Mantic uttaïr, Invocation

Praise be to the holy Creator of the soul, who bestowed soul and faith upon vile earth, who set His throne upon the waters, and gave life in the air to creatures of the earth! He granted dominion to the heavens and dependence to the earth; upon the heavens He impressed perpetual motion, upon the earth unvarying repose. He placed above the earth the firmament, like a tent without pegs to support it. In six days He created the seven planets, and with two letters He created the nine domes of the heavens. He gilded the dice of the stars, so that during the night the heavens might play at tric-trac. He endowed the net of the body with diverse properties; He placed dust upon the tail of the bird of the soul; He made the Ocean fluid as a token of subjection, and froze the mountain with the fear He inspired in it. He dried up the sea completely; from stone He brought forth the ruby, and from blood, musk. To the mountain He gave the dagger and the belt; for this reason it lifts its head in pride. Now He caused tufts of roses to spring forth upon the face of fire, now bridges upon the face of water. He set a tiny mosquito upon His enemy, whose sting he felt for four hundred years.

In His wisdom, He inspired a spider to weave its web wisely, to protect the most eminent of men. He cinched the ant’s waist until it resembled a hair, and made it the companion of Solomon; He gave it the fine black garment of the Abbasids and a peacock-worthy robe of brocade, which was no trouble to weave. Seeing that the carpet of nature was defective, He mended it properly. He dyed the sword with the tulip’s colour, and from smoke He made a bed of water lilies. He soaked clods of earth in blood to draw forth carnelian and ruby.
The sun and the moon, one by day, the other by night, bow their foreheads in adoration upon the dust of the road. Their movement is owed to this adoration: could it take place without adoration? It is God who spread out the white day and made it bright; it is He who folded the night and blackened it as though He had…

He has given the parrot a collar of gold; He has made the hoopoe the messenger of the way. The firmament is like a bird beating its wings along the road God has traced for it; it comes and strikes at His door with its head as with a hammer. God gives the firmament the revolution of day and night; night leads day, and day, night. If God breathes upon clay, He creates man, and forms the world from a little vapour. At one time He sends the dog ahead of the traveller, and at another He makes the way known by means of the cat. Thus, while He makes the dog familiar with man, He allows the latter, however brave,

Sometimes He is like a lion, or likened to a dog. At one time He gives Solomon’s power to a staff; at another, He grants it to the earth. From a staff He brings forth a serpent, and from an oven He makes a torrent of water gush forth. If He sets the proud orb of the moon in the firmament, He shoes it with the iron of waning, reddened in the fire. He brings a she-camel out of a rock; He makes the golden calf bellow. In winter He spreads silver snow; in autumn, the gold of yellowing leaves. If He tinges a thorn red, it is because it is dyed with the bud’s blood. He gives four petals to the jasmine, and sets a red cap upon the tulip’s head. At one time He places a golden crown upon the narcissus’s brow; at another, He sets the pearls of dew therein. O praises of God, the spirit is bewildered, the soul sinks; for God’s sake, the heavens turn, the earth trembles. From the back of the fish to the moon, every atom bears witness to His existence. The depths of the earth and the heights of the heavens both bear Him witness, each in its own way.

God produces the wind, the earth, the fire, the blood; through these things He reveals His secret. He took earth, kneaded it with water, and after forty mornings placed therein the soul, which, upon entering the body, gave it life. God gave it intelligence, that it might discern things; when He saw that intelligence possessed discernment, He gave it knowledge, that it might judge them. When man had received his faculties, he confessed his helplessness, and was overwhelmed with astonishment, while his body gave itself up to outward acts. Friends or enemies, all bow their heads beneath the yoke of God, imposed by His wisdom; and, wondrous to relate, He watches over us all.

At the beginning of the ages, God employed the mountains as nails to fasten the earth; then He washed the face of the globe with the water of the Ocean. Since He placed the earth upon the back of a bull, the bull is upon the fish, and the fish is in the air. But upon what, then, does the air rest? Upon nothing; but nothing is nothing, and all this is nothing. Admire the work of this king, although He Himself regards it as sheer nothingness. For, since His essence alone exists, there is certainly nothing outside it. His throne is upon the water, and the world is in the air; but leave aside the water and the air, for all is God. The heavenly throne and the world are but a talisman. God is all this, and these things have only a name’s worth. Know that the visible world and the invisible world are Himself. There is none but He, and whatever exists is He. But, alas! no one has the power to see Him. Eyes are blind, although the world is illumined by a brilliant sun. If thou succeedest in glimpsing Him, thou losest wisdom; if thou beholdest Him fully, thou losest thyself. A wondrous thing! all men, excusing their ignorance, respectfully lift the hem of their robe and say in haste: O Thou whom none can see, though Thou makest Thyself known! the whole world is Thee, and nothing other than Thee is manifest. The soul is hidden in the body, and Thou art hidden in the soul, O Thou who art hidden in what is hidden! O soul of the soul! Thou art more than all and before all. All is seen through Thee, and Thou art seen in everything. Thy roof is full of guards and sentinels; how, then, can one gain access to Thy person? Neither spirit nor reason can gain access to Thy essence, and no one knows Thy attributes. Although Thou art a treasure hidden in the soul, Thou art nonetheless manifest, both in the soul and in the body. The human spirit bears no trace of Thy existence; the prophets themselves lose themselves in the dust of Thy path. Although the spirit may discover Thy existence, will it ever find the way to Thy essence?

