Concerning submissiveness [khushu]

Cordial disciplines

One of the cordial disciplines of the worships and the spiritual duties of the traveler along the path to the Hereafter is paying attention to the Might of the Lord and to the humility of servitude. It is one of the important stages for the salik (traveler). The strength of everybody's suluk (journey) is in proportion to the strength of this attention, or rather the perfection or the imperfection of humanity is connected to the perfection or imperfection of this matter. The more one is overwhelmed by egoism, egotism, self-conceit and selfishness, the farther he will be from the human perfection and from the nearness of the presence of Allah. The veil of self-conceit and egotism is thicker and darker than all other veils. To tear open this veil is more difficult than tearing all other veils, and tearing it is a preparatory step to tearing other veils. In fact, tearing off this veil is the master key for the invisible, the visible and the great door of the ascent to the perfect spirituality. As long as man has his eyes on his own self, his imagined beauty and perfection, he will be veiled and discarded from the absolute beauty and pure perfection. The first condition for travelling to Allah is to leave this house. Actually, it is the criterion for the struggle between right and wrong. So, every salik, who travels with the steps of selfishness and self-conceit, and is wrapped in the veils of egotism, his sufferings would be in vain and his journey would not be to Allah, it would rather be to his self: "The mother of the idols is the idol of your self'. [18]

Allah, the Most High, says: "And whoever Leaves his house migrating to Allah and His Messenger, and then death overtakes him, his reward is, indeed, with Allah," [19] The formal migration, or the form of migration, is the corporeal migration from the formal house to the ka'bah or to the shrines of the holy men [awliya'] (AS), but the spiritual migration is the going out of the house of the soul and the house of this world to Allah and His Messenger. To migrate to the Messenger and the guardian [waliy] is also a migration to Allah. As long as one's soul has an inclination to oneself and to egotism, it is not journeying. And so long as there are residues of I-ness in the salik's eyes, and as long as the walls of his own town and the adhan announcing selfishness have not yet disappeared, he is regarded present, not a traveler or an emigrant.

It is stated in Misbahush-shari'ah that Imam as Sadiq (AS) said: "Servitude is a gem whose core is Lordship [rububiyat]. Whatever is lost of servitude is found in the Lordship, and whatever is hidden of Lordship is obtained by servitude." [20]

The one who travels on the foot of servitude, and burns his forehead with the brand of the humility of serfdom, will reach the Glory of (His) Lordship. The way of attaining to the facts of Lordship is journeying along the footsteps of servitude, and what is lost of servitude because of egoism and egotism, can be recovered under the shadow of the Lordship's patronage, until he reaches a stage in which the Haqq (Allah), the Most High, will become his ears (hearing), eyes (seeing), hands and legs, as is stated in the true and well-known hadith accepted by the two sects. [21]

When the salik forsook his conducts [tasarrufat] and completely submitted the kingdom of his existence to Allah, leaving the house to its Owner, and perishing in the Glory of (His) Lordship, the Owner of the house would Himself manage the affairs. Thus his conducts [tasarrufat] would become divine, and his eyes would be divine and he would see with the Haqq's (Allah's) eyes, his ears would become divine and he would hear with the Haqq's (Allah's) ears. The more complete the lordship of the soul and the more its glory be cherished, the more, in the same proportion, the Glory of the (divine) Lordship decreases and becomes incomplete (in the salik's kingdom of existence), because these two stand face to face: "This world and the next are like the two wives of a man". [22]

Thus, the salik to Allah has to recognize his state of humility, and to place the humility of servitude and the Glory of the Lordship before his eyes. The stronger this viewpoint, the more spiritual his worship and the stronger the spirit of his worship, until, if, with the help of Allah and the perfect holy men [awliya'] (AS), he reaches the truth of servitude and its core, he will catch a glimpse of the secret of worship. In all the worships -especially (in) the salat which has a position of comprehensiveness [jami'iyat], and is, among the worships, like the Perfect Man, and like the Greatest Name (of Allah), or rather it is the very Greatest Name these two positions, i.e. the position of the Glory of Lordship, which is a fact, and the position of the humility of servitude, which accompanies it, are occult. Among the recommended acts the qunut, and among the obligatory acts the sujud, have particular specialities to which we shall refer later insha 'allah.

It should be noted, however, that absolute servitude is of the highest degrees of perfection and of the loftiest positions of humanity, of which no one has any share except the most perfect of the creatures of Allah, Muhammad (SA) at the top, followed by the perfect walis (the Guardians). The others are limping in servitude, and their worshipping and servitude are endued with causes, only with the steps of servitude one can reach the real absolute mi'raj. That is why the noble ayah says: "Glorified is He Who carried his servant by night ...". [23] It was the step of servitude and the attraction of (His) Lordship that carried that holy person to the mi'raj of proximity [qurb] and union [wusul]. In the tashahhud of the salat - which is a return from an absolute "annihilation" [fana'] that was achieved in the sujud there is once again a tendency to servitude, before paying attention to the Messengership. It may also be a reference to the position of Messengership as a result of the essence of servitude. This is a lengthy subject which is out of the scope of these papers.

