Rami, Author at Ghayb.com

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The Destruction Of Knowledge In Islam

Today we are plagued with fake fatwas by fake scholars and fake individuals on Q&A sites pretending to be knowledgable people hiding behind a mirage of authority because their organisation knows how to fake looking respectable and scholarly. Most of the time the absurd rulings which are never not adequately researched happens to be a woman with a fake profile picture on Facebook, suddenly she has a massive fan club of thousands that can’t even read the arabic alphabet who then begin defending her heresy. This is all deliberately done to manipulate trends and public opinion in the islamic world so they can sway and manoeuvre entire populations away from orthodox Islam, the prophet (saws) gave one piece of advice over and over again for the people of our time to combat this deliberate fitnah being staged by our own people against us;

He (saws) said repeatedly “You have to follow the congregation for verily Allah will not make the largest group of Muhammad’s community agree on error”… “Shaytan is a wolf like the wolf that preys on sheep, taking the isolated and the stray among them; therefore, avoid factionalism and keep to the congregation and the collective and the masjid”…“Allah’s hand is over the group, and whoever dissents from them departs to hell”…“Allah’s hand is over the group, follow the largest group, for verily whoever dissents from them departs to hell”.

The main body of muslims follow the same orthodox madhhabs that have been around from day one, in terms of islamic population, of 1.5 billion muslims Sufi’s make up over 55% of the Muslim Ummah, Salafi’s are not even 1%, of the sunni’s Hanafi’s are about 45% of the Muslim Umma, Shafii’s are about 33%, Maliki’s about 19% and Hanbali’s about 3% which is about the same number of people in the Arabian peninsula who are the smallest Islamic demographic.

Anas bin Maalik (ra) narrates that Rasulullah (saws) said: “Indeed, the example of the ‘Ulama (real scholar) is like that of stars in the sky, by which guidance is obtained in the darkness of the land and water…” (Musnad Ahmad)

The prophet (saws) said, “The virtue of a Alim (real scholar) to a worshipper (Aabid) is similar to the virtue of the moon when it is full to the rest of the stars. And verily the Ulema are the inheritors of the Prophets. Verily the Prophets did not leave behind dirhams and deenars (money), but rather they left behind knowledge.” (Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah).

Abu Huraira reported the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The wise saying is the lost property of the believer, so wherever he finds it then he has a right to it.” (At-Tirmidhi)

Proper Islamic knowledge has been deliberately undermined for the past 100 years, everything that can be done is being done to corrupt it or alternately peoples understanding of it by public figures in the islamic world most would call scholars or respectable people, in a world that is heavily controlled by governments subservient to one super power no one is given an accidental podium, these people don’t speak out against islam, that is public suicide what they do is careful move you away from the real message so true islam will seem strange to people when they hear it. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Islam began as a something strange and it will return to being strange, so blessed are the strangers.” (Those who know Islam) (Muslim) real Islam is the one that teaches you how to struggle against the world and your nafs, it is the one that has the ability to change you, if you have been listening to a scholar for 10 years and never learned the steps of how to change your life in the world you live in all you have been doing is being fed a bunch of facts, true or not a list of facts don’t do anything and this is deception the prophet (saws) said would be occurring, duplicit scholars making certain people don’t know how to act so everything in islamic society becomes superficial and fake.

When a scholar teaches you a path you need take in life and how to take it step by step that is complete Islam, anything less than that is a scholar for hire.

It may be a shock to know but nearly all modern publications of the Sahih Sita, Bukhari, Muslim, Dawuud, Tirmidhi etc, contain errors or are missing ahadith found in the original hand written manuscripts, this is the sad sate of islamic publications, in some cases the number of missing ahadith runs into the hundreds and in the case of the Musnad of Imam Ahmad it was found that in all published editions nearly 100 ahadith where missing that existed in the original manuscripts. This deliberate tampering of classical text is discovered almost every year in a published islamic text, the list of books is very long and it begins with false translations of the Quran to promote a sects ideology, selective “translations” of hadith collections, or ahadith being cut of outright. Tampering with fiqh manuals and every other kind of classical text one can imagine all deliberately done to manipulate islamic populations and create trends in religion people follow, if you don’t like fake Fiqh then for some fake spirituality will do nothing is left alone and there are fake groups for everything.

One scholar wrote about the tampering with Imam Nawawi’s Riyad al Saliheen “A team of unprincipled editors and translators out of a Ryad publishing house by the name of Darussalam was commissioned to produce a glossy 2-volume English edition of Imam al-Nawawi’s Riyad al-Salihin – being distributed for free to Islamic schools around the world – designed to propagate “Salafi” ideology to the unwary English-speaking Muslim students of Islamic knowledge. This ideology is couched within a thoroughly unscrupulous “commentary” inserted into the book chapters and authored by an unknown or spurious “Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf of Pakistan,” “revised and edited by Mahmud Rida Murad” (1:7).” The fact is Imam Nawawi was Shafii in Fiqh, the new commentators took this book of the shafii madhhab and inserted their sects legal rulings through out it in disguise as commentary then passed it of as the famous Imams own work, they also relabelled many of it’s chapter headings because the titles went against their sects beliefs, these practices are now widespread and largely unnoticed by the uneducated public.

The people behind this are not dumb this effort is very deliberate and done by people who know exactly what they are doing and how to manipulate crowds. The prophet (saws) referring to the end of the Khalifah said “My community will be destroyed because of evil scholars and ignorant servants” (Darimi), the founder of the salafi sect also helped establish the Young turks who took over the khalifa….The Prophet (saws) said about the fake scholars and their servants “such a time will come when the scholars will be an element of Mischief” (Abu Nuaim). And “There will appear in latter times a people who will gain this world with the help of religion.” (Tirmidhi)

Allah’s Messenger (saws) said, “In the End Times men will come forth who will fraudulently use religion for worldly ends and wear sheepskins in public to display meekness. Their tongues will be sweeter than sugar, but their hearts will be the hearts of wolves.” (Tirmidhi)

The prophet (saws) said about our time “In the End Times of the community of the faithful, people who adorn the mosques but leave their own hearts in ruins, who fail to look after their religion as much as they do their clothes, who forsake their religious obligations for the sake of their activities in this world, will increase in number.” (Agreed upon)

The prophet (saws) swore by Allah himself that deception on a large scale would occur to His community, the Prophet (saws) said, “By the One Who has sent me with the Truth, this world will not come to an end until they are afflicted with Al-Khasf (earth- quakes), Al-Qadhf (Bombardment), and Al-Maskh (emergence of people who perform maskh on other’s i.e stunt, delude, deceive, peoples intellects, the deliberate dumbing down of society)”.

The companions said in reference to the madness in the world today shocked people would act so dumb and blindly…“And while the book of Allah will be still with us?!” He said: “While the book of Allah will be still with you.” We said: “Subhan’Allaah!! And while our intellects will be conscious?!” He said: “No, no, the intellects of the general masses at that time will be deceived! They will be following fools that have no intellects themselves. They will be assuming they have a cause (to follow), but they will not have a (legitimate) cause.” (Ahmad, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban).

The prophet (saws) said “The hour will not come until renunciation of this world (the heart of all spiritual life) no longer remains in peoples vocabulary (religious institutions and their scholars no longer teach it), and until fear of Allah also becomes artificial” (it is fake, your supposed to have it but no one actually does) (Jamiu al Sahgir, Imam Suyuti)

The Holy prophet (saws) prophesized about the current fitna of people abandoning real Ulema and following corrupt leaders, He (saws) said “…the people will take the ignorant as leaders, who are asked for and give Islamic legal opinions without knowledge, misguided and misguiding.” (Sahih Bukhari)

The prophet (saws) said “Such a time will come to people that only the name of Islam and the image of the Quran will remain (people won’t know actual Islamic knowledge which shapes peoples lives, and everything will be superficial, this situation was manufactured in society by those in charge of educating it). Mosques will be prosperous on the outside (they have the appearance that everything is fine), but will have no salvation in them (no real education). Their scholars will be the most evil under the sky. Corruption emerged from them and will return to them.” (Al Bayhaqi).

The prophet (saws) said “There will come a time for my people when… the mosques will be full of people but they will be empty of right guidance.” (Ibn Babuya, Thawab ul-A’mal), “A time will come upon people in which they will use the Masjid as a pavilion (a meeting place for the corrupt).” (Narrated by Hasan (r.a.), “Let him who reads the Qur’an ask (his reward) from Allah. Because in the final times there will be many people who read the Qur’an and seek their reward from other people (they read for show, benefit, money or to fool and manipulate people by displaying religion in front of them).” (Tirmidhi)

The prophet (saws) said “A time will come when the hypocrites will live secretly among you (secretly trying to corrupt you), and the faithful will try to live their religion in secret among others (because they are oppressed in public and in the groups these hypocrites live in).” (Agreed upon), “There will be years of deceit, in which a truthful person will be disbelieved and a liar will be believed” (Ibn Kathir), “The (end of) time will be years of confusion. People will believe a liar, and disbelieve one who tells the truth. People will distrust one who is trustworthy, and trust one who is treacherous.” (because they can gain from them in life) (Ahmad) “There will be an abundance of critics, tale-carriers, backbiters and taunters in society.” (Al-Muttaqi Al-Hindi, Muntakhab Kanzul Ummaal) Ibn Mas’ood said, “Those are the days…when a man will not be safe from the companion he sits with.” Waabisah said, “And what do you order me to do if I reach that time?” He said, “Restrain your tongue and your hand, and be a fixture from the fixtures of your house.” (Abu Dawwud) Don’t get involved in community affairs not even the masjids who are filled with evil scholars, stay in your home.

Anas ibn Malik said, “I shall tell you a hadith which I heard from the Messenger of Allah (May Allah shower peace and blessings upon him), and which no-one will tell you after me. I heard him say “Among the signs of the Hour will be disappearance of knowledge and the appearance of ignorance. Adultery will be prevalent and the drinking of wine will be common…”” (Bukhari, Muslim).

The prophet (saws) said “Near the establishment of the hour there will days during which ignorance will spread, knowledge will be taken away and there will be much Harj, and al Harj means killing.”(Bukhari).

Allah’s messenger (saws) mentioned something and said “It will happen when knowledge will be no more. (Ziyad) said: “Allah’s messenger, how will knowledge vanish despite the fact that we will be reciting the Quran and teaching its recitation to our children and our children will teach it’s recitation to their children up to the day of Resurrection?” thereupon he (saws) said: “Ziyad, do these jews and christians not recite the Torah and the bible but not act according to what is contained in them?” (Ahmad, Ibn Maaja, Tirmidhi). Because everything will deliberately be made superficial people will no longer act on anything or have the knowledge that is only gained from experience in life.

Allah said “The metaphor of those who were charged with the Torah but then have not upheld it, is that of a donkey carrying books…”(Surah Jumuah, verse 5)

The Prophet (saws) said that, despite the fact the Qur’an will be read, the knowledge and wisdom it contains will not be considered. “There will come a time upon the Umma when people will recite the Qur’an, but it will not go further than their throats” (Bukhari) it won’t reach their hearts because they are not sincere and the recitation is fake.

The prophet (saws) referring to scholars said “Wolves (scholars who use up people) will give readings in the end of time. Let those who come to those times seek shelter from their evil in Allah. They will be very corrupt people. Hypocrisy will prevail, and nobody will be ashamed of it and it’s manifestations (appearance in society).”(Tirmidhi)

He (saws) said about the people spreading this fitnah in the Ummah, they “shall continue to appear until the last of them appears with the Anti-Christ”

The prophet (saws) literally said people won’t be able to recognise them, and they will have a hard time seeing them for what they are; Ali (ra) said, “O people! Indeed, I heard Allah’s Messenger say, ‘There shall be a folk that comes from my Umma and they will recite the Quran—your recitation will not be comparable to theirs, or your prayers or your fasting to theirs. They will recite the Quran and believe it supports them but [in reality] it is against them. Their prayers will not go past their throats, and they shall exit from the religion just as an arrow exits from a hunted game. If only the army who encounters them knew what has been decreed for them upon the tongue of their Prophet, they would rely on it [if they knew it was referring to them]…they have shed inviolable blood and raided the people’s belongings. So go forth [against them] in the name of Allah”.’

All this is the work of the groups and sects that where invented during the last 150 years.

The prophet (saws) said “Seventy thousand scholars wearing turbans from my community will follow the Dajjaal” (Ahmad ibn Hanbal) these are the evil scholars in the masjid responsible for destroying the Umma of Muhammad (saws) today.

This is part of a larger hadith spanning the history of Islam, Hudhayfah said, I said: “O Messenger of Allah, will there be evil after this good?” (after the Khalifah has ended, after WW1) He said: “Yes, callers to the gates of Hell. (This is when the sects spread) Whoever answers their call, they will throw him into it.” “I said: “O Messenger of Allah! Describe them to us.” So he said: “They are from our people (arabs who are evil scholars), and they will speak our language.” “I said: “So what do you order me to do if that reaches me?” He said: “Hold fast to the Jama’ah (largest body) of the Muslims and their imam.” “I said: “And if there is no jama’ah, and no imam?” (no khalifa) He said: “Then avoid all of those groups (sects that will appear), even if you have to bite on the root of a tree (isolated from society), and death reaches you in that state.” (Bukhara)

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Syria and Signs Of The Hour.

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Scientific Research Papers and Articles We Have Used

Below you will find some of the research papers and articles used to right the books on this website, each article explains the research paper in simple terms, this is not a comprehensive list, just a starting point on these subjects.

Transduction of the Geomagnetic Field as Evidenced from Alpha-band Activity in the Human Brain

Abstract

Magnetoreception, the perception of the geomagnetic field, is a sensory modality well established across all major groups of vertebrates and some invertebrates, but its presence in humans has been tested rarely, yielding inconclusive results. We report here a strong, specific human brain response to ecologically-relevant rotations of Earth-strength magnetic fields. Following geomagnetic stimulation, a drop in amplitude of EEG alpha oscillations (8-13 Hz) occurred in a repeatable manner. Termed alpha event-related desynchronization (alpha-ERD), such a response is associated with sensory and cognitive processing of external stimuli. Biophysical tests showed that the neural response was sensitive to the dynamic components and axial alignment of the field but also to the static components and polarity of the field. This pattern of results implicates ferromagnetism as the biophysical basis for the sensory transduction and provides a basis to start the behavioral exploration of human magnetoreception.

Consciousness as a State of Matter

Abstract

We examine the hypothesis that consciousness can be understood as a state of matter, “perceptronium”, with distinctive information processing abilities. We explore five basic principles that may distinguish conscious matter from other physical systems such as solids, liquids and gases: the information, integration, independence, dynamics and utility principles.

Article: Human consciousness is simply a state of matter, like a solid or liquid – but quantum.

Article: Physicists Say Consciousness Might Be a State of Matter.

On the Rationality of the Appearance of Consciousness

Abstract

This paper tries to reveal the rationality of the appearance of consciousness in the evolution of the universe. Difficulties in understanding consciousness can be boiled down to two problems: the possibility of causality breaking and the origination of truth. By virtue of structural information from the neural networks, this paper gives a causality breaking description of the nervous system and promoted that the biological feelings can be abstracted as a mapping from the nervous system to the world of cognition. Cognition reflects the causality conserving experience, at the same time, it’s also connected with the causality breaking expectations. The mathematical description of trans- formation law provides a proper definition of truth, which makes cognition possible and integrate the framework. The hole theory is consistent with structures of the nervous system and biological feelings, which makes it a scientific framework of understanding consciousness.

Transmission of DNA Information Through Electromagnetic Waves

Abstract

Some bacterial and viral DNA sequences have been found to induce low frequency electromagnetic waves in high aqueous dilutions. This phenomenon appears to be triggered by the ambient electromagnetic background of very low frequency. We discuss this phenomenon in the framework of quantum field theory. A scheme able to account for the observations is proposed. The reported phenomenon could allow to develop highly sensitive detection systems for chronic bacterial and viral infections.

Article: DNA Sequence Reconstituted from Water Memory.

Electromagnetic Signals from Bacterial DNA

Abstract

Chemical reactions can be induced at a distance due to the propagation of electromagnetic sig- nals during intermediate chemical stages. Although is is well known at optical frequencies, e.g. photosynthetic reactions, electromagnetic signals hold true for muck lower frequencies. In E. coli bacteria such electromagnetic signals can be generated by electric transitions between energy levels describing electrons moving around DNA loops. The electromagnetic signals between different bac- teria within a community is a “wireless” version of intercellular communication found in bacterial communities connected by “nanowires”. The wireless broadcasts can in principle be of both the AM and FM variety due to the magnetic flux periodicity in electron energy spectra in bacterial DNA orbital motions.

Article: Bacteria on the Radio; DNA Could Act as Antenna.

Quantum Mechanical Evolution Towards Thermal Equilibrium

Abstract

The circumstances under which a system reaches thermal equilibrium, and how to derive this from basic dynamical laws, has been a major question from the very beginning of thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Despite considerable progress, it remains an open problem. Motivated by this issue, we address the more general question of equilibration. We prove, with virtually full general- ity, that reaching equilibrium is a universal property of quantum systems: Almost any subsystem in interaction with a large enough bath will reach an equilibrium state and remain close to it for almost all times. We also prove several general results about other aspects of thermalisation besides equi- libration, for example, that the equilibrium state does not depend on the detailed micro-state of the bath.

Article: Time’s Arrow Traced to Quantum Source.

Quantum Entanglement and the Spread of Information

Abstract

The key to explaining and controlling a range of quantum phenomena is to study how information propagates around many-body systems. Quantum dynamics can be described by particle-like carriers of information that emerge in the collective behaviour of the underlying system, the so-called quasiparticles. These elementary excitations are predicted to distribute quantum information in a fashion determined by the system’s interactions. Here we report quasiparticle dynamics observed in a quantum many-body system of trapped atomic ions. First, we observe the entanglement distributed by quasiparticles as they trace out light-cone-like wavefronts. Second, using the ability to tune the interaction range in our system, we observe information propagation in an experimental regime where the effective-light-cone picture does not apply. Our results will enable experimental studies of a range of quantum phenomena, including transport thermalization, localization and entanglement growth, and represent a first step towards a new quantum-optic regime of engineered quasiparticles with tunable nonlinear interactions.

Time From Quantum Entanglement: An Experimental Illustration

Abstract

In the last years several theoretical papers discussed if time can be an emergent propertiy deriving from quantum correlations. Here, to provide an insight into how this phenomenon can occur, we present an experiment that illustrates Page and Wootters’ mechanism of “static” time, and Gambini et al. subsequent refinements. A static, entangled state between a clock system and the rest of the universe is perceived as evolving by internal observers that test the correlations between the two subsystems. We implement this mechanism using an entangled state of the polarization of two photons, one of which is used as a clock to gauge the evolution of the second: an “internal” observer that becomes correlated with the clock photon sees the other system evolve, while an “external” observer that only observes global properties of the two photons can prove it is static.

Article: New Experiment Shows How Time May Emerge From Quantum Entanglment.

Article: Quantum Experiment Shows How Time ‘Emerges’ from Entanglement.

Cardiac Coherence a New Measure of Autonomic Nervous System Order

Abstract

Although cardiac sympathovagal regulation has been studied during stress using power spectral density analysis of heart rate variability, little is known about its regulation during emotional states. Using heart rate variability measurements, we studied autonomic balance in 20 subjects trained in a mental and emotional self-management technique called Freeze-Frame. The study was conducted in two environments: under controlled laboratory conditions, and under real-life stressful conditions in the workplace. Power spectral density plots of R-R intervals obtained from electrocardiogram recordings were divided into three regions: low frequency (predominantly sympathetic activity), midfrequency, and high frequency (parasympathetic activity). Measurements were taken for a 5-minute baseline period, followed by a 5-minute period of positive emotional expression. Three unique conditions of autonomic nervous system order can be clearly discriminated in the data: (1) normal heart function mode, (2) entrainment mode, and (3) internal coherence mode. The internal coherence mode is new to the electrophysiology literature. We provide supporting data for modes 2 and 3 and show that a group of 20 subjects trained in this technique can enter and maintain these states at will. We found that, when one is in the entrainment mode, other physiological systems lock to the entrainment frequency, which is approximately 0.1 Hz. The results suggest that emotional experiences play a role in determining sympathovagal balance independent of heart rate and respiration and further suggest that positive emotions lead to alterations in heart rate variability that may be beneficial in the treatment of hypertension and reduce the likelihood of sudden death in patients with congestive heart failure and coronary artery disease.

Complex Interactive Nervous System of the Heart
[Paper no longer available online]

Abstract

The heart is an organ with continuous activity, which must satisfy demands of an organism on various conditions. Therefore, heart activity is modulated at many levels, including intrinsic regulatory mechanisms, humoral factors and autonomic nervous system. The regulation of heart activity by sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system is well known. Accumulated evidence in recent decades indicates that intracardiac neurons can also significantly regulate heart activity. These neurons are concentrated in multiple heart ganglia. Interactions between neurons within intracardiac ganglia together with interconnections between individual ganglia provide anatomical and functional basis of complex nervous network of the heart. This complex intracardiac nervous system together with extracardiac autonomic neurons, innervating heart, provides modulation of heart activity during both physiological and pathological conditions.

This review article summarizes recent knowledge about the role of heart neurons in physiological con- ditions and in etiopathogenesis of selected diseases. Effect of pharmacological and surgical interven- tions on heart neurons is also discussed

Nerves of The Heart: a Comprehensive Review with a Clinical Point of View

Abstract

The heart is an organ which main characteristic is its autonomy of function. Therefore, it is possible to develop elementary experiments such as extirpating the heart of a frog (Bufo amenarum), which during a certain amount of time keeps beating and even responding to brady- or tachycardian chemical stimulations. The underlying cause of this phenomenon is the action of specific solutions, which shower the mentioned organ. However, inside the organism, it adapts its functions to the somatic reality and to the specific moment of that soma. These conducts are instrumented by a complex system of information gathering, the adoption of central nervous system’s function standards, and the production of functional responses suitable for the different possible situations. All these functions are related to cardiac innervation.

Locality of Gravitational Systems from Entanglement of Conformal Field Theories.

Abstract

The Ryu-Takayanagi formula relates the entanglement entropy in a conformal field theory to the area of a minimal surface in its holographic dual. We show that this relation can be inverted for any state in the conformal field theory to compute the bulk stress-energy tensor near the boundary of the bulk spacetime, reconstructing the local data in the bulk from the entanglement on the boundary. We also show that positivity, monotonicity, and convexity of the relative entropy for small spherical domains between the reduced density matrices of any state and of the ground state of the conformal field theory are guaranteed by positivity conditions on the bulk matter energy density. As positivity and monotonicity of the relative entropy are general properties of quantum systems, this can be interpreted as a derivation of bulk energy conditions in any holographic system for which the Ryu-Takayanagi prescription applies. We discuss an information theoretical interpretation of the convexity in terms of the Fisher metric.

Article: How spacetime is built by quantum entanglement.

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About.

The Lataif Of Islam

The Dua Of Light; the Prophet (saws) often prayed in Sujood, “O Allah, place light in my heart, and on my tongue light, and in my ears light and in my sight light, and above me light, and below me light, and to my right light, and to my left light, and before me light and behind me light. Place in my soul light. Magnify for me light, and amplify for me light. Make for me light, and make me light. O Allaah, grant me light, and place light in my nerves, and in my body light and in my blood light and in my hair light and in my skin light.” (Bukhari)

“O Allaah, make for me a light in my grave… and a light in my bones.” (Tirmidhi)

“Increase me in light, increase me in light, increase me in light.” (Bukhari, adab al mufrad)

“Grant me light upon light.” (Bukhari)

The Lataif al Sita (the six points of Lataif) in the body are similar to acupuncture points, they deal with mans physical body from his soul, and their role is to open the heart to greater depths, ultimately so it can finally perceive (receive sustenance) from the Arsh (throne) of Allah as the prophets (as) did, they bring man closer to Allah and have the dual function of healing the body because if the heart is sound the rest of the body is sound.

By simile, the human soul also possesses “vital organs” like the physical body; through which it acquires its knowledge, food and energy. In simple terms the soul performs various roles for the Human body all relating to how man learns and gains knowledge from his environment and experiences in life which serve to help him grow as a person.

“By the soul and how He fashioned it (sawwaha)” (97:1) Allah took an oath by the soul and said it can be moulded and changed, “Yet for all thou didst know,

[O Muhammad,] he might perhaps have grown in spirit”(80:3).

According to Allah in the Qur’an the “soul” has two universal dimensions it can turn to. The first dimension is called “fujoor” (Immorality) and the second one is called “taqwa” (morality);

– Immorality is the lower reality of the “Nafs” (self) which the soul is attached to through the body, “Man has been created weak” (4:28)

– Morality is the higher reality of the “Soul” because it witnesses the Angelic (subatomic) realm and is always influenced by it, “And how He inspired it (the soul) with its Fujoor (Immorality) and its Ta’qwa (morality)” (91:8)

In relation to this Allah said “To a happy state shall indeed attain he who causes it (the soul) to grow, and truly lost is he who buries it [in evil]”(91:9-10), in the verse Allah uses the word nafs (self or ego) in arabic, but because this word can also refer to the soul in specific contexts, scholars understood Allah meant the soul in this verse because the evil self (nafs) is from our actions in life while only good comes from Allah, the soul of man knows good through Allah and knows evil through the self (nafs), Allah inspired the soul to recognize what is evil in life but it doesn’t do evil.

When Allah does this in the Quran, calls one thing by another name He is connecting the two things together, Allah was referring to soul’s higher morality and the human selfs immorality as they function together in the same body, because even though we are referring to them here separately in the body they work together as a part of a whole and the aim of the verse is to purify the entire body.

“IS THEN -HE who was dead [in spirit] and whom We thereupon gave (his soul) life (through morality), and for whom We set up a (literal) light whereby he might see his way among men – [is then he] like one [who is lost] in darkness deep, out of which he cannot emerge?” (Al-Anam: 122), the prophet (saws) said “The similitude of someone who remembers his Lord and someone who does not is like that of the living and the dead”(Bukhari) the body is a system that needs nourishment in every respect, the comparison between the living and dead is made because the soul is receiving a tremendous amount during this time while the person heedless is going deeper into loss with out replenishing himself, this is why we pray five times a day, this is the minimum the body requires to maintain our standard of morality.

Allah says in surah al Asr man is always in a state of loss unless he does good which refers directly to the body.

Morality isn’t simply a matter of will you need to nourish the soul so it’s acts become easier to perform otherwise as Allah said; “Whomsoever Allah desires to guide, He expands his breast (heart) to Islam (so it is easily nourished); whomsoever He desires to lead astray, He makes his breast narrow, tight, (so performing good is) as if he were climbing to heaven (it becomes difficult to nourish the soul and morality becomes like an uphill climb while evil becomes easy). So Allah lays abomination upon those who believe not.” (6:15)

This is why Allah said “Whoever turns away from my remembrance will have a wretched life”, because his body won’t be capable of living life to it’s fullest, his heart is narrow in what it is experiencing from life. Allah said, “Whosoever turns away from my message, verily for him is a life narrowed down, and we shall raise him up blind on the day of judgment (as a consequence)”(20:124), Allah also says “And whoever turns away from (the) remembrance (of) the Most Gracious, We appoint for him a devil, then he (is) to him a companion.”(43:36) all this occurs because we deprive the heart from the moral life and this is what nourishes it so it grows, bad actions bury it in darkness so the devils become attracted to the person.

The part of us connected with the spiritual world are called Lataif (singular Latifah) meaning subtlety, they are also called Lataif al sita meaning the six subtle points in the body. Scholars of various Sufi Orders (tariqah’s) have identified the Lataif points in specific areas of the human body and there are five major Lataif points that Islamic scholars work with (even though the body contains more), they serve to open up the heart to the depths of the unseen world which will result in a person gaining wisdom and becoming sagacious in his nature, the depth of the unseen world ends with the persons heart receiving (knowledge, guidance, wisdom) from the Arsh (throne) of Allah as the prophet (saws) did.

This is a path (Tariqa) a person takes through life because it requires work to achieve it, before the prophet (saws) reached this depth in his heart, even as a prophet, he had to first gain prerequisite knowledge to understand the deeper knowledge that is with Allah. The Prophet (saws) said “My Lord came to me in the best form” – the narrator said: “I think he said: `in my sleep’” – “and asked me over what did the Highest Assembly (al-mala’u al-a`la) vie [i.e. “the angels brought near” according to Ibn al-Athir in al-Nihaya and others, these are the Angels closest to the Arsh (throne)]; I said I did not know, so He put His hand between my shoulders (meaning in his chest so the heart could benefit), and I felt its coolness in my innermost, and knowledge of all things between the East and the West came to me.” (this knowledge was required to understand the Angels around the Arsh) (Sahih, Tirmidhi)

The opening of the heart can occur to any person not just a prophet, this is how Harithah (ra) could see Heaven and Hell, the opening of his heart reached the depth of the Arsh hence he could see it with his inner vision, as the prophet (saws) said, Allah illuminated his heart so it could see these things.

But before this occurred Harithah (ra) placed the knowledge of all these things in his heart with his faith in them, this was the first step in directing his inner vision to the existence of something he knew nothing about before Islam, only then did Allah iluminate his faith so he could see.

The Prophet (saws) asked, “Harithah, how are you this morning?” He said, “This morning I have become a true mu’min” (A person who has believed). He said, “Think about what you are saying! Because every statement has a reality” (every statement shapes your reality). He said, “Messenger of Allah, my self dislikes the world, so that it is sleepless at night and thirsty in the day, and it is as if I am gazing upon the Throne of my Lord appearing (he sees them with his inner vision rather than his eyes), and it is as if I am gazing upon the people of the Garden in the Garden and how they visit each other in it, and it is as if I am gazing upon the people of the Fire and how they howl in it” (the words as if are used because it isn’t the vision of the eyes it’s his inner vision, “it’s as if my eyes are looking at these things”). He said, “You have seen, so remain firm. [You are] a slave whom Allah has illuminated the iman (faith) in your heart”.

Meaning Allah gave his heart a light so it can see the depths of the unseen world, his depth reached right up to the Arsh (throne) with his light. Our faith is the light we place in our heart through our own selfs, “every statement has a reality” or creates the light of faith in the heart. Allah gave him another light to guide this iman (light) to what it should see, all because of his practices in life which Harithah (ra) mentions at the beginning of the hadith. (Tabarani, Suyuti, al-Haythami, al-Askari, Ibn al-Mubarak, Abd al-Razzaq, Bayhaqi and Imam Abu Hanifa, Ibn Rajab, among others.)

Imam Ali (ra) was once asked what is creation ? (referring to Ghayb) he (ra) said “It is like the dust in the air, it only becomes visible when the light of Allah strikes it”, in other words the universe is created from subatomic particles (dust) and the subatomic world (Ghayb) is only seen when Allah places a light (an electromagnetic field) in a persons heart so His inner sight can see the unseen world with his own electromagnetic field (light).

Large electrical towers generate a strong electromagnetic field which affects the area around it, this is why it isn’t safe for children to live under strong power lines, they can develop cancer and other nervous system related illness later in life as a consequence. Through it’s own “electrical wiring” the nervous system of the Human body also generates an electromagnetic field that is safe for us which surrounds the entire body, this is the non physical (or spiritual) part of our body, the pre-modern term for this field is the human bodies aura or light and scientifically this is absolutely accurate because light is an electromagnetic field.

In Chinese this energy is called Chi, in Japanese it is called Ki, in Hindi it is called Prana and in Arabic it is called Qudra, many scholars have written about the human bodies light which the prophet (saws) often spoke of, asking Allah to regulate the light in his body for him and to increase it for him.

Ibn Abbas (r.a) related that the Prophet would say while in prostration: “O Allah, place light in my heart, light in my hearing, light in my sight, light on my right, light on my left, light in front of me, light behind me, light above me, light below me, and make light for me,” or he said: “Make me light” (Muslim) meaning the entire body, Allah answered Him (saws) and made Him an illuminating lamp for people, a clear reference to His Chi energy that was guiding other people, “O Prophet! We have sent you as a witness, a bearer of good tidings and of warning, And as a summoner unto Allah by His permission, and as a lamp that giveth light.”(33:45-46)

To aid him in this task as a lamp for people Allah gave Him the most special light of all, the light of prophethood, which is the light Allah created the entire universe from and is the oldest light in creation, so the light coming from the prophets body was even stronger than any other person who ever lived, all of this tells us light and chi have a very significant role in Islam and guiding people; Abd Al Razzaq narrates, from Jabir bin Abdullah (r), that he said, “Oh, Messenger of Allah, may my father and my mother be sacrificed to you, tell me about the first thing that Allah (swt) created, before all other things.” He said, “Oh, Jabir, Allah created, before anything else, the light of your Prophet (saw) from His Light.”

This was the light that Allah gave to each prophet as proof of their prophethood, hence light is central to the tenants of Islam; “O you who believe! Have Taqwa (fear) of Allah and believe in His Messenger; and He will provide you with a light by which you will walk.” (57: 28), “Those Allah gives no light to, they have no light.” (24:40) the scholars of Islam have never understood these verses as other than literal because traditionally they understood the physiological role of light in the body, if this wasn’t the case Imam Malik (as) wouldn’t have said “Knowledge does not consist in narrating much. Knowledge is but a light which Allah places in the heart” He was one of Islam’s four greatest scholars, the founder of the Maliki school of Law, hence he can’t be accused of inventing anything, his famous book al Muawata was given such a title because when the imam finished it He (ra) presented it to 80 prominent scholars in Madinah seeking their opinion before he released it, every single one accepted it from Him so He called it al Muwatta, the Approved.

This is the extent to which He sought the correct path on matters, the Imam was not afraid to say I don’t know if he did not know the answer to something Al-Haytham said: “I heard Malik being asked forty eight questions, to thirty-two of which he replied: ‘I do not know.’” Because we have a clearer scientific understanding of the human body we can answer questions about the role of light (photons) than any previous generation in Islam, and it is the Ummah’s responsibility to do so.

The light of prophethood was shown to the other prophets and by it they became prophets, indicating the depth of it’s ability to guide man through his physiology; Imam Qastallani said “It has been narrated that (relatively speaking) when Allah created the light of our Prophet Muhammad (saws), He ordered him to look at the lights of the other Prophets. His light covered them, and Allah had them talk and they said, Oh, our Lord, who is covering us with his light? Allah replied, This is the light of Muhammad Ibn Abdullah (saws); if you believe in him I will make you Prophets. They said, We believe in him and in his Prophethood.” Allah said, Shall I be your witness? They said, Yes. Allah said, Do you agree, and take this My covenant as binding on you? They said, We agree. He said, Then bear witness, and I am with you among the witnesses (3:81). This is the meaning of Allah’s saying. Behold, Allah took the covenant of the Prophets, saying, I give you a book and wisdom, then comes to you a Messenger (Muhammad), confirming what is with you (your own lights); believe in him and render him help.” (3:81)

Allah clearly states the Quran, like the light of prophethood, provides an inner light to people so they can see as Haditha saw and be guided, Allah said “We have made it a light whereby We guide whom We will of Our bondmen” (42:52) this simply means that their are physiological process’s in the Human body that rely on light and Allah provides it to His servants through the Quran so they have the ability to walk the path of Islam.

All of this clearly shows the prophets (saws) understanding of how light or the electromagnetic field surrounding the body plays an important role in mans perception through his senses, He (saws) asked often for light in specific areas of the body and for Allah to increase the light that surrounds the body.

He (saws) clearly knew about the electromagnetic field of the body (or Chi), this is one of the reasons He (saws) said “seek knowledge even unto China” because China was famous for how it healed the body through acupuncture, a knowledge it discovered thousands of years ago and developed over the ages as scientific discoveries increased, while China was advanced in many areas historically Islamic society would not need to rely on this knowledge because they developed it themselves but the science behind Chi and the flow of energy, the electromagnetic field, in the body was theirs uniquely.

Many scholars through history similarly made the connection between light and the human body from the prophets (saws) prayers for light, these prayers are many and amongst the most famous and often repeated prayers by muslims today.

Light by definition in physics is energy because it is the carrier of the electromagnetic force in the universe. Light is a form radiation and it is Electromagnetic energy, this type of energy can take the form of visible light, like the light from a candle or a light bulb, or invisible waves, like radio waves, microwaves, x-rays and gamma rays, each of these is a type of light the difference being their wave length, some have longer wave lengths and less energy while others have shorter wave lengths and more energy but each is a form of light.

“Sometimes physicists describe electromagnetic radiation as being composed of particles – tiny packets of energy called photons. Each photon has a characteristic frequency, wavelength, and energy, but all photons travel at the same speed, the speed of light.”

Electromagnetic energy can be converted to chemical energy, this is one way the human body uses it, in fact this is how the eye sees when light (photons) hits it, a chemical reaction is generated by the energy in the photon which the body uses.

“Light is also produced by our own cells and forms a major component of man’s inner environment and a non-material part of our bodies connecting us with the outer environment. Scientifically this was discovered in the late 1920’s and conclusively demonstrated by modern biophysicists since the late 1960’s. All living organisms, including humans, emit a low-intensity glow that cannot be seen by the naked eye, but can be measured by photomultipliers that amplify the weak signals several million times and enable researchers to register it in the form of a diagram. As long as they live, cells and whole organisms give off a pulsating glow with a mean intensity of several up to a few ten thousand photons per second and square centimeter, this corresponds to a candle-light seen from a 15 mile distance.”

Scientists in Japan employed extraordinarily sensitive cameras capable of detecting single photons. The researchers found the body glow rose and fell over the day, with its lowest point at 10 AM and its peak at 4 PM, dropping gradually after that. These findings suggest there is light emission linked to the body clock, most likely due to how metabolic rhythms fluctuate over the course of the day, they also found faces glowed more than the rest of the body.

Allah says in the Quran “[Some] faces, that Day, will be radiant, looking at their Lord”(75:22-23) it is becoming increasingly clear to scientists that their is a far more powerful approach to healing that is based on physics and not chemistry, because physics is the foundation of every chemical reaction and man can access the laws of physics more easily through the electromagnetic fields of the body.

[Schematic illustration of experimental setup that found the human body, especially the face, emits visible light in small quantities that vary during the day. B is one of the test subjects. The other images show the weak emissions of visible light during totally dark conditions. The chart corresponds to the images and shows how the emissions varied during the day. The last image (I) is an infrared image of the subject showing heat emissions. Credit: Kyoto University; Tohoku Institute of Technology; PLoS ONE]

What is interesting about this study is that the light emissions appear to be linked to our body clock and the rhythmic fluctuations of our metabolism over the course of the day. This suggests that you could detect medical conditions with the use of highly light-sensitive cameras. “If you can see the glimmer from the body’s surface, you could see the whole body condition”. There are other devices that can accomplish a similar feat already, such as electrodermal screening, which measures our electrical skin resistance.

“The DNA inside each cell of our body vibrates at a frequency of several billion hertz, which is unfortunately the same range at which modern cell phone communication systems also work. This vibration is created through the coil-like contraction and extension of our DNA — which occurs several billion times per second — and every time it contracts, it squeezes out one single biophoton (a biologically produced photon); a light particle.”

“That photon contains all the information on everything going on in our DNA at that moment. One single biophoton can carry more than four megabytes of information, and relays this information to other biophotons it crosses in the biophoton field (electromagnetic field) outside our body. All the photons that are emitted from our body communicate with each other in this highly structured light field that surrounds our body.”

“This light field also regulates the activity of our metabolic enzymes. This corresponds with the findings in the study that shows our light field ebbs and flows along with our metabolic rhythm. The information transfer on biophotons is bidirectional, which means your DNA sends information out on a photon, and on the same photon the information of all the biophotons from our body is broadcast back to our cells, and to our tubulin, which are light conductive molecules in our connective tissue. The tubulin, in turn, receives the information-carrying light impulse and conducts it at the speed of light throughout our body, where it is translated inside each cell into activating or inactivating certain metabolic enzymes.”

The electromagnetic field of the heart, brain and other organs communicate with the field produced by the body from each of it’s cells, they compound with each other to make the total electromagnetic field of each person and just like our senses compound with each other to shape our perception of the world the electromagnetic field of the body is our instinct which compounds with our physical senses. Because we understand the structures of the nervous system and biological feelings researchers around the world are already proposing a scientific framework for understanding consciousness based on biology and physics.

Since there are different fields produced from different areas of the body the coherence of waves is essential for man’s religion, this is the tawhid of physics when man is one with the forces of the universe that Allah is communicating to him through, “Allah guides to His light whome He wills”(24:35), what we do in religion is to purify the heart so nothing blocks it from connecting with these forces external to our body.

