Precious Treasure - Ranks of Light (Maqamat-i Nur)
Ranks of Light (Maqamat-i Nur)
Tags: Nur, Light, Divine Light, Sawwaytuh, Ziya', A`yun, , Vision, Miracles of Hazrat-i `Isa, Wahy, Ibda`, Mubdi`, Qaba Qawsayn, Niche, Lamp, Fire
1. There is no doubt that "Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth" (24:35). However, it is extremely important that we should think deeply about this great secret and ask ourselves: which world's heavens and earth does the Divine light illumine directly? Is it the external world or the internal? Is it the world of religion or the personal world?
The correct answer to this key question is that the world of religion is in this physical world and the personal world is in the former, which is directly illumined by the holy light of God. The personal world here means the true Imam's blessed personality, which is the place of manifestation and illumination of God's light, which illumines the heavens and earth of the world of religion. The external world too receives light from the true Imam by degrees.
2. God, the Nourisher of honour, first of all appointed Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) as the mazhar of His absolute light, which is also called the Divine Spirit, as God says: "When I will perfect him (sawwaytuh) and breathe into him My Spirit (the word 'Be') (at the rank of soul and the rank of intellect), then fall down, prostrating yourselves to him" (15:29; 38:72). In this Divine teaching, the Divine act of the word "sawwaytuh (I have perfected him)" means to be elevated from the stages of spirituality and to reach the light of Intellect (the Divine Throne), for the Divine Spirit, which is the Divine Word (kalimah-yi bari) is breathed in at this stage.
3. Two kinds of light are mentioned in the holy Qur'an: ziya' and nur (10:5). Kindly explain to us which light was in Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him)? Are two separate lights mentioned here?
Answer: Light, in reality, is one. However, with respect to the Divine Word it is called ziya' and when it is transferred to the Intellect, it is nur. An example to explain this reality is that the sun is called ziya' and the moon nur in the wise Qur'an (10:5). The reason for this is that the light of the sun is its own, but that of the moon is not as it comes from the sun. Both the lights were in the personal world of Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him). On the one hand, the sun of the Divine Word was radiating its light (ziya') and on the other, the moon of Intellect was shedding its light (nur).
4. The rank of the Divine Spirit and light was also given to Hazrat-i Nuh (May peace be through him). Thus, the ark of luminosity, which was in his personality, is mentioned in the Qur'an in these words: "And build the ark with Our essence (a`yun=jawahir) and with Our inspiration (wahy)" (11:37). A`yun is the plural of `ayn. `Ayn has many meanings, one of which is essence. Thus, a`yun means the essences of things, which are the realities of the rank of Intellect. Inspiration or wahy means the Divine Word. Another verse in this connection is: "And We carried him on a thing (ark) of planks and nails that was floating according to the essences of things as a reward for the one who was rejected (so that the disobedient may perish in the deluge of ignorance)" (54:13-14). In this verse, planks mean the manifestations of the Divine Word and nails mean the demonstration of the light of Intellect. The ark was floating according to the realities or the essences of things, so that the disobedient people who were outside it may perish in the deluge of ignorance.
5. There is another verse in this regard: "And it was said: O earth! Swallow your water, and O sky! Withhold (your rain)! And the water subsided and the commandment was fulfilled. And the ark rested on Mount Judi and it was said: A far removal (from Divine mercy) for wrongdoing people" (11:44). The ta'wil of this verse is: The souls of the personality were absorbed in the body and the external souls flew back and thus the water of the deluge of spirituality subsided and manifested the Word of Command, with which [his] spirituality reached its climax and the ark went to the Mount of Intellect to rest there forever. In such a state, Hazrat-i Nuh (May peace be through him) and the mu'mins were receiving God's mercy and the others were far removed from it. This shows that Hazrat-i Nuh (May peace be through him) had the same light as Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) before him. The reality and the light are one and the same, although the words to describe it with respect to these two great personalities are different.
