The aphorisms (ḥikam) of Ibn ʿAtāʾillāh al-Iskandarī, with commentary.
- 1. Wisdom: Not Relying on Deeds
The fact that a person's hope diminishes when he falls into sin by mistake is a sign that he relies on his dee - 2. Wisdom: Causes and Detachment
While the Lord of the worlds has made you serve and live by means of worldly causes, your desire for abandonme - 3. Wisdom: The Ramparts of Destiny
Even the most advanced and incisive himma (spiritual resolve) cannot pierce the ramparts that surround destini - 4. Wisdom: Planning and Decree
O righteous murīd (aspirant, disciple)! Do not fall into anxiety over worldly affairs so that you may find eas - 5. Wisdom: Provision and Worship
Murāqaba: To observe, protect, control. To contemplate Allah with the qalb (the heart). In Sufism (taṣawwuf) s - 6. Wisdom: The Time of Supplication and Acceptance
Do not let the delay in the fulfillment of your request, despite your persistence in supplication (dua), drive - 7. Wisdom: Doubt Dulls Insight
O seeker (sālik)! Even if the appointed time has been set, do not ever let the non-fulfillment of what has bee - 8. Wisdom: Little Deed and Maʿrifatullāh
If the True God (Allah) opens for you a door to maʿrifatullāh (gnosis, experiential knowledge of God), then pa - 9. Wisdom: Diverse Actions and Inspirations
The diversity of the actions performed by the sāliks (wayfarers on the Sufi path) arises from the variety of i - 10. Wisdom: The Spirit of Action, the Secret of Ikhlas
Actions are but lifeless forms. Their spirit is the secret of ikhlas (ikhlas: sincerity) within them. Poetic T - 11. Wisdom: Bury Your Existence in the Soil of Obscurity
Bury your own existence in the soil of obscurity. That is, be without name or sign! For a seed that is not bur - 12. Wisdom: The Soundness of the Heart, Seclusion, and Contemplation
The most beneficial thing for the soundness of the qalb (the heart) is to withdraw into seclusion and immerse - 13. Wisdom: The Mirror of the Heart Tainted by Existence
How can the sun of maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) shine in the mirror of the heart (qalb) that is tai - 14. Wisdom: The Perishing Existence, the Everlasting Real
Non-existence is darkness, while existence is light. The meaning of the cosmos becomes manifest through the Ab - 15. Wisdom: The Unity of Being (Wahdat al-Wujūd)
The proof of God's wrath upon you: In reality, it is that He has veiled your eyes with things that have no tru - 16. Wisdom: Created Things Cannot Veil the Real
He is the One who makes all things manifest: Poetic Translation How could the Real be veiled by anything, When - 17. Wisdom: Existence Is One
How can it be imagined that anything could veil Allah, the Exalted, when He is manifest before the existence o - 18. Wisdom: The Ignorance of Desiring Other Than What Is Given
Whoever desires other than what the Exalted Truth offers him within the “moment” (the decree of time), has not - 19. Wisdom: The Folly of Postponing Deeds
O seeker of ḥaqīqa (inner reality)! To postpone acts of worship and righteous deeds stems from the foolishness - 20. Wisdom: The Impropriety of Seeking Another State
Do not ask Allah to remove you from your present ḥāl (spiritual state) and employ you in another! If the Exalt - 21. Wisdom: Not Stopping on the Journey to Allah
If the sālik (traveler on the path) journeying to the banquet of oneness is content to stop at the unveilings - 22. Wisdom: The Necessity of Non-Request
O seeker of truth! To ask for a blessing from the Real (al-Ḥaqq) is an accusation against Him. To seek to beho - 23. Wisdom: The Seal of Destiny in Every Breath
With every breath you take, Allah the Exalted enacts a decree concerning you. Poetic Translation O seeker (sāl - 24. Wisdom: Saying 'Allah' in Every State
O aspirant of spiritual serenity! Do not wait for a convenient time that will remain after being occupied with - 25. Wisdom: Not Being Surprised by Afflictions
O repentant murīd (aspirant, disciple)! As long as you remain in this world, which is the abode of tribulation - 26. Wisdom: Acting with the Nafs Is a Dead End
O murīd (aspirant, disciple)! That which you seek with your Lord proceeds smoothly and becomes easy. But the w - 27. Wisdom: The Beginning is a Sign of the End
The murīd’s (aspirant, disciple) turning to Allah and fully attaching himself to Him at the first stage of the - 28. Wisdom: The Beginning and the End
Whoever's beginning is radiant, their end will also be radiant. Poetic Translation He whose beginning is radia - 29. Wisdom: The Outward Manifestation of the Inner Light
The maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) and lights entrusted to the treasury of the secret and the qalb (t - 30. Wisdom: Knowing Creation as the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
There is a great difference between those who see creation as the Real (al-Ḥaqq) and those who seek evidence f - 31. Wisdom: Those Who Have Arrived at the Station and Those on the Path
"Let a man of wealth spend from his wealth!" (al-Ṭalāq 65:7). The individuals indicated by this noble verse ar - 32. Wisdom: Say 'Allah' and Disregard All Else
Those who travel the path of Allah have attained hudā (guidance) through the lights of tawajjuh (divine attent - 33. Wisdom: Instead of Seeking the Unseen, Busy Yourself with Your Own Faults
It is better for you to strive to learn your own hidden faults than to seek out the secrets of the unseen (gha - 34. Wisdom: There Is No Veil Covering the Real
The eye of fairness: the gaze of mercy and justice. The Exalted Real (Allah) is not veiled. It is you who are - 35. Wisdom: Depart from Evil, Attain to the Real
Abandon all human qualities that would corrupt your servanthood, so that you may respond to the call of the Re - 36. Wisdom: Truthfulness Is Not Being Swayed by the Nafs
Nafs al-ammāra: The commanding nafs (nafs al-ammāra); that which draws the qalb (the heart) toward base things - 37. Wisdom: The Scholar Content with His Nafs Is More Harmful Than the Ignorant
It is certainly more beneficial for you to befriend an ignorant person who is not content with his nafs (the l - 38. Wisdom: The Reality of Insight
The light of insight shows you that it is kindled by the presence of the Exalted Truth; the eye of insight ind - 39. Wisdom: Allah Exists, Nothing Else Exists
