THE TENTH DISCOURSE On the self and its states

Verily there is nothing except God and your self and you are addressed, and the self of man is opposed to God and inimical to Him and all things are subordinate to God and the self of man really belongs to God as a creation and as a possession and the self of man entertains presumptions from whence arise false hopes and passions and sensual pleasures. So ally your self with truth by opposing your self and become inimical to your self. Thus God said to Prophet David (peace be on him), "0 David, I am your unavoidable resort, so hold firmly to this resort; true servitude consists in your becoming inimical to your own self for My sake." It is then that your friendliness towards God and servitude to Him will become a proven fact. And it is then that you will get your share of things holy, wholesome and pleasant. You will then become dear and honourable and everything will become your servant and render you homage and will be afraid of you, because all of them are subordinate to their God and in harmony with Him, since He is their Creator and Originator and they acknowledge their servitude to Him. God says: And there is not a single thing but glorify Him with His praise, but you do not understand their glorification. (17:44) This means that everything in this universe is conscious of His presence and obeys His commands. And God of might and glory said: ' Then He said to it and to the world: come both willingly or unwillingly. They both said: We come willingly. (Qur'an 41:11) Thus all servitude consists in opposing your self and your carnal desires. God says: And follow not (low) desire, lest it lead thee astray from the path of Allah (Qur'an 38:26) He has also said: Shun your low desire because there is nothing that contends with Me in My kingdom except the carnal desire of man. And there is a famous incident related of Abu Yazid Bustami that when he saw God the Almighty in his dream, he asked Him, "How is one to get to You?" God said, "Discard yourself and come to Me." "Then," continues the Saint, "I got out of my self as a snake gets out of its slough." Thus all good lies in fighting one's self in everything and in all conditions of life. If, therefore, you are in a state of piety, oppose your self so much so that you may keep away from the forbidden things of the people and their doubtful tilings and from their acts of help and from depending on them and putting any reliance on them, or from any fear of them or from coveting what they possess of the vanities of the world. Thus, you should not expect any gift from them by way of present, or alms, or charity, or by way of redemption for certain lapses or as a fulfilment of some vow. You should, therefore, free yourself of all concern about the means of the world in all their various aspects so much so that if you have got a relation who is wealthy, do not desire his death with a view to inheriting his wealth. Thus, you should get out of the creation with a strenuous effort and consider them like a gate that closes and opens and like a tree which sometimes yields fruit and at others remains barren, and (know that) every such event is the doing of a doer and planned by a planner and He is God, so that you may be a believer in the oneness of the Lord your God. And do not forget at the same time the position of human efforts lest you fall victim to the creed of the fatalists (Jabariyya), and believe that no action attains its fulfilment but in God, the Exalted. You should not therefore worship them and thus forget God, nor should you say that the actions of men proceed from anything but from God, because if you say so, you will become an unbeliever and belong to the category of people known as Qadiriyya (believers in the doctrine that men have absolute control over the origin and cause of actions). You should rather say that actions belong to God in point of creation and to men in point of effort, and this is the view that has been handed down to us by traditions which related to the discussion on rewards and punishments. And execute the commandment of God pertaining to them (people) and set apart your own share from them by His commandment and do not exceed this limit because the order of God will stand and it will judge you as well as them; do not be the judge yourself. And your being with them (people) is a decree of God and this decree of God is in darkness, so enter this darkness with a lamp which is also the judge and this is the Book of God and the practice of His Prophet. Do not go beyond these two. But if there arises in your mind any thought or you receive any revelation, submit them before the Book of God and the practice of His Prophet. And if you find in these (authorities) a prohibition against what has occurred to you or been received by you through revelation, such as if it is revealed to you that you should commit fornication, or take to usury, or keep company with immoral people, or something else in the line of sinfulness, keep away from such a course of action and abstain from it and do not accept it and do not act upon it and remain firm in your conviction that this must be from the devil, the accursed; and if you find in these two authorities just an allowance for the things revealed to you such as fulfilment of lawful desires like eating, drinking, dressing or marrying, etc., abstain from it likewise, and do not accept it and know that it is a suggestion of your animal self and its desires, and that you are commanded to oppose it and be hostile to it. And if you find in the Book of God and in the practice of the Holy Prophet neither any prohibition nor a mere permission for the thing received through revelation but it is a thing which you cannot understand, — for example, if you are asked to go to a certain place or meet such and such a righteous person whereas through the blessings of God bestowed on you in the form of knowledge and illumination, you do not stand in need of going to that place or meeting the person mentioned, hold your patience in the matter and do not be in any hurry about it. Instead ask yourself: "Is it a revelation from God and should I act upon it?" Rather, wait to decide on any step in the matter. It is a practice of God of power and glory to repeat such a revelation and to command you to be quick in your efforts in the matter, or to reveal such a sign which is revealed to the people of knowledge of God — a sign which is understandable only by the intelligent among the awliya and the confirmed among the abdal, and you should by no means be in any hurry about the matter because you do not know the sequel of the matter and the ultimate purpose of the affair; nor are you aware of where lies a trial and a path of ruin, and a subtle planning contrived by God and an examination for you. So you should be patient till God Himself becomes the doer of the thing in you. So when the act becomes distinctly of God and you are carried to such a position, if now any trial confronts you, you will be safely carried through it because God the Exalted, will not chastise you for an action which is His own. And it is certain that chastisement comes to you for your active participation in the happening of a thing. If you are in the state of reality and it is the state of wilayat (saintliness), then stand opposed to your passions and obey the commandments fully. Obedience to commandments is of two kinds. One is that you should take from the world means of subsistence to the extent of the just demands of your self, and that you should avoid indulging in sensual pleasures and perform your duties and engage yourself in warding off sins, open and secret. And the second kind relates to the hidden commandment; and it is the commandment of God with which He either enjoins His servant to do or forbids him doing anything. And this hidden commandment applies to things permissible, for which there is no positive injunction in the Law, in the sense that they neither belong to the class of prohibited things, nor to the class of things specified as obligatory, but are rather of an obscure nature wherein the servant is given complete freedom to act, and these are called mubah. In these the servant should not take any initiative, but wait for an order concerning them. When he receives an order he obeys it. Thus all his movements and restful conditions become dedicated to God. If there is an injunction in Law with regard to a certain thing, he acts in accordance with it, but if there is no injunction in the Law, he acts on the hidden commandment. It is through these that he comes confirmed as a man attaining reality. And where there is not (even) this hidden commitment, and it is just an act of God, it entails a state of resignation. And if you have attained to the truth of truth which is otherwise called the state of immersion (mahw) or annihilation (fana), it is the state of the abdal — who are broken-hearted on account of Him, a state belonging to pure monotheists, to men of spiritual enlightenment; to men of knowledge and (higher) intelligence, (men who are) chiefs of the chiefs, the wardens and protectors of people, the vicegerents of the Beneficent, and His friends and confidants, peace be on them. To pay obedience to the commandment in such matters is to go against your own self and to be free from reliance on any ability and power, and to be absolutely devoid of all will and purpose with regard to anything of this world and the hereafter. Thus you will become the servant of the King, and not of the Kingdom, of the Divine commandment and not of the desires of the flesh; and will become like a baby in the care of a nurse and a dead body in the hands of the washer at the time of the funeral bath, and an unconscious patient lying before the physician, in all matters that are outside the range of injunctions and prohibition.