Bismillahi rahmani raheem, assalamu alaikum
What makes man’s spiritual vision unique among all of Allah’s creatures, such as the Angels and Jinn?
Angels and Jinn have peripheral vision while looking at the spiritual world while man does not.
They see the spiritual world with their eyes and that sight is limited by the 180 degrees view eyes are limited by, but man sees spiritually with his heart and that vision has no limit of distance, time or direction we see 360 degrees around us.
It has no limit of distance or time because it relies on subatomic particles and that is how they exist, and it is 360 degrees around us because it relies on the electromagnetic field of the heart and body to see and that is in all directions around the human body.
Both Bukhaari (418) and Muslim (424) narrated from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said:
“Do you think that I face the qiblah (and do not know what you are doing)? By Allah, your bowing and prostrating are not hidden from me; I can see you behind my back.”
Imam Nawawi (ra) said: “The scholars said What this means is that Allah, may He be exalted, created for the Prophet (saws) the ability in the back of his head to see what was behind him, and he (saws) was granted more extraordinary abilities than this. This is not contrary to reason or textual evidence; rather the texts confirm this (there are many other ahadith), so we must believe in it.”
Imam Ibn Rajab (ra) said: “This does not mean that he used to turn around and look behind him whilst he was praying, so that he could see how they were praying, as some people think. Imam Ahmad refuted those who claimed that, and affirmed that this was one of his unique characteristics, and one of his signs and miracles.” (Fath al-Baari (4/341))
Imam Ibn Hajar (ra) said: “The correct view is that it is to be interpreted as it appears to mean, and that this “seeing” was in a real and literal sense that was unique to the Prophet (as far as He knew, it was not though) and was an extraordinary feat.”
The prophet Muhammad (saws) was not the only person to be granted this sometimes the Awliyah are granted the same miracles the prophet (saws) had as a sunnah, and many of the Awliyah reported being able to behind them as well as they saw in front of them.
This is because spiritual vision is via the vision of the heart, the eyes see because light (photon particles) bounce of objects and reach the eyes, while the vision of the heart is an electromagnetic field (light) that surrounds the entire body interacting with all the particles around it, it is not limited by the peripheral view of man’s eye sockets.
If you are a person of Tasawwuf/Ihsan and Muslim Jinn have revealed themselves to you, you can ask them to show you this to a small extent and you will see your inner sight will see behind your back, it has been 1400 years since the prophet Muahmmad (saws) and Jinn are well aware of these abilities and how to help man with them.
Shaykh Rami Al Rifai.