LETTER 26: THE LAW AND THE TRUTH

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

Brother Shamsuddin, may God make you prosper! The Law and the Truth are two expressions. For the Sufis the reality of the external state is measured by the Law, while soundness in the internal state is encompassed by the Truth. The outer and inner are joined together, indeed, at root, they are inseparable! Believing, without profession by word of mouth, is not real faith; nor is profession of faith complete without the inner resonance of belief. There is no god but God is the Truth, and Muhammad is the Apostle of God is the Law. If someone, in the soundness of his state of faith, wants to separate them, he will not be able to do so. His very desire would be futile! One can, however, separate the injunction of the Law from the Truth, in the sense that there is a manifest difference between speaking and really believing, but the externalist scholars say, We do not make any distinction! The Law is itself the Truth, and the Truth means the Law!

This is false! Whoever says that it is possible to have one without the other follows the religion of the pagans. There are those who claim that when the state of the Truth is revealed, the Law is no long er needed. Cursed be such a belief and such a religion! It should be known that the Truth has to be interpreted to mean that there can be no annulment with respect to it. From the time of Adam till the end of the world, the command concerning the mystical knowledge of God remains the same. Yet in the Law there is scope for annulment and change. This presents no difficulty, for the Law deals with explicit commands. There was a time when there was no Law, and there will be another time when Law will be no more, but there never was, nor could there ever be, a time without the Truth

The Law is an action of Man, while Truth belongs to the Lord and is in His safekeeping and protection. Almighty God says Those who strive hard for Us. We will certainly guide them in Our ways (Q29:69). Struggles pertain to the Law: One finds divine guidance through the Truth. The former is the preserve of man and refers to commands that concern him, while the latter is the preserve of God and concerns the various states that a man can experience. The Law pertains to things acquired, while Truth is a matter of God's gifts. The Law is like matter, Truth like the heart. It is the heart that gives consistency to matter. The Law is like the body. Truth like the soul. In the life of man it is impossible to have one without the other just as the Law is indispensable for the attainment of Truth, so the Truth is necessary to complete the legal requirements of faith.

This group (i.e., the Sufis] is especially well versed in knowledge of the Law and the Truth as applied to real-life situations and not merely verbal ideals. Knowledge of the Truth rests on three pillars: first, knowledge of the essence of the Lord, His unicity and precepts, and also the negation of any likeness to Him whatsoever, second, knowledge of the attributes of the Lord and His commands, and third, knowledge of His deeds and wisdom. Knowledge of the Law rests on these three pillars the Book of God, the Custom of Muham mad, and the consensus of the community. Dwelling on knowledge of the Truth without insisting on observance of the Law is heresy, while dwelling on knowledge of the Law without attesting to the Truth is hypocrisy. The saints of God acquire, by the sincerity of their quest, the knowledge of instruction, that is, that knowledge of the Law which can be learned from the teaching of others, through diligent application. But the saints also purify their own actions by the knowledge that is given to them and is something inherited, having been bestowed on them as a gift and not acquired through teaching or learning: Whoever has acted according to what he knew, it is God who made him an heir to knowledge that by himself he did not pos sess. Hence it is that externalist theologians seek knowledge ac- quired by instruction for that is their stage and yet they do not find this knowledge. Necessarily they become apostates saying, This is against Tradition! or, Where is such a Tradition to be found? They do not realize that the absence of something from the house of a beggar does not explain why it is also absent from the palace of Sul- tan Muhammad Shah!50

The Tradition of Almighty God in his dealings with His own saints is that He dislikes them to manifest more than is fitting. What- ever they get from God is their secret, and their tongue is the instrument used to interpret that secret. The tongue should restrict itself to manifesting the secret in a manner appropriate to, and consonant with, God Almighty.

Their tongue mirrors their knowledge and action; It is a balanced scale, showing neither more nor less! United to God, they are distraught with themselves; Even their own feelings are unknown to them.

If someone sees in a distorted manner, it is because of the crookedness of his being. A squint-eyed person sees double, yet he is con viced that he sees correctly! As far as this group is concerned, those people are all external, squint-eyed persons scanning the world in vain, yet they number themselves among those whose vision is correct! This group is ready to excuse them, because a person with clear vision should be extremely tolerant toward one who is blind. Turn away from the ignorant! (Q7:199) is the same command, but the people with this knowledge have departed and their works have come to a standstill. In this religion all who were men of Truth have become hidden and have concealed what they had. Anybody who held him- self knowledgeable in this religion hid the Truth from the hearts of the people. So this religion at once came to a standstill, for the people said, But this is not the Truth! There used to be adepts of the Truth among them, but they disappeared from their midst, taking their knowledge along with them. No one was left who could describe this religion. Deeds were no longer found in their midst, for they, too, need to be described, and description requires knowledge that must be obtained from those who are capable of understanding! When such people can no longer be found, neither can knowledge! Without it, there is no description, and when description ceases, so too do deeds. Not only this there is also a decrease in knowledge of the Truth. There is a similar falling off in knowledge of the Law. You should know, therefore, that since this group does not countenance the Abandonment of even one of the finer points enjoined by the Law, how could they possibly advocate the neglect of what is obligatory

The stories of the sheikhs concerning Traditions about the nice- ties of the Law are recorded in books and repeated on the tongues of all, for the most famous of the great men of religion used to say: I de- sired everlasting life of the Lord that all peoples might be brought to the joys and delights of Paradise, and that I might be in the heights of the world and show the fine points of the Law as firmly established, and so that they might know the extent to which the Law benefited them. Thus they can learn the finer points so well that whatever they acquire is found in following the Law.

O brother, do not break your heart, but neither be remiss in carrying out what God has ordained The goal is reached by His Assistance, not by your efforts! [This teaching is then illustrated with reference to Adam and the angels.