Notes:

[18]. The Mother of the idols is your self's idol, As those are snakes, and this is a dragon-idol! (by Maulawi)

[19]. Surah an-Nisa: 100.

[20]. Misbahush-Shari'ah, "On the Reality of Servitude", ch. 100.

[21]. This is a reference to a narrative about "The Approximation by Nawafil", which reads: " ...He (Allah's servant) keeps trying to get closer to Me by means of the nafilah until I love him. Loving him, I will become his ears with which he hears, his eyes with which he sees, his tongue with which he speaks and his hand with which he strikes. When he asks Me I answer him, and if he demands from Me 1 will give him ..." 'Usul ul Kafi, vol. 4, p. 53, the book of "Faith and Infidelity", ch. on "One who hurts and despises the Muslims", narratives 7 and 8.

[22]. 'Awaliyul-La'ali, vol. 1, p. 277, and vol. 4, p. 115. Nahjul Balaghah, edited by Faydul Islam, maxim, No.100.

[23]. Surah al-Isra': 1.

The Stages of the Stations of the People of Suluk

Know that there are for the people of suluk, in this station (i.e. paying attention to the humility of servitude and the Glory of His Lordship) and other stations, countless stages and degrees, only to a few of which we can generally refer, since comprehensively knowing all their aspects and counting all the stages are beyond the capacity of this humble creature: "The ways to Allah are as numerous as the breaths of the creatures". [24]

One of those stages is the stage of Knowledge ['ilm], which is such that it proves, by scientific conduct [suluk] and philosophic argument, the humility of servitude and the Glory of (His) Lordship. This is a pure sort of knowledge, since it is clearly proved in the high sciences and supreme philosophy that the entire House of Realization [dar-i tahaqquq] and the complete circle of existence are mere relation and attachment and nothing but poverty. The Glory, Kingdom and Sovereignty belong to His Sanctified Essence of Majesty. No one can have any share of Glory and Majesty, while the humility of servitude and poverty is engraved on the forehead of every body, and is registered in the innermost part of their truth. The truth of gnosis and vision [shuhud], and the result of suffering and suluk, are in lifting the veil off the face of the truth, and discerning the humility of servitude and the origin of poverty and lowliness in oneself and in all the creatures. The invocation ascribed to the master of all beings (the Prophet of Islam) (SA):"O Allah, show me the things as they are", [25] may be a reference to this stage, i.e. wishing to see the humility of servitude which requires discerning the Glory of the Lordship.

Therefore, if the salik on the road of the truth, the traveler in the way of servitude, covers this distance with the steps of scientific suluk and the mount of intellectual advance, he will fall in the veils of knowledge and attain to the first station of humanity. But this veil is a thick one, as it is said: "Knowledge is the greatest veil." The salik should not stay behind this veil. He is to tear it, since, should he be contented with this stage and keep his heart chained by it, he would fall into istidraj (being engaged in other than the Haqq). Istidraj in this stage, means becoming engaged in the numerous secondary branches of knowledge, presenting many arguments justifying his intellectual roamings in that field, and depriving himself of the other stages, because his heart is attached to this stage only, neglecting the wanted result, which is attaining to annihilation in Allah. He, thus, would spend his life in the veil of argument [burhan] and its branches. The more these branches, the thicker the veil and the greater the distance from the truth. The salik, therefore, should not be deceived, in this stage, by Satan, secluding himself from the truth and reality, and stopping his journey to the goal on the pretext of being a great scholar, a very learned person and a powerful man of argument. He must set to work briskly, be serious in his quest for the real demand, and take himself to the next stage, which is the second stage. And that is such that he should write what (his) reason has understood through irrefutable proof and scientific conduct, with the pen of intellect on the tablet of the heart, to convey the truth of the humility of servitude and the Glory of Lordship to the heart and free himself from the chains and the veils of knowledge. We shall refer to this stage presently, insha'allah. so, the result of the second stage is acquiring belief in the facts.

The third stage is that of "tranquility and calmness of the soul", which is, in fact, the perfect stage of faith. Allah, the Exalted, said to his "friend" [khalil = Ibrahim] :"Have you not believed [yet]? " He said: "I have, but just to have a calm heart." [26] A reference to this stage may come later.

The fourth stage is that of "vision" [mushahadah], which is a divine light and a divine manifestation, as a consequence of the manifestations of the Names and the Attributes appearing in the secret of the salik, and enlighting his complete heart with the visionary light. This stage comprises many degrees that are out of the capacity of these pages. In this stage an example of the effect of the nafilahs: (I would be his hearing, sight and hand) [26a] will appear, and the salik will see himself drowned in limitless ocean, beyond which there is another very deep ocean, in which the secrets of "fate" are partly disclosed. Each one of these stages has its special istidraj (being engaged in other than the Haqq) through which the salik is exposed to great perishing [halakat]. So, he will have to rid himself, in all stages, of egoism and I-ness. He should not be self-conceited nor egotistic, both of which are the sources of most of evils, especially for the salik. However, we shall have another reference to this subject presently insha'allah [Allah willing].

