They Ask You About The Soul

They Ask You About the Spirit
Ahmed AlHasan
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{And they ask you about the spirit. Say, "The spirit is of the affair of my Lord. And I have not been given of knowledge except a little”} Quran Chapter “The Night Journey” 17:85.
The term “spirit” refers to any living creation that is not in this physical world. Souls of humans and jinn are spirits, and all angels are called spirits. Just as the wind moves things in this world, so do spirits. They move whatever they enter and merge with.
{And it is He who sends the winds as good tidings before His mercy until, when they have carried heavy rain clouds, We drive them to a dead land and We send down rain therein and bring forth thereby [some] of all the fruits. Thus will We bring forth the dead; perhaps you may be reminded} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:57.
The first creation that God the Exalted and Almighty created is the human: {The Abundantly Merciful ✶ Taught the Quran ✶ Created man} Quran Chapter “The Abundantly Merciful” 55:1-3. Then He created the creation from the first human. This first human is the manifestation of divinity within the creation. It is the first intellect, the first created spirit, and the spirit of God: {Thus We have revealed a spirit of Our command unto you. You did not know what is the Book or [what is] faith, but We have made it a light by which We guide whom We will of Our servants. And indeed, you guide to a straight path} Quran Chapter “The Consultation” 42:52.
Al-Ahwal said: "I asked Abu Abdullah pbuh about the spirit that is in Adam pbuh, when God says: {And when I proportioned him and breathed into him of my Spirit} [Quran Chapter “The Rocky Tract” 15:29 and “Saad” 38:72]. The Imam said: ‘This spirit is created, and the spirit within Jesus is created’” (Al-Kulayni, Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 133, Chapter of the Spirit, 1944).
Some of our companions narrated from Ahmed Ibn Muhammad Ibn Isa, who narrated from Al-Hajal, who narrated from Thalaba that Himran said: “I asked Abu Abdullah pbuh about the saying of God the Exalted and Mighty {of My Spirit} [15:29, 38:72]. He said: 'It is a spirit of God that is created. God created it within Adam and Jesus'" (Al-Kulayni 1944. Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 133, Chapter of the Spirit).
Thus the spirit of God, or the spirit that the angels had prostrated to when it was breathed into Adam's raised wet clay and manifested in his loins, is the greatest spirit—Muhammad—m ay God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his progeny {So, when I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My Spirit, then fall down to him, prostrating”} Quran Chapter “The Rocky Tract” 15:29 and “Saad” 38:72. Thus, the prostration in the verse {So fall down to him in prostration} is to the greatest spirit, or Muhammad, pbuhap. He is the first Qibla (direction) for knowing God the Exalted and Almighty. The prostration of the angels to Adam pbuh never happened until after
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some of the first spirit, Muhammad, pbuhap, was breathed into Adam.1, The spirit that the people ask about [in the verse] would face them and they would face it in this world through the body of Muhammad pbuhap, yet they did not know. {And they ask you about the spirit. Say, "The spirit is of the affair of my Lord. And I have not been given of knowledge except a little”} Quran Chapter “The Night Journey” 17:85.
Jabir, son of Yazid narrated, “Abu Jafar pbuh said to me: ‘O Jabir, the first ones that God created were Muhammad pbuhap and his progeny. They are the guides and the guided ones. They used to be apparitions of light before God.’ I then asked: 'What are these apparitions?' He said, 'They are the shadows of the light—luminous bodies without spirits.2 He was supported with one spirit, which is the Holy Spirit.3 By it, he and his progeny used to worship God , and thus He created them humble, knowledgeable, benevolent, and pure—worshiping God through prayer, fasting, prostrating, glorifying, tahleel (reciting that there is no God but the one true God), performing their prayers, observing Hajj, and fasting'" (Al-Kulayni 1944. Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 442).
Creation of the Human Soul:
{Who perfected everything that He created, and began the creation of man from wet clay} Quran Chapter “The Prostration”, 32:7.
1 “The first manifestation of the Absolute Divinity in creation, the clearest image of God, and the first creation, intellect and word, is Muhammad (pbuhap). Muhammad's light was breathed into Adam pbuh. Thus, the meaning of the verse {I have breathed My Spirit into him} is: "when I have breathed the Light of Muhammed (pbuhap) into Adam pbuh (Ahmed AlHasan, Kitab Al-Tawheed [The Book of Monotheism], 107). Perhaps the attentive reader will remember that many prophets and successors are better than Adam pbuh and have a greater rank. The image of God that Adam was created from was not the first image (Muhammad pbuhap); and the spirit of God that was breathed into Adam was not the first spirit (Muhammad pbuhap). Rather, it is one of that spirit’s manifestations in the creation. This is because between Adam and that first spirit, there exists all creation that have a higher rank than Adam pbuh. However, we can say that that manifestation is the first spirit because it represents it and reveals it, and because it is one of its manifestations” (Ahmed AlHasan 2010. The Book of Monotheism, footnote 107) -Trans.
