A012
Surah: 066 - Ayah: 012
Click here to see the translations
66:12
Transference of Light
Q. 56. How was the Spirit or Light transferred from the Prophet to Mawla 'Ali? How does the Light go from the Imam to his successor? Can any light from the light of the Imam come to the murid (follower)? If so, how does it come?
A. In this regard, first of all, it is necessary to know that the term "kalimah (Word)" is the key to all realities and gnoses. Kalimah has four letters: kaf, lam, mim and ha. Similarly, it implies four kinds of meaning, namely, command (amr), spirit (ruh). Supreme Name (ism-i a’zam) and teaching (ta'lim). For instance, the Holy Qur'an says that Allah breathed His Spirit into Hazrat Maiyam (66:12). Its ta'wil is that the Prophet or the Imam gave the Supreme Name to Hazrat Maryam. Also you can see in the Wise Qur'an, that Hazrat 'Isa, as the Word of God and His Spirit, is sent into the forehead of his revered mother. For, the place of light is the forehead (4:171).
Similarly, the Prophet gave Mawla Ali the Word of God, which is the Command of God, His Spirit, the Supreme Name and the heavenly teaching at the same time. Thus, every Imam transfers his light to his successor in this way.
The followers can receive the light from the holy light of the Imam in general as well as in a special way. The way of giving light to the followers by the Imam, is not different from the law of giving light to his successors. The followers are the spiritual children of the Imam and in this spiritual relationship, lies their well-being in both the worlds.
Q.10. In addition to the Imam, there are the hudud-i din sometimes both physically and spiritually and sometimes only spiritually. In this respect, what was the status of Hazrat Maryam? Was she a Prophet because the angles spoke to her? Had she attained the status of Imamat? If not, what was her status?
Ans.10. Hazrat Maryam was neither a Prophet nor an Imam, for according to the law of Divine wisdom, all Prophets and Imams have to be men. Hazrat Maryam held the rank of Hujjat. According to the Qur’an, she was a siddiqah (truthful) and the meaning of siddiqah is mentioned in verse (66:12). You can see in this verse that the Holy Spirit was working in Hazrat Maryam, with respect to spirituality, knowledge and wisdom in the form of the Great Names and the Perfect Words.
Maryam (Mary, the daughter of Imran)
It is said in verse (66:12): "And of Maryam, daughter of Imran, who guarded her private part and We breathed in it Our Spirit." That is, she guarded her ears from the conversation of the enemies (of the Imam) and thus her ears were able to receive the breath of the Holy Spirit.
Question: According to the exoteric meaning of the verse (66:12), it appears that the Divine Spirit was breathed into Hazrat Maryam because of her physical chastity. What do you say in this connection?
Answer: Although physical chastity is a virtue and necessary in its own place, the Holy Spirit cannot be attained only by physical chastity. The Holy Spirit enters a mu'min through the ears, concealed in the pure conversation of knowledge and wisdom It is necessary therefore to keep pure and away from the contaminated discourse of the enemies of religion. This is the meaning of the example given in this verse
Also concerning Hazrat Maryam, God says: “And We breathed into it Our spirit and she testified to the words of her Lord and His books and she was of the obedient” (66:12). This holy verse reveals that the words of God are other than His books. It is clear here that first, the Spirit of God was breathed into her, that is to say, she was given the word. She completed the correct cibadat of certain Words and attained the Light as a result of that, then in the light of those Words, she understood the reality of the scriptures. This is the meaning of testifying to the Words of God and His Books and to be obedient to Him.
Affirmation (tasdiq) of the Heavenly Books: At the beginning of this article it was asked: Is the recognition of the Holy Qur'an possible or not? Although in a way the question has been answered positively, for further satisfaction a Qur'anic example of Hazrat Maryam is presented as mentioned in verse (66:12): "And Maryam, the daughter of Imran, who guarded her privy parts (farj), so We breathed into it Our Spirit, and she affirmed the words of her Lord and His Books, and she was one of the obedient." That is, Hazrat Maryam was guarding her ears from false teachings, as a result of which, by the grace of God, her spiritual resurrection took place and the Holy Spirit was breathed into her through the blowing of the sur, then in the illumination of the light of recognition, she affirmed the Perfect Words and the Heavenly Books and she was among the chosen obedient servants. It becomes evident here that the Heavenly Book has spirit and spirituality whose recognition is attained by complete observation of it.
Q281 Once you said that the sur is blown in order to breathe the Divine spirit into a perfect human being. That is, the breathing of the spirit and the blowing of the sur take place simultaneously. Therefore, the resurrection is also mentioned with the breathing of the spirit. Would you kindly give us an example of this event?
A281 It is mentioned in verse (66:12): “And Maryam, daughter of cImran, who guarded her private parts, therefore We breathed therein something of Our Spirit”. Maryam(c) was a hujjat and the example of all hujjats in her time. This means that the hujjats have to necessarily undergo resurrection, because all esoteric sciences lie in it and without it, there is neither wisdom nor recognition.
This verse has been referred 8 times.