The Spiritual
Life: Prayer and Supplication
For the Muslim, the necessary personal concomitant of professing God's
Unity is devotion to Him. The outward dimension of this devotion is shaped
by the Shari'ite injunctions concerning worship: the canonical prayer,
whether mandatory or recommended, fasting, pilgrimage, almsgiving, etc.
But the inward dimension of Muslim devotions is much more difficult to
grasp. Unlike the outward dimension, it cannot be defined in so many sentences.
It can only be perceived through studying the lives and spiritual radiance
of holy men and saints. Some of the most intimate glimpses of the pious
Muslim soul are to be found in supplications. [1] Prayer in Islam can be divided into four basic forms: canonical prayer
(salat), supplication (dua'), litany (wird) and invocation
(dhikr). One can say that the first, especially in its mandatory
form, corresponds to what is implied in Christianity by mass or holy communion.
The second is equivalent to "personal prayer", or simply to what the Christian
often understands by the term "prayer" as such. The mandatory canonical
prayer must be performed at specific times every day and according to strictly
defined rules, while the recommended form also follows the same strict
pattern (standing, bowing, prostrating, sitting, etc.). But one may "supplicate"
God at any time and in any circumstance, without any set pattern or formulae.
Supplications are strictly voluntary and "free". As for litanies and invocations
i.e., the recitation of Quranic formulae or one or more of the Names of
God, like supplication these are voluntary, although they are not so "free"
since they follow set patterns, and like the canonical prayer, must be
in Arabic. Litanies may be performed by any pious Muslim, whereas invocations
are recited almost exclusively by the Sufis. Although supplications left by the great saints of early Islam are of
the type of "free prayer", invariably they have one element in common:
since they were recited in Arabic (although they may be made in any language),
they are largely inspired by Quranic images and incorporate Quranic verses
and formulae. Also, they are usually rhythmic and very often, as in all
four prayers translated here, employ rhymed prose (saj'). Hence
in this part I have divided the lines of the translation in keeping with
the rhythm of the original in order to give a better idea of the style. The author of the first supplication is Imam Husayn, the Third Imam,
who was martyred at Karbala and is probably the most important Imam in
popular Shi'ite devotion. Certainly the days of mourning for him (in particular
tasu'a and 'ashura, the ninth and tenth of Muharram), are
still the most solemn and carefully observed holidays in the Shi'ite calendar.
Imam Husayn made his supplication-one of the most famous in Shi'ite annals,
one year during the pilgrimage to Mecca on the Day Of Arafah (the ninth
of Dhu-l-hijjah), and it has been recited by pious Shi'ites ever since.
On that day pilgrims pass the time at Mount Arafat occupying themselves
with canonical prayer, reciting the Quran, litanies, invocations and supplications.
The spirit of the day is well represented in the Imam's prayer. [2]
The second and third prayers are taken from the Fourth Imam's al-Sahifat
al-Sajjadiyyah, referred to in the introduction. As for the fourth and final prayer, it was given by the Twelfth Imam
to his second "deputy" (na'ib), Abu Jafar Muhammad ibn Uthman ibn
Said, who acted as the Imam's spokesman for many years until his death
in 304/916-7 or 305/917-8. Here it is important for those not familiar
with Shi'ite doctrines to understand that after the Twelfth Imam went into
"occultation" at a young age in the year 260/873-4 and thus disappeared
from the eyes of men, he maintained contact with four persons in succession
until the last of them died in the year 329/940-1. Then his "greater occultation"
(al-ghaybat al-kubra) began. He will not reveal himself again until
the end of time. A. al-Husayn, the Third Imam Prayer for the Day of Arafah
Praise belongs to God
whose decree none may avert,
and whose gift none may prevent.
No fashioner's fashioning is like
His fashioning,
and He is the Generous, the All-embracing.
He brought forth the varieties of unprecedented
creatures
and perfected through His wisdom
all He had fashioned.
Hidden not from Him are harbingers,
nor lost with Him are deposits. [3]
He repays every fashioner,
feathers the nest of all who are
content
and has mercy upon all who humble
themselves.
He sends down benefits
and the all-encompassing Book
in radiant light.
He hears supplications,
averts afflictions,
raises up in degrees,
and knocks down tyrants.
For there is no god other than He,
nothing is equal to Him,
"Like Him there is naught,
and He is the Hearing, the Seeing" (XLII, 11),
the subtle, the Aware,
and "He is powerful over all things" (V, 120 etc.).
O God, I make Thee my quest
and bear witness to Thy Lordship,
acknowledging that Thou art my
Lord
and to Thee is my return. [4]
Thou originated me by Thy blessing before I was
a thing remembered. [5]
Thou created me from dust,
then gavest me a place in the
loins (of my fathers),
secure from the uncertainty of
Fate and the vagaries of
the ages and the years.
I remained a traveller from loin to womb in a time
immemorial of past days
and bygone centuries.
In Thy tenderness, bounty and goodness toward me
Thou
didst not send me out into the empire of the
leaders of disbelief, those who broke Thy
covenant and cried lies to Thy messengers. [6]
Rather, Thou sentest me out to that guidance which
had
been foreordained for me, the way which
Thou madest easy for me
and in which Thou nurtured me.
And before that Thou wert kind to me through Thy
gracious fashioning
and abundant blessings.
Thou originated my creation from a sperm-drop spilled [7]
and madest me to dwell in a threefold gloom among
flesh,
blood and skin. [8]
Thou gavest me not to witness my creation, [9]
nor didst Thou entrust me with anything of my own
affair.
Then thou sentest me out into the world for the
guidance
that had been foredained for me, complete
and unimpaired.
Thou watched over me in the cradle
as an infant boy,
provided me with food,
wholesome milk,
and turned the hearts of the nurse-maids toward
me.
Thou entrusted my upbringing to compassionate mothers,
guarded me from the calamities brought by the jinn
and kept me secure from excess and lack.
High art Thou, O Merciful! O Compassionate!
Then when I began to utter speech
Thou completed for me Thy abundant blessings.
Thou nurtured me more and more each year
until, when my nature was perfected
and my strength balanced,
Thou madest Thy argument encumbent upon me by
inspiring me with knowledge of Thee,
awing me with the marvels of Thy wisdom,
awakening me to the wonders of Thy creation which
Thou
hadst multiplied in Thy Heaven and Thy earth, [10]
and instructing me in Thy thanks and remembrance.
Thou madest encumbent upon me Thy obedience and
worship,
madest me to understand what Thy messengers had
brought
and madest easy for me the acceptance of Thy good
pleasure.
Thou wast gracious to me in all of this, through Thy
succour and kindness.
Then, since Thou created me from the best soil, [11]
Thou wert not satisfied, my God,
that I should have one
blessing without another.
Thou provided me with varieties
of sustenance
and kinds of garments
and Thy tremendous, most tremendous,
graciousness
to me
and Thy eternal goodness toward
me.
And finally, when Thou hadst completed
for me every
blessing
and turned away from me all misfortunes,
Thou wert not prevented by my
ignorance and audacity
from guiding me toward that which
would bring me nigh
to Thee
or from giving me success in that
which would bring me
close to Thee.
For if I prayed to Thee Thou answered,
if I asked of Thee Thou gavest,
if I obeyed Thee Thou showed Thy
gratitude,
and if I thanked Thee Thou gavest
me more. [12]
All of that was to perfect Thy
blessings upon me and
Thy goodness toward me.
So glory be to Thee;
Glory be to Thee,
who are Producer and
Reproducer, [13]
Laudable,
Glorious.
Holy are Thy Names and tremendous
Thy bounties.
So which of Thy blessings, my God, can I enumerate
by counting
and mentioning?
For which of Thy gifts am I able
to give thanks ?
Since they, O Lord, are more than
reckoners can count [14]
or those who entrust to memory
can attain by knowledge.
But the affliction and hardship,
O God, that Thou turned
and averted from me
is more than the health and happiness
that came to me.
