Studies in Islamic Mysticism - Nicholson (1921)
Studies in Islamic Mysticism - Nicholson (1921)
Studies in Islamic Mysticism - Nicholson (1921)
IN
ISLAMIC MYSTICISM
CLAY, MANAGER
LONDON
FETTER LANE,
E.G. 4
BOMBAY \ CALCUTTA I MACMILLAN AND CO., LTE. MADRAS ) TORONTO THE MACMILLAN CO. OF
:
CANADA,
:
LTD.
TOKYO MARUZEN-KABUSHIKI-KAISHA
ALL RIGHTS RESERVKI)
STUDIES
IN
ISLAMIC MYSTICISM
BY
CAMBRIDGE
AT THE UNIVERSITY
PRESS
1921
TO
*.
PREFACE
in the preface to my Studies in Islamic the following essays conclude a series of five, which Poetry, fall into two groups and are therefore published in separate volumes. While mysticism, save for a few casual references,
As was explained
found no place in the studies. on the Lubdbu 'l-Albdb of 'Awfi and the Luzumiyydt of Abu l-'Ala al-Ma'arri, in these now
brought together
it
field.
Ibnu 1-Farid, indeed, is an exquisite poet; and the picture of Abu Sa'id ibn Abi '1-Khayr, drawn by pious faith and coloured with legendary romance, may be looked upon as a work of art in its way. But on the whole the literary interest of the present volume is subordinate to the religious and philosophical. I have tried to make the reader acquainted with three Sufis famous in the East and worthy of being known in Europe. Most of what has hitherto been written concerning Abu Sa'id begins and ends with the quatrains
passing as his, though (for the chief part, at any rate) they were neither composed nor recited by him. As to Jili, the
masterly sketch in Dr Muhammad Iqbal's Development of Metaphysics in Persia stands almost alone. Ibnu '1-Farid had the misfortune to be translated by Von Hammer, and
the
first intelligent
appeared in Italy four years ago. It will be seen that the subjects chosen illustrate different aspects of Sufism and
exhibit racial contrasts, of which perhaps the importance has not yet been sufficiently recognised. Abu Sa'id, the free-thinking free-living dervish, is a Persian through and through, while Ibnu '1-Farid in the form of his poetry as well as in the individuality of his spiritual enthusiasm displays the narrower and tenser genius of the Semite. Nearly a third of this volume is concerned with a type of Sufism, which
vi
Preface
as represented by Ibnu 'l-'Arabf and Jflf possesses great interest for students of medieval thought and may even claim a certain significance in relation to modern philosophical and
Mysticism is such a vital element in Islam that without some understanding of its ideas and of the forms which they assume we should seek in vain to penetrate below the surface of Mohammedan religious life. The forms may be fantastic and the ideas difficult to grasp; nevertheless we shall do well to follow them, for in their company East and West often meet and feel themselves akin.
theological problems.
I regret that I have not been able to make full use of several books and articles published during the final stages of the war or soon afterwards, which only came into my hands
when these studies were already in the press. Tor Andrae's Die person Muhammeds in lehre und glauben seiner gemeinde (Upsala, 1917) contains by far the best survey that has yet appeared of the sources, historical evolution and general
characteristics of the
I
Mohammedan Logos
doctrine. This, as
the real subject of the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil. Its said, roots lie, of course, in Hellenism. Andrae shows how the
have
is
notion of the
6elo<t avdpwrro*; passed over into Islam through the Shf'ites and became embodied in the Imam, regarded as the living representative of God and as a semi-divine person-
the world depends for its existence. ality on Shf'ites were in close touch with unsm, and there can
whom
Many
be no
the
doubt
that, as
Shf'ite
Imam is
prototype of the
attributes of the
Qutb.
It
Prophet, so that even amongst orthodox Moslems the belief in his pre-existence rapidly gained ground. Particularly instructive to students of the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil is Andrae's account of the Logos doctrine of Ibnu 'l-'Arabf, whose
influence
In this is manifest in every page that Jili wrote. connexion another book by another Swedish scholar H. S. Nyberg's Kleiner e Schriften des Ibn al-Aratri (Leiden,
1919) provides to which I have
new and valuable material. The introduction, now and then referred in the footnotes, not
vii
to
In the i6th and I7th centuries the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil exerted a powerful influence upon Indonesian Sufism, which has been studied by the Dutch Orientalists D. A. Rinkes, B. J. O. Schrieke, and H. Kraemer. I should
like to call attention to the
scholar in
account given by the last-named Een Javaansche primbon uit de zestiende eeuw (Leiden, 1921), p. 40 foil, and p. 83 foil. Some months after my work had gone to the press, I
received from Prof. C. A. Nallino an off-print of his article // poema mistico arabo d'Ibn al-Fdrid in una recente traduzione
italiana 1
Sac. Ignazio
from which I learned that a prose translation by Di Matteo of Ibnu '1-Farid's most celebrated ode, the Td'iyyatu 'l-Kubrd, had been published in 1917 at Rome. As this book was reproduced in autograph for private circulation, it would have been inaccessible to me, if the author had not kindly presented me with a copy. He replied
,
paper entitled Sulla mia interpretazione poema (RDSO., 1920, vol. vm. which was 479-5)> immediately followed by a second article from Nallino, Ancora su Ibn al-Fdrii e sulla misto Nallino in a
del
tica
musulmana (ibid. vol. vm. 501-562). Having myself attempted to translate the Td'iyya, I am impressed with the merit of Di Matteo's version rather than inclined to dwell on its faults. He has given us, for the first time, a careful
and tolerably correct rendering of the original; and that is no slight achievement. The articles by Nallino, which include a critical examination of numerous passages in the poem, are the most important contribution that any European Orientalist has so far made to the study of Ibnu '1-Farid. In an essay
consisting largely of translations, I could but indicate (pp.
193-5 infra) my views on the main question which he has discussed in his friendly controversy with Di Matteo. To him, as to me, it seems clear that the view put forward by Di
Matteo
is erroneous. Neither the form nor the substance of the Td'iyya suggests that it was inspired by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi,
his influence
may
viii
1
.
Preface
It differs in
it
as the 'Ayniyya of
kind from poems indubitably so inspired, such Above all, it is a mystic's autoJili.
biography, a poet's description of his inner life, and the terms which it employs belong to the psychological vocabulary of $ufism, with few exceptions. I have no quarrel with those who call Ibnu '1-Farid a pantheist but his pantheism (unlike that of his commentators) is essentially a state of feeling, not a system of thought. The poem, however, requires explanation, and I do not think it can be interpreted without reference to the corresponding philosophical doctrine. In other words, if we are to elicit any definite meaning from the symbols which shadow forth a consciousness of mystical union, we must somehow connect them with metaphysical propositions. But although mysticism is not an allegory, still less is it a theology or philosophy. Hence the sayings of "God-intoxicated" men will not serve as a sure criterion of their attitude towards religion. Moslems themselves, as a rule, want better evidence of heresy than this.
;
I desire to
express
my gratitude to Prof.
C. A. Nallino
and
Di Matteo for their gifts of books and for the which courtesy accompanied them; to Mr A. G. Ellis for the loan of his copy of the InsdnU 'l-Kdmil and to the authorities
Sac. Ignazio
;
my
disposal the
manuscripts mentioned on
77 infra. Especial thanks are due to Mr Rhuvon Guest, who most generously sent me his unpublished translation of the Td'iyya of Ibnu '1-Farid and allowed me to use it for the purpose of correcting and imp.
proving
my
latter
was
in print.
is
Mr
Guest's
thoughtful
and
and I found it of great service in dealing with which to me seemed obscure. If I have sometimes passages
judicious,
preferred
my
1 There is no trustworthy basis (cf. p. 164 infra) for the statement that Ibnu '1-Farid was acquainted with Ibnu 'l-'Arabf. The latter is said to have asked the poet's permission to write a commentary on his Td'iyya, and to have received the reply that the Futiihdlu 'l-Makkiyya was a commentary on it (Maqqarl, Leiden ed., i. 570, 16-18); this, however, is the kind of story that could scarcely fail to be invented. The Fut&hdt was completed in A. H. 629, only three years before the death of Ibnu '1-Fdrid.
Preface
ix
convinced me that his was more likely to be the right one. Besides thanking the scholars who have helped me in the second part of these studies, I wish to acknowledge the appreciative criticism which the first volume has received.
Both Noldeke and Goldziher have declared their agreement with the view there taken of the character of Ma'arri. The remarks of my old teacher, Prof. Noldeke, are so interesting that I cannot refrain from quoting them:
In der Gesammtauffassung des Dichters und Denkers muss ich Ihnen durchweg beistimmen. Zunachst darin, dass M. kein Muslim mehr war, sondern als einzigen, allerdings festen Punct aus der religiosen Ueberlieferung das Vorhandensein eines allmachtigen Gottes behielt, der in seiner Willkiir so ziemlich dem koranischen glich. Dabei halte ich es immerhin fur moglich, dass M. hie und da auch sonst an Einzelheiten der Lehre Muhammeds festhielt, je nach verschiedenen Zeiten und Stimmungen. Dass
die Widerspriiche innerhalb der Sammlung nicht alle auf absichtliche Tauschung herauskommen, mochte ich damit betonen.
Welche Weltanschauung und welche Dogmatik ist ohne innere Das christliche Dogma habe ich hier vor Allem im Auge ich meine die Dogmatik aller christlichen Confessionen. ...Was man auch an M. aussetzen mag, man muss vor seiner Selbstandigkeit doch die grosste Achtung haben. Wie eigen
Widerspriiche?
;
beriihren uns nr. 117-119, worin die Fiirsten als Diener und Besoldete des Volkes erscheinen, bei einem Orientalen (Friedrich der Grosse dachte wenigstens theoretisch auch so.) So fern^uns oder mir (da ich mich doch als strenger Rationalist ihm verwandt fuhle) seine iibertriebene Askese liegt, die z. B. nicht beriicksichtigt, dass "Die grossen Fische fressen stets die kleinen," dass die Singvogel grosstenteils von Insecten leben und dazu, dass wir Menschen von den Tieren direct oder indirect aufgefressen wiirden, wenn wir sie nicht vielfach toteten, so muss man doch auch in der Hinsicht vor ihm Achtung haben. Wenn er den Wein verabscheut, so muss man bedenken, dass dieser damals wie jetzt (namentlich bei den Persern) ganz besonders dazu diente, rasch sinnlos betrunken zu werden (cfr. Gen. xliii. 34, "nDH). Der Standpunct war also verniinf tiger als der der americanischen Gesetzgebung, die das Kind mit dem Bade ausschiittet. Wie verstandig ist M. auch darin, das er nicht an dem fast zum Dogma der islamischen Ueberlieferung gewordenen Satze festhielt, dass die Menschen in fruheren Zeiten besser
!
gewesen waren als die Zeitgenossen (nr. 162, 4 als zweifelhaft, Vermutlich wollte er damit 146, 3 bestimmt ausgesprochen) besonders den Vorzug der "Genossen des Propheten" treifen.
!
x
Prof.
Preface
Noldeke laid me under a further obb'gation by the text of the pieces selected from the Luzumiyydt reading and proposing a number of emendations. These are given below, together with some which I owe to the kindness of
Prof. Bevan. Misprints are included, and the English version has been corrected in a few places where, as Prof. Bevan pointed out, the original was mistranslated or not fully under-
stood.
P. 66, No. 20, first line.
Read
nature joined of old in friendship fast."
"Ah,
P. 79,
let
us go,
whom
No.
Read
"With
P. loi, note 4.
(^JJajUl
:
(Abu Muslim) hatte der Dynastic treu gedient darauf bekleidete die ihn mit der Farbe der Finsterniss" (N.).
P. 109, No. 124.
Although
>^LO
by "words are wounds," that rendering gives too wide an application to the Arabic phrase. As the context shows, ^^UC)| has here its technical
meaning and
theologians)
.
refers
to
the dialectic
of
the mutakallimun
(scholastic
P. 116, No. 144, lines 5-6. Read " Be just and live
And none
P. I2i, No. 163, third line.
is
ubS$\
JJ^* (B.).
Read
here calamity."
better."
Read
"If nonsense be
all
the coin
we exchange, then
P. 132, No. 192, last line. Read "To succour, and shall surpass in excellence Hajib's bow." Note 2 should be deleted. For "Hajib's bow" see Naqd'id, 462 (B.).
from
foot.
By an
oversight,
written instead of
P. 145, note
i
.
"Abu
'Abdallah al-Khwarizmi."
called
The animal
by the Arabs
jLyAJI
j^j
is
not the lynx but, as Prof. Noldeke reminds me, the hunting-leopard
(cynaelurus),
commonly known
in
P. 167, No. 240, first verse. Read " Say to wine, which is a foe to (men's) understandings, ever drawing against them the swords of a warrior."
Preface
Noldeke writes: "240,
als Intransitiv
i 1st
xi
richtig,
vJ^w
doch wohl
da toj schwerlich
Ibn
j
Qotaiba, 'Uyun, 277, 2, wie es ja regelrechter Plural von i^yj zu Sura xx, 56, 128); und so passt das gut."
t^J
(Baidawl
For
"my
"
Read But pardon me, O my God At Mecca shall I throw off Amongst pilgrims newly come the weeds of a widowed frame."
!
Prof.
Bevan
^US
by
can
woman who is
.J.b.
when
throwing on (a garment)," it properly means "to throw off." as bereaved of I suggest that ^^JUr denotes here the poet's body, which he compares to a woman clad in sight, strength, and all its pleasures mourning, while ^>Lo refers to the garments which would be laid aside
i.
For
XaJU read
v. 16.
For For
(B.).
v. 3.
v. 8.
lyJLJL*.
lyXJU.
(B.).
J,x>l. (B.)
better than
jcU..
"
(
v. 5.
Read
For
^^
f
"
15^'
J & '
irn
Zorne
-)-
v. 3.
A^ read ^9l^Y^ N
(
v. 2.
-)-
v. 4.
For
&\&read cJU.
Wellhausen, Scholien
211, 4
fr.
zum Diwan
and
foil.
Hudail, 277, 5 (ZDMG., xxxix, 479) and Lisdn, x, "Die Bedeutung scheint 'Wachtel' zu sein" (N.).
P. 251,
foot
No. 163,
v. 2.
xii
P. 251, No. 167, P. 253, No. 174, P. 255, No. 181,
v. i.
Preface
For
jgM^^
read
v. 6.
For
v.
3.
For
J(^
read
J.^L*
(B.).
v. 2.
v. 6.
v. i.
v. i.
v. 2.
v. i.
v. 7.
here,
as^JLli can
ostrich" and iLolxi "the female ostrich." Noldeke " Fear the prayer of an oppressed man on suggests that the sense may be, behalf of his wife."
P. 279, No. 284, P. 282, No. 302, P. 286, No. 318,
v. i.
Read
Read
If
Jju for
Jjtf.
v. 4.
(the
rhyme-word).
is
v. i.
ifjtfr
the individual
implied by the preceding words. The reading ifjtf," gives an easier and more natural sense.
Even the minutiae in this list will be carefully noted, hope, by students of the Luzumiyydt. Success in mastering the difficulties of Arabic poetry depends on the conviction
I
that no detail
is
REYNOLD
March, 1921.
A.
NICHOLSON.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER
ABtf SA'fD IBN ABI 'L-KHAYR
I
PAGE
i
CHAPTER
THE PERFECT MAN
ESSENCE, ATTRIBUTE, AND
II
NAME
... ...
.
.
77
89
94 97
103
GOD
....
. . .
121
125
130
143
149
APPENDIX
I.
JILI'S
'Ayniyya
APPENDIX
II.
CHAPTER
THE ODES OF IBNU
'L-FARID
III
.... ....
ETC.
162
...
CHAPTER
ABIJ SA'ID and
Omar Khayyam
of Persian literature
the evidence
is
likely to assert:
they should rather be regarded as anthologies of which the nucleus, perhaps, was formed by the two authors in question containing poems of a particular type composed at various
periods by many different hands. It is possible, no doubt, that Omar's view of life and his general cast of thought are more or less reflected in the quatrains attributed to him, but
we can learn from them nothing definite and same considerations apply with equal force
rubd'is passing
distinctive.
The
to the mystical
Abu
Sa'id.
In his case,
and copious biographical materials which make us intimately acquainted with him and throw a welcome light on many aspects of contemporary
however,
possess
we
is
life
is
It bears neither title nor indication of in his edition of the text (PetroZhukovski but authorship, with the Hdldt u Sukhundn-i Shaykh it identifies grad, 1899) Abu Sa'id ibn Abi 'l-Khayr, a work composed about a century after Abu Sa'id's death by one of his descendants whose name is unknown. He was a cousin of Muhammad ibnu '1-Munaw-
Museum
(Or. 249).
war, the great-great-grandson of Abu Sa'id. Using the Hdldt u Sukhundn as a foundation, Muhammad ibnu 1-Munawwar compiled a much larger biography of his
ancestor which he entitled Asrdru 'l-tawhid fi maqdmdti 'lShaykh Abi Sa'id (ed. by Zhukovski, Petrograd, 1899) and dedicated to the Ghurid prince, Ghiyathu'ddin Muhammad
N.
S. II
2
ibn
[CH.
Sam
(ob.
was a native
earliest
A.D. 1203). The author, like Abu Sa'id himself, of Mayhana or Mihna in Khurasan. From his
youth it had been a labour of love for him to gather the sayings of the Saint and to verify the records and
traditions
still
which were handed down in his family and were minds of his fellow-townsmen. The task was undertaken not a moment too soon. In A.D. 1154 the
fresh in the
Turcoman tribe of the Ghuzz swept over the borders of Khurasan and carried fire and sword through that flourishing
Everywhere the population was massacred; the author tells us that 115 descendants of Abu Sa'id, young and old, were tortured to death in Mayhana alone, and that no memorial of him was left except his tomb. Religion, he says,
province.
fell
became rampant of Islam only the name, and of Sufism only the form survived. Impelled by divine grace, he complied with the request of some novices that he should write an account of the spiritual experiences and memorable sayings
of
Shaykh Abu
desired to enter
those
who
upon the Path (tariqa) and for the guidance of were travelling on the road of the Truth (haqiqa) 1
Abu
Sa'id died in A.D. 1049, an d the Asrdru 'l-tawhid was probably completed not less than 120 or more than 150 years
later.
in Persian of a separate
As Zhukovski points out, it is almost the first example work having for its subject the life of an individual mystic. The portrait of Abu Sa'fd amidst the circle of ufis and dervishes in which he lived is drawn with extraordinary richness of detail, and gains in vividness as well
as in value from the fact that a great part of the story is told by himself. Although the Mohammedan system of oral
by which these autobiographical passages have been preserved forbids us to suppose that we have before us an
tradition
exact transcript of Abu Sa'id's words as they were spoken to the original reporter, there is no reason to doubt that in
of
them
is
own
veracity is not incontestable, but this question, which leads at once into the darkest abysses of psychology, I must leave
in suspense.
1
Asrdr,
4,
16
6, 5.
l]
Abu
The Hdldt u Sukhundn and the Asrdru 'l-tawhid render the more recent biographies of Abu Sa'id all but superfluous 1 A certain amount of new material is found in the Supplement to
.
(vol.
of
(ed.
my
by
Nassau Lees, No. 366) 2 For the sake of clearness, I have divided the following study into three sections, of which the first deals with the life of Abu Sa'id, the second with his mystical sayings and doctrines, and the third with miracles -and other matter
belonging to his legend.
I.
known
A.H. 357 (December 7th, A.D. 967). His father Abu '1-Khayr, in Mayhana as Babii Bu '1-Khayr, was a druggist, "a
pious and religious man, well acquainted with the sacred law of Islam (shari'a) and with the Path of Sufism (tariqa)*." He
and other
Sufis were in the habit of meeting every night in Whenever a strange Sufi
arrived in the town, they would invite him to join them, and after partaking of food and finishing their prayers and devotions they used to listen to music and singing (sqmd').
when Babii Bu 1-Khayr was going to meet his begged him to take Abu Sa'id with him in order that the dervishes might look on him with favour; so Bu '1-Khayr let the lad accompany him. As soon as it was time
One
night,
for the
quatrain
gives the dervish love and love is woe; dying near and dear to Him they grow. The generous youth will freely yield his life, The man of God cares naught for worldly show.
God
By
In referring to these two works I shall use the abbreviations = Hdldt Since A includes almost the whole of H, I have usually given references to the former only.
1
and
A =Asrdr.
The
oldest notice of
Abu
Kashf al-Mahjtib
of his
contemporary, Hujwiri, who mentions him frequently in the course of that 3 work. See especially pp. 164-6 of the translation. A 13, 4.
[CH.
fell into ecstasy and kept daybreak. The qawwdl sang the quatrain so often that Sa'fd got it by heart. When he returned home, he asked his father the meaning of the verses that had thrown the dervishes into such transports of joy. "Hush!" said his father, "you cannot understand what they mean: what does it matter to you?" Afterwards, when Abu Sa'id had attained to a high spiritual degree, he used sometimes
On
up the dance
AM
to say of his father, who was then dead, "I want Babii Bu '1-Khayr to-day, to tell him that he himself did not know the meaning of what he heard on that night 1 ."
was taught the first rudiments of Moslem Koran by Abu Muhammad 'Ayyari, an eminent divine, who is buried at Nasa 2 He learned grammar from Abu Sa'id 'Ayyari and the principles of Islam from Abu '1-Qasim Bishr-i Yasin, both of Mayhana. The latter seems to have been a remarkable man. I have already referred to the mystical quatrains which Abu Sa'id was fond of quoting in his discourses and which are commonly thought to be his own. Against this hypothesis we have his definite statement that these quatrains were composed by other Sufis and that Bishr-i Yasin was the author of most of them 3 From Bishr, too, Abii Sa'id learned the doctrine of disinterested love, which is the basis of ufism.
Sa'id
Abu
education
to read the
13, 9.
8, io.
a translation of the text as it stands in Zhukovski's edition: "Whenever I have addressed poetry to any one, that which falls from my lips is the composition of venerable Stiffs ('azizdn), and most of it is by Shaykh Abu '1-Qasim Bishr." I am not sure that instead
54, 3.
14, 16.
The
following
is
of the
first
clause
(^l
L) we ought
not to read
^1
4IA5O
js& j-$S*
The statement
will
composed poetry. That which falls from my lips, (A 263, io) it is stated on the authority of the writer's grandfather (Abu
Sa'id's grandson) that of all the poetry attributed to Abu Sa'fd only one verse and one rubd'i, which are cited, were his own composition, the remainder being quoted from his spiritual directors. The credibility of this
not affected by the explanation that he was too absorbed in ecstasy to think about versifying. In addition to the single rubd'i, of which Abu Sa'id is expressly named as the author, H and A contain twenty-six which he is said to have quoted on different occasions. Of the latter, two occur in Ethe's collection (Nos. 35 and 68).
is
I]
Abu
One day Abu
'1-Oa.sim Bishr-i
honoured
spirit
!)
said to
1
me:
"O Abu
from thy dealings with God. So long as that exists, sincerity (ikhlds) cannot be attained. Devotions inspired by self-interest are work done for wages, but devotions inspired by sincerity are work done to serve God. Learn by heart the Tradition of the Prophet God said to me on the night of my Ascension, Mohammed! as for those who would draw nigh to Me, their best means of drawing nigh is by performance of the obligations which I have laid upon them. My servant continually seeks to win My favour by works of supererogation until I love him; and when I love him, I am to him an ear and an eye and a hand and a helper: through Me he hears, and through Me he sees, and through Me he takes." Bishr explained that to perform obligations means "to serve God," while to do works of supererogation means "to love God"; then he recited these
self-interest (tama
)
lines
Perfect love proceeds from the lover who hopes naught for himself; What is there to desire in that which has a price?
is
better for
How
you than the gift gift, when you possess the very
:
On another occasion Bishr taught his young pupil how to practise "recollection" (dhikr). "Do you wish," he asked him, " "to talk with God? "Yes, of course I do," said Abu Sa'id.
Bishr told him that whenever he was alone he must recite the
following quatrain, no
more and no
I
less
Without Thee,
Beloved,
cannot
rest;
cannot
tell.
"By the
to God was blessing which they brought," he says, "the childhood." Bishr died in A.H. 380 opened to me in (A.D. 990). Whenever Abu Sa'id went to the graveyard of
Way
my
Mayhana
.
who had
16, 9.
to the
tomb
of the
16, 20.
6
If
[CH.
we can believe Abu Sa'id when he youth he knew by heart 30,000 verses of
his
pre-Islamic poetry,
.
1 knowledge of profane literature must have been extensive After completing this branch of education, he set out for Merv with the purpose of studying theology under Abu 'Abdallah al-Husri, a pupil of the famous Shafi'ite doctor, Ibn Surayj. He read with al-Husrf for five years, and with Abu Bakr al-Qaffal for five more 2 From Merv he moved to 3 Sarakhs, where he attended the lectures of Abu 'All Zahir on Koranic exegesis (in the morning), on systematic theology (at noon), and on the Traditions of the Prophet (in the
.
afternoon)
4
.
Abu
Sa'id's birth
of his
life
to which a precise date is attached. know that he studied at Merv for ten years, and if we assume that his underjahre
We
began at the usual time, he was probably between 25 and 28 when he first came to Sarakhs. Here his conversion to Sufism
He has described it himself in the following narrative, which I will now translate without abridgement. I have relegated to the foot of the page, and distinguished by
took place.
means
of square brackets, certain passages that interrupt the narrative and did not form part of it originally.
Abu
with
was a student,
lived at Sarakhs
and read
Abu
I
'Alf,
the city,
the doctor of divinity. One day, as I was going into saw Luqman of Sarakhs seated on an ash-heap near the
on
his gaberdine".
of the "intelligent
madmen "
At first he practised many austerities and was scrupulous in his devotions. Then of a sudden he experienced a revelation (kashf) that deprived him of his reason. Abu Sa'id said: "In the beginning Luqman was a man learned
1
8, 20.
17, 16.
9, i.
(A.D. 999).
A
*
22, 14.
10, 14
A 23, 6 26, 10. There is not much to choose between have generally preferred the latter, which adds some interesting details, although it is not quite so tersely and simply written. Concerning this numerous class of Mohammedan mystics see Paul Loosen, Die weisen Narren des Naisdburl (Strassburg, 1912).
12. 7.
I
I]
Abu
stood looking at him, while he continued to sew 6 As soon as he had sewn the patch on, he said, "O Abu Sa'id I have sewn thee on this gaberdine along with the patch." Then he rose and took
!
my
hand, leading me to the convent (khdnaqdh) of the Sufis in Sarakhs, and shouted for Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl Hasan, who was within. When Abu 1-Fadl appeared, Luqman placed my hand in " O Abu '1-Fadl, watch over this young man, for he is his, saying,
my
down
in the portico
volume and began to peruse it. As is the way of scholars, I could not help wondering what the book was. The Shaykh perceived " " " my thought. Abu Sa'id he said, all the hundred and twentyfour thousand prophets were sent to preach one word. They bade the people say 'Allah and devote themselves to Him. Those who heard this word with the ear alone, let it go out by the other ear; but those who heard it with their souls imprinted it on their souls and repeated it until it penetrated their hearts and souls, and their whole being became this word. They were made independent of the pronunciation of the word, they were released from the sound and the letters. Having understood the spiritual meaning of this word, they became so absorbed in it that they were no more
!
'
me
:
pious, but afterwards he ceased to perform the duties of he was asked how this change had come to pass, he replied The more I served God, the more service was required of me. In my despair I cried, "O God! kings set free a slave when he grows old. Thou art the Almighty King. Set me free, for I have grown old in Thy service." I heard " The sign of his freedom was a voice that said, "Luqman I set thee free." that his reason was taken away from him. Abu Sa'id used often to say that Luqman was one whom God had emancipated from his commandments.] 6 [Abu Sa'id was standing in such a position that his shadow fell on
and
When
'
Luqman's gaberdine.]
of
[Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl was exceedingly venerable. When, after the death '1-Fadl, Abu Sa'id became an adept in mysticism, he was asked what was the cause of his having attained to such a degree of perfection. He " answered. The cause was a look that Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl gave me. I was a student of theology under Shaykh Abu 'All. One day, when I was walking on the bank of a stream, Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl approached from the opposite direction and looked at me out of the corner of his eye. From that day to
e
Abu
this, all
my
This rendering of Abu '1-Fadl's admonition agrees with is given most fully.
n,
foil.,
[CH.
and did not allow me to sleep that night. In the morning, when I had finished my prayers and devotions, I went to the Shaykh before sunrise and asked permission to attend Abu 'All's lecture on Koranic exegesis. He began his lecture with the verse, Say Allah! then leave them to amuse themselves in their folly'1 At the moment of hearing this word a door in my breast was opened, and I was rapt from myself. The Imam Abu 'Ali observed the change in me and asked, "Where were you last night?" I said, "With Abu '1-Fadl Hasan." He ordered me to rise and go back to Abu '1-Fadl, saying, "It is unlawful for you to come from that subject
.
and bewildered, for I had entirely lost myself Abu '1-Fadl saw me, he said: "Abu Sa'id!
in this word.
When
Thou
I said, "what is thy command? He said, "Come Shaykh and sit down and devote thyself wholly to this word, for this word hath much work to do with thee." After I had stayed with him for a long time, duly performing all that was required by this
!
"O
in
mastak shuda'i hami naddni pas u pish 2 Thou know'st not head from
.
tail."
"
me one day, " O Abu Sa'id the doors of the letters of this word have been opened to thee. Now the hosts (of spiritual
word, he said to
3
!
grace) will rush into thy breast, and thou wilt experience diverse " kinds of self-culture (adab)." Then he exclaimed, Thou hast been
transported, transported, transported! Go and seek a place of solitude, and turn aside from men as thou hast turned aside from
thyself,
I
and behave with patience and resignation to God's will." abandoned my studies and came home to Mayhana and retired into the niche of the chapel in my own house. There I sat for seven
years, saying continually, "Allah!
Allah! Allah!"
Whenever
drowsiness or inattention arising from the weakness of human nature came over me, a soldier with a fiery spear the most terrible and alarming figure that can possibly be imagined
4 appeared in front of the niche and shouted at me, saying, O Abu " The dread of that apparition used to keep me Sa'id, say Allah
!
"
1 *
Kor.
6, 91.
Though printed
it is
rubd'i, since
as prose in both texts, this line appears to belong to a written in one of the metres peculiar to that form of verse.
' According to H: "the doors of the spiritual gifts (a*.^I) of this ^ word." 4 H has merely: "a terrible figure appeared in front of the niche."
I]
Abu
burning and trembling for whole days and nights, so that I did not again fall asleep or become inattentive; and at last every atom of me began to cry aloud, "Allah Allah Allah "
! !
Countless records of mystical conversion bear witness to the central fact in this description the awakening of the soul in response to some unsuspected stimulus, by which, as
Arnold says,
A bolt
opening a
is
way
to burst through. The accompanying ecstasy is a normal feature, and so is the abandonment of past occupations, habits,
reality
ambitions, and the fixing of every faculty upon that supreme which is henceforth the single object of desire. All
these phenomena, however sudden they may seem, are the climax of an interior conflict that perhaps only makes itself known at the moment when it is already decided. Probably in Abu Sa'id's case the process was at least to some extent a conscious one. He had been long and earnestly engaged in
prayed to God, saying, "O Lord, nothing is revealed my by all this study and learning: it causes me to lose Thee, O God Let me be able to do without it by giving me some1 thing in which I shall find Thee again 'X
any peace.
to
heart
Here Abu Sa'id acknowledges that he sought spiritual peace, and that all his efforts to win it from intellectual proofs ended in failure. The history of that struggle is unwritten, but not until the powers of intellect were fully tried and shown to be of no avail, could mightier forces drawn from a deeper source come overwhelmingly into action. As regards the perpetual iteration of the name Allah, I need hardly remind my readers that this is a method everywhere practised by Moslem mystics for bringing about fand, i.e. the passing-away from self, or in Pascal's phrase, "oubli du monde et de tout hormis
Dieu."
1
50, 12.
io
[CH.
We
first
is to say, '1-Fadl as his spiritual director, in accordance with the rule that "if any one by means of asceticism and self-mortifica-
Abu Sa'fd after his Abu '1-Fadl what he he had implicitly accepted Abu
act of
tion shall
have risen to an exalted degree of mystical experience, without having a Pir to whose authority and example he submits himself, the Sufis do not regard him as belonging to their
community
doctrine
is
."
In this
way a continuous
tradition of mystical
down
secured, beginning with the Prophet and carried through a series of dead Pirs to the living director who
forms the last link of the chain until he too dies and is succeeded by one of his pupils. Abu Sa'id's lineage as a Sufi is given in the following
table:
Mohammed,
the Prophet
Hasan
of
Basra
I
(ob.
A.D. 728)
Habib 'Ajami
I
(ob.
A.D. 737)
Dawud
Ma'riif
Ja'f
i
(ob.
A.D. 781)
Karkhi
I
(ob.
A.D. 815)
Sari Saqati
'
I
(ob.
A.D. 867)
A.D. 909)
A.D. 939)
Junayd
of
Baghdad
I
(ob.
Murta'ish of
I
Baghdad
(ob.
(ob.
A.D. 988)
Abu
Abu
'1-Fadl
Hasan
of Sarakhs
55, 15.
I]
Abu
The appearance
of a list of this
11
Mohammed and
fits
head
with the fiction which was necessary for the existence of Sufism within Islam that the Sufis are the legitimate heirs and true interpreters of the
kind
in
*
esoteric teaching of the Prophet. Hasan of Basra, Habib Ajami, and Dawud Ta'i were ascetics and quietists rather than
it
Even if we take the ninth century as a startingmust not be supposed that any fixed body of doctrine point, was handed down. Such a thing is foreign to the nature of
mystics.
is not a system based on authority but a free movement assuming infinitely various forms in obedience to the inner light of the individual soul. Before the time of Abu Sa'id, certain eminent theosophists Junayd, for instance had founded schools which owed their origin to controversies over particular questions of mystical theory and practice, while at a later period Sufism branched off into great organisations comparable to the Christian monastic orders. Everywhere we find divergent tendencies asserting themselves and freely developing a
and
tradition,
vigorous
life.
There
is
no
Abu
Sa'id, after
which has been described, returned to Mayhana and spent some time in solitary meditation, though doubts are suggested by the statement, which occurs in the two oldest biographies, that his seclusion
passing through the spiritual
(khalwat) lasted for seven years. According to the Hdldt u Sukhundn, at the end of this period Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl having died in the meanwhile he journeyed to Amul in order to visit Shaykh Abu '!-' Abbas Qassab 1 The Asrdr, however, mentions a second period during which he practised the most severe austerities, first at Sarakhs under the care of
.
2 Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl and then, for seven years in the deserts and mountains of Mayhana, until at the age of 40 he attained to perfect saintship. These numbers can only be regarded as evidence of a desire to make him exemplify a theoretically
,
symmetrical scheme of the mystic's progress towards perfection, but it is none the less probable that for many years
1
12, 7.
41, 3.
12
[CH.
Abu Sa'id was painfully treading the via call the Path (tariqa) His biographers which Sufis purgativa account of his self-mortification (mujdan interesting give are derived either from his public disThe details hada). courses or from the testimony of eye-witnesses 1 The author of the Asrdr relates that after seven years of solitary retirement Abu Sa'id came back to Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl, who gave him a cell opposite his own, in order that he might keep him always under observation, and prescribed such moral and ascetic discipline as was necessary 2 When some time had passed, he was transferred to the cell of Abu '1-Fadl himself and subjected to still closer supervision (murdqabat-i ahwdl). We are not told how long he remained in the convent at Sarakhs. At last Abu '1-Fadl bade him return to Mayhana and take care of his mother. Here he lived in a cell, apparently in his father's house, though he also
after his conversion
,
' '
' '
frequented several cloisters in the neighbourhood, especially one known as "The Old Cloister" (Ribdt-i Kuhan) on the Merv
road 3
Among
now
4 constantly engaged the following are recorded He showed excessive zeal in his religious
ablutions,
emptying a number of water- jugs for every single wutfu'. He was always washing the door and walls of his cell.
He never leaned against any door or wall, or rested body on wood or on a cushion, or reclined on a couch.
increased in weight because, whenever
his
sew a patch on
He
except
it was torn, he would 20 maunds. weighed never quarrelled with any one nor spoke to any one,
it.
At
last it
He
more
cell,
necessity forced him to do so. ate no food by day, and broke his fast with nothing than a piece of bread.
when
did not sleep by day or night but shut himself in his where he had made an excavation in the wall, just high and broad enough to stand in, which could be closed by means
1 1 8, 17. About 200 of Abu Sa'id's discourses were in circulation the Hdldt u Sukhundn was written (H 55, 21).
He
when
27, 18.
I]
Abu
13
of a door.
himself with recollection (dhikr), stuffing his ears with cottonwool in order that no disturbing sound might reach him, and
that his attention might remain concentrated. At the same time he never ceased to watch over his inmost self (murdqabat-i sirr), in order that cross his mind 1
.
He wandered
places and would often disappear for a month or more. His father used to go in search of him and find out where he was
from labourers or travellers who had seen him. To please his he would come home, but ere long he would feel the presence of human creatures to be unendurable and would again flee to mountains and wildernesses, where he was sometimes seen roaming with a venerable old man clad in white raiment. Many years afterwards, when Abu Sa'id had risen to eminence, he declared to those who questioned him that this old man was the prophet Khadir 2 Although he was carefully watched, Abu Sa'id contrived to escape from his father's house night after night. On one
father,
.
occasion his father (who felt a natural anxiety as to the object of these nocturnal excursions) followed him, unperceived, at
little
distance.
My son (he relates) walked on until he reached the Old Cloister (Ribdt-i Kuhari). He entered it and shut the gate behind him,
went up on the roof. I saw him go into a chapel, which was and close the door. Looking through the chapel window, I waited to see what would happen. There was a stick lying on the floor, and it had a rope fastened to it. He took up the stick and tied the end of the rope to his foot. Then, laying the stick across the top of a pit that was at the corner of the chapel, he slung himself into the pit head downwards, and began to recite the
while
I
in the ribdt,
Koran.
commenced
1
28, 8.
28, 15.
14
of the ribdt.
until he
I
[CH.
roof,
came
The
Abu
Sa'id's asceticism.
He
said,
One day I said to myself, Knowledge, works, meditation I have them all; now I want to become absent from them (ghaybati
"
On consideration I saw that the only way to attain this was by acting as a servant to the dervishes, for when God wishes to benefit a man, He shows to him the path of self-abasement. Accordingly I made it my business to wait upon them, and I used to clean their cells and privies and lavatories. I persevered in this work for a long time, until it became a habit. Then I resolved to beg for the dervishes, which seemed to me the hardest thing I could lay upon myself. At first, when people saw me begging, they would give me a piece of gold, but soon it was only copper, and by degrees it came down to a single raisin or nut. In the end even this was refused. One day I was with a number of dervishes, and there was nothing to be got for them. For their sake I parted with the turban I had on my head, then I sold one after the other my slippers, the lining of my jubba, the cloth of which it was made, and the cotton
az in}."
quilting
2
.
During the period of ascetic discipline which he underwent Mayhana, Abu Sa'id sometimes visited Sarakhs for the purpose of receiving spiritual guidance from Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl. His biographer says that he travelled on his bare feet, but if we may trust 'Abdu '1-Samad, one of his disciples, he usually flew through the air it is added that this phenomenon was witnessed only by persons of mystical insight 3 According
at
; .
to the Asrdr, he returned to Abu '1-Fadl for another year's training and was then sent by him to Abu 'Abd al-Rahman
al-Sulami, who invested him with the patched frock (khirqa) that proclaims the wearer to be a recognised member of the brotherhood of Stiffs 4 Al-Sulami of Nishapiir (ob. A.D. 1021),
.
a pupil of
He
is
al-Nasrabadf was a celebrated mystic. the author of the Tdbaqdtu 'l-Sufiyya biographies of
,
Abu '1-Qasim
On Abu
1
Sa'id's return,
32, 4.
34,
and other important works. Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl said to him, A 35, 15. A 35, 4. 5.
I]
Abu
15
call
"Now
all is finished.
You must go
to
Mayhana and
the
people to God and admonish them and show them the way to the Truth." He came back to Mayhana, as his Director
enjoined, but instead of contenting himself with Abu '1-FadTs assurance that all was now finished, he increased his austerities
in his devotions.
In the
following discourse he refers to the veneration which the people 1 began to manifest towards him at this time
.
When
I
was a
novice, I
;
fasted continually
awake
at night; I
;
never reclined on the ground I never slept but in a sitting posture I sat facing the Ka'ba; I never leaned against anything; I never
looked at a handsome youth or at women whom it would have been unlawful for me to see unveiled; I did not beg; I was content and resigned to God's will I always sat in the mosque and did not go
;
into the market, because the Prophet said that the market filthiest of places and the mosque the cleanest. In all
I
is
the
acts
my
Every four-and-twenty hours I completed a recitation of the Koran. In my seeing I was blind, in my hearing deaf, in my speaking dumb. For a whole year I conversed with no one. People called me a lunatic, and I allowed them to give me that name, relying on the Tradition that a man's faith is not made perfect until he is supposed to be mad. I performed everything that I had read or heard of as having been done or commanded by the Prophet. Having read that when he was wounded in the foot in the battle of Uhud, he stood on his
sole of his foot
was a follower
of the Prophet.
toes in order to perform his devotions for he could not set the upon the ground I resolved to imitate him, and
standing on tiptoe I performed a prayer of 400 genuflexions. I modelled my actions, outward and inward, upon the Sunna of the Prophet, so that habit at last became nature. Whatever I had
heard or found in books concerning the acts of worship performed by the angels, I performed the same. I had heard and seen in
writing that some angels worship God on their heads. Therefore I placed my head on the ground and bade the blessed mother of Abu
Tahir
tie
my toe with a cord and fasten the cord to a peg and then
1
36, 8.
16
[CH.
shut the door behind her. Being left alone, I said, O Lord I do not want myself: let me escape from myself!" and I began a
recitation of the whole Koran.
suffice thee against them, for
When I came to the verse, God shall He heareth and knoweth all 1 blood
,
eyes and I was no longer conscious of myself. Then things changed. Ascetic experiences passed over me of a kind that can be described in words 2 and God strengthened and
poured from
my
these acts were done by me. The grace of God became manifest and showed me that this was not so, and that these were the acts of divine favour and grace. I repented of my belief and realised that it was mere self-conceit.
aided
me therein, but
fancied that
all
you will not tread this path because it is selfyour refusal to tread it is self-conceit. Until
all this, its self-conceit will
not be revealed to
you. Self-conceit appears only when you fulfil the Law, for selfconceit lies in religion, and religion is of the Law. To abstain from
is
religious acts is infidelity, and to perform such acts self-consciously dualism. If "thou" exists and "He" exists, "two" exists; and
is
that
I
dualism.
"self"
away
altogether.
which I sat, and sitting there I was enamoured of passing-away from myself. A light flashed upon me, which utterly destroyed the darkness of my being. God Almighty revealed to me that I was neither that nor this that this was His grace even as that was His gift. So it came to pass that I said
had a
cell in
mine eyes have opened, all Thy beauty I behold I tell Thee my secret, all my body is ensouled. Methinks, unlawful 'tis for me to talk with other men, But when with Thee I am talking, ah the tale is never told.
I
;
!
When When
with great approval. Disciples gathered round me and were converted to Sufism. My neighbours too showed their respect for me by ceasing to drink
to regard
me
I had thrown for of was One day when I was bought twenty pieces gold. away on horse horseback, riding my dropped dung. Eager to gain a the came and picked up the dung and smeared blessing, people their heads and faces with it. After a time it was revealed to me that I was not the real object of their veneration. A voice cried from the corner of the mosque, 7s not thy Lord enough for thee*?
Kor.
2,
131.
Keading O)Ufr.
I]
Abu
light
17
gleamed in
my
and most
veils
people who had honoured me now rejected me, and even went before the cadi to bear witness that I was an infidel. The inhabitants
of every place that I entered declared that their crops would not wickedness. Once, whilst I was seated in grow on account of
my
women went up on
to the roof
and bespattered
me with filth and still I heard a voice saying, 7s not thy Lord enough
for thee?
The congregation
I
"We
will
mosque." Meanwhile
was
I was a lion the fierce pard was ware Of my pursuit. I conquered everywhere. But since I drew Thy love close to my heart, Lame foxes drive me from my forest-lair.
This joyous transport was followed by a painful contraction (qabd). I opened the Koran, and my eye fell on the verse, We will prove you with evil and with good, to try you; and unto Us shall ye return 1 as
,
though God said to me, All this which I put in thy way is a trial. If it is good, it is a trial, and if it is evil, it is a trial. Do not stoop to good or to evil, but dwell with Me!" Once more my "self" 2 vanished, and His grace was all in all
.
"
After the death of his father and mother which the biographer leaves undated, only observing, in the spirit of a true Sufi, that these events removed the obstacle of filial
affection
from
his
path
Abu
Sa'id
is
said to have
roamed
for
seven years in the deserts between Mayhana and Baward 3 He then returned (Abiward) and between Merv and Sarakhs
.
time Shaykh
Abu
'1-Fadl, to
Amul
that he required a spiritual Director, Abu Sa'id set out for in Tabaristan, whither many Sufis were flocking in consequence of the fame of Shaykh Abu '!-' Abbas Qassab.
and lifelong friend, who is buried at Sarakhs. They journeyed to Baward and thence along the Gaz valley 4 At Shah Mayhana 5 a village in this (Darra-i Gaz) to Nasa
.
1
5
A
9,
37, 8.
40, 19.
the inhabitants of
Baward
N. S.
II
18
[CH.
valley, having performed their ablutions and prayers on the rocky bank of a stream, they were approaching the tomb of Abu 'Ali ^j*-^ (?), which it was their purpose to visit, when they saw a lad driving an ox and ploughing, and on the edge of the field an old man sowing millet-seed. The old man seemed to have lost his wits, for he was always looking towards the tomb and uttering loud cries.
deeply moved," said Abu Sa'fd, "by his behaviour. meet us and salaamed and said, Can you lift a burden from my breast? If God will,' I replied. I have been thinking,' he said, 'if God, when He created the world, had created no creatures in it; and if He had filled it full of millet from East to West and from earth to heaven and if then He had created one bird and bidden it eat one grain of this millet every thousand years; and if, after that, He had created a man and had kindled in his heart this mystic longing and had told him that he would never win to his goal until this bird left not a single millet-seed in the whole world, and that he would continue until then in this burning pain of love I have been thinking, it would still be a thing soon ended The words of the old peasant (said Abu Sa'id) made all the
"We were
to
He came
'
'
'
'
'
mystery plain to
me 1 ."
Nasa, which the travellers skirted but did not enter, was known amongst Sufis by the name of "Little Syria" (Shdm-i
kuchak), because
of prophets.
it
boasted as
many tombs
of saints as Syria
of the Asrdr says that in his time the the town contained 400 sepulchres of cemetery overlooking 2 men The prevailing belief that the and holy great Shaykhs
.
The author
of
Shamina (tUg.Ur) or Shahina (A^fcli), but changed its name to Shah Mayhana (A^O dlw) on the suggestion of Abu Sa'fd. This story appears to indicate that dUy^ was pronounced Mihna, and that the pronunciation
Mayhana (which
have adopted
in deference to Yaqiit)
is
not
A^A
may
etc.
1
O^-VS"* y+
,
Sam'anf gives
.A^
44, 12.
46, 7.
I]
l-Khayr
19
Every calamity that threatened Nasa has been averted by the favour and kindness of God and by the blessings of the tombs of
departed Shaykhs and by the prayers of the
continues),
living.
Even now
(he
when
religion in Khurasan is almost extinct and vestige of Sufism is left, there are still in Nasa many
and Sufis, richly endowed with inward exas numerous hidden saints who exert a powerful as well periences, and beneficent influence 1
.
In the upper part of the town, adjoining the cemetery, stood a convent for Sufis, the Khanaqah-i Sarawi. It had recently been founded by the famous mystic, Abu 'All
Daqqaq of Nishapur
(ob. A.D. 1015). The legend concerning its foundation was that Abu 'All had a dream in which the Prophet ordered him to build a house for Sufis, and not only pointed out the site but also drew a line showing its dimenNext morning, when Abii 'All went to the place sions.
and all those who were with him saw a line marked on the ground; and upon this line the outer distinctly wall of the convent was raised 2 When Abu Sa'id arrived at 3 Yaysama a village in the neighbourhood of Nasa, he went to 4 Meanwhile Shaykh visit the tomb of Ahmad 'All Nasawi 5 Ahmad Nasr who was then in charge of the convent at Nasa, put out his head from his cell and said to the Sufis
indicated, he
.
"The
village,
Abu
Sa'id
and
his
46,
n.
45, 14.
In the Nafahdtu 'l-Uns (ed. by Nassau Lees), p. 327, 2, where this passage is quoted, the name of the village is written 4^,.o (Basma). 4 A pupil of Abu 'Uthman Hiri. It is stated in theAsrdr, 48, i, that his name is given by Abii 'Abd al- Rahman al-Sulami in the Tabaqdtu 'l-Stifiyya as Muhammad 'Ulayyan al-Nasawi, but that in Nasd he is generally known
by the name of
Tdbaqdt,
6
f.
Ahmad
'AH.
96
a, his
name is Muhammad b.
According to the British Museum MS. of the Ali and he is generally known as
'
Muhammad
Cf.
b.
'Ulayyan.
47, 10,
2O
[CH.
a fur gaberdine (pustin) with pieces of meat hanging in front of him. He came forward to greet the strangers, and bade an apprentice follow them and see where they lodged. They found quarters in a mosque beside the river, and when they had performed their ablutions and prayers the butcher appeared, bringing some viands of which they partook.
who wore
in his shop,
of us could
said,
'
"After we had done," said Abu Sa'id, "he asked whether any answer a question. My friends pointed to me. He then
'What
is
for hire?
'
I replied in
'
the duty of a slave and what is the duty of a labourer terms of the religious law. He asked,' Is there
'
nothing else? I remained silent. With a stern look he exclaimed, Do not live with one whom thou hast divorced meaning that
!
since I had discarded exoteric knowledge (ilm-i zdhir), I must not have any further dealings with it. Then he added, Until thou art 1 and until thou art an honest and free, thou wilt never be a slave
'
wages of everlasting
To
digress a
little,
it
will
Abu
Sa'fd immediately
abandoned the
study of theology and jurisprudence in which he had spent so much of his youth. He collected all the volumes that he had
read, together with his own note-books, buried them, erected over them a mound of stone and earth (dukdni)
this
and
.
On
planted a twig of myrtle, which took root and put forth leaves, and in the course of time became a large tree. The people of Mayhana used to pluck boughs from it,
mound he
hoping thereby to win a blessing for their new-born children, or in order to lay them on their dead before interment. The author of the Asrdr, who had often seen it and admired its beautiful foliage, says that it was destroyed, with other relics
of the saint, during the invasion of Khurasan by the Ghuzz 3 When Abu Sa'fd buried his books, it was suggested that he
.
might have done better to give them to some one who would
1
I.e.,
thou wilt never serve God truly until thou art free from
i.
'self.'
A A
49, 450,
I]
Abu
21
that my heart profit by reading them. "I wished," he said, should be entirely void of the consciousness of having conferred an obligation and of the recollection of having bestowed a gift 1 ." Once he was heard wailing in his cell the whole night long. Next morning he explained that he had
been visited with a violent toothache as a punishment for having dipped into a tome which he took away from a
student 2
.
Here are two more of his sayings on the same topic: "Books! ye are excellent guides, but it is absurd to trouble about a guide after the goal has been reached." "The first 3 step in this affair (Sufism) is the breaking of ink-pots and the tearing-up of books and the forgetting of all kinds of (intellectual)
knowledge
."
the assembly-room (jamaat-khdna), facing the oratory 6 reserved for himself, where he had sat for forty-one years in
cell in
the midst of his disciples 7 It was the custom of Shaykh Abu '!-' Abbas, when he saw a dervish performing supererogatory prayers at night, to say to him, "Sleep, my son! All the
.
devotions of your Director are performed for your sake, for " they are of no use to him and he does not need them himself but he never said this to Abu Sa'id, who used to pray all night
;
and
During the night Abu Sa'id kept his eyes continually fixed upon his navel, and his mind upon the spiritual "states" (ahwdl) and acts of the Shaykh. One day the Shaykh had some blood let from his arm. At night the
fast all day.
bandage slipped off, uncovering the vein, so that his garment was stained with blood. As he came out of the oratory, Abu Sa'id, who was always on the watch to serve him, ran up to
1 3 5
51, 18.
2 *
52, 7.
A 51, 14. Reading j~=> for u* jib. Two and a half years, according to another tradition which has
less
authority (A 52, 17). 6 Zdwiya-gdh. It seems to have been a place surrounded by a railing or lattice, since it is compared in the text to a penfold (ha?ira).
7
53,
i.
22
[CH.
toiled
him. washed and bandaged his arm, and taking from him the garment offered his own, which the Shaykh put on, 1 Sa'fd dad himself in a khashan that he had. Then while
AW
he washed and cleaned the Shaykh's garment, hung it on the it to the rope (k*N) to dry, rubbed and folded it, and brought " it on!" the It is thine, "said "Nay," Shaykh, "put Shaykh. cried Abti Sa'fd, "let the Shaykh put it on me with his own
bleated
hand I"
This was the second gaberdine (khirqa) with which Sa'fd was invested, for he had already received one from
Abu Abu
al-Sulamf of Nfshapur 2 Here the author of the Asrdr introduces a disquisition on the meaning of such investiture 8 with the object of refuting
Abd al-RaJmian
ought not to accept a khirqa from more than one Pfr. In the first place, he describes the endowments in virtue of which the Pfr is privileged to invest a disciple with the khirqa. The Pfr should be worthy of imitation, he should have a perfect knowledge, both theoretical and
those
who
hold that a
$iiff
the Law, practical, of the three stages of the mystical life the Path, and the Truth he should also be entirely purged of
;
fleshly attributes (fifdt-i bashariyya), so that nothing of his lower "self" (nafs) remains in him. such a Pfr has
When
become thoroughly acquainted with a disciple's acts and thoughts and has proved them by the test of experience and, through spiritual insight, knows that he is qualified to advance beyond the position of a famulus (maqdm-i khidmat) whether his being thus qualified is due to the training which he has received from this Pfr or to the guidance and direction of another Pfr possessing a like authority then he lays his hand fie head and invests him with the khirqa. By disciple's
disciple
the act of investiture he announces his conviction that the U fit to associate with the $uffs, and if he is a person
-dit and renown amongst them, his declaration carries the same weight as, in matters of law, the testimony of an tr * * properly the name of a grass from which coarse garments
Set
p. 1 4
t*fa.
59, 3Cl. the fourth
*
PI* 45^47. to
ay
translation.
l]
Abu
23
honest witness and the sentence of an incorruptible judge. unknown dervish comes into a
company
was the Pir that taught thee 1 ?" and "From whose " Sufis recognise no hand didst thou receive the khirqa! but which these two, relationship they regard as all-important. with them, unless he not to associate allow one do They any can show to their satisfaction that he is lineally connected in
both these ways with a fully accredited Pir. Having insisted that the whole Path of Sufism turns upon the Pir (maddr-i tariqa bar pir ast 2), the author of the Asrdr comes to the question in dispute "Is it right to receive " investiture from the hands of more than one 3 ? He answers, " in effect, Yes, it is right, provided that the second investiture 4 is not accompanied with the intention of annulling the first ." His argument is a universal principle, which can be stated in a few words. Ultimately and essentially all things are one. Difference and duality are phenomena which disappear when
unity
is
"Who
reached.
The sayings
expression, but their meaning is the same. There are many religions, but only one God; diverse ways, but only one goal. Hence those who raise an objection against the double investiture proclaim themselves to be still on the plane of dualism, which the Pirs have transcended. In reality, all Sufis, all Pirs, and all khirqas are one. Amidst these sublime truths it is rather a shock to meet with the remark that the
novice
who
receives
calls
two witnesses to
On
1
attest his
Pir-i suhbat,
the Pir to
Sa'fd was Abu '1-Fadl Hasan of Sarakhs (A 26, 10). Abu Sa'id used to call him Pir,' while he spoke of Abu '!-' Abbas Qassab simply as the Shaykh (A 43, 18). The second question implies that a Pir might confer the khirqa upon a novice whom he had not personally
(sahib).
The
pir-i suhbat of
'
Abu
'
trained.
2
56,
i.
or
"
57, 7,
4
59,
in place of
57, 12.
24
[CH.
Shaykh Abu '!-' Abbas Qassab to return once more to Mayhana 1 This event approximately coincides with the beginning of a new period in his spiritual history. The long discipline of 'ath, broken by fleeting visions and ecstasies, brought him at last into the full and steady splendour of illumination. The which had hitherto been lifted only to fall again, was now burst asunder. Henceforth no barrier (hijdb) in the shape that insidious obstacle which it is the whole of "self" business of the via purgativa to remove could even temporarily shut off his consciousness of the Unseen. While conversing with Abu 'All Daqqaq, Abii Sa'fd asked him whether this experience was ever permanent. "No," said Abti 'AH. Abu Sa'fd bowed his head, then he repeated the question and received the same answer, whereupon he bowed
.
1
icad as before.
On
ever
Abu
'AM
replied, "If
it
permanent,
it is
Abii Sa'fd
times,
rarities 1 ."
"is one of these Continuous though his illumination may have been, it was not of uniform intensity, but was subject to the fluctuations which are described in the technical language of
.
dapped his hands joyfully and "This" referring to his own case
$unsm as contraction (qabd) and expansion (bast) 3 Often, when he fell into the former state, he would go about asking questions of every one, in the hope of hearing some words that might relieve his oppression 4 When qabi was violent, he would visit the tomb of Shaykh Abu '1-Fa^l Hasan at Sarakhs. Idest son, Abu T^hir, relates that one day Abu Sa'id,
.
while preaching, began to weep, and the whole congregation wept with him. Giving orders that his horse should be
saddled, he immediately set out for Sarakhs, accompanied by all who were present. As soon as they entered the desert, his
feeling of "contraction"
freely, while those
was dispelled. He began to speak around him shouted with joy. On arriving at Sarakhs he turned aside from the highroad in the direction
1
A 50 A 62, 9. Concerning these terms see my translation of the Kashf al-Mahjtib. PP 374-37$-
62. 18
I]
Abu
tomb
of
25
of the
Shaykh Abu
:
qawwdl
Here
is
home
bounty and
of grace
Ka'ba
During the qawwdl' s chant Abu Sa'id and the dervishes with bare heads and feet circumambulated the tomb, shrieking
ecstatically.
When
quiet
was
restored, he said,
"Mark
the
date of this day, for you will never see a day like this again." Afterwards he used to tell any of his disciples who thought
of making the pilgrimage to Mecca that they must visit the tomb of Shaykh Abu '1-Fadl Hasan and perform seven cir-
Shaykhu
'1-Islam
Abu
Sa'id,
cannot help regarding as suspicious its combination with the 3 theory founded on a passage in the Koran that no one under forty years of age ever attained to the rank of prophecy or
,
Yahya
this point the biographer concludes the first chapter of his work, describing Abu Sa'id's conversion and novitiate, and enters on the mature period of his mystical
Baptist)
and Jesus. At
life
the period of illumination and contemplation. In the foregoing pages we have been mainly concerned with his progress as an ascetic. We are now to see him as
Theosophist and Saint. It must be added, however, that in this higher stage he did not discontinue his austerities. He took pains to conceal them, and all our information about them is derived from allusions in his public speeches or from the exhortations which he addressed to novices. According to his disciples, after becoming an adept there was no rule or 4 practice of the Prophet that he left unperformed From this time (circa A.H. 400 = A.D. 1009) until his death, which occurred in A.H. 440 = A.D. 1049, the materials avail.
64, 6.
61,
i.
65, 9.
26
able for
[CH.
consisting for the most part of a kind that it is impossible such are of miscellaneous anecdotes, to give a connected account of events in their chronological
Concerning his movements we know nothing of importance beyond the following facts: (a) He left Mayhana and journeyed to Nfshapur, where he stayed for a considerable time. (b) Shortly before quitting Nfshapur he paid a visit to
order.
Abu
'1-Hasan Kharaqanf at Kharaqan 1 (c) Finally, he returned from Nishapur to Mayhana. The anecdotes in the second chapter of the Asrdr form
. :
Nfshapur
(pp. 68-174).
(pp. 175-190). (pp. 191-247).
2. 3.
Kharaqan
Mayhana
Various circumstances indicate that his residence in Nfshapur was a long one, probably extending over several 2 and the evidence years, but we find no precise statement that can be obtained from his reported meetings with famous
,
is insufficient, in opinion, to serve as a basis for investigation. His visit to Kharaqan supplies a terminus ad quern, for Abu '1-Hasan Kharaqam is known to
contemporaries
my
have died
A.D. 1033-4. Unless the stories of his friendship with Qushayrf are inventions, he can hardly have settled in Nfshapur before A.H. 415 = A.D. 1024, smce Qushayrf (born A.H. 376 = A.D. 986) is described at the date of Abu
in A.H.
425
with numerous pupils. For the reasons mentioned above, we must now content ourselves with the barest outline of a narrative and seek compensation in episodes, incidents, and details which often reveal the personality and character of Abu Sa'fd in a surSa'fd's arrival as a celebrated teacher
1
Khurqan, the spelling preferred by Mr Le Strange (Eastern Caliphate, pp. 23 and 366), has less authority. The words "He was one year in Nishapur" (A 94, 4) refer, as the context makes plain, only to the first year of his stay in that city. Possibly the period of his residence there was not continuous. It is worth notice that, to H he according 72, 17, usually spent the winter at Mayhana and the
nciation
Kharaqan.
summer
at Nfshapur.
I]
Abu
27
prising
ised.
monastic
manner and at the same time let us see how the life was lived and by what methods it was organ-
Sa'id set out for Nishapur, he did not travel but was attended by the disciples whom he had already gathered round him at Mayhana, while many new converts joined the party at Tus. Here he preached to crowded assemblies and moved his audience to tears. On one of these occasions an infant fell from the gallery (bam), which was thronged with women. Abu Sa'id exclaimed, "Save it!" A
alone,
When Abu
in the air
floor.
child
The
who
I
scenes of ecstasy ensued. "I swear," says Sayyid Abu 'All, relates the story, "that I saw this with my own eyes. If
it,
Abu
At Xiis both my eyes become blind 1 said to have passed by a number of children
may
"
standing together in the street of the Christians (kuy-i tarsdydri) and to have pointed out one of them to his companions, saying, "If you wish to look at the prime minister " of the world, there he is The boy, whose future eminence
!
and who, forty years afterthose words to a great-grandson of wards, repeated prophetic Abu Sa'id, was the illustrious statesman Nizamu '1-Mulk (born
foretold,
A.D. IOl8) 2
On entering Nishapur Abu Sa'id was met by an influential patron of the Sufis, Khwaja Mahmiid-i Murid, who installed him and his disciples in the monastery (khdnaqdh) of Abu 'All
Tarasusi in the street of the carpet-beaters
.
(?)
which seems
1 2
A A
115, 16.
foil.),
made after Abu Sa'id's return from Nishapur to Mayhana, where he was visited by Nizamu '1-Mulk, who was then a young student. 8 A 73, 4. The MSS. give the name of the street as ^bj j& \^^ or Ok*^3 A 73. 14; "9, 15)- Cf. w5b ^J^ (A 463. 9)^J^ 4 This convent was destroyed by the Ghuzz who sacked Nishapur in
the prophecy was
A.H.
548=A.D. 1154 (A
195, n).
84, 10.
28
Mu'addib
[CH.
relates his
own
experience as follows
When people were proclaiming everywhere in Nishapur that a $uff Pir had arrived from Mayhana and was preaching sermons in the street of the carpet-beaters and was reading men's secret
thoughts,
I
said to myself
for I
"How
can a
knows nothing about theology? How can $iifi preach, when he he read men's thoughts, when God has not given knowledge " One day of the Unseen to any prophet or to any other person?
I went to the hall where he preached, with the intention of putting him to the proof, and sat down in front of his chair. I was handsomely dressed and had a turban of fine Jabari stuff wound on my head. While the Shaykh was speaking, I regarded him with feelings of hostility and disbelief. Having finished his sermon, he asked for clothes on behalf of a dervish. Every one offered something. Then
he asked
for a turban.
it
had been brought to me from Amul as a present and that it was worth ten Nishapuri dinars, so I resolved not to give it. The Shaykh made a second appeal, and the same thought occurred to me, but I rejected it once more. An old man who was
reflected that
me asked, " O Shaykh does God plead with His He answered, " Yes, but He does not plead more than creatures? twice for the sake of a Tabari turban. He has already spoken twice to the man sitting beside you and has told him to give to this
seated beside
"
!
because
it is
is wearing, but he refuses to do so, worth ten pieces of gold and was brought to him
and went forward to the Shaykh and kissed his foot and offered my turban and my whole suit of clothes to the dervish. Every feeling of dislike and incredulity was gone. I became a Moslem anew, bestowed on the Shaykh all the money and wealth I pos1 sessed, and devoted myself to his service
.
While Abti Sa'fd was enthusiastically welcomed by the Stiffs of Nfshapur, he met with formidable opposition from the parties adverse to them 2 namely, the Karramfs 3 whose A 7 1 He compares his reception to that of a dog who on entering a parish
,
he
is
unknown
is
set
all
it
(A 26s
The Kan-amis interpreted the Koran in the most Macdonald, Muslim Theology, p. 170 foil.
