(vii) Checking
It means that the spiritual traveller should every day have a fixed time for checking and assessing what he had done during the past 24 hours. The idea of this checking has been derived from what Imam Musa ibn Ja`far has said: 'He who does not take account of himself once every day is not one of us.' If on checking the spiritual traveller finds that he has not done his duty, he should seek forgiveness from Allah and if he finds that he has performed his duty in every respect, he should be thankful to Him.
(viii) Censuring
If the spiritual traveller finds that he is guilty of some lapse or error, he should take some suitable action to reprimand or punish himself.
(ix) Hastening
This means that the spiritual traveller should be quick in implementing the decision he has taken. As he is likely to face many obstacles on his way, he should be vigilant and careful and should try to achieve his objective without wasting a moment.
(x) Faith and Reliance
The spiritual traveller must have love for and implicit faith in the Holy Prophet and his rightful successors.1 Complete reliance and trust are especially necessary at this stage. The more the reliance, the more lasting the effect of good deeds.
As all the existing things are the creation of Allah, the spiritual traveller must love all of them and should have regard for them according to the grade of their dignity. A lover of Allah shows kindness to all men and animals. According to a tradition, affection for the creation is a part of faith in Allah.
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1 The rightful successors of the Holy Prophet are those who have complete knowledge of Islam and who have been designated to execute his mission after him. According to a tradition accepted both by the Shi`ah and the Sunnis the Holy Prophet said: 'There will be 12 Caliphs/amirs after me.' al-Sahih, al-Tirmizi, Vol. II: Abu Dawud, al-Sunan, Vol. II, Ahmad ibn Hambal, al-Musnad, vol. V, al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak, vol. II)
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Another tradition says: "Allah, I seek of You Your love and the love of him who loves You."
(xi) Observance of the Rules of Veneration
The observance of these rules of correct behaviour towards all and His vicegerents is different from the faith and reliance mentioned above. Here veneration means to be careful not to exceed one's limits and do anything inconsistent with the requirements of man's servitude to Allah. It is essential for man to observe his limits vis-a-vis his Creator, the essentially existing Being. This veneration is a requirement of this world of plurality, whereas faith and love naturally require attention to monotheism — the unity of Allah.
Faith and veneration stand in the same relationship to each other as an act obligatory and an act prohibited. While performing an obligatory act the devotee looks towards Allah and while abstaining from a prohibited act he looks towards his own limitations lest he should exceed them. Veneration means following a middle way between fear and hope. Not to observe the rules of veneration indicates too much familiarity which is extremely undesirable.
The distinctive characteristic of the late Haji Mirza Ali Agha Qazi was his cheerfulness and faith rather than fear. The same was true of the late Waji Shaykh Muhammad Baqir. On the contrary the predominent feature of Hiji Mirza Jagha Maliki was fear rather than hope and cheerfulness. That is what is indicated by theirawad sayings. According to the gnostic parlance he who is dominated by cheerfulness is called a "drunkard" and he who is dominated by fear is called a "hymist". The best thing is to adopt a middle way in between these two extremes. In other words the devotee should have the highest degree of both the qualities at one and the same time. This degree of .excellence is found in the case of the Imams only.
In short, man who is a possibly existing being, should not forget his limits. That is why Imam Ja`far Sadiq used to prostrate himself on the ground whenever anything smacking extremism was uttered by anybody about him.
An absolutely dutiful devotee is he who always considers himself to be present before Allah and observes all the rules of
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property and deference while doing anything such as talking, keeping quiet, eating, drinking, sleeping etc. If the devotee kept the names and attributes of Allah in his mind, he would automatically observe all the rules of veneration and would always be conscious of his humility.
(xii) Intention
It means that the spiritual traveller should be single minded and well-intentioned. The objective of his spiritual journey should be nothing but to pass away in Allah. The Qur'an says: "Worship Allah keeping worship purely for Him."
A number of reports say that there are three grades of intention. Imam Sadiq is reported to have said: "There are three kinds of worshippers: There are some who worship Allah because they are afraid of Him. Their worship is that of the slaves. There are some others who worship Allah for the sake of recompense. Their worship is that of the wage-earners. There are till others who worship Allah because they love Him. Their worship is that of freemen."
On deep thinking it appears that there are two kinds of worship. One of them is not worship at all in the right sense, because those who perform this kind of worship are actually self-worshippers. They are motivated by self-interest. As self- worshippers cannot be the worshippers of Allah, they may even be regarded as a sort of unbelievers.
The Qur'an has described the worship of Allah as man's nature. At the same time it has denied the possibility of any change in man's in-born qualities.
