Sufi cosmology
Encyclopedia
Sufi cosmology is a general term for cosmological
doctrines associated with the mysticism of Sufism
. These may differ from place to place, order to order and time to time, but overall show the influence of several different cosmographies:
, is typical:
The Human Realm is supervised by:
On every planet with life on it, life exists in three different planes of existence, the Plane of Angels, the Plane of Jinns and the Plane of Humans. On the other hand, it is surrounded by another realm known as Alam-e-Araf or Barzakh (Astral plane
), where humans stay after they die (when the soul disconnects from the physical body
). Humans can also visit the astral realm during sleep (while dreaming) or during meditation.
Greek philosophers
such as Aristotle
who believed that the universe
had an infinite past with no beginning, Medieval philosophers
and theologians
developed the concept of the universe having a finite past with a beginning (temporal finitism
). This view was inspired by the creation myth shared by the three Abrahamic religions
: Judaism
, Christianity
and Islam
. The Christian philosopher
, John Philoponus
, presented the first such argument against the ancient Greek notion of an infinite past. His arguments were adopted by many, most notably; early Muslim philosopher
, Al-Kindi
(Alkindus); the Jewish philosopher
, Saadia Gaon
(Saadia ben Joseph); and finally the Sufi thinker Al-Ghazali
. Philoponus proposed two logical arguments against an infinite past, the first being the "argument from the impossibility of the existence of an actual infinite", which states:
His second argument, the "argument from the impossibility of completing an actual infinite by successive addition", states:
Both arguments were adopted by later Christian philosophers and theologians, and the second argument in particular became more famous after it was adopted by Immanuel Kant
in his thesis of the first antimony concerning time
.
Cosmology
Cosmology is the discipline that deals with the nature of the Universe as a whole. Cosmologists seek to understand the origin, evolution, structure, and ultimate fate of the Universe at large, as well as the natural laws that keep it in order...
doctrines associated with the mysticism of Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
. These may differ from place to place, order to order and time to time, but overall show the influence of several different cosmographies:
- The Quran's testament concerning God and immaterial beings, the soul and the afterlife, the beginning and end of things, the seven heavens etc.
- The Neoplatonic views cherished by Islamic philosophers like Ibn Sina / AvicennaAvicennaAbū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
and Ibn ArabiIbn ArabiIbn ʿArabī was an Andalusian Moorish Sufi mystic and philosopher. His full name was Abū 'Abdillāh Muḥammad ibn 'Alī ibn Muḥammad ibn `Arabī .-Biography:...
. - The HermeticHermeticismHermeticism or the Western Hermetic Tradition is a set of philosophical and religious beliefs based primarily upon the pseudepigraphical writings attributed to Hermes Trismegistus...
-Ptolemaic spherical geocentric world. - The Ishraqi visionary universe as expounded by Suhrawardi Maqtul.
Emanation
The following cosmological plan, explaining a creation by successive emanation of worlds, as taught by PlotinusPlotinus
Plotinus was a major philosopher of the ancient world. In his system of theory there are the three principles: the One, the Intellect, and the Soul. His teacher was Ammonius Saccas and he is of the Platonic tradition...
, is typical:
- Alam-i-Hahut (Realm of He-ness) The Realm of pre-existencePre-existencePre-existence , beforelife, or pre-mortal existence refers to the belief that each individual human soul existed before conception, and at conception one of these pre-existent souls enters, or is placed by God, in the body...
, the condition of the universe before its formation, equated with the unknowable essence of God’s. Alam-e-Hahut has similarities to the Christian concept of Deus absconditus, the Hindu notion of Nirguna BrahmanNirguna BrahmanNirguna Brahman, signifies in Hindu philosophy the Brahman that pervades the Universe, considered without form , as in the Advaita school or else as without material form, as in Dvaita schools of philosophy.-Advaita:According to Adi Shankara, the famous reviver of Advaita...
and the Kabbalist idea of the En-Sof.
- Alam-i-Lahut (Realm of Divinity) That region where incalculable unseen tiny dots emerge and expand to such large circles that they engulf the entire universe. This Realm is also known as Tajalliat (The Beatific Vision, or the Circle of the Beatific Vision). These countless circles are the bases of all the root causes of the universe. This whole circle is known as the Ghaib-ul-ghaib (Unseen of the Unseen). Alam-e-Lahoot has similarities to the Christian concept of Deus revelatus, the Hindu notion of Saguna BrahmanSaguna brahmanSaguna Brahman came from the Sanskrit "with qualities" and Brahman "The Absolute".-Advaita:...
and the Kabbalist idea of Kether. The final boundary of the human knowledge and understanding is called Hijab-e-Mehmood (The Extolled Veil), which is the extreme height of the Arsh (Supreme Empyrean). Nehr-e-tasweed (The Channel of Black Draught/Darkness) whose last limit is in the Realm of Divinity, is the basis of the Unseen & feeds Rooh-e-Azam (The Great Soul).
