DÖRDÜNCÜ BÂB · DÖRDÜNCÜ FASIL · Dördüncü Madde
The Fourth Section
Concerning the attributes, signs, and indications of the saints that they attain nearness [to God] and safety.
O beloved! It is known that the friends of Allah have said: The saints possess two signs. One is their obedience to the command of the Divine with reverence, and the other is their compassionate treatment of all creation.
The sign of the saints is their utmost respect for the Divine Law and their love for the creation [of God] because of its Creator.
The sign of the friends of Allah is that they safeguard the secrets between themselves and Allah. They patiently endure and tolerate every kind of affliction and hardship coming from creation, without complaint. They are not pained by anything and attain to the pleasure of the Divine. They get along well with the servants of Allah, do not complain about anyone to anyone, cover up faults and shortcomings, and act with wisdom towards everyone.
*Quatrain*
In my common state, my heart was dead within me,
Then it became vibrant with “the love of the Beloved revived me.”
Accept this breath, O Divine One, do not grieve the people;
Whoever grieves you, know him from God – you know him.
[Translation Note: This quatrain expresses a spiritual awakening through divine love.]
Some of the signs of the saints are sweetness in their tongues and wisdom in their words, beautiful character, radiance and loveliness on their faces, the fragrance of musk and amber emanating from their bodies, generosity, approaching all people with compassion, objecting to nothing, immediately accepting excuses presented to them, preferring their friends over themselves.
It is narrated that a poor man wished to be a companion of one of the saints, a beloved of Allah. That friend of Allah looked at him and saw that he was an elder. He had a sack on his back and his boots were quite worn out.
He said to him: “If you will be our companion and go on this path, you must surrender to us and obey everything we say. Otherwise, you must depart from us.”
When that elder decided to surrender to that saint and become his companion, the source of generosity exchanged his new boots for those of the elder, and took the elder’s sack upon his own back and set out on the journey. Every saint behaves in this manner with his friends who are near him, because they have attained the station of love.
The custom of the saints is always to be occupied with worship of the Divine. Their character is to treat people with compassion. Their actions are always performed with deliberation and gentleness, serving on the path of God. Their words are praise and commendation. For their hearts are a sea of love, and they are familiar with the Oneness of the Divine.
*Poem*
1. We have become an ocean in the heart, though we are but a drop in the world;
We are unique upon the expanse of the earthly essence.
2. Our journey is through the soul’s desert; we are free from other lands.
We are travelers on our own desert, which has become a desert itself.
3. With our radiance, we have burned away the veil of selfhood.
We are hidden from others, but appear only in the heart.
4. We are the successive waves of this sea of love;
Though chained, we have become the Majnun of the intellect. [Majnun is a legendary figure driven mad by his love for Layla.]
5. To grieve and be grieved is not our glory;
We are the compassionate father to everyone.
6. We are friends to the unwise who offend, and also offer prayers;
From all, we have become the object of contemplation.
7. We are lovers like Zuleika, beloveds like Joseph;
In loving ourselves, we have become alone with God – individual and solitary.
[Translation Note: This poem uses metaphors drawn from classical Persian poetry to describe the qualities of a saint.]
The sign of the saints is to attain to the secrets of the Divine and to conceal those secrets from people. The friend of Allah is he who, as long as he safeguards the Divine, the Exalted One protects him. As long as he respects the honor of the Divine, the Exalted One elevates his honor [makes him worthy of respect among people].
The friend of Allah is he who neither feels nor speaks of the grace that emanates from him. The friend of Allah is he who surrenders his form to the people and directs his heart towards the presence of the Divine.
*Quatrain*
Surrender yourself in your heart to the Creator, and outwardly to the creation;
Do not be contrary, for fame is a calamity, evil, and ill omen.
A heart that has been revived by love does not see death;
It is always the throne of God – that blessed abode.
[Translation Note: This quatrain emphasizes surrenderance and the transformative power of divine love.]
The sign of the saints is that their hearts are always filled with joy and light. Their souls are filled with the tranquility of Divine friendship. The sign of the saints is to turn towards the Divine in everything, and to be independent of everything through Him – to turn towards Him first. The friend of Allah is present with Him and remembers Him in every state.
The sign of the saints is to find everything within themselves and to be able to combine opposites.
*Poem*
1. Those devoted to love are like kingdoms
Pleasant in disposition, pleasant in manner
They die, their souls travel through the cosmos
And become beloved in the heart.
2. They become both kingdom and sultan
Both bliss and reward
Both soul and beloved
Both lion and antelope.
3. They become both bitter and sweet
Both form and meaning
Appearances and non-appearances
They are attuned to the nature of the soul.
4. When the soul transcends the created world,
It flies like a Christian towards the cross.
It drinks from the wine of love
1. When it was one, it becomes three.
2. If the heart is troubled, it becomes sweet.
3. It nears if the soul is distant.
4. If that light is unveiled, it seeks union with longing.
5. When this eagerness departs from the soul,
6. The heart becomes vibrant with every breath.
7. The limbs utter remembrance as if possessed.
8. Immediately, thought becomes "Ya Hu."
9. Were it to be annihilated for the sake of God, it would become a soul.
10. From being a servant, it becomes a sovereign.
11. It is a pleasing remedy for every affliction.
12. And a medicine for every pain.