KARÂMÂT - كرامات

 

Literal meaning and Etymology: Derived from the Arabic root k-r-m (ك-ر-م ), which denotes nobility, high esteem, generosity and honour. Karâmât is the plural of karâmah (كرامة ), literally signifying acts of nobility, honor, generosity and the favour of Allah.

As an Islamic term: Wondrous, extraordinary states or manifestations bestowed by Allah upon a walî as a direct act of rahmah and favour (ikrâm). Unlike a miracle (mu‘jizah) — which is publicly manifested accompanied by a claim to nubuwwah and carries a challenge (tahaddî) to disbeleivers and sometimes displayed as a strengthening proof for the îmân of beleivers — a karâmah is inherently tied to humility, impotence (‘ajz), poverty (faqr) and concealment.

Karâmât is categorised into two foundational branches:

1. al-Karâmât al-‘Ilmiyyah wa al-Ma‘nawiyyah (الْكَرَامَات الْعِلْمِيَّة وَالْمَعْنَوِيَّة ) :

This category denotes unacquired, bestowed illumination in the form of ‘ilm (al-‘ilm al-wahbî) granted by Allah directly to the heart of His ‘abd — rather than being accumulated through conventional scholastic endeavour or intellectual effort (al-‘ilm al-kasbî) — as well as the istiqâmah and steadfastness manifested in the ‘abd’s conduct, morality and actions.

Core characteristics of this kind of karâmât:

•  Unveiling of the haqiqahs of the Quran: The capacity granted by Allah to comprehend, articulate and systemise the most complex haqiqahs, such as tawhîd, the mysteries of the creation of the universe and mankind, the resurrection and assembly for judgment (hashr) and qadar, with absolute clarity, exceptional depth and decisive logical proofs.

•  Profound ease, exceptional clarity and remarkable depth in the exposition of the Qur’an: The rapid composition — under severe conditions of extreme adversity, exile and isolation and without access to reference works — of profound haqiqahs that conform to the understanding of the age, address the ma’nawî and intellectual needs of the time and dispel the doubts cast into the hearts and the minds of their own age.

•  Primacy of Istiqâmah: In alignment with the principle

الاسْتِقَامَةُ فَوْقَ الْكَرَامَةِ1

maintaining istiqâmah and steadfastness in the Quranic service — particularly during periods of fitnah, moral corruption of the ummah and aggressive attacks on the foundational pillars of îmân and Islam — is regarded as the highest, safest and most enduring form of karâmât.

This form of karâmât is inherently safeguarded against vanity and pride, as it is the manifestation of a deep consciousness of utter impotence (‘ajz), absolute poverty before Allah (faqr) and profound shukr, thereby continually reinforcing these foundational virtues.

2. al-Karâmât al-Kawniyyah wa al-Hissiyyah (الْكَرَامَات الْكَوْنِيَّة وَالْحِسِّيَّة )

This category denotes extraordinary events and wonders occurring within the physical world (al-kawn). In this state, Allah makes a walî a place of manifestation for His Qoudrah, as his rûh and subtle ma’nawî faculties gain strength, while his physical existence acquires subtlety through riyâzah and purification of nafs al-ammarah. In this category of karâmât, Allah suspends or alters the customary execution of the universal laws (‘Âdatullah) He Himself established and maintains, in favour of an ‘abd who has attained His pleasure and acceptance through sincere devotion and faithful ‘ubûdiyyah.

Core characteristics of this kind include:

•  Traversing Space and the Expansion of Time (Tayy al-Makân and Bast al-Zamân): The extraordinary contraction of physical distances (tayy al-makân), allowing a walî to cross vast spaces in a moment, and the expansion of time (bast al-zamân), wherein immense religious duties, ‘ibâdah or experiences are enfolded within a brief temporal duration.

•  The protection of Allah from worldly dangers (Himâyah):  Extraordinary preservation against fatal harms, such as lethal poisons, wild beasts, or weapons, as well as the subordination of physical elements (including water, animals, and fire) by Allah’s leave.

•  Succor (Imdâd) from the ghayb: Extraordinary intervention or timely ma’nawî or physical relief granted to mu’mins in situations of extreme distress or helplessness.