It’s because of these facts we can better understand what Allah said in surah al Shams (91); Allah says: “BY the sun and its radiant brightness, By the moon as it reflects the sun! (It reflects the suns solar activity at night) BY the day as it reveals the (sun to the) world, By the night as it veils it darkly! (The day and night cycle is the period of increased and decreased solar activity) BY the sky and its wondrous make (the atmosphere is created because of the earth’s magnetic field shielding it from the sun and space creating it’s own independent cycles that affect us), By the earth and all its expanse! (The expanse of the earth is affected by gravity, it creates the atmosphere and different weather patterns that exist around the world) BY the Soul (which is made from subatomic particles, as all things are), and how it is formed (from these particles) in accordance with what it is meant to be (it is subject to the Laws of physics and because it is subatomic…and Allah tied this subject to the previous verses…it is affected by the ecosystem and fields in space and on earth), And inspired it (through the subatomic universe, the particles and forces that exist there, all of which are the context of this surah because it begins with suns solar activity) with what is wrong for it and right for it. To a happy state shall indeed attain he who causes this [soul] to grow in purity (human flourishing and creativity is part of this process), and truly lost is he who buries it [in darkness] (91:1-10).

“Without the sun it is virtually impossible for most life forms to exist. For example, we now know that without appropriate sun exposure, we will become deficient in vitamin D, which will have very far ranging consequences for our health. Vitamin D influences at least 2,000-3,000 genes (that we know of), and without sufficient amounts of vitamin D, our body becomes susceptible to a staggering amount of diseases. The greater our store of light energy, the greater the power of our overall electromagnetic field, and consequently the more energy is available for healing and maintenance of optimal health and performance.”

When the flow of energy in the body is disturbed or insufficient this affects a persons health adversely because light is directly connected with the nervous system which is connected with all our organs, so maintaining a positive energy flow in the body is essential to a persons health because it allows the body to heal itself. If we don’t maintain the balance of our body this will create problems, hence dealing with the source of disease is the focal point of Lataif treatment.

While the body generates it’s own energy it also takes it in from it’s surroundings at the same time, Allah spoke about this in Surah al Shams (91) and said he guides man through the fields generated by the sun, moon and earth and are present in earths atmosphere (sky). The human body requires light from the sun to survive which each cell in our body uses to drive the chemical reactions in us that in turn drive the reactions in the rest of the body.

The Lataif are the points of maximum energy intake in the body and are very important focal points of balance within the bodies energy system, they also serve as an important part of mans perception through his heart which the prophet (saws) was careful to look after because this was vital to his role as a prophet (saws) charged with reading Allah’s signs in the Universe.

Through prayer and meditation these focal points generate energy as well as take in more energy from earths atmosphere and other sources in the universe, so then depending on the illness a person focuses on a specific Lataif point needed to cure that sickness.

Allah in many places in the Quran affirms man can be physically healed through his spiritual faculties, “And (Allah) shall heal the breast of the believers” (9:14) meaning He will directly heal them through these process’s we just mentioned.

“We send down (through) the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe: to the unjust it causes nothing but loss after loss.”(17:82), the proclamation “send down” is a direct reference to the unseen world, which is the subatomic universe, this healing is sent down through the Quran because Allah made the Quran a source of light for people when it is recited and this light can heal.

“Mankind, a teaching from your Lord has now come to you, (it is) a healing for (the diseases) in [your] hearts (because the heart receives the light from the Quran first), and guidance and mercy for the believers.”(10:57), This is why the Lataif of Islam focus on the points in and near the heart because the heart is the first point Allah gives light to. The Quran is called a healing for mankind because through it’s recitation and contemplation a person generates energy and receives energy, in these verses Allah is saying a specific type of energy or light from him that heals the believers and causes oppressors loss, “And when I am ill, it is He Who cures me.”(26:80)

“(Declare O Muhammad) It (the Quran) is a Guidance and a Healing to those who believe.” (41:44) here again the Quran, a book, is called a healing for the physical and spiritual illness of man, this is because the human body is a complete system connected and interwoven together from our physical organs to our spiritual systems to our psychological self.

It was narrated that Abu Sa’eed (r.a) said: “A group of the companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) set out on a journey and traveled until they stopped in (the land of) one of the Arab tribes. They asked them for hospitality but they refused to welcome them. The chief of that tribe was stung by a scorpion and they tried everything but nothing helped them. Some of them said, ‘Why don’t you go to those people who are camped (near us), maybe you will find something with them.’ So they went to them and said, ‘O people, our chief has been stung by a scorpion and we have tried everything but nothing helped him. Can any of you do anything?’ One of them said, ‘Yes, by Allaah, I will recite ruqyah (spiritual healing) for him, but by Allaah we asked you for hospitality and you did not welcome us, so I will not recite ruqyah for you until you give us something in return.’ Then they agreed upon a flock of sheep.’ Then he went and spat drily and recited over him Al-hamdu Lillaahi Rabb il-‘Aalameen [Surah al-Fatihah].

(The chief) got up as if he was released from a chain and started walking, and there were no signs of sickness on him. They paid them what they agreed to pay. Some of them (i.e. the companions) then suggested to divide their earnings among themselves, but the one who performed the ruqyah said, ‘Do not divide them until we go to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and tell him what happened, then wait and see what he tells us to do.’ So they went to the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) and told him what had happened.

The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) asked, ‘How did you know that it (al-Fatiha) is a ruqyah? (Contained spiritual healing) ’ Then he added, ‘You have done the right thing. Share out (the flock of sheep) and give me a share too.’ And the Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) smiled.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

The fact the human body literally glows, emitting light at levels that rise and fall with the day was something Islamic scholars discovered and understood about the Human body a thousand years ago and the science of the Lataif revolve around this very fact. Each Lataif point corresponds to one of the five daily prayers because that is when that point is most active, beginning with the prayer just after sunset (Maghreb), then going to the prayer between sunset and midnight (Isha), then to the dawn prayer (Fajr), then the midday prayer (Dhur) and lastly the late afternoon prayer (Asr).

The prophet (saws) understood this himself and mentioned it in the vocabulary of the Arabs of his time, because He (saws) often described the power or benefit of each prayer and the strength of it’s merits in peoples lives, the benefit and power is based on what Allah placed for it in the universe through the systems He created, this is the only way man receives anything in the universe through it’s many systems, the exception to this are miracles but no scholar ever claimed each prayer is creating a miracle by providing benefit in each persons life hence the benefits the prophet (saws) was describing are through the subatomic and physiological systems Allah created.

No two prayers are ever the same and each offers a unique benefit in peoples lives, this benefit comes through mans physiology and these are the systems that bring this benefit about in each persons.

The prophet (saws) exlained this science in the language of the Arabs living 1400 years ago, prayer is light, He (saws) said every act of worship has an impact on the human body and the human body is owed it’s light because it needs it; The Messenger of Allah (saws) said, “Every morning charity is due from every joint bone of the body of every one of you. Every utterance of Allah’s Glorification (i.e. Subhan-Allah) is an act of charity, and every utterance of praise of Him (i.e. Al-hamdu lillah) is an act of charity, and every utterance of profession of Faith (i.e. La ilaha illallah) is an act of charity, and every utterance of His Greatness (i.e. Allahu Akbar) is an act of charity; and enjoining good is an act of charity and forbidding what is disreputable is an act of charity; and two Rak’ah prayer which one offers in the forenoon (Ad- Duha) will suffice for all this.” (Muslim).

This was the language used by the prophet (saws) to bring an illiterate people living in the desert out of ignorance (Jahaliya) and ground them in science, He expressed science in words they could understand, His method was amazing and effective because it resulted in these illiterate people defeating the worlds greatest superpowers in a little over 30 years, the Romans and Persians, and founding a world empire based on knowledge, science and wisdom.

The Prophet understood the importance of purifying the body and opening the heart so Allah could guide his perception through the body by taking hold of all the senses, like his hearing and sight, which is why He (saws) asked for increased light in his faculties, “O Allah, place light in my heart, light in my hearing, light in my sight, light on my right, light on my left, light in front of me, light behind me, light above me, light below me, and make light for me,”(Bukhari) in other words strengthen the instincts of my faculties by increasing the electromagnetic field in the body and surrounding it so that ‘i am always in a perfect state’.

The First Latifah Point Is Called Qalb (Heart): The prophet (saws) said “O Allah, place light in my heart”, this spiritual faculty is located to left side of the chest, the bulk of the heart is in the centre of the chest and the remainder is towards the left side stretching towards the nipple where this point is located above.

The first latifah involves the power of imprisoning the ego, its main function is knowledge and Dhikr, the remembrance and knowledge of Allah. Its strength increases one’s capacity for Allah’s Zikr (remembrance) and opens up ones spiritual hearing. When man first begins to work on himself, this latifah opens and he begins to contemplate his own actions and gain understanding of the world of Jinn, the lowest spiritual being, because there existence is the lowest spiritual existence just above our physical one on earth.

The surah associated with the first level (or depth of the heart) is surah al Shams (91), Allah inspires the soul to know what is right and wrong for it, this is the foundation of man’s spiritual reality and the lataif, through them the body is equipped to receive spiritual guidance.

The Lataif points are very important because they shape a persons reality, how we perceive the world. Allah in a hadith Qudsi said “I am as my servant thinks I am, I am with him whenever He remembers me: If He thinks of Me, I think of Him; if He mentions Me in a gathering, I mention him in a gathering even better than it. If He draws near to Me a hand’s span, I draw near to him an arm’s length; If he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I draw closer to him by two arms length; and if he comes to Me walking, I go to him running.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

This hadith tells us the speed at which Allah changes a person’s reality as He remembers him. Because Allah has no need of travel, He doesn’t have a body and isn’t in creation, when He says “I go to Him running” this refers to mans perception of Him, meaning ‘I shape his reality quickly’, the more a person comes to Allah by remembering Him the faster Allah changes his perception.

The prophet (saws) said Ihsan (human perfection) is to worship Allah as if you see Him which is the highest form of worship and the end of this path. Allah says “He is with you, wherever you are” (57:4), “And we are nearer to him than his jugular vein”(50:16) Allah in the second verse is saying you will find my nearness in you already.

The muslim day begins at Maghreb which is the prayer just after sunset, hence we move from the Latifah most active at maghreb to the next at Isha then to the next at Fajr which is the deepest spiritual point and is at night time, then we continue to the Dhur latifah and then to the Asr which is the end of the Islamic day, if we trace this pattern in the diagram below it makes an hourglass shape and is a daily cycle that influences each human.

The colours below associated with each point represent the four seasons and black represents death and the next life it is deepest spiritual point in man, in the centre of his heart. The light (energy) in our body fluctuates throughout the day, we receive the least at night when there is little light, this is the cycle of influence the body goes through, Allah put us on earth and subjected us to the four seasons of the earth, which are also cycles of increased and decreased light (energy) in earths atmosphere and they shape who we are, this is alluded to in surah al shams where Allah teaches man about what shapes his soul in the subatomic world, He begins with the suns solar activity, then the moon then the earth and it’s atmosphere which are the four seasons, the scholars understood all this and developed the science of the Lataif around this knowledge.

The Second Latifah Is Called Sir (secret) or Ruh (Soul): The site of this Latifah, which is a faculty of the human soul, is on the right side of the chest at the same level as the Qalb (heart) latifah. Imam Ali said the soul is located or centered in the lungs which these points work through. The primary function of this latifah is concentration towards Allah, when man opens his heart to this depth, he gains knowledge of Alam al Araf (The Unseen world, surah al Araf which means ‘the heights’ has a similar name), this is at the depth of the unseen (subatomic) world that the soul begins to work at, when a person has reached (opened) this depth in his heart it then becomes easier to see those who have died in our dreams and visions, like the prophets or relatives.

Allah opens mans spiritual vision and he is able to see things from the unseen world, like the Jinn or visions in his sleep, “We have stripped from thee the Veil that covered thee and thy (inner) vision, this day is iron” (50:22) we sometimes have dreams but don’t see them clearly or remember them when we wake up, when a person opens his heart those visions are easier to see and remember, the key to the second latifah is Dhikr with la ilaha illallah, focusing the self on Allah focuses our inner vision so it sees better.

The Third Latifah Is Called Sir al Sir (secret of the secret) or just Sirri (Secret): This is located below the Qalb (heart) latifah and functions to make possible Kashf (unveiling) from the unseen world, unveiling means the person’s ability to see through the veil (Barzakh) that hinders man’s sight of the unseen world. The prophets had clear vision of the unseen world because nothing hindered the sight of their heart, “And He (Allah) revealed unto His slave that which He revealed. The heart lied not (in seeing) what it saw.” (53:10-11)

This depth of the heart is where Allah records His commands for the individual in similitude (at the same time) as it is recorded for him in Lawh al Mahfouz (the preserved tablet) which Angels take mans fate from.

At this depth of the unseen (subatomic) world man is aquatinted with ‘Alam al misl’, the Allegorical realm (realm here just refers to a depth and not another world), dreams are allegorical representations of what is occurring in the unseen world, the subatomic universe, events in life take on forms in the unseen world this is the subatomic world beyond the particles that just float around because other things beside us exist which shape that part of the universe, sometimes we see them in our dreams or visions.

A perfect example of this is the prophet’s (saws) night journey as He (saws) travelled from makkah to madinah Allah showed the prophet the reality of people on earth, as their actions took on form in the spiritual world. One example, as He (saws) was traveling with Jibril (as), the prophet (saws) saw people who in front of them had excellent meats disposed in pots and also putrid, foul meat, and they would eat from the foul meat and not touch the good meat. He (saws) said What is this O Jibril? He replied: These are the men from your community (who are still alive) who had an excellent, lawful wife at home and who would go and see a foul woman and spend the night with her; and the women who would leave her excellent, lawful husband to go and see a foul man and spend the night with him. (The connection between the physical world and the unseen world and it’s literal relationship within dreams which are allegory is discussed in the next section, Imam Ibn Arabi also explains this in detail in works, of which we have quoted in our book Imam Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe).

The Soul latifah is sometimes instead called Sir (secret) and this Lataif is instead called Sir as Sir (the secret of the secret) by different sufi tariqah’s. Allah says the soul is a Sir (secret) from him, and the Quran is were much of the terminology originated from, it is an encompassing term that relays both it’s name and function at the same time, that Sir al Sir is a greater depth, than the Sir Latifah because sir means hidden knowledge and refers to depth of knowledge one is gaining from the unseen world, “Allah has encompassed (in ghayb) all things in knowledge” (65:12) hence sir al sir is a greater subatomic depth, this is also why the last latifah point which is the deepest is called Akhfa (the most Hidden).

This Latifah point allows a person to properly see the unseen world and receive knowledge and experience from it, dreams are one type of Kashf (unveiling) from the unseen world, through dreams we gain both knowledge, experience and feelings because the soul is giving information to the heart and the heart is giving information to the body which it is physically reacting to, this is how dreams have physical consequences on the body, we live out the dream just like we live out real life.

The prophets and saintly men (Awliya) experience other kinds of unveilings (Kashf) such as visions whilst they are awake, Imam Kubra who first developed the science of the Lataif wrote books to help explain the meaning of these visions, which come from deeper within the unseen quantum universe rather than our immediate surroundings that influence normal dreams.

The prophet (saws) said “who ever sees me in a dream will see me whilst awake; the Shaytan (devil) can not take on my form” (Bukhari) this means if a person saw the prophet (saws) in a dream the prophets (saws) soul will visit that person when he is a wake, some people are able to see Him when He visits them most can not. The hadith was meant for people after His (saws) death because the reassurance that shaytan can not imitate Him was not for the companions He (saws) was protected whilst alive, the reassurance was for the time when people would come to see his soul whilst awake because people are not certain if what they saw was real or a trick. Most people can’t see the unseen world but their soul will see the prophet (saws) regardless and benefit from his presence, like the Quran He (saws) is a Lamp for the soul.

This is a role Allah gave his prophet (saws), many scholars who had been given visions of the unseen world reported seeing Him (saws) whilst awake because they had purified their hearts enough to see that world, “O Prophet! We have sent you as a witness, a bearer of good tidings and of warning, And as a summoner unto Allah by His permission, and as a lamp that giveth light.” (33:45-46).

As the majority of scholars throughout history believe, the prophet’s (saws) are alive in their graves, just like the Quran says martyrs are alive in Jannah (heaven), and they can travel because when the prophet (saws) went on His (saws) night journey (Isra wal Miraj) He (saws) visited them and saw them in their graves on earth, then when He (saws) travelled to Jannah (heaven) He (saws) again saw the prophets, who had left their graves and were in different levels of Jannah having different roles in each level.

The scholars deduced they had roles after death from the fact that each level of Jannah corresponds to a nearness to Allah (and a deeper depth in the subatomic universe) until we reach the Arsh (throne) of Allah (which is the furthest limit or depth in subatomic space), so these levels of Jannah where not their final destination (or reward) because each prophet (as) is deserving of the highest part of Jannah (Heaven).

This is why each Latifah point corresponds to a different prophet, “Latifat al-qalb, the stage of the Heart, is under the authority of Sayyidina Adam , because it represents the physical aspect of the heart and this is the beginning of mans journey in this physical life.

Latifat as-sirr, the station of the Secret, is under Sayyidina Nuh, because it is the Vessel which is saved from the Ocean of Darkness, salvation from the flood of ignorance because it is the beginning of the real opening of the spiritual world and He as) is mankind’s second father, it is a point in history when all mankind would no longer become animals deserving of death.

Latifat Sirr as-Sirr, the station of the Secret of the Secret, is under two Prophets: Ibraham and Musa (as), who represent Allah’s Divine Presence on Earth, for man this is the real opening towards Allah. Allah made Ibraham the symbol of all His Khalifs on this Earth, as mentioned in the verse of the creation of mankind, “I will create a vicegerent on earth.” [2:30]. Musa was blessed with hearing and speaking to Allah which are the two essential attributes of knowledge.”

Latifat al-khafa, the Hidden Station, is under Sayyidina Isa (Jesus). Because of his relationship with Hidden Knowledge, he represents spiritual understanding, Allah increased Him in spirituality “We gave Jesus the son of Mary Clear (Signs) and strengthened him with the holy spirit” (2:87) He moved towards the Angelic nature which is the most spiritual.

Latifat al-Akhfa, the Most Hidden Station, is under the Reality of Sayyidina Muhammad (saws), because he was granted a station high above that of all other Prophets and messengers. He was the one who was raised up, in the Night of Ascension to the Divine Presence. This is represented by the Kalima (Sacred Phrase), because there is no la ilaha illallah without Muhammadun Rasulullah and Allah wrote this on His throne so all creation would know this, there is no knowing Allah without Muhammad Rasul Allah.

The Fourth Latifah Is Called Khaffi (Hidden): This is located below the soul Latifah and functions to perceive the presence of Allah and the beginning of perfecting the soul, it also represents intuition.

“Behold he cried to his lord in secret (Khafiya)”(19:3), the names for these points refer to the unseen world and the deeper a person can sense into it, what is hidden by Allah is deeper than what is secret, as He mentioned in the Qruan.

The end of the unseen world and the created universe in the Quran is called “Sidrat al Muntaha”, the furthest limit (depth), this is were Allah’s Arsh (throne) is, no being can pass the Arsh or know what is there, this is the significance of the prophet (saws) reaching Sidrat al Muntaha on the night of His ascension into Jannah (al Isra wal Miraj).

If we can imagine looking into the atom that is one type of depth in front of us, another is going into Jannah (heaven) it’s the same depths that exist in each atom but this is spread out in the entire universe, each of it’s levels exists at a deeper subatomic depth in space. Each level of Jannah (heaven) requires that the heart is connected to a deeper level of the subatomic world so it can experience what is there otherwise it will be blind to it, Allah placed different prophets in charge of guiding people at each depth of the heart, it is one reason why people are visited by different prophet (as).

“So did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His Servant- (Allah conveyed) what He (meant) to convey. The (Prophet’s) heart in no way falsified that which he saw.” (53:10-11) The prophets heart was capable of seeing the deepest part of the unseen world and Allah said this was significant, had the prophet (saws) not been able to see, His (saws) heart would have wavered from it’s vision and the imagination would have made up something because it was overwhelmed, “Near the Lote-tree (of furthest limit) beyond which none may pass…(His) sight never swerved, nor did it go wrong! For truly did he see, of the Signs of his Lord, (He saw) the Greatest!” (53:14,17-18)

In the Quran Allah praises the quality of His heart for being capable of seeing what Allah created at this subatomic depth of creation. The night Journey was a journey of the heart, the prophet (saws) saw the physical world and unseen world with his inner sight.

It was from everything that was recorded about this Journey, which can’t be related here, that the scholars understood the significance of the Lataif in Islam, uneducated people will simply say Allah gave the prophet (saws) “something” to be capable of going on this Journey, but “something” isn’t a scientific explanation, on the other hand the scholars deduced the science behind the human body that allowed Him (saws) to see on this night, this is the science behind the Lataif. (The complete account of the night journey can be read in the article entitled “The Collated Ahadith Of Isra Wal Miraj” at my blog).

The scholars understood the events of the night journey along with the verses relating to it deeper than us and took from it knowledge about the human soul and self, things occur because of (Asbab) laws Allah placed in the Universe, it is just a matter of knowing them and the science behind them.

“Your Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and earth in six Aeons (periods), then established Himself on the throne; He makes the night cover the day in swift pursuit; He created the sun, moon, and stars to be subservient to His command (the laws of the Universe, e.g. physics); all creation and command (Laws) belong to Him. Exalted is Allah, Lord of all the worlds!” (we see in space) (7:54).

The Fifth Latifah Is Called Akhfa (The Most Hidden): This is located in the middle of the heart and makes it possible for the Ruh (soul) to perceive the closeness of Allah, “And we are nearer to him than his jugular vein”(50:16) .

The naming convention used for the Lataif is in line with how people in the old world often named things, using simple and descriptive terms, for example the old name for Syria is Sham which simply means the land to the north, while Yemen means the land on the right.

The name comes from the verse “What is secret and what is more hidden (Akhfa)”(20:7), to hide something in the unseen world is to take it deeper into it, from verse 20:7 we can see why many of the Lataif where named this way because they refer to deeper levels of the heart as it penetrates deeper into the unseen world, “What is secret and what is more hidden (Akhfa)”(20:7).

This is also mentioned in the story of Adam, Allah “said, “O Adam, convey unto them (Angels) the names of these [things]” So, when he (Adam) informed them of their names, He said (to the Angels), “Did I not say to you (that) surely I know the Unseen (subatomic) of the heavens (space) and the earth and I know whatever you (Angels) reveal (bring forward towards the physical world) and whatever you used to keep back (Keep deeper in the subatomic world)” (2:33), Allah created the Angels to do His will and they choose what to bring forward and to keep deep in the unseen, this is clear from the context of Allah saying He knows the subatomic (unseen) of both space and earth before mentioning the work of the Angels.

Imam Tustari said in his Tafsir “the nafs (self) has seven celestial veils (hujub samawiyyah) and seven earthly veils (hujub ardiyyah)”, things that cover the nafs, in relation to mans character a veil is something that covers our inner perception about things, it makes us in varying degrees delusional, the imam then explained “when ever man buries his nafs (self) in earth upon earth (ardan ardan), (lowers his esteem and ego), his heart (qalb) is raised up heaven upon Heaven (sama’an sama’an). And when he (completely) buries the nafs (ego) under the ground (tahta at tara), the heart reaches the throne” (Arsh, in it’s perception and the sustenance it receives).

When all the lataif points become receptive we gather information from greater depths and can understand a more complex picture of life.

This is the meaning behind the hadith in which Allah places His hand in the prophets (saws) chest to allow his heart to know all knowledge on earth so He can understand the conversation of the Angels near the Arsh (throne), a wide array of knowledge was required so He (saws) could put together the more complex picture of life needed to understand the conversation of the highest Angels.

By reaching this Latifah point the person begins to understand how the universe works, from it’s hidden realties to it’s manifest laws and can complete the picture of how things exist, He understands the meaning of “for you we have revealed whatever is in the earth and the heavens”, this centre is associated with deep perception and is only accessible to a person who has developed the others, at this point a person is called a sage.

In the Quran Allah says He established Himself on the Arsh (throne), which is an allusion to something because Allah has no form or body and isn’t in creation, but the Arsh (throne) is, so if we consider the Arsh (throne) we know it has a location and it is at the furthest limit of subatomic space at the end of all the levels of Jannah, in Allah saying He established himself on the Arsh means He is associating it with His qualities directly and in a complete manner, hence this Latifah point which puts the greater picture of life together is called the most Hidden, the deepest.

These five Lataif points are the basis for the Tariqa (path of tassawwuf) and it’s teachings, which scholars use to purify a person, they are the levels of the heart as it penetrates (perceives) deeper into the unseen world (ghayb) through it’s connection to the soul. The inner sight of the prophet Muhammad (saws) penetrated the deepest of any prophet into that world, Allah then connected this feat with the perfection of His (saws) heart by praising it in the Quran.

Unlike acupuncture points which deal with energy as it flows through the body then connects to the heart and soul, the lataif begin with the heart and deal with how it penetrates into the body, this is the most top down approach to healing and helping the body.

The word quantum comes from the latin word quantus which means quantity or “how much”, today it is used to refer to a universe filled with small subatomic particles in space that are created from even smaller particles, this smallness doesn’t end except at the Arsh (throne) of Allah.

What Allah is teaching man is that space isn’t empty He has created an entire universe of things from quantum particles which we can’t see, Human’s are unique in that they are physical creatures with intelligence, while other intelligent creatures are not physical, like the Jinn made from thermal energy (fire) and Angels made from photons (Light) and the Buraq which the prophet (saws) rode on in his night journey, (the article at my blog “The Ahadith Regarding Life On Other Worlds” elaborates on this subject further).

The prophet (saws) spoke about the depths of the Unseen world (quantum world) directly and likewise gave names for each depth, but they where descriptive of their role in space (and physics) not the heart, Imam Tabari records them in the first volume of his Tarikh (history) which deals with the creation of the universe. (Insha Allah we will write about the prophets (saws) knowledge of space in a future work, my book Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe covers much of these ahadith).

Each Lataif point is associated with the perfection of one of our senses, the Heart Latifah is associated with hearing, the Soul (or Sir) Latifah with vision, the Sir (or Sir al Sir) is associated with touch, the Khafa Latifah smell and the Akhfa Latifah with taste. Allah mentions this in a hadith Qudsi were He takes hold of mans senses, literally saying they become His senses, in order to shape the persons perception of the universe so he can know Him and love him, when He loves him that is when He grants him miracles;

Th prophet (saws) said “Allah (mighty and sublime be He) said: Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory (extra) works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful servant: he hates death and I hate hurting him.” (Bukhari).

The heart’s depth into the unseen world reaches the deepest subatomic level, we can do this because the soul id made from the particles that exist at the deepest subatomic depth, hence perfecting the self and becoming a complete person (Insan Kamel or Bashran Sawiya in the Quran) is a matter of following the path Allah already placed in us.

“Say, “The spirit (rooh) is from the command (amr) of my Lord” (17:85) literally the soul is one of the laws of the universe, the particles at the deepest subatomic depths are given this kind of description because they are responsible for creating the laws of physics, the Higgs field is responsible for giving particle Mass without it most of the laws of physics would not exist, the Kursi which is an even deeper subatomic field is responsible for Allah’s knowledge, this relates to quantum entanglement which surrounds all things in knowledge deciding how they form and the creation of time in the universe, Allah says He is Time, while the Arsh is responsible for all creation being able to know Allah and His qualities, it brings everything together so the bigger picture can be seen.

Allah “the most gracious “Istawa” (is established) on the Throne (Arsh)” (20:5), “He fashioned him (man) in due proportion, and breathed into him something of His (own) spirit. And He gave you (the faculties of) hearing and sight and feeling (meaning because it is from Allah’s own spirit we are able to experience life as we know it, while other creatures like Angels experience life differently): little thanks do ye give!”(32:9)

“When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of My spirit, fall ye (Angels) down in obeisance unto him.” Imam Suyuti said regarding this verse in his tafsir “So, when I have proportioned him, completed him, and breathed, caused to flow, of My Spirit in him, so that he becomes a living thing — the annexation of ‘the Spirit’ to him is a conferring of honor upon Adam” (15:29)

We honour things in ourself by having a high regard for them, in the unseen world Honor is given literally, things are raised and lowered and clothed in special qualities, this is part of the role of Angels, “I know whatever you (Angels) reveal (bring forward towards the physical world) and whatever you used to keep back (deeper in the subatomic world)” (2:33) in the Unseen world the honor befitting Allah and the human soul is represented by a location and that is the Arsh which He established Himself upon, so Allah honouring something by saying it is from Him self is to bring it to Himself, hence the soul is originated from the Arsh.

‘The heart of man is called the “true essence of a human being” (al Jurjani), containing “all levels of inner being” (al Hakeem al Tirmidhi), and for the prophets (saws) it is the place of revelation. Concerning mans ability to perceive and know Allah (Taqwa) the prophet (saws) said while pointing to his heart “God-wariness is right here” (al taqwa hahuna), this is it’s function to have the ability of knowing Allah fully, the only other thing Allah said knows Him properly is the Arsh which He established Him self upon.

These are the five Lataif points of Islam, there are more in the body but scholars focus on these, the following two lataif points exist elsewhere in the body and have separate roles indirectly relating to the heart and soul.

The Sixth Latifah Is Called Nafs (self or ego): This Latifah is located at the centre of the forehead, below the starting of the hair (some place it slightly lower), and functions to purify the human soul. Man’s struggle against his ego purifies the soul from being buried in darkness and helps it grow, Imam Rumi said “Allah turns you from one feeling to another and teaches by means of opposites so that you will have two wings to fly, not one”.

Allah’s universe and what He created is vast man could dedicate his life to learning and knowing anything in it, this struggle to know and it’s results help give the soul direction, and by the end of man’s life each person’s soul is unique because his life was unique, this will then decide what his after life will look like. Man will be given according to the light Allah grants the soul and the next creation will revolve around the human soul and what it knows, wants and achieved, this is the Jannah (Heaven) Allah promised.

The prophet (saws) said about the people of Jannah “Their Lord will say to them, ‘I have removed from you the provision of worship (your bodies need), and I have made your bodies to rest (they no longer need to work in any way). Long it is that you have tired your bodies for Me and now you have come to My Mercy and Generosity, so ask me whatever you please and hope from Me: I will give you all of your wishes, for I will not reward you today in proportion to your deeds, but rather in proportion to My Mercy, My Generosity My Exaltedness, My High Place, and the Greatness of My Affair.’” (The Greatness of his existence and nature, in relation to us) (Ibn kathir)

In this life the laws of physics govern how things work and how people receive things, while in this hadith Allah has removed many of these laws and replaced it with a Universe that is governed by a different set of laws were man’s body no longer needs to work to get anything he wants, Allah called worship a provision because of what it produces in the human body from the subatomic to the physical, because man’s body and self are no longer in need of worshiping Allah the machine will no longer need oil to run and stay conditioned. What Allah said in surah al Asr about man, his body and the Laws of this universe, “Lo! man is in a state of loss” (103:2), will no longer exist in the next one.

Very literally the second law of thermodynamics and entropy of the universe will no longer exist, the next universe will be created to last and won’t head towards a big chill or big crunch or have any kind of end, so there won’t be any systems in the universe that waste energy or take it towards a finality the laws of the universe will be self sustaining for eternity.

Everything will be granted to man according to what we have earned in this life, the extent of it is according to Allah’s greatness, and the soul is key to what we are and what we will be, we shape our soul in this life and live according to what we achieved in the next.

Allah mentions this Lataif point in the Quran in relation to Abu Jahl who was trying to stop the prophet (saws) from praying at the Kaaba, “No! If he does not stop, We shall drag him by his forehead, his lying, sinful forehead.” (96:15-16), the ego (nafs) is the centre of sin and lying in the body, and Allah located it here. Physiological in the brain this is the centre of aggression and planning in man any sin or act of lying he commits is done by this portion of the brain hence it is the seat of the ego, when man is cut of from his spiritual heart his ego begins to dominate his personality, he begins to think in a heartless dry rational manner that is devoid of substance, peoples lives are like a number on a piece of paper and it is easier to treat others as faceless masses.

Some sufi Tariqa’s place this point below the naval, they say because below the naval is the birth canal of life for man but this is limited to women, or because they state that food is the source of evil for the ego the fact is food is not part of mans physiology so it isn’t the ego and man doesn’t think from below the naval, and the part of the brain behind the forehead is responsible for lying and sin (wrong acts) in the body as well as man’s sense of direction in life, in religious terms this is called his fate, the nafs has a higher role to play in mans consiousness than the place were food is stored.

These tariqa’s are correct in that below the naval is a source for evil, even in modern terms we have the saying “gut feeling”, “what does your gut tell you” etc, which is a reference to waswasa (whispering) of the Jinn, and evil Jinn deriving influence and power over a person from what he ate, but these are not part of man’s physiology they are external things influencing man, because this is a matter of science there are different opinions on the subject but today we have a better undressing of mans physiology.

Together with the five previous Lataif these are commonly known as the Lataif al Sita (the six Lataif). The following latifah point is another that some Sufi Tariqa’s use as well.

The Seventh Latifah Is Called Sultan al-Azkar (the leader of remembrance): This Latifah is located at the top centre of the head and serves to absorb the Barakah (blessing) from Allah into the entire body, so that every cell resonates with Zikr (barakah of remembrance), in some tariqa’s this Latifa is also called latifa Qalbiyah.

Allah sends down light into a persons heart, as well as other things we call barakah like peace (Salam) and tranquility (Sakina), when it descends this Lataif benefits from Allah’s blessings, “He it is who sent down tranquility into the hearts of the faithful” (48:4)

“Surely the hearing, the sight and the heart, all of those shall be questioned” (17:36), “when the heart is illuminated, the whole personality is affected. When the inside is purified, the outside displays it. When a battery becomes charged it illuminates light bulbs and makes motors work.” Every single cell in the body produces photons (light) and through it sends and receives information that the body needs to regulate itself, prayer is light and light interacts with other light.

“The training of Sultan al Azkar is such that while, doing the Zikr of ALLAH’s Name, its influence flows throughout and envelops the whole person. It is like touching an electric wire when the current flows through the whole body and every single cell feels its effect (every cell produces photons and uses photons). Similarly, through Sultan al Azkar the whole body, all the limbs, every single strand of hair and every single drop of blood is suffused by the remembrance of ALLAH (which is a source of light). The strength that it gives to the mind diverts the direction of its thoughts to the Will of ALLAH (making it easy to perform right actions, Allah expands the breast). If a hand is to rise it will rise for the welfare of all creations and to aid justice. The eyes will refuse to witness injustice. The ears are only prepared to hear truth. In short, every limb in the body is engaged in the exaltation of justice and the welfare of all creations.”

“When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks.”

“Since the seat of acquiring the nearness of ALLAH, rests in actions and the instruments of these actions are the limbs, the questions concerning the execution of the Divine injunctions will be directed towards the limbs. The ordinance of the Creator is: Surely the hearing, the sight and the heart, all of those shall be questioned. (17:36)

“That Day shall We set a seal on their mouths. But their hands will speak to Us, and their feet will bear witness to all that they did.” (36:65) a thing can only speak about what it knows, hence the hands will speak about the actions of the hands and the feet about the actions of the feet.

“At length when they reach it (the Fire) their hearing, their sight and their skins will bear witness against them, as to all their deeds. They will say to their skins, “Why bear you witness against us. They will say: ALLAH has given us speech; He gives speech to everything.” (41:20-21) this is a unique type of speech we know in science, every atom, cell and organ in the body records the history of what it experiences, just like a scar on the arm is testament to the fact the arm was injured or the diseased liver is a witness to alcohol abuse.

“The influence of the illumination of latifa Qalbiyah and its demand (on the body) is that, a human should keep a strict eye on his practical life. In the use of his ears, eyes and all other organs he should keep in mind the approval of the beloved. His ears are not ready to hear anything improper. His eyes cannot lift up to see any obscenity, no matter how attractive it may be. His tongue cannot utter anything improper. His feet refuse to walk in the wrong direction and his hands can never be a source of pain to others. The centre of his thoughts and reflections is nothing but the pleasure of ALLAH and the ways and means to achieve this goal.”

“The main base for the spiritual journey are the lataif, that is why a devotee is taught the lataif as the first chapter of Tasawwuf or the spiritual Journey. Therefore, in every chain of the Sufi Order whether it is Qadriah, Naqshbandiah, Chishtiah, or Suharwardiah, the lataif are accepted as the basis of Sulook. In Naqshbandiah the training and education of these lataif are through Zikr ALLAH. After all the lataif are illuminated, the Ruh finds strength to direct the body in the right direction. Secondly, it becomes strong enough for its flight to its native land (the spiritual world). In other words, the thoughts and reflections are in the right direction and a firm belief in ALLAH is created. A change is brought about in the character and conduct of person and he becomes an obedient servant of ALLAH in the true sense, in order to live a perfect life in this world and in the Hereafter.”

After practising Zikr ALLAH upon all the seven lataif individually, the devotee is directed back to the first latifa that is the latifa Qalb, because it is the beginning and centre of all inward and outward qualities in the heart.

Contained in the hadith of Jibril where He asked the prophet (saws), what is islam, iman, the hour and ihsan, are two names. The answer concerning Ihsan- excellence, is that we should worship Allah as if we saw Him, because if we do not see Him, He sees us. These names are the description of two main practices: mushahada- witnessing, to be as if you see Him, and if Allah grants it, it will be as if we actually see Him, this is witnessing or mushahada. The second is Muraqaba and refers to the second part of the prophets (saws) answer: to always be aware that He sees you. It comes from the word al-Raqib- The Watchful, referring to the ayat-Signs Allah mentions in the Qur’an and means we always see the signs of Allah in creation because seeing them is to be aware of Him and how He is watching us.

“And know that Allah knows what is in your minds, so fear Him.”(2:235), “And Allah is Ever a Watcher over all things.”(33:52), “And He is with you wherever you may be.”(57:4) Allah would not say this if we could not know it, hence as the prophet (saws) answered Jibril, through Ihsan there is a way of seeing Allah and Allah is seen through creation, in the process one will come to know creation through the eyes of the creator, “I am His Eyes when he sees”.

All that we have explained in this article shouldn’t insha allah be understood as something unique or happens to other people, this is the physiology of every person, this is the science behind what think is the chaos in our life, why we experience and feel things randomly or unexpectedly, it is only chaos if we can’t understand the reasons (asbab) behind it. This is why when a person trains spiritually one of the main states or stations he achieves is the station of muraqaba, meaning he begins to see the causes behind why things occur to him in life, and their origin, this is so he can fix them and correct the source of harm that is coming to him.

When an entire community achieves muraqaba and is correcting the sources of harm in the world, this was the community in Madinah during the time of the prophet (saws), this is the real Islamic Ummah.

There are many things in the unseen world we don’t know about yet but which the scholars have considered with depth, so there is a side to us that is influenced by these creations whose basis is light and subatomic particles. It is clear that this world and the unseen world (ghahb) are one and the same universe, we live in the physical world while most of Allah’s creation lives in the subatomic depths of the universe, the vastness of space attests to this, we only think it’s empty while Allah has filled it with creatures of a different nature, it’s more reasonable to assume that because most matter in the universe is subatomic not physical most creatures in the universe would be created from them, and in the prophets (saws) words we live in the universe while they live on it.

The prophet (saws) said about the creation on the day of judgment “The earth will be changed to another earth and so will be the heavens. Then He will unfold, even out, spread, and then extend it (the universe), like the extending of tanned leather… You will see therein nothing crooked or curved. Then Allah will drive out (resurrect) the creation with one driving, and they will be like they were the first time: whoever was inside of it will be inside of it, and whoever was on it will be on it.” (Ibn Kathir).

It’s significant to know that subatomic particles are small, much smaller than atoms, and like we are made from atoms but are 6ft tall, subatomic creatures are created from these small particles but their size can be greater than planets, many Angels have been reported to be these sizes. Subatomic particles pass through everything in space including the earth itself like it wasn’t even there, in fact there are about 60 billion neutrinos passing through a persons fingernail every single second.

Usayd bin Hudayr narrated:…that while he was reciting ‘al-Baqarah’ at night, and his horse was tied beside him, the horse was suddenly startled and troubled. When he stopped reciting, the horse became quiet, and when he started again, the horse was startled again. Then, he stopped reciting, and the horse became quiet, too. He started reciting again, and the horse was startled and troubled once again. Then, he stopped reciting, and his son, Yahya, was beside the horse. He was afraid that the horse might trample him. When he took the boy away and looked towards the sky, he could not see it (any longer, the thing that startled the horse). The next morning he informed the Prophet who said: “Recite, O Ibn Hudayr! Recite, O Ibn Hudayr!” Ibn Hudayr replied: “O Messenger of Allah! My son, Yahya, was near the horse, and I was afraid that it might trample him, so, I looked towards the sky, and went to him. When I looked at the sky, I saw something like a cloud containing what looked like lamps (lights), and I went out in order not to see it.” The Prophet said: “Do you know what that was?” Ibn Hudayr replied: “No.” The Prophet said: “Those were Angels who came near you for your voice, and if you had kept on reciting till dawn, it would have remained there till morning for the people to have seen it, as it would not have disappeared.”(‘Sahih al-Bukhari’; # 5018)

The hue of light from a light bulb can be described as a cloud, and similarly Angels are made from photons, the subatomic part of the universe is all around us and we are connected to it through our body.

