Common Roots - Part Five
The third principle of 'globalized' religion to be noted by Imam Rauf is that the nature of the aforementioned Divine relevance is knowable to humans through any of three modalities – taken separately or in combination. These are: (1) divination which is done through various modes of 'seeing' via appropriate states of consciousness and internal spiritual faculties; (2) science and history which consist of the collected knowledge that accumulates in relation to humankind and nature; (3) prophecy which is described as “direct revelation of the will of God through words for the ready use of human understanding.”
Any divination which does not take place in a context that is fully modulated by a prophetic mission is problematic. As the Sufi master, Hazrat Junayd (may Allah be pleased with him), stated: This knowledge of ours [that is, Sufi knowledge] is delimited by the Qur'an and the Sunnah (i.e., conduct of the Prophet).
Consequently, transpersonal or altered states of consciousness are not necessarily enough, in and of themselves, to ensure that what is being manifested in such states is necessarily an expression of authentic spiritual knowledge of some kind. This is true for the Islamic spiritual tradition, and, as well, I believe authentic spiritual guides from any spiritual tradition would agree that not everything which glitters in the way of divination is necessarily 'gold'. One needs to differentiate veridical spiritual experiences from those which may be generated through the ego, fantasy, Satanic suggestion, psychological problems, and delusional thinking.
Secondly, without wishing to dismiss or discount the value of rigorous, sound, insightful scholarship in the areas of science and history, the fact of the matter is that both science and history have been, and currently are, of limited value when it comes to uncovering the nature of Divine relevance to human beings. To be sure, there are many speculations rising out of the mists of quantum physics, evolution, astrophysics, and psychology concerning the origins, meaning, and purpose of life – but that's just what they are … flights of speculation which, however interesting, intriguing and thought-provoking they may be cannot be proven to be true statements about the nature, purpose, and relevance of Divinity to humanity. In fact, many scientists would take umbrage with any attempt to try to forge a bridge between Divinity and humankind via science. To paraphrase Jesus (peace be upon him) 'render unto science the things which are science's and render unto Divinity the things which are God's.'
Of course, some would wish to argue that if there is no reality but God, then, in part at least, the subject matter of science does engage Divinity whether scientists acknowledge this or not. From here it is just a skip, hop, and jump to saying that, in principle, science has the capacity to discover various facets of Divinity's relevance to humankind.
There is, however, an assumption implicit in the foregoing line of reasoning. This assumption is that the methods, techniques and processes of science are fully capable of penetrating into, illuminating, and grasping all dimensions of the relation of relevancy between Divinity and humankind.
The realm of the spirit and the nature of the Divine relevancy in human affairs may not necessarily be a function of physical, chemical, biological, material, or mathematical processes except in a very tangential or asymptotic sense. If this is so, then, science is largely irrelevant to the issue of uncovering the nature of Divine relevancy to human purpose, meaning, norms, and ethics.
In any event, I have not seen any feasible experimental proofs for the aforementioned assumption. But, if it exists, the guy or gal who came up with the solution deserves at least a Nobel Prize for the discovery.
Finally, to try to argue, as Imam Rauf does, that prophecy “is the direct revelation of the will of God through words for the ready use of human understanding” is problematic in a number of ways. To begin with, I believe Imam Rauf's way of characterizing things with respect to the nature of prophecy is far too limited.
Some have said that prophecy consists of some 46 parts. Prophecy is more than being a locus of manifestation of God's will through words … however important this latter aspect may be.
There is a saying among the Sufis which states: 'Do not think that learning comes from discourse. It comes in 'keeping company'.
Barakah, or Divine Grace, is also transmitted through Prophets, and it is, God willing, the presence of this barakah that underscores the importance of 'keeping company' with a prophet or any other species of Divine friend. In fact, one might say that the meaning of God's will as expressed through Divine words may not be properly understood unless that understanding comes about through support in the form of barakah that is transmitted, if God wishes, through a prophet or authorized vicegerent to those who are keeping company with God's appointed emissary.
Another problem inherent in Imam Rauf's way of describing things in conjunction with the medium of prophecy as one of three ways for generating knowledge concerning the nature of the relevancy of God to Creation is that the meanings and purposes of God's words are not always available for the “ready use of human understanding”. There often are conditions surrounding the extent to which God's meanings and purposes will be disclosed through the revealed word.
