on an islamic note of freeman :)

not one to be shy about scripture and interpretation, here is a little surah from the islamic Koran, translated by: abdulah yusuf ali.


In the name of Allah, the most gracious, the most merciful.



-

I do call to witness this City;

And thou art a freeman of this City;-

And (the mystic ties of) parent and child;-

Verily We have created man into toil and struggle.

Thinketh he, that none hath power over him?

He may say (boastfully); Wealth have I squandered in abundance!

Thinketh he that none beholdeth him?

Have We not made for him a pair of eyes?-

And a tongue, and a pair of lips?-

And shown him the two highways?

But he hath made no haste on the path that is steep.

And what will explain to thee the path that is steep?-

(It is:) freeing the bondman;

Or the giving of food in a day of privation

To the orphan with claims of relationship,

Or to the indigent (down) in the dust.

Then will he be of those who believe, and enjoin patience, (constancy, and self-restraint), and enjoin deeds of kindness and compassion.

Such are the Companions of the Right Hand.

But those who reject Our Signs, they are the (unhappy) Companions of the Left Hand.

On them will be Fire vaulted over (all round).

as a particular surah, it is talking about the city of Mecca i believe, but the principle i draw from this is, that we are all born freemen, and we should always do our Best in freeing others from oppression, if not spiritually, then at least pyhsically, and if not physically, then from hunger,

back in the days of old, there wasnt any countries as such, but Lands of peoples, and Cities, as even today, most talk is of the important cities, like london, rome, washington, moscow, hong kong, bejing, tokyo, and only about countries if there is war Looming,
yesteryears wars were cities,

todays wars are commited against countries, which in reality are made up places for the nationally minded peoples,
how the world changes eh!

Wondrous is the moment we meet in the palace, you and I,
Two bodies, two faces, and yet one soul, you and I,
The flowers are ablaze, birdsong surrounds us with immortality
As soon as we enter the garden, you and I,
The stars gaze down on us
And we shine as if we were the full moon itself, you and I,
Heaven's fiery birds are consumed with envy of us,
Exhilirated we laugh, you and I,
Such a miracle, entwined together, you and I,
Such a miracle, one lover, one flame, you and I,
We are together now and in the world to come,
In a rapture without end.

The world is a mirror.
In each atom blaze a thousand suns,
In each droplet gush a hundred oceans,
Within a grain of sand is the promise of future beings.
The ant looms larger than the elephant.
In its heart, one droplet is the Nile,
Within the seed live a hundred future harvests,
Within the corn the entire cosmos.
On the wing of an insect, a sea of wonder,
In the center of the eye, a heaven eternal.
Even though the human heart is small,
The Lord of earth and heaven has made it His home.

Rumi and Mahmud Shabestari.

heres a good read treeman, its a translation of AL-GHAZZALI and his Niche for lights, http://www.ghazali.org/books/mishkat/index.html enjoy bruv, a good couple of hours reading

http://servantofthelight.com/component/option,com_frontpage/Itemid,1/

great site and very educational,

some really well thought articles of interest.

Al Ghazali and Shabistari are, indeed, worthy of our time. They have stood the test of long centuries, and retain their place among the unconquered giants of esoteric literature.

Musashi.

In the section entitled “Mysteries left unveiled in this treatise” I find reference to Al Hallaj, who I mention in the essay I wrote yesterday, edited today, and was just about to post on this forum.

Gairdner also mentions
“The astounding passage in which to the supreme adept of the mystical union with deity are ascribed features and functions of very deity”
The use of this adjective, “astounding”, confirmed my earlier, 'inductive', sense that he, Gairdner, is not a Sufi. It is this very matter of “function of deity” which allowed me to introduce Hallaj in the essay, and is one familiar to all Sufis and their disciples.