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The Islamic Journal #5.

Imam Qastallani: The Divine Gifts In The Form Of The Muhammadan Grants

Al-Muwahib al-ladunniyya bi al-minah al-Muhammadiyya

The Divinely-Granted Gifts in the Form of the Muhammadan Grants

By Imam Ahmad Shihab Al Deen Al Qastallani (d.923 AH)

Translated by Staff of As-Sunna Foundation of America

One should keep in mind the ancient world didn’t have a complete picture of the universe so matters concerning the first things Allah created were understood vaguely by our standards.

Imam Al-Qastallani said in al-Mawahib al-Laduniyya (al-Zarqani’s Sharh 3:174):

The name Muhammad matches its meaning exactly and Allah thus named him Himself before he was thus named

[by people]. It constitutes one of the signposts of his Prophet-hood, for his name confirms his truth. Thus he is praised (Mahmud) in the world with whatever knowledge and wisdom he guides to and benefits with; and he is praised (Mahmud) in the hereafter with the office of intercession.” (saws)

On how Allah bestowed honour upon Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), by giving precedence to his Prophethood. Also, on the purity of his lineage, the signs that accompanied his conception, birth, and upbringing.

The Creation of the Blessed Soul

When Allah made the Divine decree to bring Creation into existence, He brought forth the Muhammadan Reality from His Lights. He then pulled away from this Reality all the worlds, upper and lower. Allah then informed Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) of his Prophethood, while Adam was nothing but soul and body. Then from him gushed forth the springs of the souls, making him superior to all created things, and the greater father to all things in existence.

In Sahih Muslim, the Prophet (saw) said that Allah wrote the Destinies of the Creation fifty thousands years before He created the Heavens and Earth, and His Throne was on the Water, and among the things that have been written in the Dhikr, which is the Mother of the Book, is that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is the Seal of Prophets. Al Irbadh ibn Sariya, said that the Prophet (saw) said, “According to Allah, I am the Seal of the Prophets, while Adam was still in clay.”

Maysara Al Dhabbi (r) said he asked the Prophet (saw), “Oh, Messenger of Allah, when did you become a Prophet?” He (s) answered, “While Adam was still between the soul and the body.”

Suhail bin Salih Al Hamadani said, “I asked Abu Ja’far Muhammad ibn Ali (ra), ‘How did Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) precede the other Prophets when he is the last to be sent?’ Abu Ja’far (ra) answered that when Allah (swt) drew forth the children of Adam and made them testify concerning Himself (answering His question, ‘Am I not your Lord?’), Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was the first to answer ‘Yes!’ Therefore, he preceded all the Prophets, even though he is the last to be sent.”

Al Shaykh Taqiy al Deen Al Subki comments on this hadith saying that since Allah (swt) created souls before bodies, Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) saying, “I was a Prophet,” is a reference to his sanctified soul, to his reality; and our minds fall short of understanding these realities. No one can understand them except the One who created them, and those whom Allah (swt) has supported with divine light.

So, Allah (swt) has bestowed Prophethood upon the soul of the Prophet (saw) before even the creation of Sayyidina Adam (as); for He created it thus, and He blessed immeasurably this creation, writing Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) name on the Heavenly Throne, and informing the angels and others of His high esteem for him. Thus, Prophet Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) reality has existed ever since, even though his blessed body came later. Al Shi’bi related that a man said: “O, Messenger of Allah, when did you become a Prophet?” He said: “when Adam was between the soul and the body, when the covenant was taken from me”. Thus he (s) is the first of the Prophets to be created, and the last to be sent.

It was narrated that the Prophet (saw) was the only one to be drawn forth from the loins of Adam before his soul was blown into him, because he (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), is the cause for the creation of mankind, he (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is their master, their substance, their extraction, and the diadem of their necklace.

Ali ibn Abi Talib (r) and Ibn Abbas (r) both narrated that the Prophet (saw) said, “Allah has never sent a Prophet, from Adam onward, unless he took from Him the covenant regarding Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam): if Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is sent in that Prophet’s lifetime, he was to believe in him and support him, and that Prophet was to take this covenant to his people as well.

It has been narrated that when Allah created the light of our Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), He ordered him to look at the lights of the other Prophets. His light covered them, and Allah had them talk and they said, “Oh, our Lord, who is covering us with his light?” Allah replied, “This is the light of Sayyidina Muhammad Ibn Abdullah (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam); if you believe in him I will make you Prophets.” They said, “We believe in him and in his Prophethood.” Allah said, “Shall I be your witness?” They said, “Yes.” Allah said, “Do you agree, and take this My covenant as binding on you?” They said, “We agree.” He said, “Then bear witness, and I am with you among the witnesses” (3-81). This is the meaning of Allah’s saying. “Behold, Allah took the covenant of the Prophets, saying, ‘I give you a book and wisdom, then comes to you a Messenger, confirming what is with you; believe in him and render him help.'”

Shaykh Takiy Deen Al Subki said, “In this noble verse the tribute to the Prophet (saw) and the veneration of his high prestige is evident. It also indicates that if he had been sent in the other Prophets’ lifetimes, that his message would have been for them to follow, too. Therefore, his Prophethood and message is general to all creation from the time of Sayyidina Adam until the day of Judgment, and all the Prophets and their nations are from among his nation. So, Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) saying, “I have been sent to all the people,” is not only for people in his time and until the day of Judgment, but also includes those before them. This further explains his saying, “I was a Prophet (saw) when Adam was still between the soul and the body.” Knowing this, Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is the Prophet of Prophets, as was made clear on the night of his Ascension, when all the Prophets (As) prayed in congregation behind him. His pre-eminence will be further evident in the Hereafter, when all the Prophets will be under his banner.

The Creation of the Sacred Body

Ka’b al Ahbaar (r) said, “When Allah wanted to create Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), he ordered the Angel Gabriel to bring him the clay which is the heart of the earth, its splendour and light. Then Gabriel descended, accompanied by the angels from the Highest Part of Paradise. He took a handful for the creation of the Prophet (saw) from the spot where his hallowed resting place is; it was shining brightly white. Then he kneaded the clay with the most superior water of creation from the Heavenly Fountain Tasneem, in the clear flowing rivers of Paradise, until it became like a white pearl with a tremendous white radiance. The angels carried it, circling the Heavenly Throne and the mountains and the oceans. In this way the angels and all creation came to know our Master Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) and his prestige, before they knew Sayyidina Adam (as).”

Ibn Abbas (ra) said, “The origin of the clay of Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is from the navel of the earth, in Mecca, at the spot where the Ka’aba is located. Therefore, Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) became the origin of creation, and all created things are his followers.”

The author of Awarif Al Ma’arif [al-Suhrawardi], said that when the Flood, surged, sending foam in every direction, the essence of the Prophet (saw), ended up near his resting ground in Medina, so he (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) became someone of both Makkah and Medina.

It has been narrated that when Allah (swt) created Sayyidina Adam (as), He (swt) inspired him to say, “Oh, Lord, why did you give me the nickname, Abu Muhammad (the father of Muhammad)?” Allah replied, “Oh, Adam, raise your head.” He raised his head and saw the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) in the canopy of the Throne. Adam then asked, “Oh, Lord, what is this light?” Allah replied, “This is the light of a Prophet from your progeny. His name in the heavens is Ahmad, and on Earth it is Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam). If it were not for him, I would not have created you, nor heaven, nor the Earth.”

Abd Al Razzaq narrates, from Jabir bin Abdullah (r), that he said, “Oh, Messenger of Allah, may my father and my mother be sacrificed to you, tell me about the first thing that Allah (swt) created, before all other things.” He said, “Oh, Jabir, Allah created, before anything else, the light of your Prophet (saw) from His Light. That light started to move about by Allah’s Divine Power to wherever Allah wished. At that time there was neither Tablet nor Pen; neither Paradise nor Fire, no angels; neither Heaven, nor Earth; neither Sun nor Moon; neither Jinn nor humankind. When Allah (swt) wanted to create His Creation, He divided that light into four parts. From the first part he created the Pen, from the second, the Tablet, and from the third, the Throne. Then He divided the fourth part into four parts: the first part formed the bearers of the Throne, the second part became the Footstool, and from the third He created the rest of the angels. He then divided the fourth part into four parts: He created the heavens from the first part, the earths from the second, the Paradise and Fire from the third. Then he divided the fourth part into four parts: creating the light of the vision of the believers from the first part, the light of their hearts (that is knowing Allah) from the second, and from the third the light of their pleasure and joy (Uns, which is La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammadun Rasoolullah).

Another narration from Ali ibn Al Husain (r), from his father (r), from his grandfather (r), from the Prophet (saw) who said, “I was a light in front of my Lord, fourteen thousand years before the creation of Adam.” It has been narrated that when Allah (swt) created Adam (as), He (swt) put that light in his back, and it used to glow from his front overwhelming all the rest of his light. Then Allah raised it to the Throne of His Sovereignty, and had it carried on the shoulders of His angels, and ordered them to take Adam around the heavens and show him the wonders of His Kingdom.

Ibn Abbas (r) said, “Adam’s (as) creation was on Friday in the afternoon. Allah then created for him Eve, his wife, from one of his left ribs while he was asleep. When he woke up and saw her, he felt at ease with her, and he stretched his hand out to her. The angels said, ‘Stop, Adam.’ He said, ‘Why, didn’t Allah create her for me?’ They said, ‘Not until you pay her dowry.’ He asked, ‘What is her dowry?’ They answered, ‘To recite praises on Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) three times.'” [and in another narration, twenty times].

It has also been narrated that when Adam (as) left Paradise, he saw written on the leg of the Throne and on every spot in Paradise, the name of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) beside the name of Allah (subhan hu wa ta’ala). He asked, “Oh, Lord, who is Muhammad?” Allah answered, “He is your son, who, were it not for him, I wouldn’t have created you.” Then Adam said, “Oh, Lord, for the sake of this son, have mercy on this father.” Allah called out, “Oh, Adam, if you were to intercede through Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) for the inhabitants of Heaven and Earth, We would grant you intercession.”

Hasrat Umar Ibn Al Khattab (ra) said that our Master Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “When Adam committed the mistake, he said, ‘Oh, Allah, I ask you for the sake of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) to forgive me.’ Allah (swt) said to him, ‘How did you know Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) when I haven’t created him yet.’ Adam answered, ‘Because, O My Lord, when You created me with Your Hand, and blew into me from Your Spirit, I looked up and saw written on the legs of the Throne, La ilaha illallah, Muhammadun Rasoolullah. I knew that You did not attach any name to Yours except that of the most beloved of Your creation.’ Allah (swt) said, ‘Oh, Adam, you have spoken the truth: he is the most beloved of My creation. And since you asked Me for his sake, you are forgiven. Were it not for Sayyidina Muhammad (sala lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), I would not have created you. He is the seal of the Prophets from your progeny.'”

In the Hadith of Salman (ra) it is related that: Gabriel (as) descended on the Prophet (saw) and said, “Your Lord says, ‘If I have taken Abraham as a beloved, intimate friend (Khalil), I have taken you for the same. I have never created any creation more precious to Me than you, and I have created this world and its inhabitants for the purpose of letting them know your honour and what you mean to Me; and if it were not for you I would not have created this world.'”

Bibi Hawa – Eve (as) gave birth to forty sons from Sayyidina Adam (as), in twenty births; but she gave birth to Sayyidina Seth (as) separately, out of respect to Our Master Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), whose light moved from Sayyidina Adam (As) to Sayyidina Seth (As). Before Sayyidina Adam (as) departed, he gave Seth (as) custody over his children, and he, in turn, entrusted the children with the testament of Sayyidina Adam (as): to put this light only into pure women. This testament continued, century after century, until Allah (swt) gave this light to Abdul Muttalib and his son Abdullah. In this way, Allah (swt) kept pure the impeccable lineage of Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) from the fornication of the ignorant.

Ibn Abbas (ra) said, “Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, ‘Nothing of the fornication of ignorance has touched my birth. I was born by no other than the marriage of Islam.'”

Hisham ibn Muhammad Al Kalbi narrated that his father said, “I counted for Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) five hundred mothers, and I never found in any of them a trace of fornication, or any of the ignorant one’s affairs.”

Sayydina Ali (karamullah waj ho) said that the Prophet (saw) said, “I came forth from marriage, I did not come from fornication; from Adam until I was born to my father and mother, nothing of the fornication of ignorance has touched me.”

Ibn Abbas (ra) said Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “My parents never committed fornication. Allah (swt) kept moving me from the good loins to the pure wombs, purified and refined; whenever there were two ways to go, I was in the best of them.”

Anas (r) said Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) recited, “La qad ja’akum Rasoolun min Anfasikum, and said, I am the best among you in my lineage, in my relations, and ancestry: there is no fornication in my fathers all the way back to Adam.”

Sayyidina A’isha Siddique (ra) related from the Prophet (saw) that Gabriel (as) said, “I have searched the Earth, east to west, and I have never found a man better than Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), and have never seen any father’s sons better than the sons of Hashim.”

In Sahih Al Bukhari, Abu Huraira (ra) relates that the Prophet (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “I have been sent from the best generations of the sons of Adam, one after the other, until I reached the one I am in.”

In Sahih Muslim, Wathila ibn al Aska’ narrated that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “Allah has chosen Kinana from the sons of Isma’il, and Quraish from Kinana, and from Quraish the sons of Hashim, and finally chose me from the sons of Hashim.”

Al Abbas (ra) said Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “Allah created the creation, and put me in the best groups, and the best of the two groups; then He chose the tribes, and put me in the best of their families. Therefore, I have the best personality, the best soul and nature, and possess the best origin among them.”

Ibn Umar (ra) said Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “Allah (swt) examined His creation and chose the children of Adam from among them; He examined the children of Adam and selected the Arabs from among them; He examined the Arabs and chose me from among them, so I was always the choicest of choices. Behold, people who love the Arabs, it is out of love for me that they love them, and those who hate the Arabs, it is out of hatred for me that they hate them.”

Know that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was not directly related to any brothers or sisters from his parents; he was their only child and their lineage stops at him. In this way, he exclusively enjoyed a lineage which Allah (swt) intended as the highest that Prophethood can reach, and which holds the ultimate honour.

If you examine the status of his lineage (s) and know the purity of his birth, you will be certain that his is a progeny of honourable fathers, for he is Al Nabi (saw), Al Arabi (saw), Al Abtahi (saw), Al Harami (saw), Al Hashimi (saw), Al Quraishi (saw), the elite of the Sons of Hashim(s), the one who had been chosen from the superlative tribes of the Arabs, from the best lineage, the most noble descent, the most flourishing branch, the highest pillar, the best origin, the strongest roots, possessing the most eloquent tongue, the most articulate diction, the most outweighing scale, the most perfect faith, the most powerful company, the most honourable kinfolk from both parents, and from the most honourable of Allah’s (swt) land. He (saw) has many names and the foremost of which Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) the son of Abdullah. He is also the son of Abdul Muttalib, whose name is Shaybat-ul Hamd, the son of Hashim, whose name is Amr, the son of Abd Manaaf, whose name is Al Mugheera, the son of Qusai, whose name is Mujammi’, the son of Kilaab, whose name is Hakeem, the son of Murra, the son of Ka`b (of the tribe of Quraish), the son of Lu’ai, the son of Ghalib, the son of Fihr, whose name is Quraish, the son of Maalik, the son of Al Nazhir, whose name is Qais, the son of Kinana, the son of Khuzaima, the son of Mudrika, the son of Ilias, the son of Mudhar, the son of Nizar, the son of Ma’add, the son of Adnan.

Ibn Dihia said, “The scholars agree and the scholarly consensus is proof that Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) has mentioned his lineage back to Adnan, and did not go beyond that.”

Ibn Abbas (r) related that whenever Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) mentioned his genealogy, he never went beyond Ma’add, the son of Adnan, and would stop, saying, “The genealogists have lied.” He would repeat that twice or thrice. Ibn Abbas also said, “Between Adnan and Isma’il there are thirty fathers who are not known.”

Ka’b Al Ahbaar (r) said, “When the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) arrived at Abdul Muttalib, and he had reached the age of maturity, he slept one day in the courtyard of the Ka’ba; when he woke up his eyes were blackened with antimony (kohl), his hair was oiled, and he was adorned with the robe of gorgeousness and beauty. He was amazed, not knowing who had done this to him. His father took him by the hand and hastened to the soothsayers of Quraish; they advised him to get him married, and he did. The smell of the finest musk used to exude from him, with the light of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) glowing from his forehead. Whenever there was a drought, Quraish used to take him to Mount Thabeer, and call on Allah through him asking for Allah to send rain. Allah would answer their call and send them rain because of the blessings of the light of Sayydina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam).”

When Abraha, the king of the Yemen came to destroy the sanctified house and news of this came to Quraish, Abd Al Muttalib told them, “He will not get to this House, for it is under the protection of its Lord.” On the way to Mecca, Abraha plundered Quraish’s camels and sheep, among them four hundred she-camels that belonged to Abd Al Muttalib. He and many of the Quraish rode to Mount Thabeer. After climbing the mountain the light of Allah’s Prophet (saw) appeared in the form of a circle on his forehead like a crescent, and this beam reflected on the Sanctified House. When Abd Al Muttalib saw that, he said, “Oh, people of Quraish, you may return now, it is safe. By Allah, now that this light has formed a circle on me, there is no doubt that victory belongs to us.”

They returned to Mecca where they met a man sent from Abraha. Upon looking at the face of Abd Al Muttalib the man was overwhelmed; his tongue stuttering. The man fainted, all the while bellowing like an ox being slaughtered. When he regained his senses, he fell in prostration to Abd Al Muttalib, saying, “I bear witness that you are truly the Master of Quraish.”

It has been narrated that when Abd Al Muttalib appeared before Abraha, the huge white elephant in his army looked at Abd Al Muttalib’s face and kneeled down like a camel does, and fell into prostration. Allah caused the elephant to speak, saying, “Peace be upon the light in your loins, Abd Al Muttalib.” When, the army of Abraha approached to destroy the Holy Ka’ba, the elephant kneeled down again. They beat him severely on his head to make him stand up, which he refused to do. But, when they turned him around toward Yemen, he stood. Then Allah sent against them flights of birds from the ocean, every one of them carrying three stones: one in its beak, and one in each claw. The stones were the size of lentils, and when one hit a soldier, it killed him. They fled in chaos. Abraha was stricken with a disease. His fingertips began to fall off, one by one. His body poured out blood and pus, and eventually his heart split and he died.

It is this event that Allah was referring to when He addressed His Prophet (saw) saying, “Seest thou not how thy Lord dealt with the companions of the elephant…” This event is an indication of the prestige of our Master, Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), and a sign of his Prophethood, and its establishment. It also points out the honour given to his people, and how they were protected, which caused the Arabs to submit to them and believe in their nobility and distinction, because of Allah’s protection of them and defending them against the plots of the seemingly invincible Abraha.

The Conception of the Beloved Prophet

Once while sleeping in the courtyard of the Kaa’ba after Allah (swt) had saved Abd Al Muttalib from Abraha’s wrath, he saw an amazing dream. He woke up frightened, and came to the soothsayers of Quraish, to whom he related his dream. They told him, “If it is a true vision, then from your loins someone will come whom all the inhabitants of Heaven and Earth will believe in, and who will be very well known. At that time he married Fatima, and she conceived Abdullah, Al Zabeeh (ra), whose story is well known.

Years later, when they were returning home after having sacrificed a hundred camels as a ransom to save his life, Abdullah (ra) and his father passed by a Jewish soothsayer named Fatima. When she looked at the face of Abdullah (ra), who was then the most handsome man in Quraish, she said, “I will give you the same number of camels which were sacrificed for you if you have intercourse with me now.” She said this because of the light of Prophethood that she saw in his face, and she was hoping that she would conceive this honorable Prophet. Abdullah (ra) replied,

“Regarding haram, death is better,

And I don’t see any halal in sight,

And about what you are asking for,

An honourable one must protect his honor and religion.”

The next day, Abd Al Muttalib brought him to meet Wahab ibn Abd Manaaf, who was the chief of Bani Zuhra, their master in lineage and origin. Abd Al Muttalib married Abdullah (ra) to Wahab’s daughter, Aamina (ra), who was then the best woman in Quraish, both in lineage and birth. They became husband and wife on Monday, one of the days of Mina, at the mountain pass of Abu Talib, and she conceived the Prophet (saw).

The next day, Abdullah (ra) went out and passed by the woman who proposed to him earlier. He asked her, “Why don’t you offer me what you offered me yesterday?” She replied, “The light that you were carrying yesterday has left you; therefore I have no need for you today. I was hoping to have that light in me, but Allah (swt) willed it to be put elsewhere.”

As early as the Prophet’s (saw) conception, many wonders began to happen to Amina (ra). Sahl Ibn Abdullah Al Tustari said, “When Allah (swt) created Sayydina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) in his mother’s womb, on a Friday night during the month of Rajab, he ordered Ridwan, the Keeper of Paradises, to open the Highest Paradise. A caller announced in the Heavens and Earth that the concealed light which would form the guiding Prophet (saw) would settle on that very night in his (saw) mother’s womb where his (saw) creation would be completed. It was also revealed that he would come out as a bearer of glad tidings and as a warner. (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam)

It is narrated by Ka’b Al Ahbaar (r), that on the night of the Prophet’s (saw) conception it was announced in Heaven and each of its divisions, and on Earth and all its corners, that the concealed light, from which the Prophet of Allah (saw) was made, would settle in Aamina’s (ra) womb.

Also, on that day all the idols on Earth turned upside down. Quraish was suffering from a severe drought and great distress, but through this blessed event the earth turned green and the trees bore fruit, and blessing came to them from every direction. Because of these blessed signs, the year when Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was conceived was called the ‘Year of Triumph and Joy’.

Ibn Ishaq narrated that Amina (ra) used to say how she had been visited by angels while she was pregnant with the Prophet (saw), and she was told, “You are pregnant with the master of this nation.” She also said, “I never felt that I was pregnant with him, and I never experienced any difficulties or food cravings like other women do; I only noticed that my menstruation had stopped. Once, an angel came to me while I was in between sleeping and wakefulness, and said, ‘Do you feel that you are pregnant with the Master of people?’, then he left me. When the time of birth approached, he came again and said. ‘Say: I seek refuge for him with The One from the evil of every envious one. and name him (Sayyidina) Muhammad.'” (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam)

Ibn Abbas (ra) said, “One of the miracles of the Prophet’s (saw) conception was that on that night, every one of Quraish’s animals spoke and said, ‘By the Lord of the Ka’aba, the Messenger of Allah has been conceived. He is the leader of the world and the light of its inhabitants. There is no throne belonging to any king of this world which hasn’t been turned upside down tonight.’ The beasts of the east rushed to the beasts of the west carrying the good news, and likewise the inhabitants of the oceans greeted each other. Every day of the month of his conception there was a call in Heaven and a call on Earth: Rejoice, the time is near when Abul Qasim will appear, blessed and fortunate.”

Another narration indicates that on that night, each and every home was illuminated, and the light reached everywhere and each and every beast spoke.

Abu Zakariya Yahia ibn Aa’ith said, “Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) remained in his mother’s womb the entire nine months, during which she never had any complaints of pain or anything that pregnant women often experience. She used to say, ‘I have never seen an easier pregnancy than this one, or a more blessed one.'”

When Amina (ra) was in her second month of pregnancy, Abdullah died in Medina amongst his uncles of the Bani Al Najjar, and was buried in Al Abwa’. It has been mentioned that when Abdullah (ra) died, the angels said, “Oh, our Lord and Master, your Prophet has become an orphan.” Allah said, “I am his Protector and Supporter.”

The Miraculous Birth of the Prophet (saw)

Amr ibn Qutaiba heard his father, who was very knowledgeable, say, “When it was time for Amina (ra) to give birth, Allah (swt) said to the angels, ‘Open all the gates of Heaven, and the gates of Paradise.’ The sun on that day was dressed with a great light, and in that year Allah (swt) allowed all the women on Earth to conceive boys, for the sake of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam).”

Ibn Abbas (ra) said Amina (ra) used to relate, “An angel came to me in a dream during my sixth month of pregnancy and said to me, ‘Oh, Amina, you are pregnant with the best of the worlds. When you give birth to him name him (Sayyidina) Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), and keep it secret.’ When I started to experience the pains of labour no one knew that I was home alone, including Abd Al Muttalib who was doing his circumambulation of the Ka’aba. I heard a loud bang that scared me. Then I saw what looked like the wing of a white bird, rubbing my heart, causing all fear to subside, and every pain I was feeling disappeared. Before me appeared a white drink which I drank, after which a bright light fell upon me and I was surrounded by some women, tall as palm trees, who looked like the women of Abd Manaaf. I was amazed, thinking, ‘Oh, how did they find out about me?’ They said to me, ‘We are Asiya, Pharaoh’s wife, and Maryam, the daughter of Imran.’ My condition continued to intensify, and I could hear the banging getting louder and more frightening hour after hour. While I was still going through this I suddenly saw a piece of white silk stretched between Heaven and Earth, and heard someone say, ‘Hide him so people can not see him.’ I saw men standing in the air with silver jugs in their hands. I saw a group of birds filling my room, each possessing emerald beaks and ruby wings. Then Allah (swt) removed the veil from my sight, and I witnessed the whole Earth east and west, and three banners erected; one in the east, one in the west and one on top of the Ka’aba. Then I gave birth to (Sayyidina) Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam). Immediately he (saw) was prostrating, raising his two hands (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) to Heaven as if in humble supplication. Then I saw a white cloud coming from Heaven which covered him (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) causing him to disappear from my sight, and I heard a voice calling, ‘Take him around to all the corners of earth, east and west, and into the oceans, so all will know him by his name, his attributes, and his form.’ Then the cloud quickly disappeared.”

Al Khateeb Al Baghdadi narrates that Amina (ra) said, “When I gave birth to (Sayyidina) Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) I saw a large illumined cloud, wherein I heard horses neighing, wings flapping, and men talking. It covered him and he disappeared from my sight. Then I heard a voice calling, ‘Take (Sayyidina) Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) all over the Earth. Show him to every spiritual being; the Jinn, human beings, angels, birds, and wild beasts. Give to him the shape of Adam (as), the knowledge of Seth (as), the courage of Noah (as), the intimacy of Abraham (as), the tongue of Ismail (as), the contentment of Isaac (as), the eloquence of Salih (as), the wisdom of Lot (as), the glad tidings of Jacob (as), the strength of Moses (as), the patience of Job (as), the obedience of Jonah (as), the strife of Joshua (as), the protection of David (as), the love of Daniel (as), the reverence of Ilias (as), the impeccability of John the Baptist (as), and the asceticism of Jesus (as), and immerse him in the qualities of the Prophets (Alayhi Salaam).’ Then the cloud cleared and Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was grabbing a piece of green silk, folded tightly, with water gushing forth from it, and someone was saying, ‘Great, great, (Sayyidina) Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) has grasped the whole world; all the creation in it has entered into his (saw) grasp, with none left out.’ Then I looked at him and he looked like a moon on the night when it is full. His (saw) fragrance spread like the finest musk and suddenly, there were three individuals, one held a silver jug, the second, an emerald washtub, and the third, a piece of white silk, which he unfolded. He then took out a dazzling looking ring and washed it from the jug seven times, then he made a seal between his (saw) shoulders with the ring, wrapped him (saw) with the silk, and finally carried him (saw) under his wings and gave him back to me.” Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi Wasallam.

Ibn Abbas (r) related, “When Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was born, Ridwan, the keeper of Paradises, spoke in his ear saying, ‘Rejoice, oh, (Sayyidina) Muhammad salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam, whatever knowledge any other Prophet has, you have been given that knowledge. Therefore, you are the most knowledgeable and the most courageous of heart, among them.” Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi Wasallam.

Ibn Abbas (r) also said that Aamina (ra) said, “When I gave birth to the Prophet (saw), with him came out a light that lit the space between the east and west. He then fell on the ground, and leaning on his (saw) hands, took a handful of soil, grasped it, then raised his (saw) head toward Heaven.”

Al Tabarani narrates that when he (saw) fell to the ground, he had his (saw) fingers drawn together, with the index finger pointing, testifying to the oneness of Allah (swt).

Uthman ibn Abi il Aas narrated that his mother Fatima said, “At the time of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (s) birth (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) I saw the house filled with lights and the stars drew so near that I thought they were going to fall on me.”

Al Irbadh Ibn Sariya related that Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “I am the slave of Allah, and the Seal of the Prophets, from the time when Adam was thrown from clay. I will explain this to you: I am the answer to the prayer of my father Abraham, the glad tidings of Jesus, and the vision that my mother saw. Mothers of Prophets often see visions.” When the Prophet’s (saw) mother gave birth to him she saw a light which lit the palaces of Syria. This is what his uncle Al Abbas (ra) was referring to when he said in his poem, “When you were born, the earth shone and the horizon was illuminated with your light. We are travelling in that light and in the paths of righteousness.”

Ibn Sa’d narrated that when Amina (ra) gave birth to the Prophet (saw) he had no meconium (fetal fecal matter) in him.

Regarding the light which illuminated the palaces of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan, there is a reference being made here to the benefit that these kingdoms received from the light of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) Prophethood, as these are the places of his (saw) dominion. It has been said, “Prophethood is no longer with the Children of Israel, oh, people of Quraish. By Allah, Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) will lead you to have such influence that it will be spoken of from east to west.”

Some of the wonders of the Prophet’s (saw) birth have been narrated by Ya’qoob ibn Sufian, with a fair chain of narrators, in Fath Al Bari. He said that the Palace of Kisra of the emperor of Persia shook and fourteen of its balconies collapsed; the water of Lake Tiberias abated; the fire of Persia was extinguished (according to numerous narrations this fire had burned non-stop for a thousand years); and in the Heavens security was increased, being filled with more guards and shooting stars which prevented the devils hiding there from their evil eavesdropping.

According to narrations by Ibn Umar (ra) and others, Prophet Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was born circumcised and with his umbilical cord already cut off. Anas (ra) related that the Prophet (saw) said, “One of the signs of the honour I have been given by my Lord is that I was born circumcised, and no one saw my private parts.”

There are different opinions regarding the year of Prophet Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) birth. The majority agree that he was born in the ‘Year of the Elephant’, and that it was fifty days after the incident with Abraha’s elephant, and it was at dawn of the twelfth night of the month of Rabi’ Al Awwal. Ibn Abbas (ra) said, “Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was born on a Monday, given the Prophecy on a Monday, immigrated from Mecca to Medina on Monday, arrived in Medina on a Monday, and carried the black stone on a Monday; moreover, the opening of Mecca and the revelation of Surat Al Ma’ida were both on a Mondays.”

Abdullah ibn Amr ibn Al Aas (r) said, “There was a monk in Marr Al Zhahran, of the people of Syria, whose name was Easa. He used to say, ‘It is about time that among the people of Mecca a child will be born whom the Arabs will submit to, and whose dominion the non-Arabs will also be under. This is his time.’ Whenever there was a newborn boy, he used to inquire about him. On the day of the birth of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam), Abd Al Muttalib went out and visited Easa. He came out and said to him, ‘May you be the father of the blessed newborn I told you about. I said he would be born on a Monday, receive Prophethood on a Monday, and pass away on a Monday.’ Abd Al Muttalib replied, ‘Tonight, at dawn, I had a newborn.’ The monk asked, ‘What did you name him?’ He answered, ‘(Sayyidina) Muhammad.’ Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam. Easa said, ‘I was anticipating that this newborn would be from among your kinfolk. I had three signs: his star appeared yesterday, he was born today, and his name is (Sayyidina) Muhammad.’ Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam. On the solar calendar it was the 20th of April and it is said that he was born at night.

Sayyidina A’isha said, “There was a Jewish merchant in Mecca on the night that the Prophet (saw) was born. He inquired, ‘Oh, people of Quraish, was there any newborn among you?’ They replied, ‘We don’t know.’ He said, ‘Tonight, the Prophet of this last nation was born. Between his shoulders there is a mark containing a few hairs on it like a horse’s mane.’ They accompanied the Jew and went to the Prophet’s (saw) mother, and asked her if they could see her son. She brought him to them and they uncovered his back and saw the birth mark, whereupon the Jew fell unconscious. When he regained consciousness, they asked him, ‘Woe to you. What is the matter with you?’ He answered, ‘By Allah, Prophethood has gone away from the children of Israel.'”

Al Hakim narrated that the Prophet (saw) was born in Mecca in the house of Muhammad bin Yousif. He was breast fed by Thuwaiba, the freed female slave of Abu Lahab. He freed her upon her bringing him the good news of the Prophet’s (saw) birth. After his death, Abu Lahab was seen in a dream, when he was asked, “How are you faring?” He answered, “I am in the fire. However, I get a break every Monday, when I am able to suck water from this spot between my fingers,” and he gestured with two of his finger tips. “This miracle is due to my freeing Thuwaiba when she brought me the good news of the birth of the Prophet (saw).”

Ibn al Jazri said, “If Abu Lahab, the infidel, who was dispraised in a Qur’anic revelation, was nevertheless rewarded because of his rejoicing at the birth of the Prophet (saw), how about Muslims from among his nation who rejoices in his birth and do the best they can out of love for him? By my life, their reward from Allah, the Generous, will be entry into the Paradises of bliss with Allah’s abundant bounties.”

The people of Islam always celebrate the month of our Holy Prophet’s (saw) birth by having feasts, giving all kinds of charity, expressing their joy, increasing their good deeds, and carefully reading the story of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) birth. In return, Allah (swt) fills believers with the abundant blessings of this month. It has been proven that one of the qualities of the Prophet’s (saw) birthday, which is called the Mawlid, is that it brings safety throughout the year and the good news that all wishes and desires will be fulfilled. May Allah shower His mercy on everyone who turns the nights of this month of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) blessed birth into festivities.

An Infancy of Wonders

Sayyidina Halima (ra) said, “I came to Mecca with some other wet nurses from the tribe of the Bani Sa’d ibn Bakr, looking for newborn babies. It was a bad year for prospective nurslings. I and my child arrived riding a she-donkey and my husband led an old she-camel that didn’t have a drop of milk. Throughout the journey the three of us could not sleep at night and I could find nothing in my breast to feed our son.

“When we came to Mecca every woman of our group was offered Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) as a nursling, but each turned down the offer after finding that he was a fatherless orphan. Literally, none of my women friends left Mecca without taking an infant, but no one would accept Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam). When I could find no other nursling, I told my husband that I hated to be the only one in the group to go back without an infant, and that I wanted to pick up that orphan.

“When I went to get him (saw) he was wearing a wool dress, whiter than milk. The fragrance of musk spread from him (saw). Under him (saw) was a piece of green silk, as he lay on his back in a deep sleep. I was careful not to wake him (saw), because of his beauty and grace. I carefully came close to him (saw), and putting my hand on his (saw) chest, he (saw) smiled and opened his (saw) eyes. From his (saw) eyes came a light which went all the way to Heaven while I was looking. I kissed him (saw) between his (saw) eyes and gave him (saw) my right breast, which gave him (saw) all the milk he (saw) wanted. Then I switched him (saw) to the left, but he (saw) refused. That was the way he (saw) always was. After he (saw) was satisfied, I gave my son his fill. As soon as I brought him (saw) to my camp, both my breasts started pouring milk. By Allah’s grace, Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) drank until he (saw) was satisfied, as did his brother. My husband went to our old camel for milk for us, and lo, it was full. He milked enough for us both to drink until we were satisfied, and we spent a wonderful night. Later my husband remarked, ‘Oh, Halima, it looks like you have picked a blessed soul. We spent the first night in blessings and bounties, and Allah continues to give us more and more ever since we chose him.’ Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam.

“I bid farewell to the Prophet’s (saw) mother, and mounted my she-donkey, holding Sayyidina Muhammad (saw) in my hands. My donkey outstripped all the animals of the others who were with me, who were watching it in amazement. When we arrived at the dwellings of Bani Sa’d, which is one of the most barren parts of the land, we found that our sheep were full of milk. We milked and drank plentifully in a time where no one else could find a drop of milk in an udder. Others began to tell each other, ‘Go to pasture wherever the shepherd of the daughter of Abu Thu’aib goes.’ Still their sheep used to return hungry, with no milk to be found in them, while mine would return full of milk.”

The Prophet’s (saw) uncle, Sayyidina Al Abbas (ra) said, “Oh, Messenger of Allah, what made me enter into your religion was my witnessing a sign of your Prophethood. I saw you in your cradle talking tenderly to the Moon and pointing at it with your finger. It moved across the sky to wherever you pointed.” Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “I was talking to it, and it talked to me, which distracted me from crying. I could hear the sound of its prostration under the throne.”

In Fath Al Bari it is narrated that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) spoke when he first was born.

Ibn Sab’ mentioned that Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) cradle was rocked by the angels.

Ibn Abbas (ra) said that Sayyidina Halima (ra) used to narrate that when she first weaned Sayydina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) he spoke, saying, “Allah (swt)s most Great in His Greatness, and much praise be to Allah, and glory be to Allah (swt) in the beginning and end.” (Allahu Akbar kabira, wal hamdu Lillahi katheera, wa subhana allahi bukratan wa aseela.) When he (saw) grew older he (saw) used to go out, and when he (saw) would see other children playing, he would avoid them.

Ibn Abbas (ra) said that al Shayma’a (ra), the Prophet’s (saw) foster sister, witnessed that as a boy a cloud shaded the Prophet (saw). It stopped when he stopped, and moved when he moved. He grew up like no other boy. Sayyidina Halima (ra) said, “When I weaned him (saw), we brought him (saw) to his (saw) mother, even though we longed for him (saw) to stay with us for all the blessings that we saw in him (saw). We asked his (saw) mother to let him (saw) stay with us until he (saw) grew stronger, for we were worried about him (saw) being in the unhealthy environment of Mecca. We continued asking until she agreed to send him (saw) back with us. Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi Wasallam.

Early Childhood Marvels

“By Allah, two or three months after our return, while we were taking care of some of our animals behind our home, the Prophet’s (saw) foster-brother came running, shouting, ‘It is my Qurashi brother. Two men came to him wearing white clothes. They laid him (saw) down and cut his (saw) abdomen open.’ His father and I ran to him (saw). He (saw) was standing and his (saw) colour was changed. His father hugged him and asked, ‘Oh, son, what happened to you?’ Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) answered, ‘Two men wearing white clothes came to me. They made me lay down and cut my abdomen open. They took something out and threw it, then put my abdomen back together the way it was.’ We took him home and his father said, ‘Oh, Halima, I am afraid that something might have happened to this son of mine. Let’s return him to his family before it gets worse.’

“We took him (saw) back to his (saw) mother in Mecca. She said, ‘What made you bring him (saw) back after you were so anxious to keep him (saw)?’ We told her that we were worried that something bad might happen to him (saw). She said, ‘It is not that, so, tell me the truth.’ She insisted until we told her his story. She asked, ‘Were you afraid that the Devil might do something to him? No. By Allah, there is no way that the Devil can get to him. This son of mine will be of great standing. You may leave him now.'”

In the hadith of Shaddad ibn Aws (ra) it is related that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa ale hi wasallam) said, “I was suckling at Bani Sa’d ibn Bakr. One day while I was in the valley with young boys my age, when suddenly three individuals appeared. They possessed a golden washtub filled with ice and took me from my friends, who ran back to the quarter. One of the three made me lay down gently on the ground and cut open my abdomen from my chest to my pubic bone. I was able to watch and felt no pain. He took out my intestines and washed them thoroughly with the ice, then returned them to my body. The second one rose and told his partner to move aside. He put his hand inside me, removing my heart while I watched him. He cut it, took out a black clot and threw it away, and moved his hands right and left, as if receiving something. Suddenly, there was a ring made of dazzling light in his hand. He stamped my heart with the ring, whereupon it was filled with light. It was the light of Prophethood and wisdom. He then returned the organ to my chest and I felt the coolness of that ring in my heart for a long time. The third one told his partner to move aside. He passed his hand over the area which had been cut and it was instantly healed with the permission of Allah (swt). He then took my hand and gently helped me up and said to the first one, ‘Weigh him against ten of his nation.’ I outweighed them. Then he said, ‘Weigh him against a hundred of his nation.’ I outweighed them. Then he said, ‘Weigh him against a thousand of his nation.’ I outweighed them. Then he said, ‘If you weigh him against his entire nation, he would outweigh them.’ They all hugged me, kissed my forehead and between the eyes and said, ‘Oh, beloved, if you only knew what goodness is waiting for you, you would be delighted.'” The weighing means a moral weighing. The Prophet (saw), therefore, outweighs all in merit.

The cleansing of his (saw) holy chest happened another time when Angel Gabriel (as) brought him (saw) the revelation in the cave of Hira’ and one more time on the night of his (saw) Ascension. Abu Nu’aim (ra) narrated in Al Dala’il, the cutting of his (saw) chest also when he (saw) was twenty years old. The wisdom of cutting his (saw) holy chest open in his (saw) childhood and removing the black clot, was to cleanse him (saw) from childish traits so he (saw) would have manly attributes. His (saw) upbringing was therefore perfectly immaculate. He (saw) was sealed with the seal of Prophethood between his (saw) shoulders which smelled of musk and looked like a partridge egg.

