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mOmen! vhen !he 5un emerges rOm !he eas!ern hOrZOn has an
nk!ng O !he spr!uaI! O !gh!. 1hs nchOa!e exQerence O !he
cOmmun! O !he IumnOus and !he numnOus s !he QOn! O
depar!ure !Or !he \sdOm O IIumna!On Ormu!a!ed b
5hhabOddn Yaha 5Ohravard, !he grea! revver O! lerme!c
gnOss n sIam vhO suered a mar!rs dea!h B IZ" L 5ra. ^! !he
hear! O 5Ohravards ms!c scence s !he recOgn!On !ha! !he l
O ever seI!-avare en!! s a Qure, mma!era! !gh!.
\h!e 5Ohravards vOrks exercsed a prOOund n!luence
On sQr!ua! and n!eIIec!ua! curren!s v!hn sIamdOm, !he vere
never !ransIa!ed n!O La!n and !hus remaned vr!ua!! unknOvn
n !he \es! Or cen!ures. lenr LOrbn [1V3-1V7b) deserves !he
!On's share O cred! Or !he redressa! O !hs s!a!e O! a!!ars. ^s a
Oung man LOrbn vas n!rOduced !O 5:hravard b hs !eacher
LOus NassgnOn, vhO Qresen!ed hm v!h a I!hOgraQh O !he
mar!red shah's ^rabc mas!erpece Hikmat a!-sma
q
. 1he
Qenn drOpQed. n hs cOrrespOndence v!h NassgnOn ears !a!er,
LOrbn spOe O! 5Ohravard as mOn shaK [m sQr!ua! gude).
ar rOm mereI servng as a research !Opc, 5Ohravard had
become LOIID n!a!or.
1Iank> !o Lorbns !teOng cOmm!men! !O ed!ng,
tran>Ia!ny, and [mos! mpOr!an!!) n!erpre!ng !he vr!ngs Ot
5o!ravod and I> commen!a!Ors, !he Nas!er Ot l!!umna!On has
IDcrtuI:_\ become a sOurce Ot Iresh nspra!On tOr ph!OsOphers,
>\cIo!oy>!>, ar!s!s, and ms!cs n !he \es!. Lne mgh! ven!ure
!o omare Lorbns cOn!empOrar unve!ng Ot !he \sdOm Ot
l!!umna!on v!I 5Ohravards hgh-spr!ed revva! Ot !he gnOss
o! ancen! ran n hs Ovn era. Lke !ha! Ot 5Ohravard, LOrbns
vork IarmOnzes cr!ca! reasOnng and vsOnar n!u!On, mOdes
o! knovng nOv mOre !han ever Ou! Ot snc. n reva!OrZng
mayna!on as an eps!emO!Ogca! ca!egOr LOrbn cOned !he !erm
magna!, an expressOn vhch has guck! ganed vde
n!erdscp!nar currenc.
\h!e !he presence Ot 5Ohravard nspred and Oren!ed
LOrbns vOrk, ! b nO means cOntned hs n!eres!s. 1he \sdOm
ot !!umna!On has nO use tOr !aassub, tana!csm. 5!eeped n
a!c hem , ange!O!og, cOOr smbO!sm, cOsmO!Og, geOsOph, Cra!
!ore, heroIs!or\, !oVe !heOr, sub!!e phsO!Og, sacred geOme!r,
sopho!oy\ and !IeopIanc phenOmenO!Og, LOrbns Oeuvre Ot
some !vo Iundred cr!ca! !ex! ed!Ons, bOOks and ar!c!es
cons!!u!es a monumen!a! con!rbu!On !O !he te!ds Ot s!amc
pI!o>opI\, 5uI>m, and 5h!e eso!ercsm.
n !he presen! vO!ume, LOrbn veaves !he tber Ot
5Ohravards me!aphscs n!o a !apes!r resp!enden! v!h !he
cO!Ors Ot Cerman rOman!csm, NaZdasm, Nanchesm,
lerme!csm, and !he 5utsm Ot Kuzbehan bag!, amOddn
KObra, "amOddn Kaz, 5hamsOddn Lah, and ^!aOddav!eh
5emnan. 1he avakenng Ot !he bOd Ot !gh! s !he !heme. 1he
!ranstOrma !ve experences Ot !!um na !On descrbed n !hese pages
amOun! !O nO!hng !ess !han !he tu!t!!men! Ot a supp!ca!On !ha!
resOunds !O !hs da n mOsgues trOm !he Naghreb !O |ava:
\ COd, p!ace !gh! n m hear!, and !gh! n m
sOu!, !gh! upOn m !Ongue, !gh! n m ees and
gh! Bm ears, p!ace !gh! a! m rgh!, !gh! a! m
et!, !gh! behnd me and !gh! betOre me, !gh!
abOve me and !gh! benea!h me. !ace !gh! n m
nerves, and !gh! n m t!esh, !gh! n m bOOd,
!gh! n m har and gh! n m skn! Cve me
!gh!, ncrease m !gh!, make me !gh!!
Za naa! Khan
I . ORIENTATION
C0n/cn/s
1.ThePo|eofOrientation
2. TheSymbo|softheNorth 4
I I . THEMANOFLIGHTANDHISGUIDE 13
1.TheHermeticIdeaofPerfectNature 13
2. TheNaofHermesandtheShepherdofHermas 26
3.FravartiandWa|kyrie
28
4. TheHeaven|yTwin( MandeismandManicheism) 33
I I I . MIDNIGHTSUNANDCELESTIALPOLE 39
1. TheCosmic North andtheOrienta| Theosophy"
of Sohravardi (1191) 39
2. VisionsofthePo|einRzbehnofShirz(1209) 52
