hoseyn b. Mansur
Kill me, O trusted friends of mine!
For in my killing is my life.
My life is in my death, And my death is in my life.50
O friend, I am truly content now to die;
A thousand gifts are theirs if they’ll now kill me!
During this time, when the spirit is detained at the threshold of
might and afflicted with the torment of separation and the pain of longing, it
becomes seized with the madness of the moth, proclaiming—
We tried all the cunning that reason contrived, So now grant madness
a turn!
Caught in these straits of helplessness, impotence, and
wretchedness, the spirit despairs of itself and its efforts; it
’’Qur’an, 12:94.
^Diwan al-Hallaj, ed. Kamel Mostafa
al-Slbt (Baghdad, 1974), p. 14.
knows for certain that “its request is spumed and its path is
barred”; and it casts itself down lamenting—
I am lost in my search for thee, take then my hand, O guide of those
who stray in search of thee!
Last night my soul was steeped in blood on thy account, And my
companion till daybreak was the Pleiades.
Until dawn came this was my lament— Thy help, O Helper of the
supplicant!
When the smoke arising from the lament of that burning heart in the
station of helplessness reaches the presence of the Merciful One, in accordance
with "Who answers the needy when he calls upon Him?”51 He lifts
the veil of might from the beauty of eternal besoughtness52 and
caresses that suffering lover with a thousand favors:
Arise and come, for my house is cleared of strangers, And the veil
is lifted for thy sake.
When the candle of the beauty of eternal besoughtness is made
manifest, the spirit spreads its wings like a moth; the attraction of the rays
of the candle plunders the moth’s being; the beam of the light of manifestation
decorates the moth’s substance with the adornment of the candle’s attributes;
and when the tongue of flame of the candle of unity blazes brightly, it spares
not a single straw in the harvest of the moth of the spirit.
Thy love hath freed me from joy and from sorrow;
Thy union hath freed me of rejoicing and mourning.
A single light from thee hath touched me;
No more do I know the good or the bad, the great or the small.
The light of the beauty of eternal besoughtness becomes now the
spirit of the spirit—“Those it is in whose hearts faith has been inscribed and
whom He has aided with a spirit from
"Qur’an, 27:62.
“’See p. 217, n. 70.
Him.”53 If one life was lost, behold now a life that will
never be lost.
Love came and gave my soul to the beloved;
Then she gave me a soul from her own soul.
This is the threshold of the realm of effacement,54 and
the frontier of the realm of abiding.55 Henceforth the task of
training the spirit changes into its adornment with the rapturous states
bestowed by God; a single one of His breaths is equal to all the deeds of men
and jinn: ‘A state of rapture bestowed by God is equal to all the deeds of men
and jinn.”56
In secret He gave me the messages, So ten myriad souls cannot buy a
single point.
“He approached and remained suspended at a distance of two
bowstrings, or even nearer; and He revealed unto His slave that which He
revealed.”57
May God’s peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
’’Qur'an, 58:22.
’’Effacement (fana): see n. 34 above.
55Abiding (baqa): abiding
within God, clothing oneself in divine attributes and losing consciousness of
separate existence (Sajjadl, Farhang-e moftalahat-e 'oraja va motafawefa,
p. 90).
“See p. 222, n. 15.
’’Qur’an, 53:9.
Ninth Chapter:
Concerning the
Need for a Shaikh in Man’s Training and Wayfaring
God Almighty said: “Moses said unto him, ‘shall I follow thee that
thou might teach me the right guidance taught unto thee?’ ”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The shaikh
among his following is like the prophet among his people.”2
Know that in order to travel the path of religion and reach the
realm of certainty, a perfect shaikh and guide, well-acquainted with the way
and possessed of sainthood and spiritual efficacy,3 is essential.
Better to abstain from all but wine
And better for that to come from the hands of a hidden idol.
“My saints are beneath My domes; none knows them but I.”4 Despite
his perfection of rank as a prophet and of degree as a messenger, and despite
his being a possessor of firm resolve, Moses, upon whom be peace, had to serve
So'eyb5 continuously for ten years until he was fit to receive the
honor of conversing with God. Then, after attaining the good fortune of being
God’s interlocutor and the auspiciousness of “We inscribed for him on the
tablets the lesson to be drawn from all things and the detailed explanation of
all things’’;6 after gaining the leadership of the
'Qur’an, 18:67. The words of Moses are addressed to the figure
generally identified as Kezr.
2Tradition already quoted on p. 178.
’Spiritual efficacy (tajarrof): the ability of the shaikh to
affect, unhindered and unseen, the inner state of his morld (see Meier's
introduction, Fawa’ih al- Jamdl wa Fawatih al-Jalal, pp. 214, 229,
233-234). The term is not to be found in the earliest Sufi texts, and would
seem to have originated in the seventh/ thirteenth century when the structure
of the tarlqat crystallized and the relationship of shaikh and morld
became more closely defined.
iHadls qodsl (Foruzanfar, Ahadls-e Masnavi, p. 52).
5The personage known in biblical
tradition as Jethro (cf. Qur’an, 7:85).
6Qur’an, 7:144.
Twelve Tribes of the Children of Israel, and receiving the entirety
of the Torah from the dictation of the Divine Presence— after all this, in the
school for the learning of innate knowledge, he had to request the alphabet of
following from the teacher Kezr:7 “Shall I follow thee that thou
might teach me the right guidance taught unto thee?”8 and then the
teacher wrote the first inscription on his alphabet slate: “Thou wilt not be
able to keep patience with me.”9 For see, in reality—
A banquet where two thousand souls are sacrificed is no place for a
loud, empty drummer.
Seduced, deceived, and outwitted on this path is he who imagines
himself able to traverse die limitless desert and attain the Ka'ba of union
with the strength of his mere human footsteps, without guide or escort: “Far,
far off is that which ye are promised.”10 In the beginning of
guidance, it is true, there is no need for prophet or shaikh, for that
beginning comes with the seed of search that is planted in men’s hearts only by
the effect of the gaze of God’s grace. However much the Prophet, upon whom be
peace, tried to sow that seed in the soil of Abu Taleb’s heart,11 he
was unable to do so without God. It was said to him: “Verily thou dost not
guide whom thou wish, but God guides whomsoever He wills.”12
By God! None has any share of God unless it be through God!13
Once the seed has appeared, however, there arises the need for
prophets and shaikhs to nurture it: “Truly thou guidest to a straight path.”14
Know that the need of the wayfaring morld for the shaikh
’Concerning Kezr, see p. 25, n. 4.
“Qur’an, 18:67.
’Qur'an, 18:68, 73, 76.
"Qur’an, 23:36.
"Abu Taleb, an uncle of the Prophet who despite the solicitude
he showed to his nephew never embraced Islam.
"Qur'an, 28:56.
"A line from Sana’i (Divan, p. 172).
"Qur'an, 42:52.
who has attained union is on account of many reasons. First, the
outer path to the material Ka'ba cannot be traveled without a guide acquainted
with the journey, although the traveler on that path has an eye with which to
see it and a foot with which to walk on it. The path, moreover, is visible and
the distance is fixed. But on the path of the Truth, which has been trod by a
hundred and twenty thousand and more manifestations of prophethood and
instances of messengerhood, not a single footprint is to be seen.
’Tis with aspiration and vision that the men of His path travel;
Hence not a single footprint is seen on love’s highway.15
Now the novitiate wayfarer on this path has neither vision nor foot
to carry him forward. Although initially all were brought forth from the gate
of extreme oppressiveness and extreme ignorance, so that none might boast of
vision and knowledge concerning the Path—it was said to the Master of Creation:
“thou knewest not what was the Book, nor faith; but We made it a light, guiding
those of Our bondsmen whom We will ’’16—still it is certain that so
vast a desert cannot be traveled without a visionbestowing guide.
The second reason is that just as on the outward path robbers and
bandits are numerous so that an escort is called for, so too on the path of
Truth the adornments of this world (“Fair- seeming to men has been made the
love of that which they covet—women, sons, hoards heaped up of gold and silver,
horses branded, cattle, land well-tilled”)17 the soul, capricious
desire, evil companions and demons, all these are as bandits, and one cannot
travel unless escorted by a possessor of sainthood.
The third reason is that on this path there are also numerous
pitfalls, afflictions, and illusions, and countless deep abysses. Hence the
philosophers, through their insistence on traveling
15Half of a quatrain attributed to the
Kobravi saint, Seyf al-Din Bakarzi (concerning whom see introduction, p. 4);
see Sa'id Nafisi, “Seyf al-Din Bakarzi,” Majalla-ye Daneskade-ye Adablyat
(Tehran), 11:4 (1334 S./1955), p. 8.
16Qur'an, 42:52.
'’Qur’an, 3:14.
alone, have fallen into many an awesome chasm and lost faith and
religion. So too the materialists and the naturalists, the Brahmins and the
anthropomorphists, the abstractionists and the antinomians, the people of
capricious desire and innovation —all belong to those who have embarked on this
path without a shaikh and exemplary model. They were unable to cross the
abysses and pitfalls; each one fell from the path into some valley of doubt and
misfortune, and perished there.
Thou art like an ant, and the path is like the tress of an idol, So
go not forth in blind aping and guessing, beware!18
But those fortunate ones who have traveled under the protection of
the sainthood of perfect shaikhs have comprehended the essence of all afflictions
and pitfalls, contemplated all illusions with equanimity, and distinguished and
recognized the pitfall by means of which each group of the people of capricious
desire and innovation have been borne off to Hell. Taking refuge themselves in
the good fortune of the possessors of sainthood, they have crossed safely over
all pitfalls.
The fourth reason is that among the different trials and afflictions
that beset the path from end to end are the numerous halts and pauses that
occur. A shaikh endowed with spiritual efficacy is needed so that by the effect
of his sainthood he may deliver the morid from the halts and pauses;
restore the ardor of search and the sincerity of desire within him; through
various subtle strategems expel contraction,19 weariness, and
depression from his nature; and, with both clear expression and indication,
awaken the impulse of longing in his inner being: “Remind, for verily the
reminder benefits the believers.”20
The fifth reason is that sicknesses and ailments assail the disposition
of the wayfarer on this path. Certain corrupt substances gain dominance over it
so that the temperament of search and aspiration becomes perverted. The need
then arises for a skillful physician who, with appropriate treatment, will
strive to remove
18A line from Sana'! (Divan, p.
52).
'’Contraction (enqebai): "the cessation through
temporary severance, of the heart’s pleasure" (Sajjadl, Farhanq-e
mostalahal-e 'orafa va molafawefa, P- 312).
’"Qur'an, 51:55.
the disease and allay the corrupt substance. If this is not done,
the wayfarer will be unable to proceed. Indeed, it can be said that these
afflictions beset every morid at the outset, and unless the physician of
hearts removes them with wholesome medicines, the morid will have no
power to begin his journeying on the path.
When he is visited again later by the same afflictions and
sicknesses, or by some of them, he will again need the shaikh as his skilled
physician. Otherwise, like other wayfarers, he will remain at a certain station
and be infected by some affliction that may damage his faith, just as at each
stage and station of this path thousands upon thousands of sincere and faithful
devotees have been severed from all further progress, been infected with
various diseases, and lost their faith.
The sixth reason is that the wayfarer on this path will reach
certain spiritual stations where his spirit is divested of the garment of
fleshly humanity and the clothing of water and clay. A ray from the manifestation
of the traces of God’s attributes will touch it, and it will in turn manifest
itself to him with all the spiritual and infinite lights and attributes. The
traces and remnants of the falsehood that is fleshly humanity will vanish, and
the sense of the verse, “Truth has come and falsehood has vanished,”21
will become apparent. At this station, when the mirror of the heart has become
purified, it receives the reflection of the manifestation of the spirit; it
experiences the taste of “I am the Truth” and “Glory be unto Me”;22
and there appears in it the proud delusion that it has found perfection and
attained the true goal. The gaze of the intellect, the understanding and the
imagination, is totally unable to perceive that any of the prophets and saints
has gone beyond this station. Were not the workings of the sainthood of the
shaikh—this being a form of God’s favor— to come to the aid of the morid
on the edge of this abyss, his faith would be in danger of destruction. For at
this station the danger of belief in incarnation and absorption23 is
to be feared.
2'Qur’an, 17:81.
22Theopathic utterances of Hallaj and
Bayazid Bastami, respectively; seep. 173, n. 86 and n. 87.
’’Absorption (ettehad): "the mingling and merging of two
things so as to become a single thing" (JorjarH, Ketab al-ta'rifat,
p. 6); the illusory notion of a substantive identity between man and God.
Therefore a perfect shaikh, one well versed in visionary experiences,
is needed to deliver him from this delusion by the workings of his sainthood.
He will explain to him the nature of his station, bring to his attention the
stations that lie above it, and encourage him to strive toward them. Then the morld
will escape this pitfall and set his face to the path once again. Otherwise
he would be so fettered to this obstacle that he could in no way escape. And
God is the Most Knowing.
The seventh reason is that various phenomena from the unseen world
appear to the wayfarer on the path, and certain visions are unfolded to him.
Each of these is either an indication from the unseen world of the morld's
deficiencies and excesses, of his progress and pauses; a sign of the purity and
impurity of his heart; a pointer to the reprehensible and praiseworthy attributes
of his soul; or a mark of veils pertaining to this world and the hereafter, of
states deriving from Satan, the soul, or God, as well as other matters which
cannot be counted or enumerated. The novice has no awareness or knowledge of
any of this, for it is all spoken in the language of the unseen, and only the
people of the unseen know the language of the unseeri. A shaikh is therefore
needed, strengthened with divine support and instructed in the science of
interpreting the unseen—thus did Joseph, upon whom be peace, say, "O Lord,
Thou hast bestowed kingship upon me and taught me the interpretation of
sayings”24—in order to explain the visions of the morld and
unveil his states to him, gradually teaching him the language of the unseen,
and acting as his teacher and translator. Otherwise the morld will
remain deprived of the knowledge contained in those indications from the unseen
world; progress will be unattainable and knowledge of the stations on the path
impossible.
The eighth reason is that the wayfarer who journeys on the limited strength
of his own foot will be unable, in many year, to traverse even a single station
on the path, for the progress of the novice is less than that of the feeblest
ant:
On this path not every ant can journey, For not every foot is suited
to it.
^Qur’an, 12:101.
There are, moreover, certain stations on the path that can be
traversed by flying, and the novice is incapable of flying, for he is like an
egg that has not reached the station of birdhood.[85]
He can reach that station only by a bird exerting influence upon him. The
shaikh it is who resembles a bird; and when the morid attaches himself
to the wings of his sainthood, he traverses in a brief time, on the pinion of
the shaikh’s aspiration, vast distances that he could never have covered
himself in whole lifetimes. Through attaching himself to the shaikh, he flies
in a realm where he could not fly alone.
This feeble one once saw in Khrazm a wayfarer known as Shaikh Abu
Bakr. He was from the province of Jam in Khorasan. He was of those whom God had
drawn unto Himself, and although he had no particular shaikh, by virtue of the
rapturous states God had bestowed on him he had attained lofty stations, passed
numerous mighty obstacles, and traversed great distances. While discussing one
of the stations with this feeble one, he said: “It took me forty-five years of
journeying to reach that station, and then, from the rigor of the states
accompanying it, my stomach bled for two years. I lost much blood, and was
about to lose both life and soul when God Almighty caused me to move on from
that station.”
This feeble one narrated the story in the presence of his own
shaikh, the monarch of the Path, the exemplar of the Truth, Majd al-Din
Bagdadl, may God be well pleased with him. He uttered these blessed words:
“None ever recognizes the true value of the shaikh, nor is able to repay the
debt that he owes him. We have morids who in two years fulfill all the
requirements of wayfaring, from the beginning of the Path to the end of Truth.
And when they reach that station of which you speak, we cause them to pass
beyond it in one or two days. Yet that venerable one, after forty-five years of
struggle and being drawn nigh to God, tarries there for two whole years and
suffers so much pain!”
The ninth reason is that traveling on the path is made possible for
the morid by means of zekr, and zekr practiced independently
does not yield its full benefit. Rather, it should be received from a perfect
shaikh, as will be described in the chapter on the need for the inculcation of zekr
by the shaikh.26
The tenth reason is that when someone desires, at the court of a
monarch in the world of form, to obtain some degree or rank, or to acquire some
position or governorship, he may not deserve these things, or have performed
any service that would fit him for them. But when he enters the court in the
protection of one of the king’s intimates, attaching himself to him, and then
submits his request to the royal presence, since the king looks upon that
person with favor and accepts his word, he will pay no attention to the lack of
merit and prior service of the petitioner, but only to the rights earned by his
intimate, to his rank and degree of nearness. He will not reject his words but
instead grant his desire, whereas if the petitioner had made his request alone
it would never have been granted. At the court of the True Monarch there are
also servants drawn nigh to the Presence whose wish will be granted even if
they request that the world be turned on its head. “Many a dusty and disheveled
one clad in rags, to whom men pay no heed, will have his oath fulfilled when he
swears upon God.”27 Such is the station of those bareheaded,
barefooted ones at that court, for they are the kings and monarchs of religion,
the guides of the world of certainty. In his presence they enjoy a dignity and
esteem that cannot be encompassed in description or statement: “I have
prepared for My righteous servants that which no eye has seen, no ear has
heard, nor has occurred to the heart of any man.”28
There are numerous other reasons for the necessity of a shaikh, but
we restrict ourselves to these to avoid length and prolixity.
God’s peace and blessings be upon Mohammad and all his family.
Third Part, Fourteenth Chapter.
“Tradition recorded by al-Haklm, and quoted also by Gazali (Ehya’
'olum al-din, III, 270).
2SHadis qodsi already quoted on p. 133.
Tenth Chapter:
Concerning the
Conditions and Attributes of the Shaikh
God Almighty said: "Then they found one of Our bondsmen whom We
had given mercy from Our immediate proximity and whom We had taught knowledge
from Our presence.”1
The Prophet, God’s peace and blessings be upon him, said: “There
will always be a group of my people steadfast in the truth, who shall not be
harmed by those who revile them.”2
Know that God Almighty appointed Kezr as shaikh and exemplar, and
sent to him Moses to be his morid and to leant Godgiven knowledge from
him. The worthiness of Kezr to be shaikh is indicated by the words, “one of Our
servants whom We had given mercy from Ourselves and whom We had taught knowledge
from Our presence.” Here God establishes five ranks for Kezr: first, the
distinction of His servitude—“one of Our bondsmen”; second, the capacity to
receive truths through direct bestowal from Him—“whom We had given mercy”;
third, the honor of attaining special mercy from the station of immediate
proximity3—“from Our immediate proximity”; fourth, the nobility of
learning different species of knowledge from Him—“and whom We had taught”; and
fifth, the auspicious fortune of attaining God-given knowledge through direct
bestowal—“knowledge from Our presence.”
These are the five pillars on which rest fitness for being a shaikh
and the ability to be an examplar. The shaikh must be distinguished by these
properties or stations, and possess in
‘Qur’an, 18:65. "One of our bondsmen" is generally
understood to refer to Kezr.
Tradition previously quoted in part on p. 178.
“Immediate proximity ('endiyat): a noun formation from the
preposition 'end ("in the presence or proximity of”) that occurs in
the phrase men 'endena ("from Our immediate proximity”). The phrase
is explained by Daya in his tafsir as follows: "We had made him
capable of receiving the effulgence of a light from among the lights of Our
attributes without intermediary” (quoted in flaqqi, Ruh al-bay an, V, p.
270).
addition other qualities which, God willing, will be set forth, in
order to be suitable for the task of shaikh and exemplar.
The first station is that of servitude. As long as one is not free
from the bondage of other than God, he cannot attain the distinction of
servitude of “one of Our bondsmen.” And the wayfarer is not free as long as he
is attached to himself, and his own felicity and wretchedness. The great have
said: ‘Attachment to aught is slavery to it.” Also, “the bondsman who would buy
himself free is a slave until the last derham is paid.”
The second station is that of receiving truths through direct
bestowal from God. This is attainable only when one is completely delivered
from the. veils of both fleshly and spiritual attributes, for whatever comes
from behind a veil comes indirectly, even though it may sometimes appear to be
direct. Thus Moses, upon whom be peace, heard speech coming to him directly,
even though in reality it was not direct. Sometimes the tree functioned as
intermediary—“from the tree saying, ‘O Moses, verily I, I am God’”4—and
sometimes a voice calling: "He was called from the right bank of the
valley.”5 Not everyone will understand the details of this matter.
It should, however, be known that God’s speech is without letter, sound, or
voice, whereas Moses was able to hear only by means of letter, sound, and
voice. If he had been able to hear directly he would not have been assigned to
the company of Kezr for him to efface from the mirror of his heart all vestiges
of human attribute, with the polish of “Thou wilt not be able to keep patience
with me.”6
Since at the beginning of his mission the Prophet, upon whom be
peace, did not have all veils completely lifted from him, he received
revelation indirectly—“the trustworthy spirit brought it down to thy heart.”7
But on the night of the ascension, when a true removal of veils was effected,
no intermediary remained, “and He revealed to His servant that which He
revealed.”8
’Qur’an, 28:30.
5Qur’an, 28:30.
'Qur’an, 18:68, 73, 76.
’Qur’an, 26:193.
“Qur’an, 53:10.
The third station is the attainment of special mercy from the
station of proximity to His attributes, this being reserved for the elect among
the elect. For there are three classes among the beneficiaries of the attribute
of mercy: the common, the elect, and the elect among the elect. The common and
the elect attain it indirectly, and the elect among the elect, directly.
The common partake of the attribute of compassion, and to it attain
both the accepted and the rejected of God. For daily sustenance, health, and
concern for family are shared by Muslim and unbeliever alike. This is a
property of the attribute of compassion, and were it not for the effect of
this attribute, God would not give a single drink of water to any unbeliever.
Thus He said: “My compassion has outstripped My anger,”9 and for
this reason too it has been said, in supplication, "O Compassionate in
this world!”10
The elect partake of the attribute of mercifulness, for through
accepting the summons of the prophets and following them, they attain the
bounty of the eight paradises in the hereafter: "Tell My bondsmen that I
am the Oft-Forgiving, the Merciful.”11 For this reason it has been
said, in supplication, “O Merciful in the hereafter!”
The elect among the elect partake of the attribute of Most Merciful
of the Merciful, and do so directly, as did the prophets. Job, upon whom be
peace, said: “Harm has touched me, and Thou art the Most Merciful of the
Merciful.”12 So too Moses said, peace be upon him: “O Lord, forgive
me and my brother and cause us to enter Thy mercy, for Thou art the Most
Merciful of the Merciful.”13 The prayer of Moses was for mercy
received directly from the station of proximity to His attributes—“mercy from
Ourselves”—through the manifestation of the attributes of divinity, the
effacement of the traces of humanity, and the assumption of the dominical
characteristics.
-Hadis
qodsi recorded by Bokari, Moslem, Ebn Maja, and Ebn
Hanbal. 10Cf. the discussion of the attributes rahman and rahim
on pp. 201-202. "Qur’an, 15:49.
■’Qur’an,
21:83.
■’Qur’an,
7:150.
The fourth station is that of learning different species of
knowledge directly from God. This is attainable only when the tablet of the
heart has been completely cleansed and purified of the impress of all other
forms of knowledge—spiritual, intellectual, auditory, and sensory. For as long
as these forms of knowledge are fixed in the tablet of the heart, they prevent
the heart from being able to receive knowledge from God directly. Although
Moses had received the knowledge of the Torah from God, it had been by means of
tablets—"We inscribed for him on the tablets.”14 One of the
benefits that he derived from keeping the company of Kezr was that his heart
became worthy itself to receive divine inscription, so that he was no longer
concerned with the tablets. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, also enjoyed this
tank, for he said: “I have been given the totality of words.”15
Moreover, he was instructed in the Qur’an by means of his heart, not by means
of written forms; “the Compassionate taught the Qur’an.”16
The fifth station is that of being taught God-given knowledge
directly. Although different branches of knowledge may be learned directly from
God, such knowledge is not necessarily God-given. Thus God said concerning
David, “We taught him the art of fashioning coats of mail,”17 the
knowledge of this art not being one of the branches of God-given knowledge. Godgiven
knowledge relates rather to the cognition of the essence and attributes of the
Majestic Presence, and is attained only through the teaching and instruction of
God himself, without intermediary. Thus the Prophet said: “I knew my Lord by my
Lord.”18
Man comes to receive this knowledge when he is reborn, emerging from
his own existence, for by virtue of that rebirth he moves from his own presence
to that of God. Thus God said to the Prophet: “Thou receivest the Qur’an from
the presence of One all-wise, all-knowing.”19 And Jesus said:
"He who is not bom
"Qur’an, 7:144.
'’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Nasa’I, TermezI, and Ebn
Hanbal. ‘“Qur’an, 55:1-2.
'’Qur'an, 21:80.
'“Tradition; source unknown.
’’Qur’an, 27:6.
twice shall not penetrate the kingdom of the heavens and the earth.”20
This second birth takes place as follows. When, at the beginning,
the sincere morld places his foot on the path of search in accordance
with the words "those who strive for Our sake” and when, with the lasso of
the rapturous states bestowed by God’s grace, he averts the gaze of his heart
from all that is familiar to instinctual nature and pleasurable to the soul,
directing it instead toward the Mighty Presence—then will God, in accordance
with His custom of “verily We shall guide them to Our paths,”21 display
the beauty of the perfect and accomplished shaikh in the mirror of the morld’s
heart. This relates to the wayfarer, not to the one whom God has drawn unto
Himself, for the latter is not fitted to be a shaikh. A wayfarer may also be
one of those who are drawn unto God, but he is different from the one who is so
drawn without any wayfaring.
When the sincere morld has beheld the beauty of a shaikh in
the mirror of his heart, he will forthwith fall in love with that beauty, and
all repose and tranquillity will leave him. This state of loverhood is the
source of all felicities. Unless the morld is enamored of the beauty of
the shaikh’s sainthood, he cannot quit the domain of his own will and choice
and enter that of the shaikh’s will. The sense of the word morld is he
who desires the wish of the shaikh, not his own wish. His duty is therefore
what is indicated in these verses:
O heart! If thou seekest the beloved’s good pleasure, So act and
speak as she orders thee.
If she says, “weep blood,” ask not, “for what?” And if, “give up the
ghost,” ask not, “but when?”
When the sincere morld is enamored of the beauty of the
shaikh’s sainthood, there appears in him the fitness to receive the workings of
that sainthood. The morld is like an egg, imprisoned in the eggshell of
his human state with its different
Z0Cf. Sc John, 111:3: "Except a
man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
’■Qur'an, 29:69.
aspects, unable to attain the rank of hen (that is, being God’s
chosen bondsman). When he is accorded the favor of being able to submit to the
workings of his shaikh’s sainthood, then the shaikh will take him under the
wing of his sainthood like an egg, devoting to him all his lofty aspiration and
closely observing his state. Thus, just as the effect of the hen on the egg
becomes apparent, changing it from egghood and bringing it forth as a hen, so
too does the lofty aspiration of the shaikh work its effect on the egglike
being of the morid, transmuting it into the henhood of being God’s
chosen bondsman.
Now the material hen emerges from the eggshell into the outer aspect
of this world, since it was created for this world. But the hen in our allegory
travels a path leading inward, and emerges through an aperture opening onto the
world of Dominion, since it was created for that world. Furthermore, since the
material hen that hatches the egg is already in the outer world, while the hen
that is to be bom is concealed in the malakilt of the egg, the effect
produced is to bring it forth from the malakilt of the egg into the
world of form. With the allegorical hen and egg, however, matters are the
reverse, since the shaikh’s sainthood is not in the outer world. For the shaikh
does not consist of the head and beard that men see; the true shaikh is the
reality situated at the station of proximity to God’s attributes, “in a seat of
sincerity,”22 beneath the dome of God. For “My saints are beneath
My domes; none knows them but I,”23 and they are exempt from the
gaze of all others. This feeble one says:
The men of His path are alive with a different life;
The birds in His sky come from a different nest.
Do not look upon them with this eye of thine, For they are beyond
both realms, in a different world.
Thus the hen of the morid's being that was concealed and
deposited in the malakilt of the egg of his human state will be brought
forth by the workings of the shaikh’s aspiration, through an aperture opening
onto the world of Dominion, into
’’Qur’an, 54:55.
2iHadis qodsi quoted on p. 235.
the spacious sky of Ipseity;24 and be bom, from the loins
of sainthood and the womb of morldhood, into the station of proximity to God’s
attributes—“in a seat of sincerity, in the presence of a powerful king.”25
Although the egg of the human state had been of this world, the hen
of being God’s chosen bondsman that was bom from it belonged to the Divine
Presence. When the egg of the human state of the Prophet, upgri whom be peace,
had not yet been laid by the hen of Abdollah,26 God called him
Ahmad—“there shall come after me one whose name is Ahmad.”27 But
when that egg had come into being and been nurtured with prophethood and
messengerhood under Gabriel’s wing, then He called him Mohammad—“Mohammad is
naught but a messenger.”28 When he had been nurtured to perfection,
had left behind egghood for henhood, and begun to fly in the station of “the
distance of two bowstrings,’ ’29 then He called him His bondsman— ‘
'G lory be unto Him Who carried His bondsman by night from the sacred mosque.”30
This is so that you might know henhood to be the station of being God’s chosen
bondsman.
It is not, however, every hen that is fit for the station of shaikh,
even though it has attained the degree of henhood, just as not every hen is
able to hatch an egg. For a shaikh, a hen is needed that, after being nourished
to perfection and attaining the powers of henhood, for a while enters anew the
dominion of the cock and submits fully to it, so that the cock’s workings upon
it attain perfection. It will then produce eggs and be able to brood on them,
and the eggs will be placed beneath it. For its power to act on the eggs will
be certain, and the aim will be attained.
Similarly, when the sincere morid has fully submitted to the
"Ipseity (hoviyat): “absolute reality, containing all
realities within itself in the same way that a date kernel contains a date palm
within it, in utter obscurity” (Joijani, Ketab al-la'ft fat, p. 278).
25Qur’an, 54:55.
“Abdollah was the father of the Prophet.
27Qur’an, 61:6; the foretelling by
Jesus of the mission of the Prophet Mohammad.
28Qur’an, 3:144.
29Qur’an, 53:9.
’“Qur’an, 17:1.
sainthood of the shaikh and been delivered of the shell of being, he
must submit, in the station of henhood, to the workings of God’s decrees of
fate and destiny; carry for a while the burden of the obligation of His
ordinances; sacrifice his hen-being to the workings of God’s uncreate wisdom;
immolate his existence in God’s pre-etemal dictates; and require of himself all
that was required of him in pre-etemity, not seeking to make God the Mighty subordinate
to the wishes and accomplishments of his own being, for it is not fitting that
God be subordinate.
When he has been submitted in this fashion for a while to the
unmediated workings of God, there begin to appear within him the eggs of
mystery and meaning, of truths and innate knowledge; like an oyster, he will
become pregnant with gems and with pearls. The lights of those truths will cast
rays through the apertures of his speech and his gaze, and he will enable the
well-prepared being of sincere morlds to receive the workings of these
influences. When this period has come to an end and it is time for the hen in
its turn to work its effects upon other eggs, an indication from God or the
permission of the shaikh—this being the outer form of God’s indication—will
appoint him to the station of shaikhhood, and give him leave to nurture the
eggs of the morlds’ beings.
In addition to all this, the conditions of the station of shaikh are
beyond limit and number. Not only must the pillars that we have expounded be
present in the shaikh, but also twenty other attributes, each to perfection.
For if a single one of those attributes be defective, the degree of attainment
will suffer corresponding damage and deficiency.
Of those twenty attributes, the first is knowledge. The shaikh must
be acquainted with knowledge of the Law to the extent of essential need, so
that if a morld requires an answer to a pressing question of Law, he
will be able to satisfy him.
The second is correct belief. The shaikh must hold the belief of the
People of the Sunna and the Community, avoiding all taint of innovation,31
so that he does not cast the morld into inno-
’•Innovation (bed'at): "any act opposed to the Sunna, so
called because its author has invented it without any authority” (Ketab
al-ta'rifat, p. 44).
vation. For the deeds of the people Of innovation do not lead to
success and salvation.
The third is intelligence. The shaikh must have perfect intelligence,
not only with respect to religion, but also with respect to worldly life, so
that he may fulfill all conditions of preceptorship in training the morid.
The fourth is liberality. The shaikh must be liberal, supplying the morid
with all that he needs, so that he frees him of all care for food, drink, and
clothing, and the morid is able to devote himself fully to the work of
religion.
The fifth is courage. The shaikh must be courageous, brave and
unafraid, paying no heed to men’s blame and chattering tongues, so that he does
not refuse any morid on account of men’s words, and is able to protect
him against the envious and malicious.
The sixth is chastity. The shaikh must be chaste of soul so that no
evil befall the morid at his hands, and no corruption infect him, for
the novice is powerless against him.
The seventh is loftiness of aspiration. He must pay no attention to
the world beyond what is essential, even though he has attained a position of
strength where the world cannot harm him. He must not strive to accumulate
property, nor covet the morld’s property. For then the morid
would disapprove and his effort would be weakened, and there is no affliction
or misfortune worse for the morid than disapproval of the states of his
shaikh.
The eighth is compassion. The shaikh must be compassionate toward
his morid and gradually urge him to the work, not imposing on him a
burden he cannot bear, but instead gently and circumspectly setting him to
work. When the morid is in a state of contraction, through the workings
of his sainthood he should remove from him the burden of contraction and bestow
expansion32 on him. But if he becomes too absorbed in expansion,
let
’’Contraction and expansion: see p. 133, n. 19, and p. 68, n. 28,
him impose some contraction on him and take back expansion. He
should be constantly aware of the states of the morid.
The ninth is forbearance. The shaikh must be forbearing and
tolerant, not swift to take anger at anything. He should not cause pain to the morid
unless it be by way of chastisement, lest the morid take fright and flee
from the trap of discipleship.
The tenth is forgiveness. The shaikh must be constantly forgiving
so that if the morid commits some act arising from human weakness, he
may overlook it and forgive him.
The eleventh is sweetness of temper. The shaikh must be
sweet-tempered in order not to frighten the morid away with harshness,
and in order for the morid to learn good morals from him. For the
character of the morid is a mirror to the deeds, states, and morals of
the shaikh.
The twelfth is selflessness. There must be selflessness in the
shaikh so that he prefers the interests of the morid to his own, and
devotes to him all that he has—"They prefer them to their own selves,
though poverty become their lot.”33
The thirteenth is generosity. There must be the generosity of
sainthood in the shaikh, so that he is able to be munificent to the morid
with the same generosity.
The fourteenth is reliance upon God. The power of reliance must be present
within the shaikh so that he does not fret over the sustenance of the morid
or refuse him for fear of being unable to provide for him.
The fifteenth is submission. The shaikh must be submitted to the
unseen, so that when God Almighty brings to him whomsoever He wills and takes
from him whomsoever He wills, he is neither excessively eager to receive a morid
nor discouraged by his departure. He will not say, “I labor in vain,” and wish
to withdraw and devote himself to his own affairs, neglecting his morlds.
Rather, in all circumstances he should surrender to the
’’Qur'an, 59:9.
divine will and fulfil the duties of servitude. Whoever comes to him
he should know to have been brought to him by God, and consider service to him
as service to God; and whoever leaves him he should know God to have taken him.
Thus he will experience neither increase with their coming nor decrease with
their departure.
The sixteenth is contentment with destiny. The shaikh must be
content with God’s decree. In the training of morlds, after fulfilling
the conditions of shaikhhood and striving in servitude, he should be content
with whatever God ordains for the morlds —finding or not finding,
acceptance or rejection—and not object to God’s pre-etemal decree.
The seventeenth is dignity. The shaikh must live with his morlds
in dignified and respectable fashion so that they do not become insolent and
impudent, with veneration and respect for him leaving their hearts, for that
would inflict harm on their effort. The great have said that the shaikh is more
deserving of veneration than one’s own father.
The eighteenth is tranquillity. There must be perfect tranquillity
in the shaikh, and he must not show haste in anything, but exert his influence
on the morld slowly so that he does not turn away in his rawness.
The nineteenth is steadfastness. The shaikh must be steadfast and of
firm resolve in all matters and fulfill his undertakings to the morld,
not neglecting the morld’s claims through inconstancy and disloyalty,
nor averting his aspiration from him at every turn.
The twentieth is awesomeness. The shaikh must be awesome, so that
the morld has esteem, veneration, and awe of him in his heart, and he
behaves courteously, whether in the presence or the absence of the shaikh. From
the awesomeness of the shaikh’s sainthood, the soul of the morld will
gain humility and tranquillity. Satan, seeing the protective shadow cast over
the disciple by this awesomeness, will not dare to exert any influence upon
him.
Thus when the shaikh possesses these accomplishments and stations,
and is adorned and qualified by these noble attributes and characteristics, the
sincere morid will attain his purpose and goal in a short time,
protected by the auspiciousness of the shaikh’s sainthood.
The morid must in turn be adorned with the attributes of his
station and fulfill its conditions and customs, as shall soon be set forth, God
Almighty willing. It will then be an instance of “light upon light; and God
guides to His light whomsoever He wills.”34 Then too the grace of
God will be joined to the strivings of the morid, and it is that grace
which is the root and essence of the matter: “That is the grace of God; He
bestows it upon whomsoever He wills.”35
And peace be upon Mohammad and all his family.
"Qur'an, 24:35.
’’Qur’an, 5:59, 57:21, 62:4.
Eleventh Chapter:
Concerning the
Conditions, Attributes, and Customs of the Morid
God Almighty said: ‘And if thou followest me, then ask me not
concerning aught until I introduce mention of it to thee.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: ‘‘It is a duty
upon you to hear and obey your rightful leader, even if it be an Abyssinian
slave.”2
Know that the state of morid (“desiring”)3 is a
great good fortune and the seed of all felicities. It is not a human attribute
but rather a ray from the lights of the divine attribute of desiring or
willing.4 Thus Shaikh Abu’l-hasan Karaqani says: “God desired
Himself when He desired us.” Morldship is an attribute pertaining to the divine
essence, and unless God Almighty manifests Himself with this attribute to the
spirit of His bondsman, the reflection of the light of morldship will not
appear in the heart of the bondsman and he will not become a morid.
When this seed of felicity is cast into the soil of the heart by
divine bestowal, it must not be left to perish. For at the beginning that
light is like a spark of fire struck from a flint. If it is not succored with
sulphur and assisted with dry firewood, it will return to haughty seclusion and
withdraw to the lair of the unseen.
Aiding the light of morldship lies in submission to the training and
influence of a perfect and efficacious shaikh, like an egg lying beneath the
wing of the hen, as was described in the preceding chapter, so that the shaikh
may fulfill all the conditions of training the morid and cause him
swiftly to reach his goal. If someone wishes to train himself, with the vision
of his own in-
■Qur’an, 18:71.
’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, TermezI, Ebn Maja, and Ebn
Hanbal.
’In view of the context, we have translated eradal
("will”) as the state of the morid.
*Cf. Qur’an, 11:107: "Verily thy Lord enacts whatsoever He
wills.”
tellect and his own knowledge, he will never advance. He will risk,
moreover, falling into the abyss of destruction and error and be exposed to the
loss of faith, for through the proud and boastful imaginings of his soul and
the insinuations of Satan, he will have cast himself into the perilous
wildernesses of this unending path.
And if someone, deceived by his own soul and by Satan, should say
the only guides on this path are the Prophet, upon whom be peace, and the favor
of God Almighty, and that the Qur’an and the science of the Law are all in
exposition of God’s path, so that there is no need of a shaikh, the answer to
him is the following: Without doubt the guides on this path are the Prophet,
God’s favor, the Qur’an, and the science of the Law. But the whole matter may
be compared to the coming of skilled physicians who, aided by divine
inspiration, after toiling and struggling for whole lifetimes, discovered
different types of sickness and disease; learned the properties of drugs and
made electuaries and potions; and described each of these in books and drew up
compendia of the medical sciences, both theoretical and practical. A group of
pupils then learned those sciences from them; practiced the methods of healing
in their presence; were initiated into the task of medicine; and accumulated
diverse experiences. In imitation of their masters they began practicing as physicians,
training in turn another group that had the capacity to learn these sciences
and bringing them to perfection.
Thus did pupils arise in each race of men, generation after
generation. In the present age, if anyone afflicted with a disease yearns for
health and wishes for treatment, what does he do? Does he refer to the books of
the physicians and make use, according to his own reasoning, of the ready-made
electuaries that are available at the druggist’s shop? Does he pay no attention
to physicians and try to cure himself from books according to his own
intelligence, despite his lack of experience and knowledge? Or does he refer to
the physicians; wait on the presence of those who have gained experience in the
science of medicine; and submit himself to them, taking every electuary they
concoct for him and drinking every potion they give him, whether sweet or
bitter? Does he refrain from treating himself according to his own whim, and
from casting dear life to the winds?
Similarly, in the Qur’an are contained all the sciences of religious
medicine that pertain to the cure for the disease of “in their hearts is a
sickness.”5 “We send down of the Qur’an that which is a cure and a
mercy for the believers.”6 Indeed, the Qur’an is like a druggist’s
shop in which all electuaries and potions have been assembled—“neither wet nor
dry but in a Book perspicuous.”7 The Prophet, upon whom be peace,
was the skilled physician of religion, acquainted with every sickness and
treating each one appropriately (“Verily thou dost guide to a straight path).”8
The Companions, as his gifted pupils, learned the science of medicine from that
excellent one, and each of them attained perfection in the art of curing—“My
Companions are like the stars; whichever ye follow ye will be guided aright.”9
Thus, generation after generation, first the Followers10
received this knowledge from the Companions, then the Followers of the
Followers11 from them, and so on until the present day. God has
granted each generation some particular insight into this knowledge, so that
knowing the disposition of the people of their age, they have been able to
extract and deduce appropriate remedies from the Canon12 of the
Qur’an—“Whoever strives for correct results shall attain them.”13
Each generation has also composed numerous books on the different sciences of
religious medicine —that is, the Law—both theoretical and practical.
Now when the practitioner is himself afflicted, he cannot cure
himself from books, merely by the exercise of his intelligence,
’Qur’an, 2:10.
“Qur’an, 17:82.
’Qur’an, 6:59.
“Qur’an, 42:53.
’Tradition; Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, pp. 19, 35.
"The Followers: the second generation of Muslims, those who met
one or more of the Companions (i.e., those who had met or seen the Prophet, without
necessarily enjoying any prolonged intimacy with him).
'The Followers of the Followers: the third generation of Muslims;
those who met one or more of the Followers.
12A reference to the epitome of
medicine composed under the title of Qanun (Canon, in its Latin
translation) by the great philosopher and scientist Avicenna (d. 980/1037). The
word qanun may also mean ’’code” in this context, as it does elsewhere
in the book; the ambiguity is deliberate.
'“Part of a Tradition recorded, with slightly different wording, by
Bokarl, .Moslem, DaremI, Nasa’I, Ebn Maja, and Ebn ETanbal.
even though he be a master of the science. For it has been said,
“The sight of the ill is itself sick.” He needs a skillful and experienced
physician who will know the different temperaments and be fully acquainted with
the Canon of medicine, theoretical and practical, and thus able to prescribe
the treatment appropriate to each sickness. For even though it be the same
sickness, an old man requires one form of treatment, a young man another, and
an infant yet another. There is much difference between the temperaments of an
infant, an adolescent, a youth, a mature man, and an aged man. There is also
much difference among persons, and it is possible that ten infants may all
differ with respect to pulse, temperament, and strength or weakness. There are,
moreover, differences determined by city, climate, and season.14 The
skillful physician must know all these and pay due regard to such subtleties so
that the illness will decline and health reappear, in accordance with the
Tradition: “Seek to cure, for He Who has sent down the disease has also sent
down the remedy.”15
But if, as we said, the skillful physician himself is afflicted, it
is not fitting that he should treat himself, for his discernment will be
affected by illness. He needs a physician sound in discernment and healthy in
body for the treatment to be of use, for proper treatment is not to be had of a
sick physician: “The physician who would cure others is himself ill.”
Thy scholar is asleep, and thou sleepest too; How might one sleeper
awaken another?16
Once this truth is realized, none should be deceived by the wiles of
Satan and the whims of the soul into relying upon himself and his own
knowledge. When the seed of morldship has been cast into the soil of the heart,
one should regard it as a great prize and cherish it as a guest from the world
of the unseen, giving it appropriate nourishment. That nourishment is to be had
only at the breast of the shaikh’s sainthood, for the seed of
"Concerning these principles of traditional medicine, see Nasr,
Science and Civilization in Islam, p. 228.
'“Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
16A line from Sana’I (Divan, p.
182).
moridship is like an infant newly born
from the world of the unseen, and must be fed at the breast of the people of
the unseen.
Let the morid arise, then, in search of a perfect shaikh, and
let him go wherever a sign of him is to be had, east or west, and having found
him, let him cleave to his service. Whatever binds his foot and restrains him
from the service of the shaikhs, let him sever it with the strong arm of
moridship and not bind himself with any excuse. For then he would be deprived
of this great fortune, and the loss would be deplorable.
Whate’er holds thee back from the Friend, Fair words or foul, it is
the same![86]
In truth, until the morid is satiated with his own existence,
he is not man enough to accomplish this task of severance. As this feeble one
said—
One tired of his own self is needed, One who left body and soul is
needed.
At each step a thousand or more fetters— A swift-paced breaker of
fetters is needed.
Whatever the morld destroys and overturns on his path, God
Almighty will recompense him for his losses in this world and the hereafter, in
accordance with the verse, “Verily We shall reward them for the best of that
which they were doing.”[87] As
for that host of relatives and kinsmen that he left behind and whose fragile
hearts he wounded with his departure, to each of them God Almighty will grant a
certain rank, degree, and reward that shall be a mending for the rupture they
suffered. For one of the divine attributes is jabbdr,[88]
and one of the meanings of the word is “the mender of fractures.” God shall
say: “O helpless one! All that thou has broken in thy search for My dominical
being, I shall mend with My dominical generosity; and I shall pay the
blood money for every heart thou hast wounded—
If Gabriel should molest thee, then spill his blood,
And take the blood money from the treasury of
My mercy.20
“But if thou art held back from Me, and all of creation is thine, it
will never compensate thy loss:
If thou hast all but hast not Me, thou hast naught;
And if thou has naught but hast Me, thou hast all.”
Once, one of the great to whom the Divine Presence was unveiled
heard himself addressed, saying: “I am that necessity that cleaves to thee;
cleave then to thy necessity.” That is, “Thou mayest dispense with thyself, but
not with Me; cleave then to the indispensable.”
When the morid has attached himself to the presence of the
shaikh and done away with all obstacles and attachments, he must possess twenty
attributes to keep the company of the shaikh in fitting manner and to attain
perfect wayfaring on the path.
The first is the station of repentance. He must repent sincerely of
all his contraventions of the Law and lay his repentance as a firm foundation,
for it is upon it that shall be raised the structure of all his deeds. If the
foundation is faulty, faults will appear in the outcome of the work; it will be
as naught, and all effort will have been in vain. Let the morid practice
repentance at each station on the path, for each station of wayfaring has a sin
peculiar to it, and repentance should be made of that sin. Thus the Prophet,
upon whom be peace and blessings, despite the perfection of his station as the
Beloved of God and despite the good fortune mentioned in the verse “that God
might forgive thee thy sins, those gone before and those that come after,”21
still engaged in repentance and said: "Temptation comes to my heart, and I
seek forgiveness of God seventy times a day.”22
!°A line from Sana’I (Divan, p.
450).
2lQur’an, 48:1.
“Tradition recorded by Bokarl and Ebn Hanbal.
The second is renunciation. The morid must completely avert
himself from worldly goods, retaining nothing, small or great. If he has
relatives and dependents, let him divide everything among them according to
God’s injunctions; and if he has no relatives, let him place all his property
at the disposal of the shaikh for him to use for the benefit of the morids.
He should be content with whatever the shaikh gives him by way of food and
clothing.
The third is the abandonment of family ties. The morid must
be unattached, severing all attachments, acquired or inherited, in the kindest
fashion, lest his mind turn toward them: "Truly, among your wives and your
children are enemies for you, so beware of them.”23
The fourth is correct belief. The morid must hold the belief
of the People of the Sunna and Community, avoiding all innovation and adhering
to the school of one of the Imams of former generations. He should be untainted
by anthropomorphism, abstractionism, Shi'ism, and Mu’tazilism, but also free of
fanaticism, not regarding as unbelievers any group that prays toward the qebla,
nor considering it permissible to utter curses.
The fifth is fear of God. The morid must be abstemious and
full of fear, cautious with respect to the food he eats and the clothes he
wears,24 without, however, going to excess and falling into fastidiousness,
which is also reprehensible. He should fulfill his fundamental religious
duties as far as he is able, not seeking dispensation,25 and also do
his utmost to remain pure and clean, again without an excess of zeal that leads
to fastidiousness. In all cases he should observe the command of ‘Abandon that
which causes you doubt for that which does not cause you doubt.”26
The sixth is patience. The morid must be patient when submitted
to the workings of the injunctions and prohibitions of the
“Qur'an, 64:14.
24By caution with respect to food and
clothing is meant the exercise of care to see that what one eats and wears is
in every respect in conformity with the Law.
“Dispensation (rok^at): see p. 195, n. 15.
26Tradition recorded by Bokari, Termezi,
and Ebn Hanbal.
Law, and the commands given him by his shaikh in accordance with the
Law. He should endure all severities and never leave himself open to
discouragement and lassitude. If some such sentiment appears in him, he should
expel it by conscious effort, and show fortitude and patience. For the Prophet,
upon whom be peace, said: “Whoever shows patience, God gives him patience.”27
The seventh is struggle against the soul. The morld must
always keep the steed of the soul tied with the bridle of struggle, never
relenting toward it except to the degree necessary. As far as he is able, he
should not satisfy the soul, and remain steadfast in this refusal. For the soul
is like a hungry lion: When you fill its stomach, it gains new strength and consumes
you.
The eighth is courage. The morld must be manly and courageous
in order to withstand the soul and its stratagems, and not care for the guile
and cunning of Satan. For on this path demons in the form of men and jinn are
numerous, and they can be repelled and subdued only by courage.
The ninth is readiness to sacrifice. There must be readiness to
sacrifice and selflessness in the morld, for miserliness is a heavy
fetter and a thick veil. At some stations it becomes necessary to sacrifice
this world and the hereafter, and sometimes life itself must be renounced.
The tenth is chivalrousness. The morld must be chivalrous,
granting all their due rights so far as he is able, without expecting his own
rights from anyone.
The eleventh is sincerity. The morld must base his spiritual
work and his dealings with men upon sincerity, doing all that he does for the
sake of God and completely ceasing to look in the direction of men.
The twelfth is knowledge. The morld must acquire a degree of
knowledge that will enable him to perform the religious duties
’’Tradition recorded by Bokari, Moslem, Abu Da’tid, TermezI, DaremI,
and Ebn Han ba 1.
that are incumbent upon him, such as prayer, fasting, and the other
pillars. He should not strive for knowledge in excess of this, for he would
then fall back on the path, except when he has attained the goal in its
perfection. If, however, he wishes to act as exemplary model and has gained the
rank of leadership, study of the sciences of the Book and the Sunna will be
useful, not harmful.
The thirteenth is a state of seeking. The morid should never
abandon his seekings at any station. If he falls into the state of complacency,
he should bring himself back, by conscious effort, to that of seeking, for
seeking is the station befitting the lover and complacency that befitting the
beloved.
The fourteenth is daring. The morid must travel this path
daringly, for numerous difficult tasks will confront him. He must cast himself
into them recklessly, with no thought of the outcome nor fear for his life.
This feeble one said—
See how daringly we go forth in love for the Friend, Boldly tossing
our heads beneath our feet!
Around the point of desire we trace out a circle, For our head ever
turns around like the compass.
The soul that we have, we sacrifice to the Friend, And if He so
commands, we will mount the gallows.
If death is being sold for the price of life, we’ll buy it,
For daring as a brigand we go forth to the Friend.
What fear do we have of Hell, what concern with Paradise?
Our hearts we have surrendered, and we go forth to the heart’s
keeper.
The fifteenth is reproach. The morid must have the attribute
of one who courts reproach and the character of a qalandar,2i
but not in the sense of contravening the Law and imagining this to be the
desired state. No indeed; such is the path and guidance of Satan, and it is by
virtue of this error that the antinomians have been borne off to hell. The true
accepter of censure is he for whom good and evil repute, praise and blame,
rejection and
’•"Reproach” and qalandar: see p. 99, n. 18 and p. 100,
n. 19.
acceptance by men are as one; who neither rejoices at men’s
friendship nor grieves at their hostility; and accounts all these opposites as
the same. This feeble one said—
Since narrow indeed is the path of love,
No place it has for peace with self or war with others.
The life of all men is spent in care of repute—
O heedless ones, what place has repute, good or ill?
The sixteenth is intelligence. The actions of the morld must
be regulated by the use of the intelligence, so that he commits no act contrary
to the pleasure, command, and custom of the shaikh, for then all his time and
effort would be brought to naught by the blow of stray thoughts and the
rejection of his shaikh’s sainthood.
The seventeenth is courtesy. The morld must be courteous and
of refined manners, and forbid himself all slackness of demeanor. He should not
speak in the presence of the shaikh until a question is addressed to him; and
when he does speak, it should be calmly, gently, and honestly. He should always
be waiting for the command of the shaikh, both inwardly and outwardly. If some
complaint is raised against him or fault committed by him, he should
immediately seek forgiveness, both inwardly and outwardly, and apologize and
make amends in the best fashion.
The eighteenth is good nature. The morld must be of constantly
serene disposition and good temper, never irritable or cantankerous toward his
companions. He should avoid arrogance, boastfulness, pride, pretentiousness,
and ambitiousness, and live with his elder companions in modesty, humility, and
the readiness to serve, treating his younger companions with compassion,
kindness, affection, solicitude, and generosity. He should have endurance and
tolerance, bearing the burdens others place on him, but placing no burdens on
his companions. As far as he is able, he should serve his companions, but
expect no service from them; always seek accord with them and avoid discord;
both dispense and heed advice; and forbid himself debate and argument, enmity
and dispute. He should regard all
his companions with respect and benevolence, despising neither the
old nor the young, and constantly seeking to draw near to the Almighty Presence
by serving them solicitously. When eating he should give up to others his own
share of food, without coveting any part of their share.
He should restrain himself during sama',[89]
not moving unless impelled to by a certain spiritual or ecstatic state. When in
such a state, he should avoid troubling his companions and so far as possible
contain the sama' and its effect within himself. But if it overpowers
him, he should move only as much as necessary, and when the ecstasy declines,
he should control himself and not exaggerate its effect. During the sama',
he should conform to the rhythm of his companions, taking care not to disturb
their state, and sacrificing his own state to theirs. He should approach those
who are under the influence of ecstatic states respectfully and humbly.
Furthermore, he should advance to and retreat from the foot of the shaikh with
respect, and when he places his head at someone’s foot, he should take care
that it is not in the form of prostration, for this is forbidden. He should
hold his hands behind his back, and put his face to the ground, not his
forehead. In general, he should so conduct himself in the company of others
that all hearts are content with him and he avoids troubling them.
The nineteenth is submission. The morid must be submitted to
the workings of the shaikh’s sainthood, both inwardly and outwardly, effacing
all influences that he exerts upon himself, and living entirely by the workings
of the commands and prohibitions of the Law and the chastening of the shaikh.
Outwardly he should be like a corpse in the hands of the corpse washer, and
inwardly he should constantly seek refuge with the shaikh’s inner being. In all
actions that he wishes to undertake, whether in the presence or the absence of
the shaikh, he should inwardly seek permission from the shaikh’s sainthood: if
he receives permission, then he may perform the deed, and if not, he must
abandon it.
He should in no wise disapprove of the states and deeds of the
shaikh, whether inwardly or outwardly. Whatever appears bad to him he should
attribute to the evil of his beholding, not to any deficiency in the shaikh. If
something appears to him to be in contradiction with the Law, he should believe
that even though it appears so to him, in reality the shaikh is not
contravening the Law. For his judgment in the matter is more developed, and all
that he does is on the basis of his judgment, the correctness of which he can
prove. Thus it was in the encounter of Moses with Kezr, upon both of whom be
peace. The condition imposed upon Moses by Kezr was “If thou foliowest me, then
ask me not concerning aught until I introduce mention of it to thee.”30
That is, "Whatever I do, do not object, nor ask me why I did it, until I
see fit to tell you.” And when Moses objected, three times Kezr overlooked his
fault, but then he said, “This is the separation between me and thee.”31
Know that it is the objecting that causes the real separation, even though it
may not have the outward form of separation. Let the morid then prohibit
to himself all objecting and heed the command of “It is a duty upon you to hear
and obey.”32
The twentieth is abandonment. When the morid sets out on the
path of search, he must completely renounce his own being and devote himself to
God’s path, saying in sincerity, "I abandon my affair to God.”33
He should worship God not because of Paradise and Hell, of gain and loss, but
rather out of pure servitude and the compulsion of love, being content with
whatever the Mighty Presence decrees for him, and being diverted from that
presence neither by joy nor by sorrow.
All my affairs I have entrusted to the Beloved;
If He wishes, He will quicken; if He wishes, He will kill.
The morid should furthermore be steadfast on the highway of
servitude and fulfill the conditions of sincere seeking. If a thousand times
he hears a voice saying that he will not reach his
50Qur’an, 18:71.
’'Qur’an, 18:79.
’Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
’’Qur'an, 40:44.
goal, he should not desist from his efforts by even an atom. No
affliction or trial should cause him to cease searching or lay down the work.
This feeble one says—
Since the heart had thy love inscribed on its soul, The rain of misfortune
has ever poured down on it.
I swear by thy head, O beloved, I will never turn from thee, Even if
love’s pain grows a thousandfold.
The morid should not abandon the presence of the shaikh under
any circumstances; even though the shaikh turns him away and drives him off a
thousand times, he should not go. Let his resolve not be less than that of a
fly, which always returns however much it is driven off. This indeed is the
reason that the fly, in Arabic, is called zobab: zobba (“it was driven
off”) aba (“it came back”). So if the morid cannot be one of the
peacocks of the path, at least he should not be less than a fly, "for both
peacock and fly are necessary in this realm.”34
When the sincere morid fulfills all these conditions and the
shaikh possesses all the attributes that have been mentioned, the true purpose
and goal will emerge more swiftly from behind the veil of deprivation; the
curtain of might will be removed from the visage of beauty; the traveler will
attain his destination, the seeker his goal, and the lover his beloved:
"Whosoever seeks Me shall of a certainty find Me.”35
And peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
’“Half of a line by Sana’i (Divan, p. 254). 55Part
of a hadis qodsi; source unknown.
Twelfth Chapter:
Concerning the
Need for Zekr and the Special Properties of the Zekr of la elaha ella’llah
God Almighty said: “Make remembrance of Me, and I will make
remembrance of you”;1 and also: “Make remembrance of God abundantly,
that haply ye might prosper.”2
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The best zekr
is that of la elaha ella’llah, and the best supplicatory prayer is that
of al-hamdo le’llah.”3
Know that the veils that beset wayfarers on the path are the result
of forgetfulness. There is forgetfulness for this reason, that when the being
of the spirit appeared in the primordial state, the very essence of its being
was established as duality between itself and the Divine Presence. Although the
spirit in the primordial state knew God to be one, its knowledge was not experiential,4
for experiential knowledge of unity derives from witnessing, and witnessing is
not compatible with existing, the one being the opposite of the other.5
‘And opposites do not meet.”
The attachment of the spirit to the bodily frame was for the purpose
of fathering two offspring, the soul and the heart,6 so that when
the spirit sacrificed its being at the station of witnessing—“truth has come
and falsehood has vanished”7—it should have a successor to take its
place. This is a great mystery, not within the reach of everyone’s
understanding.
'Qur’an, 2:147.
2Qur’an, 8:46, 42:10.
’Tradition recorded by Ebn Maja. Ld elaha ella’llah (“there
is no god but God”) we leave, in the context of zekr, deliberately
untranslated because of its untranslatable multiplicity of meaning and effect.
Al-hamdo le'llah: "Praise and thanks be to God.”
Tn this sentence, Daya uses the two verbs danestan and senaklan
in contrasting senses. I have taken the second, which generally means knowing
in the sense of having acquaintance, to mean "experiential knowledge” in
this context.
’he., existing as part of an undifferentiated whole (the primordial
state) does not permit the witnessing that becomes possible only with the
differentiation of seer and seen.
6See p. 192.
’Qur’an, 17:81.
Now just as the spirit in the world of the primordial state had no
experiential knowledge of God in His perfection and unity, so too it was unable
to make pure remembrance of Him: it made remembrance both of itself and of God.
This was a zekr or remembrance sullied by other than God, whereas God
says: “Make remembrance of God when thou hast forgotten.”8 That is,
“Make remembrance of Me after forgetting all other than Me, so that none else
shares in the remembrance.”
As the spirit passed through the worlds of Kingship and Dominion on
its way to join the bodily frame, it retained a memory of all that it beheld.
By virtue of that memory its remembrance of God was lessened, to such an extent
that some were so enveloped by the veils resulting from the memory of different
objects that they totally forgot God. Then God Almighty expelled them from the
memory of His grace—“They forgot God and He forgot them.”9
When the veils of forgetfulness appeared—this being the cause for
the disease of “in their hearts is a sickness”10—of necessity God
prescribed, from the apothecary of the Qur’an, “make remembrance of God
abundantly,”11 for it has been said that cure is effected by
opposites. Then deliverance might be had from the veils and the disease of
forgetfulness—“that haply ye might prosper.”12
As for the special properties of the zekr of la elaha
ella’llah, they derive from His saying: "to Him do good words ascend.”13
The words meant here are la elaha ella’llah, and it is they that
may attain the Mighty Presence. They contain both negation and affirmation, and
the disease of forgetfulness can be repulsed by the medicine of negation and
affirmation. For forgetfulness is likewise composed of negation and affirmation—negation
of the remembrance of God and affirmation of the remembrance of other than God.
A potion mixed like oxymel out of the vinegar
“Qur'an, 18:24.
’Qur’an, 9:68.
“This phrase occurs in Qur'an, 2:10, and ten other verses.
"Qur’an, 33:41.
12Qur’an, 8:45.
■’Qur’an, 35:10.
of negation and the sugar of affirmation is therefore needed to
eliminate the bilious matter of forgetfulness. By la elaha, other than
God is negated, and by ella’llah, His majestic presence is affirmed.
When one pursues this zekr and persists in it, the attachments of the
spirit to other than God will be gradually severed by the scissors of la
elaha, and the beauty of the monarch of ella’llah will become
manifest and emerge from the veil of might. In accordance with the promise of
“make remembrance of Me, and I will make remembrance of you,”14
that beauty will cast off the garment of letter and sound; and in the
manifestation of the light of the sublimity of divinity, the property of
"all things shall perish but His face”15 will become apparent.
