Abu Hamid Muhammad al-Ghazali's philosophical explorations covered nearly the entire spectrum of twelfth-century beliefs. Beginning his career as a skeptic, he ended it as a scholar of mysticism and orthodoxy. The Niche of Lights, written near the end of his illustrious career, advances the philosophically important idea that reason can serve as a connection between the devout and God. Al-Ghazali argues that abstracting God from the world, as he believed theologians did, was not sufficient for understanding. Exploring the boundary between philosophy and theology, The Niche of Lights seeks to understand the role of reality in the perception of the spiritual.
Muslim theologian and philosopher Abu Hamid al-Ghazali of Persia worked to systematize Sufism, Islamic mysticism, and in The Incoherence of the Philosophers (1095) argued the incompatibility of thought of Plato and Aristotle with Islam.
Born in 1058, Ab奴 岣つ乵id Mu岣mmad ibn Mu岣mmad al-Ghaz膩l墨 ranked of the most prominent and influential Sunni jurists of his origin.
Islamic tradition considers him to be a Mujaddid, a renewer of the faith who, according to the prophetic hadith, appears once every century to restore the faith of the ummah ("the Islamic Community"). His works were so highly acclaimed by his contemporaries that al-Ghazali was awarded the honorific title "Proof of Islam" (Hujjat al-Islam).
Al-Ghazali believed that the Islamic spiritual tradition had become moribund and that the spiritual sciences taught by the first generation of Muslims had been forgotten.[24] That resulted in his writing his magnum opus entitled Ihya 'ulum al-din ("The Revival of the Religious Sciences"). Among his other works, the Tah膩fut al-Fal膩sifa ("Incoherence of the Philosophers") is a significant landmark in the history of philosophy, as it advances the critique of Aristotelian science developed later in 14th-century Europe.
Quite fascinating key text by this great and problematic teacher and polemicist. I've so regularly encountered Al-Ghazali in the context of his critique of Ibn Sina and the other Neoplatonic and Peripatetic philosophers of the Muslim world that it was quite nice to see him present a positive vision of his own. Here we find that the cosmos is the interplay of varying degrees of light and darkness, with God as the source of all. Al-Ghazali presents a theory of the abnegation of the ego and the resultant beatific vision in terms that are entirely new to me - the non-existence of the self is, in his view, a reflection of the fact that nothing has within itself any capacity for perdurance or causation whatsoever. Instead, all sovereignty is given to Allah.
His Occasionalist rejection of causation is not new to me, but it's interesting to see it framed in this rather lovely and evocative vision of a graded cosmos formed of the play of light from light, and presented in relationship to the phenomenon of epiphany. A lovely and worthy classic.
To tell you the truth, all the time I was reading or even contemplating upon the subject of the book, my heart flutters. The heart flutters to and fro, between the sad realisation of ignorance and the excitement for discovering something new. Algazel's Misykat al-Anwar is one of his best writings, set to expound a verse in the Quran that so dense, it perplexed everybody who read it.
Now, aside from the pretty shite printing quality (but I have to opt for the cheapest edition, so the fault's on me) and the (high-browed) Orientalistic introduction, I have no qualms whatsoever with this book. The book set to expound a verse from the Quran, from the Chapter of the Light;
"Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth; a likeness of His light is as a niche in which is a lamp, the lamp is in a glass, (and) the glass is as it were a brightly shining star, lit from a blessed olive-tree, neither eastern nor western, the oil whereof almost gives light though fire touch it not 鈥� light upon light 鈥� Allah guides to His light whom He pleases, and Allah sets forth parables for men, and Allah is Cognizant of all things."
Now as you can see the verse is so dense with symbolism and what not, it almost impossible to make sense of it in the first read. And here's where Algazel came into the spotlight.
He started of by expounding what is really meant by Light. He gave us three cases; 1) the things who aren't visible to themselves, nor they make other visible, these are the dark bodies, 2) the things that are visible to others, but the do not make other visible, these are the luminaries such as stars and 3) the things that are both visible to others and make other visible themselves, and this is what is meant by Light, in the truest sense.
Now even this definition of Light is held by the Many. Even among the Many, they still confused. When they saw a meadow full of green, they said "That is nothing but the color green". But think for a moment. Does green visible by itself? Surely not. It was made visible by the Light, which we already agreed are those that it itself is visible and make others visible too. And this understanding that there can't be anything visible without the one who sees, is what Light means among the Few.
But think again. Algazel gave us 7 defects of the light as understood by physical sign, which is not present in the Intelligence. Intelligence, by Algazel term, is also a type of Light, as we shall see why. The eye perceives the exterior part of a thing, but the intelligence breaks through its mold and frame; it discovers the thing's secrets, elicit their causes and laws, their origin, their formation, their characteristics, so on and so forth. Think of how a cube nevertheless seem to be made by one surface, while the Intelligence can know that it is not thus; it is a three dimensional item with 4 sides (which the physical sense alone can never grasp). These are what the Light means, as understood by the Few of the Few.