In this kind of karâmât, there is the risk of istidrâj: Seeking or deliberately displaying al-karâmât al-kawniyyah carries a potential peril for the nafs. If accompanied by ananiyyah or ma’nawî intoxication (sakr), it risks damaging ikhlas and degenerating into istidrâj.

Therefore, while acknowledged as genuine manifestations of the favour of Allah, al-karâmât al-kawniyyah are considered of secondary rank when compared to al-karâmât al-‘ilmiyyah. This form of karâmât typically manifests among the awliyâ at the lesser and middle degrees of walâyah (walâyah al-sughrâ and walâyah al-wustâ), primarily serving to fortify weak or imitative îmân (al-îmân al-taqlîdî). Conversely, among those who attain the supreme degree of walâyah (walâyah al-kubrâ) — the path of al-îmân al-tahqîqî embodied by the sahabah and the asfiyâ — such karâmât are rarely sought or displayed. Instead, their devotion was directed entirely toward preserving, serving and clarifying the haqiqahs of the Qur’an for the ultimate salvation of the ummah.

Selected excerpts from the Risale-i Nur on the haqiqah of karâmât:

KNOW THAT the ma’nawî solicitude (himmah) and assistance of the awliyâ, along with their ma’nawî actions manifested through the outpourings of faydh (ifâdât), are merely a form of du‘â — whether offered through their language of being or the language of their actions. For Allah alone is Al-Hâdî, and He alone is Al-Mughîs and Al-Mu‘în.

Al-Mathnawi al-Nuri-599

 

The walâyah of the Sahâbah, referred to as the Greatest Walâyah (Walâyah al-Kubra), is a walâyah — aring from the inheritance of nubuwwah and passing directly from the dhâhir2 to haqiqah without traversing the barzakh of tarîqah — that looks to the unfolding of closeness (Aqrabîyyah3) to Allah. Although this path of walâyah is exceptionally short, it is immensely elevated. Its wonders are few, but its virtues abundant. Kashf and karâmât appear infrequently upon it. Moreover, the karâmât of the awliyâ is mostly involuntary; wonders manifest through them unexpectedly as a bestowal (ikrâm) of Allah. The majority of these kashf and karâmât occur during the ma’nawî journey of their rûh as they traverse the barzakh of the tarîqah; they become a place of manifestation for these extraordinary states because they have detached, to a degree, from ordinary human limitations. The Sahâbah, however, by virtue of the reflection, gravitational attraction and elixir of prophetic companionship, were not obliged to traverse the vast sphere of the ma’nawî journey of the rûh within the tarîqah. In a single step and through a single gathering, they could pass directly from the dhâhir to haqiqah.

The Fifteenth Letter/First Station

 

A certain group among the Sufis who fail to comprehend the mystery of the tarîqah find pleasing and become captivated by azwaq, nûrs and karâmât — which are given without being sought merely to strengthen the weak, encourage the lax and to alleviate weariness and hardship arising from intense service; and by preferring them to ‘ibâdah, service and awrâd, they fall into a perilous abyss. As is concisely explained in the Third Point of the Sixth Allusion of this risale and decisively proven in other Words: This earthly realm is the abode of service, not the abode of reward. Those who demand their reward here — alongside converting eternal and everlasting fruits into a transient and temporary form — take pleasure in permanence in this world and cannot gaze yearningly upon the barzakh; it is as if they love this worldly life because they find a semblance of the âkhirah within it.

The Twenty-Ninth Letter/Ninth Section/8th Allusion

 

This world is the abode of hikmah, the abode of service; it is not the abode of reward and recompense. The wage for deeds (‘amal) and services here is granted in the barzakh and the âkhirah. Deeds (‘amal) performed here yield their fruits in the barzakh and the âkhirah. Since this is the haqiqah, one must not seek the results belonging to the deeds of the âkhirah in this world. If they are granted, they should be received not with gratification, but sorrowfully. For, by the mystery that the fruits of Jannah are replaced as soon as they are picked, consuming the eternal fruits of deeds pertaining to the âkhirah in this world in a transient manner is by no means rational. It is like exchanging a permanent lamp for a lamp that will last a minute and then be extinguished.

