Adab as-Salat: The Disciplines of the Prayer Second Revised Edition

The Rukū‘of the Salāt of The Messenger’s Mi‘rāj

In respect of the mi'rāj salāt of the Messenger of Allah (s) it is stated that after the rukū', the Almighty addressed him, saying: “Look at My 'Arsh.” The Messenger of Allah said: “I looked at a greatness which astounded my soul and I went in a swoon. I was inspired to say: 'Glory be to my Great Lord and praise be to Him' because of the greatness which I saw. As I said that, I came to myself. I continued to say it for seven times till I came to myself as before…”[^1] as the hadīth goes.

Consider, dear, the state of the greatness of the sulūk of the “Universal Master” [sarwar-i kull] and the Guide to the Paths (s), who, while in the state of rukū', which is a looking down at one's inferior, sees the light of the 'Arsh; and, as the light of 'Arsh to the walīs [awliyā'] is the manifestation of the Essence, without mirror, the self individuation is gone, and a mood of swoon and shock takes place.

So, the Holy Essence, with eternal care, helped that honorable being, and with affectionate inspiration taught that noble personality how to “glorify,” “aggrandize” and “praise,” until after seven times the number of the veils and the number of man's ranks he came to himself and to wakefulness. This condition prevailed throughout the mi'rāj salāt.

But as we have no admission into the privacy of intimacy, nor into a place of Holy State, it is good to use our incapability and humility as a capital for the attainment of the objective, and as a pretext to reach the goal.
We have to keep clinging to the skirt of the intended until we get what we desire. Or, at least, if we are not the men for the job, we are to seek guidance from the guides of the road, and find help with the perfect spiritual men, so that a smell of fragrant of knowledge may reach the smelling sense of our souls, and a breeze of the graces may blow into our dead corpses, because Allah, the Exalted, is accustomed to being beneficent, and His habit is to be graceful and generous.

It must be noted that rukū' consists of “glorifying,” “aggrandizing” (magnifying) and “praising” the Lord, Almighty and Most High. Thus, “glorifying” is purifying Allah, the Exalted, from description and definition. “Aggrandizing” and “praising” are refraining from limits of assimilation and devesting Allah from attributes, because “praising” denotes the appearance in the mirrors of creation, and “aggrandizing” negates limitation. Thus, He is apparent and there is no appearance in the world more apparent than Him. He is not clothed in the apparel of the individuations of the creation.

[^1]: 'Ilal ash-Sharā'i' , p. 315. A part of the hadīth concerning al-mi'rāj salāt.