Allah existed, and there was nothing else with Him. And everything is still as it was before. Poetic Translati - 40. Wisdom: The Only True Generous One is Allah
Your intention in seeking should not reach beyond Allah. For the truly generous one is only called such when r - 41. Wisdom: Ask Only from Allah
Do not turn to anyone else to fulfill a need that Allah has placed upon you! Since it is Allah who has instill - 42. Wisdom: Looking Beautifully Upon Allah
If you do not think well of Allah due to His transcendent attribute (sublimity), then at least make your opini - 43. Wisdom: Do Not Chase After Illusions
The most astonishing person is the one who tries to flee from that which he can never be separated from, and s - 44. Wisdom: Abandon Existence, Attain the Creator
O murīd (aspirant, disciple) who seeks ḥaqīqa (inner reality)! Do not keep passing from one becoming to anothe - 45. Wisdom: Everyone Attains According to Their Intention
O seeker of Truth! If you possess understanding, carefully observe, reflect upon, and strive to comprehend the - 46. Wisdom: Do Not Associate with One Whose State and Speech Are Not True
Do not meet or keep company with anyone whose state does not direct you to Allah and whose words do not indica - 47. Wisdom: The Evil Reveals Its Own Evil
Sometimes there may be evil within you, but if you keep company and form intimacy with someone who is characte - 48. Wisdom: The Few Deeds of the Ascetic Are Counted as Many
The deeds that arise from a heart that has abandoned love of the world are never few. The deeds that emerge fr - 49. Wisdom: Temekkün (Spiritual Establishment)
The beauty of deeds is the result of the beauty of spiritual states (ḥāl). The beauty of states is, in turn, t - 50. Wisdom: Neglecting Dhikr Is Heavier Than Heedlessness During Dhikr
Do not abandon dhikr (dhikr, remembrance of God) merely because you have not attained presence with Allah duri - 51. Wisdom: The Sign of the Death of the Heart
Not grieving over missed good deeds and not feeling remorse for one's mistakes are among the signs of the deat - 52. Wisdom: Sin Should Not Lead to Despair
Do not consider your sin so great that it prevents you from having ḥusn al-ẓann (good opinion) of Allah! For a - 53. Wisdom: Sin Is from Us, Forgiveness Is from Allah
If the Lord Most High responds to you with His attribute of justice, then no sin of yours can be considered sm - 54. Wisdom: The Deed Unseen by the Eye Is Greater
There has never been a deed, unseen by your eye and to which you attach no importance, that is more likely to - 55. Wisdom: Divine Effusion Is Only for Attaining God
The spiritual influxes (wāridāt) that come to you from the Exalted Truth are only for your reaching Him throug - 56. Wisdom: The Purpose of Manifestation is Freedom
The grace and manifestation (tajallī) that the Almighty offers you is to rescue you from the hands of others a - 57. Wisdom: Deliverance from the Prison of Existence
The inspirations (waridāt) that Allah Most High brings to your heart are meant to bring you out from the priso - 58. Wisdom: Lights That Carry Hearts to Allah
Wārid: In the language of Sufism (taṣawwuf), these are the spiritual states (ḥāl) of divine gnosis (maʿrifa) a - 59. Wisdom: The Battle of Light and Darkness
Light is the army of the qalb (the heart), and darkness is the army of the nafs (the lower self). When Allah t - 60. Wisdom: Felicity and Wretchedness
The unveiling of secrets is a quality particular to the light of maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God), and - 61. Wisdom: Worship Is by Allah’s Mercy
Let it not delight you that worship arises from you. Rather, let your delight in worship be only in that it is - 62. Wisdom: The Seeker Does Not See His Deeds, the Realized Does Not See His State
Allah Most High has prevented both the sāliks (murīd, aspirants on the path) and the wāsils (those who have re - 63. Wisdom: The Tree of Humiliation Grown by Greed
The branches of the tree of humiliation grow only from the seed of greed. Poetic Translation The branches of t - 64. Wisdom: The Delusive Power That Drags You Along
Nothing has ever dragged you along behind it as much as delusive imagination (wahm) has Verse Translation Ther - 65. Wisdom: The Slave of Greed
You are free with respect to what you have renounced out of greed; but you are a slave to everything you covet - 66. Wisdom: The Chain of Trial
Whoever does not turn to Allah through the ease brought by blessing is drawn toward Him by the chains of trial - 67. Wisdom: Gratitude Binds Blessings
Whoever does not show shukr (gratitude) for blessings has, in effect, wished for their disappearance. But whoe - 68. Wisdom: Fear of Istidrāj
If, while you persist in evil deeds, the Lord of Majesty continues to bestow favors and gifts upon you, fear t - 69. Wisdom: Indecency Does Not Go Unpunished
If a murīd (aspirant, disciple) who acts contrary to adab (proper conduct) sees that the punishment he deserve - 70. Wisdom: Whoever Has Dhikr Also Has Love
If you do not see in a servant whom the Almighty keeps constantly engaged in dhikr (remembrance of God) and wo - 71. Wisdom: To Some, Worship; To Others, Love Is Bestowed
There are some servants of Allah Most High whom He keeps solely in service and worship. And there are other se - 72. Wisdom: The Arrival of Divine Grace at Unexpected Moments
The fact that the influxes of grace (fayḍ) and inspirations (ilhām) that come to the hearts often manifest rar - 73. Wisdom: Whoever Answers Every Question Is Ignorant
If someone answers every question posed to them, recounts everything they see, and says everything they know, - 74. Wisdom: The Reward of God Cannot Be Contained by This World
Allah, the Exalted, has created the hereafter (ākhira) in order to grant the rewards to His believing servants - 75. Wisdom: The Proof of Acceptance in the Hereafter
Whoever feels in their conscience that they have found the fruit of their deed in this world, this very feelin - 76. Wisdom: The State You Are In Is Your Worth Before God
If you wish to know your worth in the sight of Allah (c.c.), look at the kind of work in which He has placed y - 77. Wisdom: Outward and Inward Blessings, Acts of Obedience, and Gnosis
Whenever the Real (God Most High) bestows upon you His obedience (ṭāʿa) and, without your need for obedience, - 78. Wisdom: What God Desires Is What Is Most Beneficial
