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| gencnurCom | From the Risale-i Nur Collection Reflections on the Divine Bediüzzaman SAID NURSI Table
of Contents Creation
Rejects Associating Partners With God 1 Manifestations
of Divine Names—....... 19 Everything
is an Ode of Divine Names 27 The
Colorful Page of the Book of the Universe 39 Each
Science Speaks of God in Its Own Tongue 47 He:
APoint of Divine Unity..................... 55 How
Beings Worship God...................... 61 Subhan
Allah [Glory be to God].............. 73 Al-Hamdu
Lillah [All Praise be to God] 77 AUahuAkbar
[God is the Greatest]........ 83 The
Ranks in Manifesting Allahu akbar [God
is the Greatest]............................... 87 Refuting
False Notions About the Origin of Existence... Ill
In
the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. Had
there been gods in either [Earth or the heavens]
besides God, both surely would be in disorder. ( There
is no god but God, He alone; having no partner; His is
the Kingdom and to Him belongs all praise; He alone gives
life and makes to die; He is living and dies not; in His
hand is all good. He is powerful over everything, and
unto Him is the homecoming. One
night during Ramadan I mentioned that each of those
eleven statements of affirmation of Unity contained an
aspect of Divine Unity and a particular good tiding
(for believers). I explained only the meaning of without
partner in the form of an allegorical conversation.
Now, at the request of brothers at the mosque and friends
attending me, I have committed this conversation to
writing.
Imagine
someone who, on behalf of unbelievers (who attribute
everything to nature or material causes, or are
polytheists or atheists), presumes to be Lord or exercise
Lordship over some part of creation. That is, this being
alleges that he or she owns or rules, controls or
disposes, of that part. Coming upon an atom, he or she
informs it in the language or according to the
presumptions of materialistic science or natural
philosophy that he or she is its true master and owner.
The atom answers in the language of truth and revealed
wisdom:
I
perform many tasks, and work within, alongside, or upon
an infinite variety of created, ever-evolving entities.
Do you have the knowledge and power to direct me in
these tasks? I work and move in a measured relationship
with innumerable other atoms of a like constitution.1
Can you command and employ all of these? If you own,
arrange, or manage the infinite complexity of entities
of, for example, red blood corpuscles, of whose atoms I
am but one, and do so with perfect knowledge and
discipline, then presume to be my master, and only then
presume me to be attributable to any other than God. But
you cannot do so, be silent then! You do not own me and
cannot interfere in my operation, for all of my movements
and activities are so purposeful and arranged that only
One with infinite Wisdom and all-encompassing Knowledge
can run them. If any other had a hand in it, there would
be confusion. How can anyone who, like you, who cannot
even give yourself life, whose seeing and feeling are
blind to truth, who sees yourself as subject to chance
and accidents of nature, even presume to interfere in
my functioning? The
pretender responds as all materialists do: "Be your
own master then! Why do you claim to be in the service of
some other power?" The atom replies: If
I had a mind with knowledge as all-encompassing as the
sun's light and with power as intense as its heat; if I
had powers of feeling as all-embracing as the seven
colors in its light; if I had faces and eyes to turn to
every being and every place with which my being and my
place are connected; and if I had authority in and over
all these connections—then perhaps, I might have
claimed to be my own master. Yet even then, had I done
so, I only would have been as foolish as yourself. Now
get away from me, for you have no business with me! The
pretender, giving up on the atom, looks for a particular
and harmonious grouping of atoms in the cell of a living
body. Coming upon a red blood corpuscle (and thinking
he or she can grasp its nature and control its workings),
he or she speaks to it in the name of material causality
and the language of natural philosophy: "I possess
you. I am your master, and you work for me." The red
blood corpuscle answers in the language of truth and
Divine Wisdom: But
I am not alone. If you also possess all my fellows in the
blood army with whom I share the same formation
pointing to our Maker, as well as the same duties and
functions, and if you have the full and detailed
knowledge, the awesome and subtle power, as well as the
perfect wisdom to direct all the body cells through which
we move and in which we operate, there might be some
sense to your pretensions. But as you depend on blind and
deaf nature or natural forces, you can have no influence
over us, let alone mastery over me. Our order is as
perfect as it is intricate. Only One Who sees, hears, and
knows all things forward and backward in time and in
all directions of space; only He Who governs the being
and operation of all that is; only He could be our true
sovereign and master. So go your way, for I have better
and more important things to do than answer your
nonsensical pretensions! Unable
to deceive the red blood corpuscle, the pretender moves
on and comes across a larger entity they call
"cell." Addressing it in the familiar language
of natural philosophy, he or she says: "True, the
atom and the red blood corpuscle did not listen to me. I
hope you can understand me. As I can see, you are
composed of several smaller elements, like things
arranged in a room. I can have a hand in this
arrangement, and arrange and rearrange it. You can be
my creature, and I can have power over you." The
body cell answers with wisdom and in the language of
truth: Although
I am small, I perform vital tasks. I have the subtlest
and yet strongest connections with all my neighboring
cells, and with the whole organism of which I am a part.
