JARBAZA – جربزة

 

Literally: A being or becoming wily, tricky, deceitful, wiliness. Readiness of wit combined with a facile expression. Presence of mind and tact.

As an Islamic term: Ifrât degree of al-quwwa al-aqliyyah, the power of the mind, which is given to man in order to distinguish haqq and bâtil. Deceptive mind, which displays the haqq as the bâtil and the bâtil as the haqq and is over-meticulousness in trivialities.

(Please refer to the Compilation on As-sirât Al-mustaqîm.)

 

The strange state of jarbaza collects together things which were divided in time and place and makes them one. It looks on everything through that black veil. Truly, jarbaza is a machine of strange things with all sorts.

Münazarat (35)

 

You are accusing me of making religion an instrument of politics. In response to this serious slander of yours, I am accusing you of making politics an instrument of irreligion, along with proving with a hundred decisive proofs that the accusation is a clear slander; it is baseless and rotten!

One time, a sultân with jarbaza was committing great cruelty with the intention of justice. A muhaqqîq ‘âlim told him, “Oh Ruler! You are oppressing your subjects in the name of justice because your critical view with jarbaza gathers the faults of a person that occurred throughout time. By imagining those faults to be present now, you deliver severe punishments to their perpetrators. Moreover, in your critical view with jarbaza, you gather the faults that are committed by different people in one tribe. Due to that veil, rancour and rage towards each individual of that tribe come to you. You unjustly strike all of them. Yes, if you release in one day the saliva you release in a year, you will drown in it. If several people were to take all at once bitter medicines, such as quinine sulphate, that you use at different times, it could kill all of them. In just the same way, it is necessary to hide faults that occur occasionally since they are to be found in between good attributes. Without considering the good attributes that eliminate the faults, through your view with jarbaza, you gather those various faults and punish your subjects severely.” Thus, the sultân was saved from dhulm that he had perpetrated in the name of justice, due to the warnings of that muhaqqîq ‘âlim.

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