There can be no doubt or hesitation regarding ḥayra (bewilderment) concerning the divine attributes (ṣifāt). The second bewilderment, however, is maʿrifa (gnosis, experiential knowledge of God). This is because Allah's attributes are beyond the grasp of human intellect. For this reason, some have said: O guide of those who are bewildered! Increase my bewilderment! Thus, from the very beginning, the existence (wujūd) of Allah and the perfection of His attributes have been affirmed, and it has been clarified that He is the ultimate goal of all people, the One who accepts supplications (duʿā), and that for those who are bewildered, there is no other being worthy of bewilderment besides Him. Therefore, the desire for increased bewilderment is expressed. In this request, it is understood that the bewilderment and distress of the intellect are a form of doubt and hesitation (pause and indecision). (Hujwīrī, 327)
Abū Yazīd Bisṭāmī said: Maʿrifa is knowing that the movements and stillnesses (all actions) of creation (khalq) are dependent on Allah. No one or no power can act in His dominion without His permission and without maʿrifa/maʿrifatullāh (gnosis of God). Unless He creates power (qudra) in the servant and places will in his heart, a person is not capable of any action. Human actions are entirely metaphorical in nature; Allah Most High is the true agent. (Hujwīrī, 328)
The scholars of methodology have not seen any difference between knowledge (ʿilm) and maʿrifa, and have said that the two are one and the same. However, they have also stated: It is permissible to call Allah 'ʿālim' (knower), but not 'ʿārif' (gnostic).
The shaykhs of the Sufi path have called this knowledge, which is accompanied by practice and spiritual state (ḥāl) and expresses their states, maʿrifa, and have named its possessor 'ʿārif'. Knowledge that is abstracted from meaning and practice is called ʿilm, and its possessor is called ʿālim.
In this ḥāl, Sufis call those who possess only knowledge of expression and phrase, and who memorize words without grasping their meanings, 'ʿālim'. Those who possess knowledge of the meaning and ḥaqīqa (inner reality) of something are called 'ʿārif'. Therefore, when this group wishes to belittle their peers, they call them 'ʿālim'. For the common people, this appears as a form of rejection. However, the Sufis' intention is not to disparage them for acquiring knowledge, but rather to criticize them for abandoning practice and action. For the ʿālim stands by his nafs (lower self), while the ʿārif stands by his Lord. (Hujwīrī, 464)
Allah Most High has said: "When they listen to what has been revealed to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflowing with tears because of what they have recognized of the truth." (al-Māʾida 5:83) (Maʿrifa) is to perceive the reality of a thing as it truly is. There are three degrees of this, and people are divided into three groups in this regard: The first degree is the maʿrifa of attributes and qualities... (Manāzil, 43)
Their names have been transmitted through the path of messengership (the informing of the prophets). The witnesses (shāhid) of this maʿrifa arise from the perception of the light present in the heart, the life of the intellect being the seed of thought, and the life of the heart being beautified by a gaze that lies between reverence and beautiful reflection. This is the maʿrifa of the common people, and it is bound only by these conditions of certainty.
This maʿrifa has three pillars: First, affirming the attribute by its name alone without falling into anthropomorphism (likening Allah to creation), removing anthropomorphism from the attribute without falling into negation (denial of the attribute), giving up hope of comprehending its essence, and seeking the paths of interpretation (taʾwīl).
The second degree of maʿrifa is the maʿrifa of the Essence (Zāt), without distinguishing between the Essence and the attributes. This maʿrifa is established through the knowledge of union (jamʿ), is purified in the field of fanāʾ (annihilation in God), reaches perfection (kamāl) through the knowledge of baqāʾ (subsistence in God), and is honored by the eye of union (ʿayn al-jamʿ).
This too has three pillars: the transmission of attributes to witnesses, the division of intermediaries of maʿrifa/maʿrifatullāh into degrees, and the transmission of expressions to knowledge. This is the maʿrifa of the elite (khawāṣṣ) who are intimate with the horizon of ḥaqīqa (inner reality).
