| Hazrat
Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan
9. There is One Truth
the true knowledge of our
being, within and without,
which is the essence of all wisdom.
Hazrat Ali says, "Know thyself, and thou shalt know
God." It is the knowledge of self which blooms into the
knowledge of God. Self-knowledge answers such problems as: whence
have I come? Did I exist before I became conscious of my present
existence? If I existed, as what did I exist? As an individual
such as I now am, or as a multitude, or as an insect, bird, animal,
spirit, jinn, or angel? What happens at death, the change to which
every creature is subject? Why do I tarry here awhile? What purpose
have I to accomplish here? What is my duty in life? In what does
my happiness consist, and what is it that makes my life miserable?
Those whose hearts have been kindled by the light from above,
begin to ponder such questions but those, whose souls are already
illumined by the knowledge of the self, understand them. It is
they who give to individuals or to the multitudes the benefit
of their knowledge, so that even men whose hearts are not yet
kindled, and whose souls are not illuminated, may be able to walk
on the right path that leads to perfection.
This is why people are taught in various languages, in various
forms of worship, in various tenets in different parts of the
world. it is one and the same truth; it is only seen in diverse
aspects appropriate to the people and the time. It is only those
who do not understand this who can mock at the faith of another,
condemning to hell or destruction those who do not consider their
faith to be the only true faith.
The Sufi recognizes the knowledge of self as the essence of all
religions; he traces it in every religion, he sees the same truth
in each, and therefore he regards all as one. Hence he can realize
the saying of Jesus, "I and my Father are one!"
The difference between creature and Creator remains on his lips,
not in his soul. This is what is meant by union with God. It is
in reality the dissolving of the false self in the knowledge of
the true self, which is divine, eternal, and all-pervading. "He
who attaineth union with God, his very self must lose,"
said Amir.
In a few instances, Hazrat Inayat
Khan's original gender-specific wording of the 10 Thoughts and 3
Objects has been slightly altered, by Pir Moineddin Jablonski, Murshid
Wali Ali Meyer, and Pir Shabda Kahn, as a reflection of ongoing guidance. The commentary associated
with each Thought has been extracted directly from the Sufi Message
of Hazrat Inayat Khan, Volume I, Part 1: The Way of Illumination (© 1979,
International Sufi Movement, All rights reserved.), and as a quoted passage,
Hazrat Inayat Khan's use of gender specific language has not been updated. |