BB00173: Fi Istifhamat al-Qur’an

The Sacred Words Concerning Description, Explanation and Investigation of the Qur’anic Questions

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate

Praise be to God Who brought forth the essential realities of the people of creation from naught by His command, that all who dwell in the kingdom of earth and heaven might know Him through His manifestation unto them in the degrees of their being and the expressions of their signs, that there is no God but Him, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting, in the eternity of eternities and the everlasting of days. He hath ever been, with naught existing beside Him, and will ever be as He hath been, with nothing at His level, for the existence of aught else is impossible to mention in the court of His might, since all things in all their degrees neither comprehend their own selves nor are conscious save of the ordinances of their own actions. Thus did the Imam, peace be upon him, indicate their station in his words, exalted be his remembrance:

“My God, Thy power hath begun, O my God, yet Thy awe appeared not, so they likened Thee and took some of Thy signs as lords.”

Hence they knew Thee not, for such is the condition of contingency in all the degrees of existence. His essential eternity is in itself indicative of the presence of His being, that it is as it is. Created things are cut off from the station of knowledge, and contingent beings are precluded from the station of explanation. He is the Exalted One Whom sight comprehendeth not, nor do the loftiest essences of thought ascend unto Him, while He, of Himself, comprehendeth the vision of all things—the All-Subtle, the All-Informed.

I bear witness unto Muhammad, peace be upon him, as God hath testified in the essence of His being, that he is His servant whom He chose from the midst of the eternity of grace upon the pinnacle of justice, and selected him from the ultimate station of praise for the manifestation of His lordship over all who dwell in the kingdom of names and attributes. Indeed He fashioned him for the station of His authority over all degrees of existence, both unseen and visible, for the station of the manifestation of His sanctity over all contingent things, for He hath ever been beyond the grasp of vision and beyond description by what comprehendeth the mysteries of sight. Verily God is the Single One, the Ever-Living, the Self-Subsisting, Who made him the station of His Self in the world of performance and decree, for He hath ever been beyond association with the creation of servants or description by the knowledge of the degrees of hearts—He is the All-Subtle, the All-Bountiful.

And I bear witness to the Trustees of the Mission of Muhammad, the Messenger of God—may blessings rest upon Him—according to that wherewith God Himself hath borne witness unto them in the stations of creation and the manifestations of revelation, and in those realities which none comprehendeth in the kingdoms of the heavens and the earth save God, exalted be He above that which they ascribe unto Him.

And I bear witness that verily I am His servant, who hath believed in God and in His signs, and seeketh not to transgress by so much as a single letter the decree of the Qur’an. God, in His bounty, hath honoured me with knowledge from His presence; and I have proclaimed to the people the Cause of my Lord, that all His servants might render thanks unto Him for the favour He hath vouchsafed, and acknowledge the bounty that hath been made manifest from His own Self. And sufficient is God as a witness unto me.

Thereafter, when one among the students inquired concerning a question touching the interrogative verses of the Qur’an, and how their like had been revealed in the Words of the Bayan, I—having promised to expound it—indicated the rule of the reply in such wise as might suffice the servant at the time of address.

Know then that the Qur’an compriseth stations without end or limit in the knowledge of God; nor can any soul attain unto comprehension of these realities save through the knowledge of the command betwixt the two commands and the station between the two stations—that which hath descended in the traditions concerning the Suns of Certitude and the Pillars of Assurance.

Whoso attaineth unto the mystery of that decree shall find the path made easy before him: he shall behold the multiplicity of things with the eye of the Theophany of the Divine Essence shining within them. And whoso standeth steadfast upon this straight path shall discern no contradiction among the traditions, nor any ambiguity within the Qur’an. He shall regard the interrogative verses as akin to the decisive, and the allusions as resembling the evident proofs.

Now will I indicate the meaning of a single interrogative verse, that through it the gate of knowledge may be opened unto the understanding of all interrogatives and ambiguities. There is no doubt that God is, and hath ever been, knowing of all things. His word, exalted be His remembrance—“What is that in thy right hand, O Moses?”—is, in the utmost degree, the station of the reply; for it signifieth the manifestation of his capacity for the appearance of the divine effulgence within him, even as the word “Am I not your Lord?” revealeth the ultimate mystery of Reality.

As for the indication of the outward path, the way to comprehend its meaning is through the souls of men, yet encompassed by the chain of universals which the learned, may God sanctify them, have expounded in all their ranks as eight degrees.