3.ThePo|eastheAbodeoftheAnge|Sraosha 55
IV. VISIOSMARAGDINA 61
l . NamoddinKobr(1220) 61
2.LightandSpiritua|Warfare 64
3. TheTri|ogyoftheSou| 66
4.LikewithLike 68
5.TheFunctionoftheDbikt 73
6. TheGreenLight
76
7. TheSensesoftheSu prasensoryWor|d 80
8. TheOrbsofLight
82
9.TheHeaven|yWitness" 84
10.TheSca|esandtheAnge| 89
V. THEBLACKLIGHT 99
1.LightwithoutMatter 99
2.The Doctrine ofPhotisms accordingto Nam Rzi
( l 256) 103
3.B|ack Light in the Rose Garden of Mystery"
(I 317)
11 0
VI. THESEVENPROPHETSOFYOURBEING 12 l
l . A|oddaw|ehSemnni(1336) 121
2. TheWor|dofCo|orsandtheManofLight l 3 I
3 . ThePhysio|ogica|"Co|orsaccordingtoGoethe 139
NOTES 1+
BI BLIOGRAPHY 16 l
I NDEX 163
. . . /am/uingwitbtbeai/a[anclive
tteewbicbi neitheroftheEastnoroI
theWest,/utstinginta[mmeeven
tbaugb [itetaucbitnat. . .Hnditi/igbt
uan/igbt.
~Qorn24. 35
1
,
LV11^1L
! . 1he Po/e o uentotion
Orientation is a primary phenomenon ofour presence in the
wor|d. A human presence has the property of spatia|izing a
wor|d around it, and this phenomenonimp|iesa certain re|a-
tionship of man with the wor|d, bis wor|d, this re|ationship
being determined by the very mode of his presence in the
wor|d. The four cardina| points, east and west, north and
south, are nottbings encountered by this presence, but direc-
tionswhichexpressitssense, man'sacc|imatizationtohiswor|d,
hisfami|iaritywith it.To have thissenseistoorientonese|fin
the wor|d. The idea| |ines that run from east to west, from
north to south formasystemof tiati spatia|evidenceswith-
outwhichtherewou|dbeneithergeographicnoranthropo|og-
ica| orientation. And indeed, the contrasts between Eastern
man and Western man, between Nordic man and Southern
man, :egu|ate our i deo|ogica| and charactero|ogica|
c|assifications.
The organization, the p|an, ofthis networkhasdepended
sincetimeimmemoria|onasing|epoint. thepointoforienta-
tion,theheaven|ynorth,thepo|estar. Isitenough,therefore,
to say that spatia|ization, deve|oped horizonta||y toward the
four cardina| points, is comp|eted by the vertica| dimension
frombneathtoabove,fromthenadirtothezenith:Orrather
1
l. frcntaton
aretherenotinfactdifferentmodesofperceptionofthissame
vertica|dimension,sodifferentin themse|vesthattheymodify
theatientatian ofthehuman presence,noton|yinspacebuta|so
in time: Orientation in time" refers to the different ways in
which man experiences his presence on earth, and the con-
t|nuityofthis presence within a kindofhistory, andtheques-
tronastowhetherthishistoryhasasense,andifso,whatsense:
Thisinturnraisesthequestionwhethertheperceptionofthe
heaven|y po|e, of the vertica| dimension tending toward the
cosmic north, isauniform phenomenon,physio|ogica||yregu-
|ated by constant |aws, or whether the phenomenon is not in
factregu|atedanddiversifiedbytheverymodeofbeingofthe
human presence atienting itse|f: Hence therefore the primor-
dia|importanceofthenorthandoftheconceptofthenorth. it
is in accordance with the way in which man inward|y experi-
ences the vertica|" dimension of his own presence that the
horizonta|dimensionsacquiretheirsense.
Now one ofthe /eitmative ofIranian Sufi |iterature is the
QuestfortheOrient,"butthisisa QuestforanOrientwhich,
asweareforewarned(ifwedonota|readyrea|ize) ,isnot~and
cannot be~situated onourgeographica| maps. This Orientis
notcomprisedinanyofthesevenc/imes (kesbvat) ,itisinfactthe
eigbtb c|ime. And the direction in which we must seek this
eighth c|ime" isnotonthehorizonta|butonthevertica|. This
suprasensory, mystica| Orient, the p|ace ofthe Originand of
'
h