Because Thou art eternal and perfect in Thy existence, Thou hast constantly confounded all.

O Thou who art within and without the soul! Thou art not, and Thou art, all that I say. In Thy court, reason reels; it loses the thread that should guide it on Thy path. I see the whole universe clearly in Thee, and yet I do not see it at all in the world. All beings bear the impress of Thee, but visibly there is no impress of Thee. Thou hast kept the secret of Thy existence unto Thyself. However many eyes the firmament may have opened, it has not been able to see an atom of dust from the path that leads to Thee. Nor has the earth seen that dust, though in grief it has covered its head with dust. The sun has lost its reason for love of Thee, and each night it rubs its ear upon the earth. The moon, for its part, melts away because of Thy love; each month it vanishes in its bewilderment. The Ocean, having raised its waves to proclaim Thy glory, has had its robe drenched and its lips dried. The mountain has remained a hundred times upon the path that leads to Thee, its foot sunk deep in the damp earth like a blade of straw. Because of Thy love, fire has flared up, and if it has risen so high, it is because its foot is in the fire. Without Thee, the wind has neither head nor foot; it has dust in the hollow of its hand and measures the air. So long as water has water in its heart, it remains behind in Thy love. I have remained at Thy door, like the dust of the road, with ashes and dust upon my head.

What more shall I say, since Thou canst not be described? Could I, moreover, describe Thee, since I know Thee not? O my heart! If Thou wouldst enter upon the novitiate of this knowledge, tread the spiritual path; look before and behind, and walk warily.

See the adepts who have arrived at this court; they have supported one another along this way. For every atom there is a different gate, and from every atom opens a different path leading to the mysterious Being of whom I speak. What knowest thou of walking such a road and reaching that gate by such a path? When thou wouldst see this Being plainly, He is hidden; if thou desirest Him hidden, He is manifest! Finally, if thou wouldst find this peerless Being visible and invisible at once, then He is neither one nor the other. Thou hast been able to do nothing; seek nothing more, therefore; all that thou sayest is not what should be said; say nothing, therefore. What thou sayest and what thou knowest is what thou art. To know oneself is to exist a hundred times over. But thou must know God through Himself, and not through thyself; it is He who opens the way that leads to Him, and not human wisdom. His description is beyond the reach of rhetoricians; the man of energy and the man devoid of it are equally incapable of tracing it. Knowledge and ignorance are here one and the same, for this Being can neither be explained nor described. Men’s opinions on this subject are but the product of their imagination; it is absurd to seek to deduce them. Whether they speak well or ill, what they have said of Him, they have said of themselves. God is indeed above knowledge and above evidence, for nothing can give an idea of His holy majesty. Of His trace, no one has found anything but the absence of a trace; no one has found any other course to take than to surrender himself to Him. Every man, whether cool-headed or beside himself, has nothing else to do but acknowledge the God of revelation. The atomic beings of the two worlds are but the product of thy conjectures. All that thou knowest, apart from God, is but the result of thy own conceptions. The word imperfection cannot reach the height where He dwells, and how shall a human soul attain it?

Where is He? He is a thousand times above the soul; He is far above all that I can say. Reason is forbidden in its passionate love for Him; the spirit is confounded. What! The soul is desolate on His account, the heart is stained with its own blood!

Thou who esteemest the truth! seek no analogy herein, for the existence of the Being without peer admits of no analogy. His glory has cast the spirit and reason into despondency; both are in an unspeakable bewilderment. Since none of the prophets and heavenly messengers has understood the smallest portion of the whole, they have, in their helplessness, bowed their foreheads to the dust, saying: “We have not known Thee as Thou oughtest to be known.” What then am I, to flatter myself that I know Him? He has known Him who has sought to know Him only through Him. Since there is no other being than Him in the two worlds, with whom, if not with Him, can one be bound by affection and love? The Ocean stirs its waves to proclaim its essence; but thou understandest not this discourse and remainest in uncertainty. He who knows not how to find in this Ocean the essence in question ceases to exist, for he finds nothing but nothingness and negation. Speak not of this Being when He does not reveal Himself to thee allegorically; say nothing of Him when He does not show Himself to thee through symbols. It is true that no allegory nor explanation can give a just idea of Him; no one knows Him or has found His trace. Annihilate thyself; this is perfection, and that is all. Renounce thyself; this is the pledge of thy union with Him, and that is all. Lose thyself in Him to penetrate this mystery; all else is superfluous. Walk in unity, and keep apart from duality; have but one heart, one qibla, one face.

O ignorant son of the first man, vicegerent of God upon earth!

