Book of Healing - Healing Through Knowledge - Laws of Spirit and Spirituality
Laws of Spirit and Spirituality
Tags: Laws of Spirit, Spirituality, Subtle body, Soul, Jinn, Pari, Death
1. The knowledge of spirit and spirituality is not common and easy, rather it is very special and extremely difficult. Nonetheless, it is not impossible in Islam for the Holy Spirit of the wise Qur'an, which is also called Light, to be the generating source of spirituality. If, for the sake of knowledge, you want to ask: What is meant by a living spirit of the noble Qur'an? The answer to this question is that whenever a verse of the Qur'an used to be revealed to the holy Prophet, it used to be in the form of spirit and light. Then he used to recite it and let the scribes of revelation write it down. This means that real spirit and spirituality is linked with the wise Qur'an (42:52).
2. If a fortunate Muslim attains an experience of spirituality, then this bounty, wealth, guidance, knowledge, wisdom and gnosis is due to the external and internal blessings of the Qur'an. For, among the names of the Qur'an, one name is "Mubarak" (38:29), which means blessed Book. The essential prerequisite of attaining Qur'anic blessings is that the people of wisdom should reflect upon it (38:29). He who loves the beauty of the meaning of the Qur'an, should understand the examples of its blessings properly. The material example of a blessing (barakat) is a thing which continues for ever and never ceases, such as the resources of a huge mountain which always continue, namely, the constant flow of water, the perpetual growth of trees and herbs, the chain of the beasts of prey, abundance of minerals, etc. (41:10).
3. Now with recourse to the holy Qur'an time and again, we will try to explain the human soul. Soul is the most amazing and most incomparable thing in God's Godhead. The greatest wonder of soul is that, at its supreme rank, it acts as the mirror of Divine beauty and majesty, in which the reflection of the blessed Divine attributes have a new mode in every moment. This infinite chain of the Divine manifestations and theophanies is mentioned in the wise Qur'an as: "Every day He is in a mode (manifestation)" (55:29). Among the various exegeses of this noble verse, there is also a Sufic exegesis, that among the days of God, the Omnipotent, there are the shortest as well as the longest days. This is because of the fact that it is God Himself Who enfolds and unfolds temporal and spatial distances. Thus, one of the several meanings of this sacred verse is that the luminous manifestation, which is observed in the mirror of soul, shines every moment with a different beauty. After all, what are these Divine manifestations and theophanies in the mirror of the heart and the soul? And why? They are the countless similes and similitudes of the Reality of the realities.
4. Is it true that a successful Sufi can see his soul? Yes, it is true that a Muslim, who has been adorned with knowledge and action, a true mu'min and a pure-hearted Sufi can see his soul. With which eye can the soul be seen? With the external eye or with the eye of the heart? First with the eye of the heart and then with the physical eye as well. What is the shape and form of the soul? Or, what is the creature in whose form the soul appears? Since the human soul is created from the quintessence of the universe and the existents, or in other words, man or soul is the microcosm or the personal world which contains each and every thing of the macrocosm in a subtle state or in the state of particles, therefore, in spiritual observation the soul appears in the shape of everything. Yet, it has a special form of its own as well, which is the human form, which in reality is called the Divine Form or Image (surat-i Rahman) in which external and internal beauty is found in its most consummate and perfect form.
5. Soul is a self-subsistent substance, therefore, originally it is free from everything, yet it is also embodied. There are four stages of its abstract or immaterial state, which are: imagination, dream, spirituality and the place of intellect. It also has four stages of embodiment which are: dense particles, dense body, subtle particles and subtle body. Here, it should be remembered that the place where the souls are in particles is called the world of particles (`alam-i dharr).
