The SDfiTheory of Knowledge: A Studyof 'Ain Al-Qudah's Zubdat al-F. qtr'rq Yt. tsron Asrofie Abstrak Teori Sufi tentang llmu Pengetahuan Ini adalahstudi tentangrcori ilrupcngetahuanyang dikcrbangkan , o r a n gh a k i r nv a n g s e k a l g u s o l e h ' A i n a l - Q u c l : rIhl e n r : r d x n(J1 0 9 8 - 1 1 3 1. e l u g as c o r a n gs u fr . I ) l d u u s i at i g a p u l u ht i g at a h u nd i a d i h u k u r nm a t i k a r e n a dituclLrlt lnentpun\'. scpertial-lJallff. dan clitudult i r i s am c n c a p a ik e a d a e nN a b i s e p e r t S i u h r a w a r d. 1 1 9 1 ) . 'Ain al-Qr,rtlil-irerasli tidak renrperolehkepuasan dalanr lnencari ilrnu,dllatn hal ini adalahilrtiu Kalarn. I)i:r akhirnvarnerasadisci:rrnatkan clarikekafiran,kesalrrhan, kel>ingr. dan kebutaandengan rlielnbrc. kan rr-kan'eIrnarn al-Gha. rll u,. Nlenurut pendapat 'Ain :tl-QudXh,Tr-rhunitu rlah:i t:rlrr. iseglt hai b l i k h a l - h a lv a n g l t e s l r r n u u p u r rh a l - h a ly a n g . s a n g akte c i i . ' A i n a l - e u d e h r n c n c l a s : r r kpaenn d a p u t n r ,p' u a c l eu v a t2 : 1 1 5y a n gb e r b u n y i ',. k c l r n n a p u n kartrurnengltadap,clr siiuiah *'ajlh Allah. Sesungguhny,a Allah ftu nraha iu:is lugr ralil nlcngct. ' Avrit ini, n('riurut clia,lncnunjukkanbahr. ke InanasalaInlinusutnrensirudllp. clil nrelihlt ltahvu':r w'ajahAllah adl cli Ini adalah rnerupakanindikasi yang lernbut nanlun lelas behwa setiapbenda 1'angedr itu renrprunyai hubungan tertentudengan wayah Tuhan, ataLrdengan katl luin berada dalam pandanganTr-rhan. Logika kebaiikannya adalah bahwa segala sesuaru yang di luar pengetahuan l'uhan berarti tidak ada, atau merupakan hal yang tidak ada. iebih lanjut, 'Ain al-Qudah mengutip ayatT:7 yangberbunyi, "Sung3uh Kami akan menceritakan kepada mereka dengan ilmu pengetahuan. SesungguhnyaKami tidak akan absen. "Menurutnya, ayat ini menunjukkan bahwa segala sesuatu itu berada dalarn pengetahuan Tuhan dan Dia selalu hadir bersama dengan segala sesuatu. Tidak ada satu hal pun y'ang bisa menghindar dari pengetahuan Tuhan. Karena alasan inilah. mt'a\ 5Y1996 M. ,1. srut Asrofie ,Ain al-Qucl5hlebih Tuhan itu sesuatu iauh mengatakanbahwa sebenarnya yang banyak . t-katbi. dan merupakan keseluruhan atau totalitas benda-bendtr. t-kul. SegalasesuatuselainTuhan adalahhal-hal merupakanbagian dan khusus' 'Ar el-Qud:1hrtrengakuibah*. a penielasannyadi atas itu sangat t r d r r k l e l e s \ a m b t g t t o r r - s )u. n t u k t n e l n p e r i e l a sp e r r l i k i r a n n y a rnenggrrnlk:tnpennlsalan rnatahari. Dia mengltaken bahn'lt l t c t r r l r t u t t l t i t l t r ii f l t S e t t l , n i l l l l t l n C a i l l l ' a V e n g I n e l l l l t n C a rc l l t r i r ' r t a t a l t l t riit t ' t J, 6l. LJ, i,rr acllrl:. ilerkesirrtpullnbahrt''. etehllrlitLrltnr. :rk lthn'lt dilr d a l t r r i t r s r n g - l t t l s l n gs i n t t r i l u s l t t l . t ,r r t a k a h a l i n i r u e r - r u n i u k k a n tu1 rtarl i . rSt* u eltlrtlh:ir. r l e l i l l t t r r l i t u h e r i i f r . tt t r e r u p l t k l t t l a k u l r l u l l l s i c l a r i s i n a r , s u l t t t ' t aclellh penvltltlclltlt r ' : r n g r n e i i p l l t t s c l l ' l L l l sl i n e r , s e c l a l l g k a n s i n : t r - s i n : t ri t u -rr,*ttl eLrlls . liet!-l k r r l t ' k t i l c l : r r iI l t l r t l r l t l r i ,(\\\\- c. trtl'rK Seblgai kesitnpul:rn dari ketrllthrtaltuanTuhan, tnaklt sang,. llr'ill'-\:'r l l t L l n g k l n t t r t e l e k I n a n u s i a i t u b i s : r t l l e n g c t a h u i i l r t l u T r - r i t a n I. n t c i c k rnl (). i t r _ rh a n v u s r , r l t u b a g i e n k e c i l d a r i w u j r - r d v a n g a d a c l i a l : r r l l sLri'ltl ''"':l' k u r c n l t i t u . t r t a k a i n t e l e k V : u l g ,l n c r L l p a k l r n l l l t g t : t r l k e r r l c l ' 1 r t -[-r. vllnli I. c:-'l'rr':is('lneStll inr tidak llislt tncngr:t:lhLli illtlr. 