If thou dost behold the verse from the station of exposition, thou wilt perceive therein naught but the act of God in the Furqan, as He saith: “O Moses! Verily, I am God, the Lord of the worlds.” But if thou wouldst discern its meaning in the station of inner significances, it is the manifestation of God’s bounty unto Moses, whereby He caused him to utter the reality of what He had placed in his staff—that he might render the right due to the truth which his soul had received; and this is of the grace of God unto whomsoever He hath settled in that degree, as it is said in the sacred tradition: “When he is silent, I begin him.” This is the loftiest of the degrees of manifestation in the world of names and attributes.

If thou desirest its meaning in the station of the Gates, it alludeth to His word: “And from the right side of the valley, in the blessed spot, from the tree: ʿO Moses, verily, I am God, the Lord of the worlds.”’ The breeze of that utterance wafteth from the right-hand valley, proclaiming that He, in very truth, is the Lord of all being.

If thou seekest its meaning in the station of the Imamate, it is the secret of the Gate, for the material of that station is the command of God to Moses, that he should know what lay in his right hand of the ordinances of the Imams of religion—those who act by the command of God, trembling in awe before Him. Thus He confirmed that in the station of Essence his reliance was upon the staff from the Tree of Ahmad—upon it be the blessings of God—since the Sun of Prophethood rose with Prophethood, and the Sun of Guardianship set with Guardianship.

If thou seekest its meaning in the station of the Pillars, it signifieth the position of Moses among the Prophets, that God inspired him with what He had placed in his hand of the rulings of his staff, revealing thereby the secret of the radiance of the lights of Unity and the attributes of Eternity, when He said: “What is that in thy right hand, O Moses?” The allusions of these stations are beyond enumeration.

And now, as I am in a state of fever, I shall shorten the discourse and entreat God for inspiration unto him who possesseth the decree of the pure inmost spirit of Islam.

If thou wouldst discern its meaning in the station of the Nuqaba’ (chieftains), it is the secret of that which I have expounded unto thee concerning the stations already mentioned; and it is what is meant by His exalted word, that what is in Moses’s right hand is the manifestation of one of the partisans of ʿAli—he who shall speak, by God’s leave, from the right side. When he turneth toward that station, there shall issue from the staff whatsoever God willeth to make manifest.

The interrogative address in this verse signifieth the favour of God, that He caused His interlocutor, Moses, to speak, for he was of all men the most abased before the Presence of God, the most reverent among the humble. Whoso humbleth himself in the utmost degree of lowliness shall be gathered beneath the shadow of that same station with the Interlocutor of God upon Mount Sinai.

Verily, within these stations are sacred allusions, were they to be unveiled from the veils of affliction and the conditions of being. Sufficient for thee is the divine indication in His exalted word: “When His Lord manifested Himself to the mountain, He made it crumble, and Moses fell down senseless.” Al-a¹¢adiq—peace be upon him—interpreted this verse, saying: “When His Lord manifested Himself to the mountain, He made it crumble, and Moses fell down senseless.” This, he said, referreth to one among the Shi’ah of Ali, as related in the Basa’ir, that the Cherubim are a people of our Shi’ah, of the first creation, whom God placed behind the Throne; were a single ray of their light divided among the earth, it would suffice for all. And Ali said that when Moses inquired concerning one of the Cherubim, that being manifested itself to the mountain and it was made dust.

If thou hast grasped this mystery, then supplicate God to unite me with those Cherubim in the sanctuary of holiness, beneath the overshadowing shades of divine splendour and nearness; for this is the utmost of my hope in this world and the next. Unto Him do I complain in this life below; unto Him shall be the return in the life to come and the life that was before.

If thou wouldst discern its meaning in the station of the Nujaba’ (nobles), it is veiled beneath the coverings of secrecy and the curtains of glory; and whoso seeketh to uncover its reality opposeth God in His dominion, contendeth with Him in His sovereignty, and returneth with the wrath of God upon him. Hell shall be his abode—how wretched the resting-place of the wrongdoers!

In every one of these stations there is a meaning corresponding to the outward tongue of interpretation, whereby the servant may perceive, if he but meditate. But beyond these seven degrees there extendeth another chain of lateral correspondences, proceeding as reflections from each preceding rank. These possess diverse stations, for the meanings vary according to the differences of their degree, until the significance of the verse reacheth the station of the Atom.

And here will I stay the pen from its flow, and entreat God’s forgiveness in all matters; for He is verily the Protector at the beginning and at the return. Glorified be the Lord, the God of the Throne, above all that they ascribe unto Him! And peace be upon the Messengers; and praise be to God, the Lord of all worlds.