2 The shadow of light is its dark trace that indicates its self. In an honorable hadith, the light is God Almighty, as He is light without darkness, and His shadow is His manifestation within the creation. Muhammad and his progeny pbut are shadows of light, meaning the traces of God Almighty in the creation. By the effect the cause is known, and by them God Almighty is known.
3 The Holy Spirit is within them. Rather, it is their spirit in the seventh complete heaven (the heaven of the intellect).
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The wet clay of Adam was raised from the earth to the first heaven (the World of al-Thar).4 Then the spirit of faith was transmitted into the wet clay, and the first human soul was formed. After that, the Holy Spirit was transmitted into it and the angels were commanded to prostrate to him: {“And when I have proportioned him and breathed some of My Spirit into him, then fall down to him in prostration”} Quran Chapter “The Rocky Tract” 15:29 and Chapter “The Letter Saad” 38:72.
In this way, the first human soul was formed from the raised wet clay of Adam and the spirit that had been transmitted into it. Then another soul was extracted from that first human soul and through God Almighty’s ability, it was split from the first soul and became the second human soul, or the soul of Eve pbuh, the wife of Adam pbuh. The Almighty said: {O Mankind, fear your Lord who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from
4 Raising here means returning, by one or more steps, in the direction of the starting point or source. This means that, if we picture the human being—and the rest of creation as well—as a manifestation of divinity in the nothingness that can exist, we will have a particular rank whenever we move away (in terms of knowledge) from the source of the manifestation, and it will have less light and more darkness (which is the nothingness that permeates it).
Let us assume that the world of matter, in which our bodies exist, is composed of 10% light and 90% darkness (nothingness), and that each step that light takes toward absolute darkness (absolute nothingness, absence of knowledge and awareness) represents a whole number. Raising a material object (for example, the wet clay of Adam pbuh) by one step would be to move it to the parallel world whose percentage of light is 11% and percentage of darkness (nothingness) is 89%. In other words, this world is ahead of ours.
It must be the case that the worlds are divided in an ideal manner, because their creator is absolute. As such, they must be as close as possible to being absolute, because they represent the first thing to come from Him (Muhammad = all of the worlds). To make this easier to understand mathematically, what it means is that the divisor is the smallest thing imaginable. You can imagine that there is a number as close as possible to zero, but you cannot truly know this decimal number. For example, if you say it is 0.0001, then 0.00001 is even smaller, and so on. In this way, you will reach a number that you can affirm exists, and you will know some of its attributes, but never actually know it. If you place this number in the denominator of any fraction, the result will be the closest thing possible to infinity, because the denominator is the closest thing possible to zero. This means that if we were able to see a person being raised before our eyes, we would see him gradually disappear. In other words, we would see a body, then an apparition and after that, he would disappear. However, he never actually disappeared. What happened was that he moved toward the light, to a world parallel to ours and more developed in rank. Alternatively, we can say that he returned one or more steps toward the starting point or source, depending on the circumstances of the raising of that material body. In any case, the sum of light and darkness, or existence and nonexistence, outside of the source of light or existence, is zero, which means nothing really exists outside of the source.
For example, let us picture a light source, with the light from it moving in a particular direction. With each step that the light advances forward, some of it condenses to form a sheet of matter that some of the light passes through. In this way, light forms a number of screens in front of the light source, with some of the light passing through them. The number of these screens is as close as possible to infinity. Between the screens is a vacuum filled with antiparticles (antimatter) equal to the sum of the matter of the screens and the energy of the light. This means that the sum of matter and energy outside the light source is equal to zero. In other words, nothing really exists outside of the light source.
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both of them many men and women. And fear God, through whom you ask one another, and the [severing of] ties. Indeed, God is ever an observer over you} Quran Chapter “The Women” 4:1.5
The Almighty said: {It is He who created you from one soul and created from it its mate, that he might live with her, and when he covers her she bears a light burden and continues therein. And when it becomes heavy, they both invoke God their Lord, “If you should give us good, we will surely be among the grateful”} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:189.
