بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ وَ الصَّلاَةُ وَ السَّلاَمُ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَلَى آلِهِ وَ صَحْبِهِ اَجْمَعِينَ

AL-WÂJIB AL-WUJÛD - الواجب الوجود -1

(For the literal meaning of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd please refer to the article on Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd)

1. The six essential attributes of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd:

Thus, وَ لِلّٰهِ الْمَثَلُ اْلاَعْلٰى , As-Sâni’ Zuljalâl of the universe is Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd. It means that His existence is

• essential1,
• azalî,
• eternal2;
• the non-existence of His existence is impossible3;
• the cessation of His existence is impossible4;
• His existence is the firmest, strongest and most perfect5 of all the levels of existence.

The other levels of existence are extremely weak shadows compared to His existence. The existence of Al-Wâjib is so firm and true and the existence of contingent beings is so pale and weak to such an extent that numerous ahl al-tahqîq, such as Muhyiddîn Bin 'Arabî, have degraded the other levels of existence to the level of wahm and imagination; they said, لاَ مَوْجُودَ اِلاَّ هُوَ6. That is, compared to the existence of Wâjib, other things should not be called existence. They have judged that other things are not worthy of the title of existence.

…

As-Sâni’ of the universe, indeed, is not of the same kind of the universe. His essence does not resemble any other essence.

…

The sacred essence of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd is not of the same kind of the essences of contingent beings.

The Twentieth Letter-Second Station-The Tenth Phrase/The Fourth

2. The proofs of the existence of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd: The proof of hudûth7 (برهان الحدوث ) and the proof of imkân8 (برهان الإمکان والوجوب ):

The First Haqiqah contains the haqiqahs of hudûth and imkân that the genius ‘ulamâ of Usul ad-Dîn and ‘Ilm al-Kalâm and the philosophers of Islam saw and proved with countless proofs. They have said:

“Since there is change and transformation in the ‘âlam and everything, it is, indeed, transient, newly comes into existence and is formed and cannot be eternal and uncreated. Since it came into existence and was formed recently, there is, indeed, a Sâni’ Who creates and forms it. And since, if there is no cause, in the essence of all things, their existence and non-existence are equal; they certainly cannot be wâjib and azalî. And since it has been proven with decisive proofs that it is not possible to create each other through the continuous causal chain — a notion that is bâtil and impossible — the existence of a Wâjib Al-Wujûd becomes necessary such that the existence of anything like or equal to Him is impossible; everything apart from Him is contingent and all that exists besides Him are His creatures.”

Yes, the haqiqah of hudûth dominates throughout the universe. Most of it is seen by the eye; the rest is seen by the mind. For every autumn, such an ‘âlam dies in front of our eyes that hundreds of thousands of species of plants and tiny animals, each of which has infinite members and is a living universe, die with that ‘âlam. It is, however, a death so orderly that in the spring, in their places, they leave behind seeds, cores and eggs, which are the miracles of Rahmah and Hikmah, wonders of Qoudrah and ‘Ilm and the source of their resurrection, sprouting and spreading. They hand their book of deeds and programme of their duties to those seeds, cores and eggs and entrust them to the protection and hikmah of Al-Hafîdh Zuljalâl, and then they die. And, in spring, as a hundred thousand examples, samples and proofs of the great arena of rising from the dead and assembling for judgement, those dead trees, roots and some tiny animal species are given life and revived, just as they were. As for another group, as a replacement, the similars and identicals of the members of those species are created and given life. And the beings of the past spring demonstrate an example of the âyah 9 وَاِذَا الصُّحُفُ نُشِرَتْۙby publishing and spreading the pages of the deeds and duties they performed, like a proclamation.

Furthermore, from the aspect of the state of the totality of the universe, each autumn and each spring, a great ‘âlam dies, and a fresh ‘âlam comes into existence. Such death and hudûth occur so orderly, and so many species die and come into existence by perfect order and balance amidst such death and hudûth that it is as if the world is a guesthouse, where living universes become guests in it, travelling ‘âlams and wandering worlds come into it, fulfil their duties and depart. Thus, it appears to the minds clearly, like the sun, the necessary existence, boundless qoudrah and infinite hikmah of the Zuljalâl One Who, in this world, creates such living worlds and employed universes, with perfect ‘ilm, hikmah, equilibrium, balance, order and regularity, and brings them into existence, and Who employs them with His rahmah and qoudrah for Rabbânî purposes, Ilahî aims and Rahmânî services. We close this discussion by referring the matter of hudûth to the Risale-i Nur and the books of the muhaqqiqîn of ‘Ilm al-Kalâm.