51f ,J \lplt -f. r rb . ', :JlJJX-atr, ,iS ,(\ \ \ r :: d p a s l t i l rv l n g l r d l l ' k c . s c l r , r r t r i r l tdnl r i r v r - t i r ' r a I ) 1 i a r 1 s r x r l i l l t u p e n g e t u h u l l n r n : t n L I S i l lA. i n a l - Q L l c L l il. l tl c r l g c . t - . - - s - i r ' : l sr:"r\'''ri sltu p()l pcttlikirall Vang l. elpunyai dua struktur. d c n g l n $ r . i : \' r r - ' rkrl, clanvxng kecluuwilel'air di luar akal. Yang dirnaksucl ur*,ij Lir. -q liJ5 L^r, . 'cl'' eliel eclalalt u'ilavah pengalal-nan empirik Vang Dcrdltsltr peng,inciera:indan interpretasi rasional' Sedangkan yang drrnaksud w,illvalr di Iuar akal adalah wilal'ah mereka yang telah niencrtplr p r l i n g a k l - r i rc l l r i w i l a y a h a k a l k e r n u d i a n a d a c a h a v a v a n g p e r b c c i a l r na n t a r l t c i t r l : r r nh l r t i n v l D a l a r n k a i t a n i l m u n l a n u s i a , d i b a h a s F r g a dan seorang i l r n L rc l a n r l e ' r i f a h d a n p e r b e d a a n b s g a i m a n a s e o r a n g ' a l r n t 'ari. f'nternandang suatu persoalan atau suatu hal' nlengen'li Terakhir clalaln tulisan ini adalah penelusuran secara ringkrs keorisinalan pemikiran'Ain al-Qu<,Itrhdalam soal ini' di' f" - ix 4 tJl qil ,*. crB 'o-s . ,5y . ,i1lf oJo. j3 Yf ,rns ,)S ,ff C Al-Jaml' ah, tkt. 5/ 1 996 kil A r,r No. TbeSufi Ifuiry { KntuNdge A Stud! { Atu af-gttab. s Zttdat a!. 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Jfr #l UL. ! gy '&l Jl * k# i,lii ,i-r"l itdJt ob d tfT tAt l*i5 ')Ui. Jf fit d Atw'eb. Irk,sqltfi TbeSuf Tbany ofKnruldge A Sat. olAtn al-eutab. \ Zufut F1-lhis is a study of the sufi theory of knowledgedevelopedby ,Ain al. 9-1r. , al-Hamadani a iudgeby profession, who is of an I ouoatr extraordinary character since he teaches that those who wish to finci the Truth must go beyond the law. At the age of thirry hree, he was executed on the order of the seljuk vizier of Iraq, eiwim al-Drn Darguzinr. ,Ain alQ"dah has been accused of Ismailian tendencies like Hallaj kl. and of p r e t e n d i n g t o t h e p r o p h e t i c s t a t e l i k e S u h r a w a r d i( d . 1 1 9 1 ) . 'Arn In the preface to his zubdat al-Haqd 14,r'ritten at the age of rwenry-four, at-Qur,lih tells his reader that he fincls no spiritual satisfactionin seeking xnon'ledge He constders that he r','asfinally delrvered fronr unbelief, error. and blindness iry the grace of Goci and bv reading the rvorks of al_ G h a z l l r ( c i 1 l I 1 ) f o r r h c p e r i o c lo f t o u r v e a r s . Divine Knowledge 'Ain al-Quql. -rhbelieves thar God knows paniculars. To supporr his bel i e f , h e q L r o t e sa Q u r ' i n i c r . ' e r s c( 2 : 1 1 5 ) w h i c h s a y s :" w h i t h e r s o e \ . e ry o u r u r n , therc is the Face of God. God is All-ernbracing. All-knowing. " This verse, accorcling to him, shows thar wherever nran turns, he sees tirat Gcxl's face is there This is a subtle and clear indication that every exi. stent thrng . ,". particular thtn. sa certain relatron with tlts lace . s withrn the sigtrt of Goc. 1Ain al-Quciah firrther elaborates his argurnenr that the face of God faces er. 'erything. Everything is presenr to . ithin the knoq. ,ledge of ) God. Anr,thing which is not within tiie knowledge of God is non-exisrenr viere it not fbr the face of God, no exisrenr rhing would exist. In ordinary language, 'Ain al-Qucjih compares . oci's knos'ledgc oi'everything with rhc sun. Hacl ir trot been fbr the fhce oi tite sun n'liiclr is the sustainer of rays that are scatiercd or. 'erthe earth, these rays woulcl have never existecl. Since G9d"s i. rcc is everpresent. He will necessariiyknou'every particle in existence. Ilecause of the vastness of God's knowledge, everytlring is nothing cornpared to ciocl. the relation of all things to God's knowledge is like tire relation of nothing to something infinite. To support his argument, 'Ain al-eudah quotes some further verses of the Qur'an, such as verse 7: 7 which says ". and ve shall relate to them with assuredly \J. were not absenr". According to him, this implies that everything is within the knowledge of God and rhat He is present with Thus nothing escapes His knowledge. The eur. tn (ZO:99 and 65: says that God's knowledge encompasses everyrhing. 