LETTER 79: SPIRIT

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate!

Brother Shamsuddin, there is a difference of opinion among people with regard to the spirit. One group calls it a body, another group, a substance; another, the soul; another, eternal; still another, created. The Christians also call it eternal, and a number of philosophers agree with this opinion. The orthodox view, however, is that we shall call it spirit, and not say anything about its nature or quality. Hence it is that Khwaja Junaid has said: The spirit is at the command of my Lord, and of knowledge you were given but a little (Q17:85). We are not permitted to explain it through any creature, for God has said: When people ask you about spirit, you are to say that it is at the command of my Lord. Junaid added: The jurists firmly maintain the same viewpoint, namely that God Almighty has told us just this much about its nature, that when people ask you about spirit. God put an end to the matter by prohibiting any further discussion saying, 'You are to say that it is under the command of God. The reason is that beneath this command there is nothing but a creature, something contingent. We should take our stand on what God has said and not ask, What is it? and Where is it? for its Creator has told us about it, but not about its nature and quality.

Hence the venerable Sufis have spoken in this manner: Among all the creatures of God Almighty there is one called spirit, but He did not disclose what it is, or where it is. The result is that people are unable to understand it. Hence people should realize that if they cannot understand a creature when God does not tell them about it, how can they hope to know the Creator unless He first makes Himself known to them? Maulana Rumi has said:

Listen to this address, and prepare to give an answer! An atom has become a great sign for the sun. All the kings on the way of religion, all the trustworthy angels say,

Bowing in prostration; I am a tiny basket, ready to receive what God gives.

Another of the beloved has said:

Your body lives by its soul, yet you ignore it: You live by the soul, without knowing the soul. Behold, how delicately fashioned is everything, both hidden and visible.

There is no alternative, O friend, but to keep silent!

Abu Bakr was asked what the soul was. He said that it was not produced under the creative command of God. The meaning of someone who asserts this is that spirit is nothing more than making some thing alive, or life itself. Yet we know that it is God Almighty who makes alive Bestowing life is one of the divine attributes, for creating is proper to the Creator. The proof of this is that God has said, The spirit is at the command of my Lord (Q17:85). God's command is His word, and this is hidden from creatures. It is as if you were to say: This speaker says that the body that came to life did so at the divine command. There is no other meaning in the terms life and spirit.

The wise have said: This is incorrect! In point of fact, there is meaning in the term, 'spirit.' It is created inside the body, just as the body itself is created. As for the saying: It does not come under the divine command, this is an apt hint that things are of two kinds: Either they are passing, or eternal. All ephemeral beings are under the creative command of God, whereas all eternal beings are not. They are called 'eternal because every being that does not cease to exist is eternal. It is clear that spirit, from which the body derives the attribute of life, is a quality of the body, for it is unthinkable that an essence be modified by a quality that is completely extrinsic to it. Hence it is correct to say that spirit is a quality of this living creature. Now this essence is transitory, and it is impossible for such an essence to have an eternal quality, just as it is impossible for an eternal essence to have an ephemeral quality. Yet it has been said: It is nothing but bringing to life, and bringing to life is the quality of one who does just that, in the same way that giving existence is the prerogative of the Creator. This line of argument is false, for the simple reason that, if we admit this for the spirit, we would have to do the same for all qualities. Hence we would say that a being at rest is not at rest because it is resting but because it has been put to rest by a quieter.

Or, a being in motion is not in motion because of its own motion, but because it was put in motion by a stirrer. Similarly, sleeping and waking, health and sickness, and all the qualities of beings would have to be restricted to this source, and it would have to be said that all of these did not come within the ambit of the creative command of God.

