It is related that Junayd said: “Unification is the separation of the eternal from that which was originated in time,” i.e. you must not regard the eternal as a _locus_ of phenomena, or phenomena as a _locus_ of the eternal; and you must know that God is eternal and that you are phenomenal, and that nothing of your _genus_ is connected with Him, and that nothing of His attributes is mingled in you, and that there is no homogeneity between the eternal and the phenomenal. This is contrary to the above-mentioned doctrine of those who hold the spirit to be eternal. When the eternal is believed to descend into phenomena, or phenomena to be attached to the eternal, no proof remains of the eternity of God and the origination of the universe; and this leads to materialism (_madhhab-i dahriyán_). In all the actions of phenomena there are proofs of unification and evidences of the Divine omnipotence and signs which establish the eternity of God, but men are too heedless to desire only Him or to be content only with keeping Him in remembrance. Ḥusayn b. Manṣúr (al-Ḥalláj) says: “The first step in unification is the annihilation of separation (_tafríd_),” because separation is the pronouncement that one has become separated from imperfections (_áfát_), while unification is the declaration of a thing’s unity: therefore in isolation (_fardániyyat_) it is possible to affirm that which is other than God, and this quality may be ascribed to others besides God; but in unity (_waḥdániyyat_) it is not possible to affirm other than God, and unity may not be ascribed to anything except Him. Accordingly, the first step in unification is to deny (that God has) a partner (_sharík_) and to put admixture (_mizáj_) aside, for admixture on the way (to God) is like seeking the highway with a lamp (_mizáj andar minháj chún ṭalab-i minháj báshad ba-siráj_). And Ḥuṣrí says: “Our principles in unification are five: the removal of phenomenality, and the affirmation of eternity, and departure from familiar haunts, and separation from brethren, and forgetfulness of what is known and unknown.” The removal of phenomenality consists in denying that phenomena have any connexion with unification or that they can possibly attain to His holy essence; and the affirmation of eternity consists in being convinced that God always existed, as I have already explained in discussing the saying of Junayd; and departure from familiar haunts means, for the novice, departure from the habitual pleasures of the lower soul and the forms of this world, and for the adept, departure from lofty stations and glorious states and exalted miracles (_karámát_); and separation from brethren means turning away from the society of mankind and turning towards the society of God, since any thought of other than God is a veil and an imperfection, and the more a man’s thoughts are associated with other than God the more is he veiled from God, because it is universally agreed that unification is