As for imkân, it too dominates and embraces all over the universe. For we see that all beings, universal or particular, big or small, from the ‘arsh to the earth, from the particles to the planets, are sent into the world with a particular essence, a specific form, a distinct identity, exclusive attributes, qualities full of hikmah and beneficial equipment. Whereas,

• giving to that specific essence and individual the things particular for it from among the infinite possibilities,
• clothing it with an embroidered, distinguished, appropriate and specific form from among the possibilities and probabilities to the number of forms,
• assigning a worthy and distinguishing identity for that being while it is shaken within the possibilities to the number of members of its species,
• placing exclusive, appropriate and beneficial attributes on that artful being, which is formless and wavering amidst the possibilities and probabilities to the number of varieties and degrees of attributes,
• attaching and equipping qualities full of hikmah and equipment full of ‘inâyah to that aimless creature, which wanders and strays amidst the infinite possibilities and probabilities of existing in countless different ways and modalities.

Indeed, indications, proofs and evidences — to the number of all the contingent beings, whether universal or particular, and to the number of the possibilities of each contingent being’s essence, identity, totality, form, attribute and situation — of the necessary existence, boundless qoudrah and infinite hikmah of a Wâjib Al-Wujûd, Who is the specifier, chooser, determiner and creator, and that nothing and no shuûn can hide from Him, nothing is difficult for Him, the greatest thing is as easy as the smallest thing for Him, and He can create a spring as easily as a tree and a tree as easily as a seed; indications, proofs and evidences arise from the haqiqah of imkân and form one wing of this great testimony of the universe. Since the various parts of the Risale-i Nur, especially the Twenty-Second and Thirty-Second Words and the Twentieth and Thirty-Third Letters, fully proved and explained the testimony of the universe, with its two wings and two haqiqahs, we refer the matter to them and cut short this extremely long matter.

The Seventh Ray/The Eighteenth Degree

 

Know that a proof is of two kinds:

The first is limmî, which involves deducing an argument from cause to effect10.

The second is innî, which involves deducing an argument from effect to cause11. This latter is sounder. It is either based on imkân, which proves the existence of a Chooser through the evidence of equality of the possibility of things existing or not existing, or it is based on hudûth, which proves the existence of a Creator through the evidence of constant change and renewal in beings.

…

As for the proof of creation (al-dalîl al-ikhtirâ) indicated by the âyah اَلَّذي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ‌12:

Allah Taâ’lâ has bestowed upon every individual and species a particular existence, which is the source of its spesific works and perfections worthy of it. Because they are contingent and the argument regarding the causal chains is false, none of the series of species can be azalî, and the constant change and transformation in the ‘âlam prove, sometimes through witnessing and sometimes through rational necessity, that everything comes newly into existence (hudûth). It has also been demonstrated by biology and botany that there are more than two hundred thousand species, and each must have an Âdam and forefather. The mystery of imkân and hudûth necessarily proves that these progenitors and forefathers emerged from the hand of the Qoudrah of Allah without intermediaries. Consequently, the things — that is, the material causes — thought to be part of the causal chain of successive generations cannot be considered the origins of the first creation, and the delusional concept of the separation of certain species from others is also bâtil. Because an interbred species generally cannot start new chains through reproduction.13 Therefore, since the origins and beginnings are as stated, the successive members of these chains will also be the same. How can it be imagined that simple, lifeless natural causes, lacking intelligence and will, are capable of giving existence to these chains, which astound the mind, and capable of creating out of nothing (ikhtirâ) the members of these chains, each of which is a wonder of art and miracle of Qoudrah? Indeed, through the languages of their coming into existence (hudûth) newly and contingency (imkân), all members of chains with the chains they belong to testify decisively to the necessary existence of their Khâliq, Jalla Jalalûhu.

If you were to ask: Why do people believe in such dhalâlahs, like the matter and its movement being azalî, despite this decisive testimony?

You would be told: An indirect and superficial view sees the impossible as possible, just like an elderly man searching the sky for the crescent moon of Eid mistook the downward-curving white hair from his eyebrow for the moon. Since man possesses a lofty essence and noble nature, he pursues haqq and haqiqah. However, sometimes the bâtil and dhalâlah involuntarily fall into his hand without seeking or searching; rather, out of necessity, he accepts them since he looks through his superficial and indirect view. Because when he ignores the order of the universe, which is the thread and chain of hikmahs, and he is blind to the contradiction of the matter and its movement and their being azalî, it becomes possible in his indirect view to attribute the unique embroideries and wondrous art to blind chance and unseeing coincidence.

