The Kashf al-mahjúb: The oldest Persian treatise on SúfiismHujviri, ‘Ali ibn ‘Usman
Islamic
The Kashf al-mahjúb: The oldest Persian treatise on Súfiism
Hujviri, ‘Ali ibn ‘Usman
Sufism -- Early works to 1800
In short, the resident is not obliged to pay attention to the travelling
dervish unless the latter’s attention is paid entirely to God. If he is
devoted to his own interests, it is impossible that another should help
him to gratify his selfishness, for dervishes are guides (_ráhbarán_),
not brigands (_ráhburán_), to each other. So long as anyone perseveres
in a selfish demand, his friend ought to resist it, but when he
renounces it, then his friend ought to satisfy it. In the Traditions of
the Apostle it is related that he made a brotherhood between Salmán
(al-Fárisí) and Abú Dharr Ghifárí, both of whom were leading men among
the People of the Veranda (_ahl-i ṣuffa_) and eminent spiritualists. One
day, when Salmán came to visit Abú Dharr at his house, Abú Dharr’s wife
complained to him that her husband neither ate by day nor slept by
night. Salmán told her to fetch some food, and said to Abú Dharr: “O
brother, I desire thee to eat, since this fasting is not incumbent on
thee.” Abú Dharr complied. And at night Salmán said: “O brother, I beg
thee to sleep: thy body and thy wife have a claim upon thee, as well as
thy Lord.” Next day Abú Dharr went to the Apostle, who said: “I say the
same thing as Salmán said yesterday: verily, thy body has a claim upon
thee.” Inasmuch as Abú Dharr had renounced his selfish pleasures, Salmán
persuaded him to gratify them. Whatever you do on this principle is
sound and impregnable. Once, in the territories of `Iráq, I was
restlessly occupied (_tápákí míkardam_) in seeking wealth and
squandering it, and I had run largely into debt. Everyone who wanted
anything turned to me, and I was troubled and at a loss to know how I
could accomplish their desires. An eminent person wrote to me as
follows: “Beware lest you distract your mind from God by satisfying the
wishes of those whose minds are engrossed in vanity. If you find anyone
whose mind is nobler than your own, you may justly distract your mind in
order to give peace to his. Otherwise, do not distract yourself, since
God is sufficient for His servants.” These words brought me instant
relief.
_Chapter concerning their Rules in Travel._
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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