مجله انوار معرفت
سال ششم شماره 1 (پیاپی 12، بهار و تابستان 1396)

The mystics have presented different explanations about the number of the stages of spiritual journeying and wayfaring in various ways. Imam Khomeini believes that, these stages can be explained in seven general stages. Concentrating on the Imam Khomeini's works, and focusing on the explanations of his pupil Ayatollah Mazaheri about the seven stages of spiritual journeying and wayfaring, this paper seeks to entirely study these stages. Imam Khomeini's seven stages of spiritual journeying and wayfaring include, awakening, repentance, piety, interior purification, adornment reflection, effacement. Using analytical and desk-research method, this paper investigates the attitude of the Islamic mystics especially Imam Khomeini on the role of these stages, and it presents it in the form of a conceptual model.

One of the foundations of the practical mysticism is the unity of the wayfaring act with the rational soul, which should be discussed in the philosophy of science of wayfaring. The wayfaring act is an essential act not an accidental one, i.e. it does not have an identity, but a communicative one with the rational soul, that means the wayfaring act is the ideation of an act issuing from the rational soul, not from the bodily or hearty acts. This wayfaring act emerges from essential agent, and it is not one of the members and powers of the rational soul, but the rational soul itself. This unity goes back to two existential combinations, "endemaje" existential combination and endekaki one, which the combination in the first one is an existential mode abstracting from existence itself, and the combination in the second one is a combination of two longitudinal matters, which one is imperfect and the second itself, existentially is the perfect form of that imperfect. The combining unity is proved by three arguments, proving based on potentially and actually, proving based on correlating menses and proving based on depending identity.

Using descriptive-analytical method, this paper studies the God's Former and Congenital Knowledge of the objects from the viewpoint of Islamic mysticism. Presenting the correct image of the presence of objects in the stage of Divine Essence before their creation prevents considering the God's former knowledge of objects among the category of the knowledge without datum. The mysteries consider Allah Almighty as the simple and infinite being, which encompass the whole universe in such a way that, not only it is incompatible with the assumption of the real latitudinal beings, but also with the real longitudinal beings. This claim does not mean the negation of any plurality in the universe, but it means, truly and congenitally, existence can't be attributed to anyone except the Divine Essence. Hence, the witnessing multiplicities are the states and self-manifestations and epiphanic forms of that unit existence that has the real and actual fact. This paper shows that, the absolute being due to the non-conditional at the stage of division generality of the Exalted Reality requires the non-distinct existence of all facts and things in the status of Divine Essene. Thus, the intuitive knowledge of God to His Essence is the same as His acquired knowledge to the things in the status of Divine Essene.

Sheikh Ishraq, who is one of the brethren of detachment and the Sufis, has counted a series of lights that illuminate upon the beginners, intermediators and leaders of wayfaring. The illuminated lights upon the beginners, which is unstable, is called tavaleh and lavayeh and the illuminated lights upon the intermediators in wayfaring, which has stability is called sakineh (tranquility). These lights that are the illuminations from the non-material intellect upon the human soul have various guilds and effects. Tameth light is for the disciples and leaders in wayfaring, which leads the wayfarer to effacement and continuity after effacement. These Divine lights and bright lights upon the wayfarers are not the same as knowledge or a deriving pleasure from knowledge, and also entrance of these lights upon the wayfarers, especially manifestation of the incomprehensible light, does not mean connecting and uniting with the Innovator (the Exalted Reality). Nevertheless, Sheikh Ishraq has mentioned a kind of unity in this regard that has been criticized by Mulla Sadra.

One of the undeniable facts is the death that occurs for every human being. There are various points of view about the essence of death and its subsequent events in different schools. The human being has two dimensions of the soul and body, which the soul is the director of body from the viewpoint of Ibn al-Arabi's mysticism and Mulla Sadra's Hikmat al-Muta’li. Considering this fact about the truth of the human existence, and also due to the substantial motion of the soul, Mulla Sadra considers death as the end of the soul's movement and its realization, and consequently, its separation from the material body. Considering two dimensions of the human existentialism and also the quality of the system of creation from the mystical point of view Ibn 'Arabi also considers death as the separation of the soul from the body and its returning to its original position. Of course, from the viewpoint of Mulla Sadra, with the realization of death, the whole body interrupts its connection with the body, but Ibn Arabi believes that this disconnecting is not general. However, in terms of mysticism and philosophy, death is not an annihilator matter, but an existential matter that brings perfection for the soul.

Love is a matter that has celebrated by almost all mystics, and each of them has explained the truth and its place in the theological system of mysticism. Studying a subject in the structure of the mystical thought of various schools inspires a deep understanding about the related issues. Thus, this paper studies the status of love from the viewpoint of one of the twelfth century Christian mystics. Using, analytical-descriptive method and concentrating the works of St. Bernard, this paper study the view of this Christian mystic about love. He has discussed the truth of love in God and in man. Bernard considers the truth of love first in the Essence of God and then the essential characteristics of the three hypostases of the Trinity, and considers love as a gift to God. He categorized love in four times. He has also proposed existential and spiritual effects for love in the stage of Gog's Essence, the three hypostases of the Trinity and also the love of man. Some Bernard's words about the truth, the types and effects of love have close similarities with the Islamic mysticism, although the explanations are different in terms of mysticism. Bernard has considered the love of God and man separately, and has focused on "the human love to God". However, in the Islamic mysticism, there is a close relation between this issue with the mystical ontology and the unity of existence, and the love is regarded absolutely. Furthermore, due to the foundations of the permeation of love, and the theoretical explanations of mystical topics, there is not essential detachment between the God's states and the love of God.