And I witness, my God, by the truth of my faith,
the knotted
resolutions of my certainty,
my pure and
unadulterated profession of Unity,
the hidden inwardness
of my consciousness,
the places to
which the streams of light of my eyes
are attached,
the lines on
my forehead's surface,
the openings
for my breath's channels,
the parts of
my nose's soft point,
the paths of
my ears' canals,
what my lips
close upon and compress,
the movements
of my tongue in speaking,
the joint at
the back of my mouth and jaw,
the sockets
of my molar teeth,
the place where
I swallow my food and drink,
that which bears
my brain,
the hollow passages
of my neck's fibers,
that which is
contained in my breast's cavity,
the carriers
of my aorta,
the places where
my heart's curtain [15]
is attached,
the small pieces
of flesh around my liver,
that which the
ribs of my sides encompass,
the sockets
of my joints,
the contraction
of my members,
the tips of
my fingers,
my flesh,
my blood,
my hair,
my skin,
my nerves,
my windpipe, [16]
my bones,
my brain,
my veins,
and all of my members,
what was knitted upon them in the days when I was
a suckling baby,
what the earth has
taken away from me,
my sleep,
my waking,
my being still,
and the movements
of my bowing and prostrating,
that had I taken pains and had I striven
for the duration of
the epochs and ages
were my life to be
extended through them
to deliver thanks
for one of Thy blessings,
I would not have been
able to do so,
except by Thy grace,
which alone makes encumbent
upon me never-ending and ever renewed
gratitude to Thee,
and fresh and ever
present praise.
Indeed, and were I and the reckoners among Thy
creatures ever so eager
to calculate the extent of Thy bestowal of blessings,
whether past
or approaching,
we would fail to encompass it through numbers
or to calculate its boundaries.
Never How could it ever be done!
For Thou announcest in Thy eloquent Book
and truthful Tiding,
"And if you count God's blessing, you will never
number it" (XIV, 34).
Thy Book, O God, Thy Message, has spoken the
Truth!
And Thy prophets and messengers delivered Thy
revelation that Thou hadst sent down upon
them
and the religion that Thou hadst promulgated for them
and through them.
And I witness, my God, by my effort,
my diligence,
and the extent of my obedience and my
capacity,
and I say as a believer possessing certainty,
"Praise belongs to God,
who has not taken to Him a son"
that He might have an heir,
"and who has not any associate in His
dominion"
who might oppose Him in what He creates,
"nor any protector out of humbleness"
(XVII, 111)
who would aid Him in what He fashions.
So glory be to Him,
glory be to Him!
"Why, were there gods in earth and heaven
other than
God,
they would surely go to ruin" (XXI,
22) and be rent. [17]
Glory be to God, the Unique, the One,
"the Everlasting Refuge" who "has not
begotten, nor
has He been begotten,
and equal to Him there is none" (CXII,
2-4).
Praise belongs to God,
praise equal to the praise of the angels
stationed near to Him
and the prophets sent by Him.
And God bless His elect, Muhammad,
the Seal of the Prophets,
and his virtuous, pure and sincere household,
and give
them peace. Then he began to supplicate. He occupied himself
with prayer as tears ran from his blessed eyes. Then he said:O God,
cause me to fear Thee as if I were seeing Thee, [18]
give me felicity through piety toward
Thee,
make me not wretched by disobedience
toward Thee,
choose the best for me by Thy decree
(qada')
and bless me by Thy determination (qadar),
that I may love not the hastening of
what Thou hast
delayed,
nor the delaying of what Thou hast hastened.
O God, appoint for me sufficiency in my soul,
certainty in my heart,
sincerity in my action,
light in my eyes,
and insight in my religion.
Give me enjoyment of my bodily members,
make my hearing and my seeing my two
inheritors,
help me against him who wrongs me,
show me in him my revenge and my desires,
and console thereby my eyes.
O God, remove my affliction,
veil my defects,
forgive my offence,
drive away my Satan, [19]
dissolve my debt,
and give me, my God, the highest degree
in the world to come and in this world.
O God, to Thee belongs the praise,
just as Thou created me
and made me to hear and to
see;
and to Thee belongs the praise,
just as Thou created me
and made me a creature
unimpaired
as a mercy to me,
while Thou hadst no need
of my creation.
My Lord, since Thou created me
and then made
straight my nature;
my Lord, since Thou caused me to grow
and made good
my shape; [20]
my Lord, since Thou didst good to me
and gavest me
well-being in my soul;
my Lord, since Thou preserved me
and gavest me
success;
my Lord, since Thou blessed me
and then guided
me;
my Lord, since Thou chosest me
and gavest me
of every good;
my Lord, since Thou gavest me to eat
and drink; [21]
my Lord, since Thou enriched me
and contented
me; [22]
my Lord, since Thou aided me
and exalted
me;
my Lord, since Thou dothed me with Thy
pure covering
and smoothed
the way for me by Thy sufficient
fashioning:
Bless Muhammad and the household of Muhammad,
aid me against the misfortunes
of time and the
calamities of
nights and days,
deliver me from the terrors of
this world and the
torments of
the world to come
and spare me from the evil of
that which the evildoers
do in the earth.
O God, as for what I fear, spare me from it,
and as
for what I seek to avoid, guard me against it.
in my
soul and my religion watch over me,
in my
travelling protect me,
in my
family and my property appoint for me a
successor,
in what
Thou hast provided for me bless me,
in my
soul humble me,
in the
eyes of men magnify me,
from the
evil of jinn and men preserve me,
for my
sins disgrace me not,
for my
inward secrets shame me not,
for my
action try me not,
of Thy
blessings deprive me not
and to
other than Thee entrust me not.
My God, to whom wouldst Thou entrust me ?
To a relative
? He would cut me off.
Or to
a stranger ? He would look at me with displeasure.
Or to
those who act toward me with arrogance ?
But Thou
art my Lord and the sovereign over my affair.
I would
complain to Thee of my exile and the
remoteness of my abode,
and that
he whom Thou hast made sovereign over me
despises me.
My God,
so cause not Thy wrath to alight upon me.
If Thou
becomest not wrathful with me
I will
have no care, [23]
glory be to Thee
But Thy
protection is more embracing.
So I ask Thee, O Lord, by the Light of Thy Face
by which the
earth and the heavens are illuminated,
shadows are removed,
and the affairs of the ancients
and the later folk are
set aright,
not to cause me to die when Thy
wrath is upon me, [24]
nor to send down upon me Thy anger.
The pleasure is Thine
The pleasure is Thine,
to be satisfied with me before
that.
There is no god but Thou, Lord of the Holy Land, [25]
the Sacred Monument, [26]
and the Ancient House, [27]
upon which Thou caused blessing
to descend
and which Thou madest a sanctuary
for mankind. [28]
O He who pardons the greatest sins by His clemency!
O He who lavishes
blessings by His bounty!
O He who gives
abundance by His generosity!
O Sustenance
to me in my adversity!
O Companion
to me in my solitude!
O Aid to me
in my affliction!
O Benefactor
to me in my blessing!
O my God
and God of my
fathers,
Abraham, Ishmael,
Isaac and Jacob! [29]
Lord of Gabriel,
Michael and Israfil! [30]
Lord of Muhammad,
the Seal of the Prophets,
and his household,
the chosen ones!
Revealer of
the Torah, the Gospel, the Psalms and
the Criterion, [31]
and Sender down
of Kaf Ha' Ya' Ayn Sad, Ta' Ha',
Ya' Sin,
and the Wise Quran! [32]
Thou art my cave (of refuge) when the roads for
all their
amplitude constrict me
and the land for all its breadth is strait for me.
If not for Thy mercy, I
would have been among the
perishing,
and Thou annullest my slip.
If not for Thy covering
me, [33]
I would have been
among the disgraced,
and Thou confirmest me with help against my enemies. [34]
And if not for Thy helping me,
I would have been
among those overcome. [35]
O He who appropriated loftiness and exaltation to
Himself,
so His friends (awliya')
are mighty through His might!
O He before whom kings place the yoke of abasement
around their necks,
for they fear His overwhelming power!
"He knows the treachery of the eyes and what the
breasts conceal" (XL,19)
and the unseen brought by time and fate.
O He about whom none knows how He is but He!
O He about whom none knows what
He is but He!
O He whom none knows but He!
O He who squeezed the earth onto the water and held
back the air with the sky!
O He to whom belong the noblest Names! [36]
O He who possesses kindness which will never be
cut off!
O He who assigned the cavalcade to Joseph in the
barren
land,
brought him out of the well
and made him a king after slavery!
O He who returned him to Jacob after "his eyes were
whitened with sorrow that he was
suppressing" (XII, 84) [37]
O He who removed affliction and tribulation from
Job [38]
and restrained Abraham's hands
from the sacrifice of
his son after he had reached old
age and
his life had passed by! [39]
O He who answered the prayer of Zachariah
and bestowed upon him John,
not leaving him childless and
alone! [40]
O He who brought Jonah out from the stomach of the
fish! [41]
O He who parted the sea for the Children of Israel,
then saved them
and drowned Pharoah and his hosts! [42]
O He who sends winds heralding His mercy! [43]
O He who does not hurry (to act) against those of
His
creatures who disobey Him! [44]
O He who rescued the sorcerers after (their) long
denial!
