The Pilgrimage of The Soul of The Nobles and The Righteous Ones - Introduction

   بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Introduction - draft

These articles aim to initiate a discussion on what Islam is about and what animates and drives Muslims, should we call it their Soul and Mind, from the prospective of the Twelver Shia faith, compiled by yours truly, reflecting my current state of understanding, and not necessarily the Truth in its accuracy and completeness.

Therefore, the dear readers are invited to take what follows with due attention and critical thinking. And I greatly appreciate your contribution to this discussion.

And to those who are not familiar with the Shia Islam, this post presents some clues and references from its written Codex (Quran & Hadiths), the meanings of which should resonate and take body in what Shia Muslims are actually living. 

So if the words set the algorithm, should the world be its emulation displaying the meaning in a dynamic and multidimensional state of being.

In other words if our being and the world we are diving in are a Journey, then the Codex is its map. Since the Journey may be either salutary or perilous, the Shia Codex suggests that the traveler/explorer should equip himself with a trinitarian "perception", which, ontologically, is more of an interpreted nature than a sensoring one, while embodying both in its processing:

1. the "perception" of "eyes" and "ears", or broadly all the sensory perceptions, with which mind explores and interprets the living world, interpreting external data, signals, waves, emotions etc. that mind receives;
2. the "perception" of logical reasoning, or so called thinking, with which mind explores both the written Codex and the above (1). This logical reasoning can proceed to creative thinking, even without reading external data, and produce imaginations;
3. the "perception" of the living and grounded frame of Reference, who sets the Purpose, upon which He discriminates the true and false, the right and wrong, the perishable and the perpetual, and who is the Imam of the time, امام زمان and within whom the mind explores himself and the above (1 & 2). According to Shia dogma, Allah appoints one Imam, and only one, for every time and season.

Although at its beginning, this third perception is of interpreted nature, the more mind grasps some awareness of Imam, the more it vibrates with him, and the more this perception ascends to become ontologically affectional and vibratory.

In an analogy with the survival instinct, it seemingly bypasses mind and becomes some sort of instinct sight, either attractive or repulsive, vis à vis Imam. The latter sight is from the perspective of the traveler/explorer. Imam has his own affectional ties with him/her too, which according to Shia dogma, are pure and suffer no corruption, noise or shadow, should the explorer be sensitive about it.

Therefore, the "perception" is trinitarian, because the mindful reasoning of the explorer should merge the three dimensions into one single awareness and understanding. Quran calls it Argument: برهان pronounced "Borhan", which brings the explorer to set a direction, make a decision, base an action and take on his journey and its struggles.

The process of this mindful reasoning which makes sense of the trinitarian perception, is called عقل in Quran, pronounced "Aghle", which could be understood like a multilayer wisdom and soundness, but it is different from thinking, called فکر (Fekr). Both verbs are used in Quran and I let the dear readers, explore their meanings.

Thinking, فکر, proceeds actually to the second "perception". Before the mind becomes sensitive to the third perception, thinking and sensory perceptions drive the mind. As per mind's free will, a purposeless thinking, can proceed, but regarding the outcome, it is either rational or irrational, futile or foreseeing, smart or stupid, imaginative or measured. While, Aghle, عقل, cannot be purposeless, it cannot be irrational, futile and stupid. When thinking equips it self with a perception of a proper purpose, it ascends to become عقل Aghle, some sorte of smartness and wisdom, which is relevant until its purpose stands and it serves it.

But when mind doesn't have a proper perception of the Purpose, this is the thinking, فکر, which must figure it out and factcheck it. In other words, thinking may sight in the darkness through a process of trial and error. That's why thinking is very important.

Imam Hassan, peace be upon him said: "Thinking is the survival of the heart (or instinct) which perceives."

امام حسن (علیه السلام) : التفكُّرُ حَياةُ قَلبِ البَصيرِ.

Therefore thinking فکر should be tireless and ongoing like breathing or heart-beating, until a proper perception of the Purpose takes form, and Aghle عقل gets equipped with its compass and becomes relevant.

Imam Hassan, peace be upon him: "I advise you piety and fear of Allah, and sustained thinking, because thinking is the father of all good, and its mother."

امام حسن (علیه السلام) : اُوصيكُم بتَقوَى اللّه وإدامَةِ التَّفَكُّرِ ؛ فإنَّ التَّفَكُّرَ أبو كُلِّ خَيرٍ واُمُّهُ .

Piety and fear of Allah, would help to navigate in the process of trial and error of thinking, without being lost. They help thinking to be relevant and foreseeing, so it sets a primary reference for Aghle.

In other words, in order to be relevant and accurate, Aghle, عقل must be synchronized with Imam, knowingly or not, and in doing so it turns on its "trinitarian Compass", called Hagh حق in Quran and Hadiths. Piety and fear of Allah provide some primary sense of Hagh, حق.

It is quite difficult to translate حق Hagh in English, and by the way, even in Arabic its meaning grows with the level maturity of mind.

In an attempt to provide a description of it, I would say حق Hagh is a Truth, which is Relevant according to Allah’s Plan, a Truth, which deserves to be unfolded and happens, a Truth which is Right, Straight, Just, Moral, Timely, Proportionate, Fruitful etc.

Hagh is also one of Allah’s Names.

The Third Imam, Hossein ibn Ali, peace be upon him said: "Aghle cannot be complete and perfect without obeying Hagh." 

امام حسین (علیه السلام): «لا يَكْمُلُ الْعَقْلُ إِلا بِاتّبَاعِ الْحَقّ».

But in order to obey Hagh, one should sense it first, and then test it, factcheck it.

So should there be any other requirement?