But this is incorrect. It could not be correct! The person who argues about this revelation of the Lord, namely, Say: that the spirit is at the command of my Lord (Q17:85), says that His command is His word, which is not created. This way of arguing is incorrect because God did not command Muhammad: Say that the spirit is the command of my Lord, as though spirit were a command, and this command was His word! On the contrary, He said: It is at the command of my Lord. Thus the spirit has been confirmed at the very moment when He said that spirit is at My command. It is clear that spirit is not a command, but proceeds from a command. If by this description one were compelled to say that spirit was not something created, then one would also have to say that all things are not creatures, because just as spirit is from His command, so, too, all things are from His command, for His command is creative-Be! and it came to be (Q2:148). All transient beings, from the divine throne to the nadir of hell, from the beginning till eternity, share in this quality that He said, Be! and it came to be. All are transient, not eternal. It is impossible that spirit be eternal.

This is why most people say that the members of this group have gone astray in this matter, and give witness to their unbelief on the topic of spirit. They say that these call spirit something eternal, just as the Christians do. The latter have said: A group that belongs to Is lam is our friend, for they say that spirit is eternal. This accusation became abominable for the group in question. If such a charge is correct and Sheikh Abu Bakr of Qahat subscribed to this belief, then a certain group in one of its books has remembered that error and tried to explain his position. It is not known, however, whether this is what that great man said or not. And it turns out that these heretics have not remembered him correctly but have striven to denigrate the real Muslims, and to strengthen their own sect. Even were it true that the firm opinion of Sheikh Abu Bakr of Qahat was this, then just because one member of a group is at fault, we cannot say that the whole group went astray and became unbelievers. We have described this not with the intention of proving that spirit is eternal, but to affirm that it is an order from the Giver of life, not a quality within the living creature. One should not call this spirit eternal.

There may have been a mistake in the argumentation of that great man. When one whose heart is intoxicated makes a mistake in his chain of reasoning, this does not make him an unbeliever. Since he himself did not become an unbeliever because of his error, it is impossible that all the group should be accused of having gone astray and become unbelievers on his account. Or, even if the entire group of that great man is held to be in error in its argumentation, and if, be cause of that fact, it is said that all groups have gone astray, then it must necessarily be added that there cannot be found a single correct investigator of reality in the whole world, since there is no group in quest of God that does not include someone who has unintentionally erred. But are they called unbelievers simply because of a single error?

The same applies here. God knows the full truth of what takes place. The author of Kitab at-Ta'arruf [The book on seeking knowledge) has spoken about spirit, heart, the lower soul, and the world, and what he said can be taken as a common basis for the first conviction of Muslims. Let us recall something of what he said. In his view, spirit, heart, the lower soul, and the world are the four things that God Almighty has mentioned by name in His own book. The Law also speaks of them. The people, too, acknowledge their existence. Although the Law and people speak about these four, mentioning their features, activities, and outward qualities, nowhere is there a description of their inner qualities and essence! Khwaja Attar said:

The soul had loftiness, but the earth-formed body, lowliness: There occurred a meeting of lowly dust and pure soul When the exalted and the lowly became friends, Then man emerged as a secret, filled with wonder. But nobody was acquainted with His secret, Nor could a single beggar's work be compared to His! You are able to say only so much. No path remains but silence, Who is there who can even dare to utter a sign?

The wise have said: If it were permissible to speak about spirit, then the Messenger would have been the first to do so, so that when he was asked about spirit he would have answered, because his intellect surpassed all others! As far as both the orthodox and heretics are concerned, the orthodox acknowledge him as the Apostle and easily admit that Muhammad is the most intelligent of men. The heretics, too, call him Abu Ja'far, the Wise. Certainly a wise person must be highly intelligent! Hence there is concurrence about his intelligence, and it was he who was asked about spirit. Yet he did not reply from his intelligence. Instead, he hesitated, until a reply came in the form of an order that confirmed the existence of the spirit, but said nothing about its nature or quality. It was the perfection of his intellect that made him consider this as the proper response. It was the harm done to our intellects that makes it even more necessary for us to respond in a similar way, for we are but slaves, and must conform to the injunctions of the Law. The Law also corroborates this opinion; we should not enquire into the nature and quality of the spirit, since the Law does not treat them.