They had early benefitted
from His blessing,
eating His provision
and worshipping other than
Him;
they had opposed, denied
and cried lies to His
messengers. [45]
O God!
O God!
O Beginner, O Creator with no compeer!
O Everlasting who has no end!
O Living when nothing was alive!
O Quickener of the dead! [46]
O "He Who is aware of the deserts of every soul"
(XIII,33)!
O He toward whom my gratitude was little,
yet He deprived me not!
My transgression was great,
yet He disgraced me not!
He saw me committing acts
of disobedience,
yet he made me not notorious!
O He who watched over me in childhood!
O He who provided for me in my adulthood!
O He whose favors toward me cannot be reckoned and
whose blessings cannot be repaid!
O He who has confronted me with the good and the
fair,
and I have confronted Him
with evil and disobedience
in return!
O He who led me to faith before I had come to know
gratitude for His gracious bestowal!
O He upon whom I called when I was sick
and He
healed me,
when naked
and He clothed me,
when hungry
and He satisfied me,
when thirsty
and He gave me to
drink,
when abased
and He exalted me, [47]
when ignorant
and He gave me knowledge,
when alone
and He increased my number,
when away
and He returned me,
when empty-handed
and He enriched me,
when in need of help
and He helped me,
and when rich
and He took not from
me.
I refrained from (calling upon Thee in) all of that
and Thou caused me to begin (to call).
Thine are the praise and the gratitude!
O He who overlooked my slip,
relieved my distress,
heard my prayer,
covered my defects,
forgave my sins,
caused me to reach
my desire,
and helped me against
my enemy!
If I were to count Thy blessings, favors and generous
acts of kindness
I would not be able
to reckon them. [48]
O my Protector!
Thou art He who was gracious,
Thou art He who blessed,
Thou art He who worked good,
Thou art He who was kind,
Thou art He who was bounteous,
Thou art He who perfected,
Thou art He who provided,
Thou art He who gave success,
Thou art He who bestowed,
Thou art He who enriched,
Thou art He who contented, [49]
Thou art He who sheltered,[50]
Thou art He who sufficed,
Thou art He who guided,
Thou art He who preserved
(from sin),
Thou art He who covered
(my sins),
Thou art He who forgave,
Thou art He who overlooked,
Thou art He who established
(in the earth), [51]
Thou art He who exalted,
Thou art He who aided,
Thou art He who supported,
Thou art He who confirmed,
Thou art He who helped,
Thou art He who healed,
Thou art He who gave well-being,
Thou art He who honored
- blessed art Thou
and high exalted!
So Thine is the praise everlastingly,
and Thine is gratitude enduringly
and foreverl
Them I, my God, confess my sins,
so forgive me for them.
I am he who did evil,
I am he who made mistakes,
I am he who purposed (to sin),
I am he who was ignorant,
I am he who was heedless,
I am he who was negligent,
I am he who relied (upon other
than Thee),
I am he who premeditated,
I am he who promised,
I am he who went back on his word,
I am he who confessed (my sins)
and I am he who acknowledged Thy
blessings upon me
and with me and then returned
to my sins.
So forgive me for them,
O He who is not harmed by the
sins of His servants
nor needs He their obedience.
He gives success through His aid
and His mercy to
whomsoever of them works righteousness.
So praise belongs to Thee, My God and My Lord !
My God, Thou commanded me and I disobeyed
and Thou forbade me and I committed
what Thou hadst
forbidden.
I became such that I neither possessed
any mark of
guiltlessness
that I might ask forgiveness
nor any power
that I might be helped.
Then by what means shall I turn
toward Thee, O my
Protector ! ?
What, by my ears ?
Or my eyes ?
Or my tongue ?
Or my hand ?
Or my leg ?
Are not all of them Thy blessings
given to me ?
And with all of them I disobey
Thee, O my Protector!
Thine is the argument and the
means against me. [52]
O He who veiled me (my sins) from fathers and mothers
lest
they drive me away,
from relatives and
brothers lest they rebuke me,
and from kings lest
they punish me!
If they had seen,
O my Protector, what Thou hast seen
from me,
they would not have
given me respite,
they would have abandoned
me
and cut me off.
So here I am, O my God,
before Thee O Lord,
humbled, abased, constrained,
despised,
neither possessing guiltlessness
that I might ask forgiveness
nor possessing power that I might
be helped.
There is no argument with which
I might argue,
nor can I say I committed not
(sins) and worked not evil.
And denial, were I to deny-my Protector!-could hardly
profit me.
How could it ever
do that ?
For all of my members
are witness against me for what I
have done. [53]
And I acted with certainty and without any doubt
that
Thou wilt ask me about great affairs,
and that Thou art the equitable Judge who does no
wrong.
Thy justice is deadly for me and I flee from Thy
every just
act.
If thou chastisest me, O my God, it is for my sins
after
Thy argument against me;
and if Thou pardonest me, it is by Thy clemency,
generosity and kindness.
"There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
the wrong-doers" (XXI, 87).
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who pray forgiveness.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who profess Thy Unity.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
the fearful.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who are afraid.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
the hopeful.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who yearn.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who say "There is no god
but Thou".
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
the petitioners.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
the glorifiers.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee!
Truly I am one of
those who magnify.
There is no god but Thou, glory be to Thee, my Lord,
and the Lord of my
fathers, the ancients!
My God, this is my praise of Thee exalting Thy majesty,
my sincerity in remembering
Thee by professing Thy
Unity,
and my acknowledgment
of Thy bounties by
enumeration,
even though I acknowledge
that I cannot reckon
them for their multitude,
their abundance,
their manifestness
and their existence
from ancient times
until a present in
which Thou hast never ceased to
care for me through them
from when Thou created
me and brought me into
existence in the beginning of (my) life,
by enriching from
poverty,
relieving affliction,
bringing ease,
removing hardship,
dispelling distress,
and (giving me) well-being
in body
and soundness in religion.
Were all the world's
inhabitants, both the ancients and
the later folk, to assist me in attempting to
mention Thy blessing,
I would not be able,
nor would they, to do so.
Holy art Thou and
high exalted,
a generous,
mighty,
merciful
Lord.
Thy bounties cannot
be reckoned,
nor Thy praise accomplished,
nor Thy blessings
repaid.
Bless Muhammad and
the household of Muhammad,
complete Thy blessings
upon us
and aid us in Thy
obedience.
Glory be to Thee! There is no god but Thou.
O God, truly Thou hearest the destitute,
removest the evil, [54]
succourest the afflicted,
healest the sick,
enrichest the poor,
mendest the broken,
hast mercy upon the young
and helpest the old.
There is no Support other than
Thee
and none powerful over Thee.
And Thou art the Sublime, the
Great.
O Freer of the prisoner in irons!
O Provider of the infant child!
O Protection of the frightened
refugee!
O He who has no associate and
no assistant!
Bless Muhammad and the household
of Muhammad,
and give me this evening the best
of what Thou hast given
to and bestowed upon any of Thy servants,
whether a blessing Thou assignest,
a bounty Thou renewest,
a trial Thou avertest,
an affliction Thou
removest,
a prayer Thou hearest,
a good deed Thou acceptest
or an evil deed Thou
overlookest.
Truly Thou art gracious,
Aware of what Thou
wilt,
and Powerful over
all things!
O God, truly Thou art the nearest of those who are called,
the swiftest of those who answer,
the most generous of those who
pardon,
the most openhanded of those who
give
and the most hearing of those
who are asked of.
O Merciful and Compassionate in
this world and the next!
Like Thee none is asked of;
and other than Thee none is hoped
for.
I prayed to Thee and Thou answered me,
I asked of Thee and Thou gavest to me,
I set Thee as my quest and Thou hadst
mercy upon me,
I depended upon Thee and Thou delivered
me,
I took refuge with Thee and Thou sufficed
me,
O God, so bless Muhammad, Thy servant, messenger
and
prophet,
and his good and pure household, all of them.
And complete Thy blessings upon us,
gladden us with Thy gift
and inscribe us as those who thank Thee and remember
Thy bounties.
Amen, amen, O Lord of all beings!
O God, O He who owned and then was all-powerful,
was all-powerful and then subjected,
was disobeyed and then veiled
(the sin of disobedience),
and was prayed forgiveness and
then forgave.
O Goal of yearning seekers
and utmost Wish of the hopeful!
O He who "encompasses everything in knowledge" (LXV,12)
and embraces those who seek pardon
in tenderness,
mercy and clemency!
