Mystical Experience and its Critique of Pure

Reason in the Spiritual Epistemology of

Shraward and Rm
Milad Milani
Introduction
Though you believe in the accuracy of the scholastic
knowledge,
1
it will not open your inner eyes to invisible existence.
Rm
This paper aims to introduce and discuss some preliminary aspects of
mystical experience by examining the specific methodologies proposed
by two celebrated figures of twelfth and thirteenth century Persian
Sfsm, Shihab al-Dn Yahy al-Shraward and Jall al-Dn Rm. It
will focus on their critical exposition of inner knowledge as opposed to
knowledge by pure reason. The learned scholar and philosopher mystic
of Persian descent, Shraward, sought to unify scholarly differences
and to identify one common trajectory of wisdom from which both the
Greek and the Persian were descended. While making a clear break
from the Peripatetics and philosophers of reason before him, he
expounded upon the importance and primacy of direct mystical
experience as the only means through which one may transcend the
object/subject divide. Following the short life of Shraward, the great
Persian mystic and poet, Rm, brought with him a continuation of the
idea of religious unity and the belief that direct mystical experience
takes precedence over and above reasoning alone. His monumental
work, the Mathnaw represents the culmination of Sf experience and
wisdom and is a landmark work for later Sfs in its expression of the
heights of mystical knowledge. The central focus on unity of being,
which comes to its theoretical fulfillment in bn Arab, sits at the heart of
the legacy of these two masters. Addressing the dilemmas of the

Jall al-Dn Muhammad Balkhi, Mathnaw, a critical edition by Muhammad

Estelami, 6 volumes, Tehran, 1991, MVI /263. In subsequent citations M
refers to the published text and Roman numerals referring to the book.

Milad Milani
diversity of thought and the ultimate aim of spiritual union and fulfillment
of being, it has particular importance for the tradition of Persian Sfsm.

On the subject of knowledge, this paper will discuss two forms of

knowing that are peculiar to the phenomenon of religion: inner
or hidden knowledge as opposed to apparent knowledge. In the
Sf tradition these two forms of knowledge are referred to,
respectively, as ilm al-btin and ilm al-zhir. The term btin,
refers to that which is at the base or the inner core or the very
heart of things, and zhir simply indicates that which is, or
appears to be transparent.
It is necessary to first clarify the terminology used to express
inner knowledge: in particular, the terms gnosis and esoteric
have caused much debate in the scholarly world concerning their
application and meaning. 2 In terms of a practical mysticism, the
term esoteric represents hidden and protected knowledge that
requires a level of initiation and guided intuition; it is not subject
to normative means of learning. The term gnosis, then, refers to
experiential knowledge and the realisation of the truth, which
otherwise remains hidden or esoteric. Gnosis is sacred because
it refers to the highest realization of ones existence.
It is also important to clarify what knowledge or truth is being
discussed. There are many forms of knowledge. Secondly, the
terms esoteric and gnosis can be used interchangeably to
imply any form of privileged knowledge. For example, a simple
feat of carpentry demonstrates the very complexities of the
nature of esotericism and of knowledge. The building of common
household furniture is not as simple as it appears, especially if
one has no knowledge of carpentry. Even for the apprentice
carpenter, theoretical knowledge of carpentry is put to the test
2

See Antoine Faivre, Quotations of Terminology Proper to the Study of

Esoteric Currents in Modern and Contemporary Europe, and Wouter J
Hanegraaff, On the Construction of Esoteric Traditions, in Western
Esotericism and the Science of Religion, A Faivre and W J Hanegraaff, editors,
Belgium, 1998, 1-10 and 11-61.