See
I]
Abu
29
was Abu Bakr Ishaq, and the Ashdb-i ra'y (liberal theologians) and Shfites led by Qadi Sa'id. The leaders of those parties drew up a written charge against him, to the
chief
following effect:
man has come hither from Mayhana and pretends to He preaches sermons in the course of which he recites poetry but does not quote the Traditions of the Prophet. He holds
certain
be a
Sufi.
sumptuous feasts and music is played by his orders, whilst the 1 young men dance and eat sweetmeats and roasted fowls and all kinds of fruit. He declares that he is an ascetic, but this is neither asceticism nor Sufism. Multitudes have joined him and are being
led astray.
will
it,
the mischief
The authorities at the court of Ghazna, to whom the document was sent, returned it with the following answer written on the back: "Let the leaders of the Shafi'ites and Hanafites sit in council and inquire into his case and duly inflict upon him
whatever penalty the religious law demands." This answer was received on a Thursday. The enemies of Abu Sa'id rejoiced and immediately held a meeting and determined that on Saturday he and all the Sufis should be gibbeted in the market-place. His friends were anxious and alarmed by rumours of what was impending, but none dared tell him, since he desired to have nothing communicated to him, and in
fact always on.
knew by miraculous
intuition
all
performed the afternoon prayers (says Hasan-i the Mu'addib), Shaykh called me and asked, "How many are the Sufis?" I replied, "A hundred and twenty eighty travellers (musdfir) and forty residents (muqim)." "To-morrow," said he,
When we had
you give them for dinner?" "Whatever the Shaykh "You must place before each one," said he, "a lamb's head and provide plenty of crushed sugar to sprinkle on the lamb's brains, and let each one have a pound of khalifati sweets, and see that there is no lack of aloes-wood for burning and rosewater for spraying over them, and get well-laundered linen robes.
will
"what
bids," I replied.
a sweetmeat
see Dozy.
The latter is
said to be
30
Lay
[en.
who
me
behind
my
back
may
own
eyes
Now,
at the
God sends from the unseen world to moment when the Shaykh gave me these
there was not a single loaf in the store-room of the convent, and in the whole city I did not know any one of whom I could venture
of
to beg a piece of silver, because these rumours had shaken the faith all our friends; nor had I courage to ask the Shaykh how I
should procure the things which he required. It was near sunset. I left him and stood in the street of the carpet-beaters, utterly at
a loss what to do, until the sun had almost set and the merchants were closing their shops and going home. When the hour of evening prayer arrived and it was now dark, a young man running
for he was late saw me as I stood there, and cried, " I told him that the Shaykh had what are you doing? given me certain orders, that I had no money, and that I would
to his house
"
O Hasan
stay there
till
morning,
if
necessary, since
Throwing back his sleeve, he bade me put my hand in. I did so and drew forth a handful of gold, with which I returned in high spirits to the convent. On making my purchases, I found that the sum was exactly right not a dirhem too much or too little. Early next morning I got the linen robes and laid the table in the congregational mosque, as the Shaykh had directed. He came
thither with
all
many
Now, when Qadf Sa'id and Ustad Abu Bakr Karrami were informed that the Shaykh had prepared a feast for the $uffs in the mosque, Qadf Sa'id exclaimed, "Let them make
galleries above.
merry to-day and eat roast lamb's head, for to-morrow their own " " will be devoured by crows and Abu Bakr said, Let them grease their bellies to-day, for to-morrow they will grease the " scaffold. These threats were conveyed to the Stiff s and made a painful impression. As soon as they finished the meal and washed their hands, the Shaykh said to me, "Hasan! take the Sufis' prayer-rugs to the chancel (maq$ura) after Qdclf $a'id (who was the official preacher), for to-day we will perform our prayers under his
heads
;
leadership." Accordingly, I carried twenty prayer-rugs into the chancel and laid them in two rows; there was no room for any
more. Qacli $i'id mounted the pulpit and delivered a hostile address; then he came down and performed the service of prayer.
i]
Abu
31
As soon as he pronounced the final salutation (saldm), the Shaykh rose and departed, without waiting for the customary devotions
(sunna). Qadi Sa'id faced towards him, whereupon the Shaykh looked at him askance. The Qadi at once bowed his head. When the " Shaykh and his disciples returned to the convent, he said, Hasan
!
jo to
the Kirmani market-place. There is a confectioner there las fine cakes made of white sesame and pistachio kernels.
;n
maunds' worth.
little
further on
you
will find
sells raisins.
Buy
cakes and raisins in two white cloths (du izdr-i futa-i kdfuri) and put them on your head and take them to Ustad Abu- Bakr Ishaq and tell him that he must break his fast with them to-night."
followed the Shaykh's instructions in every particular. When I gave his message to Abu Bakr Ishaq, the colour went out of his
I
face
and he sat
in
minutes he bade
me
amazement, biting his fingers. After a few be seated and having summoned Bu '1-
Qasimak, his chamberlain, despatched him to Qadi Sa'id. "Tell " him," said he, that I withdraw from our arrangement, which was that to-morrow we should bring this Shaykh and the Sufis to trial
he asks why, let him know that last night To-day, while riding on my ass to the congregational mosque, I passed through the Kirmani marketplace and saw some fine cakes in a confectioner's shop. It occurred to me that on returning from prayers I would send to purchase
If
resolved to fast.
them and break my fast with them to-night. Further on, I saw some raisins which I thought would be very nice with the cakes, and I resolved to buy some. When I came home, I had forgotten all about the matter and I had not spoken of it to any one. Now Shaykh Abu Sa'id sends me the same cakes and raisins which I noticed this morning and desired to buy, and bids me break my fast with them! I have no course but to abandon proceedings
against a
man who is
his fellow-creatures."
so perfectly acquainted with the thoughts of The chamberlain went to Qadi Sa'id and
returned with the following message: "I was on the point of sending to you in reference to this affair. To-day the Shaykh was present when I conducted public worship. No sooner had I pronounced the salutation than he went off without performing the
sunnat.
I
of devotions
turned towards him, intending to ask how his neglect on a Friday was characteristic of ascetics and Sufis
32
[CH.
and to make this the foundation of a bitter attack upon him. He looked askance at me. I almost fainted with fear. He seemed to be a hawk and I a sparrow which he was about to destroy. I
struggled to speak but could not utter a word. To-day he has shown to me his power and majesty. I have no quarrel with him. If the Sultan has issued an edict against him you were responsible.
You were the principal and I was only a subordinate." When the chamberlain had delivered this message, Abu Bakr Ishaq turned
me and said: "Go and tell your Shaykh that Abu Bakr Ishaq Karramf with 20,000 followers, and Qadi Sa'id with 30,000, and the Sultan with 100,000 men and 750 war elephants, made ready for battle and tried to subdue him, and that he has defeated all their armies with ten maunds of cake and raisins and has routed right wing, left wing, and centre. He is free to hold his religion, as we are free to hold ours. Ye have your religion and I have my
to
1 religion ."
him
"
all
came back to the Shaykh (said Hasan-i Mu'addib) and told that had passed. He turned to his disciples and said,
Since yesterday ye have been trembling for fear that the scaffold would be soaked with your blood. Nay, that is the lot of such as Husayn-i Mansur Hallaj, the most eminent mystic of his time in East and West. Scaffolds drip with the blood of heroes, not of cowards." Then he bade the qawwdl sing these lines:
With shield and quiver meet thine enemy Vaunt not thyself but make thy vaunt of Me.
!
Let Fate be cool as water, hot as fire, Do thou live happy, whichsoe'er it be
all
gaberdines away. After that day no one in Nishapur ventured to speak a word in 2 disparagement of the $uffs
.
The story may not be entirely fictitious. It shows, at any Moslems ascribe a miraculous character to telepathic nor does it exaggerate the awe inspired by a holy powers, man who displays them effectively. Most of Abu Sa'fd's
rate, that
recorded miracles are of this kind. That Mohammedan saints have often been thought-readers seems to me beyond question,
1
Kor. 109,
6.
84, 10
91, 17.
I]
Abu Said
ibn
Abi 'l-Khayr
33
may feel as to a great part of the evidence preserved in their legends. Whether Abu Sa'id was actually threatened with legal prosecution or not, we can well
believe that the orthodox parties were scandalised by his luxurious manner of living and by the unlicensed practices in
disciples indulged. He made no attempt to rebut the charges brought against him, and from numerous anecdotes related by those who held him in veneration it is
clear that if the document said to have been sent to Ghazna be genuine, his accusers set down nothing but what was notoriously true. They gained sympathy, if not active support, from many Sufis who perceived the danger of antinomianism and desired above all things to secure the position of Sufism within Islam. Of this party the chief representative in
which he composed in A.H. 437 = A.D. 1045-6 with the avowed object of demonstrating that the history and traditions of Sufism are bound up with strict observance of the Moham-
Nishapiir was Abu '1-Qasim Qushayri, well known as the author of al-Risdlatu 'l-Qushayriyya fi 'ilmi 'l-tasawwuf,
Abu
with Qushayri,
who
personal experience of his miraculous intuition to repent of the hostile feelings with which he regarded the new-comer.
During the
year of Abu Sa'id's stay in Nishapiir, his prayer-meetings were attended by seventy disciples of Qushayri, and finally he himself agreed to accompany them.
first
reflected:
"This
:
" of reading men's thoughts? Abii Sa'id at once paused in his discourse and fixing his eye on Qushayri reminded him of a certain ritual irregularity of
power
which he had been guilty in private on the preceding day. Qushayri was dumbfounded. Abu Sa'id, as soon as he left the pulpit, approached him and they embraced each other 1 Their harmony, however, was not yet complete, for they
.
94, 3a
N.
S. II
34
[CH.
which had long been raging, whether audition (samd') was permissible; in other words, "Did the religious law sanction the use of music, singing, and " 1 One day dancing as a means of stimulating ecstasy ?
differed in the great controversy,
Qushayrf, while passing Abu Sa'id's convent, looked in and saw him taking part with his disciples in an ecstatic dance. He thought to himself that, according to the Law, no one who dances like this is accepted as a witness worthy of credit. Next day he met Abu Sa'id on his way to a feast. After they
had exchanged salutations, Abu Sa'id said to him, "When " have you seen me seated amongst the witnesses? Qushayri understood that this was the answer to his unspoken thought 2 He now dismissed from his mind all unfriendly feelings, and the two became so intimate that not a day passed without one of them visiting the other 3 while on Qushayri' s invitation Abii Sa'fd conducted a service once a week in the former's convent 4 These anecdotes and others of the same tendency may be viewed, not as records of what happened, but rather as
. ,
.
religious law and mystical truth Qushayrf and Abii Sa'id were inclined by temperament to take opposite sides. In every case, needless to say, the legalist is worsted by the theosophist, whose inner light is his supreme and infallible authority. The following stories, in which Qushayrf plays his usual role, would not have been worth translating unless they
had incidentally sketched for us the ways and manners of the dervishes whom Abu Sa'fd ruled over.
Abu '1-Qasim Qushayrf and were disciples going through the marketplace of Nishapur. A certain dervish let his eye fall on some boiled turnips set out for sale at the door of a shop and felt a craving for them. The Shaykh knew it by clairvoyance (firdsa). He pulled in
Sa'id with
a large number of
my
and Hujwirf, Kashf al-Mafrjiib, 393 foil. It is certain that Qushayri did not condemn samd' outright. He seems to have held the view, which was favoured by many ufis that samd' is bad for novices, but good for adepts. chard Hartmann, Al-Kuschairts Darstellung des $4f(turns, 134 foil.
69
foil.,
i
95, 15.
97, 10.
106, 8.
I]
Abu
all
35
man's shop
"Go
to that
and buy
along."
the turnips and beetroot that he has and bring them Meanwhile he and Qushayri and the disciples entered a
neighbouring mosque. When Hasan returned with the turnips and beetroot, the dinner-call was given and the dervishes began to eat. The Shaykh joined them, but Qushayri refrained and secretly
" place and was open in front. He said to himself, They are eating " The Shaykh, as was his custom, took no notice. in the street
!
or three days afterwards he and Qushayri with their disciples were present at a splendid feast. The table was covered with viands
of all sorts.
dish,
felt
Two
Qushayri wished very much to partake of a certain but he could not reach it and was ashamed to ask for it. He extremely annoyed. The Shaykh turned to him and said,
it, it is
"Doctor, when food is offered, you refuse it, and when you want not offered." Qushayri silently begged God to forgive him
.
what he had done 1 One day Qushayri unfrocked a him and ordered him to leave the
for
dervish and severely censured city. The reason was that the
dervish admired Isma'ilak-i Daqqaq, one of Qushayri's disciples, and had requested a certain friend to make a feast and invite the
singers (qawwdldri) and bring Isma'ilak with him. "Let me enjoy his company this evening (he pleaded) and shout in ecstasy at the
sight of his beauty, for I am on fire with love for him." The friend consented and gave a feast which was followed by music and
singing (samd').
of his gaberdine
On hearing of this,
and banished him from Nishapur. When the news came to the convent of Shaykh Abu Sa'id, the dervishes were indignant, but they said nothing about it to the Shaykh, knowing that he was acquainted by clairvoyance with all that passed. The Shaykh called Hasan-i Mu'addib and bade him make ready a fine banquet and invite the reverend Doctor (Qushayri) and all the Sufis in the town. "You must get plenty of roast lamb," he said, "and sweetmeats, and light a great many candles." At nightfall, when the company assembled, the Shaykh and the Doctor took their seats together on a couch, and the Sufis sat in front of it in three rows, a hundred men in each row. Khwaja Abu Tahir, the Shaykh's eldest son, who was exceedingly handsome, presided
1
IO2, IO.
32
36
[CH.
over the table. As soon as the time came for dessert, Hasan placed a large bowl of lawzina before the Shaykh and the Doctor. After
said to Abu Jahir, Take they had helped themselves, the Shaykh i>owl and go to yonder dervish, Bii 'Ali Turshizi, and put half of this lawzina in his mouth and eat the other half yourself." Abu "
Tahir went to the dervish, and kneeling respectfully before him, took a portion of the sweetmeat, and after swallowing a mouthful put the other half in the dervish's mouth. The dervish raised a loud
cry and rent his garment and ran forth from the convent, shouting " " " The Shaykh said, Abu Tahir I charge you to wait Labbayk upon that dervish. Take his staff and ewer and follow him and be
!
!
assiduous in serving him until he reaches the Ka'ba." When the dervish saw Abu Jahir coming after him, he stopped and asked " him where he was going. Abu Tahir said, My father has sent me
upon you," and told him the whole story. Bu 'Ali returned Shaykh and exclaimed, "For God's sake, bid Abu Tahir " The Shaykh did so, whereupon the dervish bowed and leave me departed. Turning to Qushayri, the Shaykh said, "What need is there to censure and unfrock and disgrace a dervish whom half a mouthful of lawzina can drive from the city and cast away into the Hijaz? For four years he has been devoted to my Abu Tahir, and except on your account I should never have divulged his secret." Qushayri rose and prayed God to forgive him and said, " I have done wrong. Every day I must learn from you a new lesson :fism." All the Sufis rejoiced and there were manifestations of
to wait to the
!
ecstasy
1
.
Nfshapiir, as depicted by his own friends and followers, must have shocked uffs of the old school who had been taught to model themselves upon the saintly heroes of Moslem asceticism. What were they to think of a man whose visitors found him lolling on cushions, like a lord, and having his feet
2 massaged by one of his dervishes ? A man who prayed every that God would give his disciples something nice to eat 3 night and spent all the money he received on costly entertainments?
, 1
103, 14.
294, ii.
I]
Abu
37
Could their objections be removed by exhibitions of thoughtreading or by appeals to the divine right of the saint T Thou art thus because thy lot is thus and thus, I am so because my lot is so and so 1
to regard the inward nature and disthe outward act 2 ? From the following rather than position anecdote it appears that such arguments did not always
or
by exhortations
suffice.
When Abu
Sa'id
was
at Nishapur, a
present of a large bundle of aloes-wood and a thousand Nishapuri dinars. The Shaykh called Hasan-i Mu'addib and bade him
prepare a feast and in accordance with his custom he handed over the thousand dinars to him for that purpose. Then he ordered that
;
an oven should be placed in the hall and that the whole bundle of " aloes-wood should be put in it and burned, saying, I do this that my neighbours may enjoy its perfume with me." He also ordered a great number of candles to be lighted, though it was still day. Now, there was at that time in Nishapur a very powerful inspector
of police,
man came into the monastery and said to the Shaykh, "What are you doing? What an unheard-of extravagance, to light candles in
the daytime and burn a whole bundle of aloes-wood at once It " 4 against the law ." The Shaykh replied, I did not know that it
!
is is
against the law. Go and blow out these candles." The inspector went and puffed at them, but the flame flared over his face and hair and dress, and most of his body was scorched. "Did not you know," said the Shaykh, "that Whoever tries to blow a candle out " That God hath lighted, his moustache gets burnt?
The inspector
fell
jurists
While the relations which Abu Sa'id established with the and theologians of Nishapur cannot have been friendly, it is likely enough that he convinced his adversaries of the wisdom or necessity of leaving him alone. In order to under1
117, 16.
no,
3.
^\j ^^.lo.
4
5
Extravagance (isrdf) is forbidden in the Koran, 6, 142; 7, 29, etc. 134, 9. In another version of this story (A 157, n) the offender is
38
[CH.
stand their attitude, we must remember the divinity that hedges the Oriental saint not merely in the eyes of mystics but amongst all classes of society. He wields an illimitable and mysterious power derived from Allah, whose chosen instrument he is. As his favour confers blessing, so his displeasure is fraught with calamity. Countless tales are told
of vengeance inflicted on those who have annoyed or insulted him, or shown any want of respect in his presence. Even
if his enemies are willing to run the risk, they must still reckon with the widely spread feeling that it is impious to
criticise the actions of holy men, which are inspired and guided by Allah Himself.
Naturally, Abu Sa'id required large sums of money for maintaining the convent with, perhaps, two or three hundred disciples, on such a liberal scale of living as he kept up. A
certain
their
conversion, put into the common stock all the worldly goods they possessed, but the chief part of the revenues came in the
shape of
gifts
who
desired the
from lay brethren or wealthy patrons or persons Shaykh to exert his spiritual influence on
their behalf.
accepted;
No doubt, much food and money was offered and much also was collected by Hasan-i Mu'addib, who
seems to have been an expert in this business. When voluntary contributions failed, the Shaykh's credit with the tradesmen of Nfshapiir enabled him to supply the needs of his flock. Here are some anecdotes which describe how he triumphed
over financial
difficulties.
The 'Amid
of
Khurasan
relates as follows:
The cause of my devotion to Shaykh Abu Sa'fd and his disciples was this. When I first came to Nishapiir, my name was Hajib Muhammad and I had no servant to attend upon me. Every morning I used to pass the gate of the Shaykh's convent and look in, and whenever I saw the Shaykh, that day brought me a blessing, so that I soon began to regard the sight of him as a happy omen. One night I thought that on the morrow I would go and pay my respects to him and take him a present. I took a thousand silver dirhems of the money which had been recently coined thirty dirhems to the dinar and wrapped them in a piece of paper,
I]
Abu
39
intending to visit the Shaykh next day and lay them before him. I was alone in the house at the time when I formed this plan, nor did I speak of it to any one. Afterwards it occurred to me that a
divided the
>so
Next morning, after taking one packet with me five pillow. As soon as we had exchanged greetings, I gave the hundred dirhems to Hasan-i Mu'addib, who with the utmost
packets.
hundred will be ample I placed in two prayers, I went to visit the Shaykh, and leaving the other behind my
five
;
has brought some pieces of money (shiThe Shaykh said, "God bless him! but he has not brought the full amount he has left half of it behind his pillow. Hasan owes a thousand dirhems. Let him give Hasan the whole sum in order that Hasan may satisfy his creditors and be freed from anxiety." On hearing these words, I was dumbfounded and
kasta-i)."
:
"Hajib Muhammad
immediately sent a servant to bring the remainder of the money for Hasan. Then I said to the Shaykh, "Accept me." He took my hand and said, "It is finished. Go in peace 1 ."
Sa'id's stay in
had contracted many debts in order to provide the dervishes with food. For a long time he received no gift of money and his creditors were dunning him. One day they came in a body to the convent gate. The Shaykh told Hasan to let them in. On being admitted, they bowed respectfully to the Shaykh and sat down. Meanwhile a boy passed the gate, crying "Sweet cakes (ndtif)l" "Go and fetch him," said the Shaykh. When he was brought in, the Shaykh bade Hasan seize the cakes and serve them out to the Sufis. The boy demanded his money, but the Shaykh
only said, "It will come." After waiting an hour, the boy said " again, I want my money" and got the same reply. At the end of
another hour, having been put off for the third time, he sobbed, "My master will beat me," and burst into tears. Just then some one entered the convent and placed a purse of gold before the
Shaykh, saying, So-and-so has sent it and begs that you will pray for him." The Shaykh ordered Hasan to pay the creditors and the cake-boy. It was exactly the sum required, neither more nor less.
"
"
It
113,
123, 19.
40
[CH.
There was in Nfshapur a rich broker, Bu 'Amr by name, who was such an enthusiastic admirer (muhibbi) of Shaykh Abu Sa'id that he entreated Hasan-i Mu'addib to apply to him for anything that the Shaykh might want, and not to be afraid of asking too much. One day (said Hasan) the Shaykh had already sent me to him seven times with divers requisitions which he satisfied in full. At sunset the Shaykh told me to go to him once more and procure some rosewater, aloes-wood, and camphor. I felt ashamed to return to him however, I went. He was closing his shop. When he saw me, he cried, "Hasan! what is it? You come late." I expressed to him the shame which I felt for having called upon him so frequently in one day and I made him acquainted with the Shaykh's instructions. He opened the shop-door and gave me all that I needed; then he said, "Since you are ashamed to apply to me for these trifles, to-morrow I will give you a thousand dinars on the security of the caravanseray and the bath-house, in order that you may use that sum for ordinary expenses and come to me for
;
matters of greater importance." I rejoiced, thinking that now I was quit of this ignoble begging. When I brought the rose-water,
camphor to the Shaykh, he regarded me with " and Hasan go and purge thy heart of all desire said, disapproval
aloes-wood, and
!
may let
and stood with bare head and feet and repented and asked God to forgive me and wept bitterly and rubbed my face on the ground but the Shaykh did not speak to me that night. Next day when he preached in the hall, he paid no attention to Bu 'Amr, although he was accustomed to look at him every day in the course of his sermon. As soon as he had finished, Bu 'Amr " came to me and said, Hasan what ails the Shaykh? He has not looked at me to-day." I said that I did not know, and then I told him what had passed between the Shaykh and me. Bu 'Amr went up to the Shaykh's chair and kissed it, saying, "O prince of the age, my life depends on thy look. To-day thou hast not looked at me. Tell me what I have done, that I may ask God's forgiveness " dl Will thee tn pardon my Offence." The Shaykli said, fetch me down from the heaven to and demand earth you highest
;
!
..:
li
a pledge from me in return for a thousand dinars? If you wish me to be pleased with you, give me the money now, and you will see
how
little it
my
"
lofty spirit
Bu 'Amr
i]
Abu
41
immediately went home and brought back two purses, each containing five hundred Nishapuri dinars. The Shaykh handed them " to me and said, Buy oxen and sheep. Make a hotchpotch (harisa)
of the beef
and a zira-bd
and
otto of roses. Get plenty of lawzina and rose-water and aloes- wood, and light a thousand candles in the daytime. Lay the tables at
Pushangan
(a beautiful village,
people of Nishapur),
which is a pleasure resort of the and proclaim in the city that all are welcome
who wish
nor calling to account in the next." More than two thousand men assembled at Pushangan. The Shaykh came with his disciples and
entertained high and low and with his own blessed hand sprinkled rose-water over his guests while they partook of the viands.
Abu
trated
Sa'id's
methods
in
of raising
money
is
recorded that, while preaching in public, he held up a sash and declared that he
it
by the story
which
must have three hundred dinars in exchange for it, which sum was at once offered by an old woman in the congregation 1 On another occasion, being in debt to the amount of five hundred dinars, he sent a message to a certain Abu '1-Fadl Furati that he was about to visit him. Abu '1-Fadl entertained him sumptuously for three days, and on the fourth day presented him with five hundred dinars, adding a hundred for travelling expenses and a hundred more as a gift. The Shaykh
.
I pray that God may take from thee the riches of this world." "Nay," cried Abu '1-Fadl, "for had I lacked riches, the blessed feet of the Shaykh would never have come here, and I should never have waited upon him and gained from
"
said,
spiritual power and peace." Abu Sa'id then said, "O God do not let him be a prey to worldliness make it a means
him
"
In consequence
.
his family prospered greatly and reached high positions in church and state 2 Apparently, Abu Sa'id did not scruple to employ threats when the
Abu
'1-Fadl
and
prospective donor disappointed him. And his threats were not to be despised For example, there was the Amir Mas'iid who, after once paying the Shaykh's debts, obstinately
!
280, 3.
299, 16.
42
[CH.
refused to comply with a second demand; whereupon Abu Sa'fd caused the following verse to be put into his hands by
Hasan-i Mu'addib:
Perform what thou hast promised,
else
thy might
!
And valour will not save thy life from me The Amfr flew into a rage and drove Hasan from his presence. On being told of this Abu Sa'id uttered no word. That same
night Mas'iid, as is the custom of Oriental princes, slipped out from his tent in disguise to make a round of the camp and hear what the soldiers were saying. The royal tent was
guarded by a number of huge Ghuri dogs, kept in chains by day but allowed to roam at night, of such ferocity that they would tear to pieces any stranger who approached. They did not recognise their master, and before any one could answer his cries for help he was a mangled corpse 1 Stories of this type, showing the saint as a minister of divine wrath and vengeance, must have influenced many superstitious minds. The average Moslem's fatalism and belief in clairvoyance lead him to justify acts which to us seem desperately immoral. Abu Sa'fd is said to have corresponded with his famous contemporary, Ibn Sfna (Avicenna) 2 I cannot regard as historical the account of their meeting in the
.
.
monastery at Nfshapur, or the report that after they had conversed with each other for three days and nights the philosopher said to his pupils, "All that I know he sees," while the mystic declared, "All that I see he knows 3 ." Even
less
probable
is
writings were the result of a miracle wrought by Abu Sa'fd, which first opened his eyes to the reality of saintship and
$ufism
4
.
Among
as
the eminent Persian mystics of this epoch none to Abu Sa'id in temperament and character
Abu
1
'1-Hasan of
Kharaqan
5
.
A
A
one from
Abu
given in
65, 3.
251, 16.
252, 12.
See his biography in 'Attar's Tadhkiratu 'l-Awliyd, n. 201-255. of his sayings are translated in my Mystics of Islam, p. 133 foil.
Some
I]
Abu
43
finally settling at
is
Mayhana, Abu Sa'id paid him a visit, which described with great particularity 1 A complete version would be tedious, but I have translated the most interesting
.
passages in
full.
Abu
Sa'id,
making the pilgrimage to Mecca, his father with a numerous following of Sufis and disciples resolved to accompany him. As soon as the party left
Nishapur behind them, Abu Sa'id exclaimed, "Were it not for my coming, the holy man could not support this sorrow." His companions wondered whom he meant. Now, Ahmad the son of Abu '1-Hasan Kharaqani had just been arrested and put to death on his wedding-eve. Abu '1-Hasan did not know until next morning, when, hearing the call to prayer, he came forth from his cell and trod upon the head of his son, which the executioners had flung away. On arriving at Kharaqan, Abu Sa'id went into the convent and entered the private chapel where Abu '1-Hasan usually sat. Abu '1-Hasan rose and walked halfway down the chapel to meet him, and they embraced each other. Abu '1-Hasan took Abu Sa'id's hand and led him to his own chair, but he declined to occupy
it;
announced
his intention of
and
since
Abu
place of honour,
Abu
"It
chapel. While they sat there weeping, Abu '1-Hasan begged Sa'id to give him a word of counsel, but Abu Sa'id said,
is
the
chant the Sufis wept and wailed. Abu '1-Hasan threw his gaberdine (khirqa) to the readers. After that, the bier was brought out, and they prayed over the dead youth and buried
im with manifestations of ecstasy. When the Sufis had etired to their cells, a dispute arose between them and the aders for the possession of Abu '1-Hasan's khirqa, which the
ufis claimed in order that they might tear it to pieces. Abu 1-Hasan sent a message by his servant to say that the readers should keep the khirqa, and he gave the Sufis another khirqa, to be torn to pieces and distributed among them. A separate
for
1
Abu
A
Sa'id,
175-191.
44
[CH.
'1-Hasan three days and nights. In spite of his host's entreaties he refused to speak, saying, "I have been brought hither to listen." Then Abu '1-Hasan said, "I implored God that He would send to me one of His friends, with whom I might speak
of these mysteries, for I am old and feeble and could not come to thee. He will not let thee go to Mecca. Thou art too holy
He will bring the Ka'ba to thee, thee." Every morning Abu circumambulate may '1-Hasan came to the door of Abu Sa'id's room and asked addressing the mother of Khwaja Muzaffar, whom Abu Sa'id had brought with him on this journey "How art thou, O faqira* Be sage and vigilant, for thou consortest with God. Here nothing of human nature remains, nothing of the flesh (nafs) remains. Here all is God, all is God." And in the daytime when Abu Sa'id was alone, Abu '1-Hasan used to come to the door and draw back the curtain and beg leave to come hi and beseech Abu Sa'id not to rise from his couch; and he would kneel beside him and put his head close to him, and they would converse in low tones and weep together; and Abu '1-Hasan would slip his hand underneath Abu Sa'id's
to be conducted to Mecca.
that
it
garment and lay it upon his breast and cry, I am laying my hand upon the Everlasting Light...." Abu '1-Hasan said, "O Shaykh, every night I see the Ka'ba circumambulating thy head: what need for thee to go to the Ka'ba? Turn back, for thou wast brought hither for my sake. Now thou hast performed the pilgrimage." Abu Sa'id said, "I will go and visit Bistam and return here." "Thou wishest to perform the
'umra," said
hajj."
"
Abu
Then Abu
'1-Hasan, "after having performed the Sa'fd set out for Bistam, where he visited
From Bistam the pilgrims westward to journeyed Damghan, and thence to Rayy. Here Abu Sa'fd made a halt and declared that he would go no
the shrine of Bayazfd-i Bistami.
farther in the direction of Mecca.
who
son
persisted in their intention of performing the pilgrimage, the rest of the party, including Abu Sa'fd and his
still
Abu
The
Kharaqan and
Nfshapur.
last
years of
Abu
Sa'fd's life
l]
Abu
45
at
Mayhana. We are told that his final departure from Nishapiir was deeply regretted by the inhabitants, and that
of the city urged him in vain to alter his With advancing years he may have felt that the which devolved upon him as a director of souls (not to
.
:
the chief
decision 1
men
duties
of bodies) were too heavy a burden in his old age he spe speak uld not rise without being helped by two disciples who took COT hold of his arms and lifted him from his seat 2 He left no money in the convent, saying that God would send whatever
.
was necessary
this prediction
fulfilled, and although the convent never of income (ma'lum), it attracted a a sure source possessed and received more spiritual and number of dervishes larger
was
material blessings than any other religious house in Nishapiir, until it was destroyed by the invading Ghuzz 3
.
4 months). He (83 years I2th of died at Mayhana on the 4th of Sha'ban, A.H. 440 January, A.D. 1049, and was buried in the mosque opposite his house 4 His tomb bore the following lines in Arabic, which
Abu
months
nay, charge thee Write on my gravestone, "This was love's bondsman," that when I am gone, Some wretch well-versed in passion's ways may sigh And give me greeting, as he passes by 5
.
his corpulence, the only personal appearance that his biographers have preserved is the following, which depicts him as he was seen by an old man whom he saved from dying
description of
Abu
Sa'id's
and wide eyes and a long beard a patched frock (muraqqa'); in his hands a staff and a ewer; a prayer-rug thrown over his shoulder, also a razor and toothpick a Sufi cap on his head, and on his feet
stout, with a white skin
falling to the navel; clad in
;
light
was shining
from
1 5
his face 6
193, 18.
78, 19.
no,
16.
445, 12,
A A
195, 3.
80, 14.
67,
i.
46
in one.
[CH.
This sketch of his life has shown us the saint and the abbot Before coming into closer touch with the former character, I should like to refer to a few passages of specially
monastic
interest.
The
first
Abu
in writing, in order that they might be observed punctiliously by the inmates of his convent. In the original, after every rule
there follow
I.
some words
of the
Koran on which
it is
based.
II.
sit 1 in
the
for the
sake of gossiping.
III.
In the
first
instance 2 let
their prayers in
common.
IV.
much
at night.
V. At
VI. In
dawn let them ask forgiveness of God and call unto Him. the morning let them read as much of the Koran as they
and
let
can,
them not
VII. Between evening prayers and bedtime prayers let them occupy themselves with repeating some litany (wirdi u
dhikri).
VIII.
Let them welcome the poor and needy and all who join their company, and let them bear patiently the trouble of
(waiting upon) them.
IX. Let them not eat anything save in participation with one
another.
X. Let them not absent themselves without receiving permission from one another.
Furthermore,
:
let
them spend
three things either in the study of theology or in some devotional exercise (wirdi) or in bringing comfort to some one. Whosoever loves this community and helps them as much as he can is a sharer
in their
1
Reading
* life.
*i*^
J^W
suppose, at the
commencement
of their monastic
416, 5.
l]
Abu
Pir
47
used
Abu
continually to stand beside him with a pair of nail-scissors in his hand. Whenever the Shaykh looked at his woollen gaberdine and
saw the nap (purz) on it, he would pull the nap with his fingers, and then Abu Salih would at once remove it with the nail-scissors, for the Shaykh was so absorbed in contemplation of God that he
did not wish to be disturbed by perceiving the state of his clothes. Abu Salih was the Shaykh's barber and used regularly to trim his
moustache.
matter.
of doing this.
and
said,
"It
is
no such easy
how
Salih related that the Shaykh, towards the end of his life, had only one tooth left. "Every night, after supper, I used to give him a
his hands,
toothpick, with which he cleansed his mouth; and when he washed he would pour water on the toothpick and lay it down.
thought to myself, He has no teeth and does not require a toothpick: why should he take it from me every night? The Shaykh raised his head and looked at me and said, Because I wish to observe the Sunna and because I hope to win divine
One evening
'
'
'
May God have mercy upon those of my who use the toothpick in their ablutions and at their meals was overcome with shame and began to weep 1 ."
' !
Pir Hubbi was the Shaykh's tailor. One day he came in with a garment belonging to the Shaykh which he had mended. At that moment the Shaykh was taking his noonday siesta
and reclining on a couch, while Khwaja 'Abdu 1-Karim, his valet, sat beside his pillow and fanned him. Khwaja 'Abdu '1-
Karim exclaimed, "What are you doing here?" Pir Hubbi " Wherever there is room for you, there is room for retorted, me." The valet laid down the fan and struck him again and
" That is again. After seven blows the Shaykh said, enough." Pir Hubbi went off and complained to Khwaja Najjar, who
when he came out for afternoon prayers, "The young men lift their hands against the elders: what says the Shaykh?" The Shaykh replied, "Khwaja 'Abdu '1-Karim's
said to the Shaykh,
hand
is
my
it
2
.
146, 4.
271, 5.
48
[CH.
II.
In describing
scholars have
Abu
and
their
European
hitherto
quatrains which he is said to have composed and of which more than six hundred have been published 1 As I have shown above (p. 4, note 3), it is doubtful whether Abu Sa'id is the author of any of these poems, and we may be sure that in the main they are not his work and were never even quoted by him. To repeat what has been already said, they form a miscellaneous anthology drawn from a great number of poets who flourished at different periods, and consequently
they
mysticism as a whole.
to bring its peculiar diction and symbolism quoting Sufi poetry in his sermons and allowing
we may hesitate to accept the view that he invented this style (which occurs, full-blown, in the odes of his contemporary, Baba Kuhi of Shfraz) or was
the
first
to
embody
it
neither the precision of a treatise nor the coherence of a system. It is experimental, not doctrinal or philosophical. It does not concern itself with abstract speculations, but sets
maxims
forth in simple and un technical language such principles and as bear directly on the religious life and are the fruit
of dearly-bought experience. As we read, we seem to hear the voice of the teacher addressing his disciples and ex-
pounding for their benefit the truths that had been revealed to him. Abu Sa'fd borrows much from his predecessors, sometimes mentioning them by name, but often appropriating
1 92 by H. Eth6 in Sitzungsberichte der konigl. bayer. Akademie der Wissenschaften, philosophisch-philologische Classe (1875), pp. 145-168 and (1878), pp. 38-70; 400 by Mawlavi 'Abdu '1-Wali in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vol. v, No. (December, 1909) and vol. vn, No. 10 (November, 1911); and 1 1 2 by H. D. Graves Law in the same journal
(according to an offprint given to me by the author in i<)i3, which refers to 'Abdu 'l-Wali's work as "comparatively recent"; but I cannot find the article in the volumes issued in 1912 and 1913. It is entitled "Some new
quatrains of
Abu
I]
Abu
this
49
1
.
their
acknowledgement
Amongst
kind of plagiarism is considered respectable, Moslems, even when the culprit is not a saint.
The sayings
Sufism, which
further.
of
Abu
it will
1. To lay aside what thou hast in thy head, to give what thou hast in thy hand, and not to recoil from whatsoever befalls thee 2 2. Sufism is two things to look in one direction and to live in
. :
is
a name attached to
its
object;
when
it
reaches
its
ultimate perfection, it is God (i.e. the end of Sufism is that, for the Sufi, nothing should exist except God) 4 4. It is glory in wretchedness and riches in poverty and
.
lordship in servitude
in bitterness 5
5.
and
satiety in
The
Sufi
is
that
God may be
he who is pleased with all that 6 pleased with all that he does
God does,
in order
6.
Sufism is patience under God's commanding and forbidding, in the events determined by
divine providence 7 7. Sufism is the will of the Creator concerning His creatures when no creature exists 8
.
to cease from taking trouble (takalluf) ; and there is no greater trouble for thee than thine own self (tu'i-yi tu), for when thou art occupied with thyself, thou remainest away from
8.
To be a
Sufi
is
God 9
9.
1
He
said,
"Even
this
Sufism
is
is
polytheism (shirk)."
"Why,
is
One
of his sayings,
which
certain sage," reveals the source (hitherto, I believe, unidentified) of Sir William Jones's lines To an Infant newly born: "On parent's knees, a naked new-born child,
ascribed to
"a
sat'st while all around thee smiled; that sinking in thy long last sleep. Calm thou mayst smile, while all around thee weep." The original is in prose and runs as follows: "Thou wast born weeping, whilst thy folk smiled. Endeavour to die smiling, whilst thy folk weep"
Weeping thou
So
live,
(A 317,
2
6
14).
3
7
A 373, 7. A 381, 5.
N. s. ii
4 8
375,
n.
6
9
386, 4.
50
[CH.
O Shaykh? "
in
He
what
pantheistic self-abandonment, on which much stress, forms only the negative so these definitions lay Sa'id's Abu of side mystical teaching. His doctrine of fund,
the passing-away from self, is supplemented by an equally characteristic positive element, of which I shall have more to say presently. Both aspects are indicated in the following
maxim:
"A man
ought to put
away
ought to be occupied with two things: he all that keeps him apart from God, and
God 3
yet the
Way is
but a
single step: "take one step out of thyself, that thou mayst arrive at God 4 ." To pass away from self (fund) is to realise that self does not exist, and that nothing exists except God (taw hid). The Tradition, "He who knows himself knows his
Lord,"
signifies
that he
who knows
cannot be obtained through the intellect, since the Eternal and Uncreated is inaccessible to that which is created 6 it cannot be learned, but is given by divine illumination. The organ which receives it is the "heart" (qalb or dil), a spiritual faculty, not the heart of flesh and blood. In a remarkable passage Abu Sa'id refers to a divine principle, which he calls
;
sirr Allah, i.e. the conscience or consciousness of God, and describes it as something which God communicates to the
"heart."
"What
ikhld
is
"
is
sincerity (ikhlds)?
he
a divine
sirr in
man's heart
soul,
which
sirr is
replenished by God's pure contemplation thereof. Whosoever declares God to be One, his belief in the divine Unity depends on that sirr.
1
319, 8.
402, 3.
A A
380. 6.
A 380,
9.
74, 13.
397, 8.
i]
Abu
That
51
he continued as follows:
for He is gracious
it is
(latif)
a substance of God's grace (latifa) unto His servants (Koran, 42, 18) and
produced by
the bounty and mercy of God, not by the acquisition and action of man. At first, He produces a need and longing and sorrow in man's
heart; then
He contemplates that need and sorrow, and in His bounty and mercy deposits in that heart a spiritual substance (latifa) which is hidden from the knowledge of angel and prophet. That substance is called sirr Allah, and that is ikhlds 1 ....Tha.t pure sirr is the Beloved of Unitarians. It is immortal and does not become naught, since it subsists in God's contemplation of it. It belongs to the Creator: the creatures have no part therein, and
body it is a loan. Whoever possesses it is "living" (hayy), and whoever lacks it is "animal" (hayawdn). There is a great difference between the "living" and the "animal" 2
in the
.
many
analogies to this sirr Allah, e.g. the "synteresis" of Gerson " and Eckhart's " spark or " ground of the soul."
I will
now
translate
some
of
Abu
Sa'id's discourses
and
sayings on the Way to God through self-negation. He was asked, "When shall a man be freed from his
wants?
"
"When God shall free him," he replied; "this is not effected by a man's exertion, but by the grace and help of God. First of all, He
brings forth in him the desire to attain this goal. Then He opens to him the gate of repentance (tawba). Then He throws him into
self-mortification (mujdhada), so that he continues to strive and, for a while, to pride himself upon his efforts, thinking that he is
advancing or achieving something; but afterwards he falls into despair and feels no joy. Then he knows that his work is not pure, but tainted, he repents of the acts of devotion which he had thought
to be his own,
and perceives that they were done by God's grace and help, and that he was guilty of polytheism (shirk) in attributing them to his own exertion. When this becomes manifest, a feeling
of joy enters his heart.
(yaqin), so that for
Then God opens to him the gate of certainty a time he takes anything from any one and accepts contumely and endures abasement, and knows for certain
1
383, 15.
A 385,
3.
52
[CH.
this is
by Whom it is brought to pass, and doubt concerning removed from his heart. Then God opens to him the gate
(mahabba), and here too egoism shows
of love
exposed to
itself for a time and he is blame (maldma), which means that in his love of God he meets fearlessly whatever may befall him and recks not of reproach but still he thinks I love and finds no rest until he perceives that it is God who loves him and keeps him in the state of loving, and that this is the result of divine love and grace, not of his own endeavour. Then God opens to him the gate of unity (tawhid) and causes him to know that all action depends on God Almighty. Hereupon he perceives that all is He, and all is by Him, and all is His; that He has laid this self-conceit upon His creatures in order to prove them, and that He in His omnipotence ordains that they shall hold this false belief, because omnipotence is His attribute, so that when they regard His attributes they shall know that He is the Lord. What formerly was hearsay now becomes known to him intuitively as he contemplates the works of God. Then he entirely recognises that he has not the right to say I or 'mine.' At this stage he beholds his helplessness; desires fall away from him and he becomes free and calm. He wishes that which God wishes his own wishes are gone, he is emancipated from his wants, and has gained peace and joy in both worlds.... First, action is necessary, then knowledge, in order that thou mayst know that thou knowest naught and art no one. This is not easy to know. It is a thing that cannot be rightly learned by instruction, nor sewn on with needle nor tied on with thread. It is the gift of God 1 ."
;
'
'
'
'
The heart's vision is what matters, not the tongue's speech. Thou wilt never escape from thy self (nafs) until thou slay it. To " " say There is no god but Allah is not enough. Most of those who make the verbal profession of faith are polytheists at heart, and
is the one unpardonable sin. Thy whole body is full of doubt and polytheism. Thou must cast them out in order to be at peace. Until thou deny thy self thou wilt never believe in God. " Thy self, which is keeping thee far from God and saying, So-andso has treated thee ill," "such and such a one has done well by thee," points the way to creatureliness and all this is polytheism. Nothing depends on the creatures, all depends on the Creator. This thou must know and say, and having said it thou must stand
polytheism
376,
n.
I]
Abu
53
firm.
To stand firm (istiqdma) means that when thou hast said "One," thou must never again say "Two." Creator and creature
suddenly may " "
:
start
are "Two."... Do not double like a fox, that ye up in some other place that is not right faith.
Say
Allah
"God"
Standing firm is this, that when thou hast thou shouldst no more speak or think of created
there.
it is
things, so that
who
though they were not.... Love that One when thou ceasest, in order that thou that thou never wilt cease to be 1 a be such being mayst
just as
So long as any one regards his purity and devotion, he says I," but when he considers exclusively the bounty and 2 mercy of God, he says "Thou! Thou!" and then his worship 3 becomes a reality
"Thou and
He was
asked,
"What is
'
evil
and what
is
"
'
;
evil is
thou/ when
individuality was constantly asserting itself. Once he attended a party of mourners (ta'ziya), where the visitors, as they
arrived, were
loud voice enumerated their titles of honour (alqdb) When Abu Sa'id appeared, the mu'arrif inquired how he should announce " him. Go," said he, "and tell them to make way for Nobody,
the son of Nobody 5 ." In speaking of himself, he never used the pronouns "I" or "we," but invariably referred to himself as
for
(ishdri). The author of the A srdru 'l-ta whid apologises having restored the customary form of speech, pointing out that if he had retained "they" in such cases, the meaning of the text would have been confused and unintelligible to
"they"
6
.
selflessness is
independent of
translation). 371, 5 (abridged IostBandagi (Arabic 'ubudiyya) properly man's relation as a slave to his
2
in
is
Lord. Cf R. Hartmann,
.
A l-Kuschairis
4
foil.
3
6
A 403,
3.
for the
same
reason,
Abu
"
form instead (A 68, 12). He always said, necessary to do so-and-so" (chunin bdyad hard), not "Do so-and-so"
{chunin bikuri).
54
[CH.
human
it is attained. A power not his own draws him on towards the goal, but this divine attraction (kashish) demands, on his part, an inward striving (kushish), without which there can be no vision (binish) 1 Like many Suffs, Abu Sa'fd admits freewill in practice but denies it in theory. As a spiritual director, he could not teach what, as a pantheist, he was bound to believe that the only real agent is God. Speaking from the standpoint of the religious law, he " used often to say: O God whatever comes from me to Thee I beseech Thee to forgive, and whatever comes from Thee to 2 " On the other hand, he says that me, Thine is the praise had there been no sinners, God's mercy would have been wasted 3 and that Adam would not have been visited with the tribulation of sin unless forgiveness were the dearest of all 4 In the following passage he suggests that things to God sin is an act of disobedience to the divine comalthough mandment (a mr) it is none the less determined by the divine
the process
by which
will (irdda).
On
the
Day
judgment with
led multitudes of people astray. He will confess that he called on them to follow him, but will plead that they need not have done so. Then God will say, " Let that pass Now worship Adam, in order that thou mayst be saved." The devils will implore him to obey
!
and thereby
will answer,
weeping,
worshipped
it, I
Adam
and them from torment, but Iblis will, I would have at the time when I was first bidden. God
Had it depended on my
commands me
to worship him, but does not will should have worshipped him then 5 ."
it.
Had He willed
It is significant that Abu Sa'fd lets Iblfs have the last word, whereas Hallaj, who was faced with the same dilemma,
must
fulfil
the divine
command
is
(amr)
identical with
4
A 387. A 332,
9.
A
For a
14.
full
401, 17.
see
I]
Abu
nearer to
55
Abu Sa'id calls "want" (niydz). There is no than this 1 It is described as a living and God way luminous fire placed by God in the breasts of His servants in order that their "self" (nafs) maybe burned; and when it has been burned, the fire of "want" becomes the fire of "longing"
the state which
.
(shawq)
which never
and
is
Complete negation of individuality involves complete affirmation of the real and universal Self a fact which is
expressed
by
away"
The
"Abiding
(as Ruysbroeck says) "he goes out towards created things in a spirit of love towards all things, in the virtues and in works of righteousness 3 ." He is not an ecstatic
devotee lost in contemplation of the Oneness, nor a saintly recluse shunning all commerce with mankind, but a philanthropist who in all his words and actions exhibits and diffuses
amongst those around him the divine life with which he has been made one. "The true saint," said Abu Sa'id, "goes in and out amongst the people and eats and sleeps with them
sells in
in social intercourse,
the market and marries and takes part and never forgets God for a single
ideal of charity and brotherhood was a noble however he may have abused it. He declared that there is no better and easier means of attaining to God than by 5 and quoted with bringing joy to the heart of a Moslem approval the saying of Abu '!-' Abbas Bashshar, "When a disciple performs an act of kindness to a dervish, it is better for him than a hundred genuflexions; and if he gives him a mouthful of food, it is better for him than a whole night spent in prayer 6 ." His purse was always open, and he never 7 because he regarded all creatures quarrelled with any one
,
with the eye of the Creator, not with the eye of the creatures 8 When his followers wished to chastise a bigot who had cursed
.
328, 10.
388, 10.
3 4
7
Cf.
my
Mystics of Islam,
5.
6
p.
162
foil.
6 8
A 259, A 306,
380, ii.
17; 220, 3.
56
[CH.
him, he restrained them, saying, "God forbid! He is not cursing me, but he thinks that my belief is false and that his own belief is true therefore he is cursing that false belief for God's sake 1 ." He seldom preached on Koranic texts describing the pains of Hell, and in his last years, when reciting the Koran,
:
he passed overall the "verses of torment" (dydt-i 'adhdb). "O " he cried, "inasmuch as men and stones have the same value in Thy sight, feed the flames of Hell with stones and do " not burn these miserable wretches 2 Although Abu Sa'id's embraced all created he makes a clear discharity beings, tinction between the Sufis and the rest of his fellow-men. The Stiffs are God's elect and are united by a spiritual affinity which is more binding than any ties of blood.
God
Four thousand years before God created these bodies, He created the souls and kept them beside Himself and shed a light
upon them. He knew what quantity of light each soul received and He was showing favour to each in proportion to its illumination. The souls remained all that time in the light until they became fully nourished. Those who in this world live in joy and agreement with one another must have been akin to one another in yonder place. Here they love one another and are called the friends of God, and they are brethren who love one another for
God's sake. These souls know each other by the smell, like horses. Though one be in the East and the other in the West, yet they feel
joy and comfort in each other's talk, and one who lives in a later generation than the other is instructed and consoled by the words
of his friend 8
.
Abu
Sa'fd said:
Whoever goes with me in this Way is my kinsman, even though he be many degrees removed from me, and whoever does not back
me
in this
matter
.
is
of
my
nearest relatives 4
To many
Moslem
Abu
Sa'fd as a
seem doubly paradoxical. The Mohammedan notion of saintship, which is founded on ecstasy 5
saint will
,
A A
'A 261,
359, 15.
A
p.
399, 14.
120
foil.
i]
Abu
57
justifies
the noun; but we may still wonder that the adjective should be applied to a man who on one occasion cried out in a transport of enthusiasm, "There is nothing inside " I need not discuss here the causes this coat except Allah 1
!
which gradually brought about such a revolution that, as Professor D. B. Macdonald says, "the devout life within the Muslim church led to a more complete pantheism than
ever did the Christian trinity 2 ." At any rate, the question whether Abu Sa'id was a Moslem cannot be decided against
him on
this count, unless we are prepared to excommunicate most of the saints, some of the profoundest theologians,
and wellnigh all the earnestly religious thinkers of Islam. This was recognised by his orthodox opponents, who ignored his theosophical doctrines and attacked him as an innovator in matters connected with the religious law. Within
reasonable limits, he might believe and say what he liked, they would take notice only of his overt acts. The following pages, which set forth his attitude towards positive religion,
will
from
Oriente lux.
At the time
'Abdallah
of Abu Sa'id's residence in Nishapiir Shaykh Baku was in the convent of Shaykh Abu 'Abd
Rahman al-Sulami, of which he became the director after the death of Abu 'Abd al-Rahman. (Baku is a village in the district of
Shaykh Abu
Shirwan.) This Bii 'Abdallah Baku used frequently to talk with Sa'id in a controversial spirit and ask him questions " about the Sufi Path. One day he came to him and said, O Shaykh
!
we
you doing some things that our Elders never did." "What are these things?" Abu Sa'id inquired. "One of them," said he, "is this, that you let the young men sit beside the old and put the juniors on a level with their seniors in all affairs and make no difference between them secondly, you permit the young men to dance and sing; and thirdly, when a dervish throws off his gaberdine (in ecstasy), you sometimes direct that it should be
see
;
1
2
H 6,
The
5.
262,
5.
religious attitude
and
life
in Islam, p. 39.
58
[CH.
given back to him, saying that the dervish has the best right to his " own gaberdine. This has never been the practice of our Elders. "Is
there anything else?" said Abu Sa'id. "No," he replied. Abu Sa'id said, "As regards the juniors and seniors, none of them is a junior in my opinion. When a man has once entered on the Path of
$ufism, although he may be young, his seniors ought to consider that possibly he will receive in a single day what they have not
received in seventy years. None who holds this belief will look upon any person as a junior. Then, as to the young men's dancing
in the samd', the souls of
indeed
of all
young men are not yet purged of lust prevailing element and lust takes possession the limbs. Now, if a young dervish claps his hands, the lust
:
it
may be the
and
if
he tosses his
feet,
the lust of
by
this
means the
limbs, they can preserve themselves from great sins, but when all lusts are united (which God forfend !), they will sin mortally.
It is better that the fire of their lust
samd' than in something else. As regards the gaberdine which a dervish throws off, its disposal rests with the whole company of
dervishes and engages their attention. If they have no other garment at hand, they clothe him again in his own gaberdine, and thereby relieve their minds from the burden of thinking about it.
That dervish has not taken back his own gaberdine, but the company of dervishes have given him their gaberdine and have thus freed their minds from thought of him. Therefore he is protected by the spiritual concentration (himma) of the whole company. This gaberdine is not the same one which he threw away.
' '
Bu
'Abdallah
Baku
said,
"Had
should
This interesting passage represents Abu Sa'fd as having departed in certain respects from the ancient ufistic tradition. His innovations, by destroying the influence and authority of the more experienced dervishes, would naturally tend to relax
uff writers, e.g. Sarraj, Qushayri, and Early Hujwfrf, do not agree with him in thinking that the practice of samd' is beneficial to the young on the contrary, they urge the necessity of taking care lest novices should be demoralised
discipline.
>
269, 2.
I]
Abu
it.
59
by
are contained in, and derived from, the Koran and the Traditions, of which the true meaning has been mystically revealed to the Sufis alone. This theory concedes all that
Moslems claim as to the unique authority of the Koran and reduces the difference between Moslem and Sufi to a question of interpretation. Abu Sa'id, however, found the source of his
doctrine in a larger revelation than the to the Prophet.
The author
day, whilst
My grandfather, Shaykhu
Abu
Sa'id
Abu
one
was preaching
logian who was present thought to himself that such doctrine is not to be found in the seven sevenths (i.e. the whole) of the Koran.
Abu Sa'id immediately turned towards him and said, "Doctor, thy
thought is not hidden from me. The doctrine that I preach is " contained in the eighth seventh of the Koran." "What is that?
the theologian inquired.
are, thee (Kor. 5, 71),
"
He
His
He
the
infinite
revealed (Kor. 53, 10). Ye imagine that is of fixed quantity and extent. Nay, the
down
to
Mohammed
is
the
whole seven sevenths of the Koran but that which He causes to come into the hearts of His servants does not admit of being numbered and limited, nor does it ever cease. Every moment there comes a messenger from Him to the hearts of His servants, as the Prophet declared, saying, 'Beware of the clairvoyance " (firdsa) of the true believer, for verily he sees by the light of God.'
Then Abu
Thou art my soul's joy, known by vision, not by Of what use is hearsay to one who hath vision?
hearsay.
In a Tradition (he went on) it is stated that the Guarded Tablet 1 (lawh-i mahfuz) is so broad that a fleet Arab horse would not be
able to cross
it
a hair. Of
1
all
in four years, and the writing thereon is finer than the writing which covers it only a single line has been
believe that everything that shall Throne of God.
Mohammedans
is
happen
till
the Last
Day
6o
[CH.
communicated to God's
anything about
it
1
.
and temporal and appeals to the universal, infinite, and everlasting revelation which the Suffs find in their hearts. As a rule, even the boldest Mohammedan mystics shrink from uttering such a challenge. So long as the inner light is regarded only as an interpreter of the written revelation, the supremacy of the latter is nominally mainsets aside the partial, finite,
tained,
it
:
this is
though in fact almost any doctrine can be foisted upon a very different thing from claiming that the inner
light
transcends the Prophetic Law and possesses full authority to make laws for itself. Abu Sa'id does not say that the partial and universal revelations are in conflict with
each other: he does not repudiate the Koran, but he denies that it is the final and absolute standard of divine truth. He often quotes Koranic verses in support of his theosophical views. Only when the Book fails him need he confound his critics by alleging a secret communication which he has received from the Author. The foregoing anecdote prepares us for mysticism of an advanced and antinomian type. Not that Abu Sa'fd acted in logical accordance with his beliefs. With one exception, which will be noted presently, he omitted no religious observance that a good Moslem is required to perform. But while he thus shielded himself under the law, he showed in word and deed how little he valued any external ceremony or traditional
dogma.
There was at Qa'in a venerable Imam, whose name was Khwaja Muhammad Qa'inf. When Abu Sa'fd arrived at Qa'in, Khwaja Muhammad spent most of his time in waiting upon him, and he used to attend all the parties to which Abu Sa'id was
invited.
On
Abu
transports of ecstasy.
1
Sa'fd and all the company had fallen into The muezzin gave the call to noonday
49, 22.
132, 3.
I]
Abu
61
prayers, but Abu Sa'id remained in the same rapture and the dervishes continued to dance and shout. "Prayers! Prayers!"
Imam Muhammad Qa'ini. We are at prayers, said Abu Sa'id; whereupon the Imam left them in order to take part in the prayer-service. When Abu Sa'id came out of his trance, he said,
cried the
' '
'
'
"Between its rising and setting the sun does not shine upon a more venerable and learned man than this" meaning Muhammad Qa'ini "but his knowledge of Sufism is not so much as the
tip of
a hair 1 ."
it
Although
of
would be wrong
was not the formal act, but from self" which is completely attained in away he "to have a mystical experi"Endeavour," said, ecstasy. ence (wdrid), not a devotional exercise (wird) 2 ." One day he said to a dervish, who in order to show the utmost respect stood before him in the attitude of prayer, "This is a very 3 respectful posture, but thy not-being would be still better ." He never made the pilgrimage to Mecca, which every
the "passing
Abu
Moslem is bound to make at least once. Many Sufis who would have gladly dispensed with this semi-pagan rite allegorised it and attached a mystical significance to each of
but they saved their orthodoxy at Abu Sa'id had no such to His to refusal reputation keep up. perform the Hajj is not so surprising as the contemptuous language in which he refers to one of the five main pillars of Islam.
;
Abu Sa'id was asked, "Who has been thy Pir? for every Pir has had a Pir to instruct him and how is it that thy neck is too
;
big for thy shirt-collar, while other Pirs have emaciated themselves by austerities? And why hast thou not performed the " He replied, "Who has been my Pilgrimage, as they have done?
Pir?
1
is
part of what
my
Lord hath
A 293,
A
Cf.
12.
3
2 4
403, 15.
375, 13.
,
Kashf al-MaJijiib (translation), p. 327 fol.; Kitdb al-Luma' 172, 3 foil. The allegorical interpretation of the Pilgrimage seems to have been borrowed by the Suffs from the Isma'ilis. See Professor Browne's Literary
History of Persia, vol. n, p. 241
foil.
62
taught
[CH.
me
shirt-collar?
How is it that my neck is too big for my is room for my neck in the seven
heavens and earths after all that God hath bestowed upon me. Why have I not performed the Pilgrimage? It is no great matter that thou shouldst tread under thy feet a thousand miles of ground in order to visit a stone house. The true man of God sits where he
is,
to visit
and the Bayt al-Ma'mur 1 comes several times in a day and night him and perform the circumambulation above his head. Look and see!" All who were present looked and saw it 2
.
The mystic's pilgrimage takes place within himself 3 "If God sets the way to Mecca before any one, that person has been cast out of the Way to the Truth 4 ." Not content with
.
encouraging his disciples to neglect the Hajj, Abu Sa'id used to send those who thought of performing it to visit the tomb
of
ambulate
Hasan at Sarakhs, bidding them circumseven times and consider that their purpose was 5 One sees what a menace to Mohammedan accomplished
'1-Fadl
it
.
Abu
had already become. The saint lost in contemplation of God knows no religion, and it is often his fate to be classed with the freethinkers (zanddiqa), who, from the Moslem point of view, are wholly irreligious, though some of them acknowledge the moral law. Abu Sa'fd said, "Whoever saw me in my first state became a 6 ?iddiq, and whoever saw me in my last state became a zindiq ," meaning that those who accused him of being a freethinker
thereby
made themselves
I will
guilty of the very thing which they translate the biographer's commentary
His first state was self-mortification and asceticism, and since most men look at the surface and regard the outward form, they saw the austerity of his life and how painfully he advanced on the Way to God, and their sincere belief (sidq) in this Way was increased and they attained to the degree of the Sincere (siddiqdn). His last state was contemplation, a state in which the fruit of self1
The
celestial
See E.
J.
W.
Gibb, History of
Ottoman Poetry,
1
vol.
p. 37.
347,
7.
360,
374, 15.
15, 12.
41, 19.
I]
Abu
63
is gathered and the complete unveiling (kashf] comes to pass; accordingly, eminent mystics have said that states of contemplation are the heritage of acts of self-mortification (al-
mortification
mushdhaddt mawdrithu 'l-mujdhaddt). Those who saw him in this state, which is necessarily one of enjoyment and happiness, and were ignorant of his former state denied that which was true (haqq); and whoever denies the Truth (Haqq} is a freethinker (zindiq). There are many analogies to this in the sensible world. For example, when a man seeks to win the favour of a king and to become his companion and intimate friend, before attaining to that rank he must suffer all sorts of tribulation and patiently endure injuries and insults from high and low, and submit with cheerfulness to maltreatment and abuse, giving fair words in return for foul; and when he has been honoured with the king's approval and has been admitted to his presence, he must serve him assiduously and hazard his life in order that the king may place confidence in him. But after he has gained the king's confidence and intimacy, all this hard and perilous service belongs to the past. Now all is grace and bounty and favour; everywhere he meets with new pleasures and delights and he has no duty but to wait upon the king always, from whose palace he cannot be absent a single moment by day or night, in order that he may be at hand whenever the king desires to tell him a secret or to honour him with a
;
place
by
his side 1
Asceticism and positive religion are thus relegated to the lower planes of the mystical life. The Sufi needs them and must hold fast to them while he is serving his spiritual apprenticeship and also during the middle stage which is
marked by longer or shorter intervals of illumination but in his "last state," when the unveiling is completed, he has no further use for ascetic practices and religious forms, for he lives in permanent communion with God Himself. This leads
;
directly to antinomianism,
though in theory the saint is above the law rather than against it. One who sees the reality within cannot judge by appearances. Being told that a disciple of his was lying blind-drunk on a certain road, Abu Sa'id said, "Thank God that he has fallen on the way, not
1
42, i.
64
off
[CH.
in
Way
."
the mosque?
"
Some one asked him, "Are the men of God 2 "They are in the tavern too," he replied
His pantheistic vision blotted out the Mohammedan afterworld with its whole system of rewards and punishments.
"Whoever knows God without mediation worships Him without recompense 8 ." There is no Hell but selfhood, no Hell is where thou art and Paradise Paradise but selflessness where thou art not 4 ." He quoted the Tradition, "My people shall be split into more than seventy sects, of which a single
' '
:
one
shall
added, "that
As
voices:
to say, in the fire of their own selves 5 ." I have already remarked, Abu Sa'id speaks with
now
as a theosophist,
now
as a Moslem.
same terms bear their ordinary religious meaning in one passage and are explained mystically in another, while the
purest pantheism runs side by side with popular theology. To our minds it seems absurd to suppose that he believed in both yet probably he did, at least so far as to have no difficulty in
;
accepting the
Mohammedan scheme when it suited him. For example, he preaches the doctrine of the intercession of saints, in which (though the Koran does not support it) Paradise,
Hell, the
Day
of
Judgment,
etc.,
are
they
are.
it is closely connected with his miracles and legend which will be discussed in the following pages.
here, especially as
He
will
is being carried off to Hell will see a light from ask what it is and will be told that it is the light of
Pir.
He
will say,
"
In our world
used to love
bear his words to the ears of that Pir, who will plead for him in the divine presence, and God will release the sinner on account of the intercession of that holy man 8
will
Whoever has seen me and has done good work for my family and disciples will be under the shadow of my intercession hereafter 7
I
.
7 6, 7.
16.
A A
373, 4. 418, 4.
A 266, A 380,
392, 16.
I]
65
and behind, and He has forgiven them for my sake." " Then he said, My neighbours are Balkh and Merv and Nishapur and Herat. I am not speaking of those who live here (Mayhana) 1 ."
right, in front,
" I need not say a word on behalf of those around me. If any one has mounted an ass and passed by the end of this street, or has passed my house or will pass it, or if the light of my candle falls on him, the least thing that God will do with him is that He will have mercy upon him 2 ."
III.
Sufism is at once the religious philosophy and the popular religion of Islam. The great Mohammedan mystics are also saints. Their lives belong to the Legend and contain, besides their lofty and abstruse speculations, an account of the
miracles which they wrought.
They
worship and adoration, their tombs are holy shrines whither men and women come as pilgrims to beseech their allpowerful aid, their relics bring a blessing that only the rich can buy. Whilst still living, they are canonised by the people
;
not posthumously by the Church. Their title to saintship depends on a peculiarly intimate relation to God, which is
attested
gifts
Belief in such gifts is (kardmdt = ^apior^ara, grazie) almost universal, but there is disagreement as to the import.
by
fits
of ecstasy and,
above
all,
by thaumaturgic
ance which should be attached to them. The higher doctrine, that they are of small value in comparison with the attainment of spiritual perfection, was ignored by the mass of Moslems, who would have considered a saint without miracles
to be.no saint at
failed to
all.
