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Caskets of Pearls Vol. 1 - Casket of Pearls 35

Casket of Pearls 35

Tags: Ma`arij

Q334 Would you kindly explain why God, may He be exalted, is called Dhi'l-ma`arij (the Lord of ladders) in verse (70:3)?
A334

• Ma`arij, which is the plural of mi`raj, means ladders or ranks.
• They are the hudud-i din of every cycle, namely, the Universal Intellect, the Universal Soul, natiq, asas, Imam, bab, hujjat, da`i, ma'dhun and mustajib.
• These hudud-i din are the ranks, sometimes called the straight path, sometimes the rope of God and sometimes the ladder.
• All these hudud are gathered together in the Imam-i mubin, whose recognition is in the personal world.

Q335 Every Qur'anic verse in its esoteric wisdom is extremely amazing for the people of intellect, such as verse (51:50): "So flee to Allah." Please explain the wisdom of this verse.
A335 This verse means:

• Go forth on the straight path rapidly.
• Do not be at all lazy in the remembrance of Allah.
• Excel others in every good deed.
• Benefit profoundly from the rapid remembrance.
• Flee to the refuge of God to escape all evils and dangers.

Q336 What is the greatest wisdom of verse (4:125): "And who is better in religion than he who submits his face to Allah, being a doer of good and who follows the [pure] religion of Abraham, the upright? And Allah did take Abraham for a friend."
A336

• Whose religion can be better than the one who submits his spiritual face to Allah, being a doer of good and who follows the [pure] religion of Abraham (May peace be through him), the upright? And Allah chose Abraham (May peace be through him) for His friendship.
• The one who together with knowledge and good deeds is doing abundant giryah-u zari with intense and ardent heavenly love and prostrates abundantly, submits his intellectual and spiritual face to Allah. To him Allah grants eternal life in the surat-i Rahman like Hazrat Adam (May peace be through him).

Q337 What is the wisdom in verse (6:80): "Verily I have turned my face to Him Who originated the heavens and the earth, as a man of pure faith"?
A337

• Hazrat Abraham (May peace be through him) said: I turned my intellectual and spiritual face to Him Who created the heavens and the earth. I am the one who recognises oneness.
• When Hazrat Abraham (May peace be through him)'s access of recognition reached the Universal Soul after reaching the Universal Intellect, God created him in the form of Rahman like Hazrat Adam (May peace be through him).
• When the `arif is merged in the surat-i Rahman, his intellectual and spiritual face is assigned to Allah, may His splendour be glorified.
• The wisdom of the above verse is expressed in the following verse:

Q338 What is the secret of recognition in Hazrat Abraham (May peace be through him)'s saying "I do not love the setting ones (afilin, 6:76)"?
A338 There is an allusion to the specific recognition of the Universal Soul, who transcends rising and setting.

Q339 Hazrat Abraham (May peace be through him) also said: "And I am not of the polytheists" (6:79). Please explain this to us.
A339

• It means that he was among those who accepted that God is one in a true sense.
• It is very easy to verbally declare that God is one, but true knowledge and recognition of His oneness are extremely difficult. In order to attain this knowledge and recognition, the guidance of the Imam from the progeny of the holy Prophet is extremely necessary.
• It is an `arif's supreme success to go to the sacred Sanctuary and be in the surat-i Rahman, yet it is important to reflect whether this is a totally new event which never happened in the past, or is it the discovery of an eternal secret?

Q340 Verses (23:97-98) mention not only the evil suggestions (hamazat) of satans, but also that they can appear before people. Thus, the question here is that if satan as a misleader (muzill) can do so much to spread evil, does the Imam, as the true guide, not have anything to counteract his evil deeds?
A340

• Why not? The Imam has many things rather he has everything!
• There are numerous examples of his light. It is like a telephone, a military signal and wireless.
• The Imam possesses the supreme miracle of the ibda`i body and hence he can appear in front of a devoted mu'min in this luminous body.
• There are many exalted places of the holy didar in the spiritual world (batin) as well, but here our focus is on the celestial body of the Imam and how tremendous that miracle is!

⁸⁰ Al-Mu'ayyad fi'd-Din Shirazi, al-Majalisu'l-Mu'ayyadiyyah, ed. H. Hamid al-Din (Bombay, 1975), I, 461.