6. The light of guidance also called the Divine Spirit, which entered the forehead of Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) and which according to the verse of "Selection (istafa', 3:33)" had to continue and last in the chain of the Prophets and Imams continued in Hazrat-i Ibrahim (May peace be through him) generation after generation, as mentioned in the Qur'an: "And when his Nourisher tried Ibrahim with certain Words (kalimat), and he fulfilled them, He said: Verily I am going to appoint you a leader (Imam) for humankind. (Ibrahim) said: And of my offspring also? He said: (Yes, but) My covenant is not within the reach of wrongdoers" (2:124). The main focus of our search in this verse is "Words (kalimat)", which included both "Names (asma')" and "Words (kalimat)", which (Hazrat-i Ibrahim (May peace be through him)) completed one after the other. At the end of these "Words (kalimat) was the Divine Word (kalimah-yi bari)", which contains everything and is the fountainhead of light and the ultimate destination of the spiritual journey.
7. The rank of Hazrat-i Musa (May peace be through him)'s light too, was the same as that attained by Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him), Hazrat-i Nuh (May peace be through him) and Hazrat-i Ibrahim (May peace be through him) before him, as God says: "And when Musa came (to the Mount Sinai) to fulfil Our appointed time and his Nourisher (rabb) spoke to him, he said: O Lord! Show me (Yourself) that I may gaze upon You. He said: By no means can you see Me; but look upon the mountain (to which I reveal My glory)! If it stands still in its place, then you will see Me. And when his Nourisher revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Musa fell down unconscious. And when he came to consciousness (i.e., when the ta'wil came to him) he said: O God, You are free from all attributes! I turn to You, and I am the first to believe (in these realities)" (7:143).
In this verse, Hazrat-i Musa (May peace be through him) had the vision (ru'yat=didar) from one respect but not from another. This indicates that one should always [aim to] have the vision of the manifestations of the intellect and knowledge of God. Therefore, God manifested the light of knowledge and wisdom on the Mount of Intellect and transformed it into countless gems. He drew Hazrat-i Musa (May peace be through him)'s attention towards this perpetual and perennial vision and polished and burnished every gem in such a way that Mount Sinai's theophany reflected in it when observed in the light of knowledge and recognition.
Vision (ru'yat=didar) in the form of intellect and knowledge is a Qur'anic reality. God willing, if you reflect on this verse, you will have abundant happiness. It is: "Unto Allah belong the East and the West, and wherever you turn, there is Allah's Face. Verily, Allah is All-Embracing, All-Knowing" (2:115). The ta'wil of this verse is that the entire world of the Qur'an belongs to Allah. Therefore, you will have an intellectual manifestation and a vision of knowledge of Allah's Face in the esoteric aspect of whichever verse you study. For God, the Wise, has adorned His Mighty Book with the miracles of knowledge. Indeed, He is the Owner of all-embracing knowledge.
8. It is among the realities of the Qur'an that Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) was manifesting the same Divine Spirit breathed into Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) and which manifests from the Divine Word. Thus, from the following verse you can determine what kind of miracles manifest from the Perfect Men into whom the Divine or Holy Spirit is breathed. See the verse: "When Allah will say: O `Isa, son of Maryam! Remember My favour on you and your mother; how I helped you with the Holy Spirit, so that you spoke to the people in the cradle and when grown up, and how I taught you the Book and Wisdom and the Torah and the Gospel; and when you made out of clay the likeness of a bird by My permission (idhn), and breathed into it and it became a bird by My permission, and you healed those born blind and the lepers by My permission; and when you raised the dead (from the graves) by My permission" (5:110).
The ta'wil of the above-mentioned miracles of Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) is as follows: When the luminous birth of Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) took place in the personal world of the hudud-i din, he started to speak immediately in their personal world. This continued and when he became mature, he started to show spiritual miracles in their personal worlds. The Book or al-kitab is that living light whose signs (ayat) are the Pen, the Tablet and the Writing (raqim). This Book contains profound wisdom and all heavenly Books.
Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) gave ism-i a`zam to the hudud-i din. One Qur'anic name of ism-i a`zam is "idhnu'llah (God's permission)", through which at the station of `Izra'il (May peace be through him) (maqam-i `Izra'il), his personality became an image and a mould into which the Holy Spirit was cast and consequently an angel like him came into existence and began to fly.
To heal a person born blind means to bring someone who is lost, to the straight path and to give him the inner eye by God's permission. A leper means someone who has remained in the initial light of spirituality5 for a long time and who does not realise that its real stages are further ahead, and particularly someone who has seen this light without the Imam of the time's guidance. Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) used to help such people to progress further in the stages of spirituality. This is the ta'wil of healing a leper. The ta'wil of raising the dead from the graves is that, the particles of soul used to resurrect from the living graveyards of human beings and come towards Hazrat-i `Isa (May peace be through him) when he was passing through the personal resurrection.