The zekr of the spirit, together with its own being, will perish in the
ocean of remembrance of "make remembrance of Me,” and "I will make
remembrance of you” will begin making remembrance on behalf of the spirit. It
is then that pure remembrance of God alone will be attained.
Then does He hear from Himself, not from me or thee: "To whom
belongs kingship? To the One, the Invincible!”16
The true meaning of "God bears witness that there is no god but
He”17 will become apparent; and Yusof b. Hoseyn Razi’s cryptic
saying that "none says ‘God’ but God” will be understood.18 It
will also become evident why Islam has been founded on precisely these words—la
elaha ella’llah. For in just the same way that deliverance from the inward
association of gods with God is to be had only through the inner meaning of
these words, so too the outward association of gods with God can be abolished
only by means of their outer form.
Wield
the sword of la elaha throughout creation, So the whole world is purged
for ella’llah.
And
peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
'“Qur’an,
2:147.
'“Qur’an,
28:88.
'“The
second half of this line is taken from Qur'an, 40:16.
■’Qur’an,
3:18.
'“Yusof b. Hoseyn Razi (d. 343/916), an associate of many of the
leading early Sufis, whose recorded sayings are mostly concerned with zekr
('Attar, Taz- kerat al-owliya, I, pp. 280-286).
Thirteenth Chapter:
Concerning the
Method of Zekr, Its Conditions and Customs
God Almighty said: "Make remembrance of God as ye do of your
fathers, or with more lively remembrance.”1 And also: “Make
remembrance of thy Lord in thy soul, in supplication and fear, without thy word
being audible, at morning and evening.”2
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “Go forth, for
the unattached have preceded you.” He was asked: “Who are the unattached, O
Messenger of God?” He said: “Those who tremble with the remembrance of God,
until the zekr removes their burdens from them and they come to resurrection
lightly laden.”3
Know that to perform zekr without observing its customs and
conditions is of only slight utility; one must first observe the arrangement,
customs, and conditions of zekr. When the painful longing of the search
and the impulse of wayfaring appear in the sincere morid, the sign of
this state is that he becomes attached to zekr and shuns men’s company,
turning away from all and taking refuge in zekr. "Say, ‘Allah,’
then leave them to play at their vain talk.”4 When he wishes to
pursue constant zekr, he must base his practice on the foundation of
sincere repentance for all his sins.
When making zekr, he should if possible make a complete
ablution, and failing that a partial one, and put on clean clothes in
accordance with the Sunna. He should then prepare an empty, dark, and clean
room; and it will be fitting too if he perfumes the room by burning some
fragrant substance. Then he should sit facing the qebla crosslegged. To
sit crosslegged is forbidden at all times except when making zekr, for
the Prophet after performing the dawn prayer would sit in his place
crosslegged, performing zekr until sunrise.
‘Qur’an, 2:200.
2Qur’an, 7:204.
’Tradition recorded by Moslem, Ebn Hanbal, and Termezl.
’Qur'an, 6:91.
When beginning the zekr, the morid should place his
hands on his thighs, ensure that his heart is concentrated and alert, close his
eyes, and then, with the utmost reverence, begin saying the words la elaha
ella’llah with all his strength. He should bring the words la elaha
up from the navel, and direct the words ella’llah down into the heart,
in such manner that the effect and power of the zekr reach all his
members. He should not, however, pronounce the words aloud, but rather conceal
and lower his voice as much as possible, as God said: “Make remembrance of thy
Lord in thy soul, in supplication and fear, without thy word being audible.’’
The morld should make zekr in this fashion, vigorously
and unceasingly, pondering the meaning of the zekr in his heart. When he
ponders the meaning of la elaha, he should negate any stray thoughts
that enter his heart, saying to himself: "I desire nothing and seek
nothing, and have no aim or object of love, ella’llah—other than God.”
Having negated all stray thoughts with la elaha, he affirms the Mighty
Presence as his sole aim, purpose, and object of love with ella’llah.
He must be inwardly alert and present both at the beginning of the zekr,
which is the negation, and at its end, which is the affirmation. Whenever
looking within his heart he sees something to which the heart has formed
attachment, he fixes his gaze upon it and vows his heart to the Mighty
Presence. Seeking succor from the aspiration inherent in the shaikh’s sainthood,
he abrogates all ties of the heart with the negation of la elaha, and
uproots all love from it; then, with the affirmation of ella’llah, he
causes love of God to take the place of all other love.
The morld then persists in this fashion until the heart is
gradually purged and emptied of all that is beloved of it and familiar to it,
for trembling in remembrance comes only with persistence. Trembling consists of
this, that the being of the one engaged in zekr is overpowered by its
effect and dissolved in its light. His zekr causes him to become
unattached: it removes all obstacles in his path and all attachments, and
conveys him lightly laden from this world of corporeality to the hereafter of
spirituality. It is to this that the Tradition, “Go forth, for the unattached
have preceded you,” refers.
Know that the heart is the secluded shrine of God, for "Neither
My earth nor My heavens may contain Me, but the heart of My believing slave may
contain Me.”[90] As
long as the troublesome presence of others is to be observed in the heart’s
court, His jealous pride and might will prevent Him from joining them. But once
the lieutenant of la elaha has cleared the court of their presence, one
must wait expectantly for the approach of the manifestation of the king of ella’llah—“So
when thou art empty, labor and incline unto thy Lord.”[91]
Clear the court, for the king comes unannounced;
Once the pavilion is clear, then the monarch comes.[92]
The morid should also be fully convinced that he will obtain
full benefit from the zekr only when it is transmitted to him by a
shaikh possessing the ability to direct him. For the arrow serves to protect
only when it is taken from the king’s quiver. If bought from the shop of the
arrowmaker, it does not bestow protection on the whole kingdom, and serves only
to repel a personal enemy. This will be explained later, God Almighty willing.[93]
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
Fourteenth Chapter:
God Almighty said: "O ye who believe! Fear God and speak words
that hit the mark,”1 that is, say la elaha ella’llah.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: "Say la
elaha ella’llah, and ye shall prosper.”2
Know that the zekr of imitation is different from the zekr
of realization. That which comes from men’s mouths and enters the gate of outer
hearing is the zekr of imitation. It has little effect, and resembles an
unripe and uncultivated seed that fails to grow when sown in the earth. The zekr
of realization is that which is sown through transmission by a shaikh possessed
of sainthood in the well-prepared soil of the morid’s heart.
The zekr that the possessor of sainthood transmits is the
fruit of the tree of his sainthood, for he too received the seed of zekr through
transmission by men possessing sainthood. It was then nurtured in the soil of
his heart with the succoring water of the shaikh’s aspiration, so that it
gradually grew into the tree of sainthood and yielded the fruit of zekr
from the blossom of “I shall make remembrance of you.”3 Finally,
when the fruit reached the full maturity of the station of shaikh, a seed was
cast from it into the soil of the morid’s heart.
When the seed of zekr is nurtured by sainthood; when the soil
of the heart is ploughed by moridship, cleared of the weeds of instinctual
nature by the hand of the Path, and nourished by the sun of the shaikh’s
sincerity and the water of his aspiration— then the verdure of true faith will
swiftly grow, for “la elaha ella’llah causes faith to grow in the heart
as water causes bean-
‘Qur’an, 33:70.
’Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
’Qur'an, 2:147.
sprouts to grow.”4 It will increase daily until it
becomes first the sapling of beneficence5 and then, with further
cultivation, the tree of gnosis.
The condition for transmission of zekr is that the morid should
fast for three days at the behest of his shaikh. During these three days, he
should strive continuously to be in a state of ritual purity, and should engage
constantly in zekr, making zekr to himself even while walking
outside. He should have little intercourse with men, speak only when necessary,
not eat much when breaking his fast, and spend most of the night awake in zekr.
After three days he should make a total ablution at the shaikh’s
command, performing it with the intention of one who is about to embrace Islam.
For originally everyone who wished to enter the faith would first make a total
ablution and then be instructed by the Prophet, upon whom be peace, in the
words constituting the profession of faith. Let then the morld make a
total ablution in readiness for true Islam, in accordance with this Sunna, saying
as he pours the water over himself: “O Lord, I have cleansed with water this
body, which is under my control; cleanse Thou, with the gaze of grace, this
heart, which is under Thy command.”
When he has made a complete ablution, the morld should go to
the presence of the shaikh after the evening prayer. The shaikh will seat him
facing the qebla, and himself sit with his back to the qebla. The
morld should sit on his knees facing the shaikh, with his hands placed
on top of each other, and his heart in a state of alertness. The shaikh will
then pronounce the necessary instructions, and the morld should detach
his heart from all things and cause it to face the shaikh’s heart. With the
utmost expectancy, he then waits for the shaikh to say la elaha ella’llah the
first time, aloud and with vigor. When the shaikh has finished saying it, the morld
should begin to say la elaha ella’llah in the same tone as the shaikh,
aloud and with vigor. The shaikh will then say it a second time, and the morld
will repeat it after
’Arabic utterance of undetennined origin.
sBeneficence (ehsan): see p.
126, n. 13.
him; and a third time, and again the morid will repeat it
after him. Finally the shaikh will make a prayer, and the morid will say
‘Amen.”
When all this is completed, the morid will arise and enter
the cell of seclusion, there to devote himself to the cultivation of the seed
of zekr. God Almighty willing, this will be described in the chapter on
the conditions of seclusion.
The beginning of zekr in the heart of the morid is
like that of a tree newly planted. Thus God said: “God made a similitude—a
goodly word like a goodly tree.”6 By the unanimous agreement of the
exegetes, the “goodly word” is la elaha ella’llah. When the tree of zekr
is continually nurtured, its roots reach out from the heart to all the members
and limbs of the body, in such a manner that from the crown of the head to the
toenails, not a particle remains untouched by the roots of the tree of zekr.
When its roots become thus firmly established in the soil of the
bodily frame, the tree of zekr begins to extend its branches toward the
sky of the heart—"Its roots are firm and its branches are in the heavens.”7
At this point, the heart takes over the work of zekr from the tongue and
begins clearly uttering la elaha ella’llah. As soon as the heart begins
engaging in zekr, the zekr of the tongue must be suspended so
that the heart may perform its zekr properly without being distracted by
the tongue. But whenever the heart ceases its zekr, the tongue must be
put to work again until the heart becomes fully engaged in zekr. By the
aid of the tongue, the tree of zekr is thus nurtured and enabled to
strive upward. When it attains full development, the blossom of witnessing will
begin to appear on its branches, and from this blossom will gradually emerge in
turn the fruits of unveiling and of God-given knowledge—“It yields fruit in all
seasons by the permission of its Lord.”8
If, in the beginning, the seed had not been taken from the
6Qur'an, 14:24.
’Qur’an, 14:24.
“Qur’an, 14:25.
ripe fruit of sainthood, it would never have grown into a tree in
this fashion.
Abdollah the son of ‘Omar—may God be pleased with them both—relates
the following: “Once we were seated in the presence of the Prophet, upon whom
be peace and blessings, together with a group of the Companions. The Prophet
said: ‘There is a tree that resembles the believers in that its leaves never
wither. Tell me what it is.’ Each of the Companions fell to guessing about some
desert tree, one saying, ‘it is this,’ another saying, ‘it is that.’ The
Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: ‘It is neither this nor
that.’ It came to my mind that it must be the date palm, but Abu Bakr and
‘Omar—may God be pleased with them both—were present among the Companions, and
I was loath to say in their presence anything they had not said. Then the
Prophet said: ‘It is the date palm.’”9
The date palm resembles the believer in this sense: The female date
palm will not yield good dates unless it is given semen, impregnated, and
fertilized. It is well known that each year a substance is taken from the
spathe of the male tree and grafted onto that of the female tree in order for
it to produce good dates. If this is not done, it will not bear fruit properly.
Similarly, when it is desired that the believer should yield the
fruit of sainthood, he is impregnated and fertilized through the transmission
of zekr by a shaikh possessing sainthood. Once transmission has taken
place, the morid must pursue and adhere to seclusion and isolation in
accordance with the shaikh’s command until the true fruit appears. This will be
described later.
It is related of the Prophet that he once assembled a group of the
foremost Companions in a room and ordered them to close the door. He then said
aloud, three times, la elaha ella’llah, and commanded the Companions to
do likewise. They did so, and he then lifted up his hands and said: “O God,
have I conveyed that which was to be conveyed?” Then he said, “Glad tidings be
unto
’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Termezi, and Ebn Hanbal.
you, that God Almighty has forgiven your sins.”10 The
shaikhs of the Path have derived the transmission of zekr from this
Sunna.
‘"Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal. In the Prophet’s
exclamation, ‘‘O God, have I conveyed that which was to be conveyed?" it
may be permissible to see an allusion to Qur’an, 5:70 (“O Messenger, convey
that which has been sent down to thee from thy Lord; if thou dost not, thou wilt
not have fulfilled His mission”). The zekr is, after all, described
elsewhere (Qur’an, 15:9) as having been “sent down.” But it is of course true
that the commentators mention circumstances for the revelation of 5:70 that are
unconnected with zekr.
Fifteenth Chapter:
Concerning the
Need for Seclusion, and Its Conditions and Customs
God Almighty said: “When We appointed for Moses forty nights.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “Whoever
worships God sincerely for forty nights, the springs of wisdom shall well up
from his heart to this tongue.”2
Know that the foundation of wayfaring on the path of religion and of
attaining the stations of certainty is seclusion, withdrawal, and isolation
from men. All the prophets and saints devoted themselves to seclusion at the
beginning of their state, and persisted in it until they reached the goal. Thus
‘A’esa, may God be pleased with her, relates concerning the Prophet that
"seclusion was beloved of him.” It is also related that "retirement
to Hera for a week or two weeks was beloved of him.”3 That is, he
would spend one or two weeks in seclusion and worship on Mount Hera, before
the coming of the revelation. According to other versions, the period was one
month. This feeble one has visited the Prophet’s place of seclusion—may peace
be upon him—on Mount Ilera near Mecca; it is a cave on the side of the
mountain, filled with spirit.
When Moses, upon whom be peace, was granted the fitness to hear
God’s word without intermediary, God commanded him to observe forty days’
seclusion—“when We appointed for Moses forty nights.”
The number forty has a certain property with respect to the
completion of things that other numbers lack. There is an authentic Tradition
that “The creation of one of you is that he is a drop of sperm for forty days,
collected in his mother’s womb; then a drop of coagulated blood for another
forty days; and then
‘Qur’an, 2:51.
Tradition recorded by Abu No’eym.
’Quoted in Bokan, “Bab kayfa kana bad' al-wahy.”
a fonnless lump of flesh for a further forty days.”4 The
Prophet, upon whom be peace, also said that the springs of wisdom would well up
from the heart to the tongue as the result of forty days’ sincere worship.
Similarly, the kneading to perfection of the clay of Adam, upon whom be peace,
was entrusted to a period of forty days;5 and there are many other
examples.
There are many conditions and customs attached to the observation
of forty-day periods of seclusion. Among them, eight conditions are the most
important, and if even one of these is only partially fulfilled, it will be
difficult to attain the goal in its totality.
The first is to sit alone in an empty room, facing the qebla
with the legs crossed and the hands placed on top of each other. The morld
should have made a total ablution, intending it to be like the washing of a
corpse, and imagine the room to be his shroud, leaving it only to perfonn
ablution and prayer and fulfill other needs. The room must be small and dark,
with a curtain drawn over the door so that no light or sound penetrates. The
senses will then cease functioning—seeing, hearing, speaking, and walking—and
the spirit, no longer preoccupied with the senses and sensory phenomena, will
direct itself to the world of the unseen. Moreover, once the senses have ceased
functioning, the misfortunes that assail the spirit through the apertures of
the five senses will be effaced by means of zekr and the negation of
stray thoughts. The veils that derive from the senses will fall; the spirit
will gain familiarity with the unseen; and its familiarity with men will
cease.
The second is to be constantly in a state of ritual purity, so that
the morld will be armed and Satan unable to defeat him. For “purity is
the weapon of the believer.”6
The third is continuously to recite the words la elaha ella’llah.
God’s saying, “Those who make remembrance of God standing
’Tradition previously quoted on p. 100.
5Allusion to the hadis qodsi “I
kneaded the clay of Adam with My hands for forty days” (see p. 94).
6Tradition; source unknown.
and sitting and on their sides,”7 implicitly commands
continuous zekr.
The fourth is persistence in negating stray thoughts. Whatever
thought comes to the mind, whether good or bad, must be negated by la elaha,
as if the morid were saying to himself, "I desire nothing but God.”
The verse “If ye reveal that which is in yourselves or conceal it, God will
call you to account for it”8 implicitly commands the negation of
stray thoughts.9 In truth, whatever thought comes to the heart
leaves an impression on its page, whether good or bad, and prevents the heart
from receiving the impressions of the unseen. Until the mirror of the heart is
cleansed and purified of all impressions, it cannot receive the impressions of
the unseen or God-given knowledge, nor the lights of spiritual witnessing and
unveiling.
The fifth is constant fasting. The morid must always be fasting,
for fasting is of great effect in severing human attachments and palliating
animal and bestial attributes: "Fasting is mine, and I give reward for
it.”10
The sixth is constant silence. The morid must not speak to
anyone except the shaikh, when bringing a vision to his attention, and he
should then use as few words as possible. Otherwise he should say to himself,
"he is saved who remains silent,”11 and move his tongue only in
zekr.
The seventh is to keep in view the heart of the shaikh. The morid
must constantly join his heart to that of the shaikh and seek aid from it, for
revelations from the unseen and the breeze of the exhalations of dominical
favor first come to the heart of
’Qur’an, 3:191.
8Qur’an, 2:284.
’Stray thoughts (kavater; sing., kater): Daya does not
expand on the varieties of stray thought, good and evil, that assail the morid,
but we may assume that he followed Najm al-dln Kobra in his fivefold division
of kavater: those divinely inspired; those arising from the heart; those
inspired by angels; those arising from the soul; and those of satanic origin.
See Kobra, “Risalat as-Sa’ir al-Ha’ir al-Wajid ila 's-Satir al-Wafiid
al-Majid,” ed. Marijan Mole in Annales Islamo- logiques (Cairo), IV
(1963), p. 52.
wHadls qodsi previously quoted on p. 185.
“Tradition recorded by TermezI, Ebn Hanbal and Dareml.
the morid through the aperture of the shaikh’s heart. For the
morld is at first encumbered by many veils and, accustomed as he is to
the manifest world, cannot direct himself to the Mighty Presence as is
required. But if the bond of his moridship be firm, he can easily direct
himself to the Shaikh’s heart. The shaikh’s heart is turned to the Divine
Presence and natured by the world of the unseen: each moment some effusion of
dominical grace reaches the shaikh’s heart from that world. Insofar as the morld’s
heart is turned toward that of the shaikh, succor from the unseen world will be
transmitted from the shaikh’s heart to that of the morld. The morld’s
heart will thus first accustom itself to receiving succor and nourishment from
the unseen through the intermediary of the shaikh, until it gradually attains a
state where it is able to receive grace without intermediary— “Their Lord shall
give them to drink of a pure wine.”12 It is this very wine that they
drink at the beginning, but it is handed to them in the goblet of the shaikh’s
sainthood: ‘And therein they shall be given to drink of a cup whose mixture is
ginger.”13 Then God the cupbearer will hand them the pure wine of
witnessing without intermediary in the goblet of the prophethood of Mohammad,
upon whom be peace: "Their Lord shall give them to drink of a pure wine.”
I drank of the wine that has the spirit as goblet;
I became drunk on the wine that maddens the mind.
I was touched by smoke, and a flame leapt forth From the candle that
has the sun as its moth.
The morld should always consider the aspiration of the shaikh
to be his guide and escort on the path. Whenever he is assailed by some
misfortune or fear, or some awesome image enters his vision, he should
immediately take refuge in the sainthood of the shaikh and inwardly seek help
from the shaikh’s heart so that the aid rendered by the aspiration of the
shaikh and the gaze of his sainthood may repel any misfortune, whether it
originate with the soul or with Satan.
The eighth is the abandonment of all objection, whether to
'■Qur’an, 76:21.
'■Qur’an, 76:18.
God or the shaikh. Abandonment of objection to God means being
content with whatever God sends him from the unseen, whether contraction or
expansion,14 toil or ease, sickness or health, adversity or good
fortune; surrendering to God; not turning away from Him; and being steadfast.
When thou pourest into thy heart the wine of Our union, Thou must
not flee at the onset of giddiness.
If thou desirest constant enjoyment of Our union, Then renounce and
abandon all other enjoyment.
The morld should make no objection to whatever he observes in
the shaikh—his words, deeds, states, and attributes—and surrender himself to
the shaikh’s outer and inner workings upon him. He should look upon the doings
and states of the shaikh with the gaze of morldship, and not with the
short-sighted gaze of reason, for surrender to the sainthood of the shaikh is
the supreme condition, as was explained in the allegory of the egg and the hen.15
If the egg leaves, however slightly, its state of surrender to the
workings of the hen and thus becomes deprived of its succor, the quality of
henhood that was inherent in it will immediately perish. It will then be
neither egg nor hen. And if an egg rots while beneath one hen, the assembled
hens of the whole world will be unable to restore it to salubrity.
It is for this reason that if a morld should be rejected by
the sainthood of a certain shaikh, none among the shaikhs will be able to bring
him to perfection: he will have been rejected, in effect, by the sainthood of
all the shaikhs. However, if the morld has a valid excuse for leaving
the service of a shaikh without being rejected by his sainthood—if, for
example, it is impossible for him to come to the shaikh and benefit from him
because of the shaikh’s death or some distant journey on which the morld cannot
follow him—then the morld will be excused if he adheres to the service
of another shaikh. The workings of the aspiration of that shaikh may cause him
to attain the station of henhood,
“Contiaction and expansion: see p. 238, n. 19 and p. 68, n. 28.
15See pp. 247-249.
because the potentiality of henhood has not been corrupted within
the egg of his being. There are many customs connected with seclusion, but the
conditions are the eight set forth here.
One of the customs of seclusion is to lessen the consumption of
food, but not to the extent of becoming weak and without strength. The morld
should eat enough to have the strength for pursuing continuous and vigorous zekr.
He should eat, for example, a hundred, a hundred and fifty, or two hundred
drachms a day: the amount may be increased or decreased according to the
strength of one’s constitution and appetite. In general, the morld
should be lightly filled at night, so that sleep does not overcome him and
cause him to abandon zekr, because of either deficiency or excess of
food. Whatever he eats, the morld should eat while making zekr
and with alertness of the heart. He should take small mouthfuls and not eat
lustily, and chew the food into small pieces, in harmony with the zekr
performed in his heart, so that through the light of zekr the darkness
of passion contained in the food may be dispelled. He should stop eating when
half full, to avoid all extravagance, and not take any care for his food to be
delicious. He should avoid eating too much meat, and it will be fitting if he
eats it only once or twice a week, fifty drachms on each occasion.
The morld should also strive to reduce his sleep. As far as
possible, he should not lie on his side on the ground through conscious choice,
but rather wait to be overcome by sleep, so that he falls unconscious and
succumbs to sleep. When he awakes, he should arise, make his ablutions, and
busy himself with zekr. If he is exhausted to the extent that he can no
longer remain sitting, it is permissible for him to lie on his side on the
ground for an hour, or to place his head on his knees and thus sleep, so that
weariness departs from his mind and dullness from his senses.
Whenever he is too tired to pursue zekr with the tongue, he
should busy his heart with zekr for a time. He should observe his heart
closely and watch for anything that may enter its vision. He should not fear
any terrible image he sees or any awesome sound he hears, but be stouthearted
and forthwith seek
refuge in his shaikh’s sainthood. He should utter the name of his
shaikh and seek succor from his aspiration, so that God Almighty may avert all
evil through His favor.
Whenever the morld emerges from his seclusion to make
ablution, or to participate in congregational or Friday prayer, he should fix
his gaze straight ahead of him and not look to either side, and keep his tongue
and heart busy with zekr, in order to avoid distraction.
And peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
Sixteenth Chapter:
Concerning Certain
Visions Deriving from the Unseen1 and the Difference between Dreams
and Visions
God Almighty said: "I saw eleven planets and the sun and the
moon, saw them prostrating themselves unto me.”2
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The sound
dream is one of the forty-six parts of prophethood.”3
Know that when the wayfarer embarks upon ascetic striving,
chastening of the soul, and purification of the heart, it is given to him to
traverse and journey through the worlds of Kingship and Dominion. At each
station visions appropriate to his state are disclosed to him, sometimes in the
form of a sound dream, and sometimes as a vision deriving from the unseen.
In the view of the People of the Path, the difference between the
dream and the vision has two aspects—form and meaning. With respect to form,
the vision is that which is seen either between sleep and waking, or in a
state of complete wakefulness. With respect to meaning, the vision is that
which emerges from behind the veil of imagination and is derived entirely from
the unseen. If it is perceived by the spirit when divested of all human
attributes, the vision is purely spiritual. But if, as sometimes happens, the
gaze of the spirit is strengthened by the light of
'Visions (vaqdye' sing., vaqe'a): This tenn, like tajarrof,
appears to have originated in the period when the Kobravl order crystallized.
It is used by Kobra himself, although not with the same consistency as by Daya,
for he sometimes employs instead the word gey ba ("absence”) to
designate visions, a usage justified by the "absence” of the visionary
from his nonnal modes of perception (Meier’s introduction to Fawa'ih
al-Jamal wa Fawatih al-Jamal, pp. 110-111). The entirety of this and the
following three chapters may be said to constitute an elaboration and
systematization of Kobra’s analysis of the visionary experience: a detailed
comparison of all the relevant texts is desirable, although not possible here.
■Qur’an, 12:4. The first person of this verse refers to Joseph.
’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Abu Da’ud, Tennezi, Ebn Maja,
DaremI, and Ebn Hanbal.
divinity, the vision is dominical. Hence it has been said that “the
believer sees with God’s light.”4
The dream is that which occurs when the senses have ceased to
function, the imagination has begun to operate, and a certain object becomes
visible to the one overcome by sleep. There are two kinds of dreams: the first
is the confused dream,5 that which is perceived by the soul, through
the instrumentality of the imagination, and is derived from the temptations of
Satan and the whisperings of the soul. These are infused in the dreamer by
Satan and the soul; the imagination forms a suitable image of them and conveys
that image to the gaze of the soul. Such confused and disorderly dreams are
not liable to interpretation; one must seek refuge in God from them and not
relate them to anyone.
The second kind of dream is the good dream known as “sound,” which
the Prophet, upon whom be peace, defined as one of the forty-six parts of
prophethood. Certain leaders of religion have interpreted his saying as meaning
that the duration of his prophethood was twenty-three years, and that during the
first six months of that period revelation came to him in the form of dreams.
Sound dreams would thus represent one fortysixth of his prophethood. Many were
the prophets to whom revelation came entirely in dreams; and there were some to
whom revelation came sometimes in dreams and sometimes in wakefulness. Thus,
Abraham, upon whom be peace, said: "Truly I see myself sacrificing thee in
my dream; look then, what thinkest thou?”6 and the Prophet said:
“The sleep of the prophets is revelation.”7
The sound dream is of three kinds. Whatever is seen in the first
kind has no need of explanation or interpretation: it comes to pass exactly as
seen. Thus the dream of Abraham was quite clear: "Truly I see myself
sacrificing thee in my dream.”
■Part of a Tradition previously quoted on p. 86.
5“Confused dream" (aigds-e
ahlam): term taken from Qur’an, 12:44 and 21:5.
6Qur’an, 37:102.
’Tradition recorded by Bokarl.
The second kind of sound dream is that in which part needs
interpretation and part comes true exactly. Such was the dream of Joseph, upon
whom be peace, “I saw eleven planets and the sun and the moon, saw them
prostrating themselves unto me.”8 The eleven planets, the moon, and
the sun had to be interpreted as his eleven brothers, his mother, and his
father; but the prostration came true exactly and did not need to be
interpreted— “they fell down prostrate before him.”9
The third kind of sound dream is that which needs interpretation in
its entirety, like the dream of the king (“I see seven fat ears of corn”)10
and the dream of the prisoners (“O companions of the prison, one of you shall
serve his lord with wine, and the other shall be crucified and the birds shall
eat from his head.”)11
In truth, the sound dream is not simply that which has a correct
interpretation and comes true, for such dreams are common to believer and
unbeliever, and the king and the prisoners all saw them. The unbeliever sees a
dream with the gaze of the heart, supported by the spirit but not by divine
light. It is the dream supported by divine light that is the sound dream and
one of the parts of prophethood, and it is seen only by the believer, the
saint, or the prophet. For the unbeliever has no part of prophethood, as is
stressed in the saying of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, that “nothing has
remained of prophethood except dreams conveying good tidings; these are seen by
the believer, directly or on his behalf.”12
This feeble one therefore divides dreams into two types: the sound
dream and the veracious dream. The sound dream is that seen by the believer,
the saint, or the prophet; it comes true or has a correct interpretation, and
it is shown to man by God. The veracious dream is also that which has a correct
interpretation and comes true, perhaps exactly. But it is displayed to man by
the spirit, and it is common to unbeliever and believer.
“Qur'an, 12:4.
“Qur’an, 12:100.
“Qur’an, 12:43.
“Qur’an, 12:41.
‘Tradition recorded by Tennezi, Ebn Maja, Daremi, and Ebn Hanbal.
I likewise divide visions into two kinds. The first is that which is
doubtless seen by monks, philosophers, and Brahmins, and derives from extreme
mortification of the soul, purification of the heart, and training of the
spirit, leading to a point at which certain matters relating to the unseen
become unveiled. These visions occur halfway between sleep and complete
wakefulness. It sometimes happens too that on account of extreme mortification
of the soul, spirituality will establish its ascendance and efface most of the
animal and bestial attributes. The spirits of this class of men will then be
somewhat freed from the veils of imagining and become manifest, and the lights
of the spirit will be unveiled to their gaze. But this will not bring them
closer to God or earn them His acceptance, nor will it be a cause for their
salvation. Rather, it will impel them to excess and extreme in their unbelief
and misguidedness, and cause them to become ever more remote from God. Thus He
said—mighty, glorious and exalted is He!—“Step by step We shall lead them on
from whence they know not. I give them rein, for lo, My cunning is strong.’’[94]
The second kind of vision is that which occurs when God Almighty
displays the beauty of His perspicuous signs to the affirmers of His unity in
the mirror of horizons and souls: "We shall show them Our signs on the
horizons and in their own souls until it becomes plain to them that it is the
Truth.”[95]
Such visions cause the Truth to become manifest to the affirmers of God’s
unity. And if, when the senses are mastered, the heart of the wayfarer receives
inspiration from his Lord concerning knowledge of the corruption and
righteousness of the soul, then the gaze of the heart or the spirit will fall
upon the form of that inspiration, as conceived by the imagination. It is also
possible that the gaze will fall upon the reality of that inspiration, without
the intervention of the imaginative faculty. In either case the wayfarer will
be made aware of the salubrity or corruption
of his soul, and of his degree of progress or deficiency. Thus God
said, "By a soul and Him Who ordered it, inspiring it with knowledge of
lewdness and godfearing.”[96] In
the same way that the vision of the associator of gods with God removes him farther
from God and increases his unbelief, so too the vision of the affirmer of God’s
unity bestows wondrous states upon him and increases his faith: “He it is who
sent down peace and assurance into the hearts of the believers that they might
add faith unto their faith.”[97]
The difference between the vision of the associator and that of the affirmer
of unity is that the first is caught up in the veils of association and
duality, has no part in the witnessing of the lights of the attributes of
unity, and does not transcend the human state. The second is delivered from the
dark veils of association by the light of unicity, effaces his human state in
the manifestation of the lights of the attributes of unity, and through the
manifestation of the world of unicity, comes to partake of the station of
oneness.[98]
How might we become separate from ourselves,
Thou and I depart, and God alone remain?
The tongue that uttered the supreme secret Spoke truly when it said,
“I am the Truth.”
Know that the disclosure of visions to the gaze of the wayfarer has
three benefits. The first is that through them he is made aware of his own
states, whether excess or deficiency; motion, pause or interval; ecstasy,
eagerness, or languor; delay or advancement. He is also informed of the stages
and stations of the path, of degrees of ascent and descent, of elevation and depression,
and of the true and the false. For the imagination invests each of these with a
suitable form, so that the wayfarer comprehends all the visions that come to
him—those arising from the soul; those animal, satanic, or bestial in origin;
and those deriving from the angels, the heart, the spirit, or from God.
Thus, if the reprehensible attributes of the soul—greed, envy,
concupiscence, miserliness, rancor, arrogance, anger, lust, and so forth—gain
mastery over him, the imagination will invest whatever attribute predominates
with the form of an animal. The attribute of greed will appear to the wayfarer
in the form of a mouse, an ant, or some other greedy animal. If the attribute
of concupiscence predominates, it will appear in the form of a pig or a bear.
If the attribute of miserliness predominates, it will appear in the form of a
dog or a monkey. If the attribute of rancor predominates, it will appear in the
form of a snake. If the attribute of arrogance predominates, it will appear in
the form of a leopard. If the attribute of anger predominates, it will appear
in the form of a panther. If the attribute of lust predominates, it will appear
in the form of a donkey. If the attribute of animality predominates, it will
appear in the form of a sheep. If the attribute of predatoriness predominates,
it will appear in the form of various kinds of predator. If the attribute of
deviltry predominates, it will appear in the form of demons, rebellious
spirits, and ghouls. And if the attributes of treachery, deceit, and cunning
predominate, they will appear in the form of a fox or a rabbit.
If the wayfarer sees these animals prevailing over him, he will know
he is dominated by the corresponding attributes. If, on the contrary, he sees
the animals subjugated to him, he will know he is transcending the attributes.
If he sees that he is killing the animals or subduing them, he will know he is
passing beyond the attributes and being delivered from them. If he sees that he
is struggling against the animals, he will know he is in contention and dispute
with the attributes; he will not become careless or imagine himself to be safe.
If the wayfarer dreams of pure, flowing water, of seas, ponds and
pools, of gardens and orchards, of palaces and burnished mirrors, of the moon,
the stars and clear skies, all these are the forms taken by the attributes of
the heart. If he dreams of unending lights and infinite worlds, flight and
ascension, realms devoid of color and quality, swift traversal of the earth
and the heavens, walking on air, the unveiling of inner realities and God-given
knowledge, and immediate perception, he will know
that all these represent spiritual stations. If he dreams of contemplating
the world of Dominion and witnessing the angels, of voices from the unseen, the
expanse of the firmaments and the stars, of the souls and inner essences of
things, of the Throne and the Footstool, he will know he is traversing the
angelic attributes and acquiring praiseworthy attributes. If he finds himself
witnessing the lights of the uttermost unseen, the unveiling of the attributes
of divinity, inspiration and revelation, and indications and manifestations of
the dominical attributes, he will know he is in the station of clothing himself
in the divine characteristics. This is a brief indication of each type; the
rest may be deduced by analogy.
The second benefit of visions is that, deriving from the heart, the
spirit, and the angelic realm, they yield a certain taste. The soul gains from
them such libation and nourishment, such joyous taste and ardor, that it
annuls its intimacy with creation, with all to which instinctual nature is
accustomed, and with sensory delights and corporeal pleasures, and instead
forms acquaintance with the unseen and the spiritual world, with subtle
essences and inner meanings, with mysteries and realities. It turns fully to
the world of seeking, and its wonted drinking place becomes the world of the
unseen—“and all the people knew their drinking place.”[99]
In truth, the infants of the Path can be nurtured at the beginning
only on the milk of visions from the unseen; it is only the form and meaning of
these visions that can be nurtured for the soul of the seeker. One filled with
astonishment once related the following in the presence of Kaja Abu Yusof
HamadanI: “I was once in the presence of Shaikh Ahmad Gazall, may God have
mercy on him. While seated eating with his companions in the hospice, he lost
awareness of self. When he came to himself he said, 1 have just seen the
Prophet, upon whom be peace; he came and put a morsel of food in my mouth.’”
Kaja Abu Yusof
remarked: "These are imaginings on which the infants of the
Path are nurtured.”[100]
The third benefit is that it is only by virtue of visions deriving
from the unseen that certain stations of the Path may be transcended. The
chief reason for the need of prophets and shaikhs is as follows. So long as the
wayfarer is voyaging in his own being and journeying through the attributes of
the soul, the heart, and the spirit, it is possible that he should not need
anyone. But when he reaches the farthest limit of spirituality he cannot cross
it by himself, for any effort that issues from the wayfarer creates more being,
whereas henceforth his course is directed to non- being, and nonbeing can be
attained only through the medium of others. It is visions proceeding from the
effusion of the shaikh’s sainthood, from the presence of prophethood or from
the manifestation of the dominical attributes, that bestow effacement on the
wayfarer. And until he has attained true effacement, he cannot reach true
abiding, which is the goal and purpose of his wayfaring. And God knows best.
After this, an indication of those visions that pertain to unveiling,
witnessing, manifestation, and attainment will be given, each in a separate
chapter, God the Unique willing.
Peace be upon Mohammad and his family.
Seventeenth Chapter:
Concerning the
Witnessing1 of Lights and the Degrees Thereof
God Almighty said: “The heart lied not in seeing that which it saw;
will ye then dispute with him that which he saw, for indeed he saw him at a
second descent?”2
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “Beneficence (ehsan)
is your worshipping God as if you saw Him.”3
Know that when the mirror of the heart is gradually burnished by the
workings of la elaha ella’llah, and the rust of instinctual nature and
the darkness of human attributes are erased from it —"everything may be
polished, and the heart is polished by the remembrance of God”4—it
will become receptive to the lights of the unseen world, and the wayfarer, in
accordance with the purity of his heart and the degree of manifestation of
lights, will behold lights. Initially the lights will be mostly in the form of
lightning, of gleams and flashes.
O lightning flash leaping forth!
From which guarded shrine comes thy light?
As the polishing of the heart increases, the lights will strengthen
and multiply. After being first like a lightning flash, they will later be
witnessed in the likeness of a lamp, a candle, a torch, or a burning fire.
After this, the supernal lights will become manifest, first in the shape of
stars, large and small. Then they will be witnessed in the likeness of the
moon; and later they will become apparent in the shape of the sun. Finally,
lights free of any locus will appear.
'Witnessing (mosahadat): the word is derived from the same
root as sohud (for a definition of which see p. 140, n. 24), and has the
sense of an instance of sohud, a “witnessing" of a particular
object by a particular subject. On the difference between witnessing and
unveiling, see pp. 321-322.
■Qur’an, 53:13.
’Part of a Tradition previously quoted on p. 126.
’Tradition; source unknown.
Know that the sources of light are various: the spirituality of the
wayfarer; the sainthood of the shaikh; the prophethood of Mohammad, upon whom
be peace; the spirits of the prophets, the saints, and the shaikhs; the Mighty
Presence; the zekr of la elaha ella’llah; other forms of zekr;
the Qur’an; Islam, and faith; and the different forms of worship and obedience.
Each has a separate light; from each source a certain light arises conforming
to its nature; and each light has a certain taste and color.
When the lights emerge fully from the veil, the imagination no
longer has any power over them. The colors disappear, and the lights are
witnessed without any color, image, locus, shape, form, or quality: absolute
light is that which is pure and free of all these. Whatever form or color is
perceived by the imagination derives from the pollution of vision by the veils
of the human attributes. When the lights are seen by pure spirituality, none
of these attributes remains, and a colorless and formless radiance becomes
visible.
It is impossible in this brief account to describe in detail the
sources from which each of the different kinds of light is derived. But know by
way of summary that whatever appears in the form of lightning and flashes is
generally derived from the source of zekr, ablution, and prayer, and
sometimes from the ascendancy of the lights of the spirit. The veils of the
human attributes are rent apart like clouds, and a ray of spirituality is
witnessed in the form of lightning. Once a morid of Shaikh Abu Said—may
God’s mercy be upon him—made his ablutions and entered his place of seclusion. He
emitted a cry and ran out, saying “I have seen God!” The shaikh knew the nature
of his state and said, "O immature one! That was the light of your
ablution. What vast distance still separates you from the Divine Presence!”
As for the light seen in the form of a lamp, a candle, or something
similar, it is a light borrowed from the sainthood of the shaikh or the
prophethood of Mohammad, upon whom be peace —“and a light-giving lamp.”6
It may also derive from the benefits of learning, or the light of the Qur’an
and the light of faith. The lamp or the candle is in reality the heart
illumined with the
sQur’an, 33:46.
amount of light suggested by those objects and deriving from the
sources we have mentioned. If the light is seen in the form of an oil lamp or a
niche, it is the same comparison that God Almighty made in the description of
the heart: “The likeness of His light is as a niche, in which there is a lamp.”[101]
As for those lights that are seen in the form of heavenly
bodies—stars, moons, and suns—they derive from the lights of spirituality that
appear in the sky of the heart, in accordance with its degree of purity. When
the mirror of the heart becomes as pure as a star, the light of the spirit
becomes apparent to the amount of a star. Sometimes the star will be seen in
the sky, and at other times it will be seen without the sky. When it is seen in
the sky, the sky represents the fleshly form of the heart. The star represents
the light of the spirit, being small or great, little or much, according to the
degree of purity of the heart. When the star is seen without the sky, it is a
reflection of the light of the heart, the light of the intellect, or the light
of faith, appearing in the pure air of the breast. It sometimes happens that
the soul attains such purity that it appears to be like the sky, and the heart
is seen in it like the moon. If the full moon is seen, the heart has become
completely pure; if it is less than full, a degree of impurity remains in the
heart. When the mirror of the heart attains perfect purity and begins
receiving the light of the spirit, that light will be witnessed in the likeness
of the sun. The brightness of the sun is in proportion to the degree of the
heart’s purity, until a point is reached at which the heart is a thousand times
brighter than the external sun. If the moon and the sun are witnessed together,
then the moon is the heart, illumined with the reflection of the light of the
spirit, and the sun is the spirit, witnessed but still rising from behind a
veil, so that the imagination has conceived the sun as a suitable image for it.
For otherwise the light of the spirit has neither shape, color, nor form.
It sometimes happens that the sun, the moon, and the stars are
witnessed in pools, seas, wells, streams, mirrors, and similar objects. All
these are the lights of spirituality, and each repre-
sents a different locus of the heart, clothed in this image by the
imagination.
It may also happen that a ray from the lights of the attributes of
God, mighty and exalted, goes forth to welcome the wayfarer in accordance with
His saying: “Whosoever approaches Me by a span, him I approach by a cubit.”7
From behind the veils of the spirit and the heart, this ray casts its
reflection on the mirror of the heart in proportion to its degree of purity, as
happened with Abraham, upon whom be peace, at the beginning of his prophethood:
“When night enveloped him, he saw a star.”8 When the mirror of his
heart had attained a purity equal to that of a star, light was witnessed to the
amount of a star. When his heart had been completely delivered from the rust of
instinctual nature, light was witnessed in the form of a moon—“when he saw the
moon rising.”9 When his heart became utterly pure, light was
witnessed in the form of a sun—“when he saw the sun rising.”10 That
which was witnessed by the gaze of Abraham’s soul—peace be upon him!—was in
reality a ray from the lights of the dominical attributes, witnessed in the
mirror of the heart, but from behind the veils of the spirit and the heart, in
the station of mutability. It was of necessity subject to decline, and Abraham
said: “I love not that which declineth.”11
The ray was perceived from behind veils in the sense that it showed
itself in different forms, while the Divine Presence is exalted above all form.
It was in the station of mutability because it was subject to decline, and God
is exalted above all decline. And it was a ray from the light of God’s
attributes that Abraham, upon whom be peace, witnessed, because the heart
experienced the taste of witnessing God’s making Himself known and judged it to
be true. The heart is a true judge, and the blight of lying cannot touch it
concerning what it sees, for "the heart lied not in seeing that which it
saw.”12 The heart, insofar as it is heart, cannot behold a lie.
Moreover, the judg-
1
Hadis qodsi
previously quoted on p. 222.
“Qur’an, 6:76.
“Qur'an, 6:77.
“Qur’an, 6:78.
■■Qur’an, 6:76.
'■Qur'an, 53:13.
ment of “this is my Lord”13 springs from the ray that the
heart witnesses.
The light that is derived from God’s lights and witnessed by the
heart serves to make God known to the heart: He makes Himself known by means of
Himself. A taste derived from God’s presence arises in the heart, by virtue of
which the heart knows that what it sees is from God, not from other than God.
This is something which must be experienced and cannot easily be explained.
This taste is experienced in different ways. If God’s making Himself
known enters man by way of his hearing, it will be as it was with Moses, upon
whom be peace: “Verily I, I am God.”14 When the voice comes from
behind veils, it is perceived by intermediary—“from the tree saying, ‘O Moses!
Verily I, I am God.’ ”15 When the veils are removed, the voice is
heart without intermediary: “and God spoke directly unto Moses.”16
If God’s making himself known comes by way of sight and the veils
are still in place, then it comes by intermediary, as was the case with
Abraham, upon whom be peace: ‘And when he saw the sun rising, he said, ‘this is
my Lord.’”17 Only when the soul truly experiences the taste making
known to it that “I am thy Lord”18 will the interpreter of the
tongue say, “This is my Lord.”19 When the veils are completely
removed, God’s making Himself known will come without intermediary, as was the
case with the Prophet, upon whom be peace: “The heart lied not in seeing that
which it saw; will ye then dispute with him that which he saw)”20
‘Omar—may God be pleased with him!—experienced some part of this matter when he
said: “My heart saw my Lord.” And the Prophet alluded to the attainment of this
joy when he said in description of beneficence (ehsan) that it is “your
worshipping God as if you saw Him.”21
“Qur'an, 6:76, 77, 78.
“Qur’an, 28:30.
“Qur’an, 30:28.
1
“Qur’an, 4:163.
“Qur’an, 6:78.
“Qur’an, 20:12.
“Qur’an, 6:76, 77, 78.
’•Qur’an, 53:13.
’’Tradition previously quoted on p. 126.
If it be asked whether Abraham, upon whom be peace, saw the sun, the
moon, and the stars in the inner or the outer world, we answer that it makes no
difference. When the mirror of the heart is pure, it sometimes happens that
these witnessings are beheld in the world of the unseen, proceeding from the
world of the heart by means of the imagination; and sometimes that they are
seen in the manifest world, proceeding from the outer world by means of the
senses. They are seen in some suitable form that can serve as locus for the
manifestation of the divine lights: Thus the sun, the moon, and the stars
receive the reflection of the ray of God’s lights—“God is the light of the
heavens and the earth.”22 In truth, it is the heart that perceives
the light and the Mighty Presence that displays it. When God’s making Himself
known bestows the taste of “this is.my Lord,”23 the unseen and the
manifest, the outer and the inner, are as one.
It sometimes happens that the purity of the heart attains perfection,
the veils become transparent, and the meaning of the verse “We shall show them
Our signs upon the horizons and in their own souls”24 is made
apparent. If man then looks into himself, he sees only God; and, indeed, if he
looks into all beings, wherever he looks he sees only God. Thus that great one
said: “I looked upon nothing without seeing God in it.”25 When the
veils are completely removed and the station of immediate witnessing is
attained, then it will be said: “I looked upon nothing without seeing God
before it.” If one is submerged in the boundless ocean of witnessing, then
one’s existence as a witness of God will be dissolved and only God’s existence
as witness to Himself will remain. Thus Joneyd—may God sanctify his
spirit!—used to say, "There is naught in existence but God.”26
At this station, only the gaze of the witness can perceive the beauty of the
witness, in the mirror of man. This feeble one says:
In my lifelong search for thee, my head has been my foot, And with
my eyes I have swept up the dust of thy foot.
Thus I am now the mirror to thy face,
And
with thine own eye I gaze on thy face.
“Qur’an, 24:35.
“Qur’an, 6:76, 77, 78.
“Qur’an, 41:53.
“Saying of Mohammad b. Vase' previously quoted on p. 139.
26Conceming Joneyd, see p. 35, n. 9.
As for the colors of the lights, they vary according to the station
in which the lights are witnessed. Thus, in the station of the reproachful soul
a blue light is seen, arising from the mingling of the light of the spirit, or
the light of zekr, with the darkness of the soul. When the darkness of
the soul decreases and the light of the spirit increases, a red light is
witnessed. When the light of the spirit begins to prevail, a yellow light
appears. When no darkness remains in the soul, a white light appears. When the
light of the spirit begins to mingle with the purity of the heart, a green
light appears. When the heart is completely purified, a light appears like the
light of the sun and its rays. When the mirror of the heart is polished to
perfection, a light becomes visible like the light of the sun appearing in a
pure mirror. Vision cannot endure this light on .account of the strength of
its rays.
When the light of God casts its reflection on the light of the
spirit, man’s witnessing of God becomes mingled with the taste of God’s
witnessing of Himself. And when the light of God is witnessed without any of
the veils of the spirit or heart, it manifests its freedom from color,
quality, limitation, similitude, and opposition; and it both enjoys and bestows
the stability of its own nature. At this point neither sunrise nor sunset
remain, neither left nor right, neither above nor below, neither time nor
place, neither proximity nor distance, neither night nor day: "With God
there is neither morning nor evening.”27 There is neither the
heavenly throne, nor the earth spread out beneath it, neither this world nor
the hereafter.28
A light appears and, appearing, is stable; A sun rises, and he who
sees it believes.
Men are content with the darkness of gloom—
Much I have spoken and much I still speak—but to whom?
At first, in the station of God’s witnessing Himself, the lights
■’Arabic utterance of unknown provenance.
■“This passage is reminiscent of the supplication made by the
Prophet after dawn prayer, in the course of which he said: "O God! Make
light on my right, light on my left, light above me, light beneath me, light
before me, light behind me” (recorded by Bokarl and Moslem). Although there is
a specification of direction in the supplication, direction in effect becomes
dissolved and abolished through the ubiquitousness of light.
of the attributes of beauty, deriving from the world of God’s favor,
manifest all these effects, leading to effacement in the manner described.
As for the lights of the attributes of splendor, deriving from the
world of God’s wrath, they bring about the effacement of effacement, and the
effacement of the effacement of effacement. Speech falls short of this and is
unable to explain it. First a burning light appears that manifests the
property of “Thou causest naught to abide, and leavest naught,”29
and in truth the seven hells are derived from the ray of that light. The lights
of the attributes of beauty illumine and do not burn, whereas the lights of the
attributes of splendor bum and do not illumine. Not every understanding and
intelligence can perceive these matters. For sometimes it happens that the
light of the attributes of splendor is totally dark; and how can the intelligence
comprehend a dark light, when it considers the union of opposites impossible?
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said that hellfire was kindled for
several thousand years until it became red; was kindled for several thousand
years more until it became white; and was again kindled for several thousand
years until it became black, which is the color it now possesses. If you can
understand the indication contained in this saying, know that dark light belongs
to the same order as black fire; for how can mere intelligence understand
black fire?
Given the true meaning of oneness and unicity, wherever you see
light and darkness in the two worlds, they are derived from the ray of the
light of the attributes of favor and wrath, respectively, for “God is the
light of the heavens and the earth.”30 It is for this reason that
God established light and darkness with the word “made,” not with the word
“created,” saying: “He created the heavens and the earth and made the darkness
and the light.”31 The nature of what is created is different from
the nature
“Qur’an, 74:28.
’“Qur’an, 24:35.
’■Qur’an, 6:1.
of what is made. The many truths contained in this indication are
not accessible to every understanding.32
As for the attributes of splendor, when they manifest, in the
station of the effacement of effacement, the imperiousness of the awe of
divinity and the severity of the majesty of eternity, a black light is
witnessed that dispenses man from all need of other than God, causes him to
abide in God, and gives life and death. For with the appearance of this light
the supreme talisman is broken and all vague images are dispersed. Shaikh Ahmad
Gazall, upon whom be God’s mercy, says in this connection:
We saw
the world’s origin and its inner aspect, And passed with ease beyond all
sickness and disgrace.
Know that black light to be higher than the point of “no”; Beyond
that too we passed; neither this nor that remained.33
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, when he prayed in supplication,
saying, “Show us things as they truly are,”34 was seek-
52Part of what Daya intends here is
that the verb ja'ala ("He made”) may also have the secondary sense
of “He appointed” (cf. Qur’an, 2:30: When the Lord said unto the angels,
"Verily I shall make/appoint [ja'elon] a viceregent upon earth”).
Light, therefore, may be seen in the context of Qur’an 6:1 as having been
"appointed” and not “created” like the heavens and the earth (i.e., endowed
with separate form), for God is Himself the light that He has "appointed”
to illumine His creation. As for darkness, it is merely the antonym of light
and has neither form nor substance to be created.
“Daya's attribution to Shaikh Ahmad Gazall of this quatrain of
obscure meaning is incorrect. 'Eyn al-Qozat HamadanI, the foremost pupil of
Gazall, quotes the quatrain twice in his Tamhidat and on both occasions
attributes it to Abu’l- Hasan BostI, a contemporary of his master (Tamhidat.,
in Ahval va osar, pp. 119, 248). Jami likewise ascribes it to BostI,
describing it as “well-known and difficult” (Nafahat, p. 413). HamadanI
suggests first that the “black light” is the light that lies beyond the divine
throne, the light of Eblls, conventionally called “darkness” only because of
its sharp contrast to God’s light (Tamhidat, pp. 118- 119). Later he
proposes an alternative interpretation of “black light” as the "shadow of
Mohammad": “You know that Mohammad is the shadow of God, but did you ever
perceive the shadow of the sun that is Mohammad? Did you never see the black
light beyond the point of ’no’ (la)? Then you would know what is the
shadow of Mofiammad" (Tamhidat, p. 248). Corbin suggests that Daya
associates black light with "passionate, ecstatic love” (L‘Homme de
lumiere dans le soufisme Iranien, p. 161).
“Tradition: see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 45.
ing the manifestation of the lights of the attributes of favor and
wrath. For all that has existence in the two worlds has it either from the ray
of the lights of the attributes of His favor, or from the ray of the lights of
the attributes of His wrath. Apart from this, nothing has real existence, or
subsists through its own essence. For real existence belongs only to God, Who
ceases not nor has ceased. Thus He said: "He is the first and the last,
the outward and the inward.”35
The heart is the kernel of reality, see the body as its husk; See
the beloved’s form clothed in the spirit’s garb.
All things that bear the sign of existence
Are either the shadow of His light, or are He.36
Blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
"Qur’an, 57:3.
36A quatrain of Afzal al-DTn Kasani (Mofannafat,
II, p. 737).
Eighteenth Chapter:
Concerning
Unveiling and Its Varieties
God Almighty said: ‘‘We have removed from thee thy covering, and
this day thy sight is sharp.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “Light is his
veil; were he to remove it, the glory of His face would burn all whose sight
attained unto it.”2
Know that the true sense of unveiling is the emergence of something
from the veil in such manner that the one to whom it is unveiled perceives it,
whereas he had not perceived it before.3 Thus God said: “We have
removed from thee thy covering.” That is, “We have removed the veil from in
front of your gaze so that what you did not see previously is now uncovered to
your gaze.”
The veil consists of those obstacles that prevent the sight of the
bondsman from attaining the beauty of the Glorious Presence. These obstacles
are constituted by all the different realms of this world and the hereafter,
which according to one tradition number eighteen thousand, according to another
seventy thousand, and according to yet another three hundred and sixty
thousand. Seventy thousand is the most suitable, since it conforms to an
authentic Tradition: “God has seventy thousand veils of light and darkness.”4
These seventy thousand realms exist in man’s own nature; he has an eye
corresponding to each realm by means of which he beholds it, insofar as it is
unveiled to him.
The seventy thousand realms are all included in two encompassing
realms, which may be termed light and darkness, King- ship and Dominion, the
unseen and the manifest, the corporeal and the spiritual, or this world and the
hereafter. All these pairs are the same; only the words differ.
'Qur’an, 50:22.
■Tradition recorded by Moslem, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
5Cf. this definition of Jorjanl:
"gaining awareness of matters concerning the unseen and the verities of
things that are customarily behind the veil” (Ta‘rifat, p. 193).
’Tradition already quoted on p. 124.
Man consists of a union of these realms, God in His eternal power
having brought opposites together. The seventy thousand eyes with which man
perceives the seventy thousand realms have been subsumed in the means given him
for perceiving the two realms he comprises. These are the five senses which pertain
to the corporeality of man, and by means of which he perceives all the realms
of corporeality; and the five inner means of perception, which pertain to the
spirituality of man and by means of which he perceives all the realms of
spirituality. The inner means of perception are called the intelligence, the
heart, the mystery, the spirit, and the arcane.3
Now in the terminology of the people of wayfaring, the word
“unveiling” is applied to matters perceived by the five inner means of
perception, not what is perceived by the five outer senses or those human
faculties that depend on the senses.
When, therefore, the sincere wayfarer, drawn by moridship, strives
upward from the lowest of the low that is his instinctual nature to the highest
of the high that is the Law, and when he begins to tread the highway of the
Path with the foot of sincerity in accordance with the code of ascetic striving
and mortification, escorted by the principle of subordination, an eye
appropriate to that station will be opened for him as he passes through each of
the seventy thousand veils, and the states belonging to that station will
become visible to his gaze.
First the eye of his intelligence will be opened, and intelligi-
bilia will begin to show themselves to him in proportion to the degree of
unveiling and the purity of his intelligence; the secrets of intelligibilia
will be uncovered to him. This is called "meditative unveiling,”6
and is not worthy of great reliance, for what is perceived with the intelligence
is not fit to be relied on unless it is also practically attained: “O heart,
not everything that thou seest is given to thee.” Most sages and philosophers
have not progressed beyond this station; they have devoted their energy
“Concerning these five inner means of perception, see p. 134, n. 9.
“"Meditative” (nazari): "that the acquisition of
which depends on the exercise of the gaze of the intelligence—as, for example,
the perception that the world is created” (JorjanI, Ta'nfdt, p. 261).
to the purification of the intelligence and the perception of in-
telligibilia. They have imagined this to constitute attainment of the true
goal, and remained bereft of the benefits to be had from the other means of
perception. They have come forth in open denial and become lost in the
wilderness of misguidedness, causing others too to go astray—“They went astray
before and caused many to stray.”7
After the wayfarer passes beyond the unveiling of intelligi- bilia,
there will appear the unveilings of the heart, these being known as the
“unveiling of witnessing.” Different lights are unveiled, as was explained in
part in the chapter on witnessing.8
Then follow the unveilings of the mystery, known as the “unveiling
of inspiration.” The secrets of creation and the mystery of being of all
tilings become unveiled and apparent. This feeble one says:
O thou whose grief snatched reason from my heart, Whose pain put up
for sale the dwelling of my heart!
That mystery denied all the angels sanctified, Thy love softly
whispered in the ear of my heart.
Then come the unveilings of the spirit, known as “spiritual
unveiling.” At the beginning of this station there are unveiled paths of
ascent, the expanse of Paradise and Hell, and the sight of the angels and their
discourses. When the spirit becomes entirely pure and is cleansed of all
corporeal contamination, infinite worlds are unveiled, and the circle of pre-
and posteternity becomes visible to the eye. Now the veil of time and place is
removed, so that what happened in the past can be perceived in this state.
Thus there are those to whose gaze the beginning of the creation of beings and
its different stages are unveiled, and who also perceive what is to be in the
future. Thus Haresa said: “It is as if I look upon the people of the garden
visiting each other and the people of the fire following each other in
torment.”9 And the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “The
’Qur’an, 5:80.
“Seventeenth Chapter.
“Haresa is the name of several Companions of the Prophet; I have not
been able to ascertain which one is intended here.
garden was shown to me, and I saw most of its people to be the
indigent, and the fire was shown to me, and I saw most of its people to be
women.”10 When the veil of worldly time and place was lifted, the
time and place of the hereafter was unveiled.
It is also in this station that the veil of directions is removed
from in front of the gaze: one sees behind him just as one sees in front of
him. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “O people, I am your imam. Do not
precede me in bowing, in prostration, or in raising the head, for I see you
whether in front of me or behind me.”11
Most of the abnormal phenomena known as karamdt12—“wondrous
deeds”—happen in this station: awareness of the stray thoughts of others;
knowledge of the unseen; walking on water, or through fire or air; swift
traversal of the earth; and the like. This kind of wondrous deed has little
significance, for it is common both to people of religion and to others. Thus
the Prophet, upon whom be peace, asked Ebn §a’ed, “What do you see?” He said,
“I see a throne upon the waters.” And the Prophet answered, “That is the
throne of Eblis.”13 This type of abnormal phenomenon will also be
manifested by the Dajjal; it is even recorded in a Tradition that he will kill
men and then restore them to life.14
As for what may truly be called wondrous deeds and belongs only to
the people of religion, it is that which appears after
'“Tradition; source unknown.
"Tradition recorded by Moslem, Nasa’I, and Ebn Hanbal.
l2See p. 229, n. 39.
"Tradition reported by Ebn Hanbal, Moslem, and Termezl. Ebn
§a’ed (or Ebn Sayyad) was a Jew of Medina who claimed prophethood and exhibited
some of the features of the Dajjal (Antichrist) as specified in Tradition.
"Cf. the long Tradition recorded by Moslem concerning the signs
and deeds of the Dajjal, from which the following is taken: "He will call
a person brimming with youth, strike him with the sword and cut him in two,
causing the two pieces to be as distant from each other as an archer from his
target. He will then call the young man, who will come forward with his face
gleaming with joy. ft is at this very time that God will send Jesus son of
Mary. . . .” These powers of the Dajjal are an instance of estedraj, a
“parody” or inversion of the miracles performed by a prophet (see Rene Guenon,
The Reign of Quantity [London, .1953], pp. 321-329), the word dajjal
having the fundamental sense of impostor.
spiritual unveiling—the unveiling of the arcane. For the spirit is
common to both Muslim and unbeliever, while the arcane is a special spirit of
God, given only to His elect. Thus God said: “He inscribed faith in their
hearts and strengthened them with a spirit from Him.”[102]
And elsewhere He said: “He casts the spirit, from His command, on whomsoever He
wills among His bondsmen.”[103]
Concerning the Prophet, upon whom be peace, He said: ‘And thus We infused in
thee a spirit, from Our command. Thou knewest not what was the Book, nor faith.
But we appointed for him a light with which to guide those We will among Our
bondsmen.”[104]
That is, “We bestow a luminous spirit, deriving from Our presence, upon some of
Our bondsmen and not others, so that by means of it they may gain access to the
world of divine attributes.” Only Raks can serve as mount to Rostam.[105]
The heart is the link between the corporeal and the spiritual
worlds, with one aspect turned toward the world of Dominion and the other
turned toward the body. Through the first aspect it receives the effusion of
the light of the intelligence, and through the second it conveys the traces of
the lights of the world of Dominion and of intelligibilia to the soul and the
body. The mystery is likewise the link between the two worlds of the heart and
spirit. With the aspect turned toward the spirit, it partakes of the effusion
of the spirit, and with the aspect turned toward the heart, it conveys the
truths of the effusion of the spirit to the heart. Similarly, the arcane is the
link between the world of divine attributes and the world of spirituality.