Return,obectoftheeterna|Quest, isattheheaven|ypo|e,
it is the Po|e, at the extreme north, so far off that it is the
thresho|d of the dimension beyond. " That is why it is on|y
revea|edtoadefinitemodeofpresencein thewor|d,andcan
be revea|ed on|y through this mode of presence. There are
otier modes to which it wi|| never be revea|ed. It is precise|y
thrsmodeofpresencethatcharacterizesthe modeofbeingof
theSufi,buta|so,throughhisperson, themodeofbeingofthe
entirespiritua| fami|ytowhichSufism~andespecia||yIranian
Sufism-b|ongs. TheOtient sought by the mystic, the Orient
that cannot be |ocatedon our maps, isin thedirectionofthe
nat|b,beyondthenorth.On|yanascensiona|progresscan|ead
towardthiscosmicnorthchosenasapointoforientation.
A primary consequence a|ready foreseen is, to be exact, a
dis/acatian of the contrasts regu|ating the c|assifications of
2
!. Po/e o urientotion
exotericgeographyandanthropo|ogy, which dependonouter
appearances. Eastern men and Western men, Northern men
andSouthernmen, wi||no|ongerbe identifiedby thecharac-
teristics previous|y attributedtothem, itwi||no|ongerbe pos-
sib|eto|ocatetheminre|ationtotheusua|coordinates.Weare
|eftwonderingat what point the |oss comes about in Western
man of the i ndi vi dua| di mensi on that is irreducib| e to
c|assifications based on exoteric geographic direction a|one.
Then it may happen,ust as we have |earned to understand
a|chemyassignifyingsomethingquitedifferentfromachapter
in the history or prehistory ofour sciences, that a geocentric
cosmo|ogy wi|| a|so be revea|ed to us in its true sense, having
|ikewisenoconnectionwiththehistoryofoursciences.Consid-
ering the perception ofthewor|d and the fee|ing ofthe uni-
verseonwhichitisbased,itmaybethatgeocentrismshou|dbe
meditated uponandeva|uatedessentia||yafterthemannerof
theconstructionofamanda/a.
It isthismanda/a uponwhichweshou|dmeditateinorderto
find again the northern dimension with itssymbo|ic power, ca-
pab|e of opening the thresho|d of the beyond. This i s
theNorthwhichwas|ost"when,byarevo|utionofthehuman
presence, a revo|ution ofthe mode ofpresence in the wor|d,
theEarthwas|ostintheheavens. "To|osesightoftheNorth"
meansno|ongertobeab|etodistinguishbetweenheavenand
he||, ange| and devi|, |ight and shadow, unconsciousness and
transconsciousness. A presence |ackingavertica| dimension is
reducedtoseekingthemeaningofhistorybyarbitrari|yimpos-
ingthetermsofreference, power|esstograspformsintheup-
ward direction, power|ess to sense the motion|ess upward im-
pu|seofthepointedarch, butexpertatsuperimposingabsurd
para||e|epipeds. And so Western man remains baff|ed by Is-
|amic spiritua|ity, with its powerfu| ca|| to reco||ection ofthe
'pre-eterna| covenant" . and by the heaven|y Assumption
(mi't) ofthe Prophet, he doesnotevensuspectthathis own
obsession with the historica|, his materia|ization of events in
Heaven, " can be equa||y baff|ing to others. In the same way,
theSufiHeavensofLight"wi|| remain foreverinaccessib|eto
the most ambitiousastronautic" investigation, theirvery exis-
tencenotevenbeingsuspected.Ifthosewho|eadyousay,'Lo!
the Kingdom isin the sky! , ' then the birds ofheaven wi|| be
3
. frcntaton
therebefore you ... utthe Kingdom is withinyou and a|so
outsideofyou."
2. 1he 8ymoo/ of the North
And so, ifwe found ourse|veswriting the wordsLx Urtcnlc lux
as
.
an epigraph, we wou| d be comp|ete|y mistaken if we im-
a
8
med we
.
wer