9. Regarding the holy Prophet Muhammad (May Allah send blessings and peace through him and his progeny), the Chief of the Prophets, no Muslim has any doubt in his being "A light from God (5:15)" and a "Luminous Lamp (33:46)". Further, the reality that the holy Prophet was the most noble and excellent of all the Prophets and Messengers is crystal clear to the people of wisdom. There are many reasons for this. Nonetheless, the straight path (path of spirituality) and the ultimate destination are the same for all Prophets and all ummats, as God says: "Verily We inspired you (awhayna ilayka) as We inspired Nuh and the Prophets after him" (4:163). Thus, the way of inspiration and its stages are the same for all the Prophets.
Reflect on this verse too: "And it is not possible for a human that God should speak to him except by inspiration (wahy) or from behind a veil, or by the sending of a messenger to reveal what He wills by His permission. Verily He is Exalted, Wise." (42:51). The main meaning of wahy is indication, allusion. It is of three kinds: The first is the vision (ru'yat, didar), which is the supreme indication, the second is verbal indication, in which countless spiritual examples are hidden, and the third is the practical (`amali) indication in which there are innumerable examples of the demonstration of the Intellect. In 'from behind a veil' implies that at this second level of indication or wahy or kalam, there is no vision but only the Divine light's voice. 'Sending of a messenger to reveal what He wills by His permission' is the third level of wahy or kalam. It should be remembered that although wahy at the highest level is used in an extremely special sense, it is applicable to all levels of tanzil, for each and every verse contains a spiritual and ta'wili indication.
The above-mentioned law of wahy and kalam was common to all the Prophets, accordingly the spirit of the Qur'an was revealed to the holy Prophet from the Divine Command (kalimah-yi kun). In fact, it was the same Spirit which was breathed into Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) in the beginning. You can see in verse (42:52) that the same Spirit is also the living light. It is worth pondering: Why is the Qur'an's light linked to a living personality? A great wisdom is hidden in this, otherwise God would have given the Qur'an to the Prophet in the form of an external book instead of revealing it to his blessed heart in the form of a spirit and spirituality (26:194). But God did not do so, rather He revealed the Qur'an with a light that spoke with its sacred tongue. Then the glorious Qur'an was given a written form and the light remained in the holy Prophet's personality. Now the question arises here:
Should the Qur'an's light be extinguished with the physical demise of the Prophet? No, never. It is against the Divine will. Thus, it is true that God, by His perfect power, transferred the Qur'an's light to the chain of Imams from the progeny of Muhammad (May Allah send blessings and peace through him and his progeny) so that His light may continue and last with His Book. This is the law of the religion of nature.
10. Some wisdoms of the surah of Najm (Star) will be explained now as an example of the status of the Prophet's spirituality and his recognition: First Hazrat-i Mubdi`'s manifestation is likened to a falling star and God swears by this great miracle. Through ibda` the Mubdi` manifested in front of the Prophet. In "wa ma zalla sahibukum (Your companion did not err)", the way the Prophet's ascension and elevation has been described and praised, indicates the Prophet's guidance of and the mu'mins' access to this place, for inbi`ath is their final destination. In the verse "`allamahu shadidu'l-quwa (He was taught by one mighty in power)", God's overpowering knowledge is mentioned prior to His overwhelming power. And "zu mirrah" means the one who does an action repeatedly. The act of ibda` is mentioned in "fa'stawa (then He appeared)". That is, the Mubdi` is the one who repeats the act of ibda`. He appeared in luminosity and then He came closer and the 'Higher I' descended into the 'Lower I'. Their concept is such that they are like two bows as well as a circle, as shown in the following diagrams:
| Higher I | Higher I | ||
| Qaba Qawsayna Like two bows before recognition |  |  | Aw Adna like a circle after recognition |
| Lower I | Lower I |
There were many far-reaching allusions in this event. The Prophet had this vision the second time with his inner eye 'at the lote-tree of the utmost boundary (sidratu'l-muntaha)', near which is 'the paradise of abode (jannatu'l-ma'wa)'. This lote-tree was repeatedly showing and hiding a treasure. This manifestation was not such that one could turn away the eye and ignore it nor was there a boundary to transgress. The Prophet saw the extremely great miracles of his Nourisher (rabb) here (53:1-18).
