FIFTH CHAPTER · SECOND SECTION · Second Article
Second Article
It explains the way to understand the unity of the pure essence of the Most Merciful (Hazrat-i Rahmān) by considering the resemblance, in one respect, of the attributes of the human spirit to His attributes.
O dear one! It should be known that the people of gnosis (ʿirfān) have said: Just as the organs of the human body, in one respect, resemble the divisions of the world of bodies, so too the attributes of the human spirit have, in one respect, been found to resemble the non-essence-related, affirmative attributes (ṣifāt-i thubūtiyya) and the most beautiful names (asmāʾ al-ḥusnā) of the Most Merciful (Rahmān). Thus, the Lord of the Worlds is: living (ḥayy), knowing (ʿalīm), hearing (samīʿ), seeing (baṣīr), speaking (mutakallim), powerful (qādir), willing (murīd), and exercising authority (muṭaṣarrif) as He wills. Similarly, the human spirit is also characterized by the attributes of life, knowledge, hearing, seeing, speech, power, will, and the ability to exercise authority. However, the human spirit is in need of the mediation and instruments of bodily organs for its attributes. The attributes of the Lord, however, are not in need of the mediation of things as instruments. (Even to think otherwise is incorrect.) Indeed, the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, is Rahmān and Rahīm, and is characterized by the most beautiful names (asmāʾ al-ḥusnā); He is the owner of the straight path (rashīd) and exceedingly patient (ṣabūr). In the same way, the human spirit may also be characterized by the most beautiful names (asmāʾ al-ḥusnā). Yet the human spirit is in need of the mediation and instruments of its organs. For example, unless Allah wills, the heavens do not move, the stars do not exert influence, the elements do not intermingle, and composite bodies do not come into being. All these wise acts do not manifest. Similarly, unless the human spirit wills, the tongue does not speak, the ear does not listen, the eye does not see, the hand does not grasp, the foot does not walk, and the limbs do not properly perform their functions. The governance of the human spirit over the body resembles the governance of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, over the world. Just as the subsistence (baqāʾ) of the world is by the Real (al-Ḥaqq), so too the human body remains alive by the spirit.
Indeed, in relation to the parts of the world, the spheres (falak), the elements (ʿanāṣir), and the forms, states, and colors of the various species (mawālīd) appear to be countless. However, with regard to the unity (waḥdāniyya) of the Exalted Allah, all of these are the loci of manifestation for the acts and attributes of one Wise One, under His power and command. Similarly, if one looks at the parts of the body, due to the bones, nerves, veins, and their forms, states, and acts, they appear to be many. Yet all of them are organs, senses, and faculties under the command of a pure spirit. In this way, the meaning becomes manifestly clear.
If the guidance (hudā) of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, reaches you and you can comprehend this meaning, you will find the unity of the essence amidst the multiplicity of attributes. Like Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him), you will see the dominion (malakūt), the heavens, and the earth with the eye of the heart. For knowing your nafs (the lower self) and knowing your Lord is only realized in the world of the heart (qalb). Whoever knows his nafs attains to knowing his Lord. As the secret of “Whoever knows his nafs knows his Lord” expresses this meaning.
For the human spirit is a polished mirror, by which the heart (qalb) becomes the locus of the manifestation (maẓhar) of the Real (al-Ḥaqq). If you cleanse yourself from the impurities of the body and attain to the purity of the heart, you will be filled with the light of love and enter the realm of unity (waḥda). You will become intimate with the Real (al-Ḥaqq) and remain with Him.
Poem
1- Seek the unity of love; flee from saying “what” and “who.” It is a single number, but when it descends into ranks, it becomes tens, hundreds, thousands.
2- In the sea of love, all spirits are of one color; but in this bodily vessel, they have multiplied and gained apparent distinction.
3- Even the sweetly flowing water becomes bitter in this unpleasant vessel; if your desire is to be pleasant, become intimate with the streams of love.
4- The abundance of seeds in the grape and pomegranate is due to their skins; when pressed, the juice of grape and pomegranate is one and the same.
5- If you wish to be joy in hearts and light in eyes, leave aside this earthen body and choose pure love.
6- If you become intimate with love, everlasting fortune is yours; you immediately obtain your desire, and you will have no worry of waiting.