The best of what you seek from the Lord Most High is that which He seeks from you. Poetic Translation The high - 79. Wisdom: The Delusion of Sorrow
To feel sorrow merely for the absence of worship, without actually engaging in it, is among the signs of delus - 80. Wisdom: The Essence Without Indication, The Knower of God
The ʿārif-i billāh (knower of God); when he points to the Divine Essence, there is no one who finds God more f - 81. Wisdom: Hope Without Deeds Is Mere Wishful Thinking
Hope only has meaning when accompanied by action. Otherwise, it does not go beyond being mere wishful thinking - 82. Wisdom: Complete Loyalty in Servitude
The request of the ʿārifūn (those endowed with maʿrifa, experiential knowledge of God) from Allah Most High is - 83. Wisdom: Beyond Contraction and Expansion
Rubūbiyya: Lordship; ownership, mastery. In order not to leave you in the state of qabḍ (contraction), the Tru - 84. Wisdom: Observing Proper Conduct in the State of Expansion
The gnostics (ʿārifūn) are more fearful in the state of expansion (bast) than in the state of contraction (qab - 85. Wisdom: The Nafs Loves the State of Expansion (Bast)
The state of expansion (bast) is a condition in which the nafs-i ammāra (the commanding/lower self) partakes o - 86. Wisdom: Sometimes Giving Is Withholding
Sometimes His giving to you is actually withholding; and His withholding may, in fact, be giving! Poetic Trans - 87. Wisdom: Sometimes Withholding Is Giving
O traveler on the path of Truth: If the door of understanding and discernment present in Allah's withholding i - 88. Wisdom: The Outward and Inward Aspects of the Realm of Existence
The outward appearance of created things is a cause of delusion, while their inward aspect is a means of takin - 89. Wisdom: Enduring and Ephemeral Honor
If you wish to attain enduring honor, never value ephemeral honor! Poetic Translation If you desire enduring h - 90. Wisdom: The True Folding of Space and Time
The true “folding” is to have the world’s time and space folded up from your sight, and to experience the real - 91. Wisdom: The Beloved's Withholding Is Also Beloved
The giving of people is deprivation, and Allah's (Glorified and Exalted) withholding is beneficence. Poetic Tr - 92. Wisdom: Worship and Reward
The servant performs worship in advance, yet Allah is exalted and transcendent above granting the Divine rewar - 93. Wisdom: The Opportunity for Worship Is the Greatest Reward
O sincere murīd (aspirant, disciple); what is greater than Allah granting you reward for your worship in this - 94. Wisdom: The State of Nearness in Worship
It is a sufficient reward that the Exalted Truth bestows divine maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) and th - 95. Wisdom: The Hope for Reward Does Not Befit the Servant
Whoever worships out of hope for reward or fear of punishment does not truly fulfill the duty of servitude to - 96. Wisdom: The Self-Disclosure of the Real (God)
O seeker of the Real! Whenever the Exalted Hudā (God) gives to you, He manifests His generosity and beneficenc - 97. Wisdom: Not Understanding the Manifestation of the Real
Your sorrow over something being withheld and not given is, in reality, due to your failure to perceive that t - 98. Wisdom: The Sin That Becomes a Means to Union
There are times when Allah Most High opens to you the door of worship, but does not open the door of acceptanc - 99. Wisdom: The Subjugation Caused by Sin
A sin whose result is humility and submission is better than an act of worship that leads to pride and arrogan - 100. Wisdom: Being Brought into Existence and Sustained in Being
There are two blessings from which no being can remain excluded, and which are necessary for every created thi - 101. Wisdom: The Blessing of Deliverance from Nonexistence
To bring you forth from nonexistence is the first blessing of the Exalted Truth upon you; to maintain you in e - 102. Wisdom: Neediness
Neediness is an essential quality for you; it is original. Indeed, the successive arrival of causes of need re - 103. Wisdom: Realizing One's Humiliation
The best of your moments is when you witness your poverty (fakr, neediness) and are returned to your humiliati - 104. Wisdom: Being Distanced from People
Whenever Allah, the Exalted, distances you from people, know that He wishes to open for you the door of friend - 105. Wisdom: The Ability to Make Supplication
Whenever the Exalted God enables you to make supplication (dua), know that He has willed to bestow His favor u - 106. Wisdom: The Inability to Be With Other Than Allah
The ʿārif-i billāh (knower of God) is in a constant state of need for the Real (al-Ḥaqq). Indeed, he never fin - 107. Wisdom: The Sun of the Heart That Never Sets
Allah, the Exalted, illuminated the visible world with the lights of His works. What illuminates the esrār (se - 108. Wisdom: The One Who Chooses Good Is the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
Knowing that it is Allah, the Exalted, Who subjects you to tribulation should lighten the burden of your sorro - 109. Wisdom: Seeing Grace in Destiny
The one who considers Allah’s grace as separate from His decree, does so out of a deficiency in their percepti - 110. Wisdom: The Path Is Clear, It Is Your Sight That Is Veiled
What is truly to be feared for you is not that the paths appear confused, but that you are overcome by your ow - 111. Wisdom: The Truth Hidden by the Veil of Created Things
I glorify and declare holy Allah, Exalted is He, who veils the secret of His particularity (maʿrifa, experient - 112. Wisdom: The Delay of Acceptance
Do not attempt to demand a right from your Lord or object because the answer to your dua (supplication) is del - 113. Wisdom: Outward Obedience, Inward Surrender
Whenever Allah outwardly makes you obedient to His command, and inwardly provides you with surrender and conte - 114. Wisdom: Liberation from Existence
He whose particularity is fixed, his salvation is not perfected. Poetic Translation For one whose particularit - 115. Wisdom: The Necessity of Dhikr and Worship
Only the ignorant belittle the wird (dhikr, prescribed devotional practice). For the divine wārid (maʿrifa, ex - 116. Wisdom: Assistance Proportional to Capacity
The aid that comes to the murīd (aspirant, disciple) from the Exalted Truth (God) is in proportion to his capa - 117. Wisdom: What Does the Real Do With Me Today?