I perform vital functions with, for example, arteries and
veins, sensory and motor nerves, electrical forces of
attraction and repulsion, and the principles or elements
determining my size, shape, and reproduction. If you have
the knowledge and power to form an entire organism, to
order and regulate the arteries and veins and nerves, and
to put to work all the diverse forces and principles
managing our form and function; if you can direct, with
irresistible power and all-comprehending wisdom, the
innumerable body cells similar to me in artistry and
quality, then show your ability. Then perhaps, you
might claim to master or make me. But
as you cannot, leave me—there are even now red blood
cells carrying nourishment for me, white blood cells
confronting diseases that might threaten me—I am
busy, so do not waste my time any further with your
vanity. No one as empty as you are of
true
understanding, of true hearing and seeing, could ever
meddle in our being. Our order is so precise, delicate,
and perfect that only One with absolute Wisdom,
Knowledge, and Power could control us.2 If it
were otherwise, our cohesion and order would not exist or
would quickly fall into chaos. Disappointed,
the pretender seeks out a still larger entity and,
confronting a human body, reiterates the argument in the
language of unenlightened nature and erring philosophy:
"I can say that you are mine, that I have a share in
owning and managing you." The human body answers in
the language of wisdom and truth and in the
"natural" tongue of its order:
Do
you have the knowledge and power to control and direct
all human bodies similar to me that manifest the same
signs of supreme power and creation? Do you have dominion
over the treasuries of light, air, and water, as well as
of all plants and animals, which are the ground and store
of my provision and sustenance? Do you have the
boundless wisdom and infinite power by which such
invaluable, immaterial entities as the mind, intellect,
and soul are so securely disposed in a narrow, bodily
envelope, such as me, and made to "worship" by
performing extremely important tasks? If you have such
power, knowledge, and wisdom, demonstrate it—only then
claim to own and manage me. But
as you cannot, be silent! My Maker is All-Pow-erful,
All-Knowing, All-Seeing, and All-Hearing—this is
testified to by the perfection with which I am
organized and by the sign of Oneness in my face. A
being as ignorant and incompetent as you could never have
the least hand in His art. The
pretender, nonplussed that all points in the . human body
reject his or her claim to have a say, moves on and
surveys humanity as a species, thinking: They live in
such diverse and complex societies—I see that the
devil finds a way to interfere in their affairs of will
and their social relations. Is there a way for me to
enter into the creation, constitution, and operation of
their bodies? If I can find such a point, I will be able
to control the body and its cells that turned me down. With
this intention, he or she addresses the species in the
familiar language of blind nature and erring
philosophy: "You appear very diverse and at great
odds. I am your master and owner or, at the very least, I
have a share in your making." To this, humanity
responds in the language of truth and reality, and in
the tongue of wisdom and order: Do
you have the power, knowledge, and wisdom to create the
rich texture covering Earth's face, woven with perfect
wisdom from varied fabrics, thousands of mineral and
plant and animal species, including humanity? Can you,
with a like wisdom, renew this texture and do so
continuously? Do you possess the all-extensive power
and all-comprehending science that manages Earth, of
which we are a fruit, and the universe, of which we are
the seed? Can you send us, from across the universe and
in measured amounts, the provisions we need for our
sustenance? Can you generate all individuals of my
kind, past and future, whose faces bear the same sign of
supreme majesty as mine? If so, you might then, perhaps,
claim mastery over me. But
as you cannot, be silent! Do not dare to say that you
have a hand in me just from remarking the diversity in
my kind, for that diversity is part of our ordering's
perfection. Diversity and multiplicity are copies made
with a perfect order from the Book of Destiny
[containing the origins of beings in a perfect order]
by Power. Our diversity of appearance is a sort of
reproducing of our forms [dictated by Destiny]—as the
perfect diversity and order of plants and animals
(which are inferior to us, under our vigilance, and
which we study) also testifies. Is
it at all plausible that the One Who weaves the diverse
fabrics spread over and through this world's texture
with great skill is other than its Maker, that the
Creator of a fruit is other than the Creator of the
tree from which it grows, and that the Creator of a seed
is other than the Creator of the fruit it yields? You
are blind, for you do not see the miracles of His
Omnipotence in my face and the wonders of His Creation in
my constitution. If you had seen, you would have
understood that nothing escapes my Maker's observation or
tasks Him capriciously. He makes the stars as easily as
He makes an atom. He creates springtime as smoothly as He