The third degree of maʿrifa is the maʿrifa in which one is immersed in the reality of definition. No inference can reach this maʿrifa, no witness can find a path to it, and no means can deserve it. It too has three pillars: the witnessing of hearts, attaining a high level in knowledge, and the contemplation of union. This is the maʿrifa of the most elect of the elite (ahāss al-khawāṣṣ). (Manāzil, 44)
Tawḥid (the oneness of God) is in the qalb (the heart), zuhd (asceticism) is in the qalb, taqwa (God-consciousness) is in the qalb, maʿrifa is in the qalb, knowing the Truth is in the qalb, loving the Truth Most High is in the qalb, drawing near to Him is in the qalb. (Fath, 49)
Zuhd is for an hour; warāʿ (scrupulousness) is for two hours; maʿrifa is continual action. (Fathī, 294)
Maʿrifa is a divine characteristic. There is no identical term among the divine names. It is the station of aḥadiyya (absolute oneness); only the One (Wāḥid) desires it. According to one group, maʿrifa is an evidence and a path that leads to the truth. Every knowledge yields results only through action, taqwa, and entering His path. That is maʿrifa. For it arises through the unveiling of the verifiers, and no doubt arising from the method of speculative reasoning, which is never free from doubt, can enter it... Know that knowledge is only valid for one who knows things by his essence. Whoever knows things by an added state to his essence is imitating (taqlīd) this extra state that Allah has given him. In existence, only the One (Wāḥid) knows things by His essence. For everything other than the One, knowing things and what is other than things is taqlīd. Since it is established that everything other than Allah can only know by way of imitation, we imitate Allah, especially in the matter of knowing Him. (Futūḥāt, TI, 294)
The veils are the maʿrifas
He puts you into difficulties
But not into darkness
There, numbers are unable to be counted
There, difficulties attain very little
The sign of maʿrifa is love. Whoever knows Allah, loves Him... (Qudāma, 159)
(According to one group) maʿrifa, in its essence, precedes maḥabba (love). For it is inconceivable to love something without knowing it. Thus, loving or not loving something—unless it is innate as in animals—stems from knowing that thing. Therefore, maʿrifa is the cause of maḥabba (love).
Another group has said: Maḥabba precedes maʿrifa. For maʿrifa, as they say, is a distant goal, and there is nothing beyond knowing Allah. The fact that the ʿārif has surpassed stations and states is only due to will and maḥabba. If will and maḥabba had not come first, these stations would not have been surpassed nor these states attained. Thus, the realities of maʿrifa and maḥabba are interconnected. (Rawḍa, 234)
In technical terms, maʿrifa is a well-known station among the Sufi stations that arises from divine favors, or maʿrifa is a result that also encompasses maḥabba. Abū'l-Qāsim (Junayd) said: Maʿrifa is the characteristic of one who knows the Truth by His names and attributes. Then his actions confirm this; he is purified from non-ethical actions and afflictions; he waits long at the door of the Truth; he continues his spiritual retreat with his heart; he seeks a good future and success from Allah; in all his states, he affirms Allah; Allah prevents him from what his nafs (lower self) brings to his mind, and does not let thoughts inviting to other than Allah enter his mind. He becomes estranged from people, is saved from the diseases and afflictions of his nafs, continues his secret supplication (munājāt) to Allah, and if he can return to Him at every moment; through the secrets taught to him regarding the decrees that Allah has determined, he becomes a servant addressed by Allah, is called ʿārif, and this state is called 'maʿrifa'. (Rawḍa, 235)
When Abū Saʿīd Harrāz was asked which is superior, maḥabba or maʿrifa, he replied: Maʿrifa is one of the ethics of maḥabba. Some have said: Harrāz's statement that 'maʿrifa is one of the ethics of maḥabba' is an allusion to the ecstatic utterance (nisba) attributed to Abū Yazīd. As Abū Yazīd said: The Truth Most High said to me: O Abū Yazīd! All these besides you are My creation. You are Me, and I am you. Nevertheless, such utterances are not to be relied upon. (Rawḍa, 353)
In the dictionary, maʿrifa means knowledge. Knowledge is defined as recognizing the known as it is. Thus, every knowledge is a maʿrifa, and every maʿrifa is knowledge. Therefore, every ʿārif is an ʿālim (knower of Allah), and every knower of Allah is an ʿārif. However, unlike knowledge, maʿrifa as a word is transitive to Allah (i.e., maʿrifa targets Allah, whereas the word knowledge is not used for knowing Allah, but maʿrifa is). (Rawḍa, 417)
According to the Sufis, maʿrifa is the attribute of one who knows the Truth by His names and attributes, then affirms Allah in his actions, then is purified from bad character, then waits long at the door. Such a person continues his spiritual retreat with his heart. Along with his beautiful orientation, he awaits his portion from Allah. In all his states, he affirms Allah. He cuts off and ends the whisperings of his nafs. He does not allow a thought inviting to other than Allah to enter his heart. When a person becomes estranged from people, distances himself from the afflictions of his nafs, makes his place and considerations radiant, makes his secret supplication with Allah, and returns to Him at every moment, and when he is granted inspiration regarding the secrets of Allah's decrees, he is called ʿārif; his state is called maʿrifa.