Then the souls of the offspring were brought out of the souls of Adam and his offspring, and God tested them in that world [of al-Thar]. This was the first test, which preceded the test in this physical world: {And when your Lord took from the children of Adam—from their backs—their descendants, and made them swear on their souls, [saying to them], "Am I not your Lord?” They said, “Yes, we have testified.” Lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, “Indeed, we were of this unaware”} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:172.
Thus, all the souls of the children of Adam are composed of both the raised wet clay and a manifestation of the spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit, or say an image of the spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is in every human’s nature to reach the highest ranks, and to be with the people of the highest realm, and to know God. Moreover, they have the device with which they rise; the image of the spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit. As such, through the image placed within them, they are supposed to know and reach the truth. But unfortunately, instead of benefiting from this image being reflected in their own mirror, some children of Adam obliterate it and debase themselves, until nothing remains except the animal body that they share with cattle, apes, and pigs. The Almighty said: {Or do you think that most of them hear or reason? They are but like cattle. Rather, they are even more astray in their path} Quran Chapter “The Criterion” 25:44.
The Almighty said: {Say, "Shall I inform you of a penalty from God that is worse than that? It is that of those whom God has cursed and with whom He became angry and made of them apes and pigs and slaves of tyranny. Those are worse in rank and further astray from the sound path"} Quran Chapter “The Table Spread” 5:60.
Creation of the Human and Transmission of the Soul into the Body:
God Almighty began the creation of Adam in the first heaven (the heaven of souls). But in order for Adam and his offspring to become capable of “lowering” to the earth and connecting with the bodies, the wet clay had to be “raised” to the first heaven, and the soul of Adam pbuh and everyone else had to be created from it. This was necessary since the spirit was transmitted into this raised wet clay, which became the tool for connecting the spirit to the body. The spirit
5 At a higher level, what is meant by the first spirit is Muhammad’s pbuhap spirit. From it, the level of the spirit below it was created, which is the spirit of Ali and Fatimah pbut.
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cannot touch the body because they are in—and from—two different worlds, and there are worlds between them as well. Therefore, there has to be a tool that exists at all levels of progression and in all worlds between the physical heaven and the first heaven. When the body is raised, it will have these levels and the ability to move within their boundaries.
In this way, the wet clay that was raised (which represents everything on the earth) has this range of movement between the bodily world and the spiritual world, or let us say between the bodily world (from the beginning of the first heaven all the way up to the second heaven), and the spiritual world (starting at the second heaven, which is also the spiritual heaven and the kingdom of heaven).
Furthermore, Adam’s creation began from wet clay and water of the earth in order for his soul, which was to be created in the first heaven, to carry the power and lust on the earth that would enable him to reproduce and live in every place on the earth, and to dominate it. As such, by the command of God Almighty, the angels took some dust and water from the earth and raised it to the first heaven, and the light (as in non-dense) body of Adam was molded from it therein and placed in the temporal paradise, in other words, the upper end of the first heaven, or more specifically, at the door of the heavenly kingdom (the second heaven). It is the first of the paradises of the kingdom that the angels traverse.
Abu Abdullah al-Sadiq pbuh said: “The angels would pass by Adam pbuh, in other words, his form, while he was wet clay lying in paradise and they would say, ‘Why were you created?’” (Al-Rawandi1969. Qisas Al-Anbiya [The Stories of the Prophets], 41. Arabic source, translated).
This means that he was lying in the paradise that exists in the first heaven. Al-Baqir pbuh said:
God created Adam, and he remained as a form that the cursed Iblis used to pass by and say: “Why were you created?” (Al-Qumi 1983. Tafsir Al-Qumi [Interpretation of Al-Qumi] vol 1, 41. Arabic source, translated).
{So We said, "O Adam, indeed this is an enemy to you and to your wife. Then let him not remove you from Paradise so you would suffer} Quran Chapter “Ta Ha” 20:117.
When the earth was ready to receive Adam pbuh, God’s vicegerent, God breathed the spirit of faith into the ideal body of Adam that was in the first heaven. Thus, the first human soul was formed, as in the saying of the Almighty, {When I have proportioned him}, as well as His saying, {And We created you}. This is at the level of the world of souls, or the first heaven.
Afterwards, He breathed the Holy Spirit into Adam as in His saying, {. . . And I breathed some of My Spirit into him}, and His saying {And giving you form}, meaning giving you form upon the image of God, as in the Old Testament:
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26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness.”
27 So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him;
male and female He created them” (Genesis 1:26-27). In the religious accounts:
Muhammad Ibn Muslim said: I asked Abu Jafar pbuh about the the meaning of God creating Adam in His image. He said: It is a recently created image that God selected and chose over all of the other different images. He attributed it to Himself, just as he attributed the Kaaba and the Spirit to Himself. {And I breathed some of My Spirit into him} ( Al-Kulayni 1944. Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 134. Arabic source, translated. Also Al-Sadooq 1956, 103).