Ibn Abbas (ra) and others narrated that when Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was six years old, his (saw) mother (ra) and Um Aiman (ra) took him (saw) on a month long visit to his (saw) maternal uncles of the Bani Adiy ibn al Najjar in dar al tabi’a in Yathrib. Later, he (saw) recalled events that happened when he (saw) stayed there. Looking at a certain house, he (saw) said, “This is where my mother and I stayed. I learned how to swim in the well belonging to Bani Adiy ibn Al Najjar. A group of Jews used to frequent this place to look at me.” Um Aiman (ra) said, “I heard one of the Jews saying that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) is the Prophet of this nation, and this is the abode of his (saw) immigration. I understood everything they said.”

Rasulullah (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) and his mother set out to return to Mecca, but when they arrived at Al Abua’, not far from Yathrib, she fell gravely ill. Al Zuhri (ra) narrated from Asma’ bint Rahm, from her mother, “I was present with Amina, the Prophet’s (saw) mother, during the ailment that led to her death. At this time Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was a five-year-old boy. As he (saw) sat by his (saw) mother’s head she was reciting some poems, and looked into his (saw) face and said, ‘Every living thing must eventually die, everything new must eventually get old, and every abundance must eventually get less. I am dying, but my memory shall remain, I have left behind abundant goodness, and gave birth to purity,’ then she died. We were able to hear the Jinn crying over her.”

It has been narrated that Amina testified to Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) Prophethood after her death. Al Tabarani narrated in a chain of narration from Sayyidina A’isha (ra) that when the Prophet (saw) arrived at al Hajoon he (saw) was sad and grieved. He (saw) stayed there for as long as Allah (swt) willed him (saw) to stay. Upon his (saw) return, he (saw) was happy and said, “I asked my Lord, Mighty and Sublime, to bring my mother back to life. Allah (swt) did that and then took her back.” Also it has been narrated by both Al Suhaili and Al Khateen that Sayyidina A’isha Siddique (ra), said that Allah revived both of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) parents and they both testified to Rasulullah’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) Prophethood.

Al Qurtubi, in Al Tadhkira, said, “Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) merits and attributes never ceased to occur all his (saw) life. Bringing his (saw) parents to life so that they could believe in him (saw) is not impossible. There is nothing in the Islamic religious laws or logic against it.” It is mentioned in the Holy Qu’ran that the one who was murdered in Bani Isra’el was brought back to life to have his murderer revealed to him. Moreover, our Master Isa (as) – Jesus used to bring the dead back to life. Likewise, Allah (swt) brought a number of dead people back to life at the hands of our beloved Prophet (saw). Why is it not possible that Rasulullah’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) parents testified to his Prophethood after they were brought back to life, since this occurrence only enhances his merit and virtue?

Al Imam Fakhruddin Al Razi said that all the fathers of Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) are Muslims, which is proven by Rasulullah’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) saying, “I was transferred from the loins of pure men to the wombs of pure women.” And since Allah (swt) has said “Truly, the pagans are unclean,” we see that none of his (saw) ancestors were infidels. Salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi Wasallam

Al Hafiz Shams Al Din Al Dimashqi addressed this subject so well when he wrote:

“Allah bestowed upon the Prophet more bounties

And more yet, and unto him He was most kind

He brought his mother back to life, and also his father

So that they could believe in him.

That was a subtle bounty

So believe these miracles, for He is capable of doing that

Even if the creature is weak.”

Um Aiman (ra) was Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) nurse and nanny after his (saw) mother’s death. He (saw) used to say about her, “Um Aiman is my mother after my mother.” When Rasulullah (salla alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) was eight years old, his (saw) grandfather and custodian, Abdul Muttalib died. He was one hundred and ten years old (in another narration, he was one hundred and forty). At that time Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) uncle Abu Talib became responsible for him (saw) at the request of Abd Al Muttalib, because he was the full brother of Sayyidina Muhammad’s (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) father, Abdullah.

Ibn Asakir narrated from Jalhama ibn Urfuta that Sayyidina Muhammad (salla lahu alayhi wa’ale hi wasallam) said, “I came to Mecca during a drought. Some men of Quraish came to Abu Talib and said, ‘Oh, Abu Talib, the valley is barren and the families are suffering. Let us go and pray for rain.’ Abu Talib came out, and with him was a young boy who looked like the Sun after the clouds have cleared. He (saw) was surrounded by other young children. Abu Talib led him to the Ka’aba and had him stand with his back against it. There wasn’t even a tiny cloud in the sky, but as soon as the young boy rose his hands, clouds started to arrive from every direction and it started raining, then pouring. The valley blossomed and both in Mecca and out in the desert became fertile. About this miracle, Abu Talib wrote the following verses:

‘To the one of bright complexion,

rain is sent for the sake of his countenance,

He is a refuge for the orphans,

and support for the widows.'”

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The Islamic Journal #5.

Sultan Muhammad Ibn Qalawun’s Fatwa Regarding Ibn Taymiyyah

Shaykh al-Islam Taqi al-Din al-Subki (d.756AH) on ibn Taymiyya and his Followers being from the Deviant Hashwiyya Sect, and that they were a Minority Fringe Group who would Teach their Beliefs in Secret

“As for the Hashwiyya, they are a despicable and ignorant lot who claim to belong to the school of (Imam) Ahmad (ibn Hanbal)… They have corrupted the creed of a few isolated Shafi’is, especially some of the Hadith scholars among them who are lacking in reason… They were held in utmost contempt, and then towards the end of the seventh century (AH) a man appeared who was diligent, intelligent and well-read and did not find a Shaykh to guide him, and he is of their creed and is brazen and dedicated to teaching his ideas… He said that non-eternal attributes can subsist in Allah, and that Allah is ever-acting, and that an infinite chain of events is not impossible either in the past or the future. He split the ranks and cast doubts on the creed of the Muslims and incited dissension amongst them. He did not confine himself to creedal matters of theology, but transgressed the bounds and said that travelling to visit the tomb of the Prophet (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) is a sin… The scholars agreed to imprison him for a long time, and the Sultan imprisoned him… and he died in prison. Then some of his followers started to promulgate his ideas and teach them to people in secret while keeping quiet in public, and great harm came from this.”

[al-Zabidi, Ithaf al-Sada al-Muttaqin, 2:11. al-Zabidi is quoting fromal-Subki’s al-Sayf al-Saqil fi al-Radd ‘ala ibn Zafil, see al-Rasa-il al-Subkiyya, 84-85]

The Edict Of Sultan Muhammad Ibn Qalawun

Al-Malik an-Nasir Nasir ad-Din Muhammad ibn Qalawun

(d. 741AH/1341CE)

Regarding Ibn Taymiyyah (d.728AH)

This is a translation of the Edict of the honorable Sultan Nasir al-Dunya wa Deen, Muhammad Ibn Qalawun.

It was read over the minbar of Masjid Jami’ Dimashq onFriday, in the year 705H:

Bismillah al-Rahman Al-Raheem. Alhamdulillah, Who is clear of having a thing or one similar or equal to Him. Allah said:

Laysa kamithlihi shay, wa huwa Sami’ al-Baseer.

Nothing resembles Him; yet He is the one who hears and sees everything.

I thank Him for inspiring us to act in accords with the Sunnah and the Book, and for lifting in our days reasons for doubt and suspicion. I declare that there is no God except Allah, alone without any partner, a shahada of someone who hopes by his sincerity a good ending, and declares that his Creator is clear of occupying a place in accordance with the saying of Allah:

Wa huwa ma’akum ayna ma kuntum, wallah bima ta’maluna Basir

He is with you (with His knowledge) wherever you are, and Allah sees what you do.

I testify that Muhammad is his slave and Messenger who clarified the route of safety for whoever followed the path of pleasing Him, and who ordered contemplating about the blessings of Allah and forbade thinking about the Self of Allah. May Allah send prayers and peace upon Prophet Muhammad and may Allah have mercy upon his Companions by whom the banner of Iman rose, and through whom Allah codified the rules of Deen, and by whom Allah extinguished the word of whoever deviated from the Haqq and leaned towards innovations.

The Islamic creed, the regarded rules of al-Islam, the Usul al-Din, and the acceptable Madhhabs of this religion are the bases upon which things are built, and the reference to which everyone resorts, and the route that whoever follows will succeed greatly and whoever deviates from is deserving of a painful torture. Therefore, they must be carried out, their permanence considered with harmony, the agitations of innovations extinguished and what gathered of their groups dispersed.

In our time, Ibn Taymiyyah spread his pen, and by his ignorance he extended the reins of his words. He talked about issues of the Self and attributes of Allah, and talked in his invalid words about rejected matters.

Additionally, he spoke in regards what the sahabah and tabi’un kept silent about, and about what the righteous salaf wrote against and what the a’immah of al-Islam renounced and what deviated from what the Ijma of the a’immah and rulers had determined.

He spread in the regions his fatwa which fooled the minds of the lay people and disagreed with the fuqaha of his time, and the ulama of Levant and Egypt. He sent his letters to every place and gave his fatawa names which have no evidence from what Allah revealed to his Prophet.

When this reached us and what his followers followed of these corrupt routes and showed these conditions and spread them, and we knew that he exploited the ignorance of his people and they obeyed him until it was said that he attributed to Allah, letter, sound, similarity to others, and a body, then we, for the sake of Allah stood up cautious of this news and renounced this bid’ah. It pained us to have this infamy spread in our kingdom. We hated what the false people uttered and recited the saying of Allah, the Exalted:

SubhanAllah amma yusifun.

Glorty to Allah; He is clear of what they describe.

He, subhana wa ta’ala is clear of a match or equal as He says:

La tudrikuhul absaru wa huwa yadrikul absara wa huwa Latiful khabir

He is not known by His creation, yet he knows about them.

He is the one who knows the apparent and hidden matters of His creation.

Our edict summoned Ibn Taymiyyah to our high doors when his false fatwa spread in our Levant and Egypt and in them he declared words which when read by any person with a sound mind, he would recite the ayah:

Laqad ji’ta shay’an nukra

You have brought an enormity.

When he arrived to us, we approached the people in charge and those of authentication and reporting. The judges of al-Islam, the rulers of the people, the scholars of the religion, and the fuqaha of the Muslims came. An Islamic court was conducted for him in the presence of people and a group of a’immah, and those who have knowledge in hearing and refuting.

Everything attributed to Ibn Taymiyyah by the saying of whoever is reliable and by his own handwriting which indicates his belief was shown to them. The assembling people departed renouncing his wicked belief, taking him by what his pen testified, reciting the ayah:

Satuktabu shahadatuhum wa yusalun

Their testimony will be written down and they will be asked.

It was reported to us that he had been ordered to repent many times. However, he returned (to his deviant beliefs) after he had been prohibited.

In the court of al-Hakim al-Aziz al-Maliki, the ruling of the honorable Shari’ah was passed to have Ibn Taymiyyah put in prison and to be prevented from disposing of such matters to the public. Our edict writes that no one is to follow what the aforementioned person followed and it forbids imitating believing the like or saying it, or listening to his words imitating him in tashbih (likening Allah to His creation), or to utter what he uttered about the direction of spatial highness or to speak about letter or sound, or to speak at leisure about the Self or attribute or utter any tajsim or utter anything about that which is not correct, or to dissent from the opinions of the a’immah, or to be alone of an opinion away from the scholars of the Ummah, or to attribute to Allah a direction or to allude to Him a place and manner. This belief will receive nothing but the sword.

Let everyone stop at his limit! Everything before and after this is by the will of Allah.

Let the Hanabilah leave his belief and leave the serious, deviant, suspected matters and abide by what Allah ta’ala ordered of holding to the praised madhhabs of the people of Iman.

Whoever dissents from the order of Allah has lost the way and does not deserve except torture, and his residence should be the long imprisonment; how bad a residence it is.

We decreed that it should be called out in the protected Damascus, the Levant countries and other close and far areas with a serious forbiddance and threat to whoever follows Ibn Taymiyyah in this matter which we have clarified.

Whoever follows him will be put in a similar place and will be regarded by the Ummah as he was. Those who insist to refuse our order and insist on defending him will be ordered to be dropped from their schools and offices and be put down from their offices and humiliated. They will have no place judging, ruling, in governance, teaching, testimony, imamah, rank or even residence in our countries.

We have removed the call of this man from the countries and we have refuted the belief by which he led or almost led astray many people. How many people did he lead astray, who then corrupted others?

Let the Islamic reports be affirmed to the Hanabilah to leave that out and let the reports after its affirmation to be carried out by the Maliki judges. Since we heave warned, we have left no excuse we have been fair.

Let our edict be read on the minbars to be the best admonisher and restrainer, and the most just forbidder, by the Will of Allah. Praise be to Allah alone, and His prayers and peace be upon His Prophet, and the sahabah of the Prophet.

The certified reference is upon the above mentioned honorable writing.It was written on the eighteenth of Ramadan in the year 705H.

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The Islamic Journal #5.

The Depth Of The Heart Is The Depth Of The Subatomic Universe and It Ends With The Arsh Of Allah

The universe Allah spoke about in the Quran is the same universe science is discovering today, no one knows it better than Him, hence He is the one who can make the promise (41:53) to show it to mankind before the hour is established and He did this by speaking about it in the Quran, therefor the science of the Universe is already with us but only those with understanding of science can see, “And we strike these similitudes for the people, but no one understands them except those who know.” (29:42).

The Heart has many roles in the human body the simplest of which is to pump blood, Allah refers to it by different names in the Quran for which it must have specific physiological process’s beyond the pumping of blood in order to carry out these roles;

– Fuad, Af’idah: the heart engrossed or inflamed in emotion, this is it’s role of sensing and reacting with happiness, sadness, lust, frustration, anger or regret, this term is used 25 times to refer to the heart in the Quran.

– Sadr (chest), Sudur: Allah calls the heart by the name for the chest, it is the place where shaytan (the Jinn) tries to gain access to influence man, the term is used 25 times in the Quran in this context.

– Lubb, Albab: the innermost place where the light of tawhid (oneness or wholeness or completeness) resides, which is always used with “the people of” albab, meaning the people of understanding or intellect, the term is used 16 times in the Quran in this context.

In relation to this Allah says “Know that Allah intervenes between man and his heart”(8:24), this is a physical description referring to mans physiology because the heart is a physical organ that creates spiritual experiences in man, so there must be more complexity to the heart.

Allah directly puts things like knowledge, revelation, tranquility (sakina), peace (salam) in mans heart to guide and help him, the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) has said, “Verily the hearts of mankind, all of them, are between two fingers of the All-merciful like one single heart, which He turns whither He wills” (Muslim) Hence the heart must be capable of directing man in his life, an organ that just pumps blood is not capable of that so their must be more to the heart, recent advances in science have shown the heart has a very complex role in the body.

The first verse in the Quran is “In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate” Imam Ibn al-‘Arabi says it is the predicate of a subject omitted in ellipse (intended in the subtext), as is frequent in the Qur’an, and its full meaning is “(The origin and appearance of the world are but) In

[‘in virtue of, because of’] the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate” (al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya (7), 1.102) because the universe was created from His light (particles) and our world appeared from the subatomic.

Both tranquility (sakina) and peace (salam) are subatomic substances that Allah mentions this way in the Quran, He for instance placed both in the Ark (Tabut) He gave to the Jews.

“Their prophet said to them, ‘The sign of his authority will be that the Ark [of the Covenant] will come to you. In it there will be [the gift of] tranquillity (Sakina) from your Lord and relics of the followers of Moses and Aaron, carried by the angels. There is a sign in this for you if you believe.’”(2:248), “Every single thing is perishing” because all particles can unravel to nothingness just like they formed, “except His face” (Qur’an 28:88) the face being an Arabic metaphor for what is most distinctive of someone, the person himself; here, the Being of Allah the originator of everything from His light.

If the heart just pumped blood how does it receive tranquility (sakina) and how is belief located in it, “It is He who sent down tranquility into the hearts of the believers, that they may add belief to their belief.” (48:4) the simple answer is found in the Light (electromagnetic field) the heart produces which is connected to it’s very intricate nervous system that is almost like a miniature brain in complexity and role.

Because all these matters refer to the subatomic part of our body and the universe Allah can say “And we are nearer to him than his jugular vein”(Qaf:16) which is another physical description, He can also say that He is the “light of the heavens and the earth” (24:35) He is all light (particles) that the heart perceives because all subatomic particles directly represent His will, this is what verse 24:35 means and it is also stated in a hadith Qudsi indirectly in which Allah says “I am Time” and time as physics teaches is created from the interactions of subatomic particles (quantum entanglement). Because light is an electromagnetic field and it is made from photons and the photon is the carrier of the electromagnetic force (Chi) He can also say He guides man’s heart to Him because the heart creates light (an electromagnetic field) and Allah places light in the heart as guidance, “Allah guides to His light whom He pleases”(24:35) the prophet (saws) used to pray “O Allah, place light in my heart”, these are the reasons behind that prayer.

“The Quran’s role in the soul’s transformation is implicit in the accounts of the Prophet’s ascent (miraj) to Allah, the “Night Journey,” to which reference is made in 17:1: Glory be to Him Who carried His servant by night. Laylat al-isra, “the Night of the Journey,” or al-miraj, “the Ascent,” was understood as the fulfilment of laylat al-qadr, “the Night of Power” (97:1-3, a reference to subatomic power). Having brought the Divine Word down to the Prophet on the Night of Power (when the effects of ghayb are increased), Gabriel took him up to meet Allah on the Night of the Journey. He could encounter Allah precisely because “His character was the Quran,” which had descended into his soul and transmuted it into a luminous lamp (33:46) in answer to his prayer, “Make me into a light.”(Muslim) The Quran itself, after all, is the light (64:8), revealed by the Light of the heavens and the earth (14:35) to bring forth mankind out of darkness into light (14:1)” and so light (particles in this context) is the medium by which mankind is guided.

‘Matter and energy are equivalent and can be transmuted through the equation E = mc^2; that is, energy (in ergs) is equal to mass in grams times the speed of light squared, in centimeters per second. In other words matter is just condensed energy, if you can get enough energy into one place (generally light or kinetic energy), then you’ll get a (mostly random) variety of particles popping out. This accounts for the vast energy released by small amounts of matter in nuclear explosions, but it also means that staggering amounts of energy are required to create even the tiniest particles of matter.’ Hence there is a clear relationship between every cell and atom in the body and the subatomic universe and what happens there influences every part of us directly.

Allah expands the chest, meaning opens the heart, to Islam, “Those whom Allah willeth to guide,- He expands their chest (heart) to Islam” (6:125), due to this opening man can then perceive deeper because guidance requires wisdom and wisdom requires depth. This opening is the essence of Tawhid, oneness with Allah, the light of the heart is connected with the light of Allah and through quantum entanglement with the rest of the universe. It is because light (particles) is the medium for tawhid that many sufi scholars often described tawhid in physical terms, and why translators often made the mistake of calling it unity with Allah. Being one with Allah means being the same as Him while unity with Allah means joining with Him, an impossible thing. Tawhid is the unity of man’s light with the Light Allah places in the heart, “It is He who sent down tranquility (a light) into the hearts of the believers, that they may add belief (light) to their belief (light).” (48:4), “so that he has received faith (light) from Allah” (39:22).

Tawhid can only be achieved when nothing else is in the heart of man but Allah, it means you experience the world through the Quran, Allah’s words, this is the true aim of saying Allahu Akbar, Allah is greater than everything else in mans heart, not verbally but literally, this is why Tawhid is called oneness it results in the self being the same as Allah in opinion.

Oneness with Allah is not an abstract or intangible idea, through subatomic particles it is physiologically literal and physical, “Allah is the light (particles) of the heavens and the earth” and He “guides to His light (particles) whom He pleases” (24:35). 1400 years ago Light was the name given to all particles by Allah because it could be understood by people of that time, Imam Abd al-Razzaq narrates that Jabir (May Allah be pleased with him) said: “I said: O Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you, tell me of the first thing Allah created before all things”. He said: “O Jabir, the first thing Allah created was the light of your Prophet (the light of prophethood) from His light (particles), and that light (particles) remained (“turned”) in the midst of His Power for as long as He wished (this is the first moments of the big bang), and there was not, at that time, a Tablet or a Pen or a Paradise or a Fire or an angel or a heaven or an earth or a sun or a moon or a jinn or a man.

And when Allah wished to create creation, he divided that Light (particles) into four parts and from the first made the Pen, from the second the Tablet, from the third the Throne (Arsh, the outer most subatomic layer of the created universe, sidrat al muntaha), and then he divided the fourth [part] into four [other] parts and from the first he created the bearer of the Throne, from the second the Kursi (Footstool, a subatomic layer just beneath the Arsh), from the third the rest of the angels.

Then He divided the fourth into four other parts and created from the first the heavens (space), and from the second the earth (planets), and from the third the Paradise and the Fire, and then he divided the fourth into four parts and created from the first the Light in the believers visions, and from the second the light of their hearts which is knowledge of Allah, and from the third the light of their inner harmony (‘Uns) which is Tawhid (that) ‘There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah…”. (Abd al-Razzaq (d. 211) narrates it in his Musannaf according to Qastallani in al-Mawahib al-laduniyya (1:55) and Zarqani in his Sharh al-mawahib (1:56 of the Matba`a al-`amira edition in Cairo).

Here the prophet (saws) speaks about three different kinds of light in the human body that man relies on, the light of the believers vision is different from the light of the heart and this is different from the light of their Tawhid, (Uns) their inner light, it is very significant that the harmony of electromagnetic waves is called the coherence of waves, when there is coherence between waves (light) they can clearly communicate with each other, coherence is the name for Tawhid in physics.

The Prophet (saws) said, while pointing to his heart; “God-wariness is right here” (al-taqwa hahuna), if the heart wasn’t a perceptive faculty then it could not be aware of Allah, it is because of this that mens hearts will be judged “The day on which property will not avail, nor sons; except him who comes to Allah with a sound heart.” (26:88-9)

“but he who opens up his breast to unbelief, that is, [he who] opens it up and expands it [with unbelief]… upon such shall be wrath from Allah, and there is a great chastisement for them.”(Tafsir al Jalalayn, 16:109), the one’s who fail are those who bury their souls in darkness, they open the heart to perceive greater evil.

So then what is depth in relation to the heart, if we take the words literally the physical depth of the heart means we reach the other side of it which has no relevance, but because we know the heart is a vessel containing light which is a subatomic particle and light is used to pass on knowledge by Allah the depth we are referring to is subatomic depth. When Allah expands the breast He allows the heart to connect with deeper subatomic depths and this allows it to gather information from a wider number of sources (influences).

We know this because the qualities people display when Allah expands their chest (heart) are wisdom and sagaciousness and by definition these are the people who consider the widest amount of knowledge before judging anything, just like the prophet was “a walking Quran” they embody the physical attributes Allah gave them, “He gives wisdom to whomever He wills, and whoever is given wisdom has been given tremendous good” (Qur’an 2:269).

Hard heartedness is the root of all sin and sin is the root of all illness, the spiritual heart is affected by sin and the physical heart is affected by the spiritual heart.

Imam Tustari said “Allah does no open the heart of a servant if it still contains three things, loving to remain (in this world), love of wealth, and concern about tomorrow.” The prophet (saws) said “What I fear most for my community, is that they follow their desires and have long hopes” because of what these things do to the heart.

The Imam also said in his Tafsir “the nafs (self) has seven celestial veils (hujub samawiyyah) and seven earthly veils (hujub ardiyyah)”, things that cover the nafs, in relation to mans character a veil is something that covers our inner perception about things, it makes us in varying degrees delusional, the imam then explained “when ever man buries his nafs (self) in earth upon earth (ardan ardan), (lowers his esteem and ego), his heart (qalb) is raised up heaven upon Heaven (sama’an sama’an). And when he (completely) buries the nafs (ego) under the ground (tahta at tara), the heart reaches the throne” (Arsh, in it’s perception and the sustenance it receives).

In a number of verses Allah talks about the opening of the heart, which is a subatomic description referring to the heart opening up to the unseen world (quantum universe) and being influenced by it; “Is one whose heart Allah has opened to Islam, so that he has received faith (the heart is given light) from Allah, (not better than one hard-hearted)? Woe to those whose hearts are hardened against the remembrance of Allah! (because they can’t receive that light) they are manifestly wandering (this life in error)! (39:22), making bad choices because their judgment isn’t sound, their perception is not complete, and they are ill-informed.

The remembrance of Allah opens the heart and stops it from becoming hard (becoming shallow) which leads to depravity, “Has not the Time arrived for the Believers that their hearts in all humility should engage in the remembrance of Allah and of the Truth which has been revealed (to them), and that they should not become like those to whom was given Revelation aforetime, but long ages passed over them and their hearts grew hard? For many of them became depraved?.” (57:16)

Allah says in the Quran “AND [know, O men, that] whether you keep your beliefs secret or state them openly, He has full knowledge indeed of all that is in [your] hearts.”(67:13) Allah doesn’t simply know our thoughts He created the causes (asbab) in the universe that can make them known because He has creatures that record them which use these systems in the universe, this is the nature of the Universe what ever Allah says He can do has scientific reasons behind it’s existence, the underlaying science behind what is in the heart is light (the electromagnetic field), the subatomic part of the universe and it’s particles and Angels are made of the same matter.

Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said, relating from his Lord, may He be glorified and exalted: “Allah decreed good deeds and bad deeds, then He explained that. Whoever thinks of doing a good deed then does not do it, Allah will write it down as one complete good deed. If he thinks of doing a good deed and then does it, Allah [may He be glorified and exalted] will write it down between ten and seven hundred fold, or many more. If he thinks of doing a bad deed then he does not do it, Allah will write it down as one complete good deed, and if he thinks of it then does it, Allah will write it down as one bad deed.” (Bukhari, Muslim)

Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar said in Fath al-Bari, “This indicates that the angel can see what is in the heart of the human being” because Angels are created from light and it is their place to know and record.

Imam Ibn Arabi said “Sound knowledge is not given by reflection, nor by what the rational thinkers establish by means of their reflective ability. Sound knowledge is only that which Allah throws into the heart of the knower (Allah himself literally places it there, and) it is (a) divine light for which Allah singles out any of his servants whom He will, whether Angels, Messenger, Prophet, friend, or a person of faith. He who has no unveiling (from Allah) has no knowledge.” Meaning through light (the electromagnetic field) Allah gives knowledge to all his creatures from Angels to men.

If we keep in mind that every thing occurs because of scientific causes in the universe, and Allah does things through the systems in the Universe, Allah then connects what is within mans heart with what occurs in the world “If Allah knows [any] good in your hearts, He will give you better than what was taken from you, and He will forgive you; and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (Quran 8:70) Allah doesn’t look at the hearts then walks somewhere to bring us what He wants, He moves the universe from the deepest subatomic depths until we are given what He wants for us. The foundation for everything are subatomic particles, which is why the verse began with what is in the heart, and everything around us is made of them. The basis for any two things being connected regardless of distance is a Law in physics (quantum mechanics) called quantum entanglement, particles can connect with each other regardless of distance in space and physicist now believe this law which begins with just two small particles, on a cosmological scale is the driving force behind the entire universe shaping it’s evolution, the direction of it’s change.

Allah explains this in another verse, “Whatever misfortune befalls you is for what your very hands have earned, and He pardons much” (Qur’an 42:30) misfortune is a situation we fall into not a rock hitting us in the head, if we think of the many parts of any situation we fall into in life then some very complex things are occurring to bring it about which Allah is saying the bad of it comes together because of the evil we commit, quantum entanglement is the basis for this it’s building blocks, “what your very hands have earned” in the universe.

Allah in hadith Qudsi said “I am Time”, physicists believe time is born out of the quantum entanglement of particles, when Allah says He is something in the Universe, and keeping in mind time is something created while He is not, it is because it’s nature is encompassing of everything and quantum entanglement is the driving force behind every action in the Universe shaping it’s direction, and direction by definition is time.

Time as many assume is something that is meant to be intangible and abstract but it is created by “physical” matter, every moment of time occurs beocuse of how particles are entangled together creating literally everything that is occurring, from chemical reactions to electricity to the atmosphere, the fabric of space and time are woven together because in physics the arrow of time is the direction of matter in the universe, the quantum entanglement of particles shapes the direction of all matter and creates time.

Allah said, the “Sons of Adam inveigh against [the vicissitudes of] Time, and I am Time, in My hand is the night and the day”, the direction of the universe is the passing of the night and the day and they are created because of the forces in the universe, which is what “in My hand” means.

The soul directs the heart and the heart influences the mind creating our intellect which is our ability to understand based on the knowledge we can perceive into things, the act of sensing ghayb the unknown about something. Imam al Ghazali further elaborates on this,“The images supplied by the imagination hold together the knowledge supplied by the intellect.” (Imam al Ghazali, Mishkat al Anwar) and from here we can trace entire physiological process’s in the body that bring this about.

The Prophet (saws) said “There is a knowledge like the form of a hidden thing, known to none save those who know Allah.” (Imam al Ghazali, Mishqat al Anwar), the form of a hidden thing refers to knowledge that is inspired into man from ghayb (the unseen) when he looks into something, commonly called insight, the invisible things our heart has the ability to perceive about this world are the things that exist in ghayb (the subatomic world) about the nature of things, it exists as a hidden thing because “Allah has encompassed (in ghayb) all things in knowledge” (65:12).

In other words Allah’s knowledge is the knowledge gained from the subatomic universe because the prophet related the matter to the people who know Allah, and Allah said about them “Those whom Allah willeth to guide,- He expands their chest (heart) to Islam” (6:125) He gives them the ability to see deeper, Allah’s knowledge (light) is “neither of the East nor of the West” (24:35) because that depth is a subatomic depth.

All knowledge comes from Allah, it flows from the light of Allah which is beyond the Arsh (throne), He created the Universe from His light which are the subatomic particles and encompassed all He created with His Knowledge of it (65:12). The Arsh (throne) allows creation to know Allah because that is where He Istiwa (established) Himself for us while the Kursi allows creation to gain knowledge about everything because Ibn Abbas (ra) said: “His Kursi is His knowledge (kursiyyuhu `ilmuhu) (Bukhari), and man gains Allah’s knowledge through his self and heart, these are the roles of the Arsh and Kursi in the Universe.

The Arsh exists at the deepest most subatomic depth called sidrat al muntaha (the furthest limit) in the Quran (53:14) while the Kursi (footstool) is closer to us, it’s distance sub atomically is as a footstool in relation to a throne (Arsh), this is why it is called al Kursi, the footstool because of it’s role and location in relation to the Arsh of Allah not because it resembles a footstool.

Ayat al Kursi explains this reality of both the Arsh (Throne) and the Kursi (footstool) very clearly; “Allah! There is no deity save Him, the Alive, the Eternal. Neither slumber nor sleep overtaketh Him. Unto Him belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and whatsoever is in the earth. Who is he that intercedeth with Him save by His leave? He knoweth that which is in front of them (death) and that which is behind them (this life), while they encompass nothing of His knowledge save what He will. His Kursi (footstool) encompasses the heavens and the earth, and He is never weary of preserving them. He is the Sublime, the Tremendous.” (2:255)

We can say much about this verse which the prophet (saws) said contains the greatest name of Allah, meaning it explains His greatest Quality in understanding it. The expression “He knoweth that which is in front of them (death) and that which is behind them (this life)” is the expression used to explain the Barzakh, a subatomic veil (field) stoping man from seeing ghayb (the unseen), mentioned in the Quran; referring to the dead Allah says “Behind them (in this life) lies the intervening barrier (Barzakh, stretching until) to the day of their resurrection” (23:99-100) stopping the souls from returning to this world.

“(He knoweth that which is in front of them) in front of the angels regarding the matter of the Hereafter (death) and who is to intercede (and that which is behind them) of the life of this world”(Tanwir al Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas 2:255)

What the verse is referring to is the subatomic world (ghayb) that the souls of the dead go to in relation to the physical world because that is the context in relation to the Kursi (footstool), it exists subatomicly. The main theme is about Allah’s knowledge which the verse teaches encompasses all that exists, none can gain that knowledge except by Allah’s leave, Allah then relates all these qualities He is mentioning in the verse to the Kursi which He says encompasses space and earth, this literally means it is spread out through the entire universe and earth. We usually assume everything relating to the unseen world like Heaven, Hell, and everything that exists in it exists in space above us because that is where it all begins and everything is distant from us, but Allah is saying something very different about His Kursi and by extension His Arsh, they cover the entire earth existing around us.

If we ask the simple question that if the Kursi covers the earth why can’t we see it and where is it; understanding that it is something which exists sub-atomically at a depth near the Arsh (sidrat al Muntaha) will explain how it can encompass the entire earth and space and can’t be seen, from Here we know the Arsh is larger than the Kursi and of a similar nature which also tells us the Arsh encompasses the heavens and the earth sub-atomically, and while the Kursi relates to His knowledge as Ibn Abbas (ra) said, and ayat al Kursi explained, the Arsh relates to His qualities directly as Allah explains in the Quran, man gains knowledge (al Kursi) to Know Allah (al Arsh) these are their roles, gaining knowledge is the steppingstone (Kursi/footstool) to knowing Allah hence it’s name.

“He is never weary of preserving them”, all matter in the universe is held together by forces Allah calls His hold on creation, this verse is the clearest indication that both the Kursi and Arsh are subatomic fields similar to the Higgs field which gives all particles their Mass. “Allah is the One who holds the heavens and the Earth (the universe), lest they cease to exist. And if they vanished no one could then keep hold of them. Certainly He is Most Forbearing, Ever-Forgiving.” (35:41) This verse refers directly to the subatomic forces that hold all particles together, if they stopped everything would vanish, this is what is directly preserving the Arsh and Kursi and “He is never weary of preserving them”.

“His Kursi is His knowledge”, man gains knowledge through His heart and Allah “encompassed all things in knowledge” (65:12) this is the explanation about the Kursi preferred by the Imams of the Salaf such as Sufyan al-Thawri, al-Bukhari, al-Tabari, al-Bayhaqi, and others. This means the Kursi is the thing responsible for gathering all the elements of knowledge in the heart of man from subatomic space so He can gain knowledge through his self, while the Arsh is responsible for gathering all the elements in man’s heart responsible for knowing Allah.

“Gravity in a three-dimensional volume (an object) can be described by quantum mechanics on a two-dimensional surface surrounding the volume (object) (think particles are relatively flat to solid matter so gravity is treated in objects layer by layer of particles in the object). In particular, the three dimensions of the volume should emerge from the two dimensions of the surface.”

Quantum entanglement is the entanglement of subatomic particles with each other, it is a subatomic “information carrier”, if we think about a heater heating a room the hot particles from the heater make contact with the cold particles of the room, they then entangle with each other and quantum entanglement carries the information (state) of the hot particle and tells the cold particle to become like it, hot, in this way a room is heated as the cold particles slowly copy the state of the hot particles, quantum entanglement does this for every single type of reaction in the universe it is how all particles interact with each other, essentially it is how everything occurs.

Presently it is believed quantum entanglement decides how the particles of all physical objects shape or create the object layer by layer, almost like a 3d printer prints the object layer by layer, not just because entanglement passes on information, the entanglement of all particles in a region like a giant spider web creates an atmosphere that influences what occurs sub atomically. Even though we are in the process of establishing all this, it is very significant Islamically because Allah states that He literally surrounds all things in Knowledge (65:12) which means every particle, and knowledge here does not mean words in a book it is a reference to how things come to be created.

“It is Allah Who created the seven heavens and of the earth, it’s like. The command (laws of physics) comes forth between them (subatomic space) so that perhaps you would know that Allah is Powerful over everything and that Allah, truly, enclosed everything in Knowledge.” (65:12), after Allah mentions the laws of physics and subatomic space He then explains how everything is enclosed in knowledge, the term here relates to the laws of the universe just mentioned in the verse and refers to how objects form since the verse begins with Allah creating the universe, the context of the entire verse.

Quantum entanglement projects data on the two dimensional surface of all objects and shapes how they form from the subatomic to the physical, this allows for the computation of energy density which is a source of gravitational interactions, this method is emerging as a possible way to unify general relativity with quantum mechanics and explains how things are created, by simile it is like DNA that defines the shape of the body but for subatomic particles. (This is explained in detail in our book “Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe”, in the chapter with the same name.)

Quantum entanglement is very significant to many verses in the Quran because it is the underlaying law in physics at the heart of much of what Allah said. It is believed that it creates time and Allah says He is time, when Allah says He is something it means it is encompassing of all His qualities, translators often translate verse 65:12 as “enclosed everything in His knowledge” and Allah says elsewhere in the Quran His Kursi surrounds all things, “His Kursi (footstool) encompasses the heavens and the earth”(2:255), the Kursi is a subatomic field in space like the Higgs field, the companions explained that His Kursi is His knowledge hence it has a role in quantum entanglement and the data it projects onto objects shaping how they form.

Imam Tabari writes that many Companions (Allah be well pleased with them) and students of the Companions (Allah be well pleased with them) held the opinion that the word Kursi in this verse refers to the Knowledge of Allah Most High, meaning that His Knowledge encompasses all that is the heavens and the earth. Ibn Kathir writes that “Abdullah bin Abbas (Allah be well pleased with him) narrates that the meaning of the word Kursi in this verse is the Knowledge of Allah Most High, and His Knowledge encompasses the earth”, hence the purpose of the Kursi is to allow Allah’s creatures to gain knowledge about His universe.

Mans consciousness is connected to the subatomic part of the universe through the heart more directly than any other part of his body. We feel before we think and that should tell us we sense before we see, our senses direct our mind shaping our personality.

The miracle of the prophet (saws) was the opening of science for mankind, which we have elaborated on in previous articles of the Journal, it is because of this fact and the Kursi is Allah’s knowledge that the prophet (saws) said “On the Day of Resurrection your Prophet shall be brought and shall be made to sit in front of Allah the Almighty, on His Kursi.” (Abd Allah ibn Salam by Ibn Abi `Asim in al-Sunna (p. 351 #786) and al-Tabari in his Tafsir (8:100))

Imam al Ghazali further explains the unseen world: The Real Light is Allah; and the name “light” is otherwise only predicated metaphorically (light is a simile for particles)… you must know that the word light is employed with a threefold signification…”Light” as Physical Light; as the Eye (that sees); (and) as Intelligence (our imagination, which is made from more than just light)…You have now realized that there are two kinds of eye, an external and an internal; that the former belongs to one world, the World of Sense, and that internal vision belongs to another world altogether, the heavenly World (subatomic); and that each of these two eyes has a sun and a light whereby its seeing is perfected; and that one of these suns is external (the sun in space), the other internal (it’s sun is the Quran which is a light for the intellect)… If then this has been disclosed to you thoroughly and entirely, then one of the doors of the heavenly realm (Ghayb) has been opened unto you. In that world there are marvels, in comparison with which this world of sight is utterly condemned; For this reason the latter is called the World of Spirit (world of subatomic particles), or the World of Light (particles), in contrast with the World Beneath (the physical world), the World of Matter and of Darkness. (Mishkat al Anwar)

Illness is a manifestation of imbalance or lack of ch’i (energy) within the body, this is the top down approach to healing the body and self from our most subtle (Lataif) parts down to our physical organs. Unlike acupuncture from China the Islamic Lataif (subtle aspect of the body) deal with an even higher part of mans physiology relating to his psychology that is created from the subatomic world, but unlike modern psychology which has a myopic world view, Islam treats man from the absolute origins of his self and what influences them.

Allah teaches us about what influences our self from the subatomic world in the Quran in many places like surah al Rahman (55), al Shams (91), the verse of light (24:35), al Nun (68), al Najm (53) and indirectly in surah al Takwir (81). Two of these things are the Arsh and Kursi, other subatomic forces are the sun’s electromagnetic field (solar activity), the moon that reflects the suns light and earths gravity and atmosphere, all specifically mentioned by Allah as being responsible for inspiring the soul in surah al shams (91).

The picture Allah is painting for us in the Quran is that every subatomic field or force influences mans nature, a person need only take a flash light and shine it on their skin to feel the effect of photons hitting us, today there are clinics that conduct light (photon) therapy to treat depression, bipolar disease and other psychological disorders because increasing light (photons) is a natural antidepressant, in fact shining a soft natural light like an LED light on a persons head, face and shoulders will make you feel the tension is lifting from your body because every cell in the body naturally takes in light and uses it, (we have written a tafsir to surah al shams on our website).

If we understand that our consciousness is created from different parts of the body, the different senses and the organs responsible for them, all giving input to the brain at the same time to make up who we are and how we experience the world, then we can understand that while acupuncture is closely related to the physical body the Lataif of Islam are closely related to mans psychology as it comes about through his Chi meridians (centres of the nervous system), and it primarily revolves around the connection between the soul and the self through the heart, in other words the connection between the subatomic and the physical.