Set your purpose for religion as a man by nature upright the nature in which Allah has created man. There is no altering in the nature framed by Allah. That is the right religion, but most men do not know 'even this fact.' (Surah ar-Rum, 30:30)
Therefore an act of worship actuated by self-interest is not only a deviation from the path of devotion to Allah, but is also a deviation from the path of monotheism, for these self-seekers appear not to believe in the unity of Allah in His actions and attributes because they associate some one else with Him. The Qur'an has everywhere proclaimed the unity of Allah and has denied the existence of any associate or partner with Him. The
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first two groups of worshippers mentioned above consider Allah to be their partner in their objectives and do not refrain from the idea of self-aggrandizement even in worshipping Him. They have double objective and that is what is called polytheism which according to the Qur'an is an unforgive offence.
Allah does not forgive that partners should be ascribed to Him. He pardons all save that to whom He will. (Surah 4:48, 116)
It is clear from the above that the worship performed by the first two groups is not fruitful and will not bring the worshipper closer to Allah.
As for the third group who worships Allah for the sake of love, their worship is that of freemen, and according to a report the most noble worship. "It is a hidden position to which only the pure attain." Love means attraction, or in other words to be drawn by some person or some truth.
The third group is of those who love Allah and are inclined towards Him. They have no objective other than being drawn to Him and gain His good pleasure. Their motive is their Real Beloved and they try to move towards Him.
Some reports say that Allah should be worshipped because He deserves being worshipped. He is fit and worthy of being worshipped because of His attributes. In other words He is to be worshipped because He is Allah.
Imam Ali says: "My Lord, I do not worship You because I am afraid of Your hell, nor because I want Your paradise. I worship You because I have found You fit for being worshipped. You Yourself have guided me to You and have called me to You. Had You not been I would not have known what You are."
In the beginning the spiritual traveller goes forward with the help of love, but after traversing a few stages he realizes that love is different from the beloved. Therefore he tries to give up love which was his means of progress so far, but which might prove a hindrance in his further advancement. Now he concentrates all his attention on the Beloved Whom he worships as his Beloved only. When he goes a few steps further he realizes that yet his worship is not free from duality for he still considers himself to be the lover and Allah the beloved, while it is inconsistent with absolute unity of Allah to think of a
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lover of Him. Therefore the spiritual traveller tries to forget about love so that he may step into the world of unity from the world of plurality. At this stage he ceases to have will and intention for his
distinctive personality has already passed away.
Prior to this stage the spiritual traveller was seeking vision, viewing and sight. Now he forgets all these things, for when he has no intention, he can have no desire. In this state it cannot be said whether the eyes and the heart of the spiritual traveller are functioning or not. To see and not to see, to know and not to know all become irrelevant.
Bayazid Bistâmi is reported to have said: 'First I renounced the world. Next day I renounced the hereafter. The third day I renounced everything other than Allah. The fourth day I was asked what I wanted. I said: I want that I do not want.' Perhaps taking a clue from this saying some people have fixed the following four stages:
(i) Renunciation of this world; (ii) Renunciation of the hereafter; (iii) Renunciation of the Lord; (iv) Renunciation of renunciation. This is a point which requires deep consideration for being understood properly. This is the stage at which the spiritual traveller gives up all desires. This is a great achievement, but difficult to realize, for even at this stage i,he spiritual traveller finds that his heart is not free from all desires and intentions. At least he aspires to gain perfection. It is of no use to make any conscious effort to get rid of the desires for such an effort itself involves a desire and an objective.
One day I spoke to my teacher, Mirza Ali Agha Qazi about this question and asked him what the solution of this problem was. He said that it could be resolved by adopting the method of "burning". The spiritual traveller should realize that Allah has created him in such a way that he must always have some desires and ambitions. That is a part of his inborn nature. Howsoever he may try, he cannot eliminate all desires. Therefore he should realize his powerlessness and give up all efforts to that effect. In that case he will entrust his case to Allah. The feeling of powerlessness will not only purify him, but will also burn the roots of all desire. Anyhow, it must be kept in mind that only theoretical knowledge of this point is not enough. The spiritual traveller must develop a real taste for it. If such a taste
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is developed, it can be more pleasure-giving than anything else in the world.
This method is called 'burning' for it burns out the very existence of will and intention and uproots them completely.
The Qur'an has used this method on a nurni.) of occasions. One instance is the use of the Divine expression: "We belong to Allah and to Him we shall return." Anybody who uses this method will find that it produces very quick results.