creates a flower. He has placed the vast universe's index
in my constitution with perfect correspondence. Could
anyone who is, as you are, corporeal, incompetent,
blind, and deaf have had a hand in such a Being's
artistry? So be silent, and be gone! The
pretender then turns to the widespread texture
overlaying Earth's face like an embellished cloak and
speaks to it in the name of causality and in the language
of natural philosophy: "I can manage you. I own
you, or at least have a share in you." The texture
answers in the name of truth and in the language of
wisdom3:
If
you have the skill and power to create and weave all
textures that have been hung on the line of past time,
laid, unlaid, and relaid seamlessly throughout all time,
and that will be hung on the line of future time,
according to programs and patterns pre-designed with
the greatest precision and in accordance with Destiny's
framework, each elegant, purposeful, and uniquely
adorned; if you possess immaterial hands that can reach
out from Earth's creation to its destruction, or rather,
from the eternity of no-beginning to the eternity that
is to come; if you have the power and science to create
all individuals within this texture, restoring and
renewing them in exact order and wisdom; if you can
create and possess Earth itself which is, as it were, a
model for me and puts me on like a veil—only if you
can, only then claim mastery over me—if not, leave! You
have no business here! In
my rich and harmonious diversity are demonstrated clear
signs of Oneness, and the clear stamp of His Uniqueness.
Only He Who controls the whole cosmos, Who can do
innumerable tasks simultaneously, Who can see all beings
and their actions, whether inner or outer, at the same
instant, Who is present and vigilant everywhere while
being unbounded by time, space, or dimension, and who has
infinite wisdom, science, and power—only such a Being
could ever own or have dominion over me.
The
'pretender turns to Earth, hoping to deceive it,4
and repeats the same argument in the name of causality
and in the language of mere naturalism: "I see that
you roam about idly in the universe. Certainly you can
have no master, and so I claim you." Upon hearing
this, Earth roars like thunder in the name of truth:
Do
not be foolish! How can I roam about without a master?
Have you ever seen any disorder, lack of wisdom or
skill, in the making of my dress or in any little point
or fabric of it, that you dare to say that I roam about
idly? Do you presume to own my orbit, which would take
some 25,000 years to traverse at a human being's pace but
which I complete in my annual round with perfect
discipline and precision?3 Do you claim to own
my ten fellow planets, which carry on their appointed
tasks along their individual orbits as I do? Do you claim
to have the unlimited science and power to create and
control the sun, which gathers and focuses our orbits,
orbits to which we are bound through the gravitation of
mercy, and to make me and other planets revolve around
it? Since
you cannot plausibly make such a claim, leave me, for I
have work to do. Our awesome circling, purposeful
submission, and magnificent discipline show that our
Maker is a Being to Whom all entities submit, and
submit perfectly—as a dutiful soldier submits to his
superior's orders. He is the Wise and Absolute Ruler of
Majesty, Who holds the sun and planets in their proper
order as easily as He adorns each tree with its proper
fruit. Having
failed to find a place in governing Earth, the pretender
turns to the sun in the expectation that he or she can
open a path there. Since the sun is so great an entity,
he or she hopes to use it to gain control of Earth.
Addressing the sun in the name of the way of associating
partners with God Almighty and in the language of satanic
philosophy, as sun-worshippers do, the pretender says:
"You are a monarch. You are your own master. You do
whatever you will." The
sun answers in the name of truth and reality and in the
language of Divine Wisdom: No,
indeed! How can you utter such an untruth! I am but an
obedient officer, no more than a candle in my Master's
guest-house. I could not own so much as a fly, even its
wing, for even such a small thing has such immaterial
faculties and fine, exquisite works of art as its eye and
ear. I do not have their like in any of my workshops. I
cannot make even the smallest of them. Though
rebuked by the sun, the pretender argues in the manner of
Pharaohs, arrogant creatures who promote themselves as
deities: "I claim you as mine in the name of
causality, since you are not your own master but merely a
servant." The sun replies in the name of truth and
in the language of obedience to its Creator: "I can
belong only to that Being Who has created me and all
resplendent stars like me, Who, having fixed them in
their stations with perfect wisdom, rotates them in
glory and adorns the wide heavens thereby." The
pretender then comes among the stars and thinks:
"Perhaps I can find some clients here."
Talking to them in the name of causality and its
partners and in the language of corrupt philosophy as
star-worshippers do, he says: "You must be under
the control of many different rulers, seeing that you are
situated at such vast distances from each other."