7- If you become annihilated (fanāʾ) in love, you are an awakened gnostic (ʿārif); if you become free and detached, you will never again make excuses.
8- The beloved companion is now with you; whatever you desire is yours. Open your hand, hold the hem, kiss and seclude yourself.
9- Come to yourself, know yourself—who are you? O Truth, what are you? Do not count your body, for the heart is the refuge of the beloved, and the beloved is the companion of the cave.
In contemporary Turkish
1- Desire unity in love; avoid saying “what and who.” It is a single number, but when it descends into ranks, it becomes tens, hundreds, thousands.
2- In the sea of love, all spirits are of one color; but in this bodily vessel, they have multiplied and gained apparent distinction.
3- Even the sweetly flowing water becomes bitter in this unpleasant vessel; if your desire is to be pleasant, become intimate with the cascades of love.
4- The abundance of seeds in the grape and pomegranate is due to their skins; when pressed, the juice of grape and pomegranate is the same.
5- If you wish to be joy in hearts and light in eyes, leave aside this earthen body and choose pure love.
6- If you become intimate with love, you are eternally fortunate; you immediately obtain your desire, and you will have no worry of waiting.
7- If you become annihilated (fanāʾ) in love, you are an awakened gnostic (ʿārif); if you renounce the world, you will never again make excuses.
8- The beloved companion is now with you; whatever you desire is yours. Open your hand, hold the hem, kiss and seclude yourself.
9- Come to yourself, know yourself—who are you? O Truth, what are you? Do not count your body, for the heart is the refuge of the beloved, and the beloved is the companion of the cave. [34]
Third Article
It explains the way to understand the acts of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, in the realm of dominion (mulk) by analogy with the acts of governance found in the human’s own bodily kingdom.
O dear one! It should be known that the people of gnosis (ʿirfān) have said: The sovereignty and power of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, in the realm of dominion (mulk), His effects upon all things, and His governance and nurturing of all the atoms of the world can only be known by a human being by analogy with the sovereignty, command, governance, movements, and acts found in his own body. Only in this way can one comprehend how all the atoms of the universe submit and obey the command of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He. If a person does not know how his own spirit is effective in his body, how can he know how the Lord of the worlds is effective throughout the universe? The command, “O human! Know your nafs so that you may know Me!” is for this meaning.
For example, when you wish to write “Bismillāh” on a piece of paper, first the inclination and desire to write it arises in your heart through your spirit. Then, by means of the animal soul (rūḥ-i ḥaywānī), that inclination and desire reaches the brain, and in the faculty of memory therein, the form of “Bismillāh” becomes manifest. Then, by means of a white nerve, that form descends from the memory to the fingertips. Then, with the will of the heart, the help of the senses, and the mediation of the pen and ink, the fingers write “Bismillāh” on the paper. In the same way, if the exalted will of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, wills the manifestation of a thing, first the effect of that will appears in the Throne (ʿArsh). Then, by means of the First Intellect (ʿaql-i awwal), that will reaches the Footstool (Kursī), and in the “Preserved Tablet” (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ) therein, it becomes manifest. Then, the Tenth Intellect (ʿaql-i ʿāshir), which is the “Holy Spirit” (Rūḥ al-Quds), brings it down from the spheres to the elements. By means of the movements of the spheres and the lights of the stars, from the mothers of the natures—heat, cold, moisture, and dryness—the intended thing comes into being, which is among the threefold generated beings (mawālīd-i thalātha). Either the celestial void (kāʾināt-i jaww) is from the heavens, or the forms, states, and acts seen in them are from there. Just as paper is the place of writing and holds the forms of the letters upon it, so too the mother of natures (heat, cold, moisture, and dryness) is invisible and receptive to the forms belonging to the world, and preserves the manifest forms. Since the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, brings down the meanings belonging to the Throne to the lower world (ʿālam-i asfal) by the aforementioned method and, through various compositions, makes them into bodies, the celestial void and the threefold generated beings (mawālīd-i thalātha) have appeared in so many forms.
