He said: Say that it is the meaning we have indicated as ishāra. (Luma', 84)
When Sari al-Saqati was asked about the meaning of qurb (nearness), he replied: "Qurb is obedience." Another explained this meaning as follows: It is for the servant to be both cherished and abased before his Lord.
Qurb is to witness the acts of Allah upon oneself. This means to see the acts of Allah and the blessings He has bestowed upon you, and in return, to become absent from seeing your own acts and struggles. (Ta'arruf, 77)
The state of witnessing and qurb is as follows: The servant, with certain knowledge (yaqīn), ascends to the purity of the qalb's safā (purity of the heart). The safā of the qalb elevates the servant to the stations of witnessing with the eye, so that nothing passes through his qalb except the remembrance of the Real (al-Ḥaqq). So much so that if he were to disobey, he would be disobeying the Real. If this is abandoned or neglected, sorrow (turbidity) befalls the qalb. 566 kurb-bu'd
The sorrowing of the qalb means its darkening. This is the station of the qalb at the point of qaswa (hardness). These stations are the beginning of bu'd (distance).
I have heard the following: For every act, even if small, three registers are opened. The first is the "why" register. The second is the "how" register. The third is the "for whom" register. Why? That is, for what reason did you do it? This is a station of trial arising from the attribute of rubūbiyya (lordship) under the rule of ʿubūdiyya (servanthood)—it is a place of testing. That is, did you do this for your Master, or because of the desires of your nafs (the lower self)? If he fulfills what is required of him as his Master has commanded, and is saved from this register, then the question of the second register is asked: How did you do it? This is the place of questioning with knowledge, and the second imtihān (test). That is: You did what you had to do, but did you do it knowingly or unknowingly?
Allah Most High does not accept a deed that is not done in His path and according to the requirements of knowledge. If he is saved from this register as well, the third register is opened before him and he is asked: For whom? This path is the path of worship with ikhlas (sincerity) for the pleasure of rubūbiyya (lordship). This is the third test. (Küt, I, 80)
The beginning of qurb is taqarrub (striving to draw near), and the beginning of love is striving to love. They have the attributes of taʾalluf (harmonizing), ta'līf (joining), and taʿrīf (making known). They are those who are abrār (the righteous). (Küt, I, 241)
The first degree of qurb is to draw near by spending one's time in obedience and worship to Allah. Bu'd is to be stained by distancing oneself from Him through opposition and disobedience. The beginning of bu'd is distancing from tawfīq (divine enabling), then from tahqīq (realization). Indeed, to be distant from tawfīq is to be distant from tahqīq. (Qushayri, 45)
The journey is the journey of the qalb. Qurb (nearness) is nearness to the secrets. Action is the action of meanings by observing the boundaries of the sharia (the sacred law) with the body and showing humility to Allah's servants for His sake. Whoever values his own nafs has no value. Whoever shows his deeds to people has no deeds. Deeds are performed not in the presence of crowds, but where there is no one. Of course, obligatory acts are excepted from this; these must be performed openly. (Fath, 30)
Tawhid (the oneness of God) is in the qalb, zuhd (asceticism) is in the qalb, taqwa (God-consciousness) is in the qalb, maʿrifa (gnosis, experiential knowledge of God) is in the qalb, knowing the Real is in the qalb, loving the Most High is in the qalb, drawing near to Him is in the qalb. (Fetli, 49)
The state of qurb is to gather one's himma (spiritual aspiration, attention) in His presence, being absent from all besides Allah. (Ādāb, 21)
Qurb is to be always in obedience. The reality of qawsayn (the two bows' length) is also called qurb.
Bu'd is to remain always in opposition. Sometimes bu'd comes from you, and it varies according to the differences of states. Thus, the causes of states indicate the intended thing. Qurb is likewise. (Istilāh, 533)
Qurb should only be an attribute of the servant. In this ḥāl (spiritual state), the servant is characterized by qurb by Allah, just as Allah is characterized by qurb. As Allah Most High says: "Wherever you are, He is with you" (Qur'an 57:4). No matter in what form people manifest, they always wish to be with the Real. He, however, always manifests in the forms of His servants. Just as the servant is never free from being in a place (ayniyya), he is always with Him wherever He manifests. Wherever the servant is, Allah is with him. The ayniyya of the Real is the form in which He manifests in that place.
The gnostics (ʿārifūn) are always in the witnessing of qurb. For they are in a state of witnessing both the forms in their own nafs and those outside themselves. This is nothing other than the manifestation of the Real. As for the qurb that is established through obedience, it is the happiness the servant attains by being saved from wretchedness. The happiness of the servant is in attaining all his goals, and this is only in Paradise. In this world, he must give up some of his aims that hinder his happiness. Qurb-i ʿāmma or qurb-i ʿām (the nearness of the common folk) is to draw near to happiness. Thus, the servant obeys in order to be among the happy ones. (Futūḥāt, II, 548)
Bu'd is to remain in opposition. Sometimes what comes from you is also called by this name. It is distance from selfhood—nearness.
One is single and double.
Straighten your rows for prayer.
He is the source of nearness and exaltation.
When I saw the imam who said this,
I understood that for me,
subsistence (baqāʾ) is only for my own existence,
and exaltation is only for my own existence.
Know that bu'd varies according to its differences. Thus, the causes of states indicate the intended thing. All the states and things we have mentioned become qurb; if it is not an attribute belonging to the servant, its absence is itself bu'd. This also includes the topic to which the Sufis have alluded.
According to us, the ruling of bu'd is as follows: While accepting what they call bu'd, my view is certainly different from theirs. However, we have added some things that they have overlooked. They are not unaware of what we will say.
However, they have included the knowledge of bu'd within the discussion of qurb. The reason for this is that qurb means coming together, and bu'd means separation. What occurs in the state of union is not the same as what occurs in the state of separation. Therefore, bu'd is distinct from qurb. When two states come together in one thing, this is the furthest point of qurb. For each of them, in the aspect in which union occurs in itself, qurb-bu'd
is the same as the other. When one of two things that are otherwise identical differs from the other by a quality not found in the other, then it is a distinct thing from it. Thus, from that...