Now, we are ready to understand that where causality ends. To offer an example by Schopenhauer, scientific knowledge could offer us description, but never the origin. It somehow resembled the comic scene where an uninvited group of guests came visiting for a party. When asked who are they, they replied that they are this-and-that family, living in this village, this is my wife, and this is my children, so on and so forth. Alright, that is all fine and dandy, but who really they are? Science or knowledge of causality as we know in the realms of physics are equivalent to this comic lot of visitors. They offer us processes and descriptions, but never their origin. So did Algazel wants us to contemplate that the physical causality of everything existents are not as simple as we perceived them to be, nor they story are as opaque as we believed them to be.
He offered a metaphor where, even the knowledge of causality produced by the Intelligence is just a mere step from the higher order. The floor which is illuminated in the night, was reflected by the mirror on the wall, which in turn was shined by the light of the moon form the window, and even this light of the moon owed its source from the Sun. Now, most people would not even think the Sun as the source of the Light; most would halt the order up to the moon. But everything has its ultimate source, and to Algazel, the source of the Light, is the Light of Light, which is Allah.
We have seen being, which its existent can be known, and by contrast we know of the non-being, which its existent cannot be known at all. And without Light, can anything be known. If none, is there anything aside from the Light? Everything contingent cannot be perceived aside from its state of perishing; they owe its existent as existing only from the Light that give its knowability in the first place. Even then, it cannot be said to exist by themselves; its existing state merely retained by the flowing of Existence from the Prime Reality. And it is thus what it seemed from the eyes of the Gnostics, that there is no existent aside from Allah. And in their passion and intoxication, they said certain incomprehensible words, heretical even. But upon their Descent, they knew what they felt is not of Identity, but of something resembling to identity. Aren't we in the throes of passion, we spoke our self and our lovers as one, while it is all impossible in and out? So did these Gnostics, who a poem line described them best, "The glass it thin, the wine is clear! The twain are alike...For 'tis as though there were wine and no wineglass there...".
And so, after reached this pinnacle of ecstacy, Algazel pulled us with firm hands back to the topic. It is of dangerous paths to go beyond without proper rites and understanding.
We have seen all along what is truly meant by the Light, and the graded order of Light. And now, to arrive for a clear exegesis of the Verse of the Light, Algazel proceeded to grade the faculty of the human soul.
There are generally 5 graded order of the human soul. The first is the sensory, the second is the imaginative/mnemonic spirit which able to retain the form of the sensory (the Pavlovian dog), the third: intelligential spirit, which can arrives to eternal truths and axioms. The fourth is the discursive spirit, ever possessing the capability to expand such axioms ad infinitum, perhaps akin to Kantian's synthesis. And the fifth, is the transcendental prophetic spirit, which its character is obvious to be described.
Returning back to the symbols in the verse; there are 5 of them. The Niche, the Glass, the Lamp, the Olive tree, the Oil. Now, perhaps it clear enough to hazard the guess. The Niche is the sensory spirit, the Glass is the imaginative spirit, the Lamp is the intelligential spirit, the Olive tree is the discursive spirit (it able to deduce eternal truthful axioms, free from any infection by space and time; thus the "neither eastern nor western". Last but not lest, the olive oil, which obviously can only came from the blessed olive tree, is the transcendental prophetic spirit. It gives light though fire touch it not. Yes, my brothers and sisters, we have reached the end of a journey.
I write this in a flurry of haze and daze, recalling every tiny bit I can remember and understand. It is a mere, based and meagre effect to reflect the jewels contained in this short work, I implore everybody, Muslim or not, to have a go at this treatise. It would not hurt you, it would give you wonders, as it did to me.
one of the most beautiful books i have ever read...Ghazali takes one verse of the quran and dives into its meaning...its absolutely magnificent...i hardly ever read a book twice, but this is one of those books, if u read it over and over again, each time you would learn something new...an excellent explanation of islamic spirituality/sufism...after reading this, for the first time ever, i understood the meaning of "nonexistance" in the sufi context...
If you told me 5 years ago when I was 15 that I would be reading a book by an 11th-12th century Islamic scholar I wouldn't have believed you for a second. In any case, this is a wonderful and thought provoking text. Al-Ghazali incorporates Neoplatonic and Aristotelian philosophy in the context of Islam. What makes this work so powerful is the fact that he alludes to Being as a kind of darkness, which requires illumination in order to become manifest. The five levels of illumination are: Sense, Imagination, Rationality, Reflective Spirit (Pure, Unchanging Ideas; Pure Rationality), and the Prophetic Spirit (experience and knowledge of the Divine). The latter two are like a lamp which can never be extinguished. These are the ways Being and God are manifest to us. However, it requires work on our part. While sensation and imagination are always at play, the other 3 sources of illumination require cultivation and effort. Moreover, illumination is not exclusive to us, but requires our powers and an external agent (the Sun, God, etc) to be fully active. In which case, illumination is not delegated to just subjectivity.
A final word: Medieval Philosophy really should be taken up by more people. It is commonly regarded as an obsolete philosophy, with the rising pervasiveness of atheism. However, that's a form of willful ignorance: "If there's no God, why would I study anybody whose philosophy is premised on faith?" - There is a kind of voluntary blindness here. The Medieval thinkers provide rigorous and logical arguments (these guys were masters of Logic), and moreover, offer penetrating practical insight regarding living a meaningful and fulfilling life. There is still much to be learned, regardless of whether or not you believe in God. In my opinion, there are deep truths to be learned from Avicenna, Al-Ghazali, Aquinas, Averroes, and Augustine. What makes these philosophies so compelling is the fact that God cannot be empirically observed, but there is a great attempt to develop a strong metaphysics/theology with logic and sound argument.