God commanded the angels to prostrate to him as in the Almighty’s saying: {“Fall down to him in prostration"}, and in His saying: {Then We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam"}. As such, there were those who prostrated and others who were arrogant and were expelled.
{“And when I have proportioned him and breathed some of My Spirit into him, then fall down to him in prostration”} Quran Chapter “The Rocky Tract” 15:29.
{And We created you, then We formed you, then We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam.” So they prostrated except for Iblis. He was not from the prostrating ones} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:11.
Afterwards, God Almighty created the soul of Eve pbuh from the soul of Adam pbuh.6 The Almighty said: {O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and transmitted from both of them many men and women. And fear God, through whom you ask one another, and the [severing of] ties. Indeed, God is always an Observer over you} Quran Chapter “The Women” 4:1.7
Abu Abdullah al-Sadiq pbuh said, “God Almighty created Adam from wet clay and created Eve from Adam” (Al-Rawandi 1989. Qisas Al-Anbiya [The Stories of the Prophets], 42. Arabic source, translated).
6 God Almighty did not create Eve’s pbuh soul independently as he did the soul of Adam pbuh. This was so that affection and mercy would exist between them. Thus the affection, or love, and obedience is directed from Eve to Adam, and the mercy is directed from Adam to Eve {And of His signs is that He created for you from yourselves mates that you may find tranquility in them; and He placed between you affection and mercy. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought} Quran Chapter “The Romans” 30:21.
7 At a higher level, what is meant by the first spirit is Muhammad’s pbuhap spirit. From it, the level of the spirit below it was created, which is the spirit of Ali and Fatimah pbut.
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Then he brought forth their offspring and tested all of them with the first test in the world of al-Tharr (the world of souls). The test had one question: {And when your Lord took from the children of Adam—from their backs—their descendants and made them swear to Him of their souls, [saying to them], "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes, we have testified." Lest you should say on the Day of Resurrection, "Indeed, we were of this unaware"} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:172. The verse is clear, {made them swear on their souls}, meaning it was a world of souls. The one who comes first in the test—and wins the race—is the one who sees, hears, and answers first.
When this test ended, God wished for what He knew to be fulfilled: the lowering of Adam pbuh to the earth and his test therein. Therefore, Adam’s test pbuh was in the first heaven (the temporal paradise), and he failed it as was destined. {Adam and his wife ate of it, their shame became apparent to them, and they began to fasten the leaves of paradise over themselves. Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred} Quran Chapter “Ta Ha” 20:121. As a result, he was lowered to the earth, as was our mother Eve—may the prayers of God be upon them, and may God bestow their intercession upon us in this world and in the hereafter.
The Quranic text is clear: Adam and Eve were created and initially lived in the paradise of the first heaven, which is a temporal paradise, but not on the earth. Rather, it is in the first heaven: the world of souls.
The Almighty said, {We said, "O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in paradise and eat therefrom in abundance from wherever you will. But do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers"} Quran Chapter “The Cow” 2:35.
And the Almighty said, {"O Adam, dwell, you and your wife, in paradise and eat from wherever you will but do not approach this tree, lest you be among the wrongdoers"} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:19.
The Almighty also said, {So We said, "O Adam, indeed this is an enemy to you and to your wife. Then let him not remove you from paradise so you would suffer. ✶ Indeed, you will not be hungry therein or be unclothed. ✶ And indeed, you will not be thirsty therein or be hot from the sun." ✶ Then Satan whispered to him; he said, "O Adam, shall I direct you to the tree of eternity and possession that will not deteriorate?" ✶ Adam and his wife ate of it, their shame became apparent to them, and they began to fasten the leaves of paradise over themselves. And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred} Quran Chapter “Ta Ha” 20:117-121.
The verses are clear: Adam pbuh was not earthly. He was not created on the earth to begin with. Instead, he was created in paradise, in the first heaven, which is not the eternal paradise: {Then let him not remove you from paradise so you would suffer}. This paradise Adam was created in is not like the earth where the human being can become hungry, unclothed, thirsty, visible, or harmed by the sun and the weather if he does not work and collect fruit, or plant and
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hunt, or raise animals, and take precautions to prevent harm. Therefore, it is something other than earthly.
