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Allah, Goal of the SufiThe Sufi's goal in life is to achieve an intimate understanding of, and love
for, God. As in any pursuit, he must have some idea of what he is looking for.
The Sufi therefore asks, who or what is God? For Sufis, because Allah is both uncreated and the Creator, Allah is the fundamental energy which has existed before all time. Furthermore, because Sufis believe that Allah is the Being who contains infinite knowledge and power to act in whatever way He wills, the Sufi concept of Allah includes His comprehensive consciousness. Simply put, Allah is the conscious energy of the universe, aware of and in command of all existence, unbounded by time or space. Allah defines Himself in the Holy Qur'an as " ... the Light of the heavens
and the earth" (24:35). Just as we understand that light is energy, we conceive
of Allah as energy. Allah as pure energy is formless, but contains the potential
to create all forms. Allah's power is at once the energy used to create all forms,
and the energy/substance of forms. We find the Sufi point of view supported by
scientific research in the following statement: "'Light' creates our world
of pattern and form. In agreement with many other scientists, we defined the domain
for 'light' as the full range of the electromagnetic spectrum in modern physics
theories. ... Everything in the physical world represents various manifestations
of light."
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Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The analogy of His light is as a niche, and within it, a lamp. The lamp is enclosed in a glass. The glass is like a shining star, lit from a blessed tree, an olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil is almost luminous, though no fire touched it. Light upon light. Allah guides to His light whom He will. And Allah speaks to mankind in allegories, and Allah is Knower of all things. (Qur'an 24:35) |