O God, truly we turn towards Thee this evening,
which Thou honored and glorified
through Muhammad,
Thy prophet and messenger,
the elect of Thy creation,
the faithful guardian of Thy-revelation
which bears good
tidings and warning and which
is the light-
giving lamp [55]
which Thou gavest to those who
surrender (al-muslimin)
and appointed as a mercy to the
world's inhabitants. [56]
O God, so bless Muhammad and the household of Muhammad,
just as Muhammad is worthy of
that from Thee,
O Sublime!
So bless him and his elect, good
and pure household, all
of them,
and encompass us in Thy pardon,
for to Thee cry voices
in diverse languages.
So appoint for us a share this evening, O God,
of every good which Thou dividest
among Thy servants,
every light by which Thou guidest, [57]
every mercy which Thou spreadest, [58]
every blessing which Thou sendest
down,
every well-being with which Thou
clothest
and every provision which Thou
outspreadest. [59]
O Most merciful of the merciful!
O God, transform us now into men
successful,
triumphant,
pious,
and prosperous.
Set us not among those who despair,
empty us not of Thy mercy,
deprive us not of that bounty of Thine for which
we hope,
and set us not among those deprived of Thy mercy,
nor those who despair of the bounty of Thy gift
for which
we hope.
Reject us not with the disappointed,
nor those driven from Thy door.
O Most Magnanimous of the most magnanimous !
O Most Generous of the most generous!
Toward Thee we have turned having
sure faith,
repairing to and bound for Thy
Sacred House. [60]
So help is with our holy rites,
perfect for us our pilgrimage,
pardon us,
and give us well-being,
for we have extended toward Thee
our hands
and they are branded with the
abasement of confession.
O God, so give us this evening what we have asked
of Thee
and suffice us in that in which
we have prayed Thee to
suffice us,
for there is none to suffice us
apart from Thee
and we have no lord other than
Thee.
Put into effect concerning us
is Thy decision,
encompassing us is Thy knowledge [61]
and just for us is Thy decree.
Decree for us the good
and place us among the people
of the good!
O God make encumbent upon us through Thy magnanimity
the mightiest wage,
the most generous treasure
and the lastingness of ease.
Forgive us our sins, all of them,
destroy us not with those who
perish, [62]
and turn not Thy tenderness and
mercy away from us,
O Most Merciful of the merciful!
O God, place us in this hour among those
who ask of Thee and to whom Thou
givest,
who thank Thee and whom Thou increasest, [63]
who turn to Thee in repentance
and whom Thou
acceptest [64]
and who renounce all of their
sins before Thee and whom
Thou forgivest,
O Lord of majesty and splendor!
O God, purify us,
show us the right way
and accept our entreaty.
O Best of those from whom is asked!
And O Most Merciful of those
whose mercy is sought!
O He from whom is not hidden the eyelids' winking,
the eyes' glancing,
that which rests in the
concealed,
and that which is enfolded
in hearts' hidden secrets!
What, has not all of that been reckoned in Thy knowledge
and embraced by Thy clemency
?
Glory be to Thee and high
indeed art Thou exalted above
what the evil-doers say!
The seven heavens and the earths and all that is
therein praise
Thee,
and there is not a
thing but hymns Thy praise. [65]
So Thine is the praise,
the glory and the exaltation of
majesty,
O Lord of majesty
and splendor,
of bounty and blessing
and of great favor!
And Thou art the Magnanimous,
the Generous,
the Tender, the Compassionate.
O God, give me amply of Thy lawful provision,
bestow upon me well-being in my
body and my religion,
make me safe from fear [66]
and deliver me from the Fire.
O God, devise not against me, [67]
lead me not on step by step, [68]
trick me not [69]
and avert from me the evil of
the ungodly among jinn
and men. Then he lifted his head and eyes toward Heaven. Tears were flowing
from his blessed eyes as if they were two waterskins, and he said in a
loud voice: O Most Hearing of those who hear!
O Most Seeing of those who behold!
O Swiftest of reckoners! [70]
O Most Merciful of the merciful!
Bless Muhammad and the household
of Muhammad,
the chiefs, the fortunate.
And, I ask of Thee, O God, my
need.
If Thou grantest it to me,
what Thou holdest back from me
will cause me no harm;
and if Thou holdest it back from
me,
what Thou grantest me will not
profit me.
I ask Thee to deliver me from
the Fire.
There is no god but Thou alone,
Thou hast no associate.
Thine is the dominion,. and Thine
is the praise,
and Thou art powerful over everything.
O my Lord!
O my Lord!
Then he said "O my Lord" over and over. Those who had been gathered
around him, who had listened to an of his prayer and who had limited themselves
to saying "amen" raised their voices in weeping. They stayed in his company
until the sun went down, and then all of them loaded their mounts and set
out in the direction of the Sacred Monument. [71] B. 'Ali Zayn al-'Abidin, the Fourth Imam I .In Praise of God Praise belongs to God,
the First, without a first
before Him,
the Last, without a last
behind Him.
Beholders' eyes fall short of seeing Him,
describers' imaginations
are not able to depict Him.
He originated the creatures through His power with an origination,
He devised them in accordance
with His will with a devising.
Then He made them walk on the path of His desire,
He sent them [72]
out on the way of His love.
They cannot keep back
from that to which He has sent them forward,
nor can they go forward
to that from which He has kept them back.
He assigned from His provision to each of their spirits
a nourishment known and apportioned.
No decreaser decreases those
whom He increases,
no increaser increases those of them whom He decreases.
Then for each spirit He strikes a fixed term in life,
for each He sets up a determined
end;
he walks toward it through
the days of his span,
he overtakes it through
the years of his time.
Then, when he takes his
final step
and embraces the reckoning
of his span,
God seizes him to the abundant
reward
or the feared punishment
to which He has called him,
That He may repay those
who do evil for what they have done
and repay those who do good with goodness, (LIII, 3I)
as justice from
Him
(holy are His names,
and manifest His boons).
He shall not be questioned
as to what He does,
but they shall be questioned. (XXI, 23)
Praise belongs to God, for,
had He withheld from His
servants the knowledge to praise Him
for the uninterrupted kindnesses
with which He has tried them
and the manifest favours [73]
which He has lavished upon them,
they would have moved about
in His kindnesses
without praising Him,
and spread themselves out
in His provision
without thanking Him.
Had such been
the case,
they would have left the bounds of humanity
for that of beastliness
and become as He has described in the firm text of His Book: [74]
They are but as the cattle-nay, but they are further astray from the way!.(XXV,44)
Praise belongs to God, for
the true knowledge of Himself He has given to us,
the thanksgiving He has inspired us to offer Him,
the doors to knowing His Lordship He has opened for us,
the sincerity towards Him in professing His Unity
to which He has led us,
and the deviation and doubt in His Command
from which He [75]
has turned us aside;
a praise through
which we may be given long life
among those of His creatures who praise Him,
and overtake those who have gone ahead
toward His good pleasure and pardon;
a praise through
which
He will illuminate for us the shadows of the interworld, [76]
ease for us the path of the Resurrection, [77]
and raise up our stations
at the standing places of the Witnesses [78]
on the day when every soul will be repaid
for what it has earned -
they shall not be wronged; (XLV, 22)
the day a master shall avail nothing a client,
and they shall not be helped; (XLIV, 41)
a praise
which will rise up from us to the highest of the 'Illiyun [79]
in a book inscribed,
witnessed by those brought nigh, [LXXXIII, 20-21]
a praise whereby
our eyes may be at rest when sight is dazzled, [80]
our faces whitened when skins are blackened, [81]
a praise through
which
we may be released from God's painful Fire
and enter God's generous neighbourhood,
a praise by
which
we may jostle the angels brought nigh
and join the prophets, the envoys,
in a House of Permanence that does not remove,
the Place of His Generosity that does not change.
Praise belongs to God,
who chose for us the good qualities of creation,
granted us the agreeable things of provision, [82]
and appointed for us excellence
through domination over all creation;
every one of His creatures submits to us
through His power
and comes to obey us
through His might. [83]
Praise belongs to God,
who locked for us the gate of need
except toward Him.
So how can we praise Him?
When can we thank Him?
Indeed, when? [84]
Praise belongs to God,
who placed within us the organs of expansion,
assigned for us the agents of contraction, [85]
gave us to enjoy the spirits of life, [86]
fixed within us the limbs of works,
nourished us with the agreeable things of provision,
freed us from need through His bounty,
and gave us possessions through His kindness. [87]
Then He commanded
us that He might test our obedience
and prohibited us that He might try our thanksgiving.