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 Through a Glass Darkly

against the realities of the practice of carpentry. Many mistakes

are made before the art is mastered and the desired article
produced professionally. In any case, the type of knowledge that
the esoteric represents (or protects) is experiential knowledge,
or knowledge by experience. The possessor of gnosis is, in this
instance, one who is by necessity a practitioner par excellence of
a certain discipline. In other words, gnosis cannot be achieved in
theory, but only through strict observance of the principles and
disciplines of the way or method of ones practice.
A core premise in Islmic theology maintains that certainty is
the condition of true knowledge and proper insight is only gained
by way of three specific and necessary stages. It is believed that
before one can achieve true knowledge one first needs to follow
a strict discipline of practice. This is called Ilm al-Yaqeen or the
certainty of practice. After this, one will arrive at a proper vision
or clarity of thought, a stage referred to as Ayn al-Yaqeen or the
certainty of seeing. The final stage is defined by experience, this
is called Haqq al-Yaqeen or the certainty of truth. It is from
these basic principles that the two main figures under discussion
expound upon their mystical vision and epistemology. Shihab alDn Yahy b. Habsh b. Amirak, Abul-Fth al-Shraward
(1154-1191) and Mawln Jall al-Dn Mohammed Balkh- i
Rm (1207-1273) have written extensively on the concept of
experiential knowledge, though via different methodological
avenues.
A brief overview of Shraward and Rm in a Sf context
Shraward and Rm both fall into the period of Sfsm that is
characterised by its speculative drive and by a preoccupation
with the attributes of gnosis and love. Each figure is further
defined by distinct methodological approaches to Sfsm. Where
Shraward would typically fall into the rational or philosophical
realm and is, therefore, obviously an advocate of gnosis, Rm
focuses on the principal of love through the realm of poetry.
These are, however, technical, scholarly distinctions and both

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Milad Milani

Shraward and Rm transcend their own methodology in their

appeal to spirituality and the true heart of Sfsm. In short, the
way or method, for these two figures, is only the means to the
Truth, after which naught but the Truth itself remains without any
trace of the seeker (as idealised within the concept of fan).
A primary teaching that pervades Sfsm is the constant warning
of the individual regarding trap/s (and demands) of the nafs.3 The
entire depth and breadth of Sf spirituality is encapsulated in
this fundamental precept and expressed in a variety of ways by
Sf masters through the ages. This teaching is comprised of two
doctrinal components that form the basis of Sf practice: selfexamination (mohsebeh) as formally instigated by al-Mohsib
(d.857) and chivalry (javnmard)4 a rich tradition given particular
spiritual impetus as a result of the rise of Islm. Sfsm, which
was from its inception motivated by love (eshq) for Absolute
Being (Allh, Haqq, H) crystalised into two living traditions of
thought: the school of Baghdad (sobriety) and the school of
Khorsn (drunkenness). The latter is the dominant form of
3

Expressed in psychoanalytical terminology as the ego, it is more accurate to

understand the term to imply the base self. However, the concept does not, in
the Sf paradigm, denote something that is entirely a component of evil nor is it
necessarily associated with matter as its source. Two notions that help us deal
with the complexities of the principle of the nafs are in a sense corruption (of
the soul) and forgetfulness (of its divine origin). The idea of the nafs and its
various stages is based on the Qran and is expounded upon by Sf masters
explaining the progressive stages of the soul (ar-ruh) with which the term nafs
is often exchangeable with. For the outline of the stages of the nafs see
Annemarie Schimmel, Islm, in Historia Religionum, C J Bleeker and G
Widengren, editors, Leiden, 1971, 180; and J Nurbakhsh, Sf Psychology,
London, 1983, 51-59.
4
Javaanmardi or spiritual chivalry as it is better translated (which overlaps
somewhat with the practice of db), is the adherence to a set of ethical codes
by the individual that make up the core discipline of Sf practice, in this
instance. For an extensive discourse on the history and practice of
Javaanmardi see Karim Zayyani, Javaanmardi dar aayne-ye tasawwuf, in Sf,
Issue 50, March, London, 2001, 26-37; also see introduction to Hussayn Waiz
Kashifi Sabziwari, Futuwat Namah-Yi Sultani, translated by J R Crook, Chicago,
2000, xxi-xxxi.

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 Through a Glass Darkly

Persian Sfsm and upholds the importance of db5 over and

above asceticism (zhd).
These various practical Sf doctrines often subtly overlap each
other. However, Sfsm traditionally quotes a particular Hadth of
the Prophet, as an exemplar, in which the aim of Sfsm is
concisely defined: man rafa nafsah faqad rafa Rabbah [he
who knows his own self, knows his Lord].6 This paper will mainly
focus upon the notion of mohsebeh and begin to clarify this idea
and discuss in greater detail the structure and meaning of the
methodologies of Shraward and Rm in light of the doctrine of
self-knowledge.
A point of departure in methodological approaches toward a
hermeneutics of esotericism and the phenomenology of
religion
The hermeneutics of esotericism is a methodological approach
to the study of religion that aims to interpret esoteric texts, and
their concepts, theories and principles on their own terms. Its
primary concern is to treat world religions not simply as a
subject of social scientific research, but, as Eliade has put it, as
hierophany (that is, manifestation of the sacred).7 The basic
premise underlying this approach is the claim that religious texts
and practices share a common core that is only separated
methodically and socio-culturally in shaping individual ontological
styles. As important as social science may be to the study of
religion, an understanding of the nature of world religions, and
especially their esoteric content, is predicated upon
methodological approaches that look beyond methods which
5