Let us examine the distinct condition of Adam in these verses and whether or not it concurs with the condition of the earth and the bodies therein. The body of the earthly human, unless partially covered by clothes, is revealed, and it is certainly seen by him and others. If Adam had been wearing earthly clothes, they would not vanish once he disobeyed God. If Adam and Eve were on the earth and unclothed from the beginning, they would have noticed their condition then, rather than after the disobedience. If they were wearing clothes on the earth, the clothing would not vanish from their bodies just due to disobedience.
Therefore, the issue is not earthly, and neither is the story. As told by God in the Quran, it does not correspond with the condition of the earth and the people in it. However, if Adam and Eve had been in the temporal paradise in the first heaven during the disobedience, it would have been natural for the shame to become apparent to them only when they disobeyed, and not before. This is because the clothing that conceals the shame is the clothing of piety that is worn by the soul as a natural result of obeying God and opposing the desires and Satan. The clothing of piety is of greater importance and better than bodily clothing, because God looks at the soul and spirit of the human being and what it wears, rather than the body of the human and what is covering it.
{O Children of Adam! We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal your shame, and as an adornment. But the clothing of piety, that is the best. That is from the signs of God, perhaps they will remember} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:26.
With disobedience, this clothing is removed and the shame of the human being is exposed before his Lord.8 In other words, Adam and Eve pbut were wearing clothes in paradise from the beginning. They were wearing the clothing of piety, and then it was removed from them. It is not that they were naked in the beginning and their initial condition was revealed to them. What was actually revealed to them was their condition after disobedience and the removal of the clothing of piety.
{“O Children of Adam! Do not let Satan tempt you as he removed your parents from paradise, stripping them of their clothing to show them their shame. Indeed, he and his tribe see you from where you do not see them. We have made the satans supporters of those who do not believe”} Quran Chapter “The Heights” 7:27.
The verse clearly states that the clothing of Adam was removed from him because of his disobedience. {Do not let Satan tempt you as he removed your parents from paradise, stripping
8 This goes for any human being, not just Adam. The angels could see and thus know that he had been stripped of piety because he was disobedient. That is why Adam and Eve were concerned about what happened. It is embarrassing, to say the least, coming from Adam, the teacher of the angels. That is why he started to request forgiveness: so that the clothing of piety would return to him. {. . . their shame became apparent to them, and they began to fasten the leaves of paradise over themselves.} Quran Chapter “Ta Ha” 20:21.
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them of their clothing to show them their shame}. This clothing was returned by seeking forgiveness: {Their shame became apparent to them, and they began to fasten the leaves of paradise over themselves}.
The verses clearly show that the fall of Adam pbuh and Eve, from the temporal paradise in the first heaven to the earth, cannot be said to be a fall from a paradise on this earth to the earth. {We said, “Go down from it, all of you; and when guidance comes to you from Me, whoever follows My guidance, there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve.”} Therefore, it is a fall from the first heaven to the physical heaven, and to the earth specifically. Imam al-Sadiq pbuh clarified that Adam requested to return to the paradise he was in, and God granted his request. This clearly shows that it was the paradise he would enter once more, after the separation of his soul from his body through death, thus returning to the way he was before.
AbuAbdullahpbuhsaid:“WhenAdampbuhcircumambulatedtheHousefor one hundred years, he did not look at Eve. He cried about paradise until he had two great rivers of tears on his cheeks. Then Gabriel pbuh came to him and said, ‘May God prolong your life and may He bring you near to Him.’ When he said, ‘May God prolong your life’, Adam’s face beamed with joy, and he knew that God was satisfied with him. And when he said, ‘May He bring you near to Him’ Adam laughed, because ‘May he bring you near to Him’ means,
‘‘May He cause you to laugh.’ He stood by the door of the Kaaba clothed by the skins of camels and cows and said, ‘O God, undo my error, forgive my sin and return me to the home that you removed me from.’ Then God Almighty said, ‘I have undone your error, forgiven your sin, and I will return you to the home that I removed you from’” (Al-Sadooq 1960. Maani Al-Akhbar [The Meanings of the Reports], 269. Arabic source, translated).
This is the story of the creation of Adam pbuh from the wet clay that was raised to the first heaven and had the spirit breathed into it. Adam was created in the temporal paradise that is in the first heaven.9 Thus, we are heavenly, and our souls were created from the spirit breathed into the raised wet clay in order for us to be tested on this earth, and for the souls to be able to connect with the earthly bodies that are the expanse in which the soul is tested in this physical, material world.
The Soul, Spirit and Intellect:
It had been explained already that the soul was formed from a composition of raised wet clay and a spirit. Therefore it differs from the spirit, but only from the perspective of how it is named.