The heedless one, when morning comes, thinks about what he will do. The one endowed with insight looks to see - 118. Wisdom: Whoever Sees Allah Finds Nearness in Everything
The reason why the devout worshippers and ascetics feel estrangement (haşyet) from everything is that they are - 119. Wisdom: With the Light of Insight, the Real is Seen
O aware gnostic, in this world Allah the Exalted has commanded you to look upon created beings with heedful re - 120. Wisdom: The Gnostic Sees the Essence in Existence
The Eternal Designer has inscribed upon the map of the Throne / With a hundred thousand flowers of light: "Say - 121. Wisdom: Performing the Prayer as It Ought to Be
Because the Exalted Truth (Allah) is aware of your quality of boredom, weariness, and fatigue, He made acts of - 122. Wisdom: Prayer Opens the Gates of the Unseen
Prayer is a supplication to Allah for the cleansing of hearts from the stains of sin and for the opening of th - 124. Wisdom: The Prayer Is Few, Its Aid Is Abundant
Allah (Exalted is He), knowing your weakness and weariness, reduced the number of prayers. And, knowing your n - 125. Wisdom: The Desire for Reward Gives Rise to the Desire for Sincerity
O repentant servant; whenever you seek reward from Allah in exchange for worship, you will encounter the deman - 126. Wisdom: Allah is the Creator of Deeds
Do not seek recompense for an act for which you are not the true agent! If the Exalted Allah accepts your wors - 127. Wisdom: Allah Attributes the Deed to the Servant
If Allah, Exalted is He, wishes to manifest His bounty and grace upon you, He creates good deeds and attribute - 128. Wisdom: Entrusting Affairs to Allah
If the Exalted God entrusts you to your nafs (nafs, the lower self), there will be no end to your bad states a - 129. Wisdom: Lordship and Servanthood
It is realized by relating to the attributes of Lordship and actualizing the attributes of servanthood! Poetic - 130. Wisdom: The Servant Does Not Claim Lordship
Allah the Exalted has forbidden you even from making unjust claims over the property of others—so would He per - 131. Wisdom: Karāma (Saintly Wonder) and Divine Secrets
How can the divine patterns change for you before you have abandoned the habits of your nafs (the lower self)? - 132. Wisdom: Seeking and Proper Conduct
Your honor and dignity do not lie in supplication (dua) and seeking, but rather in your being adorned with bea - 133. Wisdom: The Most Effective Supplication is Helplessness
There is no supplication (dua) for you as effective as necessity and helplessness. Moreover, nothing attracts - 134. Wisdom: Union is Only Through Divine Grace
If your union with the Real (Ḥaqq) Most High were only to occur after the annihilation of faults and the remov - 135. Wisdom: Deeds Are Accepted Only by Divine Grace
If it were not for the beautiful covering of the Real, not a single deed would be worthy of acceptance in the - 136. Wisdom: One Repentance for Sin, a Thousand for Worship
Your need for Allah’s forbearance (ḥilm) is greater in times of obedience than in times of rebellion. Poetic T - 137. Wisdom: Fear of Displeasing the Real (God)
Concealment (satr) is of two kinds: one is to be veiled from sins, the other is to veil sins themselves! The c - 138. Wisdom: Generosity Belongs to God
Whoever shows you generosity has, in reality, only honored the beautiful covering of the Exalted Truth (God) u - 139. Wisdom: The True Friend is Allah
The true friend is the one who, though knowing your hidden faults and shortcomings, still turns towards you an - 140. Wisdom: The People of Certainty Perceive the Hereafter as if Seeing It
If the light of yaqīn (certainty) were to rise in your heart, then surely the abode of the Hereafter would app - 141. Wisdom: The Veil Before the Real is the Illusion of Existence
It was not the existence of a being present with Him that veiled you from Allah. Rather, it was your imagining - 142. Wisdom: If the Truth Were Manifest, the Cosmos Would Be Destroyed
If the Most Exalted, Glorious Truth (al-Ḥaqq) did not manifest existence within His created things (makhlūqāt) - 143. Wisdom: The Real is Both Hidden and Manifest
Because He is al-Bāṭin (the Hidden), He manifested everything; and because He is al-Ẓāhir (the Manifest), He f - 144. Wisdom: Seeing the Real (al-Ḥaqq) Everywhere
The Exalted Real (Allah) has commanded and permitted you to look upon all created things (mukawwanāt, beings). - 145. Wisdom: The Cosmos Does Not Truly Exist
The cosmos is established and existent by the affirmation of the Exalted Truth (Cenâb-ı Hak), but in relation - 146. Wisdom: In Response to Praise, Reproach Yourself
People praise you for the good qualities they think you possess. You, however, should be self-reproaching and - 147. Wisdom: Boasting of What Belongs to Another
A believer who possesses modesty feels shame before Allah when praised and commended for a noble quality which - 148. Wisdom: Desiring Praise
The most ignorant of people is the one who abandons and sacrifices his own certain knowledge to the opinion of - 149. Wisdom: Praise Belongs to Allah
If the Exalted Truth causes people to praise you even though you are not worthy, then you too should praise an - 150. Wisdom: Knowing Praise as Coming from the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
The ascetic (zāhid) group feels discomfort when praised, because they see praise and commendation as coming fr - 151. Wisdom: The Childhood of Seeing Other Than God