'Ain al-eudah inter- Auant'ab. No. 5*t9x M. Yt&oil AwIe TtuSrtf Ttur, prets this as meaning that all existent things are derived from God's kno*'ledge. In reality. according to him. God is the multipliciry . l-katbli and rhe with reference to rwo different levei 'Ain al-QuCrh defines the first level totality . l-kull ). Everything other than Him is particular and partial or, to pLlt it more boldly, everything other than God is neither particular nor partial and the second as the "domain & Toshihiko lzutsu refers the former cxcept by' r'irtue of Gocl's f:rce which representsHis totality and multiplicitl'. 'Ain al-Quqllh adrnits tl-rathis explanation, as describecl above, is ven' based on sensation and ratronal r. ct trans-rational faculty of the mrnc 1o clarify his thought, he uses the parable of the sun. He expllins tl-urtu'hilc it is trurethlt the sun is one. nevertheless the rays whici"r reached the utmosr limit of the cic:. u t w h e n h e c o n c l u c l e st h a t t h e s u n i s n t u l t i p l e . e n t a n u t ct r o m r t a r e m r - r l t i p l e B l r n c lt l t l r r i t s r a v s e r c o n e . t h r s i n r p l i c st h a t h e s e e st h e s u n a s t h e a c c u t . t t u l a t t t > n These rn'o dif-fbrentlevels o: : , e p t s o f k n o n ' i e d g e . T i t e s v o r c ta . - . o f t i r e r e v s . u l r a l l - e n c o r l p : r s s i n gs ' l ' r o l e, a n d t l ' r er a y s a s a c c l l l e c t i v er t r a n i f e s Irurthcnttorc, thc usc of tl"rev"ords "God is the Illultiple" bv tution oi Iltc . sr-tn. 'Ain el-Qudlih souncls ven' unortl. toclox and unconventional. besides being r student q'hich is derived fron, :-. IIosever. in anothei pllrt of his Zttbclat al-Hctqa'iq,'Ain al-Qudiih ,nf'usir-rg. rnekes thc excuse that fbr one n'ho knou's God. his tongue becomes dull: lte is i-rnablcto fincl l,ords suttable t() expres. sthe real concept which he kncln's so that other people cltn understancl. ' A i n a l - Q u d r h . G o c l k n o w s p a r t i c u l a r sb e c a u s c f l i s k n o n ' A c c o r c l i n gt o ) n es r a t r o n a ip o w e r . a n a l l - i l l u m r : . : C o t s 3 o v c o n c e p t w h i c h c a n b e er : oncept which cannot be explarne-: Ain al-Qudah goe. s on ro el:: mar-also mean al-ma'rifah r see : : xnori-ledge referrcd to in verse I E -,' the clivineknowledg. , is rhe sar-: I e c l g cc k r c sn o t c l e p e . r c. ) n t h e c x i s t e n c eo f e x i s t e n t t h i n g s B u t t h e e x i s t c n c e -fl-tus o l e v c n ' t h i n g c l e p e n d so n t h e e x i s t e n c e o f G o d s e t e r n l l k n o s ' l e d g e Drsregarding the Qur'anic cc-)!i:. io s611sc,n"n,ho is confined \\ t:l:: : :o sonreonewho has reached trc . to llis the chun. qesn,hicl'r occur in existent things do not necessitalechan51e. knon'ledge knol'ledge, but thet' clo in the case of tlre creature 'Ain al-Quclxh assertsthat the relation of all things to God is one and the r e 3 s o n I n t h e Q u r ' I n , h o r r ' e ' , e rr r : . God is the 'alim fthe Knc r- : c r a r r r p l e6 s : 7 3 : c ) : 9 1 il. 3 1 9 r l n c l . Thcre is no distinction betrveen present. and future in their relatlon r() Gocl. They have the salric relation to Ilint V'hen existent things are . ltrn in the superior . sense\\'. ::r'nutes thc term 'alim to :1r1 : , r:rtlonall\ considered they lvill be seen in levels: solne precede others. Horvever. s'hcn they are ref'errecland related to God. their relation to FIim becomes eclual and tir-neless. God's knosv'ledgeis eternal. It exists befbre time. :erched al-ma'rifah Thc way in which one acouj:. , : -: i. :nos'ledge he has. Knon'ledge r. ai- tlrrt *'hile that which is acc-::: befbre all existent things. ancl befbre the before iust as it exists right non' God's knon'ledge is altove the intellect and encompasses it. It cannot be r r n a g i n e dt h a t t h e i n t e l l e c t w i l l e n c o r n p a s sG o d . I t i s a b s u r d t o t h i n k t h a t t h e ai-Quclfh firmly states thar q'hoeve: , particular encolnpasses the whole. The intellect is merely a panicle of extst- prophets, except if one wishes to u-iC ence which results fiom Him. me that this is an allusion ro a poo 'ulamd are the heirs of prophel. 