– Be present with the Real (al-Ḥaqq) in His station
The new has replaced the ancient
From every direction, praise becomes a right for you
You have become esteemed through beautiful character (akhlāq).
Now you are the sole inheritor; we always supplicate as the Good and the Merciful.
You possess knowledge without doubt |
The brother of Kalīm (Mūsā) brought it to you
You are called Khalīl (the Intimate Friend) and Nadīm (the Companion)
You are called Ḥamīm (the Intimate) and Qāsim (the Distributor)
The verse, from the beginning of the surah to the part “harsh and evil (zanīm)…** was recited to us with divine condescension, and in a dream during the recitation, Allah informed us of its station with Him. Such sound dreams are a portion of revelation left for us as a prophetic legacy by Allah, and for this we praise Him. I too, “Because of their plotting,
in verse 247, have inherited this legacy. In the dream, I inherited
other two verses: “We know that your breast is constrained by what they say”** and “Turn away from those who turn away from Our remembrance and desire only the life of this world >”* are mentioned. I thanked Allah for granting me to learn the realities of the prophetic legacy as ḥaqq al-yaqīn (certainty of truth). I hope that I will be among those who do not speak from the desire of the nafs (the lower self)! May Allah make us among those who do not speak from the desire of their nafs.
Otuz Birinci Sifir I51
May Allah make us among those who do not speak from the desire of their nafs. Such a bestowal is “divine protection.” When Allah wills good for the possessor of this dhikr (remembrance of God), He inspires the meaning of a hadith. When ʿĀʾisha was asked, “What was the character of Allah’s Prophet?” she replied, “His character was the Qur’an,” and she indicated this verse. The greatness of every matter exalted by Allah becomes manifest upon the believers. The person who adopts this dhikr as a principle examines the Qur’an and looks at every quality praised by Allah or every group praised because of that quality. He sees such a quality as one praised by Allah and strives to be characterized by it. When Allah mentions a bad trait in His Book to censure a group among His servants, he must avoid that trait.
Therefore, the person who adopts this dhikr as a principle considers the Qur’an as if it was revealed only to him and that Allah addressed no one else. When he acts in this way, his character becomes the Qur’an. The Real (al-Ḥaqq) exalts him, and he is exalted wherever greatness is beneficial.
Beautiful character is known by reason and custom, but
to act and behave according to beautiful character is a matter known by religion. To be characterized by beautiful character as determined by the sharia (the sacred law) and to add to oneself a completing element—which means to add (by a certain interpretation) what is considered bad character to it—means that one is characterized by all the praises coming from the Real. In this case, all character, according to legitimate and reasonable use, returns to beautiful character. While the meanings of the verses of the surah descend upon the possessor of this dhikr in the most perfect way (fath, opening), at the same time, he becomes one who is constantly envied with enmity and is the target of that enmity.
– The state of the Hereafter is shown to him clearly.
From this surah, the Prophet of Allah learned the knowledge of those before and after him. “Allah speaks the truth and guides to the right way.”
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FIVE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIFTH CHAPTER
The Station of the Pole (Quṭb) Whose State is Known by the Verse: ‘Those who remember Allah standing, sitting, and lying on their sides’™
Those who remember their Lord in every state — are the possessors of all virtue in the world
They see none but Him in their existence — They are always sovereign in existence —
They observe not their own rights, but the rights of Allah — Whether awake, sitting, or standing
They have attained perfection; others are deprived From this station bestowed by the Sovereign God
They reflect upon the subjects of His attributes
They reflect upon their own existence and the existence of the world
May Allah help us and you with a spirit (rūḥ) from Himself. Know that the original state of the created is sleep, until the Real lifts it. Sometimes the Real lifts it so that he may sit and attain his share of mercy. Allah says, “You were dead, and He gave you life.”** Sometimes He lifts it so that he may attain the portion mentioned in the verse, “Who is it that stands over every nafs (the lower self) for what it has earned?” Allah says, “The Merciful (al-Raḥmān) established Himself above the Throne.” In another verse, “Allah! There is no god but He, the Living, the Self-Subsisting (al-Ḥayy, al-Qayyūm).”** Among our companions, the scholars have differed as to whether man can be characterized by the attribute of ‘qayyūm’ (self-subsisting).
