The holy Prophet (cpth) said: ‘Be learned or learner or listener or lover and don’t be the fifth, if you are, you will perish’ . [ Al mu’ajem Alawsat for Tabarani. ]
The explanation of the terms of this noble hadith:
- Be: Is a command from the holy Prophet (cpth) to human beings.
- Learned: In Arabic, it is derived from the word science which is knowledge based on recognizing and witnessing. God the Almighty says:)) …Verily, Al’lah is All-Knower of the spirit (which is inside the) chest)) [ Ma’ida, Verse 7. ]. That is, God is the Witness of what are in the chests (the Spirits) and aware of them.
- Learner: It is he who follows the way of the Prophet (cpth), in order to be learned finally.
- Listener: The word ((listen)) in this noble hadith means listen thoughtfully to the word of God the Almighty.
- Lover: The one who loves and feels such a pure passion in his heart towards God, the Prophet and then to true believers.
- And don’t be the fifth: The fifth means; everything other than the four above commands.
- If you are, you will perish’: The word ((Perish)) indicates to the forfeiture and loss.
The holy prophet (cpth) wants to elevate man and direct him to the greatest thing where he can get the favour of God the Almighty and His satisfaction. That is achieved through one of the following:
Firstly to be learned: to have a Divine science which is knowledge based on recognizing and witnessing (as it was mentioned above).Actually this man of an insight-eyed witnesses the reality, that is for his hearted-link with the Prophet (cpth) which will also make him know God the Almighty and His good exalted Names ((Merits)). The insight-eyed learned man sees evil by Al’lah’s Light and runs away from it, as he sees goodness by Al’lah’s Light and seeks them.
For example:
Let us watch a practical experiment done by the teacher and his students/pupils. If the teacher puts something such as: pieces of chalk, cups,… or what so ever he wants in a dispersed way, then covers the eyes of one of his students with a band and asks him to move between these things without hitting any one of them. This experiment should be repeated by the student he wants. Finally you realize that, the student with banded eyes hits and steps on the things while he moves no matter how he struggles to avoid them, in addition to that he doesn’t know the direction he has to take. No doubt you will find him walking confused and astray. And after that, the teacher rearranges the things again and asks the same students who did recently that practice, to move between them again with not banded or covered eyes. Actually, you realize that they move avoiding easily hitting the things and they know the right directions to follow. By this practical example, we understand why the holy Prophet (cpth) commands us to be learned or having insight-eyed. So, an ‘insight-eyed’ man is guided by Al’lah’s Light, moves in this world without falling on things that will harm him, that is to say without committing evil deeds which harm him here and in the hereafter. But he does what will bring him good and the last happiness. But if he remains in his blindness and does not open his insight-eyed to the light of God, he will be committing harmful things which make him miserable, sad and distressed. All that bad result is actually caused by his insight-blindness and his straying from the right path. God the Almighty says:)) …Say:
((Are the blind and the one who sees equal? Will you not then take thought?)) . [Anam Verse 50.]
Dear student remember the lessons you have learned in the interpretation of Am’ma Part especially the interpretation of Fortress Al-Qadr, how man gets knowledge in that blessing night and have the insight-eyed. Also remember the interpretation of Fortress Al-Takathur in His holy saying: ((No, indeed! If you only attain knowledge of certainty)). Certainty means: a firm matter which is settled in the human spirit. Knowledge is the witnessing and the sight, and this is of two types:
1- The human’s spirit sees only the appearance of things through eyes.
2- The human’s spirit itself sees the reality of things. That is to say it sees and recognizes what things contain of the goodness or the badness.
But seeing the appearance of things is through the normal eye look while witnessing the reality is the spirit’s internal realization (itself) of the goodness and the evils which are hidden in things, such knowledge is exactly the knowledge of certainty. But, how can the spirit know good and bad things? This can only be achieved if the spirit is devoted to the Provider through prayers (communication with Al’lah) in which the spirit is wholly devoted to Its Provider through the great intercessor ((the Prophet)) peace be upon him. By this whole devotion, man will be lightspirited by the light of God the Almighty, that Light unveils to him the concealed realities which are behind appearance and aspects. So, attaining these steps and reaching these high ranks are based on prayer. Having the knowledge of certainty and avoiding evils are achieved through communication with Al’lah. God the Almighty says: ((...Communication with God restrains outrageous and unacceptable behavior. Surely remembering Al’lah is greater...)) [fortress Al Ankabut, Verse 45.] . Now, we want to give an example that differentiates between the knowledge of appearance and the knowledge of reality of something, we say: A fish within its materialistic eye can only see the small piece of flesh attached to a fishhook thrown by a Fisher man. Had it been, having insighteyed and strong penetrating light, it would have seen the hook, behind the small piece of flesh, on which the fish is hung, it would have seen the death hidden behind the food and will fear the piece of flesh, neglecting it and does not want it. So, if human is having the eye of realities i.e. insight-eyed (the eye of the enlightened spirit) with the light of God the Almighty, he sees the realities of things and will never like the low desires of this world. Thus he sees the danger that will lead to the Hell fire.
The second example: Consider that, a teacher, in the class, is holding a pen and asking one of the students ‘what am I holding? ‘The student will answer ((it is a pen)). And that is very true even if some persons tell him that it is not a pen he will never accept, why? Because he saw the pen within his own eyes and that is what is called the certainty. But if a student closes his eyes and the teacher asks him what he holds in his hand and the student has never seen it before and does not know it, really, he will give an estimated and doubtable answer. Such answer will not be certain but it is out of his thought, if someone tells him a different thing other than what he expects, he will believe him. Why? Because he has never seen that thing which is in his teacher’s hand with his eyes but his answer is just suspecting.
