Paradox of One | from Ibn Arabi's 'The One Alone'

I,
. you,
... he,
..... she,
.. we ...

IN THE GARDEN
........OF
MYSTIC LOVERS
.... THESE
......... ARE NOT
................... TRUE
DISTINCTIONS.

- Rumi


1.

You cannot know your Lord by making yourself nothing. Many a wise man claims that in order to know one’s Lord one must denude oneself of the signs of one’s existence, efface one’s identity, finally rid oneself of one’s self. This is a mistake. How could a thing that does not exist try to get rid of its existence? For none of matter exists. How could a thing that is not, become nothing? A thing can only become nothing after it has been something. Therefore, if you know yourself without being, not trying to become nothing, you will know your Lord. If you think that to know Allah depends on your ridding yourself of yourself, then you are guilty of attributing partners to Him – the only unforgivable sin because you are claiming that there is another existence besides Him, the All-Existent: that there is you and a He.

Our Master, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon Him), said: He who knows himself knows his Lord.

He did not say: He who eliminates himself knows his Lord!

2.
Then how is one to know oneself in order to know one’s Lord?

The answer to this question is: Allah Most high exists and none other exists with Him. He is now as He has always been.

If one sees oneself as other than the only existence which is Him, or if one does not see oneself as a part of Him, then the answer came from the Messenger of Allah when he said, “He who knows himself, knows his Lord.” He did not mean by ‘self’ one’s ego – that self which favors the pleasures of the flesh and its lowly desires and which tries to command all of one; nor did he mean the self that first deceives – making one believe that the dirt and the ugliness is proper, then flagellates itself for the wrong it has done and forgets and does it again; nor did he mean the self-satisfied self. He meant one’s truth, one’s reality. When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) prayed and said: O my Lord, show me the reality of things.

What he meant by ‘things’ was those things that appear to be other than Allah. He meant, “Teach me those things other than You. What is all this around me? Let me know. These things – are they You, or are they other than You? Did they exist before or did they come to be? Are they here forever or are they going to pass away?”

And Allah showed him that the ‘things’ had no being and He showed ‘them’ to be Him, and it was seen that all appeared as other than Allah was His being. He was shown things without a name, without time, without quality, as the essence of Allah.

About: 'The One Alone' is an esoteric essay on transcendental unity by celebrated twelfth-century Spanish mystic Ibn Arabi who is considered by many the greatest master of Sufism, may God hallow his station. The essay is published as part of the book, Divine Governance of the Human Kingdom from FonsVitae.

3.

Wrapped in ultimate paradox, the doorway of enlightenment and marifa (Divine Gnosis) is summarized in its totality in the opening verse of a short illuminated chapter in the Final Testament by this:

'Qul: Huwa Allahu Ahad.'

Say and Realize: Allah Alone Is.
- The Quran, Chapter of Sincerity

# Further: Click here to read an excerpts from "The One Alone," a famous treatise by 13th-century Sufi master Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi. The whole essay is only 20 pages, and is a marvel of precision and intensity. Some call it as Islam's "Tao Te Ching".

# Related:
. I AMness | Integral vision of Ken Wilber and Sufism
. La ilaha illa-Allah and Advaita | Supreme Oneness
. Sufi Zen Koan from Alice in Wonderland
. a sufi tale | dhikr of la ilaha illa Allah