CHAPTER I.
Onknowledge of the soul, and how knowledge of
the
soul is the key to the knowledge of God.
O seeker after the divine
mysteries! know thou that the door to the knowledge of God will be opened to a
man first of all, when he knows his own soul, and understands the truth about
his own spirit, according as it has been revealed, “he who knows himself knows
his Lord also.” And God proclaims in his holy book: “We will display our
miracles in the different countries of the world, till it shall be demonstrated
to them that the Koran is the truth,”1
that is, let us show men in the visible world, and in their own souls, the
wonderfulness of our works and the perfection of our power, that they may learn
to know that the Lord God is Almighty and true, and that everything else
besides is vanity.
O seeker of the
mysteries! since there is nothing nearer to thee than thyself, and that still
with thy soul alone, thou canst not discriminate anything, and art impotent to
find out and know thyself, in what way canst thou become acquainted with
anything else, and with that which is even separate from thyself? And how
should'st thou be able to comprehend God, who in his nature cannot be
comprehended, and of whose absolute essence it is not possible to give thee any
explanation. If thou should'st say, “I perfectly know myself,” we reply, that
we have no doubt that what you are acquainted with is your own hand and foot,
with your eye and mouth, and animals even have this kind of knowledge. You know
also that if you are hungry, your stomach craves food, and that if you are
cold, you desire clothing; but other animals also understand these things.
However, that knowledge
of the soul which leads to the knowledge of God, is not of this kind. The
knowledge which you need to possess is, to know what you are; how you are
created; whence you are; for what you are here; whither you are going; in what
your happiness consists, and what you must do to secure it; in what your misery
consists, and what you must do to avoid it. And further, your internal
qualities are distributed into animal, ferocious, demoniacal and angelic
qualities. You need to know, therefore, what qualities predominate in your
character, and in the predominance of which your true happiness consists. If
your qualities are chiefly animal, the essence of which is to eat and drink,
you will day and night seek after these things. If your qualities are of the
ferocious kind, the essence of which is to tear and rend, to injure and
destroy, you will act accordingly. If you are endowed chiefly with the
qualities of devils, which consist in evil machinations, deceit and delusion,
then you should know and be aware of it, that you may turn towards the path of
perfection. And if you possess angelic qualities, whose nature it is to worship
God in sincerity and continually to await the vision of His beauty, then like
them you should unceasingly, resting neither day or night, be zealous and
strive that you may become worthy of the vision of the Lord. For know, O
student of the mysteries! that man was created to stand at the door of service
in frailty and weakness, and wait for the opening of the door of spiritual
union, and for the vision of beauty, as God declares in his holy word: “I have
not created the genii and men except that they should worship me.”1
These qualities, whether
animal, or ferocious or demoniacal have been bestowed upon man, that by their
means the body might be adapted to be a vehicle for the spirit, and that the
spirit, by means of the body which is its vehicle, while herein this temporary
home of earth, might seek after the knowledge and love of God, as the huntsman
would seek to make the phœnix and the griffin his prey. Then, when it leaves
this strange land for the region of spiritual friendship, it shall be worthy to
partake of the mystery contained in the invitation, “enter in peace, O
believers!”2
and which is in the homage, “Peace is the word they shall hear from the
merciful Lord.”3
People in general suppose that this refers to Paradise.
Woe to him who has no portion in this knowledge! There is great danger in his
path. The way of faith is veiled from his eyes.
If you wish, O seeker of
the way! to know your own soul, know that the blessed and glorious God created
you of two things: the one is a visible body, and the other is a something
internal, that is called spirit and heart, which can only be perceived by the
mind. But when we speak of heart, we do not mean the piece of flesh which is in
the left side of the breast of a man, for that is found in a dead body and in
animals: it may be seen with the eyes, and belongs to the visible world. That
heart, which is emphatically called spirit, does not belong to this world, and
although it has come to this world, it has only come to leave it. It is the
sovereign of the body, which is its vehicle, and all the external and internal
organs of the body are its subjects. Its especial attribute is to know God and
to enjoy the vision of the beauty of the Lord God. The invitation to salvation
is addressed to the spirit. The commandment is also addressed to it, for it is
capable of happiness or misery. The knowledge of what it is in reality, is the
key to the knowledge of God. Beloved, strive to obtain this knowledge, for
there is no more precious jewel. In its origin it comes from God, and again
returns to him. It has come hither but for a time for intercourse and action.
Be sure, O seeker after
knowledge! that it is impossible to obtain a knowledge of the heart, until you
know its essence and its true nature, its faculties, and its relations with its
faculties,—nor until you know its attributes, and how through them the
knowledge of God is obtained, and what happiness is, and how happiness is to be
secured. Know then, that the existence of the spirit is evident and is not
involved in doubt. Still, it is not body, which is found in corpses and in
animals generally. If a person with his eyes wide open should look upon the
world and upon his own body, and then shut his eyes, everything would be veiled
from his view, so that he could not see even his own body. But the existence of
his spirit would not be at the same time shut out from his view. Again, at death,
the body turns to earth, but the spirit undergoes no corruption. Still it is
not permitted to us to know what the spirit is in its real nature and in its
essence, as God says in his Holy Word : “They will ask you about the spirit.
Answer, the spirit is a creation by decree of the Lord.”1
The spirit belongs to the world of decrees.
All existence is of two
kinds, one is of the world of decrees, and the other is of the world of
creation. “To him belongs creation and decree.”2
The matters which belong to the world of decrees are those which have not
superficies, quantity, or form: to the world of creation belong those which do
have both quantity and form. The creation spoken of in the verse is in the
sense of foreordination and not of actual formation. Hence those who say that
the spirit is created, and is also from all eternity are in error, for nothing
is eternal except the being and attributes of God.
Those also, who say that
the spirit is but an accident, are in error, for the spirit exists by itself in
the body, and an accident is that which subsists with something else. And those
who say that the spirit is matter are in error, for matter is that which can be
divided, and spirit is not susceptible of division. There is spirit, beloved,
which is called animal spirit, which is susceptible of division. It is found in
animals. But that spirit, which has the property of knowing God, and which is
called the heart, is not found in beasts, nor is it matter or an accident. The
heart, on the contrary, has been created with angelic qualities. It is a
substance of which it is difficult to apprehend the essence. The law does not
permit it to be explained, but there is no occasion for the student being acquainted
with it at the outset of his journey. That which is necessary to the student is
pious ardor and zeal, and this must be called into exercise in perfection. It
is God who graciously teaches the student what spirit is, as we find in the
Holy Book: “We will direct in our way, all those who shall strive to propagate
our worship.”1
And if a man does not strive earnestly for the faith, there is no use of
explaining to him the essence of spirit. It is, however, lawful to explain to
him the instruments by which it operates.
Know, O seeker after the
divine mysteries! that the body is the kingdom of the heart, and that in the
body there are many forces in contrariety with the heart, as God speaks in his
Holy Word: “And what shall teach thee the forces of thy Lord ?” The heart was
destined to acquire a knowledge of God, in which its happiness consists. But we
cannot grow in the knowledge of God, unless we understand the works of God.
The works of God are
apprehended by the senses, which are five, hearing, sight, taste, smell and
touch. For such an arrangement of the senses, there was also need of a body.
The body itself is composed of four diverse elements, water, earth, air and
fire. Being, therefore, liable to decay, it is in continual danger of perishing
from the external and internal enemies that perpetually assail it. Its external
enemies, are such as wild beasts, drowning and conflagrations; its internal
enemies, such as hunger and thirst. For the purpose of resisting these, it was
in want of various internal and external forces, such as the hand and foot,
sight and hearing, food and drink. And in this connection, for eating and
drinking, it is in want of internal and external instruments like the hand, the
mouth, the stomach, the powers of appetite and digestion. In addition to these
instruments, there was need of means to guide in their occasional use, that is,
for the internal senses. These are five, the faculties of perception,
reflection, memory, recollection and imagination. Their home is in the brain,
and each has a specific function, as is well known to the learned. If to any
one of all these faculties and instruments an injury occurs, the actions of man
are defective. Now all these are the agents of the heart and subject to its
rule. If, for example, the heart gives permission to the ear, hearing results;
if it gives permission to the eye, there follows sight; if it gives permission
to the foot, there is movement. All the other members are obedient in the same
manner to the commands of the heart. The divine plan in all this arrangement
is, that while the members preserve the body for a few days from harm, the
heart, in its vehicle the body, should pursue its business of cultivating the
seeds of happiness for eternity and prepare for its journey to its native
country. So long as the various forces of the body are obedient to the dictates
of the heart, in like manner as the angels obey in the presence of God, no
contrariety of action can arise among them.
Know, O student of
wisdom! that the body, which is the kingdom of the heart, resembles a great
city. The hand, the foot, the mouth and the other members resemble the people
of the various trades. Desire is a standard bearer; anger is a superintendent
of the city, the heart is its sovereign, and reason is the vizier. The
sovereign needs the service of all the inhabitants. But desire, the standard
bearer, is a liar, vain and ambitious. He is always ready to do the contrary of
what reason, the vizier, commands. He strives to appropriate to himself
whatever he sees in the city, which is the body. Anger, the superintendent, is
rebellious and corrupt, quick and passionate. He is always ready to be enraged,
to spill blood, and to blast one's reputation. If the sovereign, the heart,
should invariably consult with reason, his vizier, and, when desire was
transgressing, should give to wrath to have power over him (yet, without giving
him full liberty, should make him angry in subjection to reason, the vizier, so
that passing all bounds he should not stretch out his hand upon the kingdom),
there would then be an equilibrium in the condition of the kingdom, and all the
members would perform the functions for which they were created, their service
would be accepted at the mercy seat, and they would obtain eternal felicity….
If you desire, inquirer
for the way, with thankfulness for these mercies, to obtain eternal happiness
in the future mansions, the heart must enthrone itself like a sovereign in its
capital, the body, must stand at the door of service and direct its prayers to
the gate of eternal truth, seeking for the beauty of the divinity. It must take
reason for its vizier, desire for its standard bearer, anger to be the
superintendent of the city, and taking the senses of reason as its spies, it
must make each one of them responsible in its sphere. The perceptive faculties
which are foremost in the brain, it must make to be chiefs of the spies, that
they may convey to the spies notices of what occurs in the world. The faculty
of memory, which is next in order in the brain, it must use as a receptacle in
which it may treasure up whatever is noticed by the spies, and, as occasion
requires, may inform reason, the vizier. The vizier, in accordance with the
information received, will administer the kingdom. When he sees any one of the
soldiers revolting and following his own passions, he will represent it to the
sovereign, that he may be controlled and conquered. He must not, however, be
destroyed, for each one of us has received, from his original country, a
definite commission, and in that case this service must remain unfulfilled.
But, alas! if the heart should swerve from its sovereignty, and not make use of
reason as its vizier, and should be reduced by the standard bearer, desire, and
the superintendent, anger, all the forces would then follow in the train of
desire and anger, the kingdom would fall into disorder, and everlasting ruin
would be the result….
If you inquire, O
student! how it is known that the heart of man has been created in accordance
with the qualities of angels, seeing that the most of the qualities and
attributes of angels are foreign to it, I reply, you know that there is not, in
truth, any creature on the face of the earth more noble than man, and that it
belongs to the dignity and perfection of every creature, to work out
perseveringly that service for which it was created. The ass, for instance, was
created to bear burdens. If he carries his load well, without stumbling or
falling, or if he does not throw off his load, his qualities are in perfection,
and his service is accepted. The horse was designed also for war and military
expeditions, and has strength to carry burdens. If he performs his duty well,
in time of war, in running, fleeing and going to meet the enemy, his service is
accepted, and he will be treated with attention in his accoutrements, grooming
and feeding. But if he performs his service imperfectly, a pack saddle will be
put on his back, as on the ass, from day to day he will be employed as a beast
of burden, and he will be carelessly and deficiently provided with food, and
poorly taken care of.
Besides, beloved! if man
had been created only to eat and drink, it would follow that animals are of
greater worth and excellence than man; for they can eat and drink more than man
can, and they have useful services devolved upon them of drawing burdens,
tilling the ground, and giving meat, butter and milk for food. If also man had
been created to fight, kill and domineer, it would follow that beasts of prey
are nobler than he, for they are mightier in their ferocity and their power of
subjugating other animals. There are, moreover, many animals of manifest
utility, as the dog to watch and hunt, and the skins of some of them for
clothing. It follows, therefore, that man was not created for these things, but
rather to serve God and to grow in the knowledge of him.
It is plain that mind,
discernment and reason were bestowed upon man, that when he looks upon the
world and sees in every object illustrations of various forms of perfection,
and much to excite his wonder, he might turn his attention from the work of the
artist, to the artist himself; from the thing formed to him that formed it;
that he might comprehend his own excessive frailty and weakness, and the
perfection of the wisdom and power, yea, of all the attributes of the eternal
Creator, and that, without ceasing, he might humbly supplicate acceptance in
his frailty and weakness on the one hand, and on the other might seek to draw
near to the King of kings, and finally obtain rest in the home of the faithful,
where the angels are in the presence of God. If men refuse to recognize their
own dignity, if they neglect their duty and prefer the qualities of devils and
beasts of prey, they will also possess, in the future world, the qualities of
beasts of prey, and will be judged with the devils. Our refuge is in God!
Know, thou seeker of
divine mysteries! that there is no end to the wonderful operations of the
heart. For, to pursue the same subject, the dignity of the heart is of two
kinds; one kind is by means of knowledge, and the other through the exertion of
divine power. Its dignity by means of knowledge is also of two kinds. The first
is external knowledge, which every one understands: the second kind is veiled
and cannot be understood by all, and is extremely precious. That which we have
designated as external, refers to that faculty of the heart by which the
sciences of geometry, medicine, astronomy, numbers, the science of law and all
the arts are understood; and although the heart is a thing which cannot be
divided, still the knowledge of all the world exists in it. All the world
indeed, in comparison with it, is as a grain compared with the sun, or as a
drop in the ocean. In a second, by the power of thought, the soul passes from
the abyss to the highest heaven, and from the east to the west. Though on the
earth, it knows the latitude of the stars and their distances. It knows the
course, the size and the peculiarities of the sun. It knows the nature and
cause of the clouds and the rain, the lightning and the thunder. It ensnares
the fish from the depths of the sea, and the bird from the end of heaven. By
knowledge it subdues the elephant, the camel and the tiger. All these kinds of
knowledge, it acquires with its internal and external senses.
The most wonderful thing
of all is, that there is a window in the heart from whence it surveys the world.
This is called the invisible world, the world of intelligence, or the spiritual
world. People in general look only at the visible world, which is called also
the present world, the sensible world and the material world; their knowledge
of it also is trivial and limited. And there is also a window in the heart from
whence it surveys the intelligible world. There are two arguments to prove that
there are such windows in the heart. One of the arguments is derived from
dreams. When an individual goes to sleep, these windows remain open and the
individual is able to perceive events which will befall him from the invisible
world or from the hidden table of decrees,1
and the result corresponds exactly with the vision. Or he sees a similitude,
and those who are skilled in the science of interpretation of dreams understand
the meaning. But the explanation of this science of interpretation would be too
long for this treatise. The heart resembles a pure mirror, you must know, in
this particular, that when a man falls asleep, when his senses are closed, and
when the heart, free and pure from blameable affections, is confronted with the
preserved tablet, then the tablet reflects upon the heart the real states and
hidden forms inscribed upon it. In that state the heart sees most wonderful
forms and combinations. But when the heart is not free from impurity, or when,
on waking, it busies itself with things of sense, the side towards the tablet
will be obscured, and it can view nothing. For, although in sleep the senses
are blunted, the imaginative faculty is not, but preserves the forms reflected
upon the mirror of the heart. But as the perception does not take place by
means of the external senses, but only in the imagination, the heart does not
see them with absolute clearness, but sees only a phantom. But in death, as the
senses are completely separated and the veil of the body is removed, the heart
can contemplate the invisible world and its hidden mysteries, without a veil,
just as lightning or the celestial rays impress the external eye.
The second proof of the
existence of these windows in the heart, is that no individual is destitute of
these spiritual susceptibilities and of the faculty of thought and reflection.
For instance every individual knows by inspiration, things which he has neither
seen nor heard, though he knows not from whence or by what means he understands
them. Still, notwithstanding the heart belongs to the invisible world, so long
as it is absorbed in the contemplation of the sensible world, it is shut out
and restrained from contemplating the invisible and spiritual world.
Think not, thou seeker
after the divine mysteries! that the window of the heart is never opened except
in sleep and after death. On the contrary, if a person calls into exercise, in
perfection, holy zeal and austerities, and purifies his heart from the
defilement of blameable affections, and then sits down in a retired spot,
abandons the use of his external senses, and occupies himself with calling out
“O God ! O God!” his heart will come into harmony with the invisible world, he
will no longer receive notions from the material world, and nothing will be
present in his heart but the exalted God. In this revelation of the invisible
world, the windows of the heart are opened, and what others may have seen in a
dream, he in this state sees in reality. The spirits of angels and prophets are
manifested to him and he holds intercourse with them. The hidden things of
earth and heaven are uncovered to him, and to whomsoever these things are
revealed, mighty wonders are shown, that are beyond description. As the prophet
of God says: “I turned towards the earth, and I saw the east and the west.” And
God says in his word: “And thus we caused Abraham to see the kingdom of heaven
and earth,”1
which is an example of this kind of revelation. Probably the knowledge of all
the prophets was obtained in this way, for it was not obtained by learning….
When the heart is free
from worldly lusts, from the animosities of society and from the distraction
occasioned by the senses, the vision of God is possible. And this course is
adopted by the Mystics.1
It is also the path followed by the prophets. But it is permitted also to
acquire the practice of it by learning, and this is the way adopted by the
theologians. This is also an exalted way, though in comparison with the former,
its results are insignificant and contracted. Many distinguished men have
attained these revelations by experience and the demonstration of reasoning.
Still let every one who fails of obtaining this knowledge either by means of
purity of desire or of demonstration of reasoning, take care and not deny its
existence to those who are possessed of it, so that they may not be repelled
from the low degree they have attained, and their conduct become a snare to
them in the way of truth. These things which we have mentioned constitute the
wonders of the heart and show its grandeur.
Think not that these
discoveries of truth are limited to the prophets alone. On the contrary every
man in his essential nature is endowed with attributes rendering him capable of
participating in the same discoveries. What God says, “Am I not your Lord?”2
refers to this quality. And the holy saying of the prophet of God: “Every man
is born with the nature of Islamism; but his ancestors practised Judaism,
Nazarenism or Magianism,” is an indication of the same thing.
The heart of man while in
the spiritual world knew its maker and creator; it had mingled with angels and
knew for what service it was created; and in the assembly where they said,
“Yes,” it was intoxicated as with wine at the interrogation, “Am I not your
Lord?” As at that moment, it was seen with the eye of certainty, no person had
any doubt on the subject, as God says in his holy word: “If you ask them, who
created the heavens and the earth, they will answer thee, the wise and holy
God.”1
All the prophets were apparently of the same nature as other men without any
difference, as we find in God's holy word: “Say, I am a man like you: it was
revealed to me.”2
Afterwards the heart descended from the world of divine union to this house of
separation, from that assembly of love to this station of sorrow, and from the
spiritual to the material, and entering within the curtain of the senses, it
became occupied with the care of the body and was overcome by the animal
affections and material pleasures. The heart of man, veiled with the garments
of heedlessness, forgot the assembly with which it had been familiar, and
imagining that this miserable place was to be its mansion of rest, it chose to
establish itself here in this world of perdition, as if this was its home.
