Vision sees in two ways. One is direct, and the other is indirect. The example of the mirror has already been mentioned earlier. When we look within our own being, that is inwardly, this is the direct seeing of vision. This seeing is seeing “Jo,” meaning seeing in unity. The vision that sees in unity is the human being itself, that which belongs to the command of the Lord, the spirit, or that which cannot be divided. This same vision brings the witness close to the witnessed. This is the vision through which the reality of “We are nearer to him than his jugular vein” is disclosed. This vision, in its own station, is divine knowledge or the knowledge of Oneness.
When this same vision operates within multiplicity, it becomes additive, detailed, expansive, and sensory in nature. Its first movement is the knowledge of Oneness, or Wahdat-ul-Wujood (the Oneness of Being, where all existence is experienced as one reality). The second, third, fourth, and fifth movements of this same vision are multiplicity, or Wahdat-ush-Shuhood (the Oneness of Witnessing, where unity is experienced through perception while multiplicity remains visible). When this vision sees indirectly, it constructs space and time. As changes occur in its movements, corresponding degrees of multiplicity continue to be created. In its first descent, this vision takes the form of consciousness as the powers of seeing, speech, smell, and touch.
In every descent, this vision has two components. Before entering motion, in the first descent, it exists as knowledge and the Knower. After entering motion, in the second descent it becomes consciousness, in the third descent vision and formation, in the fourth descent speech and hearing, in the fifth descent colorfulness and sensation, and in the sixth descent attraction and touch.
The first descent is one degree of unity, and the second descent consists of five degrees of multiplicity. In this way, the total number of descents becomes six. The first descent is called the subtle faculty of unity, and the remaining five descents are called the subtle faculties of multiplicity. From here, the structure of that which cannot be divided, the human being, or the spirit becomes disclosed.
First is the Being of Allah Most High, and the mind of Allah Most High is called Necessary Knowledge. Within this Necessary Knowledge, the existence of the universe was present under the will of Allah Most High. When Allah Most High chose to manifest it, He commanded “Kun,” meaning enter into motion. Thus, whatever existed within Necessary Knowledge took its first turn and began to move in the form of the universe. The first movement was that every individual existence attained awareness of itself. Within the thought of every individual arose the realization that I am. This mode of awareness was a state of absorption and self-forgetfulness. Every individual was immersed in the shoreless river of Oneness. Each individual felt only this much, that I am. There was no awareness of where I am, what I am, or how I am. This state is called the realm of Wahdat-ul-Wujood, the Oneness of Being.
The people of spiritual realization also refer to this realm simply as unity. This unity is not the unity of Allah Most High, because it is impossible to express any attribute of Allah Most High in words. This unity is an invention of the human mind, reflecting only the limited scope of human thought, and it is utterly incapable of fully conveying any infinite attribute of Allah Most High. It is impossible that any word could completely express an attribute of Allah Most High.
This truth cannot be ignored that “unity” is, as an invention of human thought, at most an expression of the knowledge and scope of human thinking itself. When a person uses the word unity, its meaning is nothing more than this, that they have understood the Oneness of Allah Most High only up to this point. In other words, the meaning of the word unity is limited to the boundary of human thought. It is precisely this limitation that a human being names infinity. In reality, Allah Most High is far exalted and far above such descriptive boundaries. When we speak of unity, we are in fact speaking of the unity of our own thought. From this very point, after the realm of Wahdat-ul-Wujood, the Oneness of Being, the realm of Wahdat-ush-Shuhood, the Oneness of Witnessing, begins.
Allah Most High addresses the souls and says:
اَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ
“Am I not your Lord?”
(Quran, Surah Al-A‘raf 7:172)
From here, the vision of existence of the human being, that which belongs to the command of the Lord, comes into being. He realizes that someone has addressed me, and his vision falls upon the One who addressed him. He replies:
بَلٰی
“Yes, indeed.”
Meaning, I affirm Your Lordship and I recognize You, as stated in the Quran.
This is the station where that which belongs to the command of the Lord takes its second movement, or turns to its second turning. At this very point, it becomes introduced to multiplicity. It perceives that besides me there is other creation, because it has now attained the witnessing of the multitude of creation. It has been granted the vision that sees. This is the second descent of the Necessary. Within the boundaries of this descent, the human being develops awareness of the depth of their own existence and the witnessing of the presence of other creation. The first descent had the status of knowledge and the Knower, meaning the human being was aware only of their own being.
“I am.”
“I” is the Knower, and “am” is knowledge.