Miracles there
must be;
Sa'id
if
the holy
It is
man
vain
to inquire
how
Abu
may
have been
work of popular imagination, but the following extracts show that the question is not an irrelevant one, even if we take for granted the reality of these occult and mysterious
the
powers.
It is related
1
N. S.
II
66
[CH.
Sa'id
was and
Sa'id's principal Koran-reader (muqri), that living in Nishapur a man came to him
when Abu
said
I
full of
am a stranger here. On my arrival I found the whole city thy fame. They tell me thou art a man who has the gift of miracles and does not hide it. Now show me one." Abu Sa'id
"
replied
:
"
When I was at Amul with Abu '!-' Abbas Qassab, some one came to him on the same errand and demanded of him the same thing which you have just demanded of me. He answered, What do you see that is not miraculous? A butcher's son (pisar-i qassdbl), whose father taught him his own trade, has a vision, is
'
enraptured, is brought to Baghdad and falls in with Shaykh Shibli from Baghdad to Mecca, from Mecca to Medina, from Medina to Jerusalem, where Khadir appears to him, and God puts it in Khadir's heart to accept him as a disciple then he is brought back here and multitudes turn towards him, coming forth from taverns and renouncing wickedness and taking vows of penitence and sacrificing wealth. Filled with burning love they come from the ends of the world to seek God from me. What miracle is greater than this? The man replied that he wished to see a miracle at the present moment. Is it not a miracle,' said Abu '!-' Abbas, that a goat-killer's son is sitting in the seat of the mighty and that he does not sink into the earth and that this wall does not fall upon him and that this house does not tumble over his head ? Without goods and gear he possesses saintship, and without work or means of support he receives his daily bread and feeds many people. Is not all this a gift of miracles?' Good sir (Abu Sa'fd continued),
; ;
'
'
'
me
is
the
"
!
same
O Shaykh
said he,
Shaykh Abu
'l-'Abbas."
Abu
Sa'fd said,
Whosoever belongs
gifts (kardmdt)."
said in verse
Every wind that comes to me from the region of Bukhara Breathes the perfume of roses and musk and the scent of jessamine. Every man and woman on whom that wind is blowing
Thinks
it is
!
Nay, nay
delicious gale
I]
67
That wind is coming from the presence of the Beloved. Each night I gaze towards Yemen, that thou mayst rise; For thou art Suhayl (Canopus), and Suhayl rises from Yemen. Adored One I endeavour to hide thy name from all,
!
But whether
Thy name
is
or no, whenever I speak to any one, the first word that comes to my lips.
I will
man
pure and separates him from his from doing, all that he says
Mohammed and
that he feels becomes a wondrous gift (kardmdt). the whole of his Family 1
.
God bless
by
He
replied, "It is easy enough: frogs and waterfowl do it." They said, "So-and-so flies in the air." "So do birds and insects," he replied. They said, "So-and-so goes from one town to another in a moment of time." "Satan," he rejoined, "goes in one moment from the East to the West. Things like these " have no great value and he proceeded to give the definition a man who of the true saint which has been quoted already 2 lives in friendly intercourse with his fellow-creatures, yet is
;
Abu tver
on the composition of marvellous tales concerning himself. One day he summoned his famulus, Khwaja 'Abdu '1-Karim, and inquired what he had been doing. 'Abdu 1-Karim answered that he had been
writing some anecdotes of his master for a certain dervish who wanted them. "O 'Abdu '1-Karim!" said the Shaykh, "do
will
not be a writer of anecdotes: be such a man that anecdotes be told of thee." The biographer observes that Abu Sa'id's fear lest a legend of his miracles should be published and widely circulated accords with the practice of the most eminent Sufis,
concealed their mystical experiences 4
:
Abu
Sa'id placed the hidden and unrecognised saint above the saint manifest and known to the people the former is he whom
God
1
5-
See p. 55.
243, 18.
381,
i.
5-2
68
[CH.
Such protests may have retarded, although they did not check, the constantly increasing glorification of popular saints by themselves and their devotees. At any rate, the ancient
Lives of Abu Sa'fd are modest and subdued if we compare them with some famous legends of the same kind. As I have mentioned, his recorded miracles are mostly
instances oifirdsa, a term equivalent to clairvoyance. Being an effect of the light which God sets in the purified heart, is reckoned among the (kardmdt) of the saint and gifts
' ' ' '
firdsa
is
tailor
accepted as evidence of holiness. There were two friends, a and a weaver, who obstinately asserted that Abu Sa'fd
gift of miracles.
said, "This man pretends to Let us go to him, and if he knows what trade each of us follows, we shall then know that his claim is true." They disguised themselves and went to the Shaykh. As soon as his eye fell on them, he said:
On
Then he
One a
And
Both were covered with confusion and fell at the Shaykh's and repented of their disbelief 2 Moslems attribute to firdsa, and therefore to a divine source, all the phenomena of telepathy, thought-reading, and second sight. In the course of this essay I have had occasion to translate several testimonies that Abu Sa'fd was richly endowed with these "gifts" and that he made his reputation as a saint by exhibiting them in public. That he really possessed them or, at least, persuaded a great number of people
feet
.
to think so,
is
beyond dispute
1 The falak is a pole on which the feet are tied when bastinado is administered. The words "on the falak" refer, no doubt, to the anxious suspense in which the two sceptics awaited the result of their experiment. Cf. our phrase "on the rack." 1
240, 9.
I]
l-Khayr
69
them would not have occupied so much of his legend; but when we come to examine particular cases, we find that the evidence is weak from a scientific point of view as well as on
of probability. Such considerations, I need not hardly say, only have no influence upon the Moslem's belief in occult phenomena but do not even enter his mind. Many stories illustrating Abu Sa'id's powers oifirdsa occur in the preceding pages, and it would be useless to give further
common grounds
extracts
commemorate some
was
In Nishapur there lived a woman of noble family, whose name f shi Nili. She was a great ascetic, and on account of her piety
the people of Nishapur used to seek blessings from her. It was forty years since she had gone to the warm baths or set foot
outside of her house.
When Abu
Sa'id
came
to Nishapur
and the
through the city, she sent a nurse, who always waited upon her, to hear him preach. " Remember what he says," said she, "and tell me when you come back." The nurse, on her return, could recollect nothing of Abu Sa'id's disreport of his miracles spread
course, but repeated to her mistress some bacchanalian verses she " had heard him recite 1 Ishi cried, Go and wash your mouth Do " ascetics and divines speak such words as these? Now, Ishi was
.
making eye-salves which she gave to the people. That night she saw a frightful thing in her sleep and started up. Both her eyes were aching. She treated them with eye-salves, but was no better; she betook herself to all the physicians, but found no cure: she moaned in pain twenty days and nights. Then one night she slept and dreamed that if she wished her eyes to be better, she must satisfy the Shaykh of Mayhana and win his exalted favour. Next day she put in a purse a thousand dirhems, which she had received as alms, and bade the nurse take it to Abu Sa'id and present it to him as soon as he should have finished his sermon. When the nurse laid it before him, he was using a toothpick for it was his rule that at the end of the sermon a disciple brought some bread and a toothpick, which he would use after eating the bread. He said to her, as she was about to depart, "Come, nurse, take this toothpick and give it to thy lady. Tell her
in the habit of
1 I have not attempted to translate but there are textual difficulties.
this rubd'i.
is
plain,
jo
that she must
[CH.
stir some water with it and then wash her eyes with the water, in order that her outward eye may be cured. And tell her to put out of her heart all suspicious and unfriendly feelings towards the $iiffs, in order that her inward eye too may be cured."
Ishi carefully followed his directions. She dipped the toothpick in water and washed her eyes and was cured immediately. Next
day she brought to the Shaykh all her jewelry and ornaments and " dresses, and said, O Shaykh I have repented and have put every
!
my
heart."
"May
it
and bade them conduct her to the mother of Bu Tahir 1 that she might robe her in the gaberdine (khirqa). Ishi went in obedience to his command and donned the gaberdine and busied herself with serving the women of this fraternity (the Sufis). She gave up her house and goods, and rose to great eminence in this 2 Path, and became a leader of the Sufis
said he,
.
During the time when Abu Sa'fd was at Nfshapur, disciples to him of all sorts, well and ill bred. One of his converts was a rough peasant with iron-soled mountain-shoes, which made a disagreeable noise whenever he entered the monastery; he was always knocking them against the wall and annoying the Sufis by his rudeness and violence. One day the Shaykh called him and it lies said, "You must go to a certain valley (which he named between the hills of Nfshapur and TUS, and a stream descending from it falls into the Nishapur river). After going some distance you will see a big rock. You must perform an ablution on the bank of the stream and a prayer of two genuflexions on the rock, and wait for a friend of mine, who will come to you. Give him my greeting, and there is something I wish you to tell him, for he is a very dear friend of mine: he has been with me seven years." The dervish set off with the utmost eagerness, and all the way he was thinking that he was going to see one of the saints or one of the Forty Men who are the pivot of the world and upon whom depends the order and harmony of human affairs. He was sure that the holy man's blessed look would fall on him and make his fortune both in this world and in the next. When he came to the place indicated by the Shaykh, he did what the Shaykh had ordered; then he waited a while. Suddenly there was a dreadful clap and the mountain quaked. He looked and saw a black dragon,
came
The
91, 18.
71
the largest he had ever seen its body filled the whole space between two mountains. At the sight of it his spirit fled he was unable to
;
move and
little
fell
head reverently. After a somewhat, and observing that the dragon had come to a halt and was motionless, he said, though in his terror he scarcely knew what he said, "The Shaykh
towards the rock, on which
laid its
greets thee." The dragon with many signs of reverence began to rub its face in the dust, whilst tears rolled from its eyes. This, and
the fact that it attempted nothing against him, persuaded the dervish that he had been sent to meet the dragon; he therefore
delivered the Shaykh's message, which it received with great humility, rubbing its face in the dust and weeping so much that the rock where its head lay became wet. Having heard all, it went away. As soon as it was out of sight, the dervish came to himself
and once more fell in a swoon. A long time passed before he revived. At last he rose and slowly descended to the foot of the hill. Then he sat down, picked up a stone, and beat the iron off his
On returning to the monastery, he entered so quietly that none was aware of his coming, and spoke the salaam in such a low voice that he was barely heard. When the elders saw his behaviour, they desired to know who was the Pir to whom he had been sent they wondered who in half a day had wrought in his pupil a change that can generally be produced only by means of long and severe discipline. When the dervish told the story, every one was " amazed. The elder Sufis questioned the Shaykh, who replied, Yes, for seven years he has been my friend, and we have found spiritual joy in each other's society." After that day none ever saw the dervish behave rudely or heard him speak loudly. He was entirely reformed by a single attention which the Shaykh bestowed on
clogs.
;
him 1
Sa'id was at Nishapiir, holding splendid and musical entertainments and continually regaling the dervishes with luxurious viands, such as fat fowls and lawzina and sweetmeats, an arrogant ascetic came to him and said, "O Shaykh I have come in order to challenge you to a forty days' fast (chihila)." The poor man was ignorant of the Shaykh's novitiate and of his forty years' austerities: he fancied that the
feasts
!
128, ii.
72
"
[CH.
lived in this same manner. He thought to chasten him with hunger and put him to shame in the eyes of the people, and then I shall be the object of their regard." On hearing his challenge, the Shaykh said, "May it be
blessed
and spread his prayer-rug. His adversary did the like, and they both sat down side by side. While the ascetic, in accordance with the practice of those who keep a fast of forty days, was eating a certain amount of food, the Shaykh ate nothing; and though he never once broke his fast, every morning he was stronger and fatter and his complexion grew more and more ruddy. All the time, by his orders and under his eyes, the dervishes feasted luxuriously and indulged in the samd', and he himself danced with them. His state was not changed for the worse in any respect. The ascetic, on the other hand, was daily becoming feebler and thinner and paler, and the sight of the delicious viands which were served to the Sufis in his presence worked more and more upon him. At length he grew so weak that he could scarcely rise to perform the obligatory prayers. He repented of his presumption and confessed
!
"
his ignorance.
When the forty days were finished, the Shaykh said, have complied with your request: now you must do as I say." The ascetic acknowledged this and said, "It is for the Shaykh to " command." The Shaykh said, We have sat forty days and eaten nothing and gone to the privy now let us sit forty days and eat and never go to the privy." His adversary had no choice but to accept the challenge, but he thought to himself that it was im1 possible for any human being to do such a thing
"
I
:
In the end, of course, the Shaykh proves to be an overman, and the ascetic becomes one of his disciples.
Sa'fd's time
an eminent Shaykh who lived in Abu went on a warlike expedition to Rum (Asia Minor) accompanied by a number of $uffs. Whilst he was marching in that country, he saw Iblfs. "O accursed one!" he cried,
It is related that
,
"what
for
was passing by Mayhana," said he, "and Shaykh Abu Sa'fd came out of the mosque. met him on the way to his house and he gave a sneeze which
cast
me
here 1 ."
1
160, 18.
361, 5.
I]
73
A tomb
and sepulchre
(turbati
his native
.
hordes did not utterly destroy 1 Concerning his relics, that is to say, garments and other articles which were venerated on account of some circumstance that gave them a peculiar
sanctity or simply because they once
One day,
he grew
!
whilst
warm
in his discourse
Shaykh Abu Sa'id was preaching at Nishapiir, and being overcome with ecstasy
exclaimed, "There is naught within this vest (jubba) except " Allah Simultaneously he raised his forefinger (angusht-i musabbiha), which lay on his breast underneath the jubba, and his blessed finger passed through the jubba and became visible to all. Among the Shaykhs and Imams present on that occasion were Abu
Muhammad Juwayni, Abu l-Qasim Qushayri, Isma'il Sabuni, and others whom it would be tedious to enumerate. None of them, on
J
hearing these words, protested or silently objected. All were beside themselves, and following the Shaykh's example they flung away their gaberdines (khirqahd). When the Shaykh descended
from the
pulpit, his jubba and their gaberdines were torn to pieces 2 (and distributed) The Shaykhs were unanimously of opinion that the piece of silk (kazhpdra) which bore the mark of his blessed finger should be torn off from the breast of the jubba and set apart,
.
who came
to
it.
Accordingly,
it
was
all parts of the world as pilgrims to Mayhana, after having visited his holy shrine used to visit that piece of silk and the other memorials of the Shaykh and
and and
lining,
his family.
set apart just as it was, with the cotton in the possession of Shaykh Abu '1-Fath
Ghuzz
invasion,
.
when
Bu Nasr Shirwani, a rich merchant of Nishapur, was converted Abu Sa'id. He gave the whole of his wealth to the Sufis and by A 6, 4.
1
"The
tearing
up and
distributing
is
is
supposed to cleave to them from having been worn by some one in an especially blessed state. So the garments of saints acquire miraculous power compare Elijah's mantle" (Prof. D. B. Macdonald in JRAS, 1902, p. 10; see also Richard Hartmann, Al-Kuschairis Darstellung des SAfitums, p. 141 foil,
;
and
cf.
262, 5.
74
[CH.
showed the utmost devotion to the Shaykh. When the latter left Nishapur to return to Mayhana, he bestowed on Bii Nasr a green
woollen mantle (labdcha) of his own, saying,
"Go
to thy country
up my banner there." Accordingly Bu Nasr went back to Shirwan, became the director and chief of the Sufis in that region, and built a convent, which exists to-day and is known by his name. The Shaykh's mantle is still preserved in the convent, where Bu
and
set
Nasr deposited it. Every Friday at prayer-time the famulus hangs it from a high place in the building, and when the people come out of the Friday mosque they go to the convent and do not return home until they have paid a visit to the Shaykh's mantle. No
any time famine, pestilence, or other calamity befall the country, they place the mantle on their heads and carry it afield, and the whole population go forth
citizen neglects this observance. If at
and reverently invoke its intercession. Then God, the glorious and exalted, in His perfect bounty and in honour of the Shaykh
The inhabitants
removes the calamity from them and brings their desires to pass. of that country say that the mantle is a proved antidote (tirydk-i mujarrab) and they make immense offerings to
the followers of the Shaykh.
At the present time, through the and the people's excellent province can show more than four hundred
.
When the fame of Abu Sa'id reached Mecca, the Shaykhs of the Holy City, wishing to know what kind of man he was, sent Bii
'Amr Bashkhwani, who was a great ascetic and had resided in Mecca for thirty years, to Mayhana in order that he might bring back a trustworthy report of Abu Sa'id's character and mystical endowments. Bu 'Amr journeyed to Mayhana and had a long
Abu Sa'id in private. After three days, when he " was about to return to Mecca, Abu Sa'fd said to him, You must go to Bashkhwan: you are my deputy in that district. Ere long the bruit of your renown will be heard in the fourth heaven." Bii 'Amr obeyed and set out for Bashkhwan. As he was taking leave, Abu Sa'id gave him three toothpicks which he had cut with his own blessed hand, and said, " Do not sell one of these for ten dinars " nor for twenty, and if thirty dinars are offered (here he stopped short and Bu 'Amr went on his way). On arriving at Bashkhwan,
conversation with
1
173, 15.
I]
75
he lodged in the room which is now (part of) his convent, and the people honoured him as a saint. Every Thursday he began a
complete recitation of the Koran, in which he was joined by his
Bashkhwan and all the notables of the and when the recitation was finished, he neighbouring hamlets; would call for a jug of water and dip in it one of the toothpicks which he had received from Shaykh Abu Sa'id. The water was then distributed amongst the sick, and it healed them by means of the blessed influence of both Shaykhs. The headman of Bashkhwan, who was always suffering from colic, begged Bu 'Amr to send him some of the holy water. No sooner had he drunk it than the pain " ceased. Next morning he came to Bu 'Amr and said, I hear that you have three of these toothpicks. Will you sell me one, for I am " Bu 'Amr asked him how much he would give. very often in pain? He offered ten dinars. " It is worth more," said Bu 'Amr. " Twenty " dinars." "It is worth more." "Thirty dinars." No, it is worth more." The headman said nothing and would not bid any higher.
disciples
of
'Amr said, "My master, Shaykh Abu Sa'id, stopped at the same amount." He gave him one of the toothpicks in exchange for thirty dinars, and with that money he founded the convent which now exists. The headman kept the toothpick as long as he lived. On his deathbed he desired that it should be broken and that the pieces should be placed in his mouth and buried with him. As regards the two remaining toothpicks, in accordance with Bu 'Amr's last injunctions they were placed in his shroud and interred in his blessed tomb 1
Bii
.
set before my readers a picture of Abu Sa'id as he appears in the oldest and most authentic documents available. These do not always show him as he was, but it would be absurd to reproach his biographers with their credulity and
I
have
judgment: they write as worshippers, based upon traditions and legends which breathe the very spirit of unquestioning faith. Only an alloy can be extracted from such materials, however carefully they are analysed. The passages in which Abu Sa'id describes his
and
their
work
is
early
life,
suspicion
conversion, and novitiate are perhaps less open to than the numerous anecdotes concerning his
1
2OI, 12.
j6
miracles.
[CH.
Here pious invention plays a large part and is not by any sense of natural law. Even the sceptics converted by Abu Sa'id feel sure that miracles occur, and only doubt his ability to perform them. The mystical sayings attributed to him have a power and freedom beyond speculative theosophy and suggest that he owed his fame, in the first instance, to an enthusiastic personality and to the possession " " of psychic gifts which he knew how to exhibit impressively. He was a great teacher and preacher of Sufism. If the matter of his doctrine is seldom original, his genius gathered up and fused
limited
the old elements into something new. In the historical developas a leading exponent of the pantheistic,
poetical, anti-scholastic, and antinomian ideas which had been already broached by his predecessor, Bayazid of Bistam, and Abu '1-Hasan Kharaqani. It may be said of Abu Sa'id that
he, perhaps more than any one else, gave these ideas the distinctive form in which they are presented to us by the
later religious philosophy of Persia. Their peculiarly Persian
character
Abu
is just what we should expect, seeing that Bayazfd, '1-Hasan, and Abu Sa'id himself were born and passed their lives in Khurasan, the cradle of Persian nationalism.
Abu Sa'id also left his mark on another side of Sufism, its 1 organisation as a monastic system Although he founded no Order, the convent over which he presided supplied a model
.
were established during the I2th century; and in the ten rules which he, as abbot, drew 2 up and caused to be put into writing we find, so far as I know, the first Mohammedan example of a regula ad monachos.
1
Cf.
See
CHAPTER
Man,
is
II
1
not he Creation's last appeal, Wisdom's eye ? Behold the wheel Of universal life as 'twere a ring,
superscription
and the
seal.
OMAR KHAYYAM.
OVTOOS,
<f>rjo-w,
Sv<TKa.Ta\r)7rTO<;
rj
TOV reXetov
avOptoTTOV yvt3(rt5.
'Apxrj yap,
<j>-r)criv,
^ov
HlPPOLYTUS.
dt'Siov
Xoyos.
WHAT
Man
(al-insdnu 'l-kdmil), a phrase which seems first to have been used by the celebrated Ibnu l-'Arabi, although the notion
underlying
1
it is
itself 2 ?
The question
title is borrowed from Jili work, the Insdnu 'l-kdmil, of which a js_ but illuminating expositidrTwill be found in Dr Muhammad Iqbal's Development of metaphysics in Persia (London, 1908), p. 150 foil. I may also refer to two articles written by myself: "A Moslem philosophy of religion" (Museon, Cambridge, 1915, p. 83 foil.) and "The Sufi doctrine of the Perfect Man" (Quest, 1917, p. 545 foil.); passages from both have been incorporated in this essay, with or without alteration. The following abbreviations are used: K = the edition of the Insdnu 'l-kdmil published at Cairo in A.H. 1300; Comm. K = the commentary by Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Madani on chapters 50-54 of the Insdnu 'l-kdmil (Loth's Catalogue of the Arabic manuscripts in the Library of the India Office, No. 667); M=the commentary by Jili on the 559th chapter of Ibnu '!-' Arabi's Futuhdtu 'l-Makkiyya (Loth's 1 Catalogue, No. 693 ). 2 In the first chapter of the Fususu 'l-hikam (Cairo, A.H. 1321) Ibnu '1'Arabi (ob. A.D. 1240) says that when God willed that His attributes should be displayed, He created a microcosmic being (kawnjdmi ), the Perfect Man, through whom "God's consciousness (sirr) is manifested to Himself." Abu Yazid al-Bistami (ob. A.D. 875) defines "the perfect and complete man" (al-kdmilu 'l-tdmm), who after having been invested with Divine attributes becomes unconscious of them (Qushayri, Risdla, Cairo, A.H. 1318, p. 140, 1. 12 foil.), i.e., enters fully into the state oifand; but here the term does not bear the peculiar significance attached to it by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi and Jili.
The
brief
78
[CH.
might be answered in different ways, but if we seek a general definition, perhaps we may describe the Perfect Man as a man who has fully realised his essential oneness with the Divine Being in whose likeness he is made. This experience, enjoyed by prophets and saints and shadowed forth in symbols to
others,
is
class of Perfect
the foundation of the Sufi theosophy. Therefore, the Men comprises not only the prophets from
Adam
to
Mohammed, but
also
the
superlatively
elect
(khu$usu 'l-khusus) amongst the Sufis, i.e., the persons named collectively awliyd, plural of wall, a word originally meaning
used for "friend," "protege," or "devotee." is the popular type of Perfect Man, it should be understood that the essence of Mohammedan saintship, as of prophecy, is nothing less than Divine illuminais
"near," which
immediate vision and knowledge of things unseen and unknown, when the veil of sense is suddenly lifted and the conscious self passes away in the overwhelming glory of "the One true Light." An ecstatic feeling of oneness with God constitutes the wall. It is the end of the Path (tariqa) in so far as the discipline of the Path is meant to predispose and
tion,
grace,
prepare the disciple to receive this incalculable gift of Divine which is not gained or lost by anything that a man may do, but comes to him in proportion to the measure and degree
of spiritual capacity with which he was created. Two special functions of the wall further illustrate the rela-
tion of the popular saint-cult to mystical philosophy (i) his function as a mediator, (2) his function as a cosmic power. The Perfect Man, as will be explained in the course of our
argument, unites the One and the Many, so that the universe depends on him for its continued existence. In Mohammedan religious life the wali occupies the same middle position: he bridges the chasm which the Koran and scholasticism have set between man and an absolutely transcendent God. He
brings relief to the distressed, health to the sick, children to the childless, food to the famished, spiritual guidance to those
who
his
all
who
visit
name. The
walls,
from the
II]
The Perfect
by which the
little
Man
79
government of the
world
is
carried on 1 ."
is
whose rank
Speaking of the Awtdd four saints inferior to that of the Qutb himself
Hujwiri says:
go round the whole world every night, and any place on which their eyes have not fallen, next day some flaw will appear in that place and they must then inform the Qutb, in order that he may direct his attention to the weak spot, and that by his blessing the imperfection may be remedied 2
It is their office to
if
there be
beliefs were partly the cause and' of the speculation concerning the nature consequence partly
God and man, speculation which drifted far away from Koranic monotheism into pantheistic and monistic philosophies. The Sufi reciting the Koran in ecstatic prayer and seeming to hear, in the words which he intoned, not his own voice but the voice of God speaking through him, could no longer acquiesce in the orthodox conception of Allah as a Being utterly different from all other beings. This dogma was supplanted by faith in a Divine Reality (al-Haqq) a God who
of
,
is
all
that
exists.
While
Sufis,
like
transcendence of
first
God
it
incarnation (hulul),
general, affirm the and reject the notion of infusion or is an interesting fact that one of the
in
Moslems
more precisely the meaning attempts of mystical union was founded on the Christian doctrine of two natures in God. Hallaj, who dared to say Ana 'l-Haqq,
in Islam to indicate
"I
am
the
deification
3 Haqq ," thereby announced that the saint in his "becomes the living and personal witness of
God." The Jewish tradition that God created Adam in His own image reappeared as a hadith (saying of the Prophet) and was put to strange uses by Mohammedan theosophists.
Macdonald, The religious attitude and life in Islam, p. 163. Hujwiri, Kashf al-Mahjub, p. 228 of my translation. " 3 1 am the Creative Truth" (Kitdb al-Tawdsin, Masslgnon renders, p. 175). Al-Haqq is the Creator as opposed to the creatures (al-khalq) and this seems to be the meaning in which Hallaj understood the term, but it is also applied to God conceived pantheistically as the one permanent reality. Cf. the article "Hakk" by Prof. D. B. Macdonald in Encycl. of Islam.
Prof. D. B.
2 1
8o
[CH.
Even the orthodox Ghazali hints that here is the key of a great mystery which nothing will induce him to divulge 1 According to Hallaj, the essence of God's essence is Love. Before the creation God loved Himself in absolute unity and through love revealed Himself to Himself alone. Then, desiring to behold that love-in-aloneness, that love without otherness and duality, as an external object, He brought forth from non-existence an image of Himself, endowed with all His attributes and names. This Divine image is Adam, in
.
and by whom God is made manifest divinity objectified in 2 humanity Hallaj, however, distinguishes the human nature
.
Though mystically united, and interchangeable. even in survives union: water does not become Personality wine, though wine be mixed with it. Using a more congenial
(ndsut)
(Idhut).
they
are
essentially
identical
am He whom
I love,
and He
whom
;
love
3
,
is I.
We
If
body
And
thou seest me, thou seest Him if thou seest Him, thou seest us both.
The markedly Christian flavour of the Hallaj ian doctrine condemned it in Moslem eyes, and while later Suffs develop its main ideas and venerate Hallaj himself as a martyr who was barbarously done to death because he had proclaimed the
Truth, they interpret his
idealistic
Ana
Idhut
and ndsut to necessarily correlated aspects of the universal Essence. His doctrine in its original form has only
1
(K
Ibyd (Bulaq, A.H. 1289), vol. iv, p. 294. Massignon, Kitdb al-fawdsin, p. 129. * Contrast this with the monistic expression of the same thought by Jill I. 51, i): "We are the spirit of One, though we dwell by turns in two
I,
bodies." So, too, Jalalu'ddin Rumf (Dwdni Shamsi Tabriz, p. 153): " Happy the moment when we are seated in the palace, thou and
figures,
soul,
thou and
I."
121, ii foil. "Essential love is love in Oneness, so that each of the lovers appears in the form of the other and represents the other. Inasmuch as the love of the body and the soul is essential, the soul is pained by
li.
:
the body's pain in this world, while the body is pained by the soul's pain in the other world: then each of them appears in the other's form."
II]
The Perfect
Man
81
recently been recovered and given to the world by M. Louis Massignon, to whose learned and brilliant monograph every
student of Sufism
is
deeply indebted.
al-Jili,
author of al-Insdnu
'l-kdmilfi ma'rifati 'l-awdkhir wa 'l-awd'il ("The Man perfect in knowledge of the last and first things"), was born in
A.D. 1365-6
and probably died some time between A.D. 1406 and 1417. His surname, which is derived from Jilan or Gilan, the province south of the Caspian, commemorates his descent from the founder of the Qadirite order of dervishes, 'Abdu
'1-Qadir al-Jili (Gilani)
,
who
.
Jill's
birth 1
than once refers to 'Abdu '1-Qadir as "our Shaykh/' so that he must have been a member of the fraternity. The Moslem biographers leave him unnoticed, but he himself tells us that he lived at Zabid in Yemen with his Shaykh, Sharafu'ddin Isma'il ibn Ibrahim al-Jabarti, and had previously travelled in India 2 Of his mystical writings twenty are known to be extant, and it is not unlikely that as many have been lost. Jili begins his work with a statement of his object in
.
3 composing it That object is God (al-Haqq): therefore he must treat in the first place, of the Divine names, then of the Divine attributes, and lastly of the Divine essence. "I will call attention," he says, "to mysteries which no author has ever put into a book 4 matters concerning the gnosis of God and of the universe, and will tread a path between reserve and divulgation." He writes throughout as one reporting what has been communicated to him in mystical converse (mukd.
1 I do not know on what authority Dr Goldziher in his article on Jili in the Encycl. of Islam (vol. i, p. 46) connects the nisba with Jil, a village in the
district of
Cat. of Arabic MSS. in the India Office Library, p. 182, col. 1, 1. 7 from foot). He traced his descent to a sibt of 'Abdu '1-Qadir, i.e., to a son of the Shaykh's
daughter.
2 He mentions (K n. 43, 20 foil.) that in A.H 79O = A.D. 1388 he was in India at a place named Kushi, where he conversed with a man under sentence of death for the murder of three notables. The earliest date
referring to his stay at Zabid is A.H. 796 latest A.H. 805 = AD. 1402-3 (Loth, op.
3
= A.D. 1393-4 (K
cit.
n. 61, 20),
and the
i.
6,
foil.
Cf.
p. 183).
i.
63, penult,
and
foil.
N. s. ii
82
lama), so that
of
[CH.
knows
it
intuitively to be the
word
private revelations are supported, he asserts, and the Sunna, and he warns his readers not to
errors
;
which
may
arise
of understanding but while he professes belief in the Mohammedan articles of faith 2 he interprets them by an allegorising method that yields any and every meaning desired. As a
,
not without talent, though his work belongs to than to literature. Besides many poems rather mysticism which he seems to have admired inordinately 3 he introduces maqdmas in rhymed prose and specimens of the
writer,
he
is
is
Platonic myth. Thus he tells how the stranger, whose name the Spirit, returned from long exile and imprisonment to
the world known as Yuh, and entered a spacious city where Khadir rules over "the Men of the Unseen" (rijdlu 'l-ghayb) exalted saints and angels, of whom six classes are described 4
. .
The
characteristic of the
Insdnu
'l-kdmil
is
Perfect Man, "who as a microcosmos of a higher order reflects not only the powers of nature but also the divine powers as in a mirror' (comp. the yevitcbs ai>6pu>Tro<; of Philo) 5 ." On
this basis Jilf builds his mystical philosophy. It will be better grasped as a whole, if before coming to details I endeavour to sketch it in outline.
Jilf
,
who hold
that Being
is
one 6 that
apparent differences are modes, aspects, and manifestations of reality, that the phenomenal is the outward
expression of the real.
1
He
begins
by denning essence
as that
often uses logical arguments, but "the paradoxes proved by his logic are really the paradoxes of mysticism, and are the goal which he feels his logic must reach if it is to be in accordance with insight" (Bertrand
Jlli
Russell,
xn, No.
4,
793)4
K K
4.
10
foil.
ii.
and
refers to
God
K i. 39, 20 foil. 6 foil. In the Futuhdlu 'l-Makkiyya, ch. " Divine Spirit in man to Yuh, which is a name (al-Haqq), for He is the light of the heavens and
i.
8,
the earth, and Man is a perfect and complete copy of Him" (M 34 a). Goldziher in Encycl. of Islam. The heavenly man is the summum genus, the earthly man the summa species (M 40 a). This doctrine is called "the unity of Being" (wafrdatu 'l-wujud).
II]
The Perfect
Man
;
83
it
to
may
be either
existent or non-existent, i.e., existing only in name, like the fabulous bird called 'Anqd. Essence that really exists is of
The essence
of
God
is
unknowable per se; we must seek knowledge of it through its names and attributes. It is a substance with two accidents, eternity and everlastingness with two qualities, creativeness and creatureliness with two descriptions, uncreatedness and origination in time with two names, Lord and slave (God and man) with two aspects, the outward or visible, which is the present world, and the inward or invisible, which is the world to come; both necessity and contingency are predicated of it, and it may be regarded either as non-existent for itself but
;
;
Pure Being, as such, has neither name nor attribute; only when it gradually descends from its absoluteness and enters the realm of manifestation, do names and attributes appear imprinted on it. The sum of these attributes is the universe, " " which is phenomenal only in the sense that it shows reality under the form of externality. Although, from this standpoint, the distinction of essence and attribute must be admitted, the two are ultimately one, like water and ice. The so-called phenomenal world the world of attributes is no illusion:
it
*,
,\
existence.
while
we
necessary to us in order that we may exist, are necessary to Him in order that He may be
is
God
manifested to Himself 2 ." Jili calls the simple essence, apart from all qualities and relations, "the dark mist" (al-Amd). It develops conscious1
i.
20, 23 foil.
62
84
ness
[CH.
by passing through three stages of manifestation, which modify its simplicity. The first stage is Oneness (Ahadiyya), the second is He-ness (Huwiyya), and the third is I-ness
(Aniyya).
By
Absolute Being
lias
of all thought and has revealed itself as Divinity with distinctive attributes embracing the whole series of existence. The created world is the outward
aspect of that which in its inward aspect is God. Thus in the Absolute we find a principle of diversity, which it evolves by
moving downwards, so to speak, from a plane beyond quality and relation, beyond even the barest unity, until by degrees it clothes itself with manifold names and attributes and takes " the One visible shape in the infinite variety of Nature. But cannot The and Absolute the remains, pass." Many change rest in diversity. Opposites must be reconciled and at last united, the Many must again be One. Recurring to Jill's metaphor, we may say that as water becomes ice and then
water once more, so the Essence crystallised in the world of attributes seeks to return to its pure and simple self. And in order to do so, it must move upwards, reversing the direction of its previous descent from absoluteness. We have seen how reality, without ceasing to be reality, presents itself in the form of appearance: by what means, then, does appearance
cease to be appearance of reality?
ss
Man,
suming
flesh
of Nature.
Man
in
While every appearance shows some attribute of reality, is the microcosm in which all attributes are united, and him alone does the Absolute become conscious of itself in
diverse aspects. To put it in another way, the Absolute, having completely realised itself in human nature, returns into itself through the medium of human nature; or, more intimati-iy, God and man become one in the Perfect Man the enraptured prophet or saint whose religious function as a mediator between man and God corresponds with his
all its
II]
The Perfect
Man
85
distinguishes three phases of mystical illumination or revelation (tajalli), which run parallel, as it were, to the three
stages
Oneness, He-ness, and I-ness traversed by the Absolute in its descent to consciousness. In the first phase, called the Illumination of the Names, the Perfect Man receives the mystery that is conveyed by each
names of God, and he becomes one with the name in such sort that he answers the prayer of any person who invokes God by the name in question. Similarly, in the second phase he receives the Illumination of the Attributes and becomes one with them, i.e., with the
of the
Divine Essence as qualified by its various attributes: life, knowledge, power, will, and so forth. For example, God reveals Himself to some mystics through the attribute of life. Such a man, says Jili, is the life of the whole universe; he feels
all things sensible and ideal, that all and words, deeds, bodies, spirits derive their existence from him. If he be endued with the attribute of knowledge, he knows the entire content of past, present, and future existence, how everything came to be or is coming or will come to be, and why the non-existent does not exist: all this he knows both synthetically and analytically. The Divine attributes are
that his
life
permeates
classified
(i)
attributes of the
Essence,
(4)
attributes of Beauty, (3) attributes of Majesty, attributes of Perfection. He says that all created things
its
Beauty is reflected. What is due place in the order of existence no less than what is beautiful, and equally belongs to the Divine perfection evil, therefore, is only relative. As was stated above,
are mirrors in which Absolute
ugly has
:
Man reflects all the Divine attributes, including even the Essential ones, such as unity and eternity, which he shares with no other being in this world or the next.
the Perfect
The
third
86
[CH.
Every
attribute has vanished, the Absolute has returned into itself. In the theory thus outlined we can recognise a monistic form
of the myth which represents the Primal Man, the first-born of God, as sinking into matter, working there as a creative principle, longing for deliverance, and, at last finding the way
back to
his source 1
Jili calls
the Perfect
Man
the preserver
of the universe, the Qutb or Pole on which all the spheres of existence revolve. He is the final cause of creation, i.e., the means by which God sees Himself, for the Divine names and
attributes cannot be seen, as a whole, except in the Perfect Man. He is a copy made in the image of God therefore in him is that which corresponds to the Essence with its two cor;
related aspects of He-ness and I-ness, i.e., inwardness and outwardness, or divinity and humanity. His real nature is
threefold, as Jili expressly declares in the following verses,
which no one can read without wondering how a Moslem could have written them:
If
you say that it (the Essence) is One, you are right or if you say that it is Two, it is in fact Two. " Or if you say, No, it is Three," you are right, for that is the real
;
nature of
Man 2
Here we have a Trinity consisting of the Essence together its two complementary aspects, namely, Creator and creature God and man. Now, all men are perfect potentially, but few are actually so. These few are the prophets and saints.
with
And since their perfection varies in degree according to their capacity for receiving illumination, one of them must stand out above all the rest. Jfli remains a Moslem in spite of his
philosophy, and for
him
Man
is
the
Prophet Mohammed. In the poem from which I have quoted he identifies the Three-in-One with Mohammed and addresses
him
as follows:
! !
and contingency
Sc K
i.
foil.
II]
The Perfect
Man
!
87
Koran and
O O
point of the
and perfecter
of the
most
perfect,
by the majesty
of
God
the Merciful
Thou
art the Pole (Qutb) of the most wondrous things. of perfection in its solitude turns on thee.
The sphere
Thou
that
immanent nay, thine is all everlasting and perishable. Being and not-being nadir and zenith are thy
;
;
light
and
its
is
dazed 2
ward manifestation
holds that in every age the Perfect Men are an outof the essence of Mohammed 3 which has
,
;
the power of assuming whatever form it will and he records the time and place of his own meeting with the Prophet, who appeared to him in the guise of his spiritual director, Sharafu'ddin Isma'il al-Jabarti.
'l-kdmil
he depicts
Mohammed
God and
;
the first-created of
other created
.
4 It beings. This, of course is an Islamic Logos doctrine brings Mohammed in some respects very near to the Christ of
resemblance
the Fourth Gospel and the Pauline Epistles. But if the is great, so is the difference. The Fatherhood of
God, the Incarnation, and the Atonement suggest an infinitely rich and sympathetic personality, whereas the Mohammedan Logos tends to identify itself with the active principle of revelation in the Divine essence. Mohammed is
2 See Studies in Islamic Poetry, p. 174, note 3. I. n, i foil. in the pseudo-Clementine writings Adam or Christ, the true prophet and perfect incarnation of the Divine spirit, is represented as manifesting himself personally in a whole series of subsequent bearers of Revelation. Bousset, op. cit. p. 172, quotes the following passages: "nam et ipse verus propheta ab initio mundi per saeculum currens festinat ad requiem," and
1 3
So
"Christus, qui ab initio et semper erat, per singulas quasque generationes semper tamen ad erat." On the transmission of the Light of Mohammed see Goldziher's article cited in the next note. 4 An excellent survey of the doctrine concerning the pre-existence of Mohammed, of the consequences drawn from it, and of the sources from
which it was derived, will be found in Goldziher's Neuplatonische und gnostische Elemente imHadit (ZeitschriftfurAssyriologie, vol. 22, p. 317 foil.).
88
[CH.
loved and adored as the perfect image or copy of God: "he that has seen me has seen Allah," says the Tradition 1 Except that he is not quite co-equal and co-eternal with his
.
Maker, there can be no limit to glorification of the Perfect Man 2 I need hardly say that Mohammed gave the lie direct to those who would have thrust this sort of greatness upon him: his apotheosis is the triumph of religious feeling over
.
historical fact.
These ideas in part go back to Hallaj but were first worked out and systematised by the most prolific of Moslem theosophists and one of the most original, Muhyi'ddin Ibnu 'l-'Arabi,
whose influence on the course of later Sufi speculation and deep that he well deserves honorary title of doctor maximus (al-shaykhu 'l-akbar), which he is frequently designated. Although Jili does follow him everywhere, he has learned much from
of
traces are so broad
the
the
by
not
his
predecessor's manner of philosophising; he looks at things from a similar standpoint, and his thought moves in the same
( circle of
'
mystical phantasies struggling to clothe themselves with forms of logic. Ibnu 'l-'Arabi would be better known to us, if he had written more briefly, lucidly, and methodically. In all these respects Jili has the advantage we can say of the
:
Insdnu
'l-kdmil
of the Futuhdtu 7-
Makkiyya or the Fuusu 'l-hikam that the author is not so difficult as the subject. The philosophy of Ibnu 'l-'Arabi requires a volume for itself, but I will attempt to give my readers some account of the Fusus, where he treats particularly of the Divine attributes displayed
by the prophetic
class
of Perfect
Men 8
The Insdnu 'l-kdmil, though strongly marked with a character and expression of its own, is one of those books which gather up the threads of a whole system of thought and serve as a clue to it. After having explored the visionary world
of reality through
1
step,
Borrowed^from St John, ch. xiv. v. g. Jili declares that wherever in his writings the expression "the Perfect
ibsolutcly,
it
Man
'
refers to
Mohammed (K
n. 59,
6).
Sec Appendix
11.
I]
The Perfect
at least
le
Man
89
we
know where we
them
Into the height of Love's rare universe.
trust that the following analysis and exposition is full enough to bring out the principal features of the work and
I
open an avenue
The subject-matter of Jili's has been sixty-three chapters arranged under a few heads in the way that seemed most suitable.
for further study.
I.
NAME
God,
is
that to which names and attributes belong in their real 1 It denotes the self nature, not as they appear in existence
.
(nafs) of
is
God whereby He
exists, for
He
is
self-subsist ent.
It
endowed with all the names and ideas which His perfection demands. Amongst these are infinity and incomprehensibility. No words can express or hint what the Essence is, since it has no opposite or like. In its absoluteness it annuls all the contradictions which, as the universal ground of individualisation,
it
includes 2
am
is
non-existence, since
by
It
itself in
not other than a wall, wherein is set for thee a store of treasures. hidden in order that
Take
be a body in respect of an outward form (which It while to that body It is a spirit, that thou mayst assumes),
regard
it
(the body).
i.
18.
the passage (i. 20, 23 foil.) translated on p. 83. 3 The concept of existence involves non-existence as its logical complement. God, in virtue of His name, "the Outward" (al-Zdhir), is identical with all existing objects, while in virtue of His name, "the Inward" (alBdtin) He is non-existent externally. Cf. the saying of Hegel, "Being and not-Being are identical," i.e., no distinctions are absolute.
2
Cf.
90
God made
[CH,
Its comeliness (husn) complete and by the beauty (jamdl) of God It became celebrated (known to all). It never subsisted (as an object) but in thee alone 2 perceive the
:
Word (Amr) 3
I
its
diverse forms 4
am
the existent and the non-existent and the naughted and the
everlasting.
am the awared and the imagined and the snake and the charmer. am the loosed and the bound and the wine and the cupbearer. I am the treasure, I am poverty, I am my creatures and my
I
I
Creator.
Neither affirm
Do
my
And
****** ******
my
existence nor deny
it,
O immortal one
or
me
deem
eye-corners.
say,
dispositions
Jflf
of
my
qualities
and natural
($ifat)
of a thing as that
which
.
6 conveys knowledge of its state to the understanding The attributes of the Essence are the forms of thought by which
it is
we
manifested and made known. In the world of appearance distinguish the forms from the reality underlying them, but the distinction is not ultimate: the attributes in their real
nature are identical with the Essence which manifests itself as "other," i.e., under the aspect of externality, to our 7 What is called in theology the creation of the perceptions
.
just this manifestation, accompanied by division and plurality, of the Essence as the attributes, or of Being as the
world
is
object of thought; and in reality the Essence is the attributes (al-Dhdt 'aynu 'l-sifdt). The universe is an idea "such stuff
dreams are made on," although the idea cannot properly be differentiated from the "thing-in-itself," except for conas
let
me
:
Jamdl denotes the attribute of Divine Beauty, husn manifestation. Cf. Jfli's verse (in his 'Ayniyya)
8
I.
I.e.
i.
9, ii foil.
the Logos.
*
I.
8,
18
foil.
27, 26.
Cf.
I.
8 1, 2
foil.
n]
The Perfect
Man
how
it
91
is
57th chapter, "Concerning thought (khaydl), material (hayuld, v\rj) of the Cosmos 1 ."
the
Thought
is
the
life
it is
the foundation
life, and its (Thought's) foundation is Man. To him that knows Thought through the power of the Almighty,
of that
existence is nothing but a thought. Sensation, before its appearance, is an object of thought to thee,
and
And,
if it
goes
it
resembles a dream.
similarly, the
it is felt
inheres in our
Be
consciousness upon a foundation (of thought). not deceived by sensation, for it is an object of thought (mukhayyal), and so is the reality (which every form expresses) and
And
the whole universe, likewise, to him that knows the truth, the worlds of malakut and jabarut, and the divine nature (Idhut) and the human
nature (ndsut).
Do
not despise the rank of Thought, for it notion 2 of the Being who disposes all.
is
in a locus
is
which
is
the origin
(of
Thought. Mark how the Prophet considered the sensible world " to be a dream and dream is a thought and said, Mankind are asleep, and when they die, they awake," i.e., the reality in which they were during their earthly life is manifested to them, and they
ii. 32, last line. Khaydl is imaginal thought (phantasy). It includes that is perceived by the mind in an ideal or material form. Mystics hold that God reveals Himself in five planes (hafiardt): (i) the plane of the Essence, (2) the plane of the Attributes, (3) the plane of the Actions, (4) the plane of Similitudes and Phantasy (khaydl), (5) the plane of sense and ocular vision. Each of these is a copy of the one above it, so that whatever appears in the sensible world is the symbol of an unseen reality. Cf. Fusds, no. 2 Haqiqa, i.e., the attributes by which Pure Being is individualised.
1
all
92
[CH.
awakening. Forgetfulness
(ghaflat) of
God
the intermediate state (barzakh) and those in the place of Judgment and those in Hell and Paradise, until God reveals Himself to them
on the
Hill to
its
whatever their sphere of existence, are determined by Thought. For example, the people of this world are determined by thought of their life as it is now or as it shall be hereafter; in either case, they are forgetful of presence with God (al-hudur ma' Allah) they are asleep. He that is present with God is awake according to the measure of his presence.... The sleep of the inhabitants of the next world is lighter, but although they are with God in respect that He " is with all beings and says (in the Koran), He is with you wheresoever ye be," yet are they with Him in sleep, not in waking. One that, by divine predestination, enjoys in this world what shall at
:
last
reveals Himself to
be shown on the Hill to the people of Paradise, so that God him and he knows God that man is (truly) awake. If you perceive that those in every world are judged to be
asleep, then judge that all those worlds are a thought, Sleep is the world of Thought.
inasmuch as
Other
noted, is the central doctrine of the work men lack such consciousness: they regard
of attributes constituting the "material" world as something different from the Essence and from themselves.
sum
In the unitive state there is immediate perception of the Essence, but no mystic perceives the attributes as they really are: you can feel intuitively that you are He, that the Divine
essence
is
attain to knowledge of the Essence; you cannot, however, perceive and know the attributes of the Essence any more
than you can perceive and know the qualities latent in your-
II]
The Perfect
which are only
said that the Essence
Man
93
Consequently
it
self,
may be
its
1 being identical with the attributes The name (ism) objectifies the named (musamma) in the understanding, pictures it in the mind, presents it to the
it in reflection and It keeps it in memory make unknown things known; therefore, its relation to the named is that of the outward to the inward, and in this respect it is identical with the named. Some things exist in name and not otherwise; thus, the existence of the 'Anqd is " entirely nominal: the "named in this case is not-being. God,
.
judgment, moves
serves to
on the contrary, is real Being; and just as our knowledge of the 'Anqd is derived from its name, so we reach knowledge of God through the name Allah, in which all the Divine names and attributes are comprised 3
.
when he
looks in
beside
Him," and
is
in that
"God was and there was naught moment it is revealed to him that his
God's hearing, his sight God's sight, his speech God's hearing speech, his life God's life, his knowledge God's knowledge, his will
will, and his power God's power, and that God possesses all these attributes fundamentally; and then he knows that all the aforesaid qualities are borrowed and metaphorically applied to 4 himself, whereas they really belong to God
God's
are either
names
of the Essence,
e.g.,
al-Ahad (the One), or names of the attributes, e.g., al-Rahmdn (the Merciful), al-Alim (the Knowing). Each of them
except al-Ahad, which transcends relationship brings forth the effect (athar) inherent in that particular aspect of the Essence of which it is, so to speak, the embodiment. Good
and
1
evil,
feeling,
faith and infidelity, all mundane life, thought, and action proceed inevitably from the Divine names 5
.
i. 21, 4 fr. foot. 28, 21 foil. " the theory and practice of dhikr. The doctrine that the "named is revealed by means of the name, which is its obverse or outward self, has played a great part in Sufism. 4 I. 22, 20 foil.
i.
Cf.
Cf.
p. 293) as
Ibnu 'l-'Arabi's definition of ism (Ta'rifdt of Jurjani, ed. by "the Divine name that rules a passing state of mystical
Fliigel,
feeling
94
II.
[CH.
Pure Being, devoid of qualities and relations, is called by Jilf "the dark mist" or "blindness" (al-Amd), a term which the Prophet is said to have used in answering the question, " "Where was God before the creation? 2 Dr Iqbal remarks that al-Amd, translated into modern phraseology, would be "the Unconsciousness," and that our author here anticipates
the theories of Schopenhauer and
Von Hartmann 3
The
parallel seems to me little more than verbal. Jill's ontology is based on logic, and in developing it he follows a method which curiously resembles the Hegelian dialectic. According
articulated as abstract, self-identical unity, " " negation of this by a plural other of particularity and differences, concrete and as identity-in-difference and unity-in-plurality,
wherein
it
question, however, must not be expressed amiss. It does not occur at the end of a time-process. "Moments" severed for us are together
for the Absolute Idea, the conscious Reason, the
Notion which
the serpent is in the serpent's mouth. This self-sundering of the Idea is the Hegelian form of the mystic " Jacob Bohme's view that "without self-diremption the being of
knows
all
as
itself.
The
tail of
the Eternal would be not-being. Conscious knowledge, 4 implies antithesis within the Spiritual Ground
.
it is
urged,
(hdl),"
and the
definitions of terms like 'abdullah, 'abdu 'l-Rahim, 'abdu 'Abdu '1-Razzaq al-Kashani, ed.
by Sprenger, p. 91 foil. " 1 "Descent" (nuztil, tanazzul) is equivalent to " individualisation becomes (la'ayyun) and denotes the process by which Pure Being gradually
qualified.
1
i.
43, 2
foil.
Essence without
(creatures),
i.e.,
its
Lane under ;l^c and Nyberg, Kleinere Schriften 154. Jill says that the word signifies the complementary attributes of Haqq (Creator) and khalq
Cf.
the Essence viewed apart from its "self-diremption." * Development of Metaphysics in Persia, p. 165 fol. I have assumed that Dr Iqbal is referring to these philosophers. His exact words are " anticipates metaphysical doctrines of modern Germany." 4 E. D. Fawcett, The World as imagination, p. 102.
nj
The Perfect
Similar principles determine
Man
95
of thought, although
Jill's line
he never states them formally. The 'Amd, as he describes it, is not a blind unconscious power, but it is the absolute inwardness (buturi) and occultation (istitdr) in which the opposite concept of outwardness
relations of the Essence to itself as other is somehow absorbed and negated, like starlight in sunlight 1 Jili compares the 'Amd, as the eternal and unchangeable ground of Being, to the fire which, in a sense, is always latent in the flint whence it flashes forth 2 Thus the Amd may be regarded as the inmost self, the "immanent negativity" of the Essence as such, it is logically correlated with A hadiyya 3 in which the Essence knows itself as transcendental unity; and both these aspects are reconciled in the Absolute, "whose outwardness is identical with its inwardness 4 ."
(zuhur)
i.e., all
"
"
1 "The Essence (Dhdt) Cf. i. 61, 4 foil. i. 43, 8 foil.; i. 44, 5 foil. denotes Absolute Being stripped of all modes, relations, and aspects. Not that they are outside of Absolute Being; on the contrary, they belong to it, but they are in it neither as themselves nor as aspects of it; no, they are identical with the being of the Absolute. The Absolute is the simple essence
in which
no name or quality or
relation
is
manifested.
When any
of these
appears in it, that idea is referred to that which appears in the Essence, not to the pure Essence, inasmuch as the Essence, by the law of its nature, comto exist, prehends universals, particulars, and relations, not as they are judged but as they are judged to be naughted under the might of the transcendental oneness of the Essence."
42, 23 foil. to says distinctly that the terms 'Amd and A hadiyya are opposed each other as inward and outward aspects of the Essence (K i. 43, 7 foil.). 5 i. 36, 9 foil. i. 61, 16 foil. i. 45, 7.
i.
Jili
96
thesis
[CH.
or relative unity,
and
antithesis are
2
.
Aniyya
(I-ness)
named Huwiyya (He-ness) 1 and Huwiyya signifies the inward unity (al-
ahadiyyat al-bdtina) in which the attributes of the Essence disappear; Aniyya, the obverse side or outward expression of
Huwiyya,
is that unity revealing itself in existence. Clearly, " manifestation is the result of a self-dirempexternal then, tion" which lies in the very nature of the Essence as Pure 3
.
Thought
The discord
of
Huwiyya
(the
Many submerged
in
the One) and Aniyya (the One manifested in the Many) is overcome in the harmony of Wdhidiyya (the Many identical
in essence with each other
"essence
so that
is
and with the One) 4 In Wdhidiyya manifested as attribute and attribute as essence,"
.
all
is lost:
one
is
the 'ayn (identity) of the other, Mercy and Vengeance are the same. We shall see that from this point of view the plane of
Divinity (Ildhiyya) is a descent horn Wdhidiyya, in so far as in the former the attributes, which were identical in the latter,
become
1
distinct
to theology, let
foil, and 82, foil. Huwa, the pronoun of the third See person singular, is called in Arabic grammar "the absent one" (al-ghd'ib); therefore Huwiyya indicates the absence (ghaybubiyya) of the attributes of the Essence (from manifestation and perception). It is the inmost coni.
61, 20
sciousness of
God
(sirr Allah).
Jill
demonstrates this
(i.
82, 19 foil.)
:
by
analysing the name Allah, which in Arabic is written ALLH take away the A, and there remains LLH = /z7/rfA = "to God"; then take away the first L, " remove the second L, and you and you are left with UH. = lahu = " to Him have H=Huwa = "He" (cf. my ed. of the Kitdb al-Luma', p. 89, 1. 3 foil.). God is often described by Sufis as the huwiyya or inmost self of man and the universe, while man and the universe are the huwiyya (haqiqa, objectified idea) of God. God is the absolute Huwiyya (Individuality), and everything has its own peculiar huwiyya, which makes it what it is (Fu$u?, 146, 8 foil.).
;
Cf. Fu?u$,
46 and 194. 61. 22; 83, 16. Aniyya, derived from Ana, "I," and indicating presence, is involved in the notion of Huwiyya as the rind is implied by the kernel.
i.
in the simple
E. Caird, Hegel, p. 149: "As the lightning sleeps in the dewdrop, so and transparent unity of self-consciousness there is held in equilibrium that vital antagonism of opposites, which, as the opposition of thought and things, of mind and matter, of spirit and nature, seems to rend the world asunder." " 4 Cf. K i. 37, 8-9: Wdhidiyya is that (aspect) in which the Essence as of my attributes. Here the All is both One the difference appears unifying
*
Cf.
plurality of
what
essentially
is
One."
ll]
The Perfect
Man
97
in the
me
in
bare potentiality.
(Ahadiyya).
(b)
Outward
Being,
Outward
Being, conscious of as negating the Many (attributes). aspect: I-ness (Aniyya). Being, conscious of itself
C.
as the "truth" of the Many. Unity in plurality (Wdhidiyya) Being, identifying itself as One with itself as Many.
.
III.
In the Insdnu 'l-kdmil we find the same contrast as in the Vedanta system between Being with attributes, i.e., God, and Being which would not be absolute unless it were stripped of all qualities. The essence of God is Pure Being, but Divinity the domain of Allah, regarded as He who (Ildhiyya)
necessarily exists
is
embracing
all
that
is
the highest manifestation of the Essence, manifested: "it is a name for the sum
of the individualisations of Being, i.e., Being in the relation of Creator (al-Haqq) to created things (al-khalq), and for their
greatest possible perfection; thus, the Creator (al-Haqq) appears in the form of the creature (al-khalq)*, and conversely
Since Divinity
represents the
1
2
sum
of the attributes,
it is
i.
The universal
89,
(cf. p.
8
note
3),
correlation of Ildhiyya links Being with Not-being a truth which cannot be apprehended except by mystical
foil.)-
intuition
(K
I.
33, 2
According to the Hadith, "I saw my Lord in the form of a beardless * youth." E.g. "God created Adam in His own image."
N. s. ii
98
though
visible
[CH.
the sensible
everywhere in
world; the Essence, on the other hand, is visible, though its where is unknown. Similarly, when you see a man, you know or believe that he has certain qualities, but you do not see
them;
if
many
unknown
to you.
of his qualities are visible, the qualities themselves you cannot see, because the attribute must always remain hidden
in the Essence; otherwise, it could be separated from the 1 In a scale of existence where Essence, and that is impossible each lower individualisation marks a loss of simplicity, the
.
difference-in-identity (Ildhiyya) in which the sunken riches of the Absolute are completely realised, might be expected
to succeed the identity-in-difference which belongs to the stage of Wdhidiyya. Jili, as a mystical theologian, does not
descent 2
2.
3.
Unity
in plurality (Wdhidiyya).
.
4.
5.
Mercifulness (Rahmdniyya)
Lordship (Rububiyya)
Mercifulness
Divinity.
and Lordship are specialised aspects of Rahmdniyya* manifests the creative attributes
,
.
4 (al-sifdtu 'l-haqqiyya) exclusively whereas Ildhiyya comprehends both the creative and the creaturely (khalqi) The first mercy (rahmat) of God was His bringing the universe into existence from Himself 6 His manifestation pervaded all that exists, and His perfection was displayed in every particle and atom of the whole, yet He remains One (wdhid) in the Many which mirror Him and Single (ahad) according to the necessity of His nature, for He is indivisible and He created the world
.
i. 38, 16 foil. the attributes peculiar to the Essence (A^adiyya, Wdhidiyya, etc.) as well as those of the Creator (al-Haqq), which necessarily bear a relation to created beings, viz., life, knowledge, power, will, speech, hearing, and sight.
K K
i.
Cf. p. 92 supra.
i.
I.e.,
I.
39, 6.
II]
The Perfect
It is
Man
99
from Himself.
wrong
to say that
attributes to things; the things are really His attributes, to which He lends the name of creatureliness (khalqiyya) 1 in
order that the mysteries of Divinity and the antithesis inherent in it may be revealed. God is the substance (hayuld) of the universe. The universe is like ice, and God is the water
of which
made the name "ice " is "lent " to the congealed mass, but its true name is "water." Jili pursues this analogy in four verses which he quotes from an ode of his own
it is
:
composition
2
.
mystics know doctrine the permeation of existence by the Essence can be confounded with hulul (incarnation) which affirms contact,
,
says in the second verse that although and the water to be different, "we that they are the same." He asks how this
He
3 In virtue of the name al-Rahmdn, God non-identity exists in all the things that He brought into being. His mercy
i.e.,
.
towards His creatures was shown by His manifesting Himsejf them and by causing them to appear in Himself. "In every idea that you form God is present as its Creator, and you are God in respect of its existence in you, for you must needs form
in
ideas in
God and
God
in forming
them4 ."
Lordship (Rububiyya) establishes a necessary relation between God and His creatures, since it typifies the class of attributes which involve a complementary term or require an 4 object; e.g., "lord" implies "slave," and "knower" refers to
something "known." It will be understood that "comparison" (tashbiti), i.e., the bringing of God into relation with created things, is
1 2
Cf.
Ibnu
i.
'l-'Arabi,
K
K
'l-bawddiri 'l-ghaybiyya.
Tarjumdn al-ashwdq, No. 41, vv. 11-13. The title of the ode is al-nawddiru 'l-'ayniyya fi Cf No. 19 in the list of his works given by Brockel.
mann, n. 206.
4
i.
I.
40, 5 foil.
In another passage (i. 66, 3 fr. foot and foil.) Jili argues 40, 9 that by means of man the impossible is judged to be necessary. If you suppose what is impossible, e.g., a living being without knowledge, that being exists in your thought and is a creature of God, inasmuch as thought with its content is a creature of God: thus by means of man there came into existence in the world that which had its centre of thought elsewhere (i.e., in the knowledge of God).
foil.
72
ioo
[CH.
"
affect
His absolute
transcendence (tanzih) as He is in Himself, which He alone can conceive and know 2 This fact is known intuitively by Perfect Men for other mystics it is a truth apprehended by
.
faith.
While the Essential tanzih has no opposite, the antiand tashbih is associated with God in His creative and creaturely aspects by those who perceive that He is One and that the form of all existent things is the form
thesis of tanzih
of Divine excellence (husn)*. Considered absolutely, the Divine nature does not admit of change. Change consists in the relations of God, i.e., in the diverse aspects wherein He manifests Himself to us. His manifestation of Himself to Himself, and His occultation of Himself in Himself, is 4 eternally one and the same The notion of eternity, without beginning and without end, when it is applied to God, involves no time-relation with His creatures, but only a 5 judgment that His nature is necessarily timeless Jili makes a fourfold division of the Divine attributes:
. .
(i)
e.g.,
(2)
attributes
(jamdl), e.g., Forgiving, Knowing, Guiding aright (3) attributes of Majesty (jaldl) e.g., Almighty, Avenging, Leading astray; (4) attributes of Perfection (kamdl),
Beauty
e.g.,
Exalted, Wise, First and Last, Outward and Inward*. Every attribute has an effect (athar) in which its jamdl or
,
jaldl or kamdl is manifested. Thus, objects of knowledge are " the "effect of the Name al-Alim, the Knower. All attributes
of jamdl,
exists.
and some
Paradise
is
of jaldl, are displayed by everything that the mirror of absolute jamdl, Hell of
absolute jaldl, and the univetse is the form of these Divine attributes. Evil, as such, does not exist, although it has its
What we
of the
call evil
whole to
imperfection arises
i.
K
K
i.
46, 21.
45, 12 foil.
Tme
i.
e (Fufii?, 228).
See the chapters on azal, abad and qidam (K i. 85-89). K i. 75 foil. A list of the attributes in each class is given in
i.
78
n]
The Perfect
Man
101
unitatis. Sin is not except in so far as we judge it to be forbidden by God. The author's treatment of the seven principal attributes
evil
Life,
is
marked by great
Life
1
.
arid.
Knowledge, Will, Power, Speech, Hearing, and Sightsubtlety, but the discussion is somewhat I will give a few specimens.
The
is its
complete
exists
life; its
relative
life.
,
God
the Living One (al-Hayy) and His life is the life complete and immortal. Created beings in general exist for God their life is relative and linked with death. While the Divine life in created beings is one and complete, some
for Himself.
is
:
He
complete form, e.g., the Perfect Man and the others Cherubim; incompletely, e.g., the animal man (alinsdnu 'l-hayawdni), the inferior angels, the jinn (genies),
manifest
it
in a
animals, plants, and minerals. Yet, in a certain sense, the life of all created beings is complete in the measure suitable to-,
of the universe. Life
for the preservation of the order a single essence, incapable of diminution or division, existent for itself in everything; and that which constitutes a thing is its life, that is to say, the life of
their degree
and necessary
is
God whereby all things subsist they all glorify Him in respect
:
His name "the through His life. The author states, as a fact known to few but revealed to him by mystical illumination, that everything
exists in
and
determined. This
what
life is entirely free and selfhe does not tally with as admits, which, has been said above is confirmed by the Divine
and
for itself,
information that on the Day of Resurrection each of a man's deeds will appear in visible shape and will address him and say, "I am thy deed."
2 Knowledge Although every attribute is independent and uncompounded, knowledge is most nearly connected with 3 life: whatever lives knows Jili controverts the doctrine of Ibnu VArabi that God's knowledge is given Him by the
.
i.
63, 25 foil.
i.
64, 22 foil.
('Urn ilhdmi).
IO2
[CH.
