BB00297: Risala fi’s-Suluk (Epistle on the Spiritual Path I)

To: Mulla Hasan?

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

O seeker of righteousness, be steadfast in the station of divine unity! God, the Exalted, hath said:

“As for those who say ‘Our Lord is God’ and then remain steadfast, the angels descend upon them, saying: ‘Fear not, neither be grieved, and rejoice in the Paradise which ye were promised.’”

[Q41:30]

Know thou that the paths unto God are as numerous as the breaths of created things, yet the soul is but one, so set thy face steadfastly. Religion is but one religion, and it is the Command of God, and Our Command is but one, so “set thy face steadfastly toward the true Faith—that innate nature [fitrat] which God hath instilled into mankind. There is no altering God’s creation.” [Q30:30]

And verily religion is established upon four pillars: the unity of God [al-tawhid], the reality of prophethood [al-nubuwwa], the succession of authority [al-walaya], and the community of followers [al-shi’a]: four gates, the first of which cannot be sound without the last. All of these are the Face of God which perisheth not, and it is the love of the Family of God, which is none other than the love of God Himself, Who is the Hidden Treasure. The Prophet alluded to this station when He said:

“Above every good deed is another good deed, until one loveth Us. When one loveth Us, there is no good deed above it.”

[Biharu’l-Anwar]

Love [hubb], the beloved [habib], the lover [muhibb], and the one who is loved [mahbub] are four signs of the manifestation of the Family of God within thee, and they are thy very self. When these four signs are remembered within thee, and thy heart is illumined, and thy mind is enraptured, and thy spirit is quickened, and thy body trembleth with longing, then art thou truly of the people of Paradise and of the companions of the Commander of the Faithful. At that moment thou art upon the straight religion, the true balance, and the clear and manifest path. There is no good deed above this station, and through it thou advanceth through the eternity of God. The love of God hath neither limit nor end, and this is the pivot of all conduct.

The entire Law is but a path for the servant to journey toward his Lord, but through movement toward the pivot We have indicated. As for the way to reach this pivot, know thou that attaining unto the station of thine own reality is attaining unto thy Lord, and it is the station of pure God-fearingness, as one of the Prophets asked about God, saying: “How can one reach Thee?” God, the Exalted, replied: “Cast away thyself and come unto Me.” This station is for beginners, to turn away from what the soul desireth and to bear what it detesteth, for there is no veil more forbidding than one’s own self.

If thou turnest toward thyself and attainest unto the station of nearness and remembrance, and findest comfort in the shade of thy Beloved, and preferrest Him above all else, thou wouldst not be heedless of His station even wert thou to be cut into pieces, for the heart of one who knoweth God is with God, and he neither speaketh, nor gestureth, nor acteth save through God, the Exalted. Be not heedless of striving, deprive not thyself of thy portion of this world, and “do good even as God hath done good unto thee”. [Q28:77] If thou art heedless, thy regret on the Day of Resurrection shall be prolonged, and thou shalt be among those who say: “Alas for my negligence in regard to God!” [Q39:56]

Go forth as thou art commanded and fear not the censure of any censurer. “This is the bounty of God; He bestoweth it upon whom He willeth, and God is the Lord of abounding grace”. [Q5:54] Flee utterly from all that distracteth thee from God, for it is a deadly poison that consumeth thee while thou perceivest it not. “Nay! If ye but knew with the knowledge of certainty, ye would behold the Fire. Then you shall see it with the eye of certainty.” [Q102:5-7]

You must renounce this world and all within it, for it is the source of all sin. Do not pause in your journey, for a lowly dog is better than the people of the marketplace, and the people of the marketplace are those who stand still. The root of that which prevents [attainment] is heedlessness of God.

The world and the hereafter are two states: if your focus is on God, you are in Paradise, and if your gaze is upon yourself, you are in the Fire and in this world. Therefore, understand the signs, cut yourself off from habits and empty attestations, bear the unkindness of people, the blame of companions, and the gloating of opposers from among family and children.

When you follow this path, you have opened upon yourself the door of God and may hope to enter unto a generous King.

For people of insight there are subtle signs, so remove the veils of glory even unto the sign, efface illusions, tear away coverings, and draw with oneness the attribute of unity until the light of dawn shines from the sun of your reality.

Enter the city of unity, forget your people, and extinguish the lamp of all that veils you from God, the Exalted. When you reach the praiseworthy station where God, the Exalted, has promised “those who keep vigil in the night”—meaning orientation toward true unity in the darkness of multiplicities—“perhaps your Lord will raise you to a praiseworthy station”. [Q17:79]

This book is a path of conduct in brief for those of insight, and in it is sufficiency for the sincere ones who believe in the unity of God. The detailed version was written by my master and teacher Haji Siyyid Kazim Rashti.

So attain thereto,

“and follow the ways of your Lord made smooth: there emerges from their bellies a drink of varying colors wherein is healing for mankind and mercy”

[Q16:69, Surah of the Bee], while it increases the wrongdoers only in loss.