Muhammad (s) in the
Mirror of Islam
'Allamah Tabataba'i
Translated from
the Persian by William Chittick and Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr
Free
Islamic Literatures, Inc, Houston
In the Name of God,
Most Merciful and Compassionate
ISLAM AND OTHER
RELIGIONS: THE SHI'ITE VIEW
Islam is based on two
realities: the blessed personality of the Prophet Muhammad, who was
chosen exactly fourteen lunar centuries ago to deliver God's message and
to be the leader of mankind; and the Quran, the Book from God which is
the Prophet's enduring miracle and which contains God's words in the
form of intellectual and practical teachings of a universal nature.
These two realities must be considered as one of the most important
factors in the development and perfection of human life, or rather, they
are the most important factor to have manifested itself over the course
of fourteen centuries in the faith and practice of hundreds of millions
of men, extending its influence deep into every aspect of their society.
It is true that of the
world's religions Islam is the youngest and that its followers are fewer
in number than the sum of the adherents other faiths, yet Islam is
possessed of certain distinguishing characteristics which sets it apart
from other religious ways. For example, if we refer to the sacred books
of Hinduism, and in particular the Veda, we see that the religious
teachings presented there are almost exclusively of an ascetic nature
and at the same time that they are directed towards a minority of the
religion's followers. Thus, the majority of Hindus are excluded from
deriving direct spiritual benefit from these sacred books.
Buddhism and also
Christianity display with Hinduism the same exclusively ascetic outlook
in their teachings. In the case of Christianity this is obvious from the
four Gospels and the other basic religious texts. There are no practical
injunctions or social laws and moreover philosophy and rational thought
are looked upon with disfavor. The Divine Sacrifice and the remission of
the sins of mankind are doctrines which reduce the relevance of
injunctions concerned with this world.
Other religions have
either ceased to draw men to themselves, such as Sabeanism and
Manicheanism, or else are limited to a particular race of people, such
as Judaism.
Thus it is only Islam
which gives first importance to rationally demonstrable beliefs and
positive individual and social injunctions, as, it is hoped, the present
paper will make clear.
The Prime Importance of
the Individual from the Point of View of Human Nature
Human nature seeks no more
than to perpetuate as far as possible its own existence and to achieve
its instinctive desires. If the first step man takes in his development
is to form social groupings, and if he preserves these societies by
acting in accordance with their laws-thus surrendering to the same
extent a degree of his individual freedom-, it is in order that by
depriving himself of one portion of his freedom he gain and benefit from
another portion by being better able to provide for his innate
requirements and his subsistence.
The first goal of creation
is the happiness of the individual; the happiness of society follows
upon this. In other words the purpose of creation is the perfection of
human nature, and this perfection is realized in the being of the
individual, not in the shape and form of society. Thus, man is directed
towards the formation of social groupings to preserve the individual.
For in order that he may realize the fundamental purpose of
life-happiness and well-being-it is necessary that he should follow an
orderly system of living, a system which inevitably must be social. He
must eat, drink, clothe himself, sleep, rest, wed, bear offspring,
secure his needs, and through the use of his mind provide the means of
his own subsistence.
The Effect of the World
View of the Individual upon his Activity
The form and
characteristics of this orderly system which man follows in his life is
dependent upon his conception of the nature of the Universe and of
himself, who is an inseparable part of that Universe. Thus we see that a
group of men do not admit the existence of a creator for the world and
imagine that the world came into being accidentally and that man is only
this material form which comes into existence at birth and ceases to
exist at death. These men organize their way of life and rules for
living with a view to the material needs of their ephemeral earthly
existence, and this alone . They follow a path which can lead to no more
than a limited material happiness and well-being.
On the other hand those
who accept a creator for the universe and believe that the regulation of
the affairs of men and of the world is in the hands of "the gods" do not
consider man's life to be just this material existence; they organize
their way of living in such a way as to attract the favor of the gods
and keep away their anger, and in this manner to achieve happiness in
life and remain safe from unpleasant occurrences resulting from gods'
wrath.
Again, those who accept
the Unity of God and believe that the Universe and all that is in it is
governed by One God who is All-Wise and All-Powerful, and that man does
not cease to exist at death but lives an eternal life, will organize
their lives accordingly, that is, with an eye to assuring felicity in
both worlds.
It is thus clear that
"religion" is the organization of life, and that life lived according to
a program is religion. Those who try to separate religion and life and
claim that the first of these is only empty formalism are sadly
mistaken. It is in view of this that Islam calls the path one follows in
life "religion", while it calls the true way the "Straight Path" and the
false way the "Deviated" or "Crooked Path". God says: "The curse of
Allah is on evil-doers, who debar (men) from the path of Allah and would
have it crooked, and who are disbelievers in the Last Day." (Quran VII,
44-45. This and all subsequent quotations from the Quran are from the
translation by Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall, The Meaning of the Glorious
Koran, New York, 1953).
