Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Light Within Me

This book is corrected and edited by Al-Hassanain (p) Institue for Islamic Heritage and Thought

• Preface
• Appearance of Gnosis in Islam
• What do the Qur'an and Sunnah say about Gnosis?
• Notes
• Part 1: by Shaheed Murtada Mutahhari
• Introduction
• Theoretical Irfan
• Shari'ah, Tariqah and Haqiqah
• Note
• The Origins of Islamic ‘Irfan
• Notes
• A Brief History
• Notes
• 'Urafa' of the Second/Eighth Century
• 1. Al-Hasan al-Basri
• 2. Malik ibn Dinar
• 3. Ibrahim ibn Adham
• 4. Rabi'ah al-'Adawiyyah
• 5. Abu Hashim al-Sufi of Kufah
• 6. Shaqiq al-Balkhi
• 7. Ma'ruf al-Karkhi
• 8. Al-Fudayl ibn 'Iyad
• Notes
• 'Urafa' of the Third/Ninth Century
• 1. Abu Yazid al-Bistami (Bayazid)
• 2. Bishr ibn al-Harith al-Hafi
• 3. Sari al-Saqati
• 4. Harith al-Muhasibi
• 5. Junayd of Baghdad
• 6. Dhu al-Nun al-Misri
• 7. Sahl ibn 'Abd Allah al-Tustari
• 8. Husayn ibn Mansur al-Hallaj
• Notes
• 'Urafa' of the Fourth/Tenth Century
• 1. Abu Bakr al-Shibli
• 2. Abu 'Ali al-Rudbari
• 3. Abu Nasr al-Sarraj al-Tusi
• 4. Abu Fadl ibn al-Hasan al-Sarakhsi
• 5. Abu 'Abd Allah al-Rudbari
• 6. Abu Talib al-Makki
• 'Urafa' of the Fifth/Eleventh Century
• 1. Shaykh Abu al-Hasan al-Khurqani
• 2. Abu Sa'id ibn Abi al-Khayr
• 3. Abu 'Ali al-Daqqaq al-Nishaburi
• 4. Abu al-Hasan 'Ali ibn 'Uthman al-Hujwiri
• 5. Khwajah 'Abd Allah al-'Ansari
• 6. Imam Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazali
• 'Urafa' of the Sixth/Twelfth Century
• 1. 'Ayn al-Qudat al-Hamadani
• 2. Sanai Ghaznawi
• 3. Ahmad Jami
• 4. 'Abd al-Qadir al-Gilani
• 5. Shaykh Ruzbihan Baqli Shirazi
• 'Urafa' of the Seventh/Thirteenth Century
• 1. Shaykh Najm al-Din Kubra
• 2. Shaykh Farid al-Din al-'Attar
• 3. Shaykh Shihab al-Din al-Suhrawardi
• 4. Ibn al-Farid al-Misri
• 5. Muhyi al-Din ibn al-'Arabi
• 6. Sadr al-Din Qunawi
• 7. Mawlana Jalal al-Din Muhammad Balkhi Rumi
• 8. Fakhr al-Din al-'Iraqi al-Hamadani
• 'Urafa' of the Eighth/Fourteenth Century
• 1. 'Ala' al-Dawlah Simnani
• 2. 'Abd al-Razzaq Kashani
• 3. Khwajah Hafiz Shirazi
• 4. Shaykh Mahmud Shabistari
• 5. Sayyid Haydar Amuli
• 6. 'Abd al-Karim Jilani
• Notes
• 'Urafa' of the Ninth/Fifteenth Century
• 1. Shah Ni'mat Allah Wali
• 2. Sa'in al-Din 'Ali Tarakeh Isfahani
• 3. Muhammad ibn Mamzah al-Fanari al-Rumi
• 4. Shams al-Din Muhammad Lahiji Nurbakhshi
• 5. Nur al-Din 'Abd al-Rahman Jami
• Note
• The Mystic's Stations (Maqamat)
• Zahid, 'abid & 'arif
• The 'arif's Goal
• The First Station
• Exercise and Self-Discipline
• Some Terms of ‘Irfan
• 1. Waqt (Moment)
• 2 & 3. Hal (State) and Maqam (Position)
• 4 & 5. Qabd (Contraction) and Bast (Expansion)
• 6 & 7. Jam (Gatheredness) and Farq (Separation)
• 8 & 9. Ghaybah (Absence) and Hudur (Presence)
• 10,11,12 & 13. Dhawq, Shurb, Sukr and Riyy
• 14, 15 & 16. Mahw, Mahq, and Sahw
• 17. Khawatir (Thoughts)
• 18.,19. & 20. Qalb, Ruh and Sirr
• Note
• Part 2: by Allamah Husayn Tabatabai
• Part 2.1: Stages of Spiritual Journey by Allamah Muhammad Husayn Tabataba’i
• Sincerity of Devotion
• Notes
• Part 2.2: The Twelve Worlds
• Explanation
• Seeking Allah's Guidance
• Notes
• Part 2.3: Rules of Attaining Spiritual Perfection
• 1) Renunciation of customs, usages and social formalities
• 2) Determination
• 3) Moderation
• 4) Steadiness
• 5) Continuance
• 6) Meditation
• 7) Checking
• 8) Censuring
• 9) Hastening
• 10) Faith and Reliance
• 11) Observance of the Rules of Veneration
• 12) Intention
• 13) Silence
• 14) Abstaining from Food or at least Observing Frugality
• 15) Solitude
• 16) Vigil
• 17) Continued Cleanliness
• 18) Practicing modesty and humility to the utmost degree
• 19) Abstaining from Tasty Food
• 20) Secrecy
• 21) Preceptor and Spiritual Guide
• 22) Daily Verbal Recitation of Liturgies
• 23, 24 & 25) Remembrance, Recollection, Evil thoughts
• Eradication of Devilish Insinuations
• Notes
• Part 3: by Ayatullah Ruhullah Khumayni
• Part 3.1: Interpretation of Surah al-Hamd by Ayatullah Ruhullah Khumayni
• Allah's Names are the Symbols of His Person
• The Whole World is a Name of Allah
• All Existing Things are a Sign of Allah
• Anything Which is Finite is a Possibly Existing Thing
• What is the Grand Name?
