A021
Surah: 057 - Ayah: 021
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57:21
To sum up, in tawil the falling of stars and prostration of angels to Hazrat Adam, both at the place of the soul and at the rank of the intellect, is the same event, which is extremely exalted and by which God has sworn. The tawil of prostration is obedience, by which is meant the subjugation of the universe. That is, the great souls of the stars (which are cosmic angels) enter the arifs with a world of spirituality within themselves, about which it is said: "Excel to a special forgiveness from your Lord and to a Paradise the vastness of which is like the vastness of heaven and the earth." (57:21). Thus it should be known that by the heaven and the earth are meant stars and Paradise is in their spirit and spirituality and thus there is a spiritual kingdom in the spirit of every star.
Although Paradise, due to its being equal to the length and breadth of heaven and earth (5 7:21; 3:133) and due to its vastness is far, it is brought close in spirituality and in the secrets of knowledge and wisdom (26:90; 50:31; 81:13). Are the Light and the Book (Qur'an) not the Paradise of secrets (5:15)? Does this Paradise not exist in the personal world of those who have attained recognition and perfection (arifin and kamilin)? There is no doubt that the light and the Qur'an are the Paradise in which every kind of intellectual and spiritual favour is available and by the recognition of it tomorrow in the hereafter, the mumin men and women can attain the eternal Paradise (47:6).
Portrayal of Soul
Q. 41. In one of your works "Panj Maqalah" IV, under the heading of "An important part of a reply to a letter", you have written excellent points regarding the soul, the main part of which is as follows:
"Soul is a reality, a simple substance, a subtle life, a great world, an inner awareness, a real awakening, an unprecedented thing, a hidden treasure, an everlasting kingdom, a luminous existence, a Divine reflection, an eternal essence, a unity of attributes, a pattern of life, a subtle universe, a mirror of miracles, a fountainhead of blessings, a compriser of (the Divine) signs, a compendium of states, a centre of favours, an expanse of paradises, an exaltation of ranks, etc., etc."
In these 22 phrases, the attributes of the soul have been portrayed in the most excellent way. However, we would like to have further elaboration of the last eight phrases, so that it would facilitate the recognition of soul more and more.
A. Indeed soul is a subtle universe, in which each and everything exists in a subtle form; it is a mirror in which all the pre-eternal, post-eternal, spatial and non-spatial miracles of God, the Lord of Honour, are observed. It is the fountainhead of the Divine blessings, in which all the Divine signs are gathered; it is the compendium of the states and events of the past and the future. God has made the soul the centre of His favours. By the grace of God, the soul itself is the paradise. The expanse of the paradise, which is mentioned in the Qur*an (57:21) is, in fact, the expanse of the soul and it is the soul in which there are all the ranks and grades of honour from the beginning to the end.
Special Form of Soul
Q. 23. Is it true that the forms of the soul are as different and as numerous as those of the creatures in the entire universe? Among all these forms, is there any specific form of the soul also? If so, which one is it?
A. Yes, it is absolutely true that the Universal Soul, with all its beauties, resembles the form of the universe and this is mentioned in the description of paradise (57:21). Further, particular souls also have the shape and form of the parts of the universe and creatures. But the most special form of the soul is the human form, more specially that of the perfect Man, which is the Form of Image of God (Surat-I Rahman).
Ajal (Haste, speed, hurry)
Since the time of this world continues to pass, therefore, it is necessary to accomplish good deeds fast, as the holy Qur’Àn commands: "Hasten!" (3:133), "Excel!" (57:21) and "So flee to Allah!" (51:50). Contrary to this the time of the hereafter is immovable and never passes.
In verses (2:117; 6:101) it is mentioned: “Badicu’s-samawati wa’l-arz (the Originator of the heavens and the earth). The ta’wil of this is that He transforms the heavens and the earth into the personal world and makes the cosmic paradise in it. The proof of this cosmic paradise is found in verses (3:133; 57:21). This supreme miracle of the subjugation of the universe takes place during the spiritual resurrection.
The enfolding of the universe is mentioned in verse (21:104). The junction of the pearl of Intellect and the hidden Book is like the enfolded universe, which indeed contains many examples.
This verse has been referred 26 times.