The Qur'an states: “If you have taqwa [my note - a reverential awareness in relation to God's presence], He will give you discrimination.” (8:29) The same kind of theme appears in 2: 282 of the Qur'an: “Have taqwa, and God will teach you.” And, again, “Say (Muhammad): I call to God upon insight. I and whoever follows after me.”
Taqwa, discrimination, insight, and being taught by God are all necessary to engage the meanings of the Qur'an. I have heard my shaykh say on a number of occasions that if an individual approaches the Qur'an with the wrong kind of attitude, then, the Qur'an closes itself to that individual even though such a person may continue to read the words, and part and parcel of the appropriate attitude is to have taqwa while engaging God's words.
Not everything in the Qur'an is necessarily for ready use by human understanding. As is indicated in the Qur'an: “O Mankind! Surely you are ever toiling on towards your Lord, painfully toiling, but you shall meet Him … you shall surely travel from stage to stage. (84: 6, 9)” Part of this toiling is struggling to understand all that Divinity is saying to us through not only the words of revelation but the Divine mysteries which stand beneath, beyond, between, and all around those words.
Indeed, as the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have said: “Truly, the Qur'an has an outward and an inward dimension, and the latter has its own inward dimension … and so on up to seven dimensions.” Words may be the locus of manifestation through which revelation outwardly manifests itself in its most exoteric form, but the reality of revelation may extend into esoteric dimensions which transcend the limits of words -- “We raise by grades of (Mercy) whom We will, and over every lord of knowledge, there is one more knowing. (Qur'an 12: 76)”
The fourth principle of 'globalized religion' mentioned in What's Right With Islam revolves around the idea that human beings have the capacity to act in accordance with Divine imperatives. Because human beings have been granted free will, we can choose to act in a manner that is in concert with our knowledge of Divine imperatives and, thereby, do good while avoiding evil. “God has made nature subservient to us.” (page 36)
Human beings also have a capacity to rebel against Divine imperatives. The Qur'an indicates: “Truly, the soul commands unto evil.” (12: 53) In addition, the Qur'an states: “Lo! We have placed all that is on the earth as an ornament thereof that We may try them – which of them is best in conduct.” (18: 7)
As existentialist philosophers have long noted, one of the primary burdens of life is not only having to choose but to choose in a manner which may be characterized as being “authentic”, as having moral integrity. One of the companions of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) gave expression to this essential challenge when he saw a leaf which had fallen from a tree and wished he could be that leaf so that he would not have to carry the burden of choice.
Contrary to what Imam Rauf argued earlier in the Chapter entitled “Common Roots”, we do not just suffer from a kind of forgetfulness in which we fail -- due to a lapse in awareness or attention -- to act in accordance with what we know to be appropriate, just, right, or correct, but, as well, we also suffer from the nightmarish condition in which we often know what is right but choose to do otherwise despite what we know. We look Divinity straight in the face and brazenly choose to act in accordance with that within us which commands us to evil … whether this be the soul, Iblis (Satan), the attraction of the 'ornaments' of creation (dunya), or the encouragement of other rebels who revel in their rebellion against Divinity's Himma or aspiration for humankind.
God has not made nature subservient to human beings. Rather, God has created both human beings and nature with a conditional potential for joining nature and human beings into a relationship of harmony and mutual benefit or disharmony and mutual destruction.
We have the capacity to know. We have the capacity to choose. We have the capacity to act in accordance with Divine preferences. However, we also have the capacity for ignorance, and we have the capacity for evil, and we have the capacity to flout or rebel against Divine preferences.
Nature does not become co-operative with humankind until that individual becomes a sincere servant of Divinity. This is when human beings realize their Divinely-given potential for being God's vicegerents on Earth who have a fiduciary responsibility to the rest of Creation.
When our internal nature is made subservient to our free will, understanding and actions in relation to Divine preferences, then, external nature also becomes consonant with – to the extent that this is possible -- the human being whose spiritual condition is in harmony with Divine wishes. When our internal nature has not been made subservient to Divine preferences through our choosing to exercise free will wisely, then, not only is external nature not co-operative with human activity, but external nature actually rebels against human desires – and the environmental problems which have become rampant in every part of the world tends to bear witness to this truth.
One can only oppress nature for so long before its own form of insurgency begins. This is as true for internal nature as it is true for external nature, and the insurgency of our internal world is often manifested in the form of spiritual, physical, and psychological problems.