The Islamic World View
The concept upon which the
Prophet of Islam founded his religion is that all of existence has been
created by the One God, and that every one of the parts of existence is
directed by God towards the perfection and happiness peculiar to that
part. Man also, who possesses eternal life, is directed towards the
happiness and welfare peculiar to his nature; and this he gains by
following the path shown to him by God.
The Holy Prophet addressed
his message to natural man, that is, man endowed with human nature and
God-given intelligence and will who is not tainted by superstition and
blind belief. Such an individual with his God-given primordial nature
has the innate capacity and ability to apprehend the above- described
world view. With the slightest reminder he naturally understands that
the world in its vastness and grandeur and its perfect arrangement and
order is the creation of a transcendent Creator whose infinite Being is
the source of every beauty and perfection and who is above all ugliness
and evil. Such an individual understands that the creation of the world
and its inhabitants was not without meaning and purpose; that the life
of this world will be followed by another life, and that the good and
bad actions of this world will not go unanswered for. And as a result he
understands that there must be a way of life peculiarly suited to the
needs of man which will enable him to live according to his own real
nature.
Islam's choice of natural
and primordial man as the object of the religious message has several
basic results:
1. The Principle of
Equality. The Islamic teachings apply to all. There is no
distinction between black and white, man and woman, noble and humble,
rich and poor, king and beggar, strong and weak, eastern and western,
learned and ignorant, old and young, or between those who are present
and those who will come in the future, for all of these share human
nature and that which it implies in common. Equality of this sort is
limited to Islam; other ways, each in its own measure, have certain
discriminatory principles. For example, Hinduism distinguishes
fundamentally between Brahmins and non- Brahmins and between man and
woman; in Judaism a distinction is made between the children of Israel
and the Gentiles, and in Christianity between man and woman. As for
secular social systems, in these there is a distinction between subjects
of a country and foreigners. It is only Islam which considers humanity
as one and has uprooted completely the principle of distinction and
discrimination. "O mankind! Lo! We have created you male and female, and
have made you nations and tribes that ye may know one another. Lo! the
noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the best in conduct." (Quran
XLIX, 13) "Lo! I suffer not the work of any worker, male or female, to
be lost. Ye proceed one from another." (Quran III, 195) That is, male or
female, you are all of the same human status.
2. The Principle of
Realism. In view of the fact that man is provided with the instinct
of seeking reality and of discerning between the real and the unreal,
the laws and injunctions laid down by Islam are based upon a
correspondingly realistic view of things. This can be explained as
follows: Although man in his natural activity is stimulated towards his
vital goals by feelings and emotions, he in fact sets out after real
goals, not illusion and fantasy. The newly born baby who cries in his
hunger and reaches for his mother's breast in search of milk desires
that which is milk in reality, not the illusion of milk; he cries from
real hunger, not from fantasy and imagination. Every individual who
strives in the way of achieving his own interests seeks his own real
interests, not their mental concept. In the same manner when feelings
and emotions present certain desires to man, and without being able to
take into account his true best-interest stimulate him toward certain
goals, it is the faculty of discrimination or reason which harnesses and
modifies these emotions and shows to man that which is in reality the
good and the evil and the rightness and the wrongness of his action.
It is reason, moreover,
which forbids the sick person from eating harmful foods although he
wishes to eat them; it is reason which prevents man from entering upon
dangerous activities, hence depriving him of a large part of his freedom
of action; it is reason which is man's single superiority over other
animals, and his most important faculty for distinguishing the real from
the illusory.
The laws and injunctions
brought by the Prophet of Islam are based upon a realistic view of
things, not upon the whims and fancies of men. That is to say that man
must perform that action which is really and truly in his best interest
even if it is against his fancy; and he must avoid that action which he
feels like performing but which is not in conformity with his real
interests. The case of the religious community is the same: it must
accomplish what is truly in its best interest and what is in conformity
with its felicity, even though this act may be contrary to its wishes;
it must not perform that action which is the wish of the majority of its
members but which is contrary to its true interest.
In the language of the
Holy Quran that which is in conformity with reality or with man's true
best interest is called "The Truth" (al-haqq). It is the single goal
towards which man must direct his endeavor and after which he must
strive. "After the Truth what is there saving error?" (Quran X, 33) "And
if the Truth had followed their desires, verily the heavens and the
earth and whosoever is therein had been corrupted" (Quran XXIII, 71).
An almond nut which is
placed in the ground under the necessary conditions will after a few
days break its skin, and a green shoot will come forth from its kernel
as well as a number of roots which are put forth in various directions;
by way of the roots the shoot will take continuous nourishment from the
ground and will constantly grow and develop until ultimately it becomes
a fully grown almond tree with trunk, branches, leaves blossoms and
fruit.
