Për ta kuptuar si duhet thyerjen që ka ndodhur në art si pasojë e krijimtarisë së Kandinsky’t domosdoshmërisht duhet t’i kthehemi sfondit ideor në të cilin ishte i mbështetur ai. Fundi i shekullit të XIX karakterizohet si periudhë ku fetaria emocionae dhe spiritualizmi i është kundërshtuar me të madhe materializmit dhe naturalizmit. Spiritualizmi në fjalë e ka përfshirë në brendinë e tij simbolizmin dhe “ romantizmin e vonshëm” dhe si pasojë i ka dalë përpara pozitivizmit që deri atëherë dominonte në botën e artit. Kjo shpirtëri në masë të madhe ka ndikuar në artistët që nuk kanë qenë të kënaqur me impresionizmin dhe të cilin e kanë konsideruar si tejet sipërfaqësor. Si rrjedhojë, brezi simbolist është shndërruar në brezin më të thellë nga aspekti i mendimit artistik. Kah fundi i shekullit të XIX fetaria simbolike ka hy në kallëpe të caktuara si pasojë e botëkuptimit ezoterist të përfaqësuesve të tij, siç ishin Kandinsky, Mondrian , etj., rrjedhimisht themeluesit e abstrakcionizmit. S’ka dyshim që ata janë ndikuar nga mësimet hermetike të antikitetit dhe gnoseologjisë së vazhdueshme të historisë së mendimit njerëzor që veten e ka treguar nëpërmjet ezoterizmit të ndryshëm, mirëpo fytyra, idetë e të cilit më së shumti e kanë ndryshuar fizioniminë e artit të kësaj periudhe, është filozofi, esteti dhe sufiu i njohur mysliman i Andaluzisë, Muhjuddin ibn Arabiu.
Struktura e mendimit artistik evropian është njohtuar me mendimitn e tij nëpërmjet të shkollave filozofike të Andaluzisë në periudhën e humanizmit dhe renesansës, por edhe, nëpërmjet të poezive të Hafizit, Sadi Shiraziut dhe Mevlana Xhelaluddin Rumiut në periudhën e iluminizmit evropian.
Ibn Arabiu ka krijuar një lidhje tërheqëse midis natyrshmërisë dhe shpirtërisë. Kompleksiviteti i paraqitur në veprën artistike,sipas tij, do të jetë pasqyrë e kompleksivitetit të rendit hyjnor në gjithësi. Qëndrimi i tij është se ekzistojnë disa parime thelbësore tejgjithësore të cilat ne kemi mundësi ti reprodukojmë vetëm në trajtë estetike edhe atë vetëm në përpjekjet tona mistike.
Ibn Arabiu çdoherë ka qenë një filozof dhe artist i preferuar, por vetëm nga një rreth i ngushtë elitar i artistëve dhe filozofëve. Në mesin e tyre janë edhe estetët dhe artistët e njohur të periudhës së vonshme, Kandinsky dhe Schonbergu. Ibn Arabiu për herë të parë në trajtë filozofike ka pohuar se arti që nuk është figurativ ka validitet dhe legjitimitet filozofik dhe ka konstatuar se përmasa shpirtërore ka pashmangshmëri logjike e cila veten e paraqet nëpërmjet artit, veçanërisht nëpërmjet muzikës. Si rrjedhojë ai gjërë e gjatë e ka diskutuar relacionin e ngushtë midis oratoriumit shpirtëror dhe atij natyror/ sema-i ruhani dhe sema-i tabii.
Estetika dhe arti i Ibn Arabiut ka disa parime që i ka konsideruar si të detyrueshme për pasqyrimin si duhet të realitetit ekzistues nëpërmjet artit. Kjo përmasë që në realitet e përbën thelbin tejshqisor të perceptimit dhe konceptimit të realitetit edhe në shfaqjen e gjithësisë është pasqyruar si perceptim estetik dhe veprimtari artistike. Gjithashtu ajo është me ndikim të konsiderueshëm edhe në kuptimin, si duhet, të domethënies së të qenurit nga ana e njeriut. Ndjeshmëria estetike dhe korniza përfundimtare e botëkuptimit artistik të Ibn Arabiut është shembull i veçantë dhe i gjallë i relacionit, madje mund të thuhet edhe integrimit midis fesë dhe artit. Për pasojë, parimet e tilla, tek Ibn Arabiu, kanë krijuar një paradigmë në lidhje me origjinën hyjnore të ndjenjës artistike. Edhe Kandinsky në këtë vijë “artin do ta konsiderojë më të lartë se natyrën”, për shkak se, thotë ai, shpirti i artistit “është krijuar si pasojë e ndikimit të shenjtë”. “ Që nga dita kur jam shmangur nga imitimi i natyrës kam filluar ta du edhe më tepër atë”, pohon Kandinsky dhe thotë se arti abstrakt është “shmangie nga lëvoreja e natyrës”. Qëllimi i artit edhe tek Ibn Arabiu edhe tek Kandinsky është “ zhvillimi dhe estetizimi i shpirtit të njeriut”, ndërsa detyra parësore e artistit është “ lartësimi i nivelit shpirtëror të njerëzimit”. Artisti nëpërmjet mjeteve që bën art arrinë që nga shpirti i njeriut ta nxjerrë dridhjen e vërtetë. Si pasojë është më se e qartë se harmonia e formave duhet të jetë e mbështetur në parimin e shpirtërisë së tij.
Parimet e shpirtërisë së Ibn Arabiut, në esnecë edhe të Islamit, janë të transferuara edhe në ndjeshmërinë estetike dhe botëkuptimin artistik të tyre. Këta parime, që njëkohësisht janë edhe parimet thelbësore të besimit Islam, mund të përmblidhen në tre: Parimi i njëshmërisë së qenies/ tevhid, shfaqja e këtij parimi në platformën e perceptimit njerëzor, estetikë/ihsan dhe përcaktuesi i relacionit dhe natyrës së nduardnduartë midis tyre, rrjedhimisht platforma ideore filozofike skriptuale e tyre, zbulesa hyjnore/Kur’ani.
Shikuar më thellë, përvoja e besimit është eksperiencë estetike. Perceptimi i shumësisë brenda Një’shit dhe intuita për të pandryshueshmin që qëndron në sfondin e të ndryshueshmeve është tejet e rëndësishme edhe nga aspekti i besimit por edhe në bartjen e rrezeve të këtij realiteti në pëlhurë, melodi, arkitekturë etj. Si pasojë, të gjitha veprat artistike në një mënyrë, siç edhe ata të ngjarat në natyrë, janë vetëm se dhunime imagjinative , për tu afruar me të Madhin, prandaj edhe shpeshherë për shkak të pamundësisë së prezentimit përfundimtar paraqitern si komplekse dhe të përziera. Por edhe anasjelltas, lëvizja prej veprës artistike, ose edhe vetë natyrës, drejt thelbit është ndër mënyrat më të preferuara të zbulesës për përjetimin e përvojës shpirtërore.
Ndërsa termi Ihsan në botëkuptimin e Ibn Arabiut është bërë një term standart i cili e ka patur kuptimin e “ veprimit të bukur, sjelljes estetike”. Veprimi i bukur, sipas tij, ka mundësi të arrihet vetëm me përpjekjen për ta arritur plotninë. Ihsani në brendinë e tij, krahas të bukurës e ngërthen edhe të mirën dhe virtytin. Si pasojë në ihsanin ka një kalokagati të theksuar , një relacion presionues etiko-estetik. Poeti bashkëkohor Adonis në poezinë e tij “ The Tree of the East” ( Pema lindore) vargun e parë e ka filluar me këto fjalë:
“ U bëra pasqyrë”; mirëpo ai në realitet nuk ka dëshirë të thotë se është pasqyrë. Ai këtu flet për farefisninë, harmoninë dhe njëshmërinë që e ndërlidh qenien njerëzore me lëndën e pasqyrës. Në të vërtetë, pasi që bëhet fjalë për një poet, ai në këtë rast e paraqet rolin e poetit në reflektimin e realitetit. Ai më vonë, në poezinë e tij, flet për ujin, që gjithashtu ka karakter reflektiv. Si pasojë, Adonis, nëpërmjet të përdorimit të idiomave të ndryshme e paraqet transferimin e idesë transcedentale nëpërmes artit dhe kulturës në shoqërinë njerëzore. Në një mënyrë ai përpiqet ta identifikojë realitetin e qenies nëpërmjet bukurisë së transformuar në rrjedhat artistike dhe kulturore të botës.