'Ain al-Qudrh argues that the c:: It is acquired from no other source rh Human Knowledge ln reading . rls Zubdat al-flaqa'iq, it becomes very obvious that Ain alis structured Qudah has a pattern of thinking or a system of thought s'hich ''26 Atw'&. teachers is not, insofar as his knosr . 5 reads: "And thy Lord is the Most G Alfil'ab, /o. Ibe Sutl TbanyofKnaltdge: A SuadyofAtn at-eubh. 's ZuMat alqa 'Ain reference to rvro different levels of cognition at one and the same time. al-Qucah defines the first level as the "domain of reason" (Taur al-,aqD and the second a. s the "domain beyond reason" (Taur wara ' at-,aq. Toshihiko lzutsu refers the former as the domain of empirical experience based on sensation and ratronal interpretation, and the latter as the domain of trans-rational faculty of the mind. This is the domain of those who have reached the utmost limit of the dr:rnain of reason where at the extremity of one s rationai power. an all-illurninating lighr suddenly emerges in his heart e These nvo dif'fbrenr ler. 'els of cognrtion will result in frvo difTerent conce pts of knowiedge. Tire s'orcj al-'ilm, according ro 'Ain al-eudrh, represents anlr concept which can be expressed univocally. like rhe knoq,ledge of rr student q'hich i. s derived fiorlr his teacher virereas, al-ma,rifab is any, c'oncepr wl'ricl-rcannot be cxplained in anv fashion except equivocally Flowe'er. Ain al-Qudah goes on to explarn that in the eur'in. the terrn al,'ilnt r n a v a l s o m e a n a l - m a ' r i r f a b ( s e e f o r e x a m p l e s 2 9 :4 9 : 3 : l g r a n d j g : 6 6 ) T h e knon'ledge referred to in verse 18: . ,which the sufls call al-'ilm al-latlurttyaLt tl're divine knowledg. , is the same as al-ma. Drsregardrng the Qur'inic context, 'Ain al-eur"llh atrributes the terrn ,alim :o sorncone who is conflnecl q'rthin the domain of reason. anci the te:rn ,ai. to someone wl-ro has reached the higher level, that is. the dornain beycxrcl rc'a. In the Qur'In, horvever, we see that 'alim i. san attribute of God. an/' God is the 'alim . he Knoq,e. of the unseen and the vi. ee ior c r a r r p l e s 6 : 7 3 : 9 : 9 1 : 1 3 : 9 : a n d 2 1 : 8 . T h e r c f o r e ,t l - r c e u r . i n u s e sr h e r e r m alitn in the sr. n'i-rilc ir would seem that ,Ain al-eucllh at:ributes thc term 'alitn ro an orclinan. iurrst or theologian who has not reached al-ma'rirfab. Tl-reway in which one acquire. shis knowledge *'ill deterrnine what kincl lf knowledge he has. Knon'ledge q'hich is derived from books and teachers al-'ilm while thar whicl-r is acquired directly fiom Goct is al-ma,rifab. Ain al-Qudeh firmly srares rhar whoever acquires his knowledge from books and teachers is not, insofar as his knowledge is concemed, among the heirs of prophets, except if one wishes to use the term "heritage" loosely. r It seems to me that this is an allusion to a popular prophetic saying that the scholars t'ulam^. are the heirs of prophets. 'Ain al-Qucrh argues that the prophets'knowledge is divine knowledge. It is acquired from no orher source than from God Himself. The rn 96: 35 reads: "And thy L,ord is the Most Generous, who taught by the pen, taught At#t'ab. Itl fb"5l4t YtLstlln Astollc 'Ain al-Qu. h further statesthat God's knowledge Man that he knew not. mystical path. does not exclusively belong to the prophets. vhoever, in his will certainly teach reachesthe stage of real piety @l aqwd, godfearin. ,God "FearGod. God him what he does not know. God saysin the Qur'xn Q:. reachesyou "''' 'Ain al-QuqleIcioesnot sinlply reiectreason' It rs tmponant to note that He does not deny that reasonwas createdto enable us to its domain He ambiguousmartersbut he believesthat it will not go ber ond thrt reasonis abscritresto reasonwhateveris in its domain. He also believes is ccnatn an accuratetool $,ith ri'hichto measuretruth and that lts lucigntcnt rVerg. c\ cl-\'lhlng' csPeand correct q,ithctut any doubt. However. it clnnot -'-. ' 'i1"t( ()l c i a l l l , t h e l - n a r t e r so f t h e H e r e a f i e r ,t h e r e a l i t v o f t i r e t r c ' . i , c ' - " re:i>!n 'rnclthc t h e e t e r n a l a t t r i b u t e s . I n f a c t , h e d e s c r i b e st h e d c r : r : 1 r . ' : :l''t ':'::sr )elng dlreCtl\' "clolttlin