Still the veil of heedlessness disappeared from the eyes of those to whom the
grace and guidance of the Eternal and unchangeable gave aid and support, and
the discovery of the invisible world was not concealed from the view of some of
those who came into this material world, but was anew revealed to them, after a
measure of exertion of spiritual ardor.
To whomsoever this
revelation has been vouchsafed, if it directs him to reform the world, to
invite the nations to turn to God, and to a peculiar way of life, that person
is called a prophet, and his way of life is called a law; and that influence
which proceeds from him, which transcends what is ordinary, is called a miracle.
If he has not been appointed to invite the nations, but worships in accordance
with the law of another, he is called a saint, and that which proceeds from
him, which transcends what is ordinary, is called a manifestation of grace.
The miracle performed by a saint is accounted a miracle of that prophet whose
law he follows. He who has received, by whatever meaus, a revelation of the
invisible world, is capable of being ordained to the office of a prophet. And
if he is not appointed by God, the reason will be either, that at the time the
existing law had been newly revealed, and that there was no occasion for a
prophet, or else that there may be a peculiarity in prophets which is not found
in the saints. It follows that it is our duty not to deny either the saintship
or the miracles of the saints, but to acknowledge them as real.
You should be aware,
however, that this alchemy of happiness, that is, the knowledge of God, which
is the occasion of the revelation of truth, cannot be acquired without
spiritual self-denial and effort. Unless a man has reached perfection and the
rank of Superior,
nothing will be revealed to him, except in cases of special divine grace and
merciful providence, and this occurs very rarely. Nor, except by divine
condescension, is revelation obtained even by all who by effort reach the rank
of Superior.
And whosoever would attain holiness can only reach it by the path of
difficulty.
You have now learned,
student of the divine mysteries, the dignity of the heart through knowledge,
and what kind of knowledge it possesses. Now listen and learn its dignity
through divine power and on account of the greatness of which it is capable,
that you may see how precious you are in yourself, and yet how vile and
contemptible you make yourself by your own choice. Know then, that the heart is
endowed with properties like those of angels and such as are not found in
animals; and just as the material world is subjected by divine permission to
the angels, and when God wills it, the angels send forth the winds, cause rain
to fall, bring forth the embryo in animals, shape their forms, cause seeds to
sprout in the earth and plants to grow, many legions of angels being appointed
to this service, so also the heart of man being created with angelic properties
must have influence and power over the material world. In man's own body, which
is peculiarly his own world, its control and influence are very evident. The
hand, for example, does not in writing move of itself, but depends for motion
on volition proceeding from the heart. And in eating, it is the heart which by
an exertion of its will, causes moisture to rise in the mouth from under the
tongue, to mix with the food that it may be swallowed and digested. These facts
clearly substantiate the dominion and control of the heart, and the
subordination of the body.
Know also, that if the
heart should not be tarnished with the rust of rebellion, and if the animal and
ferocious qualities should not be dominant, that it would be capable, on
account of the presence in it of angelic properties, of manifesting this same
influence over other bodies. If it should look upon a lion or tiger with
severity, they would become weak and submissive. If it should look with
kindness upon one who is sick, his infirmity might be changed to health. If it
should look upon the vigorous with majesty, they might become infirm. The
realty of the existence of these influences is known both by reason and
experience. Sorcery with the eyes, is of this kind of power. If for example, a
man of a malicious disposition look upon some little thing with envy, and if
while he is looking, the destruction of the object should come into his mind,
an influence upon it may be observed immediately, and directly or after a while
that object will be destroyed: the prophet of God has said: “the eye brings man
to the grave and the camel to the seething pot.”
In whomsoever these
influences are shown to have power, if he occasions misery in the exercise of
this power, he is designated a sorcerer. Although as has been seen, the power
of performing signs, miracles and sorceries belongs to the heart when its
faculties are in perfect operation, yet there are important destinations
between these powers. And whoever is of a narrow mind will not be able to
appreciate that signs and miracles are influences proceeding from the heart of
man, unless he should learn it by external teaching.
The heart has dominion
and control through three channels. One is through visions, by which
revelations are made to all men. But the kind of mysteries generally revealed
to people in visions, are revealed to prophets and saints in the outward world.
The second kind is through the dominion which the heart exercises over its own
body, a quality, which is possessed by all men in general, though prophets and
saints for the good of the community, possess the same power over other bodies
than their own. The third source of dominiou of the heart is through knowledge.
The mass of men obtain it by instruction and learning, but it is bestowed by
God upon prophets and saints directly, without the mediums of learning and
instruction. It is possible also for persons of pure minds to acquire a
knowledge of some arts and sciences without instruction, and it is also
possible that some persons should have all things opened up to them by the will
of God. This kind of knowledge is called “infused and illuminated,” as God says
in his word : “we have illuminated him with our knowledge.”1
These three specialities are all of them found in certain measure in some men,
in others two of them are found, and in others, only one is found: but whenever
the three are found in the same person, he belongs to the rank of prophets or
of the greatest of the saints. In our Lord the prophet Mohammed Mustafa, these
three specialities existed in perfection. The Lord in bestowing these three
properties upon certain individuals, designates them to exhort the nations and
to be prophets of the people. To every man there is given a certain portion of
each one of these peculiarities, to serve as a pattern.
Man cannot comprehend
states of being which transcend his own nature. Hence none but the great God
himself can comprehend God, as we have shown in our Commentary upon the “Names
of God.” So also the prophets cannot be comprehended by any but the prophets
themselves. No person, in short, can understand any individual who belongs to a
scale of rank above him. It is possible that there is a peculiarity in
prophets, of which no pattern or model is found in other persons, and
therefore, we are incapable of understanding them. If we knew not what a vision
is, and an individual should say to us, that a man, at a moment when he can
neither move, see or hear, can perceive events which are to occur at a future
period, and yet might not be able to perceive the same while walking, listening
or looking, we should not in any wise be able to persuade ourselves of the
truth of it, as God says in his Holy word: “They treat as a lie that which they
cannot comprehend with their knowledge.”1
And you, do you not see that he who comes blind into the world, does not
understand the pleasure which is derived from seeing? Let us not regard,
therefore, as impossible all those states ascribed to the prophets which we
cannot understand: for they are the accepted and praiseworthy servants of God.
From all which has been
said, seeker after the divine mysteries, thou hast learned something of the
dignity of the nature of man, and that the way of the mystics is holy and
honorable. But I have heard that the mystics say that external knowledge is a
veil upon the way to God, and a hindrance in the journey to the truth. Take
care and do not deny that they are correct in what they say. For, external
knowledge is derived from the sensuous world, and all objects of sense are a
hindrance to him who is occupied with spiritual truth; for whoever is attending
to sensual objects, indicates that his mind is preoccupied with external
properties. And it is impossible that he who would walk in the way of
truth, should be for a moment unemployed in meditation, upon obtaining
spiritual union and the vision of beauty.
Know, student of the
divine mysteries, that the heart is like a reservoir into which five streams
flow: these streams at one time run clear, and at another, turbid, and hence
the bottom of the reservoir contains much mud. If a person wish to cleanse the
reservoir and to get rid of the mud in the bottom, he must first dam up the
course of the running streams, and then stir up and put in motion the mud, and
until the muddy water has been carried off by the pure water that gushes up at
the bottom of the reservoir, he will not allow any other water to run in. Now
the external senses resemble those running streams, from which various kinds of
knowledge, notions and prejudices proceed to the heart, of which some are pure
and purifying, and some are corrupt and corrupting, and until these have been
dammed up, the windows of the heart cannot be uncovered so that the
illuminating knowledge from God can be revealed to it.
If a person possessing
great knowledge of the outward world, should use his knowledge as a means of
progress in the way of truth, instead of being satisfied with such disputes as
of buying and selling; marrying and divorcing, and should be assiduous in
gaining divine knowledge, which is the end of all other knowledge, it is all
well and good. His knowledge of the outward world will give him strength in his
course, and will serve as a guide to him in the way to eternal truth. For if
the pilgrim do not understand the grounds of the respect due to, and the
law-fulness of his food and drink, his dwelling and his clothing, if he do not
understand the causes which impair or render complete acts of purification and
devotion, what has a tendency to give strength to the blameable affections of
the soul, and what is their nature and their remedy, he can derive no advantage
from the sciences of spiritual exercise, discovery and revelation. In short to
an ignorant pilgrim, the least doubt may operate as a hindrance in his course
for many years. If, however, he should fall into a spirit of disputation, and
should say, “knowledge implies nothing else than to be able to study a book and
to correct the composition, the punctuation and the declensions,” he will
certainly be frustrated from obtaining and discovering inward knowledge, — that
is, he will not attain to the knowledge of God, which is the object of all
knowledge, which is the most sublime knowledge, and compared with which all
other knowledge is but husks. Therefore, when we hear some good man, who has
travelled far on the road of spiritual discovery affirm, that knowledge of the
external world, in the sense which we at first alluded to, is a hindrance in
the way of truth, we ought to be careful not to deny the truth of what he says.
There are, however, in
our times certain weak persons and indifferent to religious truth for the most
part, who in the guise of soofees,1
after learning a few of their obscure phrases and ornamenting themselves with
their cap and robes, treat knowledge and the doctors of the law2
as inimical to themselves, and continually find fault with them. They are
devils and deserve judicial death. They are enemies of God, and of the apostle
of God. For God has extolled knowledge and the doctors of the law; and the
established way of salvation, with which God has inspired the prophets, has its
basis in external knowledge. These miserable and weak men, since they have no
acquaintance with science, and no education, and knowledge of external things,
why should they indulge in such corrupt fancies, and unfounded language? They
resemble, beloved, a person who having heard it said that alchemy was of more
value than gold, because that whatsoever thing should be touched with the
philosophers' stone would turn to gold, should be proud of the idea and should
be carried away with a passion for alchemy. And when gold in full bags is
offered him, he replies : “Shall I turn my attention to gold, when I am
dissolving the philosophers' stone?” And he finishes with being deprived of the
gold, and with only hearing the name of the philosophers' stone. He becomes
forever a miserable, destitute, and naked vagabond, who wastes his life upon
alchemy.
The science then of revelation,
or of infused spiritual knowledge, resembles alchemy, and the science of the
doctors of the law resembles gold; but it is folly and pure loss not to accept
and be satisfied with solid gold, on account of one's ardor to discover the
philosophers' stone, which latter knowledge is not acquired by one in a
thousand.
There is still one
farther observation that deserves to be made. If a person by the payment of a
thousand pieces of gold, could become master of alchemy, yet the condition of
the man who is absolutely master of ten thousand pieces of gold would be better
and preferable. And this illustrates the position of the soofees. If a person
follow their method and attain to the knowledge of some things, he still does
not equal in excellence, the doctors of the law. Just as we see, that books on
alchemy, and students of alchemy are very numerous, while those who are
successful are the least of few, so the path of mysticism is sought for by all
men, and longed for by all classes of society, yet those who attain to the end
are exceedingly rare. Perhaps, as in the case of alchemy, it only exists now in
name and form. The greater part of the notions and fancies of most of the
mystics, which they esteem as revelations and mysteries, are nothing but vain
triflings and pure self complacency; just as that while visions are a reality,
still mere confused dreams are very abundant. The mystic, however, who by
spiritual revelation has learned all that a doctor of the law has been able to
learn after many years of study, and who has no remaining doubts in matters of
internal or external knowledge, is certainly more excellent than the doctor of
the law who is learned only in external knowledge, and this should not be
denied. And it follows that the way of the mystics must be acknowledged to be a
true one, and that you must not destroy the belief of those weak minded and
vain persons who follow them; for, the reason why they cast reproaches upon
knowledge and calumniate the doctors of law is that they have no acquirements or
knowledge themselves.
O, inquirer after divine
mysteries! do you ask how it is known that the happiness of man consists in the
knowledge of God, and that his enjoyment consists in the love of God ? We
observe in reply, that every man's happiness is found in the place where he
obtains enjoyment and tranquility. Thus sensual enjoyment is found in eating
and drinking and the like. The enjoyment of anger is derived from taking
revenge and from violence. The enjoyment of the eye consists in the view of
correct images and agreeable objects. The enjoyment of the ear is secured in
listening to harmonious voices. In the same way the enjoyment of the heart
depends upon its being employed in that for which it was created, in learning
to know every thing in its reality and truth. Hence, every man glories in what
he knows, even if the thing is but of little importance. He who knows how to
play chess, boasts over him who does not know: and if he is looking on while a
game of chess is played, it is of no use to tell him not to speak, for as soon
as he sees an improper move, he has not patience to restrain himself from
showing his skill, and glorying in his knowledge, by pointing it out….
Now that it is clear that
the happiness of the heart consists in the knowledge and love of God, we may
say that the heart that does not feel the necessity of the knowledge of God,
and a longing for the love of God, but rather craves after and seeks the world,
resembles a sick person who has no appetite for food, but even prefers such things
as earth and clay to meat, regarding them as necessary, not-withstanding they
have no nourishing qualities. If no remedy can be found, speedily, to recover
his appetite for food, and if he continue indulging in perverse notions of what
is necessary, his malady will grow in strength; until if he continue in this
state, he will perish and lose the joys this world can give. In the same manner
the heart which does not feel a necessity for the knowledge and love of God,
and where the love of other objects reigns, is a heart that is sick and ready
to perish, unless a remedy be applied, unless its affections be turned away
from other things, and the love of God become predominant. Future bliss will be
lost and eternal misery will be its portion. Our refuge is in God!
You should know also that
the enjoyments of this world that are procured through the senses are cut off
at death. The enjoyment of the love and knowledge of God, which depends upon
the heart, is alone lasting. At death the hindrances that result from the
presence of the external senses being removed, the light and brilliancy of the
heart come to have full play, and it feels the necessity of the vision of
beauty. What has hitherto been said is sufficient to enable a person of
intelligence to comprehend the dignity of the heart of man. The subject could
not be discussed more at large in this short treatise.
While the heart is one of
the pillars of man, the body is another pillar. In the constitution of man's
body, there is an infinity of most wonderful things to be observed. Each
internal and external organ has various curious uses, of which man is entirely
uninformed. Know, that in the body of a man there are thousands of veins and
nerves: there are many bones, each of a particular shape and each one created
for a particular purpose and effect. You are ignorant of all this, and you only
know that the hand was formed to take hold with, the foot to walk with, and the
tongue to speak with. But in reference to the hand, you know nothing about its
blood, its bones, the number of its nerves and veins, and the uses of each one:
nor in reference to the eye, do you know that it is composed of ten layers, nor
of what the layers are composed, nor what is the use of them. And if the eye
should meet with an injury in one of the layers, you could not tell the cause
of it. You know nothing either of the internal organs in the belly, such as the
spleen, the liver, the gall-bladder and the kidneys. While these have been
given to you to perform, functions in which they are continually engaged, you
are entirely unconcerned about it.
Know then, beloved, that
the varieties of food you eat descend to the stomach, and thence to the liver,
and that in the liver they are mixed and brought to the form of blood. Upon the
Liver may be seen something black and frothy which is called black bile. The
spleen attracts the black bile and changes it into itself. The blood being
still mixed with water, has no consistence, and the kidneys draw the water from
the blood and purify it. This blood is then diffused to the seven parts of the
body, and brings and conveys strength to the limbs. If the spleen become
affected with any disorder, so that it cannot separate the black bile from the
blood, such diseases as leprosy, insanity, inflammation of the spleen and
remittent fever are the consequence. If any derangement happen to the
gall-bladder so that it cannot secrete the bile, bilious disorders follow. If
the kidneys get disordered, so that they cannot abstract the water from the
blood, dropsy and similar diseases are the result. It all depends, however, on
the will of God. In the same manner, all the organs of the body have a specific
function. If it were not so, the body would perish….
Our intention has been to
show you that man is a great world, and that you might know what a multitude of
servants his body has to minister to him : so that you might realize while in
your enjoyments, in walking, in sleeping or at rest in your world, that by
God's appointment, these numerous servants in your employ never suffer their
functions to cease for a minute. Listen now for a moment candidly. If you had a
servant who had been faithful to you during his whole life, with whose services
you were not able to dispense, while he could at any time find a better master—yet
if he should only for a single day disobey your orders, you would get angry,
beat him, and wish to get rid of him. But God has been abundant in kindness to
you, and has given you so many servants, and has in no wise any need of you.
How then can it be just that you should become enslaved to yourself, and follow
your own passions, and that forgetful of pleasing the infinite God, you should
rebel against your Creator and Benefactor, and that you should render obedience
to Satan, who is your enemy and the enemy of God ?
Many and even innumerable
books, O student of the divine mysteries, have been written in explanation of
the organization of the body and the uses of is parts: but they have no more
made the subject clear and exhausted it, than a drop can illustrate the ocean,
or an atom illustrate the sun. It is impossible for the thing formed to
understand the knowledge of him that formed it. And how is it possible, that he
who is of yesterday, should comprehend the secrets of the operations of the
Ancient of days ?
The science of the
structure of the body is called anatomy : it is a great science, but most men
are heedless of it. If any study it, it is only for the purpose of acquiring
skill in medicine, and not for the sake of becoming acquainted with the perfection
of the power of God. But whoever will occupy himself with anatomy, and therein
contemplate the wonders of the works of God, will reap three advantages. The
first advantage will be, that in learning the composition of the thing made,
and thereby gaining a comprehensive and condensed view of all other things like
it he will see that it is impossible to discover imperfection or incompetence
in the being who has created him in such perfection. The Creator himself will
be acknowledged to be almighty and perfect. The second advantage will be, that
he will see that it is impossible that a being who has created an organization
so intelligent, capable of comprehension, endowed with beauty, and useful,
should be otherwise than perfect in knowledge himself. And lastly, we shall
understand the mercy, favor and perfect compassion of God towards us. Nothing
that is either useful or ornamental has been omitted in the framing of our
bodies, whether it be such things as are the sources of life, like the spirit
and the head; or such as sustain life, as the hand, the foot, the mouth and the
teeth : or such as are a means of ornament, as the beard, elegance of form,
black hair and the lips. It is to be observed that similar organs have been
provided not only for man, but for all creatures, so that nothing is wanting to
initiate and sustain life in the mouse, the wasp, the snake and the ant. God
has done all things perfectly, and may his name be glorified !
- The investigator of truth this fact well knows,
- That he himself is endowed with every perfection.
The knowledge of anatomy
is the means by which we become acquainted with animal life: by means of
knowledge of animal life, we may acquire a knowledge of the heart, and the
knowledge of the heart is a key to the knowledge of God. But the knowledge
which we obtain of God is limited and contracted in comparison with the
knowledge which the heart has of itself. The knowledge possessed by the heart
in comparison with the knowledge of God himself, is but as an atom when
compared with the sun.
The body is but au animal
to be ridden by the heart, which is its rider, while the heart's chief end is
to acquire a knowledge of God. The dignity of any thing depends upon what it is
in itself. A person therefore who does not understand his own body, heart and
soul, and yet pretends to the knowledge of God, resembles the bankrupt, who,
although he has nothing to eat himself, should yet plan a feast for all the
poor of the city. In short, man ought to make every possible exertion to gain
the knowledge of God, because the knowledge of God necessitates the love of
God. Just in the same manner as when you see a beautiful specimen of
calligraphy or some elegant verses, you praise the person who made them, you
feel a love for him in your heart and desire eagerly to see him.
Since you have learned, O
inquirer after the divine mysteries, the dignity and nobleness of the heart,
know also that this precious jewel has been confided to you and wrapped in a
veil, that you may preserve it from too close a contact with the world, and may
lead it to perfection and to its place of rest, making it a partaker of
manifest happiness in the eternal mansions. In the house of reunion you will
have reached an eternal rest, where no evil enters, a joy where no pain mingles,
a strength without infirmity, a knowledge without doubt, and a vision of the
Lord, the enjoyment of which shall be endless.