According to the Tj al-ars, a classical Arabic dictionary, adab (the singular

of db) is the learning of the exercises of the carnal soul (nafs), the
betterment of morals. See G S Reynolds, The Sf Approach to Food: A Case
Study of db, The Muslim World, Hartford, 2000, Vol 90, 199.
6
Hadith Qudsi.
7
See Mircea Eliade and Lawrence E Sullivan, Hierophany, in The
Encyclopedia of Religion. New York, 1987, 313-15.

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Milad Milani

focus only on social and cultural layers. Interpretation of texts

and practices becomes central for a hermeneutics of
esotericism; these elements act as a window to the definitive
centre and essential being of a particular tradition.
In light of this, there exists a great need for further scholarly
appreciation of esoteric and mystical material as both the product
and trigger of hierophanic experience. Firstly, it is important to
take note of Oldmeadows comment that religious phenomena
must be treated sui generis and not rammed into the theoretical
straitjackets of reductionistic models of religion.8 Secondly, as
Oldmeadow points out in connection with Eliade, it is essential
to:
try to grasp the essence of such a phenomenon by means of
physiology, psychology, sociology, economics, linguistics, art or
any other study is false; it misses the one unique and
9
irreducible element in it the element of the sacred.

For instance, the performative and transformative character of a

particular text remains inextricable from the sacred
understanding and connection that a particular religious
consciousness has with the said text. Examining such
phenomena is the task of the esoter[ic]ist of religion; and
moreover, as I have asserted, by means of a hermeneutics of
esotericism that heads toward a phenomenology of
[comparative] esotericism gnosticism and mysticism.
Of course, this is not new. What I phrase hermeneutics of
esotericism is implicit and innate to the methodologies of
Nicholson, 10 Arberry,11 Corbin, 12 Massignon, 13 and Schimmel14 to
8

Harry Oldmeadow, Debating Orientalism, Australian Religion Studies

Review, Vol 18.2, November 2005, 144.
9
Mircea Eliade, Patterns in Comparative Religion, New York, 1958, xiii.
10
R A Nicholson, Studies in Islamic Mysticism, Cambridge, 1921.
11
A J Arberry, The Doctrine of the Sufis. Kitab al-taarruf li-madhhab ahl altasawwuf, Lahore, 1966.
12
Henry Corbin, Man of Light in Iranian Sufism, New York, 1978.

235

 Through a Glass Darkly

name but a few of the leading European specialists in Oriental

scholarship who have opened up the avenues of learning and
infinite possibilities of textual appreciation of the sacred content
of mystical material of the East to the West. These gave rise to a
revival of Western Esotericism of which the current exponents
are Hanegraaff and Faivre. 15 Esoteric knowledge of this kind
continues to attract more serious attention in the East where the
tradition is continued by the prolific scholars of the philosophia
perennis and pre-eminent exponents of the traditionalist school
such as Guenon, 16 Schuon, Coomaraswamy, Suzuki, Ling, and
Nasr.17 Although critiqued for their attack on the modernist
position and for maintaining an elitist ambiance, their work
remains an essential source for understanding the sacred.
The Traditionalists, along with Eliade (who belongs to the Eranos
School) and the above-mentioned Orientalists have played a vital
role in the building the methodological approach to the study of
the sacred within religion found in this paper. Their work is
indispensable, for instance, in interpreting key themes that
feature within and also define the Mathnaw of Rm and the
Illuminationist Wisdom of Shraward. Both Shraward and
Rm are axial points in Sf learning and history, and were
important innovators in terms of methodological approach for the
didactic tradition of mystical literature. The methodological
13

Louis Massignon, The Passion of al-Hallaj: mystic and martyr of Islam,

Princeton, 1982.
14
Annemarie Schimmel, Mystical dimensions of Islam, Chapel Hill, 1975.
15
For an introduction to their work see Faivre and Hanegraaff, op cit.
16
There is a need for further clarity concerning Guenons position among the
Traditionalists, which will not be pursued here as it is beyond the scope of this
paper. Briefly, although he was the first to publicly articulate the Traditionalist
perspective and he is also associated with the school of thought through his
earliest writings, key positions in Guenons thought as indicated by Trompf beg
the question of his correct association with the school. See G W Trompf,
Macrohistory in Blavatski, Steiner and Guenon, in Western Esotericism and
the Science of Religion, op cit, 294-5; Oldmeadow, op cit, 145.
17
For a good introduction to the Traditionalists and the idea of perennial
philosophy see Harry Oldmeadow, Traditionalism, Colombo, 2000, and Jacob
Needleman, The Sword of Gnosis, Baltimore, 1974.