Turned to the first, it receives the unveilings of the attributes of the Divine
Presence; turned to the second, it conveys to the world of spirituality the
reflection of those characteristics, ennobling it with “acquire God’s characteristics
as your own.”[106]
This is known as “the unveiling of the attributes.”
In this state, if the attribute of knowing is unveiled to the wayfarer,
God-given knowledge appears. If the attribute of allhearing is unveiled to
him, the hearing of divine speech and address will result. If the attribute of
all-seeing is unveiled to him, vision and witnessing will result. If the
attribute of beauty is unveiled to him, the taste of witnessing the beauty of
the Divine Presence will be experienced. If the attribute of splendor is
unveiled to him, true effacement will result. If the attribute of
self-subsisting is unveiled to him, true abiding will result. If the attribute
of unicity is unveiled to him, oneness will result.20 The effect of
the other attributes may be deduced from this.
As for the unveiling of the essence, this is an extremely lofty
degree that neither direct statement nor hint can describe. This feeble one
makes some allusion to it in these lines:
Our dwelling stands at the head of thy love’s street;
All the secret of both worlds is unveiled to our heart.
Thy foot is placed on our favored heart;
The desire of all creatures is our attainment.
A complete indication will be given in the chapter on manifestation,
God willing. And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad.
■“Concerning these two terms, see p. 214, n. 55 and n. 56.
Nineteenth Chapter:
Concerning the
Manifestation of the Divine Essence and Attributes
God Almighty said: ‘And when his Lord manifested Himself to the
mountain, He caused it to be flattened, and Moses fell in a swoon.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “God created
Adam and manifested Himself in him”;2 and also: “When God manifests
Himself to a thing, it humbles itself before Him.”3
Know that manifestation consists of the appearance of the essence
and attributes of God, Glorious and Exalted, in the manner now to be set forth,
God Almighty willing.4
The spirit also has its manifestation, and on account of this
wayfarers often fall into error. It sometimes happens that the attributes or
the essence of the spirit manifest themselves and appear to the wayfarer to
have the taste of the manifestation of God. Many are the wayfarers who are
deceived at this station and imagine that they have received a manifestation of
God. If there is not an accomplished and efficacious shaikh at hand, it is
difficult to escape this pitfail.
The shaikhs of the past—may God sanctify their spirits!—have made
little effort to unveil these truths, and instead concealed them from the gaze
of strangers as far as possible. But many foolish claimants have now appeared
among the people of the Path. Deceived by the guile of Satan and the cunning of
their souls, they have imagined, on the strength of a few rotten words snatched
from someone’s mouth, that they have attained the goal and purpose of this path
in its perfection and that they have tasted the libation given to true men.
Thinking themselves free
'Qur’an, 7:143.
2Tradition previously quoted on p.
144.
’Tradition recorded by Nasa’I and Ebn Maja.
'Cf. the definition of JorjanI: “lights of the unseen that are
unveiled to hearts” (Ta'rifat, p. 53).
to act as they wish in the whole realm, they have fallen to
libertinism and heresy.
Some raw and empty ones have donned the patched cloak, Snatched up
some words of Sufi speech,
And dispensing with some steps in pure sincerity, Brought ill repute
to some men of good name.5
This feeble one therefore resolved to set forth some part of the
stations and states of spiritual wayfaring to serve as a touchstone for these
claimants. Let them strike themselves against this touchstone: if they find in
themselves nothing of the states described, let them leave the sack of Satan’s
deceit and the ambush of the soul’s guile, and set their faces to the straight
path which is the highway of subordination.
If there remains within them some trace of the painful longing of
the quest, let them lay hold of the skirt of some auspicious one, so that
holding fast to the stirrup of his auspiciousness they may reach their goal and
purpose. Thus God, Glorious and Almighty, says: “Enter houses by their doors.”6
On this subject this feeble one says:
If you pollute your wings with carrion like the crow, How can you be
worthy of the king like the falcon?
If you are but food for the hawk like the sparrow, How can you perch
on the king’s arm like the hawk?
Our account will serve also as a guide to the correct path for
discerning seekers and sincere morids, and as an encouragement for them
to attain the point of return. Let us now begin, with dominical support and
divine assistance, to describe manifestation and the difference between
dominical manifestation and spiritual manifestation.
Know that when the mirror of the heart is polished and
5A quatrain of Sana'I (Divan,
p. 830). "Words of Sufi speech” (tamat): incomprehensible words
uttered by a beginner on the Path or by one in a state of ecstasy (Sajjadl, Farhang-e
moslalahat-e 'orafd va motafavvefa, p. 258).
6Qur’an, 2:189.
cleansed of the impurity of the being of other than God and attains
utmost purity, it is illumined by the sun of God’s beauty, and becomes a goblet
in which is displayed the essence of sublime attribute. But not everyone to
whom is granted the good fortune of polishing and purity is vouchsafed also the
felicity of manifestation: "That is God’s grace; He bestows it upon whomsoever
He wills.”7 It is, however, pure hearts that are enabled to attain
this felicity. Thus Shaikh Abdollah Ansari, upon whom be mercy, said:
"God’s manifestation comes unawares, but it comes to a heart that is
aware.”8 I also heard Shaikh All Bunani—may God sanctify his
cherished spirit!—relate of his shaikh, K3ja Abu Bakr Sanian Qazvini, upon whom
be God’s mercy, that he said: “Not everyone that runs after the onager will
capture it, but he who captures it will have run after it.”9
It may happen that in the beginning, when the mirror of the heart is
purified of the attributes of humanity and the rust of instinctual nature,
certain spiritual attributes will manifest themselves to the heart, through the
dominance of the lights of spirituality. It may also happen that the light of zekr
and the light of worship will gain dominance over the lights of the spirit,
causing the sea of spirituality to become turbulent, so that a battalion of
waves attacks the shore of the heart and a manifestation appears in its pure
mirror.
It sometimes occurs that the light of remembrance of the rememberer
is joined to the light of remembrance of the Remembered.10 One then
imagines oneself to have experienced the manifestation of the Remembered, but
this is not the case. It sometimes happens too that the spirit manifests itself
with all its attributes, this resulting from the total effacement of all traces
of the human attributes. It may also happen that the essence of
’Qur'an, 5:59, 57:21, 62:4.
“Quoted from Ansari's "Mahabbatnama” (Rasd'el, p. 133).
“Shaikh 'Ail Bunani (d. 601/1205): a figure concerning whom little
is known except his assination in Damascus at the hands of Isma'IlIs. See
Zakariya Qazvini, Athdr al-Bilad, ed. F. Wiistenfeld (Gottingen, 1848),
p. 194. Kaja Abu Bakr Saniyan (d. 581/1186): a shaikh of some celebrity in
Qazvln (see Hamdol- lah Qazvini, Tdrlk-e gozida, ed. 'Abd al-I;Ioseyn
Nava’I [Tehran, 1339 S./1960], p. 66).
'"Contrary to our usual practice, we have translated the word zekr
here as "remembrance” because of its occurrence in a series of cognate
terms.
the spirit, which is the viceregent of God, manifests itself, and on
account of its being the viceregent of God begins claiming “I am God.”11
It also happens thatone sees all creation in prostration before the viceregal
throne of the spirit and falls into the error of assuming the spirit to be God,
being reminded of the Tradition that “when God manifests Himself to a thing, it
humbles itself before Him.”
Many errors of this kind occur, and the soul, being eager for its
own enjoyment, is deceived by them. Not every traveler can separate and
distinguish the true from the false, but only he who is the object of the gaze
of God’s grace and who is thus protected from the soul’s wiles and God’s
cunning.
Now as for the differences between spiritual and dominical
manifestation, the first is that spiritual manifestation bears the stamp of
createdness and does not have the power to bring about effacement. Although
when it appears it removes the human attributes, it cannot efface them, for
when it retires behind the veil the human attributes return: “The ill-omened
always revert to their nature.” Matters will continue thus until, through the
repeated manifestation of spirituality, the soul acquires the means of knowing
and recognizing the cunning and wiles used by its own caprice to attain its
aims, a means it did not previously possess.
The danger of error cannot exist in the case of the manifestation
of God, Glorious and Almighty, because one of the necessary consequences of
the manifestation of God is the flattening of the mountain of the soul and the
vanishing of its false attributes—“Truth came and falsehood vanished; verily
falsehood was ■ destined to vanish.”12
A further difference between the two manifestations is this: With
the coming of the manifestation of the spirit, the heart does not attain
tranquillity; it is not delivered from the impurities of doubt and hesitation;
and it does not experience pure gnosis. With the manifestation of God, the
opposite and reverse of all this is true.
"The theopathic utterance of Hallaj already quoted on pp. 173
and 239.
l2Qur’an, 17:81.
Furthermore, there results from the manifestation of the spirit the
deceit of fantasy; arrogance and separative existence are augmented; the
painful longing of the quest is weakened; and fear and supplication decrease.
But with the manifestation of God all these sources of harm are removed; being
becomes changed into nonbeing; the painful longing of the quest is augmented;
and thirst increases. Thus a saintly one says:
Union with Him has not quieted the burning of my heart, Nor a
draught of His limpid water quieted my thirst.
The design of existence, the pattern of being—both are gone,
But my obstinate love for His beauty will not be quieted.
As for God’s manifestation, it is of two kinds: manifestation of the
essence and manifestation of the attributes. Manifestation of the essence also
comprises two kinds: manifestation- of dominicality, and manifestation of
divinity.
The manifestation given Moses, upon whom be peace, was the
manifestation of dominicality. Moses did not depend on the mountain for
receiving it; rather, the mountain depended on Moses: “When his Lord manifested
Himself to the mountain, He caused it to be flattened, and Moses fell in a
swoon.”13 The share of the mountain in the manifestation was being
flattened, and the share of Moses was swooning. Since God Almighty manifested
Himself with His dominicality, the being of both Moses and the mountain was
preserved. Although the mountain was flattened' and Moses fell in a swoon,
dominicality acted to nourish and preserve, and left their beings in place.
The manifestation given to Mohammad, upon whom be peace and
blessings, was the manifestation of divinity. It plundered the entirety of the
Mohammadan being and established in place of that being the being of the Divine
Essence—“Those who swear fealty unto thee swear fealty unto God; God’s hand is
above their hands.”14 The perfection of this felicity was not given
to any other of the prophets, upon whom be peace. It is only the
’’Qur’an, 7:143.
'’Qur’an, 48:10.
laborers upon this Mohammadan harvest who have been thus ennobled,
and it is they who have plucked from the harvest the choice sheaf of “My
servant continually approaches Me with supererogatory acts of devotion until I
love him. When I love him, I shall be his hearing, his sight, his hand, and his
tongue; by Me he shall hear, by Me he shall see, by Me he shall strike, and by
Me he shall speak.”15 This felicity is derived from the property of
the manifestation of the essence of divinity.
As for the manifestation of the attributes, it too is of two kinds:
manifestation of the attributes of beauty and manifestation of the attributes
of splendor.16
The manifestation of the attributes of beauty may be further divided
into attributes pertaining to God’s essence and attributes pertaining to God’s
acts. Attributes pertaining to the essence are, in turn, of two kinds:
attributes of definition and attributes of description.17
An attribute of definition is one the word denoting which indicates
the essence of the Creator, Glorious and Exalted, not something additional to
the essence. Examples of this class of attribute are existence, oneness, and
self-subsistence. If God manifests Himself with the attribute of existence, it
will result in what Joneyd said—May God have mercy on him!: “There is naught in
existence except God.”18 If God manifests Himself with the attribute
of oneness, it will result in what Abu Sa’id19 said— May God have
mercy on him!: “There is naught in my cloak except God.” If God manifests
Himself with the attribute of self-subsistence, it will result in what Bayaztd20
said: “Glory be unto me; how exalted is my rank!”
An attribute of description is one the word denoting which
“Tradition already quoted on p. 219.
'“Concerning this division of the attributes, see p. 204, n. 11.
17In his analysis of the attributes,
Daya follows As'ari terminology (see Tafta- zani, Sarh al-'aqa’ed, pp.
40-62), incorporating, however, the Sufi distinction between the attributes of
beauty and of splendor.
'“Utterance already quoted on p. 299.
l9I.e., Abu Sa'id b. Abu’l-Keyr,
concerning whom see p. 36, n. 11.
201
.e., Bayazid Bestami, concerning whom see p.
55, n. 12.
indicates something additional to the essence, as when we say that
God has knowledge, power, will, hearing, sight, life, speech, and permanence.
If God manifests himself with the attribute of knowledge as He did to Kezr,
upon whom be peace—“whom We had taught knowledge from Our presence”[107]—God-given
knowledge will result. If God manifests Himself with the attribute of power,
it will be as it was with Mohammad, upon whom be peace, when he routed a whole
army with a handful of dust— “Thou threw not when thou threw; rather, God
threw.”[108]
If God manifests Himself with the attribute of will, it will be as it was with
Bu ‘Osman Hi ri, who said: “For thirty years now God Almighty has constantly
willed that which I will.”[109]
If God manifests Himself with the attribute of hearing, it will be as it was
with Solomon, upon whom be peace, who heard the voice of an ant—“and an ant
said, ‘O ants, enter your dwellings!’”[110]
If God manifests Himself with the attribute of sight, it will be as this writer
says—
Thus I am now the mirror to thy face, And with thine own eye I gaze
on thy face.
Know that man in truth is the mirror of the essence and attributes
of God. When the mirror is purified, God becomes manifest in it with whatever
attribute He chooses. Whatever attribute is apparent in the mirror derives from
the source of the manifestation and does not belong to the mirror as such; all
that belongs to the mirror, once purified, is the capacity to reflect. The
secret of man’s viceregency is this, that he is the means and the instrument
for the manifestation of God’s essence and attributes.
If God manifests Himself with the attribute of life, it will be
as it was with Kezr and Elijah,[111]
who have eternal life. If He manifests Himself with the attribute of speech,
it will be as it was with Moses, upon whom be peace—“and God spoke directly
unto Moses.”[112]
If He manifests Himself with the attribute of permanence, it results in the
removal of human ego and the establishment in its place of the dominical
attributes, for “God effaces and makes firm whatsoever He wills.”[113]
Thus did IToseyn b. Mansur say:
Between me and Thee stands this troublesome I, So remove this I with
Thy generosity![114]
As for the attributes that pertain to the divine acts, examples are
the attributes of creator, provider, bestower of life, and bestower of death.
When God manifests Himself with the attributes of creator, it will be as it
was with Jesus, upon whom be peace—"and when thou Greatest the form of a
bird from clay, by My permission.”[115]
When God manifests Himself with the attribute of provider, it will be as it
was with Mary, upon whom be peace—“Shake the trunk of the palm tree toward
thee, and ripe fruit will fall down to thee.”[116]
When God manifests Himself with the attribute of bestower of life, it will be
as it was with Abraham, upon whom be peace—“O Lord, show me how Thou quicken
the dead”[117]—and
with Jesus—"and when thou bring forth the dead by My permission.”[118]
When God manifests Himself with the attribute of bestower of death, it will be
as it was with the morld of Abu Torab Naksabi:[119]
As soon as the gaze of Bayazid fell upon him, he let out a cry and gave up the
ghost. Such a per-
son can destroy whomever he chooses as object for his aspiration.34
This last attribute, while being an attribute that pertains to the divine acts,
is also connected to the attributes of splendor.
The attributes of splendor are also of two kinds: attributes of the
essence and attributes that pertain to the divine acts. An example of the
second kind is the attribute of bestower of death, as just set forth. As for
the attributes of the essence, they are of two kinds—attributes of majesty and
attributes of glory. When God manifests Himself with the attributes of majesty,
an infinite and most awesome light appears, without color, form, or quality. At
first, a glimmering is witnessed, which immediately brings about the effacement
of the attributes of humanity and removes all traces of being, although
sometimes it happens that the awareness of effacement persists. If the
cupbearer of “their Lord shall give them to drink of a pure wine”35
pours into the goblet of manifestation a single drop of the wine of splendor in
excess of the capacity of the wayfarer’s sainthood, then the assault of the wine
will so conquer all the realm of his being that awareness of being and of the
effacement of being will both depart. It is of such a state that “swooning”
consists. Thus they have said:
When morning dawned in the sky, the rays of its light Overpowered the
departing light of the stars.
If flame were tested with a drop from the cup that it gave them,
It would fly off in fright, the speediest of travelers!
The present author offers these lines as suitable to the topic:
The wine I have drunk does away with sobriety, And my drunken
slumber, with all notion of waking.
One goblet of Thy splendor’s manifestation suffices: I am repelled
alike by nonbeing and being.
’’Aspiration (hemmat): “directing the heart with all its
powers toward God in order to obtain a certain purpose for oneself or another”
(Sajjadi, Farhang-e mostalahat-e 'orafa va motasavvefa, p. 426).
“Qur'an, 76:21.
The manifestation of the attributes of glory is also of two kinds:
the attribute of living and life-sustaining; and the attribute of grandeur,
magnificence, and supremacy. If God manifests Himself with the attribute of
living and life-sustaining, the effacement of effacement will result, and the
abiding of abiding, and the true meaning of God’s light will become apparent.
Thus He said: “God guides to His light whomsoever He wills.”36 This
is a manifestation that suffers no concealment, an ascendancy that protects
from decline.
With the manifestation of the attributes of beauty, manifestation
alternates with concealment, for it is the station of mutability. By contrast,
the manifestation of the attributes of splendor is the station of stability,
and it removes duality. It is, however, extremely rare. Thus Shaikh Abu SaTd
was once present in the circle of Shaikh Abu All Daqqaq,37 may God
sanctify their spirits! Shaikh Abu All was speaking about manifestation. Shaikh
Abu Sa’id was still young and subject to the dominance of instantaneous states.
He arose and said: “O shaikh, is this state continuous?” He said: “Be seated,
it is not.” A second time he arose and said: “Is this state continuous?” He
said: “Be seated, it is not.” He remained seated for a while, then arose a
third time and said: “Is this state continuous?” He said: “It is not, but if it
is, it is rare.” Shaikh Abu Sa’id let out a cry, began turning, and said: “This
is one such rarity, this is one such rarity!”38 At this station the
object of faith becomes the object of vision, and the object of vision becomes
hidden in the organ of vision. Faith and unbelief lose all credence, and the
duality of union and separation is gone. Thus the writer says:
Thy face appears—faith and unbelief both depart;
Thy manifestation sheds its light—heart and soul
both depart.
’“Qur’an, 24:35.
’7Abu 'All Daqqaq (d. 406/1015 or 412/1021): the
preceptor of QoseyrI (d. 465/1072), author of the celebrated Resala; see
concerning him Attar, Tazkerat al-owliya, II, pp. 158-169.
’“This anecdote is drawn from Mohammad b. Monavvar, Asrar al-towhid,
p. 58. A less likely version of the same incident is recorded in Mahmud b.
'Uthman, Firdaus al-MurMdiya (ed. Fritz Meier [Leipzig, 1948], pp.
76-77), where Abu Sa'Id is shown posing his question to QoseyrI instead of his
shaikh.
When manifestation takes our us-ness from us, Hope for union and
fear of separation both depart.
It is at this point that the reality of la elaha ella’llah
manifests itself, for the idol of existence totally vanishes and the monarchy
of divinity establishes itself throughout the realm.
How might we become separate from ourselves,
Thou and I depart, and God alone remain?
When this reality appeared in the realm of the Mohammadan
being—peace be upon him!—God addressed to him this phrase: “So know that there
is no god but God.”39 Until this station is witnessed, knowledge of
the reality of la elaha ella’llah will not appear. The verse continues,
“and ask forgiveness for thy sin.”40 That is to say, “for the sin of
thy existence.” “Thy existence is a sin to which no other may be compared.”41
The saying of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, that “temptation
comes to my heart and I seek forgiveness of God seventy times a day”42
means that “through intercourse with men, the conveying of the message, and the
practice of social relationships, each moment a new existence is born within me
and comes in front of the true sun like a cloud. By seeking forgiveness I
negate that existence seventy times a day.”
When God manifests Himself to the sainthood of the wayfarer with the
attributes of grandeur, magnificence, and supremacy, he loses all that he had
acquired, astonishment and perplexity taking its place, and his knowledge and
gnosis are transformed into ignorance and unknowing. The wayfarer then says:
O pearl acquired with a lifetime’s struggle, Brought forth to the
surface from the seabed!
The diver has placed thee in his hand of supplication, And rolling
from his hand thou fallest back to the sea!
’’Qur’an, 47:19.
’’Qur’an, 47:19.
’■Tradition of dubious status.
’’Tradition already quoted on p. 260.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, was in this station when, after
first repeating the recitation of “O Lord, increase me in knowledge,”43
he began to recite instead the litany of “O guideof the perplexed, increase me
in perplexity.”44 The wayfarer becomes at this station like the
sea, with his whole being submerged in perplexity but ready to give up the
ghost from thirst.
Even though the wretch be on the seashore, It is only his dry lip
that resembles the sea.
When God manifests Himself to the generality of men with the
attributes of grandeur, magnificence, and supremacy, it is expressed as being
the Day of Resurrection; with the appearance of the effects of the
manifestation of His supremacy, He draws over the forelock of all beings the
pen of “all things shall perish but His face.”45 He issues the
summons of “whose is the kingdom?”46 with neither caller nor
answerer, and with the attribute of divinity Himself gives answer to that
address of glory, saying: “It is God’s, the one, the supreme.”47
From
Himself let Him hear, not from thee and me, That the kingdom belongs to the
One, the Supreme.
Know that there is an extremely fine difference, not perceptible to
every wayfarer, between witnessing, unveiling, and manifestation. Here we will
explain this much, that witnessing may or may not be joined to manifestation,
and manifestation may or may not be joined to witnessing.
A veritable manifestation, however, is that which occurs when there
is consciousness only of the manifestation, without any witnessing. For
witnessing, being a mode of interaction, pre-
“Qur’an, 20:114.
■'■'‘'Increase me in perplexity”: a frequent Sufi gloss of Qur’an,
20:114 (see EsmaTl Haqqi, Ruh al-bayan, V, pp. 432-433). It is
attributed in Hojvlrl, Kasf al-mahjub (p. 232), to the early Sufi Sebli
(d. 334/945). "Perplexity” (heyrat) has the technical sense of
"averting oneself from the attempt to gain control of the knowable”
(SajjadT, Farhang-e moftalahat-e 'orafa va mota- fawe fa, pp. 156-157).
“Qur'an, 28:88.
“Qur'an, 40:16.
"Qur’an, 40:16.
supposes duality, while a veritable manifestation abolishes duality
and establishes unity.'18 Neither witnessing nor manifestation may
be without unveiling, although unveiling may be accompanied by neither
witnessing nor manifestation. And God is most knowing.
As for the saying of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, that “God
created Adam and manifested Himself in him,” that manifestation in Adam was
with the essence and all the attributes, in the sense of making apparent
rather than appearing. There was neither witnessing nor consciousness, only the
making apparent of the attributes. At the time of the inhalation of the
spirit—“and I inhaled in him of My spirit”49—through the effect of
the inhalation and the quality of that elect spirit, honored by its
relationship to “My spirit,” two nobilities were implanted in Adam’s nature:
the mystery of manifestation and the knowledge of the names: “and He taught
Adam the names, all of them.”50 God’s saying, “verily We have
ennobled the sons of Adam”51 refers to these two seeds of felicity
that were planted in Adam’s clay. Similarly, His address to Eblls, “What has
prevented thee from prostrating before that which I created with My hands?”
also refers to these two principles. The true nature of man’s viceregency lies
in this, that God has manifested Himself in him with His essence and all the
divine attributes, so that all the attributes exist in him. This is the reason
for the prostration of the angels before Adam: since God was manifest in him,
their prostration was not, in reality, to Adam. In the same way that our
prostration today is not to the qebla or to the Ka‘ba, but rather to the
Lord of the House, so too the prostration before Adam was to the Lord of the
House. But Eblls was one-eyed; with that one eye he saw only the house, and he
was blind in the eye that would have enabled him to see the Lord of the House.
He was unable to see him and became accursed, for “the defective are cursed.”
The seed of manifestation was first planted in the clay of
’“See p. 140, n. 24.
’“Qur’an, 15:29.
““Qur’an, 2:31.
“'Qur'an, 17:70.
Adam; it put forth green shoots in the sainthood of Moses; and its
fruit ripened to perfection in the sainthood of Mohammad. Until the end of the
world, or rather unto all eternity, the laborers on this auspicious harvest
shall eat of this fruit of felicity: "On that day there will be radiant
visages gazing upon their Lord.”52
God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
’■Qur’an,
75:22.
Twentieth Chapter:
Concerning Attaining
to the Divine Presence, with neither Absorption1 nor Separation
God Almighty said: “Then he approached and remained suspended, at a
distance of two bowstrings or nearer.”2 He said too: ‘And truly to
Thy Lord is the ending.”3
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “God revealed
to Jesus these words: ‘Hunger, and thou shalt see Me; divest thyself, and thou
shalt attain unto Me.’”4
Know that attainment to the Divine Presence is not like the joining
of one body to another, nor that of an accident to a body, nor that of
knowledge to the thing known, nor that of intelligence to the intelligible,
nor that of anything to anything: God is greatly exalted above all such
similarity.
Know too that attainment to the presence does not come from the
efforts of God’s bondsman, but from God’s uncaused grace and the effect of the
rapturous states that His divinity bestows. Shaikh Abu’l-Hasan Karaqani—May God
sanctify his spirit!— says: “There are two paths to the Mighty Presence: one
from man to God, the other from God to man. The path from man to God is
misguidance upon misguidance, and the path from God to man is guidance upon
guidance.”5
Moses, upon whom be peace, first went by his own path—
’"Absorption” (ettesal): the word eltefal is
sometimes encountered as a synonym of vosi'd ("attaining”) and
sometimes as the designation of a stage beyond vosiil, a state of
permanent "joining” introduced by the act of vosul (SajjadT, Farhang-e
moslalahat-e 'orafa va motafavvefa, pp. 13-15). ft is evident, however,
that Daya uses the word in neither of these senses, since vosul is
described as excluding ettesal and as the final station on the Path. It
appears that he intends the word to have the same sense as ettehad (the
merging of Creator and creation; see p. 239, n. 23); this is suggested by the
third paragraph of this chapter.
2Qur'an, 53:8.
’Qur’an, 53:42.
’Tradition previously quoted on p. 144.
’This dictum of Karaqani (concerning whom see p. 74,-n. 18) is to be
found in HojvIrT, Kai; al-mahjub, p. 186, and 'Attar, Tazkeral
al-owliyd, II, 186.
“and when Moses came to Our fixed time”6—and thus when he
said, “Show me, that I may look upon Thee,” inevitably he was answered with
“Thou shalt not see Me.”7 That is, “O Moses, thou hast come by thine
own path. Such vision is not given to those who come by a gate of their own
choosing, but rather to those who come out of the gate of all selfhood.” This
writer says:
If thou art a companion to the love of our beauty, And would truly
stand at our gate, heed one word—
As long as thou hast thouness, thou canst not attain our gate;
Thou shalt attain our gate when thou attain us.
As for the Prophet, upon whom be peace, since he was taken by God’s
path—“glory be to Him who carried His servant by night”8—he was
borne beyond “two bowstrings” and conveyed to the station of “or nearer.”9
All the garments of his Mohamma- dan being were drawn over the head of his
existence—“Mohammad is not the father of one among your men”10—andhewas
clothed in the cloak of honor of the attribute of mercy. Then, as mercy endowed
with form, he was sent down to creation. When he set out he was Mohammad; when
he returned he was mercy— “and We did not send thee save as a mercy for all the
worlds.”11
When he had attained to the Divine Presence, with the removal of
duality and the establishment of oneness, of necessity these glad tidings were
given to the cripples of his community and the feeble among his people: “Not
everyone’s Boraq-like12 aspiration is able to rise from the
threshold of the human state to the Lote Tree of the limit of spirituality,
enabling him to partake of attainment to Our divine presence. But let each lay
his head on the threshold of the Prophet and fasten the belt of obedience to
him around his soul’s waist, for duality has departed from that station, and
unity settled in its place. Whoso-
“Qur'an, 7:143.
’Qur’an, 7:143.
“Qur’an, 17:1.
’Qur’an, 53:8.
'“Qur’an, 33:40.
"Qur’an, 21:107.
■’Concerning Boraq, see p. 197, n. 21.
ever finds him, finds Me—‘“Whoever obeys the Prophet obeys God’ ”13—and
between him and Me there is no otherness: ‘ “Thou art We, and We are thee and
‘those who swear fealty unto thee swear fealty unto God.’”14
Thus, in the clay of spirituality and the particle of humanity of
every auspicious one, whose final return and ending is to be the Divine
Presence—“Truly to thy Lord is the ending”15—there was implanted, at
the first beginning, with the pact of "am I not your Lord?”16
the ferment of God’s scattered light: “God created His creation in darkness,
and then scattered His light over them.”17 From the draining of the
goblet of the primordial pact, the palate of their souls tasted such joy that
its trace shall never quit them; indeed, their very being depends on that
taste. The scattered light always aspires to its center and source, never accustoming
itself to this realm. Hence those who receive it do not abandon, for a single
instant, the pleasure that it gives and the source of that pleasure. This
writer says:
Thy lovers have come drunk from alast, Their heads giddied by
the wine of alast.
They drink on, deaf to all counsel,
For their worship of wine goes back to alast.18
Similarly, a drop of oil may be hidden in the soil beneath the
ocean. Gradually it will seek to separate itself from the soil, and it will not
accustom itself either to all the water of the ocean, refusing to become mixed
with it. When it has the opportunity to escape from the soil, it will rise
immediately to the surface of the ocean, trampling the water underfoot, and
paying no attention to the various jewels that the ocean contains. But if it
encounters another drop of oil, it will place forthwith the arm of assent
around the neck of its friendship. And if it has the good fortune to meet a
spark of fire, without delay it will sacrifice its being to the spark’s
existence. If, however, you were to place all
’’Qur’an, 4:79.
“Qur’an, 47:10.
“Qur’an, 53:42.
“Qur’an, 7:171.
’’Opening part of a Tradition recorded by Termezi, Ebn Hanbal,
andTabaranl. “Quatrain by Daya.
of the ocean in front of fire, neither would fire embrace the ocean,
nor the ocean mingle with fire; rather, it would flee from it as fast as it
could. Now men’s souls are like drops in the ocean of the world; they are soon
mingled with it. But spirits, which derive from God’s presence, are like oil:
they are never mingled with the ocean of the world. When, however, they
encounter the drop of oil that is the hereafter and the bliss of Paradise—for
it too is spiritual in nature—they mingle with it; and if they have the good
fortune to encounter a spark from the fire of the manifestation of God’s
splendor, they embrace it with all their being, sacrificing their being to its
being, and counting the nonexistence of their own being as true existence.
Whoever
was taught this love’s game, before all time, In his heart a candle of love was
lit, to burn beyond all time.
And
the heart that was set aside for union with Him, From the sight of both worlds
was like a hawk hooded.
How
then do they endure separation, in this abode, Those heart-reft ones who were
reared for union in that abode?
At
times in separation they melted helplessly like candles; At times they burned
on the flame of His union like moths.
When the cupbearer filled the goblets in the tavern of effacement,
They
sold for wine all their belongings in both worlds. Did this tale reveal, maybe,
some secret to Najm-e RazI?
— “All
the sorrows both worlds hold, for him they have been hoarded.”
Upon whose neck the lasso of grace falls, there it falls; and upon
whose neck the chain of wrath is fastened, there it is fastened: “The
felicitous is he who is felicitous in his mother’s womb; and the wretched is he
who is wretched in his mother’s womb.”19 The pen of unbelief had
been drawn across the forelock of Eblls even before he existed—“he was of the
unbelievers”20—
’’Tradition of unknown status; its sense is equivalent to the last
part of the Tradition quoted on p. 110.
20Qur’an, 2:34.
and the impress of accursedness was placed on his brow without
him—“verily My curse is upon thee until the Day of Judgment.”21 God
the Mighty spoke these words in pre-eternity; it was not an occurrence that
happened that day: “Our black cloak has its color from Gilan.”22 Those
birds that today seek out the trap of affection and pluck from it the seed of
affliction have the stooping neck with which they seek and the gullet with
which they swallow from another world.
The origin of love’s jewel is a different mine, And the abode of
lovers is a different world.
The bird that eats the seed of love’s sorrow
Is from a different nest, beyond this realm and that.23
The sparks of love’s fire were implanted in the stony heart of the
lovers when God scattered forth His light: ‘And then scattered His light over
them; whoever was touched by that light was guided, and whoever was not touched
by it went astray.”24
In order to make the sparks appear from the stone, iron was needed,
and so God sent the iron of the phrase la elaha ella’llah. The Prophet
said: “I have been commanded to fight men until they say la elaha
ella’llah."25 God commanded men, saying: “Make remembrance
of God abundantly, that haply ye might prosper.”26 That is, “Strike
this ironlike phrase against the rock of your heart until there appears the
spark of the fire of love that is inherent in both the iron and the rock.”
Do not look with contempt on the darkness of the commanding soul,
like the angels who said, “Wilt Thou make upon earth one who shall cause
corruption?”27 being immature infants— “Verily I know that which ye
know not.”28 When they heard the
!lQur’an, 38:78.
22Evidently a proverb, referring to
the fast black dye of cloaks from Gilan and signifying irremediable
ill-fortune.
“Quatrain presumably of Daya’s own composition.
“The concluding part of the Tradition quoted on p. 326 (“God created
His creation in darkness. . . .”).
25Tradition previously quoted on p.
93.
26Qur’an, 8:46.
2’Qur’an, 2:30.
2BQur’an, 2:30.
name of viceregent, they looked and saw only the darkness of the
soul, and shied away from its blackness. They did not know that the water of
life of gnosis was hidden in that darkness, for when the sparks of the fire of
love appear from the stone of the heart and the iron of Id elaha elld’llah,
the satin cloth of spirituality cannot endure them, however precious and fine
it may be. That burned and blackfaced soul of man is then needed to come
forward and snatch up those sparks with heart and soul—“and man bore it; truly
he was extremely oppressive, extremely ignorant.”29 It is only these
lowly human attributes that can act as host to that fire from the unseen world,
enabling it to reside in the manifest world—“Make remembrance of Me, and I
shall make remembrance of you.”30 But if that guest from the unseen
world fails to receive its nourishment for a single instant, it will not
survive: “They forgot God, and He forgot them.”31
Whenever there sprouts forth on the tree of humanity the branch of a
lowly human attribute, the sincere lover, with the hand of sincerity, brings
down the axe of la elaha on the root of that branch, and throws it on
the fire of elld’llah. That fire will embrace it in accordance with the
promise of “I shall make remembrance of you,”32 and as it takes from
the branch its wood being, gives to it in exchange its own fire being. Finally,
the whole of the human tree, with its branches of lowly human attribute and its
roots of spirit and malakut, is given to the fire to consume. The fire
lights up all parts of the being of the tree, and the being of the tree becomes
pure fire. If once it was a tree, now it is fire; and true union is attained.
Thus the writer says:
When my soul near expired for love of a moonface, I said to her,
“Wilt thou cure me by union with thee?”
She said, “If thou hast need of our union, then go;
Remain not thyself, let me alone remain.”
When the green tree of the human soul is sacrificed to true fire—“He
Who made a fire for you from the green tree”33—then
■“Qur’an, 33:72.
’“Qur’an, 2:152.
’'Qur’an, 9:68.
’■Qur’an, 2:152.
’’Qur’an, 36:80.
fire will cry out with the tree’s tongue: “O heedless ones! I am
fire, not the tree.” “He was called from the right side of the valley in the
blessed spot, from the tree: ‘O Moses, I, even I, am God.’ ”M
When the fire embraced all the tree of wretched Idoseyn b. Mansur,
the flames of “I am God” rose from him even before the whole tree had been
burned.35 There were strangers nearby who were almost burned by the
flame of “I am God,” but God’s dominical favor protected them. It was as if He
said: “The property of this fire is that it is blessed both for the one within
it and the one standing near it—‘blessed is he who is in the fire and he who is
near unto it.’36 O Hoseyn, this fire is blessed for thee, but it
must suit too those who stand near it and be blessed for them. We are blessed
for friend and foe alike.”
Nothing less than aloes wood is fit to bum in this fire, for when
the fire gains control of all parts of its being, it begins to exhale sweet
breath. Fire is a blessing for the aloes wood in that it makes apparent its
hidden scent; were it not for fire, there would be no difference between aloes
and other kinds of wood. The dignity of the aloes depends upon fire, and since
fire was a blessing for the aloes, the aloes offered up its own being in gratitude.
It said, “let all of me bum, so that the fire should be a blessing too to those
who stand near; let me do nothing ugly, for such is not the way of the
chivalrous.” The more the aloes burned, the more it pleased those who stood
near it.
Let me burn on thy love’s fire
If for me to bum pleases thee.
Thou said, “Lose thy life in manly style”;
What is a lover to do, except lose his life?
’’Qur'an, 28:30.
“The remainder of the chapter constitutes a masterly commentary on
the "passion" of Hoseyn b. Mansur (Hallaj), in which Daya elucidates
the inner sense of the successive stages of his death and annihilation. While
not yet divested of his separative being, he repeated the theopathic utterance,
“I am God," but after that being had been fully abolished with the burning
of his corpse, there arose the sound of the divine name alone, without any
mention of ego. For the events elucidated in this manner, see Altar, Tazkerat
al-owliya, II, pp. 122-123.
“Qur’an, 27:8.
Hoseyn, in Sufi fashion, stood asking for forgiveness and cast off
his human being like a cloak. He said: “O God, I have effaced my humanity in
Thy divinity, and my humanity has the claim on Thy divinity that Thou should
have mercy on those who sought to kill me. We have sacrificed, like aloes, all
the tree of our human being to the fire of Thy love; through Thy favor,
perfume, then, with the scent of mercy the nostrils of those who around this
fire strive to.bring about this, my felicity, so that the fire shall be a
blessing to them too.”
The reply came: “O Hoseyn, even though the fire of Our love attacked
the tree of thy being, and the fiery flames of ‘I am God’ rose up from it, it
did not bum fully, and the flames were not free of the smoke of ego. When thou
hast sacrificed to the fire all the tree of thy being, lost the form and frame
from which the smoke of ego arose, and burned on Our fire of affliction— then
We will command the ashes of thy frame to be cast on the waters, and We will
remove the veil of concealment from the beauty of thy perfection. Then on the
face of the waters the smokeless fire of thy being will manifest 'ALLAH,
ALLAH!’ and Our uncaused grace will become plain to the generality and
elect of mankind: ‘Truly God does not wrong anyone by as much as an atom’s
weight; and if there be a good deed, He will multiply it, and bestow from
Himself a mighty reward.’”37
Those who in love’s realm are ready to sacrifice themselves like the
moth, and around the neck of whose heart fell the lasso of God’s rapture in the
age of alast,38 are today flying around the pavilions of the
beauty of the candle of God’s splendor, on the wing of the pain of the quest,
in such manner that in accordance with God’s saying, “Whosoever approaches Me
by a span, him I approach by a cubit,”39 one of the flames of that
candle goes forth to meet him; and with the hand of “a rapturous state bestowed
by God is equal to the deeds of men and jinn,”40 it draws him into
the embrace of union, saying: “‘O tranquil soul, return to thy
’’Qur’an, 4:39.
’BI.e., the age of the pre-eternal covenant, when God
addressed human souls and asked them, "am I not (alasto) your
Lord?” (Qur’an, 7:172).
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 222.
“Dictum previously quoted on p. 222; see also p. 222, n. 15.
Lord, well-pleased and well-pleasing.’41 Undl when wilt
thou fly around the pavilions of Our beauty on the wing of mothhood— ‘man was
created weak’?42 Come, abandon this wing on the battlefield of
‘those who struggle for Our sake,’ so that in accordance with the custom of
‘surely We shall guide them to Our paths,’43 We may grant thee a
wing taken from the flame of Our lights—‘God guides to His light whomsoever He
wills.’”44
O heart, not with mere words is this path given thee; Only at
nonbeing’s gate is union given thee.
And in
that sky where His birds are winging, As long as thou hast wings, no wing is
given thee.
‘‘Until now, flying by thine own wings, thou were but a crazed moth;
now that thou fly by Our wings, thou art unique and peerless. Now thou art of
us, not a stranger. Remove, indeed, all pretext of we-ness: thou art both the
pearl and the oyster, both the soul and the beloved.”
Thou art a soul and thought thyself a person;
Thou art water and thought thyself a bucket.45
“Henceforth thou art not thee in truth, for of thee there remains
unto thee only a name.”
Love came and like blood ran through my flesh and veins; Emptied me,
then filled me with the Friend.
The Friend took from me every part of my being, Of me, a name
remained to me; the rest is all HE.
’■Qur'an, 89:28.
’■Qur'an, 4:27.
’’Qur’an, 29:69.
’’Qur’an, 24:35.
”A line from Sana'I (Divan, p. 466).
Concerning
the Return of the Souls of the Felicitous and the Wretched, and Containing Four
Chapters because of the Blessing Inherent in These Words of God Almighty:
“Take Four Birds’’1
First Chapter:
Concerning the
Return of the Oppressive Soul, Which Is the Reproachful Soul
God Almighty said: ‘As He caused you to begin, so shall ye return: a
party He has guided, and a party deserves its misguidance.”2
He said too: “We have caused to inherit the Book those whom We chose
among Our bondsmen: among them are those who are oppressive to themselves,
those who follow a middle path, and those who are foremost in good deeds, by
God’s permission.”3
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: ‘As you live,
so you shall die; and as you die, so you shall be resurrected.”4
Know that the true meaning of the return is the turning back of
human souls to the Divine Presence, either through choice, as with the souls of
the felicitous, or through compulsion, as with the souls of the wretched. The
return of all is to that presence— “Verily to Us is their return.”5
And God said too: “As He caused you to begin, so shall ye return.”6
We intend here by human souls the essences of men, constituted by
the sum of the spirit, the heart and the soul. We have designated the essence
as the soul because God Almighty also calls it "soul” at the time of its
return—“O tranquil soul, return.”7 In reality the address is to the
essence of man, which is the sum of his inner being, and not to a part of it.
When this essence was joined to the bodily frame, God called it “spirit” (“and
I inhaled in him of My spirit”),8 for the spirit was the origin, and
the heart
’Qur'an, 7:29.
’Qur’an, 35:32.
’Tradition; see Fortizanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 18.
5Qur’an, 86:25.
“Qur’an, 7:29.
’Qur’an, 89:28.
“Qur’an, 15:29.
and soul were to come into being only after the marriage of the
spirit to the frame, as we have previously explained.9 God calls the
sum “soul” at the time of return because in common usage the word “soul” is
given broad meaning and has the sense of essence; the soul of a thing and its
essence are the same. Indeed, God Almighty has called His own essence “soul”:
“Thou knowest what is in my soul, and I know not what is in Thy soul.”10
That is, “in Thy essence.”
A gardener takes the seed to the garden when it is time for sowing
and plants it, and when the seed reaches maturity, he plucks the fruit and
takes it home, the seed being contained within the fruit. So too, the human
soul is the fruit of the human spirit: When the seed was sown, it was called
“spirit,” and when the fruit is plucked, it is called “soul.”
Now there is a difference of opinion among the people of realization
and wayfaring as to whether or not every soul can pass beyond the station it
originally had and advance to another station. Some have said that with
training it can advance and pass beyond its first station. Others have said
that it stops when it reaches its own fixed station, and cannot reach a further
station for which it does not have the capacity, just as a cornseed can
neither pass beyond the state of corn and become a chickpea by mere
cultivation, nor descend and become barley, any more than a barleyseed can grow
into corn. Upon cultivation, however, each seed may attain the perfection of
its own degree; while if there be some shortcoming in its cultivation, it will
become deficient and weak and lacking in kernel.
That which is indicated by the view of this feeble one, and has been
witnessed by him through the unveiling of the truths and inner meanings of
things, is that with training some souls may advance beyond their own station
and attain another station, while others may advance without so attaining
another station. For at the primordial beginning, spirits were arranged in four
ranks—“spirits are like armies, drawn up in ranks.”11
“See p. 192.
'"Qur'an, 5:116.
"Part of Tradition quoted in full on p. 220.
The first rank is that of the spirits of the prophets, upon whom be
peace, and the elect among the saints, theirs being the station of immediacy.12
The second rank is that of the spirits of the commonalty among the saints and
the elect among the believers. The third rank is that of the spirits of the
commonalty among the believers and the elect among the sinners. The fourth rank
is that of the spirits of the commonalty among the sinners, and those of the
hypocrites and unbelievers. The people of the fourth rank cannot attain the
station of the third rank; the people of the third rank cannot attain the
station of the second rank; and the people of the second rank cannot attain the
station of the first rank.
As for the people of the first rank, those who stand in the station
of immediacy and have been nurtured by the radiance of the light of the divine
attributes, they are deserving of the rapturous states that enable them to
advance from the station of spirituality to the world of the divine attributes.
They are like tinder that has been nurtured by the effect of fire so that susceptibility
to a spark of fire is inherent in its nature. If a flash of lightning leaps
forth, or iron is struck against rock, or a fiery flame reaches out, the fire
will touch only the tinder, even though a thousand types of fine wares and
cloth and precious jewels be present.
Again thou hast set fire to my heart— To set fire to the burned is
indeed easy.
With the tongue of longing, the burned soul addresses the spark of
the fire of rapture, saying:
The true worth of thy burning is hidden from the raw; Burn then for
me, already burned a hundredfold!
When those burned by the fire of longing are delivered from the
desert of separation that is the state of humanity and reach the frontier of
the Ka'ba of attainment, they cannot pass beyond that station by themselves.
But the welcoming party of gen-
'■Immediacy (bivasetagi): literally, “absence of
intermediary.”
erosity, in the form of rapturous states bestowed by God, goes
graciously forward to meet them and brings them into the sanctuary of
auspiciousness by virtue of the aptitude that was implanted in them at the
beginning: “There are seven whom God shelters in His shade.”13 It is
for this reason that “a rapturous state bestowed by God is equal to the deeds
of jinn and men,” for the combined deeds of all the sublime host and of jinn
and men cannot enable a single bondsman of God to partake of the manifestation
of the Divine Presence. It is only the rapture God bestows that may accomplish
this, for He seats His bondsman at the feast of proximity of "or nearer.”14
Thus one such rapturous state is of necessity better than the deeds of all
creation.
As for those bondsmen who have been delivered from their own
selfhood and are voyaging in the realm of divinity through the effect of God’s
rapture, a single breath of theirs is equal to the deeds of the inhabitants of
both worlds; rather it surpasses those deeds.
The
Sufis celebrate two festivals in one breath, Just as the spiders make salted
meat out of flies.15
Each moment, a new being arises in the self-effaced Sufi which is
then effaced by the effect of God’s rapture, and by virtue of that effacement
he advances a new step in his voyaging: "God effaces that which He wills
and makes firm that which He wills.”16 Thus in each moment there
takes place an effacement and a making firm, and it is in this sense that the
Sufi celebrates two festivals: a festival of effacement and a festival of
making firm. It is at this station that the being of the wayfarer is identical
to the being of the phrase laelahaella’llah, for both consist of
negation and affirmation. If at this station he is called “spirit of
'’Part of a Tradition; source unknown.
"Qur'an, 53:9.
15A line from the Hadiqat al-haqiqa
of Sana’I (p. 369).
'“Qur'an, 13:41.
God” or “word of God,”17 it will suit him, and be a cloak
tailored to his stature.
The people of the other ranks are deprived of the good fortune of
this perfection, but each group, when nurtured to perfection in its own
station, will advance within its own limits and attain a perfection it did not
previously possess. Thus the cornseed, although weak when first planted, will
multiply seven hundredfold and strengthen if properly cultivated, and finally
be gathered in the granary.
Moreover, the spirits of the people of each rank, after acquiring
due aptitude and purity, will come to face those of the next superior rank and
receive the reflection of their perfections. Even though they are not of them,
they are with them; and “man is to be found with those whom he loves.”18
God said: “They it is who are in the company of those whom God has given His
bounty—the prophets, the sincere devotees, the witnesses and the righteous. How
fair is their fellowship! That generosity is from God.’ ’19 The last
part of the verse bears this meaning: “This degree that they enjoy is not
present in their original nature and capacity; it is purely Our divine
generosity, bestowed upon them.” This matter is also indicated in the promise
“There is for those who did good a good reward, and more in excess.”20
“The good reward” is the bounty of Paradise, which is the fruit of the seed of
“did good”; while that which they receive by way of the good fortune of the
vision and witnessing of the divine attributes is the “more in excess,”
proceeding from God’s generosity and liberality.
■’Both phrases are among the Qur’anic epithets of Jesus; see Qur’an,
4:171: “The Christ Jesus son of Mary was a Messenger of God and His Word, bestowed
upon Mary, and a Spirit from Him.” Their occurrence in the description of a
station on the path is an indication that at a certain point the wayfarer becomes
“Christlike” not in the sense of a deliberate “imitation of Christ," but
in the sense of manifesting the spiritual properties that Islam
associates—although not exclusively—with Jesus. The notion of each prophet
being the “patron" of a certain station on the Path becomes explicit in
later Sufism; see, for example, the Qaderl manual, Esma'Il al-Qaderi’s al-Foyuiat
al-rabbaniya (Cairo, n.d.), p. 37.
■’Tradition recorded by Moslem, Bokarl, TermezT, Daremi, and Ebn
Hanbal. ■’Qur’an, 4:69.
’’Qur’an, 10:26.
God Almighty has thus declared men to belong to four different
classes. Three classes are those of the people of choice and acceptance, and
the other is that of the people of wretchedness and rejection. In His saying,
“We have caused to inherit the Book those whom We chose among Our bondsmen:
among them are those oppressive to themselves, those who follow a middle path,
and those who are foremost in good deeds, by God’s permission,”21
the three groups mentioned are the people of acceptance, because He mentioned
them using the word “chose.” That is, “We have chosen them from among Our
bondsmen.” The rejected He has threaded on a single string: “None shall enter
it but the most wretched, who call the truth lies and turn from it.”22
God designated Paradise as the place of return and reversion for the first
three groups, with different degrees to be enjoyed by each—“Verily the
righteous are in bliss.”23 He designated Hell as the place of return
and reversion for the rejected, both unbelievers and hypocrites—“Verily God
shall gather the hypocrites and the unbelievers together in Hell.”24
Since the human being is a union of the spiritual and corporeal
worlds, there is within him a specimen of all that exists in both worlds. Just
as God brought forth four ranks in the world of spirits, so too He created four
degrees of the soul in the world of the human person: the commanding, the
reproachful, the inspired, and the tranquil. Thus in the human being a certain
degree of the soul corresponds to the rank of each class of spirits. To the
people of the first rank belongs the tranquil soul; to those of the second rank,
the inspired soul; to those of the third rank, the reproachful soul; and to
those of the fourth rank, the commanding soul. None can pass beyond his proper
station, for the capacity to do so was not placed in its seed, exception being
made only for the people of the first rank, as we explained.
If someone should ask, “Since everyone will return to the station
whence he came, what was the use and purpose of his
■'Qur’an, 35:32; also given at the beginning of the chapter.
■■Qur’an, 92:15.
■’Qur’an, 82:13.
■’Qur’an, 4:139.
coining?” we would answer as follows: Although all return to their
original station, they do not return in the state in which they departed. Some
return with the high degree of felicity, and others with the low degree of
wretchedness, as God said: "By the declining day! Verily man is in a state
of loss, except those who believe and do righteous deeds.”25
This matter may be compared to seed cast in the ground. At first the
seed begins to decay and starts perishing. Then some of it is properly
cultivated and protected against harm, and increases tenfold, a hundredfold or
seven hundredfold. The part that is not cultivated rots in its entirety; it is
neither seed nor fruit.
In addition, seeds are of different kinds. Some when cultivated
yield a fruit identical to the seed itself—like corn, barley, chickpeas,
lentils, beans, and so forth. When they ripen, they have neither husk nor
kernel. Other seeds also reproduce themselves exactly, but have a husk that is
of no use and a kernel that is of use. Such are the walnut, the almond, and the
pistachio; they have a green husk but it is of no use. Then too there are seeds
that reproduce themselves exactly and have a husk that constitutes the fruit
and a kernel that is of no use. Such are the date, the sorb, the olive, and the
like. Their husk is of use, but not their kernel. Still other seeds reproduce
themselves exactly and bear fruit, and both the husk and the kernel are of use,
like the apricot, the peach, the fig, and so forth. All fruits belong to one or
other of these four categories.
The spirits of men, drawn up in their four ranks, resemble the
seeds, for when they are sown in the soil of the bodily frame, they too yield
fruit of four kinds. First is the seed of the spirits of the unbelievers, to
whom belongs the commanding soul. They return exactly as they came, with
neither husk nor kernel, like corn and barley. Second is the seed of the
spirits of believers "oppressive to themselves”; theirs is the reproachful
soul. They return with the husk of reproachfulness, but that husk is of no use;
only the kernel is of use, as with the walnut, the almond, and the pistachio.
Third is the seed of the spirits of those be-
“Qur'an, 103:1-3.
lievers “who follow, a middle path”; theirs is the inspired soul. They
return with the husk of divine inspiration, which is of necessity a sweet
fruit, like fresh dates, but has no kernel of any real use. The fourth is the
seed of the spirits of the foremost, to whom belongs the tranquil soul. They
return with a sweet husk and kernel, like the apricot, the peach, and the fig;
both husk and kernel are of use. The states of each class will be described in
a separate chapter, God Almighty willing.
* # *
In this chapter we will begin by setting forth the state of the reproachful
soul, which is indicated in the phrase, "among them are those oppressive
to themselves,” and by describing its return, since God Almighty also
mentioned it first among the three groups of the people of acceptance.
Know that the oppressive are the people of the third rank in the
world of spirits; in this world too, they occupy the third among the degrees of
the soul. For the oppressive are possessors of the reproachful soul, and
reproachfulness is the third degree, coming after tranquillity and inspiredness.
In the Qur’an too, the oppressive soul occupies the third rank, coming after
the foremost and those that follow a middle path. It is the soul of the
commonalty among the believers and the elect among the sinners.
The name "oppressive” has been given to such a one because he
acts outwardly like the people of unbelief, despite the light of faith he has
in his heart. He thus comes to be an oppressor, for the root meaning of
oppression (zolm) is "putting something in other than its proper
place.” Moreover, he covers up the light of faith with the darkness of the
oppression that is sin, whereas God said: “Those who believe and do not shroud
their belief with oppression—theirs is security.”26 Then too, he
commits oppression toward his own self, for he sins more than he worships, and
when on the Day of Judgment the pan containing his sins
26Qur'an, 6:82.
outweighs the pan containing his worship, he will be found fit for
Hell, as God said: ‘As for him whose balance is light, his home shall be the
abyss.”27
Know in truth that the people of each rank among the -accepted in
turn comprise three classes: those who are on the right, those who are on the
left, and those who stand in front of the center of the rank. Thus God says:
“Ye shall be divided into three classes. There shall be the Companions of the
Right—what will be the Companions of the Right? And the Companions of the
Left—what will be the Companions of the Left? And the foremost, they shall be
the foremost; they are those drawn nigh unto God.”28 Each rank will
thus be divided, in appropriate fashion, into the Companions of the Right, the
Companions of the Left, and the foremost.
The Companions of the Right are those persons whose seed of
spirituality, when joined to the soil of the bodily frame, was not cultivated
to perfection, enabling it to multiply a hundredfold or seven hundredfold; but
neither did it become a prisoner of the bodily frame through the effect of the
human attributes. It sprouted and again reached the station of seedhood, and
even though it did not increase, neither did it suffer decrease. This group is
under the dominance of the angelic attribute; its members are the people of
worship and little inclined to sin. They are destined for salvation; departing
by the right hand of felicity, they take the road to Paradise and return to
their spiritual station without delay.
The Companions of the Left are those who have done harm to their
seed of spirituality. Even though they have not totally destroyed the seed,
damage and deficiency have appeared in it because of the deeds of their human
attributes. This group is much inclined to sin. Departing by the left hand of
wretchedness, its members are carried off to Hell and conveyed through its
lowly degrees until all pollution is removed from them. They then return to
their proper station, although with some deficiency.
■’Qur’an, 101:8.
■“Qur’an, 56:10.
The foremost are those who have cultivated their seed of
spirituality and caused it to attain perfection of degree, multiplying it a
hundredfold or seven hundredfold. They comprise two classes. The first consists
of those who, from beginning to end, were under the dominance of the attributes
of spirituality, and were never polluted by the harm of transgression. In accordance
with the verse “Those to whom the good has gone forth from us, they are far
removed therefrom,”29 they have shunned all complicity with the soul
and subordination to passion. The second class consists of those who initially
took a few steps in accordance with the soul’s wishes and breathed for a while
in obedience to instinctual nature, but through the lasso of divine grace and
rapture were enabled to avert their faces from bestial indulgence and animal
degre.e. With the elixir of the Law, they transmuted the copper deeds of
instinctual nature into the pure gold of worship: “They it is whose evil deeds
God changes into good deeds.”30 The return of both these groups to
their station in the ranks from which they came is by means of wayfaring; it
takes place during their lifetime, and by conscious choice. The name “foremost”
was given to them because they precede the Companions of the Right and the
Companions of the Left who attain their stations only after death. Thus the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “Go forth, for the unattached have preceded
you.”31
As for the possessors of the reproachful soul, who are the people of
the third rank, the Companions of the Right among them are those whose worship
outweighs their sins. They are destined for salvation—‘As for him whose balance
is heavy, he will be in a life of ease and satisfaction.”32 The
Companions of the Left among them are those whose sins outweigh their worship;
since they followed their passions in this world, their place shall be the
abyss.
When God Almighty created the heart, He placed the intelligence on
its right and passion on its left, and love immediately
“’Qur'an, 21:101.
’“Qur’an, 25:70.
’■Tradition quoted on p. 271.
’“Qur’an, 101:6-7.
in front of it. The Companions of the Right are those who follow intelligence;
the Companions of the Left are those who follow passion; and the foremost are
those who follow love. Intelligence causes the intelligent to attain the
intelligible; passion causes the passionate to attain the abyss;33
and love causes the lover to attain the beloved. Whoever follows his passion
today, in accordance with ‘‘as you live, so you shall die; and as you die, so
you shall be resurrected,”34 his place of return tomorrow shall be
the abyss. God uses the word omm (mother) to designate the abyss,
meaning that the abyss shall be like a mother for him. This is an indication
that in the hereafter he is still captive in the being of the reproachful soul.
The reproachful soul was pregnant in this world with the infant of faith, but
failed to give birth to it. If it had done so, the infant would have emerged
from the womb of animal and predatory attributes, and the soul would have been
saved from the abyss. But since it was pregnant and failed to give birth in
this world, it will be conveyed through the lowly degrees of Hell and caused to
remain there until all that belongs to the fire—animal, predatory, and satanic
attributes—is taken from it. Then the infant of faith, conceived in the womb of
the heart, will be born from the mother of the abyss, and the soul will become
fit to enter Paradise. For “he in whose heart is an atom’s weight of faith
shall emerge from the fire.”35
The possessor of the reproachful soul is like a walnut in that his
kernel of faith is hidden within a bitter husk of corrupt deeds. A few blows
must be inflicted on that outer husk—for it contains an inner husk—so that the
infant of the kernel can be delivered from the womb of the husk. The husk is
then fed to the fire: ‘As often as their skins are roasted, We shall change them
for fresh skins, so that they may taste the torment.”36 The kernel
is wrapped in the sweet husk of God’s favor, placed on
’An allusion to Qur’an, 101:9, where the word haviya—apparently
derived from the same triliteral root as kava, "passion”—is used to
designate the abyss; an etymological reflection of the affinity between the
passionate and their ultimate destination. In his Qur’anic commentary, Daya
says of the abyss that it is “a fire ardent with the flames of blindness and
ignorance, well-stocked with the wood of the soul and its passions” (quoted in
flaqql, Ruli al-bayan, X, p. 501).
’“Tradition quoted on p. 334.
“Tradition by Bokari, Moslem, TermezI, Nasa’I, and Ebn Hanbal.
’“Qur’an, 4:55.
the tray of Paradise, and brought to the banquet of “brothers facing
each other on thrones.”37 This is a description of that group
concerning whom God said: ‘And there others who are held in suspense for God’s
command; either He will punish them or turn to them in forgiveness.”38
If dominical grace and heavenly support come to his aid, and if
before death God conveys the breeze of exhalation of His favor to the nostrils
of his soul, even for only an instant, so that from his broken heart and weary
soul a sigh arises, and he sings these verses in suffering—
The wind has come with the scent of her tress, And renewed our love
unaging.
O wind, thou bearest the scent of friendship;
Do not frequent strangers, I beg of thee!
then immediately a certain pain will arise in his being, and the
fire of regret will consume his harvest of deeds, burning in a single instant
that part of him which Hell would otherwise have burned for many years. He will
be born from the womb of the mother of passion, who resembles the abyss. Now
“regret is repentance,”39 and his sincere repentance will so purify
him in a single instant that it will be as if he had never been polluted by any
impurity: “He who repents of his sins is like the one who has never sinned.”40
Since there remains in him no portion for Hell, when he passes by the gate of
Hell a cry will arise from within, saying “Pass, O believer! Thy light has
extinguished my blaze.”
What is indicated here? That in truth hell is within you,41
and consists of the reprehensible attributes of the commanding soul. When the
zephyr breeze of grace wafts over you and the fire of your reprehensible
attributes dies down, and the light of repentance—which is derived from the
lights of the divine attribute
’’Qur’an, 15:47.
’“Qur’an, 9:106.
’“Tradition recorded by Ebn Maja and Ebn Hanbal.
’“Tradition recorded by Ebn Maja.
’’This statement is clearly not to be understood in an exclusive and
literal sense; it means only that man has within him a substance akin to the
stuff of hellfire.
of “oft turning in forgiveness”42—establishes itself in
your heart, then a cry arises from the lowly degrees of the hell of human
existence, saying: “Pass, O repenter! For thou art now beloved of God—‘Verily
God loves the penitent and loves those who purify themselves.’43
All eight paradises cannot support those who are beloved of God; how then might
the constricted space of Hell, with its seven low degrees, hope to do so?”
Thus this feeble one said:
All eight paradises are too narrow for Thy lovers;
All that lies beneath Thee is too shameful for Thy lovers.
There is a stone placed in the mouth of hellfire
Because from the ray of the fire comes a colorless light.
It is true that the reproachful soul belongs to the third rank in
the world of spirits. But in the assembly of intimacy, the cupbearer of “Their
Lord shall give them to drink of a pure wine”44 once handed, in
brimming goblets, the pure wine of effusion of God’s generosity to the people
of the first rank—the spirits of the prophets and the elect among the saints.
As they drank it joyfully, contemplating the beauty of Eternal Besoughtness, a
draught of the traces of the wine spilled onto the spirits of the people of the
second rank: “The soil has a share in the cup of the generous.”45
A scent of that draught reached the people of the third rank, and
they became drunk from the assault of the wine’s scent.
