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

God

Nature

Self-knowledge

Love

Perfection

Prophets

Sufis

Sufi Training

Manifestation

Interest and Indifference

Spirit and Matter

The Heart and Soul

Intellect and Wisdom

Dreams and Inspirations

Law of Action

Music Among Sufis

Ecstasy

Sub-Heading

-ALL-

The Descending Planes of Involution

The Ascending Planes of Evolution

The Grades of Humanity

Correspondence of the Planes

The Five Elements

Vol. 5, A Sufi Message Of Spiritual Liberty

Manifestation

The only Being has manifested Himself through seven different planes of existence, to accomplish His desire of being recognized:

The Descending Planes of Involution

Tanzih

1. Zat -- the unmanifested

2. Ahadiyat -- plane of Eternal Consciousness

3. Wahdat -- plane of consciousness

4. Wahdaniyat -- plane of abstract ideas

Tashbih

5. Arwah -- the spiritual plane

6. Ajsam -- the astral plane

7. Insan -- the physical plane

There are, again, seven aspects of manifestation:

  1. Sitara -- planetary

  2. Mahtab -- lunar

  3. Aftab -- solar

  4. Madeniat -- mineral kingdom

  5. Nabitat -- vegetable kingdom

  6. Haywanat -- animal kingdom

  7. Insan -- human kingdom

The Ascending Planes of Evolution

Insan, being the ideal manifestation, recognizes God by the knowledge of his own self. Man reaches this perfection by development through five grades of evolution:

Insan

  1. Nasut -- material plane

  2. Malakut -- mental plane

  3. Jabarut -- astral plane

  4. Lahut -- spiritual plane

  5. Hahut -- plane of consciousness

Zat

The Grades of Humanity

Each grade of development prepares a person for a higher one, and perfects him in five different grades of humanity:

  1. Adam -- the ordinary man

  2. Insan -- the wise man

  3. Wali -- the holy man

  4. Qutb -- the saint

  5. Nabi -- the prophet

The five natures corresponding to these five grades are:

  1. Ammara -- who acts under the influence of his senses;

  2. Lauwama -- one who repents of his follies;

  3. Mutmaina -- one who considers before taking action;

  4. Alima -- one who thinks, speaks and acts aright;

  5. Salima -- one who sacrifices himself for the benefit of others.

Correspondence of the Planes

The following is a diagram illustrating the planes of Nuzul and Uruj (involution and evolution):

Self Plane Descending Planes of Involution
(Nusul)
Ascending Planes of Evolution
(Uruj)
Tanzih --
the Universal Self
1. Zat -- the unmanifested
2. Ahadiyat -- plane of Eternal Consciousness Hahut --plane of consciousness
3. Wahdat -- plane of consciousness, Sound
4. Wahdaniyat -- plane of abstract ideas
Tashbih --
the Individual Self
5. Arwah -- the spiritual plane Lahut -- spiritual plane
6. Ajsam -- the astral plane Jabarut -- astral plane
Malakut -- mental plane
7. Insan -- the physical plane Nasut -- material plane

All planes of existence consist of vibrations, from the finest to the grossest kind; the vibrations of each plane have come from a higher one, and have become grosser. Whoever knows the mystery of vibrations, he indeed knows all things.

The Five Elements

Vibrations are of five different aspects, appearing as the five elements:

  1. Nur -- ether
  2. Baad -- air
  3. Atesh -- fire
  4. Aab -- water
  5. Khaak -- earth

In relation to these elements, mankind has five senses:

Senses

Organs

Basarat -- sense of sight

the eyes

Samat -- sense of hearing

the ears

Naghat -- sense of smell

the nose

Lazzat -- sense of taste

the tongue

Muss -- sense of touch

the skin

Through these senses and different organs of the mental and physical existence the Ruh, the soul, experiences life; and when the Ruh receives the highest experience of all phases of existence by the favor of the murshid, then it will have that peace and bliss, the attainment of which is the only object of manifestation.