Notes:

[24]. This hadith is ascribed to the Prophet (SA) in Jami'ul-Asrar Wa Manba'ul Anwar, by Sayyid Haydar Amuli, pp. 8, 95 and 121. Also in the Lahiji's Commentary on Gulshan-i Raz, p. 153, Naqdun-Nusus, p. 185, Minhajut-Tallibin, p. 221, and Al-Usul ul 'Asharah, p, 31.

[25]. ' Awaliyul-La'lli, vol. 4, p. 132, says: "Oh Allah, show us the facts as they are". Commenting on the same, quoting at-Tafsirul Kabir by al-Fakhr ar-Razi, vol. 6, p. 26, and in Mirsadul 'Ibad, p. 309, it is stated as follows: "Show us the things as they are."

[26]. Surah al-Baqarah: 260.

[26a]. Refer to footnote No.21.

Concerning submissiveness [khushu]

One of the things necessary for the salik in all his worships, especially in the salat, which is at the head of all worships and has a position of comprehensiveness [jami'iyat] , is submissiveness [khushu]. It is, in fact, a complete submission [khudu'] mixed with love or fear. It is the result of comprehending the Greatness, Power and Majesty of Beauty and Glory. The detail of this generality is that the hearts of the people of suluk are different according to their disposition and nature:

Some of the hearts are amorous and of the manifestations of Beauty [jamal] and, driven by their nature, they are attracted to the Beauty of the Beloved. When, in the suluk, they comprehend the shadow of the Beautiful, or witness the origin of the Beauty, the Greatness hidden in the secret of the Beauty effaces them, and they go into rapture, for in every beauty there is a hidden glory, and in every glory there is a covered beauty. There is probably an allusion to this point in his saying when the guardian of the gnostics and of the saliks, Amirul Mu'minin (the commander of the faithful), may Allah bless him and all his offspring, says: "Glory to the One whose compassion is vast for His friends despite His severe revenge, and whose revenge is severe for His enemies despite His vast compassion," [27]

Thus, the Majesty, Greatness and Power of Beauty envelop them and they fall into a state of submission [khushu] before the Beauty of the Beloved. This state, at the beginning, causes agitation to the heart and engenders anxiety. Then, after submission [tamkin], it changes to a state of familiarity, and the agitation and anxiety, caused by the Greatness and Power, turn into familiarity and peace, and there happens a state of tranquillity, as was the state of the heart of khalilur-Rahman (Allah's Friend = Ibrahim) (AS).

Some other hearts are fearing and they are of the manifestations of Glory [jalal]. They are in continual understanding of the Greatness, Grandeur and Glory. Their submission is of fright, and the Subjugative and Majestic Names are manifested to their hearts, as was the state of the prophet Yahya (may Allah's peace be upon him and our Prophet and his progeny). So, submission is sometimes mixed with love, and sometimes with fear and fright, though in every love there is fear, and in every fear there is love.

The degrees of submission are according to the degrees of understanding the Greatness, Majesty and Beauty. Now as we, in our case, are deprived of the light of visions, we have but to indulge in acquiring submission by means of knowledge and faith [iman]. Allah, the Exalted, says: "Successful, indeed, are the believers who are submissive in their salats," [28] Submission in the salat is regarded as a sign of faith [iman]. So, whoever is not submissive in his salat, will, according to Allah's saying, be excluded from the faithful [ahl-i iman]. Our salats which are not accompanied with submission are caused by a deficiency of faith or by lacking it. A belief [i'tiqad] and knowledge are other than faith, our knowledge of Allah, His Names and Attributes and of other divine Knowledge [ma'arij], is other than faith. Satan, according to the testimony of Allah, has information about the Beginning and the Resurrection, yet, he is a disbeliever. He said: "You have created me of fire, while You created him of dust," [29] So, he believes in Allah and in His being the Creator; and he says: "Respite me until the day they are resurrected", [30] So, he believes in the Day of Resurrection, too. He knows about the Books, the Messengers and the angels. Nevertheless, Allah addresses him as a disbeliever, excluding him from the group of the believers [mu'minin].

Thus, the people of knowledge are distinct from those of faith. Not every man of knowledge is a man of faith. Therefore, after acquiring knowledge, one has to join the believers, and to convey the Greatness, Majesty, Brightness and Beauty of Allah, the Most Exalted and High, to his heart, so that it may become submissive, since mere knowledge does not result in submission. You can realize it in yourself: although you do believe in the Beginning and the Resurrection and in Allah's Majesty and Glory, your heart is not submissive. As to Allah's saying: "Has not the time yet come for those who believe that their hearts should be submissive when remembering Allah and what has come down of the truth," [31] it may be that it is the formal faith the very belief in what the Prophet (SA) has brought - which is intended here, for the true faith is accompanied by a degree of submission; or the submission in the noble ayah may refer to a submission at its complete degree, as sometimes they apply the word, 'alim (erudite) to the one whose knowledge has reached the limit of faith. In the noble ayah: " ...verily only the erudite among Allah's servants fear Him, " [32] the reference may be to them. In the terms of the Book and the Sunnah, knowledge, faith and Islam refer to different degrees, the explanation of which is out of the scope of these papers.

