Volume
Vol. 1, The Way of Illumination
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Sufi Thoughts
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10. There is One Path,
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Vol. 1, The Way of Illumination
Sufi Thoughts
10. There is One Path,
the annihilation of the false ego in the real, which raises the mortal to immortality, in which resides all perfection.
"I passed away into nothingness -- I vanished; and lo! I was all living."
All who have realized the secret of life understand that life is one, but that it exists in two aspects. - First as immortal, all-pervading and silent;
- and secondly as mortal, active, and manifest in variety.
The soul being of the first aspect becomes deluded, helpless, and captive by experiencing life in contact with the mind and body, which is of the next aspect. The gratification of the desires of the body and the fancies of the mind do not suffice for the purpose of the soul, which is undoubtedly to experience its own phenomena in the seen and the unseen, though its inclination is to be itself and not anything else.
When delusion makes it feel that it is helpless, mortal and captive, it finds itself out of place. This is the tragedy of life, which keeps the strong and the weak, the rich and poor, all dissatisfied, constantly looking for something they do not know.
The Sufi, realizing this, takes the path of annihilation, and, by the guidance of a teacher on the path, finds at the end of this journey that the destination was himself. As Iqbzl says:
"I wandered in the pursuit of my own self;
I was the traveller, and I am the destination."
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