The story of the essence of your soul…

Dec 22, 2016 | Divine Names

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If Allah created us in His image to know Him, do you ever wonder how our world could get to where it is now?  This world is not always easy, and it is certainly uncertain.

Our guide, Sidi Shaykh Muhammad al-Jamal, gave us many jewels to help us through these times.  The following from his book, Music of the Soul gives us a good outline.  It’s from the chapter of Adam – the Caliph of Allah.

 

When Allah (swta) said to the angels, “I want to make a caliph on earth,” the angels said, “Why? If you bring Your light down into the density of the earth, they will kill each other and abandon Your holy way.”  Allah said, “I am the Knowing and the Wise.”

 

Sidi writes in this chapter that Adam’s story is our story.  So, Allah (swta) created us in His image, put in us His light and the fragrance of all His qualities, and wrote everything in our hearts.  Then Allah put in the nafs (ego self) to turn us toward the world.

 

[Allah] put His image in [Adam], His light in him, the fragrance of all His attributes, and He taught him everything from the beginning to the end.  He wrote everything in his heart.

The pure Adam, the original Adam lived only to remember.  He had no body, only Allah.  He had no beginning nor end, only light from Allah; no shadow of presence apart from Allah.

After that, Allah, in His wisdom, wanted the creation of the world(s).  If He had not put nafs in Adam, there would be no world, because Adam was turned only to Him and Allah had to turn him toward the creation of the world in order for mankind to be born through him.

So He put in Adam the self, and this self was in three parts:

  1. The desire to eat the fruit and then to eliminate.

  2. The desire to sleep with the woman and make children.

  3. Desire to become king of the creation.

 

 

Sidi writes of Iblis, the darkness:

When the creation of Adam was complete, Allah commanded the angels to bow down, to prostrate before him.  All the angels obeyed the order except Iblis, who seemed to refuse.  Allah asked him, “Why do you not bow down?”  Iblis said, “Why should I bow down to Adam when fire is greater than clay?”

It would appear that Iblis refused the order of Allah, but in truth he realized the divine plan.  Iblis is a complete presence.  He is fire.  And Allah in His Wisdom puts everything in its place.

If fire and water were gathered together, one would destroy the other.  In His wisdom, Allah put Iblis outside the door to the garden of His presence. Iblis is the guardian, the fire at the gate of the garden through which none but the purified may enter.

 

 

Allah, swta, put all His qualities within us, and these qualities are buried within us under veils of darkness and light.  Allah wants us to travel through the veils to know Him, to clean every quality to be the clear mirror.

You cannot clean this quality without walking through it and removing the veils from it because He put Himself in you, deep inside, and to find Him you must strike through all of the attributes.

 

 

The task of Adam and us, the sons and daughters of Adam, is to preserve the deep secret light of the garden in the midst of the veils and darkness of the created world.   Allah sent every prophet to remind us and help us.

 

My holy beloved, listen to me to the story of the first world.  “Know My beloved, that I am a hidden treasure that longed to be known.  So I have drawn forth all of the creation out of Myself in order to know Myself.

But how can My creatures know Me?  I planted all My qualities in the ground of creation.  When any creature comes to know on what ground he stands, he discovers all My attributes in the ground of his existence.  In the mirror of My attributes, he comes to see himself.

 

 

This is a long chapter, too long to include the whole thing here.  I’ll conclude with these poetic words, and suggest you read the entire chapter if you have the book.  (If not, you can read the full teaching online at http://sufimaster.org/teachings/adam.htm)

Although you may not remember, you are from the first of my children.  I gave birth to you in pre-eternity.  Please be with me in everything, and hold everything, and give everything to see everything in the light of your holy origin, in the essence of that which you are.

You are the key and you are the door.  Why do you stay in the ante-room?  Follow me, my beloved, as I pass through every doorway to the truthroom of the innermost secret.  Then you will see your Iblis lay down his life beneath your feet, and you will find me sitting in the deep knowing on the throne of your heart.

I am the mirror of your Master and you are the mirror of Him in me.  There is no difference between you and me and Him, if you want to understand what I mean.

 

Remember that Allah has sent us the prophets and guides and left us with the holy books to help us during these times.  As we move into this weekend, if you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Festivus – or all or none of the above – we wish you the peace and beauty that comes from knowing the truth of the essence of your soul.

With love and gratitude,

Mastura Graugnard on behalf of all your friends and family at UOS

 

Photo credit: © Keren Segev | Dreamstime.com – Man walking into a keyhole