At the time of calamities, disasters and mishaps man consoles himself in different ways. For example he reminds himself that death and misfortunes are the destiny of all human beings. But Allah has suggested the burning method as a short cut by prescribing the above formula to be uttered on such occasions. If man realizes that he himself and all that he possesses and all that belongs to him in any way, are all owned by Allah who has full power and authority to dispose of them as He wills and pleases, he will not grieve for any loss and will feel relieved. Man should know that factually he is not the owner of anything. His ownership is only phenomenal. In reality everything belongs to Allah who gives whatever He will and takes away whatever He will. No body has a right to interfere in what He does. Man should know that he has been created wishful, ambitious and needy. All that is a part of his inborn nature. Therefore when the spiritual traveller is filled with any sort of yearning during his spiritual journey, he suspects that it is not possible for him to be totally free from desires, and that passing away in Allah, which is the basis of the worship of freemen, is inconsistent with his inmate propensities to will and desire. In these circumstances he is perplexed and feels helpless. But it is this feeling of helplessness that effaces his egoism, which is the basis of will and desire. Therefore after passing this stage no trace of will and desire is left. This point is worth understanding well.
(xiii) Silence
There are two kinds of silence: (i) general and relative; (ii) particular and absolute. Relative silence means to refrain from talking to people in excess to what is absolutely required. This kind of silence is necessary for the spiritual traveller at every stage. It is commendable for others also. Imam Jafar Sàdiq
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referred to this kind of silence when he said: "Our partisans (Shi`ah) are dumb." A report is mentioned in the Misbihush Shari`ah according to which Imam Ja`far Sadiq has said: "Silence is the way of the lovers of Allah because Allah likes it. It is the style of the Prophets and the habit of the chosen people."
According to another report Imam Ja`far Sadiq said: "Silence is a part of wisdom. It is a sign of every virtue."
Particular and absolute silence means to refrain from talking during verbal recollection of Allah.
(xiv) Abstaining from Food or at least Observing Frugality
It is recommended on the condition that it should not disturb mental peace and composure. Imam Ja`far Sadiq has said: "The believer enjoys hunger. For him hunger is the food of the heart and the soul."
Hunger illuminates the soul and makes it lighter whereas overeating makes it dull and tired and hampers its soaring to the heaven of gnosis. Out of the acts of worship fasting has been lauded a great deal. A number of reports concerning the Holy Prophet's Ascension to the Heavens have been mentioned in Daylami's Irshad and the Biharul Anwar, vol. II. In these reports the Holy Prophet has been addressed as Ahmad. These reports underline the beneficial points of starvation, especially its wonderful effect in connection with spiritual journey. My teacher, the late Ali Aghi Qdzi once related a wonderful story about starvation. In short he said: "Once during the days of the former Prophets three persons were travelling together. At the nightfall they set-out in three different directions with a view to get food, but agreed to assemble next morning at a particular place at an appointed time. One of them was already invited by some person. The second man also by chance became the guest of someone. The third man had no place to go to. He said to himself that he should go to the mosque to be the guest of Allah. He passed the night in the mosque, but could get no food. Next morning they assembled at the appointed place and each one of them related his story. At that time the Prophet of the time received a revelation to the following effect: "Tell Our guest that We were his host last night and wanted to provide him with sumptuous food, but found that there was no food better than hunger."
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(xv) Solitude
There are two kinds of solitude also: general and particular. General solitude means not to mix with other people especially the ignorant masses and to meet them only as and when absolutely necessary. The Qur'an says: And forsake those who take their religion for a pastime and a jest, and whom the life of the world beguiles. (Surah al-An-am, 6:70)"
Particular solitude means to keep away from all men. Such kind of seclusion is commendable at the time of performing all acts of worship, but is considered essential by the gnostics at the time of pronouncing certain liturgies. In this connection the following points must be observed:
For the spiritual traveller it is necessary to keep himself away from crowds and disturbing noises. The place where he performs acts of worship must be clean and lawful. Even the walls and the ceilings of his room must be tidy. His room should be a small one preferably accommodating only one person. A small room having no furniture and no decorating material is helpful in keeping the thoughts concentrated.
A man sought Salman Farsi's permission to build a house for him. Till then Salman had not built a house for himself. Still he refused to give the permission. That man said: 'I know why you do not give permission.' `Say why', said Salman. He said: `You want me to build you a house only so long and so wide that it may accommodate you only.' `Yes, that's the thing. You are right.', said Salman. Subsequently that man built for Salman with his permission a house of that small size.