If the heart strive not
after its own glory and dignity, but inclines to the cares of the world and
sensual pleasures, no creature is more feeble, infirm and contemptible than
man. At one time he will be the slave of disappointment and melancholy, at
another suffering from disease and misfortune; at one time exposed to hunger
and thirst, and at another the slave of avarice or ambition. He is not indulged
with the enjoyment of a single day in peace. And when he is disposed to partake
of the pleasures of the world and stretches out his hand to them, for a long
time he cannot succeed in freeing himself from calamity. Even the pleasure of
eating will be attended with oppression and pain, and afterwards be followed by
some adverse accident. In short, of whatever enjoyment he partakes, regret is
sure to follow it. If we regard knowledge, power, will, beauty and grace of
form as constituting the glory and honor of this world, what is the wisdom of
man ? If his head pain him, he knows not the cause or the remedy. If he have
pain at his heart, he knows not the occasion of it, or why it increases, or
what will cure it. He sees the plants and medicines that could cure it, perhaps
even holds them in his hands, and is not aware of it. He knows nothing of what
will happen to him on the morrow, nor what action will be a source of enjoyment
to him, nor what will be to him a source of pain. If you look only to the
strength of a man, what is more impotent than he is. If a fly or mosquito
molest him, he cannot get rid of it. If he is attacked by disease, he has no
remedy to meet it with. He has no power to preserve himself from destruction.
If you look at the firmness and resolution of man, what is more contemptible
than he is ! If he see any thing more extra-ordinary than a piece of money, he
changes color and loses his presence of mind. If a beggar meet him, he turns
away, and dares not look him in the face. If you look at the form of man, you
see that it is skin, drawn over blood and impurity….
In short, man in this
world, is framed in infirmity and imperfection. But if he desire and will to
free himself from animal propensities, and ferocious and satanic qualities, he
may attain future happiness, will be more exalted and excellent than a king and
will be enriched with the vision of the beauty of the Lord. But if he incline
towards the world, and retain only the qualities of animals and wild beasts,
his future state will be worse even than theirs. For they turn to dust, and are
delivered from pains and torment. Our refuge is in God !
From the moment, O
beloved! that you have learned in what the dignity and nobleness of man
consists, and what constitutes his vileness and meanness, you have learned at
the same time how the knowledge of the soul, is the key to the knowledge of
God.
CHAPTER II.
OntheKnowledgeofGod.
In the books of former
prophets it is written, “Know thine own soul, and thou shalt know thy Lord,”
and we have received it in a tradition, that “He who knows himself, already
knows his Lord.” This is a convincing argument that the soul is like a clean
mirror, into which whenever a person looks, he may there see God. If you say,
however, that there are many who have studied themselves, and have learned that
they are creatures, and still they do not know their Lord, I reply, that to
pass from the knowledge of the soul to the knowledge of God, and to demonstrate
the latter from the former, may be accomplished by two methods. The first method
is most deep and profound. The most exalted in wisdom and the most penetrating
among men are far from understanding it, even when they apply themselves to it,
both with science, practice and a pure life. How then should those ignorant
persons understand it, who are utterly destitute of a knowledge of external
things! Let us, therefore, pass to the second method and explain that: for he
who possesses a discriminating mind, even if he were blind, is capable of
understanding it.
Know, therefore, that man
from his own existence knows the existence of a Creator; from his own
attributes, he knows the attributes of his maker; from the control which he has
over his own kingdom, he knows the control that God exercises over all the
world. The reason of this is, that when a man looks at himself, beginning at
the time when there was no trace or notion of his existence, and contemplates
his creation with attention, he sees that he had his origin from a drop of
water. He had neither mind nor understanding: and neither fat, flesh nor bones.
Afterwards by divine operation and sovereign power, most strange and wonderful
internal changes took place, and strong organs, passions, affections, and
agreeable qualities rose up all adorned with beauty. When man comes to look upon
his organs and members, whether upon the external, as the hand, the foot, the
eye, the tongue and the mouth, or upon the internal organs, as the liver, the
stomach and the spleen, he sees that each is the result of a special wisdom,
that each one has been created for some peculiar uillegiblee,
and that each one is in its place and perfect. After a man has observed these
things, he knows that the Creator has power to do what he pleases with all
things, that his knowledge includes and embraces in perfection whatever is to
be known of creatures either externally or internally, and that his power and
wisdom pervade every organ and particle.
Beloved, in proportion as
a man analyzes the nature of his body and the variety of uses of its several
members, his reverence and love for its Creator and Maker will increase. Let a
man observe, for example, that his hands are made like columns and separated
from the body, to serve as an instrument to seize, or take hold of, or to
defend it from an enemy. At the extremity of the hands are five fingers, four
of which are in a row, and some long and some short, SO that when they
take hold of anything, they may come equally together in the palm of the hand.
The thumb, which is opposite to the four fingers, is shorter than any of them
and stronger, that it may be a help to the whole and render them capable of
retaining and grasping. The four fingers have three joints each, and the thumb
has but two, that when contracted they may become like the bowl of a spoon or
ladle, and that when open they may become like a plate, and so discharge an
infinity of services. The front teeth were formed sharp, to cut and separate
the food : the side teeth were formed broad to mash and grind the food. The
tongue was formed like a spoon to throw the food into the throat. There is,
also, under the tongue, an organ by which water is poured out, and the food is
made of the consistence of dough, that it may be more easily swallowed and
digested. All the organs, in short, have been devised with the best arrangement
and form for use, and each one of them is punctual day and night in discharging
its function. Think not, that they are lazy or sleeping. If the minds of the
intelligent, the science of the learned, and the wisdom of the sage had been
united and had been employed since the beginning of the world, in reflection
and contrivance, they could not have discovered anything more excellent than
the present arrangement, nor any forms more useful and beautiful. If the eye
had been attached to the top of the head, or the ear to the nape of the neck,
or the mouth to the back of the body, or if three fingers had been given
instead of four, it is plain to a person of intelligence that the existing
advantages would not have been secured, and the present beauty of form and
appearance would have been imperfect.
Let us notice, also, the
daily necessities of man, his need of food, of clothing and of a dwelling; his
need of rain, clouds, wind, heat and cold : and that he needs the weaver, the
cotton-spinner, the clothier and the fuller to provide him with clothing; and
that each one of these has need of so many instruments, and of so many trades,
like those of the blacksmith, the farmer, the carpenter, the dyer, and the
tanner; and besides, their need of iron, lead, wood and the like. Notice at the
same time, the adaptation of these workmen to their instruments, and of the
instruments to the trades, and how each art has given rise to several others,
and the mind is astonished and distracted. The adaptation of all these instruments
comes from the pure grace and perfect mercy of God, and from the fountain of
his benevolence. Moreover, God's creating prophets, sending them to us, and
leading us to their law and to love them, is a perfume of His universal
beneficence. He proclaims himself, “My mercy surpasses my anger,” and the
Prophet has said: “Verily, God is more full of compassion to his servants, than
the affectionate mother to her nursing child.”
It has been shown that
man from his own existence, knows the existence of his creator, that from his
analysis of the materials of which his body is composed and of its distinctive
characters he understands the almighty power of God, that from the uses, the
arrangement and the combination of his organs, he knows the omniscient wisdom
of God, and that his clemency and compassion extend to all. He knows, also,
that these many mercies and bounties are bestowed upon him without his seeking
or care, from God's rich and overflowing grace. Now in this way it is possible
that the knowledge of the soul should become the key to the knowledge of God.
For just as from a survey of your own being and attributes, you have in a
contracted form learned the being and attributes of God, it is also possible to
understand how the freedom and the holiness of God, bear a resemblance to the
freedom of your soul.
Know, that God exists
exempt from and independent of the notions that enter the mind, and the forms
that are produced in the imagination, that he is not subjected to reasoning,
and time and place cannot be ascribed to him. Still his exercise of power and
the manifestation of his glory are not independent of place. But in the same
manner, this independence and freedom is possible in your soul. The spirit, for
example, which we call heart is exempt from the entrance of fancies and
imaginations, and also from size and divisibility. Nor has it form or color,
for if it had, it could be seen by the eye, and would enter into the sphere of
fancy and imagination, and its beauty or ugliness, its greatness or littleness
would be known. If any one ask you about your soul, you may answer, “It exists
by the will of God: it has neither quantity or physical quality; it is exempt
from being known.” Beloved, since you are incapable of knowing the spirit which
is in your body, how should it be possible for you to know God, who created
spirits, bodies and all things, who is himself foreign to all of them, and who
is not of their class and kind ? It is one of the most important things, yea, a
most necessary duty, to treat of God as holy, independent and free.
How many things there are
in your body in reference to which you do not know their reality and essence,
such as desire, love, misery and pleasure. Their existence is admitted, but
their quantity and quality cannot be measured. If you desire to learn the
absolute truth about them, you cherish a vain longing; and it is the same, if
you desire to know the absolute nature of voice, nutrition or hearing. As that
which is perceived by the eye has no relation to voice, and as that which is
perceived by the ear has no relation to form, and as that which is perceived by
the sense of smelling has no relation to taste, so that the one can be known by
means of the other, in the same manner that which is perceived through the
medium of the mind or of divine power, cannot be perceived by the senses.
Again, as the spirit exists and controls the body, and yet we know not the mode
and essence of it, so God is present in all things, and controls and governs
all things, but his form, essence and quality are exempt from being known.
Exemption and freedom may be illustrated in still another manner. In the same
way that the spirit pervades all the limbs and the body, and the body is
entirely subject to its control, and that the spirit is indivisible, while the
body is divisible, so also in relation to God, all that exists, springs from
him, all creatures exist by his word, and in all possible things his operations
are seen, yet still he is not related to place, nor does he reason about
anything, and he is free from relation or affinity to any quality of bodies or
to quantity.
This topic of exemption
and freedom, beloved, cannot be perfectly explained, until the mystery about
the soul shall have been developed. The law, however, gives no permission to
develop this secret, and it is not lawful to stretch out one's hand to do what
the legislator forbids. But the language of his excellency the glory of the
world,1
“God created man in his own image,” cannot be explained until die mystery about
the nature of the soul or spirit has been explained.
And now, student of the
divine mysteries, that you have in general understood, as far as your mind can
reach, the being and attributes of God, by having your own soul as an example,
it is important that you should become acquainted with the influence of the
word, government and sovereignty of God in the world. This is called knowledge
of operation. You ought to understand, also, as far as reason can go, the
government that he exercises over the body, so that you may comprehend in what
way creatures obey the word and the will of God, in what way the angels by his
decree convey their ministrations from heaven to earth, in what way the
movements of the heavens and the revolutions of the constellations are
effected, and what is the key to the method by which the orders of dæmons are
effected. But unless you know in what way you exercise authority over your
body, what probability is there that you can understand how God exercises
control over all things.
“Know thyself, and thou
shalt know thy Lord.” Observe then that when you desire to write upon paper the
phrase, In the name of God, there arises first of all an inclination and
a decision in the heart to write it. Next in order, that inclination and
decision by means of the animal spirit is carried to the brain. When that
decision has reached the brain then the image of the phrase, In the name of
God is formed in the faculty of imagination in the brain. Afterwards the
image reaches a nerve resembling a white thread, and descends by means of it to
the ends of the fingers. Finally by means of the senses the fingers write the
phrase In the name of God, in the form in which by the will of the
heart, it exists in the treasury of the imagination. Again, also, when the will
of God is to anything, a token of it rises and appears in the empyreal heaven.
And there is an essence called both the Spirit of Power, and the Holy Spirit,
by means of which it arrives at the throne in the heavens. As the phrase, In
the name of God, appears in the treasury of the imagination, so the image
of the thing dependent on the will of God appears upon the Preserved Tablet.
The angels appointed to serve in the empyrean and at the throne, cause it to
descend to the inferior world, and by means of the periods and hours of the
constellations, it is made to appear through the four elementary qualities —
heat, cold, moisture and dryness. As the phrase In the name of God is
written down by first dipping the pen in the ink, so the thing which God wills,
comes to light by mixing heat and cold with water and earth. As paper is so
adapted to writing as to preserve the forms which are written upon it, so
dryness and moisture are recipient of those other forms and preserve the images
that are produced. If moisture did not exist, forms and images could not be
preserved. In the same manner as by the will of the heart and by the method
above mentioned, the image In the name of God, which is in the treasury
of the imagination is painted with the pen upon paper, so also the will of God,
which is an image produced upon the Preserved Tablet in the empyrean, is
produced and made visible in the material world, by means of the angels, the
constellations and the elemental qualities of water and earth.
At the time when the
heart of man had control over all the organs and members, and they were all
obedient to it, some thought that man was a dweller in his own heart. When the
empyrean in like manner, ruled over all things by the will of God, they
reasoned that man was seated in the empyrean. But like as man has dominion over
his own heart in the administration of his kingdom, the body, God also rules
over the empyrean in the administration of the affairs of created beings, which
he has committed to the empyrean. Thus God declares in his holy word, “He sat
upon the empyrean to govern the universe.” 1
You should know, also, that what we have been maintaining is convincingly
established. It is known to men of penetration by revelation.
“God created man in his
own image.” What does this mean, and how is it known to be true ? Know,
beloved, that the sovereign recognizes no other person except the sovereign
himself. If the Lord had not appointed you to be sovereign over the body as
over a kingdom, if he had not confided to you the affairs of its government,
and had not given you this brief copy as a model, how would you have been able
to comprehend the sovereign, who is independent of reasoning and of place, and
who cannot be known by argument or hypothesis or in any other way? Thanks and
praises be given to him who is without beginning and eternal, to him who is
unceasingly beneficent, to him who made you sovereign over yourself, who
subjected your body to you for a kingdom, who made your heart to be an empyreal
throne, and made the animal spirit which is the fountain of the heart, to be a
seraphic messenger. He appointed the brain to be the throne, and the treasury
of the imagination to be the Preserved Tablet. He made the cupola of the brain,
which is the source of the nerves and the mine of the faculties, to be like the
vault of heaven and the stars. He appointed the fingers and the pen to serve
the elemental qualities of nature, and subjected them to your order. He made
you more excellent and noble than all other creatures, and to exercise rule
over all possible things. He has bidden you to beware and not to be heedless of
your soul, which is your kindom and dominion: for to be regardless of your
soul, is to be regardless of your Creator and Benefactor.
Know, however, that there
is an immense distance and wide interval between perceiving the beauty of the
Lord, and understanding that which constitutes its soul, marrow and essence. O
seeker of the divine mysteries, those impotent astrologers and physicists, who,
shut out from the knowledge of God, ascribe changes and events to the stars and
to nature, resemble an ant, that seeing a pen making marks upon paper, should
be overjoyed and cry out, “I have found out the secret of the effect. It is the
pen that causes the marks.” This class of men in another point resembles the
natural man, who ascribes the influences in nature to heat and cold, water and
earth: so a second ant looking on with attention, sees that the pen does not
move of itself, but rather by the will of the hand: and he turns and says tp
the first ant, “You were mistaken; you did not perceive the real nature of the
thing: you thought the marks and movements were caused by the pen. It is not
so; the whole influence proceeds from the fingers and the pen is subject to the
fingers.” Beloved, this ant resembles the astrologer, who ascribes effects to
the constellations. He does not know that he also is mistaken, and that the
stars and the constellations are subject to the angels, and that the angels can
do nothing without the command of God.
In the same manner as
there is falsity, in the way in which the material world is regarded by the
natural man and the astrologer, there is also a diversity of views among those
who survey the spiritual world. There are some who, just as they are upon the
point of entering upon the vision of the spiritual world, seeing that they
discover nothing, descend back to their old sphere. There is also a difference
of view between those who do succeed in reaching the spiritual or invisible
world by meditation, for some have an immense amount of light veiled from them.
Every one in the sphere to which he attains, is still veiled with a veil. The
light of some is as of a twinkling star. Others see as by the light of the
moon. Others are illuminated as if by the world-effulgent sun. To some the
invisible world is even perfectly revealed, as we read in the holy word of God:
“And thus we caused Abraham to see the heaven and the earth.”1
And hence it is that the prophet says, “There are before God seventy veils of
light; if he should unveil them, the light of his countenance would burn
everything that came into his presence.” 2
Still the miserable
naturalist, who ascribes effects to the influences of nature, speaks correctly.
For, if natural causes had no operation, the art of medicine would have been
useless, and the holy law would not have allowed to have recourse to medical
treatment. The mistake which the naturalist makes, is that he contracts his
sphere of vision, and is like the lame ass, that left his load at the first
stopping place. He does not know that nature also is subjected to the hand of
the power of God, and is a kind of humble servant, such as a shoe is to the
ass. The astrologer also says, that the sun is a star, which causes heat and
light upon the earth. If there had been no sun, the distinction between day and
night would not have existed, and vegetables and grain could not have been
produced. The moon also is a star, and if there bad been no moon, how many
things connected with the requirements of the Law of the Koran, would have been
impracticable, such as fasting, alms and pilgrimage, since there would have
been no distinction of weeks, months and years. The colors and perfumes of
herbs and fruits exist also from its influence. The sun is warm and dry; the
moon is cold and moist. Saturn is cold and dry, Venus is warm and moist. And
the school of astrologers is to be credited in these representations; but when
they ascribe all events to influences proceeding from the heavenly bodies, they
are liars. They do not perceive that they all alike are subject to the almighty
power of God as God says in his word: “And the sun, moon and stars are subject
to his command.” 1
There is also an influence exercised by the stars, which resembles the control,
exercised by the nerve that comes from the brain over the finger in writing;
while the force of nature is like the control exerted upon the pen by the
finger….
When the health of a
person undergoes a change, and he becomes the prey of melancholy and suspicion,
and the pleasures of the world become distasteful, so that from disgust with
it, he withdraws from all society, his physician says, “this person is diseased
with melancholy; he must take an infusion of dodder, of thyme and bark of endive
as a medicine.” The naturalist says: “As this person's malady is of a dry
nature, it arises from a predominance of dryness, which has settled on the
brain. The occasion of his having a dry temperament is the season of winter.
Until spring comes, and dry weather predominates, there is no possibility of a
cure.” The astrologer says, “this person being under the influence of
melancholy, which arises from a hurtful conjunction between Mars and Jupiter,
there will be no favorable change in his health until the conjunction of
Jupiter with Venus shall have reached the Trine.” Now know, beloved, that the
language of all these persons is correct, for they all speak and believe
according to the degree and reach of their reason and understanding. However,
the real and essential cause of the malady may be stated thus. When fortune is
favorable to any person, and the Deity desires to guide him into the possession
of it, he deputes two powerful ministers to that effect, Jupiter and Mars.
These in turn, control the light footed ministers, the elements, and command
dryness, for example, to fasten its bridle to the neck of the person, and cause
dryness to attack his head and brain. He is thus made to become weary of the
world by means of the scourge of melancholy and suspicion, and so with the
bridle of the will may be impelled towards the Deity. These circumstances can
never be understood in this sense, either by medicine, or by nature, or by the
stars. One may, however, learn to understand them by knowledge and the prophetic
power combined. For they embrace the whole kingdom of the universe with its
deputies and servants, and possess the knowledge of the end for which
everything was created: they know to whose command all things are subjected, to
what men are invited and what they are forbidden to do.
The Lord invites the
servants whom he loves to the contemplation of his glory, at one time by
sending misfortune and affliction, and at another by melancholy and sickness:
and he says to them, “my servants, what you regard as misfortune and
affliction, is but the bridle of my love, by which I draw those whom I love to
a spirit of holy submission, and to my Paradise.” It is also found in a
tradition that “misfortune is first of all the lot of the prophets, then of the
saints and then of those who are like them in successive lower degrees. Look
not then upon these things as maladies, for they are my favored servants.”
