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Qur'anic Minarets - The World of Intellect – The World of Oneness

The World of Intellect – The World of Oneness

Tags: World of Oneness, Universal Soul, Universal Intellect, Oneness

  1. When reciting the holy Qur'an, it begins with: By the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful. Praise be to Allah, the Sustainer of the worlds! In the minds of the seekers of reality, the question arises: which are these worlds and how many are there? The correct answer would be that each individual is a personal world and since there are countless individuals, therefore personal worlds are also countless. Nonetheless, fundamentally these worlds are on three levels: The world of multiplicity, the world of particles and the world of oneness. In other words, they are the physical world, the spiritual world and the intellectual world. This article is intended to explain some realities and recognitions (ma`arif) about the world of intellect, which is the world of oneness and monoreality.
  2. The world of multiplicity is the name of the external or physical world, in which all people who live are different, diverse and scattered. This diversity and scatteredness can decrease more and more on the day of resurrection in the world of particles and can come to an end in the world of intellect. Nonetheless, the event of resurrection is greatly wondrous and amazing, in which those who have died to their carnal souls or physically have undergone the stages (marahil) of resurrection, as the holy Prophet says: "Whoever dies with respect to the carnal soul or physically, indeed his individual resurrection takes place", whereas those who have not entered the door of death and are not aware of its knowledge even from the aspect of a bookish form, are awaiting it.
  3. How is the world of oneness one? What can be its example? Answer: The confluence of the ocean of intellects (Universal Intellect) and the ocean of souls (Universal Soul) is called the junction of two oceans (majma`u'l-bahrayn), about which it is said in the Qur'an (55:19-22): "He let forth the two seas that meet together, between them a barrier, they do not cross. Then which of the bounties of your Lord will both of you deny? From them come forth pearls and corals." [The 'barrier' here stands for the Perfect Man] whose intellect and soul adjoin and are united as well as separate in his personality, just as there is a barrier indeed between the flame of the lamp and its light, but there is nothing between them. There is but union in them. Reflect carefully on the words maraja (he set forth), yaltaqiyan (meeting together) and majma` (conjunction)
  4. Some people deny the existence of the Universal Intellect. However, it should be remembered well that wherever the Single Soul (Universal Soul) is mentioned in the Qur'an, the Universal Intellect too, is mentioned hiddenly because there cannot be a great soul without a perfect intellect, nor can the Divine Vicegerent's concept be correct without the perfect Intellect and the supreme Soul. It is also a fact that the great angel whose name is 'Throne' (`arsh) is also the Intellect of the intellects and the great angel whose name is 'Pedestal' (kursi) is also the Soul of souls, and there is oneness between the two.
  5. The grandeur of ayatu'l-kursi and its being an angelic panacea is due to the wonders and marvels of knowledge and wisdom and the secrets of rhetorical devices contained in it, as said in verse (2:255): "His kursi has comprised [within itself] the heavens and the earth." It is thus a very wondrous and an amazing point that the Universal Soul has comprised within itself the world of intellect, namely the Universal Intellect. Thus, the Single Soul is the world of oneness and the same is the confluence of the two seas whence emerge the pearls and corals of knowledge and recognition. This is what monoreality is.
  6. The way the 'verses of light' scatter the light of true guidance in the great Qur'an and the religion of Islam is not hidden from the mu'mins and they also know that the mention of light in the noble Qur'an is, in fact, the mention of the Prophets and Imams. However, the question here is: are the lights of the Prophets and Imams separate? The answer is "No". Not at all, rather according to "Light upon light" (24:35), there is the oneness of all lights which can be observed in the world of Intellect, where one single light is the whole and everything.
  7. Reflect carefully on the points concerning 'human oneness' in the article "Topmost Questions", Part 2. How did God create all the people of the world from the Single Soul/Adam/Universal Soul and how eventually their conscious or unconscious inmbi`ath takes place in the same rank, [namely the Single Soul]! You must note and remember the pleasant point that the world of particles exists with every Prophet and every Imam, where the people become unconsciously present in the form of particles. Read in Adam (May peace be through him)'s story (7:11) and Nuh (May peace be through him)'s story that people have continued to live in the world of particles of every Perfect Man and simultaneously they are linked and related to the world of Intellect as well but unconsciously. Thus, people have undergone many spiritual events. However, except for the Prophets and Imams, nobody is aware of them. In short, all human beings are one in the Single Soul and it is in this sense that the Single Soul is everything.