In our example, the arising of the desire in the heart for something to be, is in the station of the manifestation of the effect of the exalted will of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, in the Throne. The animal soul in the human body is in the position of the First Intellect (ʿaql-i awwal) in the world. The faculty of memory is in the place of the Preserved Tablet (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ). The white nerve that conveys this will from the brain to the fingers is in the position of the Tenth Intellect. The fingers of the hand are like the lower elements. The senses and faculties are like the spheres and stars. The instruments of writing are like the mother of natures. The written forms are like the celestial void and the threefold generated beings (mawālīd-i thalātha), which in our example is “Bismillāh.” For the human heart, being authorized over the whole body, all its organs are submissive and obedient to it. For this reason, the common people have considered the human to reside in his own heart [35]. Similarly, the Exalted Throne (ʿArsh-i ʿAẓīm), by the will of Allah, is authorized over the whole world, and all parts of the world are submissive and obedient to the Exalted Throne. For this reason, some have fallen into the thought—God forbid!—that “the owner of the dominion resides in the Throne.” Thus, the meaning indicated in the phrase, “Surely Allah created Adam in His image so that He might be known,” is understood by this explanation. For only a sultan knows a sultan. Who but a sultan can know the worth of a sultan?
If the Real (al-Ḥaqq), exalted is He, had not made you king in this bodily kingdom, had He not entrusted you with the affairs of kingship, and had He not given you this copy so that you might be a model of the world, how could you have known that sultan of the world? Thus, a hundred thousand praises and thanks be to that Ancient and Eternal Allah. Again, a hundred thousand thanks to that Generous One without end, who has subjugated this bodily kingdom to your command and made you a sultan in His own world. He has made your heart the Throne, your brain the Footstool (Kursī), and your faculty of memory the Preserved Tablet (Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ). He has made your brain, the gathering place of nerves, veins, senses, and faculties, the heavens and stars. He has given your limbs and organs the elements and states, and made them all obedient to you. He has created you as the most beautiful, most perfect, most worthy of honor, and most virtuous of all His creation, and made you victorious and superior over the entire universe. He has made you the place of prostration for the angels and the master of the spheres, and made you worship and prostrate only to Himself. By this means, He has facilitated His own maʿrifa (gnosis) for you, and bestowed upon you intimacy and love [36].
Therefore, do not be heedless of your own heart, your own kingdom, and your own sovereignty. Thus, do not become heedless of or distant from your Creator, your Maker, and your Lord. If you attain to this spiritual witnessing (shuhūd), you will see all existence as beautiful and superior, and find every act harmonious and appropriate. You will avoid the fire of opposition and objection (muʿāraḍa), and submit to the Real (al-Ḥaqq); you will settle in the blessings of contentment (riḍā) and become happy.
This universe and all within it are works of art created by the power of that Wise Creator. Thus, whoever speaks ill of the beings in the world (the designs of the Real), sees faults and defects in them, or disapproves of their Owner (the Designer), has backbitten Him. Such a person, due to his deficient intellect, being unable to understand the benefit in every thing, the good in every evil, and the wisdom in every act, drinks the poison of “why” and “how” and throws himself into the fire of objection. Otherwise, every thing is created in its place and appropriately, and every act is fitting and worthy of its Owner. For in every oppression there is justice, and in every evil there is good. As it has been said, “There is good in what occurs. For the created being, there is nothing better than what has occurred.” In a noble hadith it is narrated: “There is no small evil except that it contains a great good within it.” In the Noble Qur’an it is said: “Allah is kind and merciful to mankind” (al-Baqara, 2:143).
Verse
Har chīz ki hast ān chunān mī bāyad
Ān chīz ki ān chunān namī bāyad, nīst
Translation of the verse
Whatever exists, exists as it should. There is nothing in the world that should not be as it is.
Verse
Whoever knows the Real (al-Ḥaqq) distances himself from people and attributes every act to the Real; he sees that evil is a cover for good and oppression is a cover for justice.
In contemporary Turkish
The man of the Real, who distances himself from people, attributes every act to the Real; he sees that evil is a cover for good and oppression is a cover for justice.
Poem
O Real! Do not be heedless of the Real, be present; observe the wisdom in every act.
In the midst of a little evil, this path leads to great good.
So be skilled in contentment (riḍā) with His decree.
In contemporary Turkish
O Real! Do not be heedless of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), be present before Him; be content with His wisdom in every act. Find great good in His little evil; be attentive in being content with the decree of the Real (al-Ḥaqq).