6. Soul is indivisible. That is, soul in itself does not have particles and parts, but through the mediation of subtle and dense body, it can appear in innumerable manifestations. The example of this reality is the sun, which in itself is not divisible, but becomes divisible where it reflects in pure and transparent things. This means that in the Supreme Soul or the Single Soul (nafs-i wahidah) there is only a single reality of all the human souls. Thus what Mawla-yi Rumi says is absolutely true: "Who says we have come to this world! This existence of ours is only a shadow of the original existence." He is quite right, for according to the Qur'an, the fountainhead of the sun of souls is in the world of command (17:85), but its countless luminous shadows continue to reflect in the mirrors of human existence. Thus, although the human soul in the physical body is like a shadow as mentioned above, at least unconsciously if not consciously, it is linked with its whole (i.e. the Universal Soul) and this link continues. In such a case it should not be surprising if a Perfect Guide transmits his voice to another human being through the mediation of the Universal Soul, just as the voice and picture of a television can be heard and seen in front of you through a satellite, despite being in a distant country.
7. According to the purport of verse (35:10), the supreme grandeur of human soul lies in that its pure word and good deed may ascend to and reach the Divine Court, so that after attaining the honour of acceptance and annihilation, it may tend towards building a new world by means of His Command (amr).
8. If you wish you can see the details in my book "What is Soul?", in which it is said that in plants, animals and man there is not a single soul, rather the soul of every level is a compendium of the spiritual particles of its own kind. Thus leaving aside the total departure of the soul from the body by which a total death takes place, partially the coming-and-going of the particles of soul always continues. According to this principle the coming-and-going of good and bad souls in the town of existence becomes possible. Good souls are like angels and bad souls are like the devils. In addition, there is also the law that, from among these opposing souls, man can invite and retain whichever soul he likes and expel whichever he does not like.
9. From the preceding explanation, it clearly results that in every individual person there can be two kinds of soul: one is his own soul and the other an additional soul, whether good or bad, or an angel or a devil, namely, a believing jinn or a non-believing jinn, just as in a house, besides the members of the family, there can be some other people from outside. In this example, anyone can come home. On the one hand a king, a vizier, a rich person, a poor person, a pir, a dignitary, and on the other, a tyrant, a thief, a wicked person, etc.
10. Jinn is also spirit, therefore, it will be discussed here as well. Jinn is in the subtle body. God has created jinns in various small and big ranks. The smallest jinn is in the smallest particle, so that such jinns may cleanse our cells, and they may come and go through the pores. The greatest jinn is equal to a robust and tall young man. If he is `Ifrit, then he is a mu'min and extremely powerful and does tremendous work. Since jinn is created from fire, in the current parlance we can say that he is an electric or atomic creature. He can appear and disappear instantly. It is amazing that he has the ability to converse with everyone in their respective languages.
11. There are many misunderstandings among the masses regarding the jinn. Jinns are regarded as ugly creatures separate from paris (fairies) which are considered beautiful creatures, which is not true. The truth is that "jinn" is an Arabic word, whose Persian translation is pari. That is, the subtle being which is called jinn in Arabic, is called pari in Persian. But God knows why the story writers have divided one kind of creature into two groups.
12. Everything is mentioned in the wise Qur'an (16:89), therefore paris are also mentioned in it. They are mentioned in the subject of jinn, which is spread over fifty different places. The longest description of jinns i.e. paris is in the Suratu'l-jinn (72). In this Surah, in verse (72:6) the following words are also mentioned: "Rijalun mina'l-jinn (some men from among jinns)". This means that there are men as well as women among jinns. A male jinn in Arabic is called jinni and a female jinniyyah. (See al-Munjid, al-Mawrid, Madd al-Qamus, etc.).
13. Every wise person fails to praise and describe the wise Qur'an, because it is the unique Heavenly Book, in which all the secrets of the Universe and the existents are mentioned in the language of wisdom. In connection with the spiritual kingdom of Hazrat Sulayman, there are many subtle and profound allusions to jinns. By duly reflecting upon them, it is revealed that jinns are mostly related to the construction and progress of the personal world (microcosm), and very little to the external world. Thus, he who wishes to subjugate a jinn in order to attain wealth, fame and honour and to subdue his enemy, is utterly wrong. For this work is extremely dangerous for the body, soul, religion and faith.
