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Qur'anic Minarets - Key Wisdoms

Key Wisdoms

Tags: Islam, Maqam-i Mahmud, Durud, Transference of Light

  1. Islam, the Eternal Religion: Islam is the eternal religion and the religion of the Qa'im. It is from the time when Allah created the heavens and the earth (9:36). One literal translation of the word "din" is law (qanun), which means the law of nature. It is in this sense that it is called (the religion) of nature, as the holy Prophet has said "Kullu mawludin yuladu `ala'l-fitrah …" (Every child is born on nature (i.e., Islam) … Thus, Islam is strong according to the system of the universe.
  2. The Age prior to the Holy Prophet and the Divine Sunnat: Some examples of the Divine sunnat are:
    1. The mazhar of the Divine sunnat and habit are the Prophets and Imams (40:85).
    2. There is a warner and a guide for every community (13:7) because the guidance on the straight path depends on obeying them.
    3. Another name of the warner and guide (Prophet and Imam) is the Divine light which nobody can extinguish (9:32; 61:8).
    4. On the Day of Resurrection God will invite the people of every age with their Imam (17:71). This shows that the light of Imamat has been present ever since the existence of human beings and it will continue to be so.
    5. It is extremely important to reflect on the verse of selection (3:33-34), that Allah has selected Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him), Hazrat-i Nuh (May peace be through him), the descendants of Ibrahim (May peace be through him) and the descendants of `Imran (May peace be through him) from the entire world. The selection of the holy Prophet and the pure Imams is mentioned in the [selection of the] descendants of Hazrat-i Ibrahim (May peace be through him).
  3. Following the Light of Imamat: It is mentioned in verse (7:157): "So those who believe in him and honour him and help him, and follow the light which has been sent down with him, are those who achieve success." Imam Ja`far-i Sadiq (May peace be through him) says that in this verse by the light is meant Mawlana `Ali (May peace be through him) and the true Imams (see The Holy Qur'an, translated by Mawlana Farman `Ali).
  4. It is the Imams of Guidance who are the Truthful Ones (sadiqin): Verse (9:119) mentions: "O you who believe, fear God and be with the truthful ones." The word 'fear (ittaqu)' is so comprehensive that all the attributes and perfections of Islam are centred in it, so that the people of faith may attain that spiritual companionship of the truthful ones, which is full of the miracles of knowledge and recognition. You can see in verse (4:69) that after the Prophets, it is the place of the truthful ones, who are extremely truthful in explaining the Divine secrets, symbols of spirituality and the ta'wil of the Qur'an and the shari`at.
  5. What is "Maqam-i Mahmud (Praised Station)"?: Inmbi`ath has two aspects: spatial and non-spatial. Thus, the holy Prophet during the 'Night of Ascension' had practically seen the "maqam-i mahmud" on the right side of the Divine Throne (`arsh), which alludes to the rank of the Universal Intellect.
  6. The Collective Meaning of "Durud (salat)": What is durud? It is success (tawfiq), luminous guidance, ta'yid of knowledge, as mentioned in verse (33:43): "He it is Who sends His durud (spiritual ta'yid) on you and His angels also so that He may bring you forth from the darknesses (of ignorance) unto the light (of knowledge and wisdom)." If God, the most just of judges has made the vessels of all existents and creatures brimful with only the pearls of knowledge, how can a thing or an example of the wise Qur'an be bereft of the mention of knowledge (6:80; 40:7)? Therefore, be sure that in the example of durud too, there is knowledge and wisdom, as God says (33:56): "Verily Allah and His angels send durud (ta'yid) [for you] on the Prophet [and his progeny]. O you who believe! You should also say: O Allah send durud [for us] on Muhammad and his progeny, and [ O believers!] submit to him as ought to be submitted."
  7. The Greatest Bounty (ni`mat) which is the Universe of Bounties: God says in verse (5:3): "Today, I have perfected your religion and have completed My favour on you." Here, religion means the Qur'an and bounty, the teacher of the Qur'an (i.e., light), which is the universe of bounties in the personal world. Now the question: In what sense is religion given the name 'Islam'? The primary meaning of Islam is to submit to someone. Thus, the purpose and purport of Islam is to submit to the Divine Command, that is, to obey God, the Prophet and the Possessors of the Command (4:59).
  8. The Wisdom of Tawbah and Sadaqah (9:104): The mutual relation of tawbah and sadaqah is not only in the external world, but they are also together at the place of the Intellect: that tawbah means to return to the court of azal and sadaqat (pl. of sadaqah) mean the hidden pearls (9:109), i.e., the demonstration of the Intellect.
  9. Who are these Mu'mins (9:105)?: "And (O Messenger) say to them: Act! Allah will behold your actions, and (so will) His Messenger and the believers (mu'mins)." Hazrat-i Imam Ja`far-i Sadiq (May peace be through him) has related that in this verse 'the believers' mean the pure Imams (Da`a'im, I, 21).