The sperm of an animal
placed in the womb of the female of the species under particular
circumstances will assume the form and shape peculiar to itself and by
means of the activity peculiar to its species will day by day become
larger and more complete until it reaches the limit of its perfection.
If we investigate in the
same manner all of the creatures of the world one by one it will become
perfectly obvious that for each of them there is a way peculiar to
itself through which it reaches the limit of its own perfection, and
that from the first day of its coming into being it is attracted towards
its end. In its development it never goes astray nor does it change its
direction, as if, for example, an almond shoot could develop into a
horse or a horse could go to sleep one night and wake up the next
morning an almond tree. Rather every creature is guided toward its final
goal by means of creation itself, and in traversing this path of
development it never falls into error.
The path which has been
laid out for each creature leading to its final goal is one which is in
conformity with the means and potentialities with which it was provided
by its own nature. These means allow it to attract what is of benefit
and repel what is harmful and threatens its existence. Chickens eat
grain, sheep and cattle feed upon forage, and wolves, leopards and hawks
hunt for game, for each is equipped with particular digestive systems
which are proper only for particular nutritive substances. In the same
way, birds defend themselves with their beaks, sheep and cattle with
their horns, scorpions and bees with their stings, lions and leopards
with their teeth and claws, and deer by flight, for the defensive
equipment of each of them is just this. In summary, each of these
creatures moves in its life towards a particular goal and end. It
performs actions in which the equipment provided by its very existence
guides it, and the nature of which this equipment determines.
This guidance and
determination is the same general guidance and determination which the
Quran has referred to and attributed to the Creator: "Our Lord is He who
gave unto everything its nature, then guided it aright." (Quran XX, 50)
"Who createth, then disposeth; who measureth [i.e., determineth], then
guideth." (Quran LXXXVII, 2-3).
Obviously, man also, who
is one of the species of creation, is not an exception to this general
rule. His natural disposition and character show to him the path which
he should take in life, and point out and distinguish the duties and
responsibilities which he must fulfill. "From what thing does he create
him (man)? From a drop of seed. He createth him and proportioneth him,
then maketh the way easy for him." (Quran LX)CX, 18-20).
Meditation upon this and
upon our previous discussion will show that the result of both of these
discussions is the same, that is, that correct actions and deeds (those
which are in conformity with man's true best interest)- which man must
choose by means of his instinct of discerning between the real and the
illusory-are the very same actions towards which the nature of man
guides him, endowed as it is with its own peculiar equipment. It is thus
that the way towards which the Holy Quran invites man, which it has
named "the Religion of the Truth", which it also refers to as the
natural and primordial religion, and attributes it to creation itself.
"So set they purpose (O Muhammad) for religion as a man by nature
upright-the nature (framed) of Allah, in which He hath created man.
There is no altering (the laws of) Allah's creation. That is the right
religion." (Quran XXX, 30). "By a soul and Him who perfected it, and
inspired it (with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is)
right for it. He is indeed successful who causeth it to grow, and he is
indeed a failure who stunteth it." (Quran XCI, 7-10).
From another point of
view, since creation is the work of God and since every sort of beauty
and appropriateness which is observable in it is the result of His
Mercy, that which is appropriate to human nature inasmuch as it
determines the actions which man must perform is called "the Will of
God". (This is of course the Will of God inasmuch as it ordains laws,
guides men in his actions, and holds him responsible for these actions;
it is not the same as the Will of God inasmuch as it creates-which can
never be disobeyed or violated.) Likewise the duties and rules which
result from that which is appropriate to man's nature are called the
commands and prohibitions of God. "The Lord bringeth to pass what He
willeth and chooseth. They (men) have never any choice.* (Quran XXVIII,
68).
Since the religion of
Islam consists of duties and commands from God, the Creator, and since
the person who follows its doctrinal and practical injunctions has
submitted himself to the Will of God, in the language of the Holy Quran
this religion is called "Islam" ("submission" or "surrender"). "Lo!
religion with Allah (is) the Surrender. (Quran III, 19). "And whoso
seeketh as religion other than the Surrender (to Allah) it will not be
accepted from him." (Quran III, 85).
3. The Principle of
Equilibrium, between the Material and the Spiritual. The third
result of Islam's message being directed at natural man, a result which
is indeed one of the great achievements of this religion, is that a
middle way is taken between materiality and spirituality. This is in
contrast to Judaism, which, as can be observed in its Holy Book, the
Torah, is not concerned with spiritual matters, and with Christianity,
which on the contrary-according to the explicit sayings of Jesus-is not
concerned with the material life of this world. Other religions such as
Hinduism and Buddhism and even Zoroastrianism, Manicheanism and
Sabeanism, which to one degree or another are concerned with spiritual
things, have separated the spiritual way from material life, to the
extent that the connection between the two has been totally severed. It
is only Islam which chooses the middle way and bases itself upon the
foundation of primordial human nature. towards his God, and include
expressions of servitude in the face of His Lordship, poverty and need
in the face of His Wealth and Independence, lowliness in the face of His
Grandeur, insignificance in the face of His Majesty and Glory, ignorance
in the face of His Knowledge, incapacity in the face of His Power, and
submission in the face of His Will. Moreover, to the extent possible
these expressions have been given a social character, such as in the
case of the groups which gather for the daily congregational prayers,
the larger groups which meet for Friday prayers, and the still larger
gathering which takes place at the time of the pilgrimage to Mecca.
