بسم الله الرحمان الرحيم
In the Name of Allah,
the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Allah Almighty did not abandon the prophet Yusufعليه السلام who
bore in himself the light of Prophethood when he was thrown into
a well by his brothers. A thirsty traveller lowered a bucket in to the
well supposing that there will be some water below. When Yusufعليه السلام
came out with the bucket, the perceptive traveller forgot his thirst.
He was charmed and terrified with the beauty he beheld. The heed-
less traveller, on the other hand, did not see the spiritual aspect of
this beauty. He remained focussed on the material substance, which
he unwarily sold at a very cheap price- just like the Majnun who
remained stuck on Leyla and could not eventually achieve divine union.
For the traveller who lowered the rope into the well in the hope of
finding water, it should have been a great opportunity to forget the
water when he saw Yusufعليه السلام 's beauty. He should have severed
all his finite and relative dealings before the manifestation of divine
love which shone like the sun's bright rays through a lens. It was a
great pity that the foolish traveller was duped by the lure of worldly
advantages he calculated he would receive through Yusufعليه السلام.
He thus wasted the golden opportunity that was presented to him.
What we are trying of explain here is the ideal course to realise the
greatest love and most lasting affection. Passing through stages of
love without getting stuck is beyond the capacity of most ordinary
people. Those who reach perfection are those who incline towards
this goal externally by the choice of their free will and internally
by the drive of their destiny. These people can reach variously
advanced stages through many paths, all of them guiding to Allah
in proportion to the divine aid they are granted. The outcome is
the return to Allah - fana fi Allah (annihilation in Allah) - like
the river's disappearance into the sea. The ultimate destination is
baqa bi-Allah (abiding with Allah).
One should know that the limit of reason is finite. Anything beyond
the limit of reason is madness. However, the capacity of the heart is
infinite. The point of tranquility is annihilation in Allah and eternity
with Allah. Rumi beautifully expresses how he was burned with
divine love in a state of fana fi Allah and baqa bi-Allah and how
this fire within his soul would not be extinguished even by death:
Open my grave after my death and see how fumes will rise
from my shroud! What makes death frightening is this bodily
cage. When you break the shell of the body you will see that
death will look like pearls!
One of the most important attributes of the friends of Allah is to be
consumed by divine love. Rumi searched for the real lovers who were
burned in love, hence those impassioned expressions. He states this
desire as follows:
I need such a lover that from his inner flames great tumults should
take place; and with fire of his heart even fires should become ashes.
There are two kinds of love: real and metaphorical.
Love, addiction and devotion to any being in the universe ''other than
Allah''(ma siwa Allah) are a metaphorical love, whereas love for Lord
of the universe and inclination towards Him is real love.
Those who have polished their hearts with real love for the Lord can see
how beauty is reflected in themselves at all times and witness one of Allah's
unlimited signs of power. In other words, they discover within their nature
the reality of ahsani taqwim (the most excellent pattern). For them, there
are no metaphorical colors and odors attracting us with their beauty but
something exceedingly truer. For they have reached to the knowledge of
Allah. They have given up external adornments and reached to Reality.
There, they beheld divine eternity.
The great curtain drawn between Allah and His servants is not a physical
distance like earth and sky. This curtain is the feeling of a separate existance
from the Creator. Because of this, Allha states ''When I inspired into him a
spirit from Me'' and reminds human beings of the essence he had given from
His presence. It was also said of Allah: ''I am the secret of the human being,
and the human being is the secret of Me.''
Hence, the divine treasures and secrets are dedicated to humankind. Allah,
the Almighty, wishes to present His sublime existence in the sacred frame
of the human being. ''I am the secret of man'' contains the glad tidings of a
shared attribute. If this essence and glad tidings can convey a believer to the
perfection of love and affection, then the heart begins to travel towards the
secrets of the divine world. Thus, the reality of all objects, the secrets called
''human'' and ''universe'' and the secrets of the divine world may all appear.
At that time the servant receives the manifestations of a sound heart.
When the servant has attained this maturity, the curtain of heedlessness
between the servant and Allah is lifted little of little. The servant can
understand the secret of ''Die before you die.'' The world and its finite love,
its temporary and transient beauty scatter into the wind. The soul perceives
the great pleasure of approaching its Creator.