So we turned against the
path of His commandments
and mounted the backs of His warnings. [89]
Yet He hurried us not to
His punishment, [90]
nor hastened us on to His vengeance.
No, He went slowly with us through His mercy,
in generosity,
and awaited our return through His clemency,
in mildness.
Praise belongs to God,
who showed us the way to repentance,
which we would not have won save through His bounty.
Had we nothing to count
as His bounty but this,
His trial of us would have been good,
His beneficence [91]
toward us great,
His bounty upon us immense.
For such was
not His wont in repentance
with those who went before us. [92]
He has lifted up from us
what we have not the strength to bear, [93]
charged us only to our capacity, [94]
imposed upon us nothing
but ease, [95]
and left none of us with an argument or excuse. [96]
So the perisher
among us is he who perishes in spite of Him [97]
and the felicitous among
us he who beseeches Him.
And praise belongs to God
with all the praises of
His angels closest to Him,
His creatures most noble in His eyes,
and His praisers most pleasing to Him;
a praise that
may surpass other praises
as our Lord surpasses all His creatures.
Then to Him belongs praise,
in place of His every favour
upon us
and upon all His servants, past and still remaining,
to the number of all things His knowledge encompasses,
and in place of each of
His favours,
their number doubling and
redoubling always and forever,
to the Day of Resurrection;
a praise whose
bound has no utmost end,
whose number has no reckoning,
whose limit cannot be reached,
whose period cannot be cut off; [98]
a praise which
will become
a link to His obedience and pardon,
a tie to His good pleasure,
a means to His forgiveness,
a path to His Garden,
a protector against His vengeance,
a security against His wrath,
an aid to obeying Him,
a barrier against disobeying Him,
a help in fulfilling His right and His duties;
a praise that
will make us felicitous
among His felicitous friends, [99]
and bring us into the ranks
of those martyred [100]
by the swords of His enemies.
He is a Friend, Praiseworthy! [101]
2. Prayer for the Morning and Evening Praise belongs to God,
who created night and day
through His strength,
set them apart
through His power,
and appointed for
each
a determined limit
and a drawn-out period. [102]
He makes each of the two enter into its companion,
and makes its companion enter into it, [103]
as an ordainment from Him for
His servants
in that through which He feeds them
and with which He makes them grow.
He created for them the night,
that they might rest in it
from tiring movements
and wearisome exertions [104]
and He made it a garment for them
that they might be clothed
in its ease and its sleep, [105]
that it might be for them refreshment
and strength,
that they might reach therein pleasure and passion.
He created for them the daytime, giving sight,
that they might seek within it
of His bounty, [106]
find the means to His provision,
and roam freely in His earth,
searching for that through which
to attain the immediate in their life in this world
and to achieve the deferred in their life to come.
Through all of this He sets right their situation,
tries their records, [107]
and watches their state in
the times for obeying Him,
the waystations of His obligations,
and the places of His ordinances,
that He may repay those who do
evil with what they have done
and repay those who do good with goodness.(LIII,31)
O God,
to Thee belongs praise
for the sky Thou hast split into
dawn for us, [108]
giving us to enjoy thereby the brightness of daytime,
showing us sought-after nourishments,
and protecting us from the striking of blights.
In the morning we and all things, every one, rise for Thee,
the heaven and the earth
and what Thou hast scattered in
each, [109]
the still and the moving,
the resident and the journeying,
what towers up in the air and what hides under the ground.
We rise in the morning in Thy grasp:
Thy kingdom and authority contain
us
and Thy will embraces us.
We move about by Thy command [110]
and turn this way and that through Thy governing.
We own nothing of
the affair
except what Thou hast decreed
and nothing of the good
except what Thou hast given.
This is a fresh, new
day,
over us a ready witness.
If we do good,
it will take leave from us with praise,
and if we do evil,
it will part from us in blame. [111]
O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household,
provide us with the day's good
companionship
and preserve us against parting
from it badly
by doing a misdeed
or committing a sin, whether small or great! [112]
Make our good deeds
within it plentiful
empty us therein of evil deeds,
and fill what lies between its two sides for us
with praise and thanksgiving,
wages and stores,
bounty and beneficence!
O God,
ease our burden on the Noble Writers, [113]
fill our pages for us
with our good deeds, [114]
and degrade us not before them
with our evil works!
O God,
appoint for us in each of the
day's hours
a share from Thy servants, [115]
a portion of giving thanks to Thee,
and a truthful witness among Thy angels!
O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household
and safeguard us from before us
and behind us,
from our right hands and our left hands
and from all our directions, [116]
a safeguarding that will preserve
from disobeying Thee,
guide to obeying Thee,
and be employed for Thy love!
O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household
and give us success in this day
of ours,
this night of ours,
and in all our days,
to employ the good,
stay away from the evil,
give thanks for favours,
follow the Sunna's norms,
avoid innovations,
enjoin good behaviour,
forbid the disapproved, [117]
defend Islam,
diminish falsehood and abase it,
help the truth and exalt it,
guide the misguided,
assist the weak,
and reach out to the troubled!
O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household
and make this
the most fortunate day we have known,
the most excellent companion we have accompanied,
and the best time in which we have lingered!
Place us among
the most satisfied of all Thy creatures
whom night and day have passed by,
the most thankful of them
for the favours Thou hast done,
the firmest of them
in the laws Thou hast set down in the Shari'a,
and the most unyielding of them
toward the prohibited acts
against which Thou hast cautioned!
O God,
I call Thee to witness
- and Thou art sufficient witness
- [118]
and I call Thy heaven and Thy
earth to witness
and Thy angels and Thy other creatures who inhabit them
in this my day,
this my hour,
this my night,
and this my resting place,
that I bear witness
that Thou art God,
other than whom there is no god,
Upholding justice, [119]
Equitable in judgement,
Clement to the servants,
Master of the kingdom, [120]
Compassionate to the creatures,
and that Muhammad is Thy servant and Thy messenger,
Thy chosen from among Thy creatures.
Thou didst charge him with Thy message
and he delivered it; [121]
Thou didsst command him to counsel his community
and he counselled it.
O God,
so bless Muhammad and his Household
more than Thou hast blessed any of Thy creatures!
Give him for our sake the best
Thou hast given any of Thy servants,
and repay him on our behalf better
and more generously
than Thou hast repaid any of Thy prophets
on behalf of his community!
Thou art All-kind with immensity,
the Forgiver of the great,
and Thou art more merciful
than every possessor of mercy!
So bless Muhammad and his Household,
the good, the pure, the chosen, the most distinguished! C. Muhammad al-Mahdi, the Twelfth Imam Prayer for the month of Rajab Shaykh al-Tusi has related that this noble writing came out of the
Sacred Precinct on the hand of the great Shaykh, Abu Jaf'ar Muhammad ibn
'Uthman ibn Sa'id [122]
- may God be pleased with him. Recite it on each day of the month of Rajab. In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate O God, I ask Thee by the meaning of all that by which Thou art
called upon by those who govern with
Thy
authority:
those who are entrusted with Thy mystery,
welcome Thy command,
extol Thy power,
and proclaim Thy majesty.
I ask Thee by Thy will which speaks within them, for Thou hast
appointed them
mines for Thy words,
and pillars of the profession of Thy
Unity, Thy signs
and Thy stations,
which are never interrupted in any place.
Through them knows he who knows Thee.
There is no difference between Thee
and them,
save that they are Thy servants and
Thy creation,
their doing and undoing is in Thy hand,
their origin is from Thee and their
return is to Thee.
They are aides, witnesses, testers,
defenders, protectors
and searchers.
With them Thou filled Thy heaven and
Thy earth until it
became manifest that there is no god
but
Thou.
So I ask Thee by (all of) that,
and by the positions of Thy mercy's might
and by Thy Stations and Marks
that Thou bless Muhammad and His household
and increase me in faith and steadfastness. O Inward in His outwardness and Outward in His inwardness
and hiddenness!
O Separator of light and darkness!
O described by other than (His) Essence and well-known
in other than (His) likeness!
Delimitator of every delimited thing!
Witness of all that is witnessed!
Bringer into existence of every existent!
Counter of everything counted!
Depriver of all that is deprived!
There is none worshipped but Thou,
Possessor of Grandeur and Generosity!
O He who is not conditioned by "how" or determined
by "where" !
O veiled from every eye!
O Everlasting!
O eternally Self-subsistent and Knower of all that is known!
Bless Muhammad and his household
and Thy elect servants,
Thy mankind in veils, [123]
Thy angels brought nigh,
and the untold multitudes (of angels) set in ranks and
encircling (the Throne). [124]
And bless us in this our venerated and honored month
and the sacred months that follow it.