A scent came to me, and I became drunk on it;
Should another scent come, I will become lost in it!
’“This attribute (tavvab) occurs in the Qur'an in conjunction
with the attribute ''Merciful" (rahlm), concerning which see pp.
202 and 245. It derives from the verb taba, which has the dual sense of
man turning to God in offering repentance, and God turning to man in accepting
repentance. The fact that the verb is "shared” by man and God is an
indication of God’s going forth to meet whoever takes a step toward him (cf.
the hadis qodsi quoted on p. 222).
’’Qur’an, 2:222.
’’Qur’an, 76:21.
”An Arabic hemistich of unknown origin that has acquired proverbial
status.
When they were joined to this world, still carrying the memory of
the scent, they haunted the tavern of the earth, looking for a scent of the
scent; hoping to find it, they tasted wine from every vat in the cellar of
pleasure and passion. But in none did they find the taste of the scent, and so
they repaired to the wine cellar of worship. There a scent came to them, and
they said to themselves: “If some trace of the scent is anywhere to be had, it
must surely be here.” It is this perception of the scent that is called faith.
The light of faith then prevented them from becoming totally drunk
on the vat of the world and finding tranquillity in its pleasures and passions,
unlike those heedless ones who, lured by worldly adornments, are content with
their five days of life in this world and find tranquillity in its transient
bounty: “They are content with the life of this world and find tranquillity in
it.”46 Sometimes they would drain a cup of the soul’s desires, and
at other times taste a goblet from the wine cellar of spiritual worship—“They
mixed a righteous deed with an evil one.”47
Whenever the reproachful soul drank a goblet from the cellar of
worldly passion, it would don the cuirass of reproach, and the intoxication of
the wine it had drunk would make its head too heavy for the affairs of this
world. So the soul would turn to the affairs of the hereafter, until God’s
uncaused grace would arise in utmost solicitude to extend the aid of “Haply God
may turn to them in forgiveness.”48 The soul would then place the
cash of all life’s deeds in the crucible of repentance, melt it on the fire of
longing, cast on it a grain of love’s alchemy, and transmute it into the pure
gold of belovedness: “Verily God loves the penitent and loves those who purify
themselves.”49
Sorrow, joy becomes through Thy grace;
Life, eternal becomes through Thy gaze.
If the wind bears to Hell the dust of Thy dwelling, The flames will
become as the water of life.
““Qur’an, 10:7.
“’Qur’an, 9:102.
““Qur’an, 9:102.
““Qur'an, 2:222.
At this point the reproachful soul becomes an oath for the Divine Presence—“Verily
I swear by the Day of Resurrection, and verily I swear by the reproachful
soul.”50
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
’“Qur’an, 75:1.
Second Chapter:
Concerning the
Return of the Soul That Follows a Middle Path, Which Is the Inspired Soul
God Almighty said: “How disbelieve ye in God, when ye were dead and
He gave life to you? Then He gives you death, then life again, and then unto
Him ye shall be returned.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “Die before
you die.”2
Know that the inspired soul is that which has been honored by divine
inspirations, and has attained the rank of being an oath by which God swears:
“By a soul and Him who ordered it, inspiring it with knowledge of wickedness
and piety.”3 The inspired soul is also that which occupied the
second rank in the world of spirits, and is mentioned in the Qur’an in second
place: ‘Among them are those oppressive to themselves, those who follow a
middle path, and those who are foremost in good deeds.”4
The name of “following a middle path” is given to this soul because
it is intermediate between two worlds. It belongs fully neither to the world of
the foremost who occupy the first rank, nor to the world of the oppressive who
occupy the third rank. It is the soul of the commonalty among the saints and
the elect among the believers. It has gained the honor of divine inspiration
by virtue of this aptitude, that in the world of spirits there was interposed
between it and the Mighty Presence the medium of the spirits of the prophets
and the elect among the saints. When the succor of dominical grace came to the
spirits of the people of the first rank, a ray from it touched the people of
the second rank. Thus they had some share in the favor, and experi-
'Qur'an, 2:28.
“Tradition much beloved of the Sufis but of doubtful authenticity;
see Foruzan- far, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 116.
’Qur’an, 91:10.
’Qur’an, 35:29.
enced the taste of hearing God’s address, although from behind the
veil. When they were joined to this world, even though they were afflicted with
the attributes of the commanding soul, still the taste of God’s grace had not
left the palate of their soul, and the pleasure of hearing God’s address, “am I
not your Lord?’’5 lingered in the ear of their heart.
My acquaintance with longing and love’s pain is not new— The tale of
your passion is entwined in my entrails.
I shall not forget your love as long as life lasts, Nor when dead in
the shroud with crumbling bones.
Never, O chosen idol of mine,
Shall thy love quit my heart, nor thine image, mine eye. If after my
death thou should come seeking,
Thou will find love for thee still in my rotting bones.
Thus, by virtue of the trace of that ardor that remained in the seed
of spirituality, they refrained from giving their hearts to this transient
world; turned away from the lowest of the low of instinctual nature to the
highest of the high of servitude; and in accordance with “Verily he prospers
who purifies it,”6 they strove to purify their souls. They entrusted
the nurturing of the seed of spirituality to the water of righteous deeds
performed in obedience to the Law, and its strengthening to the power of the
Path. Thus the effect of training appeared in the commanding soul; the light of
the Law shone over its darkness, and the seed, which we compared to a date in a
previous chapter, bestirred itself and put forth green shoots.
When it is somewhat freed from the fetters and veils of its own
existence, and a window in its prison of being is opened a chink onto the broad
expanse of the sky of servitude and the station of treehood, it begins to
reproach itself for being in the prison of seedhood and says to itself: “Since
through nurturing and refinement you can escape from this prison and prosper,
why do you think it right to delay? Why do you not gird your waist with the
belt of resolve and endeavor? Why are you content like the
’Qur’an, 7:171.
“Qur’an, 91:10.
vile with this low point?” The soul is then called the reproachful
soul, since it has begun to reproach itself in this way.
Then the effect of God’s pre-eternal grace will increase by the hour
its resolve in the task of servitude and intensify the ardor of its love.
Beneath the dominance of ardor, and with the stimulus of joy, it will increase
the abundance of its ascetic striving and the excellence of its deeds. From
each act that it performs in accordance with God’s command a new light will be
born that strengthens its faith—“that they might add faith unto their faith.”7
The tree of servitude becomes more verdant by the day, and advances
from the lower world to the world of sublimity, until at last it emerges fully
from the seed: "When ye were dead and He gave life to you.” First it was a
lifeless seed, and then when it put forth a green shoot it was alive—"and
He gave life to you.” After that, the seed is totally effaced in the tree—“then
He gives you death”; and then the seed emerges again from the tree, clothed in
the garment of blossom—"then life again.”8 Even though the seed
had been effaced in the tree and died, it came back to life once more on the
branch, putting forth its head from the grave of the branch, with its shoulders
wrapped in the shroud of the blossom.
When
tomorrow the saintly from their dwellings of clay Come to mount, like the
spirit, the steed of the body, Then I too, with bloodstained shroud like the
tulip, Shall arise from the clay near to thy dwelling.
Then shall the soul have returned to its original station, for it
will have emerged like blossom on the tree of servitude. But since the fruit
has not yet attained perfection, the soul still has one foot in the station of
treehood and takes nourishment from it in order to grow further. Its other foot
is in the station of fruithood, and there it is exposed to the danger that by
virtue of some slight coldness of moist wind the decree “We made it like
scattered dust”9 might be recited over its labors of many years.
’Qur’an, 48:4.
“Qur’an, 2:28.
“Qur’an, 25:23.
At this station, it is fit that the soul should witness its own salubrity
and corruption, for it is fearful and trembling. It receives without
interruption the succor of dominical inspiration, showing it its piety and
wickedness. In this state it is exposed to great danger, for it is sincere—that
is, it has been delivered from the prison of the seed and the tree, and emerged
on the branch of sincerity: “The sincere are in great danger.”10
Before, when it was fettered in the tree or imprisoned in the seed, it was not
exposed to the danger of destruction by the least wind or cold weather.
We are not a lock of thy hair that each breeze Should drive us away
from thy face, away from thy face!
But now that the soul has been born from the womb of the tree and
wrapped in the delicate swaddling clothes of the blossom, it is like a newly
born infant, liable to perish from the slightest inj ury. If the state of the
soul is not carefully watched in this station, having now tasted divine
inspiriation and become acquainted with the world of the unseen, it is exposed
to the danger of falling, like Balaam,11 from the tree of servitude
on account of the wind of satanic whispering or the coldness of its own
arrogance.
The Glorious Presence has sworn eleven oaths to emphasize this
danger and prevent the wayfarer from being negligent. He has said that if the
soul is nurtured at this station, it will prosper—that is, from the blossom of
inspiration it will grow into the fruit of tranquillity.12 But if it
is deprived of cultivation, it will be afflicted with loss—that is, it will
wither while yet a blossom, and perish. Thus God said: “By the sun and its
brightness; by the moon when it follows it; by the day when it reveals it; by
the night when it enshrouds it; by the heaven and Him Who built it; by the
earth and Him Who spread it; by a soul and Him Who ordered it, inspiring it
with knowledge of wickedness and piety
'“Fragment of a Tradition previously quoted on p. 97.
"Balaam: a prophet who renounced his mission and to whom some
commentators have seen a reference in Qur’an, 7:176.
'“Tranquillity: (motma'ennagi): the state of the “tranquil
soul” (nafs-e motma'enna), as described in the next chapter.
—verily he prospers who refines it, and he fails who corrupts it.”13
Nowhere else in the Qur’an have so many oaths been sworn as here.
The reason is that nothing in all creation is nobler than the soul
of man, and that the delicacy of the soul and the danger to which it is exposed
in the station of inspiration are unique to that station. For while not yet
fully delivered from itself, it has had a taste of the unseen and of
inspiration, and it may thus be deceived into imagining that it has attained
the station of perfection. Falling prey to Satan’s wiles and whisperings, it
may gaze upon itself with the eye of arrogance, complacency, pride, and
self-approval, and becoming the Eblis of the age, be swept down like blossom by
the hurricane of anathema from the tree of acceptance to the dust of abasement.
The soul is first born as blossom from the seed, and then imprisoned
for a time in the tree, before being born from it anew and appearing on the
branch of creation, there to taste divine inspiration. In the station it then
attains it must be born again, from the blossom, in order to become fruit. Then
it must reach maturity as fruit, and in so doing it will finally have attained
the perfection of this station, for each of the stations of the soul has a
beginning and an end.
In the station of inspiration, the soul’s beginning is that it
tastes inspiration by God with knowledge of every form of wickedness and piety
that it might encounter. Thus it distinguishes the true from the false and
separates the false from the true, following the true and avoiding the false.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, used to pray in this station: “God, show us
the true to be true, and grant that we may follow it; and show us the false to
be false, and grant that we may shun it.”14 At the beginning of the
station comes the perception and distinction of the true and the false, and at
its end the acquisition, through God’s gift, of the power to abandon the false
and follow the true. This becomes attainable when the soul is dead to
reprehensible
'’Qur'an, 91:1-9.
'“Prayer of the Prophet recorded by Bokari and Moslem.
attributes and the heart is alive with praiseworthy attributes.
Hence, “die before you die.”15
Music becomes licit for the sincere morid in this station for
several reasons. First, since his soul has died to reprehensible attributes,
its funeral must be celebrated with music. It is for this reason that when a
cherished one dies among the Sufis, they celebrate his funeral with music.16
Second, the heart has contracted a marriage with truths from the unseen, and
wedded itself to praiseworthy attributes. To announce a marriage with music is
a Sunna, since the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: ‘Announce marriages, even
if with a tambourine.”17 Third, the soul has acquired an eye for
seeing the truth and an ear for hearing it, and it has tasted inspiration from
the unseen. From all that is analogous to inspiration it derives the same taste,
and it is stirred by it in the direction of God. Thus God said: “Those who
listen to the word and follow the best of it.”18 Every word the soul
hears from the singer, clothed in fine garment and measured rhythm, imparts to
it the taste of the address of “am I not your Lord?”19 and the
pleasant sound causes yearning for God to stir within the soul. For it is not
less than the camel, in which the cry hoda!20 arouses longing
for its familiar homeland and accustomed pasture.
I yearn, and the lean camels in the flatland yearn, When you recall
their homelands in the hills of Najd.
They long for the myrtle and oxeye of their pasture— What might you
know of oxeye or myrtle?
On hearing the measured rhythm, the bird of spirituality aspires to
return to its true nest and original abode. When it attempts to take wing, it
is held down by the cage of the bodily frame, in which it lies bound in the
fetters of the five senses. Yet
•’Tradition previously quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
•’The converse is also true: Not only does the soul of the Sufi
"die” during the dance, but physical death may also supeivene, so that
there is a double relationship between music and death. See Mole, "La
danse extatiqueen Islam," p. 187.
•’Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal and Termezl.
'“Qur’an, 39:18.
'“Qur’an, 7:171.
20Hoda:
Arabic utterance used to set camels in motion.
once it has tasted the joy of divine address, the bird of the spirit
will not rest, and in its distraction it will try to break the cage of the
bodily frame and return to its own realm.
That fettered nightingale whose name is the soul Has not the
strength to shatter its cage.
The cage of the bodily frame will in turn become distraught, and its
distraction expresses itself in dancing and ecstatic states.
Dancing is not thy habitual rising;
Unless there be pain, thou rise like dust.
Dancing is thy rising over both worlds, Tearing thy heart, and
rising over thy soul.
When the morid practiced in self-mortification comes to this
station and state, it is permissible for him occasionally to attend sessions
with flute and tambourine, on condition that he be in the presence of his
shaikh or in the company of a group of his friends afflicted with the same
painful longing. He should shun the company of strangers as far as possible,
except for those who attend the session because of ardent desire and belief in
its efficacy, and whose company is marked by courtesy and respect.
The morid must not make any motion during the music with
conscious effort, and the attention of his heart should be directed to the
meaning of the verses that are sung and the indications of the flute’s melody.
He should not begin moving on account of every divine intimation that comes to
his heart or every ecstatic state that is granted him; rather, he should
contain the effect of the music within his heart as far as possible. But if it
overpowers him and causes him to move without conscious choice, then movement
is permissible. It is also considered permissible to join one’s companions in
the expression of ecstasy, providing that all laxity of the soul be excluded.
There are numerous customs connected with musical sessions for which there is
no space here. But we will mention this, that the morid should treat his
companions with the utmost respect so that no heart is offended by him.
Further, he should not engage in music for the sake of pleasure, and he should
strive to conceal the truths that
come to him and abandon all pretension. In all events, he should
wait for divine inspiration so that what he does he does in the light of
inspiration, not in the darkness of instinctual nature. At the beginning of
this station, he will distinguish between the soundness and corruption of his
soul by means of divine inspiration, and in the middle of it, by means of
divine indication.
The difference between divine inspiration, indication, and speech is
this: inspiration is an address by God to the heart, perceived intuitively21
and without awareness; indication is an address perceived intuitively and with
awareness, and it comes in the form of an allegory, not explicitly; speech is
an explicit address, perceived intuitively and with awareness. The soul does
not experience speech in the station of inspiration, but only in that of
tranquillity: “O tranquil soul, return to thy Lord’’22 is an
explicit address.
The end of the station of inspiration consists of God’s light
establishing itself in the heart, so that whatever man looks upon he looks upon
with God’s light: "The believer gazes with God’s light.”23 The
soul’s degree is that of the elect among the believers from the time that
inspiration appears until the time that God’s light establishes itself in the
heart. Its degree then becomes that of the commonalty among the saints: “God is
the friend of those who believe; He brings them forth from darkness into
light.”24 When the soul attains this station, the return of this
group, “those who follow a middle path,”25 will have been completed.
In the world of spirits, they were the people of the second rank,
and received the lights of God’s favor and grace from behind the veil
constituted by the first rank—the prophets and the elect among the saints. In
this world, then, each of the people of the second rank, in accordance with the
degree to which he was touched by the light of God’s grace, will be enabled to
seek, strive, and endeavor to follow the prophets and the saints. As
’‘Intuitively (ba zowq): literally, “with taste,” i.e., with
the same immediacy and vividness of perception that is characteristic of the
faculty of taste.
““Qur’an, 89:28.
“’Tradition previously quoted on p. 86.
’“Qur’an, 2:257.
“Qur’an, 35:32.
there was difference among the spirits in each rank with respect to
nearness and remoteness and being on the right or the left, so too a trace of
that difference becomes apparent in the seeking, striving, and endeavoring of
each person. It also affects his finding or not finding.
As each spirit in the second rank found itself facing a spirit in
the first rank—the rank of the spirits of the prophets and the elect among the
saints—so too in this world each person will have more devotion and love for a
certain prophet or saint than the others. Thus the Prophet, upon whom be peace,
said: "Spirits are like armies drawn up: those that are familiar to each
other join together; and those that are unknown to each other diverge.”26
Those who form acquaintance with each other in that world and faced each other
or were near to each other will be correspondingly linked in this world by
acquaintance, familiarity, and affection. If the prophetic or saintly
acquaintance from the other world is not encountered in his physical form, it
is possible to see him in a dream or vision and thus gain succor from him.
In the previous chapter, we compared the seed of the spirits of this
group, the people of the second rank, to the fruit of the date. Even though the
date is tasty and sweet, only its skin is so; the kernel is of no benefit. This
is an indication that even though the place of return of this group is the
highest of the high that is Paradise, and the proximity and closeness of the
prophets and the elect among the saints (“They it is who are in the company of
those to whom God has given His bounty—the prophets, the sincere devotees, the
witnesses and the righteous. How fair is their fellowship!”)27 they
are only with them, and not of them, in the station of immediate proximity—“in
a seat of sincerity, in the presence of a powerful King.”28
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, established the honor of
■Tradition already quoted in part on p. 220.
■’Qur'an, 4:69.
■“Qur'an, 54:55.
companionship for all morzds and lovers[120]
when he said, “Man is with those whom he loves.”[121]
But the high fortune of belonging in unique fashion to the Prophet’s family
went to Salman, that one burned by love—“Salman is one of us, a member of my
house.”[122]
The description of this station and its people will come in the next chapter,
God Willing.
God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
Third Chapter:
Concerning the
Return of the Foremost Soul Which Is the Tranquil Soul
God Almighty said: “O tranquil soul, return to thy Lord, well-
pleased and well-pleasing.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: ‘A
rapturous state bestowed by God is equal to the deeds of men and jinn.”2
Know that the tranquil soul is the soul of the prophets and the
elect among the saints, who were in the first rank in the world of spirits.
Each soul from among the prophets and saints has, however, a different degree
of tranquillity, since each rank contains Companions of the Right, Companions
of the Left, and the foremost, as was previously explained.
Know in truth that from the station of the commanding soul it is
possible to advance to the station of the tranquil soul only through the effect
of the rapturous states bestowed by God and the elixir of the Law. Thus God
said: “Verily the soul commands unto evil, except my Lord be merciful.”3
In the beginning, every soul has the attribute of commandingness,4
even if it be the soul of a prophet or saint, until trained by the Law it
reaches the station of tranquillity, which is the utmost that the human essence
is able to attain, and thus becomes fit to hear the summons, “return!”
The spirit was taken in the beginning from the world of spirits and
joined to the world of bodies, being carried through the different realms of
Kingship and Dominion. Passing through the firmaments, the planets, and the
elements, it left behind the
'Qur’an, 89:28.
“Utterance previously quoted on p. 222 without attribution to the
Prophet. Concerning its possible source, see p. 222, n. 15.
’Qur’an, 12:53.
“Commandingness (ammaragi): i.e., the state wherein the soul
imperiously commands the commission of evil deeds, as indicated in Qur'an,
12:53.
vegetable and animal realms and arrived at the human state, which is
the lowest of the low among all beings. This was described previously, and is
indicated in the verse “Then We caused him to descend to the lowest of the
low.”5 Through the light of faith and righteous deeds, man then
directs himself again to the highest—“except those who believe and do righteous
deeds.”6
Until he perceives the summons “return!” it is, however, impossible
for the light of faith to appear in him so that he may engage in righteous
deeds. But the soul, equipped only with sense perception, has no awareness for
recognizing the summons. There therefore, comes to the mystery7 of
the spirit a secret clothed in the garb of rapturous state. It causes the soul
to avert itself from the attribute of commandingness and brings it to accept
faith and act in accordance with Law. So too the address of “O fire, be cold
and peaceful”8 came to the mystery of the fire, and without the fire
being aware, the address averted it from the attribute of burning and made it
attain the attribute “cold and peaceful.”
From the time that the soul, through the effect of the summons
“return!” turns away from the lowest point that is instinctual nature and
commandingness, it is engaged in advance to the point of return, until
ultimately it reaches the perfection of degree of its unique return—“enter
among My bondsmen and enter My garden.”9 This garden, which has been
honored by God with the possessive “My,” is superior to all other gardens in
the same way that the Ka'ba, similarly honored with the possessive “My,” (“My
house”) is superior to all other mosques. This is a great mystery, not
accessible to every understanding, and the indication it contains cannot be
explained in mere words.
’Qur’an, 105:5.
’Qur’an, 105:6.
’Concerning the "mystery” (serr) as one of the inner
means of perception, see p. 134, n. 9. Insofar as the mystery is presented here
as a part of the spirit instead of an autonomous entity, it appears to signify
the center or core of the spirit.
“Qur’an, 21:69.
“Qur’an, 89:30.
The soul has been given the name “commanding” in the sense that it
is the commander of the bodily frame. The word ammara (commanding) is an
emphatic form, deriving from both amir (commander) and timer (commanding).
That is to say, the soul gives commands and has command. It gives commands that
instinctual nature be obeyed and God’s law be opposed, and it has command over
all the limbs and members, so that they act in accordance with instinctual
nature and the command of the soul. Until the soul bows its head to God’s
command and submits to the Law, it will not escape the attribute of commanding,
for the attributes of commanding and commanded are the opposite of each other.
As long as the soul is commanding, it cannot be commanded; and once it has
become commanded, it will have been delivered from the attribute of commanding.
It is here that the philosophers have fallen into gross error. They
have imagined that the commandingness of the soul derives from its reprehensible
animal attributes, and have therefore exerted themselves in the refinement of
morals and the transformation of attributes, hoping that once the
reprehensible attributes of the soul have been transformed into praiseworthy
attributes, it will advance from the station of commandingness to that of
tranquillity. They were unaware that the attribute of commandingness could not
be removed by such efforts alone, but only by submission to the command of the
Law. They imagined that the Law was needed only for the refinement of morals
and therefore said: “Since we obtain the refinement of morals through the gaze
of the intellect, what need do we have of the Law and the prophets?”
By means of this error Satan carried them off to Hell, for they did
not have the light of true faith to perceive that it is impossible to emerge
from the veil of instinctual nature by means of that same instinctual nature.
If someone should mortify his soul in accordance with his intellect for a
thousand years, so that a thousand different kinds of purity, vision, and
clarity appeared in his soul, and some of the veils deriving from human
attribute were lifted—still all this would make heavier the veils of instinctual
nature and increase the true darkness and blindness of the soul. For previously
when he had no purity or vision he sought it,
knowing that he was in darkness and blindness; but now, fortified
by the trace of purity and vision he has experienced in his soul, he imagines
it to be true purity and vision and ceases his search. This imagining becomes
the most formidable of all veils and increases true blindness. This can be
understood only by a heart strengthened with divine support, when the eye of
the mystery is given vision from God’s light: “The believer gazes with the
light of God.”10
Know in truth that one can escape the nadir of instinctual nature
only by the lasso of the Law, for the Law has a property of rapture inherent
within it; and while nature is darkness the Law is light, and one escapes
darkness through light, for it has been said that “Things are made apparent by
their opposites.”
Whoever is not delivered from the abyss of commandingness by the
light of the Law, which is the form assumed by God’s rapture and the innermost
essence of His mercy, cannot be saved by anything else—“except my Lord be
merciful.”11 The Prophet, upon whom be peace, despite his perfection
of degree as prophet and messenger, was told: "Truly thou guidest not whom
thou desirest.” That is, “thoucanst deliver none from the pit of nature by
thine own nature. Rather, God guides whom He wills.”12 That is, “The
light of Our guidance, which is theessence of rapture, is needed to carry off
through grace the people of nature from their nadir, and to convey them to the
exaltedness of nearness—‘return to thy Lord.’”13
When the soul in this state is to be conveyed by the rapturous
effect of that summons to its place of return and reversion, it must traverse
and revisit all the different realms through which it first passed.
The wisdom implicit in this coming and returning is that the soul
contemplates the three hundred and sixty realms of God, takes hold of the
treasure that is stored in each world, and learns
'“Part of the Tradition previously quoted in full on p. 86.
"Qur’an, 12:53.
'“Qur’an, 28:56.
'’Qur’an, 89:28.
the secret that is deposited there—“and He taught Adam the names,
all of them.”14
For in the beginning the spirit had knowledge of universals and not
of particulars; it had knowledge of the world of the unseen and not of the
manifest world. When it was joined to this world and duly trained and nurtured,
it acquired knowledge of both universals and particulars, and became “knower of
the unseen and manifest”15 as God’s viceregent. In the world of
spirits, it had not had the strength or instruments required for the tasks of
dominical viceregency; it was in this world that it acquired the necessary
strength and instruments, and thus attained the perfection of degree of
viceregency.
When in the beginning the spirit traversed these different realms,
it borrowed something from each, leaving a pledge behind in exchange. On its
return, it is not permitted to pass until it has returned the loan at each
station and reclaimed its pledge.
If thou would escape from this cage,
Return the loan of the seven, the five, and the four.16
It is necessary first to step outside the station of clay, which is
the last stage of this world traversed by the spirit when it is attached to this
world, and the first stage of the hereafter when it returns. It is for this
reason that when someone is buried it is said: “This is the last of the stages
of this world, and the first of the stages of the hereafter.”
As for the dead, they are taken without any choice. But the one who
departs while still alive is he who of himself steps out of the attributes of
clay, not out of the form of clay. The attributes of clay are darkness,
impurity, density, and weight. The
“Qur’an, 2:31.
15“Knower of the unseen and the
manifest" is in the first instance a divine attribute, mentioned ten times
in the Qur’an; man as the viceregent acquires it by way of imitation.
16A line from Sana'i (Divan, p.
182). By “seven" either the seven heavens or the seven layers of the earth
are intended; by five are meant the five senses; and four alludes to the four
qualities of hot, cold, dry, and wet (compared by Rumi to a crucifix to which
man is nailed; see Fthe ma jih, p. 195).
properties of darkness are ignorance and blindness; from the
properties of impurity arise attachment to objects and dependence and reliance
upon them, and also dispersion; from the properties of density arise lack of
mercy and kindliness, and hardheartedness; and from the properties of weight
arise abjectness of nature, ignominy, vileness, lowliness, lack of aspiration,
degradation, apathy, and heaviness of disposition.
The wayfarer has borrowed all these reprehensible attributes from
clay, leaving there as pledge the attributes of generosity, manliness, chivalry,
loftiness of aspiration, pity, mercy, kindliness, knowledge, certainty,
purity, truthfulness, concentration, delicacy and lightness of disposition, and
luminosity. Thus he cannot pass beyond the station of clay until he has
restored the reprehensible attributes, nor can he proceed to his proper realm
until he reclaims and takes with him those other attributes he brought to this
station and left there as pledge.
Similarly, he borrowed other reprehensible attributes from the
remaining three elements—water, fire, and wind—leaving a praiseworthy attribute
as pledge for each of them. The same is true for the firmaments and planets and
all the realms he traversed.
When the wayfarer has restored all his loans and reclaimed all his
pledges and returned to his original home, he is appointed to the kingship of
viceregency. Equipped with the cloak of honor of deputyhood and the charter of
mastery, he is made king over all the realms of the unseen and manifest worlds,
and the reins of kingship are entrusted to the hands of his rule: “Say, O God,
possessor of kingship! Thou give kingship to whom Thou wish, and Thou take
kingship from whom Thou wish.”17
Once he has become king over all realms, whatever he had previously
borrowed and then been obliged to return becomes his property, and he disposes
of it as its rightful owner. As deputy and viceregent of God, he sets all the
realms of the unseen and manifest worlds to work in servitude, and brings them
to confess the truth at the threshold of the assertion of His unity.
'’Qur’an, 3:26.
Put a ring in the ear of the heavens and planets, So they
acknowledge their servitude to thee.
All creation is largesse scattered over thee;
Do not, like the lowly, gather up scattered largesse.
When he becomes the intimate of God, and experiences again the taste
of proximity and the dignity of viceregency, he says—
A lightning flash, appearing over Sanaa, Tells me of the graveyard
and its nearness.
Yet I am not content with the plain as my homeland, For I see my
abode to be above the pole stars.
How should I be a slave to the worms,
When the four elements are my handmaidens?
Those who travel this path are of two kinds: the wayfarers and those
whom God draws to Himself. The latter are those who are drawn by the lasso of
rapturous states and caused to traverse swiftly the different stations of the
path, impelled by the dominance of ardor.18 They receive little
awareness of the states of the path or knowledge of its stations, nor have they
any great share in the unveiling of the dangers of the path, and the good and
the evil, the benefit and the harm, that are to be had on the path. They are
therefore not suitable to act as shaikh and exemplar.
The wayfarer is he who, although drawn by the lasso of rapturous
states, is caused tranquilly and gradually to traverse each station with the
utmost thoroughness and care, with the states of good and evil, soundness and
corruption, that are attendant on the path all displayed to him. He is
sometimes advanced on the path, and sometimes diverted from it, so that he will
be fully aware both of the path and of diversion, and thus be fit to guide and
lead others.
Although the science of knowing this path is without limit and its
stations are innumerable, we will set forth a specimen and indication of what
is displayed in visions to the wayfarer at each station, so that our account
may serve as a guide, a touch-
18Ardor (sowq): “the need of
the heart for meeting with its beloved” (JorjanI, Ketab al-ta'rifat, p.
135).
stone, and a model for the knowledge of the path and its signs and
wayposts.
When in the beginning the wayfarer traverses the station of the
attributes of clay, he sees himself in visions emerging from slopes, alleys,
pits, and dark places, and passing by ruins, derelict places, mounds, and
mountains. Heaviness and density disappear, and lightness and subtlety appear
within him.
When in the second stage he traverses the attributes of water, he
sees himself passing through verdure, meadows, trees, fields, flowing water,
springs, ponds, seas, and the like.
When in the third stage he traverses the attributes of air, he sees
himself walking on air, flying, running, walking on the heights, crossing
valleys in flight, and so forth.
When in the fourth stage he traverses the attributes of fire, he
sees lamps, candles, torches, flashes of lightning, tinder, flames, fields and
valleys filled with fire, and the like.
When in the fifth stage he traverses the attributes of the firmaments
and the heavenly bodies, he sees himself walking and flying in the air,
ascending from one heaven to the next, rotating the firmament and the heavens,
and so forth.
When in the sixth stage he traverses the malakut of the
planets and the stars, he sees the stars, the moon, the sun, lights, and things
resembling these.
When in the seventh stage he traverses the animal attributes,
whatever attribute he is to pass through, bestial or predatory, appears to him
in the form of some suitable animal. If he sees himself dominant and victorious
over the animal, it is a sign of his traversing the attribute and gaining
victory over it; if he sees himself a captive to the animal or afraid of it, it
is a sign of the victory or dominance of the attribute over his soul.19
All these degrees relate merely to one of the different realms
>9Cf. p. 291.
that have been mentioned. The wayfarer must pass through all the
remaining several thousand realms, and in each appropriate witnessings and
visions will appear to him. It sometimes happens that a single kind of vision
is seen at several stations; in each case, it bears a different significance
appropriate to the station.
Not everyone can perceive these differences and variations; they can
be distinguished only by the perfect shaikh. Since the wayfarer is not versed
in visions, he is hampered by them and unable to proceed on the path. This is
one of the reasons for the need of a shaikh.
For example, fire is to be seen at. several stations, and it has a
different meaning at each. Sometimes it may be a sign of traversing an
attribute of fire; sometimes it may be a sign of the ardor of the quest;
sometimes it may be a sign of the dominance of the attribute of anger;
sometimes it may be a sign of the dominance of the attribute of devilry;
sometimes it may be the light of zekr, appearing in igneous form;
sometimes it may be the fire of longing that effaces all human attributes;
sometimes it may be the fire of wrath; and sometimes it may be the fire of
guidance, as it was with Moses, upon whom be peace—“He perceived a fire from
the side of the mountain.”20 Sometimes it may be the fire of love
that bums all other than God; sometimes it may be the fire of gnosis—“Though
the fire has not touched it, light upon light. God guides to His light whom
Hewills”;21 sometimes it may be the fire of sainthood—“God is the
protector of those who believe; He brings them forth from darkness into light”;22
sometimes it may be the fire of witnessing—“Blessed is he who is in the fire
and he who stands near to it.”23 There are also other types of fire
which only an experienced shaikh can distinguish. Other visions and the
differences between them may be deduced by analogy from the foregoing.
When human souls begin to traverse these stations, each soul
’•Qur’an, 28:29.
!1Qur’an, 24:35.
22Qur’an, 2:257.
’’Qur’an, 27:8.
reaches the station for which it is fitted by virtue of capacity and
the dominical support that it receives, and attains the degree for which it was
suited in the world of spirits—reproachfulness, inspiration, or tranquillity.
Becoming tied to its station, it says: “None among us but with a fixed station”24
and exclaims, “Were I to draw nearer by the length of a finger, I would be
burned.”25
For the summit of Mount Qaf is not the station for every bird; for
that, a Slmorg26 is needed. Nor can every bird make its nest on top
of the candle; for that, a crazed moth is needed. Nor is every carrion crow fit
for the king’s arm; for that, a white falcon is needed.
If you pollute your wings with carrion like the crow, How can you be
worthy of the king like the falcon?
If you are but food for the hawk like the sparrow, How can you perch
on the king’s arm like the hawk?
Even though the peacock has beauty to perfection, the nightingale a
thousand different melodies, and the parrot a human tongue, they are suited
only to be gazed on in pleasure. When life must be sacrificed to the beauty of
the flame, it is only the crazed moth that is fit for the task; the intelligent
are fit only to watch.
Enter not the trap—thou art not bird for this seed.
Reach not for the candle—thou art not a moth.
Crazed is he who goes seeking us;
Seek us then not—thou art not crazed.
O soul, O world! Those who were created to be companions in the
assembly of intimacy and attendants in the station of proximity, who are the
people of attainment and union, the possessors of grace and favor—in this world
they are hidden beneath the domes of God’s jealous pride: “My saints are beneath
My domes; none knows them but I.”2’ They are perplexed
’“Qur’an, 37:164.
25Uiterance of Gabriel during the
Prophet’s ascension. See p. 84, n. 32.
'“Concerning Mount Qaf and the Slmorg, see p. 141, n. 30.
^Hadis qodsi previously quoted on p.
235.
in state and distraught in speech, exceedingly indigent, empty-
handed and powerless. It is to them that the words “many a dusty and disheveled
one clad in rags”28 refer:
They it is who have taken hold of my heart, They whose locks are
disheveled.
The promise “those patient in their poverty shall sit with God on
the Day of Resurrection”29 is addressed to them, for their hearts
are distraught.
Was ever a heart more distraught than this, Or a vision more
disordered than this?
Whoever saw in the world a wanderer
Afflicted and luckless, more bewildered than this?
They are those who have been brought forth by the lasso of divine
rapture from their they-ness, to whose palate all the pleasures and passions of
the soul, all the caprices and desires of humanity, have been made bitter, and
who have been given to drink at another source.
We who are fed by the hand of the spirit, Why should we eat the
salt-meat of spiders?
Their hearts gain no tranquillity from all that lies between east
and west, nor from all that the two worlds contain, but only from the
remembrance of God’s favor—“Only in the remembrance of God do hearts attain
tranquillity.”30 Has it not been said that the languor of
drunkenness can be cured only by wine? Their heads are still giddy from tasting
the wine of the address of “am I not your Lord?”31 and they have
recited to all beings the verse, “say ALLAH, then leave them.”32
■'Part of a hadis qodsi, the remainder of which reads: “if he
were to swear in My name, I would respond to him."
"Tradition reported with a different wording by Ja'far b.
Mohammad al-'Alavi.
’“Qur’an, 13:28.
’•Qur’an, 7:171.
’■Qur’an, 6:91.
We are
still drunk on the wine of alast,33 Intoxicated by the pact
of alast.
With prayer rug, scripture, and litany in the
cell, We are still drinkers of dregs, reckless worshippers of wine!
Their station is continually in the tavern of being, and their
goblet is ceaselessly filled to the brim with the wine of witnessing. The
bounty of all eight paradises is not worthy to be served as a morsel at the
assembly of those tavern frequenters, for it was made to be plenteous fodder in
the stable of the inspired and reproachful souls—"Ye shall have there all
that the souls desire and all that delights the eyes.”34 None of it
bestows tranquillity upon the tranquil soul, and there is sent to it instead,
from the banquet of “I sleep in the presence of my Lord, Who feeds me and gives
me to drink,”35 the viand of “return to thy Lord.”36
A
falcon fit for the arm of a king Never sullies its beak with carrion.
Set
free from self, it sits on the king’s arm, Waiting on every command that he
issues.
No, No! What place is there for words such as these? "Those to
whom the good has gone forth from us, they are far removed therefrom.”37
His birds do not condescend to accept the degree of falconhood, counting that
station a mere game. Even though the falcon be pure white, how might it
resemble the lifesacrificing moth? The falcon hunts down the life of its prey;
what concern does the moth have with life? The falcon is a hunter from whom no
prey escapes with its life; the moth is a lover who escaping his life wins the
prize of the beloved.
Gabriel and Michael were the white falcons in the hunting grounds of
the realm of Dominion, hunting the birds of glorifi-
^Alasto: “am I not (your Lord)?”
(Qur’an, 7:171), the words that inaugurated the primordial covenant. See p. 35,
n. 7.
’“Qur’an,
43:71.
’’Tradition
previously quoted on p. 222.
’“Qur’an,
89:28.
’’Qur’an,
21:101.
cation and exaltation: "We proclaim Thy praise and sanctify
Thee.”38 But when in their hunting they came upon the attributes of
the beauty and splendor of Eternal Besoughtness,39 they drew in
their wings and pinions and abandoned prey and the hunt: "Were I to
approach by a finger’s length, I would burn.”40
When the bird flew there, it laid down its wing;
When the demon reached there, it laid down its head.
God then said to them: “In the hunting grounds of pre-etemity We
have snared a hunter in the trap of ‘He shall love them’;41 and We
will now bring him to this trapping place—‘truly I am about to appoint a
viceregent on earth’42—so that hecanshowyou the true way to hunt.”
I shall dive in the deep sea—
Either drown, or bring forth a pearl.
Thou would cast me in danger—I accept, And shall end with a face or
neck reddened by thee.43
They all said: “If this hunter should excel us in hunting, and
snatch up from the field the ball of primacy with the stick of true meaning; if
he should do that which we cannot do, and catch a prey that eludes us—then we
will gird the loins of our soul to serve him, and consent with heart and soul
to fall prostrate before him.”
From the Glorious Presence came an address, saying: "Beware!
If you see him fitted with the small, feeble wings of ‘man was created weak,’44
do not look upon him with the eye of disdain, for if you do, you will have
disapproved of My creation. Do not be proud on account of your own angelic
wings, for in truth
’'Qur’an, 2:30.
’’Eternal Besoughtness (famadiyat): see p. 217, n. 70.
MSee n. 25 above.
4'Qur’an, 5:54.
«Qur’an, 2:30.
43A quatrain of Majd al-Dln Bagdadl,
composed by him in evident anticipation of his martyrdom. See Jami, Nafahdt
al-ons, p. 426, and Bertel’s, “Chetverosti- shiya Sheikha Madhzhd ad-Dina
Bagdadi,’’ p. 337.
’’Qur’an, 4:27.
We are his wings, and only We are fitted to be his wings. ‘We have
carried them on land and on sea.’45 He flies toward Us, hence it is
with Our wings that he flies.”
Only Thy hand can run through Thy tress;
Only Thy foot can hasten toward Thee.
My eye has ceased to covet Thy face, For only Thine eye can look on
Thy face.
“Whoever flies toward Our presence is of necessity flying with Our
wings; see then what prey he captures when he opens his wings!”
When the gnat flies in the court of Thy dwelling, It captures a prey
the falcon cannot.
When the tranquil soul—the soul of the foremost, “those who are
foremost in good deeds”—46 was dispatched to fly off and hunt with
the order “return!” and sent to seek its prey throughout all creation, it did
not find a single gazelle in the area of all seven climes worthy of its claws,
nor a single dove in the air of all eight paradises fit for its beak. Thus this
feeble one says—
I was a falcon flown down from on high To snatch some prey up to the
heavens.
Yet none did I find here to share in the secret
And I left once more by the door that I came.
Like a crazed moth it passed by everything, and set its face to the
prey of union with the candle of His splendor; disdaining its figurative being,
it tired of its existence, and despaired of its soul.
Each moment I tire anew of my being, And long anew for union with
that beauty.
When the moth of my heart sees the candle of thy face, It disdains
both worlds in its madness.
’’Qur’an, 17:80.
’’Qur'an, 35:32.
When the moth disdains its own head, then surely It deserves a
thousand favors of the candle.
First the moth places its soul in the palm of its hand, And then
sets forth to embrace the candle.
Heedless it continued on its way, passing beyond the seven heavens
and eight paradises. All the sublime host placed the finger of astonishment in
the mouth of amazement, and wondered what bird this was that, for all its
feebleness, was so demanding and harsh to itself: “Truly he was extremely
oppressive, extremely ignorant.”47 It was as if he was saying to
them: “I am that bird that had not yet flown from the threshold of the nest of
the divine inhalation, nor become prisoner in the cage of the bodily frame,
when you loosed upon it, from the bow of reproach, the arrows of ‘wilt Thou
appoint there one who shall cause corruption and bloodshed?’ You took pride in
your hunting—‘and we proclaim Thy praise’48—and knew not that
On the battlements of His magnificence are birds
Whose prey is angels, who hunt prophets, who capture God the
Glorious.
“Now behold my hunting, watch the corruption and bloodshed that I
cause! I shed blood, but from the throat of my own being, on the threshold of
God’s might; I cause corruption, but through overthrowing my being and
sacrificing my soul to the Beauteous Presence.”
The day that Thou stitched the cloak of my being, They said in
objection, the people of being,
“Why make Thou a shedder of blood?” Know well, Indeed I shed blood,
but from the throat of being.
He flew on swift-paced, finally reaching the frontier of place-
lessness. The sublime host said: “He is a creature of place; he cannot travel
in placelessness. Inevitably his head will collide with the wall of
helplessness.” The Mighty Presence then addressed their mystery saying: “Did I
not tell you that ‘verily I
“’Qur’an, 33:72.
““Qur’an, 2:30.
know that which ye know not’?49 Do you still unsheathe
the sword of denial, and refuse to drop the shield in helplessness?”
Why dost thou deny the state of the heartbumed? Not all lack that
which thou lack.
That moth, ready to sacrifice its own soul and overthrow its own
being, said: "Do not blame them, for the ignorant are excused.”
We are not shamed by reproach for thy love, We have no quarrel with
the ignorant of love.
This drink of loverhood is given only to men;
The unmanly have no share in the goblet of love.
They did not know what the customs were of that qalandar-like moth.50
The ways of the qalandar and the customs of gambling I first
brought to this city, fair friend!
When the moth reached the environs of the pavilion of the rays of
the candle of Splendor, a flame was sent forth to meet it as chamberlain. When
the moth saw the chamberlain, it lost all awareness of self and threw its arms
around the neck of the chamberlain. When it looked again, it saw that it had
lost its wings. Since it had now lost its transient and figurative wings, in
accordance with the rule that “whoever cometh with a good deed shall receive
ten times as much,”51 the chamberlain of the flame, acting as the
tongue of the candle, bestowed upon it true and abiding wings from that tongue.
Thus he became able to fly in the broad sky of the ipseity of the candle, and
from the bird of duality shed the blood of otherness on the threshold of unity.
Causing its own being to perish, the moth then fled from its own being to the
being of the candle—“Flee then to God.”52 It took flight from itself
and sought refuge in the candle. It became
’“Qur’an, 2:30.
^Qalandar: see p. 100, n. 19.
“'Qur’an, 6:160.
“’Qur'an, 51:50.
nonexistent in it, and nonbeing was absorbed into being. When it
lost its being in the being of the candle, it abolished both fear of Hell and
hope of Paradise.
Finally we have traversed the seven finnaments, Finally we have
passed beyond heaven and hell.
Both Thy Thou-ness and our we-ness are sacrificed;
O Friend, finally Thou art become we, we are become Thee!
Such is the property of God’s rapture, and the meaning of God’s
command, “Enter My garden.”53
This is the description of the group that, in accordance with the
command of “die before you die,” have died a true death before the occurrence
of material death. Since they have died before death, God has given them life
before resurrection, and made His Divine Presence their place of return and
reversion: “Then He will give you life again; and then unto Him ye will return.
”54 They reside in this world in outward appearance, but in reality
they have transcended the eight paradises. “Thou see the mountains and think
them firmly fixed, but they shall pass as the clouds pass—such is God’s
artistry.”55 This is the return of the tranquil soul, and the
meaning of God’s command, “Return to thy Lord.”
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
’’Qur’an, 89:30.
’’Qur’an, 2:28.
’’Qur’an, 27:88.
Fourth Chapter:
Concerning the Return
of the Most Wretched Soul, Which Is the Commanding Soul
God Almighty said: ‘As for him who exceeds the bounds and prefers
the life of this world, hellfire shall be his abode.”1
He said too: “None shall kindle it but the most wretched, who calls
the truth lies and turns away.”2
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “The
garden is surrounded with things disapproved and the fire is surrounded with
the passions.”3
Know that those who voyage on the path of return belong to two
groups: the felicitous and the wretched. Each group has a foot on which it
advances, and a highway on which it travels. Each too has a place of return
that it reaches in accordance with its foot and its highway.
As for the felicitous, they comprise two groups, the elect and the
commonalty. The commonalty attain Paradise and its degrees as their place of
return, traveling on the foot of opposition to the soul and its caprice and the
abandonment of passion and pleasure, along the highway of obedience to the
command of the Law and the following of the Sunna: ‘As for him who fears the
standing before his Lord and forbids caprice to his soul, the garden shall be
his abode.”4 The elect attain as their place of return “a seat of
sincerity,”5 in the station of immediate proximity, after traveling
on the foot of “He shall love them” along the highway of “they shall love Him.”6
“The Godfearing will be in the midst of gardens and rivers, in a seat of
sincerity, in the
'Qur’an, 79:38.
'Qur’an, 92:15.
“Tradition recorded by Moslem, Abu Da'Qd, TermezI, Nasa’I, DaremI
and Ebn Hanbal.
“Qur’an, 79:40.
“Qur'an, 54:55.
“Qur’an, 5:57.
presence of a monarch omnipotent.”’ This has already been described.
As for the wretched, they also comprise two groups: the wretched and
the most wretched. The wretched are certain rebellious sinners in the Muslim
community who are steadfast in conforming to the caprice of the soul and
insistent on contravening God’s command. They reach hellfire and its lowly
degrees as their place of return, after traveling on the foot of untrameled
indulgence in the pleasures and passions of the soul, along the highway of
rebellion against God: ‘As for him who exceeds the bounds and prefers the life
of this world, hellfire shall be his abode.”8 Hence too the Prophet,
upon whom be peace, said: "The fire is surrounded with the passions.” On
another occasion he said: “It is mosdy two hollow things that cast my community
into the fire: the mouth and the pudenda.”9 That is, eating with the
mouth what is illicit, or going to excess in eating what is licit; and
satisfying passion illicitly with the pudenda, or falling into the illicit—into
different forms of oppression and corruption—for the sake of satisfaction that
is licit in itself.
As for the most wretched, this is the attribute of the hypocrite
and the unbeliever, who have given themselves fully to seeking this world and
its enjoyments; who like beasts have devoted their entire aspiration to full
indulgence in carnal and animal pleasures, passions, and enjoyments; who have
turned their backs on religion and its practice, and the hereafter; who have
lost abiding bliss for the sake of transient enjoyment; and who have totally
lost the hereafter without fully gaining this world—“He who wishes the tillage
of this world, We shall give him a portion of it; but in the hereafter he will
be shareless.”10
The difference between the wretched and the most wretched is this:
Even though the soul of the wretched is afflicted with the wretchedness of
rebellion against God and opposition to His command, still his heart beats with
the felicity of the acceptance of faith and submission to His command.
'Qur’an, 54:55.
“Qur’an, 79:38.
“Second half of a Tradition recorded by Bokarl, TermezI, and Ebn
Hanbal. '“Qur’an, 42:20.
Even though I never passed by the gate to Thy dwelling, I never
foreswore the gate to Thy dwelling.
The wretched has attained the good fortune of confessing the truth
with his tongue and confirming it with his heart, even though he does not
fulfill the pillars of the faith. When he enters hellfire in accordance with
God’s threat—“as for those who are wretched, they shall be in the fire: there,
sighing and sobbing shall be theirs, and they shall dwell therein as long as
heavens and earth endure”—his profession of faith, la elaha elld’llah,
and the intercession of Mohammad, the Messenger of God, will not leave him
there, on account of the exception God made—“except as thy Lord willeth.”11
He will be delivered in the end, and his ultimate place of return will be
Paradise.
According to an authentic Tradition, some men shall be brought forth
from hellfire like burned firewood, and then plunged in the River of Life.
Flesh and skin shall grow on them, and they shall come forth with countenances
like the moon on its fourteenth night, and an inscription on their foreheads
reading, "These it is whom God has set free from the fire.”12
As for the most wretched, he it is who remains eternally and
abidingly in hell. There is no light of la elaha elld’llah in him to
save him, nor does he qualify for the intercession of Mohammad, the Messenger
of God. Eternity in hell is reserved for such a person. Thus God says: “None
shall kindle it but the most wretched, who calls the truth lies and turns
away.”13 The believer may pass by hellfire—"not one of you but
shall pass by it”14—but he does not kindle it. Kindling is for the
most wretched—“None shall kindle it but the most wretched.” Elsewhere God says:
"He shall kindle a blazing fire.”15
For each group of the people of lewdness, rebellion, unbelief, and
accursedness, there is in hellfire and its lowly ranks a sepa-
"Qur'an, 11:107.
‘Tradition recorded by Termez! and Ebn Maja.
■’Qur’an, 92:15.
“Qur’an, 19:71.
■’Qur’an, 111:3.
rate station and place of return, differing in accordance with their
modes of behavior. Thus the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said concerning Abu
Taleb: “Verily Abu Taleb is in the mildest part of the fire.”16 That
is, Abu Taleb is in the first rank of hellfire: only the soles of his feet are
in the fire, even though his brain is boiling in his head on account of the
heat. Whereas God said concerning the hypocrites: “Verily the hypocrites are in
the lowest rank of the fire.”17
There are different types of unbelief, and also different types of
hypocrisy, and each has a certain path and definite place of return. Those
whose unbelief is founded on imitation differ from those whose unbelief is
founded on investigation, in the same way that those who believe by imitation
differ from those who believe by investigation. By the same token that the
faith of the investigator is superior to the faith of the imitator, the torment
of the unbeliever by investigation will exceed that of the unbeliever by
imitation.
Unbelief through imitation is that which is acquired from mother and
father by way of imitation—“We found our fathers following a religion.”18
Whatever the unbelievers saw and heard of different faiths, among the people of
their city and country, and from their mothers and fathers, they adopted by way
of imitation, and through accursedness stayed with it. They will be in the
first rank of Hell.
Unbelief by investigation consists of this, that the unbeliever is
not content with what he has received from his mother and father by way of
imitation. He toils and troubles in an attempt to find proofs; spends a whole
lifetime in studying the sciences of unbelief; constantly reads books; engages
in ascetic struggle and self-mortification; and strives to purify his soul in
order to meditate on rational proofs and evidences. He ends by acquiring
'“Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, and Ebn Hanbal. Abu Taleb
was the paternal uncle of the Prophet, but despite his devotion to his nephew
he never embraced Islam.
17Qur’an, 4:144.
'“Qur'an, 43:22.
only doubts, so that he denies the Maker, or admits only a defective
Maker.19
Thus he will say that the Maker does not have free will, or
knowledge of particularities, and that He is not the creator of the world in
the sense of having summoned it from the void and endowed it with being. The
Maker is rather a mover, a cause; and the world, the effect produced by Him.
And the priority of the cause over the effect is not temporal. By this they
mean to say that the world is uncreated and eternal, not subject to transience,
and that God is unable to efface this world and incapable of creating another.
Satan adorns these and similar articles of unbelief, and their soul deceives
them into imagining that the perfection of knowledge, and wisdom lies in these
thoughts. Whoever does not hold their opinion is a mere imitator and blind, and
in his imitation has placed his hand in the hand of those who stumble along on
a stick—namely, the prophets, upon whom be peace.
They say that the prophets were sages, and all that they said was
philosophy, but that they were obliged to speak to the ignorant in accordance
with their capacity and understanding. They therefore pretended to them to be
God’s messengers, saying: “Gabriel comes to us bringing God’s message, and has
brought us a book from God.” But in reality the books are their own
composition, and it is the prophets who have established the ordinances of the
Law for the sake of benefiting men’s lives in accordance with the principles of
philosophy. All that they said to men was an allegory they conceived, by means
of which they intended to convey something different. Thus Gabriel consisted of
the active intelligence, and Michael of the derived intelligence, both of them
proceeding from the emanation of the universal intelligence, and acquiring
from it rational truths that they then transmitted to the perceiving soul and
the rational soul.
They both invent themselves corrupt fancies, imaginings, and
19The following paragraphs constitute
another attack by Daya on the Hellenizing philosophers for their
rationalizingdeviation from scriptural orthodoxy. The major objections he
raises are those made at greater length by Gazall in his Tahafot
al-faldseja, a work probably known to Daya.
oubts, and accept those that others have invented. For. they are
conforming to the caprice of the soul, and the soul is an unbeliever in its
original disposition: “Truly the soul commands unto evil.”20 When
the soul hears these doubts raised, with apparently rational proofs and
evidences, it embraces them with heart and soul. "Sann found Tabaqa compatible.”21
As acceptance of these articles of unbelief appears in the soul, the denial of
religion and Law will increase. Thus acceptance of unbelief and the denial of
religion are two steps by means of which the soul may attain its ultimate goal,
the lowest of the low that is hellfire: “Two steps, and you’ll be there.”
This disaster has become widespread among Muslims today, for many
ignorant ones have engaged in the study of these sciences, calling them
"the science of the principles of religion”22 so that none
should become aware of the vileness of their beliefs and the evil of their
deeds. Many are the immature students who, devoid of insight into the sciences
of religion and without much light from the world of certainty, set out with
the desire to acquire knowledge and undertake journeys, and then, through ill-
fortune and God’s curse, fall into the company of some cryptophilosopher. That
species of knowledge is then placed before them; the articles of unbelief are
gradually adorned to their view; and the acquisition of that knowledge and
belief in that irreligion and misguidance, which they have called “philosophy”
’’Qur’an, 12:53.
’•An Arabic proverb signifying the affinity of the perverse and
abnormal. It is said that a man named Sann, in his search for a wife, would
pose a series of obscure riddles to all prospective brides; it was finally a
woman named Tabaqa who was able to answer them (see al-Maydanl, Majma'
al-amsal, II, pp. 211- 212).
’’"The science of the principles of religion” felm-e osul-e
din): another designation for kalam, dialectic theology, "the
science of the credal bases of the Law, deduced from rational proofs"
(JorjanI, Ketab al-ta'rifat, p. 194). Insofar as the concern of kalam
is the rational discussion of metaphysical and cosmological matters, and its
methods of argument are largely derived from Greek logic, there is a certain
similarity of content and method between kalam and philosophy, despite
differences of emphasis and conclusion. Philosophy might therefore be carried on
in the guise of kalam, and the inexperienced would be unable to unmask
the fraud. Hence Daya’s warning against a subject which is in itself licit. It
may be noted that for similar reasons Gazall also counseled the commonalty
against cultivating kalam; see his Eljam al-' awamm 'an 'elm al-kaldm
(Cairo, 1309/1891).
and “the principles of religion,” is made sweet to their hearts.
Those inexperienced wretches, unaware of the truths of religion and the
stations of the people of certainty, embrace this unbelief, and their souls
are deceived by it and take delight in it, saying: "We shall join the
people of investigation, and be freed of imitation.” Indeed they shall be the
people of investigation, but in unbelief; and they shall be freed of imitation,
but the imitation of faith.
In the faith of every hapless simpleton who takes up the company of
one of these men, on account of their pestilential breath and exhalations, a
thousand kinds of doubt, uncertainty, deficiency, and damage will appear. Many
are those who have a soul predisposed to such unbelief, and they therefore
accept it by way of imitation, completely leaving the fold of Islam. The inauspiciousness
of their evil belief then infects others, just as when a mange-ridden camel
appears in the herd, a new camel will be afflicted with mange every day.
Concern for religion is not laying hold of the skirt of any
monarch’s soul, so that he might attempt to repulse the disaster and repair the
damage it has caused. It is in roughly the last twenty years that this disaster
has appeared and gained strength, for in previous ages none of this group had
the temerity to divulge his opinions. They all concealed their unbelief, for
there were God-fearing leaders in the sphere of religion, as well as pious
monarchs who guarded religion against such pollution.
In this age only a few God-fearing leaders have survived to care for
religion and respectfully call the attention of kings to the damage caused by
unbelief, so that they might undertake its repair. It is therefore to be feared
as a matter of course that the empty chatter concerning religion which is still
heard from some mouths will disappear, and the whole world will be submerged
in the chatter of unbelief. That which is the reality of Islam will not remain
in men's hearts, and nothing of the faith will remain on their tongues except mas
a’ A lldh.23 It is on account of these inauspicious
circumstances that God Almighty has sent
25
Masa' Allah:
“what God has willed,” an exclamation of wonderment made when beholding
anything pleasing.
His wrath and anger.in the shape of the unbelieving Tartars, so that
the reality of Islam having disappeared, He may also overturn the meaningless
forms that remain. What end will this affair take, do you say? Each day now,
the cunning guile and dominance of those accursed ones increase, and so too the
neglect and sinfulness of the people of Islam, which is the cause for all this
corruption: “Corruption appeared on the land and the sea on account of what
men’s hands had earned.”24
Bitter wine still remains in the goblet;
Let us see what finally befalls it.
God’s is all rule; to Him we belong, and we are content with His
decree.
There are different forms of hypocrisy also: hypocrisy in Islam, and
hypocrisy in unbelief.
As for hypocrisy in Islam, it is that which the Prophet, upon whom
be peace, described in an authentic Tradition: “There are three characteristics
which when found in a person show him to be a hypocrite. If he has one of them,
then he has one characteristic of hypocrisy until he abandons it, even though
he fasts, prays, and claims to be a Muslim. When he speaks, he lies; when he
gives a promise, he breaks it; and when he is given a trust, he betrays it.”25
In another version of this Tradition, two other characteristics are
also mentioned as belonging to hypocrisy: “When he concludes an agreement, he
violates it; and when he falls into enmity, he vilifies.”
Such are the dealings of the hypocrites among the people of Islam.
In reality, this and similar Traditions are a threat and severe warning to the
Muslims, for few are those who escape these characteristics. The Prophet, upon
whom be peace, used to say in supplicatory prayer: “O God! I take refuge in
Thee from dissension, hypocrisy, and evil morals.” It is far more incumbent on
us to recite this prayer constantly.
"Qur’an, 30:41.
“Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Termezi, and Ebn Hanbal.
As for hypocrisy in unbelief, it is that which is practiced by the
philosophers, materialists, naturalists, metempsychosists, antinomians, and
heretics. When they are among the Muslims they say, “we are Muslims,” whereas
in reality they adhere to those articles of unbelief and doubt that have been
described. When they are among their own kind, they divulge their true beliefs
and say: "We mock the imitators with our claim to be Muslim.” God Almighty
has foretold their state: "When they meet those who believe, they say, ‘we
have accepted faith,’ but when they are alone with their devils, they say, ‘we
are with you in truth; we were but jesting.’ God it is that mocks them, and He
gives them rope in their trespass, so they wander in blindness.”26 Every
unbeliever who conceals his unbelief and claims with his tongue to be Muslim
belongs to this group. The place of return and reversion of the hypocrites is
as God described: "Verily the hypocrites are in the lowest degree of the
fire; and thou shalt find for them no helper.”27
Who truly appreciates the good fortune of Islam, and who can give
due thanks for the bounty of faith?
O Thou whose dwelling is the qebla of the fortunate,
To whom are turned the hearts of all the joyous!
Should one today avert his face from Thee, What eye will be left him
to behold Thee tomorrow?
Considering the several thousand disasters that beset the path of
man and the different kinds of affliction with which he is tried, how would he
escape the trap of the world, adorned with “made fair-seeming for men,” where
he is firmly fettered with the bonds of "the love of passion,” were it not
for the aid and succor given him by the gaze of God’s grace? Remember that from
one end to the other of this trap have been scattered the seven seeds of
“women, offspring, hoards heaped up of gold and silver, horses branded, cattle
and tillage”;28 and were there to be only one of these different
kinds of seed, still man’s beastlike soul would incline to it.
’’Qur’an, 2:14.
’’Qur’an, 4:144.
’’Qur’an, 3:14.
Only one seed was prohibited to Adam, upon whom be peace, with all
his honor and rank—“approach not this tree”29—yet when self-restraint
was not granted him, he fell into the trap of rebellion and forgetfulness:
"and Adam rebelled against his Lord and erred.”30 When God left
Adam to himself, his attribute was "and Adam rebelled”; and when He raised
him up with His favor, his description became “He chose Adam.”31
Paradise was Adam’s place of enjoyment—"Ye shall have there all that the
souls desire”32—but when favor was not granted him, his place of
enjoyment became a trap. Eblls snared two prey with a single seed— "Satan
caused them to err.”33 So too the world was a trap for Adam, but
when favor was granted him, it became a place of enjoyment: With the single
word of "O Lord, we have wronged ourselves,”34 he attained the
joy of "then He chose him.”35 When the fullness of God’s favor
was withheld from Adam for an hour, he could not endure for an instant; but
when it was granted to him, no regret endured.
Our shaikh, Majd al-mella va’l-dln,36 may God sanctify
his cherished soul, said:
No slave there is that despairs of Thy favor;
None accepted by Thee but gains eternal good fortune. No atom
touched by Thy favor an instant
But becomes more precious than a thousand suns.
In truth, all the chains and fetters that were forged in this trap
for the wretched and the most wretched were made from the material of the seven
worldly goods—"Those are the goods of the life of this world.” Each low
degree of Hell that was fashioned for this class was made from material
obtained in the shop "made fair-seeming for men.”37 Seven gates
were opened onto
“Qur’an, 2:35.
“Qur’an, 20:121.
’’Qur’an, 3:33.
