Discourses of December 1956

دسمبر ۱۹۵۶ء کے مجالس

24 December 1956 — Monday (3 Jumada al-Thani 1376 AH)

Ihsan (Spiritual Excellence)

Ihsan is: that you worship Allah as though you see Him; for even if you do not see Him, He assuredly sees you. The electrons — those minute particles of electricity — I believe in them wholeheartedly. 'He' — that is, God — is the One who knows them all and controls them all.

Lightning-Bolts (Barq Pare)

These rapid lightning-like realities flash through the cosmos. They are part of the same underlying reality that the physicist studies and the mystic perceives from within.

29 December 1956 — Saturday (9 Jumada al-Thani 1376 AH)

What is Intrinsically Lawful and What is Intrinsically Forbidden (Bi-l-Zat Halal wa Haram)

Something that is intrinsically lawful (halal bi-l-zat) cannot be rendered permanently unlawful by abrogation (naskh), and something intrinsically unlawful (haram bi-l-zat) cannot become lawful. The iman (faith) of a true Imam — meaning a rightly guided leader — similarly cannot be annulled by any legal ruling.

Good and Evil (Khair wa Shar)

Omar Khayyam said: God is pure goodness. Ibn al-Hasan the Ash'arite poet maintained that since everything comes from God, everything is ultimately good. Evil exists only in relation — in comparison to something better — not in itself.

The Illusion of Beauty (Wahm-e-Husn)

Unity and harmony produce beauty. The sound that arises from unity is inherently beautiful. Beauty, at its root, is the perception of oneness beneath apparent multiplicity.

28 December 1956 (8 Jumada al-Thani 1376 AH)

Truth and Consideration (Haqq wa I'tibar)

I hold an opinion — and every opinion is truth from the viewpoint of the one holding it. Truth is not a single fixed thing visible to all; it is seen through the lens of one's knowledge and perspective.

What is Evil? (Shar kiya hai?)

Evil (shar) has no place in the Divine knowledge as a positive reality. It exists only in comparison — relative to what is better. In itself, from the perspective of the Divine, there is no such thing as absolute evil.