A second portion of these
injunctions concern duties which man has in social surroundings and in
relation with his fellow man. Of course in these duties, which are the
Islamic laws, the sense of responsibility towards God has been taken
into account, for man must surrender only to His Will (that is, the
requirements of His creation). In other words, all actions must be
performed in the shadow of the three basic principles of Islam: Divine
Unity, Prophecy, and the Last Day. "Say: O People of the Scripture [Jews
and Christians]! Come to an agreement between us and you: that we shall
worship none but Allah, and that we shall ascribe no partners unto Him,
and that none of us shall take others for lords beside Allah. And if
they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are they who have
surrendered (unto Him)." (Quran 111, 64).
From the previous
discussion it has become clear that in the religion of Islam the path to
be followed in life has been ordered and arranged in such a way that
man's social and material life resembles a cradle in which the spiritual
life is nurtured. The inner spiritual light of the practicing Muslim is
such that all of his individual and social actions contribute to
purifying his soul and strengthening its radiance. Although outwardly he
is with people, inwardly he is with God, and although he is in the midst
of a crowd, he dwells in the spiritual retreat of the divine secret. At
the same time that he is running here and there in pursuit of material
goals, and is undergoing a series of events both bitter and sweet,
pleasant and unpleasant, beautiful and ugly, and in general is involved
in the events of the tumultuous external world, his heart is free and
exists in a world of tranquility in which he sees the Face of God
wherever he looks. And whither so ever ye turn, there is Allah's
countenance. (Quran II, 115).
A pious Muslim extends his
spiritual life into every aspect of his material life. Wherever he is
and whatever he is doing he is in contact with God. Everything with
which he occupies himself in the material world is a mirror in which he
sees God reflected. On the other hand, non-Muslims who turn towards the
spiritual life imagine that their natural and every-day life is a veil
between themselves and the Truth they are seeking. As a result they are
forced to abandon normal life and to assume an unaccustomed manner of
living in their quest after spiritual perfection. Whatever the
advantages of such a way, from the point of view of a person who lives a
normal life it is a difficult road to follow and one in which to
persevere requires an extreme degree of will power. However, the person
who follows the spiritual life according to the directives of Islam
knows full well that such a way is easier than that of Islam, for such
people, by abandoning every-day life, have taken the easy way out and
have fled from the difficulty of continual vigil and effort. They have
set a barrier in the road towards perfection which creation itself and
the means it has put at man's disposal have prepared. Such men have set
out on a path of their own fancy, and it is questionable whether they
will ever reach the goal which creation has determined for them.
In addition, given that
the world and all it contains are the creation of God and that the
phenomena of the world, each according to the measure of its own
existence, are signs of the Truth and mirrors displaying God, and given
that man along with the various conditions which mark his primordial
nature is one of these signs, then it is necessary that in the spiritual
life (the way of knowledge of self and of God) God be recognized in
every situation. All of these mirrors must be utilized in the
acquisition of divine knowledge and in the contemplation of God's
Beauty, for if this is not the case man will gain nothing more from his
labors than an imperfect knowledge or a perfect ignorance.
4. Knowledge and Wisdom
from the Point of view of Islam. The person who has made a cursory
study of the religions and creeds of the world will have no doubt that
the dignity and honor which Islam has accorded to knowledge and wisdom
and the extent to which it has encouraged their acquisition is
unparalleled in any other religion or ideology, whether revealed or
non-revealed. It is the Holy Quran which asks, "Are those who know equal
to those who do not?" (Quran XXXIX, 9), and which praises the exalted
station of knowledge in the most eloquent manner. And it is the Holy
Prophet who has said "The pursuit of knowledge is incumbent upon every
Muslim, *Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave" and "Seek
knowledge, even unto China." Again, it is the Holy Quran which commands
its followers never to stray from the way of knowledge nor to follow
what is only supposed or assumed, and never to accept without
deliberation what passes before their sight or crosses their minds, for
they will be responsible for their beliefs. "(O man), follow not that
where of thou hast no knowledge. Lo! the hearing and the sight and the
heart-of each of these it will be asked." (Quran XVII, 36).
As has become clear Islam
encourages its followers to acquire knowledge with all the powers at
their disposal, and in this respect it has designated knowledge of
religious jurisprudence or doctrinal sciences, and the injunctions of
the religious law (Shari'ah) as mandatory." And the believers should not
all go out to fight [in the holy war]. Of every troop of them, a party
should go forth, that they (who are left behind) may gain sound
knowledge in religion. (Quran IX, 122).