Medieval Philosophy should really be studied more often. In "History of Philosophy" texts you'll have one chapter for Kant, and one chapter for Medieval Philosophy as a whole; lecture courses will do the same. These thinkers have been by and large forgotten aside from mandatory programs in universities, and those who have specialized interest in this field. There is a tendency to just "get them over with" through looking at Aquinas five proofs and Augustine's confessions chapter 11-13. For anyone who reads this review (and if you are, you probably have an interest in this period or specialize in it; otherwise how would you know who Al-Ghazali is?) who is not well acquainted with Medieval Philosophy, I highly suggest you look into it. It is very hard and requires lots of work and commitment, but I guarantee it will pay off in the end.
Merenung hakikat kebenaran dalam pandangan alam Islam yang tidak dualisme hingga memisahkan bahagian zahir dan batin, apa yang dicerap oleh pancaindera dan rasional dengan intelek dengan makna roh melalui bahasa simbolik, iaitu cahaya. Hakikat yang dijelaskan oleh Imam al-Ghazali ini memerlukan hati yang dibebaskan daripada faham literalis dan tidak cepat menutup pintu kefahaman.
Beautiful yet a heavy read. This must be read if you area truly in search of knowing your heart. It is not a 'to do list' of books to read. I have read this three times. First time as a teenager-15 year old.
鈥淕od showed beneficence to Adam. He gave him an abridged form that brings together every sort of thing found in the cosmos. It is as if Adam is everything in the cosmos, or an abridged transcription of the world. The form of Adam鈥擨 mean this form鈥攊s written in God鈥檚 handwriting. It is a divine handwriting that is not written with letters, since God鈥檚 handwriting is incomparable with with writing and letters, just as His speech is incomparable with sounds and letters, His pen with wood and reed, and His hand with flesh and bone.鈥�
鈥淭he atheists have no faith in God and the Last Day. They love life in this world more than the next. They are occupied with themselves and do not attend to searching for the cause (of the world). Rather, they live the life of dumb beasts. Their veil is their murky souls and dark appetites. There is no darkness more intense than caprice and the soul. That is why God said 鈥淗ast thou seen him who has taken caprice to be his god?鈥� And the messenger of God 锓� said, 鈥淐aprice is the most hateful god worshipped on earth.鈥� They believe the ultimate end of searching in this world is to achieve wishes, to obtain objects of appetite, and to attain bestial pleasure by means of women, food, and clothing. These people are the servants of pleasure. They worship it, search for it, and believe firmly that obtaining it is the highest felicity. They are pleased for their souls to be on the level of dumb beasts - or, rather, more debased than the beasts. What darkness is more intense than that? Hence these people have been veiled by sheer darkness.鈥�
beautiful imagery of light, where it comes from, its existence in all of us, and how we can keep it in our lives. Islam has more truth in it than I think we give it credit for :)
Ambil masa yg lama untuk memahami bacaan yg berat ini. Tentang Mishkah yg disebut di dalam Al-Quran. Melewati dan menyelusuri tafsir surah An-Nur Ayat 35. Sesungguhnya pengajaran yg paling besar ialah tidak guna menjadi celik, dapat melihat cahaya namun hatinya buta untuk melihat sang pencipta cahaya.
Menyelusuri apa itu cahaya, bahan dan malaikat yg dicipta daripada cahaya, dan segalanya tentang cahaya. Mata yang terbahagi kepada dua dimensi yakni melihat alam yg sebenar atau mampu melihat alam yg lain melalui pandangan basyirah.
Apa pun, benarlah Imam Al-Ghazali merupakan tokoh hujjatul Islam, yang memberi ruang generasi masa kini untuk mengkaji seni pemikiran namun perlu memahami hakikat tauhid yang sebenar agar kita dapat memahami makrifat yg sebenarnya.
Secara umum, terjemahan Misykat al-Anwar oleh David Buchman ini lebih baik daripada terjemahan lama (namun populer) oleh Gairdner. Terjemahan Buchman lebih akurat, harfiah dan 'patuh' pada struktur buku. Format buku yang dwibahasa Arab-Inggris juga menarik. Dalam hal ini, teks mengambil teks Arabnya dari edisi A.E. Afifi yang terbit pada tahun 1960-an. Pengantar yang diberikan oleh penerjemah juga bermanfaat karena menyediakan kepada para pembaca informasi ringkas tentang hayat, pemikiran, dan perdebatan ilmiah yang 'panas' tentang Misykat al-Anwar. Buchman meringkaskan dengan sangat baik perdebatan ilmiah dari Abad Pertengahan hingga modern tentang buku kontroversial ini. Sayangnya, Buchman menempatkan Misykat dalam konteks studi tasawuf dan kurang banyak membicarakan dimensi filosofis buku ini. Informasi tentang hayat al-Ghazali yang disajikan oleh Buchman rasanya juga sudah agak usang sehingga perlu ditambah dan dilengkapi oleh studi-studi mutakhir yang dilakukan oleh Josef van Ess, Eric Ormsby, Frank Griffel, dan Kenneth Garden.
Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth; a likeness of His light is as a niche in which is a lamp, the lamp is in a glass, (and) the glass is as it were a brightly shining star, lit from a blessed olive-tree, neither eastern nor western, the oil whereof almost gives light though fire touch it not 鈥� light upon light 鈥� Allah guides to His light whom He pleases, and Allah sets forth parables for men, and Allah is Cognizant of all things. (al-Nur, 24/35)
This book gives in depth meaning of these verses. As always, Al-Ghazali r.a. splendidly breaks down in concise stages of understanding in order to flip probable divine meanings in the said verses. The splitting of 5 faculties / spirits and the categories of lights (with actual human behavior example) opens up major veil of knowledge with regards to deriving meaning of symbolism in these verses. May Allah
Tak patut untuk aku review buku Al Ghazali disebabkan pengetahuan aku yang cetek ni, tapi apa-apa pun buku ni tetap akan ditekuni dan dibaca ulang kerana penuh hikmah dan peringatan untuk kita lebih lebih lagi sebagai tuntunan hidup di dunia ini
I read this book for my philosophy class. Despite liking it, in reality the only difference he only responds to Plato's ideas to develop a metaphysical network. In my opinion, it is only different because Al-Ghazali includes the idea of God.
Nema sumnje da 鈥濶i拧a svjetlosti鈥� nadasve umnogome nalikuje na 拧tivo iz filozofske 拧kole emanacije (emanacionizam 鈥� i拧raqi)! Nazna膷eni iluminacijski nauk vezuje se za Suhrawardija, a dijelom i za Ibn Sinu i Ibn Ru拧da, no ova Gazalijeva knjiga, iako je dubinski ezoterijski tekst par exceillance, te poniranje u semanti膷ke dubine kur'anskih sentenci, nije u direktnoj svezi sa spomenutom metodologijom umovanja. Sam prevoditelj, akademik Enes Kari膰, ve膰 u predgovoru knjizi veli: 鈥濾eliki ljudi su uvijek umovali o velikim temama!鈥� Kroz nebrojene pasa啪e 鈥濶i拧e鈥� lahko se izgubiti, jer Gazali govore膰i o jednome istodobno govori i o mnogo vi拧e stvari nego 拧to prosje膷an 膷itatelj u svome zamahu pozornosti mo啪e prispodobiti. Cijela je knjiga, sumarno, ezoterijska (a na momente i egzegetska) analiza/tuma膷enje/interpretacija jednog kur'anskog stavka iz sure Nur u kojem se znakovito ka啪e da je 鈥�...Bog (izvor) svjetlost(i) nebesa i Zemlje鈥� te obrazlaganje svakog simbola pojedina膷no i napose a od onih spomenutih u ajetu, e da bi 膷ovjek mogao i iznutra i izvana shvatiti uzvi拧enu mudrost Svetog teksta. Uzmemo li u obzir rije膷i prevoditelja o knjizi u kojima ka啪e: 鈥災峯vjeku nije dato da gleda svjetlost ve膰 osvijetljeno鈥�, shva膰amo da je ovime ve膰 i prije po膷etka 膷itanja obra膰ena na拧a pa啪nja na kontemplaciju o fenomenu svjetlosti i svjetla. Naime, svjetlost je, prema Ibn 'Arebiju i Gazaliju, oku dala postojanje, jer, 拧ta je oko bez svjetlosti do li hudo tjele拧ce koje, gotovo konstantno, treptajima bje啪i u tamu. J.W. Goethe je tvrdio da "ni拧ta od stvari koje se mogu dosegnuti 膷ulima na svijetu nije dostojnije da se uporedi s Bogom od Sunca, koje 膷ulnom svjetlo拧膰u najprije sebe a potom sva nebeska i od 膷etiri elementa sa膷injena tijela osvjetljava." Gazali nastoji rasvijetliti ljudima va啪nost njihovog vlastitog umovanja o stvarima koje iz ovoga svijeta izvode i transcendiraju i uvode u svijet ponad ovog, Nadstvarni, An膽eoski, Nebeski univerzum, svijet 膷istih inteligibli. Naravno, samo umovanje i sozercanje o tom svijetu ne膰e 膷ovjeka povesti na duhovni mi'rad啪 (samospoznajno, uspinju膰e putovanje), ve膰 i djelanje skladno tome 拧to se odmisli. Sve je ovo u kontekstu govora o Svjetlosti (sa velikim S) i svjetlosti (sa malim s), jer su sve stvorene stvari tek tragovi Bo啪ijeg stvaranja, pa otuda i sjenke onoga svijeta koji prebiva izvan dosega na拧ih osjetila. Nije li ovo donekle sli膷no sa Platonovim svijetom ideja (naj膷istijim, idealnim svijetom), sjenkama i sjenkama sjenki? Raz(um) ima i u podru膷ju nutarnjeg (el-batin) svoje uhode osim 5 vanjskih osjetila, i to su: ma拧ta, imaginacija, mi拧ljenje, sje膰anje i pam膰enje. Ovo je, naravno, Gazalijeva teza koja se oslanja na nauk sufijskog svjetonazora 拧to potvr膽uje duhovno stanje autora dok ispisuje ovu knjigu. U mnogim drugim dionicama ove knjige nazo膷no je da Gazali nastupa gotovo apologetski kada su u pitanju sufijska tuma膷enja, sufijski vokabular te staje u odbranu znamenitih sufija poput Hallad啪a, brane膰i (ne do kraja) ono njegovo 鈥濫ne-l-hakk! (Ja sam Realnost/Istina)!