Topics
.It is taught in spiritual schools of thought
that it is necessary to enter the world of mysticism; that we must believe in
the presence of that invisible word. Belief is necessary because we cannot get
benefit from anything without belief. Water quenches our thirst, because we
believe that water quenches our thirst. We are alive because we believe that we
are alive. Man dies on the very moment when his belief of life is broken. When
someone arrives at the stage of belief that if he goes out of his home, he will
meet with an accident, he will not go out of the home.
Two kinds of mind work on man. One mind is the
mind of obedience which is the mind of heaven. Because of that mind Adam lived
in heaven (paradise). Other is the mind, which came into being (existence)
after disobedience.
Mind of heaven (paradise) - Mind of obedience & belief
Mind-of
disobedience
Room
(residence) of Satan's whispers
In the
case of later (mind), man indulges in doubts and whispers.
"Then Satan caused them to deflect there
from and expelled them from the (happy) state, in which they were. Then Satan
whispered to them to show them both their private parts (their shame) which
were hidden from them both and he said, "Your lord forbade you from this
tree only lest you should become angels or become among the immortals. And he
swore to them (saying) I am sincere advisor to you. Thus by deceit, he brought
about their fall and when they tasted the fruit of the tree of knowledge their
shameful parts were manifested to them". "And we already made a
commitment with Adam, but he forgot, and we found no steadfastness (determination)
in him. But the devil whispered to him, saying: 0, Adam, shall I lead you to
the tree of eternity and power that never decay?"
Adam felt, when he touched the forbidden tree
that he had no dress on his body and he had to cover it.
In the result of these feelings, paradise
(heaven), rejected (kicked out) Adam and he (Adam) was thrown down to the
earth.
How many lessons, recitation of a sacred phrase
or verse, daily worship, actions and engagements and practices are done in mysticism;
the aim of all these is that the achievement of paradise for Adam (mankind) may
be possible.
God taught Adam three kinds of knowledge
(learning).
1-
Introduction of the Creator and the Universe
2-
Creatures
3- Self
Awareness
God says that we created everything in the form
of pairs (couples) similarly, every kind of knowledge has duality and the three
kinds of knowledge (learning) have six aspects. These six sides are six circles
of mysticism called (known) six generators.
1- Self-
substance Generator
2- Heart
Generator
3-
Soul ( Spirit) Generator
4-
Head Generator
5- Hidden
(Concealed) Generator
6-· Th
e Most Hidden Generator
Self and Heart -------------------AnimalSpirit
Soul and Head------------------- Human Spirit
Hidden and the Most Hidden----------------- The
Greatest Spirit
Animal spirit is the combination of ideas and
feelings which is called awareness (wakefulness) in this world of water and
earth (mud). Man feels himself subjugated (bound) in the force of gravity at
each moment (step).
Eating, drinking, sleeping, waking, making
marriage and all worldly tastes are done (performed) by Animal Spirit.
Human spirit provides demands (requirements) of
living and informs us that at this moment food is required and now water is
needed. We call all these requirements as hunger and thirst etc.
Child birth is related to animal spirit but
love for children, growth of children and tendency of the best bringing up in
the heart of the mother is transferred (transmitted) due to human spirit. When
man sleeps, in fact animal spirit sleeps. When animal spirit sleeps, human
spirit wakes.
Time and space has no hindrance for human
spirit such as when we live in human spirit, it is possible for us to travel
(voyage) the distance of thousands of miles, to see something at the distance
of thousands of miles, and to meet (see) spirits of dead people (bodies).
We are bound with animal spirit at every step
while the human spirit liberates us. We cannot, due to the senses of animal
spirits, see behind the wall. If a thin piece of paper is placed before our
eyes, we see nothing. On the contrary, our senses are so powerful in human
spirit that we can see beyond the limits (boundaries) of earth. God says in
Surah_Al-Rehman,
"O company of jinn and men, if you can
manage to penetrate (all) regions of the heaven and the earth; then penetrate
them! You will never penetrate them except with (our) sanction
(authority)".
(Surah Rehman: Verse 33)
In mysticism, authority means human spirit i.e.
when the senses of human spirit start to work in man; he penetrates from the
boundary of heavens and earth. It is the observation of every day, when we
concentrate to something, and the rest of things sink in the realm of
negligence (ignorance).
When we continuously (constantly) concentrate
on something, that thing happens (occurs). For example, when we think (ponder,
medicate) about a friend or a relative and we think in such a way that we are
observed (soaked) in his personality leaving everything, we are actually seeing
(meet) that friend.
Those kinds of learning (education) which are
related to God's splendor, order (will) wisdom are hidden in the greatest
spirit. The person who is aware of the greatest spirit becomes devotee of God.
These are the pious (devoted) persons to whom, God says,
"My servant becomes akin to me with his
obedience; I start to love him. Till, I become the eye through which he sees,
become the ear by which he listens and become the hand, by which he
catches".
The relationship with Allah is not possible
without entering the unseen realm. To enter the unseen realm to see something
beyond the limitation of time and space is possible when a person is acquainted
(familiar) with the methods of liberation from the shackles of time and space.
Example:
Sometimes, we study such books as make us
unaware of our surroundings. After having finished the book, we realize that several
hours have passed without the realization of time. So, we feel astonished that
long hours have passed. Similarly, when we sleep we are out of the realm of
time.