’2Qur’an, 43:71.
’’Qur’an, 2:36.
“Qur’an, 7:22.
“Qur’an, 20:122.
’6I.e., Majd al-Dln Bagdad!; his expanded title means
"glory of the community and the religion.”
’’Qur’an, 3:14.
hellfire from the seven passions (“it has seven gates”)38—and
seven highways, consisting of the various passions, were laid out, leading to
Hell’s low degrees: "The fire is surrounded with the passions.”39
The seeds of these seven passions were sown in man’s seven members, and the
five senses were entrusted with their cultivation until, after a period of
fifteen years,40 the fruit of passion appeared on the tree to which
each seed had given rise. Then the bringer of the Law was sent to deal with
that tree, and he imposed the tribute of prostration on each member: “I was
commanded to prostrate myself on seven members.”41 He also
instructed man to use the fruits of those trees as the seed of felicity in the
hereafter, and to sow them in the soil of servitude with the hand of the Law—"The
world is the tillage of the hereafter.”42
The solicitude of the Lord of Splendor and His unending grace, at
the very beginning of being, caused some men to advance toward the lofty
degrees of Paradise, drawn on by the reins of "those who feared their Lord
shall be led,”43 along the highway of “as for him who fears the
standing before his Lord,” and traveling on the foot of "he forbade
caprice to his soul,”44 to the place of return of "the garden
is their abode.”45 Similarly, His exalted might and disdainful
severity, at the origin of creation, caused another group to hasten under the
wrathful lash of “those who believed not shall be led,”46 along the
highway of “as for him who exceeds all bounds,”47 traveling on the
foot of “and prefers the life of this world,”48 to the place of
return of "hellfire is their abode.”49 “These are in Paradise,
and I care not; these others are in Hell, and I care not.”50
“Qur’an, 15:44.
“Part of the Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
■“Fifteen is the age of legal accountability (mokallafiyat),
when the performance of the ritual duties becomes incumbent.
■'Tradition previously quoted on p. 210.
■Tradition previously quoted on p. 93.
■’Qur’an, 39:73.
’■Qur’an, 79:40.
■’Qur’an, 79:41.
■’Qur’an, 39:73.
■’Qur’an, 79:41.
■’Qur’an, 79:38.
■“Qur’an, 79:39.
’J'JHadis qodsi
recorded by Ebn Ilanbal.
Were not God’s uncaused grace to lean solicitously over the soul,
how might it evade the lasso of His wrath and the chains of His cunning? And
what strength would it have to dissolve the bonds of His supreme talisman?
One tired of his own self is needed,
One who left body and soul is needed.
At each step a thousand or more fetters—
A swift-paced breaker of fetters is needed.
It is only in the heads of kings that may be fittingly conceived the
passionate aspiration of wayfaring, for this supreme conquest and weighty task
cannot be undertaken by every indigent beggar. But if it proves possible to
escape the grasp of cunning Eblis and to depart this world in the garment of
Islam and the clothing of faith, such will be for you perfect good fortune and
everlasting felicity. O God, grant that our lives be ended in Islam:
If on the last day thou quench not the lamp of my covenant, I will
surrender my soul in joy and tranquillity.
If thou strip me not of the garment of Islam, What greater happiness
than death in Islam?
Let us now explain what providential purpose was inherent in giving
death after life and life after death. In so doing we shall answer the heedless
and misguided one, that straying and worthless one, who said:
Why did the Maker adorn the forms of creation,
And why then cast them down to decay and decrease? Should the forms
be ugly, whose fault is it?
And if pleasing they be, why desire their ruin?51
Know that man has five states. The first is that of nonbeing, as in
God’s saying: “Did there not pass over man a period of time in which he was not
a thing remembered?”52 That is, in the concealment of nonbeing man
had being only as an object known of
5'Quatrain of Kayyam previously quoted
on p. 54.
’’Qur'an, 76:1.
God’s knowledge, but he had no awareness of his own being: he did
not remember his own self, nor was he remembered by his own self.
The second state is that of being in the world of spirits, as the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “Spirits are like armies drawn up: those
that are familiar to each other join together, and those that are unknown to
each other diverge.”53 That is, when man emerged from the
concealment of nonbeing into the world of spirits, he acquired awareness of
himself: he remembered his own self, and was remembered by his own self.
The third state is that of attacliment of the spirit to the bodily
frame, as God said: ‘And I inhaled in him of My spirit.”54
The fourth state is that of the separation of the spirit from the
bodily frame, as God said: "Every soul shall taste death.”55
The fifth state is that of the return of the spirit to the frame, as
God said: “Then He will give you death, then life again,”56 and
also, “say: ‘He will give them life Who created them the first time.’”57
These five states were essential for man to attain perfection in the
knowledge of the Divine Essence and attributes, and for the providential wisdom
inherent in the creation of beings to be realized—“I was a hidden treasure, and
I desired to be known.”58
Firstly, the state of nonbeing was necessary so that when man
acquired a created being in the world of spirits and obtained awareness of his
own existence, he might perceive himself to be created and know God to be
uncreate.
Second, the state of being in the world of spirits was necessary so
that before man reached the world of bodies he might experi-
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 220.
“Qur'an, 15:29.
“Qur’an, 3:185.
“Qur’an, 2:28.
“Qur’an, 36:79.
5sHadis qodsi previously quoted on p. 144.
ence immediate witnessing in the purity of spirituality; receive the
effusion of God’s grace without a separating veil; and become worthy to hear
the address of “am I not your Lord?” and fit for the felicity of answering
“Yes.”59 And when he gained the good fortune of immediate discourse
with God, he might recognize the Mighty Presence as his Lord, and know Him
with the attributes of will, life, speech, hearing, sight, power, and eternity,
which are the attributes of His essence.60 If man had had no being
in the world of spirits before joining the world of bodies, he would have had
neither true knowledge of those attributes nor the capacity to attain anew, in
the world of bodies, the purity of spirituality by means of training, and thus
to reach the station of discourse with God.
The third state, that of the attachment of the spirit to the bodily
frame, was necessary for man to acquire the instruments needed for the
perfection of knowledge, and for him to gain awareness of the particularities
and generalities of the unseen and manifest worlds. It is also in this state
that man can know God with His attributes of provider, compassionate, merciful,
forgiving, concealer of sins, bestower of bounty, munificent, liberal, and accepter
of repentance. With the aid of the instruments acquired in this state, man can
also reach stations of gnosis in the training of the spirit that were not his
in the world of spirits—witnessing, unveiling, God-given knowledge, different
kinds of manifestation and rapturous states, and union with the Divine
Presence, as well as other types of knowledge that lie beyond the scope of all
explanation.
The fourth state, that of the separation of the spirit from the
bodily frame, was necessary for two reasons. First, for the pollution that had
adhered to the spirit as a result of its keeping the company of bodies to be
gradually removed by separation from them; for the spirit to leave behind the
intimacy and familiarity it had acquired with corporeal objects, and return to
the purity of spirituality; and for the spirit to partake of gnosis and proximity
to the Mighty Presence by means of the attributes it had acquired from the
instrument of the bodily frame, but without
“Qur’an, 7:171.
“Cf. p. 318.
the interference of the body, or the stain of humanity and the
darkness of createdness.
Second, for the spirit, no longer in the bodily frame, to gain a
taste of knowledge of the unseen by means of the instruments it acquired while
in the bodily frame and had not had in the world of spirits. Previously, it did
not have the instruments for perceiving such knowledge, either in the world of
spirits or in the world of bodies, for whatever came to it in the latter it
received from behind the veil of the bodily frame, whereas now its perception
is not obstructed.
The human person is like a tree, of which the seed is the pure
Mohammadan spirit—God’s peace and blessings be upon its possessor—“the first
that God created was my spirit.”61 First the roots of a tree grow
from the seed in the ground; then the tree appears above the ground; and
finally fruit appears on the tree. So too, from the seed of the Mohammadan
spirit grew the roots of the world of spirits, or Dominion; then the tree of
corporeal objects sprang up from those roots, above the ground of the sensible
world; from the tree of corporeal objects sprouted the leaves of animality; and
finally the fruit of humanity appeared on the branch of the tree of creation.
As long as a fruit is on the tree, like the grape or the peach, it
has a certain taste. But when you pluck it from the tree and leave it in the
sun for a time, the grape becomes a raisin, and the peach a prune, through the
effect of the sun, and then the fruit has a different taste. Even though it
received the effect of the sun while still on the tree, as long as its foot was
rooted in the clay of the tree, part of the property of that clay was joined to
the succor received from the sun; hence moisture and sourness remained in the
grape. Once the influence of the tree upon the grape ceased, it gained a new
sweetness as raisin, for it received the nurturing effect of the sun without
any interference from the tree. At first the grape needed the tree for its
nurture; and if there had been no tree, the grape could not have grown merely
from the effect of the sun. But when the grape had ripened, it could not
advance to the stage of raisin while still on the tree,
’'Tradition previously quoted on p. 70.
and it became necessary to pluck it from the tree and nurture it by
the sun alone, until it turned into a sweet raisin.
Similarly, the spirit that resembles a fruit must be separated from
the tree of the bodily frame, in order to receive for a time the effect of the
sun of God’s gaze without the mediation and interference of the clay of the
body. When the spirit in the beginning, still in the world of spirits, had not
reached the perfection of the human degree, it was not capable of receiving
the influence of God’s gaze. It is only by means of material death that it is
possible truly to know God’s attribute of giver of death. Here there are many
mysteries and subtleties that whole books would be unable to describe.
The fifth state, that of returning the spirit to the bodily frame,
was necessary for this reason, that the perfection of man lies in his
exercising the function of divine viceregent throughout all the realms of the
unseen and manifest worlds, and this world and the hereafter, and in his
partaking in full measure of the various bounties that have been prepared for
him in both worlds: “I have prepared for My righteous servants that which no
eye has seen, no ear has heard, nor has crossed the heart of any man.”[123]
Some of these bounties are spiritual and others corporeal. As for
those which are corporeal, use can be made of them only by means of corporeal
instruments. Man’s corporeal, worldly, and transient frame is therefore
resurrected with the luminous and eternal aspect of the hereafter—“a day on
which the earth is changed into other than earth.”[124]
Even though it is the same bodily frame, it no longer has the same worldly
aspect.
The worldly frame was constructed from the four elements of earth,
wind, water, and fire, but was under the dominance of water and earth—“from
glutinous clay.”[125]
Both of these are sensible and dense, and are perceived by the visual sense,
whereas wind and fire are insensible and subtle, and are not perceived by
the visual sense. They are therefore subordinate and latent in the
bodily frame.
In the hereafter, which is the realm of subtlety, the frame is also
constructed from the four elements, but wind and fire, both being subtle, are
made dominant over it, while earth and water are made subordinate and latent.
The light that is today latent in the heart of the believer will be given dominance
over his outward form: “Their light shall flow forth in front of them.”65 The
verse, "a day on which some faces shall be whitened and others blackened,”66
also refers to this matter.
When the frame is subtle and luminous, it no longer interferes with
the spirit, since that which was the cause of its interfering has been removed
by the effect of “We have removed all rancor from their breasts.”67
So too does the glassmaker remove all dust and impurity from the substance of
glass so that its outside and inside become alike: from the outside the inside
can be seen, and from the inside, the outside.
The verse "a day on which innermost dispositions shall be
divulged”68 also refers to the making apparent of the inward aspect
of men through their outer aspect.
The glass and the wine, both are transparent;
They are now similar—the matter is complex!69
It is also said in Tradition that so delicate and subtle will be the
bones of the people of Paradise that the marrow itself will be visible.
The bodily frame will then be resurrected in this subtle form so
that it can enjoy its full share of the bounties of the eight paradises,
without any darkness arising from it to interfere with the spirit. It is not
possible to gain true knowledge of God’s at-
“Qur’an, 57:12.
“Qur’an, 3:106.
“Qur’an, 7:43.
“Qur’an, 86:9.
69A line from $aheb b. Abbad
(al-Sa’alebl, Yatimat al-dahr, III, p. 94).
tribute of giver of life except by means of the revival of bodily
form—“Say: ‘He will give life to them Who first created them.”’70
The spirit is first nurtured to perfection in the company of the
bodily frame, fully acquiring the instruments of knowledge. It is then
separated from the bodily frame and nurtured for long by the radiance of the
gaze of God’s grace, in the world of the unseen. Corporeal pollution is
gradually effaced from it, and it receives unmediated provision from the
effusion of God’s generosity: “They shall receive provision, happy with that
which God gives them from His generosity.”71 Thus fortified, it is
sent again to the world of the bodily frame in order to exercise the properties
of both possessor and king throughout all the realms of creation, by means of
corporeal instruments. In the station of immediacy it enjoys spiritual bounty
in abundant measure, without the interference of corporeal instruments. It
attains too the taste of perfect knowledge and nearness in the station of
immediate proximity—"in a seat of sincerity in the presence of a monarch
omnipotent.”72 Then neither does the spirit divert the body from its
tasks, nor the body the spirit from its tasks: “One concern does not divert him
from another.” Inevitably, therefore, the title of God’s letter to him is
this: “from the Living King That dies not, to the living king that dies not.”
The difference between servitude and divinity is that He, Glorious
and Almighty, works His will in all the realms of creation independently and
originally, without any need of instruments; whereas his bondsman does so as
deputy and viceregent, by means of instruments. But God is most knowing of what
is correct.
This indication must suffice; it is not permissible to divulge the
rest of the divine mysteries, for “divulging the mystery of dominicality is
unbelief.” “He who knows them, knows them; he who knows them not, knows them
not.”
And God’s blessings be upon Moliammad and all his family.
’’Qur’an, 36:79.
’‘Qur’an, 3:170.
’’Qur’an, 54:55.
Concerning
the Wayfaring of Different Classes of Men and Containing Eight Chapters,
because of the Blessing Inherent in These Words of God Almighty: “Eight Pairs”1
'Qur’an,
6:143.
First Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of Kings and the Lords of Command
God Almighty said: “O David, We have made thee a viceregent upon
earth, so rule among men with justice and follow not caprice, for that would
cause thee to stray from God’s path. And for those who stray from God’s path
there is a severe chastisement, because they forgot the Day of Reckoning.”[126]
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: "The
king is the shadow of God upon earth, in whom all the oppressed take refuge.”[127]
Know that kingship is the viceregency and deputyhood of God Almighty
upon earth. The designation of the king by the Prophet as the shadow of God
also means that he is the viceregent, for if in the world of form someone
stands on the roof of a house and casts his shadow on the ground, that shadow
will be the viceregent of his essence on the ground. It will be referred to as
his, and men will say, "it is so-and-so’s shadow.”
When God Almighty placed as a trust one of the mysteries of His
favor in the homa bird,[128]
see what effect it produced, and what property arose! If the homa cast
its shadow on someone’s head, he would gain the dignity of kingship and the
good fortune of monarchy. When God Almighty in His perfect solicitude chooses a
slave, bestows on him the unique grace of being His shadow, and grants him the
felicity of receiving the reflection of the Divine Essence and attributes, see
what auspiciousness and good fortune, what dignity and favor, He implants in
that ennobled essence, that honored nature! The least property of that noble
essence and subtle nature is that all those he regards with the gaze of
favor—the worthy and unworthy alike—should enjoy auspicious fortune and be
accepted by the whole world; and
whomever he regards with the gaze of wrath shall be ill-favored and
rejected by the whole world.
One of the ancient kings is related to have said: “We are time:
whoever we elevate, will be elevated; and whoever we abase, will be abased.” These
words have meaning, but the king’s perception was not perfect, enabling him to
know himself better, for otherwise he would have said not “we are time,” but
rather “we are the viceregents of the Compassionate.”
There are two classes of kings: kings of the world and kings of
religion. Those who are kings of the world are the form for God’s attributes of
favor and wrath, but they are imprisoned within their forms and unable to
recognize their attributes. God’s attributes of favor and wrath are manifest
through them, but not to them. They are like the moon-faced one who was unaware
of her own beauty while others enjoyed it.
Pleasant is the love of a fair-faced one, Who knows naught of her
own fairness.
As for those who are the kings of religion, they are both the
manifestation of the divine attributes of favor and wrath and the recipient of
that manifestation.5 They have opened the supreme talisman of form
with the key of the Law, held in the hand of the Path, and with the eye of the
Truth they have contemplated the states and attributes stored and hidden in the
depths of their being, like buried treasure and gems. They have penetrated to
the mystery of the treasure of “he who knows his self, knows too his Lord,”6
and have mounted as rightful owners the throne of eternal kingship and the seat
of abiding monarchy—“and when thou lookest, there thou wilt see bliss and a
great kingdom”7— for "God has kings clothed in rags.”8
Their high aspiration joyously disdains the journey of “its early morning
course was a
’That is, they will be the means for the manifestation of those
attributes, and at the same time be conscious of being the means.
’Tradition previously quoted on p. 28.
’Qur’an, 76:20.
’Tradition of unknown status.
month, and its evening course a month,”9 for it circles
the realms of both worlds in a single instant.
Wherever a town lies, it is my fief, Whether I go to Iran or to
Turan.
I carry a hundred thousand Turks within me, And wherever I go, I go
as sultan.
The supreme happiness and utmost good fortune consist in this, that
a man of lofty aspiration be granted kingship of the realms of both religion
and the world, for then, with the viceregency of “Ours is the first and the
last,”10 he will control the affairs of both realms. This rank was
granted to David, upon whom be peace—“O David, We have made thee a viceregent
upon earth, so rule among men with justice, and follow not caprice, for that
would cause thee to stray from God’s path.”11 The Glorious Presence
has established ten ordinances in this one verse, and admonished kings with
respect to the customs and rules of government, the norms of kingship, and the
practices of justice.
First He said, “O David, We have made thee a viceregent,” indicating
that the king must regard his kingship as God’s gift and consider his kingdom
the result of His beneficence: "Thou givest kingship to whom Thou
wishest.”
Second, there is a reminder to the king contained in the indication
that God gave him kingship. He will know that God took it from another to give
it to him, and that one day it will be taken from him to be given to
another—“Thou takest kingship from whom Thou wishest.”12 He will
therefore strive to attain true and abiding kingship by means of this borrowed
and transient king- ship, and not to deprive himself of fair repute among men
and abundant reward in the hereafter.
“Qur’an, 34:12. This expression describes a wind that God
subordinated to the command of Solomon.
“Qur’an, 92:13.
iiQur’an, 38:26.
“Qur'an. 3:26.
Third, he will know that kingship is the viceregency of God.
Fourth, God said: "So rule among men with justice.” This is an
indication that he should exercise rule among his subjects in his own person,
and as far as possible avoid entrusting rule over them to others, for his
deputies and the commanders of state cannot show to the subjects the same
kindliness, solicitude, and compassion as the king. There are five types of
compassion, each shown by an individual to a group, that are unequaled: the
compassion of God to His bondsmen, the solicitude of the prophet for his
community, the kindliness of the king to his subjects, the affection of the
mother and father for their offspring, and the jealous concern of the shaikh
for his morids.
Fifth, God ordered that David should rule justly—that is, in rectitude
and equity, avoiding oppression and injustice.
Sixth, when he ruled justly, he was to do so in obedience to God’s
command. He was to rule justly not in accordance with instinctual nature, but
in accordance with the Law, and to do so not for the sake of man, but for the
sake of God.
Seventh, God ordered him not to follow caprice, for whoever follows
caprice cannot act in his realm in obedience to God’s command, nor can he
perform what he does for the sake of God. For when caprice becomes dominant
over a person, it is caprice that controls him, issuing injunctions and
prohibitions. Caprice always commands man to disobey God, and indeed nothing
except caprice can openly defy the Divine Presence and claim divinity. Thus God
said: "Hast thou seen him who has taken his caprice as his god?”13
If the pharaoh claimed divinity, it was out of caprice; if the Children of
Israel worshipped the calf, it was out of caprice; and if some men took an idol
as god, it was out of caprice. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “No god
more hateful to God has ever been worshipped than caprice.”14 In
truth, it is caprice that sets up gods—
’’Qur’an, 45:23.
’’Tradition of unknown status.
O thou whose caprice conjures up gods,
Whose gods are all hated of God!15
Eighth, God showed how to follow caprice is to stray from His path:
“For that would cause thee to stray from God’s path.” Conversely, to oppose
caprice is to travel on God’s path: “and he who forbids caprice to his soul,
the garden shall be his abode.”16
Ninth, God said: "and for those who stray from God’s path there
is a severe chastisement, because they forgot the Day of Reckoning.”17
This is an indication that whoever falls away from God’s path under the
influence of caprice and then persists in that state will finish as an
unbeliever, subject to severe chastisement. For unbelief consists of
forgetting the hereafter and forgetting God, and precisely this forgetting
brings the severest of chastisements—“They forget God, and He forgets them.”18
Tenth, God Almighty showed how kingship over men may be joined to
the station and degree of prophethood, so that the king both fulfills his
duties of rule and conquest, of diffusing justice and caring for his subjects,
and also travels with care the path of religion and observance of the Law,
observing all the customs of sainthood and the conditions of prophethood. Thus
the holders of power and the lords of command are left with no excuse or
pretext that might permit them to say, “because of our kingship in the world of
form and our preoccupation with men’s welfare, we were unable to obtain the
advantages of religion and the benefits of wayfaring.” On the contrary,
kingship is the most complete instrument for the worship of God, and monarchy
the greatest means for drawing near to His presence.
It was for this reason that Solomon, upon whom be peace, requested
kingship, not knowledge and prophethood: “O Lord, forgive me, and grant me
kingship such as shall be meet for none
15A line from Sana’I (Divan, p.
182).
16Qur’an, 79:40.
’’Qur’an, 38:26.
’’Qur’an, 9:68.
after me; Thou art the granter of limitless bounty!”19 In
this request, several wise reasons were contained.
First, Solomon knew that when kingship is complete, it includes
knowledge and prophethood. Thus when God gave to Adam, upon whom be peace, the
kingship of viceregency in its entirety, knowledge and prophethood were
included in it. God said: “‘I am about to appoint a viceregent on earth,’20
and to assign a deputy to the kingdom of the world.” He did not say: “I am creating
a prophet, a scholar, or a worshipper.” Similarly, He said to David, “We have
made thee a viceregent upon earth,”21 not a prophet, a messenger, or
a scholar, for all of these are included in the quality of viceregent.
Second, when the power of monarchy and the splendor of kingship are
allied to knowledge and prophethood, their effect and influence are increased a
thousandfold, and the dignity of religion is made manifest by the sword. Thus
the Prophet said, “O God, give power to Islam through 'Omar or Abu Jah I,”22
and he established too a relationship between prophethood and the sword when he
said, “I am the prophet of the sword.”23
Third, when the king exercises rule through the constant spreading
of justice and nurturing of equity among his subjects; when he restrains the
oppressors from their oppression, and the licentious from their licentiousness;
when he fortifies the weak and chastens the strong; when he respects the
dignity of the scholars so that they become eager to learn the science of the
Law; when he seeks blessing and auspiciousness from honoring the righteous, so
that they become still more inclined to righteousness and worship; when he
orders that the good should be enjoined and the evil forbidden, so that
throughout the kingdom his subjects may engage in the cultivation of the Law
and the nurturing of religion; and when he makes the roads secure for the
coming and going of travelers—when he does all this, every
“Qur’an, 38:35.
“Qur'an, 20:30.
’'Qur'an, 38:26.
’’Tradition recorded by Ebn Maja and Ebn Hanbal.
’’Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
good deed and act of worship, and the learning and devotion that the
people of his kingdom engage in, as well as their tranquillity and prosperity,
shall be inscribed by God Almighty in the king’s register of righteous deeds.
Similarly, every act of oppression, licentiousness, and abomination, and every
forbidden and frivolous deed that he prohibits and from which men refrain on
account of his chastisement, shall also be a means for him to draw near to the
Divine Presence. Indeed, each of them shall be for him as a foot, so that if
others journey to the Mighty Presence on their own feet alone, the monarch
journeys on several thousand feet. This felicity is not given to everyone:
“That is God’s generosity: He gives it to whomsoever He wills.”24
Fourth, kingship and sovereignty represent the most complete means
for attaining the desires of the soul and enjoying to the full its passions and
pleasures. The one who has no capacity to indulge the caprice of his soul will
not do so, and instead be obedient to God’s Law. For this he will be rewarded,
but not in the same fashion as the person who, having the means variously to
indulge the caprice of his soul, tramples them all underfoot, and with utter
sincerity abandons the passions, pleasures, and caprice of his soul in order to
draw near to God. In return for each instrument and capacity that he possesses
for following caprice but does not use, seeking instead the nearness of God, he
will gain a measure of nearness and a rank and degree in God’s presence.
It is related in an authentic Tradition that the poor among the
Companions came to the Prophet, upon whom be peace, and said: “O Messenger of
God! The possessors of affluence and wealth have bome off all the reward and
bounty in this world and the hereafter.” He said: “How so?” They answered: “We
pray and they pray; we fast and they fast. But they pay the purifying tax and
give alms, and we cannot do so; they go on pilgrimage and military campaigns and
emancipate slaves, and we cannot do so.” The Prophet said: “Shall I teach you
something that when you do it will be better for you than owning the whole
world and spending it in God’s path; and nobody’s worship shall then attain
yours, except for him who does the same?”
"Qur’an, 62:4.
They said: “Teach us, O Messenger of God!” He said: ‘After each
obligatory prayer say thirty-three times, ‘glory be to God,’ thirty-three
times, ‘praise be to God,’ and thirty-three times, ‘God is greatest’; and then
a full hundred times, la elaha ella’llah.” Afterward one of the
Companions, a helper, was told in a dream that it would be better to say,
“glory be to God” twenty-five times, “praise be to God” twenty-five times, la
elaha ella’llah twenty-five times, and “God is greatest” twenty-five times.
He came and related this to the Prophet, who said: “Do as this helper has
said.” Thereafter the poor engaged in this form of zekr after each
obligatory prayer. The wealthy among the Companions heard of what had happened
and began themselves to make the same recitations. The poor came again to the
presence of the Prophet and said: “O Messenger of God, the same recitations
that we are making, the rich are also making; but we cannot perform the good
deeds that they do.” The Prophet said: “That is God’s generosity: He gives it
to whomsoever He wills.”25 That is, it is generosity bestowed on
them by God Almighty that they are able to serve Him with both their persons
and their property.
Therefore Solomon desired to serve the Mighty Presence with both
person and property, with kingship and the different classes of subject—jinn
and men, beasts and birds, venomous creatures and vermin—and the other
instruments of monarchy and tools of sovereignty, so that by means of all these
he might seek to approach and draw near to God. For the more numerous are the
means of drawing near, the greater is the degree of nearness and high rank
attained.
Fifth, kingship and sovereignty represent the most perfect
instrument and greatest resource for the cultivation of both the reprehensible
and the praiseworthy attributes. If the reprehensible attributes of the soul
are cultivated with that instrument, the king will reach a stage where he
claims divinity, and this claim represents the utmost limit of the
reprehensible attributes. It is not possible to reach this low degree while
lacking the instrument of monarchy. No indigent pauper has ever claimed
divinity, because his soul does not possess the instrument necessary to
cultivate the attributes of arrogance, tyranny, and ego-
“Tradition recorded by Bokari, Moslem, TermezI, and Ebn Hanbal.
ism. Since the pharaoh had the instrument in its entirety, he
cultivated the attributes of arrogance and egoism in his soul to such a point
of maturity that they bore the fruit of “he gathered them and announced to them
saying, ‘I am your Lord the Most High.’ ”26 He relied upon his
kingship and sovereignty and said: "Is it not mine, the kingdom of Egypt,
and these rivers flowing beneath me?”27
Similarly, if the praiseworthy attributes of the soul are cultivated
with these same instruments, the monarch will reach a stage where he acquires
divine qualities and takes on dominical attributes, this representing the
utmost limit of the praiseworthy attributes and the perfection of religion.
For the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “I was sent to complete the noblest
of qualities.”28 It is not possible to attain these qualities in
their perfection without the instrument of kingship and monarchy. If one should
wish to cultivate the attributes of liberality and generosity, which are among
the divine attributes and thus to acquire the qualities of God, in accordance
with the imperative “acquire the qualities of God”29 (this being the
most emphatic of all commands, and indeed the reason for the sending of the
prophets and the purpose for the laws of different religions and the revelation
of Books), those attributes of liberality and generosity can be cultivated
only by the abundant dispensing of wealth and largesse.
If it is desired to cultivate the attribute of forbearance, power,
might, and sovereignty must be present so that the king can endure the vexation
and trouble caused him by the people, and forbearance thus gain dominance over
him. For if there is no power and strength and one practices endurance, it is compulsory,
not voluntary. Then it will be a question not of forbearance, but rather of
impotence. The divine attribute is forbearance; impotence is an attribute of
mankind alone.
When it is desired to cultivate the attribute of pardoning, which is
an attribute of God, there must be present complete
“Qur’an, 79:23.
’’Qur’an, 43:51.
’“Tradition recorded by Malek.
’“Tradition recorded by Moslem.
strength and power to punish the criminal, for the king to be able
to forgive and pardon him. Then he will take on an attribute of God, and become
beloved of Him: “Verily God is much given to pardoning, and loves pardoning.”30
All these are among God’s attributes of favor. If the monarch wishes
to take on God’s attributes of wrath, he will need the instrument of kingship
and sovereignty in its completeness, so that he can uproot and subdue the
unbelievers, the hypocrites and the innovators, and chastise them to
perfection, thus reflecting God’s attributes. For He said: “O Prophet, fight
against the unbelievers and hypocrites and be harsh with them.”31
And again: “in order that He might chastise the hypocrites, men and women
alike.”32 This purpose can be attained by undertaking expeditions;
by striving to conquer the lands of unbelief; by dispatching armies in all
directions; by punishing the people of oppression, lewdness, and corruption; by
exacting justice for the oppressed and the weak from the oppressor and the
strong; by repelling thieves and highway robbers; by executing God’s penalty on
the criminal; by regarding retribution against the offender as imperative, in
accordance with God’s law; and by dispensing punishment without quarter
throughout the realm, and like activities.
If the king wishes to take on the attributes of compassion,
kindliness, and solicitude, an extensive kingdom is needed with numerous
subjects so that he may exercise these attributes toward each group in
accordance with its merit, and thus attain perfection in them.
The best instrument for God’s bondsman to serve Him and reach high
degree, and to acquire states of nearness and journey through the stations of
the Path, is human aspiration. For if, by virtue of the attributes we have
mentioned, it is possible to journey to God’s presence, with aspiration it is
possible to fly there: “Man flies with his aspiration as a bird flies with its
wings.”33
’"Tradition.
’■Qur'an, 9:74.
’“Qur'an, 48:6.
’’Arabic utterance of unknown origin.
It is again in kingship that aspiration can be nurtured to perfection.
For the king has at his disposal wealth, abundance, and riches, the means for
the fulfilment of desire and all kinds of bounty. But he pays no attention to
them; derives from them no human, animal, bestial or predatory pleasure; and
makes no use of any of them in accordance with instinctual nature and caprice.
Instead, he turns away from them and devotes them all to the service of God, in
obedience to the command of the Law and the code of submission. He purges his
aspiration of all attention to them and approval of them, thus escaping like
Abraham the danger of associating them to God—"Verily I am free from that
which ye associate with him”34—and looks on them all with the eye of
enmity—"Verily they are enemies unto me, except the Lord of the Worlds.”35
He gives loftiness to his aspiration, not attaching his heart to these things
but rather to their Creator: “Verily I have turned my face to Him Who created
the heavens and earth, in pure sincerity, and I am not of those who associate
partners unto Him.”36
I wish this grief to become familiar to me;
How good if this grief be granted to me!
O grieving heart, draw his grief to your bosom— When you look, you
will see his grief to be him!37
When aspiration is nurtured to perfection, God's richness will
manifest itself, this being the noblest station for the People of Wayfaring.
Until the Prophet, upon whom be peace, in the loftiness of his aspiration
attained the attributes of "his gaze swerved not, nor strayed,”38
he did not merit the degree of richness of “He found thee poor, and enriched
thee.”39 Solomon, too, upon whom be peace, in order to cultivate
aspiration, would weave rush baskets with his own blessed hands, despite all
his kingship and sovereignty, and might and abundance. From the money gained in
selling the baskets, he would prepare some un-
’’Qur’an, 6:78.
’’Qur'an, 26:77.
’’Qur’an, 6:79.
”A quatrain attributed to Majd al-Din Taleb by ‘Eyn al-Qozat
Hamadan! in his Lava'eh (p. 73).
’’Qur’an, 53:17.
’’Qur’an, 93:8.
pretentious morsel, find himself some wretched pauper and then
consume that morsel with him, saying, “one wretch sitting with another.”
If someone should ask, “If kingship and sovereignty have so many
advantages, and are means for drawing near and gaining closeness to God, then
why was the kingship of this world not given to the Prophet in the same
perfection that it was given to Solomon, or even more fully, so that by means
of it he might have sought nearness and cultivated divine attributes and qualities?”
the answer to him is twofold.
First, the elect of God consist of two classes: the specially
cherished and the suppliants. As for the specially cherished, the goal is given
to them to embrace even without their asking, and they are not encumbered with
the means for acquiring it. But the suppliants are granted their desire only on
account of need and request, and they must concern themselves with the means
for acquiring it. It is like someone seeking out a bow and arrow and then going
hunting; after loosing several arrows at the birds, he finally fells one. But
another person is given a bird by someone, without his being concerned with
the means used in obtaining it or enduring effort and trouble.
Now the Prophet, upon whom be peace, is specially cherished by God:
the Mighty Presence swears a weighty oath upon his head and his life—"by
thy life.”40 All that is the goal of worldly kingship and
sovereignty has been put in his arms without the concern of requesting and the
trouble of trial—"God’s generosity to thee was great.”41 What
was the goal that God designated as great generosity? The acquisition of God’s
qualities. This was given to the Prophet in perfection, and he was caressed
with a hundred favors: “Verily thou art of great character.”42 The
bird of union that Moses had wished in vain to capture with the bow and arrow
of "show me, that I may look upon Thee” and that had flown in its
haughtiness to the apex of magnificence of “thou shalt not see me”43—this
same bird was given, with a hun-
■°Qur’an, 15:72.
■'Qur’an, 4:112.
■’Qur’an, 68:4.
■’Qur’an, 7:143.
died thousand favors and honors, to the thumb of the Prophet: “Didst
thou not look upon thy Lord?”44 In truth, the Prophet was both the
prey and the hunter. He was a bird that had arisen from the nest of “I am from
God”45 and then flown around all creation in the form of a hunter, but
without opening his wings, for creation could never have encompassed his wings.
He was both the bird and the seed in the trap; both the candle and the moth
flying around it.
Shaikh Ahmad Gazali says, may God sanctify his spirit—
In the grief of love, we grieve for ourselves;
We are distraught and bewildered because of ourselves. We are
afflicted and tried because of our fate;
We are the hunters and the prey that they hunt.
First the reins of the she-camel of kingship were given to the hands
of Solomon’s supplication after he had borne the hundred thousandfold toil of
requesting—“O my Lord, grant kingship to me.’ ’46 Then he was
afflicted with the trial of “We placed a lifeless body upon his throne,”47
and finally visited with the misfortune of “‘Verily I loved the love of good,
for the sake of remembering my Lord,’ until they became hidden by the veil.”48
What indication is contained here? That he was a suppliant, and since he had
been caused to enter by the gate of request, he had to traverse several straits
of affliction. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, since he was the cherished of
God—“He conveyed His bondsman’ ’49—had the kingship of both worlds
displayed to him in their totality at the station of the Lote Tree.50
But he did not even look upon it from the corner of his eye of lofty
aspiration, such
"Qur’an,
25:45.
“Part of a Tradition quoted previously on p. 61.
“Qur’an,
38:35.
"Qur’an, 38:34. The placing of a lifeless body on Solomon's
throne has been variously interpreted by the commentators. Some say that it
refers to the wasted state of Solomon’s own body after a prolonged illness;
others that it refers to a stillborn son that was the sole progeny born to
Solomon after his boasting that he would impregnate all his wives with virile
sons in a single night.
“Qur’an, 38:32. This verse refers to Solomon’s horses and his love
for them, a love ultimately directed to God; he caressed them until nightfall.
"Qur’an,
17:1.
’"Concerning the Lote Tree, see p. 84, n. 32.
was his disdain and indifference—‘‘His gaze swerved not nor
strayed.” Thus the purpose of both worlds was given to his embrace without
requesting or trial—“He beheld the supreme signs of his Lord.”51
The second aspect of the answer is that the Prophet was swift-paced:
“We are the last and the foremost.”52 The stations through which all
the prophets passed in the course of long lives, each remaining nonetheless in
a certain station—Adam in being the chosen of God, Noah in calling to God,
Abraham in friendship with God, Moses in conversing with God, Jesus in being
the word of God, David in the viceregency of God, and Solomon in kingship—were
all traversed by the Prophet in a short time: “They it is whom God has guided;
follow then their guidance.”53 He outstripped all others—“we are the
last and the foremost”— and was conveyed to stations that none before had
attained. Excellences were given to him that none had been given before, as he
himself said: "I was given excellence over the prophets in six things.”54
In truth, these verses are suited to him—
I am he whom none resembles in this world,
Tarrying but an instant at every station.
A path I have traversed that none other
traversed— A place where there was no place, neither in front nor behind.
As the Prophet did not delay at any station in his swift voyaging
and immediately traversed it, so too he passed through the station of kingship:
“I was given the choice between being a king-prophet and a poor prophet, and I
chose to be a poor prophet, hungry one day and satiated the next.”55
There is a celebrated Tradition in which the Prophet, upon whom be
peace, says: “I was given the keys to the treasuries of the earth.”56
That is, “The keys to all treasuries were brought to
51Qur’an, 53:17.
’Tradition
previously quoted on p. 63.
’’Qur’an,
6:90.
’’Part of a Tradition previously quoted on p. 153.
’’Tradition recorded with a different wording by Ebn Idanbal.
56Tradition recorded by Bokari,
Moslem, Ebn Hanbal.
me, and I was told, ‘if thou wilt, let us turn the mountains of
Mecca into gold and have them depart with thee wherever thou goest.’ ” There
are numerous Traditions similar to this. The Prophet said: "I am the
master of the sons of Adam, but take no pride in it.”57 What
kingship could be greater than this? But the only purpose of this kingship was
that once attained, it should be renounced and freely dispensed in God’s path.
It was necessary to remove its kernel and essence, and then cast away the husk.
This is what the Prophet did. There are many other answers to the question
concerning kingship, but we restrict ourselves to these to avoid prolixity.
It has then become established that monarchy and kingship constitute
a great means for drawing near to the Mighty Presence. Kingship is the
viceregency of God, and it is for this reason that the king is called the
shadow of God, because the shadow of a thing is its viceregent. But this
shadowhood and viceregency can obtain only when there is found in the
viceregent a specimen of the attributes of the One Who appointed him. It is for
this reason that the Prophet said in explanation of the expression “shadow of
God,” "Every oppressed one seeks refuge in him.” That is, he is to be the
place of refuge for all the oppressed so that they suffer no mistreatment at
the hands of any oppressor. But whenever such mistreatment and oppression
proceed from the king himself, it is no longer possible to conceive of his
being the shadow of God, or attaining the rank of viceregency.
The drug causes disease; what hope is there here
For the cure of the sickness and the health of the patient?
Our meaning is this, that when the king acts according to God’s
command, shuns subordination to caprice, brings his subjects into the refuge
of his own auspicious fortune, the fortress of his watchfulness and the fold of
his polity, fulfilling through kingship all his duties of service to God, then
he becomes fit to be God’s viceregent, and he becomes too the choice part of
creation, for the purpose of creation is the mystery of viceregency: “Verily I
am about to make a viceregent upon earth.”58
’’Tradition previously quoted on p. 174.
’“Qur'an, 2:30.
But if the king engages in oppression and tyranny, in subordination
to caprice and the defiance of God, then he becomes the form of God’s wrath and
anger. He will be the Eblis of his age and deserving of eternal anathema:
"Verily God’s curse is upon the oppressors.”[129]
God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
Second Chapter:
God Almighty said: “Verily God commands justice and doing good and
generosity to kinsfolk, and He forbids abomination, evil, and wrongdoing.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be peace and blessings, said: “The one among
God’s bondsmen who is given the best rank in the sight of God on the Day of
Resurrection will be the just and gentle imam; and the one among God’s bondsmen
who is given the worst rank in the sight of God on the Day of Resurrection will
be the unjust and harsh imam.”2
Know that the king has three states: a state with respect to his own
soul; a state with respect to his subjects; and a state with respect to his
God. In each of these three states, three things are enjoined on him by the
Mighty Presence and three things are forbidden him. Justice, doing good, and
generosity to kinsfolk are enjoined on him; abomination, evil, and wrongdoing
are forbidden him.
As for the first state—the state of the king with respect to his own
soul—justice lies in his equipping the soul with the affirmation of God’s
unity; doing good, in his performing religious obligations; and generosity to
kinsfolk, in respecting the rights of his limbs and members, in obstinately
opposing his soul, in watching over his heart, and in guarding his outer and
inner senses. He will then be able to use all of these in accordance with the
command that has been given him, and to restrain them from that which has been
forbidden him. The forbidden consists of abomination, evil, and wrongdoing, in
deed, word, and inner state, of all that is reprehensible, unfitting, and disapproved.
From it there arise darkness, veiling, and remoteness from God, and there
result reprehensible attributes like lying,
’Qur’an, 16:90.
“Tradition recorded by TermezI, Nasa’I, and Ebn lianbal.
backbiting, slandering, cursing, fornication, lewdness and turpitude,
oppression, and so forth.
Unless the king first be truly king of himself, he cannot properly
exercise kingship over others in such a way as not to cause harm, although
there are many people who may be truly king of themselves without being able to
exercise true kingship over others. For kingship over others is the deputyship
and viceregency of God, and second only to prophethood; than it, there is no
greater task. Thus the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: "The one among
God’s bondsmen who is given the best rank in the sight of God on the Day of
Resurrection will be the just and gentle imam; and the one among God’s bondsmen
who is given the worst rank in the sight of God on the Day of Resurrection will
be the unjust and harsh imam.” Indeed, God Almighty has threaded obedience to a
just king together on a single string with obedience to Himself and obedience
to His messenger: "Obey God, and obey the Messenger and the holders of
authority from among you.”3
Know in truth that until the king is truly king of himself, he will
never be able to exercise true kingship over others, in accordance with God’s
command. His state may be compared to that of one who, unable to swim in the
sea well enough to save himself from the whirlpool, wishes to prevent others
from drowning. It is an impossibility.
The king’s kingship over himself consists of binding with the
fetters of God’s command his limbs and his members, his soul and his heart, his
outer and inner senses, these being his true subjects. He should set each to
work in servitude to God and in the service that has been enjoined on it; cause
it to desist from the forbidden, through the chastisement of the Law; and
change the attribute of the soul from commanding to commanded, through the
elixir of the Law, as was described in the chapter on the refinement of the
soul. In addition, he should discipline his heart to shun all that is familiar
to instinctual nature and approved by caprice, and direct it to the Divine Presence,
in order to receive the effusion of God’s grace and be strengthened with divine
support.
’Qur’an, 4:58.
Then, with dominical power and heavenly support, he may embark on
kingship, acting as God’s deputy among His servants and enacting the
ordinances of monarchy in his kingdom in accordance with God’s command, so that
by virtue of every action, effort, and endeavor that he undertakes in this
fashion, he may gain a further degree of nearness, elevation, and high rank in
God’s mighty presence.
As for the second state—the state of the king with respect to his
subjects—justice means here the dispensing of justice and equity, refraining
from tyranny, and maintaining equilibrium among his subjects, so that the
strong do not oppress the weak, nor the wealthy impose burdens on the poor.
Doing good consists of conveying to his subjects the effects of his
generosity and munificence, through strengthening the weak; acting with
forbearance to the strong; supporting the poor and indigent with gifts of
charity and allowances; providing for arriving and departing travelers;
maintaining the dignity of the scholars of religion and supplying them with the
means of subsistence; encouraging students in the acquisition of learning and
aiding them with the essentials of life; treating with respect and reverence
the pious, the ascetic, and the devotee, being solicitous of their welfare and
counting it an occasion of good fortune to supply any need they may have; and
seeking out hermits and recluses, aiding them with lawful monies, even though
they may not seek or desire this, and assuring their peace of mind, so that
they may occupy themselves with God in tranquillity and concentration. For the
world subsists through the blessing of their breath and their sincere devotion,
and they have the right to a share in the public treasury which it is incumbent
to bestow upon them, even though they may not seek or desire it, on account of
their dignity and high aspiration. Whoever does not grant them their right is
an oppressor and great sinner.
As for generosity to kinsfolk, this consists of respecting the
rights of all subjects, for subjects stand in a relation of kinship to the
king; indeed, they take the place of his family and kinsfolk. The injunction
of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, at the
end of his life was: "Be solicitous for prayer, and those whom
your right hand possesses.”4 That is, “Maintain regular prayer and
treat well those in your keeping.”
Every act of beneficence, doing good, equity, justice, succor,
generosity, forbearance, magnanimity, sound policy, and protection that the
king undertakes strengthens with its nobility the monarchy’s ties of kinship,
and is a firm support for the stability and permanence of the kingdom. Thus the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: "Justice and kingship are twins.”5
Every good practice that a king establishes in his realm, to give
ease to his subjects and tranquillity to his people, as well as his removal of
any evil innovation, belongs to the same category of laudable act. In addition,
if other monarchs follow his good practice, and perpetuate and maintain those
means for easing the lot of the people, the reward for it shall be entered in
the king’s register of good deeds, until the end of all time. But if on the
contrary—may God forbid!—an oppressor establishes some evil innovation and
institutes a practice that did not previously exist or restores one that
another king had abolished; and if he is then followed in his innovation and
imitated in his practice— then the punishment for all this shall be entered in
the innovating oppressor’s register of deeds until the end of time. Thus the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: "Whoever establishes a good practice
has the reward for it and the reward of whoever acts according to it until the Day
of Resurrection; and whoever establishes an evil practice bears the burden of
it and the burden of whoever acts according to it until the Day of
Resurrection.”6
In truth, it is incumbent upon the just king to abolish any evil
custom that may have been established in previous ages, to repel any oppression
or injustice visited on the people, and to lighten any heavy tax imposed on
those incapable of bearing it. Let him not find it an acceptable excuse to say,
"I found matters thus,” or, "the blame is his who started the
custom.” For indeed the one who started the custom is to blame, but he too will
be held
'Tradition recorded by Ebn Maja and Ebn Hanbal.
’Tradition of dubious status.
"Tradition recorded by Moslem, Nasa’I, and Ebn Hanbal.
responsible for maintaining and consenting to the oppression and
evil innovation. Furthermore, the king is like a shepherd, and his subjects are
like a flock. It is incumbent on the shepherd to protect his flock from the
wolf and to strive to repel the wolf’s evil. If the flock contains both horned
rams and ewes without horns, the ram will wish to oppress the ewe and
transgress against it; this evil too the shepherd must prevent.
Now the wolf threatening the flock of Islam consists of the accursed
unbelievers, who have become extremely powerful in this age. It is incumbent on
the king, and his commanders and troops, to strive with all their souls to
repel the evil of the unbelievers, for the bread and water they consume will
become licit only when they draw the sword against the unbelievers and repel
their evil. Even if the unbelievers cause no trouble, it is incumbent on the
king to go forth in war, to conquer the lands of unbelief and make Islam
prevail, and to strive to elevate the word of religion—“so that God’s word might
be the supreme.”7
Similarly, the homed rams i n the flock are strong oppressors drawn
from the commanders and troops, the officials of state and holders of posts,
the deputies and appointees of the king, the tax collectors, headmen, and
judges, as well as the libertine rabble and scum. Whenever they find the
opportunity, they aspire to harass and dominate others, in accordance with the
power and pomp that they hold and the means and instruments at their disposal.
The king must not abandon his subjects to the mercy of these people,
but instead investigate constantly the state of each group. For on the Day of
Resurrection he will be called to account, in the minutest detail, for the
affairs of his subjects, and the good and evil they have experienced. Thus the
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “Each of you is a shepherd, and each will be
called to account for his flock. Thus the prince is a shepherd for his
subjects, and will be called to account for them.”8
’Qur’an, 9:41.
“Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Abu Da’ud.TermezI, and Ebn
Hanbal.
As for the abomination, evil, and wrongdoing of the king toward his
subjects, it consists of his living among them in lewdness and turpitude;
impelling them to corruption; coveting their children—God forbid!—for corrupt
ends; and bringing disgrace upon their families. Then in his age the people of
corruption will be fortified, and the task of enjoining the good and forbidding
the evil will suffer, for none will be able to enjoin the good. The market of
the people of religion, knowledge, and righteousness will become sluggish, and
that of the people of lewdness, oppression, and corruption will become brisk.
The low and the base, the insinuator and the slanderer, the
corrupter and oppressor, the ruthless and the cunning, will then enter the
king’s service, and adorn oppression and corruption in his sight with the
garment of true interest for the sake of their own corrupt ends. Pretending to
be friends of the king and anxious for his well-being, and claiming that their
concern is the increase of his revenue and treasury, they establish innovative
practices in the realm; impose dues and increase taxes; farm out existing tax
collectorships and institute new ones; and start farming out posts that were
formerly free of this practice. Invoking pretexts against the people, they
confiscate and extort; falsely accusing the innocent, they exact fines from
them. They levy taxes in kind and impose collective charges, unjustly and
improperly,9 and deal corruptly with bequests and the property of
orphans. They impose imposts and sales taxes on the merchants and levy tolls on
the highways. They administer the endowments corruptly, holding back what is
due to the deserving, and embezzle the pensions, grants, and emoluments10
of imams,11 sayyeds,12 ascetics, devotees,
dervishes, and righteous worshippers, attempting to nullify works of charity.
They keep the needy away from the court, failing to submit an account of
’Taxes in kind and collective charges: the probable meaning of two obscure
terms: qasamat and towzi'at. See I. P. Petrushevskiy, Zemledelie
i Agrarnye Otnosheniya v Irane XIII-XIV w. (Moscow and Leningrad, I960),
pp. 84, 97.
10Pensions (edrarat): sums of
money paid by the monarch to deserving servants of the state, inherited in
perpetuity by their descendants. Grants (anzar): evidently an award of
money given once only, in recognition of some particular service. Emoluments (ma'as):
noninheritable pensions. (See Petrushevskiy, Zemledelie, pp. 269-270).
"Imams: here, the leaders of congregational prayer in
the.mosques.
,2Sayyeds:
descendants of the Prophet.
their state to the king, and prevent his charitable and pious gifts,
his presents and donations, from reaching the deserving.
All this will incur disrepute for the king with respect to both
religion and worldly affairs, and carry the fame of his oppression, lewdness,
and miserliness to the ends of the earth. He will become known among men for
evil disposition and oppressiveness, and this reputation will remain attached to
him until the end of the world. The gate of the people’s imprecations and
curses will be open for him during his life and after his death.
Whatever evil those corrupters succeed in adorning in his sight,
through their friendship with him and proximity to his presence, and whatever
corrupt purposes they attain, the king will be called to account for on the Day
of Resurrection, which is the day of the supreme review, in the slightest
particular; and he will be rewarded and requited for each atom’s weight of good
and evil: “Whoever does an atom’s weight of good shall see it, and whoever does
an atom’s weight of evil shall see it.”13
The rise of kings is followed by a fall, beware!
There is awe of you in each trembling heart, beware! Take not even
an apple unjustly from the people, beware!
There is an accounting for that apple, beware!
In truth, all these intimate companions of kings who embolden them
to commit oppression; who adorn the accumulation of wealth in their sight so
that they exert themselves in gathering wealth without distinction between
licit and illicit; who shed the blood of the poor and store up sin and guilt,
only for all their riches to be suddenly destroyed, through accident or death,
leaving only ill-repute in this world and the hereafter— such men are the
mortal enemies of kings even though they claim to be their friends. If the king
be of fortunate destiny and possessed of insight, he will not admit to his
presence a single one of these corrupters and men of evil character.
But not all have this insight. Because of their extreme greed for
this world and their love of wealth, the people of this age generally admit to
their company vile ruffians of evil origin, and
“Qur’an, 99:7-8.
deprive themselves of the company of the accomplished, the noble and
the intelligent, the men of learning and the overseers of craftsmen,14
advisers, and counselors who urge to good deeds. When, all too rarely, such a
person is to be found in the presence of a king, he will be disregarded,
despised, and ignored. For a group of malevolent slanderers will insinuate that
he is unconcerned with the increase of revenue, that he is striving to deplete
the treasury, and that he is lacking in firmness and competence.
The wise, felicitous, and divinely supported king is he who, gazing
on the circumstances of the age with the light of royal discernment, sees that
this stinking and treacherous hag, this faithless swindler, has married since
the firmament began turning, and shall continue to marry until the end of all
time, thousands of beauteous youths, each as fresh as the spring, and each of
whom with one hand she draws into her embrace, with myriad joyous enticements,
while with the other hand she unsheathes the dagger of wrath. What head did
she find lying on her pillow that she did not sever? What stomach did she fill
that she did not tear open? One who knew her true nature said:
Whoever gives his heart to thee laughs at himself
For preferring no other darling to thee, worthless wretch. If with
thy coquetry thou winnest some nouveau riche love, What cloaks he will
stitch for thee, what belts girdle on!
Wert thou not naught other than life, thy heart I would seize,
And make one eye of thine weep, while the other one laughed!
What friend did she summon that she did not expel by the door of
enmity? What beloved did she caress that she did not melt in abasement? What
wretch did she make a prince that did not end as a prisoner? Whom did she make
a minister of the realm that she did not overturn and confound like the affairs
of the realm? Whom did she seat on the throne of kingship that she did not
upset like the chessboard with the king?
"Overseers of craftsmen (a^hdb-e boyuldt): literally,
“those in charge of government factories.” See Heribert Horst, Die
Staatsverwaltung der Grosssel- guqen und Horazmsdhs (Wiesbaden, 1964), p.
26.
If the king observes, with the eye of admonishment, the treachery of
the transient world and the faithlessness of the cunning firmament, then its
rope of deceit will not draw him into the pit, nor will the allurements of two
days’ fleeting pomp, wealth, and bounty lead him astray. He will know for
certain that just as the world did not keep faith with others, neither will it
with him, and so he will not wrong himself and God’s creatures for the sake of
this borrowed abode. It is not worth harming an ant for the sake of this whole
faithless world; why then should the intelligent offend God and men for the
sake of it?
O
king, hear now an abundance from this indigent one, For truth can sometimes be
had from a liar.
Have
shame, and seek no more to vex men.
For
the sake of one faithless, worthless, and vile.
Ugly it is to harm an ant for the sake of the world’s wealth, But
how fine if that wealth, once gained, were to last!
If
this world were not thus faithless a murderer, Adam and Eve would still rule
over the globe.
Alexander
took the world from Darius, then lost it, For Darius would yet be king, were
rule everlasting!
Where
now are all the kings of Iran and Turan
From
the awe of whose swords Gemini stood girded to serve?
Wisdom
would say, looking on their battles and banquets, That the world was an ocean
filled with their troops and their treasure.
But
the dark earth would tell you clearly the state of each king,
And all would be made known to you, if the earth could but speak!
Whoever
did good, his good name remains, And whoever did evil, he is disgraced in the
world.
If you
heard told the tale of ancient kings and their fate, It would serve you as
warning, but there is none here to tell it.
That
which the heedless looks on tomorrow,
The
wise sees today, with the seeing eye of his heart. Since tomorrow all will reap
what they have sown,
They
could sow better today if they but wished.
Today men have no care for the affairs of the world;
Alas! would that they had care for the affairs of religion!
As for the third state, which is that of the king with respect to
his God, here justice consists of making the outer and inner aspects of his
being conformable to each other before God, and in causing the hidden and the
apparent to coincide; and in girding on kingship and monarchy like a belt for
God’s service, so that he maintains himself and his kingship for the sake of
God, rather than desiring God and kingship for his own sake.
Doing good is that of which the Prophet, upon whom be peace, spoke:
“Doing good is that you should worship God as if you saw Him, for if you do not
see Him, verily He sees you.”15 It is not the proper mode of
devotion for a king that he should busy himself with supererogatory worship, such
as prayer, fasting, and reading the Qur’an, and spend most of his time in
solitude and seclusion, thus neglecting the interests of the people, depriving
the needy, remaining unaware of the well-being or corruption of the kingdom,
and abandoning his subjects to the control of oppressors. Indeed, this is a sin
greater than all others. The proper mode of devotion for a king is rather this,
that after fulfilling all obligatory duties of worship and those that are
Sunna, he should attend to the affairs of his kingdom, investigate the state
of his lands and his subjects, enforce the rights of Islam and the Muslims, and
so act with respect to God’s bondsmen and the ordinances of kingship as if he
were looking upon God. For if he does not have the power of such vision, let
him know for certain that God is looking upon him. Then all that he does will
be in accordance with God’s command, and kept pure of all taint of passion and
instinctual nature, so that each act he performs will become a step taken in
wayfaring toward God, and the means for a degree of nearness and elevation in
the Dominical Presence.
As for generosity to kinsfolk, this consists of maintaining the tie
of affinity with servitude. The king should not raise his head an instant from
the threshold of servitude, nor become vain on account of the figurative
kingship of this world: "Let not the life
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 294.
of this world deceive you, nor let the Archdeceiver deceive you
about God.”16 Nor should he look upon himself and his kingdom with
the eye of arrogance, like the pharaoh who said: "Is it not mine, this
kingdom of Egypt, and the rivers that flow at my feet?”17 Rather, in
helplessness, humility, and wretchedness, he should constantly cling to the
threshold of servitude. As has been said:
Draw not away from His dwelling, O heart filled with pain, Though I
know this desert is no place for thy foot.
Sever
thy head of suffering over the sill of His threshold, For the forecourt in the
palace of splendor is no place for thee.
Let him not reply on Mahmudian monarchy, but be instead the Ayaz of
the age, gazing upon the sheepskin cloak of indigence.18
As for abomination, evil, and wrongdoing, they consist here of the
pride and arrogance of kingship and the haughtiness and vainglory of monarchy,
which inevitably appear in the brain of kings as a result of perceiving their
own freedom from need, together with the great need that others have of them.
This is a spiritual sickness that only skilled physicians who are aware of the
temperament of the soul and the heart can cure. If this evil sickness is not
cured, rebellion against God may result from it. Thus God Almighty said: “Truly
man transgresses all bounds when he sees himself sufficient unto himself.”19
And elsewhere He said: “Were God to spread out provision for his bondsmen,
truly they would transgress upon earth.”20
Let the king know for certain that as soon as a bondsman of God
looks upon himself with the eye of the wealth, self-
“Qur’an, 31:33.
■’Qur’an,
43:51.
“Concerning Mahmud and Ayaz, see p. 48, n. 28. It is said that Ayaz
kept an old sheepskin cloak in a special chamber and would occasionally visit
it to remind himself of the poverty that had been his before receiving the
royal favor. See the story as told in the fifth book of Jalal al-Dln Rumi’s Masnavi,
IV:5, pp. 130ff.
“Qur’an, 96:6.
“Qur’an, 42:27.
sufficiency and mightiness of monarchy, the sickness of arrogance
and tyranny will appear in his brain; and when he looks upon God’.s creatures
with the eye of contempt and disdain, he will immediately fall from the gaze of
God’s grace. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “None shall enter the
Garden in whose heart is an atom’s weight of pride.” They asked: “O Messenger
of God, what is pride?” He said: “Looking on men with contempt, and turning
from God.”21
The cure for this evil is that whenever the king’s peacocklike soul
gazes upon its wings of kingship and monarchy and, taking pleasure in them,
desires to fly off to the realm of arrogance and tyranny, he should look at his
black feet of helplessness and impermanence and recall his own origins: “Did We
not create you from a vile liquid?”22 He will see that in the
beginning he was a lowly drop of liquid, and in the end will be a lowly handful
of dust, and that meanwhile he is prisoner to a mouthful of food and a drop of
water, without any control of how these pass through him, so that if they are
blocked up within him he will be content to renounce the kingship of both
worlds for the sake of relief. And with all this, each moment he anticipates
the coming of fate’s flood totally to destroy the ruined traces of life’s
house, from which the rotation of the heavens, with the succession of night and
day, has been removing one brick after the other. What cause is there for pride
in such a state, and what reliance can be placed on such fortune?
For God’s sake, what hope causes the wise
To rely on the fortune of this luckless abode?
The moment one wishes to sit at his ease, Fate takes his hand and
tells him, “Arise!”
As for the conduct of kings toward each group of their subjects and
their solicitude for the people, know that the king is to the world what the
heart is to the body. When the king is sound, the whole world will be sound;
and if the king be corrupt, the whole world will be corrupt. Thus the Prophet,
upon whom be peace, said concerning the heart: “There is in the son of Adam a
21Tradition recorded by Moslem, Abu
Da’ud, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal. !!Qur’an, 77:20.
piece of flesh which if it be sound, causes the rest of the body to
be sound; and if it be corrupt, causes the rest of the body to be corrupt. That
piece of flesh is the heart.”23 It was for this reason too that he
said: “People follow the religion of their kings.”24
The minister is to the king what the intellect is to the heart. Just
as the heart cannot dispense with a perfect intellect, to consult in ruling
the realm of the body and administering its interests, both general and
particular, so too the king cannot dispense with a learned, just, equitable,
perspicacious, efficient, trustworthy, alert, experienced, skilled,
high-minded, intelligent, generous, good-natured, pious, Godfearing, truly
believing, and compassionate minister, whom he may consult in all matters,
general and particular, and to whom the pillars of state, the deputies of the
royal presence, and the common subjects may all have recourse.
Entrust matters always to the wise
So that thy affair may be fair-seeming.
For the wise are capable of every task, And time itself gives the
bridle to the wise.
It is from the wise the heart wins tranquillity—
None ever gained his heart’s desire from the fool.
Thus did I read in Zoroaster’s book,
That the wise of a certainty go to Paradise.
When the minister has these qualities, the king, in tranquillity and
prosperity, can busy himself with conquest and all that constitutes the
conditions and customs of monarchy. But if the king has to undertake rule and
the tasks that properly belong to his minister, he will be unable to engage in
conquest or to preserve the conditions and prestige of monarchy, and the
affairs of the realm and its subjects will be damaged. Thus the Prophet, upon
whom be peace, said: “When God wishes good for a king, He appoints for him a
righteous minister, so that if he forgets, he reminds him; and if he remembers,
he aids him.”25 If the minister is deserving, the king should treat
him with respect and dignity,
’’Tradition previously quoted on p. 201.
’■Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 28.
“Tradition recorded by Abu Da’ud and BeyhaqI.
and ensure that his command is fulfilled throughout the kingdom.
However, the king should still supervise him, so that he is aware of all that
happens in the realm, to low and high alike.