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Milad Milani

approaches to comparative religion found with this paper are

also indebted to these two great figures in Sufi thought.
Shraward
Opinions on Shraward vary between those who are strict
admirers of his philosophical and scientific genius, and those
who maintain the importance of his mystical or allegorical
treatises. The Master of Illumination (Sheikh al-Ishrq) as he is
called, was the founder of an independent, non-Aristotelian
school of philosophy named the Philosophy of Illumination. He
was born in the small town of Shraward in Persia 550/1154 18
and met with a violent death by execution in Aleppo in the year
587/1191 as a result of his increasing involvement in politics.
However, during his relatively short life he managed to produce
over fifty works, many of which remain unpublished. Shraward
was educated in Persia under eminent masters of theology and
philosophy and moved to Syria (Aleppo) where he tutored a
number of late sixth/twelfth century rulers to whom he taught his
controversial Illuminationist political doctrine. Notable among
them were Seljk Sulaymn Shh, who commissioned a number
of Shrawards works, and the son of the Ayybid Salh al-Dn
(famously known as Salddn), the young prince al-Mlik al-Zhir
Ghz, the governor of Aleppo under whom Shraward met his
death.
Shrawards deep appreciation of Aristotle lead him to a rethinking of Arabic Aristotelianism. He was critical of what he saw
as the endless inconsistencies and ambiguities of Aristotle who,
Shraward felt, never clearly demonstrated his theory of intuitive
knowledge nor ever systematically presented what constitutes
the intuitive mode. His concern with intuitive knowledge was not
limited to the Greek sphere alone. Shraward was an advocate
of what he called ancient wisdom (Hikmat al-atq), which was
able to reveal the truth that remains at the heart of all divinely
18

Respectively Arabic and Christian dating.

237

 Through a Glass Darkly

revealed religions.19 Shraward attempted to bridge the gap

between Islm and the pre-Islmic philosophies of hermeticism,
Pythagoreanism, neo-Platonism, and, in particular, between
Islm and the wisdom of the ancient Persians.20 Shraward lived
at a time when there was a need to re-unify the Islmic sciences
and to synthesise the myriad, contradictory schools of thought.
Thus, his greatest contribution lay in his efforts to introduce an
all-encompassing theory of knowledge that operated in parallel
with his critique of the Peripatetics.
Shrawards underlying belief that philosophical discourse is a
necessary part of ones spiritual path is unique. This was
revolutionary in light of the Sfs traditional rejection of
rationalistic philosophy and the Peripatetics similar rejection of
Sfsm. More precisely, Shraward aimed to harmonise
intuitive knowledge (al-hikma al-dhawqiyya) with deductive
knowledge (al-hikma al-bahthiyya). 21 He does this by formulating
his unified epistemological theory, which he called Knowledge
by Presence (ilm al-hdr). This theory became his key method
for arguing in favour of synthesising the diverse schools of
thought and unifying them into a single philosophical paradigm. 22
Although philosophy occupied a privileged position in
Shrawards method, it has to be said that his entire
methodology was informed, first and foremost, by the mystical
experience. Therefore, his works can be divided into two
categories: his philosophical epistemology and, more

19

Mehdi Aminrazavi, The Significance of Shrawards Persian Sf Writings in

the Philosophy of Illumination, in Leonard Lewisohn, editor, The Heritage of
Sfsm: Classical Persian Sfsm from its Origins to Rm (700-1300), Oxford,
Vol 1, 1999, 260.
20
Ibid. See also Henry Corbin, Les motifs Zoroastriens dans la philosophie de
Sohrawardi, Tehran, Vol 3, 1946 and Spiritual body and celestial earth: from
Mazdean Iran to Shiite Iran, translated by Nancy Pearson, London, 1990.
21
Hossein Ziai, al-Shraward, in The Encyclopaedia of Islm, Vol 9, Leiden,
1995, 782b.
22
Mehdi Hairi Yazdi, The Principles of Epistemology in Islmic Philosophy:
Knowledge by Presence, New York, 1992, 43ff.