Take care to partake of your father’s spiritual knowledge. All the creatures whom God brought forth from nothing into existence prostrated themselves before Him in adoration. When at last He wished to create Adam, He brought him forth from behind a hundred veils. He said to him: “O Adam! Be an ocean of goodness; all creatures adore Me, so be thou adored in thy turn.” The sole one who turned his face away from adoration was transformed from an angel into a demon; he was accursed and knew nothing of this secret. When his face had grown black, he said to God: “O Thou who enjoyest absolute independence, abandon me not, and do something for me!” The Most High replied: “Thou whose path is accursed, know that Adam is at once My vicegerent and the king of nature. Go forth to meet him today, and tomorrow burn the ispand for him.” When the soul was joined to the body, it was part and whole: never was a more wondrous talisman made. The soul received exaltation as its portion, and the body earthly baseness; a compound was formed of vile earth and pure spirit. By the union of what is exalted and what is low, man became the most astonishing of mysteries. Yet no one knew this secret, and, indeed, this matter is not for every needy soul. We do not know, we do not understand, we cannot even in the least command our own minds. Whatever thou wouldst say, silence is the better course; for no one could even heave a sigh on this subject. Many people know the surface of this ocean, but they know not its depths. Now, in those depths lies a treasure, and the visible world is the talisman that guards it; but this talisman of bodily bonds shall at last be broken. Thou shalt find the treasure when the talisman has vanished; the soul shall be revealed when the body is set aside. But thy soul is another talisman; it is another substance for this mystery. Walk in the path I show thee, and ask for no explanation; seek no remedy for such a malady.

Many men have drowned in the depths of this bottomless ocean, and nothing more has ever been heard of them. In this vast ocean, the world is an atom and the atom a world. Know well that the world is a bubble of water from this ocean. Know well that the atom is identical to the bubble. Were not a single atom of the world left, the two bubbles of this ocean, so small beside the divine immensity, would also disappear. Does anyone know whether, in this deep ocean, it is gravel or carnelian that is of value?

We have staked our life, our reason, our spirit, our religion, to understand the perfection of an atom. Sew up thy lips; ask nothing concerning the empyrean and the throne of God; ask absolutely nothing about it. Since thy spirit is consumed for a thing as fine as a hair, thou must sew up both lips and ask nothing. Indeed, no one truly knows the essence of an atom; ask what it is, or speak on the subject—it matters not. What is the heaven, like an overturned dome, without stability, at once moving and motionless? Thou hast utterly lost thyself in the path of this mystery; it is naught but veil upon veil. What is heaven, for such a thing, whose head reels and whose foot strays? Can it know what lies behind the curtain, it that, for so many years, without head or body, has circled helplessly around this door? If it knows not the mystery hidden by the veil, how could it be manifest to a being such as thou? The world, astonished and in despair, can do no more than remain in profound bewilderment. In such a matter, which is like a surface without beginning or end, we are as the figure painted on the wall, and bite the backs of our hands. Those who before us entered the spiritual path studied this mystery at every hour, in season and out of season. They tormented themselves greatly, and, in the end, achieved nothing but weakness and bewilderment.

First see what befell Adam, see how many years he spent in grief, absorbed in that thought. Contemplate the flood of Noah and all that this patriarch suffered for a thousand years at the hands of the impious. See Abraham, who was full of love for God. He suffers torments and is cast into the fire. See the unfortunate Ishmael, sacrificed in

the path of divine love. Turn to Jacob, who became blind from weeping for his son. Behold Joseph, admirable alike in his power and in slavery, in the well and in the prison. Behold the wretched Job, lying at his door, prey to worms and wolves. See Jonah, who, having lost his way, went from the moon (mâh), whither the waves had carried him, into the belly of a fish (mâhî), where he remained for some time. Admire Moses from his birth; a chest served him for a cradle, and Pharaoh brought him up. Behold David, who occupied himself in making coats of mail and who, by the burning sighs of his heart, made iron soft as wax. Behold King Solomon, whose empire was seized by a dive. Behold Zachariah, so ardent in the love of God that he uttered no complaint and remained silent when his neck was sawn through. Behold John the Baptist, reviled before the people, whose head, cut off like a candle, was placed on a platter. Admire Christ at the foot of the gibbet, when He escaped several times from the hands of the Jews. Admire, at last, all that the chief of the prophets suffered in insults and torments at the hands of the impious.

Do you then believe that it is so easy to attain to the knowledge of spiritual things? It is less easy than to renounce life. What more shall I say, since I have nothing left to say, and not a rose remains upon the bush? I am utterly overcome with bewilderment; I know no other resource in this state than the absence of resource. O wisdom! Thou art in this path as an infant at the breast, and the reason of the experienced old man goes astray in this quest. How shall I, a fool, attain to this essence? And, if I attain it, how shall I do so without entering by the gate?