God
what its nature required it to be,, but the consequence drawn by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, namely, that
:
His knowledge of things is derived from the necessity of their is false on the contrary, their natures were necessitated by His knowledge of them before they were created and brought into existence it was His knowing them, not the necessity inherent in them of being what they are, that caused them to become objects of His knowledge. Afterwards (i.e., when they were created), their natures required other than that which He knew of them at first, and He then for the second time decreed that they should be what their natures required, according to that which He knew of them.
natures,
The will of God is "His particularisation of the of His knowledge by existence, according to the objects requirements of His knowledge." Our will is identical with the Divine eternal will, but in relation to us it partakes of our
.
Will 2
we
call it
this (unreal) attribution prevents us from actualising whatever we propose if we refer our will to God, all things become
enumerates nine phases of will, beginning with inclination (mayl) and ending with the highest and
subject to
it.
Jili
('ishq), in which there is no lover or beloved, since both have passed away in the love that is God's very essence 3 The Divine will is uncaused and absolutely free, not, as Ibnu l-'Arabi holds, determined by the obligation of the Knower to act as His nature demands 4
purest love
'
is
named
Jill
quotes three
verses
4
by himself the last runs "Thou seest them as two separate individuals
which is one." Cf. p. 80. According to Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, all action is the necessary result of God's infinite nature as eternally known to Himself (see Appendix), and free-will
in the point of Love,
in the ordinary sense is excluded. Jili tries to make room for it by ascribing to God a power of origination (ikh(ird') which affects the things written in the Guarded Tablet, so that sometimes that which comes to pass is the contrary of what was decreed. Although the actions required by the Divine nature correspond with the capacity of the recipient individual in whom they are manifested, yet in consequence of his weakness and imperfection they lose their unalterable character and become contingent, i.e.. flfod. wn is All-wise, determines whether they shall happen or not (K n. 8$lo foil.).
ll]
The Perfect
Power 1 This
.
Man
103
by Jili as "the bringing of the nonHere again he disagrees with Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, who asserts that God did not create the world from not-being, but only brought it from being in His knowledge
is
defined
into actual being. But in that case, Jili argues, the world would be co-eternal with God. It is not so: the judgment that God exists in Himself is logically prior to the judgment
that things exist in His knowledge; and the former judgment involves the non-existence of things and the existence of God
God brought things from not-being into being and caused them to exist in His knowledge, i.e., He knew them as
alone.
brought into existence from not-being; then He brought them forth from His knowledge and caused them to exist externally. Does it follow, because they were produced from not-being, that they were unknown to Him before He caused them to exist in His knowledge? No; the priority is of logic, not of time. There is no interval between the not-being of things and their existence in His knowledge. He knows them as He knows Himself, but they are not eternal as He is eternal.
IV.
Like Jacob Bohme 2 Jili sets out from the principle that "in order that the truth may be manifested as a Something, there must be a contrary therein." He finds the ground of existence in a Being which, though essentially One, is of threefold nature, since it knows itself as the Creator (al-Haqq)
(al-khalq).
72, i foil.) Jili says that
God imputes
free-will to
mankind in order that He may show His justice by punishing them with Hell, and His mercy by rewarding them with Paradise.
1
2
i.
69,
24
foil.
Godhead, Divine Wrath, and Divine system by the Essence with its complementary and harmonious attributes of majesty (jaldl) and beauty (jamdl). The German "Fire": it is "the mystic unites Wrath and Love in a form which he calls centrum naturae, the point between the kingdom of light and that of darkDeussen's ness, between love and anger, between good and evil" (Professor
Bohme's three
introd. to
Sparrow, p.
Perfect
the Divine Essence tr. by John This exactly answers to the perfection (kamdl) of the
Man.
IO4
"
[CH.
'
The Essence," he says, is Thou and I Thou in respect of thy deepest self (huwiyya, He-ness), not in respect of the human ' attributes which the notion Thou admits ; and I in respect of
' '
'
'
'
'
'
my
individual
'
self,
not in respect of the Divine attributes which is what is signified by the Essence
in respect of
my
'
I-ness
'
(aniyya),
viewed in relation
to the judgments which the notion 'I' is capable of, is God; and 'Thou,' in the creaturely aspect, is Man. Therefore consider your
if you will, as 'I,' or if you will, as 'Thou,' for there is besides the universal reality.... nothing If you say, that it (the Essence) is One, you are right or if you say that it is Two, it is in fact Two.
essence,
Or
if
it is
Three,'
you are
is
One relatively
But
if
(wdhid),
l
One absolutely
because he
the two essences are considered, you will say that he is a slave ( abd) and a Lord (rabb).
Two,
And
if
you examine
and what
is
united therein,
is
namely, two things deemed to be contrary, You will contemplate him with amazement: his lowness
that you will not call him lofty, and his loftiness you will not call him low.
is
such
such that
of a reality
having two
.
he named
Ahmad
Mohammed
that exist 2 ."
As an introduction
here,
to the
interwoven with a mystical scheme of cosmology, I will translate part of the 6oth chapter, "Of the Perfect Man showing that he is our Lord Mohammed, and that he stands
which
is
\f
(al-
1 The Perfect Man is neither Absolute Being nor Contingent Being, but a third metaphysical category, i.e., the Logos. See Nyberg, Kleineve Schriften da, Ibn al-'Arabt, Introd., p. 32 foil., 50. 1 K I. 10, 12 foil. In the Koran (61, 6) Mohammed is named Ahmad and K n. 58, 22. identified with the Paraclete foretold by Christ.
n]
The Perfect
The
Perfect
Man
105
Man
is
the Qufb
to last,
first
he
He hath various guises and in diverse tabernacles appears bodily (kand'is) in respect of some of these his name is given to him, while in respect of others it is not given to him. His own original name is Mohammed, his name
is
honour Abu '1-Qasim, his description 'Abdullah 1 and his title Shamsu'ddin 2 In every age he bears a name suitable to his guise (libds) in that age. I once met him in the form of my Shaykh, Sharafu'ddin Isma'il al-Jabarti, but I did not know that he (the
of
, .
Shaykh) was the Prophet, although I knew that he (the Prophet) was the Shaykh. This was one of the visions in which I beheld him at Zabid in A.H. 796. The real meaning of this matter is that the Prophet has the power of assuming every form. When the adept (adib) sees him in the form of Mohammed which he wore during his life, he names him by that name, but when he sees him in another form and knows him to be Mohammed, he names him by the name of the form in which he appears. The name Mohammed is not applied except to the Idea of Mohammed (al-Haqiqatu l-Muhammadiyya). Thus, when he appeared in the form of
'
Shibli 3
am
the
Apostle of
disciple,
"
being one of the illuminated, bear witness that thou art the
:
Apostle of God." No objection can be taken to this it is like what happens when a dreamer sees some one in the form of another; but
there
viz., is
that the
a difference between dreaming and mystical revelation, name of the form in which Mohammed appears to the
is not bestowed in hours of waking upon the Haqiqatu 'l-Muhammadiyya, because interpretation is applicable to the World of Similitudes: accordingly, when the dreamer wakes he
dreamer
dream-form.
Mohammed as being the haqiqa of the In mystical revelation it is otherwise, for if you perceive mystically that the liaqiqa of Mohammed is displayed in
any human form, you must bestow upon the haqiqa of Mohammed the name of that form and regard its owner with no less reverence than you would show to our Lord Mohammed, and after having seen him therein you may not behave towards it in the same
1
The servant
2 The Sun of the of God. Religion. famous Suff of Baghdad. He died in A.D. 945~6-
106
manner
[CH.
Do
my
tincture of the doctrine of metempsychosis. God forbid I mean that the Prophet is able to assume whatever form he wishes, and
the Sunna declares that in every age he assumes the form of the most perfect men, in order to exalt their dignity and correct their deviation (from the truth) they are his vicegerents outwardly, and
:
he
their spiritual essence (haqiqa) inwardly. The Perfect Man in himself stands over against all the individualisations of existence. With his spirituality he stands over
is
against the higher individualisations, with his corporeality over against the lower. His heart stands over against the Throne of
God
(al-'Arsh), his
mind over
against the
Pen
over against the Guarded Tablet (al-Lawhu 'l-mahfuz) his nature over against the elements, his capability (of receiving forms) over against matter (hayuld)....He stands over against the angels with his good thoughts, over against the genies and devils with the
doubts which beset him, over against the beasts with his animality. ...To every type of existence he furnishes from himself an antitype. We have already explained that every one of the Cherubim is created from an analogous faculty of the Perfect Man. It only
remains to speak of his correspondence with the Divine names and
attributes.
Man
is
a copy (nuskhd) of
God, according to the saying of the Prophet, "God created Adam in the image of the Merciful," and in another hadith, "God created
in His own image." That is so, because God is Living, Knowing, Mighty, Willing, Hearing, Seeing, and Speaking, and Man too is all these. Then he confronts the Divine huwiyya with his huwiyya, the Divine aniyya with his aniyya, and the Divine dhdt (essence) with his dhdt he is the whole against the whole, the
Adam
universal against the universal, the particular against the particular.... Further, you must know that the Essential names and
the Divine attributes belong to the Perfect Man by fundamental and sovereign right in virtue of a necessity inherent in his essence, " for it is he whose "truth (haqiqa) is signified by those expressions and whose spirituality (latlfa) is indicated by those symbols: they have no subject in existence (whereto they should be attached) except the Perfect Man. As a mirror in which a person sees the form of himself and cannot see it without the mirror, such is the
II]
The Perfect
Man
107
God to the Perfect Man, who cannot possibly see his own form but in the mirror of the name Allah; and he is also a mirror to God, for God laid upon Himself the necessity that His
relation of
names and attributes should not be seen save in the Perfect Man. This obligation to display the Divine attributes is the "trust" (amdna) which God offered to the heavens and the earth they were
:
afraid to accept
it,
it;
verily he
is
unjust and
it
unjust to his
own
soul in letting
suffer degradation (from the things of this world) and ignorant of his real worth, because he is unaware of that with which he has
been entrusted.... Beyond the plane of the Names and Attributes, which are ranged on the right and left of him according to their
kind, the Perfect
delight,
Man
feels
which
is
named
Godhead"
(ladhdhatu
he is independent of his modes, i.e., the Names and Attributes, and regards them not at all. He knows nothing
'l-ildhiyya)....Here
own nature
emanation (sudur) from himself of all that exists, and beholds the Many in his essence, even as ordinary men are conscious of their own thoughts and qualities; but the Perfect Man is able to keep every thought, great or small, far from himself: his power over things does not proceed from any secondary cause but is exercised freely, like other men's power of speaking, eating, and drinking.
These extracts bring out the germinal idea which is developed by Ji'li into a psychological and cosmological system. The Perfect Man, as the copy of God and the archetype of Nature, unites the creative and creaturely aspects of the Essence and manifests the oneness of Thought with things. "He is the heaven and the earth and the length and the breadth 1 ."
Mine
is
the
kingdom
in both worlds: I
myself, that I should hope for his favour or fear him. Before me is no "before," that I should follow its condition, and
after
me
is
no "after," that
should precede
its
notion.
1 K i. 26, 3 fr. foot. "The length and the breadth" (al-tM wa 'l-'ard) is a formula invented by Hallaj, which corresponds with Idhtit (Divinity) and ndstit (Humanity) and expresses his dualistic conception of the spiritual and material universe. Ibnu 'l-'Arabi and Jili interpret the "two dimensions" in a monistic sense. See Massignon, Kitdb al-Tawdsin, p. 141 foil.
io8
I
[CH.
all kinds of perfection mine own, and lo, I am the beauty of the majesty of the Whole: I am naught but It. Whatsoever thou seest of minerals and plants and animals, together with Man and his qualities, And whatsoever thou seest of elements and nature and original atoms (haba') whereof the substance is (ethereal as) a perfume, And whatsoever thou seest of seas and deserts and trees and high-
have made
topped mountains,
whose countenance
and
of things visible
seest of thought and imagination and inand soul, and heart with its inwards, And whatsoever thou seest of angelic aspect, or of phenomena whereof Satan is the spirit,
******
is
Lo,
am
my
theatre:
'tis I,
not
it,
that
Verily, I
my essence is the object named. mine and the angel- world is of my weaving and fashioning; the unseen world is mine and the world of omnipotence springs from me. And mark In all that I have mentioned I am a slave returning from the Essence to his Lord Poor, despised, lowly, self-abasing, sin's captive, in the bonds of
creation
a name, and
is
The
sensible world
his trespasses 1
verses only say what Jill repeats in many that at supreme moments a man may lose whilje places, himself in God, he can never be identified with God absolutely.
The concluding
Man
as the Spirit
whence
all
Man
them 2 The highest hypos tases Holy Spirit (Ruh,u 'l-Quds) and the
.
i.
and
foil.
K n.
10
foil.
n]
The Perfect
Man
109
"the angel the technical language of the Sufis, of which the world is created" (al-
haqqu 'l-makhluq bihi) and "the Idea of Mohammed" (alHaqiqatu 'l-Muhammadiyya). How these two Spirits are related to each other is indicated in the following passage:
You must know that every sensible object has a created spirit which constitutes its form, and the spirit is to the form as the meaning to the word. The created spirit has a Divine spirit which constitutes it, and that Divine spirit is the Ruhu 'l-Quds. Those who regard the Ruhu 'l-Quds in man deem it created, because two
whose names and attributes inhere
eternal substances cannot exist: eternity belongs to God alone, in His essence because of the
is is
impossibility of their being detached; all else originated. Man, for example, has a body, which
created and
his form,
and which is his and a is consciousness which meaning, spirit, (sirr), al-Ruh, and an essential aspect (wajti), which is denoted by the terms Ruhu 'l-Quds (the Holy Spirit), al-sirru 'l-ildhi (the Divine 1 consciousness) and al-wujudu 'l-sdri (the all-pervading Being)
a
.
The Ruhu 'l-Quds and the Ruh are one Spirit viewed as eternal in relation to God and non-eternal in relation to Man;
as the inmost essence of things or as their form of existence 2
.
The uncreated
menal
of
My
Spirit of God, sanctified above all phenoimperfections, is referred to in the verse, "I breathed the Spirit into Adam" (Kor. 15, 29; 38, 72), and in
verse,
is
Allah" (Kor.
dividualised
109),
its
i.e.,
the
Ruhu
by
thought.
Jfli
perfection," in every object of sense or adds that inasmuch as the spirit of a thing is its
is
self (nafs),
His "self
by the "self" of God; and Union with the Ruhu 'l-Quds comes life to only as the crown and consummation of the mystical "the holy one" (qudsi)* who unceasingly contemplates the
existence
is
constituted
.
"
His essence 3
1
3
KII.
K n.
"-
Cf.
M, 4
a,
b.
and
foil.
4 In M, 6 b, Jili distinguishes the qudsi (holy one), who is illuminated by the Divine attributes, from the aqdasi (most holy one), who is united with the Essence.
no
are
[CH.
Divine consciousness (sirr) which is his origin, so that its laws made manifest in him and God becomes his ear, eye, hand and tongue he touches the sick and they are healed, he bids a thing be and it is, for he has been strengthened with the
:
even as Jesus was (Kor. 2, Si) 1 It will now be seen that Jill considers the created Ruh or the archetypal Spirit of Mohammed as a mode of the uncreated Holy Divine Spirit and as the medium through which God becomes conscious of Himself in creation 2
Holy
Spirit,
God created the angel named Ruh from His own light, and from him He created the world and made him His organ of vision in the world. One of his names is the Word of Allah (Amr Allah) 9 He is the noblest and most exalted of existent beings: there is no angel above him, and he is the chief of the Cherubim. God caused the mill-stone of existent beings to turn on him, and made him the axis (qutb] of the sphere of created things. Towards every thing
.
that
God
he regards
existence.
created he has a special aspect (wajh), in virtue of which it and preserves it in its appointed place in the order of
Throne
(al-'Arsh)*.
He has eight forms, which are the bearers of the Divine From him were created all the angels, both the
sublime and the elemental. The angels stand to him in the relation of drops of water to the sea, and the eight bearers of the 'Arsh
stand in the same relation to him as the eight faculties which constitute human existence to the spirit of man. These faculties
are intelligence (aql), judgment (wahm), reflection
(khaydl), imagination
,
(fikr),
phantasy
(al-musawwira) memory (al-hdfiza), perception (al-mudrika), and the soul (nafs). The Ruh exercises a Divine guardianship, created in him by God, over the whole
universe.
He
'l-Muhammadiyya therefore the Prophet is the most excellent of mankind. While God manifests Himself in His attributes to all
other created beings,
1
He
* K n. 12, 6 foil. ii. ii, 7 fr. foot and foil. For the use of amr (which is radically connected with the Jewish memrd) in the sense of Logos, see H. Hirschfeld, New researches into the composition and exegesis of the Qoran, p. 15. Cf. Kor. 17, 87. See Kor. 69, 17, and cf. Nyberg, Kleinere Schriften des Ibn al-'Arabi,
Introd., p. 146.
The 'Arsh
is
the Universal
Body (^J&\
n. 5-6.
>o
%Jt) or the
n]
The Perfect
Man
in
angel alone. Accordingly the Ruh is the Qutb of the present world and of the world to come. He does not make himself known to any creature of God but to the Perfect Man. When the saint (wali)
knows him and truly understands the things which the Ruh teaches him, he becomes a pole (qutb) on which the entire universe
revolves; but the Poleship (Qutbiyya) belongs fundamentally to the Ruh, and if others hold it, they are only his delegates 1 He is the first to receive the Divine command, which he then delivers
.
to the angels;
and whenever a command is to be executed in the God from him an angel suitable to that command, creates universe, and the Ruh sends him to carry it out. All the Cherubim are
,
created from him, e.g., Seraphiel, Gabriel, Michael, and Azrael, and those above them, such as the angel named al-Nun 2 who is
stationed beneath the Guarded Tablet, and the angel named the Pen (al-Qalam), and the angel named al-Mudabbir, whose station
is
al-Mufassil,
who
1 Jili's identification of the Ruh with the Qutb, taken in conjunction with the fact that the Ruh is essentially God regarded as the Holy Spirit or as the First Intelligence (see pp. 109 and 112), suggests an explanation of the mysterious doctrine broached by Ghazali in the Mishkdtu 'I- Anwar, where he asserts that in very truth the Mover of all is not Allah but a Being, described as "the Obeyed One" (al-mutd'), "whose nature is left obscure, since our only information about him is that he is not the Real Being. Allah's relation to this Vicegerent, the supreme controller of the Universe, is compared to the relation of the impalpable light-essence to the sun, or of the elemental fire to a glowing coal" (W. H. T. Gairdner, Al-Ghazdll's
Mishkdt al-Anwdr and the Ghazdll-problem in Der Islam, 1914, p. 121 foil.). I agree with Canon Gairdner that Ghazali would not have accepted the ordinary hierarchical Qutb doctrine current amongst the Sufis of the 5th century A.H., if not earlier. But an hypostatised Qutb is another matter. The Perfect Man, though not himself the Absolute, in no way impairs the absolute Divine unity which he objectifies. It looks to me as if Ghazali's esoteric teaching, which he keeps back from his readers because they "cannot bear it," was not different in substance from the Logos doctrine of the Insdnu 'l-kdmil. His allusions to ineffable arcana, centring in the tradition that Adam was created in the image of God, are extremely significant. [Cf. now Tor Andrae, Die person Muhammeds, p. 335 and Nyberg,
op.
cit., 2
Introd., p. 106 foil.] See Koran, 68, i. Al-Nun symbolises the Divine knowledge (K n.
22, 3)3
The Footstool under the Divine Throne ('Arsh). Those who are not and other details of Mohammedan cosmogony may
consult E. J. W. Gibb's History of Ottoman Poetry, vol. I. p. 34 foil. According to Jili, the creatures (al-khalq) are first individualised occultly and without differentiation in the Divine knowledge, then brought into existence.
112
[CH.
Imamu
'1-Mubin 1
Angels, who were not commanded to worship Adam. God in His wisdom did not command them, for had they been commanded to worship, every one of Adam's descendants would have known them. Consider how, inasmuch as the angels were commanded to worship Adam, they appear to men in the forms of the Divine similitudes whereby God reveals Himself to the dreamer. All those forms are angels, who descend in diverse shapes by command of
the angel entrusted with the making of similitudes. For this reason a man dreams that lifeless things speak to him unless they were really spirits assuming the form of lifelessness, they would
:
not have spoken. The Prophet said that a true dream is an inand also that a spiration from God because an angel brings it
true
dream
is
Iblis,
though he did not worship Adam, was amongst those commanded to worship, the devils who are his offspring were commanded to appear to the dreamer in the same forms as the angels: hence false
dreams. According to this argument, the Sublime Angels are un-
knowable except by "the divine men" (al-ildhiyyun) on whom God bestows such knowledge as a gift after their release from the limitations of humanity.
,
to the
number
of his
aspects. He is named "The Most Exalted Pen" and "The Spirit of Mohammed" and "The First Intelligence" and "The Divine
Spirit," on the principle of naming the original by the derivative, but in the presence of God he has only one name, which is "The
Spirit" (al-Ruh).
Jili gives a long account of a vision in which the Ruh conversed with him and spoke darkly concerning the mystery of his nature, saying, "I am the child whose father is his son
is its jar.... I
and
11. 6, foil.). All these individualisations analytically in the Kursi (cf. are "unseen" (ghayb), i.e., in God, so to speak. The first objective individualisation takes place in the Pen (al-Qalam), which distinguishes the creatures from the Creator and imprints their forms of existence on the Guarded Tablet (al-Lawfr al-mahfuz), as the mind imprints ideas on the soul.
11. 5,
then manifested
Hence
(al-'aql)
22,
said in the Prophetic Tradition that the Pen or the Intelligence was the first thing that God created (K n. 6, last line and foil.). 1 The Imamu '1-Mubin is identified with the First Intelligence (K u. i), and with the human spirit (M 7 b).
it is
n]
The Perfect
Man
1 13
bore me, and I asked them in marriage, and they let me marry them 1 /' In the course of this colloquy the Idea of Mohammed
(al-Haqiqatu 'l-Muhammadiyya) says:
God
disputed
created
and
Adam in His own image this is not doubted or Adam was one of the theatres (mazdhir) in which I
:
displayed myself he was appointed as a vicegerent (khalifa) over my externality. I knew that God made me the object and goal of
all
heard the most gracious allocution from art the Qutb whereon the spheres of beauty revolve, and thou art the Sun by whose radiance the full-moon of perfection is replenished; thou art he for whom We
lo, I
"Thou
set
for
whose sake
We made
ring
thou art the reality symbolised by Hind and Salma and 'Azza and Asma 4 O thou who art endued with lofty attributes and pure qualities, Beauty doth not dumbfound thee nor Majesty cause thee to quake, nor dost thou deem Perfection unattainable thou art the centre and these the circumference, thou art the
;
.
:
In some aspects the spiritual organ which Sufis call "the heart" (qalb) is hardly distinguished from the spirit (ruh): indeed Jili says that when the Koran mentions the Divine
spirit
1
it is
is signified.
He
14, 23 foil. The commentator explains that the Rdfy is the object knowledge whose father (Divine knowledge) is produced by the object of knowledge and is therefore its son. Cf. the verse of Badru'ddin
of Divine
al-Shahid:
My mother bore her father lo, that is a wondrous thing And my father is a little child in the bosom of those who suckle it.
The mother
is Nature. Adam, her son in one sense, is her father in another, because he (as the microcosm) is the origin of all created things, like the date-kernel which is both the seed of the palm and its fruit (Comm. K 17 6). 2 I.e., the First Intelligence, the archetype of created things, which in relation to the Perfect Man is named the Spirit of Mohammed (cf. K n. 6,
penult,
3
and
foil.).
I.e.,
the Perfect
Man
is
its
mysteries.
the door-keeper of the temple of the Godhead, The text has *Jy>jJ , but according
is
Comm.
K (foil.
JH>*)J
it
= *r>lijl ***^
inserted, so that
under &*jjj These names are typical of the women whose charms are celebrated by 6 K n. 15, 10 foil. Arabian poets.
VT
f TV
[CH.
ness
revealed in the quintessence (ayri) of created beings 1 (Mohammed), that God may behold Man thereby "; as "the
(sirr)
Throne of God (al-Arsh) and His Temple in Man... the centre of Divine consciousness and the circumference of the circle
of all that exists actually or ideally 2 ." It reflects all the Divine names and attributes at once, yet quickly changes
under the influence of particular names. Like a mirror, it has a face and a back. The face is always turned towards a lighi
called the attention (al-hamm) which is the eye of the heart so that whenever a name becomes opposite to, or as we shoulc
,
impression of
say, strikes the attention, the heart sees it it then this name disappears
;
and and
receives the
is
succeedec
of the heart is the place from which the attention is absent 3 Jili illustrates his meaning by the
by
others.
The "back"
a n
1 *
K II.
names
18, 2.
n. 16, 25
foil.
The position of the hamm varies in different men. It may face upward or downward or to the right or to the left, i.e., in the direction of the nafs (appetitive soul), which is located in the left rib. The hearts of profound mystics have no hamm and no back (qafd) these men face with their whole being the whole of the Divine names and attributes and are with God essentially (K n. 18, penult, and foil.).
:
ll]
The Perfect
Man
115
The Divine names and attributes are the heart's true it was created. Some men are so blessed that they have little trouble to keep it pure, but most of us must needs undergo painful self-mortifications in order to wash out the stains of the flesh 1 Recompense for good works depends on the merit imputed by God to His creatures according to the original individualisations in which He created them it is a necessary right, not an arbitrary gift 2 The heart reflects
nature, in which
.
: .
reflected
the world of attributes, or rather, as Jili holds, is itself by the universe. "Earth and heaven do not contain^'
Me, but the heart of My believing servant containeth Me": the universe were primary and the heart secondary, i.e., if the heart were only a mirror, then the power of containing and comprehending would have been ascribed to the universe, not to the heart; but in fact, it is the heart alone that comif
prehends God
finally
Mohammed
the
God 4
faculty of Reason has three modes, viz., the First Intelligence (al-aqlu 'l-awwal), Universal Reason (al-aqlu
5 Jili identifies 'l-ma'dsh) the First Intelligence, as the faithful treasurer of Divine
The
'l-kulli),
1 2
ii.
(tajalliydt) of the Essence are not named quotes a verse of "our Shaykh, Shaykh 'Abdu
'1-Qadiral-Jilani":
I ceased
which
3
reached a dignity
comprehension are denoted by the terms wus'u 'l-'ilm ('ilm in this connexion is synonymous with ma'rifa), wus'u 'l-mushdhada, and wus'u 'l-khildfa. In the last stage Man is essentialised and becomes the khalifa or vicegerent of God. Jili, however, maintains a distinction even here. The Perfect Man knows the perfection of the Divine nature as manifested in him, not the perfection of the Divine nature in itself, which is infinite and (since the Essence cannot be comprehended by one of its attributes) unknowable. We can only say that God knows Himself according
145
of
ultimately to the necessity of His knowledge (fraqqu 'l-ma'nfa). 6 4 ii. 22, 4. ii. 21, 16 foil.
82
n6
amin)
,
[CH.
Knowledge, with Gabriel, "the trusted Spirit" (al-Ruhu 71 and as a locus for the form of Divine Knowledge in
existence
the first objective analysis of the Divine synthesis with the Pen (al-Qalam) which transmits the particulars contained as a whole in God's consciousness to the Guarded Tablet (al-Lawhu 'l-mahfuz) 2 Universal Reason is "the luminous medium whereby the forms of knowledge percipient 3" in First the not Intelligence are made manifest deposited
.
the
sum
would
of individual intelligences, for in this case Reason be plural, while in reality it is a single substance, the
common element,
so to speak, of
human,
angelic,
and demonic
spirits. Ordinary reason is "the light (of Universal Reason) measured by the rule of reflection (fikr), and does not appre-
of reflection
"
therefore
it
cannot reach
the unconditioned First Intelligence, often misses its mark, and fails to perceive many things. Universal Reason, on the
weighs all with the twin scales never penetrates beyond the sphere of creation. Neither universal (intuitive) nor ordinary (discursive) reason can attain to knowledge of God. The contrary doctrine has only a demonstrative and controversial value. True gnosis (ma'rifa) is given by faith, which does not depend on proofs and effects (dthdr) but on the Divine attributes themselves 5 The judgment (wahm) of Mohammed was created from the light of the Divine Name al-Kdmil (the Perfect), and God created from the light of Mohammed's judgment Azrael, the
other hand,
of
is infallible,
since
it
it
6 Wahm is the strongest of the human Angel of Death faculties it overpowers the understanding, the reflection, and the imagination '...nothing in the world apprehends more
.
1 II. 24, 5 foil. Gabriel was created from the First Intelligence regarded as the rational principle of Mohammed, who is therefore "the father of 2 Gabriel." n. 7, 15 foil.). I.e., Universal Soul (see * Universal Reason is a mode of Universal Soul (K n. 7, 3 fr. foot and foil.); it perceives the forms of existence imprinted on Universal Soul by the
First Intelligence. 4 Jill likens the First Intelligence to the sun, Universal Reason to water irradiated by sunbeams, and ordinary reason to the light reflected from the water upon a wall (K n. 22, 4 fr. foot and foil.).
ii.
23, 9 foil.
ii.
24, 21 foil.
Cf. Fu?i4?
229.
ll]
it is
;
The Perfect
what enables men
Man
117
in the air
to walk on the water and fly the light of certainty (yaqin) and the basis of dominion he that has it at his command exercises sway over
quickly;
it is
and low, while he that is ruled by its might becomes stupefied and bewildered 1 The spirit, on entering the body 2 either acquires angelic dispositions and ascends to Paradise, or assumes bestial dispositions and sinks to Hell it
all
things high
ascends
of its
human form,
e.g.,
grossness and weakness, to be merely negative and capable of being thrown off, since the spirit always retains its original
qualities potentially. in a form determined
At death Azrael appears to the spirit by its beliefs, actions, and dispositions
during
life
3
.
so that a
stench 4
man may "die of a rose in aromatic pain" or of a When the spirit sees Azrael, it becomes enamoured of
,
5 him, and its gaze is entirely withdrawn from the body whereupon the body dies. The spirit does not quit its bodily form at once but abides in it for a while, like one who sleeps without
seeing
any
vision 6
After this dreamless sleep, which is its spirit passes into the intermediate
is
is
state (al-barzakti)
1
Meditation (himma)
ii.
27, 14
foil.
Wahm
and forms a judgment concerning it, e.g., that the sheep runs away from the wolf. Jili regards it as the faculty whereby things are judged intuitively to be what they really are he says that by means of wahm God made His creatures worship Him
which perceives the
qualities of a sensible object
:
Lord (ta'abbada 'l-'dlam). on becoming conscious of itself as the essence (huwiyya) of the body. without being separated Spirits dwell in the place towards which they look, from their original centre" (K n. 25, 9 foil.). 3 Sometimes in the form of the Prophet, which the Cherubim, having been created from his spiritual faculties, are able to assume, unlike Iblis and the devils who were created from his fleshly nature (K II. 26, 2 foil.).
as their
2
"
I.e.,
4
6
K
it
ii.
26, 22 foil.
Jili
body
"
on the ground
that
implies 6 dreams are Against the opinion that no sleep is visionless, though some not remembered on waking, Jili sets the fact, revealed to him (as he says) by Divine illumination, that it is possible to sleep dreamlessly for a period of two days or more, which seems to pass in the twinkling of an eye. Conversely, moment of time that within it an individual God so extend a
lives
may many
single
lives
ii.
27, I foil.).
n8
[CH.
(faculties), for it
God
1
.
beware of resting
the mastermystic will leave it before it has yielded all its secrets to him, 2 lest it become a barrier to his further advance Michael, the with the of is from created it, charged duty dispensing angel the portions of fate allotted by eternal necessity to each
in order to
enjoy
its fruits:
recipient
From
the reflection
(fikr)
of
Mohammed God
created the
spirits of the celestial and terrestrial angels, and appointed them to guard the higher and lower spheres of existence until
the Last Day, when they shall be translated to the intelligible world 4 One of the keys to that world is reflection, leading to true knowledge of the nature of Man, which is set with all its
.
aspects over against the aspects of the Merciful (al-Rahmdri). oifikr lies open to mystics alone the path
:
As we have already seen 6 thought (khaydl), i.e., the faculty that retains what the fancy perceives of the forms of sensible 7 objects after their substance has disappeared is declared by
,
In Hegelian language "the about are we know that appropriately described when things we say that their being is established not on themselves, but
Jili
to
be the
on the Divine Idea." Nothing exists otherwise than as a dream in the perception of the dreamer, and the cosmos is
(khaydl
fi
must be added, however, that while khaydl) khaydl i.e., thought, expresses some reality, the every every thing,
fi
.
It
Perfect
Man
(though he
is
.
not Reality
itself) is
the complete
9 self-expression of Reality
K
K K
II.
28, 14.
Himma
(qalb)
*
6
upon God.
IT. ii.
II.
32, 15 foil.
was once
in
gnlfed in this "deadly science" and was only saved by the blessing of God and the watchful care of his Shaykh, Sharafu'ddin ibn Isma'fl al-Jabarti P. 9* supra. (K ii. 32, 4 foil.).
7
n. 34, 16.
The term al-insdnu 'l-kdmil signifies essence, attributes, and names" (K I. 80,
"
14).
n]
The Perfect
Man
119
no
Form
of
Mohammed
'l-Muhammadiyya), which I will omit for the present, he concludes his psychology with an account of the
nature of the soul.
Ascetic and devotional Sufism, in agreement with orthodox Islam, distinguishes sharply between the spirit (ruh) and the soul (nafs) 2 The latter term may, indeed, be used to denote
.
a man's spiritual "self"- -"he that knows himself (nafsahu) " knows his Lord but as a rule when Sufis refer to the nafs they mean the appetitive soul, the sensual "self" which, from with God 3
is wholly evil and can never become one makes short work of this dualistic doctrine. The heading of his 59th chapter promises to show that the nafs is the origin of Iblis and all the devils, and he begins as follows:
Jili
(sirr) of the Lord, and the essence that Essence it hath in its essence manifold (of God) through It is created from the delights. light of the attribute of Lordship:
:
many,
of
Mohammed from His own nafs essence) then He created the nafs of Mohammed 4
;
.
therefore, are its lordly qualities.... God created the nafs (and the nafs of a thing is its of
Adam
Jili
Man is the
necessary consequence of his Divine nature. Adam ate the forbidden fruit because his soul manifests a certain aspect of
Deity,
for it is not in the nature of viz.', Lordship (rububiyya) Lordship to submit to a prohibition. The soul knew that, if it ate the fruit5 it would inevitably descend into the material
; ,
P.
no supra.
D. B. Macdonald, The
religious attitude
Cf. Prof.
foil.
and
life
in Islam,
p.
224
3
How
far
Ibnu
'l-'Arabi,
Ibnu
'1-Farid,
and
Jili
the old Sufism appears from the way in which they speak of the body. Although on account of its grossness it is an imperfect medium and therefore relatively a cause of evil, its faculties are necessary for the attainment of spiritual perfection. A man born blind could know nothing, either here or hereafter, of the Divine wisdom that is communicated through the eye (M 41 ). * n. 48, 2 foil. Cf. the Td'iyya, vv. 677-9, and note ad loc. 6 The forbidden fruit symbolises the darkness of Nature which is tke
I2O
[CH.
world and would suffer misery, but on the other hand it was aware of the blessedness of its inherent sovereignty. Thus it became perplexed, and its perplexity (iltibds) brought about its fall. The choice of the soul is at once determined and free: determined, because in the last resort its act proceeds from a fundamental difference in the nature of God free, because the soul acts in accordance with its knowledge of itself and, had it not been blinded by pride, would have perceived that its
;
true nature requires obedience to the Divine command, inasthe spirit miserable, and misery inconsistent with Lordship. When God created the soul of
Mohammed
Essence, which comprises all contraries, He created from the soul of Mohammed (i) the Sublime Angels in respect of His
and Leading, and (2) Iblis and His attributes of Majesty, Darkness, and Misleading 1 Now, the name of Ibh's was 'Azazfl: he had worshipped God for thousands of years before the creation of the world, and God had forbidden him to worship aught else.
attributes of Beauty, Light,
his followers in respect of
.
Therefore,
when God
created
the
angels to bow down before him, Iblis refused, for he did not know that to worship by God's command is equivalent to 2 Instead of justifying his disobedience or worshipping God
.
and asking God to forgive him, he silently that God wills and acts in conformity with the acknowledged eternal and unchangeable principles of His nature. Iblfs was banished from the Divine presence and a curse was laid upon him "until the Day of Judgment" (Kor. 15, 35), i.e., for a
repenting of
it
3 After the Day of Judgment the creatureliness period which hinders the spirit from knowing God as He really is
finite
cause of disobedience, just as the light of Spirit is the cause of obedience; but Nature and Spirit, like their opposite effects, only differ correlatively.
1 *
ii.
50, 7 foil.
JHf derives the name Iblfs from the doubt and confusion (talbis) which was produced in the mind of 'Azazil by the command to worship Adam 1 The Days of God (ayydm Allah) are the epiphanies by which He reveals
His perfections (K I. 89, 25 foil.). The Day of Judgment signifies "an omnipotent epiphany before which all existent beings abase themselves"
(K
i.
in,
15),
God (K
11.
n]
will
The Perfect
Man
,
.
121
be counted amongst its perfections 1 and Iblis will then be restored to his place beside God 2 Jill mentions five phases of the soul, or ascending grades
of spiritual life: (i) the animal soul, i.e., the spirit regarded as governing the body; (2) the commanding (evil-prompting) soul 3 i.e., the spirit regarded as subject to the passions (3) the inspired soul, i.e., the spirit which God inspires to do good;
,
(4)
i.e.,
the spirit regarded as turning the tranquil soul, i.e., the spirit
.
God 4
V.
THE MACROCOSM.
is
As Man
is
Man 5 who
,
is its spirit
and
:
life
6
.
In
describing its creation Jili combines mystical ideas with an old cosmological myth, in the following manner 7
Before the creation
God was
in Himself,
existence were absorbed (mustahlik] in manifested in any thing. This is the state of "being a hidden " treasure 8 or, as the Prophet expressed it, "the dark mist above
which
1
is
is
Because the spirit, having regained its absoluteness, will be one with the Essence which is both Creator and creature. 2 The view that Iblis suffered damnation rather than compromise the doctrine of the Divine unity (tawhid) is derived from Hallaj. See Massignon, Kitdb al-Tawdsin, p. 5 and 41 foil. 3 In so far as the soul does what its creaturely nature requires, it may be described as ammdra (bi 'l-sti'), i.e., "commanding itself (to do evil)."
4
6
ii.
58, 3 foil.
Mohammed,
as the Logos,
is
Adam and
of all
things.
6 Cf. ii. 79, 6 foil. "God caused Adam to dwell in the heaven of this world, because Adam is the world-spirit (rtifau 'l-'dlam) through him God beheld the existent things and had mercy on them and made them live by the life of Adam in them. The world will not cease to be living so long as humankind continues there. When humankind departs, the world will perish and collapse, as the body of an animal perishes when the spirit leaves it."
:
10 foil. Cf. Nyberg, Kleinere Schriften des Ibn ai-'Arabl, 46 foil. " 8 According to the Hadith, I was a hidden treasure and I desired to be known, therefore I created the creatures in order that I might be known." * See p. 94 fol.
7
ii.
77,
1
Introd., p.
122
of Ideas 1
is
[CH.
beyond
all relations.
The Idea
,
of Ideas is called in in
willed to bring the world into existence, He looked on the Idea of Ideas (or the White Chrysolite) with the look of Perfection, whereupon it
He
When God
and became a water; for nothing in existence, not even the Idea of Ideas, which is the source of all existence, can bear the perfect manifestation of God. Then God looked on it with
dissolved
the look of Grandeur, and it surged in waves, like a sea tossed by the winds, and its grosser elements were spread out in layers
like
God
their inhabitants.
like
The
vapour from the sea, and from them God created the seven heavens with the angels of each heaven. Then God made of the water seven seas which encompass the world. This is how the
whole of existence originated.
Jfli
surveys the
celestial, terrestrial
,
at considerable length 3 but I will not attempt to give more than an outline of his map. He takes first the seven heavens,
which
rise in concentric and gradually widening circles above the spheres of earth, water, air, and fire. Mystics, he remarks, have seen them and can interpret them to sublunary men.
of the Moon. not the earth-born vapour which we call the sky, but invisible on account of its farness and subtlety. God created
1.
The Heaven
is
This
is
it
(al-Ruh)*, that it might have the same relation to the earth as the spirit has to the body and He made
the dwelling-place of
2.
Adam 5
than
silver.
The Heaven
created
it
of Mercury.
God
3.
reflection (fikr)
is
and placed
who
grey.
The Heaven
of Venus.
from the nature of phantasy (khaydl] and is the of the World of Similitudes (dlamu 'l-mithdl). Its colour locality
It is created
ffaqiqatu 'l-haqd'iq, i.e., the whole content of God's knowledge, the Divine consciousness, the First Intelligence, the Logos. It is identical with the Haqlqatu 'l-Muhammadiyya. Cf. Nyberg, op. cit., Introd., p. 33 foil,
1
and
4
50.
al-Ydqutatu 'l-bayid.
p.
n. 78,
598,
22.
See
108
foil.
Cf.
121, note 6.
II]
is
The Perfect
Man
123
yellow. Jili describes the various tasks assigned to the angels whom he saw in this heaven, where he also met the Prophet Joseph 1
.
4.
The Heaven
is like
of the Sun.
light of the heart (qalb).
It is created
from the
The Sun
in his
heaven
a mirror of Deity while the heart displays the sublime degrees of existence connoted by the name Allah, the Sun is the source and principle of the elemental world.
:
the heart in
man
Idris, Jesus,
its
ruling angel
is Israfil.
The Heaven
of Mars.
Azrael,
heaven, which
6.
the Angel of Death, presides over this blood-red is created from the light of judgment (wahm).
of Jupiter.
The Heaven
God
created
it
from the
light of meditation
(himma).
The
whom
Michael
is
the
mercy and blessing. Some have the shapes of animals and birds and men; others appear as substances and accidents which bring health to the sick or as solids and liquids which supply created beings with food and drink; others are formed half of fire and half of ice.
Here
Jili
revelation of Lordship," who explained to "Thou shall not see Me" (Kor. 7, 139).
beheld Moses, "drunken with the wine of the him the meaning of
first
to be created.
It
was
created from the light of the First Intelligence, and its colour is black. Between it and the Starless Heaven (al-falaku 'l-atlas) there
existence: the
are three heavens which have only a logical, not an actual, Heaven of Matter (falaku 'l-hayula), which is the
2
;
and highest of the three; the Heaven of Atoms (falaku 'l-habd) the Heaven of the Elements (falaku 'l-andsir) ; some philosophers add a fourth, viz., the Heaven of Natural Properties (falaku
'l-tabai'}.
1
ii.
83, 22 foil.
The
al-habd.
universe;
cit.,
is universe, being in space, requires a locus (mahall). This locus It is "logical" (hukmi), since it cannot be homogeneous with the " otherwise it would need a locus for itself. Mystics call it the First
Intelligence"
and "the
Spirit of
Mohammed" (M
35
a).
Cf.
Nyberg, op.
Introd., p. 157.
124
Earth 1
1.
[CH.
The Earth
God created it whiter than milk and sweeter than musk, but when Adam walked on it after the Fall it became dust-coloured,
except one region in the North, never reached by any sinner, which is ruled by al-Khadir and inhabited by the Men of the
Unseen World
2.
(rijdlu 'l-ghayb)
The Earth
it
In colour
their
who
believe in
God:
their night
is
day our night. After the sun sets in our earth, they appear on it and fall in love with the children of men. Most of these
spirits
envy the disciples of the Mystic Way, and taking them unawares bring them to ruin. Jili affirms that he had seen some Sufis who were in bondage to them and were made so deaf and blind that they could neither hear nor understand the Word of God, unless the reciter were one of the Jinn.
3.
The Earth
of
Nature (ardu
'l-tab').
The unbelieving Jinn who inhabit human shape amongst mankind and cause them to
of Lust (ardu 'l-shahwa). It is inhabited
The Earth
by
different sorts of
devils
5.
who
Iblis.
The Earth
seducing
The Earth
evil
ii.
most
1
and
89,
1 8 foil.
says that it is near to the land of Bulghar and that in winter they are not obliged to perform the evening-prayer, because the dawn rises before
sunset.
Jili inserts here a short passage in which he distinguishes four species of Jinn according as their nature is elemental, fiery, airy, or earthly. The "elementals" are akin to the angels and never go outside of the spiritual
'
He
world.
II]
The Perfect
7.
Man
125
The Earth
is inhabited by enormous snakes and scorpions, which God placed there in order that it might be a pattern of the torments of Hell to the people
It is
of this world 1
Concerning the Seven Seas, which were originally two one of salt and the other of fresh water Jill has much to say 2 but his description of them is somewhat confused and we must now pass on to matters of greater interest.
,
VI.
The gist of Jill's philosophy, as I understand it, is the notion of One Being, which is One Thought, going forth from itself in all the forms of the universe, knowing itself as Nature
amidst the multiformity of Nature, reasserting its in Man whom self-knowledge has enlightened and made perfect, so that ceasing to know himself as an individual he sinks into his Divine element, like a wave into the sea. This language, apart from its inadequacy, conveys a wrong impression by translating in terms of time and space
yet,
and
unity in
Man
what does not belong to these categories. All interpretations of ideal and mystical experience are more or less fictitious. The word commonly used to denote the self-manifestation of God in His essence, attributes, and names is tajalli, which
implies that something hidden before is now clearly seen, as the splendour of the sun emerging from eclipse or the beauty
of a bride
when she
unveils.
The Divine
tajalli, in
respect of
the person to whom it is made, may be called an illumination, for it is the light whereby the mystic's heart has vision of God. Absolute and Accordingly, the ontological descent from the the mystical ascent or return to the Absolute are really the
1 the Stars a prince (fdghiya) like Similarly, God set over the Heaven of the people of Paradise to serve as a pattern of the j oys of Paradise. Moreover, the images stored in the left side of the seat of khaydl (see p. 91) in the human brain are a copy of the Earth of Misery, while those in the right side are a copy of the houris and other Paradisal pleasures. Otherwise, Jili and Hell and would not be argues, the intellect could not know Paradise obliged to believe in them (K n. 92, 22 foil.). 2
K n.
93, 9 foil.
126
[CH.
The
God
of His nature
by those who
realising it in themselves. Jili divides the ascending movement of this consciousness into four stages the Illumination
which correspond in reverse order to the devolution of Pure Being from its primal simplicity to the manifestation of its
effects in the sensible world.
(a)
The Illumination
becomes plain that human agency is has no that he power or will of his own, and that all things naught, are done by the power of God who moves them and brings them to
To
rest.
will is
made known
to
him
before the
act
consequently, he may disobey the command of God in order to comply with His will in which case his disobedience is essentially
:
obedience and
between him and God, though "it remains for us to exact from him the penalty which God has imposed in the Koran and the Sunna upon those who break His commandment 3 ."
lies
(b)
The Illumination
of the Divine
names 4
The mystic to whom God reveals Himself in one of His Names vanishes (from consciousness of individuality) under the radiance of the Name and if you invoke God by that Name, the man will
;
answer you, because the Name is applicable to him.... If God reveal Himself in His Name Allah, the man will disappear and God will call to him, saying, "Lo, I am Allah"; and if you cry "O Allah!" the man will answer you with the words "At thy
service (labbayka)
"5
!
1 "The Wise Koran (al-Qur'dnu 'l-hakitn) is the Cf. I. 94, penult. descent (tanazzul) of the Divine individualisations (fyaqd'iq) by means of the gradual ascent of man towards perfect knowledge of them in the Essence, according to the requirement of Divine Wisdom. ...He that is moulded after the Divine nature ascends in it and gains, step by step, such knowledge thereof as is revealed to him in a Divinely determined order."
1
6
i.
he is the unconscious centre of manifestation, mafhar, of the Name Allah. Cf. the passage (K I. 22, 20 foil.) translated on p. 93. I.e., from the plane of Wdhidiyya (unity in plurality) to the plane of A hadiyya (abstract unity), together with Wdhidiyya and the degrees below
I.e.,
47, penult.
Cf. p. 54
and
p. 120.
i.
50, 10.
n]
The Perfect
Man
127
him and let him abide in consciousness after his passing-away (fand), God will answer any one who calls the man, so that if you say, for instance, "O Muhammad!" God will respond to you, 1 saying, "At thy service I" In proportion as he is strengthened to ascend, God will reveal Himself to him in His subordinate Names,
the Merciful (al-Rahmdn), the Lord (al-Rabb), the King (alMalik), the Omniscient (al-Alim], the Omnipotent (al-Qddir), etc. The self-revelation of God in each of these Names is superior to
viz.,
and
because as regards superior to synthesis, the manifestation of each lower Name is an analysis of the
preceding
it,
Name
Names
analysis
is
synthesis which
is
it.
As regards illuminations of the Essence, it is otherwise here the more general is above the more particular: al-Rahmdn is superior to al-Rabb, and Allah to either. Finally, all the
Divine
Names
:
man, even as the name seeks the object named, and then
he sings
One
calls
my own name)
we
'tis
That
is
because
we
dwell
by turns
a marvellous thing Like a single person with two names: thou canst not miss by whichever name thou callest him.
in
two bodies
only speaks of what he himself has experienced, since is revealed in different ways to different indievery viduals. From his account of these illuminations I take a passage which exhibits his characteristic blend of logic and
Jili
Name
mysticism
it, or in other words, from fand (the naughting of all that is not God) to baqd (union with the Divine consciousness). 1 Cf K. n. 23, i foil.: "Then, when he becomes cleansed from the defilement of not-being and ascends to knowledge of the being of the the foulness of (Absolute), and when God purifies him from
Necessary temporality by the manifestation of eternity, he becomes a mirror for the Name Allah, and in that moment he and the Name are like two opposite mirrors, each of which exists in the other. And in this vision it is God Himself that answers those who invoke him (the mystic); his anger is the cause of God's anger, and his satisfaction is the cause of God's satisfaction."
128
The way
is
[CH.
Name al-Qadim (the Eternal) through a Divine revelation whereby it is shown to any one that he existed in the knowledge of God before the Creation,
inasmuch as he existed in God's knowledge through the existence of that knowledge, and that knowledge existed through the existence of God: the existence of God is eternal and the knowledge is eternal and the object of knowledge is inseparable from the knowledge and is also eternal, inasmuch as knowledge is not knowledge unless it has an object which gives to the subject the name of Knower. The eternity of existent beings in the knowledge of God necessarily follows from this induction, and the (illumined) man returns to God in respect of His Name, the Eternal. At the moment when the Divine eternity is revealed to him from his essence, his temporality vanishes and he remains eternal through 1 God, having passed away from (consciousness of) his temporality
.
(c)
The Illumination
2
.
Himself to a
the
man by means
of
any
;
man
makes him naught and deprives him and when the human light is extinguished and the creaturely
spirit passes
tion (huh'd), a spiritual substance, which is of God's essence and is neither separate from God nor joined to the man, in exchange for
of;
which substance
is
named
the
Holy
puts instead of the man a Spirit (ruhu 'l-quds) the revelation is made to that spirit. of His own essence, spirit God is never revealed except to Himself, but we call that Divine
spirit
"a man"
man.
In
correlated terms.
When
"slave" nor "Lord," since these are the "slave" is annulled, the "Lord" is
alone.
necessarily annulled,
Mystics receive these illuminations in proportion to their capacities, the abundance of their knowledge, and the strength of their resolution. Taking each of the seven chief attributes
in turn, the
may
i.
51, 14 foil.
i.
53, 7.
' This doctrine of substitution was taught by many Christian mystics in the Middle Ages. Cf. Inge, Christian Mysticism, p. 364.
II]
The Perfect
Man
129
assume. Concerning Life and Knowledge something has been said above 1 Those endowed with Hearing hear the language
.
of angels, animals, plants, and minerals 2 As for the mukallamun, who receive the illumination of Speech, the Word
.
them sometimes audibly and from a certain from no direction and not through the sometimes direction, an inner as sometimes ear, light having a definite shape and in oneness with God they realise that all existent beings are their Word and that their words are without end 3 According
(kaldm) comes to
;
.
to
Jili,
by a phenomenon
is
marked in
its initial
which
is
produced,
as he quaintly writes, by "the dashing of realities one against another in order that men's hearts may not dare to enter the
4 presence of Divine Majesty ." "In this illumination," he says, "I heard the ringing of bells. My frame dissolved and my
and my name was rased out. By reason of the what I experienced I became like a worn-out garment which hangs on a high tree, and the fierce blast carries it away piece by piece. I beheld naught but lightnings and thunders, and clouds raining lights, and seas surging with
trace vanished
violence of
fire ."
(d)
The Illumination
or Attribute reveals Illumination of the the the Essence in a particular relation, with identical not Essence is absolute any or all of these
Name
illuminations.
the Divine subJili refers the difference to " " of the man instead God have as we seen, stance, which, puts so that the subject and object of illumination are really one. be either attributal (sifdti) or essential This substance
may
the Only in the latter case does "the man" become God-man. Such a one is
(dhdti).
1 *
See
inspiration descended upon him it was often like the ringing of a bell. Cf. Prof. D. B. Macdonald, The religious attitude and life in Islam, p. 46. 6 i. 57, 9. similar description occurs in the thirty-second chapter,
i.
p. 101.
i.
55, 3.
i.
55, 8.
90, penult.
"On
See
i.
91, 3 foil.
130
[CH.
ghawthu
to
the Perfect Unit (al-fardu 'l-kdmil) and the Microcosmic Pole (al'l-jdmi') on whom the whole order of existence revolves
;
him genuflexion and prostration in prayer are due, and by means of him God keeps the universe in being. He is denoted by the terms al-Mahdi and al-KMtam (the Seal) 1 and he is the Vice2 gerent (khalifa) indicated in the story of Adam The essences of all things that exist are drawn to obey his command, as iron is drawn to the magnet. He subdues the sensible world by his might and does what he will by his power. Nothing is barred from him, for when the Divine substance is in this wali as a simple essence, un,
.
conditioned
on every degree of existent things its haqq, i.e. what it requires and is capable of receiving, and nothing can hinder him from doing so. That which hinders the Essence is merely its limitation by a degree or name or quality; but the simple Essence
creature, he bestows
has nothing to hinder it therefore with it all things are actual, not potential, while in other essences things are sometimes potential
:
and sometimes
actual.
It would seem, then, that the Illumination of the Absolute given to the Heavenly Man (Mohammed) alone and transmitted through him to the Perfect Men who are his repreis
sentatives on earth 3
VII.
Religious belief may be denned as man's thought about God, and we have learned that all things and thoughts in the universe are attributes of God, i.e., aspects in which He reveals Himself to human minds. Moreover, the attributes are identical with the Essence in so far as they are nothing but the Essence regarded from every possible point of view. Therefore God is the essence of all thought and all thought is
;
1 The Perfect Man is the First and the Last: in his outward form he is the last of the Prophets and in his inward essence the last of the Saints, yet he is the source of all prophecy and all saintship (Fu$ii$, 34 foil.).
Koran,
'
2, 28.
Therefore, while
God
is
ayn) of
all
things, none of them is the 'ayn of God except the Logos or Heavenly Man. Contemplation of the Perfect Man serves instead of contemplation of God
(M
12 a).
II]
The Perfect
Man
131
about God.
In the light of such principles the author's of religion is easy to understand. philosophy Divine worship, he says, is the end for which all things are
,
created 1 and therefore belongs to their original nature and constitution. The different forms of worship result from the variety of Names and Attributes by which God manifests
Himself in creation. Every Name and Attribute produces its own characteristic eifect. For example, God is the true Guide (al-Hddi); but He is also the Misleader (al-Mufcll) for the Koran says, "Allah shall lead the wicked into error." He is
,
(al-
Mun'im) any one of His Names had remained ineffectual and unrealised, His self-manifestation would not have been complete. Therefore He sent His prophets, in order that those
If
them might worship Him as the One who guides and that those who disobeyed them Him as the One who leads mankind to permight worship
who
followed
mankind
dition 2
.
to salvation,
All God's creatures worship Him in accordance with His will, and every form of worship expresses some aspect of His nature. Infidelity and sin are effects of the Divine activity
and contribute to the Divine perfection. Satan himself glorifies God, inasmuch as his disobedience is subordinate to the eternal will. Yet some aspects in which God shows Himself, such as Majesty and Wrath, are relatively less perfect than others, such as Beauty and Mercy. And, again, the more completely and universally the idea of God is presented in any form of worship, the more perfect that form must be. Religions revealed through a prophet contain the fullest measure of truth, and amongst these the most excellent
is
Islam.
all (i)
mentions ten principal "religious" sects from which the rest are derived 3 It is an odd catalogue, comprising
Jili
.
the Idolaters or Infidels; (2) the Physicists, who worship the four natural properties, namely, heat, cold, dryness and moisture; (3) the Philosophers, who worship the seven
planets;
1
(4)
the Dualists,
2
who worship
light
and darkness;
3
K n.
98
foil.
K n.
100.
92
132
(5)
[CH.
riyyun),
who worship fire; (6) the Materialists (Dahwho abandon worship entirely; (7) the Brahmans (Bardhima), who claim to follow the religion of Abraham; (9) the Christians; (10) the Mohammedans. (8) the Jews; The author proceeds to explain that God is the truth or
the Magians,
all
essence of
The
Infidels disbelieved
in a Lord, because
God, who
is
worshipped God according to the necessity of their essential Idolaters worship Him as the Being who permeates every atom of the material world without infusion or com" mixture. God is the "truth of the idols which they worship, and they worship none but Him. This is the mystery of their 2 following the Truth in themselves because their hearts bore
,
witness to
in their so doing.
On
account of that
the thing as it really is " world. Every sect is rejoicing in that which
hath
"
(Koran,
.
23, 55), i.e., here they rejoice in their acts, and hereafter they shall rejoice in their spiritual states. Their joy is everlasting 8 Therefore, even if the Infidels had known the torment which
have persisted
in
it
by reason
which
they experience therein; for when God wills to punish any one with torment in the life to come, He creates for him in that torment a natural pleasure of which his body becomes
enamoured and God does this in order that the sufferer may not have an unquestionable right to take refuge with Him from
;
the torment, but may remain in torment so long as the pleasure continues to be felt by him. When God wills to alleviate his
torment, He causes him to lose the sense of pleasure, and he then takes refuge in the mercy of God, "who answers the
sorely distressed
1
to
Him"
ii.
101
foil.
Cf. Koran, 47, 3, where it is said of the Infidels that they followed Falsehood, and of the Believers that they followed "the Truth from their Lord," i.e. the Revelation given to Mohammed. This is inferred by the author from the form farihtin (which implies * n. 101. continuance) in the Koranic text.
II]
The Perfect
Man
133
Similarly, the Physicists really worship the four essential attributes of God, namely, Life, Knowledge, Power, and Will;
the Philosophers worship His names and attributes as manifested in the planets; the Dualists worship Him as Creator and creature in one; the Magians worship Him as the
all names and attributes pass away, just as destroys all natural properties and transmutes them to its own nature; the Materialists, who deny the existence of a Creator and believe in the eternity of Time, worship God in
Unity in which
fire
(Huwiyya), in which
He
is
only
potentially, but not actually, creative; the Brahmans worship Him absolutely, without reference to prophet or
apostle
1
.
As regards the future life, since all worship God by Divine necessity, all must be saved. But the seven sects abovementioned (unlike the Jews, Christians and Moslems, who
received their religions from a prophet) invented their forms of worship for themselves. Consequently, they are doomed
to misery hereafter. That which constitutes their misery is the fact that their felicity, though ultimately assured, is far
retribution.
not revealed to them until they have suffered On the other hand, those who worship God according to the mode ordained by a prophet enjoy immediate
off
is
and
which is revealed to them continuously and gradually. Jews and Christians suffer misery, but why is this? Because they have altered God's Word and substituted something of their own. Otherwise, they would have come under the rule that God never sent a prophet to any
felicity,
people without placing in his apostolic mission the felicity of those who followed him 2
.
Here, perhaps, it will not be inopportune to give some details of the author's eschatology. We must remember that in his view all experience is perception by the human spirit
Therefore the book which the Brahmans ascribe, as the author supposes, did not come to them from God but was written by Abraham himself. Jili says that it contains five parts. The fifth part on account of its profundity is forbidden to most Brahmans. He adds: "It is notorious among them that those who read this fifth part invariably become Moslems."
1
to
Abraham
II.
104.
134
of the nature
[CH.
it.
"I
spirit's contemplation of its bodily assumes the form of the object contemplated, just as sunbeams falling on green or red glass take the form and colour of the glass. After death, i.e., after the withdrawal of the spirit's gaze from the body, the spirit remains wholly
am Heaven and
wearing the same corporeal aspect had before 1 Those mystics who deny the resurrection of the body are in the wrong. "We know by Divine information that bodies are raised from the dead with their spirits." The death of the spirit consists in its detachment from the body and resembles the dreamless sleep which is akin to notin the spiritual world, while
as
it
since the sleeper has neither perception of the sensible nor vision of the unseen 3 During the intermediate state (barzakh) between death and resurrection every one moves in a world of phantasy
being
(khaydf) peopled by the forms, ideas, and essential characters of the actions which he or she committed in their earthly life 4
.
The drunkard quaffs fiery wine in a cup of fire; the sinner whom God has forgiven passes into forms of good works, each fairer than the last and he whose good works have been done in vain becomes imbued with the form of his eternal fate, ever-changing images of woe which his resurrection shall reveal to him as realities 6 The present, intermediate, and
;
.
future states are one existence (wujud wdhid), and you by virtue of your inmost nature (huwiyya) are the same in them
all,
but while the things of this world are free (ikhtiydri), the 8 things hereafter are determined by what happens here
.
created,
must
die
its
death
it
is its
Ibnu
death the
spirit receives
has been
K
spirit
ii.
71, 15 foil.
So long as the
perties of the body, it rection is it entirely free to act according to its nature, i.e., to seek good or r M! in conformity with its state in the present life (K 11. 72, 20 foil.).
'
remains in the barzakh, i.e., limited by the prodoes not enjoy full freedom. Only after the Resur-
11.
ii.
As to the question
ll]
The Perfect
Man
135
passing away (fand) under the might of the Divine Reality which manifests itself in the guise of individuals; and its
resurrection
is
1 The universal or greater resursigns foretold in the Koran rection (al-sd'atu 'l-kubrd) includes the particular or lesser
resurrection (al-sd'atu 'l-sughrd), i.e., the resurrection of eveiy individual, and their signs correspond. For example, Dajjal
(Antichrist) is an emblem of the flesh (nafs) as Dajjal shall be slain by Christ (the Spirit of God, Ruh Allah), so shall the flesh be destroyed by the spirit (mh) 2 Again, the coming of the Mahdi, who shall reign for forty years, symbolises the
:
perfection of the Perfect Man uniting and consummating the 3 God beholds this world through forty grades of existence
.
therefore, after the Resurrection, it will not exist otherwise than in God's knowledge, even as Paradise
of
;
the
medium
Man
and Hell exist in His knowledge to-day. But when Man shall have been removed to the next world, God will behold Paradise and Hell through him, and they will then exist
4
actually
God created the Form of Mohammed (al-suratu 'l-Muhammadiyya) from the light of His Name the Almighty Maker (alBadi'u 'l-Qddir), and regarded it with His Name the All-subduing Giver (al-Manndnu 'l-Qdhir) then He displayed Himself to it in
;
'l-Ghdfir). Thereupon, because of this illumination, it split in two halves, and God created Paradise from the half on the right hand, and Hell from the half
His
Name
on the
left
hand 5
Jill's description of the Eight Paradises is not specially 6 In the first Paradise good works are rewarded, interesting in the second good thoughts and beliefs concerning God. The
.
third, which is gained solely by Divine grace, surpasses all the rest in magnitude and contains persons of every religion,
sect,
and
nationality.
Theoretically
it
is
possible for
any
human
1
being to enter this Paradise, if such fortune be vouchsafed to him in some Divine illumination, but the
*
K K n.
ii.
2 6
K K
ii.
ii.
K K n.
ii.
136
[CH.
author adds: "We saw in mystical vision that only a few of each sect are there 1 ." The four highest Paradises have no trees, pavilions, or houris, and are inhabited (except the
scale of holiness.
by contemplatives and saints in an ascending The floor of the eighth Paradise is the roof of the Throne of God (al-Arsh). Thither none may come for it is the Paradise of the Essence, "the Lauded Station" (ai-Maqdm al-mahmud) which, as the Tradition tells us, was
highest of
all)
promised by
God
to
Mohammed.
of Paradise every idea immediately becomes an object of sensation. When Adam, whose form is a copy of the form of Mohammed, went down from Paradise, he lost the life of his form, i.e., the power of materialising his thoughts. In the present world this power depends on the spirit, and since most of mankind are dead spiritually, belongs 2 only to mystics endued with God's everlasting life
.
Hell
God
the manifestation of Divine Majesty (jaldl). When created the Fire, He revealed Himself to it seven times,
is
appearing each time in a different Name. These theophanies clove the Fire into seven valleys, which are the limbos of
Hell 8
.
evil to
be permanent.
Jili cites
the Tradition, "My Mercy preceded My Wrath," and infers that while the latter attribute is a mode of Divine Justice,
Mercy
him,
1
is
is
essential and prevails in the end 4 Hell, according to a temporary state 5 and not necessarily an altogether
. ,
47. 18 foil. According to Ibnu 'l-'Arabi (Fu$ti$, go foil.), the gnostic ('drif) creates by means of his meditation (himma) ideas which have an objective existence in sensation, phantasy, or higher planes of perception. His creative power differs from that of God, inasmuch as his consciousness is not universal, i.e., it does not comprehend every plane of perception
ii.
K K
ii.
45, 12 foil.
ii.
40, 21 foil.
ii.