O seeker after the divine
secrets, now that you have learned that within the body of man, there is a
sovereign who possesses and controls it, it is time that you should learn the
meaning of the sentences, “Glory to God,” “God be praised,” “There is no God
but God,” and “God is the greatest.” These sentences are very current on the
tongues of men, but they do not know the signification of them. Although these
four sentences are in appearance very short, yet there are no others that
embrace so much of the knowledge of God. Since from the consideration of the
freedom and independence of your own spirit, you have learned the freedom and
independence of God, you have in consequence learned the meaning and import of
the sentence, “Glory to God.” Seeing that from the sovereignty which you
exercise over your own spirit, you have learned the sovereignty which God
exercises, and know that all causes and instruments are subject to his power,
and that all outward and inward mercies, which are incalculable and
innumerable, are from him, you therefore know the meaning and import of the
phrase, “God be praised.” As you know also that all things are of his creation,
that his government extends over all things, and that without his will no
motion or change can affect any thing, you see the meaning of the words, “There
is no God but God. ” Listen now to the explanation of the sentence, “God is the
greatest.”
Do not suppose that, from
all that has hitherto been said, you can understand the greatness of God. His
greatness and power are above and beyond the comprehension of the mind and
wisdom of man. Moreover the phrase “God is the greatest” does not mean that God
is larger than other things : it is a sin to indulge in such a belief. It is as
much as to say, that there are large things, but that God is larger than they
are. The holy meaning of the phrase “God is the greatest” is that God is so
great, that he cannot be known or comprehended by the mind or understanding, or
be compared with any thing,—that the knowledge of God cannot be attained by
means of the knowledge which a man has of his own soul (which God forbid!),
that a knowledge of his attributes cannot be attained from a knowledge of the
attributes of man, and that his independence and holiness cannot be compared
with the independence and holiness of man in any form whatever. God forbid that
His sovereignty and government should be compared and measured ! The doctors of
the law have been allowed however, in the way of illustration to explain in a
certain degree the knowledge, power, excellence and sovereignty of God to man,
who is frail and weak in understanding.
Thus, let us suppose that
a person bad been born and brought up in darkness, where he had never seen the
rays or light of the sun, but had merely heard a description of the sun. If
such a person should ask to have the light and mode of shining of the sun
explained to him, how would it be possible in any way to explain to him what it
is? If however, there should happen to be in that dark place many glow worms,
the person addressed, taking one of them up in his hands, might say, “the light
of the sun resembles this,” although in reality it has not a particle or an
atom of resemblance. Take another example : suppose a child incapable of making
distinctions, should inquire of us about the pleasure derived from exercising
authority and sovereignty. We, knowing the impossibility of explaining the
matter to him, might answer that the pleasure of ruling was like that obtained
from playing with nuts or at ball, although it does not resemble them in any
particular. From these examples we may learn that it is impossible for any
being, except God himself, to know God. “God is witness ! God is witness! No
one knows God, except God himself.”
Finally, seeker after
divine mysteries, know that the paths to the knowledge of God, are as numerous
as the souls of creatures, and their number is known to God alone. But we have
spoken so much as is found above, for the sake of both warning and stimulating
the seeker after the knowledge and love of God.
The happiness of man
consists in the knowledge, obedience and worship of God. Only a little
previously we have shown, how it is that man's happiness consists in the
knowledge of God. We now proceed to observe, that it is an argument to prove
that the happiness of man consists in obedience and devotion, the fact that
when a man dies, his destination is to return to where God is. Every thing
which concerns man is with God, and his works will all be presented before Him.
Whenever all the affairs of a person are in the hands of another, and his
employments and his home are with him — when he is near to him and continually
has need of him, there will be perfect harmony between the two, and abiding
friendship and love. Whoever be the person whom we love, we shall find our
happiness with him. There is nothing more delightful than to meet with and look
upon an object that we love. But we ought to know that the love of God will
never reign in the heart of a man until first the knowledge of God reigns
there, and until the remembrance of God becomes unceasing. If one individual
love another, he is continually thinking of him, and by this continual
remembrance, his love is increased.
The remembrance of God
will be predominant in the heart that is always engaged in devotion: and the
heart will be engaged in devotion and worship, whenever it withdraws from
worldly lusts and sensual pleasures: it will withdraw from worldly lusts, when
it refrains from sins. To abstain from sins of rebellion, brings peace to the
heart: to be constant in worship, is a means of remembrance of God; and both
are a means of growing in the love of God, which is the seed of happiness. And
so the Lord speaks in his word : “Blessed is the man who keeps himself pure,
who repeats the name of the Lord and prays. ” 1
Know also that all our
acts cannot be devotional. Those acts only are devotional which harmonize with
the law. But it is not possible to be totally exempt from sensuous passions,
for if the body should be deprived of food and drink for example, it would
perish. There is occasion therefore for making distinctions between our acts;
but these distinctions, the individual is not capable of making for himself,
because the animal soul necessarily casts a veil over the truth and inclines it
to vanity. On this account we are obliged to follow after and imitate others —
such persons as the prophets. They have been purified and enlightened by the
eternal Truth Himself, and have been sent forth to communicate precepts and
laws, and to decide upon all circumstances. Every one is therefore bound to
imitate them within the limits of the law, and in the regulation of his moral
conduct, that he may attain felicity and be preserved from danger of eternal destruction.
Those careless and
indifferent persons, O seeker after the divine mysteries, who from ignorance,
stupidity and sin have turned away from God and his prophet, and have wandered
from the path of religion, may be arranged in seven classes.
To the first class belong
those who do not believe in God. They had desired to find him out in his
essence and attributes, by speculations and fancies, by comparisons and
illustrations. And because they have not succeeded in understanding him, they
have referred his acts and his government to the stars and to nature. They have
fancied that the soul of man and of other animals, and this wonderful world
with its marvellous arrangements came of themselves, and that they are eternal;
or that they are effects from natural causes, and that there is no creator
beyond the sphere of the world. This class of people resembles the man who
seeing a writing, fancies that it was written of itself, and infers that it was
not written by a penman or by a super-natural power : or else that it is
eternal and that no one knows whence it comes. It is impossible to recover from
the path of delusion, persons whose ignorance, error and stupidity have reached
such a degree as this.
The second class of
errorists are those who deny a day of resurrection and assembly. They allege
that man and other animals are like vegetables, and do not enter into another
body when they die. They say, that a resurrection, in which spirits and bodies
shall be reassembled in one place, is impossible, and that there will be
neither discipline or punishment, recompense or reward. The errors of this sect
arise from their inability to understand of themselves their own souls. They
imagine that the spirit is an animal spirit only, and that the heart, which is
in reality the spirit of man, is the place for the knowledge of God, and that
no evil can happen to it_ except that it will be separated from the body. They
call this separation, death. This sect is unconcerned about this spirit, and in
proof of this we shall discourse, if it please God, in the fourth chapter.
The third class of
errorists are those who indeed believe in God and a future life, but whose
faith is weak, because they do not understand the requirements of the law. They
say that “God is able to do without our worship. There is neither any profit to
God from our worship, or any injury done him by our disobedience. If we worship
God, we shall learn what good it did in the future world; and if we do not
worship him, there will neither be any advantage or harm. God himself so
declares in his holy word, “Whosoever keep himself pure, does it for his own
advantage,” 1
and in another place, “He who does well, does it for his own profit.” 2
Although it is better to worship God, yet as God has no need of our worship,
therefore if we do not worship him, what harm is there in it ?” These ignorant
people resemble the sick man, who when the physician says to him, “you should
be abstinent, if you wish to be cured of your malady,” should answer, “what
advantage is it to you whether I am abstinent or not”? Now though the sick man
is right when he says that there is no advantage to the physician from his
abstinence, yet if he is not abstinent, he will perish. This class regards
obedience and transgression as of the same degree in value. But in the same
manner as disease may occasion a man's destruction, so transgression defiles
the heart, and will cause it to appear in the future world in a state of woe.
And just as abstinence and medicine restore the body to health, so to avoid
acts of transgression and sin and to be obedient to God, are means of securing
salvation.
The fourth class of men
who indulge in error, are those who indeed receive the law, but in some peculiar
and erroneous sense. They wrongly say, “The law commands U5 to keep our hearts
pure from pride, envy, hatred, anger and dissimulation. But this is a thing
which it is impossible to do. For the soul has been created with these
qualities and affections, and human nature cannot be changed. It is just as
impossible to make a black material white by scraping it, as for the human
heart to be free from these qualities.” These ignorant men do not know and
understand, that the law does not command that these qualities should be
entirely effaced and expelled from the heart, but rather requires that they
should be brought under subjection to the heart and the reason, to the end that
they may not act presumptuously, go beyond the limits set by the law, and
indulge in mortal sins. It is possible even to change these qualities, by doing
only what reason requires, and by respecting the restrictions of the law. Many
devout men in past times have secured this change of the affections of the
soul. These qua.ities once existed in the prophet of God, but they were
corrected, as we learn from the tradition: “I am a man like you. I become
angry, as a man becomes angry.” And God speaks in his holy word of “those who
control their wrath, and who pardon the men who offend them.”1
Notice, that in his eternal word, God praises those who dissipate their anger
and irritation : he does not praise those who had no anger or rage, since man
cannot be without them.
The fifth class of
persons in error are those who say that, “God is merciful and ready to pardon,
loving and compassionate, and more pitiful to his servants than a father and
mother to their children, and therefore he will pardon our faults and cover our
transgressions.” They do not consider that notwithstanding God is bounteous and
merciful, there are still multitudes of poor and miserable people in the world,
multitudes who are infirm and helpless, and many who are subjected to
suffering. This is a mystery which is known only to God. But it shows us, that
though God is disposed to cover and hide sin, still he is an absolute sovereign
and an avenger. While he is bounteous and beneficent, he is at the same time
dreadful in his chastisements : while he is a benefactor, and provides the
necessaries of life, at the same time he who does not seek to gain, obtains no
store: and he who is not industrious, accomplishes nothing in the world.
Beloved, these ignorant men, in the affairs of the world, in their schemes of
living, and in their business, manifest no trust in the bounty of God, nor do
they leave off for one moment their buying and selling, their trades or their
farming, although God has decreed the means of their existence many years
before they were born, and has made himself surety that it should be provided
for them. He announces in his eternal word and book of mighty distinctions,
that “there is no creature on the earth, for whom God has not taken upon
himself to provide nourishment.” 2
Still they make not the least exertion in reference to their relations and
condition in eternity, but merely rely upon the mercy of God, notwithstanding
God declares in his holy word, “man can have nothing without exertion.” 1
When they say that God is gracious and merciful, they speak correctly. But they
are not aware that Satan is deceiving them with it, hindering them from obedience
and worship, and preventing them from engaging in that cultivation and commerce
that would prepare them for eternity.
The sixth class who
indulge in error, are those who, exalted with pride, think that they have
already attained and are perfect: and they say, “we have reached such a state
that transgressions do us no harm: we are like the sea, which is not polluted
by filth falling into it.” These foolish people are so ignorant, that they do
not know that “to be like the sea,” means to attain such a degree of calm that
no wind can put them in movement and that nothing can cause any perturbation in
their minds. These persons on the contrary, if an individual fail to treat them
with honor and respect, or if in conversation the individual do not address
them as, my lord or dear sir, or speak a word that touches their reputation,
they bear him a grudge for a long time, and even perhaps attempt to do him an
injury. And if a person take a piece of money or a morsel of bread from them,
the world becomes too straight for them, and every thing looks dark. These
foolish people have not even yet reached manhood. They are weak in their own
souls, and are in subjection like slaves to passion and anger. If it were not
so, how could they be so inconsiderate and presumptuous? Beloved, the falsehood
and error of these people appear from this consideration. When inadvertently
any of the prophets fell into sin, even a little and venial sin, they would
spend years in mourning and lamentation over it, and occupied themselves in
endeavors to obliterate their faults, and to obtain pardon and forgiveness.
Filled with fear and dread, they became blind from their tears; from their long
continuing perturbation and distraction of mind, yon would think they had lost
the use of their reason. As for the companions of the prophet, and their
immediate successors who were faithful witnesses for the truth and the beloved
of God, they were so afraid in their suspicionsness of doing wrong, that they
abstained in their anxiety, from doing even what was lawful. Do not these
ignoramuses know that their degree of attainment does not equal that of the
prophets and apostles, and that they are even at a great distance from them ?
Why then do they not shrink in fear and awe from the shining vengeance of the
glorious God ?
If they urge, however,
that the transgressions of the prophets were doing them no injury, but that
they were exercising prudence and carefulness for the sake of other people, we
then reply, that you also ought to be careful, lest other people seeing your
actions, should imitate your example. And if they respond, we do not belong to
the rank of prophets, that men should walk in our steps, or that any injury
should befall us, on account of the sins which they may commit, we would again
reply,/that it is better that no injury should come to you in consequence of
the sins done from imitating you, than that injury should not befall the
prophets from the sins done in consequence of imitating them; for they are the
praised and accepted servants of God; their earlier and their later sins have
been pardoned, and they are blessed in Paradise. Why, then, was it so necessary
that they should abstain from forbidden things, from things of a doubtful
nature and even from permitted things ? It is said that one day some ripe dates
were brought to the prophet, and he took one and put it in his blessed mouth.
But immediately a doubt entered his mind, as to the manner in which the dates
had been obtained, and he took it out of his blessed mouth and would not eat
it. On another occasion a cup of milk was brought to the faithful witness Aboo
Bekir by his slave, and he took it and drank it. After drinking it, he
inquired, “where did yon get the milk ?” The slave said, “I told a man his
fortune, and he gave me the milk in return.” As soon as the faithful witness
heard this, he frowned severely upon his servant, inserted his blessed finger
down his mouth, and threw up the whole of the milk, so that none of it remained
on his stomach. He then said, “I fear that if any of the milk should remain on
my stomach, God would expel knowledge and love from my heart.” Now what harm
could result to other people from their eating those dates or drinking that
milk, that they should have been so careful about such little things ? And
since they did abstain from such little things, regarding them as injurious,
how should it be otherwise than injurious to these foolish people to drink
wine, in full bowls and even by the jar full ?
They know that the
wisdom, piety and abstinence of the prophets and saints were not less than
their own. Can there be any more astonishing folly than that of these men who
dare to compare themselves with the sea, because they are not disturbed by
drinking several bowls of wine, while they compare the prophet of God, to a
little water, which is changed in its taste by a single date ? They are just
worthy that Satan should seize hold of them by the beard and mustachios, and
drag them after him both in this world and the next, making them a shame and
reproach.
Now the faithful,
truthful and experienced in religion, who are mindful that the soul is
treacherous, deceptive, perfidious, malicious and false, always watch carefully
over their own souls, lest they should do something that transcends the
commands of the law, or that is contrary to reason. The soul is always disposed
to say to itself, “I am obedient to the truth : I am submissive to the holy law
: and I am well instructed in knowledge.” But thou, without being puffed up by
this deceitful language of the soul, must constantly look to all its thoughts
and states. If it is walking in the path of the law and of the prophets and
saints, it is well! and happy is he that is faithful to his word ! But if the
soul begin to have an inclination for self-indulgence, to explain away or
exceed the limits of the law and to contradict clear and plain knowledge, you
must regard it as a machination of the devil and a temptation to the soul. In
short, man, until he descends to the grave, must always watch over his soul with
attention, to discover in what degree it is obedient to the holy law and in
harmony with knowledge. Whoever does not thus watch over and guard himself, is
most surely in a delusion and in the way of a just destruction. It is the first
step in Islamism, that a man should keep his soul subject to the law.
The seventh form of
error, beloved, is that of the class whose mistakes arise from ignorance and
carelessness, while they have never heard any thing of these doubts of which we
have been speaking. They merely wear the garments, cap and quilted robes of the
mystics (soofees), and after learning some of their words and phrases, they
pretend to have attained saintship and supernatural powers. And although
apparently they have no evil intentions, yet because they do not properly
respect the holy law, but practice their devotions in a lax way, their course
leads them to corrupt doctrines and errors. They are always inclined to do
whatsoever their corrupt disposition would lead them to do, such as yielding to
the love of frivolous practices, or to sensual indulgences, or assenting to
transgression and sin. In the presence of the multitude, they put on a holy
mien and do not approve of error and sin, but they do not withdraw their hearts
from the pleasure of wine, nor from adulterous and licentious society, nor
withdraw their hands from the business of gaining the world. Although in these
associations there may be no overt sin, yet they do not consider that such
thoughts are but satanic suggestions and sensual importunities. They are not
capable of distinguishing actions and circumstances, or right and wrong.
Beloved, to this class belong those of whom God declares in his holy word, “We
have covered their hearts with more than one envelop, that they may not
understand the Koran and we have put deafness upon their ears. Even if thou
shouldst call them to the right way, they would never follow it.” 1
It is better to talk with a sword, than to talk with this class of people, for
they are not open to conviction….
CHAPTER III.
On Knowledgeof theWorld.
Know, that this world is
one stage of our life for eternity. For those who are journeying in the right
way, it is the road of religion. It is a market opened in the wilderness, where
those who are travelling on their way to God, may collect and prepare
provisions for their journey, and depart thence to God, without sorrow or
despondency.
Know, that the state
previous to death is called the world, because mortality is close at hand. The
state after death is called the future, because its rest is permanent. The
purpose and design of the world, is to afford an opportunity to make provision
for the future, to acquire knowledge, and to worship God. Man as at first
created, was destitute of works, and void of perfection : but he was made
capable of reaching perfection and attaining felicity, so that while in a
material world he could look forward to a spiritual world, understand whence he
came, what are his duties, that he is soon to depart, and might be always
ready. Man's felicity, which consists in the contemplation of the beauty of
God, cannot be vouchsafed to him, until the eye of his judgment is opened. But
the eye of judgment is opened by the contemplation of the works of God, and by
understanding his almighty power. The contemplation of the works of God is by
means of the senses, which become the key to all knowledge of God. The senses
subsist by means of the body, and the body is composed of four different
elements. Those therefore who are endowed with understanding, conscious of the
frailty of their bodies should make all diligence to quit this kingdom of
corruption and to enter permanently into the unchanging kingdom.
Know, O inquirer after
the divine secrets, that there are two things needful to man in this world;
first of all, he needs to acquire spiritual food to preserve his heart from
perishing. The aliment of the heart consists in the love and knowledge of God;
for whatever is a necessity of the nature of any one, that he loves, as we have
before mentioned. The ruin of the soul consists in the predominance of some
other love over the love of God, which veils the divine love. Our refuge is in
God !
The second thing needful
for a man is, that the body should be preserved and tended with care, since it
is the frame of the heart. As a camel is to a pilgrim, so the body is like an
animal upon which the heart rides. The pilgrim is obliged to give food and
water to his camel, and to treat it with attention, that he may reach the end
of his journey in safety, and by its means'be successful in the object for
which he travels. But the attention bestowed by the pilgrim upon his camel,
should be only in that proportion which is really necessary. If he should be
busy with his camel day and night, and should expend all his capital in feeding
it, he would not reach his destination, but would ultimately become separated
from his caravan, would lose all that he possessed, and in view of the injury
he had sustained, he would be the victim of unceasing regrets, and ruin would
ensue. Just so is it with man in general. If he pass all his days in attending
to the preservation of the body, and spend the capital of his life, in
providing food and drink for the body, he will not reach the mansions of
felicity, but will wander in the wilderness of destruction, without capital,
penniless and a naked vagabond.