Generally speaking, the salik on the way to the Hereafter -specially if with the mi'raj (ascending) step of the salat -will have to make his heart submissive by the light of knowledge and faith, so as to strengthen, as much as he can, this divine gift and the beneficent gleam, in his heart, trying to keep this state during the whole length of the salat. This state of consolidation and stability, though a bit difficult at the beginning for people like us, it becomes quite possible by practice and by exercising the heart.

My dear: Acquiring perfection and the provision for the Hereafter requires demand and seriousness, and the greater the demand, the more it deserves being serious about it. Certainly, with such a state of weakness, laxity and carelessness, one cannot ascend to the divine proximity and to be in a place neighbouring the Lord of Might. one has to manly set forth in order to reach what one wants. Since you do believe in the Hereafter, and find no way of comparability between that world and this -whether regarding their happiness and perfection, or their sufferings and calamities, as that world is eternal, with no death and perishing, where the happy live in comfort and dignity and in everlasting bliss, a comfort which has no like in this world, a divine glory and sovereignty, the like of which cannot be found in this life, and a bliss which never occurs in anybody's imagination, and similarly regarding the sufferings of that world, its pains, torments and evils can have no match in this world -you should know that the way to happiness runs through obeying Allah, the Lord of Might. None of the acts of worship and obedience can be on the same footing as that of the salat, which is a comprehensive [jami] divine mixture [ma'jun] undertaking the happiness of humanity. If it is accepted, all other acts (of worship) will be accepted. So, you are to exert utmost seriousness in obtaining it, never to feel tired in the quest, and to bear whatever hardship there may be, though there will be none. Actually if you continued it for a while and got cordially familiar with it, you would get, in this very world, so much pleasure out of your talk with Allah -a pleasure which cannot be compared with anyone of this world's pleasures. this will be quite obvious if we study the states of the people supplicating to Allah.

In general, to sum up our discussions in this chapter, we may say that, having comprehended the Greatness, the Beauty, and the Majesty of Allah, either by means of reasoning and proofs, or through the explanations of the prophets (AS), one must remind his heart of it, and then, by gradual remindings, cordial attention and continual remembering Allah's Greatness and Majesty, he has to bring about the state of submission in his heart, so as to attain to the required result. At any rate, the salik should not suffice himself with his present station, as any station which we may obtain does not worth a farthing in the market of the people of knowledge, nor it worths a grain of mustard in the bazar of "the people of heart". The salik must, in all situations, remember his own faults and deficiencies, so that he may find, through this, a way to his happiness. And praise be to Allah.

Notes:

[27]. Nahjul Balaghah, sermon 90.

[28]. Surah al-Mu'minun: 1-2.

[29]. Surah al-A'raf: 12.

[30] Ibid: 14.

[31]. Surah al-Hadid: 16.

[32]. Surah Fatir: 28.

Tranquillity

Of the important cordial disciplines of worships, especially the invoking worships, one is tranquillity [tuma'ninah], which is not the same tranquillity as demanded by the jurisprudents (may Allah be pleased with them) in the salat. It is that the salik should perform his worship with a quietude of the heart and a tranquillity of the mind, because if the worship was performed in a state of anxiety and with shaky heart, the heart would not have any reaction, and no effects of worship would appear in the dominion of the heart, and the reality of the worship would not become an inner image of the heart.

One of the significances of the repetition of worships and the increase of supplications and invocations is that the heart is effected by them and there will be an emotion until, gradually, the reality of worship and supplication forms the innermost part of the salik, and his heart unites with the spirit of worship. Should the heart lack tranquillity [itminan], quietude and serenity, there would be no effect of the supplications and the rituals on it, and they would not pass from the outer appearance and limits of the body to the dominion of the inner soul, and the cordial parts of the truth of worship would not be effected. This is one of the clear matters that need no explanation, as it could be understood by a little contemplation. If a worship was such that the heart could have no information whatsoever about it, and there was no effect at all in the interior, it would not be kept in other dominions, nor would it ascend from the kingdom of this world to the kingdom of the heavens. And it may be that at the times of difficulties of the illness of death and its horrible agonies, and the terrors and calamities of after death, the image of such a worship may completely be effaced -God forbid! -from the plane of the heart, and that man may stand at the sacred presence of Allah empty-handed. For example, if one recites the noble supplicatiton: La ilaha illallah, Muhammad Rasulullah (There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah) with a calm and tranquil heart and teaches his heart to repeat it, the tongue of the heart will gradually become talking, and the outer tongue will be a follower of the heart's tongue, and then the heart will supplicate first, and the tongue will follow it. This is referred to by Imam as Sadiq (AS) as is stated in Misbahush- shari'ah (the Torch of the Islamic Law). He said: "Let your heart be your tongue's qiblah ,and do not move it except by the heart's order, the reason's assent and the faith's consent," [33]