Thou art not accessible to knowledge, and yet Thou art not manifest to all. Neither benefit nor harm can reach Thee. Thou didst derive no benefit from Moses, nor suffer any harm from Pharaoh. O God! Who is infinite, if not Thou? Who is like Thee, without limit or bound? Is there, indeed, anything that is truly without end or term? O Thou, at Whom the created world has remained in wonder, Thou who hast remained hidden beneath a veil! At last withdraw this veil, lest my soul perish in seeking Thee; consume me no longer in secret behind this veil. I am suddenly lost in Thine ocean, tossed by waves; deliver me from the bewilderment into which I am plunged. I have remained in the ocean of the world, surrounded by the firmament and cast out from within the veil. Ah! Draw Thy servant from this sea that is foreign to him; Thou hast plunged me into it Thyself, so draw me out. Concupiscence has wholly seized my being. If Thou dost not take me by the hand, alas! what will become of me? My soul is soiled by vanity; but I will not bear this defilement. Ah! Purify me of it, or else plunge me into blood, then reduce me to dust. Men fear Thee; but I fear myself, for I have become certain that good comes from Thee and evil from me. Though I walk upon the surface of the earth, I am nevertheless dead. Give life to my soul, O holy Creator! Believers and unbelievers alike are plunged in blood; their heads whirl, and they are astray. If Thou callest me, my reason is confounded; if Thou rejectest me, I am bewildered. O my King! I am stained with blood, and utterly dizzy, like the heavens.

I desire, my friends, to repeat my discourse to you day and night. Ah! remain not for a single instant without pondering the search for truth.
We are neighbours to one another; Thou art like the sun, and I like the shadow. O Thou who art generous toward the indigent! why wilt Thou not give heed to Thy neighbours? My heart is sorrowful, my soul afflicted; the ardour that draws me toward Thee makes my tears flow like water from the cloud. I regret that I cannot be united with Thee; yet I seek Thee no less. Ah! be my guide, for I have strayed from my path; grant me happiness, though I ask it of Thee
Perhaps untimely. He who has had the happiness of entering Thy way has grown weary of himself and lost himself in Thee. I am not without hope, but I am impatient. I hope that, out of a hundred thousand, Thou wilt take one.

Mustafa (the chosen one) is the treasure of faithfulness, the master of the spiritual and temporal worlds: He is their full moon and their centre, the sun of the law and the ocean of certainty, the light of the universe, a mercy of God unto creatures. The soul of the purest beings is the dust of His; He is the liberator of the soul: creation is His dust. He is the Lord of the two worlds and the king of the universe, the sun of the soul and of the faith of all. He ascended to the heavens; He is the centre of creatures, the shadow of God, the sun of His essence.
The two worlds are subject unto Him: the throne and the canopy of God have worshipped His dust. He is the chief of this world and the next, the chief of visible and invisible beings. The greatest and first of the prophets, He who guides the pure and the saints, the guide of Islam, the leader along the right paths, He who decides obscure matters, the imam of all and of each in particular.

He is above all that I can say; He is before all things and in all things. He declared Himself the Lord of the regions; He said: “I am a mercy unto the earth.” The two worlds depend upon His existence; He it is who supports the canopy of God’s throne. Through Him, the creatures of the world came forth from the ocean of bounty into existence, like dew. The creatures turn towards His light. He is the origin of all that exists and of all that might exist. When God beheld this supreme light, He created from that light an ocean of light. For Himself He created this pure soul, and for it He created the world. In creating the world, He had no other purpose than Mahomet; for no being was purer than he.

What first appeared from the bosom of the mystery was, without doubt, that pure light. Then this exalted light was revealed, and the throne, the canopy, the tablet of divine decrees, and the pen came into being. One trace of this light was the world; the other was humanity—that is, Adam. When the latter issued from this supreme light, he prostrated himself to worship the Creator. Through Adam, all generations took part in this worship; all souls were in that prostration. He stood upright for whole years, and for a long period he uttered the Muslim profession of faith.
It was because of the prayer (namâz) then performed by Muhammad, the light of that ocean of mystery, that prayer (namâz) became obligatory for the whole Muslim nation. God regarded this light (Muhammad) as the sun and the moon, and as forever without equal. Then, all at once, a manifest path opened for this light in the ocean of truth. When this light—that is, Muhammad—beheld the surface of the ocean of the secret, he was moved by its grandeur and its allure. Seven times he returned to this quest, and then the seven domes of the heavens were revealed. The glances God cast upon him were as many stars, and thus was the sky formed. Then Muhammad, this pure light, came to rest. Thereupon the heavenly canopy and throne appeared; they were a reflection of his essence; the angels

There too they received their existence. From His sighs were formed the celestial splendours, and from the thoughts of His spirit the mysteries were revealed. It is to these thoughts that we owe the secret of the soul, according to these words of the Most High: “I breathed into him something of My spirit!” It was indeed when these sighs and mysteries were united that souls were able to understand one another. By the effect of His light, all the nations destined to people the world hastened around this word: “All shall arise.” As for Him, He exists until the day of resurrection, for the sake of all the creatures of the world.

