To the Brothers and Sisters

in USA, Mexico and Colombia

   

Mühledorf, Saturday, May 03, 2003

Theme work starting again

The first theme is a look at Nafs-e ammâre or the “Commanding Soul”

   

My dear friends,

 Some time has elapsed since some of you had asked me to produce again monthly themes. I apologize that you had to wait so long. There are enough reasons to explain, among them my own overload with seminars and speeches, but also my personal situation that – after eight months of challenge – has become now a little more peaceful. I am a human like all of us, and I also have my interior battles with my emotional body if it comes to accept a life style that does not mach completely my conceptual ideas. May God give me the strength to be a good Fakir!

 During Eastern we had a beautiful gathering in the Austrian mountains. As basic teaching I talked about the Nafs (human soul) and its characteristics. This is a subject that touches directly our daily struggles with ourselves, and therefore I believe that it will be a good basis for monthly themes. Saying this I want to remind you of the purpose of monthly themes. They are not here just to add a few conceptual ideas to the pile of concepts we already carry with us. They are meant to accompany us in daily life as a challenge in order to support our learning process. I suggest that each of you writes down his or her experience with the working on the theme, and that each of you brings his or her experience in one or the other form into the group. So each of you may also learn from the experience of the friends. This is one of the purposes of the “Umma”, the gathering among friends within the same belief and faith.

 The Islamic psychology is not established in a uniformed way. There are many different ways to look at the human condition; however, the partition of the human soul into different stations called “Nafs” has become the most common way to throw light on our human states and behavior. I shall use the partition of the soul into four stations (Nafs), as it is very often used. These are

·        Nafs-e ammâre, the commanding soul

·        Nafs-e lawwâme, the lamenting soul

·        Nafs-e molhama, the enlightened soul

·        Nafs-e motma’ene, the tranquilized soul

 Each of this station has its positive and negative potential of expression, and the seduction by Satan is possible in each of these stations. Although it can be said that the resting in the station of Nafs-e motma’ene is a sign of high consciousness, it does not give any guarantee of good behavior. Even if someone is able to remain in the consciously most developed station he or she will constantly be challenged by Satans seducing forces – however much more subtle than in a station of lesser consciousness. This is very important to understand! It is not because of a consciously higher station that God would love us and our behavior more. The arrogance of a highly developed spiritual teacher can be a much bigger sin than the natural reaction with knife and gun of an offended human of lesser consciousness.

 Our implanted yearning, as it is so beautifully described in the first eighteen lines of the Mathnawi, draws us constantly towards the Nafs-e motma’ene. We wish to reach the station of tranquility near Allah. So it happens that through particular effort we reach from time to time the higher stations of enlightenment and tranquility. However, the average searching person remains most time on the level of Nafs-e lawwâme.

 That much for a first introduction. And now I come to the first Monthly Theme, which is the look at our lower part of the soul, the Nafs-e ammâre or the “Commanding Soul”:

 The Nafs-e ammâre or the “Commanding Soul” is that part of our soul that is in need of possession and that automatically reacts to everything that could endanger this possession. Reference is made to the verse 12:53 in the holy Quran: “...verily, man’s inner self does incite (command him) to evil, and saved are only they upon whom my Sustainer bestows His grace.” It is the unconscious part in us, that is automatically reacting to whatever happens. All happens without reflection: “eye for eye, tooth for tooth”.

 Man who has not reached any higher station than this Nafs-e ammâre can not be called a “sinner”, because sin does not exist without reflection. This argument does of course not count for us. We are all able to be at least on the next higher level of consciousness, otherwise Mevlana would not mean anything to us and we would not be on this Way. People who remain on this lower level have not yet been in the position to sufficiently experience and reflect on their inner yearning. This first reflection of man about himself happens by grace of God, and it is with this first reflection that the Spiritual Way starts. This is out of our control, and that is why we pray the Fatiha (last two verses) and that we ask God to increase our yearning.

 The veil on this level of the soul is Satan himself in his basic duty of opponent to God our Lord (al-Rabb). He creates in us negative thoughts and emotions in reaction to whatever happens to us. He wants that we remain unconscious and prevents us to reflect on higher subjects. He makes us zapping in front of the television, running after divertissements, identifying with sports teams and excessively consume whatever is given to us. All divertissement (to divert from ourselves!) belongs to this veil.

 There are ten typical attributes characterizing the Nafs-e ammâre that are often mentioned. These are

·        ignorance

·        anger

·        hate

·        tyranny

·        arrogance

·        malice

·        envy

·        greed

·        unbelief

·        hypocrisy

 Of course there are much more attributes that you will find when working with those above. Your task is to reflect on moments when you were falling into this lower level of soul. Whatever you wish to write about your findings, write it down for yourself. The act to put on paper what you discover and learn is an important act of anchoring and stabilization. I’m the most happy one to be allowed to read about your experience and to learn myself from your findings.

 With these words I wish to start some coordinated practical work again. I leave it to the Group Leaders to decide and agree about the details of how you work. A feedback will be much appreciated. It gives me the feeling of not doing my work in vein. After your feedback I shall treat the next theme.

 

May we all be well guided, and may Hz. Mevlana’s light make our path visible!

                                                                    Yours, Peter