Në botëkuptimin e Ibn Arabiut, por edhe në qytetërimin Islam në përgjithësi, elementi përcaktues i veprimit dhe formës artistike ka qenë zbulesa/Kur’ani. Brenga për ta konceptuar dhe më pas paraqitur idenë thelbësore të zbulesës ka ndikuar dukshëm në ndieshmërinë estetike dhe në paraqitjen e degëve të ndryshme artistike në mesin e myslimanëve. Para së gjithasah këtë tempo të veprimit e ka imponuar stili i gjuhës kur’anore dhe ka ndikuar në krijimin e një hermeneutike dhe semantike të theksuar filozofiko-artistike në mesin e myslimanëve. Si pasojë janë shkruar vepra vëllimore në lidhje me sfondin, domethëniet dhe konceptologjinë e Fjalës së zbuluar. Teksti i Kur’anit është ilustrim më i mirë se realitetiu/hakikati ka mundësi të bartet në imanencë vetëm nëpërmjet të përmasës estetike. Për pasojë, çdo strukturë artistike dhe estetike që është përpjekur ta formulojë të shenjtën, për shkak të pamundësisë dhe mëngësisë në shprehjen e ndieshmërisë dhe emocionalitetit, i ësthë kthyer zbulesës, madje edhe ata që nuk e kanë pranuar atë si të vërtetë të zbuluar. Kjo shihet edhe në temat e një numri të madh të veprave artistike të të gjitha rrymave.
Gjykimet estetike, tek Ibn Arabiu, i takojnë lirisë së vërtetë, domethënë shpërthimit të kufizimive fizike dhe përjetimit të lirisë së fluturimit në parimet në prapavijë të së dukshmes dhe shpeshherë janë konsideruar si pluraliste dhe tejet heterodokse. Ndjenja dhe emocioni nuk e pranojnë dhunën, estetikën nuk mund t’ia mbështesim askujt, ajo ka mundësi të depërtojë vetëm me frymën. Ibn Halduni pluralizmin dhe gjërësinë estetike e ka diskutuar në kuadër të të qenurit i qytetëruar/ medeni dhe primitiv/bedevi, në Prologomenën/Mukaddime e tij të njohur. Shoqëritë e zhvilluara, thotë ai, nga aspekti artistik, njëkohësisht janë të zhvilluara edhe nga aspekti qytetërimor. Gjithashtu ai edhe në klasifikimin e shtresave shoqërore, artin, e ka konsideruar si përcaktues. Një mendim i ngjashëm më vonë do të preferohet edhe nga ana e J.J. Rousseau’së.
Pamundësia e identifikimit të realitetit të njëshmërisë së qenies ka ndikuar dukshëm që estetika e Ibn Arabiut të merr një karakter të njëshmërisë sufike të qenies, që më vonë Kandinsky do ta shprehë si panteizëm mistik. Fuqia kozmike që e gjallëron ezoterikën subjektive është pikërisht ajo që e gjallëron edhe egzoterikën objektive. Për pasojë, dy komponentat hije që e përbëjnë gjithësinë i përgjigjen në trajtë ezoterike njëra tjetrës dhe në tërësi janë harmonike midis vetes. Qëllimi i Ibn Arabiut është që t’i vizualizojë dhe t’i paraqesë në kuadër të një rregulli të caktuar fuqitë kozmike dhe si pasojë hapja/fet’h e fuqive do ta mundësojë kthimin e njeriut në origjinën parazënafillore të tij. Natyra e tematikës së përpunuar në veprat e Ibn Arabiut, si dhe përdorimi i shpeshtë i simboleve dhe metaforave, i ka bërë shkrimet e Ibn Arabiut që, përveç në çështjet metafizike të kenë ndikim edhe në art. Në çështjet e artistike, para së gjithash ai është përqendruar në ontologjinë e aktit, ngaqë ai e merr atë në përmasën e përgjithësuar dhe më pas e vendos përballë hollësive dhe sqarimeve. Nga kjo pikënisje, edhe vetëdija është vendosur përballë dijes, për arsyen se në fjalën vetëdije (shuur) ka një lloj abstraksioni.
Kuptimi i artit si antinomi e qartësisë mund të merret në dy mënyra, dhe gjithsesi, përsëri e vazhdon lidhjen me tesavvuf-in dhe mendimin sufik islam. Gjithashtu edhe disa nga poetët e njohur janë të mendimit se thelbi i poezisë është abstraksioni; por, abstraksioni në disa raste mund të nënkuptohet edhe si lojë me emocionet dhe mendësinë reale njerëzore në një trajtë sadiste. Në këtë rast abstraksioni shndërrohet në një nyje dhe pa ide ; në një nyje që lexuesin as për së afërmi nuk e afron me kuptimin e veprës artistike. Ibn Arabiu nuk e ka këtu qëllimin. Përgjithësimi i veprës artistike në tesavvuf ka një qëllim të caktuar: është një rrugëtim prej atij që jep shenjë drejt atij që i jipet shenja; është e profilizuar me vetëdije. Në këtë rast e vërteta është mbuluar me simbolikë. Është një lojë intuitive. Shifra e gjetur në kutinë që keni hapur mban çelësin e kutisë që do hapni. Hapja e kutisë është e varur drejtpëdrejt nga kutia pararendëse. Në hapjen e çdo kutije përfitoni nga nje vijë, dhe pas hapjes së të gjitha kutive arrini deri te vepora përfundimtare. Në këtë proces edukativ e arsimor, nga njëra anë, prej atij që sodit kërkohet që të mendojë, të meditojë e të përqendrohet intelektualisht; ndërsa nga ana tjetër provohet sinqeriteti, përpjekja dhe këmbëngulja, si dhe durimi për plotësimin e kërkesës që e ka. Me fjalë tjera, ky është një rrugëtim në shtresat kuptimore të një vepre të caktuar; ose mund ta quajmë kthim dhe kuptim i veprës estetike siç është në trajtën e parë të zbuluar.
Muhammad
Iqbal has taken the Qur’an as
his centric reference and in a series of scientific conferences and written
works has drawn attention for the urgent
need for
experiencing the developing trends of both the human mentality and
intellectuality,
encompassing the Muslim milieu. With his Reconstruction of Religious Thought the latter intends to
reconstruct the Islamic philosophy and mentality by simultaneously remaining faithful to
the Islamic philosophical tradition and by relying upon the scientific developments from
various fields.
The author considers
deed making of high remark,
for
he believes that the Qur’an accentuates more on action than theory. Such a
constellation of Iqbal’s thought has been influenced by a number of historical
and sociological factors. Through actions Iqbal could awaken and recover the population of his
living milieu. In his almost entire
opus of writings, Iqbal,
with a very influential method speaks of
strengthening of the self
and the regain of confidence among Muslims.
Research and
discoveries made in the social and naturalistic sciencies at the end of the
19th and 20th century have given special ackowledgment to the matter of change,
development and reconstruction. Alongside they have presented a dynamic mindset
in the social planing, universal and that of religious. This particular state
has granted access to the understandings, updated elaboratings and analysis on
the essential religious concepts.
The one who
sought to perform an intellecual synthesi of the human inherited intellegece,
both from the East and West, and who strived to endorse the phylosophical teism
in the Islamic world and thus broaden the limitations of the apprehension on
religion and the perennial tradition in progression with time, is indubitably
the distinguished Muslim, Muhammad Iqbal
(1877-1938).
