Man – a king in Miniature

As we arrive at some knowledge of God’s essence and attributes from the contemplation of the soul’s essence and attributes, so we come to understand God’s method of working and government and delegation of power to angelic forces, etc., by observing how each of us governs his own kingdom. To take a simple instance: Suppose a man wishes to write the name of God. First of all the wish is conceived in his heart, it is then conveyed to the brain by the vital spirits, the form of the word “God” takes shape in the thought-chambers of the brain, thence it travels by the nerve-channels, and sets in motion the fingers, which in turn set in action the pen, and thus the name of “God” is traced on paper exactly as it had been conceived in the writer’s brain. Similarly when God wills a thing it appears in the spiritual plane, which is called in the Koran Al-‘Arsh or the Throne, from the throne it passes by a spiritual current to a lower current called Al-/korsi or the Chair, then the shape of it appears on “Al-Lawh Al-Mahfuz” or the Reserved Tablet, whence by the mediation of the forces called “angles,” it assumes actuality and appears on the earth in the form of plants, trees, and animals, representing the will and command f God, as the written letters represent the with and thought conceived in the heart and the shape present in the brain of the writer.

God has made each of us a king in miniature, so to speak, over a kingdom which is an infinitely reduced copy of His own. In the kingdom of man, God’s “throne” is represented by the soul, the “archangel” by the heart, the “chair” by the brain, and the “tablet” by the treasure-chamber of thought. The soul, itself unlocated and indivisible, governs the body, as God governs the universe. In short, each of us is entrusted with a little kingdom, and charged not to be careless in the administration of it. It is a wonderful trust charged to the care of man. To this the Holy Koran alludes by saying:

ÃäÇ ÚÑÖäÇ ÇáÃãÇäÉ Úáì ÇáÓãæÇÊ æ ÇáÃÑÖ æ ÇáÌÈÇá ÝÃÈíä Ãä íÍãáäåÇ æ ÃÔÝÞä ãäåÇ æ ÍãáåÇ ÇáÅäÓÇä Åäå ßÇä ÙáæãÇ ÌåæáÇõ.

“We have offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains but they were afraid to become unfaithful to it and feared it, and man accepted it but he was unfaithful to it, surely he was unjust and ignorant” (XXXIII – 72).

As regards the recognition of God’s providence. there are several degrees of knowledge. The mere physicist is like an ant – who, crawling on a sheet of paper, and observing black letters being written by a pen, should attribute the cause to the pen alone. The astronomer is like an ant of somewhat wider vision who would catch sight of the fingers moving the pen, i.e. he knows that the elements are under the power of the stars, but he does not know that the stars are under the power of angels. Thus owing to the different degrees of perception in men, disputes must arise in tracing effects to cause. Those whose eyes never see beyond the world of phenomena are like those who mistake servants for the master. The laws of phenomena must be constant, or there could be no such thing as science. But it is a great error to mistake the servants for the master.

A Lustrous Pearl

As long as this difference in the perceptive faculty of observers exists, disputes must necessarily continue. It is as if some blind men, hearing that an elephant has come to their town, should go and examine it. The only knowledge of it which they can obtain comes through the sense of touch, so one handles the animal’s leg, another his tusk, another his ear, and according to their perceptions, declare it to be a column, a thick pole, or a quilt, each taking a part for the whole. Similarly the physicist and astronomer confound the laws they perceive with the lawgiver. A similar mistake is attributed to Abraham in the Koran, where he turned successively to stars, moon and sun as the objects of his worship. Grown aware of Him who made all these, he exclaimed:

ÞÇá áÇ ÃÍÈ ÇáÂÝáíä         I love not those that set” (VI-76)                   .

We have a common instance of this attribution to second causes which ought to be attributed to the First Cause in the case of so-called illness. For instance, if a man ceases to take any interest in worldly matters, conceives a distaste for common pleasure, and appears sunk in depression, the doctor will say: “This is a case of melancholy and requires such and such a prescription.” The physicist will say: “This is a dryness of the brain caused by hot weather and cannot be relieved till the air becomes moist.” The astrologer will attribute it to some particular conjunction or opposition of planets. “Thus far their knowledge reaches,”  says the Koran (in Arabic.    Ðáß ãÈáÛåã ãä  ÇáÚáã  It does not occur to them that what has really happened is this that the Almighty God has a concern for the welfare of that man, and has, therefore, commanded His servants, the planets or the elements to produce such a condition in him that he may turn away from the world to his Maker. The knowledge of this fact, declares the Muslim saint, is a lustrous pearl from the ocean of inspirational knowledge, to which all other forms of knowledge are like islands in the sea.

The doctor, physicist, and astrologer are no doubt right, each in his particular branch of knowledge, but they do not see that sickness is, so to speak, a cord of love by which God draws to Himself the Saints.

Similarly, common folk are right when they exclaim, as they often do, that “God is the Great.” Most of them, however, understand this exclamation to mean that God is greater than creation. But when we consider that creation is God’s manifestation just as light manifests the sun, we will see that it is not correct to say that the sun is greater than its own light. So the exclamation “God is Greater” rather means the God’s greatness measurably transcends our cognitive faculties, and that we can only form a very dim and imperfect idea of it. If a child asks us to explain to him the pleasure which exists in wielding sovereignty, we may say it is like the pleasure he feels in playing bat and ball, though in reality the two have nothing in common except that they both come under the category of pleasure. Moreover, such imperfect knowledge of God as we can attain is not a mere speculative knowledge, but must be accompanied by devotion and worship.