- Alam-i-Jabarut (Realm of Power) The stage when the universe is constituted into features. Hijab-e-Kibria (The Grand Veil) is the last limit of this realm. Nehr-e-tajreed (Channel of Abstraction), whose last limit is The Realm of Omnipotency, feeds the Human Soul with its information.
- Alam-i-Malakut (Angelic Realm) The stage when the characteristics of the species and their individuals descend from the Realm of Omnipotency, separate consciousnesses comes into being. Its last limit is called Hijab-e-Azmat (The Great Veil). Nehr-e-Tasheed (Channel of Evidence) whose last limit is Angelic Realm, feeds the subtleties of the human heart.
- Alam-i-Nasut (Realm of Humans) The stage when foundations of the tangible world of matter are laid, (parallel to the Tree of LifeTree of LifeThe tree of life in the Book of Genesis is a tree planted by God in midst of the Garden of Eden , whose fruit gives everlasting life, i.e. immortality. Together with the tree of life, God planted the tree of the knowledge of good and evil . According to some scholars, however, these are in fact...
's sephirothSephirot (Kabbalah)Sephirot or Sephiroth , meaning "enumerations", are the 10 attributes/emanations in Kabbalah, through which God reveals itself and continuously creates both the physical realm and the chain of higher metaphysical realms...
of Malkuth). It includes the material realmMaterial worldMaterial world may refer to:* Nature.* Material World, a Canadian television sitcom in the 1980s.* Material World, a BBC Radio 4 science programme.* Material World: A Global Family Portrait, a 1994 photo essay by Peter Menzel....
and all the normally visible cosmos. Nehr-e-Tazheer (Channel of Manifestation) whose last limit is Alam-e-Nasut, feeds The subtleties of ego.
The Human Realm is supervised by:
- One Kitab-al-Mubeen, controlling:
- 300 million Loh-e-Mehfooz (Superclusters), each one controlling
- 80 thousand Hazeere (galaxiesGalaxyA galaxy is a massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and an important but poorly understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter. The word galaxy is derived from the Greek galaxias , literally "milky", a...
), each one containing - 13 billion star systemStar systemA star system or stellar system is a small number of stars which orbit each other, bound by gravitational attraction. A large number of stars bound by gravitation is generally called a star cluster or galaxy, although, broadly speaking, they are also star systems.-Binary star systems:A stellar...
s, out of which - 1 billion star systems have life on one of their planets.
- Each star has 9, 12 or 13 planets around it.
On every planet with life on it, life exists in three different planes of existence, the Plane of Angels, the Plane of Jinns and the Plane of Humans. On the other hand, it is surrounded by another realm known as Alam-e-Araf or Barzakh (Astral plane
Astral plane
The astral plane, also called the astral world, is a plane of existence postulated by classical , medieval, oriental and esoteric philosophies and mystery religions...
), where humans stay after they die (when the soul disconnects from the physical body
Physical body
In physics, a physical body or physical object is a collection of masses, taken to be one...
). Humans can also visit the astral realm during sleep (while dreaming) or during meditation.
Temporal finitism
In cosmology, in contrast to ancientAncient philosophy
This page lists some links to ancient philosophy. In Western philosophy, the spread of Christianity through the Roman Empire marked the ending of Hellenistic philosophy and ushered in the beginnings of Medieval philosophy, whereas in Eastern philosophy, the spread of Islam through the Arab Empire...
Greek philosophers
Greek philosophy
Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BCE and continued through the Hellenistic period, at which point Ancient Greece was incorporated in the Roman Empire...
such as Aristotle
Aristotle
Aristotle was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology...
who believed that the universe
Universe
The Universe is commonly defined as the totality of everything that exists, including all matter and energy, the planets, stars, galaxies, and the contents of intergalactic space. Definitions and usage vary and similar terms include the cosmos, the world and nature...
had an infinite past with no beginning, Medieval philosophers
Medieval philosophy
Medieval philosophy is the philosophy in the era now known as medieval or the Middle Ages, the period roughly extending from the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century AD to the Renaissance in the sixteenth century...
and theologians
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
developed the concept of the universe having a finite past with a beginning (temporal finitism
Temporal finitism
Temporal finitism is the idea that time is finite. The context of the idea is the pre-modern era, before mathematicians had understood the concept of infinity and before physical cosmology....