In our view, as with all the Names, it is valid and possible to be characterized by the Name al-Qayyūm. Allah says: “Men are qawwāmūn (maintainers) over women by what Allah has given one over the other.”* When I asked Abū ʿAbd Allāh b. Junayd, who visited us in Ishbiliyya, about his opinion on this matter, he said: “It is possible to be characterized by the Name al-Qayyūm.” Then he retracted this view, but I do not know why. Allah says: “Men are maintainers over women by what Allah has given them.”** The aforementioned Abū ʿAbd Allāh b. Junayd was from Kabīrfik, a town belonging to Ronda in Andalusia. I used to jest about his companions and followers in his city. He was from the Muʿtazila school. When he learned the truth, he abandoned the Muʿtazila, who claimed that divine threat is necessarily executed and that acts are created by man, understood in which situation these views are valid, put them in their proper place, did not transfer them elsewhere, thanked me for this, and since he returned, all his companions and followers left the Muʿtazila, and I parted from him during that process.
This, then, is the dhikr (remembrance) of states, and it appears according to the state without being limited to a specific dhikr. Whoever attains these three states (mentioned below) is considered to have attained existence. The verse that encompasses all states in this dhikr is: “Wherever you are, He is with you.” This is the general dhikr that encompasses all states, and besides it, there is specific dhikr. The dhikr of the one standing is “The Merciful established Himself above the Throne,” while the dhikr of the one sitting is “Are you secure from Him who is in the heaven?” and the dhikr of the one lying down is “He is God in the earth.” There are differences of opinion among scholars regarding the interpretation of these verses. Direct your himmah (spiritual aspiration) to one matter so that distraction leaves you! If you wish, contemplate the verse “The Merciful established Himself above the Throne,” or if you wish, “Are you secure from Him who is in the heaven?” When Allah is in the heavens, He says: “Is there anyone who repents? Is there anyone who seeks forgiveness? Is there anyone who supplicates?” If you wish, when Allah is in the heavens and the earth, you contemplate the verse: “He knows what you do secretly and openly.” If you want your food to be like oil, contemplate the verse: “Wherever you are, He is with you.” Our being in a place includes both sensory and spiritual presence. Sensory (maḥsūs) presence is being on earth and engaged with our limbs in its tasks, while spiritual presence is with our himmah, intention, and thoughts. In our engagement with Allah, we witness Him as the agent in our actions and as the owner of intention in our intentions.
Then the matter is reversed, and wherever He is, we are there. For in every place and state in which we are, only He is present.
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Be in the most beautiful state so that you may be happy
Be in the most perfect state so that you may reach the right path
Be present there not with words, but with state (ḥāl) | |
Be present in the decree of the One who decrees, so that you may attain your goal
This much allusion suffices as a divine counsel for one who has a heart or listens attentively while witnessing. “Allah speaks the truth and guides to the right way.”
FIVE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SIXTH CHAPTER
The Principle: “Whoever desires the harvest (harth) of this world, We grant him thereof, but he will have no share in the Hereafter”** — The State of the Pole (Quṭb) Known by This Verse |
Harvest (harth) is of two kinds: praised and blamed — |
You are His farmer, sustenance is apportioned
Do not seek with Us what you have abandoned |
If you pursue it, you will be blamed
Do not pursue what is perishing; you do not belong to it
Pursue what is everlasting; the matter is understood
Do not turn towards, do not incline to the perishing
The perishing vanishes; Allah’s makr (subtle plan) is known
Allah teaches it to you
Do not trust in existence! It is non-existent
If you are intelligent, pursue the harvest of the Hereafter >
Like those characterized by goodness
Allah says: “Whoever brings a good deed shall have ten times as much.” Goodness in this world is the harvest of the Hereafter. “Whoever desires the Hereafter, We increase for him his good.”” That is, We grant him the opportunity to do righteous deeds. Thus, while running from one good to another, he is in goodness. In other words, he runs from one good to another. When he attains the Hereafter, he reaches the reward and surplus that his deed necessitates. The recompense he attains is a blessing that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and has not occurred to the heart of anyone, which is called “delight.” This is the surplus in the harvest of the Hereafter. In the life of the Hereafter, man attains all his aims, and he attains a surplus that his aim could not reach. When I asked a knowledgeable shaykh about the surplus mentioned in the verse, “For those who do good is the best and even more,”** he said: “The surplus is things that do not occur to the mind.”