maʿrifa/maʿrifatullāh
Abū Saʿīd Harrāz said: Maʿrifa is derived from the One who is generous in Himself (Allah, the Most Generous) and from striving with all one's might. It has been said: The ʿārif, after the prophets, is the intermediary between Allah and His servants. (Rawḍa, 418)
The reality of maʿrifa is that it is a light that arises in the heart of the believer. There is nothing more exalted in the treasury than maʿrifa. It is said: Maʿrifa is the life of the heart by which Allah gives life to a person. (Rawḍa, 419)
Ḥasan (al-Baṣrī) was asked: Is maʿrifatullāh acquired or necessary? He replied: Things are perceived in only two ways. What is seen is perceived by the senses, and what is not seen is perceived by evidence. Since Allah cannot be perceived by attributes or senses, knowing Him is only possible through evidence, research, and inference. For we can only know the absent by evidence, and what is near by our senses. He continued: If you wish to know the place and rank of maʿrifa among the stations as closely as possible, know that maʿrifa is the first rank. This is to know the essence of bodies. The maʿrifa of those at this station is to acknowledge the existence of the Lord, that He is the Creator and the One to be worshipped. Their nearness to Allah is the nearness of reward. The second rank of the stations is the rank of iman (faith), which is the maʿrifa of the people of souls. Their maʿrifa is to declare their object of worship free from defects, and their nearness is the nearness of certainty. The third rank is the rank of ihsan (spiritual excellence). It is the maʿrifa of those possessing the sacred intellect. Their maʿrifa is to know as one all the things that other people know separately, to hear one voice, to witness one definition. (Rawḍa, 420)
Maʿrifa is a station that consists of joining together what is separate, what has set and what has risen, returning what has been taken, until the questions 'How?' and 'Where?' are no longer needed and vision appears. As a result, the individual things are gathered and unified, reaching a certain level and a balanced state. However, it is not completely abandoned. (Rawḍa, 421)
Maʿrifa is a circle. Even if you do not see its parts, Allah has beautified its outcome. Truly, although no difference is created in its outcome, the lessons derived from it are. Thus, it is a circle. The center of the circle is union (jamʿ) (there is no difference here), while the circumference is inclined toward separation (the tendency to differentiate is not at the center but at the circumference). This is so that the dominion can be independent in the matter of union. The one who sees, sees; the one who hears, hears.
Maʿrifa is ascent and descent, stopping and reaching. Arrival at the Truth does not prevent beginning; beginning does not prevent the end. Whoever fulfills everything that is required of him attains his goal and stability. Nothing he desires remains unfulfilled. At the beginning, the ʿārif gives thanks to the one who bows and prostrates. Then he seeks forgiveness from the One who is the Finder (Wājid). Then he even has mercy on the disbeliever. When the ʿārif annihilates himself, numbers are reduced to one (nothing remains but the One). (Rawḍa, 422)
Ṣiddīqiyya (the station of the truthful) is built upon six principles: Islam, iman (faith), righteousness, ihsan (spiritual excellence), testimony, and maʿrifa. Maʿrifa has three degrees: ʿilm al-yaqīn (knowledge of certainty), ʿayn al-yaqīn (eye of certainty), and ḥaqq al-yaqīn (truth of certainty). Each degree has seven conditions of its own kind: The first is fanāʾ, the second is baqāʾ, the third is maʿrifa/maʿrifatullāh of the Essence in terms of the manifestation of His names, the fourth is maʿrifa of the Essence in terms of the manifestation of His attributes, the fifth is maʿrifa of the Essence as Essence, the sixth is maʿrifa of the names and attributes with the Essence, and the seventh is being characterized by the names and attributes. (Insān, II, 85)
The stations continue as the murīd (aspirant, disciple) ascends from one to another until he reaches the station of tawḥid. Among these stations, maʿrifa is a goal desired for happiness. The murīd must pass through these stages. Its foundation is entirely obedience and ikhlas (sincerity). Iman precedes it, states arise from it, and attributes are its result and product. Each is born from the other until the station of tawḥid and irfān (gnosis) is reached. If there is any deficiency or flaw in attaining the result, it is known that this is due to a deficiency at the beginning.
The same applies to what comes to a person's mind or occurs in his heart. Therefore, the murīd needs to examine his nafs in other matters and look at the reality of these actions. For it is necessary that the intended results emerge from the actions performed at the beginning. Any deficiency that appears in the actions leads to similar deficiencies in the results for the murīd. (Bughyat, 18)
Maʿrifa is distancing yourself from everything other than Allah and surrendering yourself to Allah. There are two characteristics that facilitate the paths to Allah: maḥabba and maʿrifa. Loving something makes you blind and deaf to others. Know Allah, and ask Him to provide you with what you desire without turning to the unlawful or rejecting the lawful. Treat Allah's servants well, do not betray His trust, and continue worship until death comes to you so that you may be one of the imams (leaders) of the religion. Move from the knowledge of the ignorant to the knowledge of the elect so that you may be among the inheritors. You have the example of the messengers and prophets. Whoever associates, attributes, loves, hates, seeks to love and draw near, fears, hopes, finds tranquility, or feels secure for any purpose other than Allah, or transgresses Allah's limits, is an oppressor. The oppressor also