It is because of this mystery that the people of walâyah welcome service, difficulty, calamity and hardship; they do not drag their feet, nor do they complain, but say: الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلَى كُلِّ حَالٍ 4 When kashf and karâmât, azwaq and nûrs are granted to them, they accept them as a kind of favourable attention of Allah and try to conceal them. Far from taking pride in them, they enter all the more into shukr and ‘ubûdiyyah. Many of them have desired those states to be concealed and to cease, lest the ikhlas in their deeds (‘amal) be impaired. Indeed, the most important favour of Allah for an accepted ‘abd is to not let him perceive His favour, so that he does not pass from entreaty into petulant presumption, nor from shukr into boasting.

It is due to this haqiqah that if those who seek walâyah and the tarîqah desire them for the sake of azwaq and karâmât — which are but the manifestations of walâyah — and if they turn towards them and take delight in them, not only does it mean consuming the enduring fruits of the âkhirah in this transient world in a transient manner, but it also causes them to forfeit ikhlâs, the very leaven of walâyah, thereby allowing walâyah itself to slip away.

The Twenty-Ninth Letter/Ninth Section/6th Allusion/3rd Point

An example for al-Karâmât al-Kawniyyah:

One may pursue pleasure on the condition of avoiding wastefulness, purely to fulfil the duty of shukr and to perceive and recognise the varieties of the ni‘mahs of Allah, and provided that it is licit and does not become a means of abasement and beggary. And in order to employ the tongue, which carries the faculty of taste, in shukr, one may prefer delicious foods. An incident indicating this haqiqah, which is a karâmât of Shaykh Jilânî, is as follows:

Once, there was a devoted old woman whose only son was under the tarbiyah of Hazrat al-Ghawth al-A‘zam Shaykh Jîlânî (q.s.). Visiting her son in his cell, the venerable woman saw that he was eating a dry piece of black bread. His frailty, resulting from such rigorous riyâzah, evoked his mother’s compassion, and she felt deep pity for him.

She then went to Hazrat al-Ghawth to express her grievance, only to find him eating a roasted chicken. Out of her reverent intimacy, she said: "O Ustâdh! My son is dying of hunger, yet you are eating chicken!"

Hazrat Ghawth addressed the chicken, saying:

‌قُمْ بِاِذْنِ اللّٰه5

whereupon the bones of that cooked chicken assembled together and leapt out of the dish as a fully restored chicken. This incident has been transmitted through ma’nawî tawâtur by numerous reliable and trustworthy authorities as a karâmah of a personage like Hazrat al-Ghawth, who is world-renowned for being favoured with extraordinary karâmât.

Hazrat Ghawth said, "When your son reaches this rank, he too may eat chicken."

Thus, the meaning of this judgment of Hazrat al-Ghawth is this: Whenever your son reaches a state where his rûh dominates his body, his heart dominates his nafs, his mind (‘aql) dominates his stomach and he seeks pleasure solely to fulfil the duty of shukr, then he too may eat delicious things.

The Nineteenth Flash

Difference between karâmât and istidrâj:

To disclose a karâmât without necessity is harmful, whereas the disclosure of a bestowal is the declaration of the ni’mah of Allah.

If a person honoured with karâmât is aware that an extraordinary act is manifested through him, and if his nafs al-ammârah remains, it might transform into istidrâj in respect of relying on himself, trusting his nafs and kashf and falling into pride.

If he is not aware that an extraordinary act is manifested through him — for instance, there is a question in someone’s heart, and Allah grants him speech that gives a perfectly matching answer to that question, only understanding it afterwards, and after understanding it, his trust increases not in his own nafs, but in his Rabb, and he says, "I have a Hafîdh, Who conducts the tarbiyyah of me more than I do myself,” thereby increasing his tawakkul — this kind is a harmless karâmât; he is not charged with concealing it, yet he should not intentionally strive to display it for the sake of boastful pride. For since, apparently, man's kasb has a share in it, he might attribute it to his nafs.