Upon this, one star, speaking for all others, answers
him: How
senseless and mindless you must be, not to see or
understand the signs of the Creator's Oneness and the
stamp of His Uniqueness in our nature. Do you not know
how absolute is our organization, how secure the laws
we obey? You think we have no order. In fact, we are
the handiwork and servants of a-Unique and Indivisible
Being Who holds the sky (our sea), the cosmos (our tree),
and the vastness of space (our wide, maneuvering field)
in His control. Like the many-colored lamps indicating
human festivities, we are luminous witnesses of His
perfect Dominion, brilliant evidence blazing across
boundless space, of His Kingdom and Lordship. Each
of us is a shining servant displaying His Majesty, near
and far, in this world and the next, and in the many
worlds beyond, within the infinitude of His Creation.
Each of us is a miracle from the Power of the One, a
perfectly ordered fruit on the Tree of Creation, a bright
manifestation of God's Unity, a home and mount and mosque
for His angels, a lamp and a sun of higher worlds, an
ornament, a flower, a palace of the celestial sphere, a
luminescent fish in the heavenly ocean, and each a
beautiful eye set in the face of the heavens.6
Throughout our vast community there exists profound
silence amidst tranquility, movement in wisdom, light
ornament with majestic grandeur, the most varied beauty
in perfect harmony, and the highest art in absolute
balance.
Since
you accuse us of disorder and empty distances, of
having no duty and no master, while we proclaim in
innumerable tongues the Unity of our Majestic Maker and
His being the Eternally-Besought-of- All,
together with His Attributes of perfection, grace, and
beauty—since you accuse us, whose purity is
unstained, whose obedience and servanthood are
perfect, you merit a slap in the face in payment for
your absurd effrontery!
The
star strikes the pretender's face in a gesture like the
stoning of the devil, and hurls him from the stars'
domain to the bottom of Hell. It also hurls natural
philosophy into the storms of uncertainty,7 and
chance into the well of non-existence. It hurls all who
arrogate to themselves some portion in the One God's
Dominion into the utter darkness of improbability and
impossibility, and every argument against true religion
into the lowest of the low. Then the stars together
recite the holy decree: Had there been gods in either
(Earth or the heavens) besides God, both would be in
disorder (
"There
is no place for any partner with God, neither in the
interstices of a fly's wing nor amid the heavens' stars
and spaces." Glory
be to You! We have no knowledge save what You have taught
us. You are All-Knowing, All-Wise. O
God, bestow peace and blessings on our master Muhammad,
the lamp of Your Unity amidst the multiplicity of Your
creatures, and the herald of Your Oneness in the
display hall of Your universe, and on his Family and
Companions.
Manifestations
of Divine Names* In
the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate God,
there is no god but He; His are the Most Beautiful
Names. (20:8) A
sovereign has different titles by which he is known and
mentioned in his government's various departments,
different designations and attributes among his subjects'
classes, and different names and signs for his rale's
levels. For example, he is the supreme judge (justice
department), chief aa^ministrator (civil service),
commander-in-chief (army), and supreme teacher
(education department). If you know the rest of his names
and titles, you will understand that he may have as many
names and titles related to his government's departments
and levels of his rule.
It
is as if, due to his public person and private system
of communication, he is present in every department.
Through his laws, regulations, and representatives, he
superintends all officials, watches all subjects, and
is seen by them. Behind the veil at every level, he
administers, executes his orders, and is watchful through
his decree, knowledge, and power. Similarly,
the Lord of the Worlds, the Sovereign of eternity, has
reputations and designations at the levels of His
Lordship's manifestations. All of these differ but
correspond to each other. His Names and marks differ in
the spheres of His Divinity, but their manifestations
are concentric with each other. In His majestic
execution of His rule, His representations and
appellations differ but resemble each other. In the
operations of His Power, His titles differ but are
linked with each other. In the manifestations of His
Attributes, He has sacred ways of disclosing Himself
that differ but point to each other. In His modes of
acting, His wise operations are many but perfect each
other. In His colorful artistry and varied works of
art, His magnificent aspects of Lordship differ but
correspond to each other. In
every world and division of beings, each of His Most
Beautiful Names is manifested individually. In that world
or sphere in which a particular Name is dominant, all
other Names are subordinate. In every level and division
of beings, regardless of size, God has a particular
display of Himself, a particular manifestation of
Lordship, and a particular manifestation of a Name.