The Seed of Happiness

When a man dies he has to do with God alone, and if we have to live with a person, our happiness entirely depends upon the degree of affection we feel towards him. Love is the seed of happiness, and love to God is fostered and developed by worship. Such worship and constant remembrance of God imply a certain degree of austerity and curbing of bodily appetites. Not that a man is intended altogether to abolish these, for then the human race would altogether perish. But strict limits must be set to their indulgence, and as man is not the best judge in his own case as to what these limits should be, he had better consult some spiritual guide on the subject. Such spiritual guides are the Prophets, and the laws laid down by them under divine inspiration which prescribe the limits to be strictly observed in these matters, without being transgressed, as the Koran puts it :

æ ãä íÊÚÏ ÍÏæÏ Çááå ÝÞÏ Ùáã äÝÓå.

“He whoever goes beyond the limits of Allah, he indeed does injustice to himself” (LVI-1).

And again we read in the Koran:

Êáß ÍÏæÏ Çááå æ ãä íØÚ Çááå æ ÑÓæáå íÏÎáå ÌäÇÊ ÊÌÑí ãä ÊÍÊåÇ ÇáÃäåÇÑ.

“These are God’s limits and he who does not exceed them but obeys God His Apostle, God will cause him to enter Paradise to abide in it” (IV – 13).

Notwithstanding this clear pronouncement of the Koran there are those, who, through their ignorance of God, do transgrees these limits, and this ignorance may due to several different causes. First, there are some persons, who failing to find God by observation, conclude that there is no God, and that this world of wonders has made itself, or existed from everlasting. They are like a man who, seeing a beautifully written letter, should suppose that it had written itself without a writer, and had always existed.

Some through ignorance of the real nature of the soul repudiate the doctrine of a future life, in which man will be called to account and will be rewarded or punished according to his good or bad deeds. They regard themselves as no better than animals or vegetables, and equally perishable. Some, on the other hand, believe in God and a future life, but with a weak belief. They say to themselves that “God is great and independent us. Our worship or abstinence from worship is a matter of indifference to Him.” Their state of mind is of like certain that of a sick man who, having been prescribed a train regime by his doctor, should say: “Well if I follow it or do not follow it, what does it matter to the doctor.” It certainly does not matter to the doctor, but the patient may destroy himself by his disobedience. Just as surely an unchecked sickness of body ends in bodily death, so does uncured diseases of the soul end in future misery, according to the Divine message in the Koran :

ÅáÇ ãä ÃÊì Çááå ÈÞáÈ Óáíã.

“Only those shall be saved who come to God with a sound heart” (not with a heart contaminated with sin) (XVI – 89).

A fourth kind of unbelievers are those who say: “The law commands us to abstain from anger, lust and bodily passions. This is quite impossible, for man is created with these qualities inherent in him.” These people ignore the fact that the law does not require us to uproot these passions altogether but to restrain them within due limits, so that by avoiding the greater sins we may obtain God’s forgiveness of the small ones. Even the Prophet said in an instance; “I am a man like you, and I get angry sometimes but I am apt to subdue my anger.” In the Koran we find that God tells us:

æ ÇáßÇÙãíä ÇáÛíÙ æ ÇáÚÇÝíä Úä ÇáäÇÓ

He loves those who restrain their anger” (not those who have no anger at all) (III -34).

Another kind of people lay stress on the beneficence of God while they ignore His justice. They say to themselves: “Well, whatever we commit, God will pardon us because He is Merciful.” They do not consider that though God is Merciful, thousands of human beings perish miserably in hunger and disease. They know that whosoever wishes for a livelihood, or for wealth or learning, would never get it by merely saying “God is Merciful”, but he must exert himself as well.

Although the Koran states:

æ ãÇ ãä ÏÇÈÉ Ýí ÇáÃÑÖ ÅáÇ Úáì Çááå ÑÒÞåÇ.

“Every living creature’s sustenance comes from God”  (VI – 11).

it is also written in the Koran:

æ Åä áíÓ ááÅäÓÇä ÅáÇ ãÇ íÓÚì

“Man obtain nothing except by striving” (XXXIX – 53).

Indeed, it is the devil that spreads his teachings among those people, and really they do speak with their lips, and not with their hearts.

It is hoped that it is now made clear how by contemplation of his own being and attributes man arrives at some knowledge of God. He who does not master his appetites does not deserve the name of a man, and a true believer in God is he who cheerfully acknowledges the obligations imposed upon him by the law. But he who endeavours on whatever pretext to ignore these obligations or fails to put them into practice must not expect to acquire any true knowledge of God.

3- The Knowledge of This World

This world is a stage or market-place passed by pilgrims on their way to the next. It is here that they are to supply themselves with provision for the way, or, to put it plainly, it is here that man acquires by the use of his bodily senses some knowledge of the works of God, and, through them, of God Himself, the sight of Whom will constitute his future attitude. It is for the acquirement of this knowledge that the spirit of man has descended in this world of water and clay. As long as his senses remain with him he is said to be “in this word,” when they depart, and when only his essential attributes remain, he is said to have gone to “the next world.”

The Soul of the Body

While man is in this world, two things are necessary for him : First, the protection and nurture of his soul; secondly, the care and nurture of his body. The proper nourishment of the soul is the knowledge and love of God, and to be absorbed in the love of anything but God, is the ruin of the soul. The body, so to speak, is simply the riding-animal of the soul and perishes while the soul endures. The soul should take care of the body, just as a pilgrim on his way to Mecca takes care of his camel; but if the pilgrim spends his whole time in feeding and adorning his camel, the caravan will leave him behind, and he will miss the performance of the pilgrimage. Man’s bodily needs are simple being comprised under three headings, namely food, clothing and a dwelling-place; but the bodily desires which are implanted in him with a view to procuring them are apt to rebel against reason which is of later growth than they. Accordingly as we see in the foregoing, they require to be curbed and restrained by the divine laws promulgated by God’s Messengers.