As long as being given something brings you joy and being denied something causes you sorrow and constriction, - 152. Wisdom: The Last Sin That Has Been Decreed
When you commit a sin, do not let this break your hope of attaining uprightness in servitude! For perhaps this - 153. Wisdom: The Gate of Hope and the Gate of Fear
If you wish for the gate of hope to be opened, look at the blessings that have come to you from the Real (al-Ḥ - 154. Wisdom: Day and Night, Hope and Fear
Sometimes, the knowledge and maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) from which you could not benefit in the d - 155. Wisdom: The Truth, However, Fits Only in the Heart of the Believer
The places where divine lights arise are the hearts and inner secrets (asrār) of the gnostics (ʿārifīn). Verse - 156. Wisdom: The Heart of the Walī is the Locus of Divine Light
The light of certainty (yaqīn) entrusted to the hearts of the gnostics (ʿārif) always receives aid and illumin - 157. Wisdom: The Two Lights
There is a light by which the divine acts are unveiled to you, and another light by which the Lordly attribute - 158. Wisdom: Luminous and Obscuring Veils
Just as the density of others is a veil for the nafs (the lower self), so too can the preoccupation with light - 159. Wisdom: The Secrets of Walāya
Lest they become commonplace and vulgarized on people's tongues, He veiled the lights of the secrets of the aw - 160. Wisdom: Attaining the Friends of God
Glorified is Allah Most High, who made what is a proof of His pure Essence a proof for His friends (awliyāʾ), - 161. Wisdom: The Concealment of the Servant’s Secret
Many times Allah Most High informs you of the unseen knowledges of His dominion, yet He conceals the secrets o - 162. Wisdom: Concealing Faults
If one becomes privy to the secrets of the servants but is not adorned with divine mercy in character, this kn - 163. Wisdom: Sensual Pleasure in Worship
The pleasure that the nafs al-ammāra (the commanding self) takes in sins is manifest and apparent, while its p - 164. Wisdom: The Hidden Form of Ostentation
At times, you may commit ostentation even when people do not see you. Poetic Translation It may happen that os - 165. Wisdom: Not Desiring Your Spiritual State to Be Known
Desiring people to know the particularities of your spiritual state is evidence that you are not sincere in yo - 166. Wisdom: Looking Only to the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
Make the gaze of people upon you absent by the gaze of the Real (God), and become oblivious to the attention o - 167. Wisdom: Seeing the Real (al-Ḥaqq) in Everything
Whoever knows the Real (al-Ḥaqq), witnesses Him in everything. Whoever is annihilated in the Real (fanāʾ fī al - 168. Wisdom: The Nearness That Veils the Real
Only the extreme nearness of the Exalted Real to you has veiled Him from you. Moreover, Allah Most High, due t - 169. Wisdom: Supplication Is an Admission of One’s Incapacity
Do not consider your request and supplication to Allah Most High as the cause for the bestowal and grace prese - 170. Wisdom: Grace Is Not Caused by Supplication
How can your supplication (dua) and request, which come after the fact, be the cause of the grace and benefice - 171. Wisdom: Divine Favor Is Only Grace
Allah’s eternal will concerning you is not dependent on any of your deeds. For where were you when, in pre-ete - 172. Wisdom: Divine Grace Is Near to the Righteous
Since the Almighty knows that His servants await the manifestation of the secret of divine grace, He declared - 173. Wisdom: Everything Depends on the Divine Will
Everything depends upon the Divine will. The Divine will, however, depends upon nothing. Poetic Translation Al - 174. Wisdom: Abandoning Request and Supplication
At times, the etiquette of the people of maʿrifa (gnosis, experiential knowledge of God), relying upon the pre - 175. Wisdom: Submission to the Eternal Decree
Only one who is liable to forget is reminded, and only one for whom negligence is possible is warned. Poetic T - 176. Wisdom: Necessity is the Delight of Servitude
The arrival of poverty and need are the festival and joyous times of the sāliks (spiritual wayfarers). Verse T - 177. Wisdom: Manifestations in Poverty and Need
Often, the spiritual manifestations you do not attain in fasting and prayer are found in states of poverty and - 178. Wisdom: The True Meaning of Poverty
Poverty (faqr) and needs are displays for bestowal and beneficence. If you wish to be the locus of manifestati - 179. Wisdom: Power Aids the One Who Knows Their Own Incapacity
Fulfill the requirements of your attributes, so that the Exalted God may assist you with His attributes! That - 180. Wisdom: The True Karāma is Uprightness
Sometimes, a person whose uprightness is not perfect is also granted a karāma (a saintly wonder). Poetic Trans - 181. Wisdom: In What Comes Without Seeking, There Is Divine Aid
The sign that Allah has established you in a matter is that He keeps you constant in it along with the attainm - 182. Wisdom: The One Who Speaks from God Is Not Silenced by Sin
If a person gives advice by interpreting their own good deeds, a single evil act will silence them. But if som - 183. Wisdom: The Light of the Gnostics Precedes Their Words
The light of the rabbānī (divinely inspired) scholars surpasses their words. Thus, the word reaches the place - 184. Wisdom: The Tongue Is the Interpreter of the Heart