The West,
beginning from the second half of the 20th century, succeeded to neutralize the
military forces, as well as the intellectual and political force of the Muslim
territories. The engaging cooperation
among the Western countries and the isolation of the Islamic world from these
domains, disrupted the flow of Muslims and left them foregrounding total destruction.
The Eastern devises of individual
sacrifice and cleric inactivity influenced in such fashion that this
transient world would remain under the political and cultural pressure of the
West. The passive system of the East, in that period, instead of enabling man
to confront with the problems and concerns of life, it oriented him towards
escaping the social reality and it withdraw its strength for confronting the
material and semantic challenges.
In such
experience of the Islamic world, Muhammad Iqbal as a knowledgebale man on the
surroundings of both West and East of his time
sought to seek the saviour path of the Islamic world from the
intellectual and social chaos.
The
reconstruction of the Islamic mindset is
demanding…
Muhammad
Iqbal , in his integrated critical mindset on the actual mindset of the Muslims
of his time, has taken the entire Qur’an for an preliminary reference, and
through a scientific convension and
written works has idenitified the urgent need for experiencing both the
contemporary developing mindset and the human intellect, encompassing the
Muslim domains. Above all, Iqbal was
advocating the rethinking of the religious mindset. By “The reconstruction of the
religious mindset: as he alone claims, he means that by standing loyal the Islamic philosophical tradition and by
taking for reference the scientific developments in various fields, the
rebuilding of the philosophical and Islamic mindset shall be enabled”. [1]The developments in the scientific fields influenced Iqbal’s mindset
resulting in a dynamic character rather than a static one.
Iqbal
affirms that the time of the analyses and objective observation of the basis of
Islamic religion have come and been swept away. Despite the fact that in
several occasions we might be contradicted by our prior generations, this
reality is inevitable (Iqbal 2006b:89-95). The past ought to be seen as a
period of knowledge and in under no circumstances as a matter of doctrine
(Iqbal: 2006c: 163-168).
Muhammad
Iqbal, analyses the intellectual and religious reconstruction of the Muslims in
two divisions.
The initial
part, acknowledged as the period of diagnosing, is the degree of analyses of
the consequences of both the historical and contemporary factors, which have
led Muslims to this current position. Whereas, the second period acknowledged
as the healing period, is dictated by the changes and the renewal of the
Muslims from the doctrinal and social point of view. In other words in means that the
reconstruction of the Islamic mindset for Iqbal takes under account the social
changes and renewal of the Muslims. What mostly led Iqbal to consider the
social reconstruction was the degraded physical and essential state of the
Muslims in the world. The primary aim of religion, says Iqbal, stands in
integrating the individualism of man and the society which the person shares
(Iqbal 2006d: 127). As a consequence, Iqbal’s strive is not merely to seek God,
but simultaneously the comfort of life people can obtain in this world. The
entire corpus mindset of Iqbal is focused on strengthening the confidence and
the self of man, both among the Muslims and the human kinship.
Iqbal and
the dynamics of the XX Century
In the XX
century, “change” and “development” were key terms for research and studies,
both in the natural and social sciences, and as a consequence to this, the dynamic
world perception of the world and the society led to the dynamic world
perception of God. Such a state has caused for reanalyzing and forth brining
comments on the primary theological and religious concepts. In the West,
Whitehead and Hartshorne, and in the Islamic world Iqbal, have been the
scholars who have opened the doors to these analyses and gave new integrated
understandings to the philosophical theism (Aydın 1985:84).
In the
process of revitalizing the dynamic standpoint of the world, Iqbal was
additionally clearly influenced by the world’s plight at that time especially
the appalling perception of the Islamic world. The philosophy of the self, in
Iqbal’s point of view, has greatly suffered from this reality. The author by
also taking for reference the Qur’anic verses[2]
speaks of the continued changes and developments of the universe and the world.
A systemized and predestined world cannot possibly incorporate independent
elements, those of responsibility and ethics. There is no greater abstract
thought for the Qur’anic mindset, claims Iqbal, that that of the fatalist
theory on the world and the deed making within it.
The
thought on the world which follows and acts upon the predestined details,
abstains man’s work within it and thus for man the universe grows into a
prison. Man in the logical and esthetic constellation of the Qur’an is beyond
the universe. [3]
He has demonstrated an unparalleled courage and has avowed the trust, which
even the skies, the mountains and earth refused to embrace.[4]
Ensuing, everything which the sky and earth possess has been granted to serve
man. [5]
Man created in the outmost perfection is capable to give shape and
functionalize the forces and physical states around him. In such state, it has
been given him the power to drive his life and actions, for which he shall be
called upon. If people initiate the first step towards this drive, Allah, shall
support them by changing things which are in their outmost benefit.[6] On
the other hand, if they do not trigger the initial step and do not cultivate
the inner treasures within their inner self in order to grow part of the rising
developments of the world, then their soul hardens, their heart shrinks and
turns into an inorganic substance which shares only a limited stay in the universe.
Man’s life and the cultivation of his soul is only enabled when setting a
relationship with the reality which he confronts in the surrounding which he
shares. This link can be established only through knowledge and by the
proceedings of the contemporary world processes.[7]
Iqbal
strongly believes that the changes which occur in the universe, for which he
was assured that there stood a profound and determined reason why it had been
created, drive humans in new actions, thus persons ought to take heed of them
and meditate profoundly around them. The Qur’anic calling for studying and
researching on the universe has for aim to remind man that the universe is one
of the symbols of truth.[8]
Only in such manner, claims Iqbal, humans have the occasion to control the
space and time of their life. Furthermore, the latter is of the thought that
“man occupies the universe, whereas the universe cannot occupy him” (Iqbal
1989a : 201).
With
these thoughts, Iqbal from one angle, borders and accelerates several
theological concepts in the religious philosophical domain, and yet from
another view, through poetry he seeks to awaken the mass Muslim population from
the dogmatic sleep, which have surrendered themselves to their fate and have
led a life outside the contemporary time and space of the developed world. Such
a state taking place among the Muslims, alienated them from the surrounding
world and it matured them into a
lethargic state of the last calling.
The self
and man’s freedom
The
philosophy of the Self embraces a special distinction in the philosophy of
Muhammad Iqbal. In the development of this philosophy, Iqbal has relied on the
classical sources yet again has simultaneously taken for reference the
contemporary philosophy and thought. The
Self, could claim Iqbal,is the truth
which we learn through our intuit, for which the Muslim scholars have used
the term nefs (Aydın 1987a:91).
Everything which has been presented in the existential area, beginning from the
atoms and all hither God, from humans hither the universe, Iqbal considers them
as a special self, whereas in the central of this thought he has inserted man.
The discussion on the philosophy of the self is not a newly proclaimed matter
to the Islamic philosophy whatsoever, albeit Iqbal motioning with the
contemporary thought, he has given this perception a new leap. To Iqbal, in
every existential scope there is a designated self and their sublimity is
measured based on their personification. As a consequence, in each self which
grows to be ideal there are immense held hidden opportunities. The human self
is the highest rank to which the relative self can approach, excluding the Absolute
Self. As one can see in Iqbal’s point of view, each self takes the path hither
its person-ation (Malik 2005:91). In the process of person-ation, man is
granted ceasing opportunities, yet assigned challenges do appear. From this
stand point, the leading and controlling element in one’s self ought to be the
virtues of his genuine essence and personation. As a consequence of this mental
structure of Iqbal, man in his philosophy contains a creative character towards
his surrounding life (Aydın 1987b:89). The self, Iqbal would claim, is a
participator in the life and freedom of the Absolute Self. The Absolute Self
with His never seizing will, grants the occasion for the finite and temporary
self to be created…[9].