When he summoned Satan, the latter made profession of Islam. By the permission of the Most High, Muhammad also openly summoned the djinns on a certain night. He also seated the angels and the prophets, whom he had called together that same night. When he called the animals, the kid and the weasel came running. He invited all the beings of the world to the faith, and they hastened to come humbly before him. Muhammad, that immaculate essence, also summoned all the atoms of the world, and thus the whole earth, through him, took part in the praises of God. Which of the prophets has possessed such a privilege? Who, like him, has been able to call all the nations of the earth to the faith? Since his light was the source of all beings, and his essence gave rise to all other essences, he must indeed have called both worlds to the faith, the manifest atoms and the hidden atoms. All those who have belonged to his nation have gleaned something from his lofty vision. On the Day of Resurrection, he will say only this on behalf of the handful of earth (which will have embraced Islam): “This is my people”; and these words will suffice. For God, on account of the soul of this beacon of guidance, will grant deliverance to his nation. As he is the master of all things, all things are subject to him. Though he did not see everything (with his eyes), there is no need to grieve over it. All that exists is sheltered with him, and all intentions are directed by him. He knows the secret of every desire in the world; he is the remedy for the heart of every wounded soul. Could anyone form an idea, even in a dream, of the Prophet’s privileges? He saw himself completely, and he saw the whole world; he saw what was before him as well as what was behind. God made him the seal of prophecy; He made him the wonder of nature and generosity. He commanded him to invite great and small alike to the faith; He filled him with the fullness of grace. He granted the infidels respite before chastising them; He did not carry out their punishment in the Prophet’s time. Spiritual and temporal things are under the protection of his glory; he gave his life on behalf of his nation.

One night He ascended to heaven, and all secrets were revealed to Him. He then became, by His majesty and dignity, the object of the two qiblas; and the shadow of His body, whose shadow had never been seen, stretched across the two horizons. It was from God that He received an excellent book, and through Him He came to know all things completely.
His wives were the mothers of the believers; His ascension was held in reverence by the prophets. They are His followers, and He is their guide; the learned men of His nation are like prophets. The Most High, out of regard for Muhammad, has mentioned His name in the Pentateuch and the Gospel. Through Him, a stone gained honour and elevation, and His mantle possessed divine power. The earth where He is buried has become, by reason of the reverence that one…

That is to say, instead of turning towards Jerusalem and Mecca to pray, they turned towards him, or rather towards Medina, where his tomb lies, as will be seen further on. The word قبلنین may also be used figuratively for the East; he bears a qibla which has neither been changed nor forsaken by his people. His appearance overthrew the idols; his people are the best of all peoples. A drop of water from his mouth filled a well with clear water in a year of drought. His finger divided the moon, and the sun turned back at his command. Between his two shoulders, as bright as the sun, the seal of prophecy was plainly visible. He was the guide of men in the best of lands, and the best of men in the noblest tribe. Through him, the Kaaba became the noble house of God and a place of safety for whoever enters it. Gabriel received the mantle of initiation from the Prophet, and it was through this that he became renowned. During Muhammad’s lifetime, the earth gained greater vigour; it saw at once a mosque and a Sinai. All secrets were known to the apostle of God; this command was given him: “Speak, without reading in the book.” Since the language of God was his, his time was the best of times. On the Last Day, all tongues will be annihilated except his, so that at the end of the ages, when things change, he will intercede with God.

Since his heart was truly stirred in the ocean of mystery, this ardour manifested itself above all in prayer. He would say to Bilal: “Refresh me, that I may escape these narrow thoughts.” Then, turning round in agitation, he would say: “Speak to me, O Hamira (Aïscha)!” Yet, if one reflects seriously, one cannot tell whether he won one soul in a hundred. Reason cannot conceive of the secret converse between Mahomet and God during his ascension, and science knows not how long it lasted. When God takes His friend aside at a mysterious banquet, Gabriel is not admitted; his wings would be consumed by fire. When the Simurgh of the divine essence manifests itself, Moïse (Muça) becomes as fearful as a wagtail (mucicha). Moïse nevertheless went and sat upon the carpet of this majesty; but only after receiving God’s command to remove his shoe. When he had approached barefoot, he entered the valley of the saint par excellence and was plunged in light; but later, on the night of Mahomet’s ascension, Bilal, the torch of celestial glory, heard the sound of his sandals, whereas Moïse, son of Amran, although he was a king, could not come into God’s presence with his shoe. Admire the favour God showed to the servant of His court (Mahomet) in honour of his dignity; He made him the man of His path; He allowed him to come before Him with his shoe. When Moïse, son of Amran, witnessed the favour enjoyed by this servant of God, he said: “O Lord! admit me into his nation; grant that I may share in the banquet of his exalted visions.” But Moïse’s request for this favour was in vain; it was granted to Jesus alone. After this interview, Mahomet invites the people to his faith; he descends from the fourth heaven to earth and rests.

The Messiah, who acquired so great a renown, was but a fleeting shadow of Muhammad’s face. God made use of him to proclaim the name of the Prophet. If anyone says that a witness to this ascension should have been required, answer (addressing Muhammad): “Thou didst depart from this world and return to it; Thou didst remove our difficulties one by one, so that Thou didst leave not a single doubt in our hearts.”
No one in either world, save Muhammad, has come from Heaven, either openly or in secret. What He saw with his own eyes in that place, the other Prophets knew only through divine knowledge. He is their king, and all are His guests: He is their emperor, and they form His army. When his head had received the crown expressed in the words “I swear by Thy life,” straightway the people became the dust of the road at his door. The world having been filled with the fragrance of musk from his hair, the Ocean was overcome with longing for Him.

