QUESTION 3

WHAT is the union of the contingent and the necessary?
What are "near" and "far," "more" and "Less"?

Answer

THE world of how and why has three dimension
Intellect controls its quantitative aspect.
This is the world of Tusi and Euclid.1
The fit object of earth-measuring intellect.2
Its time and space are relative, 5
And so are its earth and sky.
Draw your bow and find the target,
Learn from me the secret of ascension.
Do not seek the Absolute in this mundane
For the Absolute is nothing but the Light of the Heavens.3 10
Reality is beyond time and space,
Don't say any more that the universe is without a limit.
Its limit is internal, not external;
There are no distinctions of low and high, more or less, in its internal aspect.
Its internal aspect is devoid of high and low, 15
But its external aspect is liable to extension,4
Infinity is not amenable to our intellect,
"One" in its hand becomes a thousand.
As it is lame, it likes rest;
It does not see the kernel; it therefore looks towards the shell. 20
As we divided Reality into several spheres,
We made a distinction of change and rest.
In non-spatial sphere intellect introduced spatial categories,
Like a belt5 it girdled time round its waist.
We did not look for time within the depth of our hearts, 25
And so we created months and years, nights and, days.6
Your months and years are of no value:
'Just ponder over the Qur'anic verse, "How long did you remain? "7
Reach within yourself and retire from this noisy world, 30
Throw yourself into the inner recesses of your heart.
To talk of body and soul as two separate entities is wrong;
To see them as two is sinful.
The whole secret of the universe lies in the soul,
Body is one- of its modes of expression.
The bride of Reality adorned itself by the henna of form, 35
It assumed different shapes for its manifestation.
Reality weaves veils for its face,
For it finds delight in display.
Since the West viewed body and soul as separate,
It also regarded State and Religion as two. 40
The churchman only tells his beads,
For he has no work of the State to perform.,
See deceit and artifice in state craft:
It is a body without a soul, or a soul without a body.
Make intellect a companion of your heart; 45
Behold, for instance, the Turkish nation.
By imitation of the West, the Turks lost their individuality;
They did not see any link between State and Religion.8
We looked at the One as compound of so many parts
That we created numerals to count it. 50
Do you think that this ancient world is a handful of earth?
It is a fleeting moment of God's activity.9
The scientists tend to adorn a dead body,
They neither possess the Hand of Moses10 nor the Breath of Jesus.11
I have seen nothing of value in this type of science, 55
I have been craving for a wisdom of another sort.
I believe that the world is undergoing a revolution,
Its inside is alive and in convulsions.
Pass beyond your numerals,
Look for a while within your self and leave. 60
In a universe where a part is greater than the whole,12
The calculations of Razi and Tusi are irrelevant.13
For a while familiarise yourself with Aristotle,
For another while sit in the company of Bacon.14
But then you must pass beyond their stand, 65
Don't get lost in this stage, journey on.
With the aid of that intellect that deals with quantities
Probe the depths of mines and oceans,
Master the world of how and why,
Catch the moon and pleiads from the sky. 70
But then learn wisdom of another sort,
Free yourself from the snare of night and day.
Your real place is beyond this mundane world,
Aspire for a right that is without a left.

[Explanatory Note] [See Notes]