sayiogthe same thing as the Spiritua|masters

drscussed

m t

,|sworI aresaying,andif|ookingfortheLight
ofthe Oieot wemere|ytu:ed towardthegeographica|east.
For, wheo we seaIofthc sun rising in theeast, thisrefersto
the |igat o| thc day as it succeeds the night. Day a|ter-
nateswith mght, astwooppositesa|ternatewhichbytheirvery
natur

caooot coexist.light risingin theeast and |ightgoing

downm the westaretwopremonitionsofanexistentia|option
between the wor|d ofDay with its criteria and the wor|d of
Night with its deep and insatiab|e passions. At best, on the
boundarybetw

en the two we haveatwofo|dtwi|ight. thecrc-

pusculum ucsc
'
ltnum, no|ongerday but not yet night, thecrc-
(
usc
"
lum malultnum, no|ongernightbutnotyetday. Thisstrik-
mgimage,aswe know, wasusedbyLuthertodefinethebeing
ofman.
Inourturn,|etuspausetoconsiderwhata|ightcansignify
w
.
hich is neither eastern norwestern, the northern |ight. mid-

ight sun, b|aze ofthe auroraborea|is. Itis no|ongera ques-

tionor daysucceedingnight,nornight,day.Day|ightbreaksin
themrdd|eofthenightandturnsintodayanightwhichissti||
therebutwhich isa Nightof|ight.Ll nox tllumtnalto mca tn dc-
/tctu mcu. Th,sa|readysuggeststhepossibi|ityofaninnovation
m phi|osophrca| anthropo|ogy. the need to situate and inter-
pret in an entire|y new way the opposition between East and
West,Lightand Darkness, inorderfina||ytodiscoverthe fu||
and unforeseen s,gnificance of the northern |ight, and con-
sequent|yofNordrcman,themanwhoisatthenorth" orwho
isgoingtowardthenorthbecausehehascomefromtienorth.
Butthenorthcanon|yattainitsfu||significancebyamode
ofperceptio