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Milad Milani

importantly, his ishrq (or theosophical) epistemology. 23

Shraward argued that philosophical epistemology of various
modes and schools inevitably suffers from one major
shortcoming: while they have their uses, philosophically based
epistemological models (including his own) fall short of attaining
certainty. Therefore, the rationalistic aspect of his theory of
knowledge is important largely to the extent that his philosophical
epistemology can be seen as an extended, supplementary
commentary to his ishrq and esoteric works. 24
This is clarified in Shrawards ishrq principles. Certainty is a
product of experiential knowledge and experiential knowledge is
based on knowing ourselves. For Shraward this is the
underlying axiom upon which cognition takes place and also
what he believed the Peripatetics had previously ignored. 25 This
special mode of cognition, which he calls Knowledge by
Presence, attains knowledge directly and without mediation,
going beyond the traditional subject/object divide. 26
The first stage of his ishrq epistemology, in essence, argues
that there is an unconditional and unchangeable self that defines
what individuals refer to as the I but is also commonly
misunderstood for the attributes that are conceptually or
accidentally attached to it. Next Shraward explains that
23

For an extended discussion on this subject see Amirnazavi, op cit, 267-269.

This hypothesis is strongly supported by Amirnazavi and contrasts the sole
emphasis placed on Shrawards philosophical works by Hairi and Ziai. See
Amirnazavi, loc. cit. It is argued by scholars Hairi and Ziai that Shrawards
philosophical works can be said to stand alone depending on the degree to
which they are successful in offering enlightenment to the adept via intellectual
means. Shraward does not deny this as being possible. See Hossein Ziai,
Knowledge by Illumination, Atlanta, 1990; Hairi, op cit.
25
Amirnazavi, op cit, 265. On Shraward and the Greek tradition see John
Walbridge, The Leaven of the Ancients: Shraward and the Heritage of the
Greeks, New York, 2000. The tradition of self-knowledge extends back to the
time of the Pre-Socratics, which carries through in Socrates and Plato.
Shraward acknowledges that there is a break at Aristotle, but mostly argues
that this is because the latters work has been largely misunderstood.
26
Amirnazavi, op cit, 265-6
24

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 Through a Glass Darkly

whereas proving the metaphysical self requires philosophical

arguments, the attributes of the self (that are made up of worldly
desires) are easy to identify. 27 He addresses this matter in some
detail in his Sf writings.
The second stage consists of the self revealing itself through a
process of unveiling. For this, Shraward prescribes some
ascetic practices as helpful for attaining mastery over the
individual ego and for allowing its false attributes to vanish one
by one. Throughout this process the self, whose relationship to
its attributes is likened to that of the accidental qualities of sugar
(that is, its whiteness, and so on) to sweetness, begins to reveal
its I-ness.28
When you have made a careful inquiry into yourself you will
find out that you are made of yourself which is nothing but that
which knows its own reality. This is your own I-ness
(anaiyyatuka). This is the manner in which everyone is to know
29
himself and in which everyones I-ness is common with you.

This constitutes the principle foundation for a theoretical

understanding of Unity of Being (wahdat al-wjd), wherein
individuals are united in one common reality, that is, their Iness: though it is Rm who later takes this beyond its
theoretical bounds in the ecstatic quotation, there is no room in
this house for two Is.30 Shraward no doubt understood this,
but saw the essential role of philosophy as a useful tool for the
realization of the I and the fact that it is separate from its
attributes. Sufi practices and ascetic techniques were then to be
incorporated for the task of destroying the accidental qualities

27

Ibid, 266.
Ibid, 267.
29
Ibid, source: Al- Shraward, Umar, uvres philosphiques et mysticques, Vol
1, Tehran + Paris, Biblioteque Iranienne, 1331/1952, Opera Metaphysica et
Mystica II, 112.
30
Nicholson, The Mathnaw of Jalluddn Rum, Vol I, London, 2001, 167.
28

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Milad Milani

(such as worldly desires) and in finally achieving annihilation

(fana). 31
It is in this regard that Shrawards ishrq doctrine offered the
synthesis between discursive philosophy, intellectual intuition
and practical wisdom. His theosophical epistemology is further
elaborated in seven short treatises known as his Persian Sf
writings. These are: Risl al-Tayr (The Treatise of the Birds),
Awz-i Par-i Jibril (The Chant of Gabriels Wing), Aql-i Surkh
(The Red Intellect), Ruzi Ba Jamiat-i Sfyyan (A Day Among
the Community of Sfs), Risla fi Hlt al-Tufuliyya (Treatise
on the State of Childhood), Risl fi Haqqat al-Ishq (Treatise
on the Reality of Love), and Lughat-i Murn (The Language of
the Termites). 32
These remain central works though which the heart of his
Illuminationist Wisdom (Hikmat al-ishraq) is understood.
Shraward confesses to this point in the introduction to his
Hikmat al-ishrq:
The truth and the content of that [Hikmat al-Ishrq] for me was
not realized through intellection but through a separate means.
Finally, having realized their truths [through illumination], I then
sought to find their rational justification, however, in such a
fashion that even were I to ignore [the rational basis of] these
demonstrated propositions, no skeptic could ever cause me to
33
fall into doubt concerning the truth of these things.