MANTIC UTTAÏR.
to breathe until their lips were dry. Who is there that is not altered by the sight of Him, and does not confront wood and stone for His sake? When this ocean of light mounted the minbar, tender sighs were heard in the distance. The heavens, which are upheld by no pillars, were filled with light, and these pillars (supposing they existed) were afflicted by His absence. When I would describe His perfections, my skin is covered with a sweat of blood. He is the most eloquent in the world; before Him I am mute; how, then, could I give a satisfactory account of what concerns Him? Would such a description be acceptable from my weakness? The Creator of the universe alone is capable of it.

O Muhammad! the world, despite its excellence, is but the dust of Thy feet; the souls of the two worlds are but the dust of Thy pure soul. The prophets, astonished, have renounced praising Thee; even those who know the divine secrets have turned their heads away from this praise. The sun is the companion of Thy smile, the cloud obeys Thy tears. The two worlds are the dust of Thy feet. Thou wert content to sleep upon a dervish’s carpet, and yet what space could contain Thee? O generous one! lift Thy head from above Thy carpet, and trample underfoot the dignity of Moses. Every law has been abrogated by Thine; every trunk has been destroyed by Thy branch; Thy law and Thy ordinances are for eternity; Thy name is joined to that of God; all the prophets and apostles hasten from their diverse paths to Thy law. As before Thee no prophet has been above Thee, none will necessarily come after Thee. Thou art at once after and before the world; Thou art at the same time prior and posterior. No one reaches Thy dust; no one attains Thy dignity. It is in Muhammad alone, His messenger, that God has fixed for eternity the empire of the two worlds.

O Prophet of God! I am disheartened; I remain with my hand full of wind and my head covered with dust. Thou art the constant support of those who are forsaken, and I have none but Thee in the two worlds. Ah! cast a glance upon me, who am beset by sorrow; bring a remedy for the ills of me, unhappy one! It is true that through my faults I have lost my life; but I repent; intercede for me with God. Although I fear the sentence of the Koran: “Do not give yourself over to confidence,” yet I also read in the same sacred book the words: “Do not despair.”
Night and day I sit in sorrow, until Thou intercede for me for a moment. If the least intercession takes place on Thy part, the seal of obedience shall cover my transgressions. O Thou who art the intercessor for this wretched handful of earth! kindly kindle the lamp of intercession, that, like the moth, I may come to flutter my wings before Thy torch, in the midst of Thy assembly.

Whoever shall plainly behold Thy torch shall submit his mind to his heart, like the moth. It suffices the soul’s sight to contemplate Thee, and the two worlds to find favour with Thee. The remedy for the grief of my heart is Thy love; the light of my soul is the sun of Thy face. My soul is at Thy door; my loins are girt with my belt. Behold the pearls of my tongue’s sword; every pearl that I let fall from my mouth upon Thy path comes from the depths of my heart. If I thus scatter pearls from the ocean of my soul, it is because I receive the indication from Thee, who art that ocean. When my soul found a trace through Thee, my own trace was no more.
O exalted essence! What I desire is that Thou shouldst deign, in Thy goodness, to cast a glance upon me. By this glance Thou wilt annihilate for ever my separate existence. Purify me of all the thoughts that trouble me, of polytheistic associations and vanities, O pure essence! Do not blacken my face with sin; have regard for the fact that I bear Thy name. I am a child engulfed in Thy path; black water surrounds me like a circle; I hope that Thou wilt draw me out of this black water and set me again upon Thy path.

Allegorical Anecdote.
A child fell into the water, and his mother fell into agitation and anguish. In his fright, the child flailed with arms and legs, but the water carried him to the mill-boat. The water drove him onward, and this beloved child went rolling over the surface of the water. His mother, who saw what had happened, would have wished to be in the boat; nevertheless, she throws herself into the water and saves the child; then she takes him in her arms, gives him her milk, and presses him to her breast.

O Thou whose tenderness is like that of mothers! Thou art for me, in this abyss, a protecting boat! When I fell into this gulf of bewilderment, I found myself before the boat of the ocean of sighs. I remained prey to vertigo, like that child in the water, flinging my feet and hands about in my distress. O Thou who art full of tenderness towards the children of Thy path! Cast at this moment a kindly glance upon those who are submerged; have pity on our heart, full of anguish; come to our aid, seeing that the waters are carrying us away; let us taste the milk of the breasts of Thy bounty; do not withdraw from before us the table of Thy generosity. O Thou who art beyond the understanding and cannot be defined! Thou whom the tales of storytellers cannot describe! The hand of none of us has been able to reach the bridle of Thy steed, and we are necessarily nothing but the dust of Thy dust; Thy holy friends have become Thy dust, and the inhabitants of the world are nothing but the dust of Thy dust.

