The Stages Of Understanding of the Creator

There are several stages of the knowledge and understanding of the Creator. The Understanding progresses and reaches the next higher stage with the development of the degree of Faith in the person. Khawaja Naseeruddin Tusi says that the Stages of Understanding of the Almighty are like the stages of knowledge about fire.
The first stage of knowledge about the potentiality of the fire is through the word of mouth. We are told that fire is that which will burn anything it comes in contact with. Similarly, the knowledge about the Existence of the Creator is through the word f mouth. One hears from others that there is Allah, and he believes. This is the Faith through Emulation (Taqleed).
The second stage of knowledge about the fire is that when a person notices the smoke, he believes there is some fire in the neighborhood. Similarly, the second stage of the Knowledge of Existence of Allah is through the signs one gets to confirm the Belief.
The third stage of knowledge about fire is when someone personally experiences nearness to the source of the fire. This Third Stage of the Knowledge about the Existence of the Creator is the privilege of those pious persons who derive contentment from the Light in their hearts about the Knowledge of the Existence of the Almighty Allah. They wonder at experiencing the Lord’s creations around them and rivet their attention on Him.
The fourth stage of understanding about the fire is that a person dares to come in personal contact with the fire. This stage of Understanding Allah is when the pious persons whose dedication has reached such heights that they are ready to sacrifice themselves (fanafillah) in the way of the Creator. This stage is reached after achieving highest degree of Devotion.
Imam Ja’far As-Sadiq (as) narrates the following tradition of the Holy Prophet (S): “When a person offers optional Sunna prayers (Nawafil and Awaqib) after the Mandatory (Faraed) prayers, Allah says that He makes him such a friend that whosoever is the friend of that person will in turn be Allah’s friend. Then the eyes of the person through which he sees will not remain his own, but they will be Allah’s eyes. Similarly the ears through which he hears, will be Allah’s ears. His tongue which he uses to express his thoughts will be Allah’s tongue.”
Hearing this Holy Tradition, the Sufis have drawn wrong conclusions and thus sprang up several orders of these groups. If they had heard the interpretation of the Tradition from the Perfect in Knowledge (Rasiqoon fil Ilm) this confusion would not have resulted. The true purport of this Tradition is that when a pious person gets deeply engrossed in the thought and love of Allah, the Almighty becomes his tongue. He sees and hears what Allah approves of.

The Ranks Of The Knowledge Of The Creator
Perhaps the meaning of this Divine Tradition (Hadith al-Qudsi) is that when a devout person attains a high degree of piety, Allah becomes his eye. It would mean that whatever his eye sees, the person visualizes the attributes of Allah in that. The person doesn’t focus his eye s on anything that Allah forbids to be seen. He doesn’t hear anything that Allah does not want him to hear. The Tradition can also have the meaning that every person, by nature, prefers to use his limbs and senses as per his own wish, but a pious person subjects all his actions to the express wish of Allah. The love of Allah dominates all other thoughts in his psyche.
There is another very appropriate meaning of the Tradition. May Allah make those who have gone astray accept this interpretation and mend their ways.
Allah has created many instincts and faculties in the human beings. He, the Creator, has exhorted the people to use them the way He wants them to use. And then Allah promises: “Whatever you spend in the Way of Allah- He gives you more in return” (34:39)
Or, He will give you such bounties that might not be similar to those given earlier. Therefore, wealth or property that might be lost by way of fire or theft, or is spent in charity or for a good cause, a person would get immense benefits in the Hereafter. These rewards would be unimaginably more than the satisfaction one would derive from acquiring and hoarding the transitory material things of this world. Here, a verse from the Holy Qur’an is quoted: “They strive to spend in the way of Allah and are not afraid of taunts.” (5:54)
One must spend in the way of Allah. Those who are not worried about the concerns of the worldly people and boldly act in the way of Allah, shall be rewarded handsomely in the Hereafter.
Amir’ul-Mu’mineen and his companions used to spend their energies in the Obedience and Prayer of Allah. Allah endowed them with such energy that their strength was far more than usual for the humans. Therefore Amir’ul-Mu’mineen ‘Ali (as) has said, “I have not broken and lifted the gate of the fort of Khaiber with my human strength. It was the Divine Strength that helped me achieve the impossible.” This is such a strength that can bring together the earth and the sky without moving a hand. This strength or faculty does not vanish with the demise of the persons. Because they don’t do anything without the wish of Allah, they become subservient to the Wishes of Allah.,Who infuses His wishes in their hearts and all their actions are according to the plans of Allah.
There is an oft- repeated tradition that says, “The heart of a pious person is held in the two fingers of Allah.” It means that the heart of the person is in the control of Allah and He turns the subject whichever way He wants. The verse of Ad-dahr, “Wa ma tashaoona illa ainyasha Allah, which has been revealed in the praise of the Ahl al-Bayt also means that they don’t intend to do anything unless Allah wishes them to do it.
Therefore, the pious cry for long hours in fear of Allah and spend the whole nights in prayers without any concern of losing their eyesight with such heavy stress. They care only for their subservience to their Friend, that is, Almighty Allah. Therefore, Allah endows them with a special light that never fades and they are able to witness things that are beyond the ken of the mortal eyes!
Here we quote another Tradition, “Be aware of the intellect of the Mu’min that he sees with the light provided by Allah. Allah opens the springs of eloquence to him without his knowledge. He benefits others from these springs as he derives benefit for himself. The springs have no end.”
“Reaching this stage, he hears, sees, moves and speaks only with My strength.”
It is evident therefore that this august status is reserved for those who are the Closest to Allah and not for all and sundry. The meaning of the Tradition Taqlaqu baqlaq Allah too means that one should endeavor to acquire manners like those of Allah Almighty. It will be like tempering the iron in the fire. The iron becomes red hot like the fire, although it is not fire itself but has acquired the colour and effect of the fire.
Similarly Allah endows some of His attributes to men in lesser or higher degree. But the knowledge of men is infinitesimal when compared to the Knowledge of Allah. When one acquires this meagre knowledge, he becomes vainglorious. When Allah bestows some power to an individual and he becomes a king, he proudly proclaims, lemanil malak al youm!- ‘who is the king today!! There are two sides to the human excellence. One is positive and the other is negative. The positive excellence of a person is from and with the Consent of Allah and the negative excellence is an aberration of the person’s own thinking process.
May Allah protect the Shi’as of Muhammad’s Progeny from the machinations of Jinn and men and they keep steadfast on the Right Path.
When one becomes a true bondsman of Allah, his heart will be the Abode of Allah, then all machinations of the evil against him will go in vain. A true lover of Allah like Abu Dharr shall always be remembered with respect. However much Yazid felt that he had subdued Husayn; Husayn will be eulogized from the pulpits and Yazid cursed till the end of this world.