Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 5

The purpose of that series is to be constructive rather than critical, and further, it is meant to contain volumes appealing to the general public as well as to the scholar. For a wider and more correct understanding and appreciation of the spirit of Islam, it is to be regretted that there are so few English translations of Muslim works in Arabic and Persian. It is to be hoped that in future more attention will be turned in this direction.

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II. Buddhist Literature in Sanskrit with translations, Commentaries, and References to specific works in European Languages.

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“He who feels the severity of pain inflicted by Him,” said Zunnun, “is no lover.” “He who finds no pleasure in such pain,” returned the Sufi, “is no lover.” “True,” replied Zunnun, “but I say to you that he who trumpets his love of Him is no lover.” The Sufi felt the force of Zunnun’s words and fell down prostrate before God and repented and did not talk again of his love.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 266

Similarly the moral faculty—call it inward sight, light of faith or reason—any name will do provided the object signified by it is rightly understood—delights in the attainment of its desideratum. I shall call it here the faculty of reason (not that wrangling reason of the Scholastics and the dialecticians)—that distinctive quality which makes him lord of creation. This faculty delights in the possession of all possible knowledge.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 263

Some have fallen into abject anthropomorphism; others have gone so far as to believe in the airy nothings of pantheism. These are all vagaries of the imagination, whether they take the form of “Ibn Allah”, (Son of God) or “Anal Haq” (I am God).[66] They are to a great extent responsible for the evils of superstition and scepticism.

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The Quran says: “There surely came over man a period of time when he was not a thing that could be spoken of. Surely we have created man from a small life germ uniting. We mean to try him, so we have made him hearing, seeing. Surely we have shown him the way, he may be thankful or unthankful.”[60] This contemplation will bear the fruit or love for God.

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(Light may be thrown on the matter by consideration of the unity of God.[38])

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In the meantime the present volume may serve at least to arouse some interest.

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Alkama on his death bed gave a fine description of a friend.

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2. The second cause is the love for one’s benefactor towards whom the heart is naturally attracted. Even if he be a stranger, a benefactor will always be loved. But it must be remembered that the benefactor is loved not for himself, but for his beneficence, the extent of which will be a dominating factor in determining the degree of love.

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But the objection may be urged: How can we ignore the diversities and multiplicities of the universe? Man has hands and feet, bones and blood, heart and soul,—all distinct—yet he is one individual. When we are thinking of a dear old friend and suddenly he stands before us, we do not think of any multiplicity of his bodily organs, but are delighted to see him. The simile, though not quite appropriate is suggestive, especially for beginners. When they reach that stage they will themselves see its truth. Words fail to express the beatitude of that highest stage. It can be enjoyed, but not described.[75]

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These words are drops in the boundless unfathomable ocean of divine knowledge: “If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would surely be consumed before the words of my Lord are exhausted.”[77]

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Thus, though the process from the commencement of mental struggle for the choice between too alternatives down to the stimulus to physical action is uniformly determinate there is at any rate a sort of freedom traceable in the will.

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_Faysalut-Tafriqa baynal Refutation of Atheists. Cairo 1325 A. H. Islami-wa-z Zandiqah._

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[34] _Quran_ XX. 12. It is generally supposed that Moses was ordered to take off his “leather shoes” out of respect for the sacred place. But Razi in his Commentary calls it an idiom and says that the Arabs used the word Na’al (shoe) for wife and family. The command to put off the shoes is therefore a metaphorical expression for making the heart vacant from care of family. See _Tafsir-i-Razi_ vol. VI. 19. Stamboul edition.

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4. Women generally feel proud of their beauty. This leads to finding fault with others, and this gradually assumes the form of contempt and disdain. Ayesha, the wife of the Prophet, says: “One day a woman came to the Prophet and I said to him: ‘Look at this dwarf.’ The Prophet turned towards me and said: ‘Ayesha, repent of what thou hast said, for it is slander.’”

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 358

“Subhan Allah” exclaimed the chief, “Do you say that to me”. “Hold thy tongue”, retorted the saint, “thy Subhan Allah is blasphemy.” “How is that”, asked the chief. “Because,” replied the saint, “you uttered Subhan Allah not for any reverence for the Holy Being but out of respect for your own vain self”. “Well”, said the chief, “tell me some other remedy, please”. “Try this remedy first”, continued the saint. “I cannot do so,” rejoined the chief. “There you are”, spoke the saint finally, “Did I not tell you that you would not like the remedy.”

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 260

Fourthly, the affinity between two souls meeting and loving each other is a mystery, but more mysterious is the affinity between God and his loving devotee. It cannot and must not be described before the uninitiated. Suffice it to say that the souls possessing the higher qualities of beneficence, sympathy, mercy, etc. have that affinity hinted at in the following saying of the prophet: “Imitate divine attributes”.

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Part I I. The Available Zoroastrian Literature. II. The Historical and Social Conditions. III. Psychological Conceptions.