39, 10 foil.
creates torment ('adhdb) by Hell-fire, He also CK in the sufferers the power of enduring it, for otherwise they would perish and o escape. Hence, their skins are periodically renewed (Koran, 4, 59), and they receive fresh powers of endurance, in virtue of which they feel a
"Whenever God
presentiment of new torments; but the powers with which they endured the former torments do not cease, inasmuch as these powers are given to them by God, and God never takes back His gifts. Thus their powers of endurance
II]
The Perfect
Man
137
undesirable one. Of course, he had been there in his visions, and he tells of a meeting with Plato, "whom the formal
theologians account an infidel, but I saw that he filled the unseen world with light, and that his rank was such as few
amongst the
excellent than
saints possess 1 ." Some of the damned are more many of the Paradisal folk: God has placed
.
He may be revealed to them therein 2 Jili on the expatiates variety of pleasures enjoyed by those who burn in the Fire 3 Some feel a pleasure comparable to the joy of battle, for although the soldier is conscious of pain he often has a keen delight in the fray into which "the Lordship lurking in his soul" impels him to plunge. Another of their pleasures resembles that felt when any one rubs an itch, even if he should chance to break the skin. Then they have subtler
them
in Hell, that
.
pleasures, like the self-satisfaction of the fanatic who persists in a wrong way of thinking, or the philosopher's happy sense of superiority in preferring his own wretched condition to the
man's luxury and ignorance. Their states are diverse some, notwithstanding that they suffer the most intense torment, would not exchange it for Paradise; some long for a breath of the air of Eden and a
rich
:
draught of its water; some, having no pleasure in their pain, feel the utmost bitterness of loathing in themselves.
It is well
known
that
Mohammed
the beginning of the world, as he believed, one and the same faith had been revealed to mankind through a succession of prophets, of whom he himself was the
unity of Revelation.
From
last.
It followed, in the first place, that the Pentateuch, the Psalms, and the Gospel are identical
continue to grow, until there appears in them a Divine power which extinguishes the Fire, because no one is doomed to misery after the Divine attributes become manifest in him" (K n. 38, 6 fr. foot and foil.). Elsewhere, on the ground that Hell-fire is an eternal object of God's knowledge, Jili denies that it is extinguished absolutely (M 44 b). "You may say, if you wish, that it remains as it was, but that the torment of the damned is
changed to pleasure" (K n.
1
K n.
40, 2).
43, 9.
K n.
44, 15.
K n.
43, 16 foil.
138
in
[CH.
substance with the Koran, and secondly, that since the Jews and Christians would neither accept Islam nor acknowledge
Mohammed as
must be giving a false account of what these books actually contained. The argumentum ad homines needed firm handling. Uninspired Moslems would rather say that the books in their present form are corrupt or incomplete. From quite another
standpoint the $uffs agree with their Prophet that the Word of God is essentially one. For them, indeed, all that exists is His Word, which is revealed to His prophets and saints
/ under different aspects and in varying degrees of perfection. J The historical and temporal is only a symbol of the mystical
and eternal
revelation. As, in the former, Christianity the middle between occupies Judaism and Islam, so in place the latter, where these religions typify the progressive ascent
of the soul to God, the Illumination of the Names is denoted by the Pentateuch, the Illumination of the Attributes by the
1 Gospel, and the Illumination of the Essence by the Koran No one who reads the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil can fail to discern
.
I
'
author was profoundly influenced by Christian ideas, not always possible to separate these from the Jewish, Gnostic and other elements with which they are 2 I need only allude to the Trinitarian basis of intermingled the Divine nature 8 and the prominence given to the Holy
that
its
though
it is
K
1
i.
104,
foil.
Naturally, the main original source is Philo, from whom many parallels might be quoted. The Logos, made in the image of God, is described both at an d/>x^ TwroJ and as a seal (<r<f>payls, xo-po-xrijp) impressing itself on
He is called an archangel, the instrument (6pyavov) of creation, the heavenly man (cf. Corinthians, 15, 45 foil.), God's interpreter and prophet (ipwfiit Kal Tpo0^T7jt). As a mediator between man and God, he is comthings.
away in God
* Cf.
pared with the High-priest (Apxupcvs) who, like the Moslem saint, passes " he shall be no man when he goeth in to the Holy of Holies," to Philo's according rendering of Leviticus, 16, 17 (Siegfried, Philo von
:
Alexandria, p. 224
foil.).
(Tarjumdn al-ashwaq, xn. 4): "My Beloved one, even as the (three) Persons (of the Trinity) are " made one Person in essence and his statement that of all the Divine names only three are cardinal, viz.. Allah, al-Rahman, and al-Rabb (op. cit. p. 71).
'l-'Arabl's verse
is
Ibnu
three although
He
is
For
Appendix
11.
II]
The Perfect
Man
1
.
139
sustaining principle of spiritual life Jili criticises the Christian doctrine, but so mildly and apologetically that one passage of his work is declared by the Moslem editor to be an
2 interpolation which only a heretic could have written The 3 he Pentateuch, says, was sent down to Moses in nine tables ,
.
two
of which, containing the mysteries of Lordship and Power, he was forbidden to communicate to any one ; and as
last of that people to gain perfect
the Jews remained ignorant of their contents, Moses was the knowledge of God. On the
of Lordship; but whereas Mohammed cloaked it in symbols and made it an esoteric matter 4 , Jesus proclaimed it openly,
with the result that his followers became infidels and worshipped him as the third of three Divine Persons, namely, the Father, the Mother, and the Son 5 This form of Trinity, 6 by the way, appears in the Koran it is not a grotesque blunder on the part of Mohammed, but a Christian heresy which still survives amongst the tribes of the Syrian desert 7
.
Massignon points out (Kitdb al-Tawdsin, p. 134, note 3) that in the Ikhwanu '1-Safa (Bombay, A.H. 1306, iv. 107 fol.) "the inbreathing of the Spirit" (nafkhu 'l-Rtili) is mentioned as a doctrine specially
treatises of the
i.
105.
Ibnu
more
critical
and orthodox
than
8
Jili.
Amongst the matters contained in the fourth table Jflf mentions foil.) the science of High Magic (al-sihru 'l-'dli), which resembles the miracles of the saints and does not depend on drugs, formulae, etc., but " In the way of Divine unity," he says, solely on the magical powers in man. of some "I have had this, and if I had desired I could have experience assumed any shape in the world and done any deed, but I knew it to be pernicious and therefore abandoned it. Then God endowed me with the secret potency which He placed between K and N" (i.e. His creative Word,
(K i.
ioi, 13
There
is
a Tradition to the
effect that
Mohammed, on
ascension, received three kinds of knowledge: one kind (external religion) he was commanded to impart to his people, another (the spiritual doctrine) he was left free to communicate or not, and the last (concerning the
mysteries of the Godhead) he was forbidden to divulge. Some, however, learn it by mystical revelation (K i. 99, 10 foil.). 6 i. 97, 15 foil. According to Jili, the Gospel was revealed to Jesus in Syriac, and its opening words are Bismi 'l-ab wa 'l-umm wa 'l-ibn, "In the name of the Father and the Mother and the Son" (K i. 105, 15 foil.).
Kor.
5, 116.
'
ill.
91.
140
[CH.
While Jesus spoke the Truth allegorically, the Christians have taken his words literally 1 Polytheists as they are, God after punishing them for their error will pardon them because of the inward sincerity of their belief, for "they acted in accordance with the knowledge which He bestowed upon
.
them: therefore blame them not, since their polytheism was 2 ." essentially belief in One God (kdna shirkuhum 'ayna 'l-tawhid)
It is this
would
Jili is
his indignation, though case the monistic doctrine to a special simply applying
erase,
which has been explained already. Of all non-Islamic religious communities he holds that the Christians are nearest
to God, for while they worship
Him
in Jesus,
Holy Ghost, they assert the indivisibility of the Divine nature and that God is prior to His existence in the created body of Christ. Thus they recognise the two complementary sides of
true belief concerning God,
of view (tanzih)
the other
creatures 8
.
He is above all likeness and that from (tashbih) He reveals Himself in the forms of His
But, in addition to the grave error of anthro-. pomorphism (tajsim), they are at fault in restricting the
Divine self-manifestation to these three. breathed My Spirit into Adam*," and here the
i
5 ties every human individual The contemplation of those who behold God in Man is the most perfect in the world.
.
Something of
and
their
them
at last,
"when
the Thing
1 "The Christians supposed that the Father was the Spirit the Mother Mary, and the Son Jesus; then they said 'God is the Third of Three,' not knowing that 'the Father' signifies the Name Allah, and that 'the Mother* signifies the Ummu 'l-Kitdb ('the Mother of the Book,' an expression generally understood as meaning the fundamental part of the Koran), i.., the ground of the Essence, and that the Son signifies the Book. which is Absolute Being because it is a derivative and product of the afore'
'
said
4
ground" (K
i.
ii. 105, 16 foil. JIH declares that the entire Gospel is contained in this verse, and that the Moslems alone have fulfilled the true doctrine of the " Gospel, which is the manifestation of the Creator (al-Ifaqq) in the creatures
i.
105, 17
foil.).
106, 2.
Koran,
15, 29.
(al-kholq)."
i.
107,
i foil.
II]
The Perfect
be discovered as
it
Man
141
shall
knowledge that
mankind
selves
are like mirrors set face to face, each of which contains what is in all and so they will behold God in them;
.
and declare Him to be absolutely One 2 Jili concludes his work with a mystical interpretation of 3 Islam, "the crown of religions ." Much of what he says has no interest except for specialists, e.g., his definitions of technical terms used by Sufis and his explanations of the esoteric meanings which he finds under every detail of
Mohammedan ritual. He is careful to guard against antinomianism. Certain Sufi saints claimed to have outdistanced the prophets 4 but Jili decides in favour of the latter. He admits that saintship the revelation of the Divine attributes
,
to
man
is
saint
the essence of prophecy, and that the prophet qua superior to the prophet qua prophet. Every prophet
is
}
has "the prophecy of saintship" (nubuwwatu l-wildyat), al5 though some, like Jesus and al-Khadir, have nothing more others, like Moses and Mohammed, have also "the prophecy of institution" (nubuwwatu 'l-tashri'), i.e., they were sent to promulgate and establish a new religious code. The Sufi Shaykhs, whom God brings back from the state of trance (fand) in order
;
that they
may
(khulafd) of Mohammed and, as such, are invested with "the prophecy of saintship" and bound to observe the laws. of the last of the institutional prophets, Mohammed, who in both
Jili must be called a pansupreme and unique he takes "There is no god but AllaE^in tKeTsense of "Nothing really exists but the Divine Essence with its creative and creaturely modes of being." These modes
respects
is
theist in so far as
is
mystic's flight to God, but the author of the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil neither a pure philosopher at any time nor an ecstatic
always.
1
4
At the Resurrection.
II.
i.
105, 6
foil.
Jili cites
an assertion
by
his ancestor,
6
'Abdu
'1-Qadir al-Jilani.
other hand, Ibnu 'l-'Arabi says that the Jews believed in Jesus until he, as an apostle, reformed the Mosaic law (Fustis, 205). 6 n. 109, 5 foil. Cf. Fusus, 34 foil., 203 foil.
On the
142
in
[CH.
II
thy knowing that thou art He and that He is thou, and is not identification or incarnation, and that the slave is a slave and the Lord a Lord, and that the slave 1 does not become a Lord nor the Lord become a slave .'* a not the is Man Perfect the Even reality (haqq), Reality
that this
(al-ffaqq)
sciousness as
1
his con-
26, 5 from foot. So the Logos of Philo is 0e6s, but not 6 Oe6j (Bigg, Christian Platonists of Alexandria, 2nd ed., p. 42, note 2). Cf. Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, cited by Massignon, Kitdb al-Tawdsln, p. 184.
1
i.
K K
i.
29, 16 foil.
143
APPENDIX
'AYNIYYA
Mention has been made (p. 99, note 2 supra) of Jili's ode entitled al- Nawddiru 'l-ayniyyafi'l-bawddiri 'l-ghaybiyya. In the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil he cites 36 of its 534 verses (i. 30, 3 39,
;
fr.
and
76, 15)
and describes
it
as a
magnificent and unique composition, too sublime to be fully understood. It is, however, little more than a versified summary of matter set forth in the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil, though
in
some instances the author expresses himself with a freedom and boldness which would hardly be tolerated in a prose treatise. As a poem, apart from its ungraceful style, it suffers from expounding a theory of mystical philosophy and cannot bear comparison with Ibnu '1-Farid's Td'iyya the poetry of pure mysticism. The extracts given below have been copied from a manuscript in the British Museum (Or. 3684; Rieu's Suppl. to the Catalogue of Arabic MSS. No. 245) containing the text together with a commentary by 'Abdu '1-Ghani alNabulusi.
i
(f.
1306)
u. r. Instead of "there is no god but Allah" the poet says, "there is nothing but Absolute Beauty (jamdl) and phenomenal beauty (frusn)," these being the inward and outward aspects of the Beloved.
144
[CH.
2(1 139*)
Jfb
*
L;
1 1
JA *
*
otJJI
UUtLJl JUJI
-l
JUoJI
^ JX^JI
A5U
v. The individualisations of the Divine Essence are named vv.\ "the creatures of God," but in reality they are no other than the Essence
itself.
v. v.
\\.
(i.
76, 16):
r.
>>.
n]
JOt's 'Ayniyya
145
3(11466)
IJ.JLA
<uj
L>
,LJ Jj
\1.
r.
v*.
is
muqayyad. Even
Jflf
(4, v. re).
He
form of fawil the third foot of the second hemistich should be - - - (not
N. S. II
146
[CH.
I,
variant
v. 1. v.
MS. UpC* J3j. Cf. p. 123 supra. foil. The terms "ascent" and "descent" arc improperly applied
its
it
being in
in
v.
it is
i.e.
created;
u.
dgfan*;
is
II]
Jill's
'Ayniyya
147
* *t-* OUULJt
*
5b
(f.
1636)
*
*
*
UJb
.^
* * UuLU
J U.
LJI
JJU
*
-3
^-i
*- Uuk
sO
jJUiJ A^J
w. f v.
\
^^U
LyJ
A-.^ * J-b,
*
^1
J-.J
Otrf
U
Sll
JyUI
A5i
AJ!
^
102
\.
MS. ^.^J.
Cf. p. 126 supra.
5, ^- t foil.
V foil.
148
JUAJI
[CH.
II
(f.
170
6)
13!
OIJJI 0)
* *
* * * *
Ul
4J
,u
Jot
jJ
* A^-
iL.
149
APPENDIX
II
ideas 2
least
The following notes, inadequate as they are, will at show the magnitude of Jili's debt to his predecessor, besides making clearer some fundamental principles which in the Insdnu 'l-Kdmil are assumed rather than expounded. The Fusus purports to be a treatise on the nature of God as
.
manifested through prophecy, each of its 27 chapters being attached to the logos (kalima) of a prophet typifying a Since God does not reveal particular Divine attribute.
first chapter treats of the Perfect Man, the absolute mirror of Divinity. Often Ibnu 'l-'Arabi takes a text of the Koran and elicits his doctrine from it in a fashion well known to
The
Fusus are
explain.
difficult to
translated the greater part of the work, with the commentary by 'Abdu '1-Razzaq al-Kashani, for own use, but the author's language is so technical,
Many
years ago
my
figurative,
convey very
On
terminology, we shall find it impossible to form any precise notion of his ideas. By collecting and arranging illustrative passages and by availing myself of the commentator's aid I may, perhaps, throw some light on a peculiarly recondite
The
edition used
is
See p. 88.
150
[CH.
is all that exists, may be a pure, simple, attributeless as from two aspects: (a) regarded essence; (b) as an essence endowed with attributes. God,
considered absolutely, is beyond relation and therefore beyond knowledge the Neoplatonic One, inconceivable and ineffable.
this point of view God, in a sense, is not God. "Some philosophers and Abu Hamid (al-Ghazali) have asserted that God is known without reference to the universe, but they are
From
is known, but it is not known an object of worship (ildh), until the ma'luh 1 (the logical complement of ildh) is known ." Here we are introduced to a dialectic which dominates the Fuu. While God is independent of created beings in respect of His essence, He requires them in respect of His divinity2 His existence is absolute, theirs is relative, i.e., it is Real Being limited and individualised by appearing as a relation of Reality. Hence all things are attributes of God. As such, they are ultimately identical with God, apart from whom they are nothing8 Regarded externally, they depend on the universals of which " they are the particulars. Thus, a "living person is not judged to be "living" unless he have in him the universal "life" which, though as a universal it exists only in the mind, has an
mistaken.
An
eternal Essence
to be a god,
i.e.,
it is
attached to phenomena.
Universals, being mental concepts, imply a subject and an object. As the universal, knowledge, necessarily predicates
of
any one endowed with it that he is "knowing," so the person endowed therewith necessarily predicates of the
it is
knowledge that
74.
*
This
mode
doxes,
e.g.,
"He
in His form),
and
me (by manifesting my perfections and creating me praise Him (by manifesting His perfections and obeying
Him). How can He be independent when I help and aid Him? (because the Divine attributes derive the possibility of manifestation from their correlates). For that cause God brought me into existence, and I know Him and
bring
Him
my
'ayn (identity) of the attributes, in the sense that they are not superadded to His Essence but are relations of the Essence as subject to itself as object (Fuftif, 226). The universe is the objectified sum of these
relations.
n]
Some Notes on
God 1
.
the Fustisu
l-Hikam
151
in relation to
The Divine Essence, in knowing itself, and distinguishes them from itself as of its objects knowledge. The difference, of course, does not the essential impair unity of knowledge, knower, and known,
knows
all
things in itself
is none the less inherent in the nature of things, i.e., in Reality as manifested to us. "Triplicity (tathlith) is the foundation of becoming 2 ." God is single (fard), but according
but
to
Ibnu
number
is 3,
not
i.
the object of numeration, whence all numbers from 2 upwards are derived. Creation depends on knowledge and
is
"One"
That which is brought into exista correlate 3 which already exists ideally and contains in itself the potentiality of existing objectively, inasmuch as
therefore involves tathlith.
ence
is
must correspond with the knowledge and will of God concerning it otherwise, it would not exist either potentially or 4 actually The essences (a'ydri) of things are eternally known to God and "give" His knowledge to Him in virtue of their being that which He knows of them. His creative Word
it
;
.
(Kun, "Be!") actualises their existence, but properly they bring themselves into existence, because He only wills what they have it in them to become. From the proposition that
"knowledge
'ilm nisbat
is
is
un
tdbi'at
all
a relation depending on the object known (alli 'l-ma'lum), and the object known
.
thou and
that
human
5 appertaining to thee ," Ibnu l-'Arabi infers 6 The fate of self-determined actions are logically
every individual
exists
from and evil just what the necessity of their natures demands. good The verse, "Had God willed, He would have guided you all " aright (Koran, 6, 150), means that God could not will the impossible. His wisdom requires that the infinite diversity of His attributes should be matched by infinitely diverse capacities
in the objects
1
his 'ayn ihdbiia or essential character as it eternity in the Divine knowledge. Men receive of
is
Fustis, 16 fol.
it
Ibid. 142.
who
brings
4
6 Ibid. 76. Fustis, 139 foil. Ibid. 77. The determining "self" is really an individualisation (baqiqai) 7 Ibid. 75-6. of God.
152
[CH.
in All.
God
is
One and
God
All,
and One
The
alone.
who
is
we predicate of the One Substance a relative sublimity (transcendence) in respect of the modes of being attributed to it hence we say that God is (huwa) and is not (Id huwa). Kharraz 1 who is a mode of God and one of His tongues, declared that God
,
is
of
known save by His uniting all opposites in the attribution them to him (Kharraz) 2 He is the First, the Last, the Outward, the Inward; He is the substance of what is manifested and the substance of what remains latent at the time of manifestation none sees Him but Himself, and none is hidden from Him, since He is manifested to Himself and hidden from Himself; and He is the person named Abu Sa'id al-Kharraz and all the other names of originated things. The inward says "No" when the outward says "I," and the outward says "No" when the inward says "I," and so in the case of every contrary, but the speaker is One, and He is substantially identical with the hearer.... The Substance is One, although its modes are different. None can be ignorant of this, for every man knows it of himself 3 and Man is the image of God. Thus things became confused and numbers appeared, by means of the One, in certain degrees 4 The One brought number into being, and number analysed the One, and the relation of number was produced by the object of numeration.... He that knows this knows that the Creator who is declared to be incomparable
not
:
Him
(munazzah) is the creatures which are compared (mushabbah) with by reason of His manifesting Himself in their forms albeit
The
1 Abii Sa'id al-Kharraz (ob. A.D. 890) was a well-known Stiff of Baghdad. See Kashf al-Mahjub, translation, p. 241 foil. The mystic cannot know God unless he is illuminated by all the Divine attributes, so that he becomes a haqq. See p. 128.
is conscious of having different faculties and qualities. degree is one, in the second ten, in the third a hundred, in the fourth a thousand, and each of these degrees comprises simple and complex numbers, just as species comprise individuals and genera species.
Every individual
in the first
One
n]
Creator
is
Some Notes on
153
all this
the Creator:
proceeds from
is
the
is
many
that
is
(individualised) essences....
Who
Nature and
Who
is all
We
by
that which was manifested from her, or increased by the not-being of aught manifested that was other than she. That which was
manifested is not other than she, and she is not identical with what was manifested, because the forms differ in respect of the predication concerning them this is cold and dry, and this is hot and dry they are united by dryness but separated by cold and heat. Nay, the Essence is (in reality) Nature. The world of Nature is many forms in One Mirror; nay, One Form in diverse mirrors 2 Bewilderment arises from the difference of view, but those who perceive the truth of what I have stated are not bewildered 3
:
do not find in the Fusus any systematic scheme of Plotinian emanation or process of self-propulsive thought such as Jili ascribes to the Absolute 4 Ibnu 'l-'Arabi indicates the
.
We
relation of the
tajalli
5
tion)
of metaphors, e.g., $ (overflowing), takhallul (permea(self-unveiling) fay and ta'thir (producing an effect or impression) 6
,
One
to the
Many by means
Contingent Being resembles a shadow cast by a figure (Real Being), falling on a place (the forms of phenomena), and made visible by a light (the Divine Name al-Zdhir, "the
Outward"). The universe is imaginary if we deem it external to God and self-subsistent it is real only as an aspect of the Real7 It is "the breath of the Merciful" (nafasu 'l-Rahmdn). God exhales, as it were, the essences and forms of things which are contained potentially in His nature, and unites the active and passive elements in one medium of self-expression, just 8 as words and letters are united in the breath of man
;
.
1 Real Being, when limited by a universal individualisation, is Nature, from which are manifested secondary and tertiary individualisations, viz.,
6
8
Ibid.
230
fol.
Ibid. 182.
154
[CH.
,
Phenomena are perpetually changing and being created anew 1 while God remains as He ever was, is, and shall be. The whole infinite series of individualisations is in fact one eternal and
everlasting tajalli which never repeats itself. Ibnu 'l-'Arabi observes that his doctrine agrees superficially with that of the
Ash'arite atomists, who held the universe to be homogeneous in substance but dissimilar in quality. On the other hand, he
points out that instead of identifying the substance with God, and the sum of those forms and relations which they call
certain
"accidents," with the universe, the Ash'arites postulate monads: these, although by definition they are com-
posed of accidents, are regarded (he says) as having an independent existence, as a reality (haqq) but not essentially the Reality (al-Haqq) 2 To our minds the atoms, which have extension neither in space nor in time, seem insubstantial
.
enough. But Ibnu 'l-'Arabi will brook no secundum quid, not even one that only endures for a moment. God is both the spirit and the form of the universe. We must not say that the universe is a form of which He is the spirit 3 What has been said in the foregoing essay regarding the
.
Man was
will
first
few quotations
make
this clear.
When God willed in respect of His Beautiful Names (attributes), which are beyond enumeration, that their essences (a'ydri) or if " should be seen, you wish, you may say "His essence ('aynuhu) He caused them to be seen in a microcosmic being (kawn jdmi') which, inasmuch as it is endowed with existence 4 contains the whole object of vision, and through which the inmost consciousness (sirr) of God becomes manifested to Him. This He did, because
,
is
the vision that consists in a thing's seeing itself by means of itself not like its vision of itself in something else that serves as a
moment
fol.).
of not-being
p.
foil.,
Fufiif. 46, 132. The attributes are really latent in the Essence identical with it. Cf. p. 90 supra. * I.e., relative existence, wherein Absolute Being is reflected.
and
ll]
Some Notes on
:
155
mirror for
it therefore God appears to Himself in a form given by the place in which He is seen (i.e., the mirror), and He would not appear thus (objectively) without the existence of this place and His epiphany to Himself therein. God had already brought the
universe into being with an existence resembling that of a fashioned soulless body, and it was like an unpolished mirror 1 No-v, it
.
belongs to the Divine decree (of creation) that He did not fashion any place but such as must of necessity receive a Divine soul,
which God has described as having been breathed into it; and this denotes the acquisition by that fashioned form of capacity to receive the emanation (fayd), i.e., the perpetual self -manifestation (tajalli) which has never ceased and never shall. It remains to
speak of the recipient (of the emanation). The recipient proceeds from naught but His most holy emanation, for the whole affair (of existence) begins and ends with Him: to Him it shall return, even as from Him it began 2
.
display His attributes) entailed the polishing of the mirror of the universe. Adam (the human essence) was the very polishing of that mirror and the soul of that form,
will
(to
The Divine
and the angels are some of the faculties of that form, viz., the form of the universe which the Sufis in their technical language describe
as the Great Man, for the angels in relation to it are as the spiritual and corporeal faculties in the human organism 3 .... The aforesaid microcosmic being is named a Man (insdn) and a Vicegerent
(khalifa).
He is named
of things
Man on
The world
Man,
in so far as every Divine attribute (universal) logically implies the existence of its corresponding particular, which is the Essence individualised by that relation, whereas Man alone is the Essence individualised by all relations together. Since the universe could not manifest the unity of
it, it
was
like
2 The "most holy emanation" (al-faydu 'l-aqdas) is the eternal manifestation of the Essence to itself. This emanation is received by the essences of things (al-a'ydnu 'l-thdbita) in the plane of unity-in-plurality (wdhidiyya), i.e., in the Divine knowledge where no distinctions exist. From one point of
view, God is never revealed except to Himself; from another, He is revealed to "recipient" modes of Himself, to each in accordance with its "capacity." 3 I have omitted a few lines here, to the effect that Man unites all aspects of God the oneness of the Essence, the plurality of the Divine
attributes, and the world of Nature. This truth, the author adds, cannot be apprehended save by mystical perception.
156
[CH.
Moreover, he
stands to God as the pupil (insdn), which is the instalment of vision, to the eye; and for this reason he is named a Man. By 2 means of him God beheld His creatures and had mercy on them
.
Man, the originated (in his body), the eternal (in his spirit) the organism everlasting (in his essence), the Word that divides and unites. The universe was completed by his existence, for he is to the universe what the bezel is to the seal the bezel whereon 3 is graven the signature that the King seals on his treasuries Therefore He named him a Vicegerent, because he guards the
He
is
creatures (of God) just as the King guards his treasuries by sealing them and so long as the King's seal remains on them, none dares to
;
open them save by his leave. God made him His Vicegerent in the guardianship of the universe, and it continues to be guarded whilst this PERFECT MAN is there. Dost not thou see that when he shall depart (to the next world) and his seal shall be removed from
the treasury of this world, there shall no more remain in
it
that
go forth, and every type shall return to its (ideal) antitype, and all existence shall be transferred to the next world and sealed on the treasury of the next
shall
his
knowledge that
replenishes every spirit that discourses on such a theme except the comes spirit of the Seal (the Perfect Man), to whom replenishment
other
from God alone, not from any spirit; nay, his spirit replenishes all himself spirits. And though he does not apprehend that of in his manifestation in the the time of respect of body, yet during his real nature and rank he knows it all essentially, just as he is
ignorant thereof in respect of his being compounded of elements. He is the knowing one and the ignorant, for as the Origin (God) is capable of endowment with contrary attributes the Majestical,
the Beautiful, the Inward, the Outward, the First, the Last so is he capable thereof, since he is identical (ayn) with God, not other
I.e.. the etymological explanation of the name insdn is that Man yu'nis or yu'dnis (knows or is familiar with) all things: the three Arabic words are derived from the same root. 1 By bringing them into existence. Cf. p. 98 supra. 1 Man's heart (qalb) bears the impression of the Greatest Name of God (f... the Essence) together with all the other Divine Names.
1
f,
foil.
ll]
Some Notes on
He 1
.
157
than
Therefore he knows and knows not, perceives and perand beholds not 2
.
Mohammed
Attributes,
is
the Logos
who
His wisdom
the most
human species
for
therefore existence
was begun
water
Adam was
have seen whither these principles lead when applied in the sphere of positive religion 5 Ibnu 'l-'Arabi's doctrine
.
We
6 sequent to the object known enables him to assert men's individual formally responsibility for their actions.
that knowledge
is
Fate (Qadd)," he says, "is the decree of God concerning things, which is conditioned by His knowledge of them; and His knowledge of them depends on what they give Him of their essential nature.
Determination (Qadar)
essential nature.
is
itself.
Whatsoever Fate decrees concerning a thing is by an external agent, but) by means of the thing the essence of the mystery of Determination (sirru
In other words, God's knowledge of His essence is His knowledge of all individual souls the soul as a mode of Divine
:
own destiny. Every one's portion in this God knows he will receive, and which is that he is capable of receiving. God Himself cannot alter The true believer here and now was a true believer when
an idea in God, the infidel of to-day infidel from eternity. Hence God says in the Koran (50, 28): "I am not unjust to My servants," i.e., "I did not ordain the unbelief which dooms them to misery and
his soul existed only as
has been an
limitation, however,
all all
Absolute Being limited by individualisation (ta'ayyun). This is negative and unreal it consists in failure to receive individualisations, to be endowed with all attributes, to be named with names. In so far as Man is a reality (haqq) he is not a human creature
is
:
Man
(khalq).
8
*
7
* Fusus, 39 fol. "Single" is equivalent to "threefold." Cf. p. 151 supra. 6 6 See p. 151 supra. P. 130 foil. Fusus, 267. 8 Fusus, 161. Jili denies this. See p. 102.
158
then
...If
[CH.
demand of them what lay not in their power to perform. 1 there be injustice, they are the unjust ." "Therefore do not praise any one but yourself or blame any one but yourself.
All that remains to God is praise for having given you 2 existence, for that (existence) is His, not yours ." Ibnu 'l-'Arabf makes the same distinction as Hallaj 3
between the Divine uncreated will (mashi'a), which decrees nothing that does not come to pass, and the mediate command (amr), which is the religious law (shar ) and is often disobeyed. God decrees the establishment of the law, but not
1
is
it
"Sin"
is dis-
In reality the Divine will decrees only the coming into existence of the act itself and is not directed towards the agent in whom the
act
is
in the individual
who
is its
locus
(i.e.,
sometimes named "obedience to the Divine command" and sometimes "disobedience to the Divine command," and is followed by
praise or
blame accordingly 4
Thus, although the sinner violates God's law, the act named "sin" by us is necessitated by the Divine nature, which reveals itself in acts of various quality corresponding with the
be regarded as effects of obedience or disobedience, i.e., Divine manifestations determined by the state of the individual soul, but it is a more profound view that God Himself feels the pleasure and the pain 5
its attributes.
in the
may
159.
1
Ibid. 77.
* See p. 54, note 5. Fu?ii?, 206 fol. Cf. 108-9. Ibid. 105-6. Job's prayer that God might relieve his pain is justified on the ground that in praying God to remove it he really removed it from God, inasmuch as man is the outward form of God. Such prayer does not evince a want of submission to the Divine decree (qadd), but dissatisfaction with the thing decreed (al-magdl bihi), which as explained above is decreed by means of the individual soul, i.e., a particular mode of God, not the absolute God (ibid. 218-9). All particular modes, together with the effects attached to them, are (as such) relations devoid of reality. "Effect (athar) belongs to the non-existent" (ibid. 224). This distinction appears in
n]
Some Notes on
The
finite
the
Fususu 'l-Hikam
159
God
God
with
of mysticism in
many
passages,
is
e.g.
The
for his
God who
in his
form of
belief
and
made by
:
the maker of
it
its
himself, and to praise the work is to praise excellence or imperfection belongs to its maker.
beliefs of others,
For
this reason
he blames the
Beyond doubt, the worshipper of this particular God shows ignorance when he criticises others on account of their " beliefs. If he understood the saying of Junayd, The colour of the
the colour of the vessel containing it 1 ," he would not interfere with the beliefs of others, but would perceive God in every
water
is
form and
fore
in every belief.
said,
He
God
"I
am
in
My servant's
opinion of Me,"
i.e.,
"I do
belief."
God is
He pleases ; and the God of religious belief for He is the God who is contained in the to limitations, subject heart of His servant. But the absolute God is not contained by
any thing, for He is the being of all things and the being of Himself, and a thing is not said either to contain itself or not to contain
itself 2
.
be noted that while Ibnu VArabi admits the immutability of the Koranic revelation, he claims for Moslem
It
may
by abrogation
i.e.,
or addition the
on non-Prophetic ijtihdd, authority, and to put aside any hadith in which their inner 3 light detects a flaw Like Jili, he is confident that all souls will be saved at last,
.
based on
and argues
it
in his
own
scholastic
way:
is
Every one
whom Mercy
remembers
blessed,
and there
is
a verse by Jalalu'ddin Rumi, which has puzzled Mr Whinfield: C^-wLa3 .t^auLc j&* O-sj' "* sa^ * hi m 'Infidelity is the thing " decreed, not the decree (Masnavi-i Ma'navi, tr. and abridged by E. H. Whinfield, and ed., p. 125).
'
of the believer.
God is revealed in different forms of belief according to the capacity The mystic alone sees that He is One in all forms, for the mystic's heart (qalb) is all-receptive: it assumes whatever form God reveals Himself in, as wax takes the impression of the seal (Fusus, 145).
1
I.e.,
Fustis, 282.
Cf. 135.
Ibid. 205.
i6o
[CH.
nothing that Mercy has not remembered. Mercy's remembrance 1 (dhikr) of things is identical with her bringing them into existence
:
therefore every existent thing is an object of mercy. Do not let thy perception of what I say be hindered by the doctrine of ever-
Know, first, that Mercy's bringing into existence comprises all, so that the pains of Hell were brought into existence by Mercy. Then, secondly, Mercy has an effect in two ways (i) an essential effect, which is her bringing into existence
lasting punishment.
:
every 'ayn (individual idea) without regard to purpose or absence of purpose, or to what is congruous or incongruous, for she was
beholding every 'ayn as
its
it
God
before
actual existence, and therefore she saw the reality (haqq), created in men's beliefs, as a potentially existent 'ayn, and showed mercy to it by bringing it into existence (in their beliefs). Accordingly,
we have
the
first
said that the reality created in men's beliefs was object of mercy, after mercy was shown by bringing into
(2)
An
effect
produced by
asking
(su'dl)
those
who
have mercy upon them in their belief, but the that Mercy may subsist in them 3 and they ask for mercy in " God's name, saying, "O God, have mercy upon us! That which
,
is
them 4
The remainder
its drift, is
of this passage, though one can readily sec too abstruse and technical to bear translation.
Ibnu 'l-'Arabf agrees with Jili that the damned, even if they remain in Hell-fire, ultimately cease to suffer pain 5 Religious intolerance appeals as little to the pantheist who says "All is
.
God "
who
cries
out that
all is
vanity; but here Ibnu 'l-'Arabf feels more deeply and pleads more earnestly than Ma'arri. What God created in His own
1
Cf. p.
I.e.,
98
foi.
the finite Lord (rabb) who stands in a special and different relation to every object of lordship (marbilb). Cf. Fupii?, 95. " " 1 illumined with the Divine I.e., the true mystic prays that he may be attribute of Mercy so as to become a rdhim (Aeu>?), which necessarily involves a marhiim (Aeoi'/pecot). and to know himself as a mode of the absolute God who is in reality both the rdhim and the margin.
4 *
ll]
Some Notes on
let
161
none take upon himself to destroy except by God's are not blameworthy in their real nature: their actions are praised or blamed, but all action belongs to God. As regards those who legally deserve death infidels and idolaters God rebuked David for slaying them, and when he said, "For Thy sake, O Lord," God answered and said, "Yea, " but are not they My servants? It is right to be indignant on God's behalf, yet "compassion towards His servants has the 1 greater claim ." Love is the highest form in which God is 2 Ibnu 'l-'Arabi anticipates Wordsworth 3 in a worshipped image
command. Men
The
from
his
his child
sway; then he becomes engrossed with educating and protecting and with seeking what is good for him and amusing him, that he may not be unhappy. All this is the work of the child
upon the father and is owing to the power of his state, for the child was with God a short while ago (hadithu 'ahd in bi-rabbihi) since he is newly come into the world, whereas the father is further away; and one that is further from God is subject to one that is nearer to
Him4
1 2
Ibid. 209 fol. Ibid. 245. Elsewhere (272) materially and that the vision of
8
Him
in
women
is
"Heaven
lies
Fusus, 250.
N. S. II
T I
162
CHAPTER
THE ODES OF IBNU
Pcnsando al belctt
etci
III
'L-FARID
MICHAEL ANGELO.
ONE
shows
of the deepest differences between Arabs and Persians itself in the extent and character of the mystical poetry
of each people. As regards Persia, the names of Sana'i, 'Attar, Jalalu'ddin Rumi, Sa'di, Hafiz, and Jami are witnesses enough. Whether quantity or quality be considered, the best part
of medieval Persian poetry
spirit or is so
is either genuinely mystical in saturated with mystical ideas that it will never be more than half understood by those who read it literally.
turn to Arabic poetry of the period subsequent to the rise and development of Sufism, what do we find? No lack of poets, certainly, though few of them reach the first
When we
is
genius of their Persian contemporaries. But from and Ma'arrf down to the bards unknown in
flourished long after the
1
Mutanabbi
Europe^
who
fallen, it is
have used the following editions and commentaries: Diwdn of Ibnu '1-Farid, ed. by Rushayyid b. Ghalib al-Dahdah (Marseilles, 1853). This contains the minor poems, with a grammatical commentary by Hasan al-Burini as well as extracts from the mystical commentary of 'Abdu '1-Ghani al-Nabulusf. (6) The Td'iyyatu 'l-kubrd, with the commentary of 'Abdu '1-Razzaq al-Kashanf bearing the title Kashfu 'l-wujuhi 'l-ghurr li-ma'dni na?mi 'l-durr
I
.
(a)
The Td'iyyalu
Kashfu
'l-sirri
'l-kubrd,
entitled
'l-ghdmid fi sharhi
Rich.).
British
at
f.
176 of the
(d)
volume.
'l-kubrd, ed.
The Td'iyyatu
Hammer- Purgstall
(Vienna, 1854).
Concerning the Italian translation of the Td'iyyatu 'l-kubrd by Sac. Ignazio Di Matteo (Rome, 1917) and the valuable notice of it by Prof. Nallino which appeared in Rivista degli studi orientali, vol. (Rome, 1919),
vm
some remarks will be found in the preface to this volume. The abbreviations Diwdn, K. and N. refer to (a), (b) and
(c)
respectively.
CH. in]
remarkable
163
Newman
lies
would
racial
The main reason, I think, endowment. The Arab has no such passion
say) of mysticism.
.
in
for
an
ultimate principle of unity as has always distinguished the Persians and Indians 1 He shares with other Semitic peoples an
incapacity for harmonising and unifying the particular facts of experience he discerns the trees very clearly, but not the
:
wood. Like
his art, in
sense for detail, but nowhere large apprehension of a great and united whole 2 ," his poetry, intensely subjective in feeling and
therefore lyrical in form, presents only a series of brilliant impressions, full of life and colour, yet essentially fragments and moments of life, not fused into the substance of universal
thought by an imagination soaring above place and time. While nature keeps Arabian poetry within definite bounds, onvention deprives the Arabic- writing poet, who is not necessarily an Arab, of the verse-form that is most suitable for continuous narrative or exposition the allegorical, romantic, or didactic mathnawi and leaves him no choice but to fall back upon prose if he cannot make the qasida or the ghazal answer his purpose. Both these types of verse are associated with love the ghazal is a love-lyric, and the qasida, though its proper motive is praise, usually begins "with the mention of
:
Arabic mystical poetry are the secular odes and songs of which this passion is the theme; and the imitation is often so close
that unless we have
some
it
may
or not be possible to know whether 1 Even Zoroastrianism does not exclude the monistic principle. It seems to be uncertain whether Ormuzd and Ahriman stood in direct and equal
antagonism to each other, or whether Anra Mainyu (Ahriman), the evil conceived as opposite spirit, and Spenta Mainyu, the good spirit, were emanations of One (Ormuzd) who is above them both. In any case, the struggle between Ormuzd and Ahriman ends with the complete destruction
of the latter.
2 3
human
tr.
Arabian Poetry,
164
divine
is
[CH.
indeed, the question whether he himself always knows one which students of Oriental mysticism cannot regard as
impertinent.
Ibnu
'l-'Arabf,
poet, deserves to be mentioned amongst the few Arabs who have excelled in this ambiguous style 1 but its supreme master
is
'1-Farifl,
born seventeen years after Ibnu 'l-'Arabi and died five years before him (A.D. n82-i235) 2 The two seem never to have met. The description of Ibnu 'l-'Arabi as Ibnu '1-Farid's teacher
.
(ustddh) rests
upon a
hills of
Tayyi'
Here N. detects an
to the Jayyi' tribe 3
allusion to
.
Ibnu
'l-'Arabi,
who belonged
It rarely happens that the outward lives of mystics are eventful. The poet's chief biographer his grandson, 'Ali
much to say about his personal beauty, his ecstatic temperament, his generosity and unselfishness, his seclusion from the world, and the veneration in which he was held by 4 all As his name declares, he was the son of a notary (fdri$) In his youth he practised religious austerities on Mt Muqattam
has
.
near Cairo, returning at intervals to attend the law-courts with his father and study theology. One day he encountered a
hour of
saint in the guise of an old greengrocer, who told him that the his illumination was at hand, but that he must go to
the Hijaz to receive it. Accordingly Ibnu '1-Farid set out for Mecca, where the promise was fulfilled. Many of his odes
celebrate the hills
1
and valleys
in the
neighbourhood of the
The present writer has edited and translated a collection of mystical odes by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, entitled Tarjumdn al-Ashwdq, in the Oriental
Translation Fund, New Series, voL xx (London, 1911). * The date of his birth is usually given as A.D. 1181, but see Nallino, op. cit., p. i, note 3.
Diwdn.
4
p. 4,
1.
13
foil,
The
Life of
Ibnu
'1-Farid
intro-
duction to the Diwdn (pp. 3-24). A shorter notice, extracted from my MS. of the Shadhardtu 'l-dhahab, was published in the JRAS. for 1906, pp. 800806. See also Ibn Khallikan, No. 511 (De Slane's translation, vol. n, p. 388
foil.).
in]
165
Holy
City, scenes endeared by the visions and ecstasies which recalled to his mind. After fifteen years' absence from they he heard the voice of the saint, who was then on his Egypt
deathbed, bidding him return to Cairo, in order to pray over him and bury him. Ibnu '1-Farid obeyed, and having per-
formed this pious duty settled in Cairo for the rest of his life, lodging (it is said) in the mosque al-Azhar, as his father had done. The biographer 'Ali, whose mother was a daughter of Ibnu 1-Farid, mentions two sons of the poet, Kamalu'ddin Muhammad and 'Abdu '1-Rahman, who were invested with
the khirqa 1 by the famous Sufi, Shihabu'ddin Abu Hafs 'Umar al-Suhrawardi on the occasion of his meeting with Ibnu
'1-Farid at
Mecca
in A.D. 1231.
The Diwdn,
first
edited
by the
a thin volume
comprising about twenty qasidas and qit'as together with some quatrains (rubd'iyydt) and enigmas (alghdz) The longest ode, fheNazmu 'l-suluk or "the Mystic's Progress," generally known as the Td'iyyatu 'l-kubrd 2 has been omitted from the Marseilles edition, which is otherwise complete. Owing to its
.
expository and descriptive character this poem stands apart from the purely lyrical odes, and I have treated it as an independent work. The Wine Ode (Khamriyya) and several other pieces have been published with a French prose translation in the Anihologie arabe of Grangeret de Lagrange (Paris, 1828), and a few more will be found in De Sacy's
Chrestomathie arabe. Italy possesses a prose rendering of the
minor poems by P. Valerga (Firenze, 1874). There is nothing in English except some fragments which hardly amount to a hundred lines in all 3 I hope to persuade my readers that the Diwdn of Ibnu '1-Farid, though it will not please every
.
See p. 22 supra. I.e. the Greater Ode rhyming in t. It is so named in order to distinOde rhyming in t guish it from the Td'iyyatu 'l-sughrd, i.e. the Lesser
2
(Diwdn, p. 142 foil.). 3 See Professor Browne's Literary History of Persia, vol. II, p. 504; my the Dervish, Literary History of the Arabs, p. 397 *ol., and The Don and is given pp. 105-9. A Latin version of one entire ode (Diwdn, p. 306 foil.) by Sir William Jones in his Poeseos Asiaticae commentarii (Works, ed. by
Lord Teignmouth,
1 66
[CH.
side
and exquisite to be
left
on one
by
take an interest in Oriental poetry. Concerning the subtle quality of his thought no less than of his style, it would be hard to better what a French critic
those
who
L'intelligence parfaite de ses productions ne peut 6tre que le d'une etude longue et approfondie de la po6sie arabe. Deux causes principales les rendent d'un difficile acces. La premiere,
c'est qu'il arrive
le
sentiment
pour
ainsi dire, si
impalpables, qu'elles echappent presque aux poursuites du lecteur le plus attentif: souvent meme elles disparoissent des qu'on les
touche pour les transporter dans une autre langue. On voit qu'il a pris plaisir, par un choix de pensdes extraordinaires, et par la 1'epreuve la sagacit6 de ceux qui singularity des tours, & mettre
etudient ses ouvrages. Au reste, les lettrs de 1'Orient pensent qu'un poete est sans genie et sans invention, ou bien qu'il compte peu sur leur intelligence, quand il n'a pas soin de leur menager des
occasions frequentes de faire briller cette penetration qui salt decouvrir les sens les plus caches. II faut done que le poete arabe, si'l veut obtenir les suffrages et 1'admiration des connoisseurs,
n'oublie pas de porter quelquefois k 1'exces le raffinement et la
subtilit6
envelopper de
dans ses compositions, d'aiguiser ses pensees, et de les telle sorte dans les expressions, qu'elles se presentent
qu'elles reveillent son attention,
piquent sa curiosite, et mettent en jeu toutes les facultcs de son Or, il faut convenir qu' Omar ben-Faredh n'a point esprit.
manquS k
ce devoir prescrit
voulu que ses lecteurs lui reprochassent de leur avoir enlev occasions de montrer leur sagacitS 1
This describes very well a general and obvious feature of Ibnu 'l-Fari<J's style, a feature which is entirely absent both from pre-Islamic and early Islamic poetry, although since the time of Mutanabbf, who first brought it into prominence, it
itself,
all
common
p. 118.
ill]
167
with the imitatorum seruum pecus, he neither attempted nor desired to swim against the stream; and it is probable that only his mysticism saved him from the worst excesses of metaphysical wit. In him, as in Meleager and Petrarch, "the
religion of love is reduced to a theology; no subtlety, no fluctuation of fancy or passion is left unregistered 1 ." If his
verse abounds in fantastic conceits, if much of it is enigmatic to the last degree, the conceits and enigmas are not, as a rule,
rhetorical
ornaments or
but
like
tendrils springing from a hidden root are vitally connected with the moods of feeling which they delineate. It may be
related on the testimony of his he used to dictate his poems at the moment when he came out of a deep ecstatic trance, during which "he would now stand, now sit, now repose on his side, now lie on his back, wrapped like a dead man; and thus would he pass ten consecutive days, more or less, neither eating nor drinking nor speaking nor stirring." His style and diction jresemble the choicest and finest jewel-work of a fastidious artist rather than the first-fruits of divine inspiration. Yet I am not inclined to doubt the statement that 2 his poetry was composed in an abnormal manner The history of mysticism records numerous instances of the kind. Blake said that he was drunk with intellectual vision whenever he
difficult to believe,
is
what
most intimate
friends, that
St Catherine of Siena," took a pencil or graver in his hand. we are told, "dictated her great Dialogue to her secretaries
whilst in the state of ecstasy 3 ." "When Jalalu'ddin Rumi was drowned in the ocean of Love he used to take hold of a
"
house and set himself turning round it. Meanwhile he versified and dictated, and people wrote down the verses 4 ." Since the form of such automatic composition will largely depend on materials stored within the mystic's brain, and on the literary models with which he is familiar, we need not be
pillar in his
surprised
1 2 3 4
if
his
visions
find
The
Mackail, Select Epigrams from the Greek Anthology, p. 34. J. Preface to the Diwdn, p. u, 1. 20.
W.
Evelyn Underbill, Mysticism, p. 352. Introd. to Selected Poems from the Dwdni Shamsi Tabriz,
p. XL.
1 68
[CH.
intense passion and glowing rapture of Ibnu 'l-FaricJ's poetry are in keeping with this account of the way in which it was
produced
1
.
That he
may have
written
;
it
2 but that he wrote it in influence of ecstasy, I can conceive who of those the sake cold blood, for might enjoy sharpening
their wits
upon it, seems to me incredible. The double character of Islamic mystical poetry makes
it
attractive to
Ibnu 'l-Fari4 would not be so popular in the East if he were understood entirely in a spiritual sense. The fact that parts of the Diwdn cannot be reasonably understood in any other sense would not, perhaps, compel us to regard the whole as spiritual, unless that view of its meaning were supported by
the poet's
tators,
life,
commen;
opinion but as things are, we can declare, with Nabulusi, that "in every erotic description, whether the subject thereof be male or
critical
Moslem
imagery of gardens, flowers, rivers, birds he refers to the Divine Reality manifested in 3 phenomena, and not to those phenomena themselves ." This conceived i.e. God in some Mohammed Reality, (or, places, as the Logos) is the Beloved whom the poet addresses and celebrates under many names now as one of the heroines of Arabian Minnesong, now as a gazelle or a driver of camels or an archer shooting deadly glances from his eye; most
female,
in all
and
and the
like
frequently as plain He or She. Th_Qde& retain the forau conventions, topics, and images of ordinary love-poetry llieir
:
Of course these remarks do not apply to many passages in the Td'iyyatu 'l-kubrd, which in respect of its didactic purpose bears the same relation to the minor odes as the Masnavi of Jalalu'ddin Rumi to his Diwdn. Prof. Nallino (op. cit p. 17) points out that at a later period the Odes were often chanted in the musical concerts of the Sufis and suggests that they were composed for this purpose. Diwdn, p. 52, 1. 8 foil. Biirinl (ibid. p. 202, 12 foil.) asserts that Ibnu '1-Farid's poetry is not invariably mystical. The two verses which he cites might bear an allegorical sense as easily as many of a similar kind in the Song of Solomon; and, in any case, they are extracted from rubd'is. The fact that Ibnu '1-Farid is known to have written one amatorious epigram (Diwdn, P- 549, 9 fol. Ibn Khallikan, De Slane's translation, vol. n, p. 389), and that he may have written others, proves nothing against those who find mysticism
in every line of the Odes.
in]
169
inner meaning hardly ever obtrudes itself, although its presence is everywhere suggested by a strange exaltation of feeling, fine-drawn phantasies in which (as the same French
critic
is
droite raison," mysterious obscurities of diction and subtle harmonies of sound. If Ibnu '1-Farid had followed the example
'!-' Arabi and written a commentary on his own poems, might have added considerably to our knowledge of his mystical beliefs, but I am not sure that it would have had much greater interpretative value than the work of his
of
Ibnu
it
commentators, who profess to explain the esoteric meaning of every verse in the Odes. While such analysis may be useful within certain limits, we should recognise how little it is capable of revealing. An eminent scholar came to Ibnu '1-Farid and asked permission to write a commentary on his masterpiece, the Nazmu 'l-Suluk. "In how many volumes? '64L. "Two." The poet smiled. "Had I wished," said he, "I coula have written two volumes of commentary on every verse of
)
it ."
The more interpreters, the more interpretations, as those given time and labour to the study of mysticism well know. Poetry of this kind suggests more than it says, and means all that it may suggest. We cannot do without the commentators, however, and they will help us a good deal if we learn to use them discreetly. When they handle their text like philologists and try
who have
to fasten precise mystical significations upon individual words is as fatal to poetry as the result is
Against
this,
immense advantage of being Sufis, that is to say, of knowing through tradition and their own experience what Europeans can only acquire by study and perceive by sympathy. They
are the poet's fellow-citizens in the ideal world from which
he drew
his inspiration; they have dreamed his dreams and travelled on his path towards his goal; they do not miss the main drift of his allegory even though they err in some of the
details.
I foil.
I jo
[CH.
Arabic will admit that while a complete rendering into English verse would be a quixotic enterprise, some entire odes and not a few passages in others are suitable for that form of
have sought here and there to capture the shadows at things that no prose version can reproduce.
Md bayna ddli
'l-munhand wa-zildlihi
.
He
lost
and
the
in his losing
:
Found
again Lo, on yon gorge's southern slope The vision long-desired, that far seemed from his hope. This is 'Aqiq 2 my friend!
,
way
Halt
Feign rapture,
thou be
:
let thine eye range free Mine, with tears overflowing, cannot range. Ask the Gazelle that couches in this valley,
Knows he my heart, its passion and distress? Delighting with his beauty's pride to dally, He recks not of my love's abasedness.
be his ransom dead or living Think you he knows that I
My
I
dead
self
Tis no giving:
am
all his,
Even
as
move
Nightly his image to my waking eye? A phantasy within a phantasy 3 So let me ne'er have savour
.
Of peace from
counsellors, as
never bent
!
A listening ear towards their argument By his sweet grace and favour,
1 Diwdn, p. 263 foil. Prof. Browne has given a translation of this ode in his Literary History of Persia, vol. n, p. 504. * A valley with fountains and date-palms in the neighbourhood of Medina.
The dream-form
in]
I
171
when he did
water might
tire,
win
!
And
But Not
!
with
soil
Ah how
For
its
mirage agleam
characteristically
subtle,
Tih daldl
wa-tahakkam fa-'l-husnii qad a'tdkd 1 Feign coy disdain, for well art thou entitled; And domineer, for Beauty hath given thee power. Thine is the word then will whatso thou wiliest, Since over me Beauty hath made thee ruler. If in death I shall be with thee united, Hasten it on, so may I be thy ransom And try, in all ways thou deem'st good, my passion, For where thy pleasure is, my choice attends it. Whate'er betide, thou to myself art nearer Than I, since but for thee I had not existed.
: !
am
I
enough
bow
And though
claim not
Favour with thee, and thou in truth my Master, Yet me sufficeth to be thought to love thee
folk amongst thy slain ones. Yea, in this tribe thou own'st a dead man, living Through thee, who found it sweet to die for love's sake; A slave and chattel who never pined for freedom
And counted by my
Whom
He When
left, would let thee leave him lonely; beauty veiled by awe doth so enravish, feels delicious even that veil of torment,
thou, brought nigh to him by hope's assurance, Art borne afar by fear of sundering darkness. Now, by his ready advance when thee he visits,
1
Diwdn,
p.
230
foil.
1 72
[CH.
his alarmed retreat when thou affright'st him, swear mine heart is melted oh, allow it To crave thee whilst it hath of hope a remnant Or bid sleep (yet, methinks, 'twill disobey thee, Obedient else) pass o'er mine eyelids lightly For in a dream, perchance, will rise before me Thy phantom and reveal to me a mystery.
By
I
But if thou wilt not stir my life's last embers With the hand of hope, and thy All needs must naught me 1
And
if
Lets trespass on
my
lids,
Spare me an eye, that some day, ere I perish, 2 Haply I may behold those who beheld thee
Alas,
how
far
is
that desire
Mine eyelashes durst kiss For had my messenger brought a word of kindness From thee, and life were mine, I would cry, "Take it " Enough of blood hath welled from these chapped eyelids Ah, have I not yet shown what shall content thee?
!
safe against thine hate a man afflicted, loved thee fondly ere he knew what love was Grant that uncivil flyting tongues forbade him
Guard
Who
To go near
thee: by whom wast thou forbidden? Grant that thy beauty moved him to such passion, Yet who moved thee to part from him? Who, think'st thou? Who, think'st thou, gave the sentence thou should'st scorn him? Who gave the sentence thou should'st love another? By my heart-brokenness and humiliation, By my most bitter need, by thine abundance, Leave me not to the forces that betrayed me Of mine own strength to thee I turn in weakness.
:
Thou
didst
ill
use
me when
!
Now
God
Scorn upon scorn It may be thou wilt pity My plaint, if but to hear me say, "It may be."
my
parting
my
passing-away
Ill]
173
And gave
I
loved not with their hearts, that I should ever so let them babble Forget thee God forfend
Thee how should I forget? At every lightning That flashes, lo, mine eye starts up to meet thee.
If 'neath
Or
the light of thy lithdm 1 thou smilest breathest soft and on the wind thy news comes
Glad is my soul when clear dawn of thy side-teeth Breaks on my sight, and keenly blows thy fragrance. Within thy borders all do love thee, natheless My single worth buys all within thy borders 2 There dwells in thee a notion that endeared thee To mind's eye, fixed my gaze on thy perfections. The lords of beauty thou in grace and goodness
.
Beneath
Excellest so, they hunger for thy notion. flag the lovers shall be gathered
my
To Judgment, as beneath thine all the fair ones. From thee dire sickness never turned me wherefore
:
Turn'st thou from me, then, O disdainful charmer? Thou art present with me in thine absence from me,
And
in
thy cruelty
I feel
a kindness.
Desire to
my net of waking moon, being thy copy, represented To my unslumbering eye thy face's image 3 And in such alien form thine apparition Cooled mine eye's fever I saw thee, none other. Thus Abraham of old, the Friend of Allah, 4 Upturned his eye, what time he scanned the heavens
!
night's long hours, see thee while it sleeps not. night in which thy vision
wake through
The
1
a
A veil
"Within thy borders": literally "within thy preserve (fyima)." The Divine Essence is preserved (made inaccessible) by the spiritual and sensible forms in which it veils itself. As the Bedouin poet brags about himself in order
to assert the dignity of his tribe, so when the Mohammedan saints boast of the
unique endowments which God has bestowed upon them, it is not selfglorification, but thanksgiving to Him "from whom all blessings flow." 8 Real Being is manifested in phenomena, just as the light of the sun is
reflected
4
"And when
174
[CH.
Now
eye in outward seeming inward, there to find thee. Of Badr are they with whom by night thou faredst 1 Nay, not of Badr: they journeyed in thy daylight
That men do borrow radiance from mine outward, Tis not strange, when mine inward is thy dwelling. Ever since thou to kiss thy mouth didst call me,
And
lingers wheresoe'er my name is spoken, the rich air teems in every place of meeting With spice a metaphor of thine aroma.
Musk
The beauty of all things seen tempted me, saying, "Enjoy me," but I said, "I aim beyond thee. Beguile not me, thyself by my Beloved
Distraught, in
whom
3 Averted, over men's souls he is mighty the be his vowed slaves. he makes ascetics Unveiled,
exchanged my truth for error, my modesty for ill-fame 4 My My heart confessed his love One: then my turning To thee were dualism, a creed I like not."
his sake I
For
and he said, This is my Lord; but when it set, he said, I like not gods which set. And when he saw the moon rising, he said, This is my Lord; but when he saw it set, he said, Verily, if my Lord direct me not, I shall become one of the people who go astray" (Sale's translation). 1 In this verse there is an untranslatable play on the double meaning of Badr, which signifies (i) a place between Mecca and Medina where the
star,
Prophet won his memorable victory over the Meccan idolaters in A.D. 624; (2) a full moon. Thus the ahlu Badr are to Moslems more than what oi napaewvondx*" were to the Greeks of Plato's time, while the phrase
also suggests the perfect illumination reserved for adepts in mysticism politics of forty years ago would provide an exact parallel, if the
Moonlighters were regarded as national heroes and saints. The poet says that the men of Badr, i.e., the noble company of mystics, journey not so much in the light which phenomena derive from Reality as in the light of
ity itself.
not worthy to be loved except in so far as it is one and manifestations) of Absolute Beauty. * When God withdraws Himself (from the inward eye of the mystic), He still lays His commands on the soul, so that it performs its predestined good and evil works. 4 Divine Love sweeps away the conventional standards of truth and right and honour.
"
Material beauty
is
ill]
175
mad
may
Hadst thou his beauty seen ne'er shalt thou see it That me enthralled, it surely had enthralled thee.
At a glimpse
of
him
my
wakefulness
pardon,
And "This
my
aching eyeballs.
After reading a little of Ibnu '1-Farid's poetry, one can take a general view of the whole. All his odes are variations on a single theme, and the variations themselves have a certain interior uniformity. Not only do the same "leitmotifs"
recur again and again, but the same metaphors, conceits and paradoxes are continually reappearing in new dress. Although
translators
must
regret this
make
other than tedious, I think most of them would agree that the poet has triumphed over it by means of the delicacy
of his art, the beauty of his diction, and the "linked sweetness" of his versification powerful spells to enchant those who read him in his own language. The Diwdn is a miracle of literary accomplishment, yet the form would be cold and empty without the spirit which it enshrines. Like Sidney, Ibnu '1-Farid looked into his heart before he wrote. His verse is charged with the fire and energy of his inmost feelings.
souls in battle-fray,
am
the murdered
first
At the
look,
crime to slay.
To that all-glorious beauty I was vowed. God bless a racked h,eart crying,
And And
lids
me
close,
ribs
worn
thin,
And
But
seas of tears
whence
I
!
How
Me from
Though
It
my
could not
move
Once
to despair
my
spirit
never cried
ij6
[CH.
To Agony,
I
"
"
Begone
yearn to every heart that passion shook, And every tongue that love made voluble,
And And
every deaf ear stopped against rebuke, every lid not dropped in slumbers dull. Out on a love that hath no melting eyes Out on a flame from which no rapture flies 1
!
In exquisite contrast with this high-wrought prelude is another passage of the same ode, describing the mystic's vision of the Divine beauty revealing itself in all things
beautiful.
Though he be gone, mine every limb beholds him In every charm and grace and loveliness In music of the lute and flowing reed
:
airs ;
And
in green hollows
where
in cool of eve
Gazelles
roam browsing, or
at break of
morn;
And where the gathered clouds let fall their rain Upon a flowery carpet woven of blooms; And where at dawn with softly-trailing skirts The zephyr brings to me his balm most sweet And when in kisses from the flagon's mouth
;
Here the Moslem commentator, startled for a moment out on syntax and rhetoric, pauses to pay a tribute of admiration to the poet, a tribute which is the more noteworthy because in these six verses Ibnu '1-Farid comes as near as he ever does to the modern European conception of what poetry should be. Unadorned simplicity is the antithesis of his style. For our taste, he has far too much of the gift of
of his lucubrations
1
Cf Shelley, Epipsychidion In solitudes Her voice came to me through the whispering woods. And from the fountains, and the odours deep
.
Of
flowers...
from the breezes whether low or loud, from the rain of every passing cloud, from the singing of the summer birds, from all sounds, all silence.
Ill]
177
Holofernes: he plays with sound and sense alike, though in the daintiest and subtlest fashion imaginable. Concerning
his verbal
euphuism a treatise might be written. One verse an extreme instance, no doubt will serve as a sample of
many:
Amd
Hast thou no
li-zalmiki
mayl
li-atfati
withdraw from a resistance that has caused thee to turn away, with wrong on thy part, from one who thirsts for the water of thy teeth 1 ?
desire to
His extravagant flights of fancy are generally accompanied by an equal exaltation of feeling and sustained by the fiery element in which they move at times, however, they sink into something very like the "sweet smoke of rhetoric,"
;
*.,
I
sowed roses on
his
cheek by looking
(at
him)
But
right to gather that which it planted. if he refuses, then his (teeth white as)
camomile
is
be
my
amends
'tis
.
of flowers 2
They
said,
"Thy
desire:
my
I slaughtered sleep
on
and therefore
my
my
>
The
more
when
typical:
it
Thou
away mine
heart
it
was whole:
!
Now
at
back
in shreds 4
thou
not thou
heart away, how didst didst treacherously take let follow it the rest of me that thou sparedst?
my
Part of
envies
my
my outward
[that
a
Ibid. p. 173. It is true, as Prof. Nallino has observed (op. less artificial in style than others.
3
5
cit.
p. 16),
Ibid. p. 108.
N.
S. II
12
1 78
I
[CH.
am so
wasted by lovesickness that those who come to visit me have lost their way, for how can the visitors see one who hath no shadow 1 ?
To affirm that lovers and mystics delight in paradox is only to acknowledge that in states of spiritual enthusiasm we enter a region where the logic of common experience is perceived to be
false. This alta fantasia moulds the language of the Odes, imposing its own laws and revelling in its power to transcend contradictions which, for the intellect, are final.
I
When
self-denial
died of his love, I lived by him, through the wealth of and the abundance of my poverty 2
.
my
Tis Love
that
is
Keep thy heart safe. Passion is no light thing, and he wasted thereby chose it not when he was sane.
is
And
live fancy-free, for love's joy sickness and its end a slaying;
sorrow:
its
beginning a
is
life
that
my
loved
If
separation be my guerdon from you, and if there be no (real) distance between us, I regard that separation as union.
is nothing but love, so long as it is not hate; and the hardest thing, excepting only your aversion, is easy to bear. Delicious to me is the torment which ye inflict; and the injustic
Repulse
And my
which Love ordains that ye do unto me is justice. 4 patience, a patience both without you and with you 5 its bitterness seems to me everlastingly sweet
.
Besides the two protagonists, Arabian love-poetry intro duces several minor figures, who play a helping or hindering
part in the idyll.
gorically.
the lover
Ibnu '1-Farid, of course, uses them alle One of them is the "watcher" (raqib), who prevents from approaching. The "slanderer" (wdshi) repre
and
intellectual faculty,
which cannot
pierce
beyond the outward forms of things. More important than either of these (to judge by the frequent passages of descrip
"
Ibid. p. 391 foil. Ibid. p. 384. Dlwdn. p. 410. "Patience without you," i.e. in bearing your separation from me patience with you," i.e. in bearing the pain which you, as the object of m)
'
1
love, cause
me
to suffer.