Imam Hossein, peace be upon him: "There are five attributes that if one misses, he/she wouldn’t earn that much benefits (from his journey): Aghle, religion (Codex & faithful practice), courtesy, decency and good temper."

امام حسین (علیه السلام): «خَمْسٌ مَنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ فِيهِ لَمْ يَكُنْ فِيهِ كَثِيرُ مُسْتَمْتِعٍ: اَلْعَقْلُ، وَ الدّينُ وَ الاَدَبُ، وَ الْحَيَاءُ وَ حُسْنُ الْخُلْقِ».

And these are the requirements for a proper pilgrimage, may the pilgrim sense Hagh.

For fact, every time I missed every single one of them, my aghle failed, so did my mind.

To the question: what is عقل Aghle? this quote from Imam Ali, peace be upon him, provides some clue about the essence of Aghle, which is the knowledge of Allah and closeness to Him: "O Allah, you created the hearts out of your affectious sentiments, and you created Aghles out of  your "Knowledge"."

  امام علي(علیه السلام): اللهم خلقت القلوب علي ارادتك، و فطرت العقول علي معرفتك

And in the experience of our earthly life, Imam Hassan, peace be upon him, depicted how Aghle proceeds in these words: "drinking sip after sip from the cup of bitterness and sorrow, until having the right opportunity." 

امام حسن (علیه السلام) : لَمّا سُئلَ عَنِ العَقلِ : التَّجَرُّعُ لِلغُصَّةِ حَتّى تَنالَ الفُرصَةَ

So true! And there are things, like Aghle عقل, that we can only sense and grasp in the process of experiencing how they challenge us and interact with us.

★ ★ ★

I continue this Introduction with some preliminary disclaimer and comments:

• I tried to support this compilation with a collection of quotes from Quran and unanimously accepted Hadiths, avoiding my own interpretations as much as possible.
  
  
• It is almost impossible to translate quranic content into other languages. Even native speakers need to supplement their reading with interpretations. That's why people interested in Islam should take on learning Arabic, both language and culture.

• Thus, my translations suffer from the fact that neither Arabic nor English are my native languages. But that doesn’t mean that the translations of natives are more accurate or better. The research, the thinking, the experience, the debates and God’s help matter too.

• My understanding required a recursive process of reading, listening, thinking, debating, experiencing and vice versa. Thus I assume that an oneway reading of what follows would take the reader no way.

• When I chose the title of this post, I googled it and noticed that another compilation with a close title: "The Pilgrimage of the Soul" or "The Pylgremage of the Sowle" exists. It was a late medieval work in English, combining prose and lyric verses, translated from Guillaume de Deguileville's Old French, "Le Pèlerinage de l'Âme". (1295 - before 1358). This was a fun find.

• Some anti-Shia propaganda, claim that the Twelwer Shia is an Iranian sect. This is a false claim.

• What is called Shia faith, was born by the initiative of the prophet Mohammadﷺ  himself, upon the express request of Allah, at the day of Al Ghadir event (غدیر خم), the 18th of Dhu al-Hijja month of the year 10 of the Hijri calendar, when the prophet appointed Ali ibn Abitaleb as his inheritor of Velayat (ولایت ولی الله), and the Source of Islam’s Science & Sacred Tradition.

• Shia Muslims claim that this appointment and inheritance cover also the political leadership of the prophet Mohammadﷺ . The Sunni sources of Hadith acknowledge that the Al Ghadir event happened. However they criticise Shia Muslims for having made an exaggerated interpretation of the event to support their claim. This is a long and very important debate, but which falls out of the scope of this discussion.

• After prophet Mohammadﷺ  passed, a council of Arab elders elected Abu-Baker as the first Caliph, and Ali accepted it, allegedly without endorsing it. Ali was the fourth Caliph, elected through this same process of collegial elections by elders and "showra" (شوری). Ali continued his teachings to his followers in between, as Imam, the First of a chain of Twelve Ranks (درجات), a cycle of Twelve Seasons (فصول) and a calendar of Twelve Times (زمان) of Growth.

• The political schism occurred during Ali’s Caliphate when several opponents rebelled against him. Muawiyeh ibn Abou Sofian, the ruler of Shaam (Levant region), based in Damascus, separated his territory from the Islamic Caliphate, and declared the establishment of the new hereditary caliphate of the Umayyads’ dynasty, which was an actual absolute monarchy.

• Ali firmly resisted this major political corruption and deviance from Islam's tradition, until he was assassinated.

• After him the council of Arab elders elected his son al-Hassan, peace be upon him, the second Imam of Shia Islam, as the fifth and last elected Caliph of Islam through the process of showra. That wasn't the Arab elders who decided that al-Hassan should be the last elected Caliph, but Moawiyeh.

• Indeed, Muawyieh rebelled again, but in order to stop the killing of Muslims, Imam Hassan, peace be upon Him, conceded to a truce making "ceasefire" with Muawiyah’s caliphate, at the condition that there must be an election after him and the caliphate must not become a family dynasty. Muawiyah managed to assassinate Imam Hassan, peace be upon Him, and broke the deal.

• Since then all Muslim caliphates, from Umayyads to Ottomans, have been family dynasties in contraction with Islam’s election through showra, thus they were not Islamic, from the Shia stand point.

• For this very reason, throughout the history of Islam, Shia Muslims were demonized and persecuted by the ruling authorities, while the Sunni Islam was the official doctrine of the caliphates.

• All the 11 Imams of Shia Islam, have been martyred by direct assassination.

• Even today, Iran suffers from this mistrust and hostility of its Sunni neighbors.

• For Shia Muslims, their faith is the actual Islam, as it was revealed to prophet Mohammadﷺ and as Him and his Noble Descendants lived it.

Source: The link of the source of this graphic illustration of al-Ghadir event

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