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[31] Comp. _Quran_ XLII. 11: Nothing is like a likeness of Him. He is the hearing, the seeing.

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The Quranic expression: “we created man in the best make” emphasises the purity of his nature. He is born with good and for good, but has to preserve and to develop his goodness to his full capacity in the struggle of life. He has but one seed which is good if it grows and bears fruit it is called goodness; if it be crushed or nipped in the bud it is called evil. Evil, therefore has no separate entity in him, it is simply a negative which will lose his soul and reduce him to the lower depths.

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Its natural property has simply operated in his system and caused his death. Similarly actions make an impression on mind. Good and bad actions are invariably followed by pleasure and pain respectively. A good action is its own reward of pleasure and a bad one of pain. The former works like an elixir; the latter like poison. The properties of actions have been discovered, like discoveries in medicine, but by the physicians of the heart, the saints and the prophets.

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_Maznun bihi ala Ghairi Exposition of Ghazzali’s ” 1328 ” Ahlihi._ own views.

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The devotee then resumed his journey. Halting in the presence of the invisible pen, politely he asked the same question. “You know my reply” answered the mysterious pen, “You cannot have forgotten the reply given to you by the pen in the terrestrial world”. “Yes, I remember,” replied the devotee, “but how can it be the same reply, because there is no similitude between you and that pen”. “Then it seems you have forgotten the tradition: Verily God created Adam in his own image”.

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2. Against prophets and saints. It is due to unwarranted self esteem when one considers obedience to any mortal being as lowering his own position. Such a person either fails to reflect on the nature of prophetship and thereby feels proud of himself and does not obey the prophet, or refuses to consider the claims of prophetship as being derogatory to his elated self and therefore pays no regard to the prophet.

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“Listen then”, calmly answered the saint, “This very moment go to the barber, get your head and beard shaven, take off this apparel, and gird your loins with a piece of blanket; gather children round you and tell them that whosoever gives you a slap with the hand will get a walnut; pass through the throngs in all the bazars, followed by those children and then show yourself to your intimate friends”.

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[90] Hadisi Qudsi is that kind of tradition in which God is himself reported to speak.

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IV. Buddhism in General with special References to Buddhist Doctrine and Practice in European Languages.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 97

What a pity it is that these who would find fault with those who worship stones do not see that on their part they worship the pig and the dog in themselves: Let them be ashamed of their deplorable condition and leave no stone unturned for the suppression of these evil attributes. The pig of appetite begets shamelessness, lust, slander, and such like; the dog of passion begets pride, vanity, ridicule, wrath and tyranny.

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“Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth: a likeness of his light is a pillar on which is a lamp, the lamp is in a glass (and) the glass is as it were a brightly shining star lit from a blessed olive tree, neither eastern nor western, the oil whereof almost gives light though fire touches it not (heads daffor.) Allah guides to his light whom he pleases, and Allah sets forth parables for men and Allah is cogniscant of all things.” Al Ghazzali has written a separate treatise called _Mishkat ul Anwar_ dealing exhaustively with the above passage.

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Similarly the dogmatic belief of the ordinary Muslim is better than the lip service of the hypocrite, but lacks that broad clear insight which is described as “He whose heart Allah has opened to Islam walks in his light”.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 145

The first is the terrestrial world. Its objects pen, ink, paper, hand etc. are just what you have seen them to be. The second is the celestial world, which will begin when you have left me behind. There you will come across dense forests, deep wide rivers and high impassable mountains and I know not how you would be able to proceed. Between these two worlds there is a third intermediary region called the phenomenal world. You have crossed three stages of it, vitality, will, and knowledge.

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Now take a mixed action which draws the doer nearer to virtue, say, by one span, but removes him away by two spans, the inward result of his progress will be that he would remain where he was, although he would be rewarded or punished according to his motive. A man starts for “Haj” but takes with him some articles for trade, he will get his reward of pilgrimage but if his motive was trade only, he could not be considered a “Haji”.

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Surely the delights of the righteous are indescribable, for they are even in this life, in a paradise which no eye has seen and no ear has heard.

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1. Repentance. 2. Patience and Thanksgiving. 3. Hope and Fear. 4. The Poor and the Hermit, 5. Unity of God, and Dependence on Him. 6. On Love, Ecstasy, and Joyous Submission to His will. 7. On Intention, Sincerity and Truth. 8. Meditation. 9. Contemplation and taking a Warning. 10. On Death and the After-Life.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali, passage 384

Accept his command and you will be able to execute it Seek union with Him, and you will find yourselves united. Exertion is giving thanks for God’s blessings; Think ye that your fatalism gives such thanks; Giving thanks for blessings increases blessings But fatalism snatches those blessings from your hands Your fatalism is to sleep on the road; sleep not Till ye behold the gates of the King’s palace. Ah! sleep not, unreflecting fatalists, Till ye have reached that fruit-laden Tree of Life.

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Let us now point out some drawbacks which hinder the path of the divine love.

Religious and Moral Teachings of Al-Ghazzali

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