A point which must be kept
in mind is that the capacity of individuals for the comprehension of
scientific and intellectual truth varies. There are people who have no
talent for logical thought and who, with their simple minds, live in a
surrounding of physical labor and on a level of purely material life,
where there are others whose thought is logical and who by their very
nature take a special joy in comprehending profound concepts and
scientific theories. Still others have cut their attention from both
thought and physical labor and, having a special aversion for the dark
world of matter and its deceiving beauty and fleeting pleasures, find in
themselves a particular attraction towards the transcendent world and a
peculiar fascination for its lasting and infinite beauty, of which the
beauty of this world is only the reflected image. Such men easily
comprehend the verities and mysteries of the transcendent world by means
of inner illumination.
It is with a view to this
diversity, which is clearly visible among men, that Islam instructs each
of these three groups in its own terms and language. One group it has
taught by means of the external and formal aspect of religion and a
second group by way of intellectual demonstration, while the third group
it has instructed to struggle against the carnal soul and to purify the
heart. In the same way, in the Quran God has struck a similitude about
His Own utterances and expressions: "He sendeth down water from the sky,
so that valleys flow according to their measure." (Quran XIII, 17). The
Holy Prophet has said, "We prophets have been commanded to speak to men
according to the measure of their understandings."
Those among its followers
who have not the taste for rational demonstration and who would face the
danger of error and deviation if they were to attempt to traverse this
path, Islam has charged with no more than the measure of their ability,
and beyond the three principles of religion (Divine Unity, Prophecy and
the Last Judgement) it only instills them with simple practical
injunctions such as command to do good and prohibitions from committing
evil; this type of formulation is found in a great number of Quranic
verses and in saying of the Prophet and the Shi'ite Imams.
Of course in the case of
the three principles of religion man in his primordial nature can engage
in a simple form of rational demonstration, and hence he will have
accepted nothing but definitely proven knowledge. And in fact this
method provides him with rational proof of the remaining teachings and
injunctions which he has accepted without rational demonstration, for
the truth of the principle of prophecy proves in a definitive manner the
validity of all of the saying which have reached us from the Prophet.
The way of rational
demonstration-Islam teaches those people who are endowed with sound
minds and who have the capacity to comprehend scientific theories and
intellectual and logical arguments through logical and rational
demonstration. In other words, it guides them towards that which their
uncorrupted and reality-seeking primordial nature immediately perceives.
It does not first impose upon them its doctrines and beliefs and then
defend these by reasoning and proofs.
The Book and the
Tradition, that is, the verses of the Holy Quran and the sayings of the
Prophet and of the Shi'ite Imams-which make clear the meaning and
purpose of the Quranic verses-are full of this type of rational
demonstration. In them the Islamic beliefs and doctrines are explained
in detail by means of the simplest forms of expression and the most
convincing proofs, and likewise, mention is made in them of the general
and universal benefits and advantages of the Islamic laws and
injunctions.
Obviously, we must not
overlook the fact that the meaning of discussion and demonstration of
the benefits and advantages of the Islamic laws and injunctions is not
that if an individual Muslim or Islamic society in general does not
understand a particular injunction, that injunction should be rejected.
For as we have already mentioned, these laws were promulgated by means
of prophecy, and the proof of the validity of prophecy is a summary
proof of the validity of these laws, even if we do not possess the
detailed reason for this.
The way of purification of
the soul-The third group of men are those who are ready and eager to
sever all material attachments and to turn their attention away from the
deceiving adornments and illusory desires of this world. Such men are
prepared to forget all that is other than God and to close their eyes to
every beauty and ugliness and every sweet and bitter experience of this
transient and illusory existence. Opening the eye of discernment 15
towards the eternal world,
they are prepared to contemplate without the veil of materiality the
radiance of the Majesty and Grandeur of God, to traverse the stages of
human perfection which must be crossed upon leaving this fleeting life,
and to enter into the Proximity of the Divine. With such men Islam
converses secretly of the divine mysteries in a language which they
alone understand, and thus it guides them from the depths of ignorance
to the pinnacle of knowledge and wisdom.
A Possible Criticism
and its Answer
A number of orientalists
have said that Islamic mystical and metaphysical doctrines have been
borrowed from those of India, for Islam in itself is no more than a
series of extremely concrete and simple beliefs and sterile forms of
worship. The succinct reply to these claims is provided nicely by the
words of the poet: "O Sweetheart, the difficulty is that you're no judge
of words."
