The Teaching of Hazrat Inayat Khan      

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Volume

Sayings

Social Gathekas

Religious Gathekas

The Message Papers

The Healing Papers

Vol. 1, The Way of Illumination

Vol. 1, The Inner Life

Vol. 1, The Soul, Whence And Whither?

Vol. 1, The Purpose of Life

Vol. 2, The Mysticism of Sound and Music

Vol. 2, The Mysticism of Sound

Vol. 2, Cosmic Language

Vol. 2, The Power of the Word

Vol. 3, Education

Vol. 3, Life's Creative Forces: Rasa Shastra

Vol. 3, Character and Personality

Vol. 4, Healing And The Mind World

Vol. 4, Mental Purification

Vol. 4, The Mind-World

Vol. 5, A Sufi Message Of Spiritual Liberty

Vol. 5, Aqibat, Life After Death

Vol. 5, The Phenomenon of the Soul

Vol. 5, Love, Human and Divine

Vol. 5, Pearls from the Ocean Unseen

Vol. 5, Metaphysics, The Experience of the Soul Through the Different Planes of Existence

Vol. 6, The Alchemy of Happiness

Vol. 7, In an Eastern Rose Garden

Vol. 8, Health and Order of Body and Mind

Vol. 8, The Privilege of Being Human

Vol. 8a, Sufi Teachings

Vol. 9, The Unity of Religious Ideals

Vol. 10, Sufi Mysticism

Vol. 10, The Path of Initiation and Discipleship

Vol. 10, Sufi Poetry

Vol. 10, Art: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

Vol. 10, The Problem of the Day

Vol. 11, Philosophy

Vol. 11, Psychology

Vol. 11, Mysticism in Life

Vol. 12, The Vision of God and Man

Vol. 12, Confessions: Autobiographical Essays of Hazat Inayat Khan

Vol. 12, Four Plays

Vol. 13, Gathas

Vol. 14, The Smiling Forehead

By Date

THE SUPPLEMENTARY PAPERS

Heading

Superstitions, Customs, and Beliefs

Insight

Symbology

Breath

Morals

Everyday Life

Metaphysics

Sub-Heading

-ALL-

1.1, Natural Self

1.2, The Instrument of Our Body

1.3, The Breath

1.4, Outer and Inner Ablutions

1.5, Inner Ablutions

1.6, Vegetarian Diet

1.7, The Five Elements of the Body

1.8, Purification

1.9, Sobriety

1.10, Fasting

2.1, The Purity of the Body

2.2, Purification

2.3, Purity of Mind (1)

2.4, Purity of Mind (2)

2.5, Purification of the Mind

2.6, The Power of Mind

2.7, Every Mind Has Its Own Standard of Good and Bad

2.8, The Impression of Illness and Weakness on the Mind

2.9, Keeping the Mind in a Pure Condition

2.10, Keeping the Mind Free From All Undesirable Impressions

3.1, Purity of the Heart

3.2, Keeping the Heart Pure

3.3, The Radiance of the Face

3.4, Innocence

3.5, Reject the Impression of Errors and Shortcomings

3.6, Purity of the Heart

3.7, Exaltation

3.8, Purify the Mind from Fear

3.9, Keep the Heart Free from Poison

3.10, The Real Purification of Mind

Vol. 13, Gathas

Everyday Life

3.2, Keeping the Heart Pure

As the rust is natural to the iron, and as the milk turns sour, so the heart can become rusted, and its feeling, which by nature is as pure as milk, turns sour. Then nothing in the world is tasteful to that person, and life with all its beauty becomes worthless. It is this condition which must be avoided. An adept must keep his mind pure from rust. The rust comes from:

  • allowing the heart to bear malice and spite against anyone,
  • by having hatred and prejudice against anyone,
  • by wanting to take revenge,
  • by looking down upon another with contempt,
  • and by the feeling of jealousy, rivalry, or envy.

The heart wants a constant care to keep it from getting rusted, for the nature of this life of illusion is such that some little unimportant things, which are not of the least value, coming from the outer life, the heart may be affected by, and the rust may be produced as the mere touch of water can produce rust upon the iron. Once the feeling has become soured it is as difficult, if not impossible, to turn it sweet again as to make sour milk sweet.

A soul has brought from heaven its love for sweet. It may after coming on earth develop a taste for salt, sour, or bitter, but its innate longing is always for the sweet, and what its life needs most is not sugar, which is required in some degree for physical health, but the sweet which is the original property of this heart and which is needed most for his true happiness and real well-being.