鈥� Sa 膷ime Gazalijeva elaboracija po膷inje? Primjer Kur'ana je svjetlost Sunca a primjer raz(um)a svjetlost oka. Od ova dva spomenuta primjera, cijeli se narativ razvija pa ponekad nam se 膷ini da odlazi u panteizam, a nekada deizam. No, klackaju膰i se izme膽u to dvoje, u pojedinim magnovenjima, nekad pred na拧im o膷ima iskrsava 膷ista ortodoksija, te tako nam se ne da njega i njegovu misao potpuno svrstati u odre膽eni kalup mi拧ljenja. Dd Njega se spu拧taju uzro膷no-posljedi膷ni lanci (esbab) postoje膰ih stvari u Svijetu Vidljivome. Ovom re膷enicom Gazali poja拧njava kako su to tijesno povezana dva svijeta. Nastavljaju膰i, on veli da svaka stvar ima dvije svoje strane, jednu u odnosu na sebe samu (ved啪hun ila nefsihi) i drugu stranu u odnosu na svoga Gospodara (ved啪hun ila rabbihi). Ovdje se svakako, mimo onog religijskog (napose islamskog) o膷ituje i inkliniranje ka sufijskome svjetogle膽u. Osim Boga nema nikakvog postojanja izuzev na na膷in da slijedi od Boga. Iako poslije ovih teza iznosi i svoje eksplikacije, jasno je da 膰e neumitno do膰i do spomena kona膷nog i拧膷eznu膰a i utrnu膰a u Bogu samome (fena fi-llah) 拧to je te啪nja, 膷e啪nja i 啪udnja sufija koji su dotakli rubove ekstrema. 艩to se inteligibilnih, apstraktnih svjetlosti ti膷e, znaj da je Vi拧nji Svijet njima ispunjen. Ovdje nas Gazalija ponovo svra膰a na platonsko, zapravo neoplatoni膷ko promi拧ljanje o ovome svijetu kao odsjaju Najvi拧e svjetlosti (Svjetlosti nad svjetlostima). Dakle, nema svjetla izuzev svjetla Njegova (la nure illa nuruhu), a sve druge svjetlosti jesu svjetlosti koje od Njega slijede, a ne iz samih sebe. Ovime Gazali ponovno ulazi u domen sufijskog i to, napose, i拧raqi filozofije (i ontologije) koja svoje za膷etke nalazi u Plotinu. Naravno, Gazalijeva metafori膷nost i ekskursi koje sebi dopu拧ta ulaze膰i u dubine ajeta i znakovlja koje se nadaje kur'anskim alinejama koje su u komplementarnosti sa centralnim ajetom na kojeg se osovljuje kompletan narativ 鈥濶i拧e svjetlosti鈥� (ni拧a, svjetiljka, staklenica, ulje...) Ka啪e Gazali i to da ne postoji ni拧ta na ovom svijetu a da nije simbol za ne拧to na onom svijetu. Ovime otvara prostor za sozercanje nad mi拧lju da Bo啪ije znake treba primijetiti u svemu, da su oni, takore膰i, samo pred na拧im osjetilima i (raz)umom skroviti a kako bismo otkra膷unali njihove tajne i sebe uveli u misti膷ke dubine. Naravno, ovo zvu膷i odvi拧e sufijski, no na kognitivnoj, spoznajnoj razini svakog pojedina膷no, ova knjiga operira sukladno onoj frekvenciji imana kojoj gravitiramo. Bo啪ija je milost htjela da 膷ovjek i samoga Boga spoznaje posredstvom simbola i simboli膷ke sposobnosti koju mu je Bog podario. Bez nje i drugih darova "ademovac" ne bi mogao spoznavati, veli El-Gazali. Oni koji u vjeri samo slijepo opona拧aju nalik su onima koji slu拧aju o vatri, ali koji se ne slu啪e blagodatima njene topline. Navedene Gazalijeve rije膷i pokazuju unaprijed re膷eno 鈥� da njegove aluzije ponekad prema拧uju anticipirani vidokrug temata o kojim bi mogao kazivati. Svojom dubinom primorava i nas na opetovano odmi拧ljanje o fenomenologiji stvarnosti s kojom se suo膷avamo, koju osje膰amo, 膰utimo, do啪ivljavamo a sve to vrijeme sprije膷eni smo da je u potpunosti od啪ivimo jer su pred na拧im osjetilima, pred nama koprene kojima smo zastrti. Na to 膰e se Gazali svratiti u posljednjem poglavlju referiraju膰i se na pravorijek Poslanika Muhammeda, a.s. u kojem se ka啪e da 鈥濨og ima sedamdeset (negdje stoji stotina, negdje 膷ak i hiljada) zastora od svjetlosti...鈥� Zastor (iz hadisa) mora da bude spram stvorenja, a zastrtih stvorenja je 3 vrste: oni koji su zastrti 膷istom tamom, oni koji su zastrti samom svjetlo拧膰u, i oni koji su zastrti svjetlo拧膰u zajedno sa tminom. Prva vrsta: a) skupina koja se pohlepno odaje potrazi za uzrokom ovoga svijeta (Priroda?) b) druga skupina - ljudi koji su se zabavili sobom, a ne posve膰uju vrijeme ni potrazi za ovim uzrokom, ve膰 啪ive kao 拧to stoka 啪ivi. Sjajna je i domi拧ljata misao u kojoj autor sukusira svu 啪e膽 savremenog 膷ovjeka: bogatstvo je, naime, sredstvo za udovoljavanje svim po啪udama i strastima, a one omogu膰avaju 膷ovjeku da ispunjava 啪elje. U svjetlu izre膷enog, onih ljudi koji potpadaju pod kategoriju b) ima raznih sorti: strasti i samoljublje; zvjerske osobine - pot膷injavanje, ubijanje, zarobljavanje, hvatanje u su啪anjstvo; mno啪enje imetka; 拧irenje ugleda i slave i pokorno izvr拧avanje nare膽enja...