Iqbal in his work Pejam-i mashkrim says
the following:
Man:
I fashioned this world
out of one and the same clay;
You made Iran; Ethiopia and Tartary.
From mere earth I made steel, pure and without alloy;
You fashioned sword and arrowhead and musketry.
You made the axe, with which you felled trees grown by me,
And fashioned cages for my singing birds, born free.
God: You made the night; I made the lamp that
lights it up.
You fashioned clay; I made of it a drinking cup.
You made the wilderness, the mountain and the steppe;
I fashioned garden, orchard, avenue and scape.
I change dread poisons into panaceas, and
I am the one who fashions mirrors out of sand (Iqbal 1977).
As one
can observe from the above lines, Iqbal through the language of poetry voices
his thought on man as a creature, who has power
to give a certain shape to the primary created substance from God and
thus to make supplementary applicable tools in life with it. Man’s self, in
Iqbal’s perception, differs from the rest of the self found in other creatures,
precisely due to the ability of production. Man is made valuable through his
creativity.
The
conscience content of the human self
Man,
according to Iqbal, is conscientious about his self and this conscience of his
has several enclosed stages which are in close dependency among each other.
From the viewpoint of the divided self, each person is a being which is capable
of thinking, believing, experiencing pain, and has a certain aim and can judge
the choices before him. Namely, humans are creatures with a certain spiritual
and intellectual platforms. The experience of the self is an experience which
is in a never ending integration, it changes and motions from one platform onto
another. The self, or the ego appear as a union of the intellectual states or
of our spiritual comprise. These embodiments cannot possibly exist in
separation from one another. Each one either influences or clarifies the other.
The intellectual encompassment differs from the physical encompassment. As long
as the human’s physical state is dependent on the universe, the intellect does
not share the same fate. The essential
virtue of man’s self is unification and the unification of his comprises.
The human
intellect, in addition, differs from the temporary self on certain matters. In
order to reach one designated conclusion, the intellect ought to equally trust
all the premises of the logical analogies. Namely, until both premises do not
emerge from the identical intellect, the conclusion is not right. As a
consequence, bliss, taste, woe and feelings are of one intellect or conscience,
and under no circumstance of another intellect, and as such they conclude as
various drives found within the same self. Precisely to this, no one can decide
on behalf of another. No one can undergo the experience of another self. Iqbal,
on defining the essence of the self has referred to William James’s point of
view. W. James values the conscience’s state as the “river of thought”. In the
flow of this river there exist links which join the flowing of the intellect’s
actions and thus form a chain. At this particular stage the self becomes
affection of the individualism and presents a portion of the system of our view
point. The never ending steps and activities of the self consist the inner
experience, whereas then the inner experience engages the self in the daily
involved activities. When one recognizes a certain substance, when that person
expresses his thought towards a certain matter or when he uses his will, he is
fronting his self. The self for Iqbal,
is an orienting energy which has taken shape and is systemized by the inner
experience (Iqba; 1956a: 135-136). The Qur’an in regards to the incentive
duties and shape of the self, as Iqbal would say, has used the following words
to portray : “And they ask you, [O Muhammad],
about the soul. Say, “The soul is of the affair of my Lord. And mankind
have not been given of knowledge except a little.”[10]
Iqbal,
when commenting the above verses uses the terms “halk” (creation) and “emr”
(duty, direction). “Halk”, as Iqbal would say, means creation, occurrence;
whereas “emr”, direction, orientation.
The
Qur’an, both for the creation and orientation says that they belong to God.[11]
By
relying on the 85th verse of the Al-Isra Surah, Iqbal would say that
the genuine essence of the soul is the virtue of incentive and of orientation.
This virtue makes it inevitable for the soul
to be a modest and simple creature (not compound) and with its own
uniqueness (Iqbal 1956b:136). Whereas in the comment of the Surah Al-Isra verse
84[12],
the author comprehends the word ya’melu (takes
action, behaves) as an essential virtue of our creation, and thus concludes
that the truthful person within man, is not “something” but rather “an action”
(act). It is this which is an action in continuum. An action, influenced and
influencing, has a will and also a particular aim. As a result, you ought to judge my self by
the decisions which I take, the conscience actions and upon my aims, says Iqbal
(1956c:137).
The
faithful one, according to Iqbal’s dynamic stand point, is to the outmost
extent remarkably determined even in the matters of this world. Iqbal, shows
how the lethargic behavior leads society hither destruction and astray from the
centric matters of this world by conveying deity as an aim, satirizes it in the
below poem of his known as the “The Prayer of the Slaves”:
“The
Turkish Knight said to me at prayer’s end.
“Why do your Imams prostrate for long and bend”
That simple manly knight and Muslim free,
Knew not at all what such prayer be.
Free men have thousands of pursuits in life,
Nations progress through great zeal and strife.
In slave’s body beat for deeds is nil,
Always his days and nights are at stand still.” [13]
It is
very apprehensible that in Iqbal’s mindset there is an unparalleled dynamics.
Aside from the importance of thought, Iqbal gives high remark to deed making,
since he believes that the Qur’an gives priority and greater importance to
actions rather than theory. Such a constellation of Iqbal’s thought, has been
influenced by several historical and sociological factors. Actions were the
mere tool which enabled Iqbal to awaken and recover the mass population of his
living milieu. Before speaking of other
matters, Iqbal recognized a need to speak to the man who had lost his self in
order to be able to regain it. Almost in all of his writings, Iqbal, by using a
very influential tool speaks of strengthening the self and the regain of
confidence among the Muslims.
The self,
can integrate its opportunities and its essential virtues, merely through love.
With the lack of love, the self cannot establish its virtues (Iqbal
1958:33-35). Through love, the self
endorses the open path towards the rest of self-s. Hence as a result of this open
path, companionship is introduced. Through love, man integrates beyond the
biological structure and upon his essential strength, draws towards himself the
sacred reflections. In the author’s point of view, the latter concludes the
absolute love is found in the love for God. The love for God commits the person
to being intelligent and exceptional and thus transforms him into an active
member of the society. In Iqbal’s
viewpoint love is a creative and active element (Iqbal 1987c:95).
When
dissertating the strengthening of the self Iqbal uses the term “fakr”
(essential destitute). According to him, man without detaching himself from the
excess in his life, cannot possibly pertain to this stage, and yet anew it
cannot even elude from being only characterized as a slave. With the lack of
courage there is no success neither in the physical nor the essential
dimension. Courage is not associated with forwarding into danger; instead it
means consolidation of the self in difficult times and in agony (Iqbal:2005).
In addition to love being applicable for building a healthy companionship, the
person is also in need for the other person’s understanding.
The
author has encountered fear, the state of being enslaved, imploring and
impersonation and so on, as a weaknesses of the self (Iqbal 1956d: 138).
Muhammad
Iqbal, in the history of the Islamic thought has encountered the concept for
the reconstruction of the mindset, the dynamics of theory and action, and the
open gated future of humans. The author, the relationship between God and man
has understood as an ethical link subject to the free will. The sacred
attributes, as Iqbal would say, give people great freedom for the articulation
of their rights and responsibilities. Yet what is of most importance is that
Iqbal has composed the theological platform for social changes and
developments, as a process which shall be integrated by humans themselves.
Aydın. Mehmet 1987c. “Ikbal’in Felsefesinde Insan”.
Pp. 95. Vol. XXIX. Ankara: A.U.I.F Dergesi
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006a. ”Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”.
Pp. 10. translated by.
Nexhat S. Ibrahimi, Skopje: Logos-A
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006b.
“Ripërtëritja
e mendimit fetar ne islam”. pp. 89-95.
translated by
Nexhat S. Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006c “Ripërtëritja e mendimit fetar ne islam”. pp. 163-168. translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
Ikbal,
Muhammad. 2006d, “Ripërtëritja e mendimit fetar ne islam”. pp. 127. translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
Iqbal, Muhammad, 2006e. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”. pp. 193.
translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. 2006e. Skopje: Logos-A
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006f. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”. pp. 27.
translated by.