He who is not as dust in the sight of Thy friends is their enemy; the first is Abû Bekr, and the last, Ali. They are the four pillars of the caaba of truth and purity. The first (Abû Bekr), by his sincerity, was worthy to be Mahomet’s confidant and minister; the second (Omar) was a radiant sun of justice; the third (Osman) is an ocean of modesty and restraint; the fourth, finally (Ali), is a king, possessor of knowledge and generosity.
Eulogy of Abû Bekr.

The first is therefore Abû Bekr, the first friend of Mahomet and the second of the two persons who were in the cave; the centre of the region, the truthful one of the Most High, the pole of the true God, he who in all things had precedence. All that God had poured forth from His exalted court upon the noble breast of Mahomet, He had also poured forth, wholly and truly, upon the breast of Abû Bekr. When God had drawn the two worlds out of nothingness with a word, He gravely kept His mouth shut and restrained His gracious words. In like manner, Abû Bekr remained with his head bowed all night until daybreak; at midnight he gave voice to groans, through the ardour of his love for God. His fragrant sighs reached as far as China, and the blood of the Tartarian gazelle yielded musk. It was on this account that the sun of law and religion said: “One must go hence to China in search of knowledge.” Wisdom so well governed the movements of Abû Bekr’s mouth that his lips continually uttered the word Hu with due gravity. What do I say! His gravity was manifest upon his tongue, so that he pronounced no other name than that of God. Gravity is needed for dignity to manifest itself: how can a man without gravity be good for anything? Omar saw a sample of Abû Bekr’s grave dignity, and said: “I wish I had a little share of it, were it no more than the worth of one of the hairs on his breast.”

O God! Since Thou didst approve the second of the two in the cave, Abû Bekr is indeed the second after the Prophet.
He is the master of the law, the great sun of religion, the shadow of God, the remarkable resolver of difficulties, the lamp of religion. He truly set the seal upon justice and equity; through his discernment he surpassed all men. From the beginning, God spoke concerning him the words “O ha!” that he might be purified and set aright thereby. He is the one who must cross the bridge first. It was Muhammad who gave him the name Omar. Happy is this eminent man, who first seized the robe of honour of Jerusalem! Since God placed His hand in his from the very beginning, in the end He led him to where He is. Through his justice, the affairs of religion found their fulfilment; turmoil and agitation were calmed. He was the lighted candle of paradise, and from that candle no shadow fell upon anyone in any gathering. How, however, can there be no shadow of light beside the candle, when the dive fled far from that shadow? When Omar spoke, truth was upon his tongue; it came plainly from the path of the heart.

When the Prophet saw that he was burning with love for God, he said: “This famous man is the torch of heaven.” Indeed, at one moment he burned his soul with the ardour of love, and at another his tongue in converse with God.
One day, when Omar was in a state of ecstasy in the presence of 5, he said: “I wish to put the caliphate up for sale. I will sell it to whoever wishes, provided it be bought with good intention.” When Awis heard this speech of Omar’s, he said to him: “Leave the caliphate to me, and remain free of care. Keep away any other individual who might desire it or seize it.”
When it became known that Omar wished to relinquish the caliphate, there arose but one cry from among his friends. They all said to him: “O our chief! We beseech thee, in the name of God, do not abandon His creatures. Abû Bekr has laid this burden upon thy neck; he did not do so blindly, but with full knowledge. If thou turnest thy head from obedience to him, his soul will be saddened on thy account.” When Omar had heard this decisive argument, he felt its force and resigned himself.

When, by the decree of fate, an unfortunate assassin wounded Ali, something to drink was at once given to Ali, and he said: “Where is he who has shed my blood? Give him to drink first, and then give me to drink; and treat him no differently from me.” They therefore brought a drink to that man, who cried out: “What a calamity! Ali wishes to destroy me with poison.” Ali then said: “I swear by the truth of the Creator, if this unfortunate man takes this drink, I will not set foot before God in the garden of eternity without him.” Indeed, Ali did not enter heaven without that wicked man who killed him. Since he interceded in this manner on behalf of his enemy, could he ever have hated Abû Bekr? God creates neither a new world nor a friend like Ali for Abû Bekr. You may say as much as you please that Ali was treated unjustly when he was denied the khalifate; since he is the lion of God, and like a crown upon the head, he could not have been treated unjustly. Know this, O my son!

Muhammad went to a place below the road, and ordered water to be brought from the well for the army. A man went, returned in haste, and said: “The well is full of blood, and there is no water.” Muhammad said: “I believe this is because Ali, overwhelmed by the grief he feels, has told his secrets to this well. The well had not the strength to hear these secrets, and so it is full of blood and not of water.” He whose heart was stirred by such emotion—how could he have had the malice of an ant?

Thy soul struggles in fanaticism; but it was not so with Ali. Keep silent, therefore; compare not Ali with thyself, for this friend of truth (God) was submerged in God (the truth). He was wholly absorbed in his duties and disgusted with all that is imaginary. Had Ali been, like thee, full of enmity, he would have made war upon the army of Mahomet. He was braver than thou, and yet he fought with no one. A strange thing! If Abû Bekr was not in the truth, Ali, who was, ought therefore to have claimed the khalifat. Since the army of the mother of the believers (Aïcha) sought not to avenge herself upon Ali on account of religion, but for other reasons, Ali, having witnessed such a battle and such confusion, necessarily repelled these troops by force. Aïcha, who was capable of fighting against the daughter of Mahomet, could well fight against her father.