So too with all the other pillars of state, such as the comptroller
of finances,26 the supervisor,27 the inspector,28
the mustermaster,29 the clerk, the chamberlain, the treasurer, the
majordomo, and all the other officials: they are like the five senses (the
eye, the ear, the tongue, the nose, and the tactile sense), common sense, and
the human faculties (thinking, imagining, understanding, memorizing,
remembering, and the other faculties). The army commanders are like the head,
the hands, the feet, and the other main organs—the liver, the lungs, the
spleen, the bile, and so forth. The deputies, the tax collectors, the marshals,30
and other officials are like the fingers, the joints, the intestines, and so
forth; and the rest of the common soldiery and the subjects, with their
differing ranks, are like the veins, the nerves, the bones, the hairs, the
muscles, and all else that goes to make up the body. Just as a human being
needs all of these, so that if one member is lacking his whole person will be
deficient, so too the king needs all these classes of men. If one of them is
lacking the kingdom will be correspondingly deficient, even though this may not
be apparent.
The king must, then, appoint and empower the members of each of
these classes at the proper rank and station, having examined and established
their aptitude, trustworthiness, piety, and soundness of character. He must be
aware of their doings, so that they do not become bold and impudent or
covetous. He
“"Comptroller of finances (mostowfi): the chief figure
in the civil administration, after the minister. For a precise description of
his duties, see 'Abbas Eq ba I, Vezdrat dar 'ahd-e saldtin-e bozorg-e
Saljuqi (Tehran, 1338 S./1959), pp. 26-28.
“’Supervisor (mosref): the head of the divan-e esrdf,
a body charged with the auditing of financial transactions, thus complementing
the functions of the mostowfi (Eqbal, Vezarat, pp. 31-32).
““Inspector (nazer): a treasury official concerning whose
duties little is known. See Mohammad b. Hendusah NakcevanI, Dastur al-kdteb
fi ta'yin al-mardteb, ed. A. A. Ali-zade (Moscow, 1964), 1:1, pp. 299, 368.
““Muster-master ('drei): the official responsible for
equipping the army, furnishing it with provender and supplies, and paying the
troops (Eqbal, Vazarat, p. 32).
’"Marshals (noqabd): the chiefs, in various cities, of
the descendants of ‘All (NakcevanI, Dastur al-kdteb, 1:1, p. 46).
should render them in full whatever is their stipend, fief, and
emolument, so that they do not commit treachery through pressing need. He
should not listen to their words concerning each other, except with clear proof
and then with great caution, for some will enviously portray the trustworthy as
treacherous, impute treason to the solicitous, and falsely accuse the devoted.
If a devoted servant commits a minor offense, one that does not
cause great harm, let the king exercise royal clemency. He should not be
angered easily, nor command excessive punishment. If there is a crime that
cannot be overlooked, let him recite "The requital of an evil deed is one
like unto it,”31 and constantly set before his eyes the verse:
"Those who suppress their anger and forgive men—verily God loves the doers
of good.”32 But let not laxity, carelessness, and feebleness of temperament
be imputed to him, for then the people of mischief and corruption will become
bold, and all kinds of corruption will appear in men’s brains.
The king should, on the contrary, be celebrated for his strictness
in punishing and taking revenge, for manly honor and zeal. In the case of
lesser crimes, he should intimidate and threaten their authors, having recourse
to arguments and good advice, then exercise forbearance and forgive them. In
the case of a crime that calls for requital or entails harm for the kingdom, he
should by no means overlook the offense, but rather bring down on its author
the pitiless sword, in accordance with God’s law. For such crimes—may God
forbid their occurrence!—are like a consuming disease affecting a limb that may
by no means be neglected; the affected limb must be severed by the sword, so
that the disease does not infect other limbs.
In all matters the king should avoid the two extremes of deficiency
and excess, for "the mean is the best in all things.” In inflicting
punishment he should not, on the one hand, be so zealous that the people come
to fear him and flee from him, with terror and hatred gaining ascendancy over
their natures and their souls becoming distraught, so that they engage in
"Qur’an, 42:40.
’“Qur’an, 3:134.
wiles and stratagems, causing disturbance in the kingdom—
Do not bring them in despair to the point
That they make designs on thy life.33
Nor, on the other hand, should he exercise so much forbearance that
the dignity of kingship and the awe of monarchy depart from men’s hearts, so
that the corrupters and the base become bold, the oppressors gain ascendancy,
and matters become difficult for the righteous and sincere, the weak and the
stranger, causing great harm to arise on all sides.
He should not be so extravagant in munificence that it results in
prodigality, waste, and lavishness, for these are reprehensible. God Almighty
has said: “Verily the lavishers are brethren unto the devils.”34 He
said too: “Verily He does not love the wasteful.”35 Nor should the
king be so zealous in the guarding of wealth that greed and miserliness become
attributed to him, for that brings about blame and loss in this world and the
hereafter. God said: “Let not those who, in their miserliness, withhold that
which God has given them from His generosity, think that it is better for them.
Rather it is worse for them, for that which they withheld shall be a collar
around their necks on the Day of Resurrection.”36 Instead of
grudging God’s generosity to God’s creatures, the king should earn good repute in
this world and reward in the hereafter before suddenly the prince of death
looses his bow, snatches him from the throne of kingship, delivers the fruit of
his many years of toil into the hands of his enemies, and the fire of longing,
regret, and loss flares up in his soul in such manner that no water but the
water of God’s mercy can extinguish it.
This world’s good fortune is indeed pleasant,
But do not give it your heart—it kills all its lovers. Whomever it
caresses like a king,
It will cast down like a pawn.
This world with its good fortune is like a mirage—
35A line from the Garsdspnama
of Asadl TusI, ed. Habib Yagma’i (Tehran, 1317 S./1938), p. 360.
’■Qur'an, 17:27
“Qur’an, 6:141.
“Qur’an, 3:180.
It entices you on, then gives you no water.
Many a king and a minister the heavens have made, Given them
kingship and treasure, a crown and a throne;
Then arranged all things at their pleasure, And humbled all mankind
before them.
Thus they became as rich as Nemrod,
And each was the pharaoh of his own age.
They sucked the blood of the poor,
And drew out the brains of the wretched.
All were busy with months and with years, All deceived by their pomp
and their wealth.
Suddenly the hurricane of wrath began blowing, And pulled them from
the throne onto the bier.
It delivered their bodies to festering clay,
And their kingdom into the hands of the enemy.
Their burden of guilt they bore off to the hereafter,
While their wealth remained here, for others to feast on. But he
whom God caressed with His favor,
Who discerned good and evil in God-given light,
He knew the difference between the light and the fire,
And gave not his heart to this abode of deceit.
He perceived what in this life has lasting effect
And hastened to righteousness for the sake of the next.
His concern was this: How from this stage
Might he move forward in joy and conteniment?
All that he had—kingship, treasure, and throne— With him he took and
left not an atom behind.
When it was time to depart, then he departed, Aided by a hundred
thousand supports.
Whoever has the eye of perspicacity illumined by divine light will
be able to conceive of the abandonment of transient pomp and property. The
lasting, righteous deeds that are the support and aid of the believer are the
righteous deeds that his body performs, and lasting acts of charity. The
Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “When a man dies, his deeds come to an end,
with the exception of three: a continuing act of charity; knowledge by which
men benefit; and a righteous son that prays for his good.”37
’’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, TermezI, Abu Da’ud, and
Nasa’I.
What good fortune could be more wondrous than this, that while God’s
servant lies in his tomb, powerless to perform further deeds, each moment and
instant the cherubim bring him trays of compassion and generosity from the
Glorious Presence, saying: “This is the reward for the morsel eaten by some
scholar of the law in a school that you founded, or some dervish in a hospice
you established”; or, “This is the reward for the rest and ease that accrued to
one of God’s bondsmen from your pious foundations—a bridge that he crossed, the
wall of a caravanserai in which he took shade, a mosque where he made two rek‘ats3s
of prayer.”
No monarch should grudge himself the acquisition of such happiness
during the days of his good fortune by leaving those good works undone. For
when he awakens from the sweet sleep of good fortune, money and wealth will
have left his possession and he will be deprived of that felicity. But if he
thus deprives himself, then beware! Let him at least not expose himself to
wretchedness by annulling others’ good deeds.
He should not attempt to change or adapt pious endowments by as much
as an atom’s weight, or accept suggestions to do so made by counselors of evil
disposition and corrupt belief; for in their ignorance and unawareness, they
are endangering their own blood, their life and their faith. They are unaware
that no intelligent man will choose to be the object of the imprecation of
several thousand wronged and oppressed ones, all of them people of virtue and
righteousness; nor will any man of sound faith consider it admissible to be
pursued by the aspiration of several thousand builders of pious foundations.
Suppose that a pious foundation in some spot has found acceptance
in God’s view; that it has earned the spirit of its builder some degree of
nearness to the Mighty Presence; and that he constantly submits a grievance to
that presence, saying: “O God, I withheld my property from myself, deprived my
own children of it, and devoted it to Thy bondsmen for the sake of Thy
pleasure. Now such-and-such an oppressor is annulling my work of charity,
depriving Thy bondsmen, and acting with
KRak'at: a
unit of prayer, ending with the second prostration.
impudence toward Thy presence. What sayest Thou?” Who can escape the
consequences of such a complaint, particularly when the endowments usurped are
many, and those with a claim on them numerous? We seek refuge in God from the
torment of the fire!
Beware if an ignorant man or a wily scholar gives leave that money
belonging to the endowments should be spent on improper purposes; if he says,
for example, that it can be given to the army to be spent in war, or that it
can be used to build a bridge, a caravanserai, a fortress, or a dam. God
forbid! By no means can the money be spent on any of these, but only on its
proper purpose. The money of each endowment should be spent on those who have a
claim on it, in accordance with the conditions laid down by its founder. As
for those who give unjust rulings or orders, those who mismanage the
endowments, and those who are able to protect the endowments but fail to do
so—they all burden themselves with sin and evil and grievances, for tomorrow
all those with a claim on the endowments will become their enemies and demand
justice.
It is incumbent on the king that he should maintain every endowment
in his kingdom for the benefit of those that have a claim on it, in accordance
with the conditions laid down by its founder, and that he appoint a pious,
solicitous, and qualified trustee for all the endowments who shall strive to
make them prosper. He should also shorten the hand of the oppressor and the
usurper, and give the deserving their due. When he does this, God Almighty will
give him the same reward that He gives to the founders of the endowments.
This feeble one once heard in Damascus that King §alah al-Dln39—may
God’s mercy be upon him—had the habit of establishing some charitable
institution in every city that he captured. When he captured the land of Egypt,
he said to his minister, Qazi Fazel,—may God’s mercy be upon him—“I wish to
build a hospice here.” The qazi said: “I wish the monarch of Islam to
build a thousand charitable institutions in the land of Egypt.”
39§alah al-Dln (Saladin): the great
warrior who took Jerusalem from the Crusaders and restored it to Islamic rule.
He died in 589/1193.
§alah al-Din asked him: "How is that possible?” The qdzi replied:
“More than a thousand charitable institutions have been built in the land of
Egypt, and their endowments have suffered great damage. If the monarch of Islam
commands that these endowments be restored to prosperity, removed from the
control of usurpers and entrusted to a pious trustee so that the income from
them can be properly spent, he will gain reward for all this, and it will be as
if he himself had founded the institutions.” Salah al-Din gave orders that
this should be done.
It should be known for certain that God Almighty will call a king to
account for any damage that the endowments have suffered during his rule. Let
kings not imagine this great task to be slight, and let them be careful not to
sin in this matter.
It is also necessary that the king, out of concern for his people,
should appoint at the entrance to his court a chamberlain or receiver of
petitions, a trustworthy and pious man of correct belief, who shall submit to
him the circumstances of the oppressed and the needy, by way of petition or
message. The king should regard it as an important task and duty to alleviate
their need, and also consider it an opportunity to earn reward for himself.
It is incumbent on the king, wherever there is a frontier with the
infidels, to appoint a manly, brave, courageous, experienced, battle-tested,
and pious commander, imbued with ardor and jealous for the honor of Islam, with
a complete army under him, and to supply him fully with provisions and fiefs.
Then let the king command that they should not rest for a single night, but
spend all day in warfare and jehad. If they need assistance, the king
should order that it be sent to them, so that they are continually powerful,
victorious, and happy of heart. For each victory that is won the king should
dispatch new favors, honors, and gifts to secure their devotion, so that thus
encouraged and supported, they may sacrifice their lives in striving to subdue
and uproot the enemies of religion.
The army must not be heedless and neglectful, so that the infidels
gain dominance and attack the lands of Islam, on each
occasion putting to death and capturing several thousands of
Muslims, and carrying off into bondage their kinsfolk, families, and children.
For the king of the age is responsible for preventing all this, and he must
answer for whatever occurs.
It is also incumbent upon the king, whenever he sends a magistrate
or governor to a city or province, to ensure that the one he sends is an
intelligent, discerning, and pious person, in whom the skill to govern,
religiosity, and generosity are all present, so that he may suitably fulfill the
conditions of his task. It must not be an oppressor who constantly spills the
blood of the subjects, or someone heedless who neglects their interests.
Further, when the king sends a judge to a city or province, he must
send one who is learned, intelligent, pious, and righteous; who does not covet
the property of orphans, or bequests, endowments, bribes, and the like; and who
has upright, reliable, and pious servants, free of bias and partiality in the
cases they handle, and not inclined by covetousness to making the right wrong,
and the wrong, right. Such an aim is extremely difficult of attainment in this
age, for the post of judge is generally given on account of some service
rendered, not on account of suitability; and whoever renders a service
inevitably expects a service in return.
In summary, if the king investigates the state of each group, and is
aware of the deeds of every official and holder of authority, and if concern
for Islam lays hold of the skirt of his soul, so that injustice and oppression
do not occur in his realm, matters will soon be restored to their proper state,
and men of evil conduct will be reformed, for “people follow the religion of
their kings.”40 But if he spends his life in heedlessness; if he is
a prisoner to caprice, passion, and momentary pleasure; and if he has no care
for his subjects—then the oppressors will swiftly win dominance, and holders of
office will begin usurping property and depriving the needy; the infidels will
gain the upper hand and keep the Muslims distraught; unjust blood will be shed;
the property of strangers and merchants will be exposed to ruin; corruption
will become manifest; and varieties of calamity and disorder will appear that
no words can describe.
'“Tradition, see n. 24 above.
The guilt for all this shall be on the head of the oppressive and
impious king. It is for this reason that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said:
“The one among God’s servants who is given the worst rank in the sight of God
on the Day of Resurrection will be the unjust and harsh imam.”41
Beggary is a thousand times superior to such kingship, for the Prophet says:
“There is no shepherd who fails to surround his flock with devoted concern,
but is taken by the nose and cast by God into the fire.”42 He also
says: “There is no chief of a tribe but is brought forth on the Day of
Resurrection with his hand fettered to his neck; then it is either released by
his justice or held there by his injustice.”43 Every ascent has a
corresponding descent: just as there is no rank loftier or nobler than that of
kingship when it is properly exercised, its profit being that indicated by the
Prophet in his saying: “There is none better in rank than the imam who says the
truth when he speaks, who does justice when he judges, and who is merciful when
asked for mercy,”44 so too the loss to be had from kingship is
correspondingly great.
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
"Part of the Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
'“Tradition recorded, with a somewhat different wording, by Bokari.
“Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal and Dareml.
“Tradition recorded by Bagavi.
Third Chapter:
Concerning the Wayfaring of
Ministers, Men of the Pen, and Deputies
God Almighty said: “(Moses said): And appoint for me a minister from
among my people, Aaron my brother, and strengthen my back with him.’”1
The Prophet, upon whom be the peace and blessings of God, said:
"When God wishes good for a king, He appoints for him a righteous
minister, so that if he forgets he reminds him, and if he remembers, he aids
him.”2
Know that the position of minister is an appurtenance of kingship
and the supreme pillar of the realm, and no king can dispense with a righteous,
intelligent, solicitous, efficacious, and sagacious minister, both learned and
given to applying his learning. It is only God’s kingship—may His glory be
magnified!—that has no need of minister or counselor, for His glorious
presence has no peer, like, or equal. All the prophets, upon whom be peace,
needed a minister and counselor. Thus, God Almighty relates concerning Moses,
upon whom be peace, that he requested a minister from His majestic
presence—“and appoint for me a minister”;3 that is, “bestow upon me
a minister who will grant me support.” The Prophet said: “I have two ministers
in the heavens, and two upon earth. My ministers in the heavens are Gabriel and
Michael and my ministers upon earth are Abu Bakr and ‘Omar.”4
If the kingdom lacks an accomplished and respected minister, it will
have no splendor or adornment. The kingdom is like a tent: the pole upholding
it is the intelligent minister, and the ropes are the commanders, lesser or
greater, just as some ropes are bigger and others are smaller. The troops are
the small ropes on the edge of the tent that are formed into rings, and the
■Qur'an, 20:31.
’Tradition previously quoted on p. 423.
’Qur’an, 20:31.
■Tradition recorded by Termez!
deputies, tax collectors, and other officials are like the ropes
that are attached to the side of the tent. The pegs of the tent that are needed
for its stability are in truth the justice and equity of the king, for even
though there may be numerous commanders, ministers, and troops, and much power
and might, equipment and provisions, still the kingdom will enjoy permanence
and stability only through justice. So too a tent, although it has all the
necessary poles and ropes, cannot stand firm without pegs. If a peg is missing
in one corner, the whole tent will be affected. Thus the Prophet, upon whom be
peace, said: ‘A kingdom can last despite unbelief, but it cannot last despite
oppression.”5
Since the minister is like the pole for the tent of the realm, the
more elevated he is and the more lofty are his powers, the greater will be the
splendor and adornment of the tent of the realm on account of him. The minister
must also have four qualities like the pole: straightness, loftiness,
steadfastness, and endurance.
Now the minister has three states: the first, that between himself
and God; the second, that between himself and the king; and the third, that between
himself and the troops and the subjects. In each state he must exercise the
four qualities, in a manner appropriate to each.
Thus in the first state, that between himself and God, he should
practice straightness in the sense that God Almighty commands: “Be thou
straight as thou hast been commanded.”6 That is, “walk straight on
the highway of the Law,” this being the straight path according to God’s
saying: “This is My path, the straight, so follow it.”7 He should
constantly seek God’s pleasure in all that he does, and avoid concern for
making his deeds appear straight to men while neglecting God’s pleasure, for
this is the beginning of all crookedness. Rather, he should make all his deeds
straight with God and not grieve if they become crooked with men, for “whoever
is for God, God is for him.”8
’Tradition of unknown status.
’Qur’an, 11:112.
’Qur’an, 6:153.
’Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 19.
As for loftiness, he should practice this quality through having
lofty aspiration, and not being seduced by the power and wealth of the world or
stooping to gaze on its carcass.
What is this world, and its people and love?
A dungheap full of dogs and carrion.
Rich and poor alike, if deceived by it,
Are happy like a dreamer musing on wealth.9
The minister should regard the power and wealth of the world as
provisions and supplies for a journey; the succession of life’s days as the
months of the pilgrimage; and the coming of his appointed term as the season of
pilgrimage and the day of standing at Arafat;10 and he should
consider himself as journeying to God’s house. He should know for certain that
he has been given provisions and supplies to enable him to traverse the desert
of the attributes of the commanding soul, for the veil between him and the
Ka'ba of God’s presence, his goal and his aim, is none other than that desert.
But if he is content with the shore of the Tigris of passion; if he
settles in the Baghdad of instinctual nature; if he adorns his camels every
day, and makes of the instruments and wherewithal of journeying means for the
luxuries of sedentary life; if he makes himself drunk and neglectful on the
wine of the passions, so that the caravans pass him by, and suddenly the pilgrimage
season arrives and others perform the pilgrimage without him—then he will have
naught in his hand but the wind of deprivation; naught on his head but the dust
of shame; naught in his eye but the tears of longing; and naught in his heart
but the fire of regret. Such is the state of the one who neglects and squanders
the power and wealth of this world that can be made the means of eternal
felicity, and who is content to use it for indulgence and luxury.
As for those who make of the power and wealth of this world— which
are properly the means for attaining the degrees of Paradise and proximity to
God—provisions and supplies for journey-
9Two separate lines from the Hadiqat
al-haqiqa of Sana’I (pp. 433 and 431). '"Concerning Arafat, see p.
187, n. 30.
ing to the India of the soul’s caprice, and use it for the sake of
passion and animal enjoyment, they grow ever more distant from the true aim and
goal, and never behold the beauty of the Ka'ba of attainment. They do not
proceed beyond the rank of “they are like beasts; rather, more erring”;11
and their allotted share is “Let them eat and indulge themselves, wliile false
hope beguiles them; verily they will come to know!”12
So when a man possesses lofty aspiration, he will not be deceived
by the transient allurements of the world, but rather fix his gaze on the
degrees of the hereafter and its high stations, and make the power and wealth
of this world means for attaining God’s nearness and acceptance.
As for steadfastness, it means that the minister should have true
certainty and be firm-footed in the practice of religion, not turning away from
a deed to be done for God’s sake out of consideration for men, or fear of
their blame and reproach. He should fear no one, for the property of those
chosen of God is that “They struggle in God’s path and fear not the blame of
any blamer.”13
As for endurance, it means that the minister should show fortitude,
patience, and endurance in bearing the burden of the trust of the Law’s
obligations, the same trust that the people of the heavens and earth were
unable to bear: “Verily We offered the trust to the heavens and the earth and
the mountains, and they refused to bear it.”14 He should not betray
the trust, but keep his foot firmly planted in wayfaring on the highway of God,
so that on the day when the address comes, "Verily God commands you to
return trusts to their owners,”15 he will be able proudly to enter
the presence of the Owner of the trust, on the pretext of returning the trust.
With heart and soul we bore the burden of His trust, So now without
burden we go to the court of His might.
"Qur'an, 7:178.
“Qur'an, 15:3.
’’Qur’an, 5:57.
QQur’an, 33:72.
“Qur’an, 4:57.
We
came with the darkness of the soul and of nature;
Now we
go with a thousand varied lights in our soul. Full long we were confined in the
enclosure of ignorance;
See
this grace, that now we go as partners in His mysteries!
Although
we spent a lifetime in the darkness of caprice, Drinking the water of life, we
go now like Kezr.16
Though
we came dark and blind like the firmament, Now we go with a hundred thousand
eyes like the heavens.
In
this revolution we shall reach the point of desire, For we go with our heads
rotating like the compass.
As for the second state, that between the minister and the king,
again the minister should apply the same four qualities. First he should
practice straightness, in the sense that his outer behavior and inner
disposition toward the king should be one. He should cleanse his inner being
from the pollution of treachery and deceit, and not be hypocritical in serving
the king, so that he speaks according to his pleasure in his presence, exclaims
“the prince spoke truly” for every good or evil thing he says or does, and
follows his every whim; but then, when leaving his presence, relates his faults
and begins to complain of him to everyone, so that the people start to describe
him as evil, ignorant, and oppressive. Nor when he wishes for the sake of his
own covetousness to commit oppression against someone should he make an excuse
of the king, saying “it is his command,” thus pretending to be free of all
blame. All this behavior is crookedness, hypocrisy, and treachery.
Straightness, sincerity, and trustworthiness lie in this, that
whatever constitutes true interest at any time, and whatever perspicacious
opinion demands, the minister should present alluringly in the king’s presence,
and submit in the garment of the most delicate phrase at a suitable time, while
fully observing the customary deference due to a king.
If the king should object to his words or seek to correct them, the
minister should not rebut or refute what he says, for kings
’’Concerning
Kezr, see p. 25, n. 4.
have royal insight on account of their monarchical splendor; it has
been said that “the words of kings are the kings of words.”17 Rather,
he should heed the king’s words with the ear of contentment and not be
enamored of his own words. He should regard it as incumbent upon him to ponder
exhaustively on the king’s words, and if any addition to them should be
necessary, let him submit it in due time. In general he should not retract
words spoken in truth, but let him pay attention to the proper time and
occasion and the mood of the king, so that his words do not come at a time of
lassitude or anger, for these act as a veil to the king’s truth-seeing vision.
Insofar as he is able, the minister will implant in the king’s nature, through
subtle stratagems, that wherein lie truth, recitude, and righteousness, thus
observing the path of honesty and sincerity.
The second characteristic is that of loftiness. The minister should
conduct himself in the presence of the king with lofty aspiration, not
conceiving corrupt and covetous wishes through abjectness and vileness of
nature, nor casting his gaze on anything. Rather, he should keep closed the
door of dispersed desire, and keep himself jealous of his own dignity, and
content and respectful of the property of others. For when the king observes
these characteristics with the light of insight, the minister will become
accepted and beloved of him, and grow in his esteem and respect. That which is
desired will be amply attained, in the best fashion: his honor will increase,
and his good name will be spread abroad.
The third characteristic is steadfastness. The minister must be
faithful, loyal, and steadfast in the service of the king, so that if the
opponents and obstinate adversaries of the king wish to seduce him, they will
be unable to do so; and even though they offer him much power and wealth, he
will not leave the straight path.
The fourth characteristic is endurance. The minister must have
endurance and forbearance, and whatever the king says or does in a state of
anger, vehemence, or fury, either toward him or another, he should accept in
good grace and silence, uttering words that will quench the flame of his anger
and shunning
’’Arabic proverb; not, however, listed in al-Maydani’s Majma
'al-amsdl.
words that will stir his wrath or arouse his rancor. When some event
befalls the king, or he is offered provocation by an enemy, if the minister is
able to make some arrangement in the matter through patience, tranquillity,
wise measure, and perspicacious advice, so that the king does not have to make
war and do battle and place himself in danger, let him do so, for "peace
is better.”18 But if the affair be such that it can be treated only
with the sharp edge of the sword and the poultice of agreement and compromise
serves no purpose, and if the king be inclined to war, then let not the
minister dissuade him or induce cowardice within him, for that brings fear to
the heart. Especially when it is a question of war with the unbelievers, he
should urge and encourage him to make war, and aid and assist him. If the king
is timid and afraid, he should remove fear from his heart, imbue him with hope
of God and His support, and strengthen his heart with the prospect of triumph
and victory from God: “Verily God’s party, they are the victorious.”19
If the army is small, let him put his trust in God, for "How many a little
company hath overcome a great host, by God’s leave! God is with the steadfast.”20
In all events the minister should place before the king that wherein
lies the interest of religion, the kingdom, and its subjects, without
dissembling, and he should discourage him from all that is connected with
corruption, guiding him instead to good deeds and assisting him in them. Thus
he will have acted in accordance with the indication contained in the
Tradition: "If he forgets, he reminds him; and if he remembers, he aids
him.”21 When the minister is adorned with the manners and
characteristics we have set forth, he will be a true support for the king, and
the case will be the same as when God Almighty bestowed his favor on Moses,
upon whom be peace, by appointing Aaron as his minister. Thus He said: “We
shall strengthen thine arm with thy brother, and We will give power unto you
both.”22
'“Qur'an,
4:128.
'“Qur’an,
5:59.
““Qur'an,
2:249.
“'Part of the Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
““Qur'an,
28:35.
As for the third state, which is that between the minister and the
soldiers and subjects, in it too the minister must observe and maintain the
same four qualities.
The first is straightness. Straightness is practiced toward the
soldiers and subjects through showing them kindness and being constantly
occupied in care and solicitude for them, so that the soldiers always have
provender, equipment, and supplies, and the subjects enjoy ease and
tranquillity, and no burden rests on them.
Such a state will be possible when the minister strives for the
prosperity of the realm and the well-being of its agriculture, and when the
king is not devoted to the accumulation of wealth. For if the affliction of
greed for the accumulation of wealth appears in the king’s disposition, he will
inevitably begin the practice of oppression and blameworthy innovation, and
reduce the salary of the army; his subjects will be ruined, and his soldiers
will be left without supplies. When the subjects are ruined, the realm itself
will be ruined; and when the soldiers are left without supplies, the kingdom
will begin to totter. Calamities, disorders, and great damage are then to be
expected, the consequences of which cannot be repaired with all the treasuries
on the face of the earth. The minister must be devoted to the prosperity of the
realm and its subjects, for it is only thus that the soldiers can be kept well
supplied. When the soldiers are kept well supplied and contented, the kingdom
can be expanded; and when kingship is firmly established, the whole world is the
king’s treasury.
The minister must not establish innovative practices in the kingdom
in order to come closer to the king, for that is not friendship to the king,
but utmost enmity: it incurs ill-repute for him in this world and chastisement
in the hereafter, and the storing up of God’s anger against him.
Let the minister strive rather to increase the salaries, stipends,
and pensions, and to ensure that the king’s charity and alms constantly reach
arriving and departing travelers, and imams, ascetics, devotees, and the people
of religion, for this will be a means of supporting the kingdom and
perpetuating the mon-
archy, as well as gaining nearness and degrees of ascent in the
hereafter.
The minister must also strive in good works with his own property and
keep his gate open to the needy. He should not be miserly, short-tempered, and
arrogant toward God’s creatures, but rather conduct himself toward them with
pleasing character, liberality, and generosity.
As for the second characteristic, which is that of loftiness, the
minister must conduct himself toward the soldiers and subjects in a manner
befitting high aspiration, not coveting any service or bribe from them, but
conveying to them instead the fruits of his generosity and liberality.
As for the third characteristic, which is that of steadfastness, the
minister must be steadfast toward the soldiers and subjects in the sense that
when he assigns a fief to a commander for his cultivation, appoints a tax
collector to a certain area, or designates someone for a post, he should not
make changes and substitutions without due reason, or pay heed to the words of
the biased, unsupported by proof. For God said: “O ye who believe, if an
evildoer comes to you with tidings, then verify it, lest ye strike some folk in
ignorance and afterward repent of what ye did.”23 When the treachery
and guilt of someone has been proved, the minister must not prevaricate or
compromise, or be negligent in requital. He must be careful not to lead astray
a group of persons at court with bribes and services, for they will then conceal
the truth and engage in intercession and obfuscation, so that others too become
bold, and the hand of oppression and trespass reaches out against the subjects.
It is incumbent on the minister, whenever he wishes to appoint
someone to a task, position, or tax collectorship, that he should act with
caution and make the appointment in accordance with merit, for all harm in
posts both religious and worldly arises from this, that those posts and tasks
have not been given to the deserving, but rather to persons who have performed
some service and acquired a protector at court, so that no atten-
23Qur’an, 49:6.
tion is paid to their fitness or lack of it. Those who are fit for
these tasks and positions do not, because of self-respect and the dignity of
religion, consider it permissible to frequent the courts of kings, to wait upon
the worthy and unworthy without distinction, and constantly to exclaim,
"May the king have long lifel” Kings rarely concern themselves with
seeking out suitable people for each task and making appointments in accordance
with merit, and thus it inevitably happens that religious posts generally fall
into the hands of the unworthy. Whenever merit is disregarded in this respect,
it is on account of the shortcomings of ministers, chamberlains, and deputies
who fail to investigate the circumstances; do not seek the people of talent,
learning, and piety; allow the talented to waste away in a corner; and assign
tax collectorships and appointments to the unworthy on account of corrupt
desire.
As for the fourth characteristic, which is that of endurance, just
as the tent pole bears the whole weight of the tent, so too must the minister
carry on the shoulder of aspiration and solicitude the burden of all the
soldiers and subjects and the whole kingdom. He must regard the subjects with
the gaze of compassion; if they commit numerous misdemeanors with respect to
his own property, he must overlook it and forgive them, practicing endurance
and forbearance. But it is incumbent upon him to prevent whatever results in
harm for the kingdom, and he must not admit apathy to his nature so that the
interests of the kingdom and its subjects are harmed or neglected. He must
investigate and be aware of the state of the kingdom and its subjects, of
friend and enemy, and of other kings and their realms, so that he can busy
himself in preventing, before it befalls, every kind of harm—religious or
worldly—that might occur. For once an event has befallen, it is difficult to
take measures against it.
The minister should know for certain that if he practices the four
characteristics that have been set forth in his dealings with God, the king,
and the subjects, and if he joins a sincere intent to that practice in all circumstances,
thinking in his own mind, ‘All these services to the king and his subjects I
perform for the sake of God’s pleasure and drawing near to his presence; my
striving is directed to bestowing ease and tranquillity on a be-
liever, to repelling some evil from an oppressed one, and to
preventing an oppressor from committing oppression” (for the Prophet, upon whom
be peace, says: ‘Aid your brother, whether he be oppressor or oppressed”; to
which it was said: “O Messenger of God, I may help him if he is oppressed, but
how can I help him if he is an oppressor?” the reply being: ‘‘You prevent him
from oppressing; that is your help to him”)24—if the minister fulfills
all this—then every deed and endeavor, every instance of endurance, patience,
rectitude, tranquillity, and steadfastness, every commanding of good and
forbidding of evil, every act of justice and equity, every service and deed of
humility, every toil and exertion, every giving and receiving, every income and
expenditure, and every talking and listening, undertaken by him with friend and
enemy, with elect and commonalty, with king and subject, will cause him to
receive a degree of nearness and loftiness of rank in the Mighty Presence. This
is on condition that his deeds be pure of and preserved from the pollution of
subordination to caprice, the pride of the soul, the arrogance and haughtiness
of lordliness, the insolence of affluence, the trappings of rulerhood, and
hypocrisy before men. Only then will they be worthy of acceptance by God, for "God
is good, and accepts only the good.”25
Similarly, when each of the other deputies, tax collectors, and
officeholders acts in his work according to trustworthiness and piety; adorns
himself with the qualities set forth above, insofar as he is able; and has
regard for God’s will, and strives to lighten the burden of the subjects—he too
becomes deserving of high rank and nearness in the Divine Presence.
The minister and the rest of this class must also observe certain
litanies and times of devotion, like rising for part of the night and engaging
in zekr, in accordance with the conditions set forth in the chapter on zekr,
or making zekr and reciting the Qur’an at the time of the morning and
midafternoon prayers. Then they will be of that number whom God praises thus:
“They call upon their Lord in early morning and evening, desiring His face.”26
If the minister can keep his tongue daily engaged in the
“'Tradition recorded by Bokarl.
“’Tradition recorded by BeyhaqI.
“’Qur’an, 6:52.
zekr of la elaha ella’lldh, in
all his comings and goings, his risings, sittings, and lyings—indeed at all
times except when answering the call of nature—this is in itself perfect good
fortune, and the minister will be of those “who make mention of God standing
and sitting, and lying on their sides.”27
And blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
“’Qur’an,
3:191.
Fourth Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of Different Classes of Scholar: Muftis, Preachers, and Judges
God Almighty said: “God will raise up those who believe and those who
have been given knowledge to ascending degrees.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: "The
scholars are the heirs of the prophets”;2 and he also said: “The
scholars of my community are like the prophets of the Children of Israel.”3
Know that knowledge is the noblest of means for gaining nearness to
God; that it is also an attribute of God; and that through knowledge lofty
degrees may be attained—“God will raise up those who believe and those who have
been given knowledge to ascending degrees.”4 But this last is
conditional upon fear and awe of God being joined to knowledge,, for the
beginning of all knowledge is the fear of God, and God Almighty calls scholar
or learned the one who has awe and fear of Him: 'Among His bondsmen they truly
fear God who have knowledge.”3 As knowledge increases, so too does
fear. Hence the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “I am he among you who has
the most knowledge of God, and the most fear of Him.”6 The sign of
fear is to act in accordance with one’s knowledge, and to make of knowledge a
means for attaining high rank in the hereafter, not for accumulating wealth or
acquiring worldly power and bestial enjoyment. Whoever does not act in accordance
with his knowledge, and makes of it a means for gaining the wealth and power of
this world, is in reality ignorant, not learned. God Almighty has likened such
a person—God preserve us!—to an ass: "The likeness of those who were
charged with the
'Qur’an, 58:11.
“Beginning of a Tradition recorded by Bokari, Abu Da’ud, Ebn Maja,
Daremi, and Ebn Elanbal.
’Tradition; source unknown.
’Qur’an, 58:11.
’Qur’an, 35:28.
“Tradition recorded by Bokari, Moslem, Abu Da’ud, and Ebn Hanbal.
Torah, and failed in their charge, is that of an ass bearing huge
tomes.”7
Knowledge is the legacy of the prophets, upon whom be peace: “The
prophets bequeathed not a single dinar or derham, but they
bequeathed knowledge, and whoever acquires it, acquires an abundant share.”8
The prophets bequeathed two kinds of knowledge: outer knowledge and inner
knowledge.
Outer knowledge is that beneficial knowledge which the
Companions—may God be pleased with them!—derived from the sayings and deeds of
the Prophet, and which the following generation and the imams of the forebears
of the community then investigated, studied, taught, and applied. It consists
of knowledge of the Book and the Sunna, exegesis, Traditions and narrations,
jurisprudence, and whatever is dependent on these.
Inner knowledge consists of the perception of those matters which
were given like wine to the Prophet’s soul to quaff—peace be upon him—without
the intermediary of Gabriel from the uttermost unseen, at the station of
"or nearer”9 and in the state of “I have a time with God.”10
"He revealed to His bondsman what He revealed.”11 Then, in
accordance with the custom of the generous, from the realm of prophethood he
would pour a draught from those brimming goblets on the soul and the liver of
those burned in the world of the quest—"God poured naught into my breast,
but I poured it into the breast of Abu Bakr.”12
In the same way that outer knowledge is of many kinds, inner
knowledge also has great variety. It includes the knowledge of the following
matters: faith, Islam, and beneficence;13 the different forms of
certainty derived from the perception of causes,
’Qur’an, 62:5.
“Completion of the Tradition, ‘‘the scholars are the heirs of the
prophets.” “Qur’an, 53:9.
'“Part of the Tradition quoted in full on p. 156.
'■Qur’an, 53:10.
’’Tradition recorded, with a somewhat different wording, by Bokari
and Ebn Hanbal.
’’Concerning beneficence (eiisan), seep. 126, n. 13.
immediate vision, or witnessing and unveiling;14
repentance; asceticism; piety; sincerity; the soul and its attributes and diseases;
the heart and its attributes, aspects, and states; the refining and training
of the soul; the purifying and nurturing of the heart; the distinguishing of
different types of stray thought— the satanic, angelic, spiritual, and divine,
and those arising from the soul, the heart, the intellect, and faith; the
difference between divine indication, inspiration, address, summons, heavenly
voice, and God’s word; the improvement of morals; the transformation of
attributes; the assuming of divine characteristics; witnessing and its
varieties; unveiling and its different types; divine unity and its different
types; the attributes of beauty and the attributes of splendor; the meaning of
the attributes; the manifestation of the attributes; the manifestation of the
essence; stations and states; nearness and remoteness; attainment; effacement
and abiding; intoxication and sobriety; and gnosis and its various types, as
well as other branches of knowledge pertaining to the unseen, an enumeration of
which would lead to prolixity.
These represent together that which the wayfarer on the Path
acquires through learning the knowledge of “He taught Adam the names, all of
them.”15 As for those who are deprived of such felicity, whenever
they hear anything concerning this type of knowledge, they begin to reject it.
Thus the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “There are hidden gems of
knowledge, known to none but those who know God; and when they are spoken of,
none reject them but those proud before God.”16 Similarly, Abu
Horeyra—may God be pleased with him!—said: “I have preserved from the Messenger
of God two vessels filled with knowledge. As for one, I have scattered forth
its contents; but as for the other, were I to scatter forth its contents, my
throat would be cut.”17
Scholars fall into three groups: those that have outer knowledge;
those that have inner knowledge; and those that have both
"Concerning witnessing and unveiling, see Third Part,
Seventeenth and Eighteenth Chapters.
"Qur'an, 2:31.
'“Tradition previously quoted on p. 48.
'’Saying recorded by Bokari.
outer and inner knowledge, which is a rarity. If there are five
people belonging to this last group in the world in each age, it is a large
number. Indeed, the blessedness of one of them will embrace the whole world,
from east to west: He will be the pole of his age, and the people of the world
will seek refuge in his high fortune and take shelter in his lofty aspiration.
It is in such a scholar that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, takes pride when
he says: "The scholars of my community are like the prophets of the
Children of Israel.”18 It is also in truth to these scholars that
belong the heirs of the prophets, upon whom be peace, for they have received
the legacy of both outer and inner knowledge—"The scholars are the heirs
of the prophets.”19
The scholars of the outer also consist of three groups: muftis,
preachers and judges.
As for muftis, they are men who engage in study and reflection and
the issuing of fatvas.20 They fall into two groups. The first
consists of those who are learned both of heart and of tongue; in whom the fear
and awe of God are present; who act in accordance with their knowledge; and
who observe piety as well as issue fatvas. They acquire and disseminate
knowledge for the sake of salvation and high rank in the hereafter, and sever their
gaze from the power and wealth of this world. It is they to whom God refers
when He says: ‘Among His servants they truly fear God who have knowledge.”21
The second group consists of those who are learned of tongue but
ignorant of heart, and from whose heart fear of God and shame are absent. In
learning and disseminating knowledge their intention is not to acquire reward
in the hereafter and closeness to God; instead, they pursue knowledge for the
sake of acquiring power, wealth, and the acceptance of men, and for gaining
appointments. They are inevitably overcome by caprice; their knowledge becomes
subordinate to caprice, and they come to act in accordance with caprice, not
with knowledge. They
■“Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
'“Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
^Faiva: the considered and authoritative
opinion of a jurist on a legal question or case.
“'Qur’an, 35:28.
envy pious and believing scholars; slander and caluminate them;
argue with them instead of discussing; vex them; utter words that have no
justification; refuse to submit to the truth; desire through mere impudence and
quickness of tongue to falsify the truth and present falsehood in the clothing
of truth; and make a show of their learning. Such scholars are of those
concerning whom the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “Beware of every
hypocrite learned of tongue, who says that which ye know to be good, and does
that which ye know to be evil.”22
In truth, the harm caused to religion and the community by such
sinful scholars and ignorant ascetics is more than that due to any other cause.
Thus the Commander of the Faithful, All— may God be pleased with him!—says:
"None caused me distress in Islam except two: the sinful scholar and the
innovative ascetic. The sinful scholar causes people to dislike his learning,
on account of the sinfulness they see in him; and the ascetic innovator causes
people to like his innovation, on account of the asceticism they see in him.”
Evil scholars, hypocritical ascetics, and mendicant dervishes, who
in their greed sell religion for worldly gain, constantly frequent the portals
of kings in abjection, and enter the gates of princes and grandees in
abasement. They serve them in lowliness and dishonor, praise them and glorify
them, and hypocritically laud them for qualities they do not possess. Whatever
falsity their master commits or utters, they flatteringly exclaim, “the prince
spoke truly!” Because of corrupt desire, they abandon enjoining the good and
forbidding the evil in order to obtain recompense or a few illicit derhams;
and they give bribes in order to acquire a tax collectorship or other post. The
faith of princes, grandees, and army commanders in the scholars, and the
devotion to them of kings, have inevitably declined through the unpropitious
effect of men such as these. By way of analogy, they have assumed that all
scholars and shaikhs have the same evil character and reprehensible
characteristics, and thus they have come to look on the chosen of God and the
friends of the Almighty with the eye of contempt, and to turn away from them
completely. They have become deprived of the benefits to be
“Tradition of unknown status.
had from their service and company, and are left without any share
in the light of their knowledge and the ray of their sainthood. It is said in
a Tradition that whoever has worldly interest as his aim in the cultivation of
knowledge will have no share in the reward of knowledge beyond the power and
wealth he attains in this world; and in the hereafter he will be the first
with whom hellfire is kindled.
It is a duty to seek refuge in God from knowledge that confers no
benefit, for the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: “I take refuge in Thee from
knowledge that has no benefit.”23 Knowledge without benefit is of
two kinds. The first is knowledge of the Law when left unapplied, for it is
then of no benefit, even though beneficial in itself. The second consists of
astrology and soothsaying, and the different sciences of philosophy which are
called “wisdom,” and which some have mingled with theology and named “the
principles of religion,”24 in order to fasten unbelief and
misguidedness on the necks of the hapless people under the cover of this fair
name. This type of knowledge is in its essence without benefit, and if applied
it is a cause of perdition, transgression, and misguidedness. Many are the
wanderers who have strayed from the road of religion and the highway of
rectitude on account of this knowledge, deludedly imagining that they are
acquiring the science of gnosis and knowledge of the truth. They were unaware
that the gnosis of God is not to be had through study and transmission, but
only through outwardly and inwardly following Mohammad, upon whom be peace.
Thus God Almighty informs us: “This is My path, the straight, so follow it and
follow not ways other than it, for they shall divert you from His way. Thus He
commands you that ye may be pious.”[130]
The pious mufti must then shun these kinds of knowledge and the harm
they produce, and strive to purify his intent so that the fatva he
delivers, the lesson he teaches, and the debate he conducts will all be
directed to attaining reward in the hereafter and nearness to God; to
disseminating knowledge and manifest-
ing the truth; and to expounding the Law and strengthening religion.
He must cleanse his soul of the arrogance that knowledge engenders and purify
it of the pollution of greed and covetousness, for the abjection of the scholar
lies in these two.
Greed for lucre pollutes the soul of the scholar;
Not by chance does abjection befall him.
Woe and alas! for life has come to an end, But this insatiable greed
is still not exhausted.
When giving his fatva, the mufti must be extremely careful
not to act in accordance with the inclination of his soul, or personal interest
and motive. If he has control of an endowment, he must not misuse it; nor must
he accept illicit money, for when he consumes something of doubtful legitimacy,
greed, passion, envy, and hypocrisy will arise, and then all the efforts he has
made in his life will become scattered dust. He must also shun all innovations,
be steadfast on the highway of imitating the Sunna, conform to the practice and
belief of the Righteous Forebears, and follow the precepts of the People of
the Sunna and Community.
He should also impose on himself some devotional duty at each
instant and hour, and not spend his precious life in idleness and frivolous
amusement. In the morning, when he performs the dawn prayer, he should busy
himself with zekr and recitation of the Qur’an until sunrise. After the
midafternoon prayer he should also spend some time in zekr until
nightfall. Then he will have acted in accordance with the indication, “remember
the name of Thy Lord morning and evening,”26 and in this there is
great benefit. When the sun has risen, he should perform two rak'ats27
of prayer, and then engage in teaching, and in benefiting himself and others
with knowledge. When he has completed this, he should perform the prayer of the
forenoon, making from two to twelve rak'ats according to his ability,
and then busy himself, until the time between the midafternoon and sunset
prayers, with providing for the livelihood and tranquillity of his family and
offspring, as well as fulfilling the essential claims on
“Qur’an,
76:25.
^Rak'at: a unit of prayer.
him of his own being. Then he should again occupy himself with
either scholarly discussion, study, or teaching until sunset and the end of the
day; and after that engage in zekr until he performs the evening
prayer. If it is possible for him to spend the period between the sunset and
evening prayers in devotion, engaging in zekr and recitation of the
Qur’an and of litanies, it will be a great felicity for him.
After performing the evening prayer, he should remain silent, for
this is decreed by the Sunna. He should engage in reading or repetition until a
sixth of the night passes, and then sit for an hour facing the qebla
engaging in zekr. When he is overcome by sleep, he should lie on his
right side facing the qebla, in a state of concentration and continuing zekr,
and recite this prayer, which is Sunna, with his heart and his tongue: “O God,
I have submitted my soul unto Thee and turned my face unto Thee; I have come
for refuge unto Thee and entrusted my concern unto Thee; in fear of Thee and in
hope of Thee; there is neither refuge nor salvation other than Thee, and no
fleeing from Thee but in coming unto Thee; I believe in Thy Book which Thou
hast revealed, and in Thy Prophet whom Thou hast sent.”28 Then he
should engage in zekr, with his heart and his tongue, until he falls
asleep. It is related in Tradition that whoever sleeps in a state of ritual
purity and continuing zekr will have his spirit borne to beneath the
Divine Throne, there to engage in the worship of God; and whatever dream he
sees will be veracious and true. The saying of the Prophet, upon whom be peace,
that “the sleep of the scholar is an act of worship”29 refers to
this kind of sleep. The mufti should then attempt to rise for an hour in the
middle of the night and engage in tahajjod30 prayer, for it
is the Sunna of the Prophet. This consists of thirteen rak'ats, together
with vetr,31 and the longer the Qur’anic passages recited in
this
’“Tradition recorded by Beyhaqi and Dareml.
’“Tradition recorded by Beyhaqi.
^Tahajiod: a supererogative prayer
performed during the night.
31 Tetr: a
highly recommended prayer, having almost the status of a mandatory one, offered
at any time between the evening prayer and that of the following dawn. It may
be offered separately or, as Daya suggests here, in conjunction with tahajjod.
It consists of an odd number of rak'ats, a minimum of one and a maximum
of thirteen, but generally three rak'ats are offered, so that tahajjod,
as prescribed by Daya, consists of ten rak'ats.
prayer, the better it will be. Then, if he wishes, he may go back to
sleep again until it is time for the dawn prayer; then he should arise, make
his ablutions, and engage in zekr until it is time for the prayer.
In making these devotions he must not be content with a form empty
of meaning, but constantly impose some form of discipline on his soul and be
watchful over his heart. In accordance with his capacity, he will then attain
some of that which we have described in the chapters on the refinement of the
soul, the purification of the heart, and the adornment of the spirit, in the section
on the life of man, so that gradually certain truths become manifest to him,
and certain mysteries unveiled.
If you fall short of the demands of the Path, Still do your best—no
harm will befall you!32
As for preachers, they fall into three groups. The first consists of
those who memorize a few chapters full of artificial and meaningless rhyming
expressions that contain no religious knowledge, and constantly mumble these as
a matter of practice. They wander the world seeking to gain men’s acceptance and
accumulate wealth, and experiment with a hundred different kinds of artifice,
hypocrisy, trickery, and legerdemain in order to attain their profane purpose.
From the pulpit they engage in praising and lauding monarchs and kings, princes
and ministers, grandees and officials, judges and governors, even going so far
as to call licit in the name of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, the lies those
powerful ones tell and the reprehensible innovations they practice. Thus they
use the pulpit, in effect, to engage in begging, to gain money from oppressors
and to demand allowances from them. Sometimes it even happens that they take
money from the poor by coercion, not by consent, and exact the purifying tax
from the people even though they are not liable to pay it. What they eat is
illicit, and what they wear is illicit. They invent lying stories, and narrate
counterfeit and dubious traditions, saying, "this is an authentic
Tradition.” They inspire reprehensible expectations in the people and speak
with an eye to pleasing them, and thus cast them into innovation and mis-
,2A line from the Hadiqat al-haqiqa
of Sana’i (p. 73).
guidedness. It sometimes happens also that they cultivate fanaticism
and stir up disorder, and encourage and incite the people to fanaticism.33
These preachers are similar to the scholars who are learned of
tongue and ignorant of heart, and hellfire will be kindled with them.
The second group of preachers consists of righteous imams who speak
for the sake of God and reward in the hereafter; who shun innovation and
misguidedness; whose words are concerned with interpretation of the Qur’an,
the Traditions of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, and the lives of the
righteous, in conformity with the Sunna and the practice of the Righteous
Forebears; and who, with preaching, advice, and wisdom, summon men to God and
the highway of the Law, to repentance and asceticism, to abstemiousness and
piety, in accordance with God Almighty’s saying: "Call unto the path of
thy Lord with wisdom and fair preaching.”34 They neither encourage
the people in reprehensible expectation nor make them despair of God’s
generosity through excessive arousal of fear, for that too is reprehensible.
They do not pollute themselves with the impurity of coveting this world, and thus
they are able to speak words of truth, for only speech that is free of
covetousness can have an effect. If the preacher is contaminated with love of
this world and covetousness, his words will be similarly contaminated; and
arising from the soul, they will neither be true nor capable of affecting the
heart. Even if what he says is the truth, it will not have been spoken in
truth, but in falsehood and vanity, and it will not reach the heart. The great
have said that whatever comes from the heart, reaches the heart.
It is said in Tradition that "God revealed to David, saying, ‘O
David, make no inquiry of a scholar who is drunk on love of the world, for such
a one is a brigand infesting the path of My bondsmen.’”35 Abdollah
the son of Abbas—may God be pleased with
’’Fanaticism: excessive partisanship in adherence to a legal school.
See pp. 43 and 261.
’’Qur’an, 16:125.
’’Tradition; source unknown.
them bothl—relates that the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said:
"The scholars of my community will all resemble two men. One will be given
knowledge by God and he will freely distribute it among men, not using it to
fulfill covetous desire, or selling it for a price. Upon such a one blessings
will be invoked by the birds in the sky, the fish in the ocean, the animals on
the earth, and the noble recording angels. He shall come before God, Mighty and
Glorious, on the Day of Resurrection as a master of men and a noble, and he
shall even be a companion of God’s messengers. The other will also be given
knowledge by God in this world, but he will withhold it from God’s servants,
use it to fulfill covetous desire, and sell it for a price. He shall be in
torment until God has finished with the accounts of all creation.”36
Shaikh Abu Taleb Makki—may God have mercy upon himl— has related the
following in his book The Nurture of Hearts:37 "Some of
the severest words I have heard concerning those who seek knowledge to pursue
worldly gain are those that were related to me on the authority of 'Obeyd b.
Vaqed, who heard them from ‘Osman b. Abu Soleyman. He said: ‘Moses, upon whom
be peace, had a servant who began saying, "Moses, the Chosen One of God,
told me”; "Moses, the Confidant of God, told me”; and "Moses, the
Interlocutor of God, told me,” so that he became rich and his property
increased. Moses then lost trace of him and began to inquire after him. He
could discover no sign of him until one day a man came to him, leading a swine
by a black rope tied to its neck. Moses said to him, "Do you know
so-and-so?” and he replied, “Yes, he is this swine.” Then Moses said: “O Lord,
I beg of Thee, restore him to his former state, that I may ask of him the cause
of this affliction.” God Almighty revealed to him, saying: "Were thou to
implore Me with all the supplications of Adam and the Children of Adam, I would
not grant thee thy prayer. But I will tell thee why I brought him to this
state: because he was seeking worldly gain by the use of religion.” ’ ”
’“Tradition recorded by Abu No'eym.
37Abu Taleb Makki (d. 386/996), author
of one of the earliest systematic accounts of religious practice imbued with a
Sufi coloring, Qut al-qolub, quoted here by Daya (cf. Cairo ed., I,
293).
Let then the scholars of religion recognize all this as true, and
abstain from greed for this world and from using religion for worldly gain. For
many admonishments have been made to this effect; we have merely contented
ourselves with the foregoing.
When the preacher refrains from worldly ambition and fulfills the
same conditions and customs, and recites the same litanies, as those set forth
for the mufti, he will be of those concerning whom God says: “God will raise up
those who believe and those who have been given knowledge to ascending
degrees.”38
It is related in a Tradition of Ebn Abbas—may God be pleased with
him!—that scholars excel mere believers by seven hundred degrees, and that
there is a distance of five hundred years between each degree. Every piece of
advice and every sermon that a true scholar delivers will gain him, with each
of its constituent letters, a degree of nearness and high rank; and the merit
of every person who repents, embarks on worship, and turns to God as a result
of his preaching will be in his balance of good deeds on the Day of Resurrection.
The third group of preachers consists of shaikhs who, through the
rapture of God’s grace, have wayfared on the path of religion and journeyed to
the realm of certainty, and who have attained God-given knowledge through the
unveiling of dominical favor. From a ray of the lights of the manifestation of
God’s attributes they have come to behold inner meanings, truths, and
mysteries; they have gained full awareness of the states and stations experienced
in wayfaring on God’s Path; and they have been appointed by God’s mighty
presence and the sainthood of the shaikhs to guide and train men, and to call
them to God. First they preach a whole lifetime to their own selves—“Preach
unto thyself, and then, if thou heedest thy preaching, preach unto others; if
not, have shame before God”;39 they hearken to the preacher within
them—"God is in the heart of every believer”;40 and they wait
in ambush on the cunning and wiles of the soul. Then, in accordance with God’s
command, they begin summon-
’’Qur’an, 58:11.
’’Tradition?
'“Tradition?
ing men to God and calling them away from the ruined tavern of this
world, with its wine of passion that bestows the drunkenness of neglect, to
the enclosure of sanctity and the assembly of intimacy—“in a seat of sincerity”41—where
pure wine is dispensed by the cupbearer of beauty made manifest—"Their
Lord shall give them to drink.”42 Thus God says: “Recall unto them
God’s days.”43 They cause them to taste of the libation given to
true men; agitate the chain of their heart’s yearning and love; and expound to
each group of men something of the Law, the Path, and the Truth, in accordance
with their degree of intellect, perception, capacity, and ardor, so that each
may attain his share and his portion, as his aspiration dictates: “Each group
knew from where it might drink.”44
Further, if a soul flies forth like a bird from the nest of "He
shall love them”; if it falls into the net of mondship and is enticed into the
trap of love’s affliction by the grain of "they shall love Him,”45
then shall the shaikhs take that royal white falcon— a strange, wondrous
bird—to the retreat that is their place of seclusion. There they will
blindfold the eyes of its soul’s caprice to the desires of both realms, and
nurture it on zekr, until its frantic desire to have recourse to other
than God is stilled, and it attains the station of intimacy and becomes ready
and worthy to perch on the arm of the King.
Shaikhs such as these are the choice part of creation, the viceregents
of God, the deputies of the prophets, and the guardians of their
legacy—"The scholars of my community are like the prophets of the Children
of Israel.”46 Not every eye may behold the beauty of their
perfection, for they are hidden beneath the domes of God’s jealousy.
The men of His path are alive with a different life; The birds in
His sky come from a different nest.
Do not look upon them with this eye of thine,
For they are beyond both worlds, in a different world.
’’Qur’an, 54:55.
’’Qur’an, 76:21.
’’Qur’an, 14:5.
’’Qur'an, 2:60.
’’Qur’an, 5:54.
ftTradiiion quoted at the beginning of
the chapter.
All that men see of the shaikhs is their heads and their beards,
because by analogy they imagine their states to resemble their own and those of
other men; they regard them merely as ordinary preachers or as scholars
learned in outer knowledge, unaware that “angels cannot be compared to
blacksmiths.”
As for judges, they also comprise three groups, as the Prophet, upon
whom be peace, says: "There are three classes of judge: two in hellfire
and one in Paradise.”47
Of the two that are in hellfire, one comprises judges who are
ignorant of the knowledge needed for judging, and who give judgment in
ignorance and according to the soul’s caprice and inclination. The other class
consists of those who have the' knowledge needed for judging but do not act in
accordance with it, acting instead in ignorance and caprice. They follow
inclination and partiality, and prefer men’s approval to God’s. They take
bribes, and assign to others the task of writing out registers and marriage
deeds in return for a fee and for money. They appoint deputies in the realm in
exchange for bribes and for money, and empower their servants to exact bribes
and annul people’s rights. They embezzle legacies and the property of orphans,
and practice all kinds of deceit. They present falsehood as truth, and conceal
and falsify truth. Furthermore, they make illicit use of the endowments, and
award official posts, as well as mosques, colleges, and hospices, to the unfit
and the usurper, on account of bribes received or personal motive and interest.
They fail to strengthen the people of religion and neglect the duty of
enforcing public order and morals, as well as the task of enjoining the good
and forbidding the evil. Finally, they fail to exercise that care for the
upkeep of pious foundations which is incumbent on judges. For all these reasons
they are deserving of hellfire.
As for the class of judge that is in Paradise, it may be that the
Prophet’s saying—peace be upon him!—is an indication that even in Paradise
there are judges; for how might any judge in this world properly fulfill all
the obligations incumbent upon him?
"Tradition recorded by Abu Da'ud and Ebn Maja.
It is for this reason that the Prophet said: "To be appointed a
judge is to be slaughtered without the use of a knife.”48
For almost thirty years, this feeble one has been wandering through
the lands of the world, in the east and the west, and he has barely found a
single judge free and immune from all the defects mentioned above. But if
despite everything a judge is free and pure of all reprehensible qualities, and
possesses on the contrary praiseworthy qualities; if he adheres to the highway
of the Law and the same pattern of innet and outer conduct, described above,
as the scholar who is learned of heart and acts in accordance with his
knowledge; if he adorns each moment of the day with the same litanies; and if
he is able to judge among the Muslims in accordance with the Sunna and the
practice of the Righteous Forebears—then he will be one of God’s saints, and
His elect and His chosen. For each judgment that he delivers in justice, for
each instance of concern that he shows for the state of the people, and for
each enactment of the penalties of the Law that he decrees, he will gain a new
degree of rank, nearness, and lofty honor. Such a judge will be one of the
world’s rarities, and to seek blessing from him and to draw near to him will be
incumbent upon all.
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
’’Tradition recorded, with a slightly different wording, by
Termez!,' Abu Da’ud, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
Fifth Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of the Possessors of Bounty and the Holders of Wealth
God Almighty said: “Seek the abode of the hereafter with that which
God has given thee, nor forget thy portion in this world, but do good, as God
has done good unto thee, and seek not corruption on earth, for God loves not
the corruptors.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “Whoever
acquires wealth that is lawful and uses it to provide for himself, to
strengthen the ties of kinship, to settle his debts, and to care for his
neighbor will have a face luminous like the full moon when he meets God on the
Day of Resurrection; and whoever acquires wealth that is unlawful, and seeks to
increase it, and is boastful and ostentatious with it, will be the object of
God’s anger when he meets Him on the Day of Resurrection.”2
Know that the wealth and bounty of this world, its pomp and good
fortune, are like a ladder by means of which one may either ascend to the
heights or descend to the depths. It is therefore possible to make of wealth
and power the means for earning either the lofty degrees of Paradise and
nearness to God, or the lowly degrees of Hell and remoteness from His presence.
God Almighty gave an indication of this alchemy of happiness when He said:
“Seek the abode of the hereafter with that which God has given thee.” That is,
“Seek the lofty degrees of the hereafter with what God has given you of the
wealth of this world, while not forgetting your share in this world.” There is
here too an indication that your share in the wealth of this world is that
which you spend for God’s sake, not that which you spend or store up for the
sake of caprice: “Whatever remains with you will come to an end; whatever
remains with God will be everlasting.”3
The description of that which is to be spent for God’s sake is
'Qur’an, 27:88.
“Tradition; source unknown.
’Tradition?
contained in the declaration of the Prophet in elucidation of the
perspicuous verse we have quoted.
"Whoever acquires wealth that is lawful and uses it to provide
for himself.” That is, whoever acquires wealth that is lawful, and uses it to
preserve his honor and his religion, by freeing himself of dependence on
others, who does not endure the abjection of covetousness, but accepts the
dignity of contentment.
"To strengthen the ties of kinship.” That is, to maintain the
ties of kinship with his relatives by use of that wealth. Relatives are of two
kinds. The first consists of relatives by blood; it is incumbent to aid and
assist them with one’s wealth, as God said: "it is righteousness ... to
spend of your wealth on your kinsfolk, out of love for Him.”4
Elsewhere too, He mentioned "generosity to kinsfolk.”3 The
second kind comprises relatives by religion, as God has said: "Verily the
believers are brethren.”6 It is also incumbent to maintain the tie
of kinship that is religious brotherhood, and the sense of this brotherhood is
made clear when God mentions as recipients of one’s wealth "kinsfolk,
orphans, the indigent, the traveler, those who ask, and slaves to be ransomed.”7
"To settle his debts.” That is, to clear his obligationsand
debts by means of that wealth. If someone has a grievance against him or a
claim upon him, or if he owes someone a debt, he should settle these matters.
