Spiritual Contraction (Kabz) and Expansion (Bast)
A seeker on the suluk path (spiritual journey) cannot always remain in the same emotional state. Sometimes the heart is filled with joy, hope, and divine bliss; this state is called bast (expansion, opening). At other times, a profound weight, sadness, and distress descends upon the heart; this is known as kabz (contraction). Shaykh Ibn Ataullah al-Iskandari states that Allah Most High does not solely test His servant through constriction, nor does He allow them to constantly remain in expansion, thereby forgetting their own existence. For those devoted to spiritual practice, both states are forms of divine refinement. If you rejoice excessively and become arrogant when something is given to you (a state of bast), and if you feel constricted and despair when it is withheld (a state of kabz), this is the clearest evidence that your servitude has not yet matured, that you remain in a stage of spiritual infancy.
Divine Mercy Within Trials
Many Sufi masters and spiritually advanced individuals have preferred the state of kabz (contraction and distress) to that of bast (expansion and ease). The reason for this is the high risk of the ego interposing, becoming arrogant, and failing to adhere to proper etiquette during times of comfort and joy. However, in moments of distress, sadness, and constriction, the servant fully feels their utter helplessness, seeks refuge in Allah, and remains within the boundaries of servitude (ubudiyyah). Drawing upon the verse from the Noble Qur’an regarding inheritance – “You know not which of them [Allah] will bring you benefit” – Ibn Ataullah reflects that only Allah knows whether ease or hardship is more beneficial for us. Illness, poverty, or inner turmoil are divine whips urging the servant to turn towards Allah.
Maintaining Balance (I’tidal) in Both States
Those who have attained true perfection do not soar with joy when blessings arrive, nor do they rebel when calamities befall them. They know that both grace and trial emanate from the same Absolute Will. Shaykh Geylani teaches that just as a person finds comfort by believing in and preparing for winter’s cold and summer’s heat, so too will one find salvation through complete surrender to the difficulties and blessings of divine decree. One must submit when the darkness of poverty descends, and patiently await the morning of healing when the night of illness arrives. States of kabz and bast are a divine cycle, like night and day. When the servant dislikes the night and understands the tranquility within its darkness, and does not become intoxicated by the brightness of the day but fulfills its obligations, they attain the station of true acceptance (rida).