Now the body needs in
this world three things, one is food, another is clothing, and the third is a
home : and by means of these, it can be preserved from injury and ruin. If the
food provided for the body is excessive, the body will be destroyed : but let
the food provided for the spirit be ever so much, still is it well. On account,
therefore, of man's need of clothing and food, God has appointed sensuous
desire to act as a commissary, that the animal, that is, the body, may not
perish from hunger, cold or heat. But as desire, under the control of the
animal soul, would not be satisfied with a sufficient quantity, but would crave
to spend its life in eating and drinking, God afterwards committed the animal
soul into the charge of the reason, that desire might not transgress the proper
limits. Yet as the animal soul and desire, on account of their intimate
relations with the body, are so essential to it, their influence would still
have been predominant. But God, the holy defender, in accordance with his
bounteousness and grace, (“ my mercy has surpassed my anger,”) has sent his law
by the tongues of prophets, that it might become strength to the reason, and
prevent the animal soul and desire from passing beyond the due limits, and on
the contrary might dispose the soul to rest satisfied with the degree of energy
and force necessary for it, and by learning the design for which it had come
into the world, might spend its days accordingly.
After you have learned, O
student of the divine mysteries, what this world in its meaning really is, it
is important that you should look at the world in detail. Every thing in the
world of matter which grows, has been included under three classes, animal,
vegetable and mineral, which are called the three generations or kingdoms.
Animals were created some for riding, some for food, and some for tilling.
Vegetables were created to afford food and conveniences to man, and sustenance
to various animals. Minerals, like gold, silver, copper and iron, were created
to serve as instruments to provide means of sustaining life in man. It was
designed that by means of these three kingdoms, the spirit of man, while
dwelling for a few days in the body, should be employed in making preparation
for the future world. Man, however, forgetful of the end for which he had come
hither, heedless of the fact that he was soon to depart, and that he would then
repent to find that he was going unprepared, became engaged in strife with his
fellows about the things of the world, fell in love with its ways, and
attempted to gain its wealth. In consequence various qualities began to appear
in the heart, such as avarice, envy, ambition and hatred, which are sources of
its ruin. Finally the heart, forgetful of the duties for the performance of
which it had come in to the world, exhausted all its energies in building up
the world.
As man's primary
necessities in the world are three, viz : clothing, food and shelter, so the
arts of the world are three, viz: weaving, planting and building. The rest of
the arts serve either for the purpose of perfecting the others, or for
repairing injuries. Thus the spinner aids the work of weaving, the tailor
carries out that work to perfection, while the cloth-dresser adds beauty to the
work. In the arts, there is need of iron, skins and wood, and for these many
instruments are necessary. No person is able to work at all kinds of trades,
but by the will of God, upon one is devolved one art and upon another two, and
the whole community is made dependent, one member upon the other. When avarice,
ambition and covetousness hold sway in the hearts of men, because some are not
pleased to see others obtain honors, and because they do not endeavor to quell
their wants, envy and hatred arise among them. Each one, dissatisfied with his
own rights, plots against the property and honor of his fellows. On this
account there was a necessity for three farther distinctions, viz: sovereignty,
judicial authority, and jurisprudence, which contains the digest of the law.
But alas ! poor and wretched man coming under the influence of all these
causes, motives and instruments, spends his life in collecting wealth and lays
up for himself sources of regret. And just as the pilgrim, who on his way to
the Kaaba of Mecca, was engaged day and night in taking care of his camel, got
separated from the caravan, and perished in the desert, so those who know not
the real nature of the world and its worthlessness, and do not understand that
it is the place where seed is sown for eternity, but spend all their thoughts
upon it, are certainly fascinated and deceived; as the apostle of God declares.
“The world is more enchanting than Harout and Marout: let men beware of it.”1
After you have learned
that the world is delusive, enchanting and treacherous, you need to know in
what way its delusions and enchantment operate. I will, therefore, mention some
things which are illustrative of the world. The world, beloved, is like an
enchanter, who exhibits himself to you as though he would dwell with you and would
forever be at your side; while in truth this world is always upon the point of
being snatched away from you, notwithstanding you are tranquilly unconscious of
it. The world is like a shadow, which, while you look at it, seems fixed,
although in reality, it is in motion. Life is like a running water, which is
always advancing, yet yon think that it is still and permanent, and you wish to
fix your abode by it. The world again is like an enchanter who performs for you
acts of friendship and manifests love for yon, for the sake of winning your
affections to him : but as soon as he has secured your love, he turns away his
face from you and plots to destroy you….
The world resembles those
imposters, who decorate themselves externally and conceal the sorrows and curse
they bring, while the ignorant, looking only at the outside, are fascinated and
deluded. The world resembles the old woman who arrayed herself in silk stuffs
and flowered brocades, and with ornaments, and covered her head with a
beautiful embroidered veil, so that those who should see her from a distance,
and notice only her garments and her form, might be deceived. And whenever she
has succeeded in inducing a person to follow after her and to decide upon
joining himself to her, she takes off her robes from her back and her veil from
her head, and immediately her concealed ugliness is brought to light, and the
person who had been seeking her, becomes subject to eternal regret and sorrow.
We have received it also by tradition, that the world will be brought to the
great assembly at the last day, in the form of a woman with livid eyes, pendent
lips, and deformed shape, and all the people will look upon her, (we take
refuge in God,) and will exclaim, “what deformed and horrible person is that,
whose aspect alone is severe torture to the soul?” And they will be answered.
“It was on her account that you were envying and hating one another, and were
ready to slay one another. It was on her account that you rebelled against God,
and debased yourselves to every sort of corruption.” And then God will order
her to be driven off to hell with her followers and her lovers….
Know, that the world
consists of a certain number of stages between the world of spirits and the
future world. The first stage is the cradle, and the last is the grave, and
every period between these is also a stage. Each month represents a league,
each hour a mile, and each breath a step. It is always flowing on like running
water. Man in his excessive heedlessness thinking himself to be permanently
established, engages in building up the world: and though he has no assurance
of a half-hour of time, he makes preparations for dwelling here for many years,
and never once brings himself to make the necessary preparation for dislodging
and moving to another land.
Behold, another likeness
of the world. Know, beloved, that the pleasures of the world, and the pains and
tribulations which are the counterpart to these pleasures in the future world,
resemble the man who should eat very largely of rich and delicate food and find
great delight therein: but on account of his excesses, he suffers from
indigestion, his stomach is irritated, vomiting and sickness ensue and he has a
great deal to endure before he can recover his health. He repents of what he
has been eating, and in proportion as he ate extravagantly, and found
enjoyment, he now suffers corresponding pain and disappointment. Now then, in
proportion as any one in the world has indulged in the pleasures of life and
dissipation, so much the greater will be his anguish and torment at the moment
of death. He who possesses gardens and fields, houses, lands, and money,
servants and horses, will be subject to regret and affliction at death, in
proportion to their amount. This misery does not close with death, but on the
contrary afterwards increases. The Lord Jesus (upon whom be peace !) declares
that the world is like the man who drinks sea-water. The more he drinks, the
more his internal heat increases. And unless he stops, he will destroy himself
by drinking.
Man in this world
resembles the guest who was invited to partake of the hospitality of a rich
man. In token of respect, the servants set before him silver washing-basins,
vessels of costly stones, perfumes of musk and amber with chafing dishes. The
poor guest is overjoyed at the sight of these things, thinking that they have
been made his own property, and belays hold of them with the intention of
retaining them. The next day, when he is upon the point of departure, they are
all taken from him by force, and the measure of his disappointment and regret
is clear to every person of discrimination. Seeing that this world is itself a
mansion built for travellers, by the road over which they are to pass, that
they may make a halt, and lay in provisions preparatory to leaving it again, he
is a wise guest who does not lay bis hand upon other things than his necessary
provisions, lest on the morrow when about to move on, they take them out of his
hands, and he expose himself to regret and sorrow.
The people of this world
are also like the passengers in a ship, who while sailing upon the sea, arrive
at an island. The sailors draw the ship to the shore, and then call out and
say, “whoever wishes for water or other provisions, let him leave the ship and
go and procure them : let him not delay, for the ship will not remain long. It
is besides a dangerous place, and whoever remains here will perish.” After
receiving this warning, the passengers leave the ship, and are all scattered
about, one in this direction and another in that. The wise passengers,
remembering the admonition of the sailors, attended quickly to their affairs,
and immediately returned to the ship. They selected the places in the ship that
pleased them best, and sat down calm and tranquil. Some of the passengers,
however, gazed at the trees, the flowers and the fruits of the island, listened
to and admired the notes of the birds, and became absorbed in looking at the
wonderful curiosities found there. They delayed so long, that when they came to
the ship, they found every place in the ship occupied, and no room for them to
sit down. They finally entered, and found a corner with great difficulty, where
they could just press themselves in. Others, not satisfied with gazing around,
loaded themselves with stones that had the appearance of being precious, and
after a time returned to the ship. They found it completely full, and
absolutely no place to sit down. After they had entered, they were compelled
from necessity to stow themselves in a dark place at the bottom. As for the
stones which they had thought were jewels, they lost their color, putrefied,
and sent forth such a disagreeable odor, as to affect the passengers to nausea.
It was impossible to expel the odor and they remained to the last with its
disagreeableness in the midst of them. Others still took so much pleasure in
looking about the island, that they said to themselves, “where shall we be able
to find a more delightful retreat than this ? It is not clear that the place
where we are going is better than this,” And so they chose to remain there; and
after the departure of the ship some of them perished with hunger and thirst,
and some were devoured by wild beasts. Not one of them was saved. In the future
world they will certainly suffer pain and retribution.
Do not suppose, beloved,
that every thing in the world is to be despised; for there are some things that
are estimable and valuable, which belong to the world: viz : knowledge,
worship, war in defence of the faith, and abstinence : and also a sufficiency
of food, drink and clothing, marriage, domestic shelter and other things;
seeing that they are helps on the journey to the future world and in the path
of knowledge, they are all of them exceedingly important and necessary. Delight
in knowledge, delight in worship, delight in prayer and delight in communion
with God are things of this world, but still they are for the sake of the
future world. It follows, therefore, that the pleasures of the world are not
all of them blamable, but only those which entail punishment in the future
world, or which are not in the path to paradise, and so the apostle declares,
“The world is a curse and all that is in it is a curse, except the remembrance
of God and that which is the object of his love.”
CHAPTER IV.
On Knowledgeof theFuture World.
Know, beloved, that we
cannot understand the future world, until we know what death is: and we cannot
know what death is, until we know what life is: nor can we understand what life
is, until we know what the spirit is….
If you wish, O student of
the mysteries of God, to learn the essential facts about death, you must know
that there are in man two kinds of spirit, one of which is of the nature of the
spirit in animals and which we call animal spirit, and the other is of the
nature of the spirit of angels, which we call human spirit. The fountain of the
animal spirit is in that heart which is in the left side of the breast, and is
a piece of flesh. It is a delicate exhalation from the humors within the
animal. Its constitution is fixed in certain proportions, just as is that of
oxymel, which is composed of honey and vinegar that on being mixed, while they
lose their own flavor, acquire a new, delicate and useful flavor, So also, by
the blending of the various elements of the body, a delicate exhalation is the
result, which finds its home in the heart. It gains other delicate qualities
from the heart, and from thence the blood channels, which are the veins of
pulsation, are supplied. The exhalation passes by their means to the brain and
from thence flows to all the members. It is exceedingly hot, but in its passage
to the brain, it loses some of its heat and becomes tepid. By the distribution
of this spirit through the body, the eye sees, the ear hears, the tongue
tastes, the nose smells, and the rest of the organs are endowed with their proper
movements and perform their appropriate functions….
So long as the spirit
works in equilibrium, it is capable of delicate operations and effects; but so
soon as excess of heat or cold destroys the equilibrium, the exhaled fluid is
diminished, and it becomes incapable of movement and sensation….
That cause which throws
the constitution out of balance and occasions the complete absence of the
exhalation, is called the Angel of death, who is also a creature of God. Most
persons merely know his name….
The second kind of
spirit, which is called both human spirit and heart, is not a body, and is not
susceptible of division. It is the seat of the knowledge of God. In the same
manner, God himself is one, is not susceptible of separation into parts and the
place of his knowledge is one….
Even if the action of the
larger part of the members should he paralyzed, it is still possible that life
should continue in a man. Death occurs, when, after the ruin of the
constitution, the delicate exhalation on that very account is no longer
transmitted to the members, and they are all paralyzed together and cease from
movement. Although, you still remain in being, you possess neither sensation
nor motion. You know, also, that in infancy the ingredients of your body were
drawn from pure blood. These underwent a change and disappeared, and the
ingredients derived from food took their place. You know moreover that the form
which you had on your entrance into the world, and your present form are not
the same. It follows therefore that there is no necessity of your perishing on
account of the perishing of the body. The body is earth and must therefore
return to its original earth. Your spirit, however, is of an angelic nature,
and you must therefore mingle with your original spirit. If the influences of
the world operate with such power that you are separated from your original
spirit, it is fixed and sure that you will have to endure the torment of
separation and misery.
It should be kept in
mind, that you possess two classes of qualities or attributes. One class
includes those which result from the union existing between your body and your
spirit, viz: hunger, thirst, sleep, eating and drinking. These qualities become
useless at death. The other class includes qualities belonging solely to your
spirit, such as the knowledge of God, and the love of God, and the qualities
which tend to secure these two, as gratitude, submission and supplication.
These are qualities of your individual self, which do not pass away with death,
but on the contrary the fruits of them will be ever growing and developing. The
language of the blessed God in the words, “the permanent things are the holy
virtues,”1
points to these qualities. That spirit is also enduring and eternal, which is
destitute of love and knowledge, which indeed knows nothing and has no delight
in or affection for these things, but it will be blind and wretched : as God
declares in his word : “He who was blind in this world will be blind in the
future world, and in a most fatal path of error.”1
The nature of death
cannot be understood, unless we are acquainted with these two kinds of spirit
and with the relations of dependence between them. Know, then, O seeker, that
the animal spirit belongs to the inferior world. The elements of its four
humors, blood, phlegm, bile and black bile, are fire, air, water and earth. The
animal spirit is a product of a delicate exhalation from these elements. The
variations in the measure of a man's health depend on the variations of heat,
cold, dryness and moisture. Hence it is the object of the science of medicine
to preserve these four elements in their due proportions, so that they may
serve as instruments to secure perfection to the human spirit.2
The human spirit belongs
to the superior world and is of an angelic substance. It has come into this
world a stranger, and has descended from its original state to this temporary
home, to receive its destiny from divine direction, and for the purpose of
acquiring the knowledge of God. In accordance with this, God declares in his
holy word, “We said to them — leave paradise all of you just as you are : a
book destined for your guidance will come to you from me: fear shall never
befall those who will follow it, and they shall not be afflicted.”3
And that which God says in another place, points to the different degrees of
worlds: “I create man of clay: and when I shall have formed man of clay and
shall have breathed my spirit in him, prostrate yourselves before him in
adoration.”4
First of all in his saying “from clay” he points to a material body. The phrase
“I shall have formed” indicates the animal spirit. The phrase “shall have
breathed my spirit in him,” means that I have given to the body of man a well
balanced constitution with power and motion. I have made it capable of
receiving the law, and to be a home for the knowledge of God.
In the same manner as the
equilibrium of the inferior spirit is to be preserved by the science of
medicine, the equilibrium of the human spirit is to be preserved by virtue,
self-denial and holy zeal, that it may not be destitute of the love of God and
perish.
It is plain, then, that a
knowledge of the future world cannot be acquired, until we have learned the
true nature of the two spirits. We cannot obtain, for example, a knowledge of
God, unless we previously possess a knowledge of the soul. But as Islamism
consists essentially in believing and confessing the Lord God and the future
world, it becomes our duty to acquire a knowledge of the future world as far as
the thing is possible. There is, however, a mystery regarding the future world,
which the holy law has not authorized to be explained or to be mentioned,
because it could not possibly be understood. Seeing then that the knowledge of
the future world cannot possibly be acquired, until that mystery is revealed,
strive that it may be revealed in your own soul by pious endeavor, self-denial
and divine guidance. You cannot learn it by any possible efforts from any other
person by the hearing of the ear. Many persons have heard this mystery, which
represents one of the attributes of God, but they did not acknowledge it as
true, and said that it was impossible, not because it was in its nature exempt
from being known, but because it was an unemployed mystery. It is not named
either in the Koran or in the Traditions. God commanded the prophets not to
inform the people of the essence of his attributes, saying “for they will not
understand them, will accuse you of falsehood, and will do injury to themselves.”
If has been clearly shown
to you, student of the mysteries, that the human spirit in its essence and
attributes is to live forever, and that it is able to exist without a frame,
that the meaning of death is not the annihilation of the spirit, but its separation
from the body, and that the resurrection and day of assembly do not mean a
return to a new existence after annihilation, but the bestowal of a new form or
frame to the spirit, which shall be under its control in the second period, as
the body was under its control in the first period….
In saying that in the
second period, the control of the spirit is easy, it is said in respect to our
contracted understandings, and in comparison with our operations, and to make
the matter intelligible to others. When God says in the powerful Koran, “It is
easier,” and “For me it is easy,” he uses the phraseology only for the sake of
being understood by man. On the contrary in the first period, there was nothing
difficult for God : it would have been nothing to him to have created without
matter, in a moment, a thousand worlds like this which we inhabit.
It follows from what has
been said, that it is not a necessary condition of the resurrection and
restoration that the spirit should possess exactly the original mould. For that
which we seek is not the vehicle of the spirit, but the spirit itself. This
mould undergoes change even in this world. Thus, for example, the materials
derived from the condensation of the exhalations and the inspissation of the
blood in the stomach of the mother are changed by food, and new flesh is
produced. Many questions may be asked of those who say that the identical mould
must return and rise in the resurrection, and that its absence can in no wise
be tolerated, and they will find much difficulty in answering them. One may ask
for example, if one man eat another man, and the man eaten become a portion of
the man who ate him, will that portion rise with the eater or with the man who
was eaten ? …
They say, moreover, that
man is created from seed, that seed is derived from food, and that food is
derived from the milk, the fat or the flesh of an animal: now with which of all
these will the ingredient rise up ? Again, suppose the hand of a thief has been
cut off', and he afterwards leads a life of good works and enters Paradise. Must he enter Paradise, where nothing maimed or
defective can enter, without his hand, or will he enter with his hand,
notwithstanding his good works were not performed when he possessed that hand ?
The source of all these perverse speculations is in the pretence of those who
say that in the day of assembly, the mould reäppears and that the spirit
follows in its train, that if it was not for the mould there would he no
semblance of man, and that the permanency of the spirit results from its
connection with the body.
If, O seeker, you say
that the well known language of the wise in the law and in discourse is, that
at death a man becomes non-existent, and that he exists afterwards in the
resurrection with this identical body, and that our language contradicts
theirs, we reply. He who merely follows in the track of the language used by
others, will never acquire a knowledge of the truth. However, the words you
have cited are not those, either of people of intelligence or of imitators. For
the intelligent and learned know that the body is not annihilated at death, but
that the materials of which it is composed are separated, and that it is this
separation which they call death. The imitator has likewise heard from the
doctors of the law, that the spirit lives eternally after death.