  10. The Pure Imams are Witnesses over the People: It is mentioned in verse (2:143): "And thus We have made you a just community, so that you may be witnesses over humankind and the Messenger may be a witness over you." Reflect carefully on wisdoms 9 and 10 that witnesses can be those only who [are present and] can see the actions.
  11. He who has the Knowledge of the Book (the Qur'an): The following very great wisdom is in the last verse of surah-yi Ra`d: "Those who disbelieve say: You are not a Messenger. Say: Allah is sufficient as witness (of my messengership) between me and you, and he who has the knowledge of the (heavenly) Book (13:43)." There are many secrets for the wise people in this verse that Allah has kept Hazrat-i `Ali (May peace be through him) with Himself for this extremely great witness. Mawla `Ali (May peace be through him) became the second witness of the holy Prophet's messengership because, by Divine Command, he saw in spiritual vision the renewal of similitudes of how the noble Qur'an was revealing to the Guarded Tablet from the word "Be" and the Divine Pen, and from there to the holy Prophet. This indelible renewal of similitudes took place in his personal world. Therefore, the ta'wili wisdoms of the glorious Qur'an were fastened to his personal world, i.e., the personal world of the light of Imamat.
  12. The Relationship between the Light and the Book (Qur'an): It is mentioned in verse (5:15): "Indeed there has come to you from Allah a (shining) light and a Book which explains clearly (Qur'an)." The light here means the holy Prophet and the Book which explains is the Qur'an. In this verse, first the light is mentioned and then the Book, because the Prophet's blessed heart had become illumined before the revelation of the Qur'an, after which the Book started to reveal [to him]. Another [important] point is that the Qur'an was a living soul and a light (42:52) in the personal world of the holy Prophet. That is, it was in the form of spiritual and intellectual light, which cannot be transferred into physical writing. Thus, the speaking and knowing soul (i.e., the light) of this heavenly Book remained in the Prophet, whereas its physical aspect was written down. Thus, the relationship between the light and the Book is that the light is the spiritual aspect of the Book and the latter is the physical aspect of the light.
  13. How is the Light Transferred?: According to wise people this question is as sublime as it is important, thus why should its answer not be [equally] great? The access of the light from one perfect person to another perfect person and its transference takes place as follows:
    1. This wisdom is hidden in the example of the verse of the Lamp (misbah, 24:35), that if there is a shining lamp which spreads light in all directions and if another lamp is to be lit, it needs to be prepared in every respect and then brought closer to the first lamp to kindle it from the shining flame of the first one. This means that the holy Prophet, by Divine Command, kept Hazrat-i `Ali (May peace be through him) in his special proximity by granting him the secrets of knowledge and wisdom, love, affection, opportunities to serve, teaching him the Supreme Names and blessing him with his most effective prayers, thereby he kindled this lamp too. This Divine miracle is called "light upon light", that is, the transference of light from one personality into another.
    2. Allah breathed His Spirit (Light) into Hazrat-i Adam (May peace be through him) (15:29; 38:72). This breathing of spirit cannot be without ta'wil. Its ta'wil is the teaching of Supreme Names, etc., as mentioned in the point (a) above, because the Divine Spirit was breathed in Hazrat-i Maryam (May peace be through her) as well (21:91; 66:12). However, it is evident from another verse that the Divine or Holy Spirit was a Word (4:171), that is, the Supreme Name, which in its many meanings includes everything.
    3. The holy Prophet was the luminous lamp (33:46), that is, he was a light which could illumine many hearts spiritually (from his heart). In fact, it is the glowing (wahhaj) lamp (78:13) from which the lamp of the light of Imamat has been illumined forever.
    4. According to the Sufis, the way to observe light is to merge in the shaykh (murshid), merge in the holy Prophet and merge in Allah. According to Ismailis, it is by merging in the Imam, then in the holy Prophet and Allah. Since the holy Prophet and the pure Imams are Allah's Supreme Names (7:180), [by remembering them] effacement, merging and the recognition of light can be easily attained. Thus, those capable of seeing have observed the light and its cosmic function with their inner eye, therefore they continue to ecstatically talk about it all the time. I humbly pray that Allah, the Sustainer of the world, grant all human beings of the world the guidance of the light of Islam, Amin!

Note: Read the article and the noble verses mentioned in it carefully. Remember that this is a special bounty and it is very important to offer practical gratitude because, on the Day of Resurrection, we will be questioned about these bounties (102:8).

22 Dhiqa`dah 1409 AH/27th June, 1989 AD

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