| 30 - Divine Guidance - Part Two |
The author of Sufism
- A Short Introduction compounds the errors present in his misunderstanding of the
Sufi tradition, when he goes on to claim that Sufis "stress inwardness over
outwardness, contemplation over action, spiritual development over legalism, and
cultivation of the soul over social interaction. On the theological level, Sufis speak of
God’s mercy, gentleness, and beauty far more than they discuss His wrath, severity,
and majesty." The author is mistaken on each and every point within the foregoing
quote.
The shaykhs of the Sufi
Path stress, balance, completeness, wholeness, harmony, moderation, and the golden mean
which involves neither excesses of the left nor the right. All of these principles were
taught by the Prophet and given eloquent expression through his life.
The Prophet did not
stress inwardness over outwardness. He spoke and acted in a way that gave importance to
both.
If, for example, the
Prophet emphasized the importance of niyat or intention - which is an inward process, he
also gave importance to the kinds of outward activities with which this niyat was aligned.
Having good or sincere intentions was not enough - thus, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be
upon him) is reported to have said: "To read the Qur’an without practicing what
one reads is the same as not reading the Qur’an at all."
The Prophet also is
reported to have said: "No individual could be learned until one put one’s
knowledge into action". Another Hadith relates that ‘the Prophet came upon a
group of people in a mosque near Medina who were reading the Qur’an. He is reported
to have said to these people that unless they put it [i.e., that which they were reading]
into practice, then, what they were reading was useless.’ And, there are many, many
more sayings of the Prophet which emphasize this same point.
One has to struggle and
make efforts to translate these intentions into outward behaviors of generosity, honesty,
kindness, compassion, charitableness, love, forgiveness, tolerance, patience, and so on.
Good deeds do, God willing, follow upon good intentions, but good deeds involve more than
just good intentions.
All of the basic pillars
of Islam - from Shahadah or attestation, to ritual prayer, fasting, pilgrimage and zakat
or charity all require effort, struggle, and outward expressions of the underlying niyat.
For each facet of internal spiritual activity, there is a correlative manifestation of
external activity which bears witness to the degree of sincerity inherent in the original
intention.
Moreover, the
relationship between the internal and the external constitutes a feedback loop. For, just
as the internal realm of spiritual awareness and understanding helps support whatever
external acts may, with God’s permission, arise out of that internal realm, at the
same time, the doing of the external acts carries its own brand of barakah or grace from
God which is fed back into the individual’s spiritual interior and helps cultivate
and enhance the quality of the latter.
Similarly, if the
original niyat is unsound or diseased, or if the original niyat is good but not acted
upon, then, the activity which arises out of this internal activity leads to external
behaviors which, in turn, feed back into the interior life in problematic ways. In short,
we often do reap what we sow, and in the case of problematic behaviors, one of the
consequences of such acts is to deplete the soil of important spiritual nutrients and, if
this is permitted to go on long enough, the land will, eventually, be rendered infertile and,
henceforth, incapable of giving rise to ‘good’ works.
The foregoing indicates
that not only did the Prophet, who is the Shaykh of all Sufi shaykhs, not stress the
inward over the outward, but he did not, contrary to what the author of Sufism - A
Short Introduction suggests in the aforementioned quote, stress
‘contemplation over action’. Instead, the Prophet taught, and acted in
accordance with this, that action needs to be informed by the fruits of spiritual
contemplation, reflection, and insight, but the former should not be abandoned in favor of
the latter.
For instance, in one
Hadith of the Prophet, he is reported to have told a group of people that Satan would bait
them with knowledge. When he was questioned about the meaning of his statement, he
elaborated, saying that Satan would entreat people to master knowledge first before
acting, and that those who fell under the spell of Satan’s entreaties would, then,
continue to seek knowledge while deferring action, finally dying, having done nothing.
The author of Sufism
- A Short Introduction also indicated in the previously noted quote that Sufis
give stress to "spiritual development over legalism". Although the Prophet did
distinguish between, on the one hand, the sort of purely ‘formal knowledge which does
not go beyond verbal profession (and is the evidence of God against His people and
according to it He will judge them)’, and, on the other hand, ‘genuine knowledge
which is deep-rooted in the heart and is the kind of knowledge which is useful’,
spiritual development was not given precedence over Shari ‘ah or Divine law.