Na koncu, zanimljiva je i tipologija koju donosi Gazali a ti膷e se razina/skalina svjetlosnih ljudskih du拧a: 1. osjetilna du拧a (el-ruhu-l-hass) 2. uobraziljska du拧a (er-ruhu-l-hijali) 3. raz(umska) du拧a (er-ruhu-l-'akli) 4. diskurzivna du拧a (er-ruhu-l-fikri) 5. sveta poslani膷ka du拧a (samo Bo啪iji poslanici i neki Bo啪iji prijatelji)
Gazalija pronalazi podudarje ovih pet du拧a sa: 1. ni拧om (mi拧kat) 2. staklenicom (zud啪ad啪a) 3. svjetiljkom (misbah) 4. stablom (拧ed啪ere) 5. uljem (zejt), respektivno. Govore膰i o tminama, simbol za spoznajne sile koje vode u zabludu je 膷ovjek u "tminama nad dubokim morem" iznad njega talasi, iznad njega oblaci - "sve tmine jedne iznad drugih"... Simbolika oli膷ena u prethodnoj re膷enici ogoljuje se na sljede膰e - more i dubine su ovaj svijet: a) prvi talas otjelovljen je u talasu strasti, dok je b) drugi talas ovaplo膰en u talasu zvjerskih osobina.
Zbog svega navedenog, tjeranja na odmi拧ljanje, duboke kontemplacije, nadno拧enjem i bdijenjem nad Svetim tekstom u jednom svojevrsnom egzegetsko-hermeneuti膷kom pregnu膰u, Gazalijeva knjiga je vrijedna 膷itanja i svakome predanom 膷itatelju bit 膰e, garantujem, plodonosna!
V铆ce ne啪 dev臎t set let po sv茅m vzniku bylo d铆lo p艡elo啪eno do 膷e拧tiny. V dob臎 pasouc铆 po aktualit臎 nen铆 zas tak mnoho p艡铆le啪itost铆 za膷铆t recenzi t铆mto exkluzivn铆m zp暖sobem; exkluzivn铆m, proto啪e pr谩ci recenzenta u啪 ud臎lal o n臎co m茅n臎 omyln媒 膷as. Arabsk媒 teolog, filozof a mystik Ab煤 H谩mid al-Ghaz谩l铆 sepsal sv暖j kr谩tk媒, hutn媒 spis V媒klenek sv臎tel na po膷谩tku 12. stolet铆. Do 膷e拧tiny jej nyn铆 p艡elo啪ila a 煤vodn铆 stat铆 opat艡ila mlad谩 arabistka Zora Hesov谩. Ghaz谩l铆 zem艡el v roce 1111, ve vrcholn茅m stolet铆 arabsk茅ho st艡edov臎ku. Byl prominentn铆m u膷encem, profesorem isl谩msk茅ho pr谩va v Bagd谩du a z谩rove艌 prost艡edn铆kem mezi sv臎tskou a n谩bo啪enskou moc铆. Ale pozoruhodn臎j拧铆 ne啪 jeho form谩ln铆 vzd臎l谩n铆 a pozice je skute膷nost, 啪e se k nim obr谩til z谩dy. V roce 1095 tajn臎 opustil Bagd谩d, aby se ji啪 ne拧pinil politikou 鈥� to nen铆 tenden膷n铆 anachronismus, ale jeho interpretace 鈥�, a obr谩til se ke stroh茅mu zp暖sobu 啪ivota jako s煤f铆, isl谩msk媒 svat媒 mu啪, jen啪 klade d暖raz zejm茅na na osobn铆 etiku a duchovn铆 cvi膷en铆. Kolem 膷ty艡ic谩t茅ho roku sv茅ho 啪ivota naznal, 啪e ani cesta v铆ry, ani cesta rozumu nevedou k n谩bo啪ensk茅mu napln臎n铆; v dob臎 mocn茅 synt茅zy isl谩msk茅 teologie s antickou filozofi铆 to byl tak trochu skand谩l. Sv暖j vnit艡n铆 obrat popisuje v Zachr谩nci bloud铆c铆ho, jedin茅 dal拧铆 knize z jeho rozs谩hl茅ho d铆la p艡elo啪en茅 do 膷e拧tiny. I V媒klenek sv臎tel v拧ak Ghaz谩l铆ho existenci谩ln铆 obrat od u膷enosti k vnit艡n铆 zku拧enosti obr谩啪铆: 鈥濾臎d臎n铆 je v媒拧e ne啪 v铆ra a okou拧en铆 je v媒拧e ne啪 v臎d臎n铆. Okou拧en铆 je toti啪 [vnit艡n铆] nach谩zen铆 (鈥�). Va啪 si tedy lid铆, kte艡铆 nach谩zej铆 a zakou拧ej铆 v臎d臎n铆!