Al Hallaj: One with Thee make me
_____________________________
Photo: Mawlana Sheikh Mohamed Osman Abduh al Burhani (RA)
_____________________________
One with Thee make me, O my One, through Oneness
Faithed in sincerity no path can reach.
I am the Truth, and Truth, for Truth, is Truth.
Robed in Its Essence, thus beyond separation.
Lo, they are manifest, the brightness
That from Thy dawning Presence scintillate,
Each gleam a brilliance like the lightning flash.
***
Is it I or Thou? These Twain! Two gods!
Far be it, far be it from me to affirm two!
Selfhood is Thine in my nothingness forever:
Mine all, over all, casts illusion twofold:
For where is Thine Essence, where from me, for me to see,
When mine hath no where, as already is plain?
And Thy Countenance, where with my two sights may I seek it,
In the seeing of my heart, or the seeing of mine eye?
Twixt Thee and me an 'I am' is, o'ercrowding me:
Take, by Thine own 'I am', mine from between us.
***
I saw my Lord with the eye of the heart.
I said: 'Who art thou?' He answered: 'Thou.'
Thus where no where hath, as from Thee,
Nor is there, as to Thee, a where.
Thou giv'st imagining no image
For it to imagine where Thou art.
He art who hath filled all where-
Beyond where too. Where art Thou then?
(Al Hallaj translated by Martin Lings)
Faithed in sincerity no path can reach.
I am the Truth, and Truth, for Truth, is Truth.
Robed in Its Essence, thus beyond separation.
Lo, they are manifest, the brightness
That from Thy dawning Presence scintillate,
Each gleam a brilliance like the lightning flash.
***
Is it I or Thou? These Twain! Two gods!
Far be it, far be it from me to affirm two!
Selfhood is Thine in my nothingness forever:
Mine all, over all, casts illusion twofold:
For where is Thine Essence, where from me, for me to see,
When mine hath no where, as already is plain?
And Thy Countenance, where with my two sights may I seek it,
In the seeing of my heart, or the seeing of mine eye?
Twixt Thee and me an 'I am' is, o'ercrowding me:
Take, by Thine own 'I am', mine from between us.
***
I saw my Lord with the eye of the heart.
I said: 'Who art thou?' He answered: 'Thou.'
Thus where no where hath, as from Thee,
Nor is there, as to Thee, a where.
Thou giv'st imagining no image
For it to imagine where Thou art.
He art who hath filled all where-
Beyond where too. Where art Thou then?
(Al Hallaj translated by Martin Lings)
_____________________________
Recommended Reading:
'The Sufi Orders in Islam'
By J. Spencer Trimingham (Author), John O. Voll (Introduction)
Purchase Book:
Amazon.com
Amazon.co.uk
Description:
Sufism, the name given to Islamic mysticism, has been the subject of many studies, but the orders through which the organizational aspect of the Sufi spirit was expressed has been neglected. The Sufi Orders in Islam is one of the earliest modern examinations of the historical development of Sufism and is considered a classic work in numerous sources of Islamic studies today. Here, author J. Spencer Trimingham offers a clear and detailed account of the formation and development of the Sufi schools and orders (tariqahs) from the second century of Islam until modern times.
Trimingham focuses on the practical disciplines behind the mystical aspects of Sufism which initially attracted a Western audience. He shows how Sufism developed and changed, traces its relationship to the unfolding and spread of mystical ideas, and describes in sharp detail its rituals and ceremonial practices. Finally, he assesses the influence of these Sufi orders upon Islamic society in general. John O. Voll has added a new introduction to this classic text and provides readers with an updated list of further reading.
'The Sufi Orders in Islam'
By J. Spencer Trimingham (Author), John O. Voll (Introduction)
Purchase Book:
Amazon.com
Amazon.co.uk
Description:
Sufism, the name given to Islamic mysticism, has been the subject of many studies, but the orders through which the organizational aspect of the Sufi spirit was expressed has been neglected. The Sufi Orders in Islam is one of the earliest modern examinations of the historical development of Sufism and is considered a classic work in numerous sources of Islamic studies today. Here, author J. Spencer Trimingham offers a clear and detailed account of the formation and development of the Sufi schools and orders (tariqahs) from the second century of Islam until modern times.
Trimingham focuses on the practical disciplines behind the mystical aspects of Sufism which initially attracted a Western audience. He shows how Sufism developed and changed, traces its relationship to the unfolding and spread of mystical ideas, and describes in sharp detail its rituals and ceremonial practices. Finally, he assesses the influence of these Sufi orders upon Islamic society in general. John O. Voll has added a new introduction to this classic text and provides readers with an updated list of further reading.
The Sufi Orders in Islam will appeal not only to those already familiar with Triminghams groundbreaking research, but also to the growing reading public of Islamic studies and mysticism.
_____________________________
_____________________________
Leave a comment