From the July-August 2001 issue
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From the July-August 2001 issueEditorial Article[Home] [Back] [Nov-Dec01] [Sep-Oct 01] [May-Jun01] | ||||
EditorialThe Path to Freedom©Rose A. Jenkins, editor...seems wide and broad. Would it be strange, then, to say that the Path of Freedom is narrow and steep? The wilderness of the heart, the jumbled lands of the concrete mind and swamps of emotion lie on all sides. By noting the dangers of complacency and obvious perils, we may discover that the optimal path, indeed, is narrow. Cutting through falsehoods, distancing ourselves from mirages shows depth of intent, therefore, the path is steep. Embracing the journey's promise, we embark. Seeking our personal truths, honoring the search of others, we discover the Freedom to be ourselves-self-discovery and self-initation–the most precious freedom of all. Behind Freedom of the Press, Religion, and other specified and desirable freedoms, standing in the place of honor is the Self–reigning supreme! When we give ourselves permission to explore and discover Truth for ourselves, we pay homage to the Creator. When we exercise our responsibility as fully-empowered individuals, we honor the Divine. In fact, it is the choices we make that display the quality of our divinity, and Conscience. Conscience, then, is our guide on the journey to Selfhood, the "journey of a thousand steps"... The time to begin is now. We begin the journey when our Soul demands its Freedom. Eventually, at the end of the journey, coming home, imagine a world filled with self-realized individuals, aware of their beauty, mutual respect with unfettered powers of perception and responsibility. It must follow that, eventually, all self-realized beings must outgrow the pangs of karma and "debt mitigation or debt cancellation". Then, we will know and align outselves with even greater Truths. This follows a natural process of soul-preparation and soul-growth requiring the full participation of the Self in order to work its magic on our lower selves. So that we may emerge, new-born... ...and Free! TOP |
ArticleThe Sufi Path© by Christopher Moinuddin Clarke, PhD[Pathfinder is pleased to offer authentic views from many spiritual Paths. As such, we are particularly pleased to present a view of the Sufi Path by Dr. Clarke...]The Sufi is like the earth, on which every foul thing is thrown and from which fair things come forth.–Al-JunaydThere are many perspectives which one might write about Sufism; however, I think the most relevant perspective would be to share what Sufism can offer a seeker on the path to Self-Realization. In order to elucidate this perspective, as is the custom among the Sufis, I will speak from personal experience as a long time seeker (and sometimes finder) on the path of Sufism. Among many, let me share three pivotal perspectives of Sufism (from the Sufi Schools with which I am affiliated) that have proven particularly helpful to my spiritual growth. These are: (1) Sufism is Universal; (2) Sufism seeks Divinity within humanity; and (3) Sufism is experiential. TOP Sufism is Universal. This means that Sufism is open to the Divine Message as brought by all illuminated souls. It also means Sufism engenders a freedom to explore new expressions of Spirituality. It recognizes the contribution of all sincere paths of Truth, all beings and all life as the unfoldment and expression of Divine Consciousness. Sufism has never adhered to a single doctrine of faith or prescribed dogma, rather it has evolved through a spiritual egalitarianism open to an exchange of philosophies and practices with those mystical schools with which it has been juxtaposed throughout history. The word "Sufi" was derived from the Arabic word, Suf, meaning wool. In the Near East, wool was the material of the garments worn by ascetics. This etymological association developed because during an early period in the Middle East, Islam changed from a "faith" to a "political empire" and the society became very materialistic. As a reaction to this materialism, a group of people shunned its decadent way of life, went into the desert and became ascetics. Here they met the Christian "Desert Fathers" and adopted their style of dress which was a coarse woolen robe-worn in contrast to the silks and finery that people of society wore. They also gained much in the way of technique and style from the "Desert Fathers" and during this period modeled themselves on Christ because of his association with poverty and charity. In Sufism, therefore, one does not seek to create walls of division between oneself and others but to understand and even partake of other perspectives, accepting other religions, pathways, philosophies and techniques for discovering our fundamental Spirituality and the underlying Truth of Existence. The Universal nature of Sufism also means it recognizes the many religions of the world. In several of the Sufi Orders to which I belong, we have a wonderful celebration called the Universal Worship Service. This service incorporates, along a given theme, sacred hymns, scriptural readings, teachings and even dances from among the many religions of the world. It is a joyous celebration which brings great insight owing to the fact that it illuminates the common thread of Truth running through the many religions which have sought to keep alive the light of truth amidst the darkness of human existence. There are many ministers, rabbis, Imams, etc., who are Sufis and many Sufis who deeply participate in the religion of their choice-there is no conflict in this because Sufism itself is not a religion. What is Sufism? To quote Hazrat Inayat Khan who brought Sufism to the West in 1910: TOP If anybody asks what Sufism is, what kind of religion it is? The answer is that Sufism is the religion of the heart, the religion in which the primary thing of importance is to seek God in the heart of humankind.This perspective is important to me because it has both empowered, enlarged and enriched my search for truth. It provides a sense of personal freedom rather than constraint. Sufism sees the Individual as Divine and the Divine as Individual God, Allah, Ahura Mazda, Brahma, Yahweh, The Great Spirit, Tao, whatever you want to call divinity, is not something separate from us but rather is actually a part of us. Therefore by discovering our true selves we discover God. In fact this perspective becomes even more dynamic when we contemplate the following phrase of Pir Vilayat (current head of the Sufi Order International): God reveals himself by manifesting himself as you; God discovers himself by the knowledge you have of him. The