Every word emerges clothed in the garment of the heart, which is its place of manifestation. Poetic Translatio - 185. Wisdom: None Shall Speak Without His Permission
Whoever is authorized to express realities, his words will be understood and clear to the ears of people, and - 186. Wisdom: There Is No Light in Speech Without Permission
When you are not permitted to disclose realities and secrets, their lights appear dimmed. Poetic Translation S - 187. Wisdom: The Gnostic Speaks Either from Ecstasy or for Guidance
The utterances of the people of ḥaqīqa (inner reality) arise either from the fervor of ecstasy (wajd) and spir - 188. Wisdom: Your Share of Speech Is the Meaning You Comprehend
Words and expressions are nourishment and sustenance for the family of listeners. Your share is only the meani - 189. Wisdom: The State of One Approaching and One Attaining a Maqām
Both someone whose gaze has only just turned toward a maqām (spiritual station) and someone who has attained t - 190. Wisdom: Explaining Spiritual Inspirations Diminishes Their Effect
Verification: To examine, to investigate the inner aspect. Arrival (wuṣūl): Reaching, attaining, arriving. Spi - 191. Wisdom: One Who Sees from the Real Can Receive What Is Given
Do not extend your hand to take your needs from people. Unless you see that the One who gives through them is - 192. Wisdom: The Gnostic is Ashamed Even to Ask from Allah
Mubāḥ: That which incurs neither reward nor sin when done. Something whose performance or non-performance is p - 193. Wisdom: Goodness Lies in What Is Hardest for the Nafs
When you are uncertain as to which of two actions is better, look to the one that is heavier upon the nafs (th - 194. Wisdom: Laxity in Obligatory Acts Stems from the Nafs
To hasten towards supererogatory good deeds while showing laziness in obligatory acts is among the signs of fo - 195. Wisdom: The Secret of the Times of Worship
Allah, the Exalted, assigned specific times to the obligatory acts of worship so that laxity would not prevent - 196. Wisdom: The Secret Behind the Obligation of Worship
Because Allah knew the servants' lack of desire for righteous deeds, He made worship obligatory upon them. Thu - 197. Wisdom: Worship and Paradise
The All-Bestowing Lord has made worship obligatory upon you, but in reality, He has only made it necessary for - 198. Wisdom: The Power of God Suffices for All Things
Whoever is astonished that the Exalted Truth (Allah) can rescue him from the bondage of lust and deliver him f - 199. Wisdom: Sometimes Evil Reveals the Value of Good
Very often, the coming upon you of the darknesses of the nafs (nafs, the lower self) is in order that the Most - 200. Wisdom: Recognizing the Value of Blessings
Whoever does not recognize the value of a divine blessing while it is present will surely recognize it once it - 201. Wisdom: Be Grateful for the Increase of Blessings, Do Not Be Astonished
Let the successive arrival of blessings not fill you with dread (astonishment and fear) regarding fulfilling t - 202. Wisdom: The World that Rules the Heart
The dominance of worldly desires in the heart is a severe illness. Poetic Translation The presence of love for - 203. Wisdom: The Humility or Longing That Purifies the Heart
The thing that will remove desires and lusts from the heart is either a fear that brings one to helplessness o - 204. Wisdom: The Divided Heart
The Exalted God does not love deeds performed with partners nor a heart that is shared. Just as God Most High - 205. Wisdom: When the Light of Iman Enters the Heart, the World Departs
Some lights are permitted by the Truth to reach the breast (ṣadr), and some lights are authorized to enter the - 206. Wisdom: Lights Do Not Enter a Heart Filled with Existence
Oftentimes, lights (nūr) reach you, but find your qalb (the heart) filled with the forms of created things, an - 207. Wisdom: Do Not Find Divine Grace Slow
Do not find Divine grace slow! Rather, find your own self slow in turning to Allah! Poetic Translation Never d - 208. Wisdom: The Irreplaceable Rights of Moments
It is possible to make up for certain rights and duties within a given moment. However, it is not possible to - 209. Wisdom: The Life That Has Passed Cannot Be Compensated
Just as there is no compensation or return for the portion of your life that has passed, so too is there no va - 210. Wisdom: That Which You Love Besides Allah Becomes Your Deity
You inevitably become a servant to that which you love. Yet the Exalted Truth (Allah Most High) is not pleased - 211. Wisdom: The Reward of Worship and Sin Returns to You
Neither your worship benefits the Exalted God, nor does your sin harm Him. Yet His commanding worship and forb - 212. Wisdom: Everything Exists Through the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
The turning of one who turns towards Him does not add anything to the majesty of the Exalted Real (Allah). Nor - 213. Wisdom: The Divine is Transcendent from Arrival
Your arrival to the Exalted Truth is your attainment of certain knowledge (ʿilm al-yaqīn) of Him. Otherwise, o - 214. Wisdom: His Nearness Is Your Nearness to Him
Your nearness to the Most High God is your witnessing of His nearness. Otherwise, where are you, and where is - 215. Wisdom: The Immediate Inaccessibility of Lādunī Realities
Lādunī (divinely bestowed) realities come in essence during the state of tajallī (divine manifestation). After - 216. Wisdom: Divine Arrivals Erase All Evils