Considering the world with which we have for a time to do, we find it essentially divided into three departments : animal, vegetable and mineral. The products of all three are continually needed by man and have given rise to some principal occupations: those of the cultivators, the weaver, the builder and the worker in metals. These, again, have many subordinate branches, such as tailors, masons, smiths, carpenters, glaziers, etc. None can be quite independent of others; this gives rise in various business connections, and relations, and these too frequently afford occasions for

hatred, envy, jealousy and other maladies of the soul. Hence come some quarrels and strives, and the need of political and civil government and knowledge of law.

The Three Necessities

Thus the occupations and business of the world have become more and more complicated and troublesome, chiefly owing to the fact that men have forgotten that their real necessities are only three : clothing, food and shelter, and that those exist only with the object of making the body a fit vehicle for the soul in its journey to the next world. They have fallen into the same mistake as the pilgrim to Mecca mentioned above, who, forgetting the object of his pilgrimage and himself, should spend his whole time in feeding and adorning his camel. Unless a man maintains the strictest watch, he is certain to be fascinated and entangled by the world.

The deceitful character of the world comes out in the following ways: In the first place, it pretends that it will always remain with you, while, as a matter of fact, it is slipping away from you, moment by moment, and bidding you farewell, like a shadow which seems stationary, but is actually always moving. Again the world presents itself under the guise of a radiant but immoral sorceress; it pretends to be in love with you; it fondles you and then goes off to your enemies, leaving you to die of chagrin and despair.

Those who have indulged themselves without limit  in the pleasures of the world, will, at the time of death, be like a man who has gorged himself to repletion on delicious viands and then vomits them up. The deliciousness is gone, but the disgrace remains. The greater the abundance of the possessions which they have enjoyed in the shap of gardens, castles, male and female servants, gold, silver, etc., the more keenly will they feel the bitterness of parting from them. This is bitterness which will outlast death, for the soul which has contracted covetousness as a fixed habit will necessarily in the next world suffer from the pangs of unsatisfied desire.

Another dangerous property of worldly things is that they at first appear as mere trifles, but each of those so-called “trifles” branches out into countless ramifications until they swallow up the whole of a man’s time and energy.

It is reported that Jesus Christ (upon whom be peace) said, “The Lover of the world is like a man drinking sea-water, the more he drinks, the more thirsty he gets, till at last he perishes with thirst unquenched.” The Prophet Muhammad (upon whom be peace) said, “You can no more mix with the lust of the world without being contaminated by it than you can go into water without getting wet.”

Likeness of The World

The world is like a table spread for successive relays of guests who come and go. There are various dishes, abundance of food and perfumes. The wise guest eats as much as is sufficient for him, smells the perfumes, thanks his host and departs. The foolish guest, on the other hand, tries to carry off some of the gold and silver dishes, only to find them stretched out of his hands and himself thrust forth, disappointed and disgraced.

We may close these illustrations of the deceitfulness of the world with the following short parable: Suppose a ship is to arrive at a certain well-wooded island. The captain of the ship tells the passengers that he will stop a few hours there, and that they can go on shore or a short time, but warns them not to remain there too long. Accordingly the passengers disembark and stroll in different direction. The wisest, however, return  after a short time, and finding the ship empty, choose the most comfortable place in it. A second band of the passengers spend a somewhat longer time on the island, admiring the foliage of the trees and listening to the songs of birds. Coming back on board, they find the best places in ship already occupied, and have thereby to content themselves with the less comfortable ones. A third party wander still farther, and, finding some brilliantly coloured stones, carry them back to the ship. Their lateness in coming on board compels them to stow themselves away in the lower parts of the ship, where they find their loads of stones, which by this time have lost all their brilliancy, very much in their way. The last group go so far in their wanderings that they get quite out of reach of the captain’s voice calling them to come on board, so that at last he has to sail away without them. They wander about in a hopeless conditions and finally either perish with hunger or fall a prey to wild beasts.

The first group represents the faithful who keep aloof from the fascinations of the world altogether, and the last group the infidels who care only for this world and nothing for the next. The two intermediate classes are those who preserve their faith, but entangle themselves more or less with the vanities of things present.

Although we have said so much against the world it must be remembered that there are certain things in the world which are not really of it, such as knowledge and good deeds. A man carries what knowledge he possesses with him into the next world, and, though his good deeds have passed, the effect of them remains in his character. Especially is this the case with acts of devotion, which result in the perpetual remembrance and love of God. These are among “those good things” which, as the Koran says:

ãÇ ÚäÏßã íäÝÐ æ ãÇ ÚäÏ Çááå ÈÇÞ æ áäÌÒíä ÇáÐíä ÕÈÑæÇ ÃÌÑåã ÈÃÍÓä ãÇ ßÇäæÇ íÚãáæä.

“What is with you passes away and what is with God is enduring; and We will most surely give to those who were patient their reward according to the best of what they earned.” (XVI-96).

Other good things are there in the world, such as marriage, food, clothing, etc., which a wise man uses just in proportion as they help him to attain in safety to the next world. Other things which engross the mind, causing it to cleave to this world and to be careless of the next, are purely evil and were alluded to by the Prophet Muhammad when he said:

“The world is but a vanity fair and all occupation in it are mere vanity except when they do not hinder a man from remembering God and worshipping Him, and doing good deeds.”