9 The temporal heaven consists of two parts or levels: the physical heaven, which is this material physical heaven containing galaxies, suns, moons, and the earth we live in, and the first heaven, the heaven of the souls, in which Adam was created. It contains the temporal paradise, which Adam and Eve were placed in at the beginning of their creation before they were lowered to the earth following the disobedience. The first heaven is itself the heaven of the world of al-Tharr.
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Sometimes the soul can be called a spirit because it was created from a spirit, and reflects the spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit. And sometimes, the spirit can also be called a soul. The human consists of a body and the mover of the body, which is invisible to the eye. Since this mover is connected to the body, it can be called a soul, even if it is developed and has a holy spirit. And since it is a mover of the body and a manifestation from the highest heavenly kingdom (meaning from the true spirit), it may be called a spirit even if it is not developed and does not have a spirit of faith or a holy spirit.
And the truth is, in order for the human to have a real spirit, he must have a share and at the very least, a presence in the second heavenly kingdom, since it is the first heavenly paradise.
Also, since this same mover is a manifestation of the intellect (the seventh heaven), it is called intellect. And the truth is, in order for the human to have true intellect, he must have a share in and a presence in the seventh heaven.
The Soul
In the beginning, the Holy Spirit and the spirit of faith were gathered together with the raised wet clay, and then the first human soul was created. The other human souls then came after the first soul that they are from, and these souls are considered to be an image of that first soul. The wet clay, along with its desires and the physical forces it contains, appears within the soul. The spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit also appear within the soul.
{[By] the soul and He who proportioned it ✶ And inspired it [with discernment of] its wickedness and its righteousness, ✶ Whoever purifies it has succeeded, ✶ And whoever instills it [with corruption] has failed} Quran Chapter “The Prostration” 91:7-10.
Every human has a soul. In the physical world, this soul is a mirror that reflects the spirit of faith and Holy Spirit. The soul consists of three spirits: the spirit of life, the spirit of power, and the spirit of lust. Each of these spirits is the human soul in the sense that they are headed in this direction and performing this function. If we imagine the soul as a factory, each of these spirits would make up a part of this factory. These components complement one another, and the factory can produce by utilizing all of them. For example, the spirit of life is the electricity in the factory. The spirit of power is the motors that operate by way of the electricity (the spirit of life). As for the spirit of lust, it is the machinery that operates using the motors.
The existence of the soul itself does not mean that the human being has a true spirit. The true spirit commences in the second heaven. So in other words, the soul must have progressed to the second heaven in order to have a true spirit. Yes, it can be called a spirit even in the first heaven, since its manifested from the highest kingdom of heaven and true spirit. This soul, along with its three spirits (the spirit of life, spirit of power and spirit of lust) is the mover of the
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body. The human's progression and high rank—whatever it is—will not strip the m over of the body of its name, which is the soul. Even if the human had a share in the kingdom of the heavens or the complete seventh heaven (the heaven of the intellect) like the prophets, executors and guardians pbut, it is possible to say that the mover of the human is the soul because this name takes into consideration his state, and that he was created from the raised wet clay and the spirit.
And the human soul that is sent down is similar to a mirror from which the spirit of faith and Holy Spirit are reflected, or the truth that the human should work towards. And this human innate nature guides him to rise up so that he can reach the highest human rank. However, if he trips along the way while requesting to progress with sincerity, he will reach the rank to which God has granted him success, according to his state. What is required from the human is for his soul to progress to the rank of the true spirit and intellect. So the one who does not rise to the second heaven has the shadow of the spirit; such is the case with the intellect as well. And since the human did not progress to the seventh absolute heaven, what he will have is the shadow of the intellect; not the intellect itself. As for calling it the spirit some of the time and the intellect at other times, this is in consideration of its reflecting the spirit at some times and the true intellect at others.
Abu Abdullah pbuh said: “O Jabir, God Almighty created the creatures in three categories, and it is in the saying of God Almighty: {And you become three kinds ✶ Then the people of the right—what are the people of the right? ✶ And the companions of the left—what are the companions of the left? ✶ And the forerunners, the forerunners—Those are the ones brought near} [Quran Chapter “The Inevitable” 56:7-11].
The forerunners are the messengers of God pbut and the elite of God from His creation. He has placed in them five spirits. He supported them with: the Holy Spirit, by which they recognized things; the spirit of faith, by which they feared God Almighty; the spirit of power, by which they had the ability to obey God; and the spirit of lust, by which they desired obedience to God Almighty and despised disobedience to Him. He also placed within them the spirit of movement by which the people come and go.