It is well known that
spirits are divided into two classes, in one of which all blessed spirits are
embraced and in the other all miserable spirits. With respect to the blessed
spirits God says, “Think not that those who have been slain on the divine road
are dead : they are alive near their Lord and are sustained by him.”1
In regard to the miserable spirits, the apostle of God came to the infidels who
had been slain in the battle of Bader,2
and called upon each by name, and said, “O ! such a one, son of such a one, I
have found the victory and triumph which my Lord promised. And you, have you
found that latter end and torment of which the Lord assured you, or have you
not found it ?” His honored companions having remarked to him, “they are dead
and how can they hear and how can they speak ?”, the glory of the world
replied, “By the truth of God who has commissioned me to be a true prophet, they
are better able to hear than yourselves : there is only this difference, that
they are not able to answer.” And the prophet of God declared that the spirits
of martyrs are in lanterns under the empyrean : and according to another
account that they are suspended to the fruits of the trees of Paradise
in the craws of green birds. In brief, whoever will study carefully the verses
of the Koran, the Traditions and recollections that have reached us respecting
death, and will consider the well substantiated accounts of the movements of
the dead in grave yards, he will know, in a manner that should remove all
doubt, that the dead clearly do not become non-existent….
Hence it happens, that
when a person becomes breathless and is entranced, as sometimes happens in the
first exercises among the Soofees, he has a delightful vision of the state
after death, notwithstanding the animal spirit continues in the enjoyment of
health. Yet if, while in that state, fear and terror should happen to
predominate and deprive him of feeling and motion, and if he become so far like
the dead that he perceives no external object, the same things may be revealed
to him which are revealed to others after death. It is sometimes permitted,
after he returns from that state to the sensible world, that all he has seen
should remain in his memory, or that if he does not remember it, traces of it
should remain in his mind. If he saw hell, he will retain traces of
despondency, sadness, heaviness of spirit, suspicion and melancholy. If in the treasury
of his imagination he has preserved these traces, it is lawful for him to
communicate them to others….
The torments of the
grave, O seeker after the divine mysteries, are of two kinds: one kind is
spiritual and the other is material torment, and they have been repeatedly
explained.
The spiritual torment
cannot be understood, until a person is acquainted with his own soul and
spirit. His soul exists in its own individuality: it is not dependent upon form
or mould : it has neither hand or foot, nor eye or ear. The external senses
which it possessed were dependent on the body, and remain inactive and useless
after death, and all the enjoyments resulting from them become entirely null.
Wife, children, friends, property, slaves and domestics, equipage, cattle,
estates and fields were formerly sources of enjoyment to it. And if he were a
lover of, and a seeker after these things, so that he had been always occupied
with them, the torment of separation from them will make a deep impression upon
his soul, and he will be most certainly the subject of sorrow and lamentation.
But if his heart was untrammeled by these delights, and was inclined towards
the future world and was always awaiting death, if the enjoyments of the world
were distasteful to him, while he was always occupied with the wants of the
soul, which are to find out God — then, in the event of death, he will have
attained his longing and his love, and have reached rest, joy and happiness.
Call to mind now, that
the spirit of a man is eternal: it has not perished at death. Can you doubt
then, that that spirit which had chosen the glare and glitter of the world for
its beloved object, and had been absorbed heart and soul in the occupations of
the world — when in a moment of time, all that which it had been gaining day
after day, which it had obtained with great perseverance and industry, and
which it had been coveting and striving for during many years, is taken out of
its hands by death, can you doubt that it will be the prey of endless sorrow
and grief, of abundant mortification, regret and remorse ? This accords with
what the apostle of God declares, “Love what thou hast loved: but thou shalt be
separated from it.” But when a man realizes that this world is a stage of a
journey, and that the purpose of his coming hither is to attain the knowledge
and love of God, and when he is day and night occupied with this, forsaking the
world before death arrives, and perhaps even envying and longing for death,
there can be no doubt that in the event of death, he is delivered from all paiu
and sorrow, and obtains rest and spiritual union.
From what has been said,
it follows that the torments of the grave are for the friends of this world and
the seekers of the world, and not for the devout and pious. And here we find an
explanation of what the prophet of God said : that “the world is the prison of
the believer and the paradise of the infidel.”
Since you have now
learned, O student, that the torment of the grave is occasioned by love of the
world, know also that there are different degrees of it. It is in proportion to
each person's affection and love for the world, and will come upon some with
great severity….
If, for example, a person
possess a female slave to whom he is exceedingly attached, and on account of
his being every day by her side, he is not conscious of his attachment, and
then if suddenly he should become offended with her and sell her to another
person, and should afterwards become conscious of his concealed love, his heart
would hourly assail him and sting him like a serpent. The fire of regret and
rage would burn within him, so that he might be not only sick from its effects,
but might even die. Now if it is possible that such results should follow from
the loss of a female slave, consider what must be the degree of grief and
affliction of a man who is suddenly called upon to part with all his beloved
objects in a moment. Just as it might happen that the master of the female
slave should throw himself into the water to drown himself, or cast himself into
the fire to burn himself, all on account of his separation from her, so those
spirits of men who are in their graves utter many wishes, exclaiming, “Ah!
would that these scorpions and serpents, like those in the material world,
would only sting us and destroy us, that at least we might be delivered from
this torment.”
Pain in the world is an
accident of the body, and passes from the body to the spirit, and thus the
spirit participates in the torment. But in the future world, pain has its home
in the spirit itself, and hence it is excruciating.
Every one bears away from
this world within himself the essence of his torment, but men are not aware of
it. God says in his eternal word, “Ah ! if you knew by infallible knowledge,
you would see hell, you would see it with the eyes of certainty,”1
and again He says in another place in the glorious Koran, “Truly hell
encompasseth the infidels.”2
He does not say, it shall encompass, but rather that it already
surrounds them….
If you say, O student of
the mysteries, that “the torments of the grave are occasioned by the relations
arising from this present world, from which no one can be exempt, since every
one has either children, a house, horses or servants, and that it results,
without doubt, in causing a feeling of dependence upon them: and hence, no
person will be able to escape the torments of the grave,” we observe, in reply,
that what yon say is correct, but then there are persons who have relations of
dependence upon the world, and who always desire death from the Lord God. The
prophets themselves did not puss away from the world until they longed for
death. You should know also, that the rich who are attached to this world are
of two classes. One class includes those, who although they have a love for the
world, yet they love the blessed God more. Au illustration of the character of
men of this class, may be found in the man who owns a house in each of two
cities; while living in one of them he has no longing to remove to the other.
But it happens that an office is conferred upon him in that other city, and
immediately he is overjoyed, and is eager to go there, and makes every
preparation to remove thither and to forsake his first house. His longing for
an office, leads him to move, and takes away all desire of remaining where he
was previously. Now although men of this class have an inclination to the
world, yet as on the other side the love of God preponderates, they prefer to
go to the future world, and would not indeed, if it were possible to do
otherwise, remain here a day. When persons of this class die, whose affections
preponderate towards the other world, they do not experience the torments of
the grave.
The other class, beloved,
includes those who are entirely absorbed in the love of the world, and of
pleasure. This class cannot escape from the torments of the grave, as the Lord
in his everlasting word declares: “There are none of you who will not be
precipitated.”1
But some of this class occasionally have a leaning towards eternal truth,
especially if there is any trace of the love of God remaining in their hearts,
and when they are about to leave the world, they forget it and never more yearn
towards it. In that case they also are saved from the tribulations of the
grave. A picture of this class is found in the person who also'has a house in
each of two cities, and as long as he is living in the one, he has no longings
for the other. But at last some necessity compels him to quit his first house,
and to go and reside in the second. After a few days residence, the love he had
for the first house dies away from his heart and it appears better to him not
to return thither. This class suffer torment in the grave up to the point where
they forget the world, but after familiarizing themselves with the mansions of
the future world, they are freed from their pain. Those, however, whose hearts
were immersed in the pleasures and cares of the world, and whose hearts bore no
trace of the love of God, or of thought fulness for the future world, and who
preferred this world to the other, will never be delivered from torment.
There is not a person in
the world who will admit that he does not love God, or but that will pretend
that he does love God. But this pretention can be brought to a touchstone and
standard and found out by experiment. Just look at his actions and conduct, and
see whether he will do a thing which has the holy approbation of God, or
whether he will abstain from doing a thing which has not the divine
approbation, notwithstanding the strong opposing inclinations of his soul, and
thus show his reverence for the Holy Law. If he does thus oppose the desires of
his soul, he is correct when he affirms, “I love God.” But if he is following
the inclinations of his soul, and is only saying with his tongue that he loves
God, his declaration is a lie. When a person in this state of mind utters the
confession, “There is no God but God,” a voice from God addresses him saying,
“You are a liar, for your actions are opposed to your words.” In this state of
mind there is no use in making the declaration, “I love God.” The prophet of
God says however, that it is not an idle act to utter the phrase “There is no
God but God” for the sake of preserving a man from the divine vengeance, so
long as the man is one who does not prefer worldly works to the works of the
future world….
Let those, then, who wish
to be saved from the torments of the grave, be earnest in cutting off the ties
of the world; and let them acquire a habit of being satisfied with just that
which is of actual necessity. Be satisfied for example with that amount of food
and drink which is necessary to give strength for devotional exercises; be
satisfied with the amount of clothing necessary to protect the body from cold
and heat; and so in everything else. If a man cannot purify his heart from attachment
to the world let him at least be assiduous in devotion and in calling upon God,
and show a preference for cultivating an intimacy with the love of God. Let him
look with fear and dread upon trust in the world, and weaken and relax the
demands of sense by strict obedience to the law. If notwithstanding he should
prefer to yield to the animal soul and to trust in this world, let him prepare
himself to experience the torment of the grave and the terrors of the future
world. And may the grace and mercy of God which embrace all men, and his pardon
and forgiveness which extend to rich and poor, to great and small, reach and
save him !
The miterizl torments
of the grave, O seeker after the divine mysteries, are those which are
addressed to the body and through the body to the spirit. Spiritual
torments are those which reach the spirit only. The language of God, “It is the
fire of God, the lighted fire which shall reach the hearts of the reprobates,”
refers to spiritual torments which affect the heart. The spiritual hell then is
of three kinds. The first is the fire of separation from the lusts of the
world; the second is the fire of shame, ignominy and reproach; and the third is
the fire of exclusion from the beauty of the one Lord. These fires only burn
the soul and do not touch the body.
There is in the world a
cause or source of each kind of torment. Then let us examine the cause of the
fire of separation from the lusts of the world. In explaining previously the
torments of the grave, we said that they arose from love of the world. Love and
desire constitute the Paradise of the heart.
So long as the heart is with its beloved object, it is in paradise, and as soon
as the heart is separated from its beloved object, it is in hell. The men of
this world, by their supreme love of the world, have made it to be their
beloved object, and as long as they are in the world it is a real paradise to
them; but as soon as death comes and separates them from their beloved, their
state is a real hell to them. Believers, by loving God and the future world,
have made them their best beloved, and as long as they are separated from them
they are in hell. But as soon as this separation is annihilated, and they leave
this world and go to the other, having attained their chief purpose and desire,
they are in paradise in reality.
Suppose a person, a
prince, had been passing his life in banqueting and pleasure, and every one
around him had been submissive and obedient to his orders. But an enemy comes
and deprives him of his principality, enslaves his wife and servants, and they
plunder him of his money and property before his eyes. His pearls and jewels
are wasted upon trifles, and his beautiful studs of horses and his retinue are
dispersed. He becomes a subject in his own city, is compelled to wear coarse
clothing in the presence of his former servants, and is appointed to guard and
feed the dogs. Can you in any wise appreciate the misfortune into which the
prince has fallen, and how deeply he must be a prey to anguish ? Probably he
exclaims many times in a day, “Would rather that I had fallen into the abyss of
the earth and perished!” The severity of his torture is in proportion to the
amount of sensual enjoyments in which he had participated while he was a
prince. And it is plain that this torture is not inflicted on the body, but
upon only the spirit, and that it is more excruciating than any pains of the
body would be.
So long as a man is
attached to the things of this world engrossed with the care of his body, and
gives over his nature to intercourse with sensual enjoyments, he will not care
for the warnings his spirit receives in this world, nor for the torment that it
will incur in the future world. A sick man for example will not be so
excessively despondent about his malady in the day time, because his senses are
interested in other things, and aa his heart follows in their train, he in some
measure forgets his malady. In the night, however, when his senses have nothing
to be employed about, his thoughts about his malady do not leave his mind free
for one moment, and his pain increases. So also in death, the cares and
thoughts of the world and the external senses cease entirely to operate on
account of the torment of the spirit, and then the perfect torment of the
spirit becomes manifest.
The second kind of
torment in hell, beloved, is the fire of ignominy and shame. In illustration
this, suppose that a prince receives in to his friendship a poor'and humble
man, treating him with great honor and making'him the favorite among all his
confidential servants. He gives into his hands the keys of all his
treasuries/commits his honor and wife and family to his care, and in short
confides all his affairs into his hands, in full reliance upon him. Then,
suppose that the poor man, after being elevated to this high rank, should be
puffed up with pride, and should be disposed to betray the honor of the
prince,— that he should begin to indulge in unworthy conduct with his wife and
servants, and should open his coffers and spend his property for his own
pleasures. Suppose farther that he should even be consulting with the prince's
enemy who has designs upon the principality, and should enter in to a compact
with him. Just at this point the prince from a concealed retreat espies his
conduct in his family, and learns how he has wasted his money and his
possessions, and in short becomes acquainted with everything he has done. The
man also learns that for some time the prince has been aware of his course of
conduct, but that the reason of his delaying and postponing punishment was that
he might see what other crimes he would commit, that he might punish him
accordingly. In these circumstances the reflecting can easily appreciate what
would be the confusion and mortification of this individual. He would think it
a thousand times better to fall from a precipice and be dashed to pieces, or
that the earth should open and he sink into the abyss, than that he should
continue to live. So also is it with you. How many actions you perform, of
which you say, “it is in private and no one sees it,” or of which Satan cloaks
over the guilt from your mind, by persuading you that it is all right and fair.
But at last, when death comes and makes your sin manifest, then the fire of
ignominy and shame makes you captive to fierce torments and long continued
misery….
Suppose you should throw
a stone over against a wall, and some one Should come and inform you that the
stone had hit your own house; and had put out the eye of your son. When you
rush to your house and find that it is even so, can you conceive of the fire of
repentance and anguish you will have to meet? …
Nor can the overwhelming
nature of the remorse or the pain of the punishment be compared with the pain
of putting out your son's eye, because the former is eternal. The pains and
sorrows of the world are but for a few days and then pass away, while thoughts
upon the advantage and profit in the future world of pains endured here, will
bring joy to those who reflect upon them. Your happiness does not depend upon
your son's eye nor upon your own eye, but upon being accepted of God, and being
honored and enriched with a vision of the divine beauty and excellence.
Another illustration of
the fire of shame and ignominy is, to suppose that a prince is giving his son
in marriage, and that after many days spent in feasting and rejoicing on the
occasion the moment has come for the son to receive his bride. The son,
however, has secretly withdrawn with some of his friends and become so
intoxicated as to be incapable of reasoning. But at last he concludes that it
is time for him to return, and that he will go secretly and alone. He sets out,
therefore, on his return home, out of his mind and unconscious of what he is
about. He walks on until he reaches a door through which he sees lights
burning. He fancies that it is his own house, and straightway he enters in. He
looks around and observes that there is not the least movement, not even a
breath, but that all have gone to sleep. At last in the middle of the court he
sees some one covered over with damask silks and brocades, from whose body is
exhaled the odor of musk. He fancies and exclaims that this must be his lawful
bride, and he kneels down before her and kisses her lips. He observes that his
mouth is damp with moisture that exudes from her lips, and that he is touching
something wet. The mouth of his beloved is wounded and bloody, and he thinks
that it is rose water, and continues to caress her, till he is stupified with
sleep. After a while he awakes and comes into his right mind, and perceives
that he is in a sepulchral chapel of the fire-worshippers, and that what he had
embraced was nothing but the body of an old woman ninety years old, who had
died six months previously. On that night they had anew changed the coverings,
burned incense and lighted the candles.1
When the prince's son
sees himself in this condition, shame and mortification overwhelm him to such a
degree, that he is upon the point of destroying himself. But still severer
anguish lays hold of him, lest, when he should leave the place in this filthy
state, he should be seen by some person. While he is asking himself what he
should do, his father who knew nothing as to the place where his son had been,
but who had left his palace with his friends and his suite in search of his
son, meets him just at the moment he is coming out of that house in that state.
Imagine now the shame of the sou and what must be his feelings. No doubt but
that he would have given his life to any one who could have offered him a
refuge and deliverance from his shame. You see that the torment here is
spiritual and not material; for there is not an iota of pain here that affected
the body.
In like manner the men of
this world when they go to their graves, will see that what they called
pleasure was flesh and corruption which they had unlawfully taken into their
mouths. They will see that that beloved object, dressed in rich clothing,
obtained by illicit means and stained with pollution, is but the old hag the
world, with her disgusting face and horrid smell and putrefied corruption, on
account of whom so many drowned in illusions have become victims to shame and
remorse. Still more bitter torment will that be, beloved, which will be the lot
of man, when in the day of resurrection and assembly all these crimes and sins
shall be laid open before all the angels and prophets. Our refuge is in God!
Think not that the shame
and remorse of the future world is only of the kind that we have been
describing. For we have before said that nothing belonging to the future world
can be understood in the present world, or be rightly conceived of by our
minds. The doctors of the law however (upon whom may God show mercy!), for the
sake of warning and admonition in the world, and so far as the mind can
appreciate it, have spoken in parables and illustrations, and they have in
various ways compared the ignominy and remorse of the future world to the shame
and misery existing in the present world, notwithstanding the misery in this
world is but for a moment or a few days, while the other is everlasting.
We come now, beloved, to
the third fire, the fire of separation from the divine beauty, and of despair
of attaining everlasting felicity. The cause of this fire, is that conduct and
stupidity which led the individual, while in the world, not to acquire a
knowledge of God, to neglect purifying the mirror of his heart from the
consuming cares ot the world and from the rust of sensual pleasures, and to
omit those austerities and exertions by which his blamable inclinations and
dispositions might be changed to laudable ones. The individual did not act in
accordance with the tradition which says, “Acquire a character resembling the
character of God,” and by means of which he might have been worthy of the
vision of the beauty of the Lord, and of being received at the king's court.
The heart which is full of the love of the world, and of the rust of worldly
cares and transgressions, will see nothing in the future world, must be shut
out from all kinds of felicity and will rise blind at the resurrection. Our
refuge is in God !
An illustration of this
fire of reprobation and banishment may be found in this world, by supposing
that a company travelling by night should come into a valley that was very
stony, and as they went on their way, they should hear a voice calling out,
“Take good heed and carry away with you an abundance of these stones; you will
have occasion to use them at some future time.” Some of those who heard the
voice, exercised prudence, and carried off as many stones as they could; others
for the sake of saving themselves trouble, carried off only a few. Others still,
did not carry away any, saying, “it is folly to take pains and trouble for the
sake of an advantage that is future and prospective : indeed it is not clear
that there will be any advantage at all.” Besides, they treated as stupid and
foolish those who did carry any away, and said, “look at those insane people,
who, from pure cupidity and craving for what is impossible, load themselves
down like asses, and give themselves useless pains. We are the comfortable
ones, who go on our way free, joyful and without concern for the future.” When
the light of day dawned, they saw that all the stones were invaluable rubies
and sapphires, each one of which was worth at least three thousand drachms of
silver. Then those who had brought away stones, exclaimed, “alas! that we were
not able to bring away any more.” But those who had brought away nothing and
had traveled with comfort and ease, were overwhelmed with the fire of
reprobation; they strike their heads upon the ground with the energy of
remorse, and are filled with sighs and lamentations. Those who had brought away
stones, arrived at the city whither they had been going, and bought estates and
slaves, jewels and rich and pleasant eatables and all kinds of raiment, and
gave themselves up to banqueting and enjoyment, while those who had not brought
away any stones, became so hungry, destitute and naked, that they went about
desiring to perform for them some kind of service. But when they begged of them
either food or drink, they said, in accordance with what God says in his
ancient word. “The dwellers in fire shall call out to the inhabitants of Paradise, ‘pour out upon us a little of your water and of
the enjoyments God has bestowed upon you.’” They will answer, “God has
forbidden the unbelievers either.”1
“No, we shall give you nothing, for God has prohibited you from having
anything. Yesterday you were laughing at us, to-day we laugh at you: as God
declares in his eternal word, ‘If you mock at us, we will in our turn mock at
you, as ye have mocked at us.’”2
This illustration of the
enjoyments of Paradise has been made in very
brief and comprehensive language, to serve as an example, but it is impossible
by any similitude to give an idea of what it is to be separated from the
contemplation of the beauty of the Lord. For whoever has but once experienced
the delight of being near to God, and has enjoyed the vision of the beauty of
the Lord, would perish if he should be for one moment separated from it. Even
the last and least person who quits hell will receive a mansion from the Lord
God which is equal to ten of these worlds. But we do not mean to say ten worlds
in surface or in amount by number and weight, but ten worlds in value and in
the beauty they display arid the pleasure they afford.