4- The  Knowledge of The Next World

All believers in the scriptures of God are sufficiently informed as regards the joys of heaven and the pains of hell which will follow this life. But according to the saints there is also a spiritual heaven and hell. They believe that in the heart of the righteous or the enlightened man there is a window opening on the realities of the spiritual world through which he is apt to know, not by hearsay or traditional belief, but by actual experience, what produces wretchedness or happiness in the soul, just as clearly and decidedly as the physician knows what produces sickness or health in the body.

The effect of death on the composite nature of man is illustrated by the Muslim saints as follows; Man has two souls, an animal soul and a spiritual soul, which latter is more or less of angelic nature. The seat of the animal soul is the heart, from which this soul issues like subtle vapour and pervades all the members of the body, giving the power of sight to the eye, the power of hearing to the ear, and to every member the faculty of performing its own appropriate functions. It may be compared to a lamp, carried about within a cottage, the light of which falls upon the walls wherever it goes. The heart  is the wick of this lamp, and when the  supply of oil is cut off for any reason the lamp is sure to die. Such is the death of the animal soul. With the spiritual or human soul, the case is different. It is indivisible and by it man knows God. As it were, it is the rider of the animal soul, and when that perishes it still remains but like a horseman who has been dismounted, or like a hunter who has lost his weapons. That steed and those weapons were granted to the human soul that by means of them it might pursue and capture the love and knowledge of God. If it has effected that capture, it is not a grief but rather a relief to be able to lay those weapons aside, and to dismount from that weary steed. Therefore, all saints consider death as a welcome gift of God to His lovers. But alas! for that soul which loses its steed and hunting-weapons before it has captured the prize ! Its misery and regret will be indescribable.

Further consideration will show how clearly distinct the human soul is from the body and its members. Limb after limb may be paralysed and cease working but the individuality of the soul is unimpaired. Again, the body which we have now is no longer the body which we had when young, but entirely different, yet our personality now is identical with our personality then. It is, therefore, easy to conceive of it as persisting when the body is done with altogether along with its essential attributes which were independent of the body, such as the knowledge and love of God. But if, instead of carrying away with us knowledge and love, we depart in ignorance of God, this ignorance is also an essential attribute and will abide as darkness of soul and seed of misery. Therefore, the Koran teaches the godly Muslims that:

“He who is blind in this life will be blind in the next life and will be still more astray from the path of happiness (XVII – 72).

æ ãä ßÇä Ýí åÐå ÃÚãì Ýåæ Ýí ÇáÂÎÑÉ ÃÚãì æ ÃÖá ÓÈíáÇ.

The reason of the human spirit seeking to return to the upper world is that its origin was from thence, and that it is of celestial origin. It was sent down into this lower sphere against its will to experience devotion of God and acquire divine love through worshipping Him; and doing good deeds and avoiding evil ones and depart to receive its reward with the righteous. This is clearly taught from the Koranic verse which may be rendered in the following terms :

ÞáäÇ ÇåÈØæÇ ãäåÇ ÌãíÚÇð ÝÃãÇ íÃÊíäßã ãäí åÏì Ýãä ÇÊÈÚ åÏÇí ÝáÇ ÎæÝ Úáíåã æ áÇ åã íÍÒäæä .

“Go down (Adam and Eve) from hence, all of you (your posterity), there will come to you true guidance from Me, and they who will follow My guidance need not fear nor shall they be grieved” (II-58).

The conception is that as just as the health of the animal soul consists in the equilibrium of its component parts, and this equilibrium is restored, when impaired, by appropriate medicine, so the health of the human soul consists in a moral equilibrium which is maintained and repaired, when necessary, by ethical instruction and moral precepts.

As already pointed out, the human soul is essentially independent of the body. Some people, however, have supposed that the human soul is annihilated after death and then restored, but this is contrary both to reason and to the word of God as revealed in the Holy Book. The former shows us that death does not destroy the essential individuality of man, and the Koran teaches us that “those who are killed while defending the religion of God are not dead, but still alive, rejoicing in the presence of their Lord and in the grace bestowed on them.” Not a word is said in the law about any of the dead, good or bad, being annihilated. Nay, the Prophet is said to have questioned the spirits of those who were killed among the infidels in battle against the early Muslim, as to whether they have found the punishments with which God had threatened them, real or not. When the followers of the Prophet asked him what was the good of his questioning them who were dead, he replied. “They hear my words better than you do.”

On the other had. the pains which souls suffer after death all have their source in excessive love of the world. The messengers of God warned that sinners, after death, will be tormented by so many snakes; some simple-minded men have examined the graves of the sinners and wondered at failing to see these snakes. They do not understand that the tormenting snakes have their abode within the unbeliever’s spirit, and that they existed in him even before he died , for they were but his own evil qualities symbolised, such as jealousy, hatred, hypocrisy, from excessive love of the world.

Every sinner thus carries with him into the world beyond death the instruments of his own punishment, and on the Koran it is stated:

æÅä Ìåäã áãÍíØÉ ÈÇáßÇÝÑíä

That is : “Hell surely surrounds the infidel (IX-49)”  It does not state that hell will surround them, for it surround them, even now.

Some people may object and say: “If such is the case, then who can escape hell, and who is not more or less bound to the world by various ties of affection and interest? To this we answer that the verse simply refers to the state of the infidels who have no faith in God and who disregarded His injunctions bending altogether on the fascination of this world. As to the faithful and doers of good, the Koran says to the prophet:

” æÈÔÑ ÇáÐíä ÂãäæÇ æÚãáæÇ ÇáÕÇáÍÇÊ Ãä áåã ÌäÇÊ ÊÌÑí ãä ÊÍÊåÇ ÇáÃäåÇÑ”

“Give good tidings to the faithful who do what is right that they shall inherit gardens beneath which rivers flow” (II—23)

Many people profess to love God, but a man can easily test himself by watching which way the balance  of his affection inclines when the commands of God come into collision with some of his ambitions and desires. Any profession of love to God which is not confirmed by obedience to Him is simply false.