Although the Name in question has a universal
manifestation, It concentrates on something particular in
such a way that you think It is exclusive to that thing.8 In
addition, although the All-Majestic Creator is nearer to
everything than itself, He is separated from it through
70,000 veils of light. For example, consider how many
veils are between the Name of Creator's particular degree
of creativity manifested in you and Its universal and
greatest manifestation as the Creator of the Universe.
This suggests that if you can go beyond the whole
universe, you may reach, through the door of being
created, to the highest limit of the manifestations of
the Name of Creator and draw close to the Sphere of the
Attribute of Creativity.
Since
the veils have windows opening onto each other, the Names
appear to be concentric with each other, the designations
correspond to each other, the representations are like
each other, the operations perfect each other, and
Lordship's various dispositions cooperate with each
other, then it is surely necessary for one who recognizes
Almighty God by one of His Names, titles, or aspects of
His Lordship not to deny His other titles, actions, and
aspects of Lordship. If we do not move from the
manifestation of one Name to the other Names, we are in
loss. For
example, if we do not see the All-Knowing where we see
the works of the All-Powerful and the Creator, we may
fall into heedlessness and misguidance by regarding
nature as self-originated. Thus we always should recite
"He" and "He is God," and listen and
hear from everything: "He is God, the One." In
unison with all creation, we should proclaim: "There
is no god but He." The manifest Qur'an, through the
declaration: "God, there is no god but He. His are
the Most Beautiful Names," points to these truths. If
you want to observe those elevated truths closer, ask a
stormy sea or the quaking Earth: "What are you
saying?" You will hear them repeat: "O Majestic
One. O Majestic One, O Honorable One of Might. O
All-Compelling One." Ask small creatures and
then-young who are maintained everywhere with care and
compassion: "What are you saying?" They will
hymn: "O Gracious One, O Gracious One, O Most
Compassionate
One."9 Then listen to how the heavens
sing: "O Majestic One of Grace." Listen to
Earth, which says: "O Gracious One of Majesty."
Pay attention to animals and hear them invoke: "O
Most Merciful One, O Provider." When you ask the
spring, you will hear it reciting such Names as: "O
Most Caring One, O Most Merciful One, O Most
Compassionate One, O Most Munificent One, O Gracious One,
O Affectionate One, O Fashioner, O IUuminating One, O
Favoring One, O Adorner." Ask
those who are truly human. See how they recite and
manifest all of God's Most Beautiful Names, and how they
are inscribed on their forehead. If you look carefully,
you may discern them one by one. It is as if the universe
were a huge orchestra singing the Divine Names. With the
songs sung in the least notes and tones mixed with the
highest, the universe produces a magnificent harmony. All
of the Names are manifested on humanity. However there
are many Names, and their manifestation in different
ways and degrees has caused variety in the universe, in
the angels' worshipping, and among human beings. It also
has caused It also has caused differences among the laws
of Prophets, the ways of saints, and the paths of
purified scholars. For example, the All-Powerful was more
predominant in Jesus than the other Names manifested in
him. The All-Loving One prevails in those who follow
the path of love, and the All-Wise in those who follow
the path of contemplation and reflection.
Consider
the following: Someone is simultaneously a teacher,
officer, lawyer, and civil service inspector. In each
office, that person has relations, duties, salaries,
responsibilities, promotions, enemies, and rivals. He
meets with the sovereign under many different titles, and
having recourse to him through these titles, seeks his
help in many ways. Humanity, in exactly the same way and
upon whom numerous Divine Names are manifested, has many
duties and is the target of many kinds of enmity. Thus
we seek refuge in God by invoking many of His Names. In
fact, Prophet Muhammad, the pride of humanity and the
most perfect human being, prayed to God through 1,001 of
His Names in his al-Jaw-shan al-Kabir supplication, and
sought refuge in Him from Hellfire. This is why God
commands us in Swat al-Nas to seek refuge in Him through
three of His Titles, and via In the Name of God, the
Merciful, the Compassionate, He teaches us to seek help
from Him through three of His Names.
Everything
is an Ode of Divine Names* In
the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. There
is nothing that does not glorify Him with praise. (17:44) This
consists of two topics.