Diwdn,
p. 402.
ill]
179
tion and dialogue in which he appears), and more dangerous, because of his greater plausibility, is the "blamer" (Id'im) or "railer" (Idhi), a type of the Devil, suggesting evil and inspiring doubt, of sensual passion, and of all that lures the soul away from Divine contemplation.
And
in
was no time
thy face;
my silencing him who blamed me on thy account, when it to dispute concerning thee 1 my argument was
,
Whereby,
after having
been
my
rebuker, he was
made
my
excuser; nay, he became one of my helpers. And, as I live, my vanquishing in argument a guide whose reproaches would have led me astray is like my greater and
lesser pilgrimages 2 .
He
perceived that
my
scornful ear
and
false counsel,
3
.
me to forget thy love and seek another than thee, but how should he change my fixed purpose? He said, "Mend what remains in thee (of life)." I answered, "Methinks, my mind turns no whither but towards death." My refusal refused everything except thwarting a counsellor who would beguile me to show a quality that was never mine 4 One to whom chiding me on thy account is sweet, as though he
,
deemed
my separation
manna and my
forget-
It is a favomite paradox of Ibnu '1-Farid that reproof bears a message of love, and that the "railer" deserves to be
The poet was rapt in contemplation of the Beloved and could not bandy
critic.
I.e.
by convincing
my
much
religious merit as
"blamer" of the error of his ways I acquired as by making the pilgrimage to Mecca. It is merit(bajj)
orious to
('umra).
3
Rajab
medan
year.
5 Diwdn, p. 179 foil. there dropped from heaven upon the Israelites (Kor. 2, 54). In the original is a double word-play: mann (separation), mann (manna), salwat (forget-
month of the Moham!* inconstancy. The last verse alludes to the manna and quails which
*
fulness),
salwd (quails).
122
i8o
Pass round the
talk of the
[CH.
name
of
Beloved
is
my Dearest, my wine
if
only in blaming
me
for
may be present to mine ear, though she be far away, as a phantom called up by blame, not by sleep. For sweet to me is her name in every mould, even if my chiders mingle it with disputation.
That she
Methinks, he that blames me brings to me the glad news of her 1 favour, though I was not hoping to have my greeting returned
.
I found thee in one way my benefactor, albeit thou wouldst have hurt me by the scorch of thy rebuke, had I obeyed thee. Thou didst me a kindness unawares, and if thou wroughtest ill, yet art thou the most righteous of wrong-doers. The phantom that visits me in the hour of blame 2 brings the Beloved, though he dwell afar, close to the eye of my waking
But
ear.
And thy reproof is, as it were, my Loved One's camels which came to me when my hearing was my sight 3
.
Thou
of him, regarded thee as excusing me for my passion. Marvel, then, at a satirist lauding with the tongue of a thankful
tiredst thyself
I
and
so that
complainant those
The hyperfaiitastic strain in Ibnu '1-Farid's poetry is surprisingly relieved by a poignant realism, of which there is no trace in the work of his Persian rivals. They have, what he
reserves for his great Td'iyya, the power of lifting themselves and their readers with them into the sphere of the infinite and
eternal,
All breathing
human
The Arabic odes, on the contrary, are full of local colour and redolent of the desert; and the whole treatment of the
subject
1
is
intimately personal.
p.
Jalalu'ddfn
Rumf
writes as
Diwdn,
I.e.
443
foil.
the image or vision of the Beloved which appears when his name isi pronounced by the "blamer." As camels bring the beloved to the lover's eye, so reproof brings him to the lover's ear.
8 *
Diwdn,
p.
275
foil.
Cf. p. 346,
1.
5,
and
p. 419,
1.
17
p. 420,
1.
6.
in]
181
a God-intoxicated soul, Ibnu '1-Farid as a lover absorbed in his own feelings. While the Persian sees a pantheistic vision of one reality in which the individual disappears, the Arar/"| dwells on particular aspects of the relation of that reality to
1 '
himself.
Some of the finest passages are inspired by the author's recollection of the years which he spent in the Hijaz, where (he says) he left his heart behind when his body returned to
Egypt
Give
1
.
aid, my brother dear, and sing me the tale of them that alighted in the water-courses if thou wilt keep a brother's
faith with
me
mine ears
;
And
recall it to
if
the
When
my
soul, the
aroma
of the
fresh herbs of the Hijaz is balm. Shall I be debarred from the sweetness of going
my
in its land,
it,
its sandhills,
And
And
its
dwellings are
my
desire, yea,
and
its
my joy
sands a
bitter distress,
its
mountains are to
me
(cool) shades of eve, pasture, and its daytime shadows are water a full well for And its earth is and its fragrant spice, thirst, and in its soil are riches,
my
my
my
its
my
And
ravines are to
me
is
its
rocks
my heart
its
tents a shield,
and on
May
hills,
following each other moisten those homes of bounty, And shed abundance on the shrines of pilgrimage and the pebbles at al-Mina, and plenteously bedew the halting-places of the
jaded camels!
preserve my dear companions there with whom I whiled away the night with tales of lovers' meetings And may He preserve the nights at al-Khayf that were but as a
in the
wakef ulness of a
is
light sleep
Ibid. p. 370,
1.
ii.
The Arabic word for rocks (safd) and this may be its meaning here.
also the
1 82
[CH.
Ah me
and
all
when
Days when
I blithely
pastured in the
.
fields of
in flowing skirts of
man and proves wonderful is him by taking the gift as spoil O would that our bygone pleasure might return once more Then would I freely give my life. Alas, vain is the endeavour, and cut are the strands of the cord of desire, and loosed is the knot of my hope.
How
'Tis torture
longing before
in frenzy, with
.
my
one that
is
charac-
his
Ibnu '1-Farid's habit of seeking 3 imagery in Nature, as seen by Bedouins and also his sense
because
it illustrates
,
that
is
demesne, where the bondsman of love is crazed Hath thunder crashed with bursting showers at La'la', and hath
And
and Hajir dawn? of is declared the by night openly, mystery And are there green dunes in the camping-place at al-Wa'sa? and
rain gushing from the clouds flooded it? shall I come down to the waters of al-'Udhayb
when
And, O ye dear folk at al-Naqa, is there in the hills of Najd any one that relates from me, to show forth what my ribs enclose 4 ? And on the sand-slope of Sal' do they ask news of a rapt lover at " Kazima and say, "How is Passion dealing with him? And are the blossoms being culled from the myrtle-boughs, and in the Hijaz are there mimosas with ripe berries? And the tamarisks at the bend of the vale, are they fruitful, and are the eyes of despiteful Time asleep to them?
And
1
women
as I
knew them
once, or
a vain thing?
desert
4
life
quite different, of course, from the pictorial treatment of find in the pre-Islamic odes.
Reading
in]
183
did the gazelles of the Two Meadows remain there a little while after us, or did something not let them stay? And will girls at al-Ghuwayr show me where dwells my Nu'm in
And
And
And
spring? how pleasant are those dwelling-places! is the shade of yon willow east of Darij still spread wide?
for
is
my
tears
have watered
it.
we
it
one
Perchance when
they will
feel
my
the flame cooled of that which their bosoms hide, And perchance the sweet nights that are vanished will come again to us, that a hoping man may win his desire,
And
a sorrowing one rejoice and a lovelorn one revive and a longing one be made happy and a listening one thrill with
delight
1
.
needs but a slight acquaintance with Ibnu '1-Farid to discover that he fully possesses a gift which the Arabs have
It
He
less than in their poets and the power of terse, striking, and energetic expression. depicts the lover wasted by suffering,
Hidden from his visitors, appearing only As a crease in garments after their unfolding 2
An exceeding great
vanished,
I felt
all
love hath
hewn
if
my
bones, and
.
my body is
who
love
me3
the strengths of
all
had borne
burden
My
my
eyelids for
my
sleep or of
my
weakness for
my strength4
this
Any one
of the
Odes
will furnish
examples of
Arabian
its
language and defies all In his famous Wine Ode (Khamriyya) Ibnu '1-Farid develops a symbolism which elsewhere he only uses incidentally. His sparing use of it may perhaps be attributed to
1
Ibid. p. 6.
least
24
foil.
184
[CH.
Mohammedan
antinomian bias of some Persian mystics seems to express itself in the freedom of their bacchanalian imagery. According to Ibnu 'l-Fari<J's custom, the symbolism is precise and circumstantial, so that its interpretation is far more baffling than in Persian odes of the same kind, where large and simple ideas
carry the reader easily along. I hope that the literal translation given below, together with the notes accompanying it, will make the meaning tolerably clear, though we may doubt
whether the poet would always have accepted the interpretation given by his commentator, 'Abdu '1-Ghani al-Nabulusi, who not only explains too much but brings in philosophical theories that belong to Ibnu 'l-'Arabi rather than to Ibnu '1Farid. Into this question, however, I need not enter now.
Sharibnd
'aid dhikhri 'l-habibi
muddmat an
.
sakirnd bihd
min
qabli
an yukhlaqa 'l-karmu l
(1) In memory of the Beloved we quaffed a vintage that us drunk before the creation of the vine 2
.
made
(2)
Its
itself
moon
stars
causes to
circle.
When
it is
how many
appear
(3)
3
!
But
its
Dlwdn,
p.
472
foil.
was intoxicated with the wine of Divine Love (i.e. was rapt in contemplation of God) during its pre-existence in the eternal knowledge of God before the body was created. The full-moon is the Perfect Man, i.e. the gnostic or saint in whom God reveals Himself completely and who is, as it were, filled with Divine Love. The new moon is the gnostic veiled by his individuality, so that he manifests only a part of the Divine Light, not the whole; he causes the wine of Love to circle, i.e. he displays and makes known to others the Names and Attrisoul
The
butes of God. When the wine is watered, i.e. when pure contemplation is blended with the element of religion, the seeker of God obtains spiritual direction and is like a traveller guided by the stars in his night-journey. 4 N.'s commentary on this verse is characteristically recondite. He interprets "its perfume" as the sphere of the Primal Intelligence, whence emanate all created things; "its taverns" as the Divine Names and Attributes; "its resplendence" as the human intellect, which is a flash of the Primal Intelligence. Divine Love, being of the essence of God, has no form except in the imagination.
ill]
185
(4) Time hath preserved of it but a breath it is unseen as a 1 thing hidden in the bosom of the mind If it be mentioned the tribe, the tribesmen become (5) amongst
.
intoxicated without incurring disgrace or committing sin 2 (6) It oozed up from the inmost depths of the jars (and 3 vanished), and in reality nothing was left of it but a name
.
.
(7)
If it
ever come into the mind of a man, joy will abide with
him and
(8)
grief will
journey away.
the boon-companions beheld the sealing of its vessel, that sealing would have inebriated them without (their 4 having tasted) the wine
;
And had
(9)
And had
;
they sprinkled with it the earth of a dead man's would have returned to him, and his body would they laid down in the shadow of the wall where sick unto death, his malady would have
;
have
its
risen
(10)
And had
vine grows a
man
(n) And had they brought to its taverns one palsied, he would have walked; and at the mention of its flavour the dumb would speak;
(12) And had the breath of its aroma floated through the East, and were there in the West one that had lost the sense of smell, he would have regained it (13) And had the palm of one touching its cup been stained
;
red thereby, he would not have gone astray at night, the lodestar
And had
it
(as
;
a bride) to one
blind from birth, he would have become seeing and at the sound of its (decanting into the) strainer the deaf would hear;
bore
And had a party of camel-riders set out for the soil that and were there amongst them one bitten by a snake, the it, venom would not have harmed him
(15)
;
"Time,"
i.e.
the world of
ren-
dered
2 3
literally: "'tis as
though
"The tribesmen," i.e. mystics capable of receiving illumination. This verse describes the gradual fading of ecstasy from the heart of the
mystic.
4 I need not trouble my readers with the detailed allegorical analysis to which the commentator subjects this and the next nine verses. They explain themselves, if taken as a fanciful description of the miracles wrought by Divine Love.
i86
(16)
[CH.
its
And had
name on
the brow of one smitten with madness, the writing would have cured him ;
(17)
And had
its
host, that blazon would have intoxicated those beneath the banner.
(18) It corrects
who lack resolution are led by it to the path of resolution, (19) And he whose hand was a stranger to munificence shows himself generous, and he who had no forbearance forbears in the
those
hour of wrath.
(20)
Had
it
the dullest-witted
man
his kissing
They say
to me, "Describe
it,
for
with
description." Ay, well do I know its attributes: (22) Pure, but not as water; subtle, but not as air; luminous, but not as fire; spirit, but not (joined to) body.
its
(23) The (Divine) discourse concerning it was eternally prior to all existing things (in the knowledge of God), where is no form nor any external trace 2 ; (24)
And
there through
of a (Divine) providence
things came into being because whereby was veiled from every one that
it all
it
lacketh understanding.
(25)
And my
spirit
was enamoured of
.
it
in
they (my spirit and the wine) were mingled together and not as a body pervades a body 3
(26)
made one,
me; there
There is a wine without a vine, when Adam is a father to is a vine without a wine, when its mother is a mother to
me 4
1
Thefiddm
is
wine
1
may
run
clear.
Vv. 23-30 are wanting in the commentary of Burfnf and may have been inserted in the poem by a copyist. See Nallino, op. cit. p. 31, note i. Divine Love, as the eternal source of all created things, is logically prior to them, although it does not precede them in time, which itself is created. * Inasmuch as real being belongs to God alone, mystical union cannot be likened to the permeation of one body by another, as when water is absorbed by a sponge. 4 This enigmatic verse refers to Being under its two aspects. Wine
signifies
pure being, vine phenomenal being. .In so far as man is related to the Divine Spirit (here identified with Adam, whom God "created in His own
in]
187
(27) The (essential) subtlety of the vessels (forms) depends in truth on the subtlety of the realities; and by means of the vessels the realities increase 1 (28)
one, our
(29)
After division has occurred, so that, while the whole spirits are a wine and our bodies a vine.
is
Before
it is
no "before" and
after it
is
no "after";
it is
.
by the
(30) Its grapes were pressed in the winepress ere Time began, and it was an orphan although the epoch of our father (Adam) came after it 3 (31) Such are the beauties that lead its praisers to laud it, and beautiful is their prose and verse in its honour. (32) And he that knows it not thrills at the mention of it, like
.
the lover of
(33)
I
They
Nu'm when her name is spoken. said, "Thou hast drunk the draught
in
of sin."
Nay,
my judgment,
to renounce.
How (34) Health to the people of the Christian monastery often were they intoxicated by it without having drunk thereof
!
Still,
they aspired
is
4.
image"), he
unreal.
"
Its
mother "
pure reality; but in so far as he belongs to Nature, he is is the mother of wine, i.e. the vine, which is a symbol
1 88
[CH.
(35)
was born,
!
it
with
though my bones decay. it Take pure but if thou wish to temper it, the worst (36) 1 is wrong thy turning aside from the water of the Beloved's teeth
.
me
(37)
Seek
it
in the tavern,
it
and there to the accompaniment of display itself, for by means of music it is made
in
a prize 2
(38)
any
place,
even as Sorrow
command.
(40)
dies not
(41)
drunk
Joyless in this world is he that lives sober, will miss the path of wisdom.
and he that
he whose
life is
wasted without
The Khamriyya forms a link between the love-lyrics and Ode in which Ibnu '1-Farid describes his own mystical experience and puts it forth (excepting, however,
the great the highest stage of all) as a doctrine for others. This Ode, the author's masterpiece, bears a plain and appropriate title,
Nazmu
'l-suluk,
meaning
of the
by which
.
it
is
3 commonly known, has been explained above The Td'iyya, with its 760 verses, is nearly as long as all the minor poems together, if we leave the quatrains and enigmas out of reckoning. It was edited in 1854 by Joseph von Hammer and may be studied in the fully vocalised text which he copied from an excellent manuscript in his possession. To transcribe
which
atom
1
is fully realised by Moslem saints, that God reveals Himself in every of existence. Cf. the Td'iyya, v. 730 foil, and p. 140 supra.
I.e. seek to contemplate the Divine Essence alone, or if you must seek anything besides, let it be the first and highest manifestation of that Essence, namely, the Spirit or Light of Mohammed, which is figuratively called "the water of the Beloved's teeth." * The Sufis have always known the value of music as a means of inducing ecstasy. Cf. The Mystics of Islam, p. 63 foil.; D. B. Macdonald, Emotional Religion in Islam as affected by Music and Singing in the Journal of the Royal
foil,
and 748
foil.,
and 1902,
p. i foil.
P. 165, note
2.
in]
is
189
one thing, to translate is another; and as "translation" of a literary work usually implies that some attempt has been made to understand it, I prefer to say that Von Hammer rendered the poem into German rhymed verse by a method peculiar to himself, which appears to have consisted in picking out two or three words in each couplet and filling the void with any ideas that might strike his fancy. Perhaps, in a
sense, the Td'iyya is untranslatable, and certainly it offers very slight encouragement to the translator whose aim may
be defined as "artistic reproduction." On the other hand, it seemed to me that a literal prose version with explanatory
notes would at least enable the reader to follow the course of the poem and become acquainted with its meaning, while any
one who ventured on the Arabic text would profit by the labours of a fellow -student and would not be so likely to lose
heart,
of thought, alone.
(qasida)
scriptive, the exposition being only now and then interrupted by strains of pure lyric enthusiasm. Not that the poem is
deficient either in
if
not most of
it,
combines these
qualities,
tried to preserve
some
and
phenomena
he compares the soul to the showman of the shadow-lantern who throws his puppets on a screen, keeping himself out of sight while he manipulates them 1 The passage
.
beginning
And
so
it
in glee
and incidents
of the
shadow-play
in the spectators.
shown
in every guise
See
v.
190
[CH.
in
them
An
providence hath joined what stands Opposed in nature mute they utter speech, 1 Inert they move and void of splendour shine
all- wise
:
comes that now thou laugh'st in glee, Then weep'st anon, like mother o'er dead child,
And
so
it
And And
mournest,
tremblest,
if if
they sigh, for pleasure lost, they sing, with music's joy.
The while their sweet notes sadden thee within Thou wonderest at their voices and their words
Expressive unintelligible tongues On land the camels cross the wilderness,
!
At sea the
And thou behold'st two armies one on On sea another multitudes of men,
Clad, for their bravery, in iron mail
And fenced about with points of sword and spear. The land-troops march on horseback or on foot, Bold cavaliers and stubborn infantry; The warriors of the sea some mount on deck, Some climb the masts like lances straight and tall.
Here in assault they smite with gleaming swords, There thrust with tough brown shafts of quivering spears; Part drowned with fire of arrows shot in showers, Part burned with floods of steel that pierce like flames 2
;
These rushing onward, offering their lives, Those reeling broken 'neath the shame of rout And catapults thou seest hurling stones
Against strong fortresses and citadels, To ruin them. And apparitions strange Of naked viewless spirits thou mayst espy 3
1 "The forms of things," i.e. the puppets, typify phenomena, which in themselves are lifeless and passive all their life and activity is the effect of the manifestation in them of the actions and attributes of Reality. * The Greek fire to which Von Hammer finds an allusion here is, I think,
:
an
ignis feUuus.
The genies (Jinn) are described as ethereal creatures, endowed with speech, transparent (so that they are normally invisible), and capable of assuming various shapes.
Ill]
191
humankind,
And
The
fisher casts his net
in the stream
and draws
forth fish ;
And
a snare
corn.
fall in it for
And ravening monsters wreck the ships at sea, And lions in the jungle rend their prey, And in the air some birds, and in the wilds Some animals, hunt others. And thou seest Many a form besides, whose names I pass,
Putting
my
is
Before thine eye and in a moment fades. All thou beholdest is the act of one
In solitude, but closely veiled is he. Let him but lift the screen, no doubt remains: The forms are vanished, he alone is all;
And
Ibnu
Thou
thou, illumined, knowest that by his light find'st his actions in the senses' night 1
.
of Dante than of be compared with a passage (z, 323 foil.) where the author illustrates "the perpetual motion of the atoms going on beneath an appearance of absolute rest" by a picture "taken from the pomp of human affairs and the gay pageantry of " armies
'1-Farid
may
Praeterea magnae legiones cum loca cursu camporum complent belli simulacra cientes,
fulgor ibi ad caelum se tollit totaque circum acre renidescit tellus supterque uirum ut
excitur pedibus sonitus clamoreque montes icti reiectant uoces ad sidera mundi
et circumuolitant equites
192
[CH.
"The
and
fulness of
life
perceived, but the element of sublimity is added by the thought in the two lines with which the passage concludes, which reduces
et
tamen
est
quidam locus
altis
montibus unde
A similar and perhaps even more striking effect is produced when Ibnu 'l-Fari<J, after having brought before his readers the spectacle of restless life and strife which fills the world, at once transforms it into a vision of eternal order and
harmony
jo
if
**
it
is
In reading the Td'iyya it is a rare pleasure to meet with even ten or twenty consecutive lines like these, which require no commentary to interpret them. Yet the poem, as a whole, Those who blame a is not unduly cryptic in expression. writer for obscurity ought to ask themselves whether his meaning could have been given more clearly; and if so, whether he can allege good and sufficient reasons for his default. On these counts I think Ibnu '1-Farid will secure an acquittal, if we remember that he was bound by the poetic forms and fashions of his day. The obscurity does not lie in
his style so
much
How
little
may
mould
of speech 2
W.
Y.
:
Sellar,
Again when mighty legions fill with their movements all parts of the plains, waging the mimicry of war, the glitter then lifts itself up to the sky, and the whole earth round gleams with brass, and beneath a noise is raised by the mighty trampling of men, and the mountains stricken by the shouting re-echo the voices to the stars of heaven, and horsemen fly about and suddenly wheeling scour across the middle of the plains, shaking them with the vehemence of their charge. And yet there is some place on the high hills, seen from which they appear to stand still and to rest on the is a bright spot."
translation
"
give Munro's
Td'iyya,
v.
489.
in]
193
symbolism
may have
mask when
generally uses it as the only possible means of imparting mystical truth; and in his own circle, no doubt, it was understood readily enough. We, on the other hand, must begin by
learning
it
What makes
uncertain
is
mystical experience is psychological in character and throws but a faint light on his theological position. Was he really
a pantheist, or was he an orthodox mystic whose feeling of oneness with God expressed itself in the language of pantheism? Does the Td'iyya reflect the doctrines of Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, as its
commentators believe? Although such questions cannot be ignored by any one who attempts to translate or explain the poem, they are not easy to answer definitely. I have followed Kashani in the main nevertheless I regard his interpretation as representing a point of view which is alien to Ibnu 'l-Farid.
;
Logically, the mystical doctrine of ittihdd (Einswerdcn) leads to the pantheistic monism of Ibnu 'l-'Arabi; but those who
find in the Td'iyya a poetical version of that system are
confusing mysticism with philosophy. In some passages, 2 however, we meet with philosophical ideas and may draw inferences from them. While they do not appear to me to support the view that Ibnu 'l-Farid was a follower of Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, they imply pantheism and monism on the plane of
speculative thought, where commentators
1 2
and theologians
E.g. emanation (fayd) in vv. 403-5. The spiritual and sensible worlds derive their life from Universal Spirit and Universal Soul (v. 405; cf. v. 492). In v. 455 the Hallajian terms, IdMt (divinity) and ndsut (humanity) are used in the same way as by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi, to denote the inward and outward aspects of the Being with whom the "unified" mystic is one (cf. Massignon, Kitdb al-Tawdsin, p. 139). Allusions to the pre-existence of the
soul occur in vv. 41, 157-8, 428, 670 and 759. Unlike Jili, Ibnu 'l-Farid shows no sign of acquaintance with Ibnu 'l-'Arabi's philosophical terminology or, so far as I have observed, of being directly influenced by him in
any considerable
N. s. ii
degree.
13
194
[CH.
(not poets and mystics) are accustomed to dwell. I consider, therefore, that K.'s interpretation, false as it is to the spirit of the poem, places it in a medium intelligible to us and
conveys
its
meaning
in a relatively adequate form. And my once how the mystical content of the
Td'iyya as well as its philosophical implications are illusby the foregoing essay on the Insdnu '1-KdmiL Was Ibnu '1-Farid consciously a pantheist? I do not think
so.
But
in the
himself as having attained, he cannot speak otherwise than pantheistically he is so merged in the Oneness that he
:
identifies himself
now
own.
now with Mohammed (the Islamic Logos), with God, whose attributes he assumes and makes his
Many of these passages are such as no medieval religion but Islam would have tolerated, and we cannot wonder that he was charged with heresy. His opponents accused him of holding the doctrine of incarnation (hulid) and of pretending to be the Qutb. He disavows hulul and shows how it differs
from his own doctrine (vv. 277 most explicit reference occurs
Therefore
'tis
foil.).
As regards the
:
Qutb, the
in vv. 500-1
turn,
at their
is
central point. And there was no Qutb before me, whom I should succeed after having passed three grades (of sanctity), although the Awtdd rise to the rank of Qutb from the rank of BadaL
Here
is
(313):
;
And my
a spirit to all the spirits (of created beings) and whatsoever thou seest of beauty in the universe flows from the
bounty of
my
nature.
Evidently the poet declares himself to be one with the spiritual Qutb (the Logos), whom in v. 501 he distinguishes from the terrestrial Qutb (the head of the $iifi hierarchy). The latter presides over the visible world. On his death he is succeeded by one of the three saints known as Awtdd, who are next to him in dignity and have themselves risen from the
in]
195
ranks of the forty Abddl or Budald 1 The dominion of the spiritual Qutb, the real Pole (al-Qutbu 'l-haqiqi), extends over the created things of both the visible and invisible worlds. He
has neither predecessor nor successor, for he is the Spirit of Mohammed, i.e., the essence of Man and the final cause of creation 2 Ibnu '1-Farid, then, does not profess this heretical
.
doctrine
(qutbiyya,
qutbdniyya)
it.
in
ordinarily assign to
His "Poleship"
vicegerency delegated
by Mohammed
to the
supreme saint
of every age, but a pure consciousness of being one with the Spirit, who as the perfect image of God encompasses all things
My
poem
3
.
The
omitted passages are generally unimportant, but I have given a summary whenever I thought it would be of use.
ARGUMENT
The poem, addressed
to a real or imaginary disciple, sets
forth in due order the phases of mystical experience through which the writer passed before attaining to oneness with God,
it
a time
when
his love of
God was
the "intoxication" of
"sobriety" of a relapse into selfhood. He tells (8-83) how he sought the favour of the Beloved and related to her his sufferings, not by way of complaint
1
p. 214.
and the subordinate members of the Sufi hierarchy see Blochet, Etudes sur I'teoUvisme musulman in the Journal asiatique, vol. 20 (1902), p. 49 foil.;
ZDMG., vol. 7, p. 21 foil.; Flugel, Scha'vdnt und sein Werk uber die muhammadanische Glaubenslehre, ibid. vol.
Haneberg, Ali Abulhasan Schadeli in
20, p. 37 foil. 2 Cf. pp. 87
3
and 103 foil. have not been 574 verses out of a total of 761. The following verses translated: 111-114, H7-9, 122-125, 141-143, 164-167, I75-I93, *95622196, 265-276, 334-393, 503-505, 515-520, 549-574, 580-588, 602-613, 626, 632-636, 750-758.
132
196
for suffering
;
[CH.
them how he said that he was enraptured by her beauty, that he would never change, that he cared for nothing but her and for her sake had abandoned all. The Beloved answers (84-102), accusing him of insincerity and presumption. He is not really in love with her, but only with himself. If he would love her in truth, he must
die to
self.
In reply he protests that this death is his dearest wish and prays the Beloved to grant it, whatever pain it may cost
(103-116). Then, addressing the disciple, he describes his dying to self and its effects: how it has brought him great
glory, though he is despised by his neighbours and regarded as a madman; and how it has caused his love to be hidden
even from himself, his faculties to be jealous of one another, and his identity to be lost, so that in worshipping he feels that he is the object of worship (117-154). He proceeds to explain the mystery of his love, saying that he loved before the creation but was separated from his Beloved in this world, and that by casting-off his self-existence he has found her to be his own real self. There was no thought of merit in his
she accepted it (155-174). He exhorts the disciple to follow the via purgativa, by which mystics are prepared for the highest things, and describes how he himself disciplined
sacrifice, so
and nature of
two
analogous case of a woman the disciple to get rid of the illusion of dualism, and the mystery
will
As
may
then become clear to him. He says that this was the way by which he himself attained to his present state (204-238). He bids the disciple mark that all beauty is absolute. Every
fair
earthly form
is
in reality
(239-264).
he
notwithstanding his exalted degree, the duties of the religious law and occupies himself with voluntary works of devotion. Antinomianism
strictly fulfils
in]
197
would be consistent with belief in incarnation (hulul) but he does not hold that doctrine. His own doctrine is supported
by the Koran and the Apostolic Traditions (265-285). He calls on the disciple to follow him in the path of love, but warns him that he must not aspire to the supreme grade
of ittihdd,
333).
which
is
now
After a hymn of praise to the Beloved (336-387), he resumes the description of his oneness. His spirit and soul, which formerly drew him up and down between them, are in reality one with the Beloved, i.e., they are identified with
all.
forms of
and
sensible
life
are fed.
The image
of the Beloved
that he receives through sensation agrees with the image of her in his spiritual consciousness; and this is a proof that he is one with her. He says that she is presented to him by all that he sees, hears, tastes and touches.
He
describes par-
ticularly his listening to music: at that time he beholds her with his whole being and is riven asunder by the struggle of
his spirit to escape from the body; then dancing soothes him, and, as it were, rocks him to sleep (388-440).
Continuing, he declares that the state which he has now " reached is higher than "union (wisdl). He gained it through casting aside every vestige of self-regard. It was he who imposed the laws of religion on himself and was sent as an
apostle to himself before His overruling influence
earth.
in the world.
He is beyond alL-relations place, time, and number are gone; he has no rival or opposite; he is the object of his own worship. No change of state can now befall him the
:
and "sobriety" has been superseded by a permanent consciousness in which past and future are the same. He is the Pole (Qtitb) on which the universe
alternation of "intoxication"
revolves (441-501). He mentions, as a strange effect of his love, that he sought his Beloved in himself until he found that he was seeking
himself, so that in being united with himself he
embraced
his
own
essence (502-532).
Speaking
in the person of
God, he
198
[CH.
says that his attributes, names, and actions cannot be known except through himself, and that he cannot be known through
them. As the names of his external attributes, e.g., sight and hearing, which are really faculties of the soul, are derived from his organs of sensation, so the names of his inward attributes are ultimately derived from his (the Divine) essence. By means of the names God manifests Himself in
creation. Their qualities and the benefits which they confer on the body and the soul are described at some length (533574)-
He
is
interfused
Hence he
and each part has become absorbed in the whole. and infinitely. This is the explana-
tion of the miracles wrought by the prophets. Mohammed, the last of the prophets, not only summed up in himself all the marvellous powers of his predecessors but is the source from
which these powers were bestowed on the prophets before him and the Moslem saints after him. Ibnu '1-Farid, making himself one with the spirit of Mohammed, claims to be the father of Adam, the final cause of creation, and the origin of
life: all
creatures obey his will, speak his word, see with his
is
sight; he
spiritual (575-650).
forbids the disciple to believe in metempsychosis, pointing out that what appears in different forms is really the
e.g., Abu Zayd (the hero of Hariri's fiction) in all his disguises, the image in a mirror, the echo, the phantom seen in dream, and the figures shown by a shadow-lantern. He
He
same,
describes the various scenes of the shadow-play all of them the work of a single person behind a screen and likens the
soul to the
to the screen,
and the
figures
to the objects perceived in sensation. When the bodily screen is removed, the soul becomes unified (651-730). He says that faith and infidelity are not essentially
different.
The One God is adored in every form of worship by Moslems, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, even by idolaters those who go asti ay from Him are none the less seeking Him
it is
He
Hi]
199
destined for salvation or perdition. All is determined by the Divine will and is the effect of the Divine nature. This the soul
knows from
itself
(731-749).
the mysteries imparted to him, and concludes with the none living or dead has attained to such a
Saqatni humayya 'l-hubbi rdhatu muqlati wa-ka'si muhayyd man 'ani 'l-husni jallati
height as he (750-761).
The hand of mine eye gave me love's strong wine to drink, cup was the face of Her that transcendeth beauty, (2) And in my drunkenness, by means of a glance I caused my comrades to fancy that it was the quaffing of their wine that
(1)
when
my
gladdened
(3)
my
my inmost soul, Although mine eyes made me independent of my cup, and inebriation was derived from her qualities, not from my wine
;
my intoxication was the hour of my thanksgiving to youths through whom my love was completely hidden notwithstanding my celebrity (as a lover). (5) And when my sobriety was ended, I sought union with her, and no restraint of fear affected me in my boldness towards her,
(4)
(1) I.e. "my love arose from contemplation of Divine Beauty, which transcends phenomenal beauty" (husn). Cf. p. 90, note i. (2) "In order to disgujse my love and to guard myself against reproach, I let my comrades, i.e. the worshippers of material beauty, suppose that my love was of the same kind as theirs." (3) "But in fact my vision of Divine Beauty took away all desire to behold the form in which material beauty is contained, like wine in a cup." So K. rightly explains the verse, regarding al-hadaq (properly, "the blacks of the eyes") as equivalent to kadaqi, "my eyes." N., however, under" stands by al-hadaq " the darkness of phenomenal being and by qadahi ("my his the Divine to Essence verse cup") (cf. i). According interpretation, the poet means to say that whereas he formerly saw only the Divine Reality, and not phenomena, he had now reached the higher stage of seeing phenomena in their true relation to that Reality a relation symbolised by his description of them as the black of the all-encompassing Divine eye. " " the " youths are (4) "I render thanks to the votaries of vulgar love " the "comrades of verse 2 "because my being confused with them enables me to hide my love from the ignorant, though its real nature is well-known to mystics." N. gives an unsuitable explanation, viz. "In my ecstasy I praised the illustrious theosophists who taught me the mysteries of Divine Love, which are hidden from the vulgar." (5) The intoxication of ecstasy is associated with unreserve (bast); restraint (qabd) is characteristic of the return to consciousness (sobriety).
2OO
(6)
[CH.
And in
I felt,
when no continuance
of self-regard
was beside me
said
which
(7)
And
and
my
finding her
my state bearing witness to my ardent love, (in my heart) effacing me, whilst my losing her
for a
brings
(8)
me back
"
to myself
ere
Bestow on me the glance of one who turns Love makes pass away what remains in me (of
moment,
self-existence)
And
if
(10) For, because of my drunkenness, I have need of a recovery (from drunkenness) which, but for passion, would not break my heart.
felt what I suffer, and were Sinai would have been razed to the earth ere the amongst them, they
(n)
Had
the mountains
revelation
(6) Prof. Nallino (op. cit. p. 68) proposes to take baqd as an accusative of duration, but this seems to me unnecessary. The poet likens the continuance of self-regard b<*?? = b<*??u 'l-nafs (see Glossary to the Kitdb al-Luma') to the watcher (raqib) who prevents the lover from gaining
attributes.
The illuminated mystic suffers an effacement (majiw) of his human The restoration (ithbdt) of these attributes coincides with the
occultation of the Divine light in his heart. " Let me behold thee, ere my rapture makes (8)
so that
it
" Inasmuch as I desire vision, which cannot be attained in the state (10) of drunkenness (entire loss of self-consciousness), I have need of a return to as Moses, on sobriety; yet sobriety brings with it repentance (tawba) coming out of his swoon, cried, Glory to thee I turn to thee with repentance
' '
!
can no more behold thee." " If thou wilt not grant (9) to me, as thou didst once deny
I
me
it
to Moses (Kor.
139)."
(Kor.
and a renewal
The
of the anguish of love" (described in the "recovery" which the poet desires is not the heart-
breaking relapse into normal consciousness after ecstasy, but the state of abnormal consciousness and clairvoyance (technically known as "the second " sobriety or "the second separation ") which is characteristic of the unitive life at its highest level. Cf. notes on w. 213-4, 233-5, 479. (11) This verse alludes to the same passage of the Koran: "And when Motes came at our appointed time and his Lord spake unto him, Moses said, 'O Lord! let me see, that I may behold thee.' God answered, 'Thou shalt not see me. but look towards the mountain if it stand firm in its place, then shalt thou see me.' But when his Lord revealed himself to the mountain, he razed it to the earth, and Moses fell in a swoon."
:
in]
201
(12) A passion that only tears betrayed, and an inward ardency that increased the burning heats whose maladies brought
me
to ruin.
(13)
my tears, when I lament, and my bosom's glow. (14) But for my sighs, I should be drowned by my tears; and but for my tears, I should be burned by my sighs. (15) That (grief) which Jacob uttered is the least of my sorrow, and all the woe of Job is but a part of my affliction;
of
is like
The Flood
Noah
fire is like
(16)
of those
are
Had
suffered in the beginning of tribulation. the ear of guide heard moaning caused by
my
my
my
my body,
My
grief
would have
called to his
ready for the journey). (19) Anguish hath sorely oppressed and naughted me, and emaciation hath laid bare the secret of my true being;
(20)
upon
And in complaining of my leanness I made him who spied me my confidant, acquainting him with the sum of my
inmost feelings and with the particulars of my way (in love). (21) I appeared to him as an idea, while my body was in such
case that he
saw
;
it
consumed
of
it
(22) And though my tongue spake not, the hidden conceptions my soul revealed to his ear the mystery of that which my soul
Abraham, having broken his people's idols, was cast into a burning which by the command of God became cold and did him no harm (Kor.
foil.).
21, 52
K. explains that the "guide" is the person who reproaches the lover and tries to induce him to forget his beloved. According to N., the
(17)
"guide"
(20)
is
"the perfect
spiritual director."
signifies here the judgment or estimative faculty (wakm). Cf. verse 137. "My way of love" is K.'s rendering of sirati. N. defines it more explicitly as "my outward state," i.e., acts of worship and devotion, asceticism, piety and thanksgiving. (21) Or, reading wasfan for ma'nan, "I appeared to him only in virtue of my external attributes, such as my acts of devotion" (N.). (22) N. says: "This is the practice of the Naqshbandis at the present day. Whilst engaged in silent meditation, they converse spiritually and understand each other though no word is uttered."
202
[CH.
(23) And his ear became for my thought a mind, so that my thought was moving in his ear, which thereby stood him in stead
of ocular vision ;
(24)
my
inward
(25)
And he gave news of me to those in the tribe, setting forth state, for he knew me well. Twas as though the Recording Angels had come down to
him with knowledge
of
in
my
my
experience).
(26) He would not have known what I was covering and what was the guarded secret that my bosom hid, (27) But the drawing aside of the bodily veil disclosed the secret, which it had screened from him, of my inmost soul. (28) And I should have been invisible to him in respect of my secret unless my groans arising from the weakness of emaciation had divulged it, (29) So that I was made visible by a malady that hid me from him there is no strange thing but Love brings it to pass. (30) A sore anguish o'erwhelmed me, at whose stroke the
:
suggestions of my soul suggestions that betrayed me, like tears vanished into nothingness. (31) If hateful death had sought me, it would not have known
where
I was, since I was concealed by concealing thee (or 'by thy love's concealing me').
my
love for
(32)
didst either avert thyself in repulse or display thyself in presence. (33) And were my heart sent back to me from thy court, to
redeem
(24)
i.e. my uff brethren. that hid me from him": cf. verse 21. (3-33) In these verses the poet describes the passing-away (/and) of " the phenomenal self in the rapture of love. " Like tears cf. verse 12. (32) His ecstasy was the result of successive states of Divine manifestation (tajalli) and occultation (tawalli). Instead of "presence" (hcufra) N. reads "favour" (hu?wa). (33) According to K., "the abode of my exile" means this phenomenal existence by which the heart is separated from God. N., taking li-fand'i " in the sense of ildfand'i, If my heart were paraphrases the verse as follows sent back from the sphere of thy most beautiful Names (the Divine Attributes) to the original state of non-existence in which I was before I manifested the light of thy real Being, which is the sphere of the most
(29)
"A malady
beautiful
Names,
it
non-existence)."
The poet
of my exile (i.e. my original (he says) describes this original state as "exile/'
Ill]
(34)
203
is
(only) the
frontispiece of
my state
'tis
beyond
underneath;
(35) And, being unable, I refrain from (speaking of) many matters; they shall not be recounted by my speech, and even if I
would be few.
the cooling of
should
burning drought
(37)
my
remaining). heart is more threadbare than the garments of endurance; nay, my selfhood is linked with my pleasure in
And my
its
respect of
(38)
am), and
of
me Love had me
except
I
allowed to survive, (39) Their eyes would not have beheld anything of a spirit pervading the garments of a dead man.
(40)
And
ever since
my
wan-
dered distraught, I had vain imaginings about my thought could not lay hold upon it.
(41)
my
existence, but
And
if
after this,
my feelings
thee became
self-
he returned to it, it would seem strange to him after his long a very forced interpretation, I think. (35) "Few," i.e. in comparison with the whole. Another rendering is "they would be little," i.e. less than they are in reality, but this does not in preserve the natural antithesis of kathirat and qallat. (36) "My cure was on the point of death" (K.) or "became incurable" (N.), i.e. I could not possibly be cured, because the presence of the beloved, which relieves pain, also kindles in me a fiercer flame of love. (37) "Myfand is so complete that not only do I feel no pleasure but my very selfhood (dhdt) has vanished." (38) The "visitors" are the sick man's friends who come to see how he is. On the Guarded Tablet (al-Lawhu 'l-mahfuz) are inscribed the archebecause,
absence
types of
(39)
"i.e.
all
oculi cordis. "The garments of a dead man": K. says, members of my body, which are the vesture of my dead soul sometimes has this (nafs}." The word for "garments" (athwdb or thiydb) meaning in non-mystical Arabic poetry. Ibnu '1-Farid indicates that Love has left in him nothing except what is immortal and incorruptible, namely,
"Eyes,"
the
his spirit (ruh), which belongs to the Unseen World. " Since thought searches in vain after (40) passing-away (fund)
my
my
my
of
lost self."
(41) My love of God is not a property of my perishable self (nafs), but my spirit (nU); otherwise the rtih would be dependent on the nafs, which
"
204
[CH.
is
subsistent (independent of my phenomenal being) my proof fact that my spirit existed before my mortal frame.
(42)
I
the
told
impatience
assuage
(43)
in of
my my
sufferings,
my
Tis good to show fortitude towards enemies, but in the presence of loved ones aught save weakness is unseemly. (44) The excellence of my patience keeps me from complaining, though if I complained to my enemies of what I feel, they would do away with my complaint.
(45)
And
if I
the issue of
my
is
praise-
endure the sorrows thou layest on me; but worthy to be separated from thee, it is not praiseworthy.
(46)
if I
endure
Whatever woe
befalls
me
is
a favour, inasmuch as
my
my
vows;
(47) So for every pain in love, when it arises from thee, I give thanks instead of complaining. (48) Ay, and if the agonies of passion do me despite, yet are they reckoned in love as a kindness; (49) And my unhappiness, nay, my tribulation is a bounty
when wrought by
sake
is
thee,
and
my
me
of slaves,
treasures.
(51)
is
One of them a
"God
Tradition,
Cf. the it existed before the creation of the body." created the spirits two thousand years before the bodies." According to N., the poet associates his love with his original state of nonexistence, i.e. when he existed only in the eternal knowledge of God. This verse explains why love continues after the passing-away (fand) of the lover. (46) The clause, "inasmuch as, etc." conveys an intimation that it is only to the constant lover that afflictions are favours in disguise. (49) K. says: "He rejects the word 'unhappiness' (s>haqd) and substitutes 'tribulation' (bald), because the sufferings of love are not an
unhappiness, but a trial and probation, which is a mark of regard (iltifdt) on the part of the Beloved towards the lover and is therefore the very essence of happiness." (50) "My ancient fealty ": see note on verse 69. "The best of treasures," because they were the predestined means by which my love was tried. (51) This verse is variously read. I translate li-'izzat'* in the first hemistich and li-ghayrati in the second. According to K., the "railer" is
ill]
205
me
about
because of jealousy. (52) oppose that one in his blame, from fear (of God), and ally myself with this one in his meanness, from caution.
I
(53)
me
And my
which
I
face
of that
therein,
(54)
harm
that smote
me
thee
of
Although in bearing what hath befallen me on account of have no patience that tends to praise of me or to the lauding
;
my love
(55)
calls
ordained that
sequel of
(56)
should endure
all
my
It
to
most perfect
(57)
my
gavest
it
it
most glorious of distinctions; (58) For when one is snared by Beauty, methinks his soul (even) from the most delicious life is (gladly) rendered up to death. (59) A soul that thinks to meet with no suffering in love, when
it
addresses
itself to love, is
spurned.
the Devil, who in the guise of a candid friend seeks to draw the pilgrim into the path of sensuality, while the "slanderer" is the Angel, who exhorts him to piety and other-worldliness, thereby diverting him from his love of the Divine Essence. Cf the passage in the Koran (2, 28), where the angels, being jealous of Adam, maligned him and said to God, "Wilt Thou place on the " See also note on earth (as Thy vicegerent) one who will do evil there ? verse 400. (52) "I resist the Devil because I should be separated from God, if I were to succumb to his wiles; but not the Angel, because I am afraid of letting him know my real aspiration." The Angel is described as "mean," for he attributes the love and wrath of God to secondary causes, such as obedience and disobedience he thinks, e.g., that Adam's sin was the cause of his incurring the Divine anger whereas in truth God's love and wrath are eternal and uncaused. The poet, though professing to agree with the Angel, keeps to himself the higher knowledge to which none but mystics can attain, who love God not as the Lord of Paradise, but as the Essence of all
.
that exists.
(55-57) ''Thy beauty called me to union with thee, and since union with thee requires complete detachment from the phenomenal self a result which cannot be secured without much suffering thou didst cause my suffering to appear to me in the form of thy beauty." " Death," i.e. fand. (58)
206
(60)
[CH.
No spirit
any
that was given repose ever gained love, nor did life ever win devotion.
!
garden of Eden
how far is it from the life of a lover The compassed about with terrors. a soul that would not forget thee (62) Mine is a noble soul offer shouldst thou even though it, on condition of forgetting thee,
(61)
Tranquillity
is
what
is
beyond
its
wishes
would not let go the true love I bear, even far (from thee) by scorn and absence and removed it were though hatred and the cutting off of hope. in love, and if (64) I have no way of departing from my Way ever I shall turn aside from it, I shall abandon my religion (65) And had a thought of fondness towards any one save thee come into my mind unawares, I should have pronounced myself
(63)
soul that
a heretic.
for
(66) Tis for thee to give judgment in my case. Do as thou wilt, my feeling towards thee was ever desire, not aversion. (67)
I swear by the firm pact of love between us, which was not with alloyed any imagination of annulment and 'tis the best of oaths (68) And by thy taking the covenant of troth in a place where
I
my
soul
was clothed
in the
shadow
(69)
(61)
my
clay,
the primal pledge that never was changed since I of Eden, etc.": this sentence is borrowed from a Tradition of the Prophet "Paradise is encompassed with things disliked, and Hell with things desired," i.e. Paradise is reached only by passing
And by
"The garden
Mohammedan
faith.
ill]
207
for
plighted
any
frailty to loose,
(70)
And by
splendour caused
(71)
all
the rising of thy radiant countenance, whose the full moons to become invisible,
fairest
(72)
is
And by the quality of thy maj esty with which my torment pleasant to me and my being slain is sweet; (73) And by the mystery of thy beauty, whereby all loveliness
is
in the world
manifested and
fulfilled;
(74) And by thy comeliness which captivates the mind and which guided me to a love wherein my abasement for thy glory's
And by an
:
which
beheld through
idea in thee beyond comeliness an idea itself, too subtle to be apprehended by the
my
heart,
my
search,
of
my
aim, and
my
choice
chosen.
(77)
I
though
my modesty for thy sake, even my folk shrink from approaching me and shamelessness is
;
my
me
law.
(79)
And no
folk of
with
my
recklessness
mine are they, so long as they find fault and show hatred and deem it right to abuse
its
for
(70)
is
hidden by
of the lunar month, so the Divine attributes are eclipsed by the splendour of the Essence which reveals them. (71-73) In these verses the poet describes the three main aspects, in one
all the Divine attributes, except those that are purely be regarded: viz. perfection (kamdl), majesty (jaldl), and beauty (jamdl). "The fairest and shapeliest form" is the Perfect Man (al-insdnu 'l-kdmil), who was created in God's image. "Fulfilled," i.e. through the love that Divine beauty inspires. i.e. Absolute Beauty (75) "An idea in thee beyond comeliness" (husn)
or other of which
essential,
may
(jamdl).
(77)
p. 56).
is
cit.
removal would alter the numeration of the verses from this point to the end of the poem. who devote (79) "They who find fault, etc." i.e. the exoteric Sufis, themselves to asceticism and religious works and dislike mystical enthusiasm.
Having translated
it,
208
(80)
[CH.
My fellows in
who
love and
;
they have approved my ignominy and thought well of my disgrace. (81) Let who will be wroth, save only thee: there is no harm their anger), when the noble of my kin are pleased with me. (in
(82)
If
by some
of the beauties
that are thine, everything in thee is the source of my fascination. (83) And I never was bewildered until I chose love of thee as
religion.
Woe
!
is
me
for
account of thee
"
my
bewilderment, had
it
not been on
(84) She said, "Another's love thou hast sought and hast taken the wrong path, forsaking in thy blindness the highway unto me.
(85)
And
beguiled thee so that thou saidst what thou saidst, putting on thereby the shame of falsehood,
(86)
And
most precious
of
that crossed
(87)
bound and
trespassed.
by means of pretence, which is the worst of qualities? (88) Where is Suha to a man blind from birth who
(80) of Sufis
in
who are known as the Malamatfs, because they deliberately acted such a way as to incur blame (maldmat). See Kashf al-Mahjtib (transla-
(81) According to K., the words "when the noble of my kin, etc." arc a half-verse composed by another poet and inserted by Ibnu '1-Farid as a quotation (iatfmin). (82) While ascetics love God for His mercy and for the blessings which He bestows on them now and hereafter, true mystics love Him for all His attributes, since they behold the beauty of His essence in all His manifestations in His wrath and vengeance no less than in His mercy and
forgiveness.
(83) Bewilderment (bayra) when caused by letting the eye wander in different directions, is pernicious; but praiseworthy, when it is the result of gazing concentratedly on the beauty of the Beloved. The latter is characteristic of
increase
one who has lost himself in Divine contemplation. "O Lord, " bewilderment was a famous Stiff's prayer. "The most (86) precious of boons," i.e. Divine Love. "Crossed its bound," because the appetitive soul (nafs) has no object beyond its own
my
gratification.
and
(88) To win Divine Love by false pretences is as impossible as to be blind see the star Suha, which is so small and obscure that only the keenest
it.
in]
209
confusion has forgotten what he seeks? Nay, thy vain hopes have
duped
thee,
(89)
inferior,
So that thou stoodest in a position to which thy rank was on a foot that overstepped not its own province,
!
(90) And soughtest a thing towards which how many stretched out their necks and were beheaded
(91)
Thou
didst
come
by
their
back parts and whose doors are closed against the knocking
like thee;
of
one
(92) And thou didst lay (as an offering) before thy converse (with me) mere tinsel, aiming thereby at a glory whose ends are hard to reach ;
(93)
face,
And thou earnest to woo my pure love with a shining not letting thine honour be lost in this world or in the
But hadst thou been with me
b,
next;
as the kasra below the dot thou wouldst have been raised to a rank that thine own effort did not gain for thee, (95) Where thou wouldst see that what thou didst (formerly) regard is not worth a thought, and that what thou didst provide is no (sufficient) provision.
(94)
of the letter
(96)
To
those
me is
plain,
but
all
who are rightly guided the straight road unto men are made blind by their desires.
(89) "On a foot, etc." i.e. relying on thy lower self (nafs), which never transcends the sphere of its selfish interests. (91) Cf. Kor. 2, 185: "It is not righteousness that ye should come into houses (tents) by the back parts thereof." The back parts of the House of Love, through which none can enter it, are egoism and self-conceit; the door that lets in those worthy of admission is self-abandonment (fund).
" Instead of (92) being ready to sacrifice thy existence as an individual in the hope of attaining unto me, thou broughtest me nothing but thine
own
acts
feelings."
lover has no regard for his name and fame. Cf. the Tradition, "Spiritual poverty is blackness of the face in both worlds." (94) "As the kasra, etc." i.e. having no independent existence, but which is always written subsisting only through God. Kasra is the vowel
(93)
The true
under the consonant that it belongs to. The letter b (^) denotes the form of phenomenal being, just as the letter a (I) denotes the form of Real Being; while the dot of the b symbolises contingency as opposed to absoluteness. Hence the mystical saying, "Existence was manifested by means of b, and the worshipper was distinguished from the Worshipped by
means
N.
of the dot."
(96)
"The
S. II
straight road,"
i.e.
selflessness (/ana).
*4
2io
(97)
it is
[CH.
time that
art
reveal (the nature of) thy love, and who by a denial of thy claim to love me.
love,
(98)
Thou
sworn to
but to love of
self
amongst
my
proofs (of this) is the fact that thou sufferest one of thy attributes to remain in existence.
(99)
For thou
away
is
in
me and
;
lov'st me not, so long as thou hast not passed thou hast not passed away, so long as my form
something
(is
Cease, then, pretending to love, and call thy heart to else, and drive thy error from thee by that (state) which
the best).
(101)
'tis far oft and was never and thou art If thou art sincere, die lo, (in life), living. Such is Love if thou diest thou wilt not win thy will not, (102) " of the Beloved in aught. Then choose death or leave my love alone!
:
reached
(103)
said to her,
it
How
should
I
be in
'tis
it.
(104)
am
:
am
always
my nature refuses aught else. What I hope to be said of me except 'Such a one should (105) died of love'? Who will ensure me of that (death)? for it is that
true (to death)
I
seek.
my
(107)
And
if I
shall not
thee, because
it is
too high, I
am
content with
my
pride in being
'1
(100) "That (state) which (is the best)," i.e. the complete passing-away (fand) of the self (nafs). So N., but K. renders "that (quality) which (is the " Do not pretend best)," namely, veracity. In this case the meaning will be to love, but give thy passion its true name, and let veracity purge thee of thy
:
false pretensions."
Shun the quarter of union " cf note on ( 101 ) of "union" (wasl) see note on verse 441. (107) Cf. p. 171, 1. 25 foil.
: .
"
v.
98.
in]
(108)
211
And if I
have done no wrong to a soul that delights in martyrdom (109) And if thou wilt spill my blood in vain and I shall not be reckoned a martyr, 'tis grace enough for me that thou shouldst
know
the cause of
my
death.
(no) Methinks, my spirit is not worth so much that it should be offered in exchange for union (wisdl) with thee, for it is too threadbare to be prized."
The poet then refers to the warning that he must show his sincerity by dying to self. Does the Beloved threaten him
with death?
(115) "To me thy menace is a promise, and its fulfilment is the wish of an affianced lover who stands firm against the blows of
all
fear: succour
By
God
life
in
(baqd).
(120)
she lets
established
my rank on the heights of glory and eminence. (121) By my life, though I lose my life in exchange for her
am
it
love, I
make
if
away
my
But
an inward
glory,
of ignominy.
142
212
[CH.
The following lines, curiously subtle in their psychology and phrasing, represent the "self" (nafs) as desiring Divine
Love, but keeping
perception.
(130)
its
desire
of
mental
My
my
heart alone, where the intellect was unable to spy upon it (131) For I feared that the tale, if it were told, would transport
the rest of me, so that the language of
secret.
(132)
was misleading part of me (my intellect), but hiding it was really my speaking the truth.
(133)
it
my
falsehood in
(intuitive)
to
my
(my mental
I
faculties), I
reflection,
(134)
And
did
my
my heart.
all love's
it
And if in planting those desires I shall pluck God bless a soul that suffered for its desires,
Since of
(136)
is
that
it
whereby she
to suffer.
(137)
who caused
set,
remember and
forget
them
willed
She
to
me
guard her, one taken from myself who the amorous approach of my spiritual
thoughts
(138)
And if they, unperceived by the mind, steal into my heart without hindrance, I cast down mine eyes in reverent awe.
(130) The nafs cannot love God purely and disinterestedly: therefore the poet does not say that it loves, but only that it desires to love. It communicates this desire to the sirr the organ of mystical contemplation, Eckhart's "ground of the soul" but withholds it from the intellect ('aql). rm i.e. concealment is one of the signs of (132) "My falsehood, etc."
t
love.
(134) The words "I was caused to forget" indicate the higher stage of unconsciousness that is produced in the mystic by an act of the Divine will, when his own will has entirely ceased. (138) Wahm, here rendered by "mind," is properly the faculty of judgment, which by its activity prevents the thought of God (khdfiru 'l-haqq), ng in the ground of the soul (sirr), from penetrating into the heart " " watcher (qalb). For this reason it is depicted in the preceding verse as a
(murdqib).
in]
(139)
213
my hand
Mine eye is turned back if I seek but one glance, and if be stretched forth to take freely (its will of her), it is
restrained.
(140) Thus in every limb of me is an advance prompted by hope, and in consequence of the awe born of veneration a retreat
prompted by
fear.
The poet now attempts to describe the mystical union of the lover with the Beloved.
(144)
Tis
my
being crazed with love of her that makes me when I recognise my worth (to be naught), I
spirit is rapt in ecstatic
disown
my
I
jealousy,
(145)
And my
though do not acquit my soul of conceiving a desire. (146) Mine ear sees her, far though she be from the eye, in the form of blame which visits me in my hours of waking, (147) And when she is mentioned, mine eye deems mine ear lucky, and the part of me that remains (in consciousness) envies
the part that she has caused to pass away. (148) In reality I led my Imam (leader in prayer), and all mankind were behind me. Wheresoever I faced, there was my
(true) direction.
but
Whilst I prayed, mine eye was seeing her in front of me, heart was beholding me in front of all my Imams. my And no wonder that in conducting the prayer the Imam (150)
(149)
my heart
dwelt she
who
is
the qibla of
my qibla,
(151) And that towards me had faced all the six directions with their whole contents of piety and greater and lesser pil-
grimage.
spirit (riih) attain to Cf. p. 180.
(144-5) Jealousy involves duality, and not until it is denied can the oneness with God. Complete spiritual oneness is incompatible with the desire of the soul (nafs) for vision.
(146) (148)
The
following lines describe a unitive state in which the mystic, realises his essential oneness with the
"My qibla" is the point to which Moslems face when they pray, the Ka'ba, which (like every other created thing) turns in worship towards the Being who endues it with existence. (151) "The six directions" are above, below, before, behind, right and
left.
214
in
[CH.
(152) To her I address my prayers at the Maqam, and behold them that she prayed to me. (153) Both of us are a single worshipper who, in respect of the united state, bows himself to his essence in every act of bowing. (154) None prayed to me but myself nor did I pray to any one
but myself in the performance of every genuflexion. (1^5) How long shall I keep to the veil? Lo, I have rent it Twas in my bond of allegiance that I should loose the loops of the
!
curtains.
(156)
I
was given
state.
to
me at the
(157)
I
my
my primal
sight nor
(158)
where
is
gained my fealty to her neither by hearing nor by by acquisition nor by the attraction of my nature, But I was enamoured of her in the world of command, no manifestation, and my intoxication was prior to my
(in
appearance
(159) The attributes dividing us which were not subsistent there (in the world of command) Love caused to pass away here
(in
the created world), and they vanished; (160) And I found that which I cast off going out of
me
unto
me and
i.e. the standing-place of Abraham, is a rock (152) situated to the east of the Ka'ba. (153) In mystical union the unity of Being is revealed: worshipper and Worshipped are distinguished only as aspects of one reality. (156) Those who interpret this verse according to the doctrine of Ibnu " I was 'l-'Arabi take the meaning to be pledged to love God before the
me
with an increase,
creation of Time when all things, though not yet objectified in material forms, existed as objects of knowledge in the Divine essence." God did not become " manifest to His creatures until at the word "Be they issued forth from the Divine essence (which from this point of view is named "the world of com!
mand ")
Ibnu
op.
cit.
It is
refers to the pledge taken by every soul, before its earthly existence, to love God for evermore. See note on verse 69. (158) "The world of command" is the invisible or intelligible world.
535
foil.
"
Divine Love enables the mystic to rid himself of the attributes of which hinder him from attaining to union with God. (160) The complement and consummation of death to self (fand) is everlasting life in God (baqd). In this life the lost attributes are restored, but "with an increase," i.e. they have been "deified" and display themselves in the eternal process of Divine manifestation, " going out of me," i.e. from the undiffcrentiated Unity, "unto me," i.e. to Unity in plurality, and again re(159)
self
ill]
215
(161) my contemplation (of the Divine essence) I beheld myself endowed with the attributes by which I was veiled
from myself during my occultation, (162) And I saw that I was indubitably she whom I loved, and that for this reason my self had referred me to myself. (163) My self had been distraught with love for itself unawares, though in my contemplation truth of the matter.
it
of the
Continuing Ibnu '1-Farid shows that the railer and the slanderer (who symbolise respectively the sensual and intellectual attributes of the self) are in reality one with the Lover-
Beloved. He next explains more fully what he meant when he spoke of the passing-away (fand) of these attributes (v. 159), and describes the successive stages by which his self
(nafs) was gradually stripped bare of all the affections that stood between him and a purely disinterested love.
(
168)
upon her as
(169)
I
sought to approach her by sacrificing my self, reckoning my recompense and not hoping for any (other) reward
me nigh. offered readily what was mine (of promised bliss) in the world to come and what she might peradventure give to me
(of
her grace),
(170) And with entire disinterestedness I put behind regard for that (self-sacrifice), for I was not willing that
me any
my
self
should be
my
beast of burden.
(171) I sought her with poverty, but since the attribute of poverty enriched me I threw away both my poverty and my wealth. turning "from me," i.e. from the One in the Many to the One who remains when the Many have passed away. (161) "In my contemplation," i.e. in the state of baqd after fand. "During my occultation," i.e. in the state preceding fand, when the mystic is veiled by his phenomenal attributes from his real self. (162) Cf. the Tradition, "He who knows himself knows his Lord/'
(163) So long as the self is attached to its desires, it is blind to its real nature, which is only revealed to it when God is the sole object of contemplation.
' '
' '
(170)
I.e.
my
goal
by means
of anything
directly or indirectly connected with self." The commentator quotes Tradition, "Honour the animals which ye offer in sacrifice, for they will carry you across the Bridge of Sirat (into Paradise)."
the
(171)
He who
self as possessing
is truly poor (in the mystical sense) does not regard himanything whatever not even poverty.
216
(172)
[CH.
My
And
throwing away
:
my
it
me
the merit of
(173)
in
my quest my discarding
therefore I discarded
my own
my
reward was she who rewarded me, nothing else. (174) And through her, not through myself,
unto her those who by themselves had 'twas she that (really) guided them.
The following verses (175-196) show the poet as a director of souls, preaching unselfishness, poverty, humility, and repentance; exhorting his disciple to lose no time and to " beware of saying "To-morrow I will work bidding him shun
;
vainglory and ambition pointing out that the true gnostic is silent inasmuch as the mysteries revealed to him are in;
must
and
(194) Be sight (not a seer) and look be hearing (not a hearer) retain (what is heard) be a tongue (not a speaker) and speak,
;
;
way of union (with the Beloved) is the best. The detachment or isolation (tafrid) of the soul from desires and affections costs bitter pain.
for the
all
(197) Formerly my soul was reproachful: when I obeyed her, she disobeyed me, or if I disobeyed her, she was obedient to me. (198) Therefore I brought her to that of which (even) a part was harder than death and I fatigued her that she might give me
rest,
(199)
her,
laid
upon
she grieved. (200) And I loaded her with tasks, nay, I took care that she should load herself with them, until I grew fond of my tribulation.
lightened
it
and
(172-3) It is not enough to regard one's self as possessing nothing: the thought that such a state of mind is meritorious must be eliminated. (194) In the unitive state (jam ) it is God that sees, hears, and speaks through the mystic, who has become His organ of sight, hearing, and
1
speech. (197)
it is still
The epithet
"
"
reproachful
(lawwdma)
is
with the passions; after these have been engaged " vanquished, it is called "calm (mufma'inna). During the former condition the soul is disobedient (sinful) if its desires are complied with, and obedient (virtuous) if they are thwarted.
in the struggle
ill]
217
removing her from her habits, and she became calm. (202) No terror remained before her but I confronted it, so long as I beheld that my soul therein was not yet purged, (203) And every stage that I traversed in my progress was an 'ubudiyya which I fulfilled through 'ubuda.
When
the soul
is
it is
made one with God. In the first verse of the following passage
the feminine pronoun, which has hitherto referred to the soul
either as reproaching itself for its actions
and
desires or as
being in passionless calm, undergoes a change of meaning, so that "she," who stood for an individual, now denotes the Universal Self.
(204)
Until then
of her, but
when
:
renounced
not
my
me
for herself
(205) And I became a beloved, nay, one loving himself like what I said before, that soul is beloved.
my
my
went forth from myself to her and came not back to myself: one like me does not hold the doctrine of
(206)
Through her
return.
(207)
And
going forth,
again,
(208)
in generous pride I detached my soul from my and consented not that she should consort with me
And
of
of)
the
detachment
I
my
my
(disturbed)
by showing any
viduality).
relation of (203) Both 'ubudiyya and 'ubuda (which literally signify the a slave to his master) are phases of mystical devotion. In 'ubudiyya the mystic is concerned with the means of drawing nigh to God, e.g. with asceticism, quietism, and the like; in 'ubuda, which is the fulfilment and consummation of 'ubudiyya, he rises above egoism and loses himself in the
Lord. becomes an object of (204-5) In ceasing to will for himself the mystic the Divine will, i.e. a beloved, and that which loves him is no other than his " " real self. The words my soul (self) is my beloved refer to verse 98 (" Thou the mystic is described as in which of but to love to art sworn love, self"), loving himself, because he still clings to his individuality.
will of his
with God, (206-8) Separation from the self, i.e. union of the self. act not Divine by any grace, by
is
brought about
218
[CH.
