Nature of God Essay

Maqamat-e Toyur (The Conference of the Birds) is a book of poems by Attar and is widely appreciated for it narrates the hurdles and levels that one may go through to understand the true nature of God. The tale begins with a group of birds who long and wish to meet the great Simurgh, who is a mythical creature residing far away. The birds then find hoopoe, a leader, and start their journey with his guidance. Their journey inhibits the crossing of seven valleys in order to reach the valley of Simurgh; Aban (Flash), Ishq (Love), Marifat (Gnosis), Istighnah (Detachment), Tawheed (Unity of God), Hayrat (Bewilderment) and, finally, Fuqur and Fana (Selflessness and Oblivion in God). Finally, a group of 30 birds reach the valley of Simurgh, only to see each others reflection in a lake. It is then they realize that the wisdom they seek is not in the mythical creature, but has been in them all along, â€Å"Si-Murgh† meaning 30 birds in Persian. The concept of God existing within is the basic theory of Sufism and Islam; it has also been mentioned in the Holy Quran. The seven valleys even signify the levels that each human seeking the truth must go through. These stages are not only for Sufis but for every Muslim, who wishes to find spiritual enlightenment. Attar has written tremendous texts for Sufism, explaining the depths of Islam with his poems and short stories and providing an insight through his stories. It is said that Attar had a tremendous impact on Rumi and he respected Attar a lot. Rumi is quoted as saying, â€Å"Attar roamed the seven cities of love — We are still just in one alley† (All About Religion). Jamal Ad-Din Al Rumi, has been the most well known Sufi poet and author around the world. Although he was a man with extensive knowledge about Islam, and all his theories and texts are based upon Islamic teachings, his work has been credited by people from various religions. Rumi was born in 1207, in the contemporary Afghanistan. Duing the era in which he was born, there was extensive violence caused by political and social causes. After which the 13th century came into being and brought the threats of crusades by the Mongols, Rumi and his family travelled to the west to find refuge. During his journey, he passed by Iran, Damascus and even performed pilgrimage at Mecca. While in Nishapur, Rumi met Attar and was deeply moved by Attar’s wisdom about Sufism. After that Rumi finally settled in Karaman and started preaching at the local mosque and teaching at the madressah. â€Å"This is where he met Shams-e-Tabrizi, an unorthodox eccentric scholar, who inspired Rumi by his intense spiritual presence. After this meeting, Rumi quit his academic workings and start writing Sufi poetry. All Rumi’s poems have the search of the truth and union with God as the common ground, and love is the most mentioned word in his poems. Rumi’s words do not just provide a great insight for a person but also carry several meanings at once† (Janghda, 157). A series of six books by the name of Masnavi-I Ma’navi (Rhyming Couplets of Profound Spiritual Meaning) which include 424 stories, is one of the most well known texts of Rumi. These stories narrate the struggle of man in search of truth and ultimate wisdom leading to God. As Rumi believed that ultimately every human on this earth seeks out to a higher purpose, to search for something that exists among the material of this world, a higher purpose that can lift the human soul to higher ground. Masnavi-I Ma’navi is referred to as â€Å"the roots of the roots of the roots of the (Islamic) Religion† by Rumi (Arbery, 89). It has also been translated in many languages and is widely accepted as prime Sufi literature. Masnavi-I Ma’navi’s stories such as, â€Å"Why the Saints take refuge in mountains and caves† and â€Å"The Prophet’s vision of Gabriel in his real form† described the essence of Islam and describe the depths of religion. Sufis have written tremendous books in the forms of poems, stories and travelogues. All these contributions have enabled people to better understand Islam in the light of mysticism. These literatures have allowed people to look into the teachings of Islam and understand them on a superior level. As Islam is a religion of peace and love, Sufism and its literature has promoted the religion of love throughout the world. The words of Rumi, Attar and many others have spread Islam through literature, because of these men of peace, Islam kept on spreading across the world without any exceptions of cultural differences. â€Å"It is said that Rumi’s funeral went on for 40 day, in which Muslims, Jews, Christians and Hindus all came to pay their tribute. As he did not promote hatred for people who did not follow his religion or disagreed with him, but according to the teachings of Islam, Rumi preached tolerance and unity of all human kind† (Janghda, 163). Nowadays that Islam has been given a bad name by the fundamentalists across the world, as they have reformed and used religion for their own agenda. The words of Sufis still echo and call for peace and love amongst all religions and races through their literature. A man seeking for wisdom and the truth will always find it in the message of Sufis, a young girl shall always find peace in a short tale of the mystic Sufi and a scholar will always question his logic when reading the swirling verses of Sufis. Arbery, Arthur J.. Sufism: An Account of the Mystics of Islam. London: Dover Publications, 2002. A. A. Janghda. â€Å"Sufism. † Hiba 10. 54 (2001): 144-163. All About Religion. 03 Jun. 2009. Religion FAQ’s At All About Religion. 14 Feb 2009 http://www.allaboutreligion.org/sufism.htm