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Love in sufi thought

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  • Love in sufi thought

    Well, a love in religious thought

    Mevlana, who considered every kind of perfection in love only, write all his works on love. For, love i the basis and essence of life. The reason for the creation of the universe is love. Furthermore , God's saying, 'If you were not, I wouldn't hae created those skies" indicates that the sole purpose of creating the universe is God's love for the Prophet Muhammed. Since the origin of the creating is love. Love of God, which is the highest points of life, is the most precious thing. Starting from the point , Mevlana renounced this divine love in thousands of verses. It is possible to classify his thoughts on love under four hedings: comparison between intellect and love/ ascendancy and value of love which is for mortal beings; and finally, the pitiable situation of those who have not a share in love.

    In sufi thought, intellect and science are incompetent in comprehending metaphysical realities. They may lead a man to a certain point, but not to the target. However, if a man has wings of love , he becomes lofty in a way that he can never imagine. Just as was the case in the night journey (Miraj/ in wich the prophet Muhammed is related t have ascended from Jerusalem to Heaven, after having been conveyed to the former from Mecca upon the beast named buraq)... In that holy night , while the Prophet and Gabriel were ascending through the levels of sky , Gabriel stopped suddenly when they arrived in Sidrat al Munteha (the lote-tree in seventh Heaven, beyond which neither angel nor prophet passes , and which shades the water and Paradise) and said , ' I will burn up if I go a step further' . But the Prophet Muhammed passed the sidrah and came closer to God; now he was at a point of " aw adna" (The Qur'an , 53/9), which is the last point of being closer to God. Sidrat al Munteha is the last point where angels and prophets could go . In another words, it is the places where everything ends except the Divine Order (Amr-i Ilahi) . So , Sufis consider Gabriel as the symbol of human conception, science and intellect , and the Prophet Muhammed as the pattern of heart and love that transcends the restricted limits of science and intellect.

    He points this as follows:

    " When a man's understanding has been his teacher, after this the understanding becomes his pupil.

    The understanding says, like Gabriel, 'O Ahmad (Muhammed), if I take one (more) step , it will burn me; Leave me, henceforth advance (alone): this is my limit, O Sultan of soul ! " (Mesnevi , I / 1112-14)


    Hence, Mevlana considered love as a state of whih every sufi must have experience. He is of the opinion that the heart that is drowned in God , the Beloved One, with love is precious and preferable. (Mesnevi,I/1853). Man , like Gabriel, cannot reach God with his intellect , anstops on the half way. If we consider the distance between God and man as a sea , then intellect is a swimmer in that sea , and love is a ship. Swimming is a pleasant thing , but not enough for a voyage. The swimmer might get tired and be drowned at the end , but he who boards the ship reaches his goal.(Mesnevi IV/1423-27) .

    On the other hand , it is a very tiring work to rach God with the renunciation of the world (zuhd) and devoutness (taqva) only. Perhaps, one man is many way achieve this. Thus , this is stated in the following prophetic saying : "Abu Bar (the second caliph after the Prophet Muhammed ) was not considered as superior over the other people because of his fasting and voluntary contribution of his almsgiving only . On the contrary , he was honoured by his strong belief (iman) in his heart." As was stated in this prophetic saying , Abu Bakr is superior to others not only for this prayers, fasting and almsgiving are being put in the scale , it out weighs everything. Hence the essential thing is love. (Fihi Mafih, 325-326)

    As a matter of fact , the nature of this love cannot be explained by words, and squeezed between lines. Those who taste it can only appreciate its value:

    Someone asked, " What is love?". I answered , " you will know when you become (lost in) me!" (Mecalis-i Saba, 82)

    Mevlana's saying "You will know when you become (lost in ) me!" states that the final stage of reaching God, that is , 'to know, find, become (God)' is only realized by love . Science and intellect may lead to the stage of knowing only. Again Mesnevi says :

    "Whatever I say in exposition and explanation of Love, when I come to Love (itself) I am ashamed of that (explanation).