Kinds of Spiritual Hell

We have seen above that one kind of spiritual hell is the forcible separation by death from worldly things to which the heart cleaved too fondly. Another kind is that of shame, when a man awakes up to see  the nature  of the bad actions he committed in their naked reality.

A third spiritual hell is that of disappointment and failure to reach the real objects of existence. Man was intended  to mirror forth the light of the knowledge of God, but if he arrives in the next world with his soul thickly coated with the rust of sensual indulgence he will entirely  fail to acquire the object for which he was created.

Suppose a man in passing with some companions through a dark wood. Here and there, glimmering on the ground, lie various coloured stones. His companions collect and carry these and advise him to do the same “ For,” say they, “we have heard that these stone will fetch a high price in the place whether we are going.” He, on the other hand, laughs at them and calls them fools for loading themselves in the vain hope of gain, while he walks free and unencumbered. Presently they emerge into the full daylight and find that these coloured stones are rubies, emeralds and other jewels of priceless value. The man’s disappointment and chagrin at not having gathered some when so easily within his reach may be more easily imagined than described. Such will be the remorse of those, hereafter, who, while passing through this world to the next, have been at no pains to acquire the jewels of virtue and the treasures of good deeds.

Many people, however, having no fixed convictions about the future world, when mastered by their sensual appetite, deny it altogether. They say that hell is merely an invention of theologians to frighten people, and they regard theologians themselves with thinly veiled contempt. To argue with men of this kind of thinking is of very little use. Thus much, however, may be said to such a man with the possible result of making him pause and reflect. Suppose you are about to eat food and some one tells you a serpent has spat venom on it, you would probably refrain and rather endure the pangs of hunger than eat it, though your informant may be in jest or lying. Or if an astrologer tells you, when the moon has entered a certain constellation, drink such and such a medicine, and you  will recover; though you may have very little faith in astrology, you very likely would try the experiment on the chance that he might be right. And do you not think that reliance is as well placed on the words of all the Prophets, saints and holy men and hundred of millions of wise men, convinced as they were of a future life, as on the promise of a charm-writer or an astrologer? People take perilous voyages in ships for the sake of merely probable profit, and will you not suffer a little pain of abstinence now for the sake of eternal joy hereafter?

From all that we have said it follows that man’s chief business in this world is to prepare for the next. Even if he is doubtful about a future existence, reason suggests that he should act as if there were one, considering the tremendous issues at stake. Peace be on those who follow the true guidance !

5- The three Stages of Man’s Development

The Holy Koran has dealt fully with three conditions of man, namely the physical, the moral and the spiritual. It observes this division by fixing three respective sources for this threefold condition of man. It mentions three springs out of which these three conditions flow. The first of them is termed the “Nafs-il-ammara”, which signifies the uncontrollable soul or the soul prone to lust and evil. Thus the Koran says: “The soul is prone to evil” (12:53) Åä ÇáäÝÓ áÃãÇÑÉ ÈÇáÓæÁ  i.e. it is the characteristic of the (primitive) soul that it inclines man to evil doings or tends to lead him into iniquitous and immoral paths. In short, man’s primitive nature is prone to transgression at a certain age in his development, and so long as he is devoid of high moral qualities, the evil nature is predominant in him. He is subject to this state so long as he does not walk in the light of true wisdom and knowledge but acts in obedience to the natural inclinations, like the lower animals.

As soon, however, as he frees himself from the control of animal passions and is guided by wisdom and knowledge, he holds the reins of his natural desires and governs them instead of being governed by them; when a transformation is worked in his soul from grossness to virtue, he then passes the physical stage and becomes a moral being in the strict sense of the word. The source of the moral conditions of man is called the “Nafs-il-lawwama”, or the self-accusing soul (conscience), in the terminology of the Koran. In the Koranic Chapter entitled “Al Qiyama” or the Resurrection we read (75:2)

“æ áÇ ÃÞÓã ÈÇáäÝÓ ÇááæÇãÉ”  i.e. And I swear by the soul that blames itself, (on every dereliction of duty, being conscience of having offended). This is the spring from which flows a highly moral life and, on reaching this stage, man is freed from bestiality. The swearing by the self-accusing soul indicates the regard in which it is held. For, the change from the disobedient to the self-accusing soul, being a sure sign of its improvement and purification, makes it deserving of approbation in the sight of God. The “nafs-il-lawwama” or the self-accusing soul is so called because it upbraids a man for the doing of an evil deed and strongly hates unbridled passions and bestial appetites. Its tendency on the other hand, is to generate noble qualities and a virtuous disposition, to transform life so as to bring the whole course and conduct of it to moderation, and to restrain and carnal passions and sensual desires so as to keep them within due bounds. Although the self-accusing soul upbraids itself for its faults and frailties, yet it is not the master of its passions, nor is it powerful enough to practice virtue exclusively. The weakness of the flesh has the upper hand sometimes and then it stumbles and falls down. Its weakness then resembles that of a child who does not like to fall but whose infirm legs are sometimes unable to support him. But it does not persist in its fault, every failure bringing only fresh reproach to the mind. In short, at this stage the soul is anxious to attain to moral excellence and revolts against disobedience which is the characteristic of the first, or the animal stage, but does, notwithstanding its yearning for virtue, sometimes deviates from the straight path, the path of God.