Having done that, he should give the purifying tax to those deserving it, in
such a way that his act is free of the blights of hypocrisy, desire for good
repute, pride, ostentation, arrogance, haughtiness, boasting, cunning, deceit,
treachery, the expectation of fame and celebrity, and the intention to injure
and make reminder of one’s charity. For all these cancel the reward for the
purifying tax and charity, as God says: “O ye who believe, cancel not your
charity by making reminder of it and by injury, like him who spends his wealth
to be seen of men.”8 The great have said that there are certain
claims upon
<Qur’an, 2:177.
5Qur'an, 16:90.
6Qur’an, 49:10.
’Qur’an, 2:177.
“Qur’an, 2:264.
one’s wealth in addition to the purifying tax, for God says:
"and the seeker of charity and the deprived had a claim on their goods”;9
and it is related of the Prophet, upon whom be peace, that he said: "There
are claims on wealth in addition to the purifying tax.”10
‘And to care for his neighbor.” That is, to meet the claims of his
neighbor upon him by use of that wealth. For the neighbor has many rights and
claims, and the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said that Gabriel would constantly
urge upon him care for the neighbor, so much so that he thought one’s neighbor
would be designated, an heir. According to another Tradition, "Whoever
believes in God and the Last Day, let him honor his neighbor.”11
Know that in truth the wealth and power of this world are like
copper awaiting the elixir. Once one has attained the science of the elixir,
the more copper one acquires, the more gold one may produce. The science of the
elixir consists of removing from copper blackness, density, lightness, and
instability, and of bringing forth in it redness, purity, weight, and
stability. When the copper has acquired these attributes it will be pure gold,
multiplied seven hundred times or more. Similarly, there are certain
reprehensible attributes and afflictions inherent in the wealth and power of
this world. If they are expelled and other attributes are added, an elixir will
result by means of which eternal felicity and everlasting good fortune may be
attained.
The reprehensible attributes and afflictions inherent in the wealth
and pomp of this world are ten in number.
The first is transgression: "Verily man transgresses all bounds
when he sees himself free from all need.”12 Transgression means
neglect of God and remoteness from Him.
The second is wrongdoing: "Were God to spread forth provi-
9Qur’an, 51:19.
'“Tradition reported with a different wording by Dareml.
"Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, Ebn Maja, Dareml, and
Ebn Hanbal. 1!Qur'an, 96:6.
sion for His bondsmen, they would engage in wrongdoing on earth.”13
Wrongdoing means corruption and the commission of oppression against the
world’s lands and their people.
The third is turning away: “When We bestow bounty on man, he turns
away and becomes remote on his side.”14 Turning away means averting
oneself from God, busying oneself with caprice, and showing ingratitude for
bounties received.
The fourth is arrogance and pride, like that of the pharaoh when he
said on account of his wealth and his power: “Is it not mine, this kingdom of
Egypt, and the rivers that flow beneath me?”15
The fifth is boasting: ‘A boasting among you, and rivalry in
increase.”16 Boasting means showing pride and vanity in front of
one’s peers, behaving arrogantly and haughtily toward one’s brethren, and
forgetting God.
The sixth is rivalry in increase: "Rivalry in increase has
diverted you [from the remembrance of God].”17 Rivalry in increase
means boasting of the extent of one’s wealth and vaunting it, and being
neglectful of God.
The seventh is preoccupation: “There shall say unto thee the desert
Arabs who were left behind, 'Our properties and families preoccupied us.’”18
Preoccupation means the squandering of life on the accumulation and guarding of
wealth, and the spending and disbursing of it for the sake of worldly desire,
passionate pleasure, and animal enjoyment.
The eighth is miserliness: “Let not those who in their miserliness
withhold that which God has given them from His generosity imagine that it is
better for them. Rather, it is worse for them, for that which they withheld
shall be a collar around their
■’Qur’an, 42:27.
"Qur’an, 17:83.
■’Qur’an, 43:51.
■“Qur’an, 57:20.
■’Qur’an, 102:1.
■’Qur’an, 48:11.
necks on the Day of Judgment.”19 Miserliness means
refusing to acknowledge the various claims on one’s wealth, such as the
purifying tax and gifts of charity; aid to brethren and kinsfolk; giving to the
beggar; honoring the guest and the neighbor; sustaining one’s family,
servants, and retinue in abundance; caring for the scholar and the devout;
providing for the stranger and the weak; and so forth.
The ninth is prodigality: ‘‘Verily the prodigal are brethren unto
the devils.”20 Prodigality means wastefulness in spending, contrary
to God’s pleasure and command; squandering one’s wealth in seeking power and position;
being generous for the sake of fame and celebrity, and gaining men’s praise;
spending money on fools, libertines, and oppressors; being extravagant in the
lavishing of money on food and clothing, and the building of palaces, houses,
and places of corrupt entertainment, like gardens with their kiosks,
pavilions, and lodges; luxurious spending on vessels, carpets, and curtains,
other household goods and equipment, and adornment for the walls; spending
money on slaves, slavegirls and riding beasts to an extent beyond licit and
essential need; and similar types of expenditure.
The tenth is deception: “Let not the life of this world deceive you,
and let not the Arch-Deceiver deceive you concerning God.”21
Deception means giving one’s heart to this world and being seduced by its
allurements; forgetting the hereafter and death, the accounting and the
balance, the bridge of §eiat,22 and reward and requital; ignoring
God’s awesomeness and might, His wrathfulness and supreme power; and relying on
His generosity, favor, and mercy alone, without worshipping Him or repenting
of sin.
All these are afflictions that arise from the wealth and power of
this world, and they are a cause of trial for the owner of property, as God
Almighty says: "Your goods and offspring are
'’Qur’an, 3:180.
“Qur’an, 17:27.
’■Qur'an, 31:33.
’’The bridge of §erat, mentioned in Tradition but not in the Qur’an,
is that narrow bridge suspended over hellfire across which all must pass on
the Day of Judgment.
a trial.”23 Therefore let every possessor of good fortune
whose helper is felicity and whose companion success apply with the hand of the
Path the elixir of the Law to this copperlike wealth and power. Once he has
purified it of the ten afflictions we have described and brought forth in it
the ten qualities that are the opposite of those afflictions, then that wealth
will be entirely transformed into the very essence of nearness to God and acceptance
by Him, into elevation of degree and increase in rank, and into the attainment
of truth: "How good is righteous property possessed by the righteous I”24
Of the ten qualities in question, the first is loftiness of aspiration.
If the whole world is one’s possession and property, he should not become
attached to it or pay it any regard; instead he should see it all to be from
God and of God. He should not look upon it with the eye of approval, in order
to avoid becoming a transgressor, and also to follow the model of the Prophet,
upon whom be peace: "When there covered the Lote Tree that which covered
it, his gaze swerved not nor strayed.”25
The second is chastity. When the possessor of wealth is chaste of
soul, he will not regard corruption and the oppression of himself and others
as permissible.
The third is turning toward God: "Verily I have set my face
toward Him Who created the heavens and earth.”26 He should know
himself and all his possessions and property to exist for the sake of God, and
abandoning the friendship of all others he should turn to the friendship of
God. He should consider everyone his enemy and then renounce the enemy for the
friend— "Truly they are enemies unto me, except for the Lord of the
Worlds.”27
The fourth is gratitude: "Thank God for His bounty if it is He
that ye worship.”28 There is in this verse an indication that true
“Qur'an, 8:28.
“Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal.
“Qur’an, 53:17.
“Qur’an, 6:79.
“Qur’an, 26:77.
“Qur’an, 16:114.
gratitude is not merely saying ‘‘Praise be to God!” but is rather
spending God’s wealth in God’s path for God’s sake, in accordance with God’s
command, expecting success only from God, and acknowledging one’s inability to
thank God adequately, on account of the infinity of God’s bounty.
The fifth is humility: “He who humbles himself before God is raised
up by God.”29 Humility is knowledge of oneself, for if one looks to
his beginnings when he was an abject drop of water, he will see that whatever
was added to that drop—strength and power, instruments and tools, property,
bounty and rank, respect and intelligence, perspicacity, learning, and
knowledge—all derived from God’s generosity, kindness, solicitude, compassion,
and bounty. He will then have nothing to boast of or vaunt, and no cause to be
arrogant, proud, and haughty with God’s creatures. Otherwise, ingratitude may
cause man’s borrowed possessions to be taken away from him—"If ye are
ungrateful, verily My chastisement is severe.”30
The sixth is generosity: "Generosity is a tree that grows in
Paradise.”31 The true essence of generosity is not to grudge oneself
one’s property, and one’s property is what one gives away, not what one hoards.
Hoard not wealth in abundance, for it is not yours;
Rather hasten to give it away, then it is yours.
If you wish, hoard it—the gain will be others’;
Or if you wish, give it—the gain will be yours.
The Prophet, upon whom be peace, once said to his Companions:
"Which among you prefers his own property to that of his heirs?” They all
replied that they preferred their own property to that of their heirs. The
Prophet then said: “Your own property is that which you send on to the
hereafter, and the property of your heirs is that which you leave here.”32
“’Tradition recorded by Mosleni and Termezl.
’“Qur'an, 14:7.
’'Part of a long Tradition recorded by Ebn I;Ianbal (according to
the second half of this Tradition, "miserliness is a tree that grows in
Hell”).
’“Tradition recorded by Bokari and Nasa’I.
The seventh is tranquillity: ‘‘Men whom neither trade nor selling
divert from the remembrance of God.”33 Tranquillity means holding
one’s property and possessions in the hand, not in the heart, and keeping the
heart exclusively engaged in the remembrance of God, thus avoiding all
negligence of Him.
Since the jealousy of His love’s monarch was plain from the
beginning,
The chamber of the heart was reserved for His ardor. His birds flew
beyond the limit of time and of space,
And made nests for themselves in the sky of detachment.
If the possessor of wealth and power cannot himself reach these
stations and degrees because of his preoccupation with other concerns, then let
him aid and assist with his wealth the class of men that is traveling toward
them. Let him prepare for them the means of concentration and tranquillity, so
that for each degree they attain with his help a reward will be inscribed in his
record of deeds, and through the blessed effect of his service to them and his
love for them he will be made one of them, and resurrected with them: "Man
shall be with those whom he loves.”34
The eighth is piety: “The noblest among you in God’s sight is the
most pious.”35 Piety consists of shunning illicit wealth, food of
uncertain lawfulness, forbidden forms of passion, the impurities of the soul,
evil characteristics, and opposition to God’s command; of striving to the
utmost to fulfill the commands, duties, and obligations of the Law; and of
attempting to purify one’s intent, so that one’s deeds are free of hypocrisy
and boastfulness, and guile and deceit.
The ninth is observing the mean: “Those who when they spend are
neither profligate nor niggardly, but observe the mean.”36 Observing
the mean means adhering to moderation, being
’’Qur’an, 24:37.
’’Tradition previously quoted on p. 338.
’’Qur’an, 49:13.
’’Qur’an, 25:67.
neither profligate nor niggardly when spending. Profligacy means
spending contrary to God’s pleasure and for the enjoyment of the soul, even if
only to the amount of a morsel. Niggardliness means withholding and failing to
spend that which should be spent according to God’s law and His pleasure.
Hence, observing the mean and moderation means going to extremes in spending
for God’s sake, even if one spends one’s entire property, as was the case with
Abu Bakr, may God be pleased with him. But as far as one’s person is concerned,
one should abandon extravagance and ostentation in food and dress, in dwelling
and mount, in household appurtenances, and cloth and other goods, thus
observing the mean and preventing one’s belongings from being a veil.
The tenth is surrender and contentment: "Contentment with fate
is the supreme gate to God.”37 Surrender means surrendering today
one’s person and property to God, since these were already sold to God in
exchange for Paradise, by the covenant of "am I not your Lord?”38
The time to surrender them is today, for God Almighty will surrender Paradise tomorrow,
since that is the time for its surrender—"Verily God has bought from the
believers their persons and property in return for Paradise.”39 To
surrender one’s person and property means to consider them as belonging to God,
not to oneself; to regard oneself as a trustee appointed by God for spending
His wealth, and one’s fellow men as bondsmen of God; to care for their welfare,
in both word and deed, with one’s own person, so far as is possible; to spend
money on them in accordance with God’s command; not to look on anyone with the
eye of contempt, but rather to see oneself as subordinate to all, and sell
oneself a morsel to eat and a rag to wear in exchange for that subordination;
to consider oneself the least slave of one of God’s bondsmen; and not to
remind anyone of what one has given him, while regarding himself as obliged and
indebted to everyone from whom he accepts a favor.
Furthermore, one should be content with whatever God de-
37Arabic uttaance of unknown origin.
38Qur’an, 7.171.
’’Qur'an, 9:112.
crees for his person, and property, and patient in any test God
imposes on him, not attaching his heart to the world, or being deceived by the
oglings of the soul and the cunning of Satan, but being constantly ready to
surrender his soul, so that he surrenders it immediately when it is demanded.
One should also strive to establish an endowment for pious foundations with
whatever property will remain after one’s death, so that every act of worship
that then takes place in those foundations is inscribed in his register of
deeds. It will then be as if he were eternally alive, for whoever does not
engage in worship during his lifetime is dead, and whoever engages in worship
after his death is alive.
When, therefore, the possessors of bounty and the holders of wealth
purify their worldly property, from the ten afflictions we have mentioned and
adorn it with the ten contrasting properties and qualities, they will have
attained the elixir of everlasting felicity, and transformed the wealth and
power of this transient world, multiplied a hundred times, seven hundred times
or more, into everlasting high rank and reward in the hereafter, into nearness
and closeness to God: “The likeness of those who spend their property in the
way of God is that of a grain of corn: it puts forth seven ears, and in each
ear is a hundred grains. God gives manifold increase to whomever He wills.”40
And if once in his lifetime the possessor of wealth sets the trap of
sincere aspiration with the hand of supplication, and scatters in it the grain
of wealth; if a white falcon from among the chosen and beloved of God then
takes the grain from his trap, so that the grain—even if only a morsel—becomes
a part of the falcon and has a share in each act of the falcon’s worship of
God, then the reward for that share will go to the giver Of the morsel. Those
auspicious ones, the chosen of God, receive at certain times the workings of
God’s rapture, and at such times a single instant of their worship is equal to
the deeds of the inhabitants of heaven and earth: ‘A rapturous state bestowed
by God is equal to all the deeds of men and jinn.”41 The share in
this of that hunter who set the trap cannot be computed by the people of the
east and the west joined together, for the favors of
'“Qur’an, 2:261.
"Saying of unknown origin; see p. 222, n. 15.
God
come from the world of infinity, and not every shortsighted gaze can alight on
the beauteous perfection of this state.
And God’s blessing be upon Mohammad and his family.
Sixth Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of Farmers, Village Headmen, and Peasants
God Almighty said: “Whoever desires the tillage of the hereafter,
We will grant him increase in his tillage, and whoever desires the tillage of
this world, We will grant him a part of it, and he shall have no share in the
hereafter.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said:
"Whoever sows a seed or plants a tree from which the birds and beasts come
to eat shall have it inscribed in his register of good deeds.”2 He
said too: "Seek for provision in the recesses of the earth.”3
Know that farming and agriculture are a form of commerce with God
and the best of all crafts and trades, if properly practiced. If one is gifted
with the insight of gnosis, he will perceive that they constitute the
viceregency of God with respect to His attribute of Provider. And if one
engages in this work with insight and awareness, he will receive reward
without limit and attain high rank and degree.
There are three classes of men engaged in this work, each of which
has its own customs and conditions. If these are observed and fulfilled, each
may attain the rank of the sincere devotee, the martyr and the righteous.
The first class is that of the farmers, who have property and land,
but need peasants, journeymen, and apprentices to engage in agriculture and
cultivation on their account. Their customs and conditions are these. First,
not to take pride in their property and land, nor to become attached to it,
considering it only a loan and a trust in their keeping, and knowing all that
exists to be God’s, for "God’s is the kingdom of the heavens and earth”;4
then not to seek to accumulate, hoard up, and augment; not to
‘Qur'an, 42:20.
’Tradition recorded by Bokarl, Moslem, TermezI, and Ebn Hanbal.
’Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi, p. 168.
'Qur’an, 5:123.
look with the eye of contempt on the indigent apprentices and
journeymen; and finally to have as their purpose in farming and agriculture the
tillage of the hereafter—"This world is the tillage of the hereafter.”5
When the farmer gives out the seed from his barn, he should do so
with the intention of sowing the seed of the hereafter, not of this world. This
he does by saying to himself: "When God Almighty nurtures this seed and it
produces a crop, I grant all creatures, both human and animal, the right freely
to eat of it.” Or rather he should say to himself: "God’s creatures, both
men and beasts, need food, and not everyone can be a farmer. I am therefore
undertaking to serve them for the sake of God’s pleasure, and to worship Him
through service to them.”
He must not in any way cheat the peasant, apprentice, or journeyman,
but give them in full their wage and their share. When first a field, orchard,
or other plantation produces a crop to the extent of the taxable minimum,6
or when the harvest is gathered, the farmer should subtract the amount due as
purifying tax and set it aside in a separate place. He should then give it as
quickly as possible to those having a claim on the tax in accordance with the
Law, for if even part of what is owed as purifying tax becomes mixed with his
property, all his property will be tainted with unlawfulness.
Whatever is left over of the crop he should not attempt to store up
for the next year, but instead rely upon God. For the essence of farming is
reliance upon God, because one must hope for God’s generosity and favor in
order to obtain a crop, and no creature has any influence or power in the
matter.
The farmer must always keep the door of his house open to travelers
coming and going, to the rich and the poor; serve God’s creatures with cheerful
countenance and joyous heart, with true faith and sincere intent, so far as his
income and the extent of his crops permit; and count this as a favor received.
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 93.
“Taxable minimum (nefab): the amount of any commodity
specified in jurisprudence as the minimum for the levying of zakat (the
purifying tax).
If one year the crop fails, or there is a drought and no rainfall,
he should not burden his heart and be anxious for daily provision. Nor should
he in his greed for possessions be ungrateful for God’s bounty, and reject or
dislike God’s actions with his heart or his tongue. Instead, let him reflect
that there is some divine wisdom dictating the matter, and conduct himself with
contentment and submission, knowing all provision to be given by God. He
should not be less than an old woman—
A wretched old woman looked out from her hovel,
Saw her patch of land parched, and then said:
“O Thou Who art both ancient and new, Provision is from Thee; do
what Thou wilt!”7
When the farmer practices his trade in this fashion; when he sows a
seed with the proper intention; when he plants a tree in sincerity; when he
refrains from encroaching on the water and land of others; when he heeds the
commands and prohibitions of the Law—then every morsel, every grain, and every
fruit that, coming from his land and his property, his fields and his orchards,
go to feed a man, a bird, or an animal, will be inscribed in his register of
good deeds, and will earn for him nearness to God and high rank. Indeed, if the
farmer’s intent is to practice his trade for the sake of the Muslims and to
benefit them, he will be rewarded for each grain and each fruit that men derive
from his toil, even though they buy it from him for money. The great have said
that three hundred and sixty people must labor for a morsel of bread to become
baked and ready to eat—a sower, a reaper, a carpenter, a blacksmith, and men of
many other trades. If that morsel should become the food of one of God’s
saints, God will forgive the sins of the three hundred and sixty for the sake
of the saint and set them free from the fire, if He so wills.
The second class is that of the village headmen and foremen. They
should fulfill the same conditions that we have laid down for the farmer, and
in addition maintain equilibrium among the peasants, not giving the strong
preference over the weak, or taking bribes. Further, they should be the helpers
of God and strengthen religion and the people of religion. They should also
’Two lines from the Hadiqat al-haqiqa of Sana’I (p. 107).
assure the tranquillity and prosperity of the peasants, and exert
themselves mightily to repel oppression from them. They should not covet their
possessions and belongings, but be content and abstemious. They should life in
righteousness, avoid all forms of corruption, chastise the corruptors, and
enjoin good and forbid evil. If they see some sign of pretension or corruption
in one of the peasants, they should admonish him and make him repent. In
general, they should fulfill properly all the conditions of their position as
headmen or foremen, and know for certain that they will be called to account
for whatever befalls them and their flock: “Each of you is a shepherd, and each
will be called to account for his flock.”8 If headmen and foremen
fulfill all the conditions of their task, God Almighty will grant them a reward
and high rank for each act of worship, charity, righteousness, and
tranquillity performed by those in their charge, if He so wills.
The third class is that of the peasants and journeymen who have
little property or land of their own, and hence sow and till the land owned by
others. Insofar as they are able, they should observe the same conditions as
the first group. They should be trustworthy and pious, and shun treachery and
dishonest behavior. They should give freely of their care and attention to
their work and act with honesty and sincerity, whether in the presence or
absence of the landowner. They should strive to protect his property and land,
and exert themselves mightily in cultivating and sowing. They should not
oppress animals by loading them heavily, making them work excessively, or
beating them too frequently, for God Almighty will hold them responsible for
whatever the animals suffer beyond their capacity, and He will avenge the
animals upon them: “God is mighty and vengeful.”9
When the peasants are engaged in tilling and driving a pair of oxen
before them, they should constantly make zekr; and when it is time for
prayer, they should immediately begin praying. If they cannot pray in
congregation, let them at least pray with the intent of congregational prayer
in order to gain its reward. In no event should they completely neglect prayer.
They should also fulfill the other conditions that have been set forth.
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 415.
’Qur’an, 3:4.
Further, they should not consider themselves to be true sowers of
the soil, but only God: “Is it ye who sow the soil, or are We the sowers?”10
Hand and foot, sight and hearing, power and strength—all are given by God’s
mighty presence so that the sower will be able to plant a seed or a tree. After
the planting, the sower can have no further effect on the seed until God Almighty
causes it to split open in the soil and put forth a green shoot. Then He
gradually effaces the seed in the earth, and restores it to life some time
later on the branch or the bough, multiplying it a hundred times, seven hundred
times, or more. Thus the sower is in truth God, Who has hidden provision for
His bondsmen in the recesses of the earth. And hence the Prophet, upon whom be
peace, instructs men to go and seek for it: "Seek for provision in the
recesses of the earth.”11
The peasant should therefore consider himself a deputy appointed by
God, and know Him to be the true Sower and Provider. He should in addition
adorn the days of his life with those litanies and prayers that were mentioned
in earlier chapters. Then all sustenance that men, animals, and birds derive
from his labor will be inscribed by God Almighty in his register of good deeds,
and he will be granted a degree of high rank and nearness. These glad tidings
were given by the Prophet, upon whom be peace, when he said: "Whoever sows
a seed or plants a tree from which the birds and beasts come to eat shall have
it inscribed in his register of good deeds.”12
And God’s blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
'“Qur’an, 56:64.
"Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
'“Tradition quoted it the beginning of this chapter.
Seventh Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of Merchants
God Almighty said: “Men whom neither trade nor selling diverts from
the remembrance of God.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “The
honest and trustworthy merchant will be brought forth with the prophets and
messengers on the Day of Resurrection.”2
Know that trade is of two kinds: the trade of this world, and the
trade of the hereafter. The trade of this world also comprises two kinds: one
that is directed to benefit in this world alone, and one that is directed to
benefit in the hereafter, with benefit in this world seen as dependent upon
it—“Whoever desires the tillage of the hereafter, We will grant him increase in
his tillage.”3
As for the trade that is undertaken for the sake of benefit in this
world alone, it is extremely reprehensible. Its gain is to be without gain, and
to carry a burden of guilt to the reckoning in the hereafter. Its profit is but
loss; its increase, but deficiency; and its benefit, but harm.
Increase in worldly goods is but decrease, And to profit in all but
pure virtue is loss.
God Almighty associates this type of trade with vanity when He says:
“Say: ‘what is with God is better than vanity and trade.’ ”4
Similarly, when the Prophet, upon whom be peace, says: “Merchants will be
brought forth as sinners on the Day of Resurrection except those who are pious,
righteous, and truthful,”5 he designates worldly merchants, in whom
there is no piety, righteousness, or truthfulness, as sinners. And God Almighty
says, “Verily the sinners will be in hellfire, entering it on the Day of
Judgment.”6
'Qur’an, 24:37.
’Tradition recorded by TermezI and Dareml.
’Qur'an, 42:30.
’Qur'an, 42:11.
’Tradition; source unknown.
’Qur’an, 82:14.
As for the trade that is undertaken for the sake of benefit in the
hereafter, it is that referred to by God in His saying, “men whom neither trade
nor selling diverts from the remembrance of God.”7 Commentators have
explained this verse in two ways. The first is that it refers to the trade of
the hereafter. That is, “there are men who do not engage in the material trade
and selling of this world, in order not to be diverted from God and the remembrance
of God.” Instead, they engage in the trade of the hereafter, devoting their
persons and property entirely to God’s path, and turning away completely from
the world. Thus God says: “O ye who believe! Shall I guide you to a trade that
will deliver you from painful chastisement? It is that ye believe in God and
His messenger and strive in His path with your property and persons; that is
best for you,, if ye but knew.”8
The other sense is that the verse does indeed refer to the trade of
this world, but to the kind of trade that is directed to benefit in the
hereafter. That is, there are men who even though outwardly engaged in
material trade, and buying and selling, do not neglect to remember God with
their heart. This latter interpretation is preferable because the verse
continues: “and the regular performance of prayer and giving of the purifying
tax.”9 That is, they also do not neglect prayer and the payment of
the purifying tax, and this tax can be paid only if one is engaged in the trade
of this world; one who completely abandons all wealth and turns away from the
world cannot pay it.
The conditions, then, for trade being undertaken for the sake of
profit in the hereafter, and the company of the prophets and messengers, are
that the merchant should make of piety his outer and inner garment; consider
his property to be God’s property; and act always with the intention of using
God’s property for the sake of God’s bondsmen, in accordance with God’s command
and pleasure, and spending any profit that may accrue for the sake of God’s
bondsmen, regarding himself and his family as part of them. He should also be
punctiliously trustworthy and religious, always observing equity in buying and
selling, and
’Qur’an, 24:37.
“Qur’an, 61: 10.
’Qur’an, 24:37.
offering fair terms whether buying or selling. For the Prophet, upon
whom be peace, says: "God will have mercy on a man who gives fair terms
when buying or selling.”10
Further, the merchant should by no means swear oaths, whether
veracious or lying, in the course of buying and selling, for God Almighty
regards the merchant who is given to oaths as an enemy. He should be content
with a modest profit, for blessedness is joined to contentment, and
deprivation to greed: “the greedy is deprived.” He should exert himself in
trustworthiness and avoid treachery, for the Prophet, upon whom be peace, says:
“Trustworthiness attracts sustenance and treachery attracts poverty.”11
When he is buying goods, he should not find fault with them, nor when he is
selling them should he praise them or conceal their defects and exaggerate
their merits. He should neither buy nor sell slaves, for the buying of slaves
exposes one to accusation and harm, and the selling of them gives rise to mischief.
It has been said, “beware of whatever excites accusation.” However, it is less
objectionable to buy and sell slaves who are crippled, and who may be kept for
a certain purpose or service.
Whenever the merchant arrives in a town in the course of his
journeys, he should inquire after its tombs and blessed places, and go there in
visitation, with the utmost ardor. He should also seek out the ascetics,
devotees, shaikhs, imams, recluses, and saints in every town that he comes to;
wait upon them in sincerity; and seek the favor of each with some token or
offering, great or small. This he should regard as great gain, for indeed there
is no gain to be had on a journey greater than being in the company of men of
God and serving them. The merchant should also help the poor and the weak in
every city as far as he can.
He should devote to charitable purposes all profit earned in the
course of a journey, as well as that gained from transactions and exchanges
conducted in his place of residence, deducting only his family’s expenses. He
should in no way be concerned with the accumulation, hoarding, and augmenting
of wealth, for God Almighty says: ‘As for those who bury gold and silver
'“Tradition recorded by Moslem, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Elanbal.
"Tradition recorded by Daremi.
and spend it not in the path of God, give them tidings of a painful
chastisement. On the day that their treasure is heated in hellfire, their
brows, their flanks, and their backs shall be branded with it—‘This is the
treasure ye buried for yourselves; taste now that which ye buriedl’ ”12
The merchant must live in such fashion that when the time comes to
depart for the hereafter, he will have sent all his profit and capital on in
advance, so that he then departs in the wake of his property. A merchant who
wishes to go on a journey in this world also sends his property on in advance.
Then he becomes restless and impatient in his own city and makes ready to
depart in the wake of his property, so that the hour when it is time for the
caravan to leave will be the happiest of all times for him. He will also
arrange matters so that his offspring are given an amount adequate to assure
their livelihood from whatever wealth he leaves behind, while the rest is
devoted to endowments and pious foundations, so that a continuing act of
charity survives him. For it is a pity that he should labor and others enjoy
the fruit of his efforts.
It is related in a Tradition of the Prophet, upon whom be peace,
that among those gathered on the Plain of Resurrection, on the Day of Judgment,
four men shall experience regret such as none other shall, from early or late
generations. The first is a scholar who has not acted in accordance with his
knowledge and sayings while others have done so. On the Plain of Resurrection
he will see them being borne off to Paradise and himself to hellfire. He will
say: ‘Ahl They acted in accordance with my knowledge and earned Paradise; I
failed to do so, and earned hellfire.”
The second is a corrupt master who owns a righteous slave. When he
sees, on the Plain of Resurrection, his slave being borne off to Paradise and
himself to hellfire, he will say: ‘Ahl My slave engaged in worship and earned
Paradise; I, his master, wrought corruption and earned hellfire.”
The third is a person who has performed many acts of worship
12Qur’an, 9:34-35.
of all kinds, but has also oppressed, insulted, or inflicted a
grievance on someone; has slandered someone or spoken ill of him; or has
tormented and beaten someone. When he comes to the Plain of Resurrection, his
adversaries will come forth. One will take away his prayer, and another his
fasting; one will take away his payment of the purifying tax, and another his
pilgrimage. So that person will be left bankrupt and the sins of his adversaries
will be lifted up and tied to his neck. He will be taken to hellfire, and his
adversaries to Paradise. He will say: 'Afi! It was I who was busy in worship,
and they who were busy in sin, but I am borne off to hellfire on account of
their sins, and they are borne off to Paradise on account of my worship.”
The fourth is the possessor of wealth who acquires his wealth with
great trouble, but neither consumes it nor takes it with him, instead leaving
it here for an heir, who uses it for pious and charitable purposes and spends
it all in God’s path. Both will be brought to the Plain of Resurrection, and
the accumulator of the wealth will be called to account and sent to hellfire on
account of his sin, while the heir will be taken to Paradise on account of his
charity. The accumulator of the wealth will say: ’Ah! It was I who toiled and
assembled the wealth, both licit and illicit; and now for the sin I am being
taken to hellfire, while another goes to Paradise because of the use he made of
my wealth.” No group of men shall suffer regret such as these four. One must
therefore exert oneself to the utmost to be protected by God Almighty from
these afflictions.
The trustworthy merchant, however, through his honesty, his honest
speech, and his honest conduct, will attain the degree of salvation and those
who are saved. Hence the Prophet, upon whom be peace, said: "The honest
and trustworthy merchant will be brought forth with the prophets and messengers
on the Day of Resurrection.”13 Honesty consists of making one’s
heart and intention conform to God’s will, and doing for the sake of God all
that one does. Honest speech consists of speaking truthfully and
straightforwardly to men, and avoiding all cunning, stratagem, and deceit.
Honest conduct consists of following the highway of the Law, and having some
awareness too of the pursuit of the Path.
'’Tradition quoted at the beginning of the chapter.
The merchant must be careful never to prefer worldly interest to
religious interest, or to neglect the tasks of religion for the sake of worldly
concern. He should in all circumstances remember God and seek the hereafter,
so that he will be of those concerning whom God, Glorious and Almighty, says:
“men whom neither trade nor selling diverts from the remembrance of God.”14
God Almighty calls them "men,” meaning that whoever does not fit this
description is not a true man. Whoever possesses both intelligence and
religion will not be content with anything less than the station of manhood,
and will not be seduced by the coquetry of this world—a stinking, murderous old
hag.
Our shaikh, Shaikh Majd al-Dln al-Bagdadi, may God sanctify his
dear spirit, said:
The intelligent when he examines the ways of the world Will not give
a grain for the fortunes of time.
His constant care will be this: How in the end
To arise and leave this trap of affliction?
And blessings be upon Mohammad and his family.
“Qur'an 24:37.
Eighth Chapter:
Concerning the
Wayfaring of Tradesmen and Craftsmen
God Almighty said: “O ye who believe, spend from the good things ye
have earned, and from that which We have brought forth for you from the earth;
and aim not for the vile, in order to spend from it, when ye would not receive
it yourselves except with closed eyes. And know that God is rich, deserving of
all praise.”1
The Prophet, upon whom be God’s peace and blessings, said: “The best
of what man eats is that which he earns with his own hand.”2
Know that trades and crafts are the result of the knowledge, power,
and cognition of the spirit which existed within it in potentiality before its
present state, and then, by means of corporeal tools and instruments, and at
the command of the intellect—the minister and deputy of the spirit—emerged
from potentiality to actuality, from the unseen to the manifest.
The trades and crafts of man afford an aperture through which the
possessor of intelligence and insight may gaze on God’s activity and work as
Maker. First he will recognize that the essence of his spirit has certain
attributes. He will know that his spirit is living, for if it were not living,
no act would emerge from it. He will know that it has knowledge, for if it did
not, these many subtle and useful arts would not proceed from it. He will know
too that it has will, for without will no deed proceeds from doer, particularly
at one time instead of another. Specification of time in the creation of a
deed on the part of its doer proves the existence of both choice and will,
contrary to what the erring philosophers say: “The maker of the world has no
choice or will in the creation of deeds.” With frank avowal of unbelief, what
ignorance, what great temerity and impertinence! God’s curses be upon them, and
those who love and follow them,
'Qur’an, 2:267.
“Tradition recorded by Termezi, Ebn Maja, and Ebn Hanbal.
until the Day of Judgment. He will know too that the spirit is
endowed with hearing, vision, and speech, for otherwise these attributes could
not appear in the bodily frame. Finally, he will know that the spirit has
power, for deeds are impossible without power; and that it has permanence, for
the permanence of the bodily frame is the result of the permanence of the
spirit.
When he has recognized these eight essential attributes of the
spirit and witnessed the effect manifested by them in his bodily frame; when he
has seen his frame engaged in motion and activity as a result of these
attributes, so that numerous subtle trades and fine crafts appear in him; and
when he has seen his spirit increase daily in knowledge—then he will know that
his spirit requires one who will bring it to perfection. For it does not exist
of itself; once it was not, then it was; and it therefore requires a creator
who shall bring it from nonbeing to being. That creator is God, the Glorious
and Almighty.
He, Glorified and Almighty, must possess also these eight
attributes, which are the attributes of perfection, in order to create beings.3
His essence must be self-subsistent, for otherwise need and substantial
continuity with other than God would result. The attributes must furthermore
subsist by the essence, and exist both before and after temporality, for
otherwise they would be accidents, the essence would become the locus of
createdness, and corruption would necessarily follow, which is an impossible
conclusion.4
The intelligent will thus recognize God to be the absolute Doer,
Powerful One, and Maker, and know that the spirit is set to work by God in the
microcosm known as the bodily frame, as His deputy and viceregent. He will know
too that God’s deeds are of two kinds: those accomplished by means of the human
person, the viceregent of God; and those accomplished without the use of any
means.
The first kind also comprises two types: deeds pertaining to
’See p. 389 and p. 389, n. 60.
'Daya’s statement that the attributes must subsist by the essence is
in full conformity with As'arT doctrine; see Taftazani, Sarh al-'aqa‘ed,
pp. 24-26.
the microcosm and deeds pertaining to the macrocosm. Those that
pertain to the microcosm—that is, the bodily frame—are accomplished by means
of the spirit, together with the tools and instruments of the soul that serve
the spirit, such as the vegetable soul, the animal soul, and the human
faculties. As for those deeds that pertain to the macrocosm known as the world,
they are accomplished not only by means of the spirit, and the tools and
instruments of the soul we have mentioned, but also by means of the tools and
instruments of the body, such as the five senses, and the members and limbs.
All the crafts and trades that man produces are the result of deeds belonging
to this last category.
As for those of God’s deeds accomplished without using the means of
the human person, they are those the signs of which are manifest upon the
horizons and in men’s souls. The signs upon the horizons consist of the
heavens, exalted and adorned with brilliant stars—"We have adorned them
for those who would gaze”[131]—and
the reflection of heaven’s stars upon the dark earth: roses and tulips, bright
and clear water, all the different varieties of trees and of flowers, of fruits
and of plants, animals, minerals, simple and compound elements, and so on:
"Verily in the creation of the heavens and earth, and the alternation of
night and day; in the ships that run on the sea, for the benefit of mankind; in
the water which God sends down from the sky, and the life He gives therewith to
the earth after its death; in the beasts of all kinds that He scatters through
the earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds subdued between the sky
and the earth—therein verily are signs for men possessed of intelligence.”[132]
As for the signs in men’s own persons, they consist in this, that
God Almighty has brought forth from a drop of sperm so subtle and complex a
being as man, endowed with hearing, sight, and speech, and well-proportioned
members and limbs— “Verily We created man from a drop of mingled sperm, in order
to try him, and endowed him with hearing and sight.”[133]
When the possessor of good fortune and insight witnesses the signs
of God, which are the results of His deeds, in the mirror of his own self
through the light of God’s demonstration—“We shall show them Our signs upon the
horizons and in their own selves”;8 when he knows the microcosm of
the bodily frame, that first was not and then was, to have been made and
fashioned by God, and the spirit to have been appointed over it as viceregent
by God; when he sees that the bodily frame cannot subsist without the
direction of the spirit, but collapses in ruin—then he will know too for
certain that in the macrocosm of the world a Maker and Doer must likewise be at
work so that numerous and varied circumstances and effects appear as a result
of His deeds, and subtle crafts emerge. For if one powerful, perfect, and wise
were not at work directing the world, it could not subsist or remain, and as
soon as the direction given it by that powerful one ceases, the world will
immediately fall down in ruin, and no trace of it will remain. At this station,
the true meaning of “whoever knows his own self knows also his Lord”9
becomes apparent, and the mystery of “and in your selves—will ye not see?”10
is also unveiled.
Thus it has been established that when tradesmen and craftsmen open
the eye of insight and look out through the aperture of their own activity and
work as makers, the beauty of the activity and work of the True Maker will
manifest itself to their gaze. For that great one said: “I looked upon nothing
without seeing God in it.”11 Their eye of insight will be opened
whenever they close the eye of their soul’s caprice to the contemplation of
worldly allurements, carnal pleasures, and animal passions.
It should also be known that the world is in truth like a hospice
where God is the shaikh and the Prophet, upon whom be peace, is the steward or
servant, it being for this reason that he
“Qur’an, 41:53.
“Tradition previously quoted on p. 28.
10Qur’an, 51:21.
"Saying of disputed attribution previously quoted on p. 139;
see also p. 139, n. 23.
said: “The master of a people is also its servant.”12 The
rest of mankind belongs to two categories: those serving and those served, just
as there are only these two groups in a hospice. There are the laborers, each
of whom is assigned a certain duty by the shaikh for which he is held
responsible, and there are the assiduous seekers who under the dominance of
love’s ardor and in the pain of the quest are oblivious to everything and everyone;
who have turned away from men and the caprice of the soul; and who have set
their faces to the wall of ascetic exercise and struggle.
We have turned our backs on the world of happiness;
Henceforth our yellow cheek and the wall of His sorrow.
Both these groups are entrusted by the shaikh to his servant, who
sets everyone to work at his proper station, giving him aid and assistance, and
instruction and guidance. Thus the laborers serve the seekers, while the
seekers engage in worship arid devotion with tranquillity and concentration.
For if all the dwellers in the hospice were seekers, each would have to care
for his own needs, and all would be preoccupied and distracted from their
seeking, for seeking is a task for the unencumbered. Thus God Almighty
addressed the Prophet, upon whom be peace, saying: "When thou art free of
concern, then labor hard, and unto thy Lord incline.”13
In
love for Thee I have abandoned all other tasks, For this is no task for one
encumbered with tasks.
In the hospice of the world, then, there are two classes of men.
First, those who are served by others and who have set their face to the world
of the hereafter and the service of God. God Almighty, who is the shaikh of
this hospice, has ordered this
“Tradition recorded by BeyhaqI, with the additional phrase,
"during a journey." Daya is using the word kadem (“servant”)
in the technical sense it bears in Sufism: the one responsible for ordering the
affairs of the hospice under the guidance of the shaikh. See Abu al-Najib
al-Suhrawardl, A Sufi Rule for Novices (Kitab Adab al-Muridin), trans.
Menahem Milson (Cambridge, Mass., 1975), p. 50, where the same Tradition is
quoted in illustration of the function of the kadem.
'’Qur’an, 94:8.
world and all that it contains to serve men such as these—“O world,
serve whoever serves Me; and take as servant whoever serves thee.” The other
class consists of those who seek the world, and they correspond to the laborers
in the hospice: like them, they have each been assigned a task, from the king to
the merchant in the bazaar. All men belong to this class except those who are
engaged solely in the worship of God and who are the choice part of His
creation. The verse “I did not create jinn and mankind except that they might
worship Me”14 means this: that whoever—man or jinn—is given a task
to fulfill, performs it so that these sincere devotees who have been delivered
from love of the world, the caprice of the soul, and the influence of Satan may
in all tranquillity engage in the worship of God and the cultivation of
religion—“They were not commanded except to worship God, devoting their
religion to Him in sincerity.”15 Thus just as in the hospice the
laborers are occupied in serving the seekers and make of their service a means
for drawing near to God, so too do those who are the laborers in the hospice
of the world receive from God Almighty a share in the dominical favors He
bestows on His elect.
While in Khorasan, this feeble one once instructed a number of
dervishes to enter seclusion and appointed another dervish to serve them. In
the course of certain unveilings, I then perceived that the succor of God’s
favor was being received by each of the dervishes who had entered seclusion,
and that a special share of that favor was passed on from each of them to the
dervish who was serving them.
Similarly, each of the people of this world—the laborers in its
hospice—should form the following intent in the exercise of his craft and
trade: “I perform this, my task, for the sake of God’s bondsmen. For my craft
is necessary if the need of a Muslim is to be fulfilled, and a worshipper is to
devote himself in tranquillity to God.” If everyone were to engage in all the
crafts and trades that he needs, he would be unable to fulfill his proper
tasks, worldly and religious; the world would be ruined; and none would have
the tranquillity needed for worship or the concentration required for
devotion.
■’Qur’an, 51:56.
l5Qur’an, 98:5.
God Almighty in His perfect wisdom and utter power has appointed
everyone to a certain service or craft which he practices for fifty or a
hundred years, without daring to engage in some other task for even a day. The
people of each craft and trade who serve in the hospice of the world should act
in all things according to the command of the shaikh—God the Glorious— and the
direction, guidance, and instruction of his servant— Mohammad, the Messenger of
God, peace and blessings be upon him. Further, they should practice compassion,
trustworthiness, and piety; in all circumstances remain steadfast on the
highway of the Law; and guard their earnings against contamination by illicit
or dubious wealth. They should refrain from taking in excess and giving in
deficiency; shun dealings with all possessors of illicit wealth, except in
ignorance; and never perform their craft or trade with fraud or deception but
instead observe equity. On encountering someone who is unacquainted with their
trade and unaware of the true price of their goods, they should refrain from
exploiting him and charging him an excessive price, asking only what they
would of someone more knowledgeable.
They should also carefully avoid all deceit and treachery. One day
the Prophet, upon whom be peace, was walking in the market when he saw a heap
of corn being sold. He dipped his blessed hand into the com, and it came forth
moist. He asked: “What is the meaning of this?” The owner of the com said, “O
Messenger of God, it has been touched by the rain.” The Prophet said: “Why did
you not leave the moist part of the corn on top of the heap so that everyone
might see it?” Then he said: “Whoever deceives us is not from among us.”16
That is, “whoever seeks to cheat and deceive the people of my community does
not belong to it.”
The practitioner of a craft or trade should also try to give a share
of his earnings and gain to one beloved of God, and to give ease to a poor
person. It is related of David, upon whom be peace, that he communed with God
Almighty, saying: “O Lord, I wish to see my companion in Paradise.” God
Almighty said:
“Tradition recorded by Moslem, Abu Da’ud, TermezI, Ebn Maja, Dareml
and Ebn Hanbal.
“Tomorrow leave the city, and the first person thou encoun- terest
shall be thy companion.” When David left the city, he saw a man coming toward
him carrying a load of firewood on his back. He greeted him and inquired
concerning his state, saying: “How dost thou conduct thyself toward God
Almighty so as to acquire the rank of companionship and friendship with the
prophets in Paradise?” The man replied: “Every day I collect a load of firewood
such as this with my own hands, then carry it to the city on my back and sell
it for a derham. I have a mother on whose upkeep I spend one third of a derham;
another third I spend on my family; and the remaining third I devote to the
poor and the needy.” David said: “Continue on thy way, for thou deserve to be a
companion of the prophets.” But then on reflection he said to him: “Come back,
and keep my company. I will give thee a derham each day, and thou shall
be my companion here in this world as thou will be in Paradise.” But the poor
man replied: “I have gained the rank of being thy companion in Paradise with
the toil of my hands, with exertion and endurance. If I cease laboring, that
rank will be lost to me. So I will continue laboring in this way and serving
God and His bondsmen until death comes and finds me in this state.”
God Almighty, in His divine favor, guides His bondsmen to this rank
and sets this duty before them when He says: “O ye who believe! spend from the
good things ye have earned.”17 That is, spend the licit wealth you
have earned. Here, spending includes giving in charity, so that the injunction
means "Spend part of what you have earned on yourself and give part to the
poor in charity.” In confirmation of this, God says elsewhere: “Eat from it,
and feed the distressed and the needy.”18 And the Prophet, upon whom
be peace, defined earnings as the most licit of all wealth when he said: “The
best of what man eats is that which he earns with his own hand.”19
When tradesmen—the laborers in the hospice of the world— observe the
conditions we have set forth, God Almighty will bestow a share of each reward,
degree, and station attained by
'’Qur’an, 2:267.
‘“Qur’an, 22:28.
‘“Tradition quoted at the beginning of this chapter.
His elect, His intimates and beloveds—the prophets and saints, upon
whom be peace—on the traders and craftsmen who are the servants and lovers of
His elect; and He will resurrect them in their company on the last day: “They
it is who are with those whom God has given His bounty—the prophets, the
sincere devotees, the witnesses, and the righteous. Fair indeed is their
fellowship!”20
* * *
If, however, the members of the different classes whom we have set
forth in this section as forming eight groups, and whose wayfaring and states
we have described in eight chapters, wish to have a fuller share in the
libations of true men and the stations of those who have drawn nigh unto God,
they should increase their recitation of litanies and acts of worship, their
exercises of zekr and practices such as remaining awake at night,
purging the inner being of love of the world, reducing the consumption of food,
mortifying the soul, watching over the heart, and abandoning all passions. They
should also follow the means for the refinement of the soul, the purification
of the heart, and the adornment of the spirit that we have explained in
previous chapters, in accordance with their capacity. They should know for
certain that the greater their exertions, the greater shall be their reward.
In toil and trouble, O wise one, treasure is hidden:
None comes on treasure without any trouble.21
It may be that by fortunate accident one attains the felicity and
honor of waiting on one of the shaikhs of the Path, a wayfarer on it by God’s
grace who has become the skilled physician of the age. Then, taking the cure of
religion in accordance with the shaikh’s insight and instruction, mounting the
pinion of his lofty aspiration and relying on his high fortune, one may
traverse the bloodthirsty waste of the commanding soul, where at each stage and
stopping place one hundred thousand sincere devotees gave dear life to the
winds, without ever seeing the beauty of the
20Qur’an, 4:69.
21A verse from the Sahnama of
Ferdowsl; I have been unable to locate its precise occurrence.
Ka’ba of their goal, because they were traveling without any guide.
Such shaikhs who are skilled physicians and fit to be guides and
directors, even though they are scarce and unique in every era and age, have
become in this time fully as rare as red sulphur[134]
and the ‘anqa[135]
of the Occident. Still more wondrous is it that if, however rarely, that red
sulphur be found, it will be less esteemed than the dark earth; and if the ‘anqa
of the Occident appears, it will be more portionless than the crow of exile.
This is because of the utter lack of insight of the people of the age, and
men’s absorption in this world and their heedlessness of death and the
hereafter, of the accounting and the bridge of $erat, of reward and punishment,
of return and reversion: “They know an outer aspect of the life of this world,
and of the hereafter they are heedless.”[136]
What value has dust-colored kohl in the view of the blind, and what worth has
the beauty of the sun? Moreover, on account of jealous concern for the honor of
His elect, God has lowered the veil of dignity over them by means of the lying
claimants who in this age pretend like gypsy charlatans to be skilled
physicians. He has made of the false claimant the dome of jealousy beneath
which the true shaikh is hidden, and thus protected them from the gaze of the
uninitiated: “My saints are beneath My domes; none knows them but I.”[137]
O friends! How is it I see myself the only true poet? How plentiful
their claims; how plentiful my odes!
Know that swords are many indeed
But
today there is only one Sword of tire State.26 Many rivals you have
in your craft, it is true.
But the clever know garlic from hyacinth, and rose from jasmine.
Were
it not for Joseph’s beauty and Jacob’s love of him, No wind or shirt could by
chance become sightlustring tutty.27
But to every possessor of felicity, whose eye is anointed with the
kohl of the pain of the quest, taken from the kohl box of God’s guidance on the
stick of His grace, will be sent the wind of affection, blown on the breeze of
compassion. Then shall this wind, acting as chamberlain, cast back the veil of
jealousy from the entrance to the pavilion of dignity, and there will be displayed
to the gaze of the fortunate the beauty of the perfection of that skilled
physician of religion, that guide and conductor to the world of certainty. If
the seeker should be in the east and the skilled physician in the west, either
the seeker shall be brought to the presence of the sought, or the sought shall
be conveyed to the door of the seeker.
If the
lofty fortune of religious yearning be given thee, Or the wind of desiring God
and His search waft over thee,
Either thou will be pulled by thy hair to the shaikh, Or he will
ride posthaste toward thee.
O God, make us to be of Thy righteous bondsmen, and of Thy chosen
ones drawn nigh unto Thee, the rightly guiding and the rightly guided; cause us
to abide in the enclosure of Thy sanctity and in the company of Thy intimates,
the prophets and messengers; and grant unto us and the people of Mohammad,
blessings and peace be upon him, the conclusion of those who truly succeed.
“These two lines of Arabic poetry are taken from a panegyric ode
composed by al-Motanabbi (d. 354/965) in honor of his patron, Seyf al-Dowla the
Hamdanid, to whose title the expression “Sword of the State" in the second
line is an allusion (d. 356/967). See Diwan al-Mutanabbi, ed. F.
Dietrich (Berlin, 18 61), p. 463.
!Two lines from Sana’! (Divan,
p. 402). The second of these two lines alludes to the restoration of Jacob's
sight by the scent of Joseph’s shirt, wafted to him by the wind.
And God’s blessings and peace be upon Mohammad and all his family.
Amen, O Lord of the Worlds.
Completed is this book replete with the true essence of all arcane
knowledge, by the aid and support of the Lord without peer, and the effluent
grace of Him Who in His might says “be,” and it is; as too by the blessedness
of the propitious good fortune, and the auspiciousness of the blessed
aspiration, of that king who nurtures religion, that monarch who disseminates
just decision, that sovereign with the mien of Key Kosrow, Key Qobad from the
stock of Qobad1—may God elevate in both realms the banners of his
state, and may He spread over the horizons the wings of his monarchy; written
by the hand of the scribe of these truths, and the builder of these fundaments,
the indigent one dependent on God, Abu Bakr Abdollah b. Mohammad b. Sahavar
al-Asadl al-Razi; on Monday, the first of the blessed month of Rajab, the month
of God2—may God magnify its blessedness and make blessed for us its
crescent and its full moon!—in the six hundred and twentieth year after the
Hijra; in the heavenly guarded city of Sivas—may God Almighty guard it full
well!
Our hope of God’s grace without cause, and the compassion of His
glorious presence, is that for this attempt to gain His favor and draw nigh
unto Him, we shall be rewarded, not rejected; and that this book will be
regarded, not discarded, in the presence of the king. For this treasury of
truths is not fit for hasty perusal, and its secrets and subdeties cannot be
discovered in the course of long lifetimes. Even though these truths drawn from
the realm of the unseen cannot be threaded on the pearlstring of expression in
a fashion more luminous and evidential than this, still one of Solomonic nature
is needed to loosen the knot of even a few of these secrets and allusions, for
they resemble the tongue of the birds.3
‘Key Kosrow: an epic hero of Iran; also the name of Key Qobad's
father, 'Ea al-Dln Key Kosrow, who ruled Saljuq Anatolia from 588/1192 to
592/1196, and then again from 601/1204 to 607/1210. Qobad: the name of another
pre- Islamic Iranian monarch.
2Rajab: the seventh month of the
Islamic calendar, on the twenty-sixth night of which the Prophet’s ascension
took place.
’Concerning the "tongue of the birds,” see p. 147, n. 52.
Not every heart can bear the burden of explaining my speech,
Not every soul derives pleasure from the soul of my speech.
Riddles such as these that are the medium of speech, I alone
understand, I, the interpreter of speech.
That which is requested by this feeble one, upon completing his
service, from the royal presence as lofty as the heavens, is not the wealth and
pomp of this world, even though on account of so awesome an occurrence and so
encompassing a disaster— far be it removed from the royal presence!—I have
exchanged homeland for exile; happiness for grief; abundance for scarcity; and
tranquillity for distraction. I shall not say, "dignity for abjection,”
for the dignity of poverty never sees the face of abjection, and poverty and
pride are like twins—“poverty is my pride.”4
God knows us, and past days know us too; Know that we are noble,
even when penniless.
Rather our hope and request is this, that in time of seclusion and
hours of tranquillity, the monarch should take the key of sincerity in the hand
of supplication and unlock the door to this treasury of divine secrets, that is
full of the coin of unlimited gift. He should remove the lid from the
jewelboxes of this book’s parts and chapters, that are full of the precious
jewels of truth and of principle, and with the eye of insight examine those
choice pearls in all the purity of faith. Then let him forward the purifying
tax due on this wealth to those entrusted with its collection and use, so that
they may spend it on those who spiritually and corporeally have a claim on it,
as recipients of the purifying tax and the different forms of charity. Thus
will all that this feeble one has inscribed with his pen come rightfully to
accrue to that religion-nurturing king, that justice-dispensing monarch of the
world and its people, and its benefits will reach all the globe and its
inhabitants. In the attainment of this aim shall lie a wondrous means for this
feeble one to gain favor in the presence of the True King, and to avoid being
afflicted with
’Tradition previously quoted on p. 174.
shame
and regret, and remonstrance and punishment, if God Almighty so wills.
O
king, my desire from this service I proffer
Is not
a cloak or a turban, a mantle or gown.
It is
not pomp and position, nor splendor and power;
It is
not riches and wealth, nor worldly respect.
It is
not milk, wine and honey, nor the fruit of the garden, Nor eternity with houris
and palaces in the shade of the Tuba.[138]
To two
things has this, thy well-wisher aspired, And the result of these two is but
one goal.
One,
perpetuity of enjoyment for the king of the world;
The
other, to expound the Path’s stations and unveil the religion of guidance.
By
these two means I may then attain the "seat of sincerity,”[139]
For
the Lord’s presence is our aim and our goal.
If the
king pays the due on this treasure to the collector of alms,
I will
be flushed red with pride in the hereafter. No punishment will I bear for what
I have written, No shame will be mine for what I have completed. For this
reason Adib §aber said, O king of the world, In a fine verse that he once
composed, “In a hundred odes I have called thee generous and merciful;
Do not
bring shame upon me for what I have called thee.”[140]
O king, may a thousand tomes of this kind
Be
prepared and presented unto thee.
It
will be fitting for the king in his kindness to regard and protect this gift
of a dervish with the eye of approval; and to draw the line of royal
forgiveness across the errors of a devoted ser-
vant,
and the lapses of a pen that prays for his welfare, considering them as
covered by the dictum, “lover’s words are concealed, not revealed.”
We
conclude the book with a versified prayer for the sake of blessedness, so that
“its ending be musk.”8
O Lord, keep this, Thy divine shadow As
guardian ruler over the world, And keep ever in the embrace of Thy kindness
This protector of the realm of Islam.
AND PRAISE BE TO GOD, LORD OF THE WORLDS, AND GOD’S PEACE AND
BLESSINGS BE UPON OUR MASTER MOHAMMAD AND ALL HIS FAMILY.
“Qur’an,
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Name, Place, and Subject
Index
Aaron,
433, 439
Abdollah,
father of the Prophet, 249
Abdollah,
son of Abbas, 454, 456
Abdollah,
son of 'Omar, 52, 277
abiding
(baqa), 228 n. 35, 234, 234 n. 55, 293, 309, 319 ablution: the light of,
295; with soil (tayammom), 173 n. 90;
total (gosl),
275
Abraham,
139, 171, 172, 188, 188 n. 35, 198 n. 25, 207, 287, 297-299, 317, 399 n. 15,
405, 408
absorption
(ettehad or ettesdl), 239, 239 n. 23, 324, 324 n. 1
AbuT-'atahiya, Abu Eshaq, 139 n. 21
Abu
Bakr (the Caliph), 277, 433, 446, 468
Abu
Bakr, Shaikh, 241
Abu
Horeyra, 447
Abu
Jahl, 400
Abu
Sa'id b. Abu’l-Keyr, 36 n. 11, 97 n. 11, 128 n. 21, 213 n. 48, 295, 315, 319
Abu
Taleb, 236, 236 n. 11, 379
abyss
of Hell (haviya), 343-344, 344 n. 33
‘Ad,
53
Adam,
65, 74, 77, 81, 91, 110, 112, 115, 116, 117, 120-122, 134 n. 9, 143-144, 149,
150, 153, 159, 168, 171, 191, 192, 201, 206, 210, 280, 322-323, 362, 385, 408;
appointed divine viceregent, 102, 106, 111-112, 165, 166; creation of his
bodily frame, 19, 27, 87, 94-109; eats of the forbidden tree, 117, 169-171;
expelled from Paradise into the world, 117-118; forgiven for disobedience, 121;
God manifests Himself in him, 310, 322; his clay kneaded for forty days, 94,
102, 109, 221, 280; his lack of self-restraint, 385; the soil of Paradise, the
substance of his heart, 102; two mysteries implanted in his nature, 322
Adib
§aber, 496, 496 n. 7
‘A’esa,
279
Afghanistan,
7
Aflaki,
15
Agaz
va Anjam, 17
Aki,
Taqi al-Din, 5
alasto "am I not [your Lord]?”), the Day or Covenant of, 35 n. 7, 126
n. 16, 192, 226, 326, 331, 331 n. 38, 369-370
alchemy,
196-197
Alexander,
25, 25 n. 3, 83 n. 20, 419
Algeria, 10
All b. Abu Taleb, 28 n. 14, 56 n. 20, 449
Alusi, al-, Sehab al-Din, 16
Amir Kosrow, 25 n. 3
Ammar b. Yaser, 3
Amoli, Heydar, 16
Anatolia, 2, 8, 10, 11, 12, 15, 20
angels,
27, 61, 63, 66, 71, 75, 77, 85, 90, 91, 92, 95, 99, 103-104, 106-108, 110, 116,
142, 185, 196, 209, 292, 306, 328-329; different classes of, 80-82, 80 nn. 3-4,
81 nn. 5-12; prostrated before Adam, 110, 113; unable to bear the Trust, 65,
147. See also Esrafil, ‘Ezra’il, Gabriel, Michael, and the Spirit
animals, 63, 71, 77, 82, 87, 129, 143, 181-182, 191, 195;
created
from the residue of spirits, 61; must not be mistreated, 474; significance in
dreams and visions, 291; unable to bear the Trust, 65
‘anqd (a mythical bird), 491, 491 n. 23
Ansari, Shaikh Abdollah, 68, 68 n. 30, 312
anthropomorphism, anthropomorphists, 237, 261
antinomians, 263, 384
Anvari, 86 n. 39, 115 n. 13, 119 n. 25, 128 n. 20, 157 n. 24
Arabs, 161
Arafat,
187, 187 n. 30, 435
arcane
(kafi; one of the inner senses of perception), 18, 134, 134 n. 9,
138-139, 143-144, 212, 305, 307; link between the world of divine attributes
and the world of spirituality, 308 archery, 273 n. 8
ardor (sowq),
365, 365 n. 18
Armenia, 44
Armenians, 13
As'arl
theology, 136 n. 13, 315 n. 17, 483 n. 4
ascetic
striving, asceticism, 262, 286, 305, 486; inadequacy of, 213, 222, 362
aspiration
(hemmat), 318.n. 34
astrology,
450
atheists,
54
attaining,
attainment (riosul), 324-332
Attar,
Farid al-Din, 9, 16, 19, 54 n. 10, 55 n. 12, 141 n. 30 attributes of God, 27,
53, 77, 134, 136, 147, 246, 388; lights emitted by, 297; manifestation of, 310;
manifested in each atom of creation, 139; relation to the essence, 483. C
lasses of: beauty and splendor, 132 n. 1, 204, 204 n. 11, 301-302, 309,
315, 371; of definition, 315; of description, 316; of divinity, 142-143, 146,
245, 292; dominical, 221, 228, 292, 293; of the essence, 318, 389; of favor and
wrath, 67, 219 n. 75, 301-302, 303, 403-404; of glory, 318-319; of majesty,
318; of perfection, 136 n. 13, 483; pertaining to the divine acts, 318. Single
attributes: all-knowing (‘alim), 309, 389; all-hearing (sami‘),
309, 389; all-seeing (basir), 309-389; bestower of bounty (mon'em),
389; compassionate (rahman), 201-203, 245, 389; concealer of sins (sattdr),
389; desiring or willing (morid), 255; eternal besought (samad),
217, 217 n. 70, 227; knower of the unseen and the manifest (ralem
al-geyb va ‘l-sehada), 363, 363 n. 15; life-bestowing (mohye), 221,
221 n. 13; living (hayy), 220 nn. 8-9; “mender of fractures” (fabbdr),
259; merciful (rahim), 202, 245, 389; most merciful of the merciful (arham
al-rahemm), 245; munificent (vahhab), 389; oft turning in
forgiveness (tavvdb), 346, 346 n. 42, 389; overpowering (jabb&r),
259 n. 19; provider (rdzeq), 389; self-subsisting (qayyum), 220,
220 n. 9
Avicenna,
16, 257 n. 12
Ayaz,
48 n. 28, 421, 421 n. 18
Azazil,
120, 120 n. 19. See also Eblis
Azerbaijan,
8
Badaksan,
5
Badawi,
al-, Ahmad, 2
Badr,
battle of, 316 n. 22
Bagdadak,
9
Bagdad!,
Joneyd, 14, 35, 299, 315
Bagdad!,
Majd al-Din, 3, 9, 10, 14, 95, 130 n. 24, 154 n. 8, 216, 226 n. 24, 227 n. 28,
241, 241 n. 25, 371 n. 43, 385, 481
Baghdad,
2, 11, 11 n. 35, 14, 141, 435
Bahr
al-haqa’eq, 15
Bahrabad,
4, 5
Bakani,
Seyf al-Din, 3, 4, 237 n. 15
Balaam,
352, 352 n. 11
BaranI,
20
Barzesabadl,
Abdollah, 6
Bastami,
Bayaad, 55 n. 12, 74 n. 18, 173 n. 87, 239 n. 22, 315, 317
Bassar
b. Bord, 34 n. 5
Bayaad
II, Ottoman sultan, 15
believers,
61, 63, 288-289, 336, 340-341, 349; compared to a date palm, 277; seeing with
God’s light, 86, 287; transfigured with light in Paradise, 392
beneficence
(ehsan), 126, 126 n. 13, 214, 275, 294, 298
Berke
Kan, 4
Black
Stone, 188
Bokhara,
4, 7, 89 n. 43
Boraq,
197-198, 197 n. 21, 325
Borusawl,
Esma‘11 Elaqqi, 16
Bosti,
Abu’l-IJasan, 302 n. 33
Brahmins,
Brahmanic mysticism, 20, 237, 289
breast
(sadr), 208, 208 n. 25
Bunani,
Shaikh All, 312, 312 n. 5
Cairo,
2, 8
candle,
symbolism of, 74 n. 19, 199, 200, 227
Canon (of Avicenna), 257-258, 257 n. 12
Central
Asia, 2, 5, 6, 20
certain
knowledge, certainty: the essence of (‘eyn al-yaqin),
214 n.