Shrawards philosophical discourse arises from the need to

explain the certainty of spiritual experience in a rational and
systematical fashion: he was by profession an adept philosopher
and scholar.
31

Amirnazavi, op cit, 267.

A brief synopsis of these has been offered by Amirnazavi in his article, op cit,
271-83. For their translation see W M Thackson, The Mystical and Visionary
Treatises of Shihabuddn Yahy Shraward, London, 1982.
33
Amirnazavi, source: Al- Shraward, Hikmat al-ishraq, translated by Sayyid
Ja far Sajjadi, Tehran, 1978, 18.
32

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 Through a Glass Darkly

Rm
The Persian poet, Rumi, was founder of the Mawlawiyya (or
Mevlevi) order, known in the West as the Whirling Dervishes,
because of his reputation for suddenly falling into a romantic
trance and whirling in the middle of the marketplace while
reciting poetic verses. It was at the behest of his beloved student
Hosamoddn Chalabi (himself the head of an order of chivalry) 34
that the Mathnaw, Rms celebrated and most treasured work,
was written down in order to collect the spiritual couplets that he
would otherwise randomly recite. Of course, all of this was due to
Rms falling in love with the legendary wandering dervish,
Shams-i Tabrizi, who is celebrated in Sfsm as a great mystic
with somewhat miraculous abilities. Before his meeting with
Shams-i, Rm was already at the head of his fathers Sf
school. After migrating from Balkh (in modern day Afghanistan),
where Rm was born in the year 604/1207, his father (Bah
Vald) established his school at Konya at the request of the
Seljuk Prince when Rm was still very young. 35 After his fathers
death, he completed his education in all the traditional Islmic
sciences including theology, jurisprudence, prophetic traditions,
Islmic philosophy and literature under the eldest member of the
school.
It was at the height of his career as a well-respected scholar that
Shams-i entered his life. The famed exchange that took place
between them is recited by Sf tradition as the example par
excellence of the relationship between master and apprentice. In
one story, it is told that Shams-i (who is described as jendepoosh: a person who dresses in rags and looks no more than a
beggar on the streets) speaks to Rm and inquires about the
34

At a time when Hosamoddn became a disciple of Rm, he was already the

head of a local order for the training of young men in chivalry. Jawid Mojaddedi,
The Masnavi: Book One, Oxford, 2004, xviii.
35
A Bausani, Jall al-Dn Rm, in The Encyclopaedia of Islm, Vol 2, Leiden,
1995, 393b; also see Mojaddedi, op cit, xv.

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Milad Milani

important books from which he was teaching. Rm replied

these books contain things you would not understand. Then,
suddenly, the books caught on fire and Rm in astonishment
demanded, how did you do that?, and Shams-i replied
something you do not understand.36 This is the legendary story
that is associated with Rms introduction to the real world of
gnosis which can never be attained through normative means of
learning. Capturing this experience, Rm writes, Though you
believe in the accuracy of the scholastic knowledge, it will not
open your inner eyes to invisible existence.37
To clarify, Rm deliberately sets up a duality concerning the
nature of knowledge. The illustration is literal insofar as it is
demonstrative of two distinct cognitive states; it is not, however,
a literal description of two apparently factual worlds. As such,
there are two main definitions of knowledge (or ilm) in the
Mathnaw: one is related to the visible and material world
accessible through intellecual facilities, while the other is not
worldly, not taught in schools and not accessible through books.
This is often playful and entertaining as these modes are
necessary in demonstrating the subtleties of inward knowledge.
Like Shraward, the prerequisite for achieving the latter form of
knowledge to first realise and accept that there is an invisible
world that one is not at present able to see and which is the
only real and eternal aspect of existence.38 Unlike Shraward,
however, rather than philosophical discourse, Rms primary
methodology is expressed through imaginative poesis. Rm
therefore, makes significant appeal to the emotions39 and
36

For other versions of their meeting (including this one) see Eva de VitrayMeyerovitch, Rm and Sfsm, California, 1987, 23ff.
37
M VI/263.
38
This is indicative of the proper state of mind of the seeker, in that the subject
wishes to understand more than what is made manifest. In addition, this arises
from the fundamental clause and first principle in Islmic practice, which is the
act of taslm (or surrender [to God]).
39
Emotion here infers the power of love, loving-kindness, compassion, mercy,
fear, repentance, and so on.