We, of course, in our
answer to this criticism, do not wish to defend Islam from the point of
view of its mystics and engage in proving the validity and originality
in the face of Indian mysticism of the various ways which they have
traversed on the spiritual path. In the same way, in our discussion of
rational demonstration we were not concerned with analyzing and proving
the validity of all the books on philosophy written by Muslims, and in
our discussion of the way of the formal aspects of religion we did not
declare as correct the way of the generality of Muslims whatever it
might be. Rather, our goal in this article is limited to a general
survey of the original and genuine Islamic sources, that is, the Book
and the Tradition, without concerning ourselves with agreeing or
disagreeing with the activities and conduct of any particular one of the
foregoing classes of men.
The claim of the
above-mentioned orientalists is based upon the principle of evolution,
according to which the development and perfection of a natural phenomena
is explained in a scientific manner. This principle has been generalized
to include every sort of happening in whatever sphere, even habits,
customs and phenomena of a spiritual nature. Thus the root cause of
every event is sought in preceding events. According to the same
principle it has been said that Islamic laws were borrowed from those of
the Romans and Islamic doctrines from the philosophical ideas of the
Greeks.
These orientalists have
been mistaken in their judgement in two respects. First, they have
considered what is called "mystical intuition" to be of the same order
as normal thought and hence they have imagined that the knowledge gained
by purification of the soul is a system of poetical thoughts, much as if
a poet with his overflowing and creative imagination and his eloquent
means of expression could voice such concepts better than a mystic
knower of the divine secrets. A similar mistake is made in the case of
revelation, which is the celestial perception of prophets and the means
of receiving divine sciences and laws. As a result, the basic source of
Islamic doctrine and injunctions is represented as being Greek thought
and Roman law. This mistake is perfectly obvious in the discussions
carried on about prophecy and the "mode of thought" of prophets.
Moreover, the words and utterances which have reached us from the
prophets-whether their claim to prophecy be true or not-openly
contradict such opinions.
The second mistake is
that, even if we accept the theory of evolution as proven and definitely
established, this theory must not be taken as providing the reason for
the manifestation of an instinctive drive. For, an instinct placed
within a species' primordial nature at its creation will be manifested
within each individual of that species (provided there be no external
impediment), whether or not there is a precedent.
As a case in point it can
be said that diversity in foodstuffs and the preparation of
sophisticated cuisine was learned by the Arabs from the Persians, but it
cannot be said that the Arabs learned how to eat from the Persians.
Likewise, it can be said that democratic government with its manifold
administrative organizations spread to the East from the West, but this
cannot be said about the very art of forming a society and establishing
a government.
In our previous discussion
it became clear that the way of purification of the soul, that is, the
spiritual life and mystical intuition, is innate within the nature of
man; once awakened through the necessary groundwork and the removal of
obstacles, it will direct man to enter upon the path of spiritual
illumination. Hence, religion, which by its very nature is concerned to
one degree or another with the transcendent and eternal world, cannot
but cause
the appearance of certain
among its followers, who, this hidden urge having been awakened within
them, will sever all attachments with this fleeting world full of pain
and hardship, and with the hope of absolute bliss and serenity will
concern themselves with the eternal abode. And in practice also we see
that in every one of the world's religions there exists a group enamored
of the spiritual life and mystical way.
By comparing the
presentation of spiritual matters in the basic texts of the world's
religions it can be clearly observed that the texts of Islam have
concerned themselves with the description of everlasting felicity and
the external world more than the texts of other religions. Therefore,
the appearance of the way of the purification of the soul within Islam
is perfectly natural, without there being the need for any relationship
as to its origins with India or with any other place. Furthermore, as
history is there to prove, a large number of the companions of Ali (the
cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet and the first Shi'ite Imam) such as
Salman, Kumayl, Rashid, Maytham and Uways were under his direct
spiritual guidance and instruction -at a time when Islam had not yet
reached India and when there could be no question of contact with Indian
thought. The fact that the chains of spiritual initiation (silsilah) of
practically all of the Sufi orders in Islam reach back to Ali further
corroborates this point.
The Difference in Means
of Expression between Islamic and other Mysticisms
The delicate and refined
expressions of Islamic mystical doctrine in contrast to the formulation
of other mysticisms, and especially to that of the Indians, has the
advantage of elucidating mystical verities within the wrapping of
formulations of a more general nature. Hence, everyone is able to profit
from them, each in the measure of his understanding. Other mystical ways
do not possess this distinction.
It is for this same reason
that Islam has been saved from the harmful results, which have affected
other religions, by presenting mystical truths openly and unambiguously.
For example, in the case of Indian mysticism, if we study the Upanishads
carefully, we will see that the doctrine presented there is a precise
and extremely profound expression of the Unity of God, but at the same
time that it is so bold and explicit that any one who refers to it who
is not completely versed in mystical and metaphysical doctrine will
consider its marvelously complete formulations as nothing but
superstitious prattle, or at the very least he will interpret passages
which express the Unity of God in the most sublime manner as being
nothing but incarnationism, pantheism and idol worship.