14. If the chillah (the constant `ibadat of forty days) is in the sense of i`tikaf in order to attain the pleasure of God, it is an extremely noble act. God willing, by this act there will be some spiritual progress. Otherwise, practice of the opposite kind of chillah is contrary to the law of spirituality. If somewhere in the stages of spirituality you observe and experience jinns, then it is among the Divine favours that a secret has been revealed to you and you have seen the subtle creature. God willing, such an experience will be a great source of blessings for you.
15. It is said that the inhabitants of the mountain Qaf, which surrounds the world, are all jinns and paris. But you know that such a mountain where there are the habitations of jinns only, does not exist on the planet earth. Therefore, by the mountain of Qaf is meant spirituality in which every kind of subtle creature is seen, namely, jinn, spirit, spiritual beings, etc. For, in spirituality the veil is removed from one's eyes.
16. We, you and all other people, whoever and however they may be, are interlinked and interrelated like a thousand-beaded rosary, in the sense that, the bodies of all of us are threaded on the string of the Single Soul (nafs-i wahidah). The beads of the rosary are separate, but its thread is one. In the light of this meaningful example, if we see our bodies, they are separate, but if we conceive the soul, then undoubtedly all of us are one. Or we should say that there is only one and that is the Single Soul. The most important point in this is that from this thread of unity and integrity neither angel, nor jinn, nor devil is excluded. Thus this thread of soul works faster and better than a telegraph wire, by which everyone receives the telegrams of good and bad thoughts.
17. Referring to the Suratu'n-Nas (114:1-6) I would like to say that if khannas (sneaking devil) which is from among both the jinn and mankind, was not threaded with all others on the string or wire of soul, i.e., were he not threaded on this all-embracing string, then how would it have been possible for him to insinuate wicked thoughts in the hearts of people? Although this example is related to evil, the wisdom which lies in it is very amazing and invites the people of wisdom to reflect upon it. One point in this is that the devil was first an angel, now he is a jinn as well as a man. The other point is that a person can sink in evil to the extent that he can, on his own insinuate wicked thoughts in the hearts of the people of the whole world. For angel, jinn, devil and man all have a soul, and the soul is like the string of a rosary, or a string of pearls, or a telephone wire, through which one can transmit a good or a bad current to many people. It is obvious that the command of God has precedence over everything and every law.
18. Read the blessed verse (45:13) in which the subjugation of the universe is mentioned in a wisdom-filled way. That is, God in His infinite mercy has subjugated the heavens and the earth to man externally and internally. Today man is struggling to reach the stars by the help of material science, which is in accordance with the will of God, because it is He Who has provided all these means. Similarly if through the help of spiritual science he subjugates the spiritual aspect of the universe, which is hidden within his self (personal world), then this will also be in accordance with that law of subjugation, which He has made possible and granted to man.
19. God is All-wise and All-merciful. Through His perfect power and profound wisdom He has transformed the external world into a spiritual and intellectual form in the person of man and has made it an everlasting great, unique, perfect and consummate kingdom in every respect. How can it be possible that, in order to attain and protect the external kingdom, treasures are spent lavishly and thousands of human souls sacrificed, but there should not be any jihad and sacrifice for the acquisition of the spiritual kingdom? It is impossible. Therefore, in order to acquire the spiritual kingdom, an essential prerequisite is that every individual should either make an infidel jinn a Muslim, or kill him. This infidel or disobedient jinn is the carnal soul (nafs-i ammarah) of every individual. But it is extremely strange that to fight against one's carnal soul is extremely difficult as well as extremely easy.
20. It is an extremely interesting, productive and beneficial question to ask: What are the occasions on which it is possible for angels to descend to the people of faith? You can see this as a special subject in the wise Qur'an. For instance, during the battle of Badr, by the command of God, the angels descended to help the army of Islam (3:125). They also descended in the battle of Ahzab (Allies) or Khandaq (Ditch) (33:9), battle of Hunayn (9:26), etc. Since this was the external jihad, therefore, the armies of angels did not appear to the Muslims. But in spiritual jihad, when they descend for the succour and help of the mu'mins they definitely appear, just as when the spiritual mujahids become shahid (martyr) in this life time, the angels talk to them (16:32; 41:30-32).