Continued in another post InshaAllah
The Secret in the Love for God
by Osman Nuri Topbas
In the Name of Allah,
the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Allah Almighty did not abandon the prophet Yusufعليه السلام who
bore in himself the light of Prophethood when he was thrown into
a well by his brothers. A thirsty traveller lowered a bucket in to the
well supposing that there will be some water below. When Yusufعليه السلام
came out with the bucket, the perceptive traveller forgot his thirst.
He was charmed and terrified with the beauty he beheld. The heed-
less traveller, on the other hand, did not see the spiritual aspect of
this beauty. He remained focussed on the material substance, which
he unwarily sold at a very cheap price- just like the Majnun who
remained stuck on Leyla and could not eventually achieve divine union.
For the traveller who lowered the rope into the well in the hope of
finding water, it should have been a great opportunity to forget the
water when he saw Yusufعليه السلام 's beauty. He should have severed
all his finite and relative dealings before the manifestation of divine
love which shone like the sun's bright rays through a lens. It was a
great pity that the foolish traveller was duped by the lure of worldly
advantages he calculated he would receive through Yusufعليه السلام.
He thus wasted the golden opportunity that was presented to him.
What we are trying of explain here is the ideal course to realise the
greatest love and most lasting affection. Passing through stages of
love without getting stuck is beyond the capacity of most ordinary
people. Those who reach perfection are those who incline towards
this goal externally by the choice of their free will and internally
by the drive of their destiny. These people can reach variously
advanced stages through many paths, all of them guiding to Allah
in proportion to the divine aid they are granted. The outcome is
the return to Allah - fana fi Allah (annihilation in Allah) - like
the river's disappearance into the sea. The ultimate destination is
baqa bi-Allah (abiding with Allah).
One should know that the limit of reason is finite. Anything beyond
the limit of reason is madness. However, the capacity of the heart is
infinite. The point of tranquility is annihilation in Allah and eternity
with Allah. Rumi beautifully expresses how he was burned with
divine love in a state of fana fi Allah and baqa bi-Allah and how
this fire within his soul would not be extinguished even by death:
Open my grave after my death and see how fumes will rise
from my shroud! What makes death frightening is this bodily
cage. When you break the shell of the body you will see that
death will look like pearls!
One of the most important attributes of the friends of Allah is to be
consumed by divine love. Rumi searched for the real lovers who were
burned in love, hence those impassioned expressions. He states this
desire as follows:
I need such a lover that from his inner flames great tumults should
take place; and with fire of his heart even fires should become ashes.
There are two kinds of love: real and metaphorical.
Love, addiction and devotion to any being in the universe ''other than
Allah''(ma siwa Allah) are a metaphorical love, whereas love for Lord
of the universe and inclination towards Him is real love.
Those who have polished their hearts with real love for the Lord can see
how beauty is reflected in themselves at all times and witness one of Allah's
unlimited signs of power. In other words, they discover within their nature
the reality of ahsani taqwim (the most excellent pattern). For them, there
are no metaphorical colors and odors attracting us with their beauty but
something exceedingly truer. For they have reached to the knowledge of
Allah. They have given up external adornments and reached to Reality.
There, they beheld divine eternity.
The great curtain drawn between Allah and His servants is not a physical
distance like earth and sky. This curtain is the feeling of a separate existance
from the Creator. Because of this, Allha states ''When I inspired into him a
spirit from Me'' and reminds human beings of the essence he had given from
His presence. It was also said of Allah: ''I am the secret of the human being,
and the human being is the secret of Me.''
Hence, the divine treasures and secrets are dedicated to humankind. Allah,
the Almighty, wishes to present His sublime existence in the sacred frame
of the human being. ''I am the secret of man'' contains the glad tidings of a
shared attribute. If this essence and glad tidings can convey a believer to the
perfection of love and affection, then the heart begins to travel towards the
secrets of the divine world. Thus, the reality of all objects, the secrets called
''human'' and ''universe'' and the secrets of the divine world may all appear.
At that time the servant receives the manifestations of a sound heart.
When the servant has attained this maturity, the curtain of heedlessness
between the servant and Allah is lifted little of little. The servant can
understand the secret of ''Die before you die.'' The world and its finite love,
its temporary and transient beauty scatter into the wind. The soul perceives
the great pleasure of approaching its Creator.
Continued in another post InshaAllah
The Secret in the Love for God
by Osman Nuri Topbas
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