鈥� Ghaz谩l铆 V媒klenek sv臎tel patrn臎 sepsal jako odpov臎膹 na t谩z谩n铆 sv茅ho p艡铆tele. To se dot媒kalo mo啪nost铆 pozn谩n铆 a n臎kolika ver拧暖 Kor谩nu, zejm茅na hojn臎 vykl谩dan茅ho Ver拧e sv臎tla. Ten obsahuje rozvinut茅 podobenstv铆 o lamp臎, p艡irovn谩v谩 Boha ke sv臎tlu a bo啪铆 sv臎tlo k prav茅mu pozn谩n铆 a poznamen谩v谩, 啪e B暖h vede ke sv茅mu sv臎tlu, koho chce. Cel媒 V媒klenek sv臎tel je mo啪n茅 stru膷n臎 charakterizovat jako pon臎kud z谩hadn媒, enigmatick媒 v媒klad toho, co je Sv臎tlo, sv臎tlo jako kosmologick媒 princip, sv臎tlo jako zdroj pozn谩n铆, kter茅 postupn臎 sn铆m谩 on臎ch tradi膷n铆ch sedmdes谩t tis铆c z谩voj暖, je啪 kryj铆 tv谩艡 Nejvy拧拧铆ho. Z谩rove艌 jej lze 膷铆st jako v媒klad tawh铆du, tedy 煤st艡edn铆ho konceptu isl谩mu o Bo啪铆 jedinosti, jedine膷nosti a ned臎litelnosti. Ghaz谩l铆 na mal茅m prostoru obhospoda艡uje velk茅 t茅ma, je si toho v臎dom, varuje: 鈥濻vou ot谩zkou jsi vystoupal do obt铆啪n媒ch vrcholk暖, p艡ed jejich啪 v媒拧kou se skl谩n铆 hlavy teoretik暖; zaklepal jsi na zav艡en茅 dve艡e (鈥�). Ne v拧echna tajemstv铆 je toti啪 mo啪n茅 odhalit a prozradit, a ne v拧echnu pravdu lze vystavit a vyjasnit. Naopak, v hrud铆ch svobodn媒ch jsou tajemstv铆 uchov谩na jako v hrobech.鈥� Ghaz谩l铆 tu nar谩啪铆 na zn谩m茅 dilema (ne)sd臎litelnosti mystick茅 zku拧enosti a ani jemu nezb媒v谩 ne啪 pro pot艡eby druh媒ch mluvit tam, kde nejv媒mluvn臎j拧铆 je ml膷en铆. Nen铆 nutn茅 p艡edpokl谩dat, 啪e v拧em n谩bo啪enstv铆m jde v podstat臎 o tot茅啪; to je trochu k媒膷, ano, n谩bo啪enstv铆 maj铆 spole膷n茅 rysy, a podobn臎 jako rovnob臎啪ky se mo啪n谩 prot铆naj铆 v nekone膷nu, ale tak茅 se z谩sadn臎 odli拧uj铆. P艡esto plat铆, 啪e V媒klenek sv臎tel je p艡es svou 膷asoprostorovou a kulturn铆 odlehlost v j谩dru p艡ekvapiv臎 p艡铆stupn媒m textem. Pracuje s teologick媒mi a filozofick媒mi koncepty, jejich啪 p艡esn媒 v媒znam nen铆 z艡ejm媒 bez hlub拧铆ho studia, ale celkov茅 vyzn臎n铆 textu nen铆 v谩z谩no na jednu tradici. Ghaz谩l铆 za膷铆n谩 t铆m, 啪e rozli拧uje n臎kolik okruh暖 v媒razu sv臎tlo. Mluv铆 o zraku, pe膷liv臎 vypo膷铆t谩v谩 jeho vady, obrac铆 se k rozumu, kter媒 podle n臎j s铆dl铆 v srdci 膷lov臎ka: 鈥濸ochopil jsi nyn铆, 啪e o膷i jsou vlastn臎 dv臎: vn臎j拧铆 a vnit艡n铆. Vn臎j拧铆 oko pat艡铆 sv臎tu viditeln茅mu smysly, zat铆mco vnit艡n铆 oko pat艡铆 jin茅mu sv臎tu, sv臎tu Kr谩lovstv铆.鈥� A zde za膷铆n谩 vlastn铆 t茅ma V媒klenku sv臎tel, nebo钮 vnit艡n铆m okem se podle Ghaz谩l铆ho d谩 spat艡it to, co naz媒v谩 Prvn铆m sv臎tlem a od 膷eho jsou v拧echna dal拧铆 sv臎tla kask谩dovit臎 odvozen谩. Nep艡ekvapuje, 啪e pro mystika je pr谩v臎 toto prvn铆 sv臎tlo skute膷n茅, kde啪to v拧echna ostatn铆 jsou jeho symbolem, podobn臎 jako se v rozhoduj铆c铆 chv铆li symbolem st谩v谩 cel媒 vn臎j拧铆 sv臎t. 