great Sufi, Enarbi , said the same thing a little differently: TOP I confer upon God a mode of knowledge by discovering his consciousness as the ground of my consciousness.When seen from this perspective, one's notion of one'self and one's relationship to God can be radically altered! Imagine that you are that divinity which you seek and that your seeking and your realizations are in fact the Divine awakening. You think you are awakening but actually it is the universe that is awakening as you (Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan). Now, this does not mean that things are 'predetermined'; quite the contrary for this is in fact a dynamically creative act of evolution-Divine potentialities that could not have manifested themselves become actualized through you! There is a beautiful rendering of a Hadith of the Prophet Mohammad which is the center of all Sufism: I was an unknown treasure and I loved to be known. And in order to do this I became, in the consciousness of all beings, the subject of my self-discovery; and, in the nature of all beings, the object of my self-discovery. (Pir Vilayat) This perspective is important to me as a seeker because now I really know where to look to find what I am seeking and even better, I know my success is assured because that which I seek is also seeking to awaken as me! TOP Sufism is Experiential Although Sufism values metaphysics, it is only to set a frame of reference for one's own experience and realization of Truth. Consider the difference between me describing to you a beautiful sunrise over the ocean and you being with me in the silent pre-dawn, watching breathless in communion as the glorious sun rises above the horizon-no matter how well I describe the experience it will never be the same as your direct experience of its reality. The heart of Sufism is in its spiritual practices and the realizations they bring. These practices provide a linage of authentic and tested methods for systematically expanding consciousness. In Sufism the place where we practice is the Heart Center. Sufism recognizes the heart center as the pivotal center for the mystical experience. It is the Alchemical caldron wherein occurs the Spiritualization of Matter and the Materialization of Spirit. It is the center that brings the soul in touch with the earth. In fact the Sufis call the heart by two names: Dil, which means soul; and Qalbi, which means in the depth or organ of the inner perception. What is so important about the heart center is that it makes the Divine human and the human Divine! This is one of the most remarkable things about modern Sufism–its emphasis upon bringing spirituality into everyday life. Sufism does not seek to escape from the world nor annihilate the individual but rather to see them for what they are-unique, creative expressions of the Divine Being. TOP There are thousands of meditation techniques used in Sufism but they all revolve around one primary practice-the practice of remembrance, called Dhikr (Zikr). In the practice of Dhikr, whether through prayer, scripture, meditation, mantra, what we are doing is striving to remember who and what we really are-Divine. Ironically, part of process of remembrance is also a process forgetting or unlearning! Unfortunately becoming self-realized does not happen in a flash. The elimination of self-illusion or the process of un-learning our limitation takes considerable practice, perseverance and patience. Our progress unfolds gradually, partially through our own spiritual practice and partially through Grace, which is Gods response to our remembrance. It is this constant remembrance, focusing and refocusing the mirror of our consciousness upon the unlimited part of our being, which whittles away the limited perspective, replacing it with a sense of Divine reality. Therefore we need to unlearn what we think we are while simultaneously remembering or re-learning what we really are. There is a specific and powerful technique of Sufism in which this entire process is embodied-it is also called Zikr. Using the technique of Zikr we actually build a temple of light out of the fabric of our being. This practice involves repeating and attuning to the phrase: La ilaha illa 'llah. The first half of the practice, La ilaha, is a negation of all we think we know, literally meaning, "There is no other Divinity"; the second half of the practice, illa 'llah, is the remembrance of what we truly are, literally meaning "except God." TOP Another great and glorious practice of the Sufis is attuning to the Divine Qualities or names of Allah (Asma Illahi)–called repetition of wazifa (mantra). Regarding this practice, my teacher Amin said: The mystics speak of the sacred names of God with great reverence, and when one knows more and more about the truth within the sacred names–so too will all revere them. The sacred names are the center of the mystery of the great power of sages, prophets, yogis, mystics or mudzubs. The power to heal, to control weather, circumstances, the outcome of events, the complete mastery of life, to always be able to attain; this is the power locked up in the sacred names. The Sacred names are the treasure chest of the one reality called God! The sacred names come from the older languages, including Sanskrit, Arabic and Hebrew. The older languages are more resonant with the true inner sounds or vibrations behind all of life. Actually, working with Wazifa is in truth working with living, divine consciousness. Pir Vilayat says: You could consider each wazifa as the signature tune of an angel. So you are communicating with being instead of just entertaining abstract thoughts. You imagine that the angels embody qualities. So in order to remember, the Sufi continually strives to focus the mirror of conscious upon something sacred, higher... and unlimited. There is a universal spiritual axiom: What you focus upon you become! I will end this article on the Path of Sufism simply with a quote from the great Sufi Al-Ghazzali: To be a Sufi means to abide continuously with God and to be at peace with humanity.TOP Christopher Moinuddin Clarke, PhD obtained his Doctorate from Kent State University in Human Communication Studies and has 25 years of formal spiritual training in the Sufi tradition. He is the spiritual director of The Fraterntiy of Light, Co-founder of the Universal Church of the Prophets in Ohio, and has conducted meditation seminars and retreats throughout the US. Professionally, Dr. Clarke is Director of the Academic Information Management Center in St. Louis, Missouri. For information on Sufi activities in Missouri email Christopher at: Moinuddin.Clarke@att.net |