First
topic: According to the meaning of There is nothing that
does not glorify Him with praise, everything has many
aspects, like windows, opened on Almighty God. All truths
contained in creation are based on the Divine Names. Each
thing owes its existence and essential nature to one or
several of God's Names. The variety of art in things and
the sciences also are based on a Divine Name. For
example, philosophy, in its true sense, depends on the
Name All-Wise, medicine on the Name All-Healing, and
geometry and engineering are based on the Names
All-De-teratining, All-Proportioning, and All-Giving of
Exact Measure. All
human arts and levels of human perfections have their
sources in Divine Names. Some exacting saintly scholars
have concluded: "A thing's reality consists in
Divine Names, and its nature is the inscription of
those realities. The manifestations of at least twenty
Divine Names can be seen in one living creature." We
will discuss this subtle and comprehensive truth
through a comparison and an analysis. When
extremely skillful sculptors want to draw a beautiful
flower and sculpt a beautiful woman, they first determine
the general lines and then, basing themselves on exact
measures and planmng, pursue their goals by using the
necessary engineering or design knowledge. With the
compasses of knowledge and purpose (or wisdom), they draw
the outer lines of the eyes, ears, and the nose, and the
leaves and seed-producing parts in a proportionate
manner, thereby displaying their art and accord with the
parts' actual functions. This shows that these
sculptors are great artists who do everything for a
purpose and put everything in its proper place. Each
sculptor attaches great importance to the work's beauty
and adornment, which greatly contributes to his or her
art. As these sculptors are benevolent and want to see
everybody happy, their works give the impression of
pleasure and happiness, which, in turn, suggest that the
sculptors are kind and gracious. These attributes
originate from their love of beings. As the sculptors
want other beings to recognize and love them so that
they might ask for help, a desire arising from the
sculptors' compassion and desire to benefit others, they
fill the woman's arms with everything beneficial and
attach jewels to the flower. The sculptors' personal
perfections and virtues cause compassion and tenderness
for others to arise in them, and they unite beauty and
love in themselves. Since their sublime feelings are so
pure that they become happy and exhilarated only when
they see others happy, they want to be known by others.
Thus they make pictures and statues that reflect all
their virtues and laudable qualities. Similarly,
the All-Wise Maker has created Paradise and the world,
the heavens and Earth, animals, jinn and humanity, and
angels and spirit beings by manifesting His Names. He
determines each according to certain measures and gives
each a certain form. This displays His Names the
All-Fashioner, All-Determining, and Giver of Measure.
Fashioning, detenruning, and giving of measure are
based on Knowledge and Wisdom, and therefore point to the
Divine Names the All-Knowing and All-Wise. By
manifesting His Names the All-Munificent and
All-Gracious, He equips His creatures with all
necessary well-proportioned parts and gives each part
many complex functions. By manifesting the same Names, He
furnishes and adorns Earth with minerals, plants, and
animals, and also provides Paradise with gardens,
palaces, and houses, each of which has a particular
beauty and functions. The
All-Wise Creator equips His creatures with the results of
showing His Names the All-Munificent and All-Gracious, as
if each embodied munificence, grace, and adornment. What
leads His Munificence and Graciousness to such a display
is His love of creatures and His will to be known by
animate beings and loved by conscious ones. Thus the
Names the All-Mvjnificent and All-Gracious exhibit the
Names the All-Loving and Recognized or Known One. He
adorns all creatures with delicious fruits and the lovely
benefits therefrom, bestowing on them all kinds of
bounties. This points to the Names the Giver of
Bounties and All-Compassionate, and shows their
manifestations from behind apparent veils. His will to
show His Mercy and Affection leads the One Who is
independent of creation to show His Munificence and
Compassion, which causes creatures to recite the Names
the All-Merciful and All-Affectionate. His Essential
Beauty and Perfection stimulate Him to manifest His
Mercy and Affection, to show the Names the All-Beautiful
with the All-Loving and All-Compassionate, which are
contained in It. Absolute beauty is loved for itself, and
the One with absolute beauty loves Himself. Therefore it
is both beauty and love. This is also true with
perfection, which is loved for itself and not because
of anything else. Therefore it is both lover and
beloved. Since
a beauty of infinite perfection and a perfection of
infinite beauty are loved to an infinite degree, they
wish to manifest themselves in mirrors according to the
mirror's capacity. As the Essential Beauty and Perfection
of the Majestic Maker, the All-Wise One of Beauty, the
All-Poweiful One of Perfection, will to show mercy and
affection, the Names the All-Merciful and All-Caring must
manifest themselves. Since the will to show mercy and
affection is associated with compassion and
bountifulness, it urges the Names the All-Compassionate
and Giver of Bounties to be manifested. Compassion and
bountifulness require and cause the Names the
All-Loving and the Recognized to manifest themselves. Being
loved and recognized incite manifestations of grace and