_The Holy Quran says,
"We alter day into night and night into
day". At another place The Holy Quran says,
"We make the night grow longer by
shortening the day and We
make the day grow longer by shortening the
night,"
(Surah Al-Imran: Verse 27) At another place The
Holy Quran says:
"And that We make the night grow longer by
shortening the day and We make the day grow longer by shortening the
night,"
(Surah Hajj: Verse 61)
Then we stand in front of a large (gigantic)
mirror, we see our image in it and say that we are looking at the mirror. In
fact, we are not looking at the mirror rather our image is reflected in the
mirror. First of all, the mirror absorbed our image and after absorption,
reflected it. If the mirror had not absorbed and reflected back our image we
would have not seen the image.
First of all, the mirror absorbed our image and
then we looked at our image. It means that we are not looking at the mirror
rather we are looking at the image in the mirror. Same is the case with all the
activities of life. If everyone considers his mind as a mirror then his angle
of direct look will be as if our mind looks at that image or thing. So,
whatever we are watching is the reflection of our mind.
We have a glass of water with us. It is filled
with water and we are watching it. This kind of observation is called fiction
in mysticism and exact way of expressing this observation is that the image of
glass emerged O”, the screen of our mind through sight (eyes) and a
sub-conscious accepted the nature of water. Our insight felt and looked into
the image of the glass and water with all our knowledge and nature.
Human eye first converts the image of anything
on the slate of our mind, only then we are able to look at it.
One of the angles of watching is that a thing
is placed before us and we are watching it. Another angle of watching is that
the image of the thing appears on our subconscious and we watch it. It means that
we are looking into the image of our soul.
When a man dies, the eye and its eye lids
remain with his body but he is unable to watch anything. This condition can
occur in common life other than in death. For example, if all the things in the
world are placed before blind, he would not be able to watch them. He is unable
to watch them as the medium of sight is lost. It shows that the eye has not
imprinted an image of the mind. Sometimes, it happens that the eyes are
restored, but the cells of mind which sensitize man, become non-functional. In
this condition, neither man can watch nor can he feel. When an ant stings a
man, he feels pain even if he has not seen it. It means that, the thing that
sensitizes the man tells the mind that something has stung him. Whatever the
first knowledge man gets is achieved by the sense of touch, hearing and sense
of sight. It is the first rank of sensitivity. Deriving some meanings after hearing something is the third grade of sensitivity.
Acquisition of knowledge for the first time is the first grade of sensitivity.
Seeing is the second grade and the hearing is the third one. Feeling the
fragrance or the bad odor of anything is the fourth grade of sensitivity.
Tactile is the fifth grade of sensitivity.
A man feels thirsty. It is a natural demand.
Senses guide us to fulfill our natural needs. They tell us whether the water is
hot or cold, bitter or sweet.
The motives working behind the needs of thirst
are not those working behind the need of hunger. The motives of hunger have
their own status; that's why eating something doesn't satisfy the need of
thirst.
The status of man stands from other animals
until he remains within the spheres of collective sentiments shared by men and
animals alike. And when the man feels these emotions through human sentiments
and he resorts to them in the completion of his sentiments, he remains
prominent from other animals. The inter link between the senses and sentiments
is also found in men like the animals. But the difference is that a goat or a
cow can't translate its senses into meaningful action. Its knowledge is limited
to the sustenance of the needs of life. It only knows that drinking water
satisfies the thirst and eating leaves removes its hunger. It drinks water
irrespective of knowing whose water it is. In contrast to this, when an urge
produces in man, he uses his senses to understand the kind of this urge and how
to satisfy it.
Since Allah has granted men the knowledge of
senses he, therefore, is superior to the other creatures.
The natural needs of all the creatures to
sustain life are the same. A man feels hungry likewise a goat or a parrot do
feel hungry. Man and the other animals alike feel thirsty; both of them satisfy
their needs of hunger and thirst. But the man is well known for the use of
senses and needs. The knowledge of these things gives man the rank of the Crown
of Creation.
In mysticism, it is taught how the senses and sentiments.
are produced? A Sufi (mystic) becomes familiar with the law to acquire this
knowledge.
Man is a machine consisting of 1.2 trillion
parts. Some parts make senses, others make sentiments still some others help in
the completion of these sentiments. Man is granted this capability to know
about these constituent parts and gets to know how these parts function and is
fitted in this machine.
The goat doesn't have the ability to understand
the creation of this machine and its constituent parts. If man doesn't
understand this machine and its relation to the universe then he is no better
than a goat. A goat and a cat both feel hungry. A bitch does nourish its
children and love them. The mouse and the sheep both feel thirsty.
Instinctively, a man nourishes his offspring and loves them. In the same way, a
goat also loves its children and suckles them and trains them how to live. If a
man does all what is done by goat then there is no difference between the two.
He can't be considered superior to the goat.
KHWAJA SHAMS-UD-DEEN AZEEMI
Many a scholar has written a lot about
spiritualism and pantheism. One school of thought is of the view that as saints
often used to wear wooly dresses therefore people would call them sufis. Wool
is called sauf in Arabic. They used to wear such a dress, for it had been the
habit of many a prophet, saints and pious people. According to some people, as
they have been associated with the Ashaab-e-suffa that is why they are called sufis;
whereas according to yet another school of thought the word sufi is linked with
suf a.... but all these explanations are not satisfactory.
In fact, the terminological meaning of Sufi'ism
(tasawaf) is self cleansing. It is the name of a true spirit that is related
to conscience and the light of conscience is always inherent. A sufi always
thinks in the context of Allah. His talk moves around Allah. He lives with
Allah and dies in the name of Allah. He recites His words and always praises
Him and remains enmeshed in His love. He sacrifices everything in order to see
and meet Allah.
