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HUMAN
LIFE HAS FIVE
DEGREES
There
are five degrees
of life.
The
first degree of
life is as we
live here and now,
which is bound by
certain
conditions.
The
second degree of
life is
manifested in the
lives of Khadr and
Elijah. This
second degree is
to some certain
extent free in
that those who
have it can be
present in
different places
at the same time,
and their life is
not bound by the
necessities that
bind ordinary
human life. Like
us, they may eat
and drink at times
but, unlike us,
they do not have
to. The
experiences that
some godly persons
who are able to
discern the hidden
truths have had
with Khadr are
enough to
illuminate and
prove this degree
of life. Further,
one of the
spiritual degrees
or stations which
saints reach in
their spiritual
journeys is called
‘the station of
Khadr’. A saint
who has attained
this degree may
meet Khadr and be
directly
instructed by him.
Indeed, it
sometimes even
happens that one
who holds this
station is
mistaken for Khadr
himself.
The
third degree of
life is
manifested in the
lives of the
Prophets Jesus and
Enoch, peace be
upon them. These
two prophets live
in heaven free of
the necessities of
human life, in
their worldly
(corporal) bodies
which, however,
have acquired some
sort of refinement
and luminosity.
The Prophet
Muhammad,
upon him be peace
and blessings, is
reported to have
said: Jesus will
come back to the
world before the
end of time and
follow the Shari‘a
of Muhammad. This
hadith implies
that the religion
of the followers
of Jesus, that is,
Christianity, will
be purified of the
polytheistic
elements and
superstitions that
have found a way
into it over time,
and will
ultimately join
Islam.
Consequently, this
chosen way of God,
or the true
Religion will
eradicate with ‘the
sword of
revelation’ the
trends to
disbelief and
absolute
materialism
established by
natural
philosophy.
The
fourth degree of
life is the
life of martyrs.
Some Quranic
verses state
explicitly that
martyrs enjoy a
higher degree of
life than the dead
who are not
martyrs. Since
martyrs have
sacrificed their
life in His way,
God Almighty has
granted them an
intermediate life
that resembles the
worldly life but
without its pains
and troubles.
Martyrs do not
feel the pangs of
death. They do not
know themselves to
be dead; instead,
they consider
themselves to be
transferred into a
better world and
enjoy perfect
happiness. By
contrast, the dead
are aware that
they are dead,
although their
souls are eternal;
also, the
pleasures they
experience in the
intermediate life
are less than what
is enjoyed by the
martyrs. The
difference can be
explained by this
analogy:
In
a dream, two men
enter a palace as
beautiful as
Paradise. One of
them gets little
pleasure because
he is aware that
this is only a
dream and will,
accordingly,
disappear when he
wakes up. As for
the other, he is
not aware that he
is dreaming and
therefore feels
wholly contented
and happy.
This
explains the
difference between
the degree of
enjoyment felt by
the dead and by
martyrs in the
intermediate
world. Besides the
relevant Quranic
verses, some
Prophetic
traditions and
countless
experiences
undeniably prove
that martyrs do
lead a life with
some degree of
consciousness,
knowing themselves
to be alive. That
life of martyrs is
particularly well
indicated in the
experienced
reality that Hamza,
again and again
comes to the aid
of those seek help
from him and
carries forward
some of their
worldly affairs.
I
had a student,
called ‘Ubaid,
who was a cousin
of mine. He was
martyred in my
company and on my
behalf when we
fought together. I
had a true dream
of him. In my
dream, I went
underground into
his tomb, where I
found him enjoying
the degree of life
of martyrs. He
told me that he
knew me to have
died, and himself
to be living. He
had cried much
over me, he said,
and built a fine
house underground
in order to avoid
the Russian
invasion. This
dream, together
with certain other
signs, convinced
me that martyrs do
have, in some
conditions, a
higher degree of
life than the
dead.
The
fifth degree of
life is the
spiritual life of
the dead. Indeed,
death is a
changing of
residence, a
receiving of one’s
discharge from
worldly duties
with the soul set
free. It is not
complete
annihilation into
non-existence.
This degree of
life is clearly
established by
such repeatedly
observed facts as
the soul of some
godly persons
appearing in their
human (material)
forms, and being
seen by men who
have insight into
hidden truths.
That the dead can
communicate with
us in dreams or
even in
wakefulness is
another proof of
their life.
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