The First Letter
Concerning the
initial stage of the attraction exerted by the Truth [jadhbat al-Haqq], and the final stage thereof. My dear friend! When the lightning bolts of direct perception [shuhud] come flashing forth from the cloud-bank of
the grace of:
Allah guides to His Light whomever He will. (24:35)
yahdi 'llahu li-nuri-hi man yasha'.
--and the fragrant scents of attainment waft on the wind that blows from the gracious favor of:
He singles out for His mercy whomever He will. (3:74)
yakhtassu bi-rahmati-hi man yasha'.
--the sweet-smelling plants of intimate friendship will blossom in the meadows of our hearts, and the nightingales of longing will sing in the gardens of our spirits, with the tremulous tones of:
Oh, how I grieve for Joseph! (12:84)
ya asafa 'ala Yusuf.
The fires of yearning will smolder
intensely in the stoves of our innermost beings, and the wings of the birds of our thoughts will shed their feathers, from flying too far in the vastness of sublime exaltation. The stallions of our minds will lose their way in
the deserts of intuitive knowledge, the foundations of our intellectual principles will quake from the shock of awe, and the ships of our firm intentions will lose their bearings in the depths of the oceans of:
They did not assign to Allah the attributes that are due to Him. (6:91)
So it sailed with them in the midst of mountain-like waves. (11:42)
wa ma qadaru 'llaha haqqa qadri-hi.
wa hiya tajri bi-him fi mawjin ka-'l-jibal.
--and at the moment when the waves collide in the ocean of the ardor of:
He loves them and they love Him. (5:54)
yuhibbu-hum wa yuhibbuna-hu.
--each and every one will exclaim, in the spiritual tongue that needs no ordinary words [lisan al-hal]:
My Lord, bring me to land in a blessed harbor, for You are the Best of harborers! (23:29)
Rabbi anzil-ni munzalan mubarakan wa Anta Khairu 'l-munzilin.
So then they will receive, as a foreordained gift, the gracious favor of:
As for those to whom the [reward] most fair has already gone forth from
Us.... (21:101)
inna 'lladhina sabaqat la-hum min-na 'l-husna....
--and it will bring them ashore on [Mount] Judi, a trustworthy landing site [maq'ad sidq]. It will introduce them to the sessions of the delirious ecstatics of the Day of:
"Am I not...?" (7:172)
a-lastu....
It will spread for them the table-mat of the bounty of:
To those who do good belongs the finest--and an extra reward! (10:26)
li'lladhina ahsanu 'l-husna
--and it will pass to them the cups of attainment, filled from the jugs of nearness, by the hands of the cupbearers of:
And their Lord will quench their thirst with a pure drink. (76:21)
wa saqa-hum Rabbu-hum sharaban tahura.
They will thus be honored with the everlasting estate and the endlessly enduring fortune of:
And when you see, there you will see a state of bliss and a great domain. (76:20)
wa idha ra'aita thamma ra'aita na'iman wa mulkan kabira.
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