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 Through a Glass Darkly

imagination of his readers through which indispensable access is

gained to the Spirit. In this respect, the Mathnaw is to be read
and understood within a specific genre of hierophanic history,
which escapes the conventional parameters of both factual
history and imaginative fiction, yet remains within the rational
appreciation of both the realm of history and fiction. It is history
insofar as events in the lives of adepts are deemed possible, and
did, in fact, occur and it is fiction insofar as it operates according
to the stereoscopic dynamics of poetic function. 40 Most
importantly, the Mathnaw serves to retain what is necessarily
significant to religious experience i.e. spiritual biography.
Therefore, figures of scriptural history, and other imaginative
characters are specifically incorporated in order to engage the
reader for didactic purposes.
The way to the invisible world for Rm is through the heart.
Firstly, Rm believes that spiritual education opens a window
upon an invisible school inside an individuals heart and upon
the mysteries which are perceptible only through inner vision. 41
Secondly, Rm acknowledges the indispensable role of the
spiritual guide or master (Pr or Murshid) as being necessary for
the illumination of ones heart, though, like a good Muslim he
maintains that it is above all upon the grace of God that ones
direction toward this path is based in the first place.
Rms poetry makes contrasting illustrations of terms in order to
highlight effectively the difference between the functional quality
and capacity of inward knowledge and surface knowledge in the
Mathnaw. He does this beautifully by the use of antonyms; and
his famous anecdote of the boatman and the grammarian can be
used to illustrate this here. The conceited grammarian, a nahw,
40

Victoria Kennick Urupshurow, Hierophanic History and the Symbolic

Process: A Response to Ricoeurs Call for a Generative Poetics, in Religious
Traditions, Vol 13, 1990, 48.
41
Mohammad Estelami, The concept of Knowledge in Rms Mathnaw, in
Leonard Lewisohn, editor, The Heritage of Sfsm: Classical Persian Sfsm
from its Origins to Rm (700-1300), Vol 1, Oxford, 1999, 401-2.

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Milad Milani

one day embarked on a boat journey and asked the boatman:

Have you ever studied nahw (grammar)? The boatman said
that he had never studied grammar, and the nahw said to him:
O! I feel so sorry for you, half your life has gone for naught. The
boatman did not answer immediately and kept silent for a while,
until the wind cast the boat into a whirlpool. Then the boatman
shouted: do you know how to swim? the proud grammarian said
that he had never learnt to swim. The boatman said: O Nahw!
Your whole life has gone for naught, because the boat is sinking
in this whirlpool.42 Following this anecdote Rm offers a further
play on words to finalise his point,
Here what is needed is self-effacement (mahw), not grammar
(nahw).
If youre effaced from self, then plunge into the sea,
43
and be not frightened of any peril or danger.

Self-effacement comes from the pursuit of education in the

school of the heart. Here the study of fiqh or sarf or nahw
transforms into the jurisprudence of jurisprudence (fiqh-i fiqh),
the morphology of morphology (sarf-i sarf), and the grammar of
grammar (nahw-i nahw), 44 placing emphasis on the knowledge
that comes from within. Hence, the initial goal of the Sf adept is
to first enter the realm of the heart and thereby illuminate his or
her being. This concerns a central aspect in Sf practice that
involves the constant purification and transformation of this
psycho-spiritual organ. Obviously, the heart is not solely a Sf
symbol. In invoking the heart, Rm primarily aimed to avoid the
formal separations of linguistic, cultural or ideological boundaries
and envoke a unitary and universal concept that would allow all
people to embrace and adapt the Mathnaw. With the presence
of Zoroastrians, Jews, Christians and Muslims in Konya, Rm
recognised importance of demonstrating a harmonious centre to
which all religious traditions belonged. In this approach, the
42