(xvi) Vigil
It means that the spiritual traveller must make it a habit to wake up before dawn as early as he tolerably can. Denouncing the sleeping at dawn and praising the keeping awake at that time Allah says: They used to sleep only a little while at night and at dawn used to seek forgiveness. (Surah az-Zaziyat, 51:18)
(xvii) Continued Cleanliness
It means to be always ritually pure and to adhere to the performance of major ablution on Fridays and on all other occasions on which it has been recommended.
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(xviii) Practising modesty and humility to the utmost degree
It includes weeping and wailing also.
(xix) Abstaining from Tasty Food
The spiritual traveller should abstain from tasty dishes and should be content with a little food as is absolutely necessary to sustain his life and energy.
(xx) Secrecy
It is one of the most important points to be observed by a spiritual traveller. The great gnostics have been very particular about it and have laid great stress on it. They advised their pupils to keep their spiritual exercises as well as their visions etc. secret. If simulation (taqiyya) is not possible, equivocation (tawriyah) must be resorted to. If necessary spiritual exercises may be abandoned for some time to maintain secrecy. "Try to fulfil your needs by maintaining secrecy."
At the time of sufferings and calamities simulation and secrecy make the things easier. If the spiritual traveller faces any hardships, he should go forward patiently.
Seek help in patience and prayers; truely it is hard except for the humble-minded. (Surah al-Baqarah, 2:45)
In this verse the word salat (prayers) has been used in its literal sense, that is attention to Allah. On this basis it may be inferred from this verse that patience in the remembrance of Allah makes the hardships less burdensome and paves the way to success. That is why it is often observed that the people who become extremely restless when their small finger is cut, do not worry in the least about losing their limbs and organs in the battlefield. According to this general rule the Imams have laid great stress on secrecy, and even have considered abandoning simulation a grave sin.
Shaykh Saduq in his book, at-Tawhid has quoted a report saying that one day Abu Basir asked Imam Ja`far Sadiq if it was possible to see Allah on the Day of Resurrection. He asked so because the Asheirah, the followers of the Sunni Imam Abul Hasan Ash`ari believe that all people will see Allah on the Day of Resurrection and in the hereafter, which is obviously not possible without incarnation. Allah is far above what these
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wrong-doers say. The Imam said: "It is possible to see Allah even in this world as you saw Him here just now." Abu Basir said: "Son of the Prophet, allow me to relate this event to others." The Imam did not allow him to do so and said: "Don't relate it to others; otherwise they will not be able to comprehend the truth and will go astray for no reason."
>(xxi) Preceptor and Spiritual Guide
The preceptors are also of two types: General and special. The general preceptor is he who is not responsible for guiding any particular individual. People seek his guidance considering him to be a learned and experienced man. The Qur'an says: Ask those who know if you do not know. Such preceptors can be helpful only in the beginning of spiritual journey. When the spiritual traveller begins to view the manifestations of the glory of essence and attributes of Allah, he no longer needs to have a general preceptor. The special preceptor is he about whom a divine ordinance exists to the effect that he has been assigned the job of guidance. This position is held only by the Holy Prophet and his rightful successors. Their guidance and company are essential and indispensable not only at every stage of spiritual journey, but even after the spiritual traveller has reached his destination. The nature of this company is esoteric not physical for the real nature of the Imam is that station of his luminosity, the authority of which extends to everyone and everything in the world. Although Imam's body is also superior to the body of everyone else, yet the source of his authority over the universe is not his body. To explain this point it may be mentioned that whatever happens in this world, its source is the names and attributes of Allah, and the same Divine names and attributes are the essence of the Imam also. That is why the Imams have said: "Allah is known through us and he is worshipped through us." Therefore it may rightly be said that whatever stages the spiritual traveller traverses, he covers them in the light of the Imam, and every position to which he advances, that position is controlled by the Imam. Throughout his journey the spiritual traveller enjoys the company of the Imam and remains associated with him. Even after reaching his destination, he needs the company of the Imam, for it is the
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Imam who teaches him the rules that are to be observed in the World of Divinity. Therefore Imam's company is essential at every stage of spiritual journey. In this connection there are many subtle points which are not easy to be explained. They may be discovered by the spiritual traveller through his own taste.
Once Muhyuddin Ibn 'Arabi went to a spiritual guide and complained to him that injustice was growing and the sins were rampant. The spiritual guide advised him to pay attention to Allah. A few days later he went to another spiritual guide and made the same complaint. That spiritual guide told him to pay attention to himself. Ibn 'Arabi was very much upset and began to weep. He asked the spiritual guide why the two answers were so different from each other. The spiritual guide said: "Oh dear! the answer is one and the same. He drew your attention to the companion and Ito the path."