Nexhat S. Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006g “Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”. pp. 27
translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A“
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006h. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”. pp. 29
translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
Iqball, Muhammad, 1989a.
“Javidnamah”. Pp. 201. Translated in Turkish by: Annemarie Schimel, Ankara: Kültür Bakanlığ
Ikball,
Muhammad, 1989b. “Javidnamah”. Pp.
159. Translated in Turkish by: Annemarie Schimel. Ankara: Kültür Bakanlığı
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1977 “Message from the East: Dialogue
between God and Man.” Translated by Hussain, M. Hadi. Karachi: Iqbal Academy
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1956a. “Peyam-i Mesrik”. Pp. 135-6. Translated in Turkish by: Ali
Nihat Tarlan.
Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1956b. “Peyam-i Mesrik”. Pp. 136. Translated in Turkish by: Ali
Nihat Tarlan.
Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1956c. “Peyam-i Mesrik”. Pp.
137. Translated in Turkish by: Ali
Nihat Tarlan.
Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi
Iqbal, Muhammad.1956d.“Peyam-i Mesrik”. Pp.
138. Translated in Turkish by: Ali
Nihat Tarlan.
Ankara: Türk Tarih Kurumu Basımevi
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1983. “The Rod of the Moses”.
Translated by: Shah, Syed Akbar Ali. Lahore: Iqbal Academy.
Iqbal, Muhammad. 1958. “Esrar-i Hodi.” Pp.33-35. Translated in Turkish by:
Ali Nihat Tarlan. Istanbul: YENİLİK
BASIMEVİ
Iqbal,
Muhammad, 2005. “Esrar ve Rumuz” Prepared for publishing:
Ali Nihat Tarlan. Istanbul: Sufi Kitap Yayinlari.
Malik, Hafeez, 2005. “Iqbal Poet-Philosopher
of Pakistan”. Pp.91. Lahore: Iqbal Academy
[1] “In these lectures, says Iqbal l, organized under
the request of the Muslim Society
in Madras and
which are kept in Madras, Hajdarabad dhe Aligarh, I have sought to answer, yet only partially to this request under no
delay, by seeking to renew the Islamic religious philosophy, and by having in
mind the Islamic philosophical traditions as well as the most undated
developments in the various fields of the humankind”.
Iqbal, Muhammad. 2006. ”Ripërtëritja e
mendimit fetar ne islam”. Pp. 10. translated by.
Nexhat S. Ibrahimi, Skopje:
Logos-A
[2] Ikbal, Muhammad, 2006e. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit fetar ne islam”. pp. 193. translated by. Nexhat S. Ibrahimi.
2006e. Skopje: Logos-A “And those who strive for Us – We will surely guide them to Our ways.
And indeed, Allah is with the doers of good.” Surah: Al-Ankabut 29:69
[3] “We
have certainly created man in the best of stature; Then We return him to the
lowest of the low.” Surah: At-Tin
95:4-5
[4] “Indeed,
we offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, and they
declined to bear it and feared it; but man [undertook to] bear it. Indeed, he
was unjust and ignorant.” Al-Ahzab
33:72
[5] “Do
you not see that Allah has made subject to you whatever is in the heavens and
whatever is in the earth and amply bestowed upon you His favors, [both]
apparent and unapparent? But of the people is he who disputes about Allah
without knowledge or guidance or an enlightening Book [from Him].” Surah: Luqman 31:20
[6] Ikbal, Muhammad. 2006f. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit fetar
ne islam”. pp. 27. translated by. Nexhat S. Ibrahimi.
Skopje: Logos-A. “Indeed, Allah will not change the
condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” Surah: Ar-Ra’d.
[7] “Man’s destiny is such
that it will take part in higher aims of the universe which surrounds him and
shall give shape to his egoistic destiny and of the universe, at times by
accommodating to the universe’s forces, and at times dedicating the entire
energy to it in order for it to be in use by this energy, according to his
personal aim. Whereas in this process of progressive alternation, Allah becomes
the transmitter of man in his duty, under the condition that man becomes the
initiator.” Ikbal,
Muhammad. 2006g “Ripërtëritja e mendimit
fetar ne islam”. pp. 27 translated by. Nexhat S.
Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A“
[8] “Indubitably the Qur’an
has for centric aim in the process of the reasonable viewpoint of nature, is to
awaken in man his conscience, in order
for nature to be perceived as a symbol. It is crucial to highlight the Qur’an’s
general empirical standpoint, which among its devotees develops the sense of
respect towards the testimonials and decisively makes them the establishers of
the modern science. It has been of great
importance to awaken the empirical soul within one era, which has left behind
the physical substance, accounting it for unimportant for man in his seek for
God.” Ikbal, Muhammad. 2006h. “Ripërtëritja e mendimit fetar ne islam”. pp. 29 translated by. Nexhat S. Ibrahimi. Skopje: Logos-A
[9] “Man always motions
further him in order to accept new enlightening, which arise from the Unending
Truth, which ‘which always emerge in greater praise’! Thus, the one who accepts
Sacred light is not solely only a passive accepter. Each singe deed of the free
self / ego, creates a new surrounding and thus brings into shape more
opportunities for creative development.” Ikball, Muhammad,
1989b. “Javidnamah”. Pp. 159.
Translated in Turkish by: Annemarie Schimel. Ankara: Kültür Bakanlığı
[11] “Indeed,
your Lord is Allah , who created the heavens and earth in six days and then
established Himself above the Throne. He covers the night with the day,
chasing it rapidly; and [He created] the sun, the moon, and the
stars, subjected by His command. Unquestionably, His is the creation and the
command; blessed is Allah , Lord of the worlds.” Surah: Al-A’raf, 7:54
[12] “Say,
“Each works according to his manner, but your Lord is most knowing of who
is best guided in way.”
Surah: Al-Isra, 17:84
[13] Muhammad Iqbal wrote this
poetry as an answer to the commission of the Red Semi-circle-moon of the Republic of Turkey,
which in the year 1935 had visited Lahore and together with Iqbal had gone to
pray the prayer of namaz in one mosque of the town. The Imam of the mosque had
spoken little more than usual, and at the end of the prayer the leader of the
delegate had asked Iqbal for the reason of the prolonging of the namaz prayer
and Iqbal had answered with this poem.
See: Iqbal, Muhammad. 1983. “The Rod of the Moses”. Translated by: Shah,
Syed Akbar Ali. Lahore: Iqbal Academy.
Man is not an eradicable being which can be easily casted into the
terrestrial existence, on the contrary he is a transformer; one who has
captivated the undefined state and has embroidered it with
rationalization. As a result man has
made the world coherent. Thereof ne can conclude that with the ending of man’s
existence the stages of humankind’s overall existence also cease to exist. Man
ought to be present in the establishing and representing elements of the
universe in order to interpret it in existence. If one would delineate in the
theosophical Islamic language, one would have said that man is a being with
himself and in him has crystallized the unification of the world’s thought and
shape. Mawlana in an unparalleled manner, in his poetry, has conveyed the
longing of man for his origin and his celestial belonging. He has elaborated
the idea of man without detaching him from his physiognomy. He speaks of art,
science and philosophy which have not abandoned their correspondence with the
principles of nature, respectively logos. Even the characterized substances in his
poetry are addressed to those who use their sensory. This text seeks to convey
and gives effort to elaborate and analyze the spiritual anthropology of the
Islamic metaphysics, with clear focus on Mawlana Jelal al-Din Rumi’s work,
Masnawi.
n order for one
to represent himself as a stable coherent unit, in other words being part of
human’s functional network, it is necessary to focus and seek the essential and
ontological dimension. This can be attained by focusing on a primer source in
order to enable the creation of values both as an individualist and the collective
as a whole. Resembling man as a biological being results in portraying him as
an undefined substance since he thus loses the will for comprehending the
beyond-substance, which he had apperceived and experienced. Hence this mundane
perception of man’s life minimizes him to a terrestrial existence of an insect,
which would blindly urge into all possible holes in order to experience the
hours of its brief life.
