Second principle

What is the Ascension’s reality?

Answer: It is Prophet Muhammad’s journey through the degrees of perfection. Almighty God has various Names and titles manifested in the arrangement and disposition of creatures, and displays diverse works of His Lordship—His upbringing, training, sustaining, and providing—as the results of executing His absolute authority in inventing and administering creatures in the levels of the “heavens” where He executes His Lordship in different ways and according to each level’s conditions.

To show His Lordship’s works to His special servant and thereby enable him to encompass all human perfections, receive all Divine manifestations, view all levels of the universe, announce His Lordship’s sovereignty, proclaim what He approves of, and unveil creation’s enigmatic meaning, God Almighty mounted him on Buraq. God raised him through the heavens like lightning, promoted him to higher ranks, and displayed Divine Lordship to him from mansion to mansion and from sphere to sphere. He also showed him the Prophets, his brothers, whose abodes are in the heavens of those spheres, one after the other. Finally He raised him to the station of the distance of two bows’ length and honored him with the special manifestation of all His Names to the fullest degree, with His Speech, and with the vision of Himself.

We may examine this sublime truth through two comparisons.

First comparison: As explained in The Twenty‑fourth Word, a king has different titles in his government’s departments, names, and attributes vis‑à‑vis his subjects’ classes; and designations and marks in his rule’s spheres and offices (e.g., just ruler in the department of justice, sovereign in the civil service, commander‑in‑chief in the army, chief teacher in the department of education). He has a seat or a chair in each sphere and department, which has the meaning of a throne. That one king may have 1,000 names and titles in his sovereignty’s spheres and his government’s departments, as well as 1,000 thrones of sovereignty one within or adjacent to the other.

It is as if that king were present and knows what is going on in every sphere through his collective personality and phone. He sees and is seen in each department through his laws, regulations, and representatives. He administers and observes from behind the veil in each level through his rule, knowledge, and power. He has a different center and headquarters in each sphere. Each sphere and department have different rules. The king designates one of his subjects, shows him to all those spheres and departments, and makes him witness his imperial dominion and commands unique to each. He then brings him to his presence, entrusts him with certain general and universal commands concerning all spheres and departments, and sends him back.

Likewise, the Lord of the worlds, the Sovereign of eternity, has attributes and qualities in His Lordship’s levels that differ and yet are related to each other, Names and signs in His Divinity’s spheres that differ but appear one within the other, and manifestations and inspirations in performing His majestic acts that differ but resemble each other. He also has titles in His Power’s execution that differ but hint at each other, sacred revelations in His Attributes’ manifestation that differ yet point to each other; operations in His actions’ manifestation that differ but complement each other, and aspects of His majestic Lordship in His colorful art and multicolored creatures that differ yet observe each other.

He organized the universe in an amazing and wonderful fashion because of this mysterious reality. The universe has different formations one over the other, from particles to the heavens, from the heavens’ first level to God’s Greatest Throne. Each heaven is the roof of a different world, a chair for exercising Divine Lordship, a center for Divine operations. Due to His absolute Oneness, all Divine Names may be found in all spheres and levels, and He may show Himself with all of His titles in them.

However, just as the title of just ruler belonging to the king in the comparison dominates in the department of justice and the others are subordinate, in each level of creatures and in each heaven, a Divine title dominates and the others are subordinate to it. For example, in whichever heaven Prophet Muhammad met Prophet Jesus, who was distinguished with the manifestation of the Divine Name the All‑Powerful, Almighty God is in constant manifestation in that heaven, primarily with that very Name. Again, in the sphere of the heavens which is the abode of Prophet Moses, God’s title as Speaker, with which He distinguished Moses, is predominant.

Finally, Prophet Muhammad—having been honored with the manifestation of God’s Greatest Name and of all His other Names as well as being given a universal Prophethood—must be connected with all of His Lordship’s spheres. Also, the Ascension’s reality required Prophet Muhammad to meet with the Prophets whose seats are in those spheres and pass through all of those levels.

Second comparison: The title of commander‑in‑chief, a title of a king, is seen throughout an army’s ranks. A private sees his corporal as a sample of that imposing title, and so listens to and obeys him. A corporal sees his sergeant in the same way, and so obeys him. A sergeant sees his lieutenant in the same way, and so on. He will see the title in each sphere (e.g., captain, major, colonel, general, and field‑marshal) in proportion to the sphere’s size.

If the commander‑in‑chief entrusts a soldier with a duty connected to all military ranks, or gives him a rank that allows him to appear in every office and control it like an inspector, the soldier must be given the necessary knowledge and be recognized by the personnel. Thus the commander‑in‑chief arranges for him to make a study and inspection tour of all the ranks. After that, the soldier will be admitted into the commander‑in‑chief’s presence to have a private conversation, receive a decoration and decree, and be sent back from whence he came.