To expect “denouments” from any Sufi, is a confirmation, also. Truth, if it were amenable to direct verbal transmission, would not be the province of mystics, pantheistic or otherwise, but an everyday market item available to any who cared to purchase it. The function of the Sufi is to lead others to a point where they may perceive and experience Truth, but he cannot give it. Truth cannot be given – it can only be alluded to. This fact is present also in Zen and Taoist teachings.

To conclude, I must place Gairdner in the ranks of the Orientalists – not a bad thing, but a necessary one – to keep the company of Fitzgerald, Glubb Pasha, Nicholson and others. Any translation made by anyone other than a Sufi is, by definition, of little value in esoteric terms. And any Sufi who did such a translation would necessarily have to update it to meet the changed times and cultural conditions of the target audience – as a Sufi, he would have no choice in the matter.

Orientalists may be a good introduction to the subject, may introduce vital ideas and concepts to others, but they are incapable - because of the literal nature of their translation due to their lack of direct experience – of continuing the chain of transmission of inner meaning. The resulting literature may be 'sufistic', but it is not Sufi. The Orientalist is not a 'fugelman' – he is a commentator. He may show us the bottle but cannot give us the wine.

Musashi.

Orientalists may be a good introduction to the subject, may introduce vital ideas and concepts to others, but they are incapable - because of the literal nature of their translation due to their lack of direct experience – of continuing the chain of transmission of inner meaning. The resulting literature may be 'sufistic', but it is not Sufi. The Orientalist is not a 'fugelman' – he is a commentator. He may show us the bottle but cannot give us the wine.

yes, i agree musashi.
at the time of posting, i had never given much thought to sufism and probably still dont really.
my own experiences are more directly associated with the discovery of a heartfelt reality conjoined with a deep sense of intimacy of divine existence of a system that i seem to intuitively grasp within a meaning i hold, but mostly something i cannot express literally.
so i do agree with your post.
i hope you dont take my meanderings to mean that i actually know anything of real quality, i see that your far more knowledgable than myself in these matters. peace.

My post was a bit stark. I have previous for this - though in my defense I can honestly say that I am trying to be a touch friendlier sounding. I should have thought to add a nice, cuddly, warm, friendly bit like "Mmmh. Nice find!" I can be a twat serious too much of the time - Capricorn, y'see.
So, cuddles all round. Enjoy the read, brothers.

Mushy Musashi.

musashi wrote:

My post was a bit stark. I have previous for this - though in my defense I can honestly say that I am trying to be a touch friendlier sounding. I should have thought to add a nice, cuddly, warm, friendly bit like "Mmmh. Nice find!" I can be a twat serious too much of the time - Capricorn, y'see.
So, cuddles all round. Enjoy the read, brothers.

Mushy Musashi.

nah, i didnt think the post was stark, nor did i see anything unfriendly Musashi, ime glad you raised the post again to be honest as it gives me an opportunity to re read what i had posted and forgotten, in a different light.

and also a chance to read your other post, which i can say i positively enjoyed and will read again.

In a recent study I undertook for a friend who wished to have some more info on the esoteric aspects of AGENDA 21 - which I discovered and reported only recently, I was appalled to discover that my own Sufi teacher, Idries Shah, was an early member and supporter of the Club of Rome and several presentations were given to his Institute for Cultural Research by scientists like Alexander King who along with Bernard Schneider in 1991/1992, published the Club of Rome's report called “The First Global Revolution” and introduced global warming and agenda 21 depopulation and sustainable development.

Just as bad, he was associated with Wicca and Thelema, worked closely with Gardner, the co-founder with Doreen Valiente, of Wicca, and Shah said,
“When I was interviewing Gerald, I sometimes wished I was a News of the World reporter. What marvellous material for an exposé! And yet I have it on good authority that this group will be the cornerstone of the religion of the coming age.”

Somewhat depressed, I continued and finally produced a 22 page time-line of the esoteric aspects of the global elite and the new world order.
It is a very dispiriting time for me, and my forty five years of Sufi involvement has turned to dust and ashes in my mouth. Betrayal, it seems, is common currency everywhere.
Musashi.