Man is not an
eradicable being which can be easily casted into the terrestrial existence, on
the contrary he is a transformer; one who has captivated the undefined state and
has embroidered it with rationalization.
As a result man has made the world coherent. Thereof ne can conclude
that with the ending of man’s existence the stages of humankind’s overall
existence also cease to exist. Man ought to be present in the establishing and
representing elements of the universe in order to interpret it in existence. If
one would delineate in the theosophical Islamic language, one would have said
that man is a being with himself and in him has crystallized the unification of
the world’s thought and shape [5].
Man and his
long-term mundane and latitude history, namely the vertical descend of God in
the existential relief, is a portraying of what exists beyond itself. With his
presence, man voices the silenced existence of the universe, but simultaneously
voices God’s existence as well. Therefore the creation of man has as aim the
acquaintance and devotion towards the Creating Almighty and the Education of
universe within the framework of the benevolence of the abundance given in
possession.[1]
The
acknowledged Muslim ceramist Imam Maturidi would say that the universe is
consisted of elements which oppose and distinguish from one another. Man, who
has been claimed as microcosm, unites the spheres which ought to be puzzled
onto as one and distinguishes among those particles which ought to be set astray
his being. Man, perceived as elmam according to Maturidi, is defined as the
being which brings forth a coherent world aside the oppositions and the
differences. Hence Maturidi has clustered in one place the immense elements of
man’s equivalence by various acknowledged scholars. Man is the only being
capable of thinking and delineating his thoughts through language. Consequently,
man has the competence to restrain and hinder himself and this is one element
makes one human.
In the history
of Islamic mentality the above estimation begins to generate value since the
eventuation of man from that moment when the sacred wisdom grew visible within
Adam’s personality. It was when he was brought forth the angels and with God’s
ordering he then denominated, or rather he termed, in other words he brought sense
to the presented names. As a result, one can say that since man is aware of the
expressions “concepts”, he is given the occasion to burden certain matters and rather
profound himself in acquiring their reality as halife (vicegerent) of God on
Earth.
Thereof Islam
and the Qur’an synchronously endorse man’s royal character with the sound roots
which harvest from God’s Might, simultaneously this reinforces the
recapitulation that man is made the centric reason for acquiring and attaining assured
knowledge of concepts and incorporating matter into existence. The Qur’an
elaborates this by its language:
“And [mention, O Muhammad],
when your Lord said to the angels, “Indeed, I will make upon the earth a
successive authority.” They said, “Will You place upon it one who
causes corruption therein and sheds blood, while we declare Your praise and
sanctify You?” Allah said, “Indeed, I know that which you do not
know.
And He taught Adam the names –
all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, “Inform Me of the
names of these, if you are truthful
They said, “Exalted are
You; we have no knowledge except what You have taught us. Indeed, it is You who
is the Knowing, the Wise.
He said, “O Adam, inform
them of their names.” And when he had informed them of their names, He
said, “Did I not tell you that I know the unseen [aspects] of the heavens
and the earth? And I know what you reveal and what you have concealed.” (Bekare, 2:30-33)
In the above
citing God and creation are appointed on a collinear. As result, knowledge and
wisdom (Ilm and hikmah) are the mere paths which man can endorse in order to
ambience himself in center of existence and only through them man can acquire the ability of comprehending the
meaning of prostrating before the Creating Might. This occurrence directly
derives from Allah’s Name and the representation of the Creating Might open
doors of assured knowledge and wisdom therefore man is constantly reminded that
the source of knowledge and wisdom is in the sacred attribute. Decisively the
answer to what is the purpose of creation is devotion towards God. The
acceptance of the Eternal Reality, sensibility towards His existence,
attachment to Him…
From one stand
point such conscience and acceptance enables the self to be close to God, and
on the other hand it permits to recognize the relative dimension of man’s being.
On this dimension the being experiences God far more close than his
individualistic existence. Man feels how the Absolute Oneness directly shares a
stay in his existence. This is the propinquity without any distance, yet with a
clear distinction between the creature and the Creator. Else like expressed by
the Qur’anic language: “And We
have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him, and We are
closer to him than [his] jugular vein.” (Kaf, 50:16)
The Almighty Allah, through this verse, determines the
mundane reality and its acquaintance with the Absolute Being. Reality as a
discussed matter is closely corresponds to the matter of knowing the Being and
vise versa, since acknowledging the being automatically incorporates the issue
of the being’s reality. As Ibn al-Arabi [7] also argues, the reality of the being
cannot be framed without motioning further the point upon which the reality of
the Being enlightens the entire reasoning and each relative being, unless the
conduction of thinking is not attained through threading each portion with the
Being.[2]
Ibn al-Arabi on
his work Fusus al-hikam elaborates on the logos (kelime) of Adam, which
simultaneously represents the humankind gender, as Abdullah Bosnevi [4] would
also support with his comment of this work:” In the representative logos of Adam’s pearl there are two crucial
messages: the pearl of the sacred wisdom in Adam’s logos aspired in Adam’s
heart as the place the sacred wisdom is inscribed, since the ideal Man in his
spiritual platform is the Seal, whereas his heart is the pearl of this seal. Ibn
al-Arabi indicates to the logos in order to recall the heart as the place for
inscribing that wisdom. The second message is rather concentrated in the fact
that Adam, in other words man, represents the object upon which the sacred pearl
of wisdom is inscribed. As a result, Adam in the spiritual dimension is on the
position of the pearl, whereas the universe in the spiritual dimension of the
Seal, thus the universe is sealed with the essence of the humankind. Adam to
the world is alike the pearl to the seal”.
According to what has been presently delineated, man
is the only being which, within one context, is the scope of the given reality;
he is capable of seeking the continuum of this reality. Albeit, in order for
one reality to be accepted and for its existence to be permitted as it really
is, one ought to focus on what that truly is, and not to perceive only the
portion which one personally wishes to see. Ibn al-Arabi and the overall
Qur’anic concepts on reality and its acquaintance on behalf of man, seek to
emphasize on the unity of the being and the reality, and rather not to emphasize
on separation and the differences in acquaintance. Reality and the being, according to Ibn al-Arabi,
motion along, they are indissoluble, there is no reality if there is no being.
The constitutive Islamic tradition of Tasawwuf
considers man to be the only representative object and resemblance of the primary
Intelligence and the eternal intelligibleness. While the other Islamic
disciplines are inscribed on the pages of the universe, in other words the
macrocosmic and the written perennial tradition either as in the sacred veil or
the constitutive religious messages of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), the Islamic
Tasawwuf is rather focused on man and his somatic and metaphysical built as an
accepter and deliverer of the veiled calling and the universe. Man in the perennial tradition of Tasawwuf is
the microcosm and the decoding of the unknown. Man is the success on the path
hither The Creator and the mere genuine Existence.
One of the most acknowledged poets of the Sufi Osman
period, Niyazi Misri has well delineated on the meaning of the existential
genuine dimension and its approach through the only interpreter of words and
stories: man. This is how he professes:
“I was seeking a cure for my
trouble;
Mytrouble became my cure.
I was seeking a proof of my origin;
My origin became my proof.
I was looking to the right and the left
So that I could see the face of the Beloved.
I was searching outside,
But the Soul was within that very soul [6].”
How I thought I was
apart, my lover another and I another”
I learned that all
which is seen and heard by myself, is the Lover and no other.
Thy path arises from
thy blood, in blood is thy home
An animal is one who
does not understand that place of arriving and its leave.
Listen to Niyazi’s words,
the substance cannot shield the face of Hakk
There is no clearer
substance than of Reality, while for the blind it remains a secret.