Having now become
acquainted with the three kinds of spiritual torment, know, O student of the
divine mysteries, that these spiritual fires of which we have been speaking,
are more severe than the fires which burn the body. The body does not itself
perceive pain, and until pain reaches from the body to the spirit, it does not
make a trace or impression. If, then, the anguish that is occasioned to the
spirit through the channel of the body is so agonizing, imagine how intense
must burn the fire of that anguish which has its origin in the centre of the
soul. The pain which any thing suffers is occasioned by the excess of something
contrary to the nature and necessities of its constitution.
The necessities of the
constitution of the spirit are to know God and to contemplate his beauty and
excellence. But if stupidity and blindness, which are opposed to this tendency
of the spirit, become predominant, the soul will be vexed and tormented, and
there will be no end to the torment. If it were not that the body is subject to
maladies in the world, the fact of this blindness and stupidity would have been
visible and apparent to the soul in this world also, and it would also have
been the source of immense anguish, and torment would at no moment have ceased
to afflict men. Just as when a person has a severe sore upon the hand or foot,
if besides it should be cut with a knife or fire should be put upon it, he
would not feel the pain of the knife or the fire, on account of the pain of the
sore, so likewise the maladies of the body, such as hunger and thirst, or such
maladies as love of possessions and family, combined with the absorbed
attention of the senses to these things, prevent the soul from being conscious
of its disquiet and distress. But when in death, the torment to which the body
was subject is taken away, it will be seen how excruciating is the torment of
the soul. And thus also God announces in his holy word : “Ah ! if you knew it
with infallible assurance. But you will see hell: you will see it with the eyes
of certainty.”1
You should know, O
inquirer, that the many arguments we have adduced to prove that spiritual
torment is more severe than material torment, and the many illustrations of it
that we have developed, are understood by intelligent and discerning minds, but
the mass of the people understand nothing about them. Suppose, for example,
that the sou of a prince has begun to go to school, and he is admonished that
if he do not study, his father will not give him the principality. The boy does
not understand the import of the warning, and continues busy in playing with
tops and nuts. But, if he is told instead, if you do not learn to read and
write, your master will whip you or pull your ears, from that moment,
understanding the force of the admonition, he leaves his sport and play, and is
diligent in his studies. Since, therefore, the commonalty cannot understand the
torment of being forbidden and shut out from the vision of the beauty of God,
the doctors of the law and the preachers, frighten them with serpents and
scorpions, and with the fire of hell; for they are not capable of understanding
anything else. In the other case, how should the “look out! take care !” from
the mouth of the master, with the pain of one or two boxes on the ear, have any
relation or resemblance in the mind of the boy with the loss of the principality?
…
The heavenly pilgrim must
forsake his own city, and not fix himself for permanence in the place where he
happens to be. And by the word city, worldly cares and employments are
designated. He must quit them, and find his home in the path of obedience, and
forsake the land of tribulation: for the prophet has said, “Love of country is
an article of religion.”
This road has four
stages: the things of sense belong to the first stage; the things of fancy
belong to the second stage; the things of speculation to the third, and those
of reason to the fourth stage….
The view which man
obtains of things in the visible world is through matter, as in the
contemplation of a prospect on land. But in the fourth stage, which is that of
the reason, man's view is entirely through the medium of pure spirit, as when a
man looks into water. But the view he takes, and the intercourse he enjoys in
the world of speculation, is as if he was looking at an object from a ship.
There is, besides, in the sphere of reason a still higher degree of sight and
vision, which is enjoyed by the prophets, the saints, and the most devout,
which may be compared to a prospect in the clearest weather. Hence, when some
one observed to the apostle of God, that Jesus (upon whom be peace !) walked
upon the waters, he replied, that “if his faith had been greater, he would have
walked in the air.”
The view that can be
taken by the heart of man, embraces all things that lie in the world of
perception and understanding. Its sphere of action and exercise is the whole
world. The ascent of man from the rank of beasts to that of angels, is an
ascent where he is always exposed to danger and to destruction. He may, with
the guidance of the divine guide, mount up to the highest heaven, or may
descend through the deceits of Satan to the lowest hell. And the prophet has
warned us of this danger in these words: “We have proposed to the heavens, to
the earth and to the mountains to accept the deposit of the faith: they
trembled to receive it. Man accepted the charge, but he became stupid and a
wanderer in darkness.”1
Know, farther, that
inanimate objects are the lowest in rank in the quantity and degree of
happiness they obtain, and it is a happiness which knows no change. The place
of beasts is in the lowest abyss and there is no path by which they can ascend
out of it. The mansion of the angels is in the highest heavens where they ever
continue in the same condition, there is neither abasement or ascent from their
place. And God also says in his eternal word, “And what have we except for each
one a certain and appointed habitation.”2
The position of man is between the rank of angels, and that of animals, because
he partakes of the qualities of both. No other rank except man accepted the
deposit of the true faith, and indeed no other had the qualities and capacities
necessary for the acceptance of it. In accepting the deposit man became bound
at the same time to accept the dangers and penalties connected with it.
The doctors of the law
have not commented upon these topics to the people in general. But this is not
to be wondered at, when we consider that the mass of the people regard
themselves as fixed in their character and position, and not as pilgrims and
travellers to a higher state. There is no possibility of unveiling the things
of truth, to those who settle down without desiring to make any progress, and
who are contented with the first stages and degrees of the sensible world and
of the world of fancy. They can neither attain to a spiritual state, nor
understand spiritual laws and precepts. We have ventured, however, to unveil a
little of the mysteries, as a type of the knowledge belonging to the future
state, so that men might be prepared to understand the questions and affairs
relating to that state. But if we had entered into any farther developments,
they would not have been able to understand us, for none but those who are
endowed with penetration and experience can by any possibility understand the
topics to which we have alluded.
There is a class of
foolish people, O inquirer after the divine mysteries, who have neither
capacity for knowledge, or sound judgment to be able to understand anything of
themselves, and who have remained doubting and speculating about the nature of
the future state, till they have become bewildered. Finally, as the lusts of
the world harmonized with their natures, they have yielded to the whisperings
of Satan, and deny that there is any future state. They pretend that the only
need there is of speaking of heaven and hell, is for the sake of correcting and
guiding the conduct of the people, and they regard as folly the course of those
who follow the law and are constant in their devotions.
If these foolish persons
have one jot of sense, it will be easy to convince them with a single word. One
hundred and twenty-four thousand prophets more or less, the whole multitude of
the saints and all the learned doctors of the law have faithfully followed the
Holy Law, have been diligent in their devotions, and with prudent anxiety and
dread about the future state, they have endured much pain and suffering. And
how does it happen that you, who are so ignorant and stupid, have found out
that they were mistaken and in error ? What should lead you to prefer your
baseless and corrupt fancies to their knowledge and science, and to say that
the spirit has no real existence and that it does not continue to live after
death ? Perhaps you do not even admit that there is any material punishment.
Truly the health of your moral being is so corrupted and depraved, that there
is no cure for you; you belong to that class of whom God says in his holy word
: “Even when thou shalt call them into the right path, they will never follow
in it.”1
If one of these men
should, however, reply: “Indeed I do not” know for a certainty, but why should I
on account of an uncertainty, pass my precious life in devotional austerities,
and forbid myself the delights and pleasures of the world ?" We observe in
return. According to your principles, the probabilities are balanced as to
whether the events spoken of as belonging to the future world will or will not
happen. It follows then as a most rational conclusion, that you ought to act in
the same way you would do, if you wished to preserve yourself from a great risk
and danger. For, if these events should take place, you may thereby be saved
from intense torment and obtain eternal felicity; whereas, if they should not
occur, you will have suffered no injury from your precautions. We have,
besides, the inspired word which declares that all these things will take
place; and all the prophets (upon whom be peace!) and all the saints and
teachers of religion (upon whom may God have mercy !) have testified to the
truth of them.
Do you not see that if
you were desirous to partake of food and were just stretching forth your hand
to take it, and some one should say, “Beware, and do not eat of that food, for
it is deadly poison,” or “a serpent has vomited upon it,” that although there
was a doubt in your mind whether what he said was true or false, still you
would believe him and refrain from eating the food ? You would say to yourself:
“If I do not eat it, I have nothing to suffer but to remain hungry for a while
longer, but if I eat it, I may kill myself. It is prudent, therefore, for me to
refrain from it.”
Again, if you were sick,
and a person who writes magical phrases and charms, should say to you, “give me
a drachm of silver, and I will write for you a well tried charm by means of
which you will immediately get well,” although you know that there is no
relation of fitness between an external charm, and an internal disorder of the
stomach for instance, and that there is little probability of your recovering
by its means, you are still disposed to take it. And you say, “Come, let me
have it, if it act as a medicine, I shall be a gainer by so many drachms of
silver, and if it do me no good, I shall only have lost a single drachm. I
ought therefore to try it.”
Once more, if an
astrologer should say to you, “if you will drink this bitter and disagreeable
medicine, you will not, be attacked with illness during the whole of this
coming year, for the moon is in such a station among the heavenly bodies,”
notwithstanding the lie of the astrologer should be very clear to your mind,
and you have no confidence in what he says, you would reply, “well, let me
drink it and see; if it do me no good, it will do me no harm.” And with the
fancied hope of advantage from it, you swallow down the bitter and unpalatable
potion as if it were sugar.
Now come and be candid
with yourself; you give credit to a false physician, to a false writer of
charms and to a false astrologer, for the sake of being delivered from a day or
two of illness in this world, and you even undergo suffering for the sake of
it. But the learned in religion, for the sake of saving you from the malady of
stupidity and rebellion and bringing you to everlasting health and felicity,
have exerted themselves to make the verses of the Koran and the holy traditions
to serve as a medicine to deliver you from bitter torment. Still you attach no
credit to their words. You treat the Koran and the traditions with entire
disregard, neither clinging to the commandments of God, nor avoiding forbidden
things. You follow the bent of your own inclinations, instead of following the
example and law of the prophet of God, and you indulge in many acts of
transgression. Nor do you call to mind what will be your condition in the end
of it all, nor how long a time you have yet to live in the world, nor what
eternity is compared with this world. Do you not know that by choosing a very
little pain in the business of religion during this short life and in this
worthless world, you may gain eternal felicity, and riches that cannot be taken
from you ? The pain which we may suffer in this world, however severe, yet does
not weigh the amount of an atom in comparison with the pains and torment of the
other world. This world is a fading shadow, but the future world is abiding and
eternal.
The following is an
illustration of the duration of eternity, so far as the human mind can
comprehend it. If the space from between the empyreal heaven to the regions
below the earth, embracing the whole universe, should be filled up with grains
of mustard seed, and if a crow should make use of them as food and come but
once in a thousand years and take but a single grain away, so that with the
lapse of time there should not remain a single grain, still at the end of that
time not the amount of a grain of mustard seed would have been diminished from
the duration of eternity.
Beware, therefore,
beloved of exposing yourself to eternal torments; call to mind the great risk
and danger you are to encounter in the future world : address to your soul
serious admonitions, before you come to be ashamed and fall into captivity and
chastisement: ask your soul, saying, “O rebellious soul, how much misery thou
dost undergo for the sake of gaining the world ! What long and distant journeys
thou dost undertake, how often dost thou remain hungry and thirsty,
notwithstanding thou are both transitory thyself and all thou dost gain is
transitory; and yet all this time God himself has engaged to supply all your
needs. But on the other hand what hast thou done to secure eternal salvation in
the mansions of the future world, to be delivered from misery and reach
unchanging felicity ? If thou art not able to endure the least pain or toil for
religion in this world, how wilt thou be able to bear it the future world both
material and spiritual torments, together with the torments of the imagination
?”
Every man ought to take
as the subject of his thoughts, the things which concern the future state,— the
pains of its torments, the joys of its felicity, the delight and ecstasy of the
vision of the beauty of the Lord, and finally the fact that these states are eternal.
Now, is it not strange folly and sottishness to be proud of the transitory
pleasures of the world in a life which lasts but for one or two days, and to
turn our backs upon future eternal joys ? If you are wise you will acknowledge
the frailly and errors of your soul, and with an understanding of the purpose
for which it was created, you will meditate upon your soul, and upon the
almighty power and greatness of God as far as the human mind can comprehend
them. Recognizing that God's design in creating you was, that you should know
him and love him, you should never cease for one moment to walk with humility
and prayer in the path of obedience. Regard this world as the place to sow seed
for eternity, and after taking such a portion from this world as may give you
strength to take the journey to the other world, turn away from whatever is
more than this. Realize that the future world is the place for enjoyment and
happiness which is eternal, and the land to behold the excellence and beauty of
the Lord; and make it your purpose, divine and omniscient grace assisting you,
never to cease from the pursuit of them, but to secure as your prey, the
phoenix of felicity and happiness.
CHAPTER V.
OntheLoveofGod.
O traveller on the way
and seeker after the love of God! know that the love of God is a sure and
perfect method for the believer to attain the object of his desires. It is a
highly exalted station of rest, during the journey of the celestial traveller.
It is the consummation of the desires and longings of those who seek divine
truth. It is the foundation of the vision of the beauty of the Lord.
The love of God is of the
most binding obligation upon every one. It is indeed the spirit of the body,
and the light of the eye. The prophet of God declares that the faith of the
believer is not complete, unless he love God and his prophet more than all the
world besides. The prophet was once asked, what is faith ? He replied, “It is
to love God and his prophet more than wife, children and property.” And the
prophet was continually in the habit of praying, “O my God! I ask for thy love,
I ask that I may love whomsoever loves thee, and that I may perform whatsoever
thy love makes incumbent upon me.”
On the resurrection day all
sects will be addressed by the name of the prophet whom each followed, “O
people of Moses! O people of Jesus ! O people of Mohammed!” even to all the
beloved servants of God, and it will be proclaimed to them, “O Friends and
beloved of God, come to the blessed union and society of God! Come to Paradise and partake of the grace of your beloved !” When
they hear this proclamation, their hearts will leap out of their places, and
they will almost lose their reason. Yahya ben Moa'z says, “It is better to have
as much love of God, even if only as much as a grain of mustard seed, than
seventy years of devotion and obedience without love.” Hassan of Basra says,
“Whoever knows God, will certainly love him, and whoever knows the world, will
shun it.”
O thou who seekest the
love of God! know that this Jove is founded upon two things : one is Beauty,
and the other is Beneficence. Beauty acts as a cause to produce love, because
the being, the attributes and the works of God possess beauty, and every one
loves that which is beautiful. There is a tradition which says “Verily, God is
beautiful and he loves beauty.” And the prophet says, “Desire to transact your
affairs with those who have beautiful countenances.” It is on this account that
the spirit in man has been created in accordance with the image of beauty, so
that whenever it either hears or sees anything beautiful, it may have a
propensity towards it, and seek for communion with it.
But you should also know,
that beauty is of two kinds, one of which is beauty of form, and the other
beauty of moral character. And know, O beloved, that the reason why man must
love beauty of form in his own species, and has an inclination to admire
external beauty, is that God created the spirits of men out of a drop of his
own light, as he says. “when I have breathed my spirit into him.”1
And as the spirit has thus been created out of the light of the Lord God, it is
so essentially beautiful, that if man were capable of seeing the degree of its
beauty, he would become bereft of reason and perhaps would perish from the
effects of the impression.
This also should be
known, that beauty of form belongs to the spirit, and not to the body. It is a
proof that there is nothing agreeable in the body by itself, that when the
spirit is separated from the body by death, no one has any inclination
afterwards to look upon the face of the dead, but on the contrary his feelings
repel him and he turns away from it. And however near a friend or relative the
person may be, we have no disposition to approach his side again. The body of
man is created of opaque earth, and the spirit by entering into the body is
entirely veiled, so that it can neither be seen or known.
It is clear then that the
beauty of form possessed by man and the beauty of many other things arise from
their being created from the light of the Lord. Consider then, as far as human
reason can reach, if such beauty and elegance exist in spirits formed out of
one drop of the light of the blessed God, what must be the beauty and splendor
of the Lord God himself. Since then the beauty of every beloved object is
derived from his light, and that the beauty of every thing that is beautiful is
from him, it follows that he who is wise, ought not to permit himself to be
deceived by the soul which passes away, and to be attracted to that beauty
which is fleeting, but that he should turn to the contemplation of that painter
who is full of all perfection, and of that maker with whom is no change, and
earnestly seek after the vision of his beauty with his whole heart. Let him
continue day and night with burning and consuming desire in humble prayer, longing
after his beauty and after union with him.
- I have made a home for thy love in my heart,
- While affection for something else hovers around the home.
- But it is folly to contract friendship, with aught else than thy beauty.
- For there is none to be loved but the eternal Friend
- He who has made thee to be his happiness and refuge,
- Has already joined himself to the perfect excellence.
O ! seeker of divine
love, that which renders man favorably inclined to persons of virtuous
character, is the fact that God has created man after his own character; as it
has come to us in the tradition that, “verily God created man after his own
image.” Hence whenever man sees or hears of a quality belonging to his own race
and kind, as justice, generosity, forgiveness or patience, he will certainly
have a sympathy with that quality and exercise love to its possessor. If we
hear for instance that in a certain country there is a just sovereign or a just
vizier, we heartily love that king or vizier, and we are always praising his excellence
and worth, although there is not the least probability of any advantage
accruing to us from his justice. Such a sovereign was Nushirvan, who
notwithstanding he was an infidel yet as he was just, the heart of every man is
drawn towards him. If again we hear of the knowledge, science, clemency or
munificence of any persons, as of the Imam Abu Hanifé, of the Imam Shaféi, of
Bayézid of Bistan, or of Junëid of Bagdad, the spirit of a man will be
attracted towards them on account of those qualities, he will love them, and he
will certainly desire to see them and to be with them. If we hear of a generous
man, although he may be in a foreign country, and we have no hope of any
advantage from him or of any token of his generosity to ourselves, yet still from
necessity we will love him, and whenever his name is mentioned we will invoke
blessings upon him and praise him. It is thus with Hatem Tai whose name, though
he was an infidel, is upon every tongue, because he was a generous and
benevolent man, and all hearts are irresistibly led to love him….
We see then that the love
we bear to persons endowed with the virtuous qualities of man, is not bestowed
by us for the sake of any fancied advantage from them or any hope of gain, but
that on the contrary it is because the spirits of men are created in
correspondence with the character of God, and when we see a trace or mark of a
quality or affection of a kind like our own, we cannot help being attracted
towards it, and must necessarily love it.