M I/2835.
M III/1124.
44
Estelami, op cit, 403.
43

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 Through a Glass Darkly

Mathnaw occupies an Islmic paradigm, but at the same time

transcends it in its profound appreciation of the hierophanic
experience of the Other to such an extent that it transcends
normative religious appreciation altogether. Reminiscent of an
invitation of Christ into ones life, Rm maintained that it is,
firstly, the opening of the gate in ones heart which is necessary
in inaugurating the spiritual journey. Everyone in whose heart
the gate is opened, will behold the sun from everywhere. 45
Those hearts that remain closed and unaware remain in a
constant state of imitation.
Again, like Saint Paul, who would emphasise faith over religion,
but firmly echoing the words of the Qran, Rm also relates that
the knowledge of real religion (ilm-i dn)46 belongs to the
knowledge of the one who becomes aware of his heart (ilm-i
ahl-i del) . 47 In short, worldly knowledge (or rather knowledge
absent of the heart) is an obstacle on the road to the real and
divine knowledge.
Between the realizer and the imitator,
there are many differences.
The former is like David and the imitator
48
is only an echo [not a song, not a singer].

Rm maintains that humankind was not created to satisfy its

material side of being, but rather material being is a vehicle by
which one should approach the frontier of Eternity.49 The point of
the recurrent Sf theme of the nafs is, lastly, that humankind has
become forgetful of its source of origin and remains a prisoner of
45

M I/1409. For the use of Jesus in the Mathnaw, see J. R. King, Jesus and
Joseph in Rms Mathnaw, Muslim World, LXXX, No. 2, Hartford, 1990, 8195; For a detailed discussion on the subject of Jesus in Sf literature see Milad
Milani, An Analysis of the mystical significance of Jesus in Sf Literature,
forthcoming.
46
M I/1019.
47
M I/3461; Estelami, op cit, 405.
48
M II/496.
49
Estelami, op cit, 406.

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Milad Milani

the physical self. So Rm recites, The ear of the head is as

cotton-wool in the ear of conscience, to open the inner ear, the
ear of the head must become deaf.50
Conclusion
The subject of mystical experience remains a source of
fascination for the West, especially the field of study known as
Sfsm. There is no doubt that there is something that drives the
human soul to perfection, even though this may be, in reality, an
unattainable goal. This very thing, this force or energy was
described and put into words by the great mystics, who had
recognised its potential, as love. Hence the theoretical
construction of the realm of the heart in Sf literature and the
constant reiteration of its distinguished reality from its opposite
force, the intellect (aql). The Sfs held heart education in such
esteem that their central identity and image was classically
formed around the concept of a dervish51, which was deliberately
contrasted to the monetary associations of intellectual or
scholastic education. The dervish, by comparison, was the
graduate of the invisible school of the heart. As a result, the
works of Shraward and Rm are especially important for an
investigation into the nature and reality of mystical experience
and inner knowledge as they contain much of the sacred
knowledge that had been kept secretly within the oral tradition of
Sfsm for many centuries.
For an approach to the subject area I have here discussed only
in brief the methodological technique that I believe to be most
pertinent to an academic investigation of this style. I must stress
again that the great labours of Nicholson, Arberry and Corbin
have been a phenomenal step forward in this way and likewise
the efforts of Eliade and the Traditionalists have also been
50

M I/571.
Literally poor or indigent, which was to be applied later on as a symbol of
inner poverty or spiritual poverty.
51

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 Through a Glass Darkly

paramount in achieving a closer appreciation of the esoteric and

gnosiological content of mystical traditions.
The central tenet discussed here is the idea that religious
traditions of the world are not only accidentally (in the
philosophical sense of the word) different but that they are
connected at their core by a common thread of values and
principles, which require proper means of academic attention
and interpretation. As such, the hermeneutics of esotericism is
engaged in hierophanic history and interested in the meaning
and value of the principles that underpin and give life to its
practical and spiritual dimension. Therefore, adequate academic
research and specialised attention aims to reveal core relative
factors at the heart of religious practices that not only drive
religious agencies but motivate religious experience as a whole.
One such common factor related to spiritual practice I have
introduced in this paper as self knowledge. Its discourse
stretches back into antiquity and it permeates the various
canonical traditions today. Moreover, as I have demonstrated in
this paper, it is a central tenet of both Shraward and Rm s
mystical epistemology. The pursuit in self knowledge is not a
promotion in the ego-self but rather its demotion from a state of
attachment and pride in order to reveal the real-self or the nonself. To return to the Hadith quote, he who knows his self,
knows his Lord, the individual in seeking his or her own self will
come to find nothing substantial or permanent but God [the Real,
the True (al-Haqq)].

248