11. The most clear and bright realities in the wise Qur'an are related to light, and the most understandable examples are also regarding light, the reason for which is the very existence of light itself and its importance and usefulness. As the world-illumining sun is the source of all material blessings and favours, in the same way the sun of religion's light is the fountainhead of all religious blessings. Then how was it possible that light should sometimes exist and sometimes not?
Allah says that He is the light of the highness and lowness of the universe. Then He says that the similitude of His light is like a niche in which there is a lamp. We should not proceed further in this Divine teaching without understanding the allusions of the niche and the lamp. In this similitude, we see first the Divine light's relation with the niche, then with the lamp, because of it being in the niche. This means that the niche of God's inner house has the supreme rank and is eternal like the concept of God and His kingdom. By God's permission the Prophets and Imams have been attaining this rank, just as the Prophet's blessed being is a bright proof of the reality that he, in his own time, was a luminous lamp. In this case, can any wise person dare to say that the lamp which was shedding light in the niche of God's house was separate from the Prophet's lamp? Never, never. Rather, the fact is that just as he was mercy for all the worlds (21:107), he was also the light of the heavens and the earth in the status of God's light, so that just as Divine mercy can reach all the worlds through him, Divine light can also reach them through him. For other than this there is no such concept in the Qur'an by which we should accept the Essence of God as light. Everybody knows that this verse is a mithal or similitude and not mamthul (reality or ta'wil). Its mamthul as mentioned above, is that the intellect of the Perfect Man, who is the true guide, God's vicegerent or the Prophet's vicegerent, God's mazhar, the speaking Qur'an, inheritor of the Book and God's living ism-i a`zam, has been made the lamp of guidance and placed in the niche of honour and supremacy and God gives him the status of His light. Now let us see the entire verse of light:
Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth, the similitude of His light is as a niche in which is a bright lamp and the lamp is in a (chandelier of) glass, the chandelier is as though it were a pearly star; it (lamp) is lit from a blessed tree, an Olive neither of the east nor of the west, the oil of which would well-nigh give light though no fire touch it, light upon light; Allah guides to His light whom He pleases; and Allah strikes parables for men; and Allah knows all things (24:35).
12. In verse (27:8) God says: "But when he reached it (fire), he was called, saying: Blessed is (are) whosoever (man) is (are) in the fire and whosoever (man) is (are) around about it! And Allah is free from all attributes (subhan), the Nourisher of the worlds" (27:8). In the above translation, both the singular and the plural forms are correct, for in Arabic, man, a relative pronoun is used for both singular and plural. As for the fire, it was not a material fire, it was the light. In this connection, see also verses (20:10-12; 28:29-30). The same question arises here: Was this light Subhan Himself? No. For this light is blessed and God is free from being blessed, rather He is the one Who blesses. Therefore, this light was God's mazhar. However, with respect to His vicegerency, God always says: "I am this light" and this is the greatest secret in all the verses of light, which are the keys of Qur'anic treasures.
13. In verse (6:122), God says: "Is he who was dead and We raised him to life, and appointed for him a light through which he walks among men, as him whose similitude is in utter darkness whence he cannot emerge?" The wisdom of this noble verse is understandable only when a wise person knows the real meaning of death and life. This external life is a kind of death, therefore, every mu'min should be born spiritually so that he may open his eye in his personal world and see the light. Then, he should experience the taste of death finally in this life when his inbi`ath takes place and [only then] in a real sense will he be called alive. Thus, two kinds of death and two kinds of life are mentioned in the holy Qur'an (40:11).
14. The relation of light after God, the Prophet and the Imam, is with the mu'mins, but this secret is hidden in the recognition of the Imam. For it is the Imam who is the treasure of the gems of knowledge and recognition and in this sense, he is also the treasure of light. When a mu'min professes this he should think about how this light can be observed and how it can be attained. In this regard, there are the exalted Imam's holy farmans, which can guide in every respect.