He has placed these spirits within the believers and the people of the right: the spirit of faith, by which they feared God; the spirit of power, by which they were able to obey God; the spirit of lust, by which they desired obedience to God; and the spirit of movement, by which the people come and go” ( Al-Kulayni 1944. Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 271. Arabic source, translated).
Abu Jafar pbuh was asked about the knowledge of the Knowledgeable One, so he said: “There are five spirits in the prophets and successors: The Holy Spirit, the spirit of faith, the spirit of life, the spirit of power, and the spirit of lust. Through the Holy Spirit, they knew of all that is under the Throne [down] to what is within
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the earth. . . . Four of these spirits are all struck by impurities but not the Holy Spirit. It does not trifle or play” (Al-Kulayni vol 1, 272, translated).
Abu Abdullah pbuh was asked about the knowledge of the Imam concerning what is in the ends of the earth while in his home secluded by curtains. He pbuh said: ”God Almighty has placed five spirits in the Prophet pbuhap: the spirit of life by which he moved and walked, the spirit of power by which he stood and strove, the spirit of lust by which he ate, drank and coupled in permissible ways, the spirit of faith by which he believed and was just, and the Holy Spirit by which he bore prophethood. When the Prophet pbuh died, the Holy Spirit transferred and moved to the Imam. The Holy Spirit does not sleep, forget, trifle, nor boast. The other four spirits sleep, forget, boast and trifle. And he would see, through the Holy Spirit” (Al-Kulaini vol 1, 272, translated).
The Spirit:
God the Exalted and Mighty created human beings. He began their creation in the World of al-Thar (the first heaven, or the heaven of the souls). These human souls were in this heaven and contained the spirit of life, the spirit of power, and the spirit of lust, or the three movers. The truth is that they are all sides of the human soul. If we look at the human soul, we find it to be the same as the spirit of life, the spirit of power, and the spirit of lust.
Or to put it more clearly, these are names for the human soul, since it has the characteristics of these names. These three spirits pertain to the human soul, regardless of whether this soul is a believer or not.
As for the spirit of faith and the Holy Spirit, they are both connected to faith and development (of the level of faith). In the World of al-Tharr, those who said “yes” and those who did not all have the three spirits. Those who said “yes” out of true, wholehearted faith, are ranked according to their standing and the speed of their answer. Some of them have only the spirit of faith and some also have the Holy Spirit. Those who have the Holy Spirit are also ranked according to their precedence in answering. Every one of them has a Holy Spirit that suits his standing. Thus, the Holy Spirit connected to Jesus pbuh is not the same as the one connected to Jonah pbuh, and so on.
Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad pbut are distinguished by their connection with the greatest Holy Spirit. However, the greatest Holy Spirit does not have just one rank, because each of them will have their own greatest Holy Spirit according to their standing.
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The Spirit of Faith and the Holy Spirit
The temporal heaven includes:
The physical heaven (which is sometimes called the earth when compared to the other
heavens) and the first heaven, which is the kingdom of the physical heaven. The first heaven is directly connected to the physical heaven through a connection of management and direction.
There are many ranks in the first heaven. The soul of every human is present in the first heaven according to its standing and rank. The share for the soul whose presence is restricted to the lower levels of this heaven is to perceive only that which is apparent in the physical world of this temporal life: {They know what is apparent of the worldly life, but they, of the Hereafter, are unaware} Quran Chapter “The Romans” 30:7.
The soul that progresses to the highest rank in this heaven will become prepared to rise up to the second heavenly kingdom, which is the first heavenly paradise. Whoever has a share within it will be among the people of heaven in the hereafter.
Moreover, if the human soul progresses to the lowest rank within the second heavenly kingdom, the spirit of faith will connect to it and be within it. This means that the reality of this soul will change and become different through the manifestation of the light of faith within it. A soul such as this will have four spirits within it (the spirit of life, spirit of power, spirit of lust, and spirit of faith).
There are many ranks of the spirit of faith, extending from where the second heaven begins to where the sixth heaven ends. Every believing human, according to their work/deeds and sincerity, will have their standing and their spirit of faith in those heavens.
Furthermore, if the soul progresses to the lowest rank of the seventh heaven, the Holy Spirit will connect to it and be within it. The more the soul progresses, the greater the Holy Spirit connected to it. This seventh heaven is the heaven of the intellect. The greater the Holy Spirit in a soul that has progressed to this heaven, the better and greater the intellect is. As I have explained previously in The Mutashabihat [The Allegories], the lowest ranks of the intellect starts from this complete seventh heaven. However, whatever is lower than it, even if it is the sixth heavenly kingdom, is a shadow of the intellect and not the intellect.