In it bestow blessings upon us copiously,
make large our portions,
and fulfill for us (our) oaths,
by Thy most tremendous, most tremendous, greatest and
noblest Name,
which Thou placed upon the day, and it brightened, and
upon the night, and it darkened.
And forgive us that of ourselves which Thou knowest and we
know not,
preserve us from sins with the best
of presentations,
suffice us with the sufficiencies of
Thy determination,
favor us with Thy fair regard,
leave us not to other than Thee,
hold us not back from Thy goodness,
bless us in the lifespans Thou hast
written for us,
set aright for us the inmost center
of our hearts,
give us protection from Thee, [125]
cause us to act with the fairest of
faith,
and bring us to the month of fasting [126]
and the days and years that come after
it,
O Lord of Majesty and Splendor! Notes:
[1]
See C. Padwick, Muslim Devotions, London, 1961.
[2]
See Shi'ite Islam, pp. 210-11.
[3]
Cf. Quran LXXIII, 20: "And lend to God a good loan. Whatever good you shall
forward to your soul's account, you shall find it with God as better, and
mightier a wage."
[4]
Cf. Quran XL, 43. In another place, using a different root form for the
verb "return", the Quran says in one of the verses most often heard in
the Islamic world, "Surely we belong to God, and to Him we return" (II,
156).
[5]
Cf. Quran LXXVI, 1: "Has there come on man a while of time when he was
a thing unremembered?"
[6]
The sin of breaking God's covenant is often described in the Quran. For
example, "Such as break the covenant of God after its solemn binding .
. . they shall be the losers." (II, 27). And "Crying lies to the messengers"
is often mentioned as a major sin of past nations, e.g., "And the people
of Noah, when they cried lies to the Messengers . . ." (XXV, 37).
[7]
Cf. Quran LXXV, 36-37: "What, does man reckon he shall be left to roam
at will? Was he not a sperm-drop spilled? . . ."
[8]
Reference to Quran XXXIX, 6: "He created you in the wombs of your mothers,
creation after creation, in a threefold gloom."
[9]
Cf. Quran XVIII, 52: "I made them not to witness the creation of the heavens
and the earth, nor their own creation ...."
[10]
Cf. Quran XVI, 13: "And that which He has multiplied for you in the earth
of diverse hues. Surely in that is a sign for a people who remember."
[11]
Reference to the Imam's descent from the Prophet. Cf. the first selection
from 'Ali above (p. 29).
[12]
Cf. Quran XIV, 7: "And when your Lord proclaimed: If you give thanks, I
will give you more ...."
[13]
Cf. Quran XXX, 11: "God produces creation, then He reproduces it, then
unto Him you will be returned." Also XXIX, 19; XXX, 27.
[14]
Cf. Quran XIV, 34 and XVI, 18: "And if you count God's blessing, you will
never number it."
[15]
The "curtain of the heart" (hijab al-qalb) is the pericardium.
[16]
The windpipe is not mentioned in some editions of Mafatih al-jinan.
[17]
Cf. Quran XIX, 88-91: "And they say, 'The All-merciful has taken unto Himself
a son.' You have indeed advanced something hideous!. The heavens are wellnigh
rent of it and the earth split asunder, and the mountains wellnigh fall
down crashing for that they have attributed to the All-merciful a son ...."
[18]
In the famous hadith concerning ihsan or "spiritual virtue" it is
said that "Spiritual virtue is that you should worship God as if you were
seeing him, and if you see Him not, He nonetheless sees thee."
[19]
Cf. Quran XLIII, 36: "Whoso blinds himself to the Remembrance of the All-merciful,
to him We assign a Satan for comrade."
[20]
Cf. Quran LXIV, 3: "He shaped you and made good your shapes". See also
XL, 64.
[21]
Cf. Quran XXVI, 79: " . . . who created me, and Himself guides me, and
Himself gives me to eat and drink. . .".
[22]
Cf. Quran LIII, 48: "And that He it is Who enriches and contents."
[23]
Some editions add here the phrase "other than Thee".
[24]
Cf. Quran IX, 55: "So let not their possessions or their children. please
thee; God only desires thereby to chastise them in this present life, and
that their souls should depart while they are unbelievers."
[25]
I.e., Mecca and the land surrounding it.
[26]
The "Sacred Monument", known as Muzdalifah, is the place where the
pilgrims spend the night after the day at Arafat. Cf. Quran II,
198: "When you press on from Arafat, remember God by the Sacred
Monument."
[27]
I.e., the Ka'bah, called the "Ancient House" in reference to the
tradition that it was constructed by Abraham. See Quran XXII, 29 and 33;
also XIV, 35-7
[28]
Cf. Quran II, 125: "And when We made the House a resort for mankind and
a sanctuary...."
[29]
A further reference to the Prophet's blood descent from the Abrahamic line
of prophets.
[30]
Israfil is the angel who according to Islamic tradition blows the trumpet
at the time of the Resurrection.
[31]
The Criterion (al-furqan), is one of the names of the Quran, mentioned
several times in its text, such as III, 4 and XXV, I.
[32]
Kaf Ha' Ya Ayn Sad are Arabic letters which appear at the beginning
of the chapter of Maryam, Quran XIX. Ta' Ha' and Ya' Sin are also
letters appearing at the beginning of Quranic chapters, XX and XXXVI respectively,
from which the chapters take their names. "The Wise Quran" is a tide which
appears in Quran XXXVI, 2.
[33]
Al-Sattar, "He who covers (faults and sins)", is one of the names of
God.
[34]
Cf. Quran III, 13: "God confirms with His help whom He will."
[35]
Cf. Quran III, 160: "If God helps you, none can overcome you."
[36]
Akram al-asma'. God's "fairest names" (al-asma' al-husna)
are referred to several times in the Quran, such as VII, I80 and XX, 8.
[37]
For the story of Joseph in the Quran see chapter XII.
[38]
Cf. Quran XXI, 83-84 and XXXVIII, 42-45.
[39]
Cf. Quran XXXVII, 102-105 and XIV, 39.
[40]
See Quran XXI, 89-90.
[41]
The story of Jonah and the "fish" is referred to in Quran LXVIII, 48-50.
[42]
Cf. Quran XXVI, 63-66 etc.
[43]
Cf. Quran XXV, 48: "And He it is Who sends the winds, glad tidings heralding
His mercy, and We send down purifying water from the sky." See also VII,
57 and XXX, 46.
[44]
Cf. Quran XVIII, 59: "Thy Lord is the Forgiver, Full of Mercy. If He took
them to task (now) for what they earn, He would hasten on the doom for
them; but theirs is an appointed term from which they will find no escape."
[45]
Reference to the story of Moses and the sorcerers, related several times
in the Quran, especially VII, 111-126; XX, 62-73 and XXVI, 36-51.
[46]
A divine Name used in Quran XXX, 50 and XLI, 39.
[47]
Cf. Quran III, 26: "Thou exaltest whom Thou wilt, and Thou abasest whom
Thou wilt."
[48]
Again reference to Quran XIV, 34 and XVI, 18.
[49]
Cf. Quran LIII, 48: "He it is who enriches and contents."
[50]
Cf. Quran XCIII, 6: "Did He not find thee an orphan and shelter Thee?" [51]
Cf Quran VII, 10: "We have established you in the earth . . .".
[52]
Cf Quran VI, 150: "To God belongs the argument conclusive."
[53]
Cf Quran XLI, 19-20: "Upon the day when God's enemies are mustered to the
Fire duly disposed, till when they are come to it, their hearing, their
eyes and their skins bear witness against them concerning what they have
been doing."
[54]
Cf. Quran XXVII, 62: "He who answers the constrained, when he calls unto
Him, and removes the evil and appoints you to be successors in the earth."
[55]
Cf Quran XLI, 4 and XXXIII, 46.
[56]
Cf Quran XXI, 107.
[57]
The symbolism of light and darkness is employed often in the Quran, not
to mention its usage in Sufism and philosophy, such as the School of Illumination
(ishraq) of Suhrawardi. A good example of Quranic usage is the following:
"God is the Protector of the believers; He brings them forth from the shadows
into the light" (II, 257). There is also the famous "Light Verse" (XXIV,
35), which contains the sentence "God guides to His Light whom He will."
[58]
Cf Quran XLII, 28.
[59]
Cf Quran XVII, 30.
[60]
Again a reference to the rites performed on the Day of Arafah. The
"Sacred House" is of course the Ka'bah.
[61]
Cf. Quran LXV, 12.