bevond rcilson' aSf$ () cuntiSuou: Icet 'fhe enci of the fornlC: t'ot:iein rs irnked t() the consecutive to the former. tts inrportantrole b e g r n n r n go f t h e l a t t e r d o m a r n I n \ \ o r l d l r i r l e r e . l s o n h a s deceive someone ro fulfill [. n,ever. in spiritual life. ratronai knr,sriedge can his realizwithout rvho is engaged in the mystical path lt can iead him ',alim is perf'ectin hrs kno$ iedge. he ri'ill certainly know that he ing it If an is even incapable of is incapable of perceiving tlte eternai realrtr'. Reason an ari,ft" realizing its real inabilitv to achievc' the uncierstandingof 'Ain al-Quclih ciescribesa person \\ ho is not endowed with a light in his "domain beyond reaheart ancl who thus rs unable to perceive things in the visible things except through son, as a blind man who cannot comprehencl the reality of color' As fbr somethrng bey'ond sensation,for instance. A color cannot be it is inrpossible for rhe blind man to perceive such a thing lt can only comprehended through a cleducti,'emethocl or through $'hich sees things bebe comprehended through a seeing eye. A seeing eye Sceing Through :l: :-::ri-' -'": . a,'. e E1'e of Vrsuc. 'il -_-!i-. i\:_ : . al::i:-:' :i:. :lc ::-:,:: <,r'a- lntP:ia::. :_. -L. \r. Ii -'' ::. 'Ainal-Qucliihtheeye. al-ma,riJab,Themore the subtle divine matperfect and prepared the eye of al-ma'rifab, the more him' the more familiar ters overflow on him. and the more they overflow on intimate he is to the grace o[ he becomes with the spiritual world, the more :=:. : . :cri:n' accordrng: . : 3. '::. : :t::s:ebie There :S :. ::::: God,andthemorehelovesthebeauryoftheeternalpresence. Thus,his and in the same manner intimacy with this world would decrease gradually However, he is aware that his intimacy with the divine world would increase. \:. anf i . dn alQur:tr:. :t. ,:'. :t'tivri. -ip3SSes ,space . n: 3. _:,' onewhoisnotendowedwiththeeyeofal-ma,rifab,w. otbelieveinthe will not allow him to''5 existence of the eye of al-ma'rifab. since his reason Al#d'ab, -:. :, :i. e same nt3nne: l. --:i '---. 3rls:ence oi God. lhe Er er,a-r:::ri . ,ieceCes the future rn thc sa::. e ::. ir:', ulamd ). hoq'ever. arC ui. :,e Fab. tbe Suf Tbany { Krnldge A Sttr4, of Ah ateutab. s ZuHat ala\a Again, to clarib/ his thought, 'Ain al-eudeh uses rhe sun for comparison. He compares the 'drif who has reached the . ,domain beyond reason" with the sun, and the 'iilim who is stilr in the . domain of reason, wirh a srar. Thus, when the dawn of the "domain beyond reason" has appeared, the light -if the stars. is the "clomain of reason", gradually disappear. In the rnysti_ --aipath, when a person reaches a stage where the dependence on the reason 'iccreases. then he may have reachecl the p'int of the dawn of the :rrh Perhaps the sun will rrse and he will see the beauty of the originai or :ilc beautv of eternity which is the water of lif'e. Therefbre, it is not surpnsing ::-. -n. \in al-Quql:iI claims thattlte 'ari. f sees with the light of Gocl. Again he -JOrcs a Qur'inic r''erse. : . : "ls he whose breasr God has expanclecl >:rrl. so he walks in a light fiorn his Lord. ?"rr. Atn al-Qudih calls those q'iro havc expenenced the vision of the tteaurty, : crernrrv. the people of taste . hl al-elbauq ) 'lhe people of taste arc tho. i:r-r ha'e purified rirerr souls of ice and who are overflowing . ,ith God,s l::icc, . 'l'rich is irnpossibie to express it in s'orcl. Again, according to . Ain al2rci:-lr rhe tongue of one who kn. rvs Gocl becomes dull: he will nor flncl --::rirle $'ord. sto exprcss the real concept which he has experiencecl so that :rer people can understand. rseeing Through the Eye of Mystical Knowledge l'hc whole short chapter . t2 cf Zubdat ai-Haqa,iq givcs an exanrple of \\ rhe ordinary sense of sight cliffers fiom the eye of rnvstrcal -i,'-,nanJabl in seeing existenr things. vhen one sees a picture rn the mirror. a lact that the picture rn the mirror rs in reality non-existent. There rs n:: in the same manner that tl-reinternal picture in the mirror is non_exis_ ::nt In realiry, according to 'Ain al-eudaft, every existent thing is non_exis_ :ir rperishabl. There is no erernal existence for anything excepr fbr 3xrstence of God, the Everlasting and self-subsisting Being. 