w|ichraisesittothepowerofasymbo|,tobing
asymthcdrrectron,thatis,toadimensionbeyond"whichcan
be pomtedtoon|ybysomethingthatsymbo|izeswith"it.And
so we are concerned with primordia| I mages preceding and
4
}2. 1he 8ym|oL o the N orth
regu|atingeverysensoryperception, and notwith images coo-
structeda poslcrton on an empirica| basis. For thescnsc o|th
given phenomenon depends on the primordia| Image. the
heaven|y po|e situatedonthe vertica|ofhuman existence, the
cosmic north. And even in geographic |atitudes where we
shou|d hard|y think itpossib|e for the phenomenon to occur,
its archetypa| Image exists. The midnight sun" appears in
many ritua|s of mystery re|igions, ust as it sudden|y bursts
forth,inSohravardi'swork, inthemidstofanecstasyofwhich
Hermes is the hero. Later Iranian Sufi masters refer to the
Nightof|ight,thedarkNoontide,theb|ackLight. Andinthe
Manicheanfaith itisthef|amesoftheauroraborea|isthatare
visua|izedintheColumna glortac ascomposedofa||thepartic|es
ofLight reascending from thetn[cmum to the Earth of|ight,
theTcrra /uctda, itse|fsituated, |iketheparadiseofYima,inthe
north,thatis,inthecosmicnorth.
Precedinga||empirica|data,the archetype-Imagesarethe
organsofmeditation,oftheactiveImagination,theyeffectthe
transmutationofthesedatabygivingthemtheirmcantng, and
precise|y in so doing make known the manner ofbeingofa
specific human presence and the fundamenta| ortcnlalton in-
herent in it. Taking its bearings by the heaven|y po|e as the
thresho|d ofthe wor|d byond means that this presence then
a||ows a wor|d other than that of geographica|, physica|, as-
tronomica|spacetoopenbeforeit. Heretrave|ingthestraight
path" means straying neither to the east nor to the west, it
means c|imbing the peak, that is, being drawn toward the
rcnlcr, itistheascentoutofcartographica|dimensions,thedis-
coveryoftheinnerwor|dwhichsecretesitsown|ight,whichts
thewor|dof|ight, itis an innerness of|ightasopposed to the
spatia|ityoftheouterwor|d which,by contrast, wi||appearas
Darkness.
Thisinnerness mustin noway be confusedwith anything
that our modern terms subectivism or nomina|ism may be
supposedtoreferto, norwithanythingimaginaryinthesense
ofthisword thathas beencontaminatedfor usby the ideaof
unrea|ity. Theinabi|ity toconceiveofaconcrete suprasensory
rea|ityresu|tsfromgivingtoomuchimportancetosensoryre-
a|ity, thisview,genera||yspeaking,|eavesnoa|ternativebutto
take the suprasensory universe as consisting ofabstractcon-
5
I . frcntaton
cepts. On the contrary, the universe which in Sohravardi's
neo-Loroastrian P|atonismisca||edthemundu tmagtnalts (Tlam
al-mtlhdl) or the heaven|y Earth of Hurqa|y" is a concrete
spiritua| universe. Itis mostcertain|y notawor|dofconcepts,
paradigms, and univcrsa|s. Ourauthorsneverceaseto repeat
thatthearchetypeofaspecies has nothingtodo withthe uni-
versa|sestab|ished in |ogic,butistheAnge|ofthatspecies.Ra-
tiona|abstraction,atbest,dea|son|ywiththemorta|remains"
ofan Ange|, the wor|d ofarchetype-Images, the autonomous
wor|d of visionary Figures and Forms, is on the p|ane of
ange|o|ogy. !o see beingsandthingsinthe northern|ight"is
toseethemintheEarth ofHurqa|y,"thatis,toseethemin
the |ightoftheAnge|,itisdescribed asreachingtheEmera|d
Rok,the heaven|ypo|e,cominguponthewor|doftheAnge|.
Andthispresupposesthattheindividua|personassuch,irres-
pectiveofanything co||ective, virtua||y has a transcendent di-
mension at his disposa|. Its growth is concomitant with a
visionary apperception, givingshape to the suprasensoryper-
ceptionsandconstitutingthattota|ityofwaysofknowing that
canbgroupedunderthetcrmhtcrognosts.
As acoro||ary, the terms ofreference presupposed by the
mystica| symbo|s ofthe north here suggest something |ike a
psycho-spiritua|rea|mofthreedimensions,which theordinary
two-dimensiona| view cannot account for, since it is restricted
tocontrastingconsctousncss andunconsctousncss. To put it more
precise|y, it has to dowith two Darknesses. there isone Dark-
ness which is on|y Darkness, it can intercept |ight, concea| it,
andho|dit captive. Whenthe|ightescapesfrom it(according
totheManicheanconceptionortheIshrqofSohravardi) ,this
Darknessis|eft to itse|f, fa||s back uponitse|f, it does notbe-
come|ight.ButthereisanotherDarkness,ca||edbyourmystics
theNightof|ight,|uminousB|ackness,b|ackLight.
A|readyinthemystica|Recita|sofAvicenna,anexp|icitdis-
tinction, dependent on the vertica| orientation, isestab|ished
betweentheDarkness at theapproachesto the Po|e"(thedi-
vineNightofsuperbeing, oftheunknowab|e, oftheoriginof
origins) and the Darkness which is the extreme occident of
Matter and of non-being, where the sun of pure Forms de-
c|ines and disappears. The Orient in which the pure Forms
rise, theirUrtcnl-ortgtn, is thepolc, the cosmic north. Here a|-