The following point must be noted: If, in addition to his political power, the king has spiritual, saintly power, he will not deputize others to act in his name in different offices. Rather, he will be present everywhere in person and give orders directly, appearing in the form of persons of certain rank. In fact, there are narrations of kings who reached sainthood’s highest level and so executed their rule in many spheres in the form of certain individuals. In other words, since the commander‑in‑chief is powerful, the decrees and commands come directly from him in every office and are executed through his command, will, and power.

The Ruler of the heavens and Earth, the Absolute Sovereign and Lord of eternity having the command of “Be!” and it is, has a sphere of Lordship, a level of rulership in the levels of creatures and classes of beings, ranging from particles to planets, from flies to the heavens, all of which differ but are related to each other. In each sphere, His regulations, statutes, and commands are carried out in perfect order and obedience. Thus in order to comprehend this universe’s elevated aims and tremendous results, witness the duties of worship particular to each level and class, observe the sovereignty of the One of Grandeur’s Lordship and His rule’s majesty, understand what is pleasing to Him, and be a herald of His sovereignty, one must travel through all levels and spheres of His rulership until reaching the Supreme Throne (the title of the greatest, all‑encompassing sphere) and attaining to the ultimate rank that a servant can reach (called the distance of two bows’ length), and meet with the One of Majesty and Grace. This is the reality of the Ascension.

Like ordinary people travelling in their minds with the speed of imagination and journeying in their hearts with the speed of lightning, angels (whose bodies are of light) circulate with the speed of spirit from God’s Throne to Earth back again. The people of Paradise will rise from the Place of Gathering to Paradise covering a distance of 500 years[1]·with the speed of Buraq. Likewise, Prophet Muhammad’s body will accompany his elevated spirit in his journey as far as God’s Throne. This is so because his body contains the faculties of his spirit and the means for performing its duties, and because his spirit is of pure light, has the abilities of light, and is more refined than saints’ hearts, lighter than the deceaseds’ spirits and the angels’ forms, and finer than the beings’ energetic envelopes.

·Now we say to the unbeliever who does not recognize God or know of the Prophet, and so does not believe in the Ascension: The universe and all of its creatures and diverse acts exist, and a continual creation is observed therein. An orderly act must have an author, a meaningful book must have a writer, and a skillful design must have a designer. Therefore the wise and purposeful acts filling the universe must have an author, and the meaningful letters and amazing inscriptions or designs covering Earth and renewed seasonally must have a writer and a designer.

In addition, the result of two rulers interfering in the same affair is disorder. But we can see that there is perfect order in everything, from a fly’s wings to the sky’s lamp (the sun). So the ruler is One, for if this were not true, and given that the art and wisdom seen in everything are so wonderful and amazing that they require an All‑Powerful and All‑Knowing Maker, there would have to be as many deities as there are creatures. Since such deities would be both opposite and similar to each other simultaneously [because the acts and creatures in the universe have infinite diversity and yet resemble each other in many ways], it is inconceivable that this amazing order would not be upset.

Since those creatures clearly move by a command and in a far more organized form than an army, and since each group of creatures, from heavenly objects to almond flowers, displays in a perfect and organized manner and in far more orderly fashion than an army, the uniforms, decorations, and other beautiful garments given to it by the Eternal All‑Powerful One and carries out the movements He has assigned to them, this universe has an Absolute Ruler behind the veil of the Unseen, Whose commands are heeded and carried out by all creatures.

As His wise acts and majestic works testify, that Ruler is a Majestic Sovereign. As shown by His favors, He is an extremely Compassionate Lord. As His most beautiful works of art bear witness, He is a Maker Who is a Lover of art and Who loves His own art. As is apparent from the decorations and curiosity‑exciting arts He exhibits, He is a Wise Creator Who wills to attract the appreciative gaze of conscious beings to His works of art. As is understood from His Lordship’s wisdom, He wills to inform conscious beings of what the amazing and wonderful decorations displayed in the universe’s creation mean, and where creatures come from and where they go. Therefore this Wise Ruler and All‑Knowing Maker wills to demonstrate His Lordship.

He also wills to make Himself known to and loved by conscious beings through all these traces of grace and mercy, as well as the wonders of the art He displays. Given this, He will use an envoy to inform conscious beings of what He wants them to do and what pleases Him. He will choose a conscious being and declare His Lordship through him. To show His favorite arts, He will honor a herald with the nearness of His presence, and use him to exhibit them. To display His perfections by informing conscious beings of His lofty purposes for creating the universe, He will appoint one of them as a teacher and a guide so that the mystery of creation and the enigma of existence do not remain meaningless.

