The Sufis imagine Allah (God) as an intimate Friend, not a distant Lord of the Universe. He is their Beloved with whom they share a passionate, sacred love affair.
By imagining Allah in this way the devotee is able to enjoy a personal relationship with the ineffable One.
Sufi poets are aware that, in reality, the Beloved with whom they are enjoying a divine romance is their own deeper Self. The love affair between the devotee and the Beloved is the One become two in order to love itself.
Rumi sings to Allah:
You - the soul free from “me” and “you.”
You - the essence in every man and woman.
When the sexes become one You are that union.
You created this business of “me” and “you.”
so that You could play the game of wooing Yourself
3 comments:
When the Beloved is recognised in the lover - and imagined as being of the complementary sex - greater things become even more possible.
Tantra is greater than religion and love is the greatest teacher and power of all.
I love this aspect of Islam. One can learn how to truly love oneself and therefore love all others. There is so much potential in religion. What a shame the institution will forever miss the mark.
Peacefully yours, adiaha
It is indeed sad that religious fundamentalists have taken such a grip on Islam at present. Most of the Arabs I speak to nowadays have never even heard about Sufism or if they have, hold it at arm's length as some heretic offshoot. If only they would expose themselves to the profound wisdom of their twelfth century masters instead of holding onto outdated dogmas, their whole religion might be more widely accepted too.
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