As Husayn Al-Jisrî has said, if a person who enters a palace filled with the adorned works of civilisation does not see its owner, he will believe that it has no owner, then he will be forced to attribute the structure of the palace and its adornments to the union of chance and coincidence and the laws of natural selection. Moreover, since he is blind to and ignores the testimony of hikmahs and benefits in the order of ‘âlam that continues through an absolute Will, encompassing ‘Ilm and perfect Qoudrah, it seems possible to prove the actual effect of lifeless causes to his indirect view.

O friend! Disregard the subtleties of the art of Jalla Jalalûhu and regard attentively the most obvious among His works called "nature," which is the visible manifestation and reflection, on condition that you rend the veil of familiarity: how can your nafs be convinced and your mind accepts that the attributes of the face of a mirror can be a real cause (‘illah) to reveal the face of the skies, attract its image with its altitude and embroider it with stars on its glass? And how can your mind be convinced that the thing called gravity, which is imaginary in reality, can be a real cause (‘illah), to hold the earth and stars with their movements and rotations, like a string of catapult, in firm order?

In Short: If man looks superficially and indirectly at something bâtil and impossible and does not see a real cause(‘illah), he may deem it possible and valid. However, if he looks at that thing directly and deliberately, seeking its true essence, he will find it impossible to accept any of those bâtil matters, which they refer to as philosophy, unless he is so foolish as to believe that all minute particles possess the intelligence of philosophers and the hikmah of politicians!

If you were to ask: What are the nature, laws and forces that they mumble about and console themselves with?

You would be told: Nature is a misdâr14, not a source. It is where the nature of everything is shaped, formed and printed, not the one that shapes, forms and prints. It is laws, not a power. Rather, it is the takwînî Sharî'ah of Allah that establishes an order on the acts of the limbs of the body of al-‘âlam ash-shahâdah. Just as Sharî'ah is the sum and summary of the laws concerning actions taken by choice and will, along with the whole of the political principles of the system of government. So too the order and Sharî'ah are two theoretical (i’tibârî) matters that exist only within the mind. Similarly, nature is a theoretical (i’tibârî) matter that is the summary of ‘Âdâtullah, which prevails and works in creation.

Imagining the external existence of nature resembles a savage man; when he sees a military division moving regularly, he imagines that the soldiers are tied together with something that has an external existence. So only those with a savage conscience (vijdân) can imagine that nature has an effective external existence because of its continuance.

In Short: Nature is the art of Allah Ta‘âlâ and His Sharî'ah of fitrah. Its laws and forces are the matters of it, and its powers are the rules of those matters.

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Moreover, As-Sâni’ is free of all defects because defects arise from the incapability of the essence of material things. However, Taâ’lâ is free of materiality and the necessities and attributes arising from the contingency (imkân) of the essences of the things in the universe. He is Subhân and Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd, 15 لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ , Jalla Jalalûhu. He indicates these two haqiqahs with His words: 16 فَلَا تَجْعَلُوا لِلّٰهِ اَنْدَادًا

As for the proof of imkân indicated by the âyah 17 وَاللّٰهُ الْغَنِيُّ وَاَنْتُمُ الْفُقَرَآءُ  

Know that regarding its essence and each of its attributes and each of its states and all aspects of its existence, every single particle in the universe is wavering amidst endless possibilities concerning its essence, attributes, states and existence. Then those particles suddenly spring to life, rise and follow a specific path; they are clothed in particular attributes and defined to form an orderly state; they mount on a rightly guided law and turn to a determined aim; they yield such results and benefits full of hikmah that cannot be obtained aside from that determined way. Does this state of particles not proclaim and declare the purpose, intention and hikmah of their Sâni’ clearly through their particular language?

Just as each particle by itself is proof of its Sâni’, so its evidences multiplies as it becomes a part of growing compounds, one within the other. For it has a position in each compound, and, in each position, it has relations, and it has duties resulting from each of those relations, and each of its duties bears the fruit of benefits. In each degree, it recites with its tongue the proofs of the necessary existence of its Sâni’. It resembles a soldier who has relations with his platoon, regiment, division, and so forth.