}2. 1he 8ym|oI o the North
ready the Avicennanrecita|exp|icit|yshowsus atwofo|d si|+..-
tionandmeaningofthemidnightsun":ontheonehand,II I5
the first I nte||igence, the archange| Logos, rising as a reve|a-
tion over the Darkness oftheDcus abscondtlus, and which, io
termsofthe human sou|, isthearising ofsupcrconsctousncss on
the horizon of consciousness. On the other hand, it is the
human sou| itse|fasthe |ight ofconsciousness rising over the
Darknessofthesubconscious. Wesha||seehow,inNamoddin
Kobr's work, the co|ored photisms (in particu|ar |uminous
b|ack" and green |ight) proc|aim and postu|ate an identica|
psycho-cosmicstructure.Thatiswhyortcnlalton requiresherea
threefo|darrangementofp|anes:thedayofconsctousncss isona
p|ane intermediate between the |uminous Night ofsupcrcon-
sctouncss and the dark Night ofunconsctousncss. The divine
Darkness, the C|oud ofunknowing, the Darkness at the ap-
proaches to the Po|e," the Night ofsymbo|s" throu
8
h wh,ch
the sou|makesitsway,isdefinite|y nottheDarkness which
thepartic|esof|ightarehe|dcaptive.The|atteristheextreme
occident, and is He||, the demonic rea|m. Orientation by the
Po|e, the cosmic north, determines what isbe|ow and what is
above, to confuse one with the other wou|d mere|y indicate
dtsortcnlalton (cf.tnjra V, I ) .
Thisorientationmightwe||bewhatwou|denab|eus tova|-
idatewhat Miche|Guiomarsoadmirab|yforesaw. Ourc|assica|
oppositionsexpressedintherefusa|ofthehosti|edawnor,on
the contrary, in the distress of twi|ight, ofthe refused eve-
ning," might we|| turn out tobe nothingother than pairs be-
comeunrecognizab|e, thatistosaythedivergence,inMediter-
ranean and northern geographica| areas, from one and the
same great origina| myth. This wou|d imp|y an exp|osion of
thismyth intotwo kinds ofanguish, two refusa|s,twocorre|a-
tive kinds ofpower|essnessinthecaseofthemanwhohas|ost
hispo|ardimension,"thatistosayofmanno|ongeroriented
towardtheheaven|ypo|eandsofacedwiththedi|emmaofDay
succeedingNight,orofNightsucceedingDay.
To speak of the po|ar dimension as the transcendent di-
mension ofthe earth|y individua|ity isto point out that it in-
c|udes a counterpart, a heaven|y partner", and that its tota|
structure isthat ofabi-unity, aunus-ambo. Thisunus-ambo can
be taken as an a|ternation ofthe first and second person, as
7
I . frcntaton '
formingadia|ogic unity thanksto the identityoftheiressence
and yet without confusion of persons. This is why the po|ar
dimensionishera|dedintheguiseofaFigurewhoserecurrent
manifestations correspond on each occasion to an abso|ute|y
persona|experienceofthespiritua|seekerandtoarea|ization
ofthis bi-unity. Soitisthatin Iraninthetwe|fthcentury(sixth
century ofthehegira) this Figure reappearsincontexts which
differ butwhich in everycase appertain to a metaphysicsora
mystica|experienceofLight.
In northwesternIran,Sohravardi(d. I I 9I ) carriedoutthe
great proect ofreviving the wisdom or theosophy ofancient
pre-Is|amic Loroastrian Iran, he set the sea| on this achieve-
ment by dying as a martyr in A|eppo in the fu||ness of his
youth, victim ofthevindictiveness ofthedoctors oftheLaw.
Heca||ed histheosophica| system Ishrq becausehetraced its
sourcetoanOrientandtothei||uminationofanOrientwhich
isnotthegeographica|east.Certain|ytheSagesofancientPer-
siawereabovea||othersthe representativesandguardiansof
thiswisdom,butthefactthattheyarereferredtoasOrienta|s"
re|ates in the true sense to their orientation toward the
Orient-originofpureLight.Threecenturiesbeforetheyzan-
tine phi|osopher Gemistus P|etho, Sohravardi's work made a
|ink between P|atoandLarathustra,inadoctrinedominatedby
the name and wisdom of Hermes. And so the same figure
which inHermetismisthatoftheheaven|yI , thellcr Lgo, the
eterna| partner and companion, reappears in Sohravardi
underthenameofIcr[ccl ^alurc.
A contemporary of Sohravardi in southwestern I ran,
Rzbehn ofShirz (d. I 209), thetmam parexce||ence ofthe
'Icdclt d'amorc in Iranian Sufism, dec|ares in his Dtartum
rptrtlualc that his decisive experience, his persona| initiatic
proof, wasa seriesofvisionsreferringto theheaven|yPo|e, it
was by meditatingonthesethathe fina||yunderstood howhe
was persona||y and secret|y connected with the group ofthe
masters ofinitiation symbo|ized by the stars stationed in the
mmediatevicinityofthePo|estar.
Last|y, at the extreme east ofthe I ranian wor|d, in Trans-
+xiania,NamoddnKobr(d. l 220)guidedtheSufismofCen-
xa| Asia toward the practice ofmeditationwith particu|arat-
entiontothe phenomenaof|ightandchromaltc succcsston that
8
2. 1he 8ym|oI of the North
wi||makec|earto us the significance and pre-eminence o|IHL
grccn Ltghl. Andin thiscontextwe meetagainthehomo|ogu