It is lord, yet totally at my service: Even if it is not God, still it is my lord! Do not say this, for it does not come within your perception! Do not waste your breath, for you will not be able to ex plain it!

The sheikhs say: Some of the venerable Sufis have seen the spirit, each of them in some particular form or another. And this is understandable from what we have just said, for since it exists, it should be visible. Reflect on the way in which it is permissible to see God, Who also exists. Well, then, the spirit, which is His handiwork and exists, should likewise be visible, for the creature cannot be more re fined than its Creator. Whenever seeing is possible with Him, it must also be possible here. If God Almighty wishes to disclose Himself to His servant, He shows Himself just as He wants, and no tongue can act as a wedge between Him and His servant. Sa'di has said:

The keepers of secrets hold their tongues in check, In order to conceal the secrets of the king. Who, fearing You, has the boldness To move his tongue except in praise of You?

O brother, it is all amazement. No knowledge or intellect suffices. When He wishes, the King beyond all needs makes a raid on the souls and the hearts of one hundred thousand upright saints. And when He wishes, He makes one hundred thousand others into lovers with inflamed hearts and roasted livers. The profile of God's will is thus made resplendent! Who is not bound before His glory? And who is not intoxicated by His grandeur? And what heart is not wounded by the sword of His anger?

You have played with love, so wash your hands of heart and eyes!

This is an event of today, but Oh! that it might last till tomorrow!

It is an astonishing world! Moses was told: You cannot see Me! (Q7:143). Then he was told: Look to the mountain! (Q7:143). Then again: Go to Pharaoh! (Q20:24). Just see the way He acts toward souls filled with love in the preceding story! When Moses arrived at that station and these exchanges took place, he wanted to return to his wife and children. An address came: Since you have fallen into My net, and have put My name on your heart, and have set out on the way to Me, your heart should become acquainted with grief and your soul with danger!

Your heart should be acquainted with grief, your soul with danger:

All devoted to idols have their gaze fixed in one direction.

No longer enamored of their own heart or soul or sight

Are those whose heart desires the company of a certain face.

Peace!

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate!

Brother Shamsuddin, there is a difference of opinion among people with regard to the spirit. One group calls it a body, another group, a substance; another, the soul; another, eternal; still another, created. The Christians also call it eternal, and a number of philosophers agree with this opinion. The orthodox view, however, is that we shall call it spirit, and not say anything about its nature or quality. Hence it is that Khwaja Junaid has said: The spirit is at the command of my Lord, and of knowledge you were given but a little (Q17:85). We are not permitted to explain it through any creature, for God has said: When people ask you about spirit, you are to say that it is at the command of my Lord. Junaid added: The jurists firmly maintain the same viewpoint, namely that God Almighty has told us just this much about its nature, that when people ask you about spirit. God put an end to the matter by prohibiting any further discussion saying, 'You are to say that it is under the command of God. The reason is that beneath this command there is nothing but a creature, something contingent. We should take our stand on what God has said and not ask, What is it? and Where is it? for its Creator has told us about it, but not about its nature and quality.

Hence the venerable Sufis have spoken in this manner: Among all the creatures of God Almighty there is one called spirit, but He did not disclose what it is, or where it is. The result is that people are unable to understand it. Hence people should realize that if they cannot understand a creature when God does not tell them about it, how can they hope to know the Creator unless He first makes Himself known to them? Maulana Rumi has said:

Listen to this address, and prepare to give an answer! An atom has become a great sign for the sun. All the kings on the way of religion, all the trustworthy angels say,

Bowing in prostration; I am a tiny basket, ready to receive what God gives.

Another of the beloved has said:

Your body lives by its soul, yet you ignore it: You live by the soul, without knowing the soul. Behold, how delicately fashioned is everything, both hidden and visible.

There is no alternative, O friend, but to keep silent!