Peace

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

Brother Shamsuddin, may God make you prosper! The Law and the Truth are two expressions. For the Sufis the reality of the external state is measured by the Law, while soundness in the internal state is encompassed by the Truth. The outer and inner are joined together, indeed, at root, they are inseparable! Believing, without profession by word of mouth, is not real faith; nor is profession of faith complete without the inner resonance of belief. There is no god but God is the Truth, and Muhammad is the Apostle of God is the Law. If someone, in the soundness of his state of faith, wants to separate them, he will not be able to do so. His very desire would be futile! One can, however, separate the injunction of the Law from the Truth, in the sense that there is a manifest difference between speaking and really believing, but the externalist scholars say, We do not make any distinction! The Law is itself the Truth, and the Truth means the Law!

This is false! Whoever says that it is possible to have one without the other follows the religion of the pagans. There are those who claim that when the state of the Truth is revealed, the Law is no long er needed. Cursed be such a belief and such a religion! It should be known that the Truth has to be interpreted to mean that there can be no annulment with respect to it. From the time of Adam till the end of the world, the command concerning the mystical knowledge of God remains the same. Yet in the Law there is scope for annulment and change. This presents no difficulty, for the Law deals with explicit commands. There was a time when there was no Law, and there will be another time when Law will be no more, but there never was, nor could there ever be, a time without the Truth

The Law is an action of Man, while Truth belongs to the Lord and is in His safekeeping and protection. Almighty God says Those who strive hard for Us. We will certainly guide them in Our ways (Q29:69). Struggles pertain to the Law: One finds divine guidance through the Truth. The former is the preserve of man and refers to commands that concern him, while the latter is the preserve of God and concerns the various states that a man can experience. The Law pertains to things acquired, while Truth is a matter of God's gifts. The Law is like matter, Truth like the heart. It is the heart that gives consistency to matter. The Law is like the body. Truth like the soul. In the life of man it is impossible to have one without the other just as the Law is indispensable for the attainment of Truth, so the Truth is necessary to complete the legal requirements of faith.

This group (i.e., the Sufis] is especially well versed in knowledge of the Law and the Truth as applied to real-life situations and not merely verbal ideals. Knowledge of the Truth rests on three pillars: first, knowledge of the essence of the Lord, His unicity and precepts, and also the negation of any likeness to Him whatsoever, second, knowledge of the attributes of the Lord and His commands, and third, knowledge of His deeds and wisdom. Knowledge of the Law rests on these three pillars the Book of God, the Custom of Muham mad, and the consensus of the community. Dwelling on knowledge of the Truth without insisting on observance of the Law is heresy, while dwelling on knowledge of the Law without attesting to the Truth is hypocrisy. The saints of God acquire, by the sincerity of their quest, the knowledge of instruction, that is, that knowledge of the Law which can be learned from the teaching of others, through diligent application. But the saints also purify their own actions by the knowledge that is given to them and is something inherited, having been bestowed on them as a gift and not acquired through teaching or learning: Whoever has acted according to what he knew, it is God who made him an heir to knowledge that by himself he did not pos sess. Hence it is that externalist theologians seek knowledge ac- quired by instruction for that is their stage and yet they do not find this knowledge. Necessarily they become apostates saying, This is against Tradition! or, Where is such a Tradition to be found? They do not realize that the absence of something from the house of a beggar does not explain why it is also absent from the palace of Sul- tan Muhammad Shah!50

The Tradition of Almighty God in his dealings with His own saints is that He dislikes them to manifest more than is fitting. What- ever they get from God is their secret, and their tongue is the instrument used to interpret that secret. The tongue should restrict itself to manifesting the secret in a manner appropriate to, and consonant with, God Almighty.

Their tongue mirrors their knowledge and action; It is a balanced scale, showing neither more nor less! United to God, they are distraught with themselves; Even their own feelings are unknown to them.

If someone sees in a distorted manner, it is because of the crookedness of his being. A squint-eyed person sees double, yet he is con viced that he sees correctly! As far as this group is concerned, those people are all external, squint-eyed persons scanning the world in vain, yet they number themselves among those whose vision is correct! This group is ready to excuse them, because a person with clear vision should be extremely tolerant toward one who is blind. Turn away from the ignorant! (Q7:199) is the same command, but the people with this knowledge have departed and their works have come to a standstill. In this religion all who were men of Truth have become hidden and have concealed what they had. Anybody who held him- self knowledgeable in this religion hid the Truth from the hearts of the people. So this religion at once came to a standstill, for the people said, But this is not the Truth! There used to be adepts of the Truth among them, but they disappeared from their midst, taking their knowledge along with them. No one was left who could describe this religion. Deeds were no longer found in their midst, for they, too, need to be described, and description requires knowledge that must be obtained from those who are capable of understanding! When such people can no longer be found, neither can knowledge! Without it, there is no description, and when description ceases, so too do deeds. Not only this there is also a decrease in knowledge of the Truth. There is a similar falling off in knowledge of the Law. You should know, therefore, that since this group does not countenance the Abandonment of even one of the finer points enjoined by the Law, how could they possibly advocate the neglect of what is obligatory

The stories of the sheikhs concerning Traditions about the nice- ties of the Law are recorded in books and repeated on the tongues of all, for the most famous of the great men of religion used to say: I de- sired everlasting life of the Lord that all peoples might be brought to the joys and delights of Paradise, and that I might be in the heights of the world and show the fine points of the Law as firmly established, and so that they might know the extent to which the Law benefited them. Thus they can learn the finer points so well that whatever they acquire is found in following the Law.

O brother, do not break your heart, but neither be remiss in carrying out what God has ordained The goal is reached by His Assistance, not by your efforts! [This teaching is then illustrated with reference to Adam and the angels.

Peace