In this view of the subject,
O seeker of the truth, and friend who longs for the bright vision, when you
consider what an impulse we have to admire and to love man who is encompassed
with so many defects, and whose qualities are subject to decay, — be candid and
reflect, that all the attributes of God are perfect, that all his titles are
glorious, and that all his works are made in infinite wisdom, and how then can
there be a man of such animal affections and propensities as not to love him
with all his heart and soul! And how can a person having the appearance of a
man, be such a stone, as not to be willing to make a sacrifice of his head and
even of his soul, impelled by his absorbing affection for Him ?
- Separation from thee, would quickly destroy me,
- Separation from one's friends is fatal.
- If thou shouldst separate from me still would I
- Be occupied with thee, ever active Friend,
- Who art the object of my desires and my researches;
- For thou wilt not turn away from him who loves thee.
You should know also that
in the world of spirits, God had ennobled man with beauty and its qualities,
and had made him sufficiently acquainted with Himself and His attributes; and
the spirits continued for a long time participating in enjoyment in the land of
affection, intoxicated and in eestacy with the cup of love and the wine of
celestial union. Afterwards in accordance with divine wisdom and by soverign
decree, they fell from that exalted world to this lower world,—from the world
of union to the world of separation. In this world of trial, having entered
into bodies and become entangled with the things of sense and with worldly
occupations, and shut out from the spiritual world, they forgot its intimate
friendships and the joys of its society. Being so far distant from that world,
the being and character of God became completely veiled from the view of some,
and the love and union which had existed in their hearts from aril eternity
disappeared. None the less however, it is still the case, that when man sees
beauty and perfection, the spirit cannot help admiring it. But as the intimacy
and friendship which had formerly existed have been clouded over, and the
animal impulses, passions and lusts have become predominant, they imagine that
the love of pleasure belongs to the delights of religion, and regard it as a
necessity of the soul.
The spirits of some men,
however, in becoming attached to a body, retained the divine guidance, and the
spiritual world in consequence was not concealed from their view, nor did they
forget its friendly society or the attributes and qualities of its holy
spirits. And as the glory of the infinite being and his attributes was not
veiled from their eyes, their desire for the blessed union and longing for the
vision of beauty increased daily. In accordance with this, it is related by
Soheil Testeri (may God's mercy be upon him !) that “from the moment that the
blessed God in the world of spirits and the assembly of holy union asked the
spirits “Am I not your Lord?”1
and they called out in an answer “yes!” that loving answer has never waned or
decayed within my soul. When I was only three years old, I used to spend all night
in the worship of the Lord God, without giving any slumber to my eyes.”
O thou who longest after
the love of God ! the second cause of love in man which we have mentioned, viz
: beneficence, operates through the state of poverty and need in which man has
been created. Both in the affairs of the world and in the concerns of religion,
man is in want of an infinite variety of things, as God says in his word,
“Verily, God is rich, but ye are poor.”.2
Hence a man always loves and honors whatever person enables him to obtain any
object of which he stands in need, or who makes it probable that he will obtain
it. This will be the case especially, if the same individual has at various
times supplied his necessities. He will then be enslaved to him, heart and
soul, and whenever his name is mentioned will chant his praise and invoke
blessings upon him. The proverb says, “man is a slave to beneficence.”
In matters of religion,
man has need of helpers of two kinds. The first class are the great expounders
of doctrine,3
who instruct him in religious precepts, and preserve him from the darkness of
ignorance and the dangers of doubt. They also make him acquainted with the
restrictions of the law, and the regulations and ceremonies of worship. They
explain to him what conduct corresponds with rectitude, and what is
improper,—what is lawful and what unlawful. The second class of helpers to man
are the venerable preachers.4
It is their province to throw light upon the nature of the way of life, and
upon the true condition in which man is placed. They point out the means and
methods by which the slave of desire may secure a change of his vicious
inclinations, and by which the disordered soul may obtain a pure and virtuous
character. They set forth the transitory nature of the world and the shame and
sin of being attached to it. They endeavor to persuade men that the design of
their entrance into the world is that they may love and know God; and they
strive to turn them away from following the world, by giving them ideas of the
joys and rest of the other world, and of the delight and preciousness of the
vision of the beauty of the Lord, that so they may live as pilgrims to
eternity. The whole reason why the apprentice loves his master, and every
disciple loves his teacher, and why the wise and excellent love the experienced
Sheikh whose lessons they hear, or love the doctors of the law and the saints
of olden time is that they have been beneficent, and have supplied their
wants.
In matters pertaining to
the world, beloved, the necessities of man are of such kinds that there is no
occasion for our entering into any details. Do you not realize for instance,
through how many hands the food you put into your mouth passes, before it is
brought to you, and how many persons have been employed in the service of preparing
it for you ? And man has, in short, the same kind of need of helpers in his
clothing, home, and in all the arts and trades, as has before been mentioned.
He needs, also, the winds and rain, the sun and moon, the earth and sky, as we
find in the verses of Sheikh Saadi:1
- The clouds, wind, moon, sun and stars are working ever:
- Therefore if a loaf of bread comes into your hands, eat it not without gratitude.
And after we have eaten
our food, how many agents we need to digest it, and to convert it into fat,
milk and blood. We have before remarked upon the number of servants there are
within your body, of which you have no knowledge.
And now, student of the
celestial way, and seeker after the love of God, come and consider a little
with the eye of reverence and the mind of thoughtfulness. If a person should
give you a drachm of silver, or a suit of clothes, or serve you for a single
day and conclude some business which concerned you, you would love him as long
as you lived, and you would always speak well of him wherever his name was
mentioned, although the service he had performed for you, and his act of
beneficence was only effected through the will of God and by his power. Be
sincere now and say, why should you not love and sacrifice every thing for the
sake of God, who created the heavens and the earth, who has taken care of all
your affairs long before you desired it of him, who has provided for all your
necessities before you had any notion of them, who gives you so many thousand
mercies at every breath, who has not ceased to sustain you, even when you were
disobedient to his commandments and rebellious, and who has covered your shame,
for the sake of the Friend of God ? Ought you not to praise him with your
tongue, and love him with your heart ? Is it right, overwhelmed as you are with
his unfailing mercies and infinite bounties, that you should regard these
mercies as coming from other source than God, and that you should thank some
other one than Him for these services and favors, and that you should love some
other one instead of him ?
- It is in vain that the eyes watch for any other love than thee.
- It is a loss for the eyes to weep for any other friend.
- Thou art the true friend! If thou deign to look upon me,
- It will be well with we, as if my eyes had never wept.
- What shall I do with that life which is not passed in remembrance of thee ?
- What shall I do with the eye that is not sad with longing after thee ?
- What shall I do with the heart that is not the home of thy love ?
- What shall I do with the soul that does not, make itself a sacrifice in thy Way ?
O inquirer after the love
of God ! The love of God exists in every heart, though it lies concealed, just
as fire exists in the flint stone, until it is drawn out. If you take the steel
of desire and affection into your hands, and with it strike the heart, you
obtain fire by the means, and your soul will be filled with light. The malice,
deceitfulness, hatred, vileness, envy and strife that are in the heart will be
burned up, and it will be freed and purified from sensual perturbations. But if
you are careless and do nothing and pass several days without seeking, the
heart will again become like fire covered over with ashes, which by remaining a
long time unused, will finally be extinguished. So at last the heart, becomes
encased with sensual impurities and with the blackness of the passions, and is
no longer capable of being enlightened with the light of truth. Our refuge is
in God !
O, faithful friend, who
art worthy to be loved ! know, that the love of God is a standard that leads to
victory. Whoever seeks refuge under it, will be a sovereign in two worlds, and
lord of a throne at the king's court. This love is a universal solvent to
secure happiness. Whoever secures it, is richer than in the possession of both
worlds. God is always rich, notwithstanding all the world is provided for
through him. The heart which bears no traces of the love of God, is like a dead
corpse, which knows nothing of its own spirit. Still there is no person among
reasonable beings who will say that he does not love God, or who will not make
pretensions to possessing a love for him. But it is like an empty claim, upon
which no decision can be based and, unless the witness is a faithful one, no
conclusion can be formed. If you should be asked, do you love God, beware and
give no answer. For if you say I do not love him, (our refuge is in God), you
would make yourself an infidel. And if you say in answer, “I love him,” yet you
have no signs or tokens of your loving Him.
Now know that there are seven
signs of love to God. In whomsoever these marks are found, his pretensions
to loving God are to be regarded as well founded.
The first sign of love to
God is, not to be afraid of death, and to be always waiting for it. For death
unites the friend to his friend,—the seeker to the object which he seeks. As
long as attachment to and dependence upon the world cannot be broken off, the
traces of love to God cannot be visible. If a person, however, is afraid of
death and does not feel a readiness to go into the presence of God, and yet is
making every provision for his journey into the other world, it does not follow
that he does not possess the love of God. It is, on the contrary, an evidence
that he does love God.
It is a second sign of
love to God, when a man prefers the love of God to any worldly object, chooses
whatsoever draws him near to God, and forsakes whatsoever has a tendency to
turn him away from God. He desires always to act in accordance with his will
and with his approbation. But it is not an indication that a person is entirely
destitute of love to God, because he is not in every circumstance submissive to
the holy will of God. For, in some persons love may exist in perfection, while
in others it may be in some measure defective. It is said, for example, that
during the life of the apostle of God, one of his companions was a wine drinker,
and he had oftentimes been punished for it. Another of his companions one day
vexed at his conduct, cursed him. The prophet happened to hear him curse him,
and knocked for him to come in. When he had come into bis presence he said,
“Why do you curse that man ? He is both a friend of God and of his prophet, and
loves them.”
The third sign of a man's
love to God is that the remembrance of God is always fresh in his heart. He
never ceases to meditate upon God. Every man thinks upon and calls to mind an object
in proportion to his love to it. If a person's love and affection is perfect he
never forgets that object. If a person say, I love both God and a certain
worldly object, attention should be paid to see which of them he loves the
most. And then that object can be said to rule in his heart which he loves the
moat. Gradually from day to day, the object which preponderates will efface
little by little all affection for the other.
The fourth sign of love
to God is, to love and respect the powerful Koran, regarding it as the word of
God. A man ought to praise and love the prophets and saints, as the friends of
God. He should love all men, saying that they were all created by the will and
power of God. Whatever person attains to this point, his feelings of envy and
hatred and even his coldness of looks will be quelled and disappear, and he
will treat all individuals as his friends.
The fifth sign of love to
God is that a man will choose the closet and retirement and have an eagerness
for secret prayer. He will long and wait for the night, that the avocations and
hindrances of the world may be banished, that he may be embarrassed by no
distractions in his supplications to his incomparable and unique Friend, and
that he may be alone in familiar intercourse with God.
It is reported that in
the days of the children of Israel,
there was a slave who prayed every night from evening until morning, but he
went out and performed his morning prayer under a tree. God spoke by
inspiration to the one who was the prophet at that time and said, “Go and speak
to that slave my servant thus:—You abandon prayer to me in secret and come out
here to pray under this tree, for the sake of the pleasure you derive from the
music of the birds over your head. But in so doing you mutilate as it were my
love and you will not again obtain it perfectly.” It is also reported that God
once said to David, “O ! David, that man is a liar, who pretends to love me and
yet goes to bed and sleeps the whole time till morning. For does not a friend
desire to see the countenance of his friend, and is he not eager to have
intercourse with him ? Whoever wishes to see me, will seek me and will find
me.”
The sixth sign of love to
God, is when a man finds the worship of God to be easy, inviting and
delightful. It is related that a certain preacher1
used to say, “I have served God in worship sixty years with irksomeness and
constraint. I afterwards served him yet sixty years more, and my devotions were
to me spiritual food; and in the absence or disuse of them, I did not enjoy a
moment's peace or quiet of mind.”
The seventh sign of love
to God is, that a man loves the sincere friends and obedient servants of God,
and regards them all as his friends. He regards all the enemies of God as his
enemies and abhors them. And God thus speaks in his eternal word. “His
companions are terrible towards the infidels, and tender towards each other.”2
A Sheikh was once asked “who are the friends of tile exalted and blessed God?”
He replied: “The friends of God are those who are more compassionate to the
friends of God themselves, than a father or a mother to their children.”
Preserved
Table. This record-tablet of Mohammed, may have been suggested to his
mind by the two tables of stone of the Ten Commandments of Moses A clear view
of what this table is, may be obtained from the following extract from a
treatise of Berkevi explaining the Mussulman dogmas, which is at the present
day a text-book in the Turkish schools.
“It must be confessed,
that good and evil and every thing in short happens from the predestination and
foreknowledge of God,—that all which has been and will be, was decreed from
eternity and is written upon the preserved table, — that nothing can happen
contrary to it,—that the faith of the believer, the piety of the pious man and
his good works are foreseen, willed, predestined and decreed in writing on the
preserved table, are produced, accepted and loved by God;—but that the
infidelity of infidels, the irreligion of the wicked and their bad actions
happen indeed with the foreknowledge of God, by his will, and as an effect of
his predestination inscribed upon the preserved table, and by the operation of
God, — but not with his satisfaction or affection
Mystics.
Wherever this word is found in this treatise, it is to be understood that the
original word is soofee. and sometimes, the word has been allowed to
stand untranslated. Soofee does not necessarily mean any one particular society
of Mussulmans, but includes all persons as well as orders and congregations,
who embrace mystical or transcendental modes of interpreting the Koran and who
conform their lite in a greater or less degree to their mystical notions
Soofee, Dervish and Fakir, are different words for various classes of oriental
monks and mystics. They are found where or there are Mussulmans, and the
differences between them and other Mussulmans bear a considerable relation to
the differences developed by mystics, pietists or puillegibletans
in Christian churches They differ also much among themselves in their modes of
spiritualization and in their ceremonies and practices. There is also much
jealousy of each other, between the dominant orthodox clergy and doctors of
religion, and the mystics, dervishes and preachers. The orthodox clergy admit
only the grammatical and literal—the external meaning of the Koran ; but
many Soofees pretend that the outward meaning is but the shell, and that they
seek for and expound the inward or mystical meaning. The reverence and esteem
for the Soofees and Monks is so great with the people, that the clergy and
doctors usually conceal their opposition and jealousy.
“Soofeeism has existed in
one shape or other in every age and region; its mystical doctrines are to be
found in the schools of ancient Greece
and in those of the modern philosophers of Europe.
It is the dream of the most ignorant and the most learned : it is to be found
in the palace and the cottage, in the luxurious city, and the pathless desert.”
The fundamental doctrine,
and the great object of longing of the oriental mystic is union with God. The
whirling Dervishes as they are popularly called, imitate the founder of their
particular order and whirl around on their toes for an hour to the sound of
soft music and muttered chants : and they imagine that the dizziness which is
created and the prostration which follows is an inspired ecstacy and `an
approximation to the desired union. Mussulman mystics are extensively accused
as are also a class of perfectionists in the Christian church, of regarding
external actions as morally indifferent to those who are spiritually
enlightened. Their doctrines have been abused among themselves by fanatics to
lead them to the commission of crime, as in the case of the attempt to
assassinate the shah of Persia
by the Babis. We should no more be led to think that there was any tendency to
abuse for evil purposes from reading this treatise of Ghazzali, than to infer
the same from devotional and mystic writings of the western world. Ghazzah, is
as much disposed to censure hypocritical pretence among Soofees, as some
writers on Persia
have been to class nearly the whole body as hypocrites.
The Mohammedan calendar
being regulated by the lunar months, every twelfth lunar month is devoted to
fasting, and it is of the greatest importance that the very first appearance of
the moon should be watched, to know just when to commence the fast. Certain
months and days of the month are peculiarly appropriate to works of charity.
The days on which the caravans of pilgrims ought to arrive at Mecca, and the days for going around the
black stone of the Caaba, occur also on certain fixed days of lunar months. The
advantages and moral ends of having a moon, must be looked at from the point of
view of the theological theory of the author, which is nothing less than that
the moon was created on purpose to render possible, and to aid in carrying into
effect, the ordinances of the uncreated Koran.
Interpretationof theKoran. The extract belew from the
work of Ghazzali, the Tehafeti Felaséfé or Destruction of Philosophy,
while it shows the position he assigns to the doctors of the law, exemplifies
also the character of his genius, and the measure of independent thought
tolerated among Mussulmans. He fearlessly adopted whatever discoveries in
science could be established by proofs, and defended them even when apparently
opposed to the language of the Koran : the dogmatical interpretation of the
Koran must yield to stubborn, undeniable facts in science. I translate it from
Hajji Khalfa's Jihani Numa, or View of the World, where it was
introduced by him to enforce the claims of scientific evidence to be received
by the faithful.
“Know that the
differences of opinion between philosophers and mankind generally are of three
kinds. The first kind of difference is simply a verbal one. As for instance
they speak of the maker of the world as essence or substance (jouhar),
while at the same time, they explain the word to mean that which exists by
itself and independent of place.
“The second kind of
difference refers to questions, where there is no difference between their
system and the principles of our religion, and where there is no occasion of
appealing to the prophets in confirmation of the matter in dispute. For
instance the philosophers say, that an eclipse of the moon is an indication
that its light is obstructed on account of the earth's coming between it and
the sun, seeing that the moon derives its light from the sun, and that the
earth is a sphere surrounded by the sky on all sides, and therefore when the
moon falls into the shadow of the earth, its light is cut off. The Philosophers
also say that an eclipse of the sun arises from the moon's standing between the
observer and the sun, and from a conjunction of the two at the same moment.
“The same may be said in
regard to this language as was observed in reference to the disputes about
words,—that one need not be anxious about refuting it. Whoever imagines that it
is a religious duty to dispute upon this subject, has in fact attacked
religion, and injured his own cause. For in truth these positions are fortified
by mathematical proofs, about which there can be no doubt. Whoever investigates
an eclipse, can establish it by demonstration, and can point out its
peculiarities, the period of its commencement, the extent of it, and the period
of duration until the reillumination begins. And if some one tell him that the
demonstration is contrary to doctrine, let him not doubt the demonstration, but
rather let him doubt the interpretation given to the law (of the Koran). The
wrong done to the law by those who defend it with false interpretations, is
greater than the wrong which is done to it by those who find fault with it on a
correct interpretation,—as says the proverb, ‘a wise enemy is better than a
foolish friend.’
“If some person should
argue, that as according to a tradition, the Prophet once said, ‘When God
manifests his glory upon anything, it humbles itself before it,’ and that
therefore this is to be taken as an indication that an eclipse arises from an
act of humility in the presence of God, we reply, that this report is not a
genuine tradition, and that even on the supposition of its genuineness, it
would be better to throw light upon its meaning, than to make use of it for
altercation in categorical premises. For when the proofs are definite, we ought
not to be controlled to such an extent by unexplained texts of the Koran. It is
a cause of great joy to the infidel when the apologist for the faith pretends
that such views are contrary to the faith, for it then makes it easy for him to
refute the law. The world is cow disputing whether it is a genuine tradition or
merely ancient. But if its genuineness should be established, it would still be
a matter of indifference, whether the earth were round or fiat, or whether the
heavens above and what is below are more or less than thirteen layer — seeing
the thing sought to be proved is, that at any rate they are all the work of
God.
“We come next to the
third difference of opinion, in which the matters disputed about are at the
foundation of religion, as the creation of the world, the attributes of the
creator, and the resurrection of the body. In this case it is without doubt our
duty to refute the error with convincing arguments.”
The work of Degerando, Histoire
comparé des systémes de philosophie, Tomi iv, Paris, 1823, many properly be
relerred to, for comparison with Smolders's Essai, to aid farther in
appreciating the principles of Ghazzali in interpreting the Killegiblen,
and the grounds of his opposition to Aristotle His picture of the stand-point
of Ghazzali seems accurate and just See also, Whewell, History of the
Inductive Sciences 3d edition, 1857.