Abu Bakr was asked what the soul was. He said that it was not produced under the creative command of God. The meaning of someone who asserts this is that spirit is nothing more than making some thing alive, or life itself. Yet we know that it is God Almighty who makes alive Bestowing life is one of the divine attributes, for creating is proper to the Creator. The proof of this is that God has said, The spirit is at the command of my Lord (Q17:85). God's command is His word, and this is hidden from creatures. It is as if you were to say: This speaker says that the body that came to life did so at the divine command. There is no other meaning in the terms life and spirit.

The wise have said: This is incorrect! In point of fact, there is meaning in the term, 'spirit.' It is created inside the body, just as the body itself is created. As for the saying: It does not come under the divine command, this is an apt hint that things are of two kinds: Either they are passing, or eternal. All ephemeral beings are under the creative command of God, whereas all eternal beings are not. They are called 'eternal because every being that does not cease to exist is eternal. It is clear that spirit, from which the body derives the attribute of life, is a quality of the body, for it is unthinkable that an essence be modified by a quality that is completely extrinsic to it. Hence it is correct to say that spirit is a quality of this living creature. Now this essence is transitory, and it is impossible for such an essence to have an eternal quality, just as it is impossible for an eternal essence to have an ephemeral quality. Yet it has been said: It is nothing but bringing to life, and bringing to life is the quality of one who does just that, in the same way that giving existence is the prerogative of the Creator. This line of argument is false, for the simple reason that, if we admit this for the spirit, we would have to do the same for all qualities. Hence we would say that a being at rest is not at rest because it is resting but because it has been put to rest by a quieter.

Or, a being in motion is not in motion because of its own motion, but because it was put in motion by a stirrer. Similarly, sleeping and waking, health and sickness, and all the qualities of beings would have to be restricted to this source, and it would have to be said that all of these did not come within the ambit of the creative command of God.

But this is incorrect. It could not be correct! The person who argues about this revelation of the Lord, namely, Say: that the spirit is at the command of my Lord (Q17:85), says that His command is His word, which is not created. This way of arguing is incorrect because God did not command Muhammad: Say that the spirit is the command of my Lord, as though spirit were a command, and this command was His word! On the contrary, He said: It is at the command of my Lord. Thus the spirit has been confirmed at the very moment when He said that spirit is at My command. It is clear that spirit is not a command, but proceeds from a command. If by this description one were compelled to say that spirit was not something created, then one would also have to say that all things are not creatures, because just as spirit is from His command, so, too, all things are from His command, for His command is creative-Be! and it came to be (Q2:148). All transient beings, from the divine throne to the nadir of hell, from the beginning till eternity, share in this quality that He said, Be! and it came to be. All are transient, not eternal. It is impossible that spirit be eternal.

This is why most people say that the members of this group have gone astray in this matter, and give witness to their unbelief on the topic of spirit. They say that these call spirit something eternal, just as the Christians do. The latter have said: A group that belongs to Is lam is our friend, for they say that spirit is eternal. This accusation became abominable for the group in question. If such a charge is correct and Sheikh Abu Bakr of Qahat subscribed to this belief, then a certain group in one of its books has remembered that error and tried to explain his position. It is not known, however, whether this is what that great man said or not. And it turns out that these heretics have not remembered him correctly but have striven to denigrate the real Muslims, and to strengthen their own sect. Even were it true that the firm opinion of Sheikh Abu Bakr of Qahat was this, then just because one member of a group is at fault, we cannot say that the whole group went astray and became unbelievers. We have described this not with the intention of proving that spirit is eternal, but to affirm that it is an order from the Giver of life, not a quality within the living creature. One should not call this spirit eternal.

There may have been a mistake in the argumentation of that great man. When one whose heart is intoxicated makes a mistake in his chain of reasoning, this does not make him an unbeliever. Since he himself did not become an unbeliever because of his error, it is impossible that all the group should be accused of having gone astray and become unbelievers on his account. Or, even if the entire group of that great man is held to be in error in its argumentation, and if, be cause of that fact, it is said that all groups have gone astray, then it must necessarily be added that there cannot be found a single correct investigator of reality in the whole world, since there is no group in quest of God that does not include someone who has unintentionally erred. But are they called unbelievers simply because of a single error?