The third or the last stage in the outward movement of the soul is reached on attaining to the source of all spiritual qualities. The soul at this stage is, in the word of the Holy Koran; the “Nafs-il-Mutmainna, or the soul at rest

“íÇ ÃíÊåÇ ÇáäÝÓ ÇáãØãÆäÉ ÃÑÌÚí Åáì ÑÈß ÑÇÖíÉ ãÑÖíÉ ÝÇÏÎáí Ýí ÚÈÇÏí æ ÇÏÎáí ÌäÊí”

“O Thou soul that art at rest! Return to thy Lord well pleased (with him), well pleasing (Him). So enter among my (beloved) servants; and enter into my paradise.” (LXXXIX-30).

At this stage the soul is freed from all weaknesses and frailties and is braced with spiritual power. The guidance of the soul at rest with its Lord is in the Koran’s teaching:

“He who purifies his soul (of the carnal passions) is entitled to success while he who indulges into a degrading passion is entitled to failure” (XCI).

In short, these three stages of the soul may be called the physical, the moral and the spiritual. Of these, the physical state, that in which man seeks to satisfy the passions of the flesh, is most dangerous when the passions run riot, for it is then that they deal a death-blow to the moral and spiritual states of man, and hence this state has been termed as that attended with failure, in the Word of God.

Teachings of the Koran as to the Physical state of man.

According to the Muslim Scriptures, the physical condition of man is closely connected with his moral and spiritual qualities. If, therefore, his natural desires are subjected to the directions of the Law, they take the form of moral qualities and deeply affect the spiritual state of the soul. It is for this reason that in all forms of devotion and prayer and in all the injunctions relating to internal purity and moral rectitude the greatest stress has been laid upon external purity and cleanliness and on the proper attitudes of the body. The relation between the physical and spiritual natures of man would become evident on a careful consideration of the actions of the outward organs and the effect they produce upon the internal nature of man. Weeping whether artificial at once suddens the heart while an artificial laugh makes it cheerful. Likewise a prostration of the body, as is done in Muslim prayer causes the soul to humble itself and adore the Creator; whereas strutting produces vanity and vainglory. These examples sufficiently illustrate the effect of bodily postures as enjoined upon Muslims when fulfilling their fixed daily prayers upon the spiritual state of man. On the other hand there is not the least doubt that food plays an important part in the formation of character. It is with this greater law in view that the Holy

Koran says : (7:29) “ßáæÇ æ ÇÔÑÈæÇ æ áÇ ÊÓÑÝæÇ”   i.e. “Eat (meat as other food) but do not give way to excess (in any particular form of diet so that your character and health may not suffer from it).(VII-29)

The physical side of man’s life being of such great importance even to the soul, the true Word of God cannot be silent on the point. The Holy Koran has, therefore, applied itself abundantly to the reformation of the physical state of man’s life. It gives us the most valuable and minute directions on all matters of importance with which man is concerned. All his movements, the manner of the satisfaction of all his requirements, his family, social and general connections, health and sickness, are all regulated by rules and it is shown how external order and purity have their effect upon the spiritual state of man.

A close study of the Koranic injunctions and directions relating to the reformation of the external life of man and his gradual advancement from savageness to civilization until he reaches the highest pinnacle of a spiritual life, reveals the following all-wise method: In the first place Almighty God has been pleased to lead him from out of darkness and raise him up from a savage state by teaching him the rules relating to his ordinary daily actions and modes of social life. Thus it begins at the lowest point of man’s development and, first of all drawing a line of distinction between man and the lower animals, teaches him the rules of morality which may pass under the name of sociality. Next, it undertakes to improve upon low degree of morality already required by bringing the habits of man to moderation, thus turning them into sublime morals.

We pass now to the third stage of advancement when man altogether forgets himself in the love of God and in doing His will and when his whole life is only for the sake of his Master. It is to this stage that the name Islam alludes, for it signifies total resignation to the commands and service of God and total forgetfulness of selfishness. Thus says the Holy Koran:

” Èáì ãä ÃÓáã äÝÓå ááå æ åæ ãÍÓä Ýáå ÃÌÑå ÚäÏ ÑÈå æ áÇ ÎæÝ Úáíåã æ áÇ åã íÍÒäæä ”

(Nay! Whoever submits himself entirely to God and he is the doer of good he will get his reward with his Lord, on such there is no fear nor shall they grieve). (II-112)

And again the Koran says:

” Þá Ãä ÕáÇÊí æ äÓßí æ ãÍíÇí æ ããÇÊí ááå ÑÈ ÇáÚÇáãíä áÇ ÔÑíß áå æ ÈÐáß ÃãÑÊ æÃäÇ Ãæá ÇáãÓáãíä”

(Say my prayers and my devoutness and my life and my death all are devoted to Allah the Lord of the Universe who has no partner. Thus I am commanded and I am the first to submit to the commandment).  (V-163)

” æÅä åÐÇ ÕÑÇØí ãÓÊÞíãÇð ÝÇÊÈÚæå æ áÇ ÊÊÈÚæÇ ÇáÓÈá ÝÊÝÑÞ Èßã Úä ÓÈíáå”

(God said) “ This is my way, leading straight : Follow it : Follow not other ways, least they should scatter you about from His straight Path. Thus God commands you, that you may be righteous ” (VI-63)

And again we read in the Koran :

” Þá Åä ßäÊã ÊÍÈæä Çááå ÝÇÊÈÚæäí íÍÈÈßã Çááå æ íÛÝÑ áßã ÐäæÈßã æ Çááå ÛÝæÑ ÑÍíã ”

“ Say (to them) “ If we do love Allah come and follow me; then will God love you and forgive you your former sins, and He is surely Forgiving and Merciful.”  (III-29)

Now we shall deal with the three states of life one after another. As already stated, there are three sources which give rise to the threefold nature of man, viz.: the disobedient soul, the self-accusing soul and the soul at rest or the contented soul.