e
of Perfect Nature, the Figure whom Nam Kobr ca||s his
Witnessin Heaven,"hissuprasensorypersona|Guide,"Sun
ofthe mystery,"Sunoftheheart,"Sunofhighknow|edge,"
SunoftheSpirit."
..
ConcerningthisFigure, Namoddin Kobrteacheshisdis-
cip|e. Thouarthe"~andhei||ustrateshisaffirmationbyadd-
ing the impassionedwordsofthe|overto hisbe|oved: Thou
artmyse|f(anla and). However,sett|ingfortheordinaryterms
I" and se|F' to describe the two dimensions" ofthisunus-
ambo mightwe|| |ead to a misunderstanding ofthe rea| situa-
tion. More often than not, Se|fdesignates an impersona| or
depersona|izedabso|ute,apureactofexistingwhichobvious|y
cou|d not act as second person, the second termofa dia|ogic
re|ationship. ut the a|ternative, whetherin experience or of
necessity, is not the supreme deity as described in dogmatic
definitions. Dcus csl nomcn rclaltuum: this essentia| and essen-
tia||y individuated re|ationship is what is her

|ded in expe
.
ri-
encebytheapparitiona|Figureweareattemptmgtorec

gmze
here underdifferentnames. Onecannot understand thrsre|a-
tionship except in the |ight of the fundamenta| Sufi saying:
He who knowshtmscg knowshts Lord. The identity ofhtmscg
andLord doesnotcorrespondtoare|ationshipofl l , butof
1 X l . the identity of an essence raised to its tota| power by
being mu|tip|iedbyitse|fandthusput inaconditiontoconsti-
tute a biunity, a dia|ogic who|e whose members share a|ter-
nate|ythero|esoffirstandofsecondpersonOragainthestate
described by our mystics. when, at the c|imax, the |over has
becometheverysubstanceof|ove,heisthenboththe|overand
thebe|oved. uthtmscg wi||notbelhal withoutthesecond per-
son, without the lhou, that is to say without the Figure who
makes him ab|e to see himse|f, because it is through his very
owneyesthattheFigure|ooksathim.
It wou| d therefore be as wrong to reduce the two-
dimensiona|ityofthisdia|ogicunitytoaso|ipsismastodivideit
into two essences, each of which cou|d be tlscg without the
other. The seriousness ofthe misunderstanding wou|dbe as
great as the inabi|ity to distinguish between the Darkness or
demonic Shadow that ho|ds the |ight captive, and the divine
9
I . frcntaton
C|oud of unknowing which gives birth to the |ight. for the
same
.
reason, reco