In a passage of high eloquence and beauty the poet endeavours to analyse his experience of the unitive state and reveal
the mystery, so far as
I will
it
unfold the beginning of my oneness and will (209) Lo, it to its end in a lowly descent from my exaltation. bring
(210)
I
In unveiling herself she unveiled Being to mine eye, and my sight in every seen thing.
that in
And when she appeared, I was brought to contemplate me that is hidden, and through the displaying of my
;
found there that I was she existence vanished in my contemplation and (212) became separated from the existence of my contemplation
secret place I
And my
effacing
(213)
it,
my intoxication I retained the object which, during the effacement of my self-existence, I contemplated in her by whom it was revealed,
(214) So that in the sobriety after self-effacement I was none other than she, and when she unveiled herself my essence became endued with my essence. (215)
And in
are hers,
(216)
and
(my essence) is not called two," my attributes since we are one, her outward aspect is mine. If she be called, 'tis I who answer, and if I am summoned,
it
When
"
(209) Perfect oneness ultimately involves "a descent from union (jam') to separation (lafriqa) and from the Essence to the Attributes, that the saint may repair the disorder of the phenomenal world and instruct those who seek the Truth, yet without losing real union with the Divine Essence; nay, he must unite in himself both union and separation, both Essence and Attri-
butes"
Mystics of I^lam, p. 163, and note on verse 218 infra. of oneness with God is God's revelation of Himself to the mystic, which causes fand, so that he sees the unveiled face of God (i.e. Real Being) in the mirror of phenomena. (212) "I became separated from the existence of my contemplation," .*. "I passed away from (became unconscious of) my contemplation." (213) The object retained and unceasingly contemplated in the sobriety (mystical clairvoyance) following intoxication (ecstasy) is the inward and " real self the hidden " I which in the preceding moment of ecstasy was contemplated in God. Cf. note on vv. 233-5. (214) Intoxication or self-effacement is only the beginning of oneness (ittihdd). Perfect oneness is attained in sobriety, when the self, having been restored to consciousness, knows itself as the Divine Essence which reveals " itself to itself. This is the state of "abiding after passing-away (al-baqd
(K.). Cf.
my
(210)
The beginning
Ill]
219
me, and
cries
And if she
'tis
speak,
'tis I
who
converse. Likewise,
I tell
a story,
(218)
she that
tells it.
between
The pronoun of the second person has gone out of use and by its removal I am raised above the sect who separate (the One from the Many). (219) Now if, through want of judgment, thy understanding
us,
it,
cause indications of
it like
it,
to demonstrate
(221)
explain
it
expressions that are clear to thee; And, since this is not the time for ambiguity, I will by means of two strange illustrations, one derived from
I will establish
And
what
(223) The parable of a woman smitten with catalepsy, by whose mouth, whilst she is possessed by a spirit, another not she gives news to thee; (224) And from words uttered on her tongue by a tongue that is not hers the evidences of the signs are shown to be true, (225) Since it is known as a fact that the utterer of the wondrous sayings which thou heardest is another than she, though in
done by God
(221)
in them.
illustration drawn from hearing (oral tradition) is the Prophet's vision of Gabriel in the form of Dihya (verse 280 foil.), while the parallel analogy from ocular experience is the case of "a woman smitten with catalepsy" (verse 223 foil.). (2235) may be worth while to summarise the commentator's explanation of the argument. Itti^dd, he says, means that Absolute Being overwhelms the being of the individual creature so as entirely to deprive him of the exercise of his faculties he appears to will and act, when he is really the organ through which God wills and acts. To the objection that such a thing is impossible the poet replies by pointing to what occurs in catalepsy; and he makes a woman the subject of his illustration because the
The
22O
(226)
[CH.
feel
intuitively the truth of what I said; (227) But, didst thou but know it, thou wert devoted to secret
polytheism with a soul that strayed from the guidance of the Truth (228) And he in whose love the unification of his beloved is
;
not accomplished
falls
fire
of separation
from
his beloved.
(229)
and
if
Naught save otherness marred this high estate of thine, thou wilt efface thyself thy claim to have achieved it will be
established indeed.
(230) Thus was I myself for a time, ere the covering was lifted. Having no clairvoyance, I still clave to dualism, (231) Now losing (myself) and being united (with God) through contemplation, now finding (God) and being sundered (from
My
intellect,
(with myself),
my my
presence
depriva-
female sex, on account of the weakness of their minds and their general passivity (inft'dl), are especially liable to seizures of that kind. Now, the body of a woman suffering from catalepsy is evidently controlled by the Jinn her own personality (nafs) is, for the time, defunct (ma'zul) otherwise, how could she foretell future events and speak in a language that she never knew, e.g. in Arabic though she be a foreigner, and in a foreign language though she be an Arab ? If this relation can exist between a woman and a Jinnf, notwithstanding the difference of their forms and qualities and notwithstanding that both of them are helpless contingent beings, surely none will deny that it may exist between the omnipotent Creator and the creature whom He has created in His own image. (226) Although the possibility of ittihdd can be proved from analogy, knowledge of its real nature depends on the unity (wa^da) or simplification (ifrdd) of the self which is effected by stripping it of attributes and relations. Cf. verse 197 foil. K. renders mundzalaP* by "intuition" (contrasted with logical demonstration), but the word may be used here in its ordinary sense, namely, "a permanent state of mystical feeling." See the Glossary to my edition of the Kitdb al-Luma', p. 151. (227) "Secret polytheism" (shirk), i.e. latent self-regard which hinders the mystic from becoming entirely one with God.
: :
self
i.e.
thinking of one's
(231-2) These verses can hardly be translated. The language of Islamic mysticism abounds in pairs of correlative terms, e.g. "losing" and "finding," "presence" and "absence," "intoxication" and "sobriety," which are not merely artificial antitheses but express the fact that, as has been well said, "the inner life of the Sufi is in large measure a swinging to and fro between opposite poles" (K. Hartmann, Al-Kuschairts Darstellung des SAfttums,
p. 8).
Cf. note
on
vv.
481-2.
ni]
221
tion (of individuality), through the enravishment of existence by absence (from myself), was uniting
my
me
self-
my
(with
God).
(233)
I
intoxication
used to think that sobriety was my nadir, and that was my way of ascent to her (the Beloved), and that
my
self-effacement
(234)
restored
was the farthest goal I could reach; But when I cleared the film from me, I saw myself to consciousness, and mine eye was refreshed by the
by a recovery from
so that (now) dividuality
= tafriqa,
my second separation I was enriched my impoverishment (self-loss) in drunkenness, my union (jam') is like my unity (wahda, inseparation).
(236) Therefore mortify thyself that thou mayst behold in thee and from thee a peace beyond what I have described a peace born of a feeling of calm.
(233-5) For the expressions used in
v.
i/.
233
cf.
729. Here Ibnu '1-Farid, writing as an adept, declares that the state of " ecstatic rapture, which Sufis call "intoxication and " self-effacement," is inferior to the subsequent state of conscious clairvoyance, which they describe
as "sobriety." Cf. Kashfal-Mahjub, transl., p. 184 foil. I cannot agree with Prof. Nallino, who thinks (op. cit. p. 73) that "sobriety" in v. 233 refers to normal and non-mystical consciousness. The meaning of the words "but when I cleared the film from me, etc." is explained by the commentator thus
:
"Existence (wujtid) is a veil (hijdbghayn, film) in the beginning of the mystic life, and also in its middle stage, but not in its end. The mystic is veiled in the beginning by the outward aspect of existence (i.e. created things) from its inward aspect (i.e. God), while in the middle stage (i.e. the period of intoxication during which he has no consciousness of phenomena) he is veiled by its inward aspect (God) from its outward aspect (created things). But when he has reached his goal (i.e. sobriety '), neither do created things veil him from God nor does God veil him from created things, but God reveals Himself to the mystic in both His aspects at once (i.e. both as the Creator and as the universe of created things), so that he sees with his bodily eye the beauty of the Divine Essence manifested under the attribute of externality." The meaning of "separation" (farq or tafriqa) has been explained in the note on verse 218: it is the state in which the mystic is conscious of himself as an individual. Passing away from himself in the ecstasy of "intoxication," he enters into the state of "union" (jam ) in which he is conscious of nothing but God. According to Ibnu '1-Farid, the final and supreme degree of "oneness" (ittifrdd) consists, not in "intoxication," but in "sobriety," i.e. the return to consciousness, "the second separation," when the mystic " " " (who in the former separation knew himself as other than God ") knows
' '
'
himself as the subject and object of all action (cf verses 237-8). and perceives " " that "union and "separation are the same thing seen from different points
.
222
(237)
[CH.
my
self-mortification I
me
me
to
my
(real) self
my own
example,
(238) And that my standing (at 'Arafat) was a standing before myself; nay, that my turning (towards the Ka'ba) was towards myself. Even so my prayer was to myself and my Ka'ba from
myself.
(239)
Be
by thy
comeliness, self-conceited,
folly;
And
thy finding the right way, the way of those other in seeking oneness (ittihdd)
;
forsake the error of separation, for union will result who vied with each
declare the absoluteness of beauty
it finite
(241)
And
deem
and be not
;
moved
to
is
(243) Twas She that crazed Qays, the lover of Lubna ay, and every enamoured man, like Layla's Majmin or 'Azza's Kuthayyir. (244) Every one of them passionately desired Her attribute
(Absolute Beauty) which She clothed in the form of a beauty that shone forth in a beauty of form. (245) And this was only because She appeared in phenomena.
They supposed that these (phenomena) were other than She, whilst it was She that displayed Herself therein. (246) She showed Herself by veiling Herself (in them), and She was hidden by the objects in which She was manifested,
assuming
of view.
like
tints of diverse
hue
in every appearance.
The
Taking yam'
in
interpretation of the concluding words in v. 235 is doubtful. a non- mystical sense, we might translate: "My plurality is
my unity." (237) Self -mortification prepares the mystic for contemplation of God but does not precede it as the cause precedes the effect. In contemplation
there
is no duality, but only God, who reveals Himself to Himself. describes this state of "union" (jam ) symbolically in vv. 239-64.
1
The poet
(238) The "standing" on Mt 'Arafat near Mecca is one of the ceremonies observed by the pilgrims. " " " " (240) Separation and union (farq and jam') are used in the technical sense which has been noted (cf. verses 218 and 233-5). (241) The "tinselled gaud" is beauty regarded as an attribute of
phenomena,
i.e.
beauty of form.
(246) The commentator illustrates this doctrine that phenomena reveal or conceal Absolute Being according to the measure of spiritual
ill]
223
At the
first
creation She
became
visible to
Adam
in the
form
motherhood,
(248) And he loved Her, that by means of Her he might become a father and that the relation of sonship might be brought into existence through husband and wife. (249) This was the beginning of the love of the manifestations for one another, when as yet there was no enemy to estrange them
And She
some
form of
dis-
was
Now
who was
and they never were. She hath no partner in Her beauty. (254) Just as She showed to me Her beauty clad in the forms of others, even so in virtue of oneness (ittihdd)
They
(fair
women)
by
(256)
me
(in time),
I
other than
inasmuch as
was
prior to
them
in
a house with no aperture except glass windows of various colours and shapes, so that when the sun falls on them, beams of corresponding shape and colour are reflected within. Imagine, further, that in the house are a number of persons who have never gone outside and have never seen the sun but have
only been told that it is one simple universal light possessing neither colour nor form. Some, perceiving that the reflected beams resemble the glass in form and colour, will not recognise them as sunbeams. Others will divine the truth, namely, that those beams are the light of the sun endued with form and colour by the medium through which it is seen and preserving its unity unimpaired amidst all variety of appearance. (249) The "enemy" is Satan, who caused Adam and Eve to eat the " forbidden fruit, whereupon God said to them, Get ye down (from Paradise), the one of you a foe to the other" (Kor. 2, 34). (256) The commentator quotes the saying of the Prophet, "We are the last and the first," i.e. the last in material time, the first in spiritual time. Absolute Being, though logically prior to phenomena, is essentially identical with them.
224
(257)
visible in
[CH.
(258)
Nor are they other than I in my passion, but I became them for the sake of clothing myself in every guise, Now as Qays, anon as Kuthayyir, and sometimes I
appeared as Jamil who loved Buthayna. (259) In them I displayed myself outwardly and veiled myself inwardly. Marvel, then, at a revelation by means of a mask
!
no infirm judgment were manifestations in which we (my Beloved and I) displayed our (attributes of) love and beauty. (261) Every lover, I am he, and She is every lover's beloved, and all (lovers and loved) are but the names of a vesture, (262) Names of which I was the object in reality, and 'twas I that was made apparent to myself by means of an invisible soul. (263) I was ever She, and She was ever I, with no difference;
(260)
their lovers
'tis
nay,
my
essence loved
my
essence.
There was nothing in the world except myself beside me, and no thought of beside-ness occurred to my mind.
(264)
in ittihdd to a point where the "I" is from God, Ibnu '1-Farid begins the promised indistinguishable "a descent from my exaltation" (see v. 209). lowly sequel He tells how he returned from the freedom of ecstasy to the bondage of piety, how he occupied himself with works of devotion and ascetic practices. He then makes a solemn declaration that his coming back to the normal life of the mystic was not due to any selfish motive, such as fear of disrepute or hope of honour, but was dictated solely by his anxiety to protect from attack the friends whom he revered. These friends (awliyd) were, no doubt, his spiritual masters or other Sufis intimately associated with him. What was the danger which he foresaw and in which he would not have them involved? As the following verses show, it was the charge of heresy in
Having advanced
its
phenomenal
Love and beauty are aspects of the self-manifestation of the " underlying all phenomena, and since that soul is the One Real Being there can be no essential difference between the lover and the object of his love. The mystic who has attained to "the intoxication of union" (sukru 'l-jam') has no thought of "beside-ness," i.e. for him nothing
"
(260-4)
invisible soul
self,
which
is
God.
in]
225
the doctrine
Moslems
If I
recant my words,
"
from one
like
me
to say
it
in me, (then I shall deserve to die the death). (278) I am not referring thee to anything unseen; no, nor to
me
of
my
power
(to
demonstrate
how
Since I am stablished on the Name of the Real (God) should the false tales of error frighten me? (280) Mark now! Gabriel, the trusted (messenger), came in
(279)
in
him
inasmuch as he knew unambiguously what it was that he saw? (283) He saw an angel sent to him with a message, while the others saw a man who was treated with respect as being the
Prophet's companion; (284) And in the truer of the two visions
I find
a hint that
removes
(285)
my
and
it
authority of the
(277)
Book and
i.e.
"I
am
She,"
(278) Addressing the reader, Ibnu '1-Farid says, "The God to whom I direct you is neither outside of the world and yourself nor within you in the sense of 'incarnate,' which is an absurdity." (279) "False tales of error," i.e. baseless accusations of heresy.
(280) Gabriel, through whom the Koran was revealed to Mohammed, is said to have assumed the shape of Dihya al-Kalbi, described as a very handsome man, on more than one occasion.
(281-4)
in Dihya, so
God
is
not incarnate
.
in the mystic "united" with Him. (284-5) Labs (the act of covering) is attributed to God in the Koran (cf 6, 9; 50, 14) and is implied in a group of traditions which record that Mohammed
said, "I saw my Lord in such and such a form." For the meaning of the term, see A. J. Wensinck, The Etymology of the Arabic Djinn (Spirits) in Verslagen en Mededeelingen der Koninklijke Akademie van Wetenschappen, Afd. Letterkunde, 56 Reeks, Deel iv ( 1920), p. 506 foil., who says, "The action of covering is conceived in this way, that the spirit comes upon a man, takes.
N.
s. ii
15
226
Ibnu
[CH.
no longer speaking in his own person but as or as one merged in the Absolute, of which nothing not even Love and Oneness can be predicated, warns his disciple that he must not aim so high: let him fix his eyes on the glory of Love, and he will far excel
the Logos
(Mohammed)
those
in
hope or
fear.
its
(286)
come
into
my way
unveiling,
(287) For the fountain of Sadda springs from a water whose abundant well is with me: therefore tell me not of a mirage in a
wilderness
(288)
take (thy knowledge) from a sea into which I plunged, while those of old stopped on its shore, observing reverence towards me.
(289)
And
The
text,
orphan"
symbolically to the
palm
of a
holden when
(290)
it
And except me none hath gained aught thereof, save only a youth who in constraint or ease never ceased to tread in my
footprints.
(291) Stray not darkly, then, from the tracks of my journeying, abode in him and overpowers him, so that he is no longer himself hut the spirit that is upon or within him." The monistic interpretation of labs adopted by Ibnu '1-Farid differs essentially from hulul. In the former case,
its
God
creates the "disguise" of phenomenality in order thereby to manifest Himself to Himself, and nothing exists beside Him; whereas hulul (the "infusion" of the Divine element into the human) denotes a relation of
of spirit
for the sweetness
and body. and wholesomeness of its water: cf. the saying, "Water, but not like Sadda." The poet means that his knowledge flows from contemplation of the Divine Essence, so that he need
not follow the mirage of intellectual speculation. " " (288-9) The sea is an emblem of the Beatific Vision which was denied to Moses (Kor. 7, 139) but was granted to Mohammed (Kor. 53, 9). Ibnu " '1-Farid interprets the text, Meddle not with the substance of the orphan," as an admonition to Moses that he must not encroach upon Mohammed's unique prerogative. When God revealed Himself in glory to Mt Sinai, Moses fell in a swoon; and on recovering his senses he heard a voice saying, "This Vision is not vouchsafed to thee, but to an orphan who shall come after thee." The orphan (yalim) is Mohammed (Kor. 93, 6). Cf. Kashf al-Mahjtib, pp. 186
and
The commentator identifies the "youth " with Ali b. Abi Talib, the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law. According to the belief of the Sufis, 'AH received from the Prophet an esoteric doctrine which was communicated to him alone.
'
381.
(290)
in]
227
and go
in
and
my
very path;
(292)
heart,
is
my
governance,
(293)
And
mine, the
army, and all lovers are my people. Love hath (294) Lo, I am severed from it as passed away one who deems it a veil. Desire is below mine high estate, (295) And I have crossed Passion's boundary, for Love is (to me) even as Hate, and the goal that I reached in my ascension to
realities (thereof) are
my
Oneness
(296)
is
hast been
serve
made a
for (thereby) thou chief over the best of God's creatures who
(297)
devotion and piety) in every nation. those heights and vaunt thyself above an ascetic
who was
worldly
(298)
exalted
by works and by a
And
knowledge) who, if his burden were lightened, would be of little weight one charged with traditional authorities and intellectual
wisdom
of the
(299)
all else)
kind)
(300)
And
the
(293) "The realities" (al-ma'dni) are probably the real content of all expressions that belong to the language of love. to (294-5) To retain consciousness of an attribute is to be limited by it; pass from it is to escape from limitation and break through to the Absolute, where all contraries are reconciled. In verse 294 some read fata 'l-jiubbi, "O thrall of love," instead of fani 'l-hubbu. (296-8) The lover of God is nearer to Him than the ascetic, theologian,
or philosopher.
whom the (299) "The most sublime gnostic," i.e. Mohammed, from Sufis claim to have inherited not only their knowledge of religion ('Urn) but also their mystical knowledge (ma'rifa). In the highest degree of gnosis union (jam') is combined with separation (tafriqa), so that the mystic while in the unitive state comes down once more to the world of
continuing
plurality and uses his spiritual powers for the benefit fellow-creatures.
152
228
skirts of
[CH.
(with the
Way
traverse the various degrees of oneness and do not join a party that lost their lifetime in (attachment to) something
(301)
And
besides.
(302) For its single champion is a host, while all others are but a handful who were vanquished by the most convincing of testi-
monies.
Therefore make that which it (the term "oneness") thy means of access (to God) and live in it, or else die its captive, and follow a community which attained the primacy
(303)
signifies
therein.
(304)
Thou
exerts himself in
art worthier of this glory than one who strives and hope (of reward) and in fear (of punishment).
(305) Tis not marvellous that thou shouldst shake thy sides (boastfully) before him in the sweetest delight and the completest
joy,
(306)
it
(to
!
Oneness)
its
how
many man have they chosen out in obscurity and how many a one have they raised to renown
a
!
names
Yet thou, in the degree (of union) to which thou hast attained, art remote from me: the Pleiades have no connexion
(307)
a step beyond
it,
fire.
Leaving his disciple in "the intoxication of union" (sukru with an emphatic warning not to exceed the measure of his spiritual capacity, Ibnu '1-Farid depicts from his own experience the unitive life in its perfect and final development, " which is known technically as "the sobriety of union ($ahwu 'l-jam'). Cf. the notes on w. 233-5, 260-4, and 326-7.
'l-jam'),
(310)
(302)
My
An
degree
is
man who
has not
come a great army by the permission of Allah " (33) "O f else die its captive," i.e "even though you fail to attain to oneness, at least pursue it until you die." Mu'anndhu ("its captive") may " also mean " pining for it and is so explained by K.
!
"How many
little
in]
229
reached it may still be deemed happy; but the state for which I am deemed happy transcends thy degree. (311) All men are the sons of Adam, (and I am as they) save that
amongst my brethren have attained to the sobriety of union. My hearing is like that of Kalim (Moses) and my heart is informed (about God) by the most excellent (ahmad) vision of an eye like that of him who is most excellent (Ahmad = Mohammed).
(312) (313)
I alone
And my
of
spirit is
spirit to all
beings)
seest of
my
nature.
Leave, then, to me (and do not ascribe to any one else) the knowledge with which I alone was endowed before my
(in the phenomenal world), while (after my appearance) created amongst beings my friends knew me not (as I really am). (315) Do not give me the name of "lover" (murid) amongst
appearance
them (my friends), for even he who is rapt by Her and is called " Her " beloved (murdd) hath need of my protection; (316) And let names of honour fall from me and pronounce them not, babbling foolishly, for they are but signs fashioned by one whom I made;
(317)
And
if
the Koran,
take back my title of "gnostic," for according to thou approvest people's calling each other names,
my
'
Thou
'
186.
(313 foil.) Here Ibnu '1-Farid speaks, as it were, out of the depths of his consciousness of God. According to the commentator, he hints that he is the
p. 194 supra. (314) God created the world in order that He might be known: before the creation He alone knew Himself, and after it His friends (the prophets and saints) did not know Him with His own eternal knowledge of Himself.
Qutb. See
(315) See note on vv. 204-5 for the distinction between murid and murdd. Even the latter, as an object of Divine protection, is other than God and therefore not to be identified with the mystic who is wholly one with Him. (316) A "name of honour" (kunya) is one of the class of names which begin with the word Abu (father) and are used as a mark of respect to the
One whom I made," i.e. Man, whose language is meaningperson addressed. less as applied to God. " " the name gnostic among alqdb (317) Cf. Kor. 49, ii. The poet includes " nicknames " or " ill names the Absobecause to here is ") equivalent (which lute suffers a limitation when it is described by any title, however exalted.
"
230
(318)
[CH.
The
least of
my
followers
were led home to the eye of his heart. (319) He plucked the fruit of gnosis from a branch of perception that grew by his following me and springs from the root
of
my
nature;
So that, if he is questioned about any (spiritual) matter, he brings forth wondrous sayings which are too sublime for com(320)
mind
to conceive.
friends)
do not
call
me by
the
epithet of "favourite" (muqarrab), which in virtue of (with God) I deem to be a sinful severance ;
(322)
my
union
being
far,
is
Her sake by whom I have disguised myself and 'tis but myself I mean I have cast off my name and my style and my name of honour, (324) And have journeyed beyond where those of old stood still, and where minds perished misled by (the search after
intellectual) gains.
(325)
have no
attributes, for
an attribute
is
a mark
(of
substance). Similarly, a name is a sign (of an object). Therefore, if thou wouldst allude to me, use metaphors or epithets.
I
(326) From "I am She" I mounted to where is no "to," and perfumed (phenomenal) existence by my returning;
(318-20)
The argument
disciples, is
meanest of
source of
(321)
my
is: "Gnostic," a name appropriate to the a term of abuse in relation to me, who am the
all gnosis.
Muqarrab,
literally
"one who
is
brought near
(to
God)."
tifis
often use this term, which is borrowed from the Koran, to describe the highest class of the saints. See Kildb al-Luma', ch. 43. The muqarrab prefers union to separation, whereas in perfect union there are no con-
note on vv. 294-5. the name "She," or "Beloved," disguises me, for it really signifies the One Essence, which is my true and eternal self. (324) The intellect moving in the world of relations and distinctions cannot reach the Absolute.
traries.
Cf.
(323)
I.e.
(326-7) Three stages of Oneness (ittijidd) are distinguished here: 1. "I am She," i.e. union (jam ) without real separation (tafriqa), although the appearance of separation is maintained. This was the stage in
1
Ana
i.e.
(in-
in]
231
(327) And (I returned) from "I am esoteric wisdom and external laws which
might
call (the
people to God).
of my disciple who was rapt to Her (in ecstasy) (328) and the utmost limit reached by his masters is the point to which I advanced before my turning back
The goal
the highest peak gained by those who thought themselves foremost is the lowest level that bears the mark of my
(329)
And
tread;
(330) And the last pinnacle of that which is beyond indication, and where is no progress upwards (but only backwards) that is where my first footstep fell
!
nothing existent but hath knowledge of my nor in grace, aught being but utters my praise. No wonder that I lord it over all who lived before me, (332) since I have grasped the firmest stay (which is a verse) in (the
(331)
is
There
in reality
my saluta-
tion
is
from
Here Ibnu l-Farid inserts in praise of his Beloved an ode of fifty-two verses (336-387) in the same metre and rhyme dividuality). This stage is technically known as "the intoxication of union"
3. The sobriety of union (sahwu 'l-jam'), i.e. the stage in which the mystic returns from the pure oneness of the second stage to plurality in oneness and to separation in union and to the Law in the Truth, so that while continuing to be united with God he serves Him as a slave serves his lord and manifests the Divine Life in its perfection to mankind. "Where is no 'to,' " i.e. the stage of "I am I," beyond which no advance is possible except by means of retrogression. In this stage the mystic is entirely absorbed in the undifferentiated oneness of God. Only after he has "returned," i.e. entered upon the third stage (plurality in oneness) can he communicate to his fellows some perfume (hint) of the experience through which he has passed. "An esoteric wisdom," i.e. the Divine providence manifested by means of the religious law. By returning to consciousness the " " united mystic is enabled to fulfil the law and to act as a spiritual director. (328) "His masters," literally "his objects of desire" (murddihi), i.e. those eminent theosophists whom the disciple seeks to imitate, but who have not reached the highest degree of perfection. (331) All created things glorify God with diverse tongues which are heard and understood by spiritual men. Cf. The Mystics of Islam, p. 64. (332) I.e. "I have attained to perfection in ittihdd through my faith in the verse (Kor. 20, 7) God, there is no god but He.' " This proves, according to the Sufis, that nothing but God has a real existence.
'
:
''
232
[CH.
as the rest of the Td'iyya. Beautiful as this lyric interlude is and welcome for the relief which its warm colouring affords
to imaginations fatigued by "the white radiance of eternity," it interrupts the course of the poem and may be omitted here. " After a short passage (w. 388-393) concerning the railer"
whom
the mystic
1
when he regards
of union (jam
perceives to be really
inspired by by enmity, Ibnu '1-Farid resumes his unitive state at its supreme level, marked of the description to a new and enlarged consciousthe return from ecstasy by ness of the One Reality which manifests itself in every form of thought and sense.
(394) And therein (in ittihdd) are matters of which the veil was recovery from intoxication, while entirely raised for me by were screened from they every one besides.
my
(395)
stand
trip
me when me up.
and
mystic can dispense with plain words and I speak allusively on account of those
divulge
will
under-
who would
(396)
None may
in
the
forfeit,
symbols there
define.
(397)
bring about
Now my exposition begins with the twain who sought to my severance, albeit my union defies separation.
(398) Those twain are one with us (the Beloved and me) in inward union, though in outward separation we and they are counted as four. (399) For truly I and She are one essence, while he who told tales of her and he who turned me away from her are attributes which appeared.
(396) The mysteries of Oneness cannot be revealed otherwise than symbolically an open statement would not only cost the writer his life but would also fail to convey the meaning, which is too subtle to be expressed
:
by
direct explanation
and
definition.
(397)
"The twain,"
i.e.
cf.
verse 51.
union defies separation," because the mystic who has attained to permanent union ($afrwu 'l-iam') knows that all things in spite of their
"My
in]
(400)
233
its
(the slanderer) helps the spirit, guiding it to of a contemplation which takes place in a for sake the region
spiritual
(401)
mould;
And
companions
form.
(402)
this one (the railer) helps the soul, driving it to its for the sake of an existence which occurs in a material
Whoever knows,
is
as I do, (the real nature of) those removing the perplexity of doubt (as to the
unmixed with polytheism. endowed with delights the whole sum of my (403) My worlds (of being) both in particular and in general, in order to replenish them with its all-embracing unity.
Divine Unity)
essence
(404)
was
as yet
capable
for acquisition (of being), and it was before there was any preparation for
(400)
51) of
heart.
The
slanderer
literally,
impels him to prevent any rival the railer is the soul (nafs) in the language of theology the former is described as the Angel who inspires the heart with good thoughts the latter as the Devil who tempts it with evil suggestions (see D. B. Macdonald, The religious attitude and life in Islam, p. 274 foil.). But in the sphere of union (jam ) there can be no duality: lover, beloved, railer and slanderer are so many aspects of the One Being. Here, then, the slanderer or the spirit (n'th) represents Universal Spirit, the first emanation from the Absolute; and the railer or the soul (nafs) stands for Universal Soul. [Cf. the introduction to K.'s commentary, p. 20 foil., where the First Intelligence, "the slanderer," is said to be the luminosity of Universal Spirit, and the Second Intelligence, "the railer," is said to be the luminosity of Universal Soul.] The human spirit is guided by Universal Spirit to its "region," i.e. the Divine Essence, while the human soul belongs to Universal Soul, which as the animating principle of the sensible world brings the soul into contact with its "com: ; 1
the slanderer and the which work upon the the spy whose affection for the Beloved from approaching her is the spirit (rub);
separation
(farq),
"
"
two
influences
panions,"
(402) slanderer.
if
i.e.
bodies.
figures,"
i.e.
"Those
railer,
and the
taken
(403-4) In v. 403 I read imddd. The reading amddd gives the same sense, (as it should be) as the plural, not of madd, but of madad. Cf. my
Selected Poems from the Divdni Shamsi Tabriz, pp. 216 and 334. The process of emanation (fayd) by which Absolute Being diffuses itself does not depend on the existence of capacities for receiving that which is rayed forth.
Plurality
is
One becomes
the self-manifestation of the One, the irradiation whereby the visible to itself.
234
(405)
[CH.
the Soul,
The forms
of existence were
made happy by
and the
spirits of (the
plane
of)
by
the Spirit.
The inward oneness of the Essence with its attributes or emanations is now further illustrated by reference to what
takes place in audition (samd'), when the mystic falling into ecstasy at the sound of music finds God, only to lose Him again as soon as the momentary transport has ebbed away.
(406)
My
his region
(407)
and a
twofold contemplation of a slanderer hastening to railer bestowing good advice on his companions
by two
Bears witness to my state in the samd', a state caused things which draw me (to and fro), namely, the law of my abiding home and the law of the place where my sentence is
passed.
(408)
ittihdd)
by
of
to say that his contemplation of the Essence under the aspect of its two attributes symbolically described as the slanderer and the railer is analogous to his perception of oneness in the samd in each case the appearance of duality is illusory. His "state in the samd'," i.e. the state of agitation and suspense between "finding God" (wujtid) and "losing" Him (faqd), is the result of two diverse aspects which are inherent in the nature of the Essence itself. One of those aspects is "union" (jam ), i.e. the oneness in which plurality " is non-existent or only potentially existent; the other aspect is "separation (tafriqa) in which the Essence passes forth from its oneness in order that it may become conscious of itself. The former is the mystic's "abiding home." "The place where my sentence is passed," i.e. the phenomenal world, which the mystic, on coming forth from the state of "union" (jam'), judges to be the abode of "separation" (tafriqa). (408) The unity of Being is affirmed by the correspondence existing
(406-7)
"Made happy," i.e. endued with existence. "To his region " cf. verse 400. The poet means
1
spirit. The mystic finds God in every object perceived by the senses, so that the image of every object in his perception is identical with the image of God in his heart. (409) "My purpose," i.e. to explain what is experienced in the samd'. (410-12) These verses illustrate "the correspondence of the two
images." Thought
is
is
inward hearing.
in]
235
afflicted by sorrow raises a mournful cry in (reciting) the verses of a chapter of the Koran, (411) My thought beholds Her with the eye of my phantasy, and my memory hears Her with the ear of my intelligence,
whenever one
(412)
so that
my
my
side,
(413)
thrilled in the
(414)
depths of my being by a joy that comes from myself, heart dances, and the trembling of my limbs
like
doth clap
(415)
hands
a chanter, and
my
spirit is
my musician.
and
soul never ceased to be fed with (spiritual) desires to efface the (sensual) faculties by weakening them, until at
My
last it
waxed
strong.
I
(416)
Here
found
all
me
(really)
In order that every organ of sense might unite me with Her, and that my union might include every root of my hair, (418) And that the veil of estrangement between us might be
it no other than friendship. and do not hope to learn this by study (419) how the sense conveys to the soul by immediate revelation what She brings to light. (420) When a north wind travelling by night from Her blows at dawn, its coolness recalls the thought of Her to my spirit, (421) And mine ear is pleased when in the forenoon grey doves warbling and singing on the branches arouse it, (422) And mine eye is gladdened if at eve flashes of lightning transmit and give it from Her to the pupil of mine eye,
cast
off,
albeit I
found
Mark now
(413-4) The ecstasy of vision and audition is not produced by an external cause, such as wine, dancing, and music, but is itself the mystic's
(415
i.e.
to the doctrine of ittihdd. (418) "No other than friendship": cf. note on v. 82. (420) There is only an allusion in this verse to the sense of smell, while the other four senses are mentioned explicitly in the verses which follow. " It " in these verses is "the thought of Her" (dhikruhd). (421-4)
236
(423)
[CH.
And
it is
bestowed on
my
taste
are passed round to me at night, And my heart conveys it as an inward thing to the (424) mental faculties through the medium of the outward thing that
was delivered by the bodily messengers (the senses). (425) He that chants Her name in the assembly (of listeners) makes me present with Her, so that as I listen I behold Her with
my
whole being.
(426)
My
spirit
whence
it
was
breathed (into me), while my theatre of manifestation (my soul), which was fashioned by the spirit, stoops to its earthly peers.
(427) Part of me is pulled towards Her and part of me pulls towards itself, and in every pull there is a tug like giving up
the ghost.
(428)
The cause
of this is
from Her when She inspired it, (429) So that it longed in the limbo of earth to hear the Divine call alone (uncontaminated by the call of the lower self), since both
(the spiritual
reins.
of
my
bridle-
Moslem psychology the heart (qcUb) "suggests the inmost, and genuine thoughts, the very basis of man's intellectual nature" (see D. B. Macdonald, The religious attitude and life in Islam, p. 221 foil.). It receives from the outer senses the outward idea of God, viz. the forms of sense-objects, and transmits the corresponding universal idea, viz. the essence and attributes of God, to the inner senses, i.e. to the cogitative, memorative, estimative, and apprehensive faculties. These two ideas are identical in so far as they are correlative aspects of Being. The mystic contemplates as pure reality that which he perceives objectively in the forms of phenomena. According to the commentator, the preposition which I have " " " translated by through the medium of should have the meaning of simulmost
(424) In secret
taneously with," i.e. the delivery of the sense-datum to the heart synchronises with its transmission by the heart to the intellectual faculties.
(425) Here the poet begins his promised explanation (which is based upon the foregoing theory) of his "state in the samd'," He says that, whilst listening to the music, he nevertheless contemplates God with his whole spiritual and sensuous self. (426-9) These verses answer the question, Why does music agitate and transport those who hear it ? Because, the poet replies, the higher and lower elements in man draw and are drawn in opposite directions. Man is led sometimes by the spirit (ruh), sometimes by the flesh (nafs); but music, in which God reveals Himself, brings back to him the recollection of what he was before he had a bodily existence then he falls into ecstasy and his soul (nafs) struggles like a captive bird to escape from its cage.
:
in]
(430)
237
it
my state in
grow up to be
(431)
dull, will
When he moans
be relieved from exceeding distress, (432) He is soothed with lullabies, so that he lays aside all the weariness which came over him and listens to his soother like one
restlessly yearns to
and
make him forget his bitter grief and remember the speech that passed in times of old, (434) And by his state he explains the state of samd' (audition) and confirms the absence of imperfection from the mystic dance (435) When through the one that is hushing him he becomes distraught with longing and would fain fly to his first home,
:
by being rocked
and
fro.
is
hands
have
felt,
when She
called to
mind by the
beautiful
tones of a reciter
(438) As Death take to themselves his all. (439) For one who feels pain in being driven to part (from his body) is like one who is pained by feeling (rapture) in his yearning after his (spiritual) companions (440) As the soul of the former had pity for that (body) in which it appeared, so my spirit soared to its high origins.
:
the Koran) or the piercing notes of a singer, the sufferer feels in his agony when the angels of
(of
due
relation to the doctrine of ittihdd, Ibnu '1-Farid returns to the region of the self-contained Unity which is sole actor on the
universal stage.
(441)
(433)
My
vv.
spirit
my
going
see
"The speech
69 and 156. (434-6) Many Sufis looked with disfavour on the ecstatic dance, which is a well-known feature of the samd'. Cf. the saying, al-raqs nags, "dancing is a fault." Ibnu '1-Farid justifies it on the ground that it is an anodyne to the fever of the soul its violent movements calm the agitating reminiscences awakened by music and rock the soul to rest. (440) Cf. vv. 426-7. As death causes the lower soul (nafs) to grieve for the loss of its earthly home, so music causes the spirit (rtih) to grieve for the loss of its heavenly home. (441) Elsewhere (Diwdn, p. 217, 1. 10) Ibnu '1-Farid says: "If others are the notes on
:
238
[CH.
He
that like
me makes
ride for
it
him
follow
me and
Before entering it, I have plunged into how many a deep! wherefrom none that craved (spiritual) wealth was ever blest with a draught.
(443)
of
show it to thee, if thou art resolved, in the mirror therefore turn the ear of insight to what I let fall. my poesy, " (445) I cast aside from speech the word self-regard," and from my actions self-interest in any act;
(444)
I will
my
(446)
my
And my looking for fair recompense for my works, and care to preserve my mystical states from the shame of susAnd my
preaching
all
is
picion,
(447)
away with
who
my
it
dwell in front of
:
(hindering approach)
is
it
of the attributes
belonging to
(449)
is
my
veiledness.
Amongst them my rignt hand is a pillar (corner-stone) kissed in myself, and because of the law in my mouth content with His image seen in dreams, I am not content even with being united to Him." In this verse (441) and also in the verse quoted he uses the
that
my
word wi$dl, properly "conjunction." Wi$dl, wa$l and ittisdl contain the idea of duality and are therefore inferior to jam' or complete union and ittifrdd or tvuffit. Cf. Nallino, op. cit. p. 60, note i.
The way to this gate is through the deeps of j'and. Those who seek alone but spiritual wealth, i.e. good works and godly dispositions, desire the continuance of their phenomenal self -existence. (445-7) These lines describe the poet's ikhld?, a term denoting freedom from every form of self-regard. Inasmuch as no one who is purely disinterested can attribute disinterestedness to himself, Ibnu '1-Faritf says that in every instance words, deeds, works, and states "he has cast aside regard for his casting aside," i.e. he is not disinterested (mukhli?) but unconscious of being disinterested (ntukhla?). See R. Hartmann, Al-Kuschairts Darstellung des $Afttums, p. 17, and Kitdb al-Luma', p. 218, 1. 6 foil. (448) The heart (qalb), in which the essence of man resides, is veiled by the attributes limiting that essence, just as the temple of a deity is shrouded
(443)
not
God
by
curtains.
(449) According to an Apostolic Tradition, God (the essence of man) is contained in the believer's heart, which is therefore likened to the Ka'ba, while by the same analogy ritual acts of worship performed in the pilgrimage are acts of the Essence, i.e. Divine acts. One of these rites is the
Ill]
239
which
I
kiss (qubla)
my
turn in
worship).
(450)
My
circumambulation in the spirit is really round my Safa to my Marwa is for the sake
while
Within a sanctuary of my inward my outward is safe, my neighbours around it are in danger of being snatched
away.
(452)
My
soul
was
purified
by
my
solitary fasting
from other
contem-
And
plation became
my grace; during my
when
I
awoke from
my slumber;
(454)
And my inmost
Truth
is like
And my
make me
neglectful of the
kissing of the Black Stone, "the right hand of God" (yamin Allah). Since the religious law is the Word of God, the kiss which it prescribes and which
is included in it, comes, as it were, from the mouth of God, who as the essence of the creature (al-khalq) adores Himself as the Creator (al-Ifaqq). (450) Safa and Marwa are two hills near Mecca. The commentator thinks that Safa signifies the present life and Marwa the life hereafter. (451) When the phenomenal self and its faculties are within the sanctuary of the heart, i.e. absorbed in God, they are safe from the assault of "otherness," to which they are exposed outside it (cf. Koran, 29, 67).
(452) The mystic's fast consists in abstaining from whatsoever is not real and Divine and in being alone with his essence his alms-giving is the communication to others of the Divine grace which flows from his essence.
;
(453) The reference to prayers in this verse is indicated by the words shaf (double) and witr (single), which may also be rendered "two genuflexions" and "a single genuflexion" in the canonical prayer (saldt). In ittihdd the worshipper is made one with the object of worship and realises that his individual existence was a dream. (454) The term "night-journey" is used in the Koran, 17, i, of the ascension (mi'rdj) of the Prophet. Since an ascension from the Truth or the Essence implies that there is something higher than that, the poet answers this objection by pointing out that the journey of the Perfect Man from the Truth is like his journey in the Law, i.e. both journeys are really movements of his essence in and to and from itself. Here the "night-journey" denotes the third stage of Oneness (see note on vv. 326-7) in which the mystic returns from "the intoxication of union" to "the sobriety of union." (455) Divinity (Idhtit) and humanity (ndstit) are correlative attributes or aspects of the One Reality. Man, created in the image of God, must nevertheless fulfil the law imposed on his corporeal nature, yet while recognising
240
[CH.
requirement of my theatre of manifestation, nor did my humanity cause me to forget the theatre in which my wisdom is manifested.
(456)
From me
soul,
upon the
(457)
and by
the covenants derived their binding power me the laws of religion were instituted to
Inasmuch as there had come to me from myself an whom my sinning was grievous, one taking jealous care of me from compassion, (458) And I executed my command (given) from my soul unto herself, and when she took charge of her own affair she did not turn back (459) And from the time of my covenant, before the era of my elements, before the (prophetic) warning was sent to (the world) where men shall be raised from the dead, (460) I was an apostle sent from myself to myself, and my essence was led to me by the evidence of my own signs. (461) And when I conveyed my soul, by purchase, from the
Apostle to
;
possession of her
(462)
own land
to the
kingdom
of Paradise
For she had fought a good fight and had died a martyr in her cause and had gotten joy of her contract when she paid the
price
(463)
in consequence of
spirit
my union, beyond
the oracle of Divine
he
is
(456) "The covenants," i.e. the acknowledgment by human souls in their state of pre-existence that they should love and worship God. Cf note
.
on verse
69.
(457-60) The Apostle is Universal Spirit, which emanates from the Essence regarded as Pure Oneness to the Essence regarded as Universal Soul. This emanation is, relatively at least, an eternal process. Mohammed (identi" fied with Universal Spirit) said, I was a prophet when Adam was water and i.e. before the Creation. The "signs" or evidential miracles given to clay." the Soul by the Apostle of Universal Spirit are the attributes of the Essence, which thereby reveals itself to itself. (461-2) These lines are best explained by a passage in the Koran (9, 112): "Lo, Allah hath purchased of the true believers their souls and their substance, promising them Paradise in return, on condition that they shall a promise binding on Him fight in the cause of Allah and slay and be slain
in the
more
faithfully
fulfilleth his pledge than Allah? Rejoice therefore in the contract which ye have
(463) In the following verses (463-477) the poet describes himself in the state of union (jam ), i.e. on the plane of Absolute Being, emancipated from the relations to which he is subject in the phenomenal world. " The earth of
1
in]
241
everlasting life in her heaven (Paradise), since I did not consent to incline towards the earth of vicegerent
my
(464)
And how
I
over which
followers
am
should
come under
dominion
of)
that
my
kingdom and
my
and my party and my adherents? (465) There is no celestial sphere but therein, from the light of my inward being, is an angel who gives guidance by my will, (466) And there is no region but thereon, from the overflow of my outward being, falleth a drop that is the source of the clouds'
downpouring. (467) Beside my countenance the far-spreading light (of the sun) is like a gleam, and beside my watering-place the all-encompassing sea is like a drop. (468) Therefore the whole of me is seeking the whole of me and
is
it,
and part
of
me is
drawing part of
me
with
is
(469) Every direction tends to the all-guiding face of him who above (the relation of) "below" and below whom is (the relation of) "above." (470) Thus (in my experience) the "below-ness" of the earth
is
" of the aether, because of the closing of that the " above-ness
my vicegerent," i.e. the body. The human soul governs the body as the vice
gerent (khalifa] of God.
4-
(464) The "united" mystic (sdhibu 'l-jam') is lord over all relations, i.e. he transcends them and is not conditioned by any of them. "The friends of my kingdom, etc." i.e. those who follow me but have not attained to Oneness, so that they still belong to the realm of phenomenal existence.
(465-6) He means to say that, in respect of his mystical identification with the Absolute, he is the ultimate source of all that exists in the visible world as well as in the universe of the Unseen: the former is the external aspect of Reality, while the latter is its hidden ground.
of me is seeking my spirit, heart, soul and body the Universal in which all particulars are comprised." When the spirit contemplates God alone, it draws to itself the heart, so that the heart desires God alone; and the heart then draws to itself the soul, so that the soul worships God alone and draws to itself the body, which God then causes to be employed entirely in good works. (469) Absolute Being is the centre to which all particular objects
(468)
"
Every part
Essence,
i.e.
converge.
The phrase, "because of the closing, etc." is borrowed from Kor. Did not the unbelievers discern that the heavens and the earth were closed until We clave them asunder and made every living thing of the water " Whatever meaning the Prophet may have attached (that gushed forth) ? to these metaphors, Ibnu '1-Farid evidently signifies by "the closing" that
21, 31
(470) "
:
N. s. ii
16
242
which
is
[CH.
clave asunder; and the cleavage of that which was closed outward aspect of my way (sunna). the only And there is no doubt, since union is the essence of (471)
and no direction, since place is a (relation of) difference from my separation (472) And there is no number, since numeration cuts like the edge of a sword, and no time, since limitation is the dualism of one who fixes a definite term (473) And I have in the two worlds no rival who should doom to destruction what I built or whose command should cause the decree of my authority to be enforced; (474) Nor have I in either world any opposite, for thou wilt
certainty,
arising
;
;
not see amongst created beings any incongruity in their creation, but all are alike (in perfection).
(475)
mode
of
And from me appeared that which I made a disguise to me the phenomena were caused to return
And
in myself I beheld those
I
my Adam
whom
And
I
bowed;
(jam ), i.e. Being viewed synthetically distinctions are reconciled, and by "the closed" the state of "separation" (tafriqa), i.e.
union
1
(477)
all
its
(472) Number and Time involve division inconsistent with real unity.
rival," i.e. (473) 21, 22 :" If there were any
and
limitation,
which are
no partner in the attributes of deity; cf. Kor. gods besides Allah in heaven or earth, verily both (heaven and earth) would be ruined." (474) Kor. 67, 3: "Thou dost not see any incongruity (imperfection) in
the creation of the Merciful (God)."
"No
Were
their difference
there two opposed creators, like would manifest itself in the objects
created by them. (475) The illusion of phenomena does not impair the real unity which creates from itself, reveals to itself, and again withdraws from its manifested into its occult self. (476) In reality the worshipper and the object of worship are one. The angels who worshipped Adam (Kor. 15, 28 foil.) symbolise the relation of
a Divine attribute to its Essence. (477) The Divine attributes as manifested in Man may be distinguished from each other, so that we speak of higher and lower natures, faculties, and powers, but they are fundamentally one and identical in respect of the Essence of which they are modes. For this symbolic use of "angels" cf.
p.
1
15
foil.
in]
243
my
(478)
Although
is
my
(to
horizon that
forth from
(479)
near
comrades craved right guidance from my them), the union of my unity was shown
my
second separation,
in the
And
my
senses
my
soul
fell
prostrate before me in order that she might recover ere repenting as Moses repented. (480) For there is no "where" after (vision of) Reality, since I
have recovered from intoxication, and the cloud that veiled the Essence has been cleared away by sobriety. (481) The end of a self-effacement that preceded my (indiis like the beginning of a sobriety (selfbecause both are circumscribed by a period. consciousness), in a I scale him who is rapt by an obliterating (482) weighed
vidual
self's)
conclusion
effacement in death
(to self)
with him
was experienced before the ecstasy began (cf. notes on 233-5, 326-7). (479) See note on v. n and vv. 288-9. "Ere repenting, etc." i.e. before coming back to the world of sense. Moses asked to see God with his phenomenal nature and was punished by being thrown into the state of "intoxication," in which it is not possible to have perfect clairvoyance; therefore his repentance and recovery involved a return to normal consciousness, whereas Ibnu '1-Farid's recovery endowed him with the abnormal consciousness which is characteristic of the unitive life. (480) "No 'where' (ayn) after Reality ('ayn)," which is free from all limitation. The meaning of the remainder of the verse has been sufficiently
explained above. (481-2) The higher mystical life, before it reaches the perfect oneness which is its goal, swings to and fro between states of ecstasy and consciousness self-effacement (mahw) and self-restoration (ithbdt), intoxication (sukr) and sobriety (sahw), etc. This ever-changing succession (talwin) of complementary states only ceases with the conclusion of self-existence, i.e. when
:
the mystic's individuality has entirely passed away, so that he is permanently one with the timeless and infinite being of God. Such permanent conscious oneness with God is described symbolically as "the second separation"
1
244
(483)
[CH.
from
my
annulled
(484)
my
One who
is
effacement
loses (God) in sobriety and finds (God) in selfincapable, owing to his alternation, of the fixity of
The drunken and the sober are alike inasmuch as they are " " " qualified by themarkof presence or by the brand of enclosure." (486) No followers of mine are they in whom the attributes of
(485)
(of
these attributes)
He
me
is
faulty,
' '
disguise
resulting
from a remnant (of self -existence), nor any shadow (of phenomenal being) that would condemn me to return (to an inferior degree).
(489)
How
little
may
ness
was
All sides (of Being) joined in me and the carpet of otherrolled up in virtue of the equality (of all),
"the second sobriety" (as-sahwu 'l-thdni). Viewed from that summit, negative or positive states, like mahw and sahw, are equally " " imperfect; hence the poet says, I weighed, etc," i.e. I found both of them is nearly equivalent to mahw. See wanting." Mahq (misinterpreted by ) Kitdb al-Luma', 355, 17. of 'film'": literally, "the dot of the (letter) (483) "The dot of the ghayn of (the word) ghayn (film or cloud)," i.e. in the first place my individual existence was effaced from my consciousness then self-effacement was superseded by "the wakefulness of the eye of the Essence," i.e. by the divine or cosmic consciousness, which is technically named "the second sobriety." Ghayn (film) becomes 'ayn (eye or essence) when the dot of its initial letter
(al-farqu 'l-thdni) or
is
removed.
(484)
cf.
note on
vv.
481-2 and
Kashf al-Mahjtib,
370
foil.
(485) Cf. verse 482. Perfect Oneness is the unity which combines two main aspects of Being as it is revealed to mystics (cf. note on v. 478). "Presence" (hutfur) is here equivalent to "union" (jam ), and "enclosure"
1
(hazlra) to "separation" (tafriqa). " refer to the (486) Cf. note on vv. 481-2. "The attributes of 'disguise' state of sobriety (?ahw) and denote the normal consciousness which follows
ecstasy and "veils" the mystic from God. "The vestiges of any remnant" refer to thestateof self-effacement (mahw) in which these attributes disappear. (489) In this verse wahy refers to the heart, slgha to the tongue.
(490)
"All sides,"
first
i.e.
and
ill]
245
And my existence,
existence,
became a contemplation in the abidingness of unity. the First (492) That which is above the range of intellect Emanation is even as that which is below the Sinai of tradition
the last handful.
(493)
prefer
him
I
Man
he
is
worthy of
preference.
have indicated (the truth concerning phenomenal by the means which language yields, and that which is obscure I have made clear by a subtle allegory. (495) The "Am not I" of yesterday is not other (than what shall be manifested) to him who enters on to-morrow, since my darkness hath become my dawn and my day my night. to God belongs the mirror of its (496) The secret of "Yea" revelation, and to affirm the reality of union (jam is to deny
(494)
relations)
1
"beside-ness."
(497) No darkness covers me nor is there any harm to feared, since the mercy of light hath quenched the fire of
be
my
my
vengeance.
(498)
And no
time
is,
save where
is
(492) According to the monistic doctrine there is no real distinction in the universe of created things from their metaphysical source in Universal Spirit to the Resurrection foretold by prophetic tradition, when "the whole earth shall be His handful and the heavens shall be rolled together in His
right
hand" (Kor.
39, 67).
is reported to have said, "Do not think I am better than Yiinus ibn Matta (Jonah)." " " (495-6) See note on v. 69. Yesterday means the Primal Covenant by which the souls, before their bodies were created, bound themselves to love God; "to-morrow" signifies the Resurrection. Time disappears in the oneness of the Essence: day is identical with night, and night with day. "The secret of 'Yea'" alludes to Kor. 7, 171 (When God said to the children of Adam) "Am not I your Lord?" and they answered, "Yea." Those who
(493)
Mohammed
affirm the oneness of Being and deny "beside-ness," exists beside God, know that "Yea" is the eternal
i.e.
Word
and spoken by Himself to Himself. (497) The commentator quotes two sayings ascribed to Mohammed: (a) that God said, "My mercy was before My wrath"; (b) that Hell will say " to every true believer who approaches it, Pass, O true believer, for lo, thy light hath quenched my fire." (498) Time is not a reality except in the spiritual world where it is eternal and infinite.
246
[CH.
mine which
is
computed by the
reckoning of the new moons; (499) But one imprisoned in the bounds of Time does not see
what
lies
beyond
'tis upon me the heavens turn, and marvel thou at their Qutb (Pole) which encompasses them, howbeit the Pole is a central point.
(500) Therefore
(501) And there was no Qutb before me, whom I should succeed after having passed three grades (of sanctity), although the Awtdd rise to the rank of Qutb from the rank of Badal. (502) Do not overstep my straight line, and seize the best
love.
calls
The poet now describes some of his strange experiences in The first of these is a state which the commentator
"the greatest absence from self" (al-ghaybiyyatu
Through Her
I
7-
kubrd).
(506)
became oblivious
of myself, so that I
thought myself another and did not seek the path that leads to
thinking myself existent. (507) And my being oblivious (of myself) in Her, caused me to lose my reason, so that I did not return to myself or follow any
desire of
(508)
mine
in consequence of
I
my
thinking (that
I existed).
And
became distraught
with Her;
and whomsoever She renders distraught through being taken up with Her, him She makes forgetful of himself. (509) And I was so preoccupied with Her as to forget the preoccupation that made me forget myself: had I died for Her, I should not have been aware of my departure (from the world).
******
I
its
(512)
And
was seeking Her from myself, though She was I marvelled how She was hidden from me by
(500) Real Being is the axis on which the phenomenal universe revolves as well as the circumference within which all particulars are contained. (501) The explanation of this verse will be found on p. 194 supra. (502) "My straight line," i.e. the mystical path by which I arrived at this supreme perfection. The poet adds that the doctrine taught in the
Ill]
247
And
ceased not from going with Her to and fro in my senses were intoxicated by
(514) Travelling from the knowledge of certainty to the intuition thereof; then journeying to the fact thereof, where the
Truth
is.
me
(So was I seeking Her within me) until there rose from mine eye a gleam, and the splendour of my daybreak shone forth and my darkness vanished. (522) Here I reached a point from which the intellect recoils before gaining it, where from myself I was being joined and united
(521)
to
to myself.
(523)
And when
me from
my
And
since I
myself to myself,
and
I
was seeking myself from myself, I directed my soul showed the way to me by means of
removed the curtains of the shroud of sense mine own ordainment had let down, soul's curtain by unveiling her, and 'twas
(that the veil should be removed). of essence
me.
(525)
And when
I lifted
of
my my request
And
my
(514) Certainty (al-yaqin) denotes real faith in the Unseen. The three stages or categories mentioned in this verse are variously denned by Sufi writers. According to Kashani, a man who has the knowledge of certainty ('ilmu 'l-yaqin) knows that the object of his search is within him; in the
second stage ('aynu 'l-yaqin) he sees this intuitively with the eye of mystical contemplation; in the last stage (haqqu 'l-yaqin} the illusion of subject and object disappears and he reaches absolute unity (ittihdd}. (522) Thought, which involves duality, cannot apprehend "the fact of " certainty ( haqqu 'l-yaqin}, i.e. the pure Oneness allegorically depicted in the
following passage. (523) When the mystic realises the fact of ittihdd, he has arrived at his journey's end. (524) I.e. I was the seeker, the guide, and the object sought. (525-6) The soul is "veiled" (ignorant of the truth) so long as she does not perceive that the bodily senses (sight, hearing, taste, etc.) are really attributes of the universal Soul with which she is essentially one. (527) The attributes, which limit the essence and prevent it from being seen as it is absolutely, are compared to rust that darkens the surface of a
steel mirror.
248
[CH.
from the rust of my attributes, and the rays that surrounded it were from myself; (528) And I caused myself to behold myself, inasmuch as in my beholding there existed none other than myself who might
decree the intrusion
(529)
(of duality).
And when I uttered my name, that which uttered it caused me to hear it, though (in truth) 'twas my soul that listened and pronounced my name while sensation was banished. (530) And I embraced myself, but not through contact of my
limbs with
(531)
my
my
ribs
I
And
And
perfume of
(532)
I embraced my very essence. myself smell my own perfume, while the breath made fragrant the scents of bruised spices.
:
nay,
let
the whole of
sensation, howbeit
unified
my
His but in the mystic's vision of Oneness all is essentialised and every partial relation identified with the Whole.
attributes, names,
enables
attributes because of me (my essence) praise to my praiser glorify me (for what I am essentially), but to praise me (my essence) because of attributes is to blame me
(533)
To
my
my
(my
essence).
(534)
my attributes in my companion
by means
of
essence)
them
will
my
abode
my attributes).
See vv. 539-540 and vv. 546-8 below. This verse refers to v. 519:
And I press my hand on my vitals that peradventure I may embrace Her when I lay it there in clasping. The whole passage (vv. 521-531) is parallel to the verses immediately
preceding it (510-520): the former describes mystical "intoxication" (sukr), the latter mystical "sobriety" (sabw). (531) I.e. I did not cry, like Mohammed, "O God, let me smell the perfume of Paradise!" for I myself was the perfumer, the perfume and everything that is perfumed. (53 2 ) Cf. v. 529. The deified mystic is transcendent "in himself" because he is One and All. (534) "Will never alight at my abode," i.e. will never attain to knowledge of
my
essence.
Hi]
(535)
is
249
a waking vision
And to call to mind my Names through me (my essence) (a revelation of the Truth), but to call me (my
them
is
the
(false)
dream
of one that
Likewise, he that knows me (my essence) through my knows me not, whereas he that knows them through me is a knower of the Truth.
actions
(537) Receive, then, the knowledge of the principal attributes, which are attached to outward abodes (visible organs), from a soul
well acquainted therewith, (538) And (receive) the understanding of the Names of the Essence, which are made manifest through them (the attributes)
spirit that gives
but (themselves) reside in the inward (invisible) worlds, from a an indication thereof (by means of symbols).
attributes (e.g. (539) 'The manifestation metaphorically of bodily organs (e.g. the sight and hearing) from the names of
my
my
visual
and auditory
of
faculties)
names by which
my
soul
was
named because
my judgment
knowledge
marks
traced on the veils of forms (bodily organs) and throwing light on what is beyond sense-perception in the soul.
(536) Knowledge derived by means of induction is inferior to knowledge revealed in contemplation. Perfect knowledge of God is truly a recognition of that which the soul contemplated before the existence of the body. (537) "The principal attributes," such as sight, hearing, speech, and power, whose respective organs are the eye, the ear, the tongue, and the
hand.
(538) The attributes, although their real nature is hidden in the Essence, manifest themselves in the bodily organs. The Names, having no such organs attached to them, cannot be manifested except through the attributes thus, before we apply the name al-Rahmdn (the Merciful) to the Divine Essence, we must be assured that the quality of ralima (mercy) is latent in the Essence. (539-540) There is only a metaphorical (unreal) connexion between the attributes of the Essence and the physical faculties and organs with which they are associated. In reality these attributes belong entirely to the Essence, inasmuch as the faculties and organs through which they are manifested are themselves no more than objectified aspects of the Essence. When a man says "I saw" and "I heard," naming himself by the names of the attributes of sight and hearing, he does so because he judges that what really sees and hears is not his eye and his ear, but the spiritual essence underlying them.
:
250
(541)
[CH.
And
names
of
my
my
inward being,
mysteries whereby the spirit was gladdened, (542) Consists of hints concerning treasures
(of
knowledge)
hints revealing the significations of a mystical doctrine and encompassed by the arcana of that which is hidden in the depths of
the heart.
(543)
And
knowledge of them and created things are not independent of the effects produced by them (the Names and Attributes) (544) Are (shown by) the existence of praise that is gained (by God) for strength of dominion, and by the beholding of thanks
that are gathered in return for universal favours. (545) They (the effects of the Names and Attributes) are theatres of manifestation for me I appeared in them, although I
:
was not hidden from myself before my epiphany (in them). and the whole of me is a tongue that tells (546) For speech of me and sight and the whole of me is an eye in me for regarding
me
(547)
And
hearing
of
me
is
ears
(asmu
(and power) listening to the proclamation of (my) bounty the whole of me is a hand strong to repel destruction,
(548)
(All these faculties) are
and
for
a means of manifestation
(541-42) The inmost meaning of the Divine Names, which depend on the Divine Attributes (see v. 538), cannot be apprehended except mystically or conveyed otherwise than symbolically. Knowledge of the Names and Attributes gladdens the spirit by revealing the mysteries of Oneness (ittifrdd) and by exalting Man, as the microcosm, above all created beings. (543-4) The whole world of phenomena exhibits the effects (dthdr) of the Divine Names and Attributes, i.e. it is constituted, sustained, and replenished by a continuous series of illuminations (tajalliydt) proceeding from these Names and Attributes. All created beings praise God and render thanks to Him who endows them with existence, since they know and this is the import of the words "together with the knowledge of them," i.e. the knowledge of the dthdr that His Names and Attributes are manifested in themselves. (545) Before God actually revealed Himself in Man and Nature, He was potentially revealed to Himself in His eternal knowledge. (546-8) -All faculties which are separate and distinct in the body are united and indistinguishable in the soul. "The soul, having no parts, speaks with hearing and sight, and sees with hearing and speech, and hears with sight and speech, because all its attributes are involved in one another." The commentator assigns to ma'dni in v. 548 an unusual meaning, viz. "places
ill]
251
Attributes which established (the presence in the soul of) what transcends the (outward) vesture (the body) and for Essential
accrue from them to body and soul; and (3) their respective spheres of influence, viz., the visible world ('dlamu 'l-shahdda), the invisible world (dlamu 'l-ghayb), the world of dominion
and the world of almightiness (dlamu Here again he rises to the plane of undifferentiated unity (jam'), where plurality (tafriqa) has disappeared. This phase, however, is momentary. As we have seen, in the highest mystical experience plurality returns under the form
(dlamu
'l-malakut),
1
.
'l-jabarut)
of unity the One does not exclude the Many, but comprehends them in its own nature, so that every part is the essence of the
:
whole.
of me performs that (devotion) which is while keeping the way of that (unity) the Path, required by which was required by my Truth.
(575)
The whole
(576)
And when, no
by the
longer separating, I joined the rift, and difference of the attributes were closed,
me and
And nothing that leads to estrangement was left between a firm trust in the intimacy of my love,
(578) I knew for sure that we (lover and Beloved) are really One, and the sobriety of union restored the notion of separation,
of submission or will (to manifestation)"; but ma'dni sifdt in may signify "realities (consisting) of attributes." "That which sensation related to the soul" is the multiformity of phenomenal existence, which corresponds to
From -perception of sensible things the soul rises to knowledge of their spiritual realities. (575) "Having realised the Truth (haqiqa), namely, that subject and object are One, I continue to walk in the Path (tariqa)," i.e. to observe the ascetic and ethical discipline which the Sufi novice learns from his spiritual
the variety of the Essential Names.
director.
(576)
The phenomenon
Divine
Names and
(577-8) Lover
of "separation" arises from the diversity of the Attributes, not from any duality in the Essence itself. and Beloved are two attributes of one essence (Love),
'l-malakut
'l-jabarut
252
(579)
[CH.
All particular attributes being thus dissolved in the universality of the Essence, the "unified" mystic can say that his eye speaks, his tongue sees, his hand listens, etc., and
by every atom
of his
body
(w. 580-88).