munificence and cause creatures to demonstrate the Names
the All-Gracious One and the Munificent One. Grace and
munificence incite the Names the All-Decorating and
All-Illuminating and show their acts via the beauty and
illumination seen in creatures. Decoration and
illumination require manifestations of the Names the
Maker and the Benevolent and demonstrate them via all
creatures' beautiful countenances. Making and
benevolence are based on knowledge and wisdom and show
the Names the All-Knowing and All-Wise via all creatures'
harmonious and purposeful organization. Demanding acts
of organizing, fashioning and forming, as well as of
knowledge and wisdom, demonstrate the Names the
Fashioner and Giver of Measure via all creatures'
general forms. In
short, the Majestic Maker has made all creatures in
such a fashion that most of them, particularly animate
ones, display most of the Divine Names. It is as if He
clothed each creature in twenty different garments, one
over the other, and inscribed several of His Names on
each one. For example, as pointed out in the above
comparison, there are many layers of loveliness in the
apparent creation of a beautiful flower and a beautiful
woman. Compare vast and universal bodies with these two
particular examples. First
layer. Their general forms and appearances, which
recite: "O Fashioner, O Giver of Measure, O
Determiner, O Organizer." Second
layer. Their form and appearance, including all bodily
members and parts, that show many Names like the
All-Knowing and All-Wise. Third
layer. The forms of beauty and adornment particular to
each bodily member and part, on which are inscribed many
Names like the Maker and the One Who Creates Subtly and
Perfectly. Fourth
layer. The detail of ornament, beauty, and elegance given
to creatures as if in the embodied form of grace and
munificence. They recite: "O Gracious One, O
Munificent One," and many other Names. Fifth
layer. The delicious fruits attached to that flower and
lovely children, as well as the laudable virtues given to
that woman as gifts, show Names like the All-Loving,
All-Compassionate, and Giver of Bounties. Sixth
layer. This layer of bountifulness and benevolence
recites: "O All-Merciful, O All-Caring," and
several other Names. Seventh
layer. The bounties given to them and the results
attached to their existence demonstrate such gleams of
beauty and grace that they deserve pure gratitude and
love kneaded with true eagerness and tenderness. This
layer manifests such Names as the All-Beautiful One of
Perfection and the Perfect One of Beauty. If
a flower and a beautiful woman display so many Names
through their outward forms, you may compare how many
Names of universal manifestation all flowers, animate
beings, and vast and universal bodies demonstrate. You
may understand how many sacred, erm^tening Names of God
(e.g., the ' All-Living, Self-Subsistent, and Giver of
Life) a person manifests through his or her spirit,
heart, reason, life, and all other senses and faculties. Paradise,
Earth's face, and sprmgtime are all flowers. Heaven is
a flower; the stars are its gilded embroideries. The
sun is a flower; the seven colors in its light are its
dyes. The cosmos is a beautiful, macro-human being;
humanity is a normo-universe. Spirit beings, angels,
jinn, and humanity have been fashioned, organized, and
created as if they were beautiful individuals. As they
collectively and individually manifest the All-Majestic
Being's Names, each one is a different mirror to His
Beauty, Perfection, Mercy, and Love. Each is also a
different and true witness, as well as a different sign,
of His Infinite Beauty, Perfection, Mercy, and Love. As
all boundless perfections are possible only in the
sphere of Divine Unity and Oneness or Uniqueness, any
perfections imagined outside of this sphere are false. The
realities of things are based on the Divine Names, or
rather they are manifestations of those Names. All things
mention their Maker in numerous tongues. Also, know one
of the meanings of "There is nothing that does not
glorify Him with praise." Say: "Glory be to Him
Who is veiled through His manifestation's
intensity." Understand the reason why He is the
All-Mighty, All-Wise; He is All-Forgiving,
All-Compassionate; He is the All-Knowing, the
All-Powerful," and similar phrases repeated at the
end of Qur'anic verses. If
you cannot see clearly the Names displayed on a flower,
ponder on Paradise, look at spring attentively, or
examine Earth's face. You can read clearly the Names
inscribed in those huge flowers of Mercy and see the
Names' distinct manifestations. *
* * The
following points to a flower from the eternal garden of
this verse (17:44): Every
tree in blossom is an ode rhythmic and well-composed,
singing the high and manifest praises of the Creator. Or
something with multiple eyes opened to watch, and
cause others to watch the wonders of
the Maker's art displayed. Or has clothed its members in
green for their festival so that its Lord may observe His
illustrious works and gifts upon it, while itself
displays in the display hall—Earth—
His Mercy's embellishments before humanity's
eyes, thereby proclaiming the wisdom in its creation, in
that significant treasuries are stored in it by the Grace
and Generosity of the Sustainer of its fruits: Glory be
to Him, how generous His
favoring, how clear the arguments for Him, how manifest
are His proofs! The
imagination sees angels clothed in bodies from the
(branches of) these trees resembling thousands of
flutes, and from these flutes are heard songs of praises
of the All-Living One. The leaves are each a tongue
reciting: "O Living One," and chanting all
together: "There is no god but He."