When, in the second descent, it moved beyond the limit of self-forgetfulness, it saw itself and it also saw others. This is what is called the realm of Wahdat-ush-Shuhood, the Oneness of Witnessing. The first descent was mere awareness. When awareness attained depth, vision came into being. Vision is another name for the depth of awareness.
Law
When awareness becomes deep, it turns into vision. As long as awareness remains light and confined to the limits of thought, the state of witnessing does not occur. Feeling operates only within the bounds of thought. When thought remains focused on a single point for a few moments, that point takes on outline and form. This is what is called witnessing or perception. When thought, now in the state of vision, remains focused on that same point for a few moments more, the point becomes expressive. In other words, the vision that is witnessing the point begins to speak. At this point, that which belongs to the command of the Lord both speaks and hears.
If this power of speech, which is called articulation, remains focused on this point a little longer, a spring of colorfulness begins to flow within thought and feeling. And it begins to sense a multitude of diversity gathered all around it.
When the attention of that which belongs to the command of the Lord remains focused upon this multitude for a little longer, bright waves of attraction arise within human consciousness. One quality of these waves is that they touch the object of their focus or witnessing, that which they are seeing or sensing. The action of these waves is called touch. From here, this law becomes fully clear that the separate movements or states of knowledge itself are called thought, vision, speech, smell, and touch.
From the stated law, it becomes evident that a single reality continues to change its state. Within these changes, different disclosures take form. At whichever point a disclosure takes place, that very disclosure becomes the movement of that which belongs to the command of the Lord. Just as thought is knowledge, so vision is also knowledge, and all the states that follow vision are also knowledge. No state can step outside these limits. Knowledge only deepens progressively while remaining within its own boundaries.
Our thought descends step by step from above to below, and we continue to give different names to the form and shape of thought as various sensations. When we experience a thought with intensity in the mind, that very thought manifests as form and shape. That same form and shape, under further contemplation, begins to speak. With a little more intensity, this very speech appears clothed in colors. In the final stage, due to the intensity of feeling, we feel ourselves being drawn toward these colorful garments, until our senses touch them. At this point, our curiosity comes to an end. This state is the peak of pleasure for human thought.
From this final point, human thought must then return. That is, the sense begins to move away from that which it had just touched. This condition is the reaction of our senses, which gives rise to the awareness of separation through space and time. What we were close to moments ago gradually becomes distant, and collectively, this distancing from the same point is called death. After death occurs, the spirit learns a comprehensive, new knowledge from the experiences it has passed through. This state is called the witnessing of the unseen realm.
Once again, the explanation of life is presented.
This universe, with every form and shape and every movement, was present within the knowledge of Allah Most High. This presence is called visionary existence. The knowledge in which the universe existed is called Necessary Knowledge or the Knowledge of the Pen. Necessary Knowledge is an attribute of Allah Most High and is referred to as the reflection of the Essence.
After Necessary Knowledge, when the attributes of Allah Most High descend one step further, the realm of events or the realm of spirits comes into manifestation. This is the locus where Allah Most High intended the manifestation of creation and, by uttering the word Kun, gave form and shape to the universe according to His will. From here, two dimensions are established. One is the dimension of Allah Most High’s knowledge, and the other is the dimension of Allah Most High’s will. In reality, it is will that initiates pre-eternity.
In the initial stage of pre-eternity, all created entities are still and silent. The form of these entities, in the language of spirituality, is called the knowledge of unity, the universals, or the knowledge of the Preserved Tablet. When Allah Most High willed that this stillness be broken and movement begin, He addressed creation and said:
اَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ
“Am I not your Lord?”
(Quran, Surah Al-A‘raf 7:172)
At this moment, every entity became attentive and consciousness arose within it. This consciousness responded with بَلٰی, affirming that Allah Most High is its Lord. This was the first form of the realm of events. When movement began within things, the second form of the realm of events commenced. In common language, this form is called multiplicity. This same form is called the realm of similitudes or “Jo.”
From here, that which belongs to the command of the Lord, the spirit, that which cannot be divided, or the human being, takes the first step of life, and its reflection takes form in the physical world as events. This reflection in the physical realm is the second representation of things. The reflection of the Essence is Necessary Knowledge or the Knowledge of the Pen. The reflection of Necessary Knowledge is the knowledge of unity or the knowledge of the Preserved Tablet. The reflection of the Preserved Tablet is “Jo,” the realm of similitudes. The reflection of the realm of similitudes is the second representation or the realm of mixture. The realm of mixture is also called the physical world.