• All Existing Things Glorify Allah
• There are Many Things that we do not Know
• All Movements are the Names of Allah
• Everything in the World is A Manifestation of His Glory
• The Word Allah is a Comprehensive Manifestation of Divine Glory
• No Praise is of Anyone Else's Praise
• To Believe Something Intellectually is One Thing and to be Convinced of it is Another
• Man's Deeds Will Assume a Concrete Shape
• Self-Conceit is the Cause of All Troubles
• All Praises Belong to Allah
• Philosophical Reasoning is not much Effective
• The Difference between the Bismillah of each Surah
• Every Possibly Existing Thing Depends on Allah for its Existence as well as Continuation
• All Existing Things Are A Manifestation of Allah's Glory
• Emigration
• Seventy Years Back
• Worst Enemy
• Egoism the Cause of All Quarrels
• Aim of the Prophets
• Major Jihad
• Devotion is the Criterion
• Our Worship is For Paradise
• Prophets Come to Reform Men
• An Appeal to the Youth
• Continue Your Effort Till You Gain Complete Victory Over Your Lower Self
• Note
• Part 3.2: Relationship between Allah and His Creation
• The Creator and the Created
• Meanings of Al-Hamd
• Divine Glory in Everything
• Prophets' Observations and Experiences
• Meaning of Glory
• Nature of the Qur'an
• Exegesis of the Qur'an
• The Holy Prophet's Embarrassment
• Tendency of Monopolization in Knowledge
• Formal Knowledge is a Hurdle in the Way of Remembering Allah
• Mental and Concrete
• Rising for Allah
• Love of the World is the Root Cause of all Troubles
• Effect of Prayer on Heart
• The Qur'an Without Traditions and Prayer
• Note
• Part 3.3: Allah and His Glory
• Glory is Not Separate From the Glorious
• His Being And His Glory Are the Real Truth
• The Real Truth Is Nothing But He
• Lack of Any Excellence Means Limitation
• Observation is a Step Further than All Arguments and Proofs
• People Depending On Arguments Are Blind
• Faith Means Cordial Perception
• The Truth is Higher than What We Say and Hear
• Heart Also Means Something Quite Different from What We Understand
• What We Feel Are Qualities and Forms
• The Holy Prophet is the Exalted Name of Allah
• Even Our Existence is A Revelation of the Glory of Allah
• All Existing Things Are the Result of Divine Glory
• The Belief Is Essential
• Belief Must Be Based On Reason
• To Deny What One Does Not Know Is Unbelief
• We Must Not Deny the Qur'an and Sunnah
• Total Denial is a Stumbling Block
• We Must Do Away With Negative Attitude
• Denial of Prophethood
• Supplications and Worship Are Means
• Justice is a Quality Appropriate to Allah
• A Dispute About Grapes Between An Iranian, A Turk And An Arab
• How To Reconcile Different Groups And Their Ways Of Expression?
• Cause and Effect
• Meaning of “with you”
• Why Do the Wars Occur?
• Words in Imam's Supplications
• Imams pray for complete withdrawal
• A Question Difficult To Conceive, But Easy to Believe
• Imam Ali is the Eye of Allah, He is the Light of Allah's Eye
• Every Thing Must Be Investigated
• Misunderstandings Must Be Removed
• Even the Ant Loves Itself
• It Is Bad Luck To Be Unaware of Some Important Questions
• It is Wrong To Persuade People To Give Up Supplications
• Kasrawi And Hafiz
• Appendix: The Invocation of Shabaniyah
• Arabic text