So that the beauties of the art He displays will not remain useless, He will choose a guide to teach the purposes contained in them. To inform them of the things that please Him, He will select a conscious being, raise him above all others, and use that person to inform others of those things. Reality and wisdom require this. As the one most worthy to perform these duties was Prophet Muhammad, who performed them perfectly, a fact attested to by the truthful and just witnesses of the world of Islam that he founded and the light of Islam that he showed, he would have to rise above all creatures and attain the rank of holding a universal and elevated conversation with the Creator of the universe. This is the Ascension’s reality.

In short, Almighty God formed, organized, and decorated this universe for mighty purposes and great aims, such as those mentioned above. We can see the universal Divine Lordship with all its subtleties, and this mighty Divine sovereignty with all its truths. Therefore the Absolute Ruler will speak to and inform us of His purposes. But not everyone can rise to the highest, universal position to receive the Ruler’s universal address directly. Given this, certain special people will be entrusted with that duty. Being human beings themselves, they can teach other human beings. They also should be extremely exalted spiritually, for only such people can receive God’s direct address.

The one who taught the purposes of the universe’s Maker most perfectly, unveiled the universe’s and creation’s mysterious meaning, and best heralded the beauties of His Lordship’s dominion was Muhammad. To rise spiritually above all others and to the most exalted and comprehensive rank, he would make an Ascension by journeying through the corporeal world and then reaching beyond the 70,000 veils of His manifestations of Divine Names, Attributes and acts, and all levels of creation. This is the Ascension.

Question: How can I believe this? What does it mean to journey thousands of years to a Lord Who is nearer to all things than themselves and to meet with Him after passing through 70,000 veils?

Answer: Almighty God is nearer to everything than itself, but everything is infinitely far from Him. If the sun were conscious and could speak, it would talk with you via a mirror in your hand. It could do with you as it wished. Although it is nearer to you than your eye’s pupil, which is like a mirror, you are millions of miles away from it and cannot draw closer to it. If you rose to a position corresponding to the moon and came face to face with it, you would only be a kind of mirror to it.

Likewise, the Majestic One, the Sun of Eternity, is nearer to everything than itself, yet everything is infinitely far from Him. To be honored with a sort of nearness to Him, one should pass through all levels of existence. Freed from the restrictions of being a single particular, one should rise above the thousands of veils in the degrees of universality, draw near to a Divine Name encompassing all creation, and then traverse many other degrees beyond it.

A private is far below the commander‑in‑chief. He views him through an insignificant sample of command that he sees in a corporal, at a great distance and beyond many veils. To be nearer to his position, the private should be promoted to the higher and comprehensive ranks of lieutenant, captain, major, and so on. The commander‑in‑chief, however, is always present with the private through his rules, decrees, knowledge, and commands. This truth has been argued convincingly in The Sixteenth Word.

Question:·I do not believe in the levels of heavens or angels. How can I believe that one can travel through the heavens and meet with angels?

Answer: It is really hard to convince those whose minds depend on their eyes. But since the truth is so brilliant that even the blind can see, we say the following: Scientists generally agree [and for almost 200 years have been trying to establish] that space is full of “ether.” Such subtle and refined matters as light, electricity, and heat point to the existence of a more subtle and refined matter that fills space.

Just as fruits demonstrate the existence of the trees that bear them, flowers their flower‑bed, shoots their field, and fish the sea, so too stars present the existence of their origin to the mind’s eye. Since there are different formations in the celestial realm and different rules are in force under different conditions, the heavens requiring the existence of those rules must be different. We contain immaterial worlds inside our bodies (e.g., mind, heart, spirit, imagination, and memory). Certainly the universe, the macro‑human and the tree of which humanity is the fruit, contains other worlds beside the physical one. Also each world, whether Earth or Paradise, has a heaven.

As for angels, we say: Earth is a medium‑sized planet that is insignificant and dense among stars. And yet the most valuable and enlightened animate and conscious beings are found on it in great abundance. So the stars, adorned castles and perfectly built palaces compared to the dark house of Earth, and the heavens, which are like the stars’ seas, are inhabited by conscious, animate, numerous, and different types of angels and spirit beings. The Twenty‑ninth Word discusses angels in more detail.

In conclusion, the heavens are formed of “ether” and are the source of such subtle and refined matters, energies, or forces as light, heat, electricity, and gravity. As pointed to in the Tradition “Heaven is a wave stretched and restrained,” they were created in such a way that stars and planets can move easily within them. ·Wisdom and reason require that all heavens should consist of seven levels in different states and formations, each being a heaven to a world (e.g., from the World of Earth to the Intermediate World [of the grave] and the World of Symbols or Ideal Forms, and to the World of the Hereafter).

Question:·We can ascend only to a certain height by aircraft. How can someone bodily travel within a few minutes a distance that would normally take thousands of years to cover?