54; Iqan, 214, 214 n. 51; yaqin, 139-140, 142
cherubim,
100, 103, 111, 112, 120, 156
Children
of Israel, 236, 398, 445, 448
China,
7, 20
Christians,
136, 159-160, 161, 166
Command,
world of (‘alam-e amr), 55, 70 n. 1, 72-73, 72 n. 7, 85, 220
Companions
of the Left, 342-344, 359
Companions
of the Prophet, 257, 257 n. 10, 277, 358 n. 31,
401-402,
446, 466
Companions
of the Right, 342-344, 359
contraction
(qabz), 238, 238 n. 19, 251-252, 283
coquetry
(naz), 77 n. 32
Corbin,
Henri, 134 n. 9, 302 n. 33
crafts
and trades, 482-490
creation, of the heavens and the earth, 72-73, 78, 80, 86-87, 149,
326
Creation,
world of ('&lam-e kalq), 72-73, 72 n. 7, 85, 220 cupbearer (saqi),
symbolism of, 176 n. 98
CelebI,
‘Aref, 15
Cesti,
Mo‘In al-Din, 2
Cesti
order, 20
Dajjal
(Antichrist), 307, 307 nn. 13, 14
Damascus,
2, 8, 429
Daqqaq,
Shaikh Abu All, 319, 319 n. 37
Darius,
419
Dasti,
All, 54 n. 10
Da'ud,
Ala al-Din, 12
David,
26, 172, 246, 395, 397-398, 400, 408, 454, 488-489
Day of
Judgment, 114, 142 n. 32, 342, 479-480. See also resurrection
Daya,
Najmal-Din, 2, 3, 5, 8-16; abandons his family, 41; arrives in Malatya, 45;
As'ari affiliations, 136 n. 13, 315 n. 17, 483 n. 4; meaning of the sobriquet daya,
8 n. 21; meets ‘Omar al-Sohravardi, 45; travels in Iraq and Khorasan, 39;
visits Damascus, 429; visits Mecca, 279
Delhi,
5, 20
demons,
27, 61, 63, 71, 77, 82, 85, 95, 190, 237, 291
Demyati,
14 devils, 61, 82 dispensation (roksat), 195, 195 n. 15, 261 “distance
of two bowstrings,” 55 n. 12, 84, 84 n. 33, 91, 197, 234,249,324,325
Diyarbekir,
10, 44
d’Ollone,
20
dominical
(rabbani), dominicality (robtlbiyat), 56 n. 18, 227 n. 30;
manifestation of dominicality, 314
Dominion,
realm or world of (‘alam-e malaktlt), 51, 61, 70-71, 70 n. 1, 72, 73,
76-77, 78, 85, 90, 91, 92, 94, 103, 111, 112, 122, 124, 138, 139, 143, 149,
154, 167, 169, 201, 202, 221, 226, 228 n. 35, 248, 269, 286, 292, 304, 308,
359, 370, 390 dreams, 3, 357; confused dreams, 287; different from visions, 286-287;
significance of, 290-291; sound dreams, 286-288; veracious dreams, 288-289
Eblis,
103-106, 112, 114, 117, 170, 302 n. 33, 322, 353, 410, 385, 387; his throne
upon the waters, 307; primordially cursed, 327-328, 328 n. 21; refusing to
prostrate himself before Adam, 113
Ebn
Arabi, 2, 5, 10, 70 n. 1
Ebn
Bibi, 11, 46 n. 23
Ebn
$a’ed, 307, 307 n. 13
Ebrahim,
$adr al-Din, 4
effacement
(fana), 228 n. 35, 293, 301, 309, 313, 319
Egypt,
2, 3, 8, 44, 429
efir
am (consecration), 187, 187 n. 28
Elijah
(Elyas), 317, 317 n. 25
endowments
(owqdf), 428-430, 451, 458
‘Eraqi,
Fakr al-Din, 10, 143 n. 35
Erbil,
10, 42
Erzincan,
12, 13, 14
Esfahani,
Jamal al-Din Abd al-Razzaq, 112 n. 6, 157, 157 n. 26
Esrafil,
98, 98 n. 13
essence
of God, 26, 61, 67, 71, 77, 134, 136, 139, 147, 246, 310, 388; manifestation
of, 310-311
estedraj (paranormal phenomena occurring a t the hands of an unbeliever),
289 n. 13, 307 n. 14
'Esq
o 'Aql, 16
Eve,
77, 117-118, 149
expansion
(enbesat or bast), 68 n. 28, 251-252, 283
extreme
oppressiveness (zalumi), extreme ignorance (jahuli), 64, 64 n.
13, 65, 65 n. 16, 69, 227, 237
‘Ezra’ll,
98, 98 n. 14
faith (iman),
the first stage of religion, 214, 214 n. 50, 295 familiarity (oris), 65
n. 19, 129, 130, 368; symbolized by the goblet, 228 n. 36
fanaticism
(ta'assob), 43 n. 17, 261, 454, 454 n. 33
Faqirollah,
Mian, 7
Fargana,
44
farming,
471-475
fasting,
52, 185-186, 193, 195 n. 15, 263, 275, 281
Fazel,
Qazi, 429-430
felicitous,
the (so'add), 316-311
Ferdowsi,
26 n. 7, 95 n. 4, 109 n. 37
Ferdowsi
order, 5
fo'dd (an aspect of the heart), 209, 209 n. 33
Followers
(the second generation of Muslims), 257, 257 n. 10
Followers
of the Followers, 257, 257 n. 11
food,
eaten i n seclusion, 284
Footstool
(korsl), 84, 84 n. 26, 85, 145 n. 45, 292
foremost,
the, 341, 342-344, 359, 372
forgetfulness
of God, 125, 128-130, 269-270, 329
forty,
significance of, 52, 279-280
fotowwa, 11
four
elements, 71, 77, 94, 96, 107, 199, 364-365, 392
Frequented
House, 84, 84 n. 31
Gabriel,
84 n. 32, 97, 112, 142, 142 n. 33, 199, 249, 260,
368 n.
25, 370-371, 380, 433, 446, 462
Ganjavi,
Nezami, 13, 25 n. 3, 228 n. 37
Garjestan,
44
Gazali,
Abu Hamed, 13 n. 41, 19, 145 n. 45, 190 n. 4, 206,
_ 206
n. 22, 210 n. 38, 222 n. 15, 379 n. 19, 381 n. 22
Gazali,
Ahmad, 77 n. 32, 99 n. 16, 292-293, 302, 302 n. 33, 407
Gazan
Kan, 4
Gaznavi,
Sayyed Hasan, 231 n. 48
Gazni,
44
Gejdovani,
Abd al-Kaleq, 2
Gilan,
328, 328 n. 22
gnosis
(‘erfan, ma‘refat), 25 n. 3, 127, 141, 206, 275, 320
goblet,
symbolism of, 228 n. 36
Gog
and Magog, 83, 83 n. 20
Golden
Horde, 4
Golestan, 42 n. 15
Gorgani,
Abu'l-Qasem, 26 n. 7
Gur,
44
Hafez,
27 n. 10
Hallaj,
see Hoseyn b. Mansur
Hamadan,
10; destroyed by Mongols, 42
Hamadani,
Ali, 5
Hamadani,
‘Eyn al-Qozat, 77 n. 32, 229 n. 44, 302 n. 33, 405 n. 37
Hamadani,
Kaja Abu Yusof, 292-293, 293 n. 19
Hamuya,
Sa‘d al-Din, 3, 4
Haresa,
306
Harput,
49 n. 31
the
heart, 18, 27, 102, 105-106, 134, 134 n. 9, 138-139, 143-145, 166-167, 294,
296-298, 305-306, 422-423; compared to a mirror, 27, 239, 281 n. 25, 294, 296,
297, 299; containing two worlds, 202; corresponding to the heavens in man’s
being, 207, 296; defined, 201, 204; distributing the grace of the spirit
throughout man’s being, 202-203; having the Black Stone as its symbol, 188;
held between two fingers of God, 219; is the essence of the corporeal and
spiritual worlds, 167; is God’s treasury, 208; is a link between the corporeal
and spiritual worlds, 308; is the locus of belief, 167, 208; is the locus or
organ of vision, 208, 294, 298 (see also fo'ad); is the male’ offspring
of the marriage of spirit and frame, 192; is the microcosmic counterpart of the
Throne, 84, 201, 203, 204 n. 9; is the recipient of God’s manifestation, 312;
is the seat of the intellect, 194; is the secluded shrine of God, 273; its five
senses, 205-206; its prostration, 110; its purification, 201-219; its seven
aspects, 207-210; its soundness and corruption, 205-206, 210-211, 216-218;
locus for the manifestation of all divine attributes, 204; sometimes seen as
the moon, 296; why called qalb, 203, 203 n. 8
Hejaz,
8, 10
Hell,
hellfire, 81-82, 110, 114, 206, 238, 301, 306, 338, 342, 344, 345, 374, 376,
377-378, 385-386; its fire is black, 301; passion and anger constitute its
substance, 194, 344 n. 33, 345, 479; seven gates open onto it from seven
passions, 385 heretics (malaheda), 43 n. 18, 136, 137, 384 Hinduism, 20
Hiii,
Bu ‘Osman, 316, 316 n. 23
Hojjat
ol-Hend, 20
Hojvlri,
All b. ‘Osman, 154 n. 4, 188 n. 36 homa (mythical bird), 395, 395 n. 4
Hoseyn b. Mansur Hallaj, 141, 141 n. 29, 173 n. 86, 213, 213 n. 47, 232, 239 n.
22, 317; his sufferings and death interpreted, 330-331, 330 n. 35
hospice
(kanaqah), 485-487 houris, 83, 118
hypocrites, 61, 336, 339, 377, 379, 383-384, 404; characteristics,
383
immediacy (bivasetagi), 336, 336 n. 12
immediate proximity ('endiyat), 243 n. 3, 357, 393
India,
2, 5, 7, 20, 44, 128, 436
innovation (bed'at), 250, 250 n. 31, 261, 414
inspiration (elham), 356, 356 n. 21
intellect,
intelligence (raql), 18, 78, 83, 87, 88, 138-139, 143-144,
212, 239, 305-306, 308; doorkeeper of the heart, 218; minister and deputy of
the spirit, 482; opposed to love, 88-90; placed by God on the right of the
heart, 343; present throughout the heart, 206; relation to the spirit, 11
intimations (varedat), 225, 225 n. 20
ipseity (hoviyat), 249, 249 n. 24, 374
Iraq, 8, 39, 41, 44, 174; the two Iraqs, 44
Islam, 39, 135, 141-142, 163, 208, 275, 295, 387; five pillars
of,
52, 180, 263; inner and outer aspects, 178; the perfection and culmination of
all religion, 165, 168; the sole valid religion, 165; supersedes all other
religions, 159-160, 162, 172-178; threatened with extinction, 40, 382-383
Isma'ilis, 43 n. 18. See also heretics
Jabalqa and Jabalsa, 82-83, 83 n. 19
Jacob,
172, 218, 232, 492
Jam, 241
Jami,
Abd al-Rabman, 9, 11 n. 35, 25 n. 3, 222 n. 15, 302 n. 33
Jamsld,
38 n. 3
Jandl,
Baba Kamal, 3
Jerusalem,
429 n. 39
Jesus, 160, 168, 172, 173, 185, 246, 307 n. 14, 317, 324, 408;
foretelling
the mission of the Prophet Mohammad, 249 n. 27;
the
Word of God and a spirit from Him, 338 n. 17
Jethro,
235 n. 5
Jews,
135, 159-160, 162, 166, 307 n. 13
jinn,
27, 61, 63, 71, 77, 82, 85, 134, 161, 337
Job,
172
John,
172
Joneyd,
see Bagdadl, Joneyd
JorjanI,
Sarlf, 60 n. 3
Joseph,
48, 68 n. 29, 172, 218, 228, 232, 240, 286 n. 2, 288, 492
judges,
431, 448, 458-459
justice,
398, 411, 413, 418, 420; required for the stability of the kingdom, 434; twin
of kingship, 414
Ka'ba,
57, 107, 186-188, 188 n. 35, 236-237, 322, 336, 360, 435, 491; designated as
the Frequented House, 84 n. 31; the terrestrial counterpart of the Throne, 84
n. 26
Kabul,
44
kaldm (dialectic theology), 381 n. 22, 450
Kansu,
7, 20
Kaqani,
92, 101 n. 22
Karaqani,
Abu’l-Hasan, 16, 74, 74 n. 18, 255, 324
Kark,
14
Kar
lei, Ma'ruf, 14
Kasani,
Baba Afzal al-Din, 28 n. 15, 100 n. 20, 153 n. 3,
205 n.
13, 273 n. 7, 303 n. 36
Karazm,
2, 3, 7-10, 19, 44, 241
Karazmsah,
Jalal al-Din, 14
Kashmir,
5
kavater,
see stray thoughts
Kawwas,
Ebrahim, 213, 213 n. 47
Kayseri,
10, 11, 12, 49
Kayyam,
‘Omar, 19, 54, 54 n. 10, 387 n. 51
Kerman,
44, 47, 47 n. 24
Kennani,
Owhad al-Din, 11, 11 n. 35
Keyka’us,
49 n. 31
Keykosrow,
‘Ezz al-Din, 49 n. 31, 494, 494 n. 1
Kezr,
25 n. 4, 236, 235 n. 1, 243-244, 246, 266, 316, 317, 317 n. 25, 437
Khorasan,
4, 39, 44, 174, 241, 265 n. 29, 317 n. 33, 487
the
kingdom: compared to the human body, 422-424; compared to a tent, 433-434
kings:
duties and functions, 411-432; frequented by evil scholars, 449-450; fulfill in
the world the function of the heart in the body, 422-423; resemble shepherds,
415; ten duties established of by God, 397-399; two classes of, 396-397
kingship:
395-410; joined to prophethood, 399; most perfect form of divine viceregency,
395; a pollution, 228
Kingship,
realm or world of (‘dlam-e molk), 51, 70 n. 1, 71, 72, 73, 76-77, 78,
85, 86, 90, 91, 94, 103, 111, 112, 122, 124, 129, 138, 139, 143, 149, 154, 221,
226, 228 n. 35, 269, 286, 304, 359
Kobra,
Najm al-Din, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15 n. 4, 116 n. 16,
134 n.
9, 203 n. 8, 281 n. 9, 286 n. 1
Kobravl
order, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 19, 134 n. 9 kon (“be!”; the divine fiat), 97,
220, 220 n. 4 Kohne-Urgenj, 4
Konya,
2, 10, 11, 49 n. 31
knowledge
(relm), 250, 262-263; given directly by God (relm-e
ladonnl), 246, 276; nobility of, 445-446; varieties of, 136-138, 140, 246,
446-447
Kottalan,
5
Kottalani,
al-, Eshaq, 5, 6
Kuf,
Shaikh Mohammad, 8, 130, 130 n. 24
Kuzestan,
44
la
elaha ella'llah (there is no god but God): 92-93,
215-216, 218, 268-270, 272-273, 274-277, 280, 294, 320, 337, 378, 402; compared
to iron, 328-329; compared to a sword, 270; compared to a tree, 93, 93 n. 62,
276
Lala,
Rail al-Din All, 3-5
Lama'at, 10, 143 n. 35
latd’ef (subtle centers, inner senses), 3, 18, 83, 134 n. 9, 138-139, 212,
305
Law (sar‘,
Sari'at), 28, 132, 136, 137, 139, 151-152, 162, 179-189, 193, 194, 210,
212, 223, 225, 256, 257, 260, 263, 265, 266, 305, 343, 350, 359, 360, 361, 362,
376, 386, 400-401, 405, 412, 434, 436, 454, 459, 465, 472; binding the soul in
its fetters, 222; compared to alchemy, 196-197; compared to an elixir, 196;
compared to medicine, 257-258; innermost essence of God’s mercy, 362; key for
unlocking the talisman of man’s being, 180; means for maintaining equilibrium
among human attributes, 195; outer and inner aspect, 180; reminder to man of
his original homeland, 183; resembling swaddling bands for the infant of the
spirit, 223, 225; touchstone for all spiritual progress, 213
the
Law, the Path, and the Truth (sari'at, tariqat, and haqiqat, the
three components of religion), 28, 28 n. 16
light:
black light, 301-302; colorless light, 318; God’s light, 143-146, 302 n. 32;
God’s light scattered over creation, 326, 328; light of divinity, 279; light of
Eblis, 302 n. 33; light of the intellect, 194, 208; light of Islam, 208; light
of morldship, 255; light of unity, 92; light of worship, 312; light of zekr,
215-216,
272, 312, 367; lights of the attributes of unity, 290; lights of the divine
attributes, 239; lights of the Divine Presence, 225; lights of the spirit, 295,
296, 297, 312; lights of the unseen world, 294; lights of various color, 300;
lights seen in dreams, 291-292; spiritual lights, 226; supernal lights, 294;
various sources of light, 294-297
Light
Verse, the (Qur’an, 24:35), interpreted, 143-147, 145 n. 45, 296, 301
Lote
Tree of the Extremity, 84 n. 32, 142 n. 33, 154, 325, 407, 465
love,
66-69, 74-75, 88-89, 98, 102, 126, 208-209, 226-227, 230-234, 327, 328,
330-331, 344; a form of alchemy, 347; joined always to suffering, 68; linked to
uncreatedness as the foremost attribute of the spirit, 67; opposed to
intelligence, 88-90; perfection of religion, 171-173; placed by God in front of
the heart, 343-344; present in every particle of creation, 90; the rain that
turned Adam’s dust to clay, 100; superior to asceticism, 213
lovers
(mohebban), 358, 358 n. 29
macrocosm,
103-104, 201, 484, 485
Magians,
162. See also Mazdeans
Mahmud,
Sultan of Gazna, 48 n. 28, 421
MakkI,
Abu Taleb, 455, 455 n. 37
Makzan
al-asrar, 13
malakut (inward aspect of created beings), 70-73, 87, 89, 90, 92, 94, 170
n. 1, 179, 192, 248, 329, 366. See also Dominion, realm or world of
Malamatis,
99 n. 18
Malatya,
10, 11, 45, 49 n. 31
man:
attains full development later than animals, 129; a combination of the two
worlds, 65, 305, 339; created for the worship and knowledge of God, 132 n. 1,
134; ennobled by God, 72-73; his corporeal nature “the lowest of the low,” 94;
his formation in the womb, 110, 193, 279-280; his four enemies, 190; his name (ensan)
derived from intimate familiarity (ons), 124; his three states, 51;
honored with direct creation by God, 65 n. 18; the microcosm, 104-105, 483-484;
the mirror of the essence and attributes of God, 316; passes through five
states, 387-391; uniquely capable of
knowing
God and bearing the Trust, 27, 64-65, 95; the viceregent of God, 76, 221, 322
Manaqeb
al-‘arefin, 15
Manen,
Ahmad Yahya, 5
manifestation
(tajalli), 310-323, 327; defined, 310, 310 n. 4; different from
witnessing and unveiling, 321-322; of the divine attributes, 315-321; of
divinity, 314-315; of dominicality, 311, 314; of the spirit, 310-311
Maqbull,
Sehab al-Din, 15
Marmuzat-e
Asadl dar mazmtlrat-e Da’itdi, 12-13 mas a'
Allah, 382, 382 n. 13 materialists, 54, 238, 384 Mazdaqani, Mahmud, 5
Mazdeans,
136
Mecca,
8, 98, 101, 102, 169, 187 n. 28, 279, 409
medicine,
256-258
Medina,
307 n. 13
Mena,
187, 187 n. 33
Mengii^eks,
13
merchants,
their proper mode of conduct, 476-481
Mer^ad
al-rebad: Arabic version of, 14;
dedicated to Ala al-Din Keyqobad, 50; diffusion and influence of, 19-20, 20 n.
61; editions of, 21; historical information contained in, 19; literary and
stylistic characteristics, 19, 21; meaning of title, 16-17; reasons for composition,
38; Turkish translation of, 20; two recensions of, 12, 12 n. 38, 21
Mesn,
al-, Ruzbehan al-Wazzan, 2, 3
Mesn
Zul-nun, 204 n. 11
metempsychosists,
384
Mevlevi
order, 15
Michael,
98, 98 n. 12, 112, 370-371, 380, 433; falsely identified as the derived intelligence,
380
ministers,
423-424, 433-443; corresponding to the intellect in the body politic, 423;
duties, 434-443
Mo’azzen,
Shaikh All, 130
Mohammad
b. Vase', 139 n. 23, 226 n. 23, 299 n. 25
Mohammadan
Light, 61, 78, 177
Mohammadan
Spirit, 60 n. 3, 67, 70. 71, 78, 87-88, 91, 390; as the Adam of spirits, 63; as
the origin of creation, 60; its light derived from the light of the divine
essence, 61
al-Mohlt
al-a‘zam, 16
Mojir
al-Din, Qazi, 14
Moltani,
Baha al-Din Zakariya, 2
Mongols,
1-4, 10, 14, 19, 40 n. 7. See also Tartars and Turks Monkar, 81
Morad
II, Ottoman Sultan, 20
the morld,
236, 238, 274-277, 280-285; conduct during samd‘, 355-356; defined, 215
n. 58, 247, 255; must abandon all family ties, 259-260, 261; must be enamored
of his shaikh’s sainthood, 247-248; must not object to the deeds of the shaikh,
260-265, 283; must possess twenty attributes, 260-267; need for a shaikh,
236-242, 255-259; resembles an egg to be hatched by the shaikh, 247-249
Moses,
52, 75, 75 n. 22, 160, 168, 172, 235, 235 n. 1, 244-245, 266, 279, 298, 310,
317, 323, 324-325, 330, 367, 406, 408, 433, 439, 455; God’s speaking to him
directly, 317; as the morid of Kezr, 243-244; needing a preceptor
despite his prophetic rank, 235-236; receiving the manifestation of dominicality,
314
Moslem
b. al-Walid, 125 n. 4
Motanabbi,
al-, 492 n. 26
Mo’tazelism,
10, 261
moth,
symbolism of, 74 n. 19, 200, 227
Mount
Hera, 279
Mount
of Mercy, 187, 187 n. 31
Mount
Qaf, 141, 141 n. 30, 368
Mount
Sinai, 75, 204
Mozdalefa,
187 n. 33
muftis,
448, 450-453
Muliyan,
89
music,
see sama'
mystery
(serr; one of the inner senses of perception): 18, 134, 134 n. 9,
138-139, 143-144, 212, 216, 305, 306, 360, 360 n. 7, 362; as the microcosmic
counterpart of the Footstool, 84 n. 26
Nafahat
al-ons, 9
Najm al-Dowla,
21
Nakir,
81
Naqsbandi
order, 2, 5, 7, 20, 293 n. 19, 358 n. 31
Naksabi,
Abu Torab, 317, 317 n. 33
Nasafi,
Aziz al-Din, 4
Naser,
al-, le din Allah, 11
Nasnas (a mythical being), 82, 82 n. 18
Nas r
b. Ahmad, 89 n. 43
Nasrabadi, Abu’l-Qasem, 222 n. 15
Ne'matollahi, Sams al-‘Orafa, 20
Nemrod, 198, 198 n. 25, 427
Nishapur, 8, 9, 130, 316 n. 23
Noah, 172, 175, 408
Nurbaks, Mohammad, 6
Nurbaksi order, 6
Nuri, Abu’l-Hasan, 163 n. 47
‘Obeyd
b. Vaqed, 455
Ohod,
battle of, 175 n. 94
‘Omar (the Caliph), 277, 298, 400, 433
oneness (vahdat), 214, 214 n. 56
oppression (zolm): 409, 412; its root meaning, 341; to be
uprooted
in all cases, 443
‘Osman
b. Abu Soleyman, 455
‘Osmani,
al-, Taj al-Din, 7
Paradise,
81, 83, 102, 110, 116, 117, 118, 127, 155, 169, 185, 206, 306, 327, 338-339,
342, 344, 357, 374, 378, 386, 479, 489; three classes of men shall enter it,
339
passion
(sahvat), 225, 376; the heaviest of veils, 117; placed by God to the
left of the heart, 343
Path (tariqat),
28, 105, 137, 180, 191, 223, 225, 237-242, 274, 277, 293, 305, 350, 446; inner
aspect of the Law, 180, 210; its science compared to medicine, 256-258; key to
unlock the talisman of man’s inner being, 181; means for purifying the heart,
204
Pen of God, 70 n. 1, 78, 84, 84 n. 28, 85
People of the Book, 161
pericardium, 208-209, 209 n. 32
perplexity (heyrat), 321, 321 n. 44
pharaoh,
403, 421, 427, 463
philosophers, philosophy, 10, 19, 54, 136, 137, 139, 161, 197,
211-212, 237, 289, 305-306, 361-362, 379 n. 19, 381 n. 22, 384, 450. Philosophers:
denying the choice and will of the
Creator,
482; disregarding the guidance of the prophets, 211-212; distorting the
teachings of religion, 379-380; leading others astray, 381-382; unaware of all
but the intelligence, 306 pilgrimage (hajj), 52, 186-188, 193 poverty (faqr),
174, 230, 408, 495 prayer, 52, 183-184, 193, 263, 414, 451-453; congregational
prayer,
285, 474; Friday prayer, 285; the light of prayer, 295; the postures and
motions of prayer, 183-185; tahajjod prayer, 452, 452 n. 30; vetr
prayer, 452, 452 n. 31
preachers,
453-455
Prophet
Mohammad, the, upon whom be peace, 1, 5, 26, 26 n. 8, 28 n. 14, 38, 39, 40, 51,
52, 60, 61, 67, 70, 77, 78, 87, 91-92, 94, 110, 124, 125, 132, 134 n. 9, 144,
149, 150, 153-178, 184, 190, 201, 204, 205, 206, 219, 222, 235, 236, 237, 243,
246, 255, 256, 268, 271, 274, 275, 277, 279, 280, 282, 286, 294, 295, 300 n.
28, 301, 302, 304, 306, 307, 308, 310, 316, 320-321, 322-323, 324, 325-326,
334, 349, 353, 357-358, 358 n. 31, 359, 362, 376, 383, 395, 398, 401-402, 403,
405, 411, 412, 413-414, 420, 422, 423, 427, 432, 433, 434, 443, 447, 448, 450,
453, 458, 459, 460, 462, 465, 466, 471, 475, 476, 478, 479, 480, 482, 486, 488;
Adam subordinate to him, 153; casting no shadow, 156, 177; choosing poverty
over kingship, 408; constantly seeking the forgiveness of God, 260, 320;
declaring himself the prophet of the sword, 400; first receiving revelation
indirectly, 244; given the keys to the treasuries of the earth, 408; his
ascension (me'rdj), 55 n. 12, 85 n. 33, 142 n. 33, 194, 244, 249, 325,
368 n. 25; is “the first and the last,” 63; is the heart of humanity, 167; is
“the last and the foremost,” 157; is the perfect manifestation of love,
171-177; is the “physician of religion,” 257; is the seal of the prophets,
153-157, 159, 177; is the sole intercessor, 155, 159, 378; preeternally a
prophet, 159 n. 32; the Qur’an as his supreme miracle, 160-161; receiving the
manifestation of divinity, 314-315; the seed and the fruit of creation, 92,
159; six aspects of his excellence over other prophets, 153, 158-159, 408; taking
pride in poverty alone, 174; universality of his mission, 153, 158-159,
164-165, 168 n. 65; veracity of his prophecies, 161; why first called Ahmad,
then Mohammad, 249; why not given worldly kingship, 406-408. See also
Mohammadan Light and Mohammadan Spirit
prophethood,
26, 158, 224, 286; the midwife of the spirit, 225 prophets, 61, 63, 149-152,
157, 159, 167, 168, 180, 211-212, 224, 231, 239, 287, 289, 336, 338, 346, 357,
359, 361, 380; each as the manifestation of a certain quality, 172, 408;
knowledge
their legacy, 446
purifying
tax or due (zakat), 52, 186, 453, 461-462, 472, 472 n. 6, 477, 495
purity,
ritual, 261, 280
qalandar, 100, 100 n. 19, 263, 374
Qanun,
see Canon
Qarahesarl,
Qasem b. Mahmud, 20
Qasri,
al-, Esma’il, 3
Qazvin,
312 n. 9
Qazvini,
Kaja Abu Bakr Saniyan, 312, 312 n. 9
Qobad,
494, 494 n. 1
Qonyavi,
$adr al-Din, 10, 11, 11 n. 35
Qoseyri,
al-, 134 n. 9, 319 nn. 37, 38
Qptb
al-ersad, 7
Qur’an,
1, 18, 36, 46, 49, 150, 160-162, 206, 246, 256, 295, 353, 420, 451, 454;
containing all that is found in other scriptures, 162, 165; containing remedies
for the sicknesses of the heart, 211, 257, 269; inner and outer meaning of, 72;
miraculous nature of, 161-162; Sufi exegesis of (ta’vil), 15-16, 17-18;
the Tablet as its heavenly archetype, 84 n. 29
Rabe'a
b. Qozdarl, 102 n. 24
Raks,
308, 308 n. 18
rapture,
state of (jazbe), rapturous states (jazabat), 222, 222 n. 15,
234, 241, 247, 324, 331, 336-337", 359, 360, 362, 365; why a rapturous
state is equal to the deeds of jinn and men, 337
Ray,
8, 10; sacked by the Mongols, 40, 42
Razi,
the dialect of Ray, 121 n. 32
Razi,
Fakr al-Din, 10, 19
RazI,
Yusof b. Floseyn, 270, 270 n. 18
rebellious
spirits (marada), 61, 61 n. 6, 82, 290
red
sulphur, 491, 491 n. 22
rek'at (a unit of prayer), 256 n. 27
reproach
(malamai), 99 n. 18, 263-264
Resalat
al-toyur, 16
Resale-ye
mabda’ va ma'ad, 17 resurrection, 81, 91, 113, 155,
157, 158, 174, 321, 348, 369, 412, 414, 417, 460, 476, 479
Rezvan,
81
Riyahi,
Amin, 21
Rostam,
308, 308 n. 18
Rudaki,
89 n. 43
Ruh
al-bayan, 16
Ruh
al-ma‘ani, 16
Rum,
43, 44. See also Anatolia
Rumi,
Mowlana Jalal al-Din, 2, 10, 11, 11 n. 35, 19, 128 n. 22
Sacred
Waymark, 187, 187 n. 32
Sa'di,
42 n. 15
Safavids,
6
$aheb
b. Abbad, 76 n. 25, 392 n. 69
Sahnama, 26, 95 n. 4, 109 n. 37
Sahrok,6
St.
John, Gospel of, 247 n. 20
sainthood
(velayat), 224, 224 n. 18, 235, 237-238, 239, 241, 247-248, 254, 258,
272, 274, 276, 277, 283, 293, 295, 367.
saints
(owliya), 61, 63, 231, 239, 289, 336, 337, 346, 349, 473;
hidden
from men’s view, 235, 248, 368-369, 491
Saktan,
7
$alah,
al-Din, 429-430, 429 n. 39
Saljuqs,
8, 10, 11, 14, 43-44, 49, 50
Salman,
358, 358 n. 31
sama' (ritualized music and dance), 265, 265 n. 29, 354 n. 16, 354-356
Samarqandi,
Badr al-Din, 5
Samud,
53
Sana’!,
17, 19, 106 n. 27, 122 n. 38, 140 n. 27, 147 n. 52,
156 n.
19, 217 n. 69, 236 n. 13, 238 n. 18, 258 n. 16, 259 n. 17, 260 n. 20, 267 n.
34, 311 n. 5, 332 n. 45, 337 n. 15, 363 n. 16, 399 n. 15, 435 n. 9, 453 n. 32,
492 n. 27
Sann
and Tabaqa, 381, 381 n. 21
Satan,
36, 52, 81, 117, 158, 186, 215, 240, 253, 256, 258, 262, 280, 282, 310-311,
361, 380, 469; claiming superiority to man, 63; infusing confused dreams in
men, 287. See also Eblis
Sazeli,
Abu’l-Hasan, 2
scholars
of religion (rolamd), 149, 178, 445-458; as the heirs of the
prophets, 445, 448; as three groups, 447-448; sleep as worship, 452
Sebll,
321 n. 44
seclusion
(kalvat), 276, 277, 279-285, 487; conditions and customs of, 279-285;
necessity of, 214-215
Semnani,
Rokn al-Din Ala al-Dowla, 4, 15, 18, 134 n. 9
$erat,
the bridge of, 155, 464, 491
Serhendl,
Shaikh Ahmad, 17
servant
(kadem; the steward of a hospice), 485-486, 485 n. 12 seven spheres (afldk),
71, 77, 84, 85, 87, 90, 207, 363 n. 16;
corresponding
to the seven members of the body and the seven aspects of the heart, 207-208
seven
stages of the Path, 366
seventy
thousand veils of God, 124, 304
Seyf
al-Dowla the Hamdanid, 492 n. 26
shaikhs
(preceptors, guides), 152, 178, 198, 274-275, 277-278, 281-285, 486-488; five
stations required in them, 244-246;
heirs
of the Prophet, 224; interceding with God on behalf of their morids,
242; intermediaries with the divine world, 282; perfect ones as the choice part
of creation, 456-458, 490-492; physicians of the heart, 211, 238-239; reason for
need of them, 293; their image to be fixed in the heart of the morid, 247,
272, 281-282; their relation to their morids, 240, 247-249; twenty
attributes required in them, 249-254; why needed by the morid, 235-242,
310, 367
Shi'ism,
6, 261, 358 n. 31
Shiraz,
6
signs
of God, 484-485
Simorg
(a mythical bird), 141, 141 n. 30, 368
sincerity
(sedq), 66 n. 21
Sirazi,
Molla $adra, 17
Sirvani,
Zayn al-‘Abedin, 82 n. 18, 491 n. 22
Sistan,
44
Sivas,
10, 12, 494
So'eyb,
235, 235 n. 5
Sohravardi,
al-, Abu Najib, 11, 486 n. 12
Sohravardi,
al-, Shaikh Sehab al-Din Abu Piafs ‘Omar, 11, 12, 45-46, 134 n. 9
SohravardI
order, 2, 11
Soleyman,
Anf al-Din, 10
Solomon,
35, 47, 47 n. 5, 147, 147 n. 52, 172, 316, 397 n. 9, 399-400, 405-407, 407 nn.
47, 48, 408, 494
Soneyziya,
14
soul (nafs),
27, 28, 86, 134, 134 n. 9, 138, 190-200, 208, 240, 282; also known as the
animal spirit, 191; attributes to be kept in equilibrium, 194-196; compared to
a dog, 212; defined, 191, 334; the female offspring of the marriage of spirit
and frame, 192-194; four degrees of, 339; infusing confused dreams in men, 287;
the most hostile of man’s enemies, 190; an obstacle on the Path, 237; passion
and anger, its two essential attributes, 194-199; refinement of, the prime task
of man, 190; transformation of its attributes, 199, 211-213. The stages of
the soul: commanding soul (nafs-e ammare), 328-329, 339, 340, 359,
359 n. 4, 360-362, 377-384, 490; inspired soul (nafs-e molhame), 339,
341, 349-358, 370; oppressive soul (nafs-e zalem), 334; reproachful soul
(nafs-e lauuame), 300, 334, 339, 340, 341-348, 370; tranquil soul (nafs-e
motma’enne), 197, 197 n. 20, 331-332, 339, 341, 359, 368-375
souls,
higher and lower, 71; of animals, 191; world of, 71 spirit (ruh), 18,
53, 83, 134 n. 4, 138-139, 143-145, 199, 212, 221-234, 268-269, 280, 297, 300,
305, 308, 334-335, 363-364; attributes of, 65-66; derived from God’s spirit,
72, 109, 221; eight essential attributes of, 482-483; God’s deputy in the
microcosm, 483, 485; “the highest of the high,” 95; its essence, the viceregent
of God, 313; joined to the bodily frame, 110-112, 114-116, 124-129, 223-225;
the Law and the Path, source of its nourishment, 223-225; manifestation of,
310-311; means for its adornment, 221-234; merging with love, 226-227; never
mingling with the world, 327; pertaining to the world of Command, 220; shining
like the sun in the heavens of the heart, 207; why attached to the frame,
132-134, 142, 146-147, 268, 363-364, 389-390
spirit
of God, 65
the Spirit,
pinnacle of the angelic hierarchy, 82, 82 n. 15 spirits, 87, 89, 94, 95, 144,
150-151, 295; the creation of, compared to the refining of sugar, 60-63; higher
and lower, 71, 85
spirits
of men drawn up in ranks, 150, 220, 335-336, 340, 356-357, 388
spiritual
efficacy (tasarrof), 235, 235 n. 3, 238 stray thoughts (kavdter),
215, 280, 281, 281 n. 9
Sufi
orders, 2; multiple affiliation to, 7
Sufism:
Central Asian, 293 n. 19; Indian, 7; false claimants to the practice of,
310-311; origins of, 1, 17
sun and
moon: their significance in visions, 296
Sunna
of the Prophet, 263, 271, 275, 278, 354, 376, 420, 446, 451, 452, 454
Sunnis,
Sunnism, People of the Sunna, 6, 43, 250, 261,
358 n.
31, 451
Sustarl,
Nurollah, 6 n. 14
Syria,
4, 8, 44
the
Tablet (lawh), 84, 84 n. 27, 85
Tabriz,
2, 14
Tabriz!,
Baba Faraj, 2
Ta’ef,
98, 101, 102, 169
takblr, 184, 184 nn. 13, 14; of consecration, 184 n. 12
Taleb,
Majd al-Din, 405 n. 37
tambourines,
beating of as a method of humiliation, 118
n. 22
Tamim!,
‘Amer b. Abd al-Qays, 56 n. 20
Tartars,
39, 40 n. 7, 161, 383
tavern,
symbolism of, 228 n. 35
Tehran,
21
TermezI,
al-, al-Hakim, 208 n. 25, 29
Throne
Cars), 84, 84 n. 25, 85, 145 n. 45, 201-204, 201 n. 3, 204 n. 9, 292,
452; boundary between the world of bodies and the realm of Dominion, 201; locus
for the manifestation of the attribute “compassionate,” 201
Timurids,
6
Tlemcen,
10
Togloq
sultans, 5
“tongue
of the birds, the,” 147, 147 n. 52, 494
Torah,
236, 246, 446
Torkan
Katun, 9
trade,
the two kinds of, 476-477
Transoxania,
44
tresses,
symbolism of, 74 n. 19
Trust,
the (of knowledge of God), 27, 64-65, 72, 95, 103, 147, 166, 223, 436
Tuba,
496, 496 n. 5
Turkestan,
44, 82 n. 18
Turkey,
6, 20, 100 n. 19
Turks,
40, 40 n. 7, 74, 74 n. 17, 88, 88 n. 41, 161
Tusi,
Asadi, 426 n. 33
Tusi,
Nasr al-Din, 17
Twelve
Imams, Sufi attitudes toward, 6
unbelievers,
61, 63, 136-137, 190, 336, 339, 340, 377, 379,
404;
war continually waged against them, 415, 439
unicity
(vahdaniyat), 214, 214 n. 55, 309
unity
if the divine essence (ahadiyat), 139, 177, 214, 214 n. 57;
compared
to the flame of a candle, 177
Universal
Intelligence, 70-71, 85
unseen,
world of the, 70 n. 1, 86, 128, 134, 139, 141, 206, 225, 240, 258, 280, 282,
292, 294, 329
unveiling
(kasf, mokasefat), 281, 304-309, 304 n. 3; different from manifestation
and witnessing, 321-322; meditative unveiling (kasf-e nazari), 305, 305
n. 6
Valad,
Baha al-Din, 10
vegetable
soul or spirit, 85, 72, 484
visions
(vaqaye‘, sing, vaqe'a), 3, 240, 286 n. 1, 289-293, 357, 366-367;
benefits of, 290-293; different from dreams, 286-287
Water
of Life, 25, 37, 69, 141 n. 30
wayfarer
(salek), 365
wealth,
correct use of, 460-470, 488-489
wine,
symbolism of, 228 n. 34, 282
witnessing
(sohild, mosahedat), 140 ri. 24, 228, 268, 281, 294-303, 294 n. 1, 309,
389; different from manifestation and unveiling, 321-322; incompatible with
existing (vojud), 268, 299
women,
77, 127 n. 17, 307
wondrous
deeds (karamat), 229-230, 229 n. 39, 307
the
wretched (asqiya), 376-378
Yafe'i, al-, Abdollah, 14
Yasavi order, 2, 293 n. 19
Zabol, 44
Zahabi order, 5
Zaher, al-, be amr Allah, 14
zekr: 214-215, 214 n. 59, 402, 443, 451-453, 474, 490; compared to
alchemy, 218; compared to an arrow, 273; compared to polish, 294; compared to a
sword, 270; compared to a tree, 276; dispelling the darkness of the heart,
215-216; emptying the heart of all but God, 216-218; how transmitted from
shaikh to morid, 274-276; la elaha elld'lldh, the best form of zekr,
268-270, 274; light of, 295; method and customs of, 271-273; must be constantly
maintained, 284-285, 44; must be inculcated by a shaikh, 242, 274-278; why
needed, 268-270; zekr of the heart, 215, 276, 284; zekr of the
tongue, 215, 276, 284
zodiac, divisions of, 71, 84, 84 n. 29, 85
Zoleyka, 232
Zu’l-qarneyn, 25 n. 3, 83 n. 20
This index is intended to serve as a guide to the many instances
where a verse has been not only quoted, but also interpreted, whether
explicitly or implicitly. Verses that have been only quoted are not listed
here.
2:28, 375; 2:30, 99, 106; 2:60,
457; 2:115, 57; 2:189, 139, 311;
2:284, 281
3:18, 270; 3:106, 391; 3:191, 280-281
4:55, 344
5:57, 68, 147; 5:70, 278 n. 10
6:59, 162, 257; 6:90, 150-151; 6.T22, 25
7:43, 392; 7:54, 72; 7:171, 35; 7:184, 71
9:102, 347; 9:106, 345; 9:112, 468
11:112, 434
13:41, 336
14:24, 276; 14:48, 391
15:29, 221
17:44, 90; 17:70, 65, 73-74, 77,
210; 17:80, 372; 17:81, 143,
239, 268, 313
18:24, 269
20:5, 201 n. 3, 202
24:35, 367
27:88, 375, 460
28:30, 329; 28:56, 362; 28:88,
202
33:10,
153; 33:72, 27, 65, 373
35:10, 269
36:82, 71
37:164, 368; 37:180, 91
40:71, 113; 40:15, 308
41:53, 27, 86
47:19, 214
48:4, 181
50:16, 92
51:21, 25; 51:56, 132 n. 1, 487
53:1, 194; 53:9, 54 n. 12
55:56, 48
56:7-9, 56
57:12, 392
58:22, 233-234, 308
62:4, 402
76:1, 125; 76:18, 282; 76:21, 282
89:28, 335; 89:30, 360, 375
94:8, 486
95:5, 95, 487
101:9, 344
[16]See A. A. Semenov, Sobranie Vostochnykh
Rukopisei Akademii Nauk Uz- bekskoi SSR, Tashkent, 1955, III, 327-328.
•’See introduction by Kalil Kalili to the Neyndma
of Ya'qub Carkl and 'Abd al-Rahman Jami, Kabul, 1336 S./1957, p. 2.
[20]Kamal al-Din al-IJaiiii, Tebydn wasd’el
al-haqd‘eq wa saldsel al-tard’eq, ms. Ibrahim Efendi (Istanbul), III, ff.
79a-84b.
[21]Quoted in Esma'Il Haqql, Rah al-bayan,
Istanbul, 1389/1970, I, 404.
[22]See p. 134 n. 9.
[23]For a discussion of the stylistic qualities of
the Mersad, see Mohammad Taqi Bahar, Sabksenasi, Tehran, 1337
S./1958, III, 22-27.
[24] Among the works containing quotations from the Mersad,
we may mention the following: Hafez Iloseyn Karbala'I TabrTzI, Rowzat
al-jenan va jannat al-janan, ed. Ja far Sol[an Qorra'I, Tehran, 1349
S./1970; Aziz al-Din Nasafi, Kasf al haqa'eq, Tehran, 1965; Kasefi Va‘ez
Sabzevari, Fotovvatnama-ye soltani, ed. Mohammad Ja*far Mahjub, Tehran,
1353 S./1974; Mo'azzen Korasani, Tohfat al- abbasvya, Shiraz, 1342
S./1963; Abd al-§amad Hamadan!, Bahr al-ma'aref, Tabriz, 1293/1876; and
Mohammad Ja'far Kabudarahangi, Mer'at al-haqq, Tehran, 1315 S./1937.
[25]Tarlk-e Flruzsahl,
quoted by Annemarie Schimmel, Mystical Dimensions of
[28]See Schimmel, Mystical Dimensions of Islam,
p. 257.
“Meier, "Stambuler Handschriften,” pp. 34-35.
“Alessandro Bausani, "Un caso estremo di diffusione della
scrittura araba: il 'sino-arabo,'” Oriente Moderno, XLVIII (1968), 875.
[14]Qur’an, 6:89.
’A verse from the Sahnam.a of Ferdowsi (Tehran edition, 1313
S./1934, IV, 1003), which according to a dream of the celebrated Sufi
Abu’l-Qasem Gor- gani (d. 450/1058) earned the poet forgiveness for his sins
(Daulatsah Samar- qandi, Tadhkiratu'sh-shu'ara, ed. E. G. Browne,
Leiden, 1901,.p. 102). It is frequently quoted in Sufi literature; see, for
example, the Lama'at of Razl’s contemporary, Fakr al-Din ‘Eraqi (in Kolliyat-e
'Eraqi, ed. Sa‘Id Nafisi, Tehran, 1338 S./1959, p. 386).
[16]A hadis qodsl, that is, a saying
attributed to the Prophet in which the Almighty speaks in the first person. It
is a constant point of reference of the Sufis, but its status as hadls
is dubious. See Badl' al-Zaman Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavi (2nd ed.,
Tehran, 1347 S./1968), p. 29.
[17]The first part of a Tradition which states that
“the purifying due incumbent
on the body is fasting” (Ebn Maja).
[18]A different version of this Tradition, which has
the Prophet pointing to Iraq, is to be found in Ebn flanbal.
[19]Qur’an, 14:7.
[20]Qur’an, 17:16.
[21]This Tradition is to be found in Bokarl and Ebn
Maja. Its applicability to the Mongols derives partly from the fact that the
bulk of the Mongol soldiery was Turkish (see Bertold Spuler, Die Mongolen in
Iran, Berlin, 1955, p. 237) and partly from the failure ever to make a
clear differentiation between Turk and Mongol, the term Tatar serving as
a general designation for both non-Islami- cized Turks and for Mongols.
Fazlollah Ruzbehan KonjI, writing in the tenth/ sixteenth century, says that
the 'olama of Transoxania were unanimously agreed on the applicability
of this tradition to Holagu and his armies (Transoxanien und Turkestan zu
Beginn des 16, Jahrhunderts, a translation of his Mehman- nama-ye Bokara
by Ursula Ott, Freiburg i. Br., 1974, p. 105).
“Concerning the circumstances of the capture and
sacking of Ray, see J. A. Boyle in The Cambridge History of Iran
(Cambridge, 1968), V, p. 310.
’Part of a Tradition that opens with the
statement: "Each of you is a shepherd” (Bokati, Moslem, Abu Da'ud,
TermezI, Ebn Hanbal).
[25]By “fanaticism” (ta'a^ob) Daya doubtless
intends rivalry and enmity between the adherents of the different Sunni mazhabs;
his native city of Ray had witnessed prolonged disturbances between Hanafls and
Safe'Is in the last quarter of the sixth/twelfth century (Yaqut al-I;Iamawi, Mo'jam
al-boldan, Cairo, 1323/1906, II, 893).
[26]The heretics (malaheda): the Isma'Ili sect
known as the “Assassins,” who had established strongholds at various points in
northern and eastern Iran from which they mounted raids on cities of the Saljuq
domain.
[27]“The two Iraqs”: a now obsolete geographical
expression designating Persian Iraq—north-central and western Iran—and Arab
Iraq—lower Mesopotamia. See G. Le Strange, The Lands of the Eastern
Caliphate, Cambridge, 1930, pp. 25, 185.
“The word sahel, here translated as the
North African coast, also means the Red Sea littoral or the East African coast,
although such translations would be less plausible in this context.
[29] Concerning the circumstances of al-Sohravardi's
presence in Malatya, see the introduction to this translation.
[30]Qur’an, 2:216.
[31]A quatrain by Astr Akslkatl (d. 570/1174); see Divan,
ed. Rokn al-DIn Homayunfarrok,Tehran, 1337 S./1958, p. 480.
’Samud and ’Ad: two peoples destroyed by God for
their impiety and rejection of His messengers (Qur’an, 26:123-159).
[35]LalI, here translated as “gypsy,” is a word of
imprecise reference, which in addition to being synonymous with Lurf (Lur
tribesman), may also mean gypsy, vagabond, and, in poetry, a shameless and
coquettish beloved. See Mohammad Hoseyn b. Kalaf TabrizI, Borhdn-e Qate',
ed. Mohammad Mo’in (Tehran, 1333 S./1954), III, 1916.
[36]The Turk is a common image in Persian poetry for
the desirable yet wayward object of love.
,8Abul-Hasan
Karaqani (d. 425/1034): an unlettered Sufi of great distinction, regarded as a morid
of Bayazid Bastarni by way of posthumous initiation. A number of his sayings
have been preserved in Attar’s Tazkerat al-owliya, II, pp. 169-213; and
another collection of his utterances under the title Nur al- 'olum has
been published with an introduction and translation in Russian by Ye. E.
Bertel’s in Izbrannye Trudy: Sufizm i Sufiyskaya Literature (Moscow,
1965), pp. 225-278. Daya’s interest in Karaqani is attested by his brief Arabic
commentary on this mystic’s celebrated utterance: "the Sufi is uncreate.”
See introduction, p. 16.
[38]The symbolism of the candle and the moth in these
verses is clear. As for the twisting tress, it refers to the manifestation of
the divine attributes, and the tip of the tress signifies the lowest degree of
manifestation, the material or phenomenal plane. The tress is “twisting” or
“chainlike” in that the phenomenal plane of manifestation is subject to
constant variation and change, and in that it is a means for “capturing” man
and directing his attention to the attributes (Sajjadl, Farhang-e
mostalakdt-e ‘orafa va motafavvefa, pp. 206-209; anonymous, Mer’dt-e
'offaq, text published by Bertel’s in Izbrannye Trudy: Sufizm i
Sufiyskaya Liieralura, p. 153).
[40]Part of the hadis qodsi quoted on p. 147.
[41]Qur’an, 7:155. Words spoken by Moses when
interceding with God on behalf of the Israelites after their worship of the
golden calf.
“Qur'an, 7:143. The reply given to the plea of
Moses: “O my Lord, show Thyself to me that I may look upon Thee.”
[43]A Tradition; see Foruzanfar, Ahadis-e Masnavl,
p. 112.
[44]A Tradition recorded by Moslem, Bokarl, Abu
Da’ud, TermezI, Nasa’I, Ebn Maja, Ebn Hanbal, and Dareml.
’’Qur’an, 14:24-25. The "good word”
mentioned in these verses is generally understood to be "there is no god
but God.”
[46]A quatrain quoted from the Savaneh of
Ahmad Gazall, p. 13.
’’“Those who court reproach”: i.e., the
Malamatis, the People of Blame, representatives of a current of Islamic piety
inspired by the Qur’anic mention of those who “struggle in God’s path and fear
not the blame of any blamer." The Mala- mati “courts reproach” by
concealing all sign of spiritual work and devotion. Originally a current of
piety akin to but distinct from Sufism, in the course of time the Malamatis
became one more Sufi order, and still later degenerated— in many cases—into
antinomianism. See Abu’l-Ala’ Aflfi, Al-Malamatiya wa’-sufiya wa ahi
al-fotowwa (Cairo, 1346/1945), and Abdiilbaki Golpinarli, Melamilik ve
Melamiler (Ankara, 1931). Daya, of course, uses the term Mala- mati in a
deliberately extended and anachronistic sense designed to show the universality
of the Malamati attitude.
[49] A line from the Hadiqat al-haqiqa of
Sana'I, ed. Modarres Razavl (Tehran, n.d.), p. 339.
[52]Qur’an, 15:29.
[53]Two lines from a poem of Jamal al-DIn 'Abd
al-Razzaq E$fahanl (d. 588/ 1192) (Divan, ed. Vahid DastgerdI [Tehran,
1320 S./1941], p. 2).
[55]An Arabic proverb—not, however, recorded in
al-Maydani’s Majma' al-amsal.
[57]See n. 9 above.
[94]A reference to the battle of Ohod, the second
major engagement between the Muslims and the Meccan polytheists, in the course
of which the Prophet was struck by a stone cast by 'Otba b. Abi Waqqas. See Ebn
Hesam, al-Sirat al- nabawiya (Cairo, 1375/1955), II, pp. 79-80.
[98]Qur’an, 2:7.
[100]First part of the Tradition quoted in full on p.
52.
[101]Qur’an, 42:52.
[102]Takblr of consecration:
the pronunciation ot Allaho akbar (“God is greatest”) while raising the
hands to the level of the ears, which marks the beginning of the prayer.
'To "recite a takbir” over something
has the literal sense of performing a funerary prayer over it and the
figurative sense of dissociating oneself from it and consigning it to oblivion.
“The Tradition is reported with a different
wording by Deylami ("The first takbir, performed by a man together
with the emam, is better for him than the gift of a thousand sacrificial
animals.”) By the first takbir is meant the takbir of
consecration.
'Tradition; see Hojviil, Kasf al-mahjub,
p. 357; and Abu’l-Qasem al- Qosayrl, Ketab al-me'raj, ed. 'All Hasan
‘Abd al-Qader (Cairo, 1384/1964), p. 44. See also p. 55, n. 12.
[107]Qur’an, 7:171. See p. 35, n. 7.
[74]Qur’an, 86:7.
[76]Compare the Tradition quoted on p. 110.
[77]Qur’an, 23:14.
[78]Qur’an, 50:37.
[80]Qur’an, 36:83.
[83]Life-bestowing (mohyi): cf. Qur’an, 30:50:
"He it is Who bestows life on the dead, and He is powerful over all
things.”
[84]Intimations (varedat): "truths from
the unseen that come to the heart without any deliberate intent on the part of
the recipient” (JorjanI, Ketab al-ta'rifdt, p. 269).
[85]In this comparison (developed more fully on pp.
247-249 below), Daya may well have had in mind the fatal utterance of his
preceptor, Majd al-Din Bagdadl. See introduction, p. 9.
[86]A line from Sana'I (Divan, p. 51).
'“The common meaning of Jabbar as a divine
attribute is "overpowering”: "He Who irresistibly exercises His will
with respect to all things" (Gazall, al- Maqsad al-asna, p. 78).
[89]Sama: the
ritualized music and dance practiced by certain Sufis, particularly those of
Khorasan and their heirs. Fora full account of sama', see Marijan Mole,
“La Danse Extatique en Islam,” in Sources Orientales 6: Les Danses Sacrees (Paris,
1963), pp. 147-280.
[90]Iiadrs qodsi
previously quoted on p. 219.
“This metaphor is not in fact explained later in the text. Daya
presumably is comparing zekr received from a shaikh by way of
transmission to the arrow taken from a king’s quiver, and zekr practiced
without such transmission to an arrow bought from the arrowmaker. The metaphor
is apt because archery is endowed with nobility by a Tradition: "There are
three whom God leads to Paradise by means of the same arrow: he who makes it,
he who fires it, and he who retrieves it.” Zekr is also described in
Qur’an, 4:9, as “words that hit the mark.”
[94]Qur’an, 7:181. From the verb nastadrejohom
("We shall lead them on”) contained in this verse, the term estedraj
has been derived, designating "paranormal phenomena occurring at the hands
of an unbeliever who advances some claim, in such a manner as to conform with
his claim” (Sajjadl, Farhang-e mostala- liat-e 'orafa va motasavvefa, p.
34.
[96]Qur’an, 91:10.
[97]Qur’an, 48:4.
[99]Qur’an, 2:60.
[100]Kaja Abu Yusof Hamadan! (d. 535/1140): a major
figure in the history of Central Asian Sufism, he stood at the beginning of a
line of "Masters" (Kajagan) from which emerged the YasavT and
Naqsbandl orders. The anecdote related here is typical of the sober and
disdainful attitude to wonders and visions that he transmitted to his spiritual
progeny. See Hamid Algar, 'Abu Ya'qub Yusof b. Ayyub Hamadant,” Encyclopaedia
Iranica, Vol. 1 (forthcoming).
Shaikh Ahmad Gazali (d. 520/1126): brother of the
more celebrated Abu framed Gazali, he was the author of one of the earliest
treatises on mystical love in Persian, Savaneh al-'ossaq, and the shaikh
of a number of influential.morids (see Jami, Nafahat al-ons, p.
374).
[101]Qur’an, 24:35.
[102]Qur’an, 58:22.
[103]Qur’an, 40:15.
'“Rostam, the epic hero of pre-Islamic Iran,
always rode Raks, a steed of equally heroic nature. See Ferdowsl, Sdhndma,
I, pp. 284ff. The sentence "only Raks can serve as mount to Rostam,"
appears to be a proverb, meaning in this context that only the arcane, the
“special spirit of God,” can convey the virile hero, struggling on God's path,
to the world of divine attributes.
[107]Qur’an, 18:66.
[108]Qur’an, 8:17; a verse revealed on the occasion of
the battle of Badr, when the Muslims with divine Succor defeated the Meccan
polytheists.
2SBu ‘Osman
liiri (d. 298/911): a Sufi who spent most of his life in Nishapur. For an
account of him, including the dictum related here, see Attar, Tazkeral
al-owliya, II, p. 45.
[111]Elijah (Elyas): A Prophet mentioned twice in the
Qur'an (6:85 and 37:123- 132). According to certain traditions, he assumed a
semi-human and semiangelic state at the end of his career, became immortal,
and continues to manifest himself sporadically to men (see Sa'alebi, Qe$a$
al-anbiya, pp. 221ff). He thus has a certain affinity to Kezr.
[112]Qur’an, 4:163.
[113]Qur’an, 13:41.
[115]Qur’an, 5:il3.
”Abu Torab Naksabi (d. 245/859): an important
early Sufi of Khorasan (Attar, Tazkerat al-owliya, I, 262). The story of
his morid's fatal encounter with Bayazid is related in detail by 'Altar
in Tazkerat al-owliya, I, 136.
[120]"Lovers" (mohebban): in addition
to the general sense of the word, Daya probably also intends the technical
meaning it had for certain Sufi orders: those who had an affiliation and
loyalty to the order, without renouncing their normal mode of life to
participate fully in the devotional activity of the Sufi hospice. See
Abdiilbaki Golpinarli, Mevlevi Addb ve Erkdni (Istanbul, 1963), p. 28.
’Tradition recorded in Ebn Hesam, al-Sirat
al-nabawiya, I, p. 222. Salman, the Persian companion of the Prophet, is a
figure of intense interest to various currents of Islam, both Sunni and
Shi'ite. Sufis regard him as being one of the “proto-Sufis," the
transmitters of esoteric knowledge from the Prophet, and he appears in the
spiritual genealogy of the Naqsbandl order. For a comprehensive account of his
posthumous career, see Louis Massignon, “Salman Pak et les premices spirituelles
de 1’Islam iranien,” in Parole Donnee; ed. Vincent Monteil (Paris,
1962), pp. 91-128.
[123]Hadis qodsi
previously quoted on p. 133.
[126]Qur’an, 38:26.
^Homa bird: a
legendary bird mentioned in pre-Islamic Iranian mythology, believed to confer
sovereignty on whomever its shadow fell upon.
[129]Qur'an, 7:44.
[130]Part of a supplicatory prayer recorded by Bokan.
“Principles of religion (o$ul-e din): see p. 381, n. 22. “Qur’an, 6:153.
[131]Qur’an, 15:16.
[132]Qur'an, 2:164.
[134]Red sulphur (kebrit-e ahmar): another name
for the elixir, the elusive substance that makes possible the transmutation of
base metals into gold. There may be an allusion here to the alleged Tradition,
“the believer is rarer and more precious than red sulphur.” For an explanation
of this Tradition, see Zeyn al-'Abedin Slrvanl, Kasf al-ma'aref (Tehran,
1350 S./1971), p. 11.
2,Anqd: a mythical bird sharing many of the features of the Slmorg (see p.
141, n. 30); it lives in the extreme Occident. For a mass of details concerning
the 'anqd, see Qazvlnl, Ajd'eb al-makluqdt, p. 439. In Sufi
usage, the 'anqd often symbolizes primary matter, in that it exists only
as an ideal and not as a tangible entity (see JorjanI, Ketdb al-ta'rifdt,
p. 164; Sajjadl, Farhang-e moftalahdt-e ‘orafd va mota^avvefa, p. 287).
[138]Tuba: the Tree of Bliss in Paradise, described as
follows in a Tradition recorded by Ebn Hanbal: "It is a tree of a hundred
years’ walk; those beneath it are clothed in the garb of its calixes."
[139]Qur’an, 54:55.
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