At the beginning, before the tongue learns talking, the salik on the way to the Hereafter, is to teach it and to instruct it, in tranquillity and quietude, with the supplications. As soon as the heart finds its tongue, it becomes the qiblah (the focus of attraction) of the mouth's tongue and of the other organs of the body. When it starts supplication, the whole kingdom of the human existence becomes supplicant. But if the noble supplication is recited without the tranquillity and calmness of the heart, but with haste, trouble, and unbalanced senses, it will have no effect on the heart, and will not pass the limits of the animal tongue and ear of the outer body to the interior and the human hearing, and its truth will not be implemented in the core of the heart, nor will it become a perfect and non-transitory image of the heart. Thus, when there are terrors and difficulties, especially the terrors of the agonies of death and the difficulties of the throes of the last breaths, one completely forgets supplication and it will be erased from the plane of the heart. Even the name of Allah the Exalted, the Seal of the Prophets (SA), the noble religion of Islam, the divine sacred Book, the Imams of guidance (AS) and other knowledge [ma'arif] which have not been conveyed to the heart, will be forgotten, and when he is questioned in the grave, he cannot answer, and the talqin will be of no avail, because he does not find in himself any trace of the truth of Lordship, prophethood or other knowledge [ma'arif], and that what he used to chatter about, and had no image in his heart, vanishes from his memory, and thus he will have no share of testifying the Lordship, prophethood and other knowledge [ma'arif].

It is stated in a hadith that a group of the people [ummah] of the Messenger of Allah (SA), on being entered into Hell, forget the name of the Prophet because of the fearfulness of the Hell-keeper, despite the fact that the same hadith states that they are of the believers and their hearts and features glitter brightly because of the light of faith. [34]

The great narrator, the late Majlisi, in Mir'atul 'uqul explaining the expression: "I will be his hearing and his seeing", says: "One who does not dedicate his eyes, ears and other organs to the way of obeying Allah, will not obtain spiritual eyes and ears, as his corporeal eyes and ears will not go to the other world, and so he will be without ears and eyes in the worlds of the grave and the Resurrection, whereas the criterion for the questionings of the grave is those spiritual organs." (the end of the sum of his translation). [35]

In short, the noble hadiths about this kind of tranquillity and its effects are many. The Glorious Qur'an orders that it (the Qur'an) should be recited in tartil, and it is stated in the noble hadiths that: "Whoever forgets a surah from the Qur'an, it will appear before him in Paradise in a most beautiful image. When he looks at it he says: 'What are you? How wonderful you are! I wish you were mine'. It will reply: 'Do you not know me? I am so-and-so surah. If you had not forgotten me, I would have lifted you to this high rank."' [36]

In another hadith it is stated that: "Whoever learns the Qur'an as a young man, it will mix with his flesh and blood." This is because the heart of a young man is less engaged and less tarnished, and so, it is affected quicker and easier, and the effect remains longer.

There are many hadiths in this respect, to which we shall refer when we discuss "recitation", insha 'allah. In a noble hadith it is said: "Nothing is more loved by Allah than a deed which is done persistently, no matter how small the deed." [38] Its important point may be that such a deed becomes the inner image of the heart, as it has already been noted.

Notes:

[33]. Misbahush-Shari'ah, ch. 5 "On Supplication", and Mustadrakul Wasa'il, "Book of as-Salat", chs. on "Supplication", ch. on "Rarities", hadith 2.

[34]. 'Ilmul Yaqin, vol. 2, p. 1039.

[35]. Mir'atul 'Uqul, vol. 10, p. 392.

[36]. 'Usul ul Kafi, vol. 4, p. 410, "Book of the Merit of the Qur'an" ch. "One Who learnt the Qur'an then forgot it," hadith 2.

[37]. Ibid., p. 405, ch. "The Merit of the Carrier of the Qur'an", hadith 4.

[38]. Ibid., vol. 3, p. 137, "Book of Faith and Infidelity", ch. "Economy in Worshipping", hadith 2.

Protecting the Worships from Satan's Intrusion

One of the important cordial disciplines of the salat and other worships which is of the chief cordial disciplines, and to implement it is one of the great affairs and minute problems, is protecting the worships against the intrusion of Satan. The noble ayah :"And those who keep guard on their salats" [39] probably refers to all degrees of keeping guard, a degree of which, or rather the most important one of them, is to guard against Satan's intrusion.