Our Prophet Muhammad was raised at a time when the whole world had sunk to the lowest depths of degradation. The threefold reformation of man was therefore, destined to be brought about at this period by means of the Holy Koran. It is this reason that the Holy Book claims to be a perfect guidance to mankind as to it alone was given the opportunity to work a reformation complete on all sides. The Koran was, therefore, sent to bring life to the dead as it says:

“ÙåÑ ÇáÝÓÇÏ Ýí ÇáÈÑ æ ÇáÈÍÑ”

i.e. “Both land and water have become corrupt.” (XXX-41)

The Koran also says :

” ÃÚáãæÇ Ãä Çááå íÍí ÇáÃÑÖ ÈÚÏ ãæÊåÇ ”

“Know it for certain that God is now going to restore life to the earth which had been dead.”      (LVII-17)

Utter darkness and barbarism at that time prevailed over the whole of Arabia. No social laws were observed; and the most despicable deeds were openly committed. An unlimited number of wives was taken, and all prohibited attitudes were made lawful. Rapine and incest raged supreme and not infrequently mothers were taken for wives.

Now the Koran had a grand aim before it. It had to reclaim mankind from savagery and to make them men; then to teach them simple morals and make them good men, and last of all, to take them to the highest pinnacles of advancement and make them godly. The Holy Book gives excellent instructions on these three aspects. It does not inculcate doctrines which are against the reason of man and which therefore one has to follow against one’s better judgment.

The whole drift of the Holy book and the substance of its teachings is the threefold reformation of man and all other directions are simply means to the end. All its moral teachings, precepts and doctrines have an all-pervading purpose beneath them which consists in transforming men from the physical state which is imbued with a tinge of savageness into the moral state and from the moral into the boundless deep of the spiritual state.

To attain to the desired end of the highest spiritual advancement, the Holy Koran has taught us two means for it, viz: complete resignation to the will of God, which is known by the name of Islam, by leading a life guided and fostered by the injunctions and ordinances of God and the traditions of the Prophet; and striving our best to recollect and love our Creator and Subtenant, the Almighty God. Meantime, we must make constant self-examination to find out if we are trodding on the right path or not.

6- Self Examination The Recollection and Love of God

The saints have conceived that men have come into this world to carry on a spiritual traffic, the resulting gain or loss of which is heaven or hell. They have always kept a jealous eye upon the flesh which, like a treacherous partner in business, may cause them great loss. He, therefore is really a wise man who, after his morning prayers, spends a whole hour in making a spiritual reckoning, and says to himself, “O my soul, thou hast only one life, no single moment that has passed can be recovered, for in the counsel of God the number of breaths allotted thee is fixed, and cannot be increased. When, life is over no further spiritual traffic is possible for thee therefore what thou doest, do now, just treat this day as if the life had been already spent, and this were an extra day granted thee by the special favour of the Almighty. What can be greater folly than to lose it?”

It was a saying of the Caliph Omar, “Call yourselves to account before ye be called to account.”

The Saints relate that at the resurrection a man will find all the hours of his life arranged like a long series of treasure-chests. The door of one will be opened, and it will be seen to the full of light. It represents an hour which he spent in doing good. The door of a second will be opened, it is pitch-dark within, it represents an hour which he spent in doing evil. The door of a third treasure-chest will be opened, it will be seen to be empty and neither light nor dark within, this represents the hour in which he did neither good nor evil. Then he will fell remorse and confusion like that of a man who has been the possessor of a great treasure and wasted it or let it slip from his grasp. Thus the whole series of the hour of his life will be displayed, one by one, to his gaze. Therefore a man should say to his soul every morning. “God has given thee twenty-four treasures, take heed lest thou should lose any one of them, for thou will not be able to endure the regret that will follow such loss.”

Muslim Saint have said, “Even suppose God should forgive thee, after a wasted life, thou will not attain to the ranks of the righteous and must deplore by loss. Therefore, keep a strict watch over thy tongue, thine eye, and each of thy various organs for each of these is, as it were, a possible gate to misery in the hereafter. Say to thy flesh, “If thou art rebellious, verily I will punish thee”, for though the flesh is headstrong, it is capable of receiving instruction, and can be tamed by austerity.

Such, then, is the aim of self-examination, and the Arabian Prophet has taught that “Happy is he who does now that which will benefit his human soul after death.”

The Recollection of God

We come now to the recollection of God. This consists in a man’s remembering that God observes all his acts and thoughts. People only see the outward, while God sees both the outer and the inner man. He who really believes this will have both his outer and inner being well disciplined. If he disbelieves it he is an infidel, and if, while believing it, he acts contrary to that belief, he is guilty of the grossest presumption.

A certain Muslim guide had a disciple whom he favoured above his other disciples, thus exacting their envy. One day the guide gave each of them a fowl and told each to go and kill it in a place where no one could see him. Accordingly, each killed his fowl in some retired spot and brought it back, with the exception of the guide’s favourite disciple, who brought his fowl back alive, saying, “ I have found no place, for God sees everywhere.” The guide said to the others, “ You see now this youth’s rank, he has attained to the constant remembrance of God.”

