The goal of all mysticism is to cleanse the heart, to educate,
or transform, the self, and to find God. The lowest level of the self
is dominated
by pride, egotism, and totally self-centered greed and lust. This level
is the part within each person that leads away from Truth. The highest
level
is the pure self, and at this level there is no duality, no separation
from
God.
The self is actually a living process rather than a static
structure in the psyche. The self is not a thing. The Arabic term is
related to words for "breath," "soul," "essence," "self," and "nature."
It refers to a
process that comes about from the interaction of body and soul. When
the soul becomes embodied, it forgets its original nature and becomes
enmeshed in material creation. This creates the self.
The lowest level of the self, the ego or lower personality, is
made up of impulses, or drives, to satisfy desires. These drives
dominate reason or judgment and are defined as the forces in one's
nature that must be
brought under control. The self is a product of the self-centered
consciousness - the ego, the "I." The self must be transformed - this
is the ideal. The self is like a wild horse; it is powerful and
virtually uncontrollable. As the self becomes trained, or transformed,
it becomes capable of serving the individual. Sheikh Muzaffer has
written,
The self is not bad in itself. Never blame your self. Part of the work of Sufism is to change the state of your self. The lowest state is that of being completely dominated by your wants and desires. The next state is to struggle with yourself, to seek to act according to reason and higher ideals and to criticize yourself when you fail. A much higher state is to be satisfied with whatever God provides for you, whether it means comfort or discomfort, fulfillment of physical needs or not.
According to many Sufi teachers, there are seven levels of
the self. They are seven levels of development, ranging from absolutely
self-centered and egotistical to purely spiritual.
The Commanding Self
The first level has also been described as the domineering
self or the self that incites to evil. The commanding self seeks to
dominate and to control each individual. At this level there is
unbridled selfishness and no sense of morality or compassion.
Descriptions of this level are similar to descriptions of the
id in psychoanalytic theory; it is closely linked to lust and
aggression. These have been called the swine and the dogs of the self -
the sensual traits are like swine, the ferocious ones like fierce dogs
or wolves. Wrath, greed, sensual appetites, passion, and envy are
examples of traits at this level of the self. This is the realm of
physical and egoistic desires.
At this level people are like addicts who are in denial. Their
lives are dominated by uncontrollable addictions to negative traits and
habits, yet they refuse to believe they have a problem. They have no
hope of change at this level, because they do not acknowledge any need
to change.
The Regretful Self
People
who have not developed beyond the first level are unaware and
unconscious.
As the light of faith grows, insight dawns, perhaps for the first time.
The negative effects of a habitually self-centered approach to the
world become apparent to the regretful self.
At this level, wants and desires still dominate, but now the
person repents from time to time and tries to
follow higher impulses. As Sheikh Muzaffer points out,
There is a battle between the self, the lower self, and the soul. This battle will continue through life. The question is, Who will educate whom? Who will become the master of whom? If the soul becomes the master, then you will be a believer, one who embraces Truth. If the lower self becomes master of the soul, you will be one who denies Truth.
At this second level, people do not yet have the ability to
change their way of life in a significant way. However, as they see
their faults more clearly, their regret and desire for change grow. At
this level,
people are like addicts who are beginning to understand the pain they
have
caused themselves and others. The addiction is still far too strong to
change. That requires far stronger medicine.
The Inspired Self
At the next level, the seeker begins to take genuine pleasure
in prayer, meditation, and other spiritual activities. Only now does
the individual taste the
joys of spiritual experience. Now the seeker is truly motivated by
ideals
such as compassion, service, and moral values. This is the beginning of
the real practice of Sufism. Before this stage, the best anyone can
accomplish is superficial outer understanding and mechanical outer
worship.
Though one is not free from desires and ego, this new level of
motivation and spiritual experience significantly reduces the power of
these forces for the first time. What is essential here is to live
in terms
of higher values. Unless these new motivations become part of a way of
life, they will wither and die away. Behaviors common to the inspired
self
include gentleness, compassion, creative acts, and moral action.
Overall,
a person who is at the stage of the inspired self seems to be
emotionally
mature, respectable, and respected. (about
dangers
at this stage)
The Contented Self
The seeker is now at peace. The struggles of the earlier
stages are basically over. The old desires and attachments are no
longer binding. The ego-self begins to let go, allowing the individual
to come more closely in contact with the Divine.
This level of self predisposes one to be liberal, grateful,
trusting,
and adoring. If one accepts difficulties with the same overall sense of
security with which one accepts benefits, it may be said that one has
attained the level of the contented self. Developmentally, this level
marks a period of transition. The self can now begin to "disintegrate"
and let go of all previous concern with self-boundaries and then begin
to "reintegrate" as an aspect of the universal self.
The Pleased Self
At this stage the individual is not only content with his or
her lot, but pleased with even the difficulties and trials of life,
realizing that these difficulties come from God. The state of the
pleased self is very different from the way we usually experience the
world, focused on seeking pleasure and avoiding pain. A Sufi story
illustrates this:
Sultan Mahmud of Ghazna once shared a cucumber with Ayaz, his
most loyal and beloved companion. Ayaz happily ate his half of the
cucumber, but
when the sultan bit into his half, it was so
bitter he immediately
spit it out.
"How could you manage to eat something so bitter? the sultan
exclaimed, "it tasted like chalk or like bitter poison!"
"My beloved sultan," answered Ayaz, "I have enjoyed so many
favors and bounties from your hand that whatever you give me tastes
sweet."
When a person's love and gratitude to God reach this level, he
or she
has reached the stage of the pleased self.
The Self Pleasing to God
Those who have reached the next stage realize that all power
to act comes from God, that they can do nothing by themselves. They no
longer fear anything or ask for anything.
The Sufi sage Ibn 'Arabi described this level as the inner
marriage or self and soul. The self pleasing to God has achieved
genuine inner unity and wholeness. At earlier stages, people struggle
with the world because they experience multiplicity. A broken mirror
creates a thousand different reflections of a single image. If the
mirror could be made whole again,
it would then reflect the single, unified image. By healing the
multiplicity within, the Sufi experiences the world as whole and
unified.
The Pure Self
Those few who attain the final level have transcended the
self entirely. There is no ego or separate self left, only union with
God. At this stage, the individual has truly realized the truth, "There
is no god but God." The Sufi now
knows that there is nothing but God, that only the Divine exists, and
that any sense of individuality or separateness is an illusion.
Rumi illuminates this state for us:
If you could get rid
Of yourself just once,
The secret of secrets
Would open to you.
The face of the unknown,
Hidden beyond the universe
Would appear on the
Mirror of your perception
Of yourself just once,
The secret of secrets
Would open to you.
The face of the unknown,
Hidden beyond the universe
Would appear on the
Mirror of your perception
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