(589) Therefore I read all the knowledge of the wise in a single word, and show unto myself all created beings in a single look (590) And I hear the voices of them that pray and all their languages in a time less than the duration of a gleam;
;
(591) And ere mine eye winks, I bring before me what was hard to convey on account of its distance (592) And with one inhalation I smell the perfumes of all gardens and the fragrance of what (herbs) soever touch the skirts
;
of the winds;
(593) And I survey all regions (of the earth) in a flash of thought and traverse the seven tiers of Heaven in one step.
and nature of these not only for claims which the extraordinary powers poet himself but for all prophets from Adam to Mohammed and for the Moslem saints in general. It is perhaps unnecessary to add that where he uses the words " I " and "my" he assumes
indicates the origin
The bodies
because of
encompassed
of those in whom remains no remnant (of my union (with them) are like the spirits they are (with my union) and made light (subtle)
:
and their union quA attributes is impossible, since the former is characterised by need, abasement and weakness, while power and pride are inherent in the latter. So long as they co-exist, they stand opposed to one another and in " peril of "estrangement only by absorption in their essence, i.e. by ceasing to be attributes, do they become united. The mystic's real Beloved is the oneness of Love, which begins in a rapture obliterating all distinctions (jam ) but ends by "restoring the notion of separation" (tafriqa), i.e. perceiving clairvoyantly that Lover, Beloved and Love are one.
;
Ill]
253
(595) And whosoever is sovereign or munificent or mighty in onset only finds his way (to these qualities) through my aiding him with a particle (of my union). (596)
He walked
in the flames
plunged
(597)
but in virtue of
my
volition,
And
am
whom
aided with a
all his
particle (of
my
moment from
(normal) being,
(598) And whence he that with his whole being followed my union recited the Koran, from beginning to end, a thousand times in an hour or less. (599) And had a breath of my grace been bestowed on a dead
man,
his soul
return.
(600)
Such is the soul if she cast off her desires, her faculties and endow every atom with the (entire) activity of
;
(60 1 ) Union suffices thee (as an explanation of these miracles) they are not produced by a separation consisting in two extensions, namely, measurable space and finite time.
After enumerating some miracles of pre-Islamic prophets Noah, Solomon, Abraham, Moses, Jacob and Jesus the
Mohammed
and the
real
as the
author
(614) The inward notion that produced (miraculous) effects in outward things is that (oneness) which, by (Divine) permission, my moulded speech communicated to thine ear, (615)
And
the
notions
underlying
all
(the
effects)
that
(595) Spiritual dominion, grace, and energy emanate from the Divine Essence with which the prophets and saints have been made one. (596) "My volition" (himma), i.e. the concentration of my thought upon the particular Divine Names which are the causes of the (miraculous)
effects that I desire to produce. (600) Cf. notes on vv. 525-6, 539-40, and 546-8 (601) Miracles are the effects of union (jam') with the Essence, unitive state. Time and Space belong to "separation" (tafriqa),
i.e.
i.e.
the the
phenomenal world.
(615-6) The spirit of prophecy attained to complete and final manifestation in Mohammed, the Seal of the prophets and since Universal Spirit, the
;
254
[CH.
belonged to them (the former prophets) were brought (together) by him (Mohammed) who caused them to stream over us, thereby
putting the seal upon a time
when no prophets
arise;
(616) And there was none of them (the former prophets) had called his people to the Truth by grace of Mohammed
but
and
because he was
Mohammed's
follower.
(617) And a divine of ours is one of those prophets, while any one of us that calls (the people) to the Truth performs the office of
apostle
(6 1 8)
And
in
our
Mohammedan
is (like)
one
of the old prophets, one who clave to the firm (in obedience to the religious law).
(619)
became
and
vicegerents.
(620) His family and his Companions and the religious leaders of the next generation sufficed mankind instead of the apostles. (621) Their miracles form part of what he conferred on them exclusively, in bequeathing to them a share of every excellence
(of his).
******
the saints
(627)
And
who
spirit resembles his yearning towards them in form. Marvel, then, at a presence in absence
!
of the saints with the Logos expresses language that might easily be mistaken for blasphemy.
emanation from Absolute Being, is identified with Mohammed and was revealed by him in its whole essential nature, whereas the prophets before him manifested no more than particular aspects and attributes, his predecessors drew their inspiration from him and are logically his followers. (617-8) Although prophecy ended with Mohammed, the Moslem divines and mystics may be described as the prophets and apostles of the Mohammedan era. Orthodox uffs take the strictest possible view of their religious duties (cf. Kitdb al-Luma', p. 10, 1. foil.).
first
For the distinction between mu'jizdt (miracles of the prophets) and hardmdt (miracles of the saints) see Kashf al-Mafrjub, p. 218 foil.
(619) (628) Yearning (ishtiydq) implies that the object of desire the mind), though absent (in the body).
is
present (to
ill]
(629)
255
who
(their peoples)
my
miscreants by
argument; (630) And in consequence of the priority of my essence they all revolve in my circle or descend from my watering-place, (631) For albeit I am outwardly a son of Adam, yet in him is a spirit of mine that bears witness I am his father.
my
(637)
Do
my service,
Since, but for me, no existence would have come into nor would there have been a contemplation (of God), nor being, would any secure covenants have been known.
(638) (639)
None
lives
but his
will;
life is
soul
is
obedient to
my
(640) And there is no speaker but tells his tale with my words, nor any seer but sees with the sight of mine eye (641) And no silent (listener) but hears with my hearing, nor any one that grasps but with my strength and might; (642) And in the whole creation there is none save me that
;
the Divine
miracles.
speaks or sees or hears. (643) And in the world of composition (the sensible world) I (629) "My way," i.e. the way of real oneness with God. "In virtue my name," i.e. the prophets manifested in their miracles the potency of the Divine Names, as Jesus, for example, called the dead to life by manifesting "
Name al-Muhyi,
the Quickener.
Cf. note on vv. 615-6 Metaphysically, Mohammed is the father of Adam in the sense that the spirit or essence of Adam is Universal Spirit = the Logos = Moham-
(630)
(631)
med.
(637)
"This matter,"
.
i.e.
Cf the Tradition in which it is related that God said to Mohammed, "But for thee I had not created the heavens." As the created universe is the form of the Logos, so is Divine contemplation an attribute of the same
(638)
Supreme
whence
all
human
powers. The "covenants" have been explained above. (643-5) These verses describe the self -manifestation of the Logos to the senses in the phenomenal world ('dlamu 'l-shahdda), to the intellect in the intelligible world ('dlamu 'l-^hayb), and to the spirit in the world of mystical contemplation, which the intellect is unable to reach ('dlamu 'l-malakut and
4
dlamu
256
form was made
(644)
[CH.
And
I
my
I
phenomena
(645)
in a corporeal shape
And
spirit
beholds by clairvoyance
my
subtlety.
The clairvoyant spirit contemplates itself as the Whole that pervades every aspect of reality and as the Identical in which all contraries are united.
(646) In the mercy of "expansion" the whole whereby the hopes of all the world are expanded;
of
me
is
a wish
the whole of me an awe, and o'er whatsoever I let mine eye range, it reveres me (648) And in the union of both these attributes the whole of me is a nearness. Come, then, draw near to my beauteous qualities
(647)
' '
contraction
' '
is
In the place where "in" ends I ceased not to through myself, the majesty of contemplating myself experience arising from the perfection of my nature
(649)
;
feel,
an
(650)
And where
is
no "in"
my
Perception of reality is impossible so long as senseimpressions, which affirm that things exist by themselves, are allowed to stand in the way.
(651) So if thou art of me, seek union with me and efface the distinction of separation and be not turned aside by the
my
darkness of Nature,
receive the signs of my inspired wisdom which (646-7) "Expansion" (bast) and "contraction" (qabd) are modes of " " " " fear (khawf) feeling in the gnostic which correspond to hope (rajd) and in the lower stages of the mystical life cf. R. Hartmann, Al-Kuschairts Darstedung des $Af(tutns, p. 84. Basf is the effect of Divine mercy, qabd of Divine
(652)
:
And
2,
246:
nearness," i.e. a negation of farness (difference) in the ground (648) of Pure Being. Distinction first appears when the Essence manifests itself through its Names and Attributes.
(649) In the sphere of the Essence there is no "in," i.e limitation of space and time. "The perfection of my nature" denotes the inherent selfidentity (jam') in virtue of which the Essence eternally contemplates itself in and by itself as the One in Many and the Many in the One. (651) I.e. do not seek me in the phenomenal world, where my attributes appear to be separated from the underlying reality.
"A
Ill]
257
will
through sensation.
special
(hulul)
Ibnu '1-Farid naturally condemns metempsychosis, a form of the already repudiated doctrine of incarnation
1
.
(653) Have nothing to do with one that believes in naskh (the transmigration of souls into human bodies) for his is a case of maskh (the transmigration of souls into the bodies of animals)
and hold
(654)
aloof
from
let
his doctrine;
And
for
everlastingly
If we scorn the notion of a spirit doomed to perpetual confinement in matter, how shall we represent the true monistic relation between them? Our minds can never know
that relation as
unseizable
it
really
is:
their own ways and communicating with each other, and the poet has just announced himself as a hierophant (v. 652), bidding his readers attend to "the signs of his inspired wisdom." The best commentary on this phrase is Ibnu 'l-'Arabi's remark that mystical "states" cannot be explained, but can only be indicated symbolically to those who have begun to experience
means
of
the like 2
my
(655) state is
me
to thee.
from
(656) Consider the Maqdmdt of the Sarujite and draw a lesson his variety (of disguise) then wilt thou deem it good to have
taken
vv.
my
advice,
The following passage should be compared with vv. 239-85 and 525-48 supra. The metaphor of "disguise" (labs: cf. note on vv. 284-5) shadows forth the oneness of reality and appearance. In Hariri's Maqdmdt (see my Literary History of the Arabs, pp. 329-336) the hero, Abu Zayd, a native of Sanij in Mesopotamia, assumes all sorts of disguises to get money from his dupes. " In whatever form and shape, " e.g. in the eye or the ear and in sight or hearing. "For the soul labours not in earnest," i.e. "if any one objects that Hariri's fiction does not correspond with the nature of Reality,
(656-8)
1
See
v.
277
foil.
Tarjumdn al-ashwdq,
p. 68.
N.
s.n
17
258
(657)
[CH.
whatever form
;
And thou
and shape she appears, inwardly masks herself in sensation work is fiction, yet the Truth makes (658) And if his (Hariri's)
a parable, for the soul labours not in earnest. Therefore be understanding, and while doing justice to thy soul look upon thy phenomenal actions with thy (faculty of) sense (660) And wouldst thou have thy soul unveil herself, contemof
it
(659)
plate
what thou
seest without
another that appeared in them? Or didst thou (661) behold thyself by means of them when the rays were refracted? (662) And listen how the sound of thy voice, when it dies away, is returned to thee by the walls of lofty buildings. (663) He that talked with thee there, was he some one else?
it
Was
Or
slumber,
(665)
And tell me, when thy senses had been hushed in who imparted to thee his lore? Ere to-day thou didst not know what happened yestershall
day or what
(666)
happen to-morrow,
art acquainted with the histories of
them
that are past and with the secrets of them that shall come after and the knowledge makes thee proud. (667) Think'st thou it was another, not thyself, that conversed with thee in the drowsiness of sleep touching diverse sorts
of noble knowledge?
(668)
Twas none
She unveiled
but thy
soul,
with her
(669)
meanings; and (670) For already had the sciences been imprinted on her,
I
reply that my analogy is perfectly just, inasmuch as the soul creates and maintains the illusion of phenomenal existence." Cf. v. 677, where phenomena are described as the playthings of a soul in earnest, and also v. 709.
(659) "Doing justice to thy soul," i.e. activities are effects (dthdr) of the soul. (668) The body is the theatre in which
recognising that
all
bodily
is
exhibited.
existence,
(669-71) In dreams the soul knows itself as it was in the state of prei.e. as one with the Being which is the subject and object of all
ill]
259
otherness was she blest; nay, she enjoyed that which she dictated
to herself.
(672) Had she become naked (detached from the body) before thy dream, thou wouldst have beheld her, as I do, with an eye that sees true (in a waking vision).
And her being normally detached (in sleep) in the first her being detached in the eternal world (of mystical confirms place contemplation) in the second place; therefore be steadfast,
(673) (674)
And be
For
not one
whom
his studies
;
made
foolish, so that
there,
beyond
tradition, lies
to be apprehended by the farthest reach of sound understandings. (676) I received it from myself and derived it from myself: 'twas with mine own bounty my soul was replenishing me.
One
of the
of the Td'iyya
his translation of
could scarcely be plainer, they introduce a passage in which the poet dwells on the relative value of sense- perception viewed as an illustration of the nature of reality and this
is
translates
them:
Du spiele nicht mit Scherz und fasle nicht im Leben, Du sei den Possen nicht, dem Ernste sei ergeben O hiite dich und wend' dich ab von alien Bildern,
!
Von
or something like
opposite.
In a different context Ibnu '1-Farid might have said this it; but here, as it happens, he says just the
itself,
knowledge, and which, qua Universal Spirit (the father) eternally begets in qud Universal Soul (the mother), the ideal, i.e. non-externalised, essences of individual things. Cf. Kor. 2, 29 "And He (Allah) taught Adam the Names, all of them." See also p. 186, note 4, and v. 631 supra. (672) "Become naked" (tajarradat): so Plato speaks of TJ ^VXTI yvftvi)
:
TOV (TOWXTOS.
(673)
Cf.
Poems from
the
a passage of the Masnavi quoted and translated in Divdni Shamsi Tabriz, p. 298 fol.
Selected
172
260
[CH.
(677) Be not wholly neglectful of the play (illusion), for the jest of the playthings (phenomena) is the earnestness of a soul in
earnest,
(678) And beware of turning thy back on every tinselled form or unreal and fantastic case
;
(679)
shadowthin
phantom
(semi-transparent) curtains.
Here Ibnu '1-Farid refers to the shadow-lantern by means which leathern figures, moved by wands against a muslin curtain, are illuminated and made visible to the spectators on the other side (see Nallino, op. cit., p. 93). The verses immediately following (680-706) have been translated above (p. 189 foil.) They describe how the showman, standing behind the screen, displays his figures in every variety of action and
of
.
causes the spectators to sympathise with the representation yet when the screen is taken away, he alone is seen to be the
;
analogy guides us to the truth of things. The the soul, the shadowy figures are the phenomena of sensation, the screen is the body: remove it and the soul
real actor. This
showman
is
is
Even thus
(like
the showman)
was
letting
down
between
me and
That
light of darkness,
(708)
in producing
my
actions at intervals
might
it
appear to
preparing
(709)
I
my
it
(and
for
complete illumination).
my work
(reality),
(677-9)
'l-haqiqa).
"The phenomenal
Cf.
Tarjumdn al-ashwdq, p. 100: "In the survival of the substance of phenomenal being the Divine Presence and its lovely Nammanifested, and this is the beauty of phenomenal being; if it perished, thou wouldst not know aught, since all kinds of knowledge are divulged by means of forms and bodies." (707) The body is dark, inasmuch as it belongs to the world of appearance, but also light, in so far as knowledge of reality first comes to the soul through sense-perception. Regarded as faculties of the soul, the senses are
capable of receiving gradual illumination.
Ill]
261
my far-off
purposes.
(710)
like
is
not (essentially)
soul resembles him in action, for sensation (712) And is like the figures (puppets), and the (bodily) vesture is screen.
my
I
my
my
(713)
it
When
removed the screen from me, as he removed my soul appeared to me without any
veiling
And
all
existence
already the sun of contemplation had risen, and was illumined, and through myself the knots of the
tethering-rope (of sense-perception) were untied (715) I slew the youth, my soul, while on the one
setting up the wall (of consciousness) to safeguard on the other staving in my (bodily) boat,
hand
was
my
laws and
(716) And turned to shed my replenishing grace over every created being according to my actions at every time ; (717) And were I not veiled by my attributes, the objects in which I manifest myself would be consumed by the splendour of
my glory.
(712)
The
same way
soul acts on the senses through a corporeal medium in the as the showman uses a screen in order to act on his puppets.
(713-5) These lines describe the states of fand and bag a the lifting of the bodily veil and the consequent union with reality which are here indicated by means of metaphors strange to us but easy for any Moslem to understand, since they refer to a famous passage in the Koran (18, 64-81). "I slew the youth, my soul," i.e. I died to self (fand). "While... I was setting up the wall... to safeguard my laws," i.e. my living (baqd) in and through God was accompanied by the maintenance of the religious law. The perfect mystic, after having "staved in his boat," i.e. having destroyed his individual existence, nevertheless in his unitive state "makes the Law his upper garment and the Path his inner garment" cf. The Mystics of Islam, p. 163. (716) The unified soul is one with the eternal source of energy whence the existence of phenomena is diffused and perpetually renewed. Imddd in this verse has its usual meaning: see vv. 403-4. (717) A paraphrase of the celebrated Tradition concerning the 70,000 veils of light and darkness which hide the face of Allah.
:
262
[CH.
Once the illusion of selfhood is destroyed, nothing remains but "the Master of the Show," the one real person in the
drama
Which, for the Pastime of Eternity, He doth Himself contrive, enact, behold.
(718) The tongues of all beings, wilt thou but hearken, bear eloquent witness to my unity. (719) And touching my oneness (ittihdd) there hath come down
(oral) relation
(from the
Declaring that
nigh unto
(721)
Him by
And
God loves (His creatures) after they draw voluntary works of devotion or by the obseris
is obligatory; the point that the doctrine bids us mark as clear as the light of noon by the words "I am to
made
him an
ear."
(722) I used the (religious and devotional) means to reach unification until I found it (unification), and the agency of the
of guides (thereto) (723) And I unified in respect of the means until I lost them, and the link of (this) unification was the way of approach (to unity)
;
my
that availed
(724)
me And I
best;
single (detached
stripped my soul of them both, and she became from the world of relations) yet had she never
single (in her real nature)
;
at
And
them
in
my
dived into the seas of union, nay, I plunged into aloneness and brought out many a peerless pearl,
I
refers to another and equally apocryphal Hadith (see the gist of which lies in the statement that those whom God loves are one with Him, so that He is their organ of sight, hearing, and speech. (722) Although the mystic at the beginning of his unification values devotional exercises as a means of,attaining to union with God, he ultimately comes to know that the attainment of union does not depend on secondary causes, which are non-existent in reality, or on any act that he may ascribe to himself. Cf Kashf al-Mahjtib, p. 202 foil. The Mystics of Islam, p. 74 foil. " I unified in respect of the means," i.e. I perceived that God is the (723)
(719)
The poet
p. 5 suf>ra),
real
" I stripped my soul of them both," i.e. both of my regard for the means themselves (v. 722) and of my regard for my unification of them (v. 723). Even in the latter there is still a remnant of dualism, inasmuch as
(724)
the unification
is
self.
in]
(726)
263
my
That I might hear mine acts with a seeing ear and behold words with a hearing eye. (727) So if the nightingale lament in the grove, whilst the birds in every tree warble a response to her, (728) And if the flute-player make music in accord with the strings touched by the hand of a singing-girl
(729)
Who
mount
I
hearers)
(730)
chants tender poetry, so that the souls to their Paradisal lote-tree at each trill
(of
the
own
art,
and
ever
declare
others.
my
It follows
forms of
worship are essentially divine. Even dualism and polytheism represent certain aspects in which God expresses Himself.
This passage (vv. 73149) should be compared with the views set forth by Ibnu 'l-'Arabi and Jili (see pp. 130 foil, and 157 foil.).
(731) Through me the assembly of them that praise (attentive like) the ear of one reading (a book), and for the wine-seller's shop is (open like) the eye of a scout;
(732)
is
my name my sake
;
and
if it
And virtually no hand but mine tied the infidels' girdle be loosed in acknowledgement of me, 'twas my hand that
And if the niche of a mosque is illuminated by the Koran, made vain by the Gospel;
loosed
it.
(733)
yet
is
no
altar of a church
(734) Nor vain are the books of the Torah revealed to Moses for his people, whereby the Rabbis converse with God every
night.
(726) In union (jam ) each attribute is identical with every other attribute and with the Essence. " (729) The words "mount to their Paradisal lote-tree depict the highest rapture of which the soul is capable, as the sidratu 'l-muntahd (Koran, 53, 14) marks the boundary of the seventh heaven, and neither prophet nor
1
angel
may
pass beyond
it.
of them that praise my name" alludes to Sufis together for the purpose of dhikr (see The Mystics of Islam, p. 45 knows what is meant by foil.). Every student of Persian mystical poetry "the wine-seller's shop" others may consult the Gulshani Rdz of Mahmiid Shabistari, ed. by E. H. Whinfield, p. 78 foil, of the English translation.
(731)
"The assembly
who meet
(732) Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians under Mohammedan rule wore a girdle round the waist to distinguish them from the Faithful; hence their "loosing" it would be a sign of their conversion to Islam.
264
(735)
[CH.
a devotee fall down before the stones in an idolno reason for religious zeal to take offence; (736) For many a one who is clear of the shame of associating others with God by means of idolatry is in spirit a worshipper of
if
And
temple, there
is
money.
The warning from me hath reached those whom it and I am the cause of the excuses put forward in every sought,
(737)
faith.
any
(738) sect
(739)
Not have
in any religion have men's eyes been awry, not in their thoughts been perverse. They that heedlessly fell in love with the sun lost not
its
brightness
is
from the
light of
my
And
if
which, as history
was not quenched for a thousand years (741) They intended none but me, although they took another direction and did not declare the purpose they had formed. (742) They had once seen the radiance of my light and deemed
it
fire,
true light
by the
rays.
(743)
it
And but
have said
out: only
my
doth keep
(744)
me
So
silent.
this is
(740) The extinction of the sacred Fire of the Persians, after it had burned unceasingly for a thousand years, is recorded amongst the portents that occurred on the night of the Prophet's birth (A.D. 572-3). (743) "Were it not that I appear under the form of externality, as a creature dependent on the Divine will and subject to the Divine law, I should have said plainly that nothing exists in reality except One Being, who manifests Himself in every thought and action." (744) The language of this verse is borrowed from Kor. 23, 117: "Did " ye think that We created you in idle sport? and 75, 36: "Doth man think he shall be left uncontrolled ? " The existence of evil, i.e. relative imperfection, follows by necessity from the self-manifestation of the Absolute. See pp. 85
93. 131
Ill]
265
Names; and the wisdom which endowed the Essence with (diverse) attributes caused them to take that course in consequence of
the Divine decree,
(746)
I care not
Disposing them in two handfuls "and I care not... and " one destined for happiness and one for misery.
let
is
(747) Oh, let the soul her not (seek to) know
know
that the case stands thus, or else according to this the Koran
And
dictated to
(749)
I hoped (of mystic knowledge). should have swerved (from the truth) and been stripped of the signs of my union (jam') through associating my handiwork (as an equal partner) with myself.
my
what
Had
I singled, I
Protesting that he is not to be blamed for having divulged the sublime mysteries with which the grace of God illuminated him, the poet bids his disciple farewell. Let him follow in his
is
knowledge
my
disciples
beg
it
of
me
as a boon.
salvation and perdition, are effects determined by al-Hddi (He that guides aright), al-Mudill (He that leads astray), and by the Divine Attributes, e.g. i'zdz (exaltare humiles) and idhldl (deponere potentes). (746) Ibnu '1-Farid refers to the Tradition that when God created Adam, He drew forth his posterity from his loins in two handfuls, one white as " These are in Paradise and I care not; silver and one black as coal, and said,
(745)
Good and
evil,
e.g.
and these are in Hell-fire and I care not." (747) "For according to this," e.g. in Kor. 16, 95: "Allah misguides whomso He pleaseth and leads aright whomso He pleaseth." (748) Cf. v. 671 and vv. 675-6. (749) "Had I singled," i.e. if I had limited the action of the soul by singling out and assigning to her the attributes of beauty (which are the source of good), while I deprived her of the attributes of majesty and awe (which are the source of evil), then I should have set up beside her a rival Being in whom these latter attributes and the effects proceeding from them
must, ex hypothesi, subsist. (759) This is the Platonic doctrine of di>dij.vri<ris. In dreams and in moments of ecstasy the soul recovers the knowledge of true being which is hidden from her during her bodily existence. Cf. vv. 428-9 and 664 foil.
266
[CH.
in
(760) Do thou, therefore, make haste to enjoy my eternal union, in virtue of which I found the full-grown men of the tribe (of Sufis no wiser than) little babes.
(761)
left;
For my contemporaries drink only the dregs of what I and as for those before me, their (vaunted) merits are my
superfluity.
INDEX
'Abdu '1-Karim, Khwaja, 47, 67 'Abdu '1-Qadir al-Jili (Jilani, Gilani), ^TrTTSr-T^T 'Abdu '1-Rahman, son of Ibnu
'1-Farid, 165
'Ali ibn
'Alij,
Abraham,
Amul, n,
66
Abu Abu
Abii
214. 253
'!-' '!-'
Andrae, Tor,
21, 22,
in
Abu Abu
23, 24,
'AM, Sayyid, 27
Abii 'Alf Zahir, 6, 7, 8 Abu Bakr Ishaq Karrami, 29-32 Abu '1-Fadl Hasan, of Sarakhs, 7, 8-12, 14, 15, 17, 23-25, 62 Abu '1-Khayr, father of Abu Sa'id, 3. 4 Abu Nasr^l-Sarraj, of Tiis, 10, 58. See Kitdb al-Luma' Abu Sa'fd ibn Abi '1-Khayr, 1-76. See Index of Subjects Abii Sa'id, Shaykhu '1-Islam, grandson of Abii Sa'id ibn Abi '1-Khayr, 25. 59 Abu Salih Dandani, Pir, 47 Abii Tahir, eldest son of Abu Sa'id ibn' Abi '1-Khayr, 15, 24, 35, 36,
43, 44, 7
'Anqa, the, 83, 93 Aura Mainyu, 163 'Aqiq, valley of, 170 'Arafat, 222 Arnold, Matthew, 9 Ash'arites, the, 154 Asia Minor, 72 Asma, 113
Asrdru 'l-tawhid fi maqdmdti 'lShaykh A bi Sa'id, by Muhammad ibnu '1-Munawwar, 13 Athdru 'l-bildd, by Qazwini, 76
'Attar, Faridu'ddin, 3, 42, 162
Avicenna, 42 'Ayniyya, the, by Jili, 90, 143 foil. See al-Nawddiru 'l-'ayniyya ft
'l-bawddiri 'l-ghaybiyya 'Ayyari, Abii Muhammad, 4 'Ayyari, Abii Sa'id, 4 'Azazil, 120. See Iblis al-Azhar, mosque, 165 Azrael, the Angel of Death,
116, 117, 123 'Azza, 113, 222, 223
in,
Abii Zayd of
Sariij, 198,
257
106, 124, 187, 242,
104,
Adam,
54, 78, 79, 80, 87, 97, 109, in, 112, 113, 119-122, 130, 136, 140, 149, 155, 186, 198, 205, 206, 223, 229, 240, 245, 252, 255, 265 Ahmad, a name of the Prophet,
Baba
229.
See
Mohammed
Abu
Baghdad, Baku, 57
Balkh, 65
162
'1-Hasan Khara-
Bashkhwan,
74, 75
268
Bashkhwani,
Basra, 10
Index I
Bu
'Amr,
74, 75
4,
48
See 'Attar
Baward, 17
Bayazid-i
BisUmi,
44,
76.
al-Bisfcimf
Abu
'1-Qasim, 4, 5
77.
Abu
'1-Fadl, 41
Bistam, 44, 76
al-Bistdml,
Fususu
See
Abu Yazid, Bayazid-i Bist&mi Black, J. S., 163 Blake, W., 167 Blochet, E., 195 Bohme, Jacob, 94, 103 Bousset, W., 86, 87
'l-hikam, by Ibnu 'l-'Arabl, 77, 83, 88, 91, 96, 100, 115, 130, 134, 136, 141, 149-161
'l-'Arabi, 77, 82,
al-Futuhdtu
l-Makkiyya, by Ibnu 88
219, 225
Gabriel,
Brockelmann, C., 99 Browne, Prof. E. G., 61, 165, 170 Bu 'Abdallah Baku, Shaykh, 57, 58
Bii 'All Turshizi, 36
Bu Bu
Gairdner, W. H. T., in Gaz, valley, 17 Gerson, 51 Ghazali, 80, in, 150 Ghazna, 29, 33
in, n6,
'Amr, 40
'1-Khayr,
Babu.
See
Abu
'1-
Bu Bu
Khayr
'1-Qasimak, 31 Tahir. See Abu Tahir
Ghiyathu'ddin Muhammad ibn Sam, Ghurid prince, i al-Ghuwayr, 183 Ghuzz, the, a Turcoman tribe, 2, 20,
2 7. 45. 73
Bukhara, 66
Bulghar, 124
al-Burfni, Hasan, 162, 168, 186 Buthayna, 223, 224
Gibb, E.
J.
W., 62,
in
Gilan, 8 1 Goldziher, Prof. I., 81, 82 Gospel, the, 137-140, 240, 263 Gulshani rdz, by Mahmud Shabistari,
Caird, .,96 Cairo, 164, 165 Caspian, the, 81 Catherine of Siena, St, 167 Christ, 87, 104, 135, 140, 187.
263
10,
u
Abu
Jesus
al-Dahdah,
162
Dajjal, 135
Rushayyid
b.
Ghalib,
Sa'id ibn Abi 'l-Khayr, 1-3 Hallaj, Husayn ibn Mansur, 32, 54, 79, 80,' 88, 107, 121, 158, 193, 230.
Damghan, 44
Dandani, Pir Abii Dante, 191
Darij, 183
Salih, 47
162.
165, 166
See Von Hammer Hanafites, the, 29 Haneberg, D., 195 Hariri, 198, 257, 258 Hartmann, Richard, 34, 53, 73, 220, 238, 256 Hasan of Basra, 10,
De De
Sacy, Silvestre, 165 Slane, Baron, 164, 168 Deussen, Paul, 103 Di Matteo, Sac. Ignazio, 162 Dihya al-Kalbi, 219, 225 Divdn-i Shams-i Tabriz, by Jalalu'ddin Rumf, 80, 168, 233, 259 Dozy, R., 29
Hubbi,
Eckhart, 51, 212 Egypt, 165, 181 Elijah, 73
Pfr,
3,
47
22,
:
Hujwiri,
34,
58,
79.
See
Kashf al-mahjtib
al-Husri, Abii Abdallah, 6
Index I
Iblfs, 54, 72, 112, Iiy, IIQ, I2O, 121,
269
124.
See Satan
Kdshanf, 'Abdu '1-Razzaq, 94, 149, 162, 193, 194, 199 foil.
'l-'Arabi, 77, 82, 83, 88, 93, 99, IOI, 102, 103, IO7, 115, 119, 134, 136, 138, 141, 142, I49-l6l, 164, 169, 184, 193, 257, 263 Ibnu '1-Farid, 119, 162-266 Ibn Khallikan, 164, 168 Ibn Sina, 42
Ibnu
'l-sirri 'l-ghdmid fi sharhi Ibni 'l-Fdrid, by 'Abdu '1-Ghani al-Nabulusi, 162 Kashfu 'l-wujuhi 'l-ghurr li-ma'dni
Kashfu
Diwdn
nazmi
Ibn Surayj, 6
the prophet, 123 Ihyd, the, of Ghazalf, 80 Ikhwanu '1-Safa, 139
Idrfs,
India, 81
'l-durr, by 'Abdu '1-Razzaq al-Kashani, 162 Kazima, 182 Khadir, the prophet, 13, 66, 82, 124, 141
Khamnyya,
Jilf,
77
foil.,
Ibnu
'1-Farid,
Iqbal, Dr Muhammad, 77, 94 Ishf Nilf, 69, 70 Isma'ilak-i Daqqaq, 35 Isma'ilfs, the, 61 Israelites, the, 179 Israffl, 115, 123. See Seraphiel Istildhdtu 'l-Sufiyya, by 'Abdu
Abu
al-Kharraz,
Abu
3
Khawaran,
'1-
Razzaq al-Kashani, 94
al-Jabartf, Sharafu'ddin, Isma'il ibn Ibrahim, 81, 87, 105, 118 Jacob, the prophet, 201, 253 Jalalu'ddin Rumf, 80, 159, 162, 167,
,
Khurasan, 2, 3, 19, 20, 38, 76 Khurqan. See Kharaqan Khurqani, Abu '1-Hasan. See Kharaqani Kitdb al-Luma', by
Abu Nasr
al-
1 68, 1 80. See Divdn-i Shams-i Tabriz and Masnavi-i ma'navi 162 Jamf, 3,
Jamil, 224 Jerusalem, 66 Jesus, 25, no, 123, 137, 139, 140, 141, 253, 255. See Christ Jflan, 8 1 Jili, 'Abdu '1-Karim, author of the Insdnu 'l-kdmil, 77-148, 149, 153,
157, 160, 193, 263
Jili (Jilani, Gilani),
'Abdu
'1-Qadir,
Sarraj, 34, 61, 96, 200, 220, 230, 238, 244, 254 Kitdb al-Tawdsin, by Hallaj, 54, 79, 80, 107, I2i, 136, 139, 142, 193 Koran, the, 4, 8, 13, 15, 16, 17, 25, 28, 32, 37, 43, 46, 51. 56, 59, 60, 62, 64, 75, 78, 79, 82, 87, 92, 104, 107, 109, no, in, 113, 120, 123, 126, 130, 131, 132, 135, 136, 138, 139, 140, 149, i5i> 157, J 59, i?3 179, 197, 200, 201, 205, 206, 209, 223, 225, 226, 228, 230, 231, 235, 237 2 39, 240, 241, 242, 245, 253, 256, 259, 26l, 263, 264, 265 Kushi, 8 1
ohn, the Baptist, 25 ohn, St, 88 onah, 245 ones, Sir William, 49, 165 Joseph, the prophet, 123
Kuthayyir, 222-224
La'la', 182 Lane, E., 94
Law, H. D. Graves, 48
Layla, 127, 222 Le Strange, G., 26 Lees, Nassau, 3, 19 Loosen, Paul, 6 Loth, O., 77, 81
Junayd, of Baghdad,
Jurjani, 93, 118
10,
n, 159
73
Ka'ba, the, 15, 25, 36, 44, 62, 213, 214, 222, 238
Kalim
(Kalimu'llah),
229.
See
al-Luma', by Abu Nasr al-Sarraj. See Kitdb al-Luma' Luqman, of Sarakhs, 6, 7 Lyall, Sir C., 163
270
Ma'arrf,
Index I
Abu
'l-'Ala, 160,
162
Macdonald, Prof. D.
236
Abu
Sa'id
Muhammad,
Maljmud-i Murfd, Khwaja, 27 Mahmud Shabistari, 263 Majnvin, 222 Malamatis, the, 208 Maqam Ibrahim, 214 Maqdmdt, of Hariri, the, 257 Ma'nif Karkhi, 10 Marwa, 239 Mary, the mother of Jesus, 140 Masnavi-i ma'navi, by Jalalu'ddin Rumi, 159, 168, 259 Massignon, L., 54, 79, 80, 81, 107,
121, 136, 139, 142, 193
'Abdu '1-Ghani, 162, 164, 168, 172, 184, 187, 199 foil. Nafahdtu 'l-Uns, by Jami, 3, 19
Najd, 182
Najjar, Khwaja, 47 Nallino, Prof. C. A., 162, 164, 168, 177, 186, 200, 207, 214, 221, 238,
260
al-Naqa, 182 Nasa, 4, 17-19 al-Nasawi, Ahmad 'AH, 19 al-Nasawi, Muhammad (ibn) 'Ulayyan, 19 al-Nasrabadi, Abu '1-Qasim, 14
Mayhana,
al-Nawddiru 'l-'ayniyyafi 'l-bawddiri 'l-ghaybiyya, by Jill, 99, 143. See 'Ayniyya Na?mu 'l-suluk, by Ibnu '1-Farid, 165, 169, 1 88. See al-Td'iyyatu
'l-kubrd
165, 174, 179, 181, 183. 222, Medina, 66, 170, 174
239
Newman,
Nishapur,
Cardinal, 163
Meleager, 167
14, 22, 26, 27, 28, 33, 34, 36. 37. 38. 41-45. 57. 59. 65, 66, 69, 70, 71, 73 Nizamu '1-Mulk, 27
in,
118, 123
Mihna,
2, 18.
See
Mayhana
al-Mina, 181
in
n,
Mohammed,
106, 130, 172, 206, 239, 264. 109, 132, 174, 219, 240,
the Prophet,
5, 6, 9,
15, 19, 25, 29, 47, 50, 59, 67, 78, 79, 86, 87, 88, 91, 92, 94, 104, 105,
Noldeke, Prof. Th., 163 183, 187 al-Nun, angel, in Nyberg, H. S., 94, 104, no, in, 121, 122, 123
Nu'm,
Omar Khayyam,
Origen, 149
i,
77
187, 188, 194, 195, 198, 223, 225, 226, 227, 229, 241, 245, 248, 252-255, See Index of Subjects Moses, 123, 137, 139, 141, 200, 226, 229, 243, 253, 263 al-Mudabbir, angel, in al-Mufassil, angel, in
Ormuzd,
163, 242
Muhammad,
the
Mohammed
Muhammad,
Prophet.
See
Pascal, 9 Pentateuch, the, 137-139. See Tor ah Petrarch, 167 Philo, 77, 82, 138, 142, 149 Plato, 22, 137, 174, 223, 259, 265 Plotinus, 153 Prophet, the. See Mohammed
Muhammad
39 ('Ulayyan)
Pushangan, 41
al-Qaffal,
al-Nasawi, 19
Abu
Bakr, 6
60, 61
~1n,
,'ini,
60
Muhammad, Khwaja,
Abu
'l-bulddn, by Yaqut, 6 Munro, H. A. J., 192 Muqattam, Mt, 164 Murta'ish, of Baghdad, 10
Mu'jamu
Qushayri,
See
Hartmann
Index I
al-Risdlatu
271
'ilmi
Ruysbroeck, 55
Sabunf, Isma'fl, 73 adda, 226 Sa'df, 162 Safa, 239 Sa'id, Qadi, 29-32 Sal', 182 Sale, G., 174 Salma, 113 Sam'ani, 18 Sana'i, 162 Sarakhs, 6, 7, 10, n, 12, 14, 24, 62 Sari Saqati, 10 al-Sarraj, Abu Nasr, of Tus, See Kitdb al-Luma' Saruj, 257 Satan, 131, 223. See Iblfs Schopenhauer, 94 Sellar, W. Y., 192
'
Tabaqdtu
Tabaristan, 17
Tadhkiratu
'l-Awliyd,
by Faridu-
'ddfn 'Att^r, 3, 42 al-Td'iyyatu 'l-kubrd, by Ibnu '1Farid, 119, 162, 165, 168, 180,
187, 188-266
17, 23,
by Ibnu
'1-
'1-
Turshfzi,
Bu
'AH, 36
in,
115.
See Israfil
Tus, 27, 70
Abu
'1-Hasan, 210.
Uhud, 15
Haneberg
Shdfi'ites, the,
'Umar ibnu
29
17, 1 8
164.
Valerga, P., 165 Von Hammer, Joseph, 188-190, 259. See Hammer-Purgstall
Von Hartmann, 94
Vullers, J. A., 113
Shiraz, 48
Shirwan, 57, 74 Shirwanf, Bu Nasr, 73, 74 Sidney, Sir Philip, 175 Siegfried, C., 138 Sinai, Mt, 200, 226, 228, 245 Solomon, 123, 253 Song of Solomon, the, 168 Sparrow, John, 103 Spenta Mainyu, 163 Sprenger, A., 94 Subkt, 6 al-Suhrawardi, Shihabu'ddfn Hafs 'Umar, 165
al-Wa'sa. 182 Wensinck, A. J., 225 Whinfield, E. H., 159, 263 Wordsworth, 161 Wiistenfeld, F., 76
ibn Zakariyya, 25 6, 18 Yaysama, 19 Yemen, 67, 81 Yuh, 82 Yunus ibn Matta, 245
Yahya
Yaqut,
Abu
Zhukovski, V.,
i, 2,
INDEX
II
SUBJECTS
Abu
Sa'fd ibn Abi '1-Khayr, 1-76; authorities for his biography, 1-3 his birth and early education, 3-5 ; his theological studies, 6; his conversion to Siifism, 6-9 his lineage as a Sufi, 10; his austerities, 1 6 he buries his books of theology, 20; the tree planted by him at Mayhana, 20; his mystical illumination, attained at the age of forty, 24-25; his journey to Nishapur, 26, 27; his telepathic
;
;
n-
powers, 27, 28-36, 38-41, 68; charges brought against him by the Sunnfs, Shf'ites. and Mu'ta28, 29; his relations with Qushayrf, 33-36; his luxury and anecdotes extravagance, 35-37
zilites,
;
showing how he maintained himself and his disciples, 38-41; his vengeance on an Amir who refused to
cosm, 149, 154 foil.; the worldthe vicegerent of God, 113, 130, 156. See Angels; Man, the Perfect; Man, the Primal; Spirit, the created Allah, the orthodox and mystical conceptions of, 79; the name Allah, knowledge of God reached by means of, 93, 107; the revelation of the name, 93, 126-7; the name repeated in dhikr, 7-9; analysed by Jflf, 96. See God; Divinity; Essence, the Divine; al-Haqq 1 22 foil., Angels, 205, 233; the worship of God by, 15; commanded to worship Adam, 112, 120, 242; jealous of Adam, 205; created from the faculties of the
spirit, 121
;
pay
reported meeting with Avicenna, 42; his visit to Abu '1-Hasan Kharaqani, 42-44; his refusal to make the pilgrimage to Mecca, 44, 61 his death, 45; his epitaph, 45; description of his personal appearance, 45; regulations which he made for the inmates of his convent, 46, 76 his barber and tailor, 47 his desire to observe the Sunna of the Prophet, 47; the quatrains attributed to him, i, 4, 48; the character of his mysticism, 48 foil., 70, 76; sayings on self -negation, 50 foil. he called himself Nobody the son of Nobody, 53; his ideal of charity and brotherhood, 55, 56; his pantheism, 57, 64; his attitude towards Islam, 57 foil. his innovations in Sufistic practice, 58; his miracles, 65 foil.; veneration paid to his relics, 7375 Actions, Divine, the illumination of
;
Perfect Man, 106, 108, 115 foil.; created from the Spirit (Logos). 111-113; faculties of the cosmos, 155; the Sublime, 112, 120. See
37,
57,
60
Asceticism, Suff, 11-16, 24, 25, 46, 62, 63, 119, 208, 215-217, 224, 251 Atomists, the Ash'arite, 154 Attributes, the Divine, 83 foil., 9093, 97 foil., 249 foil.; constitute the universe, 83, 100, 150; not ultimately distinguishable from the Essence, 83, 90, 150, 232, 242; classified, 85, 100, 207; the seven principal, 101 the illumination of the Attributes, 85, 128-9
;
the,
126;
human,
logically self-
determined, 151 Adam, created in the image of God, 79, 80, 106, in, 113; the micro-
Beauty, Absolute, 85, 90, 143, 174, 196, 199, 207 Beauty, material, 174, 196, 199. See husn Beauty, the Divine attributes of, 85, 100, 103, 120, 131. See jamdl Begging, 14 Being, Absolute, 83; identical with Thought, 83; its three stages of See manifestation, 84, 94 foil. Essence
Index II
Being, contingent or phenomenal,
See Phenomena Being, the unity of, 82,
251.
214, 234.
Bells,
273
See Illumination; Intoxica;
243.
83, 104, 153, 186, 187, 189, 190, 199, 209, 221, 222-223, 232, 2 4 2
152-154,
See
ittifydd
of,
the
ringing
heard
in
ecstasy, 129
Blame, welcome to the lover, 1 79-1 80 Blamer, the, in Arabic love-poetry, 178-179; in mystical poetry, 179, 180, 204, 205, 215, 232, 233, 234 Body, the faculties of the, necessary for the attainment of spiritual
perfection, 119
153, 155, 193, 233, 261 Eschatology, 133 foil. Essence, definition of, 82; may be regarded as with or without attributes, 97, 150, 243 Essence, the Divine, 83 foil., 89, 90, 97, 150; unknowable per se, 83, 115, 150; described by contraries, 83, 156; unites all opposites, 152; perceived immediately, 92, 98;
veiled
by phenomena, 173;
self-
diremption of the, 94, 96; threefold nature of the, 86, 103, 104; the illumination of the Essence,
85, 129-130. See Eternity, 100, 128
God
Euphuism, 177
Evil, 53; only relative, 85, 100; not
of,
100
of attaining
means
permanent, 136; a necessary consequence of the self- manifestation of the Absolute, 85, 93, 131, 264265.
See Sin
Man,
the,
138; Jill's apology for, 139 foil.; associated with wine-drinking, 187. See Gospel Christians, the, 132, 133, 138, 139,
87,
Fall, the,
119
Fasts, miraculous, 70, 71 Fate, 157. See Determinism Forgiveness, the dearest of all things
140, 187, 263 Composition, automatic, 167 Contemplation, of God, 62, 63, 130,
foil.
Creation, the, 80, 90, 103, 115, 121, 122, 151, 154, 208, 229, 255
Dancing, 237. See Music Death, 92, 117, 134 Dervish orders, n, 81, 201 Determinism, 54, 102, 115, 120, 126, r 57. I5 8 198, 199, 265
.
and
73.
See
Satan
Directions, the six, 213 Director, a spiritual, indispensable to the Sufi, 10, 22, 23. See pir
God, the nature of, 97 foil., 103, 104, the substance of the 149 foil. universe, 99, 152; the essence of all religious beliefs, 130 foil., 159, 264; the only real agent, 16, 51,
;
Divinity, the highest manifestation of the Essence, 84, 97 invisible, 97 Dreams, 90, 91, 92, 105, 112, 118, 258, 259, 265 Dualists, the, 131, 133
;
262, 264; the 50; ths way to, a single step, 50; the finite God of religion, 159, 160. See Essence, the Divine; Attributes, the Divine; Names, the
52, 54,
126,
161,
ways
to,
innumerable,
Earths, the seven, 124-125 Ecstasy, 4, 9, 25, 27, 34, 35, 36, 43,
56, 60, 61, 65, 78, 79, 167, 185, 188, 199 foil., 218, 221, 234 foil.,
Divine; Allah Gospel, the, opening words of, according to Jili, 139; typifies the second stage in the mystical
18
N.
S. II
274
Index II
final
Hadfth.
'
See
Traditions
of
the
Prophet
Hearing, the Divine attribute of, 101, 129 Heart, the, 113-115, 159, 236, 239; comprehends God, 115, 238; is reflected by the universe, 115; compared to the Ka'ba, 238. See
qalb
and absolute standard of truth, 59-60; interpreted allegorically, 82, 149; typifies the third and last stage in the mystical ascent of the soul, 138
religious, 16, 20, 33, 34, 54, 57, 60, 184. 196.
from the Form of Mohammed, 135; will not exist actually until
the
261 Letters of the Arabic alphabet, used symbolically, 209 Life, definition of, 134 Life, the Divine attribute of, 85, 101 Life, the future, 134 foil. Life, the mystic, three stages of, 221 Logic, the use of, by Jill, 82, 88, 94 foil., 127
Resurrection, 135; a state, 136; the seven limbos of, 136; dislike of Koranic texts describing the torments of Hell, 56; the pleasures of Hell,
after
Logos doctrine,
'l-'Arabi,
the, in Jill
and Ibnu
154
foil.;
temporary
87,
1 1 1
104
; ;
foil.,
in Ghazali,
See
Spirit,
See Index
Logos, union of the saints with the, 254 Lordship, the Divine attribute of,
98, 99, 119, 120, 137, 139
Illumination, mystical, 24, 25, 164, 174, 200; three (or four) phases of, 85, 125 foil. See tajalli Incarnation, the Mohammedan doc-
4,
5,
18,
208,
distinguished by a monistic tendency, 163 the First, 112, 113, 116, Intelligence, 123, 184, 233; the Second, 233 Intoxication, mystical term, 184,
J 95. !97. !99. 200, 218, 220, 221, 224, 228, 243, 248
See
huliil
168, 174, 184, 185, 186, 199, 208, 212, 214, 224, 251, 252, 262 Love, the essence of God's essence, 80, 1 02 the highest form in which God is worshipped, 161
;
Love, the monistic doctrine of, 80, 251, 252 Love-poetry, Arabian, 163, 178
Macrocosm,
Jealousy, a sign of duality, 213 Jews, the, 132, 133, 138, 141, 263. See Pentateuch
Jinn, the, 101, 124, 190, 220
of,
120
the, 121-125 Magians, the," 132, 133, 264 Magic, high, 139 Mahdf, the, 135 Majesty, the Divine attributes of, 85, 100, 1 20, 131, 265. See jaldl Man, the earthly, 82 the heavenly,
;
82, 103
foil.
Koran, recitation of the, 13, 15, 16, 75, 79; immutable, 159; not the
Mm, the Great, 155. See Macrocosm Man, the nature and function of, 154 foil. Man, the Perfect, 77 foil., 184; unites the One and the Many, 78, 84; created in the image of God, 79, 80, 86, 1 06, 107; the microcosm, 82, 84, 1 06; the Qutb and preserver of the universe, 86, 105, 130; the vicegerent of God, 113, 130, 156; his threefold nature, 86 103, 104; identified with Adam, 1 with Moidentified 54 foil.;
Index II
hammed,
Logos,
86,
275
Form
of
88,
104 foil.; identical with God, 108, 118, 142; the Spirit whence all things have
origin, 108; 115 foil. See Adam al-insdnu 'l-kdmil Man, the Primal, 86
the
will
Mohammed,
135;
their
his
;
faculties,
;
Mohammed
the Resurrection, 135 Paradises, the eight, 135, 136 Paradox, the love of mystics for,
178-180
Path, the mystic, 24, 58. See tariqa Pen, the Divine. See al-qalam Pentateuch, the, the nine tables of, J 39; typifies the first stage in the mystical ascent of the soul, 138 Perfection, the Divine attributes of, 85, 100. See kamdl Persians, the, apt to seek an ultimate principle of unity, 163; the sacred Fire of, 264 Phantasy, 91. See khaydl Phenomena, the outward expression of reality, 82, 83, 222-223; an ilhision created by the soul, 226, 258; compared to the puppets of the shadow-play, 189 foil., 260-261; a bridge to reality, 251, 260. See Being, contingent or phenomenal Philosophers, the, 131, 133 Philosophy, speculative, a deadly science, 118 Physicists, the, 131, 133 Pilgrimage, to Mecca, the, 179, 222, 238, 239; interpreted allegorically, 61; regarded with contempt, 6162. See frajj Pilgrimage, the lesser, 179. See'umra Pilgrimage, to the tombs of saints, 18, 24; equivalent to making the pilgrimage to Mecca, 25, 44, 62 Plagiarism, 49 Planes, the five, in which God reveals Himself, 91 Plurality, the nature of, 151-153 Poetry, Islamic mystical, the double character of, 163, 168; the interpretation of, 169, 184 Poetry, pre-Islamic, 6, 166, 182 Polytheism, the one unpardonable sin, 52; the mystical meaning of,
Materialists, the, 132, 133 Mercy, Divine, 98, 99, 131, 160, 208, 245. 256 Metempsychosis, 106, 198, 257 Microcosm, the. See Adam; Man,
the Perfect
Miracles, of the prophets, 198, 252 foil.; of the saints, 14, 27-41, 65
foil.,
198, 252
foil.
Mohammed,
imitation of, by Sufis, 15; the Paraclete, 104; the absolutely perfect Man, 86, 88, 104 foil.; the Qutb, 87, 113, 195; the
Logos, 87, 88, 104 foil., 157, 168, 187, 194, 226; pre-existence of, 87, 157, 187, 223, 240, 255; appears in the forms of saints, 105-106; the real author of all miracles, 198, 253-254; the Form of, 119, 135; the Idea of, 109 (see
al-haqiqatu
'l-Muhammadiyya]
the Light of, 87, 115, 172, 188; the Spirit of, 110-112, 113, 123, 188, 195, 198 Moonlighters, the, 175 Music, singing and dancing, in Sufism, 3, 4, 25, 34, 58, 188, 197, 234 foil. See samd' Mysticism, Christian, 51, 128, 139 Mysticism in Persian poetry, 162, 1 80, 184; in Arabic poetry, 162, 163
Name, Name,
foil.
object
249
their effects in the world, 93, 131, 198, 250, 251, 265; the three cardinal, 138; the illumination of
220
Poverty, spiritual, 209, 215, 216 Power, the Divine attribute of, 101, 103, 129 Prayer, the essence of, 61 justification of, 158; canonical,- 239; ecstatic, 61, 79, 213, 214; super;
the,
201 Nature, correlated with Spirit, 120; identified with the Essence, 153 Neoplatonism, 150
erogatory,
5,
21
2 76
160
Index II
Shadow-play, the, 189 foil., 198, 260-261 Sight, the Divine attribute of, 101 Sin, prevents God's mercy from being wasted, 54; not essentially 1 01 determined by the evil, Divine will and nature, 54, 120,
;
Qutb, the,
in,
246
113,
See Evil
of,
the bridge
215
245, 253, 256 Reason, the faculty of, 115-116 Reason, universal, 115, 116, 187
Religion.
Worship
Religion, Jill's philosophy of, 130 foil. contain the Religions, revealed, fullest measure of truth, 131 the ten principal, Religious sects, 131 foil. Resurrection, the, 101, 134, 135, 245 Revelation, the prophetic, unity of, 137; contrasted with the mystical, 59, 60, 138
Saint, the true, definition of, 55, 67 Saints, the Moslem, 18, 19, 65; the
Slanderer, the, in Arabic lovepoetry, 178; in mystical poetry, 205, 215, 232, 233, 234 Sleep, dreamless, 117, 134 Sobriety, mystical term, 195, 197, 199, 200, 218, 220, 221, 228, 243. See safrw Soul, nature of the, 119-121; five phases of the, 121; pre-existence of the, 56, 184, 193, 204, 206, 214, 236, 240, 249, 258, 259, 265. See nafs Soul, universal, 116, 197, 233, 240,
259
Speech, the Divine attribute of, 101, 129 Spirit, the created, 109 foil. a mode of the Divine Spirit, 109, no, 146; described as an angel, 109, no; identified with the Logos, 109, no; with Adam, 186. See alruh Spirit, the Holy, 82, 108 foil., 138, 1 86; the inbreathing of, 139, 140, 155; union with, 109, no, 128. See rtihu 'l-quds
;
and unrecognised, 67; divine powers attributed to, 38; identified with God, 44, 73 intercession of the, 64, 65, 78; visits to their tombs, 18, 24, 25, 44, 62; veneration of their relics, 73-75; their functions, 78-79; hierarchy of the, 78, 79, 194, 195; the forty on whom the order of the world depends, 70; regarded as vicegerents of the Prophet, 106, in, 130, 141 essentially one with the Prophet, 1 06; question whether the prophets are superior to the saints, 141. See Miracles
hidden
;
;
253. 255, 259 Stone, the Black, 239 Substitution, the mystical doctrine of, 128 Stiffs, the, profess to interpret the esoteric teaching of Mohammed,
ii, 59, 82, 225, affinity of, 56
227;
spiritual
Saintship, Mohammedan, founded on ecstasy, 56, 78; the essence of prophecy, 141 Salvation, future, ultimately gained by all souls, 133, 159, 160 Satan, 108, 131, 223. See Devil;
Iblis
of, 5; not 4, founded on authority and tradition, 1 1 definitions of, 49, 50 Symbolism, the only means of im-
Sufism,
the
;
basis
257
Synteresis, 51
49
foil.
See
in, H2,
'l-mahfuz
1 1
6,
203.
See al-Lawhu
Self-conceit, 16, 52, 209, 262 Self -mortification, 62, 63, 222.
See
of, 119,
Telepathy, instances of, 27, 28-36, 38-41, 68 Thoughts, the power of materialising them, 102, 136 Throne of God, the. See al-arsh
Index II
Time, spiritual, 223, 245; unreal, 242, 245 Toleration, religious, 55-57, 159-161 194 Traditions of the Prophet, 5, 6, 15,
50. 59, 64, 79, 91, 94, 97, 106, 112, 121, 122, 136, 139, 159, 204, 2O6, 209, 215, 223, 226, 238, 245, 248, 255, 261, 262, 265 Tribe, the, meaning the Sufis, 185,
277
Vedanta, the, 97
Vine, the, signifies phenomenal being, 184, 186 Vision, the beatific, 200, 226, 229
Watcher,
poetry,
the,
in
178.
murdqib
Will, the Divine attribute of, 101, 102, 158
Christian,
57,
138,
139
Wine, symbolism drawn from, 183 foil., 199, 263; signifies Absolute Being or Divine Love, 186. See
Intoxication; Sobriety
Union, mystical, 50 foil., 125 foil., 1 86, 2 13 foil.; does not exclude personality, 80 not dependent on any secondary cause, 262; four stages of, 1 26 foil.; three stages of, 230, 231 the highest stage of, 55, 218, 221, 227, 228 foil. See Ecstasy Illumination wisdl jam'
;
;
World World
hammed, 115
Worship, Divine, the end for which
all 131; things are created, different forms of, corresponding to the variety of the Divine names
ittihdd
Universals, 150 Universe, the, compared to a dream, 90-92; not unreal, 92, 153; substantially divine, 99; created in the image of Man, 121; the form of the Logos, 255 description of,
;
and
Wrath, Divine,
attributes, 131 foil. 103, 131, 136, 208, 245, 256. See Majesty
263.
See
122
foil.
Magians
83
INDEX
III
ETC.
TECHNICAL TERMS,
abad, 100
'abd, 104
ashdb-i ra'y, 29
athar, 93, 100, 158 dthdr, 116, 250, 258
'abdu 'l-Rahim, 94 adab, 8 'adam, 50 'adani-bdf, 27 adani-kubdn, 27 'adhdb, 136 105 a, 98, 104 al-Ahad, 93 ahadiyya, 84, 95, 97, 98, 104, 126 aAa;a7, 12, 21
'
ayydm
Allah, 120
ayn, 243
'ayn, 90, 92, 96, 114, 130, 150, 152, 154, 156, 160, 243, 244 'ayw thdbita, 151
a^a/,
'dlamu 'dlamu
255. 255.
See See
fea/rf,
204
bandagi, 53
55, 127, 172, 211, 214, 215, 261 al-baqd ba'd al-fand, 55, 218 barzakh, 92, 117, 134
fta^rf,
256
anidna, 107
amddd, 233
amr, 54, 90, TIO, 158
95
amr
ana
^//a/,
no
chihila, 71
ana, 96
'l-Haqq, 79, 80, 230
/,
no, 112
115.
vS><?
f,
129
5, 13, I5> 46, 93,
al-'aqlu 'l-awwal,
Intelli-
263
gence,
the-
50
,
68
124 124 u 'l-shahwa, 124 u 'l-shaqdwa, 124 'l-fab', 124 'l-fughydn, 124
'l-ilhad,
'l-nuftis,
'a>t/,
136
al-'arsh, 106,
no, in,
'l-'andfir, 123 al-falaku 'l-aflas, 123 falaku 'l-habd, 123 falaku 'l-hayuld, 123 falaku 'l-fabd'i', 123 /and, 9, 50, 55, 77, 127, 128, 135, 141, 172, 187, 202-205, 2 9. 2I 2ii, 214, 215, 218, 238, 261 faqd, 234
falaku
Index III
fard, 151 al-fardu 'l-kdmil, 130 fardiyya, 157 fdrid, 164 farq, 219-223. See tafriqa al-farqu 'l-thdni, 244 faskh, 257 /ayrf, 153. 155, 193. 233
l,
279
79, 99, 117, 128, 194, 197, 225,
226, 257 rnyjva, 206 90, 100, 143, 199, 207 huwa, 96, 152 huwiyya, 84, 96, 97, 104, 106, 107, "7. 133, 134
,
TZ^W,
1
1 86
69
furqdn, 87
,
238
ikhtiydri, 134
t7a/&,
150
gawzina, 29 al-Ghdfir, 135 ghafla, 92 al-ghd'ib, 96 al-ghawthu 'l-jdmi', 130 ghayb, 112 al-ghaybiyyatu 'l-kubrd, 246 ghaybubiyya, 96 ghayn, 221, 244 ghazal, 163
'
ildhiyya, 96, 97, 98 ildhiyytin, 112 't7w, 115, 127 'i/w ilhdmi, 101
20
120 204
202
no
Pilgrimage
254
wrrf/,
sm, 93 37
istiqdma, 53
istitdr,
95
218-225, 230,
238 265
See 'dlamu
103,
136,
'l-jabavtit
jabartit, 91.
jaldl,
100,
207.
See
Majesty; Wrath
*yy,
51
yaw', 216, 218, 219, 221, 222, 227, 230, 232, 233, 234, 238, 240-244, 251, 252, 253, 256, 263, 265 jamd'at-khdna, 21 jamdl, 90, 100, 103, 143, 207. See Beauty, the Divine attributes of
jiddriyya, 95 al-jismu '1-kuHi, ;w66a, 14, 73
no
200
,
,
himma,
253
AM^/A, 102
fyukmi, 123
kaldm, 129 kalima, 149 kamdl, 100, 103, 207. See Perfection al-Kdmil, 116 al-kdmilu 'l-tdmm, 77
280
kand'is, 105
Index
See Miracles of
HI
tnaqdma, 82
Karim, 66 kashf, 6. 63
hashish, 54
500
Know-
khalifa, 113, 115, 130, 141, 155, 241 khalq, 79, 94, 97, 103, 104, in, 140, 157. 239 khalqi, 98
khalqiyya, 99 khalwat, ii
mu'am/, 53
al-Mudill, 131, al-mudrika,
170 khidma, 22
khirqa, 14, 22, 23, 43, 70, 73, 165.
no
jf">5
al-Muhyi, 255
mtijad, 151
500 Frock
mujdhada,
mujid, 151
12,
15,
63.
500
Self-
mortification
mu'jizdt, 254.
prophets
Awnya, 229
Aursf,
in, 112
54
kiishish,
5i
al-lawhu 'l-mahfiiz (lawh-i mahfiiz), 59, 106, 112, 116, 203. 500 Tablet, the Guarded
lawzlna, 29, 36, 41
105 173
.
ma'dnl, 227, 250, 251 mahabba, 52 mahall, 91, 123 al-Mahdi, 130
maA^, 244
in
maAw,
ma;'^, 260
malakut. 91.
maldma,
tna'luh,
52, 208
150 ma'lum, 45
al-Manndn, 135
Soul
Index
a -nafsu 'l-ammdra, 121 al-nafsu 'l-lawwdma, 216 al-nafsu 'l-mutma'inna, 216 naskh, 257
ndsut, 80, 91, 107, 193, 239 nisab, 152
HI
al-sd'atu 'l-kubrd, 135 al-sd'aiu 'l-sughrd, 135
sahib, 23 sdfyibu 'l-jam'
281
wyd*. 55
241 sdhib ra'y, 37 saAz^, 243, 244, 248. See Sobriety sahwu 'l-jam' 228, 231, 232
,
nubuwwatu nubuwwatu
al-Ntin,
'l-tashri',
in
3,
237.
,
See Music
64
-i
suhbat, 23
,
See
Law
256
shawq, 55
sAiVA, 49, 51, 220 siddiq, 62 sicft?, 62 si/a^, 90
sifdt-i
sifdti,
g-a^ar,
al-Qddir, 127, 135 al-Qdhir, 135 al-qalam, 106, in, 112, 116 #a/6, 50, 113, 123, 156, 159, 212, 236, 238. See Heart qasida, 163, 165, 189
bashariyya, 22
al-sifdtu 'l-haqqiyya,
98
129
'l-'dli,
al-sihru
139
sw,
qawwdl, 3, 4, 25, 35 #i&/a, 213 qidam, 100 <?#'#, 165 qudsi, log al-Qur'dnu 'l-hakim, 126
<?M/&,
13, 50, 51, 77, 109, 119, 154, 212 sirr Allah, 50, 51, 96 al-sirru 'l-ildhi, 109
no, 114
'l-qadar,
'a/, 1
157
sudtir,
60 107
79, 86, 87, 105, 195, 229, 246 al-qutbu 'l-haqiqi, 195
no, in,
194,
119,
J35
ta'ayyun, 94, 157 tadmin, 208 to/Hd, 216 tafriqa, 218, 219, 221, 227, 230, 234, 242, 243, 244, 251, 252, 253
tajalli, 85, 115, 125, 153, 154, 155, 202, 250. See Illumination tajsim, 140
104,
1 60
al-Rabb, 127
rahim, 160
rahma, 98, 249. See Mercy al-Rahmdn, 93, 99, 118, 127, 249 rahmdniyya, 98 yo/'a, 256 yo^ife, 178, 200 r^s, 237 raskh, 257
r6^,
13,
14
rijdlu 'l-ghayb, 82, 124 rwferf'tyy^, i, 4, 8, 69, 165, 168 yw&tifcij/ya, 98, 99, 119. See Lordship al-rtify, 109-112, 113, 119, 122, 135, 203, 213, 233, 236, 237. See Spirit,
See Path
the created
rtihu 'l-'dlam, 121
rtih Allah,
153
151
135
128,
140.
tathlith, 138,
Holy
282
tawil,
Index III
145
46, 6 1 wi$dl, 197, 238
,
ta'nya, 53
thiydb, 203 al-fiil wa'l-ard,, 107
'ubiida,
zw'/r,
239
12
wutfii',
216
al-wujtidu
'l-sdri,
log
wus'u
utnmu
yamin
wahda, 220, 221
'l-wujtid, 82 wdfrid, 98, 104, 105 wdfridiyya, 95-98, 126, 155
wahdatu
yutm, 187
<tl-Zdhir, 89, 153 zdwiya-gdh, 21
wahm, no,
wajh, 109,
wali, 78,
no
in, 130
Slanderer
zindiq, 62, 63
zuhtir,
wdrid, 6 1
wds/tf, 178. 5c wa$l, 210, 238
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