This claim, moreover, is
proved by the opinions which many orientalists who have specialized in
Sanskrit have voiced concerning Indian mysticism; for after the
tremendous amount of research which they have undertaken in the original
Hindu and Buddhist texts they still consider Indian mystical doctrines
as nothing but superstition, produced by the minds of men deprived of
the advantages of life. And the basic reason for all such opinions on
the part of orientalists is the explicitness and the shocking nature of
the bold formulations of these texts.
Further Consideration
of the Islamic Message
In the same way that God's
creation has placed a particular kind of material life within the reach
of mankind and has not discriminated among men but has equipped each of
them with equal means, it has also placed the spiritual life, which is
hidden behind the veil of material life, within the reach of all men.
And in the same way that the perfection of the material life of man lies
in the manifestation and actualization of all his positive and negative
actions and deeds-which he performs by means of his body-so also
creation has extended the perfection of the spiritual life to include
all of those actions and deeds. In harmony with creation, Islam has
considered the spiritual life to belong to all men and has made no
distinction between them, and likewise it has extended the spiritual
life to all the positive and negative aspects of men's lives. It invites
men to accept the ties of social life and to act in a positive manner in
traversing a determined path. In teaching this way it has had recourse
to indications enclosed in the covering of normal and every-day
expressions. This is because our verbal formulations are in case born of
the thoughts of the generality of men. We use them in our social and
material life in order to facilitate mutual understanding, and by means
of them we exchange thoughts and mental concepts. Now mystical and
contemplative comprehension, which is rarer than the elixir of life and
which throughout history has never found general acceptance, is
something completely different from normal human expression. The person
who wants to formulate into concepts the knowledge gained through
intuitive and mystical comprehension is like the person who tries to
describe by means of words the colors of the rainbow to one blind from
birth. And the person who puts contemplative and mystical insights into
the mold of words is exactly like the person who carries water from
place to place with a sieve.
It is for this reason that
Islam has had recourse to symbols and intimations in expressing mystical
truths, and has thus remained untouched by the misfortunes which have
overtaken other religions.
A Brief Consideration
of the Spiritual Path
It may possibly be
imagined that the claim that Islam has expounded the mystical way by
means of intimations and symbols is unfounded and amounts to chasing
false ghosts. However, sufficient meditation upon Islamic teachings and
formulations, and a weighing of these against the agitated and ecstatic
states of the Islamic mystics, will prove the opposite and will show
that hidden within themselves and by allusion these teachings elucidate
all of the stages of perfection which are traversed on the mystical way,
although a true and detailed comprehension of these states is only
possible through mystical intuition.
The travellers on the
spiritual path, who as a result of their natural and primordial
readiness have surrendered their hearts to the infinite Beauty and
Perfection of the Truth, worship God only out of love, not out of hope
for reward or fear of punishment, for to worship Him in order to gain
Paradise or to avoid hell is in fact to worship that very reward and
punishment in place of God.
As a result of the divine
attraction which has engulfed their hearts, and more particularly as a
result of having seen that God has revealed the verse "Therefore
remember Me, I will remember you" (Quran II, 152) and hundreds of other
Quranic verses where the remembrance of God is spoken of,
wherever and in whatever
state they happen to be the mystic travelers are occupied with His
remembrance: *Such as remember Allah, standing, sitting
and reclining." (Quran
III, 191). And when they hear the messages of the Beloved, "Lo! in the
heavens and the earth are portents for believers" (Quran XLV, 3), "And
there is not a thing by hymneth His praise" (Quran XVII, 44), and "And
whither so ever ye turn, there is Allah's countenance" (Quran II, 115),
they understand that all existent things are mirrors, each displaying
the unique Beauty of the Truth in accordance with the possibilities of
its own being. Other than their quality of being mirrors they have no
existence in themselves. Hence such men look to every phenomenon with
love and eagerness and have no object other than to contemplate the
Beauty of God.
And when they hear God's
messages "O ye who believe! Ye have charge of your own souls. He who
erreth cannot injure you if you are rightly guided (Quran V, 105) and
"Thou, verily, O man, art working towards thy Lord a work which thou
wilt meet (in His presence)" (Quran LXXXIV, 6), they understand that by
the nature of creation itself they are bound within the framework of
their own souls, and other than the way of their souls there is no road
open to them to reach God. Whatever they see or find in the
expansiveness of the world they see and find in themselves. It is here
that man understands that in fact he is cut off from all places and
things and other than he himself and his God there is no one else. Even
if such a person is in the midst of a hundred thousand people he is
alone, and if others see him in the midst of a crowd, he sees himself in
a spiritual retreat far away from everyone else, no one being with him
but God. It is then that he looks at himself and sees all things within
himself, and he understands that he himself is also only a mirror in
which the unique Beauty of God is manifested, and that he has nothing
but God. When he has remembered God in this fashion and has cleansed his
heart and emptied it of vanity and frivolity, the remembrance of God
becomes firmly fixed within his soul and he enters among the ranks of
the people of certainty (al-yaqin) and God's promise. "And serve thy
Lord till the inevitable (al-yaqin) cometh unto thee" (Quran XV, 99) is
fulfilled. The doors of the kingdom of the heavens and the earth open to
him and he sees that all things are possessed absolutely by God. "Thus
did We show Abraham the kingdom of the heavens and the earth that he
might be of those possessing certainty." (Quran VI, 76).