To go into details, we say that it is quite explicit to the people of knowledge and the men of heart that as bodies require material food for nourishment, and that the food should be suitable for their disposition so that they may be brought up corporeally and have vegetable growth, similarly the hearts and the souls require a particular food to suit them both, so that they may be educated with it, and feed on it to grow up spiritually and progress inwardly. The nutritions suitable for the growth [nash'ah] of the souls are the divine knowledge [ma'arif] from the beginning of existence till the ultimate end of the system of existence. It is expressed in defining philosophy by the great experts that: "It is man's development into a mental world matching the material world in its form and perfection." [40] This is an indication of the said spiritual nutrition, as the hearts feed on spiritual merits and divine rites. It must be noted that each one of these foods, if kept away from Satan's intrusion and prepared by the hands of the guardianship of the Seal of the Prophets and Allah's great friend (SA), the soul and the heart would be nourished by them and would attain to the perfection becoming of humanity and ascend to the proximity of Allah. Getting rid of Satan's intrusion, which is a preliminary step to sincerity, cannot really be brought about, unless the salik be in quest of Allah in his suluk, and tread upon his selfishness and self-conceit, which are the origin of all evils and the inner diseases. This, in its full meaning, is not possible except by the Perfect Man, or, rather, by the sincere holy men [awliya'] (AS). But the salik must not despair of the inner kindness of Allah, because to despair of Allah's mercy is the beginning of all coldnesses and weaknesses, and it is one of the great sins. That which is possible for the common people, too, is the delight of eyes of "the people of knowledge" [ahl-i ma'rifat].

So, it is a must for the salik on the road to the other world to act very seriously to rid his knowledge [ma'arif] and rites [manasik] of the intrusion of Satan and the commanding soul [nafs-i ammarah], and to go deep into his doings, quests and desires, with strictness and examination, so as to find out the ultimate objective of his journey, learning the principles of his inner activities and spiritual nutrition. He is not to neglect the tricks of the soul and Satan, as well as the snares of the commanding soul and Iblis. He is always to distrust his self in all his doings and activities, and never to let it go willfully. It is quite possible that, with a little negligence, it may overcome man, knock him down and drive him to perdition and annihilation. If the spiritual foods were not free from Satan's intrusion, and if he shared in preparing them, the souls and hearts would not be educated with them nor can they reach their becoming perfection, let alone the irreparable insufficiency that would befall them. Such foods may probably cause man to join the group of Satans or the quadruped and beasts of prey. Then whatever is the capital of happiness, the source of the human perfection and the means of attaining to high ranks, results in the opposite, and drives man to the dark abyss of misfortune. Actually we did come across some of the so-called gnostics who had been led astray because of their deep indulgence in the gnostic terminology, such that their hearts became inverted and their interiors were darkened. Their gnostic practices strengthened their selfishness and I-ness, and they uttered improper allegations and abnormal expressions. Similarly, among the ascetics and the devotees there were persons who practised asceticism and self-purification, yet their exercises only aggravated their hearts' impurity and their interiors' darkness. This is because they did not keep on their divine spiritual journey and migration to Allah, and their scholarly and ascetic suluk (journey) was subject to the intrusion of Satan and the self's desire, and so, it was to Satan and self. We also noted that among the students of religious sciences there were some who had badly been affected by their studies, which increased their moral corruption; and knowledge, which should have guided them to success and salvation, had driven them to annihilation and led them to ignorance, hypocrisy, arrogance and deception. Likewise, it is seen that among the people of worship and ceremonies, who persist in observing disciplines and traditions, there were those whose worship and sacrifices -which are the source of reforming the conditions and souls had affected their hearts with impurity and darkness, causing them to be conceited, egotistic, arrogant, pampered, slanderous, ill-tempered and distrusting the servants of Allah. These are also caused by neglecting to observe those divine mixtures [ma'ajin].

Naturally, the mixture [ma'jun] prepared by Satan's filthy hand and the meddling of the obstinate self can give birth to nothing but Satanic character , and, since the heart gets its nourishment from them, in any case, and they become the inner image of the soul, after a while of man's so continuation, he becomes an offspring of Satan, and will be brought up under his patronage. And when the visible eye of such a man is closed and his invisible eye is opened, he will see himself among the Satans. Thus, the result will be nothing but a loss, and his regret and repent will avail him to nothing. Consequently, the traveler on the road to the Hereafter , notwithstanding his religious branch or divine method, has, firstly to be on the alert, like a kind doctor or a compassionate nurse, to take full care of his moods, looking for the faults of his conduct with strictness, and secondly, as he does so, he is not to neglect seeking refuge with the Sacred Essence of Allah, the Glorified and Most High, in his privacy, and supplicating in the presence of His Sanctity and Majesty.

O Lord! You do know our weakness and helplessness. You do know that without Your helping hand we cannot find our way out of the hands of such a powerful enemy who covets the great prophets and the perfect and high holy men. Without Your spark of kindness and mercy, this strong-handed enemy will knock us down on the ground of annihilation and hurl us into the pit of darkness and wretchedness. We adjure You by Your distinguished favourites and intimate confidants to extend Your helping hand to us, the bewildered in the valley of error and the fallen down in the desert of seduction. Purge our hearts from rancour, deceit, polytheism and doubt. Surely You are the Patron of Guidance!