In this way, with the progression of the soul, its reality will change and become different. With the soul’s entry to the second heavenly kingdom, the spirit of faith will connect to it and the shadow of the intellect will start heading toward the light of the intellect.
With the soul’s entry to the seventh heaven, the Holy Spirit and the intellect will connect to it. No prophet is dispatched until he has a standing in the complete seventh heaven; therefore, he
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has completed the intellect, which is the reason for his infallibility and for the Holy Spirit connecting to his soul.10
The Messenger of God pbuhap said: God did not share out anything better than the intellect. The sleep of the one of intellect is better than the awake at night of the one of ignorance, and the settled one of intellect is better than the traveling one of ignorance. God does not dispatch a Prophet or a messenger until his intellect has become complete. Thus, his intellect is better than the intellect of all the people of his nation. And what the Prophet conceals within him is better than the efforts of those who strive. Moreover, a servant does not perform his duties to God until he understands Him. The meritorious worship of all servants does not amount to what the one of intellect and those of intellect have reached. They are the ones of understanding, of whom God Almighty has said: {And none will remember except those of understanding} [Quran Chapter “The Cow” 2:269] (Al-Kulayni 1944. Al-Kafi [The Sufficient Book] vol 1, 12. Arabic source, translated).
The Companions of the Right and the Close Ones
As long as the believing human is in kingdom of the heavens, he is counted among the companions of the right. If he [his soul] progresses to the seventh heaven, he will become among the close ones. It has been explained previously that the spirit of faith is in the kingdom of the heavens. As for the seventh heaven, it contains the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the spirit of faith is connected to and within the companions of the right. As for the close ones, the Holy Spirit is connected to them, and is within them.
If we know this, it becomes clear why this happens to the close ones at the time of their deaths: they will not be taken to account, and will not be tortured during their death, even if it is on the day in which there is no intercession: {And fear a Day when no soul will suffice for another soul at all, and no compensation will be accepted from it, nor will any intercession benefit it, nor will they be aided} Quran Chapter “The Cow” 2:123.
10 Infallibility is in ranks; not only one rank, as many people imagine. Each one of the prophets, messengers, and Imams pbut is distinguished by a rank of infallibility based on his choice. Thus the infallible is the one who holds fast to God to refrain from what is prohibited by God Almighty. In the book of Maani Al-Akhbar [The Meanings of the Reports], Hisham said: “I said to Abi Abdullah pbuh, ‘What is the meaning of your saying that the Imam must be infallible?’ So he pbuh said, ‘The infallible is the one who refrains by God from all that is prohibited by God. The Almighty said, {He who holds fast to God is verily guided unto a straight path}” (Al-Sadooq 1960. Maani Al-Akhbar [The Meanings of the Reports], 269. Arabic source, translated, 132).
And Abu Abdullah Al-Sadiq pbuh said, “The infallible is the one who holds fast to the rope of God; and the rope of God is the Quran; and the Quran guides to the Imam, just as The Almighty said, {Indeed, this Quran guides unto that which is most straight}” (Ibid).
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The reason is because they entered the heaven of the intellect and became the people of intellect. The complete intellect protected them from falling into sin in accordance with their degree of progression.11 They entered into the heaven of the holy spirit, so their spirits became holy and purified. This is as long as they choose to remain where they are. The infallible mentioned in the texts is distinguished from them by his being firmly established in his standing, because he never ever chooses impurity over purity. Thus, God has guaranteed that whoever follows him will stay on the truth forever.
Despite the spirit of faith being connected to the companions of the right and being inside them, as long as they are in the kingdom of the heavens and have not entered the seventh heaven of the complete intellect, their intellects have not become complete and what they have is a shadow of the intellect. Every time the rank is lowered, the human moves further away from infallibility and closer to sin. And every time the believer advances further, the shadow of the intellect has more light and becomes more like the complete intellect, and it becomes a reason for the believer to become closer to infallibility. However, he will remain as an image of the intellect and a manifestation of the complete intellect, and the specter of falling into sin remains.
11 Each of the close ones is infallible (masoom) according to the standing they have reached. Their infallibility is limited by their standing. If carried to a higher standing, of course he will fall, make a mistake, and disobey, as had happened to Adam pbuh: {Adam and his wife ate from it, their shame became apparent to them, and they began to fasten the leaves of paradise over themselves. And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred} Quran Chapter “Ta Ha” 20:121. This is also what happened to Moses pbuh, the details of which were mentioned previously.
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