The human soul is the highest part of man’s consciousness because it is responsible for inspiring man with what it experiences (sees) in the unseen world, it plays an important role in who man is as an individual it doesn’t just give him life, this is why Allah said in surah al shams (the sun); (7) And inspired it (the soul with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it. (8) He is indeed successful who causeth it to grow, (9) And he is indeed a failure who stunteth it. (10), meaning the soul receives inspiration from the subatomic part of the universe and the person who causes it to grow, nourishes it with good acts and their light succeeds and the person who stunts it with evil fails.

So the soul expands with good acts meaning it is able to sense deeper sub-atomically and shrinks with evil making the person become shallow, his soul is not being nourished. The soul needs to sense deeper sub-atomically to gain more insight about this universe because our actions in the physical world affect the subatomic world to it’s deepest depths, our acts shape it’s atmosphere (quantum entanglement establishes this occurs) and this is something Allah mentions in the Quran. The prophet Luqman (saws) said referring to mans actions, “If there be (but) the weight of a mustard-seed (the grain is a simile for the smallest subatomic particle) and it were (hidden) in a rock (the name is a simile Allah and the prophet gave to a subatomic depth), or in the heavens (space) or on earth, Allah will bring it forth: for Allah understands the (most) subtle mysteries (a reference to the subtle subatomic part of our universe), (and) is well-acquainted (with them).”(31:16)

The companions understood the rock wasn’t in space or on earth, which the verse affirms, but was referring to a subatomic depth because the verse mentions the rock as something seperate from both space and earth, and the prophet (saws) said this in a number of ahadith. “Whatever misfortune befalls you is for what your very hands have earned, and He pardons much” (42:30) In other words the verse is saying Allah will hold us to account for the most subtlest impact our actions have on this universe down to it’s subtlest subatomic depths because “Allah understands the (most) subtle mysteries” and our actions bring about the situations we find ourselves in, in life, (our book “Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe” discusses the prophets knowledge of subatomic space and quotes these ahadith).

It is because the heart is connected to the subatomic world and gains it’s insights from it that Allah said in the Quran that the Angel Jibril who is made from light revealed the Quran from the unseen world (the subatomic universe) to the physical one through the prophets heart, the heart is focused on the soul and the soul is constantly experiencing what is happening in the unseen world, because it is made from subatomic matter.

Our physical world is affected by what occurs on the subatomic level all the time, for example if we go to the beach our body can be burnt by the sun’s ultra violet (U.V) rays, so we need sun screen to protect us, those U.V rays are basically invisible light and part of the quantum universe, visible light has a longer wavelength and less energy while U.V light has a shorter wavelength but more energy which is why it burns.

Man is capable of seeing the unseen world normally, Allah created Adam (ra) with this ability and he saw Jannah (heaven) and everything in it clearly but a veil was placed over mans inner vision on earth, the physical part of the universe. When we see the unseen world the imagination shows man the spiritual world while his eyes the physical world, they both work at the same time. An example of this in life is a mirage which we see in front of us but it is our imagination showing something that we created from our lower self. Allah lifts the veils only for people who get rid of their lower self so it is impossible for them to see delusions, Imam Tustari said “Allah does no open the heart of a servant if it still contains three things, loving to remain (in this world), love of wealth, and concern about tomorrow” because these things are the basis for man’s delusions especially having long hopes, which is why the prophet (saws) said “What I fear most for my community, is that they follow their desires and have long hopes”.

Imam Ibn Arabi called the universe the imagination of Allah because He created it from subatomic particles like we imagine something, this is how we are created in Allah’s image, our mind imagines by arranging subatomic particles to make the image we see in our mind or dreams, the difference is the universe is the world Allah shaped from these particles, it isn’t a temporary.

It should become clear by now the subatomic world is the canvas our imagination uses to shape our world, what we think with our mind bears fruit there and we shape the subatomic world with it, with evil or good, the prophet (saws) affirmed this when He (saws) said “every statement has a reality” and our reality is how the subatomic world around us is shaped by us, this to is something the prophet (saws) affirmed in ahadith when He visited Jannah the place we are most pure and connected with the subatomic world; The Messenger of Allah (saws) said, “I met Ibrahim (saws) on the Night of Ascension (Al-Asra), and he said to me: ‘O Muhammad, convey my greetings to your Ummah, and tell them that Jannah has a vast plain of pure soil and sweet water. It is a plain levelled land. The plants grow there by uttering: Subhan-Allah, Al-hamdu lillah, La ilaha illallah and Allahu Akbar (Allah is free from imperfection; praise be to Allah; there is no true god except Allah; and Allah is Greatest).” (At- Tirmidhi).

Allah says “Is the reward of goodness anything other than goodness?” (55:60) but because of our lack of purity many of our thoughts don’t have significant impact but specific statements are worth everything and the key is purity in the self because it means nothing is blocking our influence over the subatomic world. The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: “Purity is half of (our) iman (faith, inner light). (Saying) ‘Al-hamdu lillah (all praise and gratitude belong to Allah)’ fills the scales (of our deeds), and ‘subhan-Allah (how far is Allah from every imperfection) and ‘Al-hamdulillah (all praise and gratitude belong to Allah)’ fill that which is between heaven and earth.”(Muslim) all of these are allusions to subatomic realities because we can simply ask what is filling the entire sky, it isn’t sound and it isn’t our thoughts it’s the light of saying the things.

Regarding the impact of the subatomic world on us the prophet (saws) said “Belief (the light of Iman) is seventy and some branches (it appears through our acts in seventy or so ways). Its lowest branch is the removal of harm from the road while its highest is to say: There is no god but Allah. (A person gains real belief in Allah)” (Muslim)

The prophet (saws) said “Allaah created Adam in His image”(Bukhair), The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “When any one of you fights his brother, let him avoid the face, for Allah created Adam in His image.” (Muslim) this isn’t because Adam has a face like Allah, man’s mind, intellect and imagination are what the prophet (saws) is referring to.

In Jannah (heaven) our imagination at this time acts like our eyes seeing the invisible world, almost like an image superimposed on the physical world that our two eyes are seeing. Our inner sight sees only what is actually there since the lower self can’t control our imagination because it is no longer there, so when the veils are removed it becomes almost impossible for the imagination to create false images, our imagination is completely focused on what it sees because nothing is hindering it’s sight hence it can’t “wonder” because it is held in place.

When Allah took Adam (ra) out from heaven, He placed a barzakh (veil or field) over his vision so he couldn’t see the unseen world any longer, and asked for faith (Iman) of mankind, this was Allah’s test on earth because Adam wronged himself in Jannah while He (ra) could still see, the test at the same time is meant to train our hearts to trust Allah while facing deception and delusion, so we suffer the imagination in this world not the next.

We only have partial vision of the unseen world it is this veil (or field in physics) that stops mankind from seeing the unseen world with our physical eyes, but the heart can still see because the imagination is created by the mind no the heart.

Allah says “(But the unbelievers will persist) until when death comes to one of them he will say: “O Lord, send me back again, That I may do some good I did not do (in the world).” Not so. These are only words he utters. Behind them (the life they came from) lies the intervening barrier (Barzakh, stretching until) to the day of their resurrection” (23:99-100)

On the day of judgment Allah will remove this Barzakh (veil) from space and He will say to mankind on that day “We have stripped from thee the Veil that covered thee and thy (inner) vision, this day is iron” (50:22), meaning the subtle world you saw with your imagination will be seen clearly like solid iron. (We have explained this in detail in our books “Allah Is The Light Of The Heavens and The Earth” and “Who Was Al Khidr”).

Imam al Ghazali and many of the scholars said about this matter; “when the intelligence is separated from the deceptions of phantasy and imagination (delusion), error on its part is inconceivable; it sees things as they are. This separation is, however, difficult, and only attains perfection after death. Then is error unveiled, and then are mysteries brought to light, and each one meets the weal (a healthy state) or the woe which he has already laid up for himself (through his own actions), and “beholds a Book, which reckons each venial (small) and each mortal sin, without omitting a single one”. In that hour it shall be said unto him: “We have stripped from thee the Veil that covered thee and thy vision this day is iron.” Now that covering Veil is that of the imagination and phantasy; and therefore the man who has been deluded by his own fancies, his false beliefs, and his vain imaginations, replies: “Our Lord! We have seen Thee and heard Thee! O send us back and we will do good. Verily now we have certain knowledge!” (Mishqat al Anwar).

Imam Ibn al Arabi explains “It is to something like this reality (our world) that each human being goes to in their sleep and after their death”, meaning the world we see in our sleep is the same one we go to after death this is the subatomic part our universe. Imam al Ghazali identified the unseen world (ghayb) as the world our imagination looks at when we imagine something but a deluded self can’t see it properly because fantasy is a veil that distorts the vision the particles of the heart create.

Our dreams are made from subatomic particles we arrange to create it, but what we see is created inside the subatomic universe that Allah created, in this part of the universe He placed countless creatures on other planets as well as Angels throughout space whose number is only known to Allah, this is the picture of the universe we have to piece together from everything Allah said.

It’s because there is a relationship between the physical world and the unseen world that the science of Lataif attempts to help man understand the unseen forces in the universe that affect his psychology through his physiology.

That their is a physical relationship between mans body and ghayb (the subatomic world) was the understanding of Imam Ibn Arabi, Imam al Ghazali and many other scholars of Islam, this is what Ibn Taymiyah objected to (see Issue#4 of the Journal) when he debated with Ibn Ata Allah. He couldn’t understand that science was the basis for the scholars words and was the basis for all Imam Ibn Arabi’s works who He disagreed with.

Essentially Ibn Taymiya looked at physics and physiology with the mind of a lawyer (faqih) and said it was wrong and impermissible because law can’t explain it, this was the world 600 years ago if you hadn’t studied physics then it may as well not have existed. He even labeled the sciences behind it a Bidah (a reprehensible innovation), if that was truly the case with Allah then all scientific discoveries are Bidah but the universe is nothing but science waiting to be discovered, Imam Ibn Arabi and like him Imam al Ghazali employed science to understand religion so it shouldn’t be surprising that their detractors where the lawyers not trained in science.

It may be surprising to some but most sects in Islam that deviated in Aqeedah, Islamic creed, did so because they held wrong beliefs in physics. In Islam Aqeedah is the science that deals with physics because physics explains the universe, the nature of what Allah created, so modern physics and medicine have long since solved the arguments posed by Aqeedah, it was part of Allah’s plan to show mankind what Space and physiology were, mentioned in verse 41:53 and it would turn out that it was the Ashari and Maturidi schools of Aqeedah, that the majority of Muslims follow, that are in line with modern physics, even quantum mechanics. (Our book “Who Was al Khidr” discusses Physics and Aqeedah and our Book “Al Fiqh al Akbar: An Accurate Translation” covers the history of Aqeedah in more detail).

Man was created in the best of forms, he was given a unique soul which Allah honored above all other creations by likening it to His own self in the Quran, this is because it would have the responsibility of knowing Allah completely, so it must be capable of understanding everything in the universe completely which is why Allah created man with His two hands having the complete spectrum of matter in him “in the best of moulds”(94:5) and “in the image of Allah”.

The soul or Ruh of every person is a created reflection (it caries a likeness as Allah said) of the Divine Attributes, but with human limitations, this is how we are capable of knowing and understanding Allah, and it originates in Alam al Amar (the Realm of Command), the deepest part of our subatomic universe this is why the depth of the heart ends with the Arsh of Allah at sidrat al muntaha (the deepest limit to the universe).

The scholars separated the creation of the universe into it’s components in order to simplify these teachings, the realm of command is one component, the realm of the Angels is another and the human realm is another. These are simply the pre-modern terms for the physical and subatomic, the realm of the Angels is the quantum universe (subatomic world), the earthly realm is the physical universe, and the realm of command are the Laws of physics or laws of Allah governing creation, the Arsh (throne) of Allah is the limit of the created universe, the Laws (commands) of Allah have a realm (location or origin) because the scholars understood that what ever Allah does beneath his Arsh (throne) He does through the causes (laws) in the universe, and what ever Allah does above the throne He does with His command of “Be” (or Kun) and it occurs instantly, all commands or Laws originate (or began) from there hence the soul originates from there and it is one of the commands (Laws) of Allah.

The name Arsh (throne) is an honorific for what it is and what it does, it isn’t an actual throne. As the prophet (saws) said ‘the throne of Allah is the largest thing Allah ever created’, it surrounds the universe and sub atomically it exists everywhere in it, the heart with the help of the soul can perceive to the depths of the Arsh (throne) which our prophet (saws) consciously achieved, then Allah took Him (saws) on His night journey (Isra wal Miraj) to show Him (saws) that universe and praised him for reaching the furthest limit of creation (sidrat al muntaha).

“And they ask you about the soul. Say: The soul is one of the commands of my Lord, and you are not given aught of knowledge but a little.” (17:85)

Imam Suyuti said regarding this verse “And of knowledge you have not been given except a little’, relative to His knowledge, exalted be He.”(Tafsir al Jalalayn 17:85).

Each person’s soul began and is created from the Realm of Command, and because it is also made from matter all living souls require sustenance something to nourish it so it grows. Allah is the sustainer of everything as the human body grows from an infant to an adult the soul grows with it, when the body dies the soul persists, the souls of people going to Jannah (heaven) after death will be white with a beautiful musk smell from the light they nourished it with in life, while the souls of the people going to Jahanam (hell) will be black having a foul smell to it from the evil they buried it in during life, from this and other things Allah has said we know our actions in life shape the soul and change it.

Allah said “Think not of those who are slain in Allah’s way as dead. Nay, they live (their souls live), finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord” (3:169), as the prophet (saws) explained it was a gift to Martyrs that when they died Allah kept their souls alive in Jannah receiving sustenance from Allah until the hour, this isn’t the case with normal people their souls experience the life after death in the grave, not Jannah (heaven).

Imam Suyuti said “The following was revealed regarding martyrs: Count not those who were slain (read qutilu or quttilu) in Allah’s way, that is, for the sake of His religion, as dead, but rather, that they are, living with their Lord, their spirits inside green birds that take wing freely wherever they wish in Paradise, as reported in a hadith; provided for [by Him].”(Tafsir al Jalalayn 3:169).

Allah is the light of the Heavens and the Earth, the food of the soul for living people is the Light of Allah, which it acquires from the Realm of Command through our actions in life, our actions in life bring the light of Allah to earth which nourishes the soul and heart, so does the knowledge we learn and the Quran whose status and function in the spiritual (subatomic) world is like the sun for the mind, the Quran is referred to as a light by Allah many times, “O mankind! Now hath a proof from your Lord come unto you, and We have sent down unto you a clear light” (4:174) through it the light of the heart and soul are nourished and grow until death.

Notes:

On the Hadith of Ibn Abbas that he said: “His Kursi is His knowledge” (kursiyyuhu `ilmuhu). (Bukhari)

Narrated marfu from the Prophet by Sufyan al-Thawri with a sound chain according to Ibn Hajar in Fath al-Bari (1959 ed. 8:199) and al-Tabarani in al-Sunna; and mawquf from Ibn `Abbas by al-Tabari with three sound chains in his Tafsir (3:9-11), al-Mawardi in his Tafsir (1:908), al-Suyuti in al-Durr al-Manthur (1:327), al-Shawkani in Fath al-Qadir (1:245), and others. Al-Tabari chooses it as the most correct explanation: “The external wording of the Qur’an indicates the correctness of the report from Ibn `Abbas that it [the kursî] is His `ilm… and the original sense of al-kursî is al-`ilm.” Also narrated in “suspended” form (mu`allaq) by al-Bukhari in his Sahih from Sa`id ibn Jubayr (Book of Tafsir, chapter on the saying of Allah Most High: {And if you go in fear, then (pray) standing or on horseback} (2:239). Its chains are documented by Ibn Hajar in Taghliq al-Ta`liq (2/4:185-186) where he shows that Sufyan al-Thawri, `Abd al-Rahman ibn Mahdi, and Waki` narrated it marfû` from the Prophet , although in the Fath he declares the mawqûf version from Ibn `Abbas more likely.

On the Hadith of Jabir that Allah created the universe from His Light;

It is certain that what Allah meant by light are particles by simile because a number of sources indicate this like the verse of light which begins with the words “the simile for His light” then goes on to explain how Atoms and particles come into existence. In the hadith of Jabir there is something very unique that only future discoveries in physics can prove.

At the moment we don’t know what photons, the “particle” light is made of are created from, by definition it is simply energy, it is like one of the building blocks of other particles which are called elementary particles, protons and electrons are not elementary particles because they are made of smaller particles. Because E = mc^2, matter is just energy condensed, light is energy and energy creates particles.

Im certain that Allah meant particles when he used the term light in the hadith of Jabir becouse light is an elementary particle but in the Hadith Allah divides Light a number of times to create everything so the light mentioned here is no longer elementary, He then uses it to create space and the earth which are made from the many particles we know about but continues to use the term light, because it is a simile, instead of something else for physical matter such as the earth.

Particles are created from smaller particles, if we go back to beginning of the universe when this step by step process was occurring; “We don’t know what happened in the very early stages of the Big Bang because we have no experimentally tested theory that takes us back that far. However, courtesy of the LHC (Large Hadron collider) we have an experimentally tested theory that takes us back to a time (in the creation of the universe) called the electroweak epoch, and we can use this theory to answer the question (was the universe created literally from Light, photons) in the negative.”

“Electromagnetism is a low energy effective theory. It works below energies of somewhere around a teraelectron volt, but above that energy it has to be replaced by a unified theory of the electromagnetic and weak forces (these are two of the three subatomic forces in the universe) called (somewhat obviously) the electroweak theory. The discovery that proved this (not that anyone seriously doubted it) was the discovery of the Higgs Boson at the LHC in 2013”, in other words photons (light) could not have existed at the very beginning of the universe.

“The electroweak theory tells us that during the electroweak epoch (at this stage in the formation of particles from smaller particles) there were four massless vector bosons (particles). At low energies these become the (particles) Z, W+,W−, and the photon (that light is made of), but above the electroweak transition (before this period) the four bosons were indistinguishable.”

This is exactly as the hadith of Jabir states, Allah divided that light (particle) into four lights but before it was divided they were indistinguishable, as one particle.

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The Islamic Journal #5.

The Islamic Lataif, Chinese Meridians, and Buhddist and Hindu Chakras and Their Basis In Islamic Law

“O Allaah, make for me a light in my grave… and a light in my bones.” (Tirmidhi)

“Increase me in light, increase me in light, increase me in light.” (Bukhari, adab al mufrad)

“Grant me light upon light.” (Bukhari)

The Origins of the Lataif in Islam lie in medicine and science, it originated with the work of Imam Kubra in the twelfth century regarding dream and vision interpretation. As his work and tariqa spread through the muslim world it also influenced the teachings of the Buddhist, Chinese and Hindu religions because Islamic society was the most advanced in the world at the time.

This subject has always been at the core of islam since it’s first days, beginning with the prophet (saws) himself who would teach the companions how to interpret dreams and visions as well as the science of the self, among the early generations the famous and highly respected Tabi’i scholar Imam Ibn Sireen, who was born in 33 AH (653AD) during the rule of Uthman ibn Affan (ra), wrote a famous book on dream and vision interpretation which encompassed much of that knowledge, it survives to this day and has been translated into english. The Imam himself was a zahid (ascetic) the equivalent among the tabiin (first generation of muslims) to what was later termed sufi, the Zahid’s in the Ummah would organise into Tariqa’s (schools) to better teach the spiritual side of Islam just as the faqih’s (Lawyers) would organise into Madhhabs (legal schools), this tradition survives to this day in the many tariqa’s (sufi schools) that exist around the world.

It is difficult to say what specifically advanced this knowledge in Islam but a look at the Islamic world during the 12th and 13th century will tell us this was the period of Islam’s golden age of scientific and social discovery, besides making countless discoveries of their own, the Muslim world took outdated knowledge from all areas of the world it spread to and advanced it to a level never seen before, so advances in understanding the physiology of spirituality was inevitable. This began with scholars who’s people had converted to Islam in these new lands, they adopted the islamic way of looking at the world and thus began the work of advancing their own traditions (science). Persian muslims would advance Persian science, Indian muslims would advance Indian science, Chinese muslims would advance Chinese science all the while taking from the wider islamic community that they where now connected to to aid in this process, in this way the religion of Islam was instrumental in spreading science on earth in an unprecedented manner and specific regions in the muslim world began to lead the world in science.

This process came under the Shariah Laws of Urf (custom and culture) and hence Islam protected people’s naturel identity. It is impermissible to make tahrim (declare a thing impermissible) as some modern heretical sects took to doing simply because of it’s origin, because Islam accepts peoples cultures and backgrounds, it was something Allah himself created and He stated it in the Quran in very clear terms, “O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise and reject each other). Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things, meaning all cultures).”(49:12)

This is relevant today because some heretical sects denounce entire fields of science because they come from a region of the world they are racist against, which is another evil Allah condemns in the Quran. They contradict many of the prophets (saws) instructions, for example the Prophet (saws) instructed that we should “seek knowledge even unto China” (al-Munawi cites al-Dhahabi’s Talkhis in which he said it is a widely reported narration, some of its chains are weak, and some are sound), the prophet (saws) also said “The Search of Knowledge is an obligation laid on every Muslim” (Ibn Majah and Baihaqi) meaning on every muslim in every part of the world.

The Messenger of Allah acknowledge in the 7th century that China was an advanced society and had knowledge about this world we should seek out, the companions visited China not long after the prophet’s (saws) death because of this. As a result of the Islamic golden age, which Allah himself promised his prophet (saws) in number of narrations, Europe was taken out from the Dark ages by fuelling it’s enlightenment and it helped greater India, China and Asia recover from the Mongol Horde that devastated it.

The Prophet (saws) said “I have been sent with ‘Jawami-al-Kalim’ (the shortest expressions with the widest meaning and knowledge) and have been made victorious with awe, and while I was sleeping, I saw that the keys of the treasures of the world (which means the knowledge present among other nations) were placed in my hand.” Abu Huraira added: Allah’s Apostle has gone, and you people are utilizing those treasures (knowledge), or digging those treasures out.’(Bukhari) in other words making use of old knowledge from every region on earth, the spread of knowledge by Islam was something clearly promised to the prophet (saws) by Allah, and this is exactly what occurred throughout history.

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: “Indeed Allah gathered the earth for me so that I saw its east and its west. And surely my Ummah’s authority shall reach over all that was shown to me of it. And I have been granted the two treasures; the red (Roman empire, were the Greek sciences were taken from) and the white (Persian empire, were over 200 of Islam’s greatest scholars and scientists would come from). I asked my Lord that my Ummah is not to be destroyed by a universal drought, and that He does not overcome them by enemies outside of them, reaching to their heart of power (Madina and Makkah). My Lord said: ‘O Muhammad! When I issue a decree it is not reversed. I have granted for your Ummah that they shall not be destroyed by universal drought. And that they not be overcome by enemies outside of themselves reaching to their heart of power even if they gather against them from all the regions.”’ Or he said: “Among the regions. But some of them will destroy others, and some will capture others.”’ (Tirmidhi)

Allah also says in the Quran “To thee (Muhammad) We sent the scripture (Qur’an) in truth confirming the scriptures that came before it, and guarding it in safety. Say: Whoever is the enemy of Jibreel — for surely he revealed it to your heart by Allah’s command…”(2:97)

Abu Hurairah (ra) also narrated:”We were sitting in the company of Allah’s Apostle (saw) when Surat al-Jum`a was revealed to him and when he recited amongst them, (those who were sitting with the prophet) said `Allah’s Messenger?’ but Allah’s Apostle (saw) made no reply, until he was questioned once, twice or thrice, and there was amongst us Salman the Persian. Allah’s Apostle (saws) placed his hand on Salman and then said:”Even if faith were near the Pleiades (the stars), a man from amongst these would surely find it (referring to knowledge of religion).” Persia became a great centre for knowledge and many of the worlds great scholars came from there like Imam al Ghazali, Imam Abu Dawwud, Imam Bukhari, Ibn Sina, Ibn Haytham one could name well over 200 prominent and well known Islamic figures (Scholars, Scientists, Philosophers, and Physicians) in world history that came from Persia.

It is also significant to note that the Greeks such as Plato followed and revived the teachings of a prophet of Allah sent earlier to the Persians called Zoroaster (a greek translation of his name from Plato’s work). Allah in the Quran recognizes the Zoroastrians (Majus in the Quran) as people who believed in Allah mentioning them with the Jews and Christians: “Verily, those who believe and those who are Jews, and the Sabians, and the Christians, and the Majus, and those who worship others besides Allah, truly, Allah will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection. Verily! Allah is over all things a Witness”. (22:17).

The Lataif of Islam don’t resemble anything from other religions or cultures, ‘any automatic reference to the Hindu concept of koshas is inappropriate and the alluring association of the Lataif Sitta with the Tantric esoteric physiology is deluding. The central mythic power defining the Hindu Tantra, Kundalini Shakti, has no equivalent in Sufism’. Some have also likened it to Jewish traditions, beside the fact that both religions are revealed from Allah who stated the zuhd (asceticism) He taught in Islam He likewise revealed it in the scriptures of Abraham and Moses, it is highly unlikely muslims took from the Jews because the Jewish understanding of physiology would have certainly developed in the Islamic Empire during Islam’s golden age, most of their great scholars lived in Islamic lands. The Jews were largely persecuted around the world through history, except in Islamic lands and every time they were exiled their texts were destroyed, so scientific advancement among the tribes would have been slow and mostly borrowed from Islam, this was the case from most of their history and prior to Islam 1400 years ago knowledge of the body did not resemble anything we know today.

Other’s have likened the Lataif to Hindu Chakra’s, while the definitions may resemble each other that is were the similarity ends because the Chakra points are located in entirely different locations on the body and deal with different things than the Lataif.

Chakras and Acupuncture meridians are closely related, in old terms ‘meridians carry the life force (energy) that vitalizes all life forms and allows them to flourish and grow’, today using modern language we call this the nervous system. Different cultures call this life force by different names: Chi in chinese medicine, subtle (Lataif) energy in Islam, Spirit or Prana and vital energy in Hindu to name just a few but it is all referring to the same thing.

Chi and Lataif energy in the language of physics is the electromagnetic force that governs this universe and the fields created because of it, the electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields. There are only four fundamental forces in the Universe, three of them are responsible for why everything occurs from chemical reactions to electricity to magnetism, the other one is gravity but it is ruled out because it doesn’t relate to this subject. The strong nuclear force and the weak nuclear force likewise don’t relate to this subject, while the electromagnetic force is a perfect fit considering what it does and the major role it plays in life.

Everything we have mentioned above about the Lataif, Chakra’s and Meridians is mans observation of this force throughout history, it is responsible for it all.

It is responsible for the electromagnetic field that the heart, brain and other organs produce and surrounds the human body, and it is responsible for electricity and magnetism in the body. The electro-magnetic force also surrounds every single Atom in the Universe and dictates, similar to how magnetism works, it’s attraction and repulsion to other Atoms, when this is considered on a larger scale, the electromagnetic force decides the strength, shape and hardness of objects as physics states, because it is responsible for stopping things from passing through each other like they are ghosts, if it was to stop working everything would collapse into a black hole.

It is also significant that the magnetic component of the electro-magnetic field the heart generates is far stronger than the electrical component, which is important to the attraction and repulsion of particles, that the hearts rhythm also affects.

It goes without saying that martial arts masters who learnt to manipulate this force flowing through the body displayed extraordinary abilities all relating to strength, hardness and the manipulation of objects (shape).

Above all else Allah mentions this force in the Quran in the verse of light clearly, stating that He uses it to guide all people, this is the basis in Islam for the scholars using the Lataif points and this force to similarly guide and purify people through it because this is what Allah himself does.

Allah says, “Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light is like a niche (the particle field in space) within which is a lamp (the particles Atoms are made from), the lamp is within glass (the Atom), the glass as if it were a pearly

[white] star lit from [the oil of] a blessed olive tree, [it’s Olive, the particle, is] neither of the east nor of the west (but from subatomic space), whose oil (the forces of the universe) would almost glow even if untouched by fire. Light upon light (particles within particles). Allah guides to His light whom He wills (Allah uses the particles and forces of the universe to guide to him). And Allah presents examples (such as this) for the people, and Allah is Knowing of all things”. (Qur’an 24:35) (we have explained this verse in detail in our work “Allah Is The Light Of The Heavens and The Earth”)

This verse describes how the Atom comes into existence and how Allah guides man through the forces and energy of the universe that our body uses to survive. All atoms along with the particles they are made from right down to the smallest particle are created because of the four fundamental forces in the Universe, the electromagnetic force (Chi) being one of them.

In the Quran Allah, in a language Arabs living 1400 years ago could understand, calls the Atom a lamp and the forces that create it the Oil that is fuelling the lamp, the particle (Olive) the tree produces is not from the east or the west it is from within space, subatomic space, He then tells us this is His light in the Universe through which people and their hearts are guided because the body relies on what is occurring subatomicly.

The verse begins by asserting that “Allah is the Light of the heavens (the Universe) and the earth” then Allah gives an example for how His light exists. The simile for the Atom and the smaller particles it is made from in this verse is Light because both are quantum substances and light is the most visible subatomic particle, there are many ahadith that clearly state Allah created the universe from His light (particles) just as the verse of light explains what His light is by explaining how Atoms come into existence. (Our book “Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe” quotes many of these Ahadith and discusses them at length, it also discuses the prophets (saws) knowledge of subatomic space.)

Allah then says “the example of his light is like a niche”, a niche is like a crevasse in the middle of a wall, and as physics teaches particles exist in a field spread out in space as if a wall, so this is it’s similitude.

“Within which is a lamp”, the Atom or particle itself, “the lamp is within glass“, the Atom creating its own outer shell or field as it spins or vibrates.

“The glass as if it were a pearly [white] star“, it’s outer shell looks exactly like a star when it shines, this is caused by its excitation that makes it react to other particles and forces around it, as well as want to join together with other particles to make up larger particles in the universe.

Next Allah talks about the four fundamental forces in the Universe, one of which is Chi (Lataif, meaning subtle, energy) also called the electromagnetic force, “Lit from the blessed oil”, particles are created (Lit) from the fundamental forces (Oil) of the Universe, “of a blessed olive tree” the tree is the hierarchy of particles, starting with the Atom down to the smallest one, essentially the tree is the Universe itself.

The example of the tree in the verse is similar to a family tree with a list of the older generations of people going all the way back to our ancestors, just like the Atom and the particles (older generations) going back to it’s ancestor or the smallest particle it came from, in fact this is the same terminology used by physicists today when looking at the hierarchy, the particles are known by what generation they belong to, (the full explanation of the verse is in our work “Allah Is The Light Of The Heavens and The Earth”).

Through this reality of space “Allah guides to His light whom He wills”, through this blessed Tree, or the subatomic universe, Allah guides man to Him.

This is the basis for the Lataif (subtle energy) and Chi in the Quran, another clear example is given is Surah al Shams (91) where Allah talks about the celestial bodies like the sun, moon and the earth and says He guides man through the fields they generate, the electro-magnetic fields of the sun which create it’s varied solar activity and the earth that is surrounded by a magnetic field protecting it from the sun and creating it’s atmosphere, this along with it’s gravity, all of which exist because of the electro-magnetic force.

Allah speaking about the subatomic effects of these celestial bodies on human consciousness, say’s “BY the sun and its radiant brightness (It’s solar activity created by the electromagnetic force), By the moon as it reflects the sun! (It reflects the suns solar activity and protects the earth) BY the day as it reveals the (sun to the) world, By the night as it veils it darkly! (The day and night cycle is the period of increased and decreased electromagnetic activity which humans experience) BY the sky and its wondrous make (the sky and atmosphere is created because of the earth’s magnetic field shielding it from the sun), By the earth and all its expanse! (The expanse of the earth creates the atmosphere and different weather that exist around the world, as well as the gravity we experience) BY the Soul (which is made from subatomic particles), and how it is formed (from these particles) in accordance with what it is meant to be (subject to the Laws of physics, the pen wrote down what would occur according to the Laws Allah placed in the Universe which are set, mans freewill acts within the boundaries of these laws i.e. what it, the soul, is meant to be), And inspired it (through the subatomic universe, the particles and forces that exist there, with) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it. To a happy state shall indeed attain he who causes this [self] to grow in purity (Zakaha), and truly lost is he who buries it [in darkness]. TO [THIS] TRUTH (that previous civilizations already new) gave the lie, in their overweening arrogance, [the tribe of] Thamud”(91:1-11) (we have written a lengthier tafsir to these verses on our website).

Previous civilizations understood man is guided through the celestial bodies and built massive structures to mark there knowledge which they left behind like the pyramids and stone henge, the tribe of Thamud had knowledge of all this but denied their creator and worshiped the stars and invented gods instead.

Because Man’s consciousness and imagination (what we see in our mind) is made of matter, like solids and liquids are made from matter, the image in our head is made from subatomic particles, particles smaller than the atom, our imagination is created from the very same forces that govern this Universe and create these particles, Allah says He guides man through them to Himself, “Those who strive hard in Us, We shall most surely guide them in our Ways” (29:69) which is through the self, man’s consciousness and imagination that shapes who he is.

This is the significance of the verse of light in relation to the nature of man and how Allah guides people to him, this is why Allah mentioned guidance at the end of the verse. He is saying man is guided to him through the subatomic universe and the verse of light explains what that Universe looks like.

“Allah presents examples for the people and Allah is Knowing of all things”, this is the simile for the Universe, how Allah guides man from within his own self and physiology just like the Lataif of Islam teaches, Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth that we should connect our self to.

The science behind the Lataif Allah promised to reveal how it works in the Quran to the later generations of Mankind, even specifying that man would need to know how his self is connected to the subatomic universe to have certainty (al Yaqeen) that Islam is the truth, “In time We shall make them fully understand Our messages [through what they perceive] in the utmost horizons [of the universe] and within themselves, so that it will become clear unto them that this [revelation] is indeed the truth. [Still,] is it not enough [for them to know] that thy Sustainer is witness unto everything?”[Qur’an 41:53]

Allah made a connection between the the deepest regions of space and what is within man, this is the quantum universe, the subatomic world, mankind understood space by understanding what atoms are made from, the connection between atoms, space and the self is how they relate to each other in the body and the science behind the Lataif deals with this subject which Allah is alluding to here “what they perceive within themselves”, because our consciousness is made from subatomic particles all the things we witness in the self relate to physics and space which the science of the Lataif connects very clearly in it’s teachings, today the emerging field of biophysics deals with this subject.

The science of the Lataif found acceptance and consensus (Ijma) among Islam’s scholars and spread through out the earth.

“[O MEN!] We have now bestowed upon you from on high a divine writ (the Quran) containing all that you ought to bear in mind (it speaks about all knowledge relevant to the self) will you not, then, use your reason?”[Qur’an 21;10] Will you not then study the matter and think, see how these subjects are connected, Allah gave us the blueprint we need to see how it fits together and works.

“They know but the outer surface of this world’s life, but of the End of things they are heedless.”[Qur’an 30:7] They only know the material world but people are unaware of the impact their actions have in the universe. To state the matter succinctly the end of things means the end result of your actions, that is the impact our actions have on the subatomic world which is the end of things since actions are done in the physical world then impact our surroundings in every level of the universe. Every advice Allah ever gave about our behaviour and how to act is because what we do has spiritual consequences, since ghayb the spiritual world is the subatomic part of our universe it means our actions impact the subatomic world and it harms us and others.

Our bodies rely on subatomic particles, our consciousness which is made from these particles along with our heart which creates the electromagnetic field we sense the world through are tuned into the subatomic part of the universe all the time. What occurs there impacts our organs, brain and self directly. We can’t change the physical world with a thought but we can manipulate subatomic particles with our imagination with ease, so our body through our self and actions is always affecting that part of the universe directly and indirectly. This means as we act we impact the world sub atomically and what others do impacts on us as well. Hence Allah is teaching us in the verse that bad actions come back to harm us spiritually (subatomiclly) in a language people can understand, and we should be aware of it, other religions called this Karma and Allah speaks about it in many verses in the Quran.

Allah does everything through the universe and what occurs in it are described by the laws of Physics, He calls these laws in the Quran His commands which descend through subatomic space. In many verses Allah speaks about the creation of the universe and the laws of physics that govern it in a language Arabs could understand; “VERILY, your Sustainer is Allah, who has created the heavens and the earth in six aeons (periods), and is established on the throne of His almightiness (see the next article for it’s meaning). He covers the day with the night in swift pursuit (the motion of the universe is continuous), with the sun and the moon and the stars subservient to His command (the Laws of physics): oh, verily, His is all creation and all command (all laws of physics). Hallowed is Allah, the Sustainer of all the worlds! (planets in the Universe)” (7:54)

“It is Allah Who created the seven heavens and of the earth, it’s like (the other planets). The command (laws of physics) comes forth (lit. descends in arabic) between them (through subatomic space) so that perhaps you would know that Allah is Powerful over everything and that Allah, truly, enclosed everything in Knowledge.” (65:12) This is probably the most significant verse regarding the laws of physics, that it descends to the physical world from the spiritual is the most accurate scientific description possible that is only in our lifetime being understood and proven. In the earlier verse Allah mentions the Throne in relation to these laws, the throne is situated at sidrat al muntaha, the deepest subatomic depth and it is created from the first particles to exist in the universe, as later particles came to be created the many laws of physics came into existence along with them, literally the laws of physics descend from the deepest subatomic depths to the physical world, the command comes forth through subatomic space.

Keeping in mind the verse of light where He says He guides man through the subatomic universe and surah al Shams where He says He uses subatomic forces to achieve this, Allah says about these laws “To thee (Muhammad) We sent the scripture (Qur’an) in truth confirming the scriptures that came before it, and guarding it in safety. Say: Whoever is the enemy of Jibreel — for surely he revealed it to your heart by Allah’s command (Laws)…”(2:97) using the laws of physics, because the heart receives everything from ghayb (the subatomic universe) through the laws of physics. Once properly understood this verse establishes how man is inspired and how he receives revelation, it is the foundation for the lataif system because the heart is the place of revelation.

Christianity similar to Karma teaches we reap what one sows (Galatians 6:7), Chinese Taoism teaches “There are no special doors for calamity and happiness (in men’s lot); they come as men themselves call them. Their recompenses follow good and evil as the shadow follows the substance” the shadow is the subatomic world that follows what is occurring in the physical world. While Allah similarly says “Allah tasketh not a soul beyond its scope. For it (is only) that which it hath earned, and against it (only) that which it hath deserved.”(2:286) If we can’t understand the science behind this then we can understand the warning and take heed.

Verse 30:7 is literally talking about how the universe works and the subatomic part of space, Allah sets the context for this verse very clearly in the next verse, “Have they never learned to think for themselves? Allah has not created the heavens and the earth and all that is between them (the subatomic part of the universe) without [an inner] truth and a term (for it’s end) set [by Him]: and yet, behold, there are many people who stubbornly deny the truth that they are destined to meet their Sustainer!” (30:8).

Similar to ultra violet light the Lataif energy (Chi) is invisible to the human eye. However, in Chinese medicine experienced Chinese doctors can feel and trace these pathways of energy with their hands, the electromagnetic force surrounds every Atom in our hands and because of the electromagnetic field our body generates it is possible, Chinese scholars have also mapped these meridian (Lataif or Chakra) lines and many charts are available. With this understanding, acupuncture and the science of Lataif were developed to balance Chi (energy) in the body, today energy is known by a different name. Through science we know if something affects mans nervous system, if something is stopping the flow of signals (energy) the body will become sick because the brain and heart can’t regulate the body and maintain it’s balance which it needs to do all the time.

We can think of these acupuncture meridians (pathways) as streams or rivers flowing with energy. It is like a river that provides life-giving water to its surrounding areas, these channels distribute revitalizing energy to the surrounding area of the body. Today we call this the nervous system and we can be certain we are talking about the same things because physics tells us energy in the air follows the path of least resistance, the path that already exists in the body, and the nervous system is the most physical path for energy to follow. Mans nervous system and organs which generate the bodies electromagnetic field influence and manipulate the flow of energy so it follows the paths going to and from each organ.

Acupuncture is a method of touching and using ch’i, the electromagnetic force, and the energy created by it whether it is the electromagnetic field, electricity (including static) or magnetism which our body also uses, all these types of energies are created by this single force.

These meridian channels are mapped on the surface of the body, along the meridian lines there are acupuncture points, also called Lataif points, places where we know that we can connect with ch’i to work with the body and its healing process. Acupuncture uses the points related to healing the body from physical illness while the Lataif of islam use the points related to mans consciousness and self, the points most closely connected to the soul that gives us life.

Generally people seek acupuncture treatment when they are ill because Chi follows the nervous system and it is connected to our organs so we can heal the body in specific places using it.

Unlike the Meridians used in Chinese medicine the Lataif of Islam are located near the centre of the chest were the soul is centred. Our consciousness isn’t just the culmination of our senses and memory it is also created from the cumulative energy in the body created by it’s different organs. Because the entire body is connected by the subatomic fields (energy) it generates and they connect with the mind and heart more directly than through the nervous system, our reflexes and instincts rely on this part of us existing, animals specifically use it to greater effect.