Have you thought about whether the light should come to a mu'min or should the mu'min go to the presence of the light? Can God's house come to a mu'min for the [rite] of pilgrimage? Can the Imam go to every mu'min's house and give didar? Remember that in spirituality, every impossible thing becomes possible. Thus, it is light which sheds light on all the secrets of recognition, and it is light which can advance and cause to advance to the secrets of pre-eternity (azal) and post-eternity (abad). Thus, many wisdoms are gathered wherever the Qur'an mentions the [word] light, as it says: "And those who (duly) believe in God and His apostle they are the truthful ones (al-siddiqun) and the witnesses (al- shuhada') with their Nourisher; they have their reward and their light (nuruhum)" (57:19). This wisdom filled verse mentions perfect belief in God and His apostles externally and internally and to testify in the light of recognition. Farther, the words shahid and shahadat refer to being sacrificed twice in God's path and being revived twice, but additionally spiritual observation and witnessing is mentioned too. Then after the reward, i.e., at the end of everything, light is mentioned. This shows that the perfect stage of light comes after doing all these things and through this very light the supreme secret is revealed that there is the pre-eternal and post-eternal link between God's light, the Prophet's light, the Imam's light and the mu'min's light. The word "nuruhum (their light)" indicates that at this exalted place, mu'mins receive the Imam as their 'higher I' (ana-yi `ulwi) and everything is available in the holy and pure Imam's light.
15. The light of mu'mins, men and women during the individual resurrection (place of spirituality) runs in front of them and on their right side (57:12). Why should the light run? It is a practical example in which the light covers many cycles. This is a journey of the intellect, knowledge and soul. Watching them the hypocrite men and women, will say: "Wait for us! Let us borrow a spark from your light (and make it a complete light in us). It will be said: Turn back (in the chain of the past) and seek light (there)" (57:13). If this event had occurred physically after the death of all people, it would not have been said in the Qur'an: Turn back to the world. For, the exoteric language of the Qur'an rejects turning back to the world. Rather, this is the individual or personal resurrection in which the collective resurrection is represented [too]. That is, all this happens in the world of similitudes. There, it is true to say that whoever receives light, receives it from the time of Adam (May peace be through him) and from the time of the Seal of the Prophets (May Allah send blessings and peace through him and his progeny). Thus, understand that each of the verses related to light is a subject of special meaning and all the other verses of this nature are included in it. For instance, if we take the subject of the "light of the mu'min men and mu'min women" in the above-mentioned verse, the rest of the verses of light clarify this subject according to their respective wisdoms. Hence, everything is mentioned in this way in the Qur'an.
16. Every mu'min is absolutely sure that the way God, in His glorious mercy, describes light in verses (57:9, 57:12, 57:13, 57:19, 57:28) that this holy light is the Imam of the time who is the 'higher I' or the higher soul of mu'min men and women. This pre-eternal and post-eternal link of the light and mu'mins is also clearly mentioned in verse (66:8) in the way of wisdom, as God says: "On the day when God will not abase the Prophet and those who believe with him. Their light will run before them and on their right hands: they will say: Our Nourisher! Perfect our light for us, and forgive us! Verily You are able to do all things" (66:8).
The holy Prophet, the pure Imams and the staunch mu'mins are mentioned together in the above luminous verse. Thus, from the time of prophethood onwards, this event has continued to take place in every individual resurrection of the personal world. For, with respect to both individual and collective points of view, God perfects His light in this world (9:32; 61:8), where it becomes perfect by the external and internal meritorious deeds of knowledge and action. Is it possible to say that God's light is different from that of the Prophet? It is utterly impossible. Rather, the fact is that the ta'wil of God's light is the Prophet's light and that of the true Imam; the same is true of the mu'mins' light. Furthermore, we can see that there is room for the entire humanity in God's mercy, since the surah of Rahman mentions the law of merging and mercy, by which all of them have to merge in God's Face. However, the point to remember is that this merging is of two kinds: one is consciously in the light of recognition and the other is unconsciously.
One special similitude of light is fire. Fire annihilates things of two kinds: From the burning of one kind are created light, heat, power, fragrance, etc., and from the burning of the other kind nothing useful comes into existence. A great shortcoming in the example of fire is that the things which burn in it are consumed in a limited time, whereas the light and those who burn [meld or merge] in it, last forever, consciously or unconsciously.
May Khudawand of the world grant everybody the favour to recognise His holy light! And may all human beings benefit abundantly from the law of intercession!
5 If someone practices arduous mystical exercises without faith in and guidance of the True Guide, he can undoubtedly see the light of the dissolving carnal or animal soul. This is the place where deviation from the straight path reaches its climax, because most people consider this God's light.
London,
29th July, 1984.
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