The person endowed with
such a vision will behold the three stages of Divine Unity. First the
Unity of God in His Acts will be revealed to him. He will see with
certainty that it is God who directs the Universe and all that it
contains, and that the innumerable causes and agents which are at work
in the world, whether theirs be the activity of free will or of
necessity, are all painted upon the canvass of creation by His
all-powerful Hand. Cause and effect and the relationship between the
two-each is brought into being and executed by the One. "And unto Allah
belongeth the Sovereignty of the heavens and the earth." (Quran XLV,
27).
Secondly the Unity of
God's Names and Qualities will be disclosed to him and he will see
without intermediary that every quality of perfection which appears in
the world, and likewise every quality of beauty and of majesty, whether
life, knowledge, power, might, grandeur or whatever, is a glimmer from
the infinite Source of Light which is the Truth, and that these
qualities shine forth through the variegated windows which are the
existences of things with the distinctions they possess. "Allah's are
the fairest names. (Quran VII, 180).
Finally in the third stage
of Divine Unity he will behold that all of these varied qualities are
the manifestations of an infinite Essence, and that in reality each of
them is identical with every other and all are identical with the
Essence Itself. "Say: Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is the
One, the Almighty." (Quran XIII, 16).
The Superiority of
Islam in the Doctrine of Divine Unity
The above are the three
stages which the lovers of the Truth in the various religions of the
world pass through. When they begin their travel on the way of spiritual
perfection they take these stages to be their final goal. Islam,
however, does not limit itself to these stages but delineates a goal for
its followers which is even higher and which surpasses the goal
formulated in the text of any other religion. For, it does not stop at
negating all limitations from God and considering Him as infinite and
transcendent over all qualification, but it goes so far as to negate
from Him this very quality of Infinity (since every quality [even that
of Infinity] cannot help but "qualify" and so limit that to which it is
attributed.) Hence the Divine Essence is considered as transcending all
names and designations and even as transcending this very description.
The sixth Shi'ite Imam, Ja'far al-Sadiq, according to a tradition which
is quoted by al-Kulayni in the book Usul-al-kafi, has deduced this stage
from the following verse of the Holy Quran: "Say (unto mankind): Cry
unto Allah, or cry unto the Beneficient, unto whichsoever ye cry (it is
the same) . His are the most beautiful names." (Quran XVII, 110) .
However, since further elucidation of this doctrine would mean that we
must enter a philosophical discussion which is not in keeping with the
nature of the present article, for the present we must leave this aside.
Sanctity in God
The followers of the path
towards perfection from the beginning of their journey until the point
where they reach final peace witness a great deal which must remain
hidden from the eyes and hearts of the earth-bound inhabitants of the
material world, and a consideration of these states and stations would
be beyond the scope of the present article. What is important here is
the question of sanctity in God (wilayat-i ilahi).
When the travellers on the
spiritual path reach the stage of Divine Unity and enter into the
proximity of God, they let go totally of what they had possessed up to
that time, for they have come to know that everything belongs to God.
They give up the false claim of "owning" things and of being independent
in this ownership. It is then that an indescribable tranquility and
repose comes over them and they are released absolutely from all pain,
fear and sorrow. "Lo! those who say: Our Lord is Allah, and afterward
are upright, the angels descend upon them saying: Fear not nor grieve,
but hear good tidings of the paradise which ye are promised. We are your
protecting friends in the life of the world and in the Hereafter."
(Quran XLI, 30-31). Lo! verily the friends of Allah [those who possess
sanctity, wilayah] are (those) on whom fear (cometh) not, nor do they
grieve." (Quran X, 63).
It is at this point that
worldly joys, sorrows, successes and failures appear to them as all the
same, and having found a new existence they view the world and all that
it contains in a new light. His he who was dead and We have raised him
unto life, and set for him a light wherein he walketh among men, as him
whose similitude is in utter darkness?" (Quran VI, 123). And in the end
they and everything they possess belongs to God, and God to them: 'Whoso
is near to God, God is nigh unto him."
Conclusion
From our discussion it has
become clear that the spiritual life in Islam is wider in its scope and
more profound in its depth than what is found in other religions, for,
as we have explained, Islam in its breadth has laid down detailed
guidelines for all of the possible situations of human existence,
whether as regards this world or the next; and in its upward flight and
its depth it aims at a goal beyond that of other creeds. |