21. The people of wisdom, if they wish, can see all the descriptions and allusions of spirituality in the noble Qur'an. Among them there is also the mention of the wisdom-filled blessed death, which happens to a mu'min who has high ambition and is in constant dhikr, before his physical death. This death is called the spiritual death. Thus the companions of the Prophet used to yearn not only for physical martyrdom (shahadat), but also for the bliss of the spiritual death. If in the light of verse (3:143) it is accepted that some great companions of the Prophet were blessed with the honour of spiritual death and spiritual martyrdom in this life, then we should ask ourselves what is meant by spiritual death and spiritual martyrdom? The correct answer to this question is that, by this death is meant the minor or personal resurrection, without which such an honourable death cannot take place, as it is said in a Hadith: "He who dies (spiritually or physically), his personal resurrection takes place." (Ihya', IV, 64)
22. Whose martyrdom were the great companions of the Prophet, may God be pleased with them, yearning for? Their own or that of others? They were yearning for their own spiritual death. Who is addressed in the above mentioned-verse: the living martyrs of spirituality, or the physical martyrs? In this verse it is those mu'mins who have experienced the spiritual death, but are still alive, who are addressed mainly, whereas those who are martyred physically, are not addressed by this command. Thus, it should be known that in "So indeed you have seen it" in the above verse, the seeing of the details of the exercise of `Izra'il (amal-i `Izra'ili) is mentioned, and in "and you look (at it)" there is the mention of the opening of the inner eye and benefitting from the observation of spirituality as a result of it.
23. It has already been mentioned that the human soul is a compendium of innumerable spiritual particles, in which not only the people of the whole world, but each and every thing of the universe and its parts is hidden. To elaborate on this point further, man is a subtle world and all people together are called worlds (`alamin, Qamus, p. 344). Thus in every person there is everyone and everything. This means that, for everyone, the subjugation of the self (personal world) is the subjugation of the universe. This needs both knowledge and stringent action, so that man may conquer himself, open the eye of the heart and recognise his own soul. For, it is in the recognition of the soul that the recognition of God, the Lord of honour lies, and this recognition is that everlasting and eternal wealth, without acquiring which, nobody can acquire the hidden treasure.
24. If according to the Hadith: "He who recognizes his soul, recognizes his Lord" (Ahadith-i Mathnawi, p. 167) the recognition of a mu'min's soul is the recognition of the Lord, then can the recognition of the Qur'an be excluded from this recognition, or is it also included in it? If someone thinks that the recognition of His speech is excluded from His own recognition, how can this be possible? From this explanation it is clear for the wise people that the recognition of the soul is the recognition of God, as well as the recognition of the Qur'an. When it is established in the light of this proof that the recognition of the glorious Qur'an is possible, then the recognition of all those things which are mentioned in the Qur'an is not outside the domain of this recognition. Now for the sake of observation, study and recognition, there are three places: the level of intellect, the stages of spirituality and the Qur'an. That is, the mention and recognition of all events which have taken and take place in the world of intellect and in the world of soul, are also in the wise Qur'an.
25. Among the mineral soul, vegetative soul, animal soul, human soul (rational soul), and the Holy Spirit, it is only in the Holy Spirit that the greatest treasure of the recognition of the Lord lies, and after the holy Prophet, this extremely pure Spirit is in the Perfect Guide. In order to attain the favours and blessings of the Holy Spirit, one has to struggle arduously according to Islamic teachings, and it is only then that a revolution takes place in one's soul.
26. The discussion of an extremely important subject, such as the laws of spirit and spirituality requires the most beautiful words and the best examples. But I know how weak I am in this respect. Therefore realising the lack of literary embellishment and adornment of this article, I request the erudite and experienced writers to ignore these shortcomings.
Wa's-salam (Peace).
Nasir al-Din Nasir Hunzai
30/5/87
Note. This article is written on the request of my old friend, intimate companion, esteemed brother, Alijah Ra'is Amrohvi Sahib. The other azizes should read it as usual and comply with the necessary references.
Nasir.
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