In fact, as a 16th
century, Sufi shaykh from India noted, one of the many benefits and blessings which is
enjoyed by those seekers who realize the purpose of the Path, is that, by the grace of
God, they come to understand the true nature, meaning and significance of Shari ‘ah
for the first time. Consequently, while the author is right that the Sufi Path does give
emphasis to the importance of spiritual development over legalism, nonetheless, at the
same time, one of the fruits of such spiritual development is the development of insight
into the nature of Shari ‘ah or Divine law - which, among other things, entails
gaining insight into how Divine law cannot, and should not, be reduced to mere legalisms.
Unfortunately, since the
author never takes time to explain what he means by his use of the term
"legalism", he leaves the door open for misunderstanding to enter into the
discussion. More specifically, all too many people in the West - and the East, as well -
will see such a remark as indicating that Sufis dispense with many, or all, facets of
Shari ‘ah or consider Shari ‘ah to be a matter of mere legalisms, when nothing
could be further from the truth.
According to the author
of Sufism - A Short Introduction, Sufis also give stress to
"cultivation of the soul over social interaction". If by the notion of
‘social interaction’ the author means frivolous, aimless, gossipy social
chit-chat and play which squanders time better used to serve the purpose for which the
gift of life has been bestowed on us, then, one might agree with the author.
However, once again, as
is true of the author’s use of words such as "legalism", along with many
other terms appearing in his book, the author doesn’t explain what he means by a word
he uses. This failure to explicate or provide a context that would allow the reader to
grasp the precise nature of what he is saying, permits weeds of misunderstanding to grow
from a soil of ambiguity.
Although there are times
during the traversing of the Path when a Sufi may withdraw into seclusion for a period of
time lasting anywhere from 1 to 40 days in order to concentrate on engendering one’s
relationship with Divinity ["When We appointed for Moses forty nights." (2:51)],
neither the Prophet nor Sufi shaykhs advocate avoidance of social interaction - except
when it is of a frivolous nature which diverts one’s attention away from observing
one’s spiritual duties to God, one’s family, work, the community, or oneself.
The Prophet Muhammad
(peace be upon him) is reported to have said: "The creation is as God’s family,
for its sustenance is from Him. Therefore, the most beloved unto God is the person who
does good to God’s family." The Prophet also is reported to have said: "God
Almighty is the sustainer of all people. Among people, God loves best those of most
benefit to others." Neither of the foregoing traditions is a call for one to remove
oneself from social interaction - rather, they are calls to something quite the opposite.
In another Hadith, the
Prophet is reported to have said: "Shall I tell you what actions are most excellent?
To gladden the heart of a human being; to feed the hungry; to help the afflicted; to
lighten the sorrow of the sorrowful; to remove the wrongs of the injured." These
actions are "most excellent" because they, simultaneously, give expression to a
soul, which by the Mercy of God, has become cultivated, as well as provides opportunities
through which the soul becomes further cultivated.
Furthermore, the Prophet
did not say: to gladden the heart of Muslims; or, to feed just Muslims who are hungry; or,
to help only Muslims who are afflicted, or, to lighten the sorrow of merely the Muslim
sorrowful, or, to remove the wrongs of no one but Muslims who are injured. The statement
was unqualified and open to anyone who was in need.
The Prophet also is
reported to have said that: "You will not enter Paradise until you have faith, and
you will not complete your faith until you love one another." Can anyone suppose that
what the Prophet meant by loving one another was something devoid of social interaction,
and can one suppose that this process of completing the faith involves anything but
cultivation of the soul?
Everyone has an excellent
chance of being kind, generous, thoughtful, forgiving, tolerant, charitable, noble, and
loving in isolation. The truth of the matter is, however, that social interaction is not
only the real proving grounds of sincerity and commitment with respect to the foregoing
principles, but, in point of fact, it is through a seeker’s interaction with others
that the soul truly becomes cultivated under the watchful guidance of the shaykh.
Finally, the author of Sufism
- A Short Introduction contends that: "On the theological level, Sufis speak
of God’s mercy, gentleness, and beauty far more than they discuss His wrath,
severity, and majesty." Given that ‘theology’ tends to refer to a study of
religious issues which culminates in a doctrinal and/or philosophical synthesis concerning
those issues, Sufi shaykhs tend not to operate on, or out of, a "theological
level".
Spiritual transformation
is not a matter of conceptual analysis, although there may be a restructuring of
one’s conceptual understanding as a result of such transformation. Moreover,
instructions concerning the Sufi Path or discipline or Deen may be done, in part, through
words, but the real activity - both between teacher and seeker, as well as within the
seeker, is not primarily conceptual in nature - although, once again, there are bound to
be ramifications for the conceptual realm which are derivative in nature from the
underlying spiritual activity.