Imam Rauf believes that human beings know what the Divine preferences are. Even given the presence of Divine revelation in sacred books such as the Qur'an, the Gospel of Jesus (peace be upon him), the Torah of Moses (peace be upon him), and the Psalms of David (peace be upon him), I'm not so sure that human beings do know or understand what God's preferences for human beings are.
For example, a great deal of attention is given in the Muslim community to the five pillars of Islam – namely, (1) bearing witness that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God; (2) saying prayers five times a day at the appointed times; (3) observing the requirements of fasting during the month of Ramazan; (4) giving zakat or charity based on a percentage of one's accumulated wealth, and (5) performing Hajj or pilgrimage to Mecca and surrounding areas at least once in one's life if one is financially and physically able to do so.
All of these are important, and I have no wish to denigrate these practices. Indeed, I find that, by the Grace of Allah, such activities both help to order my life in constructive and valuable ways as well as spiritually strengthen me and, thereby, have enabled me to pursue horizons beyond just the five pillars.
The five pillars are part of the Deen or method of spirituality, but there is much more to Deen than the five pillars – and by this I do not mean to suggest that the rest of Deen is about religious law as conceived of by theologians, legal scholars, and the five schools of Muslim jurisprudence. In fact, in many ways, I find Muslim law as traditionally conceived to be not only largely irrelevant to what I believe Divine preferences to be for human beings, but, as well, often constitute a major set of obstacles in the way of ever realizing those Divine preferences.
The Qur'an discusses qualities such as patience, love, gratitude, sincerity, integrity, equality, equitability, righteousness, piety, humility, remembrance, insight, forbearance, forgiveness, harmony, balance, honesty, origins, the structure of human nature, nobility, courage, perseverance, striving, struggle, trust, dependence on Divinity, purifying the carnal soul, stations of the heart, human potential, Grace, wisdom, faith, purpose, models of excellence, identity, healing, reflection, character, ethics, opposition to oppressiveness, and much more. I do not find much consideration of these issues during discussions of Muslim law, and, yet, there is roughly 12 times as much exploration of the foregoing topics in the 6000-plus verses of the Qur'an than there is of the 500, or so, verses concerning issues such as inheritance, marriage, divorce, and other like matters that occupy most of the pages of Muslim legal theory.
Is it important to establish boundaries for matters such as marriage, divorce, and inheritance? Yes, it is, but so is learning to develop moral and spiritual character – qualities which not only transcend traditional approaches to the five pillars as well as Muslim systems of jurisprudence but qualities that actually serve to significantly enhance the quality of life of a community, state, or country.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have said: “Shall I not inform you about a better act than fasting, charity, and prayer? … making peace between one another. Enmity and malice tear up heavenly rewards by the root.” Here is something – namely, making peace -- which is described as being better than three of the pillars of Islam, and, yet, many Muslims tend to judge other Muslims on the basis of their observance, or lack thereof, in relation to the five pillars rather than on the willingness of individuals to try to bring peace to troubled relationships and community.
Another statement which is attributed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the following: “God Almighty is the sustainer of people. Among them God loves best those who are of most benefit to others.” Another saying attributed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the following: “The Creation is as God's family, for its sustenance is from God. Therefore, the most beloved of God is the person who does good to God's family.” The Prophet is also reported to have asked and answered: “Do you love your Creator? Then, love your fellow-beings first.”
Declaring Shahadah (bearing witness to God's Oneness and the Prophetic mission of Muhammad – peace be upon him), prayer, fasting, and pilgrimage (four of the five pillars of Islam) may, if God wishes, help the individual, but they do not necessarily help the community or the rest of humankind. Naturally, if such activities enable an individual to become a better person then, indirectly, such personal observances may be of assistance to the community if those activities become catalytic agents for an individual to undertake various forms of community work – but this is not always the case.
Nevertheless, an injunction to strive to benefit other people is not, strictly speaking, one of the five pillars of Islam. To be sure, zakat or charity is a spiritual obligation which does carry direct benefit to the needy of society. However, not only is zakat described in the Qur'an as a way of purifying one's wealth and, therefore, is often pursued by human beings for its capacity to render benefit to the individual who is observing this practice rather than primarily for the manner in which it is intended to distribute wealth to those who are less fortunate, but the unfortunate fact of the matter is that many people seek to satisfy only the minimum conditions of zakat and, as a result, do not seek to struggle with the question of whether, or not, there might be a lot more they could do with one's talents and resources in the way of charitable activity than is required by the letter of the law with respect to this pillar of Islam.