This is the top down view of the human body, like someone hitting a nerve in the body then it causes the entire arm to move the electromagnetic field created by different organs are nerves for different aspects of our self. Because of the electromagnetic field created by different organs in the body which is directly connected to our heart and brain, our consciousness, various parts of the body are responsible for different emotions and states.

Listed below are the twelve primary energy meridians, and the main emotions linked with them used in Chinese medicine:

Pasted Graphic 1. Lung meridian; grief, intolerance

2. Large intestine meridian; guilt

3. Stomach meridian; disgust, greed

4. Spleen meridian; worry, anxiety about the future

5. Heart meridian; joy, anger

6. Small intestine meridian; insecurity, sadness

7. Bladder meridian; fright, impatient, restless

8. Kidney meridian; fear, indecision

9. Pericardium/circulation-sex; hurt, extreme joy, jealousy, regret

10. Triple warmer/thyroid meridian; hopelessness, depression, despair

11. Gall bladder meridian; rage, wrath

12. Liver meridian; anger, unhappiness

This is not unlike what Imam Ali (ra) said although the list above focuses on illness, Imam Ali (ra) said “The (seat of the) intellect is located in the heart. Mercy is located in the liver, Compassion is located in the spleen. The self (soul) is located in the lungs (these refer to regions in the body that affect these types of emotions from the subatomic universe).”(Adab al Mufrad, Hasan).

The Buddhist and Hindu Chakras are similar to meridians, there are many chakras (centres of energy) in the body but in the Hindu tradition there are seven that are considered the most important. This may at first seem like different opinions coming from different religions, but one look at the location of these seven chakras tells us a different story. Unlike the Lataif of Islam which are located near the centre of the chest or the Meridians of Chinese medicine which are located in the various organs in the body the Hindu Chakras are located in a vertical line starting at the head and going directly down the body, to many this may seem unrealistic because no organs in the body are located in such a vertical way, but it is perfectly accurate if we think about the spinal cord and it’s role.

When every Organ in the body wants to send a signal through the nervous system to the brain, including the heart, it sends it through the spinal cord, so along this cord at various locations on it are chakra points associated with each organ, the picture is of the nervous system and how every organ sends a signal to the brain through the spinal chord, as well as the different locations along the spinal chord, exactly like the Chakra points.

It then becomes clear that each tradition treated the body from a different part of the Chi/Charkra/Lataif system that exists in the human body, while the Chinese focused on the organs in the body and the Hindu’s focused on the spinal chord which is a step above the organs to heal physical illness, Islam focused on the workings (“psychology”) of the self which centred around the heart, through that the rest of the body would be healed as the prophet (saws) said “Truly in the body there is a morsel of flesh which, if it be sound, all the body is (spiritually and physically) sound and which, if it be diseased, all of it (spiritually and physically) is diseased. Truly it is the heart”, so Islamic scholars focused on the heart and the soul attached to it, which is the most top down approach to healing and helping man of all these systems. None of them are wrong in their approach but the Lataif deal with the highest part of mans self first then the rest of the body.

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The Islamic Journal #5.

How The Human Body Learns and The Downward Spiral Of Western Medicine Over The Past 100 Years

The History of the Lataif of Islam begins with Shaykh Najmudin Kubra (12/13century) but it’s basis starts with the prophet (saws) himself who better than anyone understood the physiology of the Human body, how Allah created it and gave it the ability to be inspired. The prophet (saws) understood both the physical and spiritual side of man’s physiology which reflected in many of His (saws) actions and dua (prayers) that He (saws) taught His Ummah. When the Angel Jibril (ra) first came to him He instructed the prophet (saws) to (iqra), “Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists)”.

That is, to Iqra (read) the Ayat (signs) in the Universe in the name of Allah, and the first thing Allah taught Him (saws) was that He “has created man from something that clings (Alaq, the fetus).” Then He told Him (saws) to again “Read!” these Ayat (signs) because “your Lord is the Most Generous” (96: 1-3), meaning He will be generous in revealing the signs to Him (saws), so He (saws) should continue to look for them and study them.

Because this knowledge was new to the prophet (saws), Allah wanted to first focus the prophets (saws) mind on how man was created and from there He would then think about man’s complete physiology as He (swt) revealed it to Him (saws) in other verses. The first verses of the Quran were not a warning to mankind but the scientific foundation for everything the prophet (saws) would later instruct man to do in Islam in order to perfect himself, because all actions in the Deen (religion) relate to mans creation and physiology.

It is the foundation of how to perfect the self because every action man takes reflects in his body chemically, psychologically and spiritually, to much of something or to little will push man’s psychology and perception in one direction or another and that will warp his view of the world, if he can’t perceive properly then he can’t know Allah properly, hence this religion is about being balanced.

In this verse Allah ties the ability to be balanced with being just and proper witnesses, ”Thus have We made of you a nation justly balanced, that you may be witnesses over the people and the Messenger a witness over yourselves” (al-Baqarah 143).

In the opening verses of the Quran Allah teaches man to ask to be made balanced people, ”Guide us to the straight way, the way of those upon whom You have bestowed Your grace, not those whose (portion) is wrath nor those who have gone astray (become unbalanced)“ (al-Faatihah 6-7).

Man needed to purify his body so it can be capable and ready to accept Allah’s (physical) light in his heart, this is because light or the electromagnetic field is the source for all knowledge we receive through our body and faculties. The Human body through our nervous system and organs such as the heart and brain produce a strong electromagnetic field, in simple terms Light, almost all the great scholars of Islam like Imam Malik who founded the Maliki (ra) madhhab understood and said knowledge is a light Allah places in the heart, this is because there is a physiological process behind gaining knowledge which starts at the subatomic level.

A pure heart free from fault is capable of holding, sensing and understanding a subtle light, some light is visible others invisible, a good example of this was at the battle of the trench, when the muslims were digging the trench a large rock stood in their way from completing it, the prophet (saws) struck the rock three times and each time He saw a flash of light, Salman al farisi (ra) saw the light as did the prophet (saws) who was granted three future victories at that time, He was shown the lands of the Romans, Persians and Yemen in the light, but while Salman noticed these visions vaguely he could not make out what was in the light, (the hadith is related in full at the end of this work).

This has to do with the purity of the heart which reflects in mans physiology, purity and light are terms from 1400 years ago while in modern times science has rewriten the language of knowledge, to put it simply if there is something in the heart that allows it to perceive light then doing harmful actions Allah termed sins would hinder the hearts ability to understand that light, Allah said “Nay, but what they were committing has spread like rust over their hearts.” (83:14), rust stops a machine from working Allah here is likening these harmful acts to rust that stops the heart from perceiving light properly hindering the flow of knowledge, the prophet (saws) explains “When a believer sins there is a black spot on his heart, and if he repents and asks pardon his heart is polished (the act has subatomic consequences); but if he does more it increases ‘til it gains the ascendancy over his heart. That is the rust mentioned by Allah Most High” (Ahmad).

In physics this transmission of information and knowledge through the electromagnetic field (light) is called the coherence of waves, (a field is just a bunch of waves together). When one electromagnetic wave connects with another, if they are in a state of coherence (synchronized, calm and there is no interference) then information can be passed on from one to the other clearly, this is like a mobile phone which also uses the electromagnetic field (light) to communicate, if there is bad reception because of interference with the signal from something (in terms of the human body, a persons bad character or mood or the “rust” that has built up) then you will get drop outs in the information the phone is sending and receiving, if there is a good signal (coherence, produced by good character and self control that creates calmness) then the information is passed on crystal clear.

This is where the entire matter of revelation begins, with Light and the Angels created from Light are charged with giving mankind the revelations of Allah. Imam Malik (as) said “Knowledge does not consist in narrating much. Knowledge is but a light which Allah places in the heart” this is the beginning of knowledge, what we witness of it in our lives is it’s results. Narrations are the end result of receiving knowledge not the beginning which is the light Allah placed in the prophets heart, the source of the prophets (saws) knowledge was revelation passed to him by the light of the Angels who revealed it to his heart, “For he (Gabriel) it is who hath revealed (the Quran) to thy heart by Allah’s leave.” (2:97)

This process of gaining knowledge wasn’t something unique to him because the Prophet had a human body that functioned like everyone else, “Say (O Muhammad): I am only a man like you. It has been revealed to me that your Ilaah (God) is One Ilaah (God)” (18:110), “And We did not create them (the Messengers, with) bodies that ate not food, nor were they immortals” (21:8), but their is a physiological process in receiving revelation that hasn’t been properly understood, “Their Messengers said to them: We are no more than human beings like you” (14:11).

Imam Al-Dhahabi, along with many other scholars, all similarly said, Knowledge (al-`ilm) “is not the profusion of narration but a light which Allah casts into the heart.” From here Imam Dhahabi goes on to explain what all the major scholars understood, that man passes on knowledge that he knows to his students, friends, family, children…etc, through the light (electromagnetic field) of his own heart, knowledge is passed on to the light produced by the heart of the student or child they are teaching in their presence. This is along with the normal manner of communicating, what we sense about the way a person is speaking is because this electromagnetic field exists, which adds depth to the teachers words. A person with a clear heart will be able to take in more of what they are learning and hearing if they can form a coherent link with the teacher, usually achieved through respect and good conduct towards the teacher, something Islam’s scholars said is the foundation of learning.

Imam Dhahabi said about the light the heart receives “Its condition is followership”, ittibaa, following someone, akin to a respectful teacher student relationship which is what following the sunnah meant to the companions who received from His (saws) light of prophethood, it was because of the Prophet’s light that Madinah the city He lived in was called Madinah al Munawara (the illuminated city) a literal name which meant “The City that is Enlightened”, it referred to the amount of knowledge being passed on through His (saws) light of prophethood which many companions living in the city could sense and see clearly, and when He (saws) died the companions said that light left and the city became darker.

There are many ahadith about the light of prophethood which was something Allah gave to each prophet but for it to work as the light of knowledge there had to be a physiological basis in the human body for it work on the wider islamic community, this is why light holds a special place in all religions on earth.

Allah in the Quran clearly says He sent the prophet (saws) as a light for people because of this, “O Prophet! We have sent you as a witness, a bearer of good tidings and of warning, And as a summoner unto Allah by His permission, and as a lamp that giveth light.”(33:45-46) Just like the lamp creates light the Human body creates light, in this verse Allah said He sent him as a lamp for people whose role was to illuminate them, because physiologically people are guided by the light (electromagnetic field) of people so Allah gave each prophet the light of prophethood to help them reach people.

The Prophet, may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him, said “Allah created His creation in darkness then He sprayed them with His light. Those whom this light reached became rightly guided, while those it did not went astray.”(Tirmidhi)

Those who saw the prophet (saws) in the full moon noticed that his blessed face was brighter than the moon (Tirmidhi), and one of his Companions, the Lady Rubayyi‘, when asked to describe him, said, “My son, had you seen him, you would have seen the sun shining.”(Tirmidhi)

Aisha (ra) the prophets wife related how she saw the whole room fill with light one night, then it disappeared, while the Prophet continued to call upon Allah. Then the room was filled with a more powerful light which disappeared after a while. She asked, “What is this light I saw?” he said, “Did you see it. O ‘A‘isha?” “Yes!” she replied. He said, “I asked my Lord to grant me my nation, so He gave me one third of them, so I praised and thanked Him. Then I asked him for the rest, so He gave me the second third, so I praised and thanked Him. Then I asked Him for the third third, so He gave it to me, so I praised and thanked Him.” She said that had she wished to pick up mustard seeds from the floor by this light she could have (Hilya).

This is the basis for the Tariqah’s of Tassawwuf and learning from a teacher who has a silsila (genealogy) of teachers that goes back to the prophet (saws), because as the scholars have been saying for 1400 years the silsila (genealogy) of teachers means your are receiving from the light of a teacher who received from the light of a teacher who, going all the way back, received from the light of the prophet (saws) himself, Allah speaks about this reality in very clear terms in the Quran, in a few places.

The scholars understood the importance of this and preserved this chain of teachers very carefully, today every tariqa (path) of Tassawwuf can recount the lineage of teachers they received their knowledge from all the way to the prophet (saws), usually through Imam Ali (ra) or Sayidinah Abu Bakr (ra), the same is true for scholars of the madhhabs of Fiqh and Aqeedah in which it is called Ijaza.

This is what Allah means in the verse “They aim to extinguish Allah’s light with their utterances: but Allah has willed to spread His light in all its fullness (until the coming of the hour), however hateful this may be to all who deny the truth”, this expression is Jawmi al-Kamil encompassing of more knowledge, literally the verse is saying they want to extinguish the light of Allah the prophet (saws) is passing on to his students by their bad conduct, the foul things they are saying which destroys the light of knowledge, other translations have “They want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths, but Allah will perfect His light, although the disbelievers dislike it”.(61:8)

“Allah will perfect His light”, Allah’s light is already perfect so this is referring to it’s role and spread on earth that will be perfected, it primarily spreads from teacher to student through the Ijaza of the Madhhabs and the Silsila of the scholars of Tasaawwuf otherwise their is no physical connection back to the prophet (saws) at the heart of this matter and it would be lost.

Allah in the verse refers to revelation as light because of how it will spread on earth, this isn’t frivolous or hollow speech which is beneath Allah, it has significance and purpose, Allah is trying to teach us something by stating the verse in this unique way, and He promised to protect this light as it spreads from person to person until the coming of the hour.

This is why the prophet (saws) said He has left for us his descendants to learn from, the scholars among them carry this light the best which Allah wished for them in the Quran, and that they and Islam will not separate from each other until He meets them all at His reservoir (al Kawthar) on the day of Judgment. He (saws) said “I am leaving among you something which is very important and should (both) be followed, you will not go astray if you get hold of it after I am gone, one part of it being more important than the other: Allah’s Book, which is a rope stretched from Heaven to Earth, and my close relatives (and descendants), who belong to my household. These two (the Quran and my descendants) will not separate from one another till they come down to the reservoir (al Kawthar, on the day of judgment), so consider how you act regarding them after my departure.” (Tirmidhi)

“Allah has willed to spread His light in all it’s fullness” meaning in every manner the light of the heart can spread knowledge and through this means His religion, Allah prepared the way until the hour by saying about the prophet (saws) descendants in the Quran “Allah intends only to remove from you impurity (to cleans their hearts), O people of the

[Prophet’s] household, and to purify you with [extensive] purification”(33:33), it is significant enough that the last Khalifah the Muslim Ummah (nation) will have, Imam Mahdi (ra), will be a descendant of the prophet (saws) showing how Allah is fulfilling this promise, and only the pagans among the muslims “want to extinguish the light of Allah with their mouths”.

Al-Mahdi (the Mahdi) is an Arabic word which means “The Guided”, the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, “The Mahdi is from us, the people of the (Prophet’s) Household. Allah will rectify him in one night.” (Ahmad). There are many ahadith about how Allah preserved the light of Islam and who is responsible for what in history;

Jabir bin Samura said “I heard the Prophet (saws) saying, “There will be twelve Muslim rulers (Allah will send for the muslims after the prophet).” He then said a sentence which I did not hear. My father said, “All of them (those rulers) will be from Quraish (the tribe of the prophet (saws)).” (Sahih Al-Bukhari ) Abu Dawud in his Sunan also reported this Hadith, but added to it “and the whole community will agree on each of them.”

Ibn Umar said Allah’s Apostle (saws) said, “This matter (the light of Islam) will remain with Quraish even if only two of them were still existing.” (Sahih Al-Bukhari ), if this wasn’t talking about a spiritual (subatomic) reality Allah placed in the world then any person who can read a book on Islam would fulfil this role Allah intended, but we are talking about the light of Allah spreading, the prophet (saws) was sent among the tribe of Quraish and they witnessed the light of prophethood directly, a book can’t reproduce that.

Abu Huraira said Allah’s Messenger (saws) said, (referring to spiritual succession) “The kingship belongs to Quraish, the legal authority (belongs) to the Ansar (people of Madinah), the call to prayer (belongs) to the Abyssinians, and faith (belongs) to Azd (A Tribe in Yemen).” (Tirmidhi), The Prophet beckoned with his hand towards Yemen and said, “Belief (the light of Iman) is there.” (Bukhari).

The Messenger of Allah (saws) said: “This matter (the light of Islam) will be in Al-Madina, then in AsSham, then in the Al-Jazirah, then in Iraq, then in Al-Madina (which is today), then in Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem, with Imam Mahdi). And when it comes to Bayt al-Maqdis, then it will be in its homeland. And it will never go away from a people and afterwards return to them, (the Hour will be established after this time)” (Nuaim bin Hammad’s Kitab Al-Fitan)

Allah calls the human body a light in the Quran many times because it produces light, and in fact because of this He called the prophet (saws) a Lamp to illustrate this point literally; “O Prophet! We have sent you as a witness, a bearer of good tidings and of warning, And as a summoner unto Allah by His permission, and as a lamp that giveth light.”(33:45-46)

Allah says the body doesn’t just produce light it follows the light of other people, the heart perceives the light of others, in this context the prophets (saws) light, “Is he whose bosom Allah hath expanded for the surrender (unto Him), so that he followeth a light from His Lord (as he who disbelieveth) ? Then woe unto those whose hearts are hardened against remembrance of Allah. Such are in plain error. (39:22)

“On the day when thou (Muhammad) wilt see the believers, men and women, their light shining forth before them”. (57:12)

“On the Day when the hypocritical men and the hypocritical women will say unto those who believe, look on us that we may borrow from your light! It will be said: Go back (to the previous life) and seek for light!” (57:13)

“Now hath come unto you a light from Allah and a plain scripture.” (5:15) light isn’t a metaphor for the Quran, Allah mentions giving muslims two seperate things light and the Quran.

“Then those who believe in him (Muhammad) honor him, help him, and follow the light which is sent down with him: They are the successful.” (7:157)

“O mankind! Now hath a proof from your Lord come unto you, and We have sent down unto you a clear light”(4:174)

Allah instructs mankind to follow the light He sent down “Believe, therefore, in Allah and His Messenger, and in the Light which we have sent down. And Allah is well acquainted with all that ye do.”(64:8)

Light plays a significant physiological role, mankind will ask Allah to perfect it for them so their bodies can benefit from it, “O you who believe! turn to Allah a sincere turning; maybe your Lord will remove from you your evil and cause you to enter gardens beneath which rivers flow, on the day on which Allah will not abase the Prophet and those who believe with him; their light shall run on before them and on their right hands; they shall say: Our Lord! make perfect for us our light, and grant us protection, surely Thou hast power over all things.”(66:8)

Mankind will have their reward and their light in Jannah because strengthening light in the human body enhances a person in every way, this is why it is mentioned next to the reward in Heaven, “And those who believe in Allah and His messengers, they are the loyal, and the martyrs are with their Lord; they have their reward and their light; while as for those who disbelieve and deny Our revelations, they are owners of hell-fire.” (57:19)

To help mankind Allah made reading the Quran produce a light people can benefit from, “ And thus did We reveal to you an inspired book by Our command (the book is granted something unique by Allah’s command). You did not know what the Book was, nor (what) the faith (was), but We made it a light, guiding thereby whom We please of Our servants; and most surely you show the way to the right path”(42:52)

When the body is deprived of it’s ability to produce light this creates torment in the person, “On the same Day, the hypocrites, both men and women, will say to the believers, ‘Wait for us! Let us have some of your light!’ They will be told, ‘Go back and look for a light.’ A wall with a door will be erected between them: inside it lies mercy, outside lies torment.(because their bodies are deprived of light)”(57:13).

The most significant verse in the Quran about this subject is the one in which Allah literally states the heart has the ability to see and gain knowledge, referring to when the prophet (saws) saw Allah, Allah says “And He revealed unto His slave (Muhammad) that which he revealed. The heart did not lie (about) what it saw.” (53:10-11)

From all this we can see light plays an important role not just in gaining knowledge, but being happy and avoiding hardship because increasing light in the human body makes everything easy for man, the prophet (saws) understood this perfectly which reflected in the many acts He (saws) did to increase the light in his body.

Imam Dhahabi, who was Ibn Taymiya’s student, then explains what preserves this light that the heart is taking knowledge through from being destroyed… “Its condition is followership and the flight away from egotism (hawa) and innovation (which destroys that light)”, “They aim to extinguish Allah’s light with their (foul) utterances” their ego and pagan innovations.

Imam Ali (ra) understood all this and said “Enlighten the heart with prayers”, meaning prayer causes the heart to create light which helps it sense and translate knowledge, increasing light in the body is the foundation of why we do everything in religion.

In this regard Allah said “Whomsoever Allah desires to guide, He expands his breast (heart) to Islam (so it can easily understand that light); whomsoever He desires to lead astray, He makes his breast narrow, tight, as if he were climbing to heaven (it becomes difficult to perceive the light of religion, even if someone is talking to us about it). So Allah lays abomination upon those who believe not.” (6:15)

The heart produces an electromagnetic field (light) but the chest concentrates it, this is the significance of Allah mentioning the chest in this ayah instead of the heart directly. We can effectively take out the word Islam from this verse and replace it with the word knowledge, “He expands his breast to knowledge”, but Allah mentions Islam because He is referring to a specific type of knowledge that man is given or deprived of as punishment, while the heart is still capable of perceiving other kinds of worldly knowledge. A man can be cut off by Allah and still perceive knowledge but religion is being able to understand wisdom, this is why most irreligious people are also the least wise people and care little for it, whatever standard they think they have it isn’t on pare with the standard of real morality, to them it’s like becoming a priest or some uphill climb they have to take, “He makes his breast narrow, tight, as if he were climbing to heaven”.

If for some it is difficult to see the connection between all these things, all we have to ask is, what does Allah mean by expand a persons chest in relation to Islamic knowledge, and what is in the chest that literally receives that knowledge because it isn’t the brain or the lungs, the only receptive organ is the heart.

From here we have to then ask, how is the heart able to receive knowledge because to most people it just pumps blood, but this simple understanding is the old outdated view of western medicine over the past 100 years, that the heart is just a muscle, in fact the heart has very a complex nervous system, it’s “electrical wiring and circuitry” which does some very sophisticated things like a computer, because of recent advances in technology that allowed for a closer inspection of that organ science has shown that the heart is like a mini brain.

This state of western medicine over the past century was unfortunate because mankind, most of the world, has always understood the heart had a sophisticated role to play in man’s body, but as the west became secularized during the 19th century it attacked religion and used it’s pseudo scientific discoveries of the past 100 years to prematurely justify it’s Atheism, which now it is moving away from because the science is crystal clear and can’t be ignored.

Like the human body all animals produce an electromagnetic field, through it they sense the world around them and hunt other creatures, through it birds can migrate large distances and navigate the magnetic currents of the earth, most animals have specific organs designed to interpret what they sense or see through the electromagnetic field that their body produces and the human body is closely related to theirs, but perfected as Allah states, “We have indeed created man in the best of moulds”(95:4) the human body is a perfected animal and every creature has an ability to sense through the electromagnetic field our senses are more perfected than theirs because while they focus on locating things we deal with higher realities and gain knowledge.

The electro-magnetic field is made of two things, an electric field and a magnetic field which feed upon each other, both exist because of the electro-magnetic force which is like gravity (but not exactly the same) for small (subatomic) particles.

The electromagnetic force is one of the fundamental forces that the universe relies on, in importance it is second behind gravity, it affects everything in the universe including gravity and is the force behind magnetic fields, electric fields and light. It is also responsible for giving things strength, shape and hardness because it is responsible for how particles are attracted to each other or how they repel each other, just like in magnets.

This force is approximately 10 to the 36 (10^36) times stronger than the gravity on earth, but it mainly works on the small (quantum) particles, if this force wasn’t there everything would collapse into a black hole because particles are no longer being kept apart (repelled), which tells us how significant it is to life and space as well as how widespread it is in the universe.

The electromagnetic force is also responsible for giving us the ability to hold and move things, the electric field (technically it’s called the electrostatic field) generated among atoms and molecules near the surface of our hand generates a force field that doesn’t allow large objects to pass through our hand, it’s also responsible for dirt sticking to our hand, but this is how common and far reaching this force is in the universe, our heart, brain and entire body are governed by it, through it they produce an electromagnetic field that surrounds the entire human body by a distance of 3 to 4 feet which can be measured with scientific instruments.

Animals have specific organs that allow them to interpret or see with these fields, man has his heart and we do more complex things in our body, through them we sense and feel what others want or intend and through them we pass on knowledge, there isn’t an organ or cell in the human body that isn’t affected by this force.

Science and medicine, with many recent advances over the past decade, have already in our time established what we have known about the human body from the first days of Islam, for example if we hear a second hand conversation from someone, we take less information from what we are told than if we witnessed it ourself because our body takes input on many more levels from the presence and atmosphere of the people speaking or events unfolding in front of us, if this didn’t relate to mans heart and senses than any second hand conversation will do because it is the same words being repeated.

Our body senses through our organs, the heart and it’s electro-magnetic field as well as our sense of touch, hearing and smell, the heart is that extra bit of input we all know is there and rely on to judge events. We sense what people are feeling and expressing and the mind which receives all that information from our body translates all these inputs so we can comprehend it.

Most scientists agree that cognition and emotion are distinct functions in the body, mediated by separate but interconnecting neural system’s, moreover, communication channels in the brain are hard wired, and linking the mental and emotional systems together are essential for the expression of our full range of mental capacities, meaning our emotions and what we sense and feel are part of mans ability to perceive and understand, they are not useless “women’s” emotions as the western view came to be for many years.

It is very significant that the actual number of neural connections in the brain going from the emotional processing areas (centres) to the cognitive (rational) centres in the brain is greater than the number going the other way, meaning the body and brain are hard wired to translate and pay attention to what we sense and feel first then to be rational.

This goes some way to explaining the powerful influence of emotions on thought processes, and the brains receptiveness to emotions, or the bodies input to the brain through our senses, this is why the heart is the seat of the intellect because rational thought comes after what we sense and feel, western psychology has been teaching the opposite of this for well over 100 years with drastic results to society.

Ali ibn Abi Talib said “The seat of reason is the heart (al-`aqlu fi al-qalb)” the prophet (saws) said “Verily, Allah looks not at your bodies nor at your faces but He looks at your hearts.”(Muslim) Allah wouldn’t be looking at the heart if it was just a lump of flesh that pumps blood, the brain would be more deserving of consideration but Allah chose the heart above it because it does something significant for man. Imam al-Nawawi stated that this narration was used as proof that the seat of the mind is the heart and Ibn Hajar similarly adduced the same and Imam Ahmad likewise said “Its seat is the heart”.

Neuroscience has shown that because of the way the body is hardwired that while emotions can easily dispel non emotional thoughts from our awareness, non emotional thoughts do not easily displace emotions from the mental landscape.

In this regard the scholars said the heart is the seat of the intellect not the brain, Imam Ali (r.a) said at Siffin, “The (seat of the) intellect is located in the heart. Mercy is located in the liver, Compassion is located in the spleen. The self (soul) is located in the lungs (these refer to regions in the body that affect these types of emotions).”(Adab al Mufrad, Hasan). Imam Ali (ra) also said: “The (spiritual) disease of the heart is worse than the disease of the body.”

What is emerging from the most recent research is that the human body also has another layer of sensory input on top of our physical senses, and this is the input from mans electromagnetic field produced by the brain and heart. Our body is made from cells which are sensitive to what occurs at the quantum (subatomic) level of the universe because they need light to survive, so the heart and brain through the electromagnetic force are connected to the most basic level of matter, the subatomic world.

When there is coherence within and between the mental and emotional systems of the body, they impact constructively to expand awareness, they also enable the body to work optimally both psychologically and physiologically. In relation to this very point the prophet (saws) on a regular basis used to make dua for Allah to increase him in light (the electromagnetic field) (Bukhari, Muslim and many others). He (saws) would ask Allah to place light in very specific organs of the body because He understood how the body uses and relies on the electromagnetic field (light), these dua are among the most repeated prayers in Islam.

There is no doubt that the prophet (saws) understood the importance of the electromagnetic field (Light) in the body and the significance of keeping it strong. The Prophet (saws) would ask “O Allah, place light in my heart, and on my tongue light, and in my ears light and in my sight light, and above me light, and below me light, and to my right light, and to my left light, and before me light and behind me light. Place in my soul light. Magnify for me light, and amplify for me light. Make for me light, and make me light. O Allaah, grant me light, and place light in my nerves, and in my body light and in my blood light and in my hair light and in my skin light.”(Bukhari, Muslim)

“O Allaah, make for me a light in my grave… and a light in my bones.”(Tirmidhi)

“Increase me in light, increase me in light, increase me in light.”(Adab al Mufrad)

“Grant me light upon light.”(Bukhari)

“And make the light greater for me.”(Muslim)

Opposite to the coherence of light is when the mental and emotional systems are out of phase, they lack synchronisation and they interact in a conflicting manner, degenerating the performance of the human body.

Many positive thinking strategies, developed today, “follow the assumption that all emotions follow thought, which occurs first, and so by changing one’s thoughts, we should be able to gain control over our emotions. However, in the last decade, research in neuroscience has made it quite clear that emotional processes operate at a much higher speed than thoughts, and frequently bypass the mind’s linear reasoning process entirely. In other words, emotions do not always follow thought; in many cases, in fact, emotions occur independently of the cognitive system and can significantly bias or colour the cognitive process (in other words how we perceive and gain knowledge) and it’s output or decision.”

This is completely in line with the Islamic understanding that man reacts after he senses, the brain isn’t the starting point of the self and is just sitting there reacting and creating everything we experience as western medicine concluded last century and spread around the world. Mans senses give him input from what is occurring around him and the body is hardwired to process and translate this input, again reinforcing what Imam Ali (ra) and many verses in the Quran indicated, that the seat of the intellect is located in the heart.

Researchers state that “Since the mind and emotions affect a wide range of abilities and responses, mental and emotional coherence (synchronisation) are of the utmost importance. Vision, listening ability, reaction times, mental clarity, problem solving, creativity, and performance in a wide range of tasks are all influenced by the degree of coherence of these two systems at any given time. Because emotions exert such a powerful influence on cognitive processes, emotional incoherence often leads to mental incoherence and is often the root cause of mental problems and stress.”

Allah speaks about the consequences of this in the Quran clearly, “Such are they whose hearts and ears and eyes Allah hath sealed (the heart has a perceptive faculty which can be sealed, when it is), And such are the heedless.” (16:108), when He mentions the heart, He is referring to its cognitive processes, starting from the subatomic level of the Universe and the consequence is complete heedlessness in the person.

In the Quran Allah says many times, He guides man from the subatomic level (ghayb) for example the verse of light (24:35), after Allah explains how His light exists in the Universe by outlining how the Atom comes into existence from the subatomic part of our universe, He says He guides man to Him through this process, (our book “How Is Allah The Light Of The Heavens and The Earth” explains this in detail).

“Increasing stability in the emotional systems of the body can often bring the mind into a greater sense of peace and clarity”, we achieve stability through the acts of worship we perform because they all impact upon mans body and then self physiologically, Allah mentions this connection very clearly in the Quran when He says, “Then (O people)…prostrate yourself (in prayer first then) draw nearer to Us.” (96:19), nearness is achieved in the heart but it requires a physical act in order to attain it, this is the relationship between prostration and the self coming closer to Allah.

When the mental and emotional systems of the body are in sync (in coherence), we have greater access to our full potential in order to achieve our aims because we are focused.

Research has shown through experimentation with heart rate variability patterns, it’s rhythm as it beats which shapes the electromagnetic field it produces, that our emotional state constantly reflects in the field produced by the heart.

Very literally, our emotions are broadcast through the electromagnetic field produced by the heart like a broadcast tower, for example anger produces a very distinct wave from love, another layer of complexity is added once we consider quantum mechanics and the entanglement of particles, at the quantum level this is how all particles interact with each other to cause all reactions, and the body is certainly entangling quantum particles in it’s vicinity through it’s fields.

Particles are prevalent through out the universe, for example physicists estimate that about 60 billion solar neutrinos, particles created by the sun, pass through a persons fingernail every second, but this is all due to the latest research which is making the old western understanding of science obsolete as they re-evaluate their core beliefs about the body and man ’s psychology.

‘Current (western) scientific knowledge regarding the physiology of emotions has it’s roots in Gaelic medicine. Galen’s influence on scientific thinking persisted well into the 1800s, with the notion that thought’s circulate in the ventricles of the brain, and emotions circulate in the vascular system (circulatory system of the blood). A persons temperament was determined by four “humors” or secretions in the body: sanguine, choleric, phlegmatic, and melancholic. Modern biochemical research has added much to this inaccurate and simplistic model but the withdraw from this perspective, that the brain does one thing and the heart another and each part of the body works separately, has been slow and guarded for two reasons: “Old theories do not die easily, and there is an aspect of truth to this view, the thoughts circulating in the ventricles have turned out to be neural electrical activity and the humors are endocrine secretions (the secretion of hormones and other products into the blood)”’, this view has tied the hands of western society for well over a hundred years slowing any progress because it is still far to simplistic from the actual reality of the human body which is faster and more complex then the worlds fastest super computers.

By comparison to what we know today, this is a two dimensional understanding of the body, while the latest scientific understanding perfectly explains what the pseudo science of the 19th and 20th century attempted to throw out rather than advance, Eastern and Islamic medicine.

There is a deep relationship between emotions and physiology which western science and medicine has deliberately turned away from for the past 100 years, “even ordinary conversations about emotional experiences contain many physiological allusions. So there is no question that emotions are accompanied by a vast array of physiological changes, this is why people often describe emotional experiences in physiological terms, such as “My heart was pounding”, “My throat went dry”, “My blood ran cold”, “My skin crawled”, “It was gut wrenching”, “and it took my breath away.”

In the 1920’s physiologist Walter Cannon (erroneously) proposed that the essential mechanism of emotion occurred within the brain, and that bodily responses and other inputs were not needed to fully experience emotions. Much of his research centred on responses that occur in states of hunger or intense emotion (and not normal situations), and led him to propose the “fight of flight response”, his views won over the scientific community of the day and shaped western scientific views for decades to come, others simply built upon his original ideas and assumptions. In 1937 James Papez introduced the Papez circuit, and later in 1950 Paul Maclean suggested the Limbic system of the brain, responsible for emotions, both would later prove flawed and incomplete.

The result of cutting out the body and heart as the centre of emotions would shape the heartless world we now live in today, as many adopted this philosophy around world that emotions ‘were just chemicals’ and ‘it was all in the brain’, the cruelest and most desensitised period in man’s history would follow, WW2 and the rise of Capitalism, secularisation of the christian world was the real motivation because they focused on spirituality and secular Atheist needed a “heartless” society to achieve capitalism. As was often the case they looked for scientific proof for their preconceived ideology that man was just a blank slate waiting to be moulded, an ideology that came to be known as Tabula Rasa. Capitalism was the commercialisation of every aspect of life, literally everything was rationalised and stripped of it’s value then put up for sale and used to make a profit. With this new found belief that “love is a chemical” independent of who the person is, everything was devaluated since nothing had the same meaning any longer, nothing remained sacred in the world of chemicals, not religion, not morality, not women, not chastity, not even the family.

This fatal error and path in western medicine that emotions occurred within the brain alone, ignoring what man already had understood and been studying for millennia would not only shape their understanding of physiology but psychology and psychiatry as well. With the advent of recent advances in technology and the discoveries that came with neuroscience these two fields had to literally throw out the past 100 years of their doctrines and teachings to rewrite the book, this is their history as they teach it. Along with western medicine, psychology ands psychiatry were the foundations that secular Atheism came to build itself upon.

The Islamic’s worlds fundamental understanding of the human being is now proving true after almost a century of being challenged by premature theories based on incomplete science.

The impact of assuming that emotions were manufactured by the brain alone had a significant impact not just on western medicine but religious and secular beliefs as well, it almost certainly fuelled the evolutionary debate which attempted to downgrade the significance of Man in the universe in order to promote their likewise flawed theories that he originated from monkeys, despite the fact that still to this day the missing archeological link their theories relied upon hadn’t been found, there is still a few hundred thousand years gap in the archeological record between their ancient monkeys that fraudulent scientists have been passing on to the scientific community (see piltdown man and other hoax’s designed to shape the views of society) and when they assume Man first appeared on earth.

What was more intriguing were the results of simple human reaction time experiments, or reflexes, the heart decelerated during preparation which resulted in faster reflexes, man reacts to what he senses because the electromagnetic field of the body is the first point of contact with the outside world, then man’s sight hearing and body follow, most martial artists trained at having “superhuman” reflexes would attest to this while lethargic people would have hardly experienced this, Athletes call this being in the “zone”. This led researchers to propose that the feedback to the brain plays a role in accepting or rejecting what is going on in the environment, very literally the heart was telling the brain to block out the world around it, or tune out so the person could focus, a similar mechanism seen in animals when they hunt.

While Islam certainly advanced the idea of evolution in creatures through out history (see past issues of the Journal), it was now being used to attack religion through the manipulation of facts.

Evolutionary assumptions were responsible for the rise of secular Atheism which relied on evolution and psychology to prove that man was just another animal, in order to challenge religious perceptions and secularise society through what is by todays standards pseudo science.

What we know today in physics and quantum mechanics alone could debunk many of their beliefs, which is why new fields of science like biophysics are emerging which establish the relationship between man’s body and the subatomic universe.

Most medical textbooks are replete with diagrams that illustrate the nervous system sending signals from the brain to the organs in line with the idea that the brain produces emotions alone, this fuelled the over rationalised secular Atheist belief that the brain is doing everything, medical textbooks though do not complete the circuit because they omit the existence of the pathways which carry signals from the body to the brain.

“Remarkably we now know that the heart sends more neural traffic to the brain than the brain sends to the heart.”

Most academic theorists now agree that emotion involves, at the most basic level, stimulus from memory in addition to information from the human body (it’s various organs) and the emotional state we are in, and in recent years attempts have been made to determine the correct sequence of these components.

Although even more recently it is now understood that it is indeed possible to have emotional processing in specific brain areas simultaneously with input from the body to the brain, each building on the other to contribute to what we ultimately sense and feel at that moment in time.

It was first observed in the 1970’s that input from the heart and cardiovascular system (nervous system etc) significantly affected perception and behaviour, this was the first time Cannon’s theories were challenged because it was observed that the heart seemed to behave as if it had a mind of it’s own.

Subsequent research also revealed a link between the heart rate response (independent of other parts of the body) to different environmental stimuli, and a persons cognitive attitude to the environment around him. This indicated that the heart’s response was not merely a mechanical (or automatic) response due to signals being sent from the brain, it literally thought on it’s own, which implied it can react before the brain to situations.

What was more intriguing were the results of simple human reaction time experiments, or reflexes, the heart decelerated during preparation which resulted in faster reflexes. This led researchers to propose that the feedback to the brain plays a role in accepting or rejecting what is going on in the environment, very literally the heart was telling the brain to block out the world around it, or tune out so the person could focus, a similar mechanism seen in animals when they hunt.

When the signals from the heart to the brain are compromised by disease, there is less awareness of feeling sensations in the body, evidence now clearly demonstrates that signals from the heart significantly influence the way the brain processes, the signals are not only relayed to the brain so it can balance the body, but they have a separate and specific effect on higher mental processes of the brain related to perception.

This is literally part of the mechanism involved in revelation (wahy), because revelation (knowledge) is revealed to the heart and not the brain.

“In addition to functioning as a sophisticated information processing and encoding centre, the heart is also an endocrine gland, it controls the way our body functions by producing and releasing hormones and neurotransmitters, that travel through out the body to maintain our tissues and organs.”

“So with each beat of our heart it not only pumps blood, but also continually transmits dynamic patterns of neurological, hormonal, pressure, and electromagnetic information to the brain and body. Therefor the multiple inputs from the heart and cardiovascular system to the brain are a major contributor in establishing the dynamics and patterns of the brain.”

The brain familiarises itself with the rhythmic patterns of the heart, whether ordered or disordered, it then regulates the body to keep it’s balance and at the same time process emotions and senses.

The systems of the brain operate essentially as a pattern recognition system, it’s to simplistic and inaccurate to say it processes singles from the body, the brain in reality processes the complete picture being sent to it by the body rather than just individual signals, this old way of thinking is what limited western medicine and gave rise to many incorrect theories in psychology.

It’s like watching a movie, the body is relaying the complete picture to the brain, scene by scene, along with atmospheric effects (feelings) that dramatise the moment, while science and western medicine for a long time assumed the body was sending random and almost unrelated pixels. The incomplete and incorrect understanding of the heart and body inevitably lead to incorrect doctrines that shaped the course of history.

This is where western science fell short in comparison to the Islamic understanding of the human body for more than 100 years, because looking back on western history starting with the dark ages came Europe’s enlightenment then it’s secularisation, there wasn’t a period in western history where they accepted this reality of the heart, until now.

In addition to monitoring and controlling the bodies stability in each moment of time, there are also processes that assess the degree of harmony between the past (moment), what is occurring now, and the projected future, these give rise to more complex emotions like optimism and pessimism, like wise subatomic particles are entangled in more complex ways than just simple reactions, because in the subatomic universe time is a significant factor in how particles behave.