I understood what he meant and did not ask anything else. The harvest of this world is not like that, because the world is not of a nature that allows every person to attain all his aims. Allah says: “You cannot guide whom you love.”* The Prophet was very eager for his uncle Abū Ṭālib to have iman (faith), but he did not, and Allah’s knowledge and decree prevailed in him. While this is the state required by the life of this world, the life of the Hereafter—without delay or hesitation—necessitates the attainment of all aims. “By the Hereafter, I mean Paradise and those who enter it, not the Day of Resurrection. Allah says about the wretched: ‘The intercession of intercessors will not benefit them.’”* The rulings of the Resurrection are limited to the time of the Resurrection.
We have learned this through iman and unveiling. Allah has informed that the treasures of all things are with Him, but in the world, He sends them down in a determined measure. As for the life of the Hereafter, the ruling regarding what is contained in the treasures with Him returns to the gnostic (ʿārif) servant. The ʿārif servant, whom Allah has perfected in happiness, enters those treasures as one who has authority over them, brings forth whatever he wishes—without reckoning or determined measure—and gives judgment according to his will at that time. This means that in the Hereafter, the person who attains felicity is given the power of creation (takwīn), and it will be shown that he himself is the treasure with Allah—because he is with Allah.
Thus, the ʿārif servant, whatever idea of creating something comes to his mind, he brings it into being, and thus he is always creative in the Hereafter, and measurement and determination are abolished. Such a person does not reside in a specific place in Paradise, but wherever he wishes. In Paradise, the indirect and temporary need for things is removed from him; now he needs only Allah. The reason for the removal of the temporary need for things is the humiliation, brokenness, and neediness contained therein. However, Paradise is not a place for these. The place of neediness is generally the world, while in the Hereafter, the place of neediness is the Fire. So it is with humiliation. Allah will not manifest to the people of Paradise with the Name al-Mudhill (the One who humiliates), so they will not be humiliated. Likewise, Allah will not manifest to them with the Name al-ʿAzīz (the Mighty) in a way that would humiliate them. On the contrary, Allah clothes them with the garment of honor (ʿizzah) in relation to the things they bring into being; but He does not clothe them with the garment of honor in relation to their families or those with them. Their authority and honor appear only in relation to what proceeds from themselves.
What proceeds from them is from them. Therefore, while they witness that thing before its creation, their will to create it pertains to themselves. This connection is identical to the very existence of that thing. The state of what remains is swifter than the blinking of an eye. |
In this station, you must carefully consider the benefits gained by this dhikr. Know that just as there are sons of the world and sons of the Hereafter, there are also sons of both. The person who attains felicity is the perfect inheritor who combines both sonships, being simultaneously near and far.
“Allah speaks the truth and guides to the right way.”
FIVE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SEVENTH CHAPTER
The Principle: “You fear people, but Allah has more right that you should fear Him”"
— The State of the Pole (Quṭb) Known by This Verse
This verse is a strange verse.
I saw in a vision, as if I am turning those on the earth with the earth
Otuz Birinci Sifir 157
“They have no himmah (spiritual aspiration) that can ascend from the lower world to the higher
They are in bewilderment, there is no distinguisher The one who distinguishes command and offer
Who among Allah’s creatures does not fear?
The one who is placed in the station of sunnah and obligation
Allah says: “That there be no blame upon the believers concerning the wives of their adopted sons…” Know that the perfect man is the one who stands within the limits of chivalry and virtue as determined by custom. While standing there, the definite command of Allah comes, and then he acts according to the divine command. Command, offer, and desire look to the indicators of the state. If the indicator of the state gives him the ruling of the definite command, he hastens to fulfill the definite command, and it is not possible for him to do anything else in the face of the command. If the indicator of the state leaves him free, he acts according to the custom that testifies to his beautiful character. Allah says: “Muḥammad is not the father of any of your men, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets.” The Prophet acts according to the ruling of Allah.