'dri. ,f('Ain al-Quda. believes that God is spaceless and timeless. God 3ncompasses time, space, and all other existent things. God is not a body. ecedes the future in the same manner that He precedes the past. The scholxs ( ulami'), however, are unable to perceive this. They, according to ,Ain W,ab, r,to. YrLsrcil AYofe al-Qu{Ah, believe that bodies came into existence from the moment of the existence of God. To them. God is a body like any tangible obiect. He is not beyond tinre, iust as He is not free of space. According to Ain al-Qudah, their vies' is totally wrong. 'arif believes In the case of the concept of pre-eternity . l-azaliya. , an thar there exists neither past nor tuture because it encompassesthe firture in the sanre rnanner that it encompassesthe past. The time of Adam, according Ain al-Qudih, is nor closer to pre-eternity than that of 'Ain al-Qudlh The 'Ain alconcepts of' pre-eternity ancl of hulnan tirlre are diffbrcnt. Therefbre. ih f{()eson ro explltin that the relation of any til-neto pre-cternity is the : i t r t r e I t o n e l t l r st ( ) r n a k e a ( ( , l n p J r i s o n . t l t c r ( ' l l t i o n o l p r e - c t e r n i t Vt O l t t l t n l r n tutre is likc the relation of knou. 'leclgeto the location ol'all obiects ot knc'r. ''leclge. ln this rcgarcl. knowledge czrnnot be described as being close to an otriect 9r far front tt, rat. r its relation to all oblects is the sanle The knon''Ain al-Qucirh sa\'sthat ledge exists everywhere, yet all places are empty of it. pre-eternity is with all timc ancl in every tinle It encotnpa. ssesall tilc. e x i s t e n c ep r e c e d e s a l l t i m e , a n d n o t i r n e e x t e n d s o v e r i t ' j u s t a s r p l r r c ed o e s not extend over knos'ledge " d o r r r a i no f ' r e a s o n " . t h e r e r s s t i l l S p c l r k r n g f r o l . t l ' . h ep c . - , i notf ' r ' i e u ' < . f t h e . l-abadt. l'altt lr'Itus' anotlrer ltrr>blcln, narnel. thc concept oi post-eternt' there lre t$,o kincls of cterni. ': pre-eternitY tal-azaliy'a. and post-eternitv tal-abacllya. Pre-eternity is envisioned as tending tow'arclsthe p:lst: lt ls beginningless pasr on the contrary, p p l er r ' r l l t h i n k that thcy ilre the sarne Arn al-Qucllh believes that the relatron ar evcry singic luronrentls unlquel rt rs peculiar to thet Very nrornent This kinci of reiation applies to all things without exception. It implies that all things are constant. ,ciranging bcc'auscthe rclation of every existent thing to the source of s existcnce is also constantlv changing. At every ntorrent, the relation is ciiflerent frorl that at other rnolent. It means that everything clerives its existence fiom the ultintate source of' existence bv a particular relation be'r\\'een tire rwo. At every' . ontent, this relation is reneq'eci anci re-est:ritlisitecl in order fbr the thing to continuc to exist for more than one rnontent. So. 'l'he even' exlstent thing g. es()n rci'' ing a new exlstence at eve. ' nroment. existence of all existent things r. r'hichone sees in a gi,'enmoment is dif'fbrent fiom the existence which he s'ill see later or which he hes seen before Fur'Ain al-Quql. sthat every existent thing whose existence is permanent is aln'ays being recreated bv the Everlasting and self-subsisting One. and at every morrent, another existence sirnilar to that befbrc it is being T'ire problern of whether or not there is a hierarchy in existent things is 'Ain 'dlim al-Qudah. An who sees through the eye of reaalso discussed by son believes that there is a hierarchy in existent things: some of them come to 'I'hi. exist early, like the single. others come to exist late, like the composite view is true when considered fiom the domain of reason. but it is false when 'dlim believes that in seen through the eye of mystical knowledge. Nso, an terms of hierarchy, some of those things are nearer to God than the others, that the source of existence is one, and that the edstent things which ema'drif believes that nate from Him . he sourc. are