The genuine acquaintance of man’s metaphysics reality
from within the individual, threads him to his roots and through them hither God,
scilicet it unites man to the eternal and everlasting reality. This particular
emitting energy for the aspiration and love of God which motions through the individual
metaphysics of man is highly prominent and encompassing, and thereof motioning hither
God who stands beyond time and the created universe can only be obtained
through this dimension. This existential emotional experience, effervesce of conscience
and braiding of the intellect represented in the eternity and the essence of
existence through man pervades both time and space. Videlicet, all things on
this world are brought to a shape and have attained meaning around man.
If man truly seeks to be the assigner of his self and
conscience, he ought to kindle his soul which in the somatic state is
endangered to resulting in glaciating. Therefore man ought to be led from
reasoning towards love, from the physical substance towards content, from the
enclosed science towards the metaphysical poetry. As a result, man is able to
establish the harmony of the encompassed realities of both the physical and
spiritual spheres.
In the Prologue
of Masnawi, Mawlana Jelal al-Din Rumi speaks of the origin of man and in the
dialogue of nay he conveys man’s sorrow of his soul longing to be back to his
homeland: Mawlana speaks as following:
”From jungle-bed since me
they tore,
Men’s, women’s, eyes have
wept right sore
My breast I tear and rend
in twain,
To give, through sighs,
vent to my pain
Who’s from his home snatched far
away,
Longs to return some future day.
I sob and sigh in each retreat,
Be’t joy or grief for which men meet.
They fancy they can read my heart;
Grief’s secrets I to none impart
My throes and moans form but one chain,
Men’s eyes and ears catch not their train.
Though soul and body be as one,
Sight of his soul hath no man won[98].“
Mawlana in an unparalleled manner, in his poetry, has conveyed the
longing of man for his origin and his celestial belonging. He has elaborated
the idea of man without detaching him from his physiognomy. He speaks of art,
science and philosophy which have not abandoned their correspondence with the
principles of nature, respectively logos. Even the characterized substances in
his poetry are addressed to those who use their sensory. The figurative
language in Mawlana’s work is interpreted as diverse and as an existential
mimic. The image of the ideal man is portrayed as scenery, festivity of colors
and shapes; as if they continuously alter and thereof seem as accidentally
incorporated yet without the background platform. A great number of characters
as well as geographical relief dimensions in Mawlana’s work have lost their
individual competence of encompassing or the ability for peruse authenticity. [3] Heidegger considers this position to be a specific status of the artist
or of the genuine pragmatism. This encompassment, as Heidegger would suggest, is
certainly lost in the contemporary modern civilization. Albert Camya shall come
to the same conclusion. He would elaborate claiming that there is no other path
but cutting off the roots which only connect man to the terrestrial life and
nature, namely the physical substance. It is not a coincidence that the most
acknowledged books nowadays, instead of being preoccupied with the shades of
the heart and the genuinely of love, are rather engrossed in the lawsuits, accusations
and charging procedures and mechanisms. In lieu of exposing one to the
metaphysical light before the eyes of the world, they instead furnish sorrow
and desolation to man’s heart.
The above lines of Mawlana Jelal al-Din Rumi cited from Masnawi have
been greatly commented by various scholars both in the west and the east.
Behold how the above lines, speaking of the parallelism of the being and of
truthfulness, have been inferred or how they utter the genuine anthropology of the
sacred revelation and acquaintance with the physical and the dimension of
turning towards Him.
Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi, eventuates the Masnawi with the word
“Listen”. In first notice one can argue
that this is not how the classical Islamic literary works have their openings.
Since all the literary books in the Islamic literature begin in the name of
God. Some of the centrally important Anatolian works, such as Garibname by
Ashik Pasha, Felekname by Gylshehri and Mevludi by Suleyman Celebi begin in the
name of God. Garibname would proceed as follows:
Shall we foremost remember the name
of Allah.
Felekname is characterized by two verses:
Let us begin our words with
Bismillah
Let us say a prayer with Allah.
Whereas Suleyman Celebi would precede his Mevludin with the verse:
Allah we remember Thy name daima.
Consequently, the opening of Masnawi requires a careful and devotional
observation. It might be that the poet may have began his first verse with
“Listen” due to self preference and freedom of speech, as it has aspired him
from within. Conceivably, Mawlana might have deferred that on each work which
expressed love towards God, there exists sacredness of Bismillah.
As a result many acknowledged scholars of Masnawi regarding the
eventuation of his work with the word “bishnev” (listen), instead of bismillah,
have sought other utterances. They have concluded that the Masnawi begins with
the letter B, and this is a
replacement for bismillah. Since the letter B is one of the sacred Islamic letters. Hazrat Ali would infer with
the outmost accuracy, claiming that everything found in the Qur’an is in the
Fatiha, what is to be found in the Fatiha is found in the Bismillah, what is
found in the Bismillah is within the letter B. In addition to this, Hazrat Ali would comment that the wisdoms
of the letter B are found in the mark behind the letter itself. I am the mark
behind the letter B. By the above elaborated sayings Hazrat Ali
has adorned the sacredness of the letter B with hither profound meanings.
According to this viewpoint Mawlana has forenamed Bismillah before
bishnev (listen). The beginning of Masnawi with the word bishnev has other
utterances as well. Anew, according to
Masnawi’s scholars, God in the Revelation has proclaimed being able to hear
/ listen beholding of more value than sight; in fact the Qur’an speaks of the
virtue of listening. On the other hand none of the messengers of God have been
deaf and this also bolsters the argument that listening is of more importance
than sight. The eventuation of Mawlana’s Masnawi by “listen” reflects on his
sensitivity on grasping his own words.
The second most important word in the first verse is the word “nay”. Nay
is both the writing pen and a sacred tool. Furthermore, nay is the symbol of the
eminent ones (evliya). The Evliya, in reality, have been met with God. Yet
before their ultimate meeting they have undergone myriad longings as result of
the distance and far more sufferings for being parted from Him. The evliya as
well as the nay experience great mourning in scaled voice for being separated,
and by this they reprimand the neglected ones. Precisely to this nay has grown
to be a familiar plaintive melody of the dhikr rituals in the Mevledi (Mawlawi)
Tariqah and has served as the instrument for the proclamation of the sacred
love.
To be entangled in this earthly life and breathed onto a body means to
be in a preventive state; unable to meet with God. For those who behold the
veiled calling to becoming one with God, and who have perceived the everlasting
highness of this state, such a prevention becomes the reason for longing and
profound sorrow.
Therefore when nay claims that ever since the day you absconded me from
the reeds, many women and men have grieved from my sorrow, confirms that
initially he was a reed. This is a confession on our unification with God in
the Sacred world, and this characterizes the state of being a pearl in the
Creator’s arc who says:” I was a hidden arc and sought to be acknowledged”, in
other words, being one substance with Him.
Beings are revealed into existence with their own initiative for those eyes
which will perceive and the hearts which shall love the beauty of God. Before
the physical phase in the being there was no “you, I”. There was only Him.
Everything was consisted of Him. Even the ones, who nowadays long for Him, like
the nay, were found in Him. To each soul asked whether: “ Aren’t I thy God?” an answer was received with beli– yes You are. This
expression was the first step to present the soul as fire, air, water and
plants animals and the beginning of the adventures of humankind. Once the
“Elestit” occurred, souls went walking separated ways as man and women; they walked
the surface on Earth. From one hand they became both eyes and hearts able to
perceive and love the beauty of God, and on the other hand they grow to
experience the sorrow for being apart from God and astray from Him.
The nay would comment by saying that you who alike the nay are
imprisoned in thy bodies! You who are afar from the versed reed and the united
essence! I seek a heart which shall hear my words. A heart found in a breast asunder
from the burning of being apart, in order for me to confess my longing for God.
These are the words of the nay descended
from God’s province onto this mundane world, which in the body of man experienced
sorrow, and thus has transmitted to others the outmost longing and anguish.
