THE WISDOM OF IBN ATA'ALLAH
(Excerpts Only)
Translation and Commentary by Shaykh
Fadhlalla Haeri
The
Hikam (Wisdom)
Section Twenty Two
HIKMA 204
Some lights are
given leave to arrive and some lights are given leave to penetrate.
His Lights reflect in
the heart aspects of divine attributes, qualities and names. Lights
and inspirations often descend unexpectedly, and do not always make
lasting impact if they simply touch the heart without moving it. It
is the difference between hearing the news that there is a distant
fire in town and the urgency of dealing with a fire in the kitchen
of ones house. One takes some of your attention; the other demands
all your instant action.
HIKMA 205
It could be that
lights come upon you but find the heart filled up with forms of
created things, thus they return to where they descended from.
A pure
heart is necessary in order for a transformation to take place. So
long as the heart has other preoccupations the descending insights
and lights from the unseen will not move it or energise it. To
experience and enjoy the beauty of a moon you need a clear eye,
otherwise the preoccupation with impaired vision will ruin the
experience. The same is with an attached or preoccupied heart.
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