Say:
"O God, Master of the Kingdom, You give kingdom to
whomever You will and withdraw kingdom from whomever You
will." They
incessantly utter: "O Truth," announce: "O
All-Living One," and together proclaim:
"God."
The
Colorful Page of the Book of the Universe* Do
they not look at the heaven above them, how We have built
it and adorned it? (50:6) Look
at the sky's face, where you see a silence in restful
serenity, a purposive motion, radiance in majesty, a
smile in adornment, all combined in creation's
orderliness and art's symmetry. Its candle's brilliance,
its lamp's dazzle, and its stars' glitter manifest
infinite Sovereignty for those with insight and sound
reasoning.
The
following expounds the lines above in interpreting the
verse (50:6): The verse draws attention to the sky's
adorned and beautiful face. People who observe it with
care must notice the silence in the extraordinary
calmness and apparent rest observed there, and conclude
that the sky has assumed that form through an Absolutely
Powerful One's order and subjugation. If the heavenly
bodies roamed at random, with their enormous size and
speed of motion, the resulting noise would deafen
everybody. They also would cause such tumult and
confusion that the universe would collapse. If 20
buffaloes move together in the same area, you can guess
what great uproar and confusion they would cause.
However, according to astronomers, some moving stars are
1,000 times larger than Earth and move at a speed 70
times faster than a cannonball. Given this, from the
silence of the heavenly bodies in calmness and rest, you
may understand the extent of the Power of subjugation
belonging to the Majestic Maker and the Ail-Powerful
One of Perfection, and the degree of the stars'
submission and obedience to Him. A
purposive motion: The verse orders us to see the
purposive motion in the sky. That extremely strange and
mighty motion takes place in absolute dependence on an
extraordinarily subtle and comprehensive purpose. The
immensity and order of a factory whose wheels and
machinery turn and toil in wisdom, in perfect order and
for wise purposes, show to what extent its engineer is
learned and skillful. In the same way, with the sun in
the center and mighty planets revolving around it in a
perfect, subtle order for many wise purposes, the solar
system shows the extent of the Ail-Powerful One's Power
and Wisdom. Radiance
in majesty and a smile in adornment: The sky contains a
radiance of such majesty and a smile of such adornment
that it shows the splendid sovereignty and beautiful art
that the Majestic Maker controls. In the same way as
innumerable illuminations used on special occasions to
show the sovereign's majesty and his country's advanced
civilization, the vast heavens, with their majestic
ghttering stars, show to attentive eyes the perfection of
the Majestic Maker's sovereignty and the beauty of His
art. All
combined in the orderliness of creation and the symmetry
of art: The verse says: See
the order and balance in the sky and know how powerful
and wise the Creator is. When you see someone turning
numerous objects one round the other in a perfect order
and with a special, delicate balance for many wise
purposes, you may guess how wise, powerful, and skillful
that one is. Likewise, together with their numberless
stars of awesome size and speed, the vast heavens in
their tremendous immensity have performed their duties
for billions of years according to an established measure
and with a certain, sensitive balance. They have never
transgressed their limits, and have never caused even the
slightest disorder. This shows to attentive eyes just how
sensitive and exact is the measure according to which
their Majestic Maker exercises His Lordship. Like
similar verses in Surat al-Naba ', among others, the
verse also indicates that the Majestic Creator has
subjugated the sun, moon, and other heavenly bodies. Its
candle's brilliance, its lamp's dazzle, and its stars
'glitter manifest the Infinite Sovereignty for those with
insight and sound reasoning: Alrriighty God has hung on
the world's adorned roof a sun-like lamp that gives heat
and light. He uses this as a "pot" of light to
write the Eternally-Besought-of-All's "letters"
on the lines of day and night on the pages of the
seasons. Like
the phosphorescent hour-hands of a clock in a tall tower,
He has made the moon in heaven's dome the hour-hand of
the largest clock of time. He causes it to move through
its mansions according to a perfect measure and fine
calculations, as if He leaves a different crescent to
each night and then folds all of them in itself (making
it invisible). Furthermore, He has gilded the sky's
beautiful face with stars that glitter and smile in that
dome. All this points to His Lordship's infihite
Sovereignty and His Divinity's magnificence and invites
thinking people to believe in His Existence and Unity. Look
at the colorful page of the Book of the
Universe, and see how the golden pen of the Power has
inscribed it! No point has been left dark for those who
can see with the eyes of their hearts. It is as if God
wrote His signs with light. See what an astounding
miracle of wisdom
the
universe is! See how tremendous a spectacle the space of the universe is! Listen to the stars and heed their beautiful sermon |