The longer man shall be astray and away from his origin and his calling land,
the longer he shall experience an ache for return and the protracted longing
and endearment for meeting with Him.
Once man has accomplished the semi circled journey of the descend of the
sacred substance and once the stages of fire, air, ground, plants and animals
have been completed, then only man can
begin its semi circle directed hither
God, and in the first step towards this integration man experiences essence.
Henceforth man becomes the reflection of the sacred matter.
Once he progresses onto this stage and in order to motion hither the
origin there are two paths to pursue: One dying without being renewed. By having
led such a lifestyle man does not attain anything. In this mundane life he did
not know who he was, thus in the hereafter he shall also be befuddled.
Whereas if man meets an eminent figure on this earthly world, one who
shall direct his spirituality under guidance, he then is able to comprehend towards
where and for whom is his longing within him. Initially he finds God within
himself and afterwards he recognizes Him in the outer world. Experiencing God
in one’s inner is acknowledged as “teyeli”
(reflection). The one who has experienced the sacred reflection perceives the
universe through the ken of God and becomes the owner of the veiled secret with
which he sees God in each place. This state is a renewal of the assured knowledge
with God. Yet is it not the ultimate meeting with God. Even at the point where
man pervades in the quintessential stage, he shall be in endeared longing for
his origin.
Nay, or the ideal man (al-insan al-kamil), Pir or even the Murshid (the
mystical guide) speak of reed’s secret. He is kind to all the people, both the
good and the ill mannered ones and certainly behaves in good demeanor towards
each of them. Since man in each circumstance is being introduced to the path
towards the Ultimate Truth, precisely to this, people in their knowledgably and
emotional frames converge towards these leaders and seek to experience their
state.
I have disclosed the secrets of reality to people from various
backgrounds, yet they approached me on the basis of their own subjective
opinions. They did not seek the path leading to the acquaintance of my inner
aims and secrets. Since for one to be able to grasp the path of the eminent,
one ought to abstruse himself from doubt. Briefly said, the sacred truth is not
revealed if doubted. One is only able to penetrate to the sacred truth through obedient
awareness (yakin), leaving aside all choices for prejudice and doubt.
Only in the vicinity of this path can one recognize the light within the
spiritual arcs and the meanings appraised in the words of evliya.
Nay would say that I was once in a reed. My roots were in water and
soil. There I undulated as being spoiled and was a follower of the passing wind.
Yet the day when I was cut from the reed had arrived. They dried my body and
stabbed me with the flames of love. How did they open wounds in my body! How I was delivered onto the hands of a man of
a glorious breath. His familiar loving breadth motioned from within me. This breath
harvested and extinguished everything within me, but the love. I was put forth a
position face to face with the lover. I began to mourn, and longing I
experienced. The longing and sorrow arising from within simultaneously revealed
my veiled secret, preferentially they sang of the bliss and the actuality I
apperceived within.
In summary, my secrets have been preserved in the form of sounds. Yet
those of you who have beclouded eyes and whose ears do not hear, do not poses
the light to see and thus have not been penetrated onto the state of grasping
the reality of which I speak.
Man has two states: soul and body. The body represents the physical
dimension, respectively the visible state of man. What can be identified is
dense and physical substance.
Yet anew man is in possession of two souls, however they differ. One is
the soul able to maintain the body alive, categorized as the bodily soul. The
other one is the apostafat soul,
which is reflected only within humans and is a sacred substance. This soul is
not temporary as the other. This is the celestial soul. A synthesis of light
and strength impenetrable to every eye, this soul is. This substance can be
characterized as the Sacred breath reflected in man. The soul which Junus Emre
would identify as there is one self found within me.
The soul is present in each organ, in each portion of the human body and
is prudent and equally mesmerizing in beauty. The sacred soul is devoted to the
bodily soul with great love for its grasping beauty and prudency.
Intermittently, the sacred beauty of the soul emerges on the surface of the
body.
To this reason, the Gnostics (arif) recognize the ones who portray the
sacred beauty in their bodies and behavior.
When Hazrati Mawlana [9] says that the body from the soul and the sol
from the body are not hidden, yet not everyone is granted permission to
perceive it, he means to say that in order for one reach this reality, in other
words perceive the sacred soul like the nay, one ought to detach himself from
the terrestrial ground and water in order for his breast to divorce from the
growing love hither The Greatest.[4]
Man is the most conferred matter in the Islamic Tasawwuf. Mawlana speaks
of his love towards the genuine Existence regarding man and longing in many
other poems apart from Masnawi such as the Rubaiyyat.
“This drunkenness of mine
Is of no crimson wine;
My wine doth not pass
Except in passion’s glass.
O friend, was it thy will
With me this wine to spill?
The wine that moves my mirth
Was never seen on earth [56]”
This glass pour thee in my mouth,
do not give it in my hand
For I being drunk have my mouth
abstained.
If I am to go in the land of …
A confrontation / dispute / fracas
would the nothingness face
The nothingness overwhelmed claims:
“In both worlds
a storm has conquered.
“Thefire of Thy passion
In my soul glowed,
the waters of Thy sweetness
In my heart flowed.
The waters proved a
mirage,
The flames were snow;
Perchance I then was dreaming,
And waking now[84]”
I spoke to the outsiders all the
time
But the exchange without thee had
no point
When the sun sets, man seeks light
And for the slightest light he
kindles a lantern.
“Wouldst thou have
revealed to thee
All the being of the Friend?
Go, into the pith descend;
From the rind superior flee.
Veiled His essence
is, and dim,
Fold on fold enwrapped around;
In His being He is drowned,
And the world is drowned in Him [42].”
“I am an adherent in manner of believing according to Ibrahim “Mawlana
Jelal al-Din Rumi claims,” But when
it sets, he said, “I like not those that disappear (En’am, 6:76). His personality and centric philosophy were driven
towards eternity. To him, life on this earth, the benevolences of this life,
and everything evoked in it were temporary, whereas his soul and surrounding
were eternal and of authentic equivalence. Precisely to this man ought not to
lead a mundane life pursuing the caprice desires, according to Mawlana, but
rather he ought to focus on the soul and the eternal values.
Mawlana in his practical teaching and literary work manifests the path
towards eternal love and leaves the doors of his altruist heart opened to all
humankind: If you love thyself, you should also love thy Creator, since you shall
love thy Creator, you shall love his creating beings as well. Thus
hitherto this is what the final sacred encompassment wished onto the universe. If
our assured knowledge and faith direct us towards this reality, then we shall
be conscience of this and with dignity shall deity God.
[1] This scope which takes
place in the existential area on behalf of man is a subject and a matter for
discussion on the work of the great scholar and the well acknowledged Sufi in
the Islamic history of thought Muhjuddin Ibn al-Arabi. Regarding the pearls of wisdom and their comments
see: Abdullah Efendija Bosnjak, Tumacenje
Dragulja Poslanicke Mudrosti, translated from Arabic into Bosnian by: Prof.
Dr. Resid Hafizovic,Sarajevo 2008.
[2] Compare: Lasic,
Hrvoje, Covjek u Svjetlu
Transcedencije& Nadnaravno odredjenje ljudskog Bica, Zagreb, 1994. pp.
45-74.
[3] The ability for authentic
observation is one of the most complex issues of contemporary man. In complete
accuracy Prof. Ismail Bardhi in regards to this issue in his work “Theological
observation of the Absolute” claims: “Whatever acquaintance based on objective
aim must take under consider religion as a unique matter of knowing, which
itself automatically sets the boundaries of science, philosophy and art6. Knowing based on reasoning merely in the
domains of the realm, the visible, directs the individual towards that path,
the path of religion, and the entire human life ought to be transpassed in
order to attain to that path. Yet at times man tends to remain on
that overall life, and what is more tragic, in the wrong path, on the one with
an ending point.”
[4] In relation to the
comments made regarding the Masnawi for more see: Rifai, Kenan,
Serhli Mesnevi-i Serif, Istanbul 2000.