Whenever divine arrivals (ilāhī wāridāt) come to you, they eliminate your habitual tendencies of the nafs (naf - 217. Wisdom: When Light Arrives, Darkness Disappears
The manifestations (tajallī) that come from the Real (al-Ḥaqq) arrive from the aspect of the Name al-Kahhār (t - 218. Wisdom: Not Knowing the Ocean While Within the Ocean
How could the Exalted Truth (God) be veiled by anything among the higher or lower beings? Yet He, the Majestic - 219. Wisdom: Even If You Do Not See the Real, He Sees You
Do not despair over the acceptance of a deed in which you do not find tranquility. For it may be among those d - 220. Wisdom: In Sufism, Uprightness in the Sacred Law Is Essential
Never praise or rejoice in a divine influx (warid, manifestation) whose fruit you do not know. For the purpose - 221. Wisdom: The Manifestations Are Transient, Allah Is Everlasting
After the divine manifestations have spread their lights upon you and entrusted you with My secrets, do not se - 222. Wisdom: Forgetting All but Allah is Union
Your longing for and expectation of the persistence of manifestations and spiritual influxes (tajalliyāt and w - 223. Wisdom: The Paradise of Contemplation, the Hell of the Veil
Tafrīd: For actions to be done purely for Allah. In this state, the sālik (spiritual traveler) does not see hi - 224. Wisdom: The Sorrow of Not Perceiving the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
The sorrows and griefs that befall the qalb (the heart) are due to being prevented from witnessing the manifes - 225. Wisdom: Sufficient Provision Is Most Beneficial
For the Exalted Truth (God) to grant you provision in sufficiency, and to withhold from you that which would c - 226. Wisdom: Happiness Lies in Renouncing the Perishable
Let that which pleases you in terms of state and wealth be little, so that that which saddens you in terms of - 227. Wisdom: Desire
If you do not wish to taste the bitterness of being cast away, do not desire a maqām (spiritual station) that - 228. Wisdom: Happiness Is Beautiful Only If It Will Not End
The Exalted God made this world a place for others and a mine of sorrows only to make you not belong to it. Po - 229. Wisdom: A Transient Affliction Is Considered Mercy
The Almighty (Cenâb-ı Hak) knew that you would not accept admonition alone, so He let you taste trials and tri - 230. Wisdom: Beneficial Knowledge is a Radiant Light
Beneficial knowledge is a radiant light whose rays shine on the horizon of the heart, and by which the veil co - 231. Wisdom: Beneficial Knowledge and Fear of Allah
The best knowledge is that which leads to khashyatu’llāh (fear of Allah). Poetic Translation Beneficial knowle - 232. Wisdom: Knowledge Accompanied by Awe
If knowledge is accompanied by khashya (awe of God), it is to your benefit; if not, it is to your detriment. V - 233. Wisdom: Expecting Praise
Whenever the lack of attention or criticism from people hurts you, turn to the knowledge of Allah in which His - 234. Wisdom
The Exalted God has caused hardship to be enacted at the hands of people so that you do not trust in them or f - 235. Wisdom: Know Satan, Do Not Be Negligent of the Real
If you know that Satan is not negligent of you, then do not be negligent of the Exalted Real (Cenâb-ı Hak), in - 236. Wisdom: Satan and the Nafs, They Drive One to God
The Exalted Truth made Satan your enemy in order to frighten you with him and drive you to seek refuge in Hims - 237. Wisdom: Humility Is Shirk
Whoever claims humility for his own nafs (the lower self), in reality, he is arrogant. For humility is nothing - 238. Wisdom: Not Granting Any Superiority to One's Nafs
One who, when acting with humility, sees himself as above what he has done is not truly humble. Rather, the tr - 239. Wisdom: True Humility Is to Witness the Majesty of Allah
True humility is the humility that arises from witnessing the majesty of Allah Most High and from the manifest - 240. Wisdom: Forgetting the Nafs
Nothing removes you from the attribute of the nafs (nafs: the lower self) except witnessing the attribute of t - 241. Wisdom: One Who Praises His Lord Does Not Recall His Own Self
The perfected believer is one who, due to his constant praise of the Real (al-Ḥaqq), remains distant from bein - 242. Wisdom: The True Lover Does Not Seek, He Gives
One who loves with an ulterior motive or seeks something in return from the beloved cannot be a true lover! Fo - 243. Wisdom: The Nafs Is the Cause of Spiritual Journeying
If the arenas of desire and habit did not exist for the nafs (nafs, the lower self), the spiritual journey (sa - 244. Wisdom: The Human Being Between Mulk and Malakut
O human! In order to make known your worth among His creatures, and moreover, to show that you are a jewel (es - 245. Wisdom: The World Cannot Encompass the Human Being
O human being, who is the essence, foundation, and origin of the universe! This world has only encompassed you - 246. Wisdom: Maʿrifa and Freedom
A person in this world for whom the arenas of the unseen—maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) and sciences— - 247. Wisdom: Creatures Are With You
O human! Unless you witness the True Originator (the real Creator), the Exalted Lord, you are with the creatur - 248. Wisdom: The Sun of Nearness to the Real
The realization of nearness to the Real does not necessitate the absence of the attribute of humanity. Rather, - 249. Wisdom: The People of Ecstasy and the People of Spiritual Journeying