The same applies here. God knows the full truth of what takes place. The author of Kitab at-Ta'arruf [The book on seeking knowledge) has spoken about spirit, heart, the lower soul, and the world, and what he said can be taken as a common basis for the first conviction of Muslims. Let us recall something of what he said. In his view, spirit, heart, the lower soul, and the world are the four things that God Almighty has mentioned by name in His own book. The Law also speaks of them. The people, too, acknowledge their existence. Although the Law and people speak about these four, mentioning their features, activities, and outward qualities, nowhere is there a description of their inner qualities and essence! Khwaja Attar said:

The soul had loftiness, but the earth-formed body, lowliness: There occurred a meeting of lowly dust and pure soul When the exalted and the lowly became friends, Then man emerged as a secret, filled with wonder. But nobody was acquainted with His secret, Nor could a single beggar's work be compared to His! You are able to say only so much. No path remains but silence, Who is there who can even dare to utter a sign?

The wise have said: If it were permissible to speak about spirit, then the Messenger would have been the first to do so, so that when he was asked about spirit he would have answered, because his intellect surpassed all others! As far as both the orthodox and heretics are concerned, the orthodox acknowledge him as the Apostle and easily admit that Muhammad is the most intelligent of men. The heretics, too, call him Abu Ja'far, the Wise. Certainly a wise person must be highly intelligent! Hence there is concurrence about his intelligence, and it was he who was asked about spirit. Yet he did not reply from his intelligence. Instead, he hesitated, until a reply came in the form of an order that confirmed the existence of the spirit, but said nothing about its nature or quality. It was the perfection of his intellect that made him consider this as the proper response. It was the harm done to our intellects that makes it even more necessary for us to respond in a similar way, for we are but slaves, and must conform to the injunctions of the Law. The Law also corroborates this opinion; we should not enquire into the nature and quality of the spirit, since the Law does not treat them.

It is lord, yet totally at my service: Even if it is not God, still it is my lord! Do not say this, for it does not come within your perception! Do not waste your breath, for you will not be able to ex plain it!

The sheikhs say: Some of the venerable Sufis have seen the spirit, each of them in some particular form or another. And this is understandable from what we have just said, for since it exists, it should be visible. Reflect on the way in which it is permissible to see God, Who also exists. Well, then, the spirit, which is His handiwork and exists, should likewise be visible, for the creature cannot be more re fined than its Creator. Whenever seeing is possible with Him, it must also be possible here. If God Almighty wishes to disclose Himself to His servant, He shows Himself just as He wants, and no tongue can act as a wedge between Him and His servant. Sa'di has said:

The keepers of secrets hold their tongues in check, In order to conceal the secrets of the king. Who, fearing You, has the boldness To move his tongue except in praise of You?

O brother, it is all amazement. No knowledge or intellect suffices. When He wishes, the King beyond all needs makes a raid on the souls and the hearts of one hundred thousand upright saints. And when He wishes, He makes one hundred thousand others into lovers with inflamed hearts and roasted livers. The profile of God's will is thus made resplendent! Who is not bound before His glory? And who is not intoxicated by His grandeur? And what heart is not wounded by the sword of His anger?

You have played with love, so wash your hands of heart and eyes!

This is an event of today, but Oh! that it might last till tomorrow!

It is an astonishing world! Moses was told: You cannot see Me! (Q7:143). Then he was told: Look to the mountain! (Q7:143). Then again: Go to Pharaoh! (Q20:24). Just see the way He acts toward souls filled with love in the preceding story! When Moses arrived at that station and these exchanges took place, he wanted to return to his wife and children. An address came: Since you have fallen into My net, and have put My name on your heart, and have set out on the way to Me, your heart should become acquainted with grief and your soul with danger!

Your heart should be acquainted with grief, your soul with danger:

All devoted to idols have their gaze fixed in one direction.

No longer enamored of their own heart or soul or sight

Are those whose heart desires the company of a certain face.

Peace!