[62]
The word "destroy" (ahlak, from whose root is derived the word "those
who perish", halikun) is used repeatedly in the Quran in reference
to God's punishment of the evildoers, especially those of generations and
ages past, as a sign and a warning for those present. For example, "Have
they not regarded how We destroyed before them many a generation . . ."
(VI, 6). See also X, I4; XIX, 98; XXI, 9; etc.
[63]
Cf Quran II, 58: "We will forgive you your sins and will increase (reward)
for the right-doers."
[64]
Cf Quran IX, 104: "God is He who accepts repentance from His servants."
[65]
This sentence is almost a word for word quotation of Quran XVII, 44.
[66]
Cf. Quran CVI, 4: "Let them serve the Lord of this House who has . . .
made them safe from fear."
[67]
Cf. Quran III, 54: "And they devised, and God devised, and God is the best
of devisers." See also Quran XIII, 42; XXVII, 50, etc.
[68]
Cf Quran VII, 182-183: "And those who cry lies to Our signs-step by step
We lead them on from whence they know not." See also LXVIII, 44.
[69]
Cf. Quran IV, I42: "The hypocrites seek to trick God, but God is tricking
them."
[70]
A divine Name appearing in Quran VI, 62.
[71]
At this point the compiler remarks that some sources add another section
to Imam Husayn's prayer, a section which he then relates himself. Other
authorities, such as Majlisi, express their doubts as to the authenticity
of this last section. In fact it is almost certainly by Ibn 'Ata'allah
al-Iskandari, and therefore I have not translated it here. Readers interested
will find a translation in V. Danner, Ibn 'Ata'illah's Sufi Aphorisms,
Leiden, 1973, pp. 64-9. See W. Chittick, "A Shadhili Presence in Shi'ite
Islam", Sophia Perennis, vol. I, no. 1, 1975, pp. 97-100.
[72]
In Talkhis al-riyad, a commentary on the ,Sahifah (Tehran, 1381/1961-2,
p. 34) al-Sayyid 'Alikhan al-Shirazi (d. 1120/1708-9), mentions an objection
that some people might be tempted to make here, i.e., that "the pronoun
'them' refers to all creatures, while certain of the creatures are God's
enemies, so how should this statement be correct? The answer is that in
its essential and primordial nature according to which it was originally
created (cf. Quran XXX, 30), every soul loves and seeks the good, and all
good flows from God's goodness, just as all existence flows from His Being.
Therefore in reality the creatures love only Him, even if their love be
in accordance with His Name 'the Outward' and in terms of external beauty
and goodness, or worldly station and property, or anything else." Then
al-Shirazi quotes Ibn al-'Arabi in the Futuhat al- makkiyyah: "None
loves any but his Creator, but He is hidden from him under the veil of
Zaynab, Su'ad, Hind and Layla (names of women), dirhams and dinars, worldly
position, and all that exists in the world, for one of the causes of love
is beauty-which belongs only to Him-since beauty incites love through its
very nature. Now, 'God is beautiful, and He loves beauty' (a saying of
the Prophet), and thus He loves Himself. Another cause of love is virtue
(ihsan) and virtue is only perfect when it comes from God: None
is virtuous but God (la muhsin illa-llah). So if you love beauty,
you love none other than God, for He is the Beautiful; and if you love
virtue, you love none other than He, for He is the Virtuous. In every case,
the object of love is none other than God." This is one of the themes of
the Lama'at of Fakhr al-Din 'Iraqi, translated by W. C. Chittick
and P. L. Wilson, New York, forthcoming
[73]
Cf. Quran LXXXIX, 15-16: "As for man, whenever his Lord tries him, and
honours him, and blesses him, then he says, 'My Lord has honoured me'."
[74]
On the meaning of "clear text of His Book", see above, p. 56, note 48.
[75]
Literally, "concerning His affair (amr)". Al-Shirazi explains "His
affair" as meaning "either the knowledge of His nature and attributes,
or of His religion and Shari'ah" (p. 56).
[76]
Here the Interval or "isthmus" (barzakh) refers to the time between
death and resurrection. It is referred to in Quran XXIII, 100: "And beyond
them is an Interval until the day when they are raised." See Shi'ite
Islam, pp. I64-5; also the Encyclopedia of Islam (new edition),
vol. I, pp. 1071-2.
[77]
According to a hadith of the Prophet, "Verily the passage from the grave
to the Plain of Gathering ('arsat al-mahshar) on the Day of Resurrection
will be burdensome for some people and smooth for others" (quoted by al-Shirazi,
p. 62).
[78]
The Stations of the Witnesses (mawaqif al-ash'ad) are the stations
of angels, prophets, Imams and believers who at the Resurrection act as
witnesses over the deeds performed by men during their earthly lives. These
Witnesses are referred to in Quran XI, 18 and XL, 51.
[79]
'Illiyun, mentioned in Quran LXXXIII, 18 and 19, is variously interpreted.
For example, it is said to be the highest level of heaven, or a place in
the seventh heaven where the souls of believers are taken after their death,
or the book in the seventh heaven in which are written the deeds of angels
and of righteous men and jinn.
[80]
Cf. Quran LXXV, 7 ff.: "But when sight is confounded and the moon is eclipsed
and sun and moon are united, on that day man will cry: Whither to flee
!"
[81]
Cf. Quran III, 106: "The day when some faces are blackened, and some faces
whitened. As for those whose faces are blackened-'Did you disbelieve after
you had believed? Then taste the chastisement for that you disbelieved.'
"
[82]
Cf. Quran XL, 64: "And He shaped you, and shaped you well, and provided
you with the good things".
[83]
Besides the many Quranic verses which point to man's "central" position
in the Universe because of his capacity as viceregent or caliph of God,
the being who partakes of all of the divine Names and Attributes, there
are many other verses indicating one of the major results of his special
rank: his domination over all of the Universe. For example: "And He subjected
to you the night and day, and the sun and moon" (XVI); "Have you not seen
how God has subjected to you whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth
?" (XXXI, 20). See also XIV, 32-33; XXII, 65, etc.
[84]
The Arabic reads "la mata", which according to al-Shirazi can be
interpreted in two ways: either it means "Nay (it is impossible to thank
Him), when (could it be possible?)", or "(It is) not (correct to say) when,
(for that implies that it is possible to thank Him)" (p. 75).
[85]
According to al-Shirazi, the reference is to the expansion and contraction
of the organs of the body, such as nerves, muscles, veins, arteries, flesh,
etc. (p. 75)
[86]
Or "breaths of life". Al-Shirazi comments: "Arwa'h may be the plural
of ruh, meaning spirit, in which case the meaning is explained by
the tradition transmitted from Imams 'Ali, al-Baqir and al-Sadiq: 'There
are five (spirits) possessed by Those Brought Nigh (cf. Quran LVI, II):
the spirit of sanctity, through which they know all things; the spirit
of faith, through which they worship God; the spirit of power, through
which they wage holy war against enemies and attend to their livelihood;
the spirit of passion, through which they partake in the joy of food and
marriage; and the spirit of the body, through which they move and advance.
There are four spirits possessed by the Companions of the Right (Quran
LVI, 8), since they lack the spirit of sanctity; and there are three possessed
by the Companions of the Left (Quran LVI, 8) and beasts, since they lack
(the spirit of sanctity and) the spirit of faith. "Arwah may also be the plural of rawh, which is a 'breath
of wind'. The arteries of the body possess two movements, contractive and
expansive. It is their function to draw 'smoky' vapors from the heart with
their contractive movement and to attract with their expansive movement
fresh and pure breaths of air, through which the heart is refreshed and
its natural heat is drawn from it. By means of this 'breath of wind' the
animal faculty and the natural heat are diffused throughout the body. Thus
this breath of wind by which the heart refreshes itself is the 'breath
of life'. If it is cut off from the heart for a period of time, life also
will be cut off from it" (p. 75).
[87]
Cf. Quran LIII, 48: "And that He it is who enriches and contents."
[88]
Al-Shirazi quotes here a tradition of Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq: "Gratitude
for blessings is to avoid what is forbidden" (p. 77).
[89]
Al-Shirazi explains that "path" is used in the singular and "trackless
wastes" in the plural because the "straight path" is one, while the ways
of going astray are many: "This is My straight path, so follow it. Follow
not other ways, lest ye be parted from His way" (Quran VI, 154).
[90]
Cf. Quran X, 12: "If God should hasten unto men evil (i.e., punishment),
as they would hasten good, their term would be already decided for them."