As for a bestowal (ikrâm): it is even safer than the safe, second kind of karâmât, and in my view, is more elevated. Disclosing it is the declaration of the ni’mah of Allah. Man’s kasb has no share in it, and his nafs does not attribute it to itself.

The Ninth Letter

(For Further explanation, please refer to the article on Istidrâj.)

On the Qur’anic Service, Karâmât and Ma’nawî Delights:

My ‘azîz, siddîq brothers!

It has been brought to my heart to express four matters to you:

First: It is the answer to a question asked both verbally and through the language of being, as well as through other outward signs.

It is said: Since the Risale-i Nur is both endowed with karâmât and provides greater advancement in the unfolding of the haqiqahs of îmân than the tarîqahs do, and its loyal students are, in one respect, at the degree of walâyah — why is it that the manifestation of ma’nawî delights, kashf and physical karâmât is not seen in them as it is in the awliyâ, nor do its students seek such things? What is the hikmah behind this?

The Answer: Firstly, the reason is the mystery of ikhlâs. For in this world, temporary delights and karâmât become an objective for those who have not completely prevailed over their nafs, forming a motive for their deeds pertaining to the âkhirah, and thus their ikhlâs is shattered. For worldly objectives and delights are not to be sought through deeds pertaining to the âkhirah; seeking them impairs the mystery of ikhlâs.

Secondly: Karâmât and kashf are granted to those at a lower degree who possess imitative (taqlîdî) îmân and have not reached the level of verified (tahqîqî) îmân, sometimes in order to strengthen the weak among them and to bestow conviction upon those beset by waswasa and doubts. However, the proofs that the Risale-i Nur demonstrates for the haqiqahs of îmân leave no room whatsoever for waswasas, nor, in terms of providing conviction, do they leave any need for karâmât or kashf.

Because the verified (tahqîqî) îmân the Risale-i Nur confers is far superior to kashf, azwaq and karâmât, its true students do not seek such wonders as karâmât.

Thirdly: A fundamental principle of the Risale-i Nur is to serve without rivalry, purely for the sake of the pleasure and acceptance of Allah, acknowledging one's own flaws with profound humility. However, the disagreement and a kind of rivalry among those granted karâmât and the people of the tarîqah who take delight in kashf, as well as the fact that in this age of ananiyyah, the people of ghaflah accuse those blessed personages of ego and ananiyyah, harbouring prejudiced ill opinions of them demonstrate that it is necessary and essential for the students of the Risale-i Nur not to desire or pursue karâmât and kashf for themselves.

Furthermore, in its path, no importance is attached to the individual. In terms of the ma’nawî collective partnership and the brothers' annihilation in one another (tafâni), the favours bestowed upon the Risale-i Nur by Allah — such as thousands of karâmât al-‘ilmiyyah, the facilitation in the dissemination of the service and the barakah in the livelihood of those who study it — are sufficient for all; they seek no further personal perfection or karâmât.

Fourthly: A hundred gardens of this world, by virtue of being transient, cannot equal a single eternal tree of the âkhirah. However, since blind human emotions, captivated by immediate pleasures, prefer a transient, immediate fruit to an eternal garden of the âkhirah, the students of the Risale-i Nur do not seek the ma’nawî delights and kashf in this world, lest the nafs al-ammârah exploit this fitrî state.

A personage of the past who resembled the students of the Risale-i Nur in this respect, despite being at a high ma’nawî rank together with his wife, faced severe hardship regarding their livelihood. His wife said to her husband, 'Our need is dire.' Suddenly, a brick of gold appeared beside them. He said to his wife, 'Look, this is a brick from our palace in Jannah.' That blessed lady immediately replied, 'Although our need is dire and we have many such bricks in the âkhirah, let it not be wasted in a transient form, and let not a single brick be missing from our palace there. Offer du’â that it returns to its place; we do not need it here.' Suddenly it returned to its place. It is narrated that the people of kashf witnessed this.

These two heroic champions from among the people of haqiqah serve as a fine example of how the students of the Risale-i Nur do not pursue the worldly pleasures of karâmât.

Emirdağ Addendum-1 (86 - 87)