LETTER 17: THE SOURCE OF ERROR FOR THE TRAVELER

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

Brother Shamsuddin, there are some Sufis who have performed many austerities and, having witnessed much, retired for a period of time that they might devote their hearts to the profession of faith: There is no god but God! They have exerted themselves so much in meditation that, apart from remembering God at all times, nothing else finds access to their hearts. They have experienced wonderful states, had angelic secrets revealed to them, and attained the stage of being companions who are endowed with miraculous powers. Having been given information about the hidden world, they are correct in all that they say. If they exert their power in time of sickness, the sick person gets better. They have the power needed to destroy their enemies-

and this happens, if they so wish. O brother, behold your soul and your God! You should play the man and cry, I shall reach my Goal, or die in the attempt This Goal is a dazzling carbuncle, and its great excellence can be judged from the fact that it is guarded by the waves of a bloodthirsty ocean. One hundred thousand people are in quest of it. For its sake, they sacrifice their lives and, having been ruined, plunge to the bottom of the sea. When anyone foolishly tries to enter that threshold, then the Devil, who guards it, enticingly says: Don't you recognize me? I am the one from whom the inhabitants of the first heaven learned how to sing God's praises, while those of the second learned how to praise God by proclaiming There is no god but God! The inhabitants of the other worlds have received a diploma in accordance with my, teaching by means of which they can attain the very heights of heaven. Because I have abandoned all these riches, they have drawn the mark of the curse on my forehead and placed me at the head of the lane of the Law of Muhammad. Now, come with the crown of sincerity and enter in, or put your foot in my stirrup. Aren't you a man of religion? And Satan cannot be budged from this position of his, even for the sake of both worlds! He has great pride and holds his ground-until a just man appears in the kingdom and, relying solely on the stratagem of purity, he struts manfully along the Way!

Peace!

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

Brother Shamsuddin, there are some Sufis who have performed many austerities and, having witnessed much, retired for a period of time that they might devote their hearts to the profession of faith: There is no god but God! They have exerted themselves so much in meditation that, apart from remembering God at all times, nothing else finds access to their hearts. They have experienced wonderful states, had angelic secrets revealed to them, and attained the stage of being companions who are endowed with miraculous powers. Having been given information about the hidden world, they are correct in all that they say. If they exert their power in time of sickness, the sick person gets better. They have the power needed to destroy their enemies-

and this happens, if they so wish. O brother, behold your soul and your God! You should play the man and cry, I shall reach my Goal, or die in the attempt This Goal is a dazzling carbuncle, and its great excellence can be judged from the fact that it is guarded by the waves of a bloodthirsty ocean. One hundred thousand people are in quest of it. For its sake, they sacrifice their lives and, having been ruined, plunge to the bottom of the sea. When anyone foolishly tries to enter that threshold, then the Devil, who guards it, enticingly says: Don't you recognize me? I am the one from whom the inhabitants of the first heaven learned how to sing God's praises, while those of the second learned how to praise God by proclaiming There is no god but God! The inhabitants of the other worlds have received a diploma in accordance with my, teaching by means of which they can attain the very heights of heaven. Because I have abandoned all these riches, they have drawn the mark of the curse on my forehead and placed me at the head of the lane of the Law of Muhammad. Now, come with the crown of sincerity and enter in, or put your foot in my stirrup. Aren't you a man of religion? And Satan cannot be budged from this position of his, even for the sake of both worlds! He has great pride and holds his ground-until a just man appears in the kingdom and, relying solely on the stratagem of purity, he struts manfully along the Way!

Peace!