Notes:

[39]. Surah Ma'arij: 34, and Surah Mu'minun: 9.

[40]. Mulla Sadra and his disciples used this expression to define philosophy, to which some added the phrase: "in its image and perfection,"

On Vivacity and Cheerfulness

Of other cordial disciplines of the salat and other worships ,one, which has good results, or rather it opens some doors and uncovers some secrets of worships, is that the salik is to try to worship with vivacity, cheerfulness of heart and gaiety of mind, and to avoid laziness and reluctance in performing worships. He is to choose for worship a time in which he is quite prepared to perform it with animation and freshness, feeling no tiredness or lassitude. Should one force oneself to worship in times of laziness and tiredness, it would probably bring about bad consequences, such as feeling tired of worshipping and of taking the trouble and bearing difficulty. Then, gradually, one may feel disgusted with worshipping. Furthermore, it may possibly turn man completely away from remembering Allah, and give pains to the spirit from the state of servitude, which is the source of all happiness. Such worship will bring no luminosity to the heart, and the inside of the soul will not have any reaction, and the image of servitude will not become the image of the inner heart. It has already been said that the aim of worship is that the inner soul should become the image of servitude.

We now say that one of the secrets and results of worships and austerities is that the will of the soul becomes operative on the realm of the body, and its authority is overcome by the majesty of the soul and is annihilated, and the forces and soldiers spread in the kingdom of the body can no longer revolt, disobey and be obstinate and selfish. They actually surrender to the inner kingdom of the heart, or rather those forces gradually dissolve in the invisible heavenly domain, and its command is effective on the visible dominion. The will of the soul gets stronger and takes the reins of the kingdom from Satan and the commanding soul, and the soldiers of the soul are driven to submission, from submission to contentment, and from contentment to annihilation. In this situation the soul will get to discover some secrets of worship and some actual manifestations will appear. But all these cannot be implemented unless the worships are performed cheerfully and actively, away from every sort of laziness and carelessness, so that a mood of affection and love towards remembering Allah, the Exalted, and the state of servitude, with familiarity and consistency, happen. Loving Allah and remembering Him is one of the great affairs which is very much cared for by the people of knowledge, and is a subject of competition among the people of suluk. Physicians believe that if food is eaten with cheerfulness and gaiety, it will be digested much easier. Similarly, psychiatrists stress that if the spiritual nutrition is taken cheerfully and enthusiastically, and with avoiding laziness and affectedness, its effect will appear very quickly in the heart and the inner heart will be purified more quickly, too.

This discipline is referred to in the Glorious Divine Book, the upright Lordly pages, as it, in defiance of the disbelievers and the hypocrites, says:" ... And they do not come to the salat unless they are sluggish, and they do not spend unless they are reluctant ... ", [41] and the noble ayah: "O you who believe! do not approach the salat when you are drunk ... ", [42] The word "drunkenness" is explained in a hadith to mean "sluggishness". Some narratives refer to this discipline. By relating some of them we shall give pride to these papers.

Muhammad ibn Ya'qub, quoted Abu 'Abdullah (Imam as Sadiq) (AS) as to have said: "Do not force yourselves to worship." [43]

Abu 'Abdullah (as Sadiq) (AS) is (also) quoted to have said: " The Messenger of Allah (SA) said: 'O 'Ali, this religion is firm, get into it mildly, and do not cause yourself to hate worshipping your Lord." [44]

Imam al-' Askari (AS) is quoted to have said: "when the hearts are active, confide in them; and when they are reluctant, bid them farewell". This is a general instruction to deposit in your hearts any information you may when they are lively and gay, and leave them alone when they are restive. So, in acquiring knowledge [ma'arif] and sciences this discipline must also be applied , and the hearts must not be forced when they are irresponsive.