If the body doesn’t perceive (or predict) it is going to return to stability this can give rise to fear or anxiety. In simple terms the body is equipped to process and deal with time itself and what arises due to the passing of time, this is one of the more significant ways in which the western understanding of the human body fell short because they looked at the body in a two dimensional manner, completely ignoring the fact that time even exists and how the body deals with it.

If we were to take this a step up, above this simple view of man, in a Hadith Qudsi Allah said, the “Sons of Adam inveigh against [the vicissitudes of] Time, and I am Time, in My hand is the night and the day” (Bukhari).

Allah created man in His image or likeness, but with human limitations, so that man is capable of knowing Him completely, regarding this mans body must then be capable of understanding and dealing with time. The word for Time used in this Hadith is Dhuhr, in classical Arabic according to the Ullumah (scholars), Dhuhr means the Span of Time, or Time stretched out, so Allah (swt) is saying in regards to knowing His qualities He is “the Span of Time”, His qualities are known through the passing of time and the body must be able to quantify and understand through time.

It was because of this Imam Ali (ra) said “The vision of the eye is limited; the vision of the heart transcends all barriers of time and space”, this is because the heart gives a complete image (picture) of what it is focused on, and not jus a single signal that is relayed to the brain in that second, what it does is more complex than that.

One of the ways an emotion is generated is through the comparison of information received from our external senses, such as sight, sound and smell, against those present in our memories, this occurs almost with out thinking about it, but it is how the feeling of familiarity in new environments occurs.

With this understanding we can view emotions and thought emerging from an intricate array of interactions, occurring within a complex system that is the body, it’s main components include the brain, heart, nervous system, and the hormone system.

Although there are many sources for input to the brain, the heart is given particular importance due to the unique degree of inputs and rhythmic patterns that indicate a change in a persons overall emotional state.

Allah mentions the heart in the Quran often teaching us it has a complex role to play in man’s body;

“Have they not travelled in the land so that they should have hearts with which to understand, or ears with which to hear? For surely it is not the eyes that are blind, but blind are the hearts which are in the breasts.”(22:47)

“Already have We urged unto hell many of the jinn and humankind, having hearts wherewith they understand not, and having eyes wherewith they see not, and having ears wherewith they hear not. These are as the cattle – nay, but they are worse! These are the neglectful.”(7:179)

“They preferred to be with those who remained behind, and a seal is set on their hearts so they do not understand.”(9:87)

“These are they into whose hearts He has impressed faith, and whom He has strengthened with an inspiration from Him: and He will cause them to enter gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein; Allah is well-pleased with them and they are well-pleased with Him these are Allah’s party: now surely the party of Allah are the successful ones.”(58:22)

“Your Allah is one Allah; so (as for) those who do not believe in the hereafter, their hearts are ignorant and they are proud.”(16:22)

“Whosoever believeth in Allah, He guideth his heart. And Allah is Knower of all things.”(64:11)

“Most surely there is a reminder in this for him who has a heart or he gives ear and is a witness.”(50:37)

“And obey not him whose heart we have made heedless of Our Remembrance, who followeth his own lust.” (18:28)

“He it is who sent down peace of reassurance into the hearts of the believers that they might add faith unto their faith.” (48:4)

“He it is who supporteth thee with His Help and with the believers. And (as for the believers) hath attuned their hearts.” (8: 62-63)

“Say (O Muhammad, to mankind) who is enemy to Gabriel! For he it is who hath revealed (this scripture) to thy heart by God’s leave.” (2:97)

“The day when wealth and sons avail not (any man). Save him who bringeth unto Allah a sound heart“ (26: 88-89)

“Whoso is blind in here (this life) will be blind in the Hereafter, and yet further from the road.”(17:22)

(The main source used in writing this was “Heart-Brain Neurodynamics: The Making Of Emotions”)

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The Islamic Journal #5.

Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe

This work is based on a paper by William Chittick entitled “Death and The World Of Imagination: Ibn al Arabi’s Eschatology”, I have taken this work made corrections to it, expanded it and added explanations through out so it almost won’t be possible to discern the original authors words from mine. This was done because although Chittick’s translations of Ibn Arabi are valuable they contain mistakes in his understanding and explanations.

The author is not a muslim so he doesn’t believe in what He is writing and because of that He can’t fully understand Ibn Arabi, it is only when people believe the same things that they can understand each other completely. Chittick approaches the work of Ibn Arabi as a philosopher while he needs to approach it as a philosopher and physicist at the same time to ground Ibn Arabi statements in the science that he was employing. Everything Ibn Arabi says is about this same Universe we are living in, but somehow you don’t get that from the translations, not Chittick’s or any other westerner who translates His works. Islamic scholars were not just qualified religious scholars they were qualified in physics, mathematics, Astronomy, geometry and other sciences at the same time, so their words are well grounded in science and not the philosophy Islam rejected.

If we can’t understand were the statements of the scholars are coming from it is more than certain it is grounded in the science of their times no matter how that may have fallen short, not philosophy which Islam essentially banned as a method of proving science, where they fail to see the science of the scholars times then they are most certainly based on the words of the prophet (saws) and the Quran as we have shown in previous chapters, which the scholars understood at a level far deeper than the translators are capable of perceiving in these texts.

As we will see from the Imam’s own words He based much of what He said on the very Ahadith and verses in the Quran we quoted earlier, even if they aren’t quoted directly.

Ibn Arabi On Imagination and The Creation Of The Universe

Eschatology is the part of theology concerned with death, judgement, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind. The scholars who discussed it covered a wide variety of topics, two among them being the voluntary return to Allah which relates to attaining spiritual perfection and the compulsory return which is the death of a person.

Imam Ibn al Arabi discusses both topics at length in his works, he raised the bar regarding their understanding and essentially set the stage for all subsequent scholars to come.

Long before Imam Ibn al-Arabi imagination had been employed in interpreting Islamic eschatological teachings; Ibn Sina had suggested its relevance and Imam al-Ghazali had made extensive use of the lessons and examples it provides. But Imam Ibn al-Arabi was the great exponent of the imagination as the means for understanding the true nature of after-death experience, after all our imagination is made from subatomic particles and so is our soul hence the subatomic part of the universe they exist in are one and the same.

The term imagination refers to the nature of our existence becouse what we are able to imagine represents the sum of our knowledge and personality and in reality how we learn, it plays a fundamental role in both the physical world and the subatomic world (ghayb, the unseen world) because for man it is the medium between both worlds, (a good quick introduction to what Ghayb is and it’s role in mans life is the section on my website dedicated to tafsir al Quran the verses and chapters specifically deal with the subject in the broader sense).

We know our imagination is made from subatomic particles because basically it has to be made from something and particles are the building blocks of all matter, it seems a few scholars understood this in the ancient world although this was not common knowledge so indirect examples were used to describe what it is and how it exists. For example Imam Ibn al-Arabi says that the imagination “is neither existent nor nonexistent, neither known nor unknown, neither affirmed nor denied” (Futuhat al Makiyah), which are simply ways of describing non physical things, if something is physical it is existent, if it isn’t physical then it is non existent in the old manner of speaking, so the image in our mind is non existent but it is also real and created because it is made of something. In this same vein subatomic particles are non existent because they are not physical matter but they are also real and created because they are made of even smaller particles.

The common example of an imaginal (not “imaginary”) reality is the image that a person sees in a mirror: Imam Ibn al Arabi says man “knows for certain that in one respect he has seen his own form, but he also knows for certain that in another respect he has not seen it” (He has not seen his physical form) (Futuhat al Makiyah), such examples are used to point out what the imagination is, of course in our time we are able to give more precise answers to the average person.

Relating to our existence, imagination is situated between the spiritual (subatomic) and the corporeal (physical world), possessing characteristics of both sides. Hence it is often referred to as an “isthmus” (barzakh, a barrier between two things), which is defined as “something that separates two other things”, it is the barzakh that Allah mentions in the Quran which separates our world from ghayb, the unseen world, in modern terms the subatomic world.

In modern science we have the physical world and the subatomic world and there is nothing else, but if we remember the verse about the seven earths or strata Allah has divided our world into regions as it approaches the subatomic which begins after the seventh strata, the barzakh of imagination is a region existing between the two, but this description isn’t an exact science it’s a generalisation because it posses characteristics of both sides so there is overlap. Some part of subatomic space is part the barzakh and some part of physical space is part of the barzakh.

A standard example in our world is the line that divides shadow from sunlight; though we see the line, it exists only because of the two realities it separates, light and darkness. In the same way, the imagination for us separates the spiritual or unseen world (ghayb) from the corporeal or visible world; all of its characteristics are derived from its intermediate situation. It isn’t a seperate part of the universe, it is significant to man because of the role it plays.

In the universe the imaginal world stands between the human soul (al-arwah), which is disengaged or disembodied (mujarrad), luminous, simple (non-compound), and the corporeal human bodies (al-ajasam), which are made from multiple substances. In man the imagination corresponds to the animal self (al-nafs al- hayawani), or the ego, which acts as an intermediary between the body and the disengaged spirit, which was breathed into the human reality by Allah, giving it life (Futuhat al Makiyah).

The characteristic activity of imagination is to embody (tajsid) or give form to that which is disembodied, and to spiritualize (tarawhun), represent spiritually, symbolise, or sublimate (taltif) that which is corporeal (physical), such is the case when we dream. Its intermediate status means that everything that leaves the unseen world for the visible world, or the visible world for the unseen, like the jinn or Angels, must first be imaginalized. Thus, for example, the angels appear to human beings in imaginal form, and revelation is first imaginalized before it takes the sensory form of a scripture. Likewise the visions of spiritual things experienced by the saints take place in the imaginal world; relatively few of them are able to leave imagination behind and enter into the realm of souls and purely intelligible meanings (al-maani al-maqula) (go beyond the imagination and see the real spiritual world, ghayb).

The vast majority of people experience the world of imagination directly in dreams. Imam Ibn al-Arabi says, “Allah placed dreams in (our) world so that all men might witness the World of Imagination and know that there exists another world, similar to the sensory world” (Futuhat al Makiyah). The world of dreams is a bridge between us and the spiritual life of Angels, it helps translate our life to them and their life to us. In dreams “Meanings are transferred from their state of disengagement from material substrata (mawadd, or not having form) into the clothing of material substrata (having form, these forms are made of particles)” (Futuhat al Makiyah) in other words the meanings behind our actions in life are “clothed” given form in the spiritual world, just like our thoughts create images in our mind this is what it means to clothe a thought, give it shape and body and this body is made from subatomic particles.

Imam Ibn al Arabi says a good example of this is the dream of the prophet (saws) who said, “While I was sleeping, I was given a bowl full of milk, and I drank of it to my fill until I noticed its wetness coming out of my nails, and then I gave the rest of it to ‘Umar.” They (the people) asked, “What have you interpreted (about the dream)? O Allah’s Apostle?” He said, “knowledge.” (Bukhair).

Imam Ibn al Arabi says here a disengaged meaning, knowledge, has assumed an appropriate form and become embodied within the world of imagination, the dream.

What many fail to understand is that the bowl of milk was real just as the Angels holding it were real, but it’s meaning is what needed to be clothed and interpreted, in this dream the Angels clothed knowledge with a bowl of milk so the prophet (saws) could receive it, the bowl of milk wasn’t a symbol of knowledge it was the embodiment of knowledge. The essence of this matter is the scholars understanding that knowledge is a (type of) light Allah casts into the heart, which means after a person receives this light they begin to see knowledge in things and light is made of particles just like the bowl and milk in the dream.

This is the truth of dreams they are not simply meanings come to life they embody the real qualities of that meaning, and what ever has form has qualities.

Imam Ibn al-Arabi likes to refer to the Prophet’s saying, “I

[dreamed that I] saw my Lord in the form of a youth.” He says, “The dreamer sees meanings in the form of objects, since the reality of imagination is to embody that which is not properly a body” (Futuhat al Makiyah), in the dream Allah took the form of a youth even though He isn’t bound by form and has none, the meaning behind the dream was what took form and this is the role of subatomic particles since in life they take form to create our physical world and in the dream they take form around the meaning of the dream.

If on the one hand Imam Ibn al-Arabi employs the term imagination to refer to the barzakh (the place) between the spiritual (subatomic) and corporeal (physical) world, on the other he uses it to describe the whole of created reality, which is an isthmus (barzakh) between Being (the universe) and nonexistence (what Allah hasn’t created), very literally the universe is a barzakh (barrier) between us and non existence.

Imam Ibn al Arabi’s understanding aligns well with what we know about subatomic space, the spiritual world ghayb is subatomic space, everything in the physical world originated from there, all Atoms begin from what occurred sub-atomically at the creation of the universe. If Atoms did not exist we would not exist, when the universe was created everything began with the creation of subatomic particles that then formed atoms and our world last of all, so the subatomic world is the barrier between existence and non existence.

This tells us to what extent Imam Ibn al Arabi understood this universe and how much he was in line with modern science.

In a well-known poem in the Fusus al ahkam he writes “Engendered (created) existence (al-kawn) is nothing but imagination (forms the particles have taken), though in reality it is Truth (haqq). Whoever understands this has grasped the mysteries of the Path”.

This is amazing because He is essentially saying everything is created from subatomic particles, but by using the word imagination He is giving us a complete picture because imagination is the act of creating with these particles, He then says “Whoever understands this has grasped the mysteries of the Path”, Islam, this is because every road to Allah goes through this route since all mysteries begin and end with what is occurring sub-atomically in the universe.

The term “engendered existence” is synonymous with the “cosmos” (al- alam), which is defined as “everything other than Allah” (ma siwa Allah). The first line of the poem (which paraphrases the shahada: “There is no god but Allah”) affirms that everything other than Allah is unreal or “imaginal” (because it isn’t lasting and given temporary form); they derive form from Allah, this is how He is the sustainer of the Universe “Allah is the One who (literally) holds the heavens and the Earth (through the forces holding Atoms together), lest they cease to exist” (35:41)

We are given temporary form through these formless particles, we derive our form from Allah who “imagined” (gave form to) this universe with them and it is a self-manifestation of His reality (Haq). This phrasing is used because the human mind is on the archetype of Allah, the term imagined is the same as created in this respect. We are created in Allah’s image so when we imagine something we likewise move these particles to create the image in our mind, but Allah can give life to what He imagines while we can’t.

Imam Ibn Arabi says: The reality of imagination is transmutation (tabaddul: transformation of these particles) in every state and manifestation (zuhur) in every form (they take). There is no true being which does not accept (or undergo) transmutation except Allah; so there is nothing that possesses Real Being (al-wujud al-muhaqqaq) except Allah (what is our true form, if we loose our form once we die). As for that which is other than Allah, that is imaginal existence (temporary). So when Allah manifests Himself within this imaginal existence (this universe). He only appears in keeping with its reality, not in His Essence (dhat), which possesses true Being (Allah is more than what He has shown to this universe). This is what is meant by Allah’s words, “Everything is perishing except His Face” (28:88), i.e., except His Essence, since no state in the cosmos continues to endure. whether it be engendered (created and given form) or divine. . . . Hence, everything but Allah’s Essence undergoes transformation (istihala), rapid or slow; everything but Allah’s Essence is intervening imagination and vanishing shadow (by comparison). Therefore no engendered existent in this world, (or) in the next, and in whatsoever is between them, neither spirit (Jinn, Angel), nor soul, nor anything other than Allah’s Essence, remains in a single state; on the contrary, it is transmuted from one form to another constantly and forever: imagination is nothing but this, (and this universe is nothing but Allah’s imagination) (Futuhat al Makiyah).

Imam Ibn Arabi calls the imagination by other names, well-known to those familiar with the Imams teachings. Perhaps the most famous is the “Breath of the All-Merciful” (nafas al-rahman) mentioned in verse 32:9.

Imam Ibn Arabi says: “The cosmos (space) in the state of its existence is nothing but the forms that are received by the Cloud and that become manifest within it.” Hence the breath is Allah’s command to subatomic particles (the cloud mentioned earlier in ahadith) to take the form of this universe as He commanded.

This explains how miracles manifest in the physical world, they come into existence by Allah commanding particles to form into matter, Abdullah said “We used to consider miracles as Allah’s Blessings, but you people consider them to be a warning. Once we were with Allah’s Apostle on a journey, and we ran short of water. He said, “Bring the water remaining with you.” The people brought a utensil containing a little water. He placed his hand in it and said, “Come to the blessed water, and the Blessing is from Allah.” I saw the water flowing from among the fingers of Allah’s Apostle, and no doubt, we heard the meal glorifying Allah, when it was being eaten (by him)” (Bukhari).

Imam Ibn Arabi Continues…“So if you look at the reality of the cosmos (space), you will see it as a vanishing accident (aradh, better translated as “incidental characteristics” or temporary qualities). . . , while the fixed substance is the Cloud (solid matter is temporary, vanishes when matter is destroyed, but the smallest subatomic particles are more lasting), which is none other than the Breath of the All-Merciful. All the forms that become manifest in the cosmos are accidents ( have “incidental characteristics”) within the cosmos and may vanish; they are the possible existents (al-mumkinat) and are related to the Cloud as forms are related to a mirror [when different objects are placed in front of it]” (Futuhat al Makiyah).

This is an amazing statement by the Imam because it mirrors modern physics in it’s understanding of how atoms are created and in turn create the universe. The Imam simply said space is created from subatomic particles and it’s characteristics are temporary qualities that can easily change. The term Accident (aradh) is one taken from Islamic physics directly, Islamic scholars who were also physicists called the smallest indivisible particle in the universe ‘Al-Jawhar Al-Fard’ (lit. the unique essence), it is not important what subatomic particle is the indivisible one, this is the concern of modern physics, but that eventually when all particles are divided, the Atom, electron, proton etc we will reach one that is indivisible, they believed this because the universe as the Quran often explains is not infinite, it has an end.

Aradh which is often translated as “Accidents” is better translated as “incidental characteristics”, they are simply attributes (forces) that shape the particles (jawhar), neither of them can exist without the other, in essence this is very similar to modern physics understanding of how smaller particles make up larger particles, the qualities of the larger particle like the Atom only exist once the smaller particles come together to define what that Atom will be like, so because the universe is made from atoms and particles that have temporary qualities, then as the Imam was saying, space itself is temporary in the way it exists, it has “incidental characteristics”.

Allah says in the Quran “(He is) the Knower of the Unseen. Not an atom’s weight (a general translation of the word “Zaratin”), or less than that or greater, escapeth Him in the heavens or in the earth, but it is in a clear Record” (34:3).

Allah referred the knowledge of what the smallest particle is back to himself, some modern translators assume the smallest particle here is referring to the smallest visible thing in the ancient world where by they are filling in the gaps of history, but this is a clear mistake because this subject was spoken about at length in the Islamic world. In Ash’ari and Maturidi Aqeedah which dealt with physics and the creation of the universe, scholars often discussed theoretical physics and how subatomic particles come into existence, particles they clearly stipulate have no magnitude or size until they are affected by the accident (Aradh, force) which is essentially the same as the forces governing our universe, the Atom can’t come into existence until subatomic forces bring protons and electrons together, so in no way was the smallest particle to them the smallest particle seen by the naked eye.

This verse in the Quran states clearly that everything smaller than the “Zaratin” is recorded, so this verse is a clear reference to the existence of subatomic particles, Allah began the verse by saying (He is) the Knower of the Unseen” He was pointing people towards particles the naked eye can’t see because the subjects of the unseen and particles smaller than the eye can see are mentioned together.

Allah similarly says about His breath in the Quran directing people to what it is referring to;

32:6 Such is the Knower of the Invisible and the Visible, the Mighty, the Merciful,

32:7 Who made all things good which He created, and He began the creation of man from clay;

32:8 Then He made His offspring come into existence from an extract (sperm) of insignificant fluid;

32:9 Then He fashioned him and breathed into him of His (Own) Spirit; and appointed for you hearing and sight and hearts (that take advantage of this soul). Small thanks give ye!

Allah begins the passage about the creation of man by mentioning He is the knower of the visible and invisible, the visible is the physical matter we are created from and the invisible is the subatomic particles everything comes from, the invisible is most relevant to the verse “and breathed into him of His (Own) Spirit” because the soul is entirely made from subatomic particles, while the visible is a reference to clay.

The designation of what Allah breathed into man, to Himself (Of his Own Spirit) means the soul is made from particles from the deepest subatomic depth, above the Throne, these particles are mentioned in the hadith of Jabir they are similar to the first light (particles) He created creation from and the same light He gifted to the prophets to prove who they are, the light of prophethood. “Of His own spirit” then has a similar meaning to “Istiwa”, established Himself on the throne, it simply means the Arsh is the means by which creation can know Him, in modern terms the Arsh is the interface between the Universe and Allah, this is it’s role. Allah in essence “Istiwa” the human soul because at the subatomic depth of the throne that is were Allah established Himself for creation, while the soul is made of finer particles than the Arsh (throne) so it experiences that as well and it was created to do so.

“And they ask you about the soul. Say: The soul is one of the commands of my Lord, and you are not given aught of knowledge but a little.” (17:85), “His command, when He intends anything, is only to say to it: Be, so it is. Therefore glory be to Him in Whose hand is the kingdom of all things, and to Him you shall be brought back.” (36:82-83), “And Our Command is but a single (Act),- like the twinkling of an eye”(54:50).

The description of the soul as a command (Amr) is unique because it is a subtle reference to how Allah began the universe, the laws that govern it and how all particles come into existence from the first particles (light) Allah created, mentioned in the hadith of Jabir (as). There are specific ahadith which mention when the prophets soul was created at the first moments of creation and from what it was created, Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al Ginlani (d. 561) who was one of the major scholars of Islam, in his book Sirr al-asrar fi ma yahtaju ilayh al-abrar (p. 12-14 of the Lahore edition) said: “Know that…Allah first created the soul of Muhammad from the light of His beauty, as He said: I created Muhammad from the light of My Face, and as the Prophet said: The first thing Allah created is my soul, and the first thing Allah created is the Pen, and the first thing Allah created is the intellect”, these ahadith are referring to the many things Allah created at the first moments of creation from the same particles (light).

The soul was created around the same time as the pen more than likely from the same particle, while the Throne of Allah was created later, “when Allah wished to create creation, he divided that Light (particle) into four parts and from the first (type of particle) made the Pen, from the second (particle) the Tablet, from the third (particle) the Throne”.

In literal terms the verse says the soul is one of the Laws in the universe, meaning it is something that shapes this universe just like the Laws of Allah, the soul gives life and this is what it means to bring to life you are in command of the universe giving Life. The laws of physics are in command over what they affect, therefor the verse means the soul is subservient to Allah but just like one of the Laws in the universe it is in control of the universe within the physiology of man giving him life.

To illustrate this, to date there is one particle we have discovered that has some of these qualities, it behaves like one of the laws of the universe and is a particle, although it comes from a shallower part of subatomic space, the Higgs field which is made up of the Higgs boson particle gives other particles Mass, this particle essentially helped decide how matter would form in space when the universe was being created becouse Mass decides how particles move, this particle was so significant in deciding how things were to be in the universe that physicists took to calling it the god particle. It would not be surprising that other particles exist that also have significant consequences on life in space. The Higgs particle is more than likely the particle the prophet (saws) referred to as the “Angel” in the hadith we quoted earlier, because Angels govern this universe from subatomic space and that particle governed every subatomic particle that formed after it.

Allah says in the Quran “We certainly created man and know what his self whispers to him, and We are closer to him than [his] jugular vein”(50:16). Allah doesn’t move He has no location so the closeness is what He gave us to be close to him, the jugular vein is in the neck it caries blood from the head to the face this vein is used as an expression of closeness to our face because the face is our identity, hence the jugular vein is the limit of physical closeness to our face, in Allah saying He is closer than our face to us, by referring to something inside us, He is referring to the subatomic part of our physiology.

Allah “istiwa” (is established) on the throne and because mans soul is made from the finest particles in the universe and it is a part of our physiology it means we are connected to this depth of the universe, man in his self can reach that depth to know Allah and what he created, this is a step above the Angels who were created from a part of the Universe created later, “when Allah wished to create creation, he divided that Light (particle) into four parts and from the first (particle) made the Pen, from the second (particle) the Tablet, from the third (particle) the Throne, and then he divided the fourth [part] into four [other] parts (particles) and from the first (particle) he created the bearer of the Throne, from the second (particle) the Chair (Kursi), from the third (particle) the rest of the angels.”

The Angels bore witness to this fact in the prophet (saws) when He (saws) went beyond “sidrat al muntaha” to the position of “two bows length”, meaning the prophet (saws) traveled beyond the Arsh to the limit of what the soul can reach, while Jibril (as) who was accompanying Him the entire journey said to Him ‘I can not go any further’, once they approached that depth.

A creature can only fly if Allah gave it “wings” so man can only reach this far because of what Allah placed in him.

But man is made from constituent parts, the soul and the “clay” and “clay”, physical matter, was created last in this universe, in this way among the creatures Allah created we are the first with Him, and the lowest in our type of existence because of our bodies.

Referring to His (saws) light of prophethood, which was the first particle (light) the universe was created from before the light (particle) was divided, the messenger of Allah (saws) said “I am from Allah and the believers are from me, and Allah created all souls from me (my particles) in the spiritual world and He did so in the best form” (Abdul Qadir al Jilani).

It’s explained in Ahadith we quoted in the previous chapters that Allah created everything in the universe from the “cloud” (or smoke in that translation) which He extracted from the “water”. This is the exhalation of Allah from which all created beings take shape, just as the light of words take shape within human breath, we understand the reality behind them when we hear them, we don’t just hear a sound being made. It is called an exhalation because this is the Cloud (al-ama) “within” which was Allah—according to the Prophet—“before” He created the creatures, “within” here has a similar meaning to “Istiwa” because at this time there was no throne and it was almost the only thing in existence and Allah chose it to know Him.

When the prophet (saws) was asked were was Allah before he created the creatures, the prophet (saws) replied “in a cloud neither above which nor below which was any space.” (Tabari)

This may seem like it is talking about the time before the universe was created but it isn’t, this is a specific question referring to the moment before Allah created the Angels, who were his first creatures to exist. From the Hadith of Jabir and the other Ahadith quoted in the previous chapters, we know one of the last things Allah created was the Nun which is the space we see in the night sky and the first things created were the subatomic particles along with dark matter and dark energy, basically the stuff the blackness of space is made from. So their was no space at that point in time neither above or below the cloud because space hadn’t been created yet, but there where particles which is the cloud.

Our sense of direction comes from the fact space exists as we know it but if we unravel space we unravel time as well which is created by the universe, this is why space and time are joined together, and all directions as we know them would be gone.

So why is it called a cloud, if we look at the light coming from a light bulb that light is made from small subatomic particles called photons, when they are all bunched together they look like a “cloud” of light we see coming from the light bulb so the simile is very accurate, the smoke is another name translators sometimes use for this cloud.

The cloud is a simile for those particles and matter that existed at the beginning of the universe, so then why is there no space above or below, this is a technical question which has to do with time and the fact solid matter hasn’t been created yet.

To begin the particles that atoms are made from don’t look like Atoms because a particle as used in elementary particle physics is created because of an excitation in the subatomic field it comes from. Meaning the Higgs Boson particle is created when something excited the Higgs field, every particle is created from a particle field spread out in space and when something reacts with this field it creates the particle from it. Allah amazingly said this in the Quran, “Allah is the Light (particles) of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light (particles) is like a niche within which is a lamp” (24:35) a niche is a small hole in a large wall, the niche is the small pocket in the particle field and the particle (lamp) comes from this niche (field). So basically if we are at the point in time in the universe when only elementary particles exist and all that would have existed at this time are these flat particle fields that haven’t developed into solid matter, space or anything else, very literally there would have been no space above or below because it hadn’t been created.

Regarding time, “Time and space, according to Einstein’s theories of relativity, are woven together, forming a four-dimensional fabric called “space-time.” The mass of the Earth dimples this fabric, like a heavy person sitting in the middle of a trampoline. Gravity, says Einstein, is simply the motion of objects following the curvaceous lines of the dimple (gravity is the result of the earth bending space which becomes a force on the things on it). Our planet spins, and the spin twists the dimple, slightly, pulling it around into a 4-dimensional swirl”, four dimensional because it includes time.

In 2004 scientists did an experiment in space to prove this, they “put a spinning gyroscope into orbit around the Earth, with the spin axis pointed toward some distant star as a fixed reference point. Free from external forces, the gyroscope’s axis should continue pointing at the star–forever. But if space is twisted, the direction of the gyroscope’s axis should drift over time. By noting this change in direction relative to the star, the twists of space-time could be measured.”

“More recently this year scientists recorded the sound of two black holes colliding a billion light-years away, it made a fleeting chirp that fulfilled the last prediction of Einstein’s general theory of relativity. That faint rising tone, physicists say, is the first direct evidence of gravitational waves, the ripples in the fabric of space-time that Einstein predicted. It completes the vision of a universe in which space and time are interwoven and dynamic, able to stretch, shrink and jiggle.”

If we unravel the particles and matter space is created from then we also unravel the flow of time because they are interwoven together since the creation of the universe created time with it.

Hence literally the deeper we go sub-atomicaly we are going into a part of the universe were the building blocks of time don’t exist and the closer we near the Arsh of Allah, the limit of subatomic space, the more timeless we become, dreams are good example of this, scientifically an hour long dream only takes about 2 or 3 seconds in real life, the dream world is simply a world we created from subatomic particles which we experience with our consciousness, and as physics is now understanding our consciousness is a state of matter created from subatomic particles, like solids or liquids or gas’s are and it is subject to the same laws of physics subatomic particles are including the fantastic things quantum mechanics has discovered.

Allah affirms this fact about the universe and time in the Quran, “The angels and the Spirit ascend to Him in a day, the measure of which is fifty thousand years.”(70:4), “((Whereby) the angels and the Spirit) i.e. Gabriel (ascend unto Him) unto Allah (in a Day whereof the span) the span of ascending it for other than the angels (is fifty thousand years)” (Tanwir al Miqbas min Tafsir Ibn Abbas).

Ascending to him means they travel to his Arsh (throne), had this meant Gabriel traveled for 50000 thousand years of our time just to fulfil a single task then that would take more time than most of humanity had been on earth and the Angels actions would not be relevant to our lifetime because people would die before they return to carry out Allah’s decree. Another clear proof of this is the prophets (saws) night Journey the prophet (saws) traveled to Jerusalem and through the seven Heavens all the way to the Arsh (throne), saw what He did, learnt what He learnt and returned home all in a single night, the scholars said the event took no longer than the time it takes to have a dream, this was because he was traveling this universe through Ghayb (it’s unseen parts).

But the clearest example yet is found in another verse in the Quran which at it’s heart shows the nature of the Miraj of our prophet (saws). When Queen Bilqis went from yemen to visit the prophet Sulaiman (as) in Jerusalem He (saws) said “O chiefs! Which of you can bring me her throne before they come to me surrendering themselves in obedience (as Muslims).”

An Ifrit from the Jinn (the strongest type of Jinn) said: (Mujahid said, “A giant Jinn.” Abu Salih said, “It was as if he was a mountain.”) I will bring it to you before you rise from your place (throne, meaning instantly). And verily, I am indeed strong and trustworthy for such work. Sulayman, upon him be peace, said, “I want it faster than that.” When Sulayman said, I want it faster than that, “One with whom was knowledge of the Scripture said I will bring it to you within the twinkling of an eye!” (even faster than the Jinn).

Ibn Abbas said, “This was Asif, the scribe of Sulayman.” It was also narrated by Muhammad bin Ishaq from Yazid bin Ruman that he was Asif bin Barkhiya’ and he was a truthful believer who knew the Greatest Name of Allah. (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, 27:38-40)

In the twinkling of an eye means before you need to blink, both the Ifrit and Sulaiman’s scribe said they could bring it in no time at all because traveling in Ghayb takes no time by our awareness of time, we should also consider the fact Isa (Jesus) presently lives in Ghayb, a place not in “physical” space, Jannah.

So before Allah created the Angels He hadn’t finished the building blocks of time yet, and our space relies on the existence of time because the reactions of particles, matter and energy occur with our flow of time and it is movement and direction, if this seems difficult imagine our space existing but time doesn’t, it isn’t possible the two rely on each other. Time in the universe has to be thought of like it is a substance because it is attached to space, many still hold to the belief that what is referred to by time here is the ticking of the clock after which they assert that because it is just human observation or something we are measuring time then does not really exist, many philosophers and islamic scholars asserted this, like Imam Ibn Arabi, but this is time in relation to human awareness and consciousness, we invented the measurement of time we didn’t invent time itself.

When the Imam makes His argument he quotes the following verses in the Quran; “the Imam’s ultimate argument is that time, as he says, is an illusory thing, non-existent. Because of this, Allah attributes it universally to Himself, in His words, Allah is to everything All-knowing [Q. 33:40] and To Allah belongs the matter, before and after [Q. 30:4], and in the Sunna, the petitioner’s phrase is confirmed, Where was our Lord before He created His creation? If Time were an existent thing itself, Allah would not be truly removed from limitation, as the force of Time would limit Him. So we understand that this phrasing has over it no existent matter.”

As we will see time only exists in our universe because our universe created it, and Allah isn’t bound by the universe or anything in it.

When Allah wanted to teach man about time He related the matter back to physics, the forces in the universe and the revolution of the planets around the sun to show how it exists. It isn’t certain if the Imam was aware of the following Hadith because it is more literal than the verses He quoted to make his argument. In a hadith Qudsi Allah said the “Sons of Adam inveigh against [the vicissitudes of] Time, and I am Time, in My hand is the night and the day” (Bukhari, Muslim), when Allah says He is something it means it exists and has a strong relationship to his qualities, because all events occur in time Allah’s qualities are known through time so He said “I am Time”. The other remarkable thing about this hadith is the relationship between time and the alternation of night and day, when Allah says something is in his hand He is referring to a force in the universe, here the sun’s gravity which pulls on the planets making them rotate around it, so Allah is pointing towards gravity which is the bending of spacetime to understand what time is.

What we are referring to is the time that the universe created and matter relies on. If time didn’t exist for the universe then gravity wouldn’t be accelerating falling objects to earth at 9.8 meters per second and on the moon at 1.62 meters per second, irrespective of whether humans existed or not, this is the time matter relies on. “If time didn’t exist then all events would be simultaneous and there would be no defined points. Space curves and bends with events in time so it must exist.”

“Time is not an independent variable, it is strictly related to space. So if time does not exist then space would not exist. Think of “time” as a clock like the one that makes computer CPU’s run: it is something “orthogonal” (at right angles) to space. What I mean is that time is a fourth dimension whose spacial projection is the center of any mass (from which actually 3d space coordinates departs). So “time” is not perceivable nor measurable like “space”, rather its measurement is in term of “space modification”.

If time didn’t exist then the flow of time, our experience of time, in the universe would be constant everywhere but it isn’t. Time is the movement of all matter, when you go subatoimicly you expierince time direfently, you experience more time, you live longer in a shorter period of time compared to earth. In the Quran Allah says the Angels ascend to him in a day whose length is 50,000 years (by our account), the prophets (saws) Isra wal Miraj occured in the same time it took to have a dream, and the scrbe of Sulaiman brought Him the throne of Bilqees from yemen to Jerusalem in a shroter amount of time than it took to blink. When we go sub atomically we become more timeless because our flow of time relies on the existence of Mass and there is less of it sub atomically.

Because matter and particles in subatomic space created the universe in stages until it reached the inkwell (our space, the container of all subatomic matter) the flow of time was progressively created with it, the Higgs field exists at a specific subatomic depth it gives particles greater than it Mass and as physics states “time exists only where mass exists” and Mass in the universe increases as you approach the physical world.

We should note much of this is still being established in physics because scientists haven’t been able to establish the direct connection between the physical world represented by the general theory of relativity which explains gravity and large-scale phenomena such as the dynamics of stars and galaxies in the universe and quantum mechanics which explains microscopic phenomena from the subatomic to molecular scales.

There is gap in our understanding of how these are connected, obviously they are because there is no gap in space between the physical and subatomic but it isn’t known how space and time are literally interwoven. Presently it is emerging that quantum entanglement is the source of space time, “Space-time, is just a geometrical picture of how stuff in the quantum system is entangled”, the term space time here is interchangeable with how every 3 dimensional object is created because every particle it is made of is entangled with those around it to make it form like that.

Quantum entanglement explains how particles form the objects of our world almost as if particles have a DNA blue print to follow; “Gravity in a three-dimensional volume (an object) can be described by quantum mechanics on a two-dimensional surface surrounding the volume (object) (think particles are relatively flat to solid matter so gravity is treated in objects layer by layer of particle in the object). In particular, the three dimensions of the volume should emerge from the two dimensions of the surface.”

Quantum entanglement is a subatomic “information carrier”, if we think about a heater heating a room the hot particles from the heater make contact with the cold particles of the room, they then entangle with each other and quantum entanglement carries the information (state) of the hot particle and tells the cold particle to become like it, hot, in this way a room is heated as the cold particles slowly copy the state of the hot particles, quantum entanglement does this for every single type of reaction in the universe it is how all particles interact with each other, essentially it is how everything occurs.

Quantum entanglement projects data on the two dimensional surface of all objects as it forms, this allows for the computation of energy density which is a source of gravitational interactions, this method is emerging as a possible way to unify general relativity with quantum mechanics.

Quantum entanglement is very significant because it is believed that it creates time and Allah says He is time, when Allah says He is something it means it is encompassing of all His qualities, translators often translate verse 65:12 as “enclosed everything in His knowledge” and Allah says elsewhere in the Quran His Kursi surrounds all things, “His Kursi (footstool) encompasses the heavens and the earth”(2:255), the Kursi is a subatomic field at the lowest depths in space like the Higgs field, while the Arsh is sidrat al muntaha (the furthest depths of subatomic space), the companions explained that His Kursi is His knowledge (buhkari) hence it has a role in quantum entanglement and the data it projects onto objects. (Our article “The Depth Of The Heart Is The Depth Of The Subatomic Universe and It Ends With The Arsh Of Allah” in the Islamic Journal (05) explains the Arsh and Kursi further).

Quantum entanglement relies on particles and the forces of the universe that create them. Concerning the day of resurrection, Allah says: ‘On that Day eight shall bear the Throne of thy Lord’ (69:17), Imam Ibn al-Arabi said that when this verse was recited before the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, he said ‘And today (in the world) they are four’, ‘And tomorrow (in the Hereafter) they will become eight’ (Futuhat).

“Imam Ibn al-Arabi then explains that al-ʿarsh (usually translated as ‘the Throne’) in Arabic has two meanings: it can either mean the chair of the king, or it can also mean the kingdom itself (the kingdom is the Universe since the Arsh like the Kursi is a subatomic field spread out in space). According to the second meaning, he says that the bearers of the Throne or the Kingdom are those who are in charge of its affairs (carying it in the hadith means responsible for it’s affairs, they don’t literally carry it), and these are like the four supports or pillars (awtad) that hold up the tent or the house (the universe).”

“These four Throne-bearers who maintain the Kingdom (Universe) of Allah in this world (before it ends) are the four primary archangels: ʿAzraʾil (the angel of death), Jibraʾil (Gabriel, the Messenger of Allah), Mikhaʾil (Michael who is in charge of the earths and nature) and Israfil (Seraphiel who will blow the trumpet, in charge of ending the universe). With respect to the angels, Imam Ibn al-Arabi indicates in his book Insha al-Dawaʾir (Constructing the Circles): ‘They are called angels (malaʾika) because they are links or conductors that link the godly rules (laws of physics) and the divine effects with material worlds, because al-malak, the angel, in Arabic means force or intensity’.”

“Thus, we can correlate these four archangels that bear the Throne with the four fundamental forces in Nature, which are: the force of gravity, the electromagnetic force, the weak nuclear force, and the strong nuclear force, on which the Cosmos is constructed. Thus, these four forces can be conceived as manifestations of these four prime archangels.”

The Angels are created from Light, Light in the Quran is a simile for subatomic particles, hence keeping in mind these are the first Angels Allah created at the beginning of the universe one after the other from the first particles in existence; “In explanation of this, if we want to compare these four angels with the four fundamental forces that operate in Nature, we can clearly see, for example, a correspondence between gravity and the angel of death, since both operate upon forms or bodies, and they always attract everything down to the earth. We can also see a clear relationship between the electromagnetic force and Michael (who is charge of nature and the planets), because both are responsible for subsistence and nourishment, when we recall that all the food we eat is in some way produced by light and heat, both of which are electromagnetic waves (forces) emitted by the sun and other energy sources.”

Jibril is the Angel of revelation, in charge of inspiration in mans heart, the strong nuclear force is the strongest of the four and is responsible for binding together the fundamental particles of matter to form larger particles, essentially the creation of matter in the universe. This corresponds with Jibril who brings together the subatomic elements in mans heart responsible for his inspiration and the visions that prophets see. Dreams are a miniature universe we experience and both they and visions are made from subatomic particles that have bound together to create it. The weak nuclear force corresponds to Israfil the Angel who will end the universe because the weak force plays a greater role in things falling apart, or decaying and after He blows the trumpet the universe will unravel, particles will fall apart and disintegrate into nothingness.