In the Muslim spiritual literature we read the following story told by Abdullah Ibn Dinar, one of the most intelligent disciples of the Arabian Prophet. He said, “Once I was walking with the Caliph Omar near Mecca when we met a shepherd’s slave-boy driving his flock. Omar said to him. “Sell me a sheep.” The boy answered, “ They are not mine, but my master’s”. then to try him, Omar said, “ Well you can tell him that a wolf carried one off, and he will know nothing about it.” “No, he won’t,” said the boy, “but God will.” Omar was so pleased with the boy’s remark that he sent for the boy’s master, purchased him and set him free, exclaiming, “For this saying thou art free in this world and shall be saved in the next.”

Therefore, he is a wise man who keeps constant watch not only on his own actions but also on his own thoughts, which are likely to end in action. Rightly to discriminate among such thoughts is rather a difficult and delicate matter, and requires a special training, and he who is not capable of it should attach himself to some spiritual guide, intercourse with whom may illuminate his heart.

The Prophet Muhammad said:

“ God loves that man who is keen to discern in doubtful things, and who suffers not his reason to be swayed by the assaults of passion.” Reason and discrimination are closely connected and he in whom reason does not rule passion will not be keen to discriminate.

Besides such cautious discrimination before acting, a man should call himself strictly to account for his past actions. Every evening he should examine his heart as to what he has done to see whether he has gained or lost in his spiritual capital. This is the more necessary as the heart is sometimes like a treacherous business partner, always ready to cajole and deceive sometimes it presents its own selfishness under the guise of obedience to God, so that a man supposes he has gained; whereas he has really lost.

The Love of God

The love of God is the highest of all topics, and is the final aim to which this work has been tending hitherto. Human perfection consists in this that the love of God should conquer a man’s heart and possess it wholly, and even if it does not possess it wholly it should predominate in the heart over the love of all other things. Nevertheless, rightly to understand the love of God is so difficult a matter that one sect of philosophers have altogether denied that man can love a being who is not of his own species, and they have defined the love of God as consisting merely in obedience to Him. But this is not true. All Muslims are agreed that the love of God is a duty. In the Muslim literature it is related that when the angel of death came to take the soul of Abraham the latter said, “Have you ever seen a friend take his friend’s life? ” God answered him, “Have you ever seen a friend unwilling to see his friend? Then Abraham said to the angel, “Come and be quick to take my soul.” The following prayer was taught by the Arabian Prophet to his followers.

“ O God, grant me to love Thee and to love those who love thee, and what soever brings me nearer to thy love, and make thy love dearer to me than cold water to the thirsty traveller in the desert.” A Muslim used to say, “ He who knows God naturally loves him and he who knows the deceitful world certainly hates it.”

We come now to treat of love in its essential nature, according to the spiritual Muslim conception. Love may be defined as an inclination to that which is pleasant. This is apparent in the case of the five senses each of which may be said to love that which give it delight; thus the eye loves beautiful forms, the ear music, etc. This is a kind of love we share with the animals. But there is a sixth sense of faculty of perception, implanted in the heart, which lower animals do not possess, through which we become aware of spiritual beauty and excellence. Thus a man who is only acquainted with sensuous delights cannot understand what the Prophet meant when he declared that “ he loved prayer more than any pleasant and beautiful thing.” But he whose inner eye is opened to behold the beauty and perfection of God will despise all outward sights in comparison, however fair and excellent they may be.

Man will say that beauty resides in red and white complexion well—proportioned limbs, and so forth, but he will be blind to moral beauty, such as men refer to when they speak of such and such a man as possessing a beautiful character.

It is for this reason that we love the righteous, the Saints and the Godly, because the love of such men really means the love of God.

The causes of love are several. One of them is this, that man loves himself and the perfection of his own nature. This leads him directly to the love of God, for man’s very existence and man’s attributes are nothing else but the gift of God, for whose grace and kindness man would never have emerged from behind the curtain of non-existence into the visible world. Mans preservation and eventual attainment to perfection are also entirely dependent upon the grace of God. It would be a wonder, if one should take refuge from the heart of the sun under the shadow of a tree and not be grateful to the tree, without which there should be no shadow at all. Precisely in the same way, were it not for God, man would have no existence nor attributes at all., wherefore then, should he not love God, unless he be ignorant of Him ? Doubtless fools cannot love Him, for the love of Him springs directly from the knowledge of Him, and whence should a fool have knowledge?

A  second cause of this love is that man loves his benefactor, and in truth his only benefactor is God, for whatever kindness, he receives from any fellow creature is due to the immediate instigation of God. Whatever motive may have prompted the kindness he receives from another, God is the Agent who set that motive to work.

The third cause is the love that is aroused by contemplation of the attributes of God. His power and wisdom, of which human power and wisdom are but the feeblest reflections. This love is akin to the love that we feel towards the great and wise men of the past, through we never expect to derive personal benefit from them, and is therefore a more disinterested kind of love.

God said to Prophet David, “ That servant is dearest to Me who does not seek Me from fear of punishment or hope of reward, but to pay the debt due to Me Deity.” And in the Psalms it is written, “ Who is more selfish than he who worships Me from fear of hell or hope of heaven? If I had created neither, should I not then have deserved to be worshipped?”

The fourth cause of this love is the affinity which does exist between man and God as referred to in the saying of the Holy Prophet “Verily God created man in his likeness.” This is a somewhat dangerous topic to dwell upon, as it is beyond the conception of common people, and even intelligent men have stumbled in treating of it, and come to believe in incarnation and union with Go. Still, the affinity which does exist between man and God disposes of the objection of those philosophers mentioned above, who maintain that man cannot love a being who is not of his own species. However great the distance between them, man can love God because of that affinity indicated in the saying of the Holy Prophet that “God created man in His own likeness.”