The Prophet is reported
to have said that: "There is a piece of flesh in the body. If that is sound, then,
the whole body is sound. But, if that is corrupt, then, the whole body is corrupt, and
that piece of flesh is the heart." The Prophet was not talking here just in a medical
or physiological way.
He was speaking of
spirituality. If the spiritual heart - which stands in relationship to the soul, as the
physical heart stands in relationship to the body, is corrupt, then, all which emanates
from that piece of corruption will be likewise tainted.
Sound thinking is
informed by a healthy spiritual heart. In fact, there cannot be soundness of thought until the heart is well on the road to spiritual health.
The attaining of a sound
spiritual heart is not a matter of theology but, rather, is the result of a process which
engenders practical, experiential, realization concerning the various states and stations
of the heart. Adab, or spiritual etiquette, is not a function of theology but, is,
instead, a function of a heart which is healthy spiritually.
While Sufi shaykhs do
speak of "God’s mercy, gentleness, and beauty", they do not
do this, as the author suggests, as a result of theological considerations. On the one
hand, they mention these qualities because these are attributes by which God, Himself, has
described Divinity in the Qur’an - which is not a book of theology but a Book of
Revelation.
On the other hand, Sufis
mention qualities such as mercy, gentleness, and beauty, for a variety of psychological
reasons. These qualities are important aids for helping the seeker to be confident that
she or he is stepping onto a Path, or traveling on a Path, or is remaining committed to a
Path - despite its many difficulties, problems and challenges - that is lovingly embraced
and supported by a God of mercy, gentleness and beauty.
In a Hadith Qudsi (which
is God speaking through the mouth of the Prophet but is not considered to be a part of
Revelation), God has declared that "My Mercy takes precedence over My wrath".
The Hadith does not say there is no such thing as Divine wrath, rigor, severity, justice,
majesty, independence and so on, but that, ultimately, with respect to creation, Mercy has
precedence over the former qualities.
There is a working
principle of the Sufi Path which indicates that no one attains to realization without
tasting, if not imbibing, both the qualities of ‘jamal’ (i.e., mercy,
gentleness, beauty, and so on) , as well as the qualities of ‘jalal’ (i.e.,
wrath, rigor, justice, severity, and so on). If it is true - and for the purposes of the
present discussion we will assume this to be so, that the Sufis speak about
"God’s mercy, gentleness and beauty far more than they discuss His wrath,
severity, and majesty", this is not because the latter qualities have no relevance
to, nor bearing on, the nature of the Path.
Al-insan al-kamil, or the
realized human being, is one who provides a harmonious, judicious and balanced reflection
of all of the Names and Attributes of God according to the God-given spiritual capacity of
that individual to do so. This means both categories of Divine attributes - jamal and
jalal, must be present.
Phenomenologically,
qualities of jamal are experienced as ‘expansion’, whereas qualities of jalal
tend to be experienced as ‘contraction’. But, to the realized individual, the
words of Hazrat Mu’in-uddin Chishti ring true - "Do not look at things as being
good or bad. Is it not enough that they come from your Lord?"
From this perspective,
the condition of contraction may give expression to jalali qualities of rigor, severity,
and so on, but the contraction is experienced as being an instance of either
‘compassionate severity’ or ‘severe compassion’. This means that
whatever the attendant difficulties of such a condition of contraction may be, the
difficulties always are seen in the light of a Divine compassion which has brought such
difficulties into one’s life so that, ultimately, a fuller and more complete
dimension of Divine mercy may be shown to, and known by, the individual.
When a seeker starts out
on the Sufi Path, and, sometimes, even after some distance has been traveled on that
journey, a person’s spiritual strength may not be sufficiently developed, or the
individual’s faith adequately rooted, to be able to bear up under the presence of
such Divine qualities as severity, rigor, majesty, and so on. However, a time may come
during the mystical quest when further spiritual development requires an individual to
engage, and/or be engaged by, the qualities of the jalal dimension of Reality.
If, and when, the latter
stage of things is entered, the individual may gain a great many important, fundamental
insights concerning the nature of the Path, oneself, and one’s relationship with
Divinity - things which are not possible to learn through purely jamali attributes. Yet,
as important as this latter dimension of Reality may be with respect to becoming a
complete and fully realized individual, why spend much time speaking of such things if the
individual is not, yet, ready - either psychologically or spiritually - for them?
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