[91]
Bala', translated here as "benefit", usually means "test", "trial",
or "misfortune", but here it is used as in Quran VIII, 17, which Arberry,
following the commentators, translates, " . . . that He might confer on
the believers a fair benefit." See al-Shirazi, p. 81.
[92]
According to Al-Shirazi (p. 81), this is a reference to the difference
between God's "wont" (sunnah) concerning repentance with the Muslims
and His wont with the Jews. From the former He only asks regret (al-nadam),
but from the latter in addition to regret He also asks "killing of themselves"
(qatl anfusihim) as indicated in Quran II, 54: "And when Moses said
unto his people: O my people! Ye have wronged yourselves by your choosing
of the calf (for worship) so turn in repentance to your Creator; and kill
yourselves."
[93]
Cf. Quran II, 286: "Our Lord ! Lay not on us such a burden as Thou didst
lay on those before us ! Our Lord ! Impose not on us that which we have
not the strength to bear!"
[94]
Cf. Quran II, 286: "God charges no soul save to its capacity." According
to al-Shirazi this sentence is a reference to the obligations which-according
to Muslim beliefs-God imposed upon the Jews, such as, "the performance
of fifty canonical prayers per day, the payment of one-fourth of their
property in alms ...." Also it is a reference to the verse, "For the evildoing
of those of Jewry, We have forbidden them certain good things that were
permitted to them" (Quran IV, 160). See al-Shirazi, pp. 82-83.
[95]
Cf. such Quranic verses as, "He has chosen you and has not laid upon you
in religion any hardship" (XXII, 78).
[96]
Cf Quran IV, 165: "Messengers of good cheer and warning, in order that
mankind might have no argument against God after the messengers"; and LXVI,
7: "O ye who disbelieve! Make no excuses for yourselves this day. Ye are
only being paid for what ye used to do."
[97]
"In spite of Him" ('alayh) is explained by al-Shirazi as meaning,
"In spite of God's disliking (that he should perish), for He is not pleased
that any of His servants should perish. Thus it is that He spreads His
mercy over them and hurries them not to punishment for their sins. Rather
He is patient with them in His mercy and waits for their return in His
kindness. He opens for them the door of repentance, lifts from them that
which they have not the strength to bear and charges them only to their
capacity. So it is as if whoever perishes because of his evil deeds after
all of this does so in spite of the fact that God does not want him to
do so" (p. 84).
[98]
Al-Shirazi points out that the Imam first gives the Day of Resurrection
as the outer limit of His praise, then as a sort of admonition lest he
be misunderstood extends it in conformity with Him who is praised. In the
same way in another prayer he says, "A praise eternal (khalid) with
Thy Eternity" (p. 88).
[99]
The term "friend" (wali) of God, referred to for example in the
verse, "He befriends the righteous" (VIII, 190), is interpreted in many
ways. According to certain theologians the wali is a person whose
belief is sound, who performs his religious duties and who as a result
has attained proximity to God. In Sufism the term takes on a technical
meaning and is often translated as "saint". See al-Shirazi, pp. 91-92.
[100]
According to a hadith of the Prophet related through the sixth Imam, "Beyond
every one who possesses piety, there are other pious acts, until he is
killed in the path of God: when he has been killed in the path of God,
there is no further act of piety" (al-Shirazi, p. 93). See also such Quranic
verses as III, 157; III, I69 and IV, 74.
[101]
Al-Shirazi remarks, "The appropriateness of terminating this prayer, which
is dedicated to praise, with the name 'Praiseworthy' is obvious" (p. 93).
[102]
Cf. Quran XXXVI, 39: "It is not for the sun to overtake the moon, nor does
the night outstrip the day."
[103]
Cf. Quran XXXV, 13: "He makes the night enter into the day and He makes
the day enter into the night." The same or similar verses occur several
times in the Quran, including III, 27; XXII, 61; XXXI, 29; and LVII, 6.
[104]
Reference to Quran X, 68 and several identical or similar verses: "It is
He who made for you the night to repose in it."
[105]
Cf Quran XXV, 47: "It is He who appointed the night for you to be a garment
and sleep for a rest . . ." and other similar verses.
[106]
Cf. Quran XVII, 12: "We . . . made the sign of the day to see, and that
you may seek bounty from your Lord" and other similar verses.
[107]
Cf. Quran XLVII, 31: "And We shall assuredly try you until We know those
of you who struggle and are steadfast, and try your tidings."
[108]
Cf. Quran VI, 97: "He splits the sky into dawn . . ."
[109]
Cf. Quran XLV, 3-4: "Surely in the heavens and the earth there are signs
for the believers; and in your creation, and the crawling things He scatters
abroad, there are signs for a people having sure faith."
[110]
Al-Shirazi points out that "command" (amr) here means the "ontological
(takwini) command" (p. 217). Philosophers and theologians distinguish
this, which refers to the laws of creation and which all must obey by the
very nature of things, from the "legislative (tashri'i) command",
which refers to the laws set down by God in revelation and which man can
obey or disobey according to his own free will. The "ontological command"
is referred to in such verses as: "His command, when He desires a thing,
is to say to it 'Be', and it is" (XXXVI, 81).
[111]
Al-Shirazi quotes a tradition from the sixth Imam: "No day comes upon the
son of Adam without saying to him, 'O son of Adam, I am a new day and I
am a witness against thee. So speak good in me and work good in me, and
I shall witness for thee upon the Day of Resurrection, for after this thou
shalt never see me again' " (p. 218).
[112]
The distinction between minor (saghirah) and major (kabirah)
sins is much discussed in Islamic theology. For a sample of Shi'ite
views, see al- Shirazi, pp. 219-223.
[113]
The angels who write down the deeds of men are referred to in Quran LXXXII,
10-11: "Yet there are over you watchers noble, writers who know whatever
you do." In explaining what is meant by "Ease our burdens on them", al-Shirazi
quotes the celebrated Safavid theologian, Shaykh-i Baha'i: "This is an
allusion to seeking protection with God from excessive talk and from excessive
occupation with what entails neither worldly nor other-worldly gain: then
the Noble Writers will have fewer of our words and deeds to record." The
Prophet said, "I am astonished at the son of Adam: his two angels are on
his shoulders, his speech is their pen and his saliva their ink. How can
he speak of that which does not concern him?" (p. 224).
[114]
Cf. Quran LXXXI, especially 10-14: "And when the pages are laid open, and
when the sky is torn away, and when hell is ignited, and when the garden
is brought nigh, (then) every soul will know what it has made ready."
[115]
According to al-Shirazi the meaning is, "Appoint for us some of Thy servants
that we may seek illumination through their lights and follow in their
tracks." He adds a long discussion of the elevated position of the "servant"
('abd), noting that in his highest form he is even more exalted
than the messenger. This is the reason for the word order of the formula
which every Muslim repeats in his canonical prayers: "Muhammad is His servant
and His messenger". Al-Shirazi also points out that some manuscripts read
"servanthood" ('ibadah) for "servants" ('ibad) and that this
is more in keeping with the context (pp. 227-8).
[116]
This is a reference to the words of Satan in the Quran: "Then I shall come
on them from before them and from behind them and from their right hands
and their left hands; Thou wilt not find most of them thankful" (VII, 17).
[117]
Al-amr bi-l-ma'ruf wa-l-nahy 'an al-munkar, according to Shi'ites
one of the pillars of Islam, and a command which is repeated many times
in the Quran, such as VII, 157, and IX, 71.
[118]
The verse "God is sufficient witness" occurs several times in the Quran,
such as IV, 79; X, 29, etc.
[119]
These two lines are an almost word for word quotation from Quran III, 18.
[120]
A divine Name occurring in Quran III, 26.
[121]
Cf. such verses as the following: "Say: 'Obey God and obey the Messenger;
then if you turn away, only upon him rests what is laid on him .... It
is only for the Messenger to deliver the Message" (XXIV, 34).
[122]
The second of the Twelfth Imam's four deputies, referred to in the introduction
to Part III, p. 92.
[123]
I.e., "normal" men, who are veiled from and ignorant of God's true nature.
[124]
Al-Saffin, the angels "who set the ranks", are referred to in Quran
XXXVII, I65; and al-haffin are referred to in XXXIX, 75: "And thou
shalt see the angels encircling about the Throne proclaiming the praise
of their Lord."
[125]
This recalls the Prophet's supplication: "I seek refuge in Thy forgiveness
from Thy punishment, I seek refuge in Thy approval from Thy anger, I seek
refuge in Thee from Thee!"
[126]
In the Islamic calendar Rajab is followed by Sha'ban and then the month
of fasting, or Ramadan, which is considered to the holiest and most blessed
month of the year.
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