鈥� T茅ma, na n臎啪 lze narazit t艡eba i v z谩pisc铆ch 膷esk茅ho fotografa, pozd臎ji buddhisty Franti拧ka Drtikola. Ghaz谩l铆 膷asto 艡铆k谩, 啪e podrobn臎j拧铆 v媒klad v臎ci by zabral mnoho m铆sta a 膷asu, kter茅 nem谩 k dispozici. Ani zde nezb媒v谩 ne啪 se vr谩tit na obecn臎j拧铆 rovinu. Sv暖j pod铆l na p艡铆stupnosti V媒klenku sv臎tel m谩 nejen Ghaz谩l铆ho racion谩ln铆 zp暖sob v媒kladu, ale rovn臎啪 plynul媒 p艡eklad a vynikaj铆c铆 煤vodn铆 studie Zory Hesov茅. To je t艡eba zm铆nit: nen铆 samoz艡ejm茅 ps谩t erudovan臎 a z谩rove艌 膷tiv臎 o odta啪it媒ch t茅matech, vzd谩t se pojmov茅ho a konceptu谩ln铆ho 鈥瀕e拧en铆鈥� akademismu ve chv铆li, kdy nen铆 nutn茅. Hesov茅 se 鈥� snad i d铆ky schopn茅mu redaktorovi 鈥� poda艡ilo tyto dv臎 v臎ci skloubit. Ve sv茅 studii zasazuje V媒klenek sv臎tel do dobov茅ho kontextu a rozv铆j铆 mimo jin茅 podn臎tnou diskusi o t艡ech rovin谩ch textu, ka啪d谩 po sv茅 trajektorii sm臎艡uje t媒m啪 sm臎rem. V teologick茅 rovin臎 je to monoteismus, ve filozofick茅 monismus, v rovin臎 vnit艡n铆 zku拧enosti ji啪 zm铆n臎n媒 taw颅h铆d. Ghaz谩l铆ho kr谩tk媒 spis je mo啪n茅 膷铆st jako t艡铆stup艌ovou apologii jedinosti Boha, vnit艡n铆 jednoty sv臎ta a sjednocen铆 jednoho s druh媒m skrze sebe sama. V媒klenek sv臎tel vy拧el jako 16. svazek edice Orient nakladatelstv铆 Academia. Cel谩 tato 艡ada je cenn媒m p艡铆kladem toho, 啪e odlehl茅 badatelsk茅 oblasti stoj铆 za n谩mahu. Diverzita m谩 smysl nejen v p艡铆rod臎. Krom臎 toho, 啪e svazky edice Orient maj铆 sv暖j odborn媒 a oborov媒 v媒znam, roz拧i艡uj铆 v媒znamn臎 膷ten谩艡skou zku拧enost. Nejen V媒klenek sv臎tel, ale t艡eba tak茅 艩ahrij谩rovy Divy a z谩hady Indick茅ho oce谩nu nebo Tufajl暖v 沤iv媒, syn bd铆c铆ho jsou tituly, kter茅 stoj铆 za pozornost. V媒klenek sv臎tel obstoj铆 jako text i jako edi膷n铆 po膷in, a t艡eba啪e m铆艡铆 k v臎cem nad膷asov媒m, m谩 rovn臎啪 sv暖j dobov媒 v媒znam. Medi谩ln铆 obraz isl谩mu je dostate膷n臎 zn谩m媒. Ghaz谩l铆 je tradi膷n臎 naz媒v谩n 鈥瀘bnovitel isl谩mu鈥� 膷i 鈥瀌暖kaz isl谩mu鈥� a V媒klenek sv臎tel p艡inejmen拧铆m dokl谩d谩, 啪e isl谩m m谩, stejn臎 jako kter茅koli jin茅 n谩bo啪enstv铆, v铆ce vrstev. Buddhismus se na Z谩pad臎 t臎拧铆 intelektu谩ln铆 pov臎sti, proto啪e nen铆 tak zn谩ma jeho lidov谩 podoba, isl谩m b媒v谩 kv暖li sv媒m fundament谩ln铆m v媒boj暖m prezentov谩n jako bojovn茅 n谩bo啪enstv铆. Budi啪, ale jako existuje buddhistick谩 pov臎r膷ivost, existuje tak茅 isl谩msk谩 mystika, kter谩 se dot媒k谩 toho stejn茅ho tajemstv铆 jako t艡eba Mistr Eckhart. Tam nebo tady, ka啪d媒 si m暖啪e nabrat tak hluboko, kam dos谩hne.
this is a very short book about a verse of the Quran S24: 35 which talks about God as a light:
"Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light is like a niche within which is a lamp, the lamp is within glass, the glass as if it were a pearly [white] star lit from [the oil of] a blessed olive tree, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil would almost glow even if untouched by fire. Light upon light. Allah guides to His light whom He wills. And Allah presents examples for the people, and Allah is Knowing of all things."
the book is an explanation of this verse. ive read some ghazali before (incoherence of the philosophers) and that was very complicated but i found this even more complicated and difficult to understand. it may have been the translation. there were snippets which made sense to me and thsoe were impressive nuggets of knowledge but overall a hard book.