Explaining that the gnostic has a nutriment (consisting) of the Light of God, for (the Prophet said), “I pass the night with my Lord: He giveth me meat and drink”; and “Hunger is God's food whereby He revives the bodies of the siddíqs,” that is, “in hunger God's food reaches (them).”
For every
foal goes after
its dam, so that thereby
(the fact of) its being
a congener becomes apparent.
The human creature's
milk comes from
the breast (the upper half); the milk of the
ass comes from the under-half.
It is the Justice of the
Dispenser, it is an
act
of (just) dispensation: the wonder
is this,
that (in the
Divine dispensation) there is neither compulsion nor injustice.
Were there compulsion, how
would there be
repentance? Were there injustice, how would
there be protection?
1645. The day is ended: the lesson
will be to-morrow: how
should the day (of this life)
contain our mystery?
O you who
have put firm confidence in the
breath (vain words) and flattery of a scoundrel, You have raised up a
tent of bubbles: in the end (you wilt find that) that
tent has exceedingly
weak ropes.
Hypocrisy is like lightning, and in its gleam the travellers cannot
see the way.
This world and its people are good-for-nothing: both are unanimous in respect
of (their)
faithlessness.
1650. The son of the world (the
worldling) is faithless like
the
world: though he turn
the face towards you, that
face is (really) the nape
(back).
The people of that (other)
world, like that world,
on
account of (their) probity continue for ever in (observance of their)
covenant and promise.
When, in sooth, did two
prophets oppose each other?
When did they wrest (their) evidential
miracles (spiritual powers
and privileges) from one another?
How should the
fruit of that world
become stale? Intellectual joy does not turn
into sorrows. The fleshly soul is
unplighted (bound by no covenant);
for that reason it ought
to be killed:
it is base, and base is the spot to which its desires are directed.
1655. This assembly (the world) is well-adapted for fleshly souls: the
grave and shroud
are suitable to the
dead.
Although the fleshly soul is sagacious and acute, its qibla (objective) is this
world, (therefore)
regard it as dead.
(But when) the
water of God's
inspiration has reached
this dead (soul), the living
(soul)
comes into
view (rises)
from the tomb of a corpse.
Until inspiration
comes, do not you (meanwhile) be duped by that
rouge (vanity) of “May his life
be long!”
Seek the applause and
renown that does
not die away,
the splendour of the
sun that does not
sink.
1660. Those abstruse sciences and disputations are (like) the people of Pharaoh: Death is like the
water of the Nile.
Although their brilliance and pomp and show and enchantment drag the people along by the scruff of the neck,
Know that all (that) is (like)
the enchantments of the magicians; know that
Death is (like)
the rod
(of Moses) which
became a dragon.
It made one mouthful of all (their)
sorceries. There
was a world filled
with night: the
dawn devoured it.
The light is not made greater and more by that (act of) devouring;
nay, it is just the same as it
has (always) been
before.
1665. It is
increased in respect of the
effect (which it has produced), but not in respect
of its essence:
the essence has (suffers) no increase or diminution.
God was not increased by (His) bringing the world into existence:
that which He was not formerly
He has not become
now;
But the
effect (phenomenal being)
was
increased by (His) bringing
created things into
existence:
there is (a great) difference
between these
two increases.
The increase of the
effect is His manifestation, in order that His attributes and
action may be
made visible.
The increase of any (so-called)
essence is a proof that it (the essence) is originated and subject to causes.
No comments:
Post a Comment