I have related this story to show that there is no difference between making a journey to Allah on the one hand and arriving at the station of the Imam while passing through the stages of the Divine names and attributes on the other. These two things are not only closer to each other but are almost identical. At this stage there is no conception of duality. There is nothing but the light of the glory of one Single Being, which is described in different words. Sometimes it is expressed as the Divine names and attributes and sometimes as the essence of the Imam or his luminosity.
To know whether a general preceptor is fit to be so, it is necessary to watch him closely and have contact with him for a considerable time. Such super-natural things as to know what others think, to walk on fire or water, to narrate the past events or to foretell the future, are not a sign of anybody's being a favourite of Allah. The performance of such things becomes possible at the beginning of spiritual vision, but the stage of proximity to Allah is far away from this stage. No one can be a preceptor in the true sense unless and until he receives the light of the glory of Divine essence. To receive the light of the manifestations of Divine names and attributes is not enough.
The spiritual traveller is said to be receiving the light of the manifestations of the Divine attributes when he feels that his
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knowledge, power and life are really the knowledge, power and life of Allah. At this stage when the spiritual traveller hears something, he feels that Allah has heard it and when he sees something, he feels that Allah has seen it. He may feel that Allah alone is the Knower, and the knowledge of every existing being is the knowledge of Allah Himself.
The spiritual traveller is said to be receiving the light of the glory of the Divine names when he views the Divine attributes in himself. For example he feels that Allah is the only Knower and his knowledge is also that of Allah. Or he feels that the only living Being is Allah and that he himself is not living, but his life is actually that of Allah. In other words he intuitively feels that "there is no knowing, living or powerful being except Allah." If a spiritual traveller receives the light of the manifestations of one or two Divine names, it is not necessary that he should receive the light of the manifestations of other Divine names also.
The spiritual traveller receives the light of the glory of Divine essence only when he forgets himself totally and can find no trace of himself or his ego. "There is none but Allah." Such a person can never go astray, nor can be seduced by Satan. Satan does not lose hope of alluring a spiritual traveller until he obliterates his very existence. But when he enters the sanctuary of the world of divinity after annihilating his personality and ego, Satan loses all hope of seducing him. A general preceptor must be such as to have reached this stage. Otherwise it is not safe for a devotee to submit himself to any Tom, Dick or Harry.
It is not advisable for a spiritual traveller to go at random to any shop for getting what he requires or to submit himself to any pretender. He should make complete investigations about the proposed preceptor and when it is not possible to do so, he should put trust in Allah, compare the proposed preceptor's teachings with those of the Holy Prophet and the Imams, and act only according to what conforms to the latter. If he does so, he will be safe from the wiles of Satan. The Qur'an says: Satan has no power over those who believe and put trust in their Lord. His power is only over those who make a friend of him and those who ascribe partners to Allah. (Surah an-Nahl, 16:99)
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(xxii) Daily Verbal Recitation of Liturgies:
The amount and the method of the recitation of the verbal liturgies depend on what the preceptor advises. The liturgies are just like a medicine which may suit some and may not suit others. Sometimes it so happens that a spiritual traveller begins more than one liturgies of his own opinion, while one liturgy pulls him towards plurality and another towards unity. Their mutual clash nullifies the effect of both and they become totally ineffective. It may be mentioned that the permission of the preceptor is necessary only for those liturgies which every body is not allowed to recite. There is no objection to the reciting of those liturgies for which general permission already exists.
The gnostics do not attach any importance to the mere repetition of liturgies without paying attention to their meaning which is far more important. Mere verbal repetition is of no use.
(xxiii, xxiv, xxv) Remembrance, Recollection, Evil thoughts
These three stages are of great importance for the purpose of achieving the objective. Many people who fail to reach their destination either stop at one of these stages or go astray while on their way to them. The dangers which these stages imply are idol-worship, star-worship, fire-worship and occasionally heresy, Pharaonism, claim of incarnation and identification with God, denial of being obligated to abide by religious injunctions and regarding everything lawful. We will discuss briefly all these dangers. Let us first talk about incarnation and identification with God, which is the greatest danger and is caused by devilish insinuation when the mind is not free from evil thoughts.
As the spiritual traveller is not out of the valley of ostentation, he may be led in the wake of the manifestation of Divine names or attributes to believe (God forbid) that Allah has dwelt in him. That is what is meant by incarnation, which amounts to infidelity and polytheism, while the belief in the unity of Allah nullifies every concept of pluralism, and considers every existence in comparison to the existence of Allah a mere fantasy and everything existing a mere shadow. When the spiritual traveller attains to this stage, he annihilates his existence and does not perceive anything existing except Allah.