In short, all too many people may be content to observe only minimalist Islam with respect to the issue of charity rather than pursue the spirit of the principles inherent in zakat. Consequently, it is quite possible to comply with this pillar of Islam and still be largely disconnected from being committed to helping to alleviate the needs and problems which exist in a given community.
By emphasizing the five pillars of Islam, the impression is often given – by theologians, imams, mullahs, jurists, and Muslim legal scholars -- that these pillars constitute the Deen of Islam. This is only partially true, and what is often entirely missing or de-emphasized in such a reductionistic approach to Islam is the significance of a development of the qualities of character which are every bit as important as – if not more so in certain respects -- the five pillars.
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is reported to have said: “I have been given all the Divine Names, and I have been sent to perfect good conduct.” Good conduct entails more than just the five pillars.
The Prophet was asked: “Which part of faith is most excellent?” The Prophet was reported to have replied: “A beautiful character.” On another occasion, the Prophet is reported to have stated: “The most perfect of the faithful in faith is the most beautiful of them character.” The Prophet is also reported to have said: “Allah has 300 attributes, and he who acquires just one of these for his own character trait will inherit Paradise.”
A beautiful character is more than observing the five pillars. A beautiful character is more than observing the five pillars with ihsan or spiritual excellence.
Furthermore, as the saying attributed to the Prophet noted in last two lines of the paragraph immediately preceding the above paragraph suggests, there may be ways to Paradise, if God wishes, which are quite independent of the five pillars. Indeed, as Shakyh Abd al-Qadr (may Allah be pleased with him) intimated: “I did not reach Allah by standing up at night, nor by fasting in the day, nor by studying knowledge. I reached Allah by generosity and humility and soundness of heart.”
Does a beautiful character arise out of observance of the five pillars? Although this may be the case for some individuals, it is not necessarily the case for everyone.
The Prophet Muhammad is reported to have said: “Many are there among you who fast and, yet, gain nothing from it except hunger and thirst, and there are many among you who pray throughout the night and, yet, gain nothing except wakefulness.” One might easily extrapolate this warning to the manner in which some people observe the other pillars of Islam.
For some, and, perhaps, for many, the lessons of: humility, gratitude, dependence, love, sincerity, perseverance, honesty, equitability, nobility, generosity, integrity, courage, forbearance, forgiveness, and friendliness arise out of engaging the trials and tribulations of life which take place quite independently of the five pillars. The Qur'an indicates: “Lo! Ritual worship preserves one from lewdness and iniquity, but, verily, remembrance of Allah is more important” (29: 45), and remembrance of God's Presence according to the multiplicity of Names and Attributes of Divinity through which Divinity interacts with Creation is one of the primary ingredients in the formation of character amidst the trials of life … trials that God has placed into our lives for just this purpose. Remembrance puts things in perspective.
As the Qur'an informs us: “We have created life and death that We may try which of you is best in conduct. He is the Mighty, the Forgiving.” (67: 2) And, again, as indicated previously, conduct extends far beyond the five pillars and/or the legalistic prescriptions of this or that school of law.
All of the foregoing discussion about character or akhlaq and the ways in which character cannot necessarily be subsumed under, or neatly reduced, to the five pillars of Islam is intended to be juxtaposed next to Imam Rauf's belief that Muslims know what Divinity's preferences are for humankind. The questions which arise as a result of this sort of juxtaposition is especially pointed when all too many Muslim jurists, mullahs, imams, educators, and legal scholars use undue influence (in mosques, madrassas -- schools, Muslim gatherings, and the media) to re-frame the nature of those preferences and, in many ways, deflect attention away from and/or restrict the interpretation of such Divine preferences to purely legal matters as understood by traditional theories of Muslim law.
Imam Rauf might agree with many of the foregoing points. But, if he does, then, this agreement sits in opposition, to some degree, with his contention that Muslims know what Divinity's preferences are for human kind.
Contrary to what Imam Rauf seems to suppose, I feel (based on those with whom I have interacted over some thirty-plus years across four continents, as well as based on the books, articles, and lectures by a variety of Muslim authors upon which I have reflected) there seem to be a lot of Muslims who are confused about what the Divine preferences are for humankind. I also believe that a lot of this confusion is due to the misinformation and misunderstanding which is fed to them by so-called religious leaders in a pervasive pattern of spiritual abuse which is oppressively imposed from a very early age – both informally and formally.
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