…

In 18 رَبَّكُمُ is a subtle allusion to the proof of contingency (imkân) of the essences of things.

And in جَعَلَ لَكُمُ الْاَرْضَ فِرَاشًا19 is a proof of the contingency (imkân) of their attributes.

And in الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ20 is a proof of their essences and attributes being newly created (hudûth).

The following certain expressions from the word of Taâ’lâ are the proof of contingency (imkân) of the essences of things:

• 21 وَاللّٰهُ الْغَنِيُّ وَاَنْتُمُ الْفُقَرَآءُ  
• اِليٰ رَبِّكَ الْمُنْتَهَيٰ22
• فَاِنَّهُمْ عَدُوٌّ لِيٓ اِلَّا رَبَّ الْعَلَمِينَ23
• قُلِ اللَّهُ ثُمَّ ذَرْهُمْ فِي خَوْضِهِمْ يَلْعَبُونَ24
• فَفِرُّوٓا اِلَي اللَّهِ25
• اَلَا بِذِكْرِ اللَّهِ تَطْمَئِنُّ الْقُلُوبُ26

Now compare and think about the haqiqahs shown by these âyahs!

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Furthermore, it27 admonishes that the attributes of material beings prove As-Sâni’ through their contingency (imkân). Because the particles in those material beings are equal in the possibility and ability28 of conditions and qualities they can assume. All possible attributes are wavering amidst a great many possibilities. So in respect to their attributes and qualities, all material beings are in need of intention, purpose, hikmah and in need of being specified by a specifier.

Signs of Miraculousness-295-299-300-304-305-306-319

 

According to ‘Ilm al-Kalâm, contingency (imkân) is the equality of the two sides. That is, if there is no cause, then the existence and non-existence of the things — that are neither necessary (wâjib) nor impossible, but rather contingent and possible — are equal; there is no difference between them concerning the possibility of existing or not existing. Few or many, big or small, are the same in regard to this contingency (imkân) and equality.

Thus, creatures are contingent, and since, within the sphere of contingency (imkân), the possibility of their existence and non-existence are equal, the boundless azalî qoudrah of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd breaks the balance of equality of the existence and non-existence of all contingent beings as easily as granting existence to a single contingent being. He clothes everything with an existence worthy of it. When the duty of that thing is completed, He takes off the garment of external material existence of that thing and sends it to a seeming non-existence but, in fact, sends it to a ma’nawî existence within the sphere of His ‘Ilm.

The Fifteenth Ray-Second Station-2nd Step

 

Just as a thing that is struck indicates a striker, so too does an artful work necessitate an artist, an offspring require a parent, and the quality of being at the lower end demand the quality of being at the upper end, and so on... Just as all relative qualities, such as these that are called relative matters and that cannot exist without each other, so too does the haqiqah of imkân, which is seen in the entire universe as well as in its particulars, point to the necessary existence of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd. And the state of inactivity, which is visible in all of them, points to an action, and the state of being created, which is visible in the entire universe and its particulars, points to being a creator (khâliqiyyah), and the multiplicity and formation that are seen in all of them require wahdah. Being necessary (wujûb) and being creator (khâliqiyyah), action (fi’îl) and wahdah evidently and necessarily demand the attributes, such as wâjib, creator (khâliq), doer (fâ’il) and one (wâhid) who is not contingent, inactive, numerous, formed and created. In which case, all contingencies, all states of inactivity, all states of createdness, multiplicity and formation testify to Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd, Fa’âlun limâ yurîd29, Al-Khâliq of all things, Al-Wâhid, Who is Ahad.

In Short: Just as being necessary (wujûb) is seen through imkân, action (fi’îl) is seen through inactivity, and wahdah is seen through multiplicity; the existence of the latter indicates the existence of the former with certainty. In the same way, attributes, such as being created and being bestowed with rizq that are visible in beings, prove the existence of shuûn clearly, such as being Sâni’ (sâni’iyyah) and being Razzâq (razzâqiyyah). And the existence of these attributes necessarily and evidently proves the existence of a Khallâq and Razzâq, Who is Sâni’ and Rahîm. It means that, with the language of the hundreds of these kinds of attributes that they carry, each being testifies to hundreds of asmâ al-husnâ of Al-Wâjib Al-Wujûd. It becomes necessary to deny all these kinds of attributes of beings if these testimonies are not acknowledged.

Thirty-Third Word/Twenty-Fifth Window