  8. The best model of God's nature and workmanship is a human being, therefore the wise Qur'an emphatically draws attention towards the recognition of their own selves. Some such examples are:
    1. The nature of God (30:30),
    2. The best of creators (23:14),
    3. In the best stature (95:4),
    4. And in your souls (51:21),
    5. And indeed We have honoured the children of Adam (17:70),
    6. Say: the spirit is from the command of my Lord (17:85).
      Their explanation:
  9. If the question occurs to you: How did the Creator of the universe create the primordial Adam and the first human beings, the answer is right there in the state of nature and creation of the present human beings (30:30). God is the best of creators because He created "another creation" (khalq-i akhar) (subtle human being/ mubda`, 23:14). God created human beings in the form of ascension and evolution, to the extent that they have reached `Illiyyin. Now, from there, their descending or not depends on their knowledge and action (95:5-6). All these signs of power and recognition are within your own souls (51:21). Those who are called the children of Adam in the true sense, their dignity and excellence are higher than even the great angels (17:70). Soul has come into existence from the word 'Be!' (kun), therefore it is linked with the [Divine] Command and its access of ma`rifat also reaches the Divine Command (17:85), where there are only the [abundant] treasures of the secrets of azal and the universal oneness is the greatest wealth of human beings which is unprecedented and everlasting.
  10. Humankind in its present existence is a single individual, therefore he is an example of the world of oneness. However, can you tell us how many cells are there in him? Countless. How many particles of the vegetative soul? Countless. How many parts of the animal soul? Countless. How many representatives of the human soul? Beyond counting. If every representative particle is potentially a universe, these universes or personal worlds can be counted by God alone. From this, it can be estimated that there is everything in the world of intellect (world of oneness). Although it is one single light, its manifestations and theophanies are the treasures of all the worlds. Thus, the running of the mu'mins' light is a chain of endless manifestations (57:12, 57:19; 66:8). It should [however] be remembered that without merging in the Imam, in the Prophet and God, the light cannot be attributed to mu'mins.
  11. The Qur'an's heart (i.e., surah of Ya-sin) verse (36:12) mentions: "Surely We it is Who revive the dead with respect to the carnal soul and the body and We write down whatever deeds they have done and whatever traces they have left and [that intellectual writing is such that] We have gathered together all things in the speaking Guide and made them the Pearl of Intellect." The word 'ahsay-na' is from the root letters: ha, sad and ya' and from them is al-hasa, another is hasat, which means pebbles or little stone, and 'mubin' means speaking as mentioned in verse (43:18). Thus, the meaning of "Imamin mubin" is the Imam (May peace be through him) who explains the ta'wil and who is the light of guidance and the hidden Book. He is the manifest and the present [and speaking] Imam (May peace be through him) not only in the physical world but also in the spiritual and intellectual worlds, so that thereby the secrets of human oneness may become known.
  12. The Divine Throne is the fountainhead of knowledge and wisdom, therefore the rank of knowledge of its bearers is most exalted and the highest. They observe mercy in everything. Therefore, the holy Qur'an describing their position says in (40:7): "[They say:] O our Lord! Your mercy and knowledge include everything." We are sure from this Qur'anic command and decree that there is mercy for the soul and knowledge for the intellect in everything. Therefore, first, our attention and thought should be centred on Qur'anic things to understand how mercy and knowledge are mentioned in every example, every story, every allusion, every ayat (sign), every sentence and every word in it. Now, in the light of this fundamental exposition, we have to ask ourselves and provide a reasonable and desirable answer to the question of whether God enfolds the universe materially or in a spiritual and intellectual state (21:104; 38:67)? Surely its correct answer would be that its material expanse is there in its place, but all its values are enfolded in the personal world in the form of particles and spiritual values at the rank of intellect. Therefore, it is said that the world of intellect is the world of oneness, in which the Pearl of knowledge of each and everything of the heaven and the earth makes itself manifest. This marvel is extremely amazing that on one side of it is pure oneness and on the other countless manifestations! God is free from every attribute! What can be said about the glory of the wonders and marvels of the confluence of two oceans, the world of oneness!

15 Jumada II 1410 AH/13th January, 1990 AD

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