    Whilst the pen was making haste in writing , it split upon itself as soon as it came to Love.

    In expounding it (Love), the intellect lay down (helplessly) like an ass in the mud; it was Love (alone) that uttered the explanation of love and loverhood.


    The proof of the sun is the sun (himself); if require the proof , do not avert your face from him."

    (Mesnevi, I/ 112-116)


    In the above lines , it is understood that love cannot be described by words, and it is stressed once again that intellect is helpless.


    Mevlana stated in Mesnevi that he whose garment was rent by a mighty love was purged of covetousness nd all defect: and love was the physician of all our is and the remedy of our pide and vainglory; an also the earthly body soared the skies through love. By so saying , he clearly indicates that man was cleared off pride, worldly desire , envy, grudge, and many other eil habits through Divine Love only. If those who knew the spiritual world were in the majority in a society, all worldly worries and defects would be removed . On the other hand , Mevlana advisd that just as a man learned a trade to earn a livelihood for the body , we should learn trade to ear the Hereafter, that is , God's forgiveness, again, the earnings of religion were love. (Mesnevi, II/2592-2603)


    As Yunus Emre -one of the most famous sufis in Anatolia- said , "The sect of love is a religion to me," Mevlana, too, said :


    ' Our Prophet 's way is Love,

    We are the sons of Love, our mother is Love"


    So Mevlana indicates that the essence of the four orthodox sects (namely , The Hanafism, Shafism, Hanbalism, Malikism) is love. What we understood from this is that those who follow the rituals of the religion only are the ones who are not aware of its essence , and busy with the husk. In fact , man must include love in his prayers , and worship God with great sincerity and intimacy.


    Mevlana calls the love of God the only real love:


    those loves which are for the sake of a colour (outward beauty) are not love: in the end they are a disgrace." Mesnevi , I/214)


    " Because the love of the dead is not enduring, because the dead one never comes (back) to us.

    (But) love of thliving is every moment fresher than a bud in the sprit and in the wine that increases ife.

    Choose the love of Him from whose love all the prophets gained power and glory.

    Do not say , "We have no admission to that King." Dealings wiyh the generous are not difficult." (Mesnevi,I/226-230)

    "The lover of the whoe are not those who love the part: he that longed for the part failed to attain unto the whole"(Mesnevi, I/2903). With the latter verse, Mevlana indicates that the lovers of God do not value anything but God , and that those direct their love to the worldly things are deprived of God's love. However , sometimes there might be expection of this . If a man is decisive, sincere and in his love for the mortal, then this metaphorical love might lead himto the true love.


    "If the lover of that (false) conception be sincere, that metaphor (unreal judgement) will lead him to the reality."

    (Mesnevi,I/2861)


    There is similar example of this in the Islamic literatures. Mejnun set out for his ove of Laila, but he finally reached the love of God.


    But if a man has no share of love, whether it be metaphorical or true, Mevlana reprimands him severely:


    "Since you do not fall in love, go and weave...

    You have a lot to do, and your body and face have hundreds of different colours.

    Since there is no wine of love in your skull.

    Go, and lick the dishes of rich people in the kitchen..."

    (Rubais,126)


    "When love has no care for him, he is left as a bird without wings. Alas for him then!" Mesnevi, I/31)


    Mevlana, who found out that the essence of creation and man's exaltation of his worldly body was in love alone, never considered a loveless life as a real life:


    "Luck becomes your sweetheart , if it becomes helpful.

    Love helps you in your daily routines ,

    Consider not the loveless life as life.

    For , it will be out of consideration."
    "Come, Come again !
    Whatever you are...
    Whether you are infidel,
    idolater or fireworshipper.
    Whether you have broken your vows
    of repentance a hundred times
    This is not the gate of despair,
    This is the gate of hope.
    Come, come again...

    Mevlana Jelaluddin RUMI (1207-1273)
    :cool:

  • #2
    Good stuff, you got any more poetry by Rumi? This'll have to hold me over until I can get around to buying a book about him. :)

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