many. On the contmry, an Al-Jamtbb. No. 5/19'96 Yusron Asrofie the nearness of God to all things is the same without any difference. Even, the relation of bodies and spirits to flim are equal because the existence of God is simultaneous r','ith the existence of every existent thing. there is no difference in God's sirnultaneity rvith the existent things. God is with everything, and yet in spite of that. He is before everything in an intlnite prioriry and nothing exists e'ither with Gocl or after llirn. nothing exists whose exist'ari/' ence is silnult:inec>usn'ith thc existence r-,fGocl. also believes that the sourc'e of existent things is rnanvro ancl that all existent things cornpared 'fhis accorcling to 'Ain alto tlis greatness ltre likc a singlc rlotc Qudiir <. loesnot nee. to be reconcilecl n'rtlt the problem of the er. rlanV lrorr'rtl'tc one , be'causein realitv rt r. sthe one rvhich eman3tes frcrrnthe Historical Perspective 'Ain ln re:rcling al-Quda. ,I-t's Zubrlctt a!-Haqd'iq, one is struck by his mocle of thinking. Ilorvever. if we iook aI the older. sr-rfitreatises. we find thatmuch 'Ain al-Qudih rlrites has becn discussed in a sinrilar wav, ref'lecting of what hos' a \'()ung pcrson r-rsualil'absorbs the tradition into which he is born. ('olrrse. 'Arn al-Quclih also cler''eicrps his or'"'n characteristlc approach to the u'hrcl-rcontribuics and enriclres the cxlstlng traclition ln Kitab ai-l. li ai T'a. sau'u'ujby al-Sarrf,i. , fbr example, we fincl that the parable of the sun is enrployecl there. z('Speaking of the concept of eternity, al-Sarrij does not distinguish berq,een pre-eternity and post-eternitl', because in his view there is no diff'erence berween the fwo. Also on the stion of distance benveen created being and God, there is no distinction befween the concept of closeness and remotcness. Al-sarrxj also quotes a Sufi saying which statesthat God is known only through Him. selfand that the intellect . cannot knorv IJim } 'Ain Of course, \\,e cannot necessarily say that al-Qucl. xhis uncler the influence of al-Sarrij, but at least lr'e can assume that this tradition of sufi 'Ain thourght had been common in al-Quqlxh's era. Al-Kalxbadhi . also writes that the sufis believe that the intellect is weak. it can only perceive it never reaches the creatnr. He relates that according to one of the great sufis, the only way to know God is through God Himself. God teaches 'd. rif who thereby knows Him. the knowledge of God . l-ma'riJ'aD to an 'Ain al-Qudeh admits Now let us look at al-Ghazali "the proof of Islam". 'Ain al-Qu. h is that he read al-Ghazxli's works. It seems very obvious that Al*m. b 5Y19% TbeSutl TbanyofxrwtHge: A Shtdjof Atn al-Qutab. S ZuM4t alea4alq under the influence of him. Al-Ghazali also speaks of the "domain of reason" although using differenr rerminology. He uses rhe term majdl al-,aql . he domain of reaso. for all existent things. s on the relation of creation and God's face, al-Ghazallmaintainsthat drif sascendfrom metaphor ro realiry. lVhen they complete their ascentto al-ma'rifab, rhey see, through their own eyes, that there is nothing in existencebut God the most high. He quotes a Qur'lnic verse. : . which reads:"All things perish,excepr His face. "AlGhazxllexplains that they perish not in rhe senseof ar some paniculartime, but ratherthey perish eternally,meaningthat at the stageof al-ma'nfab, all tl-rings exceptGod are non-exlsrent. However,when all thingsare seenby the fzrce. frorn which they f1ow,i. God . n al-Ghazih. 'sterminology alAu,unl al-flaqq, the True I-irs. ,tlrey are exisrenr. Therefbre,he concludes that all things ha'"'erq'o faces. :they are non-existentin themselves and they are existent if consideredby God's fhce. Thus, there is no truly existentthing except God and FIisf'ace. On the concept of al-ma'ryah. irh-nes. 