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Towards the Inner Vision of the Truth

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"Their light will run before them and on their right hands; they will say: Our Lord! Perfect our light for us, and forgive us! Lo! Thou art Able to do all things." — Holy Qur'an 66:8

 

Candle Posts :: Motivational Gems for Higher Spiritual Enlightenment

:: Candle Post #39 :: What is the Source of the Light of Faith? ::

Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim
In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful.

Ya Ali Madad. In candle post number 38, I made a strong case for strengthening one's faith with knowledge and rigorous practise of faith until it (i.e., faith) becomes Light. In this post, I would like to further explore these relationships and address the question: 'Where should an Ismaili look for the Light of Faith?'.

Let us start with an excerpt of a supplication of Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi in which he seeks help for the Radiant Light to liberate him from the shackles of material existence and also to intensify his own light.

'O God, instruct my intellect in the sciences of Your Private Knowledge, and perfume my soul with the virtues of Your Lordship! Assure my senses by extending illuminating rays from the Presences of Your Radiant Light! Liberate the quintessential gemstones of my corporeality from constraints of gross nature, from the condensity of sense-perception and from the confinement of place and [phenomenal] world!

O God, transport me from the descending steps of my created being and nature to the ascending flight of Your Truth and essential Reality. You are my Friend and Master: in You I die and from You I take life. It is You alone whom we adore and it is You alone we see for aid.

Look upon me, O God, with that regards by which You arrange all my stages in a harmonious progression, by which You purify the inner heart where my secrets appear, by which You elevate the spirits of my remembrance to the Highest Assembly, by which you intensify the shining of my light.'

[Source: Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi. The Seven Days of the Heart. Translated by Pablo Beneito and Stephen Hirtenstein. 2000. Anqa Publishing, Oxford. Pages 55]

Now let us look at the position of the Holy Imam in the Ismaili Tariqah:

'...The Imam of the time is the Divine light. Just as the sun which gives light to this world is always there, similarly, the Imam of the time who gives light to the world of religion is always there. Just as the disappearance of the sun from this world is impossible, similarly the disappearance of the Imam of the time from this world is impossible. He is always there. For man is constituted of three things: body, soul and intellect. The body receives light from the sun, the moon and other sources of physical light, but the light which the human soul and intellect need is always only with the Imam of the time.

It should be noted that the light of the soul and the intellect cannot be seen with the physical eye, otherwise, all the people of the world would have seen him and nobody would have denied his existence, just as nobody denies the existence of the sun in this world whose light can be seen. The sun does not require any proof of its existence as the light of the soul and intellect requires, for God says He guides to His light whom He wills. Had this light of God been shining externally and possessed some external sign, which people would have instantly recognized as the light of God, then God would not have said that He guides to His light whom He wills (Q. 24:35)'
 
(Source: Chain of the Light of Imamat, pages 70-71)

Applications of the Above Knowledge

  1. Where can person get the Light of Faith? This has been explained by NOOR Mowlana Sultan Muhammad Shah (a.s.) as follows:
    'Islam and Ismailism are built on Iman and Mo'min. Iman means faith. Mo'min is one who has faith. Mo'min who has true faith does not mean to be philosopher; it means one who has got faith. If you have got no Iman there is no hope. Iman is a thing that one can get by praying for Iman; for that you will have to go Imam. There is no other way or short cut to it.'
    (Dar-es-Salaam, February 2, 1945)

    From this we can also conclude that the Light of Faith comes from the Light of the Holy Imam. Our religion is quite clear how and where we should go to acquire the Light of Faith! Therefore, we should make a tremendous effort to actualize our faith as Light! Al-Hamdulillah!

  2. Let us do our best and fully participate in the Jamati Evening Mushkil Aasaan satado for a period of seven days, and get the barakat of the 'Ya Ali tu Rahem Kar, Ya Mowla tu Fazal Kar' tasbi;
     
  3. Let us pray for the blessings of the protection through the Light of NOOR Mowlana Hazir Imam in our foreheads; and
     
  4. Let us remember Mowla's firman that "It (bandagi) will give you strength to face any worldly difficulty. It will give you humility to face success". As a point of clarification, bandagi is performed just for spiritual enlightenment, how besides spiritual happiness, bandagi also generates strength to solve world difficulties. Ameen.

May Mowla's Light be with all of us, always, in everything that we do!

Related Links:
Download Ya Ali Tu Rahem Kar, Ya Mowla Tu Fazel Kar mp3 sound track (8.91 MB)
The Mi'raj of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s.a.s.)
Actualizing Higher Spiritual Enlightenment

Ardent Supplications:

Ya Ali, Ya NOOR Mowlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam, create Sunshine in our hearts, light in our foreheads, and bless us all with the inner vision of the Truth!

Ya Ali, Ya NOOR Mowlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam, grant the global Jamat luminous (noorani) and spiritual (ruhani) tayid (help) to advance materially, spiritually and intellectually. Ameen.

Haizinda — Qayampaya
(Our Present Imam is Living and His NOOR is Eternal)

Rakh Mowla je Noor te Yaqeen (Certainly, we trust in Mowla's Light only),
Noorallah Juma
SalmanSpiritual.com
Tuesday, April 21, 2009

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