The one with perfect iman (faith)—the believer—is not an ordinary person. The perfect believer is one to whom the Prophet of Allah, by his tongue, has given the ruling of iman and who has iman in him. For the Prophet said about the one who has iman in Allah: ‘The believer is the one who has iman in me and what I have brought.’ Allah sent him to perfect beautiful character. Therefore, all the states of the Prophet are beautiful character, and the Prophet explained character by state. Explaining by state is more complete, measured, and effective than explaining by word. For the Real:
Condescends to His servants
We cannot ascend to Him |
For He is always the Most High (al-ʿAlī)
Even one with mixed knowledge cannot know Him
There is no place where you can see Him There is neither entering nor exiting
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Sometimes we are in a place
— It is possible for us to enter that place
From Him, bodies came forth on the earth
Everything beautiful is in pairs
The state of the perfect believer and the Prophet in relation to creatures is like the relation of the Night of Power (Laylat al-Qadr) to other nights. When Allah says about the value of the Night of Power, ‘better than a thousand months,’ He does not mean the duration, but draws attention to the fact that the Night of Power—wherever it is present in any being—is superior to all other nights.
Whenever any action appears in you, you become better than a thousand months –
A night that has no morning
The light of dawn removes it.
“In your existence, there is none but Me, O Night of Power! My value is in you
In the Night of Power, from my existence, the Real brings down every matter —
One of the things the Real brings down is “You fear people, but Allah has more right that you should fear Him”
74th verse. The verse was revealed in response to the Prophet’s saying, “If I were in the place of Joseph, I would have responded to the inviter.” That is, I would have responded to the messenger of the king who invited him to leave prison. In contrast, Joseph did not leave prison,
it is more appropriate to fear
referring to the ruler who imprisoned him, he said, “Return to your lord and ask him about the case of the women.” Thus, he did not accept being released from prison as a favor. On the contrary, “It is Allah who has favored you.” If there had remained any doubt, it would have affected Joseph’s trustworthiness. However, the trustworthiness of Allah’s messenger had to be established in the hearts of people. For this reason, fear arose so that he would not reject the invitation of the Real.
Otuz Birinci Sifir 159
Allah tested the Prophet by having him marry the wife of his adopted son. According to the Arabs, such an act could have harmed his status. However, he was the Prophet of Allah, and Allah explained to people the purpose in this will. This purpose was to remove responsibility from the believers in such matters. Then, by the office of messengership and being the last Prophet, He distinguished him from them. From Allah’s side, this event for the Prophet was the same as the event experienced by Joseph, who did not respond to the king’s invitation. This is one aspect of the guidance (hudā) of the Prophets. When Allah speaks of His Prophets, He says to the Prophet regarding this guidance: “They are those whom Allah has guided, so follow their guidance!” If the Prophet had been in Joseph’s situation, he would not have responded to the inviter and would have said something similar to what Joseph said. Thus, the statement, “If I were him, I would have responded to the inviter,” was said to exalt Joseph. As the Prophet said in another hadith, “We are more entitled to doubt than Abraham.” However, neither Abraham nor the Prophet had any doubt as people imagine, and the Prophet did not mean such a doubt. If Abraham had fallen into doubt as people imagine, then Muhammad, who was commanded to follow the guidance of the Prophets, would have been more entitled to doubt. Thus, the Prophets and perfect believers do not act according to the judgment of speculative thought, but according to the revelation that comes from their Lord.
What comes to them from Allah, as we have said before, is sometimes a command, sometimes an offer, and sometimes a desire. While fulfilling the command is obligatory, when it is an offer, as we have said before, it is optional. Their state of knowing Allah is as we have expressed in one of our odes:
The gnoses (maʿārif) of the Real are not hidden from anyone
– Whoever does not know the One is deprived . In another poem, we wrote these verses:
The quality and quantity I witness
Is not knowledge! They are called imagination and fancy
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To know something in oneself is not imagination
Does the Real manifest in a quantified matter?
The Real is in truth manifest and clear — But the reality upon which our seal is set
Why am I afflicted with the questions of why, how, how much, and what
Is there an existent being? In excess
Whatever you add is what imagination produces; the Qur’an—if you reflect—says this
Understanding has been given to the believers as well
“This is the dhikr of the wise man. He has been given the essence of gnosis (maʿrifa) and etiquette that no address can encompass. “Allah speaks the truth and guides to the right way.”
FIVE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHTH CHAPTER
The Station of the Pole (Quṭb) Whose State is Known by the Verse: “So remain upright as you have been commanded”**
Who is upright! The one whose resurrection has come Though he has not yet died, no one knows