That is how believing in God and getting the belief is; If anyone says to a true believer something about Al’lah against the Compassion, the Justice, the Mercy and Tender of Al’lah the Almighty, he will never believe him because he has seen and witnessed the truth in his heart.
But if he only believes imitating his parents and the society in which he lives and doesn’t either see himself or witness by the light of Al’lah, and someone talks to him in false way, you will find him confused and may change his belief. All that is owing to the fact that, he has never struggled to see with the light of Al’lah to become a learned. So a blind can’t differentiate between his touching of a fish and a snake, he doesn’t recognize that he is touching now a snake or a fish. Likewise for a man, if he doesn’t attain the insight-eyed to see by the Almighty Al’lah’s Light, he will always go nearer to things thinking that they are good for him but actually they are fully lethally poisonous and they can kill him ending his life. Many Verse s of the holy Qur’an command us to get the light of God so as to differentiate between good and bad, wrong and right. God the Almighty says: ((Oh you who believe be devoted to Al’lah and believe in His Messenger, He gives you two guarantees of His Mercy and He gives you a light by which you shall walk (straightly), and He will forgive you. And Al’lah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. )) [Hadeed, Verse 28.] . The words-’Be devoted to Al’lah ‘ that is: See with the light of Al’lah. If One’s Spirit proceeds to God the Almighty, his insight-eyed will be opened and he will be healed from his spirit’s illnesses and evil desires which are resulted from the love of this low world. The love of this world is the head of all wrong. ‘Devoutness’ in Arabic is Al-Takwa which literally means; Cautiousness and avoidance. That is to say: One should do something that will secure and save him from danger and the effect of something. For instance, if the heat of the Sun is so severe over our heads, we take umbrellas and switch them up, here we secure ourselves from its heat and we do this procedure as ((Takwa)). If we want to get down from the house roof and we use a ladder, here our procedure is ((Takwa)), to save ourselves from the danger we will suffer in case we jump directly onto the ground. Thus, the spirit which is existed in the chest as seen in the past lesson of the interpretation of Am’ma part, is the One that has ((Al-Takwa)) i.e. it sees within Al’lah’s Light that is shining on it. Through this Light it avoids evils and keeps itself away from all what is bad and harmful. The holy Prophet said pointing at his holy chest: ‘Al-Takwa ((Devoutness: piety)) is here…Devoutness is here…Devoutness is here’. But how this Takwa ((Devoutness)) is attained, actually, God Says: ((and believe in His Messenger)) that indicates that the Messenger of God is the High means, through him Al-Takwa can be achieved
And the statement-)) Gives you two guarantees)):It indicates that the Almighty God will guarantee your happiness in the life of this world and of the hereafter if you believe in Him and be devoted to Him through His Messenger (cpth). But how can this guarantee be done? God the Almighty says:)) He gives you a light by which you shall walk (straightly))) that is, you will be walking in your life within the guidance of Al’lah by this Godly light. Then you will be seeking the good deeds, doing them and asking God the Highest to always offer you them easily. As you are afraid of getting near to bad deeds, you will be escaping from doing them and getting away from committing them. Consequently, you will be happy in this world and in the hereafter.
Note that, the human’s spirit sees within the two eyes of the head by the Sun light, the Moon light or the Electricity light... But if the spirit of man wants itself to see, it needs a light which is stronger than these material lights, this light is Al’lah’s Light which is being poured into the heart of the Messenger of Al’lah (cpth). God the Almighty says: ((O Prophet (Mohammad)! Verily, We have sent you as witness, and a bearer of glad tidings, and a Warner. And as one who invites to Al’lah [Islamic Monotheism, i.e. to worship none but Al’lah (Alone)] by His Leave, and as the lightening Sun (which is spreading light onto believers’ hearts).)) [ Fortress Al Ahzab, Verse 45 46.]
So the messenger of Al’lah (cpth) is the lightening Sun on the Spirits of the believers. The real blindness is the blindness of the Spirits through losing this light. God the Almighty says: ((…indeed, it is not the eyes that are blind but it is the hearts in the chests that are blind)) .[Hajj, Verse 46.] Therefore, the messenger of Al’lah (cpth) commands us to be the insight-eyed learned scholars, as his noble companions were. Now, the following story is an example of the insight-eyed of the companions of him: It is reported that when our master Umar Ebnul Khatab (Al’lah has been content with him) became the leader of the believers, he sent an Islam army to fight the Persians in a place called Nahawondi in India under the great leadership of Saria (Al’lah has been content with him). When he was preaching on the rostrum in a mosque in Medina one Friday, guiding people to God the Almighty, he suddenly said: ‘Oh Saria, the mountain. Oh Saria the mountain…’ Saria heard his voice, and actually, Saria was with his army walking across the valley. When he heard the voice ordering him to ascend the mountain, he immediately, with his army, climbed the mountain and what a wonder, they saw that their enemy soldiers had already set an ambush to kill easily the Muslim soldiers by throwing upon them boulders and rocks when they passed the valley under the enemy place of the mountain. Consequently Saria escaped that ambush and crushed the enemy army overcoming it. So, by the piety ((Takwa)) of our master Umar (Al’lah has been content with him) and Saria (Al’lah has been content with him), the Islamic army was saved from the enemy ambush. Thus, have you seen what a rank and a grade of Al-Takwa the true believers like the companions of the holy Prophet (cpth) had ascended and attained! Therefore, the greatest lover, the messenger of God (cpth) commands us owing to what are in his honored heart of the love and pity upon us, and owing to the good he wants for us, to be the learned scholars in order to gain this world and the hereafter, so, what a strong love the messenger of Al’lah (cpth) feels in his noble heart towards all creatures!.