It can be gathered from this and other hadiths that there is another discipline which is also an important chapter of asceticism. This discipline is "considerateness" [mura'at], that is, the salik, in whatever stage he is, in scholarly or in spiritual and practical austerities and strifes, must consider his conditions, treat his soul with kindness and care, and avoid burdening himself with more than it can bear, especially the young people and the inexperienced, to whom this discipline is quite important. If the young people do not treat themselves considerately and kindly, and if they do not meet the needs of (their) nature through lawful ways, they will be subject to a great danger which cannot be compensated. The danger is that when one is too severe with his self and pulls the reins too hard, they will break off, and then the will gets out of control, and the accumulated natural needs and the sharp fires of desire, under unlimited pressure of austerity, burn out the whole kingdom. If a salik's reins break off -God forbid! -or an ascetic person becomes unable to control himself, he will fall so deep in a precipice that he can never see the face of rescue, nor can he ever return to the road of happiness and righteousness. Thus, a salik, like a clever physician, has to feel his own pulse during his progress on the journey and to treat his self according to the requirements of the conditions of the journey. when the flames of desire, which are the vanity of youthfulness, blaze high, one is not to completely prevent his nature from getting satisfaction, but one has to resort to lawful ways to put out the flames of his desire, as gratifying the desire, according to the divine command, is a complete help along the journey to Allah. So, he is to marry, as it is one of the great divine laws, which, besides being the base of the survival of the species, has a great effect on the journey to the Hereafter, too. For this reason, the Messenger of Allah (SA) said "He who marries will keep half of his religion." [46] Another hadith says: "He who desires to meet Allah pure, let him meet Him with a wife." [47] The Messenger of Allah (SA) is quoted to have said: "Most of the people of Hell are the singles". [48] A hadith from Amirul Mu'minin ('Ali) (AS.) says: "A group of the companions abstained from women (their wives), and from eating in daytime and sleeping at night. The Messenger of Allah (SA) was informed about them by Umme Salamah (his wife). He came to them and asked them: 'Do you reject women (your wives)? I do go into women (my wives), eat in daytime and sleep at night. Whoever disregards my tradition is not of me. Allah, the Exalted, has revealed: "O you who believe! do not forbid the good things which Allah has made lawful for you, and do not transgress. Surely Allah does not love the transgressors, And eat of what Allah has provided you as lawful and good, and fear Allah in Whom you believe," [49]

Generally speaking, the traveler along the road to the Hereafter is to be considerate with respect to the ups and downs of the soul. And, while he is never to curb the needs (of his nature) which, otherwise, would cause big mischiefs, he is also not to be severe nor to exert pressure upon himself with respect to worship and practical austerities, especially during his youth and on starting the journey, as otherwise this will also cause the soul to feel exasperated and bolt away, and, perhaps, lead him to abandoning remembering Allah.

This point is frequently referred to in the noble hadiths. The noble Al-Kafi, quoting Imam as Sadiq (AS), says: "During my youth I was seriously and earnestly doing my worshipping. My father told me: 'My son, act less on that, as when Allah, the Exalted, loves someone, He will accept his little"'. [50]

Another hadith goes almost the same. [51]

The same course relates another hadith to the effect that Abu Ja'far (Imam al-Baqir) (AS), quoting the Messenger of Allah (SA), said: "Surely this religion is firm, so go deep in it with mildness, and do not cause Allah's servants to hate worshipping Him; otherwise, you will be like the one whose mount was too tired to go on, so he neither finished the journey nor preserved the mount". [52] Another hadith says: "Do not cause yourselves to hate worshipping Allah." [53]

However, the criterion for being "considerate" is that one should be observant of his soul's conditions and act according to its strength and weakness. When one's soul is strong and able to perform worships and bear hardship with good endurance, he should, then, try to perform the acts of worship. As to those who have crossed the prime of life, and the fires of their desires have subsided to some extent, it is suitable for them to increase their ascetic austerity, and to set foot on the road of self-discipline with manly vigilance and industry. The more they accustom themselves to ascetic practices, the more doors will be opened to them, until the soul gradually overcomes the forces of (their) nature, which will be subjugated to them under the majesty of the soul.

Concerning the noble hadiths which urge the people to strive earnestly in worshipping and praise the people who do so with reference to the worships and austerities of the Imams of (the Islamic) guidance (AS), as well as the noble hadiths which recommend economy in worshipping and praise it, both categories are based on the different people of suluk and the ranks and conditions of the soul. The general criterion is the vivacity and the strength of the soul or its weakness and aversion.

Notes:

[41]. Surah at Taubah: 54.

[42]. Surah an-Nisa': 43.

[43]. 'Usul ul Kafi, vol. 3, p. 129, "Book of Belief and Disbelief', ch. on "Equality (moderateness) of Acting and Continuing it", hadith 3.

[44]. Ibid., p. 138, ch. on "Economy in Worshipping", hadith 6.

[45]. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 75, p. 377, "Book of ar-Raudah", ch. 29, hadith 3.

[46]. Ibid., vol. 100, p. 220, "Book of al-'Uqud wal-'Iqa'at" (Contracts and Agreements), chs. on "Marriage", ch. 1, hadith 14, quoted from Amali by Shaykh al Tusi, vol. 2, p. 132.

[47]. Ibid, hadiths 18 and 35, quoting Raudatul Wa'izin, p. 373, and Nawadir ar-Rawandi, p. 12.

[48]. Wasa'ilush-Shi'ah, p. 15, "Book of Marriage", ch. 2, hadith 6.

[49]. Surah al-Ma'idah: 87-88. Ibid., hadith 8,

[50]. 'Usulul Kafi, vol. 3, p. "Book of Faith and Disbelief', ch. on "Economy in Worshipping", hadith 5.

[51]. Ibid., hadith 4.

[52]. Ibid., hadith 1.

[53]. Ibid., hadith 2.