Answer: According to science, whose findings you accept without question, a heavy body like Earth travels about 400 miles in a minute, and about 200 million miles in a year. Should an All‑Powerful One of Majesty, Who causes Earth to make that regular motion and revolves it like a stone in a sling, be unable to convey someone to His Supreme Throne? Should a Wisdom that causes the heavy Earth to revolve around the sun like a dervish through a law of Divine Lordship (gravity) be unable to raise a person, like lightning, to the All‑Merciful One’s Throne through the “gravity” of the All‑Merciful One’s Mercy and the Eternal Sun’s attraction?

Question:·Even if he could ascend, why did and why should he? Would it not have been enough for him to ascend in heart and spirit like the saints?

Answer: The Majestic Maker wants to show His amazing signs in His domain’s inner and outer dimensions, make this world’s workshops and sources observed, and display the results of our actions pertaining to the Hereafter. Given this, and as required by reason and wisdom, He would take Muhammad to His Supreme Throne with his eyes (the key to the World of Visible Objects), ears (which perceived His signs in the World of Sound and Voices), and his entire blessed body, which is like his spirit’s machine. Comprised of different members and components, it enabled him to perform his countless duties. Just as Divine Wisdom makes the body accompany the spirit in Paradise, because the body enables numerous duties of worship to be performed and innumerable pleasures and pains to be experienced, it also is pure wisdom that He would make Muhammad’s blessed body accompany his spirit in ascending to the lote‑tree of the furthest limit, the “trunk” of the Garden of Abode.

Question: How, in the name of reason, can the distance that normally takes thousands of years to cover be covered in a few minutes?

Answer:·In the All‑Majestic Maker’s art, motions have infinitely different degrees. For example, electricity, spirit, imagination, and sound are quite different from each other. Also, science has established that the speeds of planetary movements are astonishingly different. So why should it be unreasonable that Muhammad’s physical body acquired a sort of refinement, accompanied his spirit in the Ascension, and moved at its speed? Sometimes you sleep for 10 minutes but have a year’s worth of experiences. If the words spoken and heard in a dream lasting for only a minute were collected, it would take a day and even longer to speak or hear them while awake. Thus a single period of time means a day for one and a year for another.

Consider this analogy: A clock measures the speed of a person, a cannonball, sound, light, electricity, spirit, and imagination. It has 10 hands to show the hours, minutes, and seconds down to fractions of an hour to the tenth power. It also has 10 circles, one round the other and 60 times larger than it, respectively. If the circle with the hour hand is the size of a normal clock, the circle with the fraction‑of‑an‑hour hand to the tenth power would have to be the size of Earth’s annual orbit or much greater.

Suppose there are two people. One is mounted on the hour‑hand and observes according to its motion, while the other is on the hand showing fractions of an hour to the tenth power. There would be an huge difference, as great as the proportion between a normal clock and Earth’s annual orbit, with respect to what they could see during the same time period.

Since time is like an aspect or a “ribbon” of motion, a rule that is in force in motion is also in force in time. While we would see the same amount of things during an hour as the one mounted on the hour‑hand, which moves in the smallest circle at the slowest speed, God’s Messenger, like the one mounted on the hand showing fractions of the hour to the tenth power, gets on the mount of Divine assistance and, in the same space of time, traverses the entire Sphere of Contingency like lightning. Seeing the wonders in the inner and external dimensions of contingent existence and rising as far as the Divine realm’s limits, he is honored with Divine conversation and vision of His Beauty, receives the decree, and returns to his duty. It was possible for him to do that, and he did it. [It should be noted that God has nothing to do with corporeality and is absolutely uncontained by time and space. So, all these examples and comparisons are aimed to make a very subtle matter understandable by human mind.]

Question:·Even if this were possible, not everything possible occurs. Is there something similar that we can accept? How can we accept the occurrence of something unique, only because it is possible?

Answer: There are countless similar cases. For example, people with sound sight can ascend with their eyes to Neptune in a second. Astronomers can mount the laws of astronomy in their minds and travel beyond the stars in a minute. Believers can mount in thought on the acts and pillars of the prescribed prayers and, leaving the universe behind through a sort of Ascension, go as far as the Divine presence. Perfected saints can make a spiritual journey and travel the spiritual ranks beyond the realms of God’s Supreme Throne and His Names and Attributes in 40 days. Such people as ‘Abd al‑Qadir al‑Jilani and Imam Rabbani truthfully reported that they used to ascend spiritually as far as the Divine Throne in a minute.

Angels, whose bodies are of light, come and go between the ground and the Divine Throne in a very short time. The people of Paradise will ascend to the gardens of Paradise from the Supreme Plain of Gathering in a short period of time. Many such examples demonstrate that it is pure wisdom, completely rational, and that it undoubtedly occurred. Prophet Muhammad, the lord of all saints, leader of all believers, head of all people of Paradise, and accepted by all angels, ascended to travel (beyond the ranks of sainthood) in a form appropriate to his position.

[1] 1A distance normally covered in 500 years on foot.