Jibril (as) corresponds to the forces of creation and guidance in the universe because Allah teaches what is being created has meaning and purpose behind it, these are the higher aspects of life. Mikail (as) correspond to the forces of life, what creates it and what sustains it, of the two Angels Mikail is the elder, Life is the most precious thing with Allah and He placed Mikail in charge of it. Azrail (as) corresponds to the forces of Death and the things that bring it about, and Israfil (as) to the forces of destruction.

The following are technical notes but the matter should be explained; The arrow of time is the “one-way direction” of time, it moves forward, the arrow of time relies on the reactions of subatomic particles to exist, particles need energy to react, the thermodynamic arrow of time is explained by the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which says that in an isolated system, entropy (complexity and disorder in the universe) tend to increase with time, entropy is also the energy that is unavailable for use (the remainder of energy) in the universe and time is the measurement of the rate of entropic change (complexity which causes energy to be unavailable for use by things in the universe) because that is the overall direction of the universe as it expands.

Think of the building blocks of the universe getting more complex over time from it’s beginning, it is a general law that this occurs, the universe kept getting more complex until all physical matter and creatures were created, physical matter was the limit of how particles evolved.

Looking at the bigger picture, the cosmological arrow of time points in the direction of the universe’s expansion. It may be linked to the thermodynamic arrow, with the universe heading towards a Big Chill as the amount of usable energy in the universe becomes negligible, so from all this it means the continued expansion of the universe relies on time existing and the expansion created the space (direction) and time we know today.

In Ahadith the prophet (saws) points to a point in time when Allah began this expansion, so before that it hadn’t started yet, this is the same point in time we are referring to when the “cloud” was extracted from the “water” Allah began expanding the universe after this, essentially the big bang and the moment Allah began expanding the universe are two seperate events.

This understanding sheds light on what the soul actually is, since it is made from the first particles in existence which are almost timeless because they exist at the deepest levels of subatomic space almost free from the constraints of spacetime.

Some of the classical scholars of Tassawwuf understood this but not in the context of particles that the soul is made from; The soul quickens the body this is how it give’s it life from death, inanimate means complete stillness of matter while animate is movement and life. Inanimate objects are dead in time and a complete slave to it’s flow and laws, which means in contrast the soul is almost timeless and has qualities closer to Allah who is free of the universe. Allah is not bound by time, if we consider the flow of time in the universe and the creation of space neither are the particles of the soul, what this means is that in the material sense death is to be a complete slave to the flow of time and the laws of the universe while life means to be free of them and to have choice and free will. Man has this because of his soul but his body limits him to the constraints of the universe, so it is the soul that gives life to the dead body. All subatomic particles move through space ignoring it’s laws as if the universe was not even there but they are bound by the laws of subatomic space, the particles of the soul are even less bound by these laws because of the depth of subatomic space they exist in.

Allah entangled the particles of the soul with the Human body in the womb, this process He likened it to breathing the soul into the womb, “And (remember) her (Marry) who guarded her chastity: We breathed into her of Our spirit (“Our spirit” means the particles come from the deepest subatomic depths), and We made her and her son a sign for all peoples” (21:91), “then [He] formed him (man) and breathed of His (own) Spirit into him and gave you hearing, sight and hearts. What little thanks you show!” (Surat as-Sajda:9).

Allah in contrast to man is not bound by creation but as the prophet (saws) said about free will for us it is half and half, the body must follow the laws of the universe while the soul gives us freedom. If we consider the creatures Allah created we have the most free will because our soul is unique while the rest have it to lesser degrees until we reach the Angels who don’t have it, they can make choices within their constraints but their isn’t enough freedom to call them free. The qualities we see in the Human soul are only there because of the qualities that exist in the subatomic particles it is created from, we only have free will because Allah placed it in the very things we are created from and they give us this ability.

The forms created from the cloud, that exists in the universe whether living or inanimate are the manifestation of Allah’s Names (qualities) and Attributes, names like the breath of the merciful or His Imagination draw a more complex picture for mankind living 1400 years ago of how this occurred because we can relate to them in our self, Imam Jalal al Din Rumi wrote:

“Know that the creatures are pure and limpid water,

shining within them the Attributes of Almighty Allah.

Their knowledge, their justice,

their kindness are stars of heaven reflected in flowing water.

Kings manifest Allah’s Kingness.

the learned display His Knowledge.

Generations have passed, and we are a new generation—

the moon is the same, but the water has undergone change . . . .

All pictured forms are reflections in the river’s water—

when you rub your eyes, you see that all are He!”.

This understanding of how the universe came into existence was common knowledge among the scholars of that time, Imam Ibn Arabi for example lived in Spain while Imam Rumi lived in Persia yet He (as) was writing poetry about the same knowledge. Did the scholars literally understand all matter was created from small particles and they intern where created from smaller particles and this went on and on, absolutely, the fact is many debates where held over the nature of these particles and whether the universe was infinite or these particles had an end, orthodox Islam came to the conclusion that eventually there was an end and the universe is not infinite, Allah states this in the Quran very clearly when he mentions sidrat al muntaha, literally the end or limit of the subatomic universe beyond which no created being has any knowledge, exactly as the prophet (saws) explained.

Imam al Ghazali, Imam Suyuti and many others all wrote very similar things, some expanded on it more than others but the underlaying knowledge was all the same, the foundation for it all where the words of the prophet (saws) and physics and in the ancient world the schools of Aqeedah (creed and theology) dealt with physics and taught how the universe was created, these scholars expanded on that foundation. Most of them followed the Ashari school of Aqeedah and some followed the Maturidi school, the former was more common among the great scholars of Islam and the later among the common people. They essentially taught the same thing but where they differed was on the big questions of cosmology, how the Universe was created and it’s nature.

Some scholars understood better than others that ghayb is the subatomic part of our universe and put the bigger picture together clearer than others, Imam Ibn al Arabi was one such scholar whose work was well ahead of his time.

To understand this picture better we should envision the Prophet Musa (saws) when Allah removed the veils so He (as) could see Him, what direction was that occurring in was He looking up at the sky into the darkness of space or the mountain in front of Him (as). Allah didn’t show Him (as) the furthest distance in the Universe because that is where the Arsh (throne) is, He removed the veils from the space directly above the mountain in front of him until He reached Allah’s light and the mountain crumbled, which means Allah unraveled the forms particles and matter had taken (these are the veils) until He reached the end of subatomic space which is the Arsh, then Allah unraveled it so He could see His light directly which is beyond it, the Arsh is the largest thing Allah created because it exists throughout all created space at it’s furthest subatomic depths and surrounds the universe as well, the term Arsh is a metaphor it isn’t a throne and never was, the Higgs field exists everywhere in space and gives all particles their Mass, in a similar way the Arsh is a field that exists in space and allows everything in the universe to connect with Allah and know Him.

Because all creatures are signs displaying Allah’s Names and manifesting His creative Word, all are constantly “speaking”, in other words displaying His qualities that He endowed them with throughout their life: “There is nothing that does not proclaim His glory, but you do not understand their glorification” (27:44). Imam Ibn al Arabi comments: “No form that exists in the world, and the world is nothing but forms, that is not glorifying it’s creator with a special praise with which He has inspired it” (al Futuhat, II).

Man plays a unique role among the world’s creatures since he was created to be vicegerent (khalifah) to Allah, meaning containing the most of His qualities within him. According to the Prophet, man was created “upon Allah’s Form”; he manifests the All-Comprehensive Name (Allah) and thus reflects all other Names (qualities) as well, this is one meaning of the Quranic declaration that Allah “taught Adam all the Names”, He placed them in his heart to manifest their qualities in his self.

Allah created the Universe with two realms one unseen, the subatomic realm, and one sensory the physical realm; Imam Ibn al Arabi says: “Know also that the Reality (Allah) has described Himself as Being the Outer (al Zahir) and the Inner (al Batin). He brought the Cosmos into being as constituting an unseen realm and a sensory realın …” So one reflects one type of qualities while the other another type of qualities, man is unique among the creatures because he is made from a complete spectrum of matter, with Allah’s “two hands”, hence he can display all the qualities.

Imam Ibn al-Arabi divided the Cosmos into five hierarchical planes or types of existence. They are as follows 1-Hadharat ‘Alam al Ghayb or al-Mutlaq, i.e. the Divine Existence; 2-Hadharat ‘Alam al-A’yan al-Thabita, i.e. the presence of the archetypes, this is Allah’s knowledge of everything before He created it, 3-Hadharat Alam al-Malakut, i.e., the presence of the purely spiritual and angelic existences, the creatures made of subatomic particles; 4-Hadharat Alam al-Mulk, i.e., the presence of the material existences, animals etc; 5-Hadharat Alam al-Insan al-Kamil, I.e., the presence of the Perfect Man, the highest type of existence because it combines the full spectrum of matter both spiritual and physical.

Imam Ibn al Arabi said the Cosmos as a whole is evolutionary, and it is a result of the continuous evolutionary process of the divine order “Be” As everything is a gradual expression of Allah’s power, it belongs to a defined level of graduation in the Cosmos, the creation began with a command and continued to evolve from a single particle (light) over time into the complex universe we see today.

Evolution of the universe was a common understanding among many muslim scholars and the source for Darwin’s theory on evolution who learnt it from Islamic text prevalent at the time, his family was also known for studying them, Imam Ibn al Arabi goes on to say “Then creation continued in the earth, minerals, then vegetations, then animals, and then Man. Allah made the last of every one of these kingdoms of the first of the next kingdoms…The last of the animal and the first of mankind is the monkey”, translators in Europe would have taken this statement at face value, a common mistake in almost everything they translated, but the Imam is saying that Allah created creatures in gradual steps independent of each other but they are related archetypes.

Considering science at the time hadn’t discovered everything their is to know about the universe, the Imam identified 28 different kingdoms of existential graduation, between every kingdom is a transitional species and some link, beginning with the Angelic and spiritual type of existence and the last kingdoms are the earthly existences.

Imagination employed as a synonym for the Cloud or for the Breath of the All-Merciful is described as being “non delimited” (mutlaq, without limit), since (the subatomic particles) as the infinite Self-manifestation of Allah, it can act as a receptacle for any form (Allah wants them to have) whatsoever.

In contrast the particular ontological realm within the cosmos (the universe) which is also known as “imagination” and which acts as an isthmus (barrier, this is the nun and Barzakh) between the spiritual world and the corporeal bodies (space where the particles our imagination manipulates, exist) is described as “discontiguous” (munfasil, disconnected because it is a barrier); while space is dependant on the imagination of Allah to exist it is independent of creatures; the Imagination of Allah in turn is contrasted with “contiguous (muttasil, connected) imagination,” the imagination (of man) that is reliant on the existence of the universe, that is the imagination of “animal man” (al-insan al-hayawani), the individual who has not attained to the spiritual degrees of the saints and the Perfect Man (al-insan al-kamil).

Imagination is discontiguous if it is independent of the subject that perceives it, “contiguous” if it depends upon the individual mind.

Hence, Imam Ibn Arabi says: The contiguous kind disappears with the disappearance of the imaginer (man), while the discontiguous kind (Allah’s and the perfect man) is an essential ontological level, forever receptive toward meanings and spirits, which it embodies through its intrinsic nature. (Al Futuhat II)

To the extent that it is perceived by man, discontiguous imagination comes from “outside” (min kharij). “It is an independent and integral ontological level made up of embodied forms that are put on like clothing by meanings and spirits” (Futuhat II).

In the Imams words is the explanation for the miracles of the prophets and saints, when they attain perfection they can Will the type of miracle they want into existence because Allah gives them this ability over the universe, as they imagine it the universe and it’s particles move for them. This is clearly expressed in many miracles of the prophet’s and companions where they wilfully choose the type of miracle they want to occur and it occurs as they will it, they are independent of influence (contiguous).

Allah affirms the imams understanding in a number of Ahadith Qudsi, referring to man’s imagination and his relationship to Allah the Prophet (saws) said, “Allah the Most High said, ‘I am as My servant thinks I am (the universe is as the person sees it to be). I am with him when he mentions Me. If he mentions Me to himself, I mention him to Myself; and if he mentions Me in an assembly, I mention him in an assembly greater than it. If he draws near to Me a hand’s length, I draw near to him an arm’s length. And if he comes to Me walking, I go to him at speed.’” (Bukhari)

The universe is as the person sees it to be, the imperfect person will suffer his imperfections as his delusions rule his self, while the perfect person will see it and Allah as it is. The underlaying knowledge is that a person can shape his universe or be shaped by it and the path to achieving this is Ihsan (perfection of the self), for the person who reaches perfection Allah raises them to Himself, makes their image of Him complete, so they can shape the universe (create miracles) as they want which the following ahadith state.

The prophet (saws) then said “If Allah has loved a servant [of His], He calls Gabriel (on whom be peace) and says: ‘I love So-and-so, therefore love him.’” He (the Prophet – peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “So Gabriel loves him. Then he (Gabriel) calls out in heaven, saying: ‘Allah loves So-and-so, therefore love him.’ And the inhabitants of heaven love him.” He (the Prophet – peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Then acceptance is established for him on earth. And if Allah has abhorred a servant [of His], He calls Gabriel and says: ‘I abhor So-and-so, therefore abhor him.’ So Gabriel abhors him. Then Gabriel calls out to the inhabitants of heaven: ‘Allah abhors So-and-so, therefore abhor him.’” He (the Prophet – peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “So they abhor him, and abhorrence is established for him on earth.” (Bukhari, Malik, Tirmidhi)

The first step in this is Allah establishing acceptance in the universe for the person who reaches perfection, then the Messenger of Allah (saws) said: “Allah (mighty and sublime be He) said: Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I shall be at war with him. My servant draws not near to Me with anything more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him, and My servant continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works so that I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful servant: he hates death and I hate hurting him.” (Bukhair)

Allah takes hold of the persons senses until they see His signs through them, they gain knowledge about the universe from their experiences other people who haven’t experienced this couldn’t, this is why Allah described the scribe of Sulaiman (as) in the Quran as “One who had knowledge of the scripture”, his knowledge was the prerequisite for the miracle He displayed which opened the way for him to achieve this ability, Allah states this prerequisite very clearly in the Quran elsewhere “Has he the knowledge of the unseen so that he can see?”(53:35), while for the Jinn it was his strength since Allah called him a Ifrit. The miracles of the prophets and saints occur as they will them to occur, this is what the phrase, “Were he to ask [something] of Me, I would surely give it to him” means and many ahadith indicate this.

In the following hadith we see the saintly person commanding something to occur and it does, it isn’t the result of an answered prayer before hand it occurs at the persons will and many ahadith reporting miracles are like this; Abu Hurayrah reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, say, “No human child has ever spoken in the cradle except for ‘Isa ibn Maryam, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and the companion of Jurayj.” Abu Hurayrah asked, “Prophet of Allah, who was the companion of Jurayj?”

The Prophet replied, “Jurayj was a monk who lived in a hermitage. There was a shepherd who used to come to the foot of his hermitage and a woman from the village used to come to the shepherd. “One day his mother came while he was praying and called out, ‘Jurayj!’ He asked himself, ‘My mother or my prayer?’ He concluded that he should prefer the prayer. She shouted to him a second time and he again asked himself, ‘My mother or my prayer?’ He thought that he should prefer the prayer. She shouted a third time and yet again he asked himself, ‘My mother or my prayer?’ He again concluded that he should prefer the prayer. When he did not answer her, she said, ‘Jurayj, may Allah not let you die until you have looked at the faces of the evil women.’ Then she left.

“Then the village woman was brought before the king after she had given birth to a child. He asked, ‘Whose is it?’ ‘Jurayj’s,’ she replied. He asked, ‘The man in the hermitage?’ ‘Yes,’ she answered. He ordered, ‘Destroy his hermitage and bring him to me.’ They hacked at his hermitage with axes until it collapsed and was broken to pieces. They bound his hands to his neck with a rope and dragged him along to the king. When he passed by the evil women, he saw them and smiled. They were looking at him along with the people.

“The king asked, ‘Do you know what this woman claims?’ ‘What does she claim?’ he asked. He replied, ‘She claims that you are the father of her child.’ He asked her, ‘Where is the child?’ They replied, ‘It is in her room.’ He went to the child and said, ‘Who is your father?’ ‘The shepherd,’ he replied. The king said, ‘Shall we build your hermitage out of gold?’ ‘No,’ he replied. He asked, ‘Of silver?’ ‘No,’ he replied. The king asked, ‘What shall we build it with?’ He said, ‘Put it back the way you found it.’ Then the king asked, ‘What made you smile.’ ‘Something I recognized,’ he replied, ‘The curse of my mother overtook me.’ Then he told him about it.” (Imam Bukhari’s Adabul Mufrad)

Imam Ibn Arabi explains that Allah brings the three worlds—the spiritual (subatomic), imaginal (the water or nun or Barzakh in ahadith, the subatomic space closest to us), and corporeal (physical)—into existence within the Breath of the All-Merciful or non-delimited imagination, which (the particles), acting as an isthmus (a place) between the Light of Being and the darkness of nonexistence, manifests the properties of both sides, (literally the subatomic part of our universe is a barrier between us and the non existence beyond our universe, we think that beyond our universe is another place but if time doesn’t exist outside the universe then space can’t exist, and everything is simultaneous, it is non existence since particles can only exist in time). The macrocosm (physical universe) in turn has these three primordial states in it’s nature —Being, imagination, and nonexistence—in its three ontological levels (because the material part of our universe has a subatomic depth and beyond that is non existence): the spiritual world manifests the Light of Being, the corporeal world displays the darkness of nonexistence (it contains lifeless creations), and the imaginal world embraces the properties of both (because it is the subatomic space between us and the spiritual existence).

The fact that Allah is stoping this universe from going into non existence is affirmed in the Quran; “Allah is the One who holds the heavens and the Earth (the universe), lest they cease to exist. And if they vanished no one could then keep hold of them. Certainly He is Most Forbearing, Ever-Forgiving.”(35:41)

The discontiguous Imagination (al-khayal al-munfasil) is the world of imagination that exists independently of the person, it is a specific part of the universe the subatomic space closest to us which Allah in the Quran calls the Barzakh. Just as discontiguous imagination is an isthmus (barzakh) between the spiritual and corporeal worlds, so non-delimited (Allah’s) imagination is the “Supreme Isthmus” (al-barzakh al-ala) or the “Isthmus of Isthmuses,” for “It possesses a face turned toward Being and a face turned toward nonexistence” (al Futuhat III), it is what is keeping everything from vanishing away.

Figure 1. The Universe as Non-delimited Imagination, “The Breath of the All-Merciful”

Figure 1 illustrates the above scheme: The circle represents non-delimited imagination, “everything other than Allah’s Essence.” Nonexistence outside the circle (the universe) describes the state of the things (al-ashya’) all entities (al-ayan) of the cosmos before Allah brings them into existence, the Angels and Jinn exist in the world of spirits because they are made from subatomic particles only, while mankind exists in the corporeal part of the universe because he is made from physical matter.

The prophet (saws) said “Then Allah will drive out (resurrect) the creation with one driving (resurrection), and they will be like they were the first time: whoever was inside of it (the universe) will be inside of it (this is mankind), and whoever was on it will be on it (this is the Angels and Jinn).”(Ibn Kathir)

Concerning the ontological role of both non-delimited (divine) and discontiguous imagination (the Barzakh), Imam Ibn al-Arabi likes to quote the Qur’anic verse, “Allah let forth the two seas that meet together, between them an isthmus (barzakh) they do not overpass” (55:20) to illustrate the Barzakh (isthmus) between the physical world and the subatomic world. He says “If it were not for the isthmus (barzakh between us the unseen world) the two seas would not become distinct” (Futuhat), these “two seas” are Being and nonexistence.

Referring to the dead who go from the corporeal world to the world of spirits Allah says “ behind them (meaning the place of the living they left), there is a barrier (Barzakh) which prevents them from going back [to this world], until the day when they are raised” (23:100, Tafsir al Jalalayn).

As for contiguous imagination (of man), it reflects discontiguous imagination (the barzakh) at the level of the microcosm (subatomic) As was pointed out, the clearest access man has to contiguous imagination is through his dreams And since dreams are the imagination of the microcosm (subatomic), it is not surprising to find Imam Ibn al-Arabi calling the universe—non-delimited imagination—the dream of Allah.

Imam Ibn Arabi says: In reality, in respect of Allah’s Name the Inward (al Batin), the forms of the universe are related to Him like the forms of a dream to a dreamer, The “interpretation” (tabir) of His dream is that these forms (the things created) are His states (ahwal), so they are not other than He (in this respect), just as the forms of a dream are the states of the dreamer, nothing else—he sees only himself (al Futuhat II), who he is through what he created in the dream.

Allah’s Non-delimited imagination is infinitely vast, for it is the cosmos itself, everything “other than Allah” “It is the vastest of engendered (created and given form) beings, the most perfect of existents” (al Futuhat II) Even at the delimited level (the boundaries of existence), that is in its discontiguous and contiguous forms.

Imagination can encompass all things in a certain manner, pointing to the skeptical views of rational thinkers when presented with a description of imagination’s qualities, Imam Ibn al-Arabi states that even their ability to “suppose the impossible” (fard al-muhal) for the sake of an argument depends upon imagination. “If the impossible did not receive existence at some level or another, it could not be supposed” (al Futuhat II).

Because imagination is the moulding of matter to it’s will and has substance in this way Imam Ibn Arabi says: Nothing is vaster [than imagination], since, in its very reality, it governs all things and non-things (a person can imagine everything in existence and everything that isn’t in existence or real). It gives form to sheer nonexistence, to the impossible, to Necessity, and to possibility. It makes existence nonexistent and nonexistence existent. (Al Futuhat I).

Having already heard that imagination is characteristically “neither this nor that,” we should not now be surprised to be told that imagination is not only infinitely vast, it is also exceedingly narrow.

Imam Ibn al Arabi says: For imagination is not able to receive anything except as a form, whether it be something pertaining to the sensory or spiritual levels, or a relation, or an attribution, or Allah’s Majesty, or His Essence. Were imagination to attempt to perceive something without a form, its own reality would not allow it to do so. . . . It cannot in any way disengage meanings from material substrata (the meaning of something, it’s worth, can exist without form, the form given to it in the dream is meant to represents it’s value, but it’s value will always exist even if it isn’t given form). . . . Hence imagination is the vastest thing that can be known; yet, in spite of this amplitude, which allows it to be exercised over all things, it is unable to receive meanings as they are in themselves, disengaged from material substrata (it can’t understand things unless it’s value is given form, because the worth of something is truly invisible to man and only known to Allah who uses the universe and life to inform His creatures of it). Hence [and here Imam Ibn al-Arabi refers to a series of ahadith about the prophets dreams] it perceives knowledge in the form of milk, honey, wine, or a pearl; it sees Islam as a dome or a pillar; it sees the Qur’an in the form of butter and honey; it sees a debt in the form of a fetter; it sees Allah in the form of a human being or a light. Thus it is vast and narrow, while Allah Himself is only vast. (Al Futuhat I)

This is the relationship between the universe, man and Allah, man’s connection to it is through the subatomic particles he moulds in his dreams and shapes with his imagination, this is the ghayb Allah often mentions in the Quran and the underlaying knowledge required to unlock it’s meanings.

وَلِلَّهِ الْمَثَلُ الْأَعْلَىٰ

“To Allah belong the Highest Similitude”(16:60)

أَعِندَهُ ۥ عِلۡمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ فَهُوَ يَرَىٰٓ

ذَٲلِكَ عَـٰلِمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ٱلۡعَزِيزُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

The Book Of Enoch (Idris): Revelation, Maarifa and Black Holes

The Prophet Idris (saws) like Rasul Allah (saws) went on a Miraj of Heaven, but where Rasul Allah (saws) was shown the unseen (quantum) aspects of the universe, Idris was shown space itself, the outer surface of this Universe.

“They know but the outer surface of this world’s life, whereas of the ultimate things they are utterly unaware.”[Qur’an 30:7]

The prophet Enoch (Idris) said in the book of Enoch “I saw the paths of the angels”, Allah said in the Quran “By the heaven full of paths”(51:7), “And We have created above you seven paths, and never are We unmindful of (any of Our) creation” (23:17).

Allah said about the prophet Enoch (as) “And the same blessing was bestowed upon Ismail and Idris and Zul-Kifl, because they all practiced fortitude.”(21:85)

“And remember Idris in the Book; he was indeed very truthful, a Prophet. And We lifted him to a lofty station”.(19:56-57)

Idris (saws) was one of the earliest prophets Allah sent to mankind before the prophet Nuh (saws), with Him Allah originated writing and other technical arts of civilization including the study of astronomical phenomena. The purpose of His journey was to teach him first hand the significance of the heavenly bodies for later generations, to inspire in them their study, He reported in detail about all the things He saw. His words where unique because they are not the words of someone on earth looking up at the stars wondering and guessing what it all means they are definite in their phrasing and to the point, spoken from a persons experience.

The Book of Enoch (Idris) is divided into passages and parchments of the book that have survived are estimated to date from 300 BC in the earliest parchments to 100 BC in the later since no complete single record survived to date, this means the parchments are records of an earlier time of man on earth and not from His (saws) period directly.

The book is not part of the biblical canon and isn’t accepted by Christians or Jews because the accounts of Enoch (saws) in the book, like a dark void existing beneath the earth was considered to fantastic to be true but as is the case with much of what He (saws) said it would prove accurate in our time. The Book of Enoch has the same issues of historicity as both the Bible and Torah, it is a translation of a translation which causes great trouble when studying the text in a finite manner. In some places tampering with the text is clear and passages have been inserted by someone else because the text switches perspectives at times when it is meant to be the first person account of the prophet (saws) in most of it, but they are rare.

Having said that because it was not accepted by Christians and Jews into their canon there was far less incentive to tamper with it over the years and most of it is the literal word of the prophet Enoch (saws) himself, this is unlike the bible which contains mostly the words others.

Any educated muslim who reads the book with an understanding of language and the prophet Muhamads (saws) way of speaking will notice one thing immediately about the language of Enoch himself, which the Bible hardly contains because Jesus (as) speaks so little in it, He (saws) speaks like the Prophet Muhammad (saws) and many of his prayers (Dua) to Allah would almost mimic those of Rasul Allah (saws), they are just as refined and beautiful, muslims can repeat them and not tell the difference between the two. It stands out very clearly that these are the words of a prophet, and this is also clear in his attitude and behaviour towards things, one can even see the sunnah of our prophet (saws) through him and understand his reasoning even if it isn’t spelt out to the translator, from all of this we can be certain that the book is genuine because no corrupt mind can think like a prophet imitating them and their words so closely.

Even if the translators of the book did not understand his actions are the actions of a prophet (saws) causing many mistranslation, His (saws) words are still very clear because just like we read ahadith we can still see what is meant behind the actions, all of this is preserved in spite of the mistranslation and tampering issues.

Beyond these issues the book speaks about fallen Angels and other matters which are translated according to interpretation by christians, while it is clearly mentioned in the book that these Angels are Iblis and his tribe when they disobeyed Allah, they don’t seem to have understood the distinction being made in the book itself which is clear, this caused many christian scholars throughout history to think Jinn are fallen Angels and is the source for this confusion among them today. Iblis (satan) belonged to a tribe of Jinn who where granted the same honor, responsibility and power of Angels on earth, but they corrupted themselves and fell from this status, needless to say much can be clarified because Islamiclly we have more detail about the story and nature the Jinn who have a similar creation to the Angels, than previous scriptures who only have fragments of these events.

The Angels are created from Light, a subatomic particle, they can govern what is occurring in the Universe because everything from the weather, which relies on energy and pressure in the atmosphere, to all materials in the world are created from similar energy and subatomic particles, the Jinn are created from thermal energy and have a similar but lessor capacity as the Angels to influence this world through the subatomic part of our world, this is why they can be raised to the rank of an Angel and be called by that title even though they are a different creation entirely.

The first part of the Book of Enoch describes the fall of the Jinn who are called the Watchers which is descriptive name for them because they always accompany humans and watch them, Allah also referred to the Jinn as Angels in the Quran when He was honouring them before they lost their rank, the Jinn fathered the Nephilim which are Half Jinn Half Humans, many ahadith speak about such things and mentions that the Queen of Bilqis who went to the prophet Sulaiman (as) was a Nephalim. The remainder of the book describes Enoch’s (as) vision and visit to Space in the form of travels, visions, dreams, and revelations.

Because the Book wasn’t accepted by the Church every copy in Europe was burnt during it’s dark ages and it was thought lost until it was rediscovered in the 17th century. Many modern translations have been made but the earlier ones are clearly more superior, later translations suffer from the same fate as the NIV Bible, they seem to have been translated by an atheist who hadn’t grasped the idea that words must have meaning and are meant to say something, and so you can read entire passages that are mind numbing and whose meaning is lost because they are meant to be as “atheistically” neutral as possible since the translator was to afraid to admit the prophet (saws) could have said anything of scientific merit. When you compare the modern translation to the older one this becomes painfully clear.

Here are three accounts of a Black Hole the prophet Idris (saws) was shown, it should be remembered that no detailed concept of space existed in 300BC when the work is dated or even earlier when the Prophet (saws) actually lived, so the simple idea of traveling through space was alien to mankind let alone the fact there was a dark void beneath the earth. It required humanity to build the Hubbell telescope before we could see the accuracy of the prophets (saws) description.

(Source: The following was taken in part from a documentary about the Book of Enoch, which uses an older translation of the work).

This account is taken from the book of Enoch 1 Chapter 1:

The Prophet Idris (saws) said, “And i came to an empty place and i saw there neither a heaven above (no sky or atmosphere) or an earth below but a chaotic and terrible place (the black hole), and there i saw seven stars of heaven bound together in it like great mountains and burning with fire (He was no longer in our solar system, the passage is a description of the prophets nearness to a blackhole with stars trapped in orbit around it) at that moment i said (to the Angel) for which sin (fault) are they bound, for what reason where they cast in here, then one of the holy Angels Uriel who was with me guiding me spoke to me and said to me, Enoch for what reason are you asking and for what reason do you question and exhibit eagerness, these are among the stars of heaven which have transgressed the commandments of the lord (literally strayed from their path in space) and are bound in this place until the completion of 10 million years according to the number of their sins (the stars were circling the black hole because they strayed from their path), i then proceeded from that area to another place which is even more terrible (a larger black hole) and i saw a terrible thing a great fire that was burning and flaming the place had a cleavage which extended to the last sea, pouring out great pillars of fire, neither its extent nor its magnitude could i see nor was i able to estimate, what terrible opening is this place and a pain to look at”.

“Then Uriel one of the holy Angels who was with me responded and said to me Enoch why are you afraid like this i answered and said i am frightened because of this terrible place and the spectacle of this painful thing and he said unto me this place is the prison house of the Angels (meaning the devil Jinn) they are detained here for ever”. (End of passage)

To appreciate the prophets description we have learn about black holes, a black hole is the final stage of a star if the star had a mass of at least three times our sun, some black holes are much larger having the mass of millions or billions of suns, there isn’t any limit to how massive they can become, especially if they are well fed by stars near the centre of a galaxy, a super massive black hole such as those believed to lurk at the centre of radio galaxies tend to spew out huge pillars of radiation that look like fire some as far as six thousand light years, or even more in length. Our entire galaxy is only about 100 light years across so the two ascending and descending pillars of radiation from both sides of the black hole could add up to a total of 12 thousand light years across. A supermassive black hole would be surrounded by stelar and interstellar material such as dust and stars being torn apart, one example of a black hole having captured a star is cygnus x1, the star seems to be orbiting nothing at all but is in fact loosing much of its mass in its fatal attraction to the black hole.

A black hole has at its centre what is called a singularity (the completely black part) which has an incredible mass and infinite gravitational pull, so great is its pull that the space around it is bent to infinity, which is a generalisation for a large number that can’t be pronounced, infinity doesn’t actually exist, and even light can not escape a black hole. Keeping in mind infinity is just a large number, in a black hole gravity causes space to have infinite curvature so light doesn’t stop when it hits it, it simply continues along a straight path through this infinitely curved space, to imagine what this looks like ‘if we start with a straight line on a piece of paper and we are a dot on this line. If we bend the paper until it is curled upon itself like a tube. Now the line makes a full circle and we have a singularity. Light is now travelling a straight line that curls up on itself. If we continue curling the paper and it makes an ever tightening circle this is what a black hole is doing to space. But we will not see the curvature in space since the line is still straight on the paper and our vision follows the shape of space.’

But black holes don’t just bend space they bend time as well, “Einstein had realized in 1905, that space and time, are intimately connected with each other. One can describe the location of an event by four numbers. Three numbers describe the position of the event. They could be miles north and east of Oxford circus, and height above sea level. On a larger scale, they could be galactic latitude and longitude, and distance from the center of the galaxy. The fourth number, is the time of the event. Thus one can think of space and time together, as a four-dimensional entity, called space-time. Each point of space-time is labeled by four numbers, that specify its position in space, and in time’, all this meant that if something like a blackhole bent space it was also changing time.

Everything that passes a certain point in a black hole called the event horizon, is doomed, it is the threshold beyond which there is absolutely no escape and is a one way trip. The material that surrounds the black hole forms spiralling feature called an accretion disk in some cases this accretion disk can outshine in brightness the entire galaxy a hundred fold, it’s paradoxical, that even though no light can escape from a black hole it’s accretion disk can be extremely bright.

Now that we have the basics of black hole’s we can understand what the prophet Idrsis (saws) said;

The empty place which is chaotic and does not have a heaven above or a earth below is outer space, space is almost completely empty and it can be called chaotic because there are, constantly at work, stellar cycles of birth and death especially near a black hole.

The great fire that was burning and flaming corresponds to the accretion disk that surrounds and feeds a black hole, the cleavage is the bending of space and time to infinity, if one imagines space as a rubber flat sheet this bending of time and space would resemble a funnel, as if a long stick was pushed down the centre of the sheet stretching it, the bending is so extreme and the forces so vast that science doesn’t even have the physics to describe it, all the laws of physics break down because the environment (space) is warped and it is believed unknown laws relating to quantum gravity take over, that is gravity at the subatomic level because large objects can’t exist in a black hole only ones to small to be affected by it like subatomic particles.

Time and space as we know them literally go out of existence in the singularity of a black hole, the last sea is the singularity, to the new physics of quantum gravity this singularity is somehow a seething mass of something newly theorised called quantum foam, it is chaotic and not well understood yet but it would correspond nicely with the description of a sea, since a sea is both fluid and somewhat chaotic, the immense pillars of fire are the immense radiation jets that spew out from the black hole in both directions perpendicular to the accretion disk.

The fact the prophet Idris (saws) goes on to state that he could neither estimate its extent nor it’s magnitude in space where nothing is blocking his view lets us know these jets are larger than our solar system, possibly stretching for thousands of light years.

Another account of this black hole is given in chapter 18 verses 10 -16:

The prophet Idris (saws) said, A place beyond the great earth where the heavens come together (come together means there is no separation of mans view like the our sky and space, the heavens are endless here), and i saw a deep pit (the black hole) with heavenly fire on its pillars (the jets) and i saw inside them descending pillars of fire (jets on both sides) that where immeasurable in respect of altitude and depth, on top of that pit i saw a place without the heavenly firmament above it or earthly foundation under it (it was floating in endless space), or water, there was nothing on it not even birds but it was a desolate and terrible place and i saw there the seven stars which where like great burning mountains (encircling it) then the Angels said to me this place is the ultimate end of heaven and earth it is the prison house for the stars and the powers of heaven and the stars which role over upon the fire (get trapped in the black hole) they are the ones which have transgressed the commandments of God from the beginning of there rising (they followed a wrong path in space destined to doom them in the black hole from the beginning of the Universe) because they did not arrive punctually (they followed a delayed path) and He was wrath with them and He bound them until the time of the completion of their sin in the year of mystery (an unknown number of years).

This is very literally a description of stars being swallowed up by a black hole dating back to 300BC and even further. The fact this place is beyond the great Earth firmly establishes its location in outer space, the deep pit is the infinite bending of time and space that occurs beyond the event horizon, again the pillars are the radiation jets that pour out of a black hole. The fact that stars are in orbit is an indication that they are captured by it and the image of the stars rolling, correctly reflects the reality that stars rotate as they orbit a black hole. In contrast to the prophets words dating back to the first days of man on earth medieval Europe thought space was a black sheet with holes punched it, their explanation for stars, there was no detailed concept of space dating back to his time let alone anything this accurate, we only understood and discovered black holes recently after the humble telescope was built.

A third account of the black hole is found in chapter 108 verse 336:

The prophet Idris (saws) said, For there is not ground there, as is upon the earth, i also saw something that is like an invisible cloud, and though i could see that it (the black hole) was completely dark yet i could see the flame of its fire because it was burning brightly (the fire was coming out of the darkness) and there where somethings like bright mountains which formed a ring around it and where sweeping to and fro then i asked one of the Angels who was with me saying to them what is this bright thing (the accretion disk) for it is not a heaven but merely the flame of a fire which is burning and a voice of weeping crying and lamenting as well as strong pain (the sound of stars being destroyed) and he said unto me this place which you see into it shall be taken the spirits of sinners blasphemers those who do evil and those who alter all the things (the books of revelation) the lord has done through the mouth of the prophets all of which have to be fulfilled (the black hole is Jahanam, Hell and souls of the evil are punished with it).

The prophet mentions again there is no ground here, and the invisible cloud could be referring to interstellar dust and gas, these would obscure his ability to see clearly, it is truly amazing that he said it was completely dark but he could see the flame of its fire because it was burning brightly, the black hole itself would be completely dark and the accretion disk would be burning brightly. Scientist have always known that the only way we could see a black hole would be indirectly by seeing a star in orbit around it or by an accretion disk, the thing like bright mountains (the hump of the accretion disk) forming a ring around the black hole made the stars sweep to and fro, the stars are clearly in orbit around the black hole.

The knowledge contained in all these passages accurately describe a black hole both in its appearance and function which establishes the accuracy of His (saws) account, we notice at first His description of it is from a distance, from a vantage point where he views it all at once, he sees the pit then the heavenly fires of its pillars, from this distance he could see that there was nothing but empty space both above and below it, he then is able to describe the outer parts of the accretion disk in detail beginning with the dimmer outer edge of gas and interstellar debris which he likens to an invisible cloud.

The prophet Idris (saws) then notes the contrast between the inner disk and the hole itself by saying that it was completely dark but that it was burning brightly, he then is able to make out individual stars that surround it most notably the seven stars of heaven which the Angels tell him are bound in it until judgment is passed upon them, then he proceeds to the region of the event horizon, there he describes the most horrific aspect of this place it is a bottomless pit, the first thing he describes here is the great fire which is even more terrible than what was previously mentioned in the first account and was burning and flaming fiercely.

As the material spirals ever close to the centre it heats up to an imaginably high temperature, the cleavage would be the region around the event horizon where the fabric of space time gets bent to infinity, this is also precisely the place where the great pillars of fire are said to be pouring out, the immense radiation jets seem to hover just above this region, emitting powerful x-rays from the white hot disk material, here he notes that the black holes size and power are infinite by saying neither its extent (which is the infinite bending of space time), nor its magnitude, and the power of its event horizon “could i see (into the darkness) nor was able to estimate”, He then tells the Angel who was taking him on this journey that the spectacle of this painful thing which frightens him, is the ultimate end of heaven and earth, again the way both space and time exist as we know them on earth go out the window inside a Back hole.

To understand the significance of the prophet Idris’s (as) role to mankind we should consider the verses of the Quran, “Read! In the name of your Lord who created: He created man from a clinging form. Read! Your Lord is the Most Bountiful One, who taught by the pen, who taught man what he did not know.” (96:5) this is how Allah began revelation in Islam, these are it’s first verses. Allah taught all of mankind by the pen and it was with the prophet Idris (as) that Allah originated writing and learning from books, and it will be the prophet Idris (as) who will have the reward of every person who benefited from the pen after his time, so it shouldn’t be surprising that He (as) was shown space just like our prophet (saws) was shown the Universe, He (as) would be the source for the beginning of it’s study in mankind just like our prophet was the source for man’s focus on science, our prophet (saws) taught mankind that “Allah has encompassed all things in knowledge” (65:12).

Black Hole with Stars orbiting.

Actual Picture of a Black Hole NGC_4261.

A Black Hole with jets larger than it.

Back

The Islamic Journal #4.

About Rami

Locality of Gravitational Systems from Entanglement of Conformal Field Theories.

The Edict Of Sultan Muhammad Ibn Qalawun

وَلِلَّهِ الْمَثَلُ الْأَعْلَىٰ

أَعِندَهُ ۥ عِلۡمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ فَهُوَ يَرَىٰٓ

ذَٲلِكَ عَـٰلِمُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ٱلۡعَزِيزُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

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