O my child! Thou hast no idea of what Ali is; thou seest only the letters ain, yé and lam, which form his name. Thou art impatient for love of thine own life, whereas he was ready to give a hundred lives to the wind.
When one of Mahomet’s companions was slain, impetuous Ali was deeply afflicted. “Why,” said he, “am I not slain too? My life, dear though it be to me, is vile in my eyes.” Someone said to him: “Of what dost thou complain, O Ali, since the king (God) hath kept thee as a trust?”
One day Bilal received in some part of his frail body many blows from wooden cudgels and leather thongs. His blood flowed copiously from the blows, and yet he did not cease to cry out: “God is one! God is one!”

If an ocean of ignominy were suddenly to appear before thee, neither love nor hatred would remain in thy path. He who is afflicted in the hand of abasement is wrong to remain in such a condition. Since those people were thus, why art thou otherwise? How long wilt thou remain plunged in astonishment? Thy tongue has increased the number of idolaters; it has wounded the Companions of the Prophet. Thou blackenest thy divan with an abundance of words; whereas, if thou restrainest thy tongue, thou carriest off the ball of the mallet.
God Most High once said to the upright David: “Announce this to My servants on My behalf, namely: O handful of earth! If I had neither Heaven nor Hell as reward and punishment, would not My service be disagreeable to you? If there were neither light nor fire, would you concern yourselves with Me? But since I am worthy of the highest reverence, you ought then to worship Me without hope or fear; and yet, if you were not bound by hope or fear, would you think of Me? Nevertheless, since I am ever your Lord, it is fitting that you worship Me from the depths of your hearts. Tell My servants, then, to withdraw their hands from all but Me, and to worship Me as I deserve.”

Reject entirely everything that is not myself, then burn it and gather its ashes; then scatter those ashes, so that, dispersed by the wind of excellence, not a trace of them may remain. When thou hast acted thus, that which thou seekest will then manifest itself from those ashes. If God permits thee to occupy thyself with eternity and the houris, know assuredly that He has distanced thee from Himself.
One day Mahmûd summoned his favourite Ayâz; he gave him his crown, seated him upon his throne, and said to him: “I give thee my kingdom and my army; reign, for this land is thine. I desire thee to exercise sovereignty and to place upon the Moon and the Fish the earring of slavery.”

When all those who composed the army of Mahmûd, both horsemen and foot soldiers, had heard these words, their eyes grew dim with jealousy. “Never in the world,” they cried, “has a king bestowed so great an honour upon a slave.” For his part, the intelligent Ayâz began to weep abundantly when he learned the sultan’s will; but they all said to him: “Thou art mad; thou knowest not what thou doest; thou art devoid of understanding. Since thou hast attained kingship, thou who art but a slave, why weep? Sit contentedly.” Ayâz answered them without hesitation: “Ye are far from the path of truth, for ye understand not that the king of the great assembly is thus sending me far from His presence. He gives me occupation so that I may remain separated from Him, in the midst of the army. He wishes me to govern His kingdom, but I do not wish to be away from the king for a single instant. I am willing to obey Him, but I do not wish to leave Him. What have I to do with His kingdom and His government? My happiness lies in seeing His face.”

If thou studyest spiritual things and knowest the truth, learn from Ayâz the manner of serving God. O thou who hast remained idle night and day, occupied only with thy first vulgar desires, while every night, as if to set thee an example, O ambitious one, Ayâz descends from the summit of power. As for thee, thou feelest no spiritual desire, by night or by day, and movest not from thy place, like an unlearned man. Ayâz descends from the heights of excellence, while thou camest afterward and stoodest on guard. Alas! thou art not the man thou shouldst be. To whom, at last, canst thou tell thy sorrow? So long as Paradise and Hell lie in thy path, how shall thy spirit know the secret I proclaim to thee? But when thou hast left these two things, the dawn of this mystery shall rise from the night. The garden of Paradise is not, moreover, for the indifferent; for the empyrean is reserved for men of heart. As for thee, renounce both, like the spiritual ones, and pass beyond without setting thy heart upon them. When thou hast renounced them and remainest apart from them, wert thou a woman, thou shalt become a spiritual man.

Râbiah once said to God: “O Thou who knowest the secret of all things! Fulfil the worldly desires of my enemies, and grant my friends the eternal life of the world to come; but as for me, I am free of both these things. If I possessed this world or the next, I should care little for intimacy with Thee. But Thee alone, O my God, do I need; Thou art sufficient unto me. If I turned my gaze towards the two worlds, or desired aught besides Thee, I should consider myself an infidel.”
He who possesses God possesses all; a bridge is cast for him over the seven oceans. All that is and all that shall be is allegorical, save the excellent Lord. Thou shalt find the like of all that Thou seekest, except Himself alone; as for Him, He hath no equal, and He exists of necessity.