). This view was inspired by the creation myth shared by the three Abrahamic religions
Abrahamic religions
Abrahamic religions are the monotheistic faiths emphasizing and tracing their common origin to Abraham or recognizing a spiritual tradition identified with him...
: Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
and Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. The Christian philosopher
Christian philosophy
Christian philosophy may refer to any development in philosophy that is characterised by coming from a Christian tradition.- Origins of Christian philosophy :...
, John Philoponus
John Philoponus
John Philoponus , also known as John the Grammarian or John of Alexandria, was a Christian and Aristotelian commentator and the author of a considerable number of philosophical treatises and theological works...
, presented the first such argument against the ancient Greek notion of an infinite past. His arguments were adopted by many, most notably; early Muslim philosopher
Early Islamic philosophy
Early Islamic philosophy or classical Islamic philosophy is a period of intense philosophical development beginning in the 2nd century AH of the Islamic calendar and lasting until the 6th century AH...
, Al-Kindi
Al-Kindi
' , known as "the Philosopher of the Arabs", was a Muslim Arab philosopher, mathematician, physician, and musician. Al-Kindi was the first of the Muslim peripatetic philosophers, and is unanimously hailed as the "father of Islamic or Arabic philosophy" for his synthesis, adaptation and promotion...
(Alkindus); the Jewish philosopher
Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy , includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or, in relation to the religion of Judaism. Jewish philosophy, until modern Enlightenment and Emancipation, was pre-occupied with attempts to reconcile coherent new ideas into the tradition of Rabbinic Judaism; thus organizing...
, Saadia Gaon
Saadia Gaon
Saʻadiah ben Yosef Gaon was a prominent rabbi, Jewish philosopher, and exegete of the Geonic period.The first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Arabic, he is considered the founder of Judeo-Arabic literature...
(Saadia ben Joseph); and finally the Sufi thinker Al-Ghazali
Al-Ghazali
Abu Hāmed Mohammad ibn Mohammad al-Ghazzālī , known as Algazel to the western medieval world, born and died in Tus, in the Khorasan province of Persia was a Persian Muslim theologian, jurist, philosopher, and mystic....
. Philoponus proposed two logical arguments against an infinite past, the first being the "argument from the impossibility of the existence of an actual infinite", which states:
- "An actual infinite cannot exist."
- "An infinite temporal regress of events is an actual infinite."
- ".•. An infinite temporal regress of events cannot exist."
His second argument, the "argument from the impossibility of completing an actual infinite by successive addition", states:
- "An actual infinite cannot be completed by successive addition."
- "The temporal series of past events has been completed by successive addition."
- ".•. The temporal series of past events cannot be an actual infinite."
Both arguments were adopted by later Christian philosophers and theologians, and the second argument in particular became more famous after it was adopted by Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher from Königsberg , researching, lecturing and writing on philosophy and anthropology at the end of the 18th Century Enlightenment....
in his thesis of the first antimony concerning time
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....
.
External links
- Sufi cosmology and psychology
- Islam Way Online - Your Religion and Spirituality Portal Islamic Cosmology: The Secrets of Creation up to the Court of Greatness
See also
- Astronomy in medieval Islam
- Bahá'í cosmologyBahá'í cosmologyBahá'í cosmology is the understanding of reality in the Bahá'í Faith, and for which reality is divided into three divisions. The first division is God, who is preexistent and on whom the rest of creation is contingent. The second division is God's logos, which is the realm of God's commands and...
- Esoteric ChristianityEsoteric ChristianityEsoteric Christianity is a term which refers to an ensemble of spiritual currents which regard Christianity as a mystery religion, and profess the existence and possession of certain esoteric doctrines or practices, hidden from the public but accessible only to a narrow circle of "enlightened",...
- GnosticismGnosticismGnosticism is a scholarly term for a set of religious beliefs and spiritual practices common to early Christianity, Hellenistic Judaism, Greco-Roman mystery religions, Zoroastrianism , and Neoplatonism.A common characteristic of some of these groups was the teaching that the realisation of Gnosis...
- KabbalahKabbalahKabbalah/Kabala is a discipline and school of thought concerned with the esoteric aspect of Rabbinic Judaism. It was systematized in 11th-13th century Hachmei Provence and Spain, and again after the Expulsion from Spain, in 16th century Ottoman Palestine...
- Plane (esotericism)Plane (esotericism)In esoteric cosmology, a plane, other than the physical plane is conceived as a subtle state of consciousness that transcends the known physical universe....
- Sufi metaphysics
- Sufi philosophySufi philosophySufi philosophy includes the schools of thought unique to Sufism, a mystical branch within Islam. Sufism and its philosophical traditions may be associated with Sunni Islam or Shia Islam. It has been suggested that Sufi thought emerged from the Middle East in the eighth century, but adherents are...