God Most High indicated His names by means of His acts, His attributes by means of His names, and His very Ess - 250. Wisdom: The Lights of the Heart Are Known in the Hereafter
Just as the lights of the heavens are manifest and visible only in the worldly realm, so too the value of the - 251. Wisdom: The Glad Tidings Announcing the Reward of the Hereafter
To witness the fruits of obedience and worship in advance (in this world) are glad tidings that announce to th - 252. Wisdom: Whatever You Have Belongs to the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
How can you seek recompense for a deed in which you have been granted success, when it was only bestowed upon - 253. Wisdom: The Four Groups
There is a group whose lights surpass their dhikr (remembrance of God). There is another group whose dhikr sur - 254. Wisdom: The Sālik and the Majdhūb
A person who practices dhikr (dhikr, remembrance of God), that is, a sālik (seeker on the path), performs dhik - 255. Wisdom: Inner Contemplation Gives Rise to Outward Remembrance
Outward dhikr (remembrance of God) arises only due to the inner witnessing and contemplation of the Divine Pre - 256. Wisdom: The Light of Iman in the Heart as the Cause of Worship
Before the Divine, in His majesty, demanded testimony from you, He manifested the vision (shuhūd) to you; thus - 257. Wisdom: Three Karāmas
The Exalted Truth (Cenâb-ı Hakk) has honored you with three kinds of karāma (a saintly wonder). First: He made - 258. Wisdom: A Long Life with Little Benefit, A Short Life with Great Benefit
Some lives are long in duration but yield little benefit. Some lives are short in duration but yield much bene - 259. Wisdom: A Blessed Life
Whoever attains blessing in their lifetime receives such Divine gifts in a short span that neither explanation - 260. Wisdom: Migrating to the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
The most bitter of all losses and deprivations is that, even though you are free from worldly preoccupations, - 261. Wisdom: Contemplation
Contemplation (tafakkur) is the qalb's (the heart's) roaming in the arenas of mā siwā Allāh (all that is other - 262. Wisdom: Contemplation as the Lamp of the Heart
Contemplation (tafakkur) is the lamp of the heart. If contemplation departs, there can be no illumination or r - 263. Wisdom: Two Types of Contemplation
Contemplation (tafakkur) is of two kinds: one arises from affirmation and iman (faith), the other from vision - 264. Wisdom: The Beginning and the End Bear the Same Name
The author, the refuge of gnosis, says in his wise words written to some of his brethren: "Let it be known tha - 265. Wisdom: Deeds Worthy of Acceptance
(Hikmat al-maktūbiyya) Truly, the deeds that are worthy of your attention are the righteous acts and good deed - 266. Wisdom: The One Who Knows God's Demand for Servitude Seeks God
(Epistolary Wisdom) Moreover, whoever truly believes without doubt that he is being sought by the Exalted God - 267. Wisdom: Rejoicing More in the Hereafter than in the World
(Epistolary Wisdom) Thus, the truly intelligent person is the perfected human (insān-i kāmil) whose heart is g - 268. Wisdom: Do Not Consider the World as Your Homeland
(Epistolary Wisdom) Accordingly, the intelligent sālik (spiritual traveler) closes his eyes to this realm of n - 269. Wisdom: The Ultimate Goal, Union
(Epistolary Wisdom) The steed of aspiration of the intelligent murīd (aspirant, disciple) who has already reno - 270. Wisdom: The Descent of the Realized Ones to the Heaven of Servanthood
(Epistolary Wisdom) When sāliks (wayfarers) who have attained union descend from the station of fanāʾ (fanāʾ, - 271. Wisdom: The Supplication of the Sālik
(Epistolary Wisdom) And O sālik (spiritual traveler)! Supplicate thus: O my Lord! Admit me into Your sacred pr - 272. Wisdom: Gratitude to People, Gratitude to the Real (God)
(Epistolary Wisdom) If the eye of the heart witnesses the oneness of the Exalted Real (God) in His grace and b - 273. Wisdom: Overt and Hidden Shirk
(Epistolary Wisdom) People are of three categories regarding shukr (gratitude). The first category: those whos - 274. Wisdom: The Gratitude of One Who Sees Only the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
(Epistolary Wisdom) The second is: one who, through witnessing the Real (al-Ḥaqq), is absent from seeing creat - 275. Wisdom: The Gratitude of One Who Sees Both the Real (God) and Creation
(Epistolary Wisdom) The third category is a servant more perfected than the aforementioned possessor of inner - 276. Wisdom: Lady ʿĀʾisha’s (may Allah be pleased with her) Seeing Only the Real (al-Ḥaqq)
(Epistolary Wisdom) When the Qur’anic verses exonerating Lady ʿĀʾisha al-Ḥumayrāʾ (may Allah be pleased with h - 277. Wisdom: The Messenger of God's Joy of the Eye
(Epistolary Wisdom) The infinite joy that results from witnessing the Real (al-Ḥaqq) is in accordance with the - 278. Wisdom: Worshipping as Though Seeing the Truth
(Wisdom of Response) We have accepted that the Messenger of God’s (peace be upon him) delight of the eye—due t - 279. Wisdom: Leave the Heedless, Let Them Amuse Themselves
And if someone asks, “The delight of the eye is in prayer, for it is clear that prayer is a grace from Allah. - 280. Wisdom: Three Types of People Regarding Blessings
People are divided into three groups regarding the arrival of blessings. Poetic Translation Upon the arrival o - 281. Wisdom: The Revelation Sent to Prophet David
The Exalted God revealed and decreed to David (peace be upon him): "O David! Say to the group of the truthful