'Ain al-Quqlihalso seemsro follow al-Ghazallwho sraresthar there is nothing which exists with God or after Him. All things are non-existenrexcept by virtue of God's face. Ain al-Qudehdiffbrs from ai-Ghaz1llin cerrainmarrers. Of course,it is to compare al-Ghazili'. sworks with 'Ain al-Qudeh'sZubclat alIlaqA'iq But fbr the sake of analysis,it is necessaryto menrion in what areas of ttrought Ain alQudah is different fron al4tazAli. In his lhln 'tll1m al-Dht. alGhazdli talks at length about knowledge, but does not clearly distinguish between al-'ilm and al-ma'ri,fab. However,'Ain al-Qu. h discussesthe theory of knowledge briefly and makes a sharp distinction berween the rwo. On the concept of perpetual creation, al-Ghaz?'libelieves thar the intellect . can perceive that a boy is constantlychanging as he grows,i while 'Ain al-Qudah believesthat it is nor reason but rhe eye of al-ma'rifab n'hich is ableto perceivethat all things,includinga boy, areconstanrlychanglng. rVhat is characteristicabout 'Ain al-Qu. h is that he has panem of thinking or mode of thought which is structured with reference to two different levels of cognition at one and the same time: the domain of reason and the domain beyond reason. This means that everything is discussed in terms of these two levels of discourse which have different inner strucrures. One of the striking opinions of 'Ain alQu. h is his solution to the problem of "the many ernanate from the One. " According to the emanatist doc- Altarrt'ab, trb. 5Y19. 6 M. Ytlffon Asrotie trine, only one can be emanated from the One. 'Ain al-eudrh, in conrrasr, believes that in reality ir is God who is the many and rhe whole. all things except God are the one and the paf. " Conclusion fhroughout ltis Zubdat al-flaqd'ic1,'Ain al-Qur,lrh tries to rationalize his thor-rght,be it rvhen he discussesa matter in the domain of reason or in the domarn beyoncl rea. son He distrnguishes sharpll' ben'een al-ma'rifab ancl al-'iirn. rarntainingtl'ratthe f<-rneris superior ro the latrer Agarn ancl agarn he forceftrily ciepreciatesthe knorvledge of ar, altm Hrs statertrenrih:rt Goc! ^'lb1d . 2'The use 9i 116 corc. -<'. 'general thought because i: :::-: ': toul'different from . me ': pre-et:ll'"1' : Qudah means rs that - 'r:On lhe ProbiertL : : i1:- : }On the conccPic: :'':':' - -' T:: also Toshlhiko -"r''l 'i:' Bu. i n r v e r s r n 'l. n s t r t u t e t ' T h t s V t e s r1' sc o n : l : l : - ' r ' \(': i - ' r r r r r l t r P ltct h e m r n r clrerv on the rvork of hi. s preclecess()rs, cliiefh' al-Ghazili End Notes: -/ht' rSeellennann l. '1'wo i. *pes irl1'stical Thought rn \lusiirr-,lmn h m W o r l d v ( r 8 . n o 2 t A p r i i , i 9 7 8 ) . 7 ( ) 2 - i 9 3 . :'Ain al-Qudrh Il. Zrtbtlat al flaqa ir1,ecl Afif l-savrirn rTehr. 'I'ihrf,n, l96l ). sec aiso the rranslarronof thrs book bv omrr Jrh. A Crc. \nnourccl Translationof Ztxlat al-lIaqa'iq of 'Ain al-Quclah:rl-lJ3na(Lni. 11-{ Thesr:. Insrurrof Isl:rmicStuclies. Gill [-]nnersrry'. IVlonrreal. ''Ain el-Qud:-iil. Ali transiation()f the Qur'unlc versesin thrs plper:r tr )ir. \nf,L. J Arberry. Tbe Korart ltietprctcd, (Oxforci: Oxforcl Iiniversifl' Press. 'Ibid. ,20-21 See also Lenrlolr. - ' A i n a i - Q u c l i h ,2 i . 'tbid. -tbid. '' lbtd . \' tt B r i l l . 1 9 1 t 3. :'Ibtd . 3--11 )'lbid . '"ebA B:rkr \1-: " ((. i!i Jl-&l:': . '-:i- bv R. i Arlrern f""'' 6-4() 'AbL) Hr:l ltr-:::r":: Qa*'nlivln 'lDt6 '-lna. JIS J,-J A s n m : i r r :l -1 -\J "See :g: * AlJont. b, ^lo. 5yI9% "-' -"--'- See tle :. 'Ibrt. " ' A i n a l - Q u d a l t , 2 3 . 2 6 - 2 i . S e e a l s o ' l - o s n i h i k ol z u l s u . " C r e a t i o na n d r h c Order of Things: A Stuclyin the M1'sric:rl Philosophyof Ain al-Qur-lr h' Tbephtir,s,tphrcal Fontm, v. 4, no. 1 (Fall, 1. , 125-127. r"'Ain al-Qudeh,67 ,69. '2AJ. Vensinck etal. CoucorclarrctlrtdicesdelaTraditiotrIusttltnanci lLcrclen: EJ Brill, 7. ,321 'r'Ain al-Quqlah,68. ro'Ainal-Quqlah, 35-36, 48,73 74, and 98 t1IUrl. , @, f%,92, and nIb. ,37,65, and77. 'E'Ain al-Qudah always mentions an 'arif which simply means 'Ain al-Qu(,lah 'arif himself when hc refers how an sees or perceives any'thing which is different from the ordinary sense. telud,4748. r' Ablr N:r:r . rl-S'r:': is tlie rl. rny ancl the rvhoic i. svery c. urageousancl unonitociox AII in all. Ain a l - Q u c L - i hw a s a n i n n o ' " ' a t i v et h i n k e r . w h i l e a t t h e s a n r e t r n t e h e o i r v r o u s l v ,Y*' Al-!arnt'&. No. 5/1996 r':-- TbeSufi Tbary { Kn