rse to any co||ective schema can on|y be

ahd if the schema rs taken as a descriptive process for indicat-

mg the potentia|ities that are repeated in every individua| case

nd abov
_
,;.
'
he potentia|ity of the l which is not ttscg withou:
rts other l
. '
its llcr Lgo . )ut such a schema by itse|f wou|d
never exp|am the rea| event: the intervention in the present
of

the Perfect Nature, the manifestation of the Heaven|y
witness, the reaciing of the p
_
lc. for the rea| event exact|y
imphes a break with the co||ective, a reunion with the tran-
scendent
.
dimension which puts each individua| person on
gua
.
rd agams
'
the attractions of the co||ective, that is to say
agam

t every impu|se to make what is spiritua| a socia| matter.

.
lt is because of the absence of this dimension that the indi-
"
rdua| person |owers himse|f and succumbs to such fa|sifica-
tr

s. On the other hand, accompanied by the shaykh al-ghayb,

h
'
s suprasensory persona| Cuide, he is |ed and dtrcclcd toward
hrs own ce

ter, and
.
a
_
biguities cease. Or rather, to suggest a
more exact rmage, hrs suprasensory Cuide and his individua|
person come to be situated in re|ation to one another as the two
foci of the c||ipse.
Tie divine

and the satanic remain ambiguous so |ong as
conscmus

s rs

nabIe to di

tinguish between what is its Day

nd wh

t

is its Night. There is an exoteric Day|ight. so |ong as
rts condrtrons prevai|, the midnight sun which is the initiatic
|ight cannot show itse|f. This Day and this Night are unaware

f o
9
e anotier and neverthe|ess are accomp|ices, the sou| |ives
th

s Day|r g|t o

| y becaus

the Night is in itse|f. The ending
of tirs ambrgmty is the harbmger of the midnight sun with its
horz

ns upon
.
hori

s: it may be the divine Night of super-

cons

musness irradratmg the fie|d of |ight of consciousness,

and it may be the |ig|t of consciousness overcoming the Dark-
ness of the subconscious, of the unconsciousness which was
hemming it in. ln both cases a burst of |ight rends the tissue of
ready-made
.
answers. th

fictions of causa| re|ationships, of
|inear evo|utions, of contmuous currents, everything that bo|-
sters up what peop|e have agreed to caI| the sense of history.
The sense of another history rising from Earth to Heaven is
revea|ed. the history of an invisib|e spiritua| mankind whose
cyc|es of earth|y pi|grimages refer to events in Heaven, not to
l 0
}2. 1he 8ym|oI of the Nort/
the evo|utionary fata|ity of successive generations. Hi5 I5 ID
secret history of those who survive the de|uges that ovcr
whe|m and suffocate the spiritua| senses, and who rise agaiu
one after another, time after time, into the universes toward
which the same lnvisib|e forces guide them. This then is the
ortcnlalton that has to be made c|ear. uhcrc is it |eading, and
uhal makes it such that the being who takes on the effort of this
upward movement is, at the same time, the being beyond
whose growing manifestation itse|f guarantees this progress?
Hidden in this reciprocity, this act of corre|ation, is the who|e
secret of the invisib|e Cuide, the heaven|y Prtner, the Ho|y-
Spirit of the itinerant mystic (saltk), who, need|ess to repeat, is
neither the shadow nor the Doub|e'' as in some of our fantastic
ta|es, but the figure of |ight, the lmage and the mirror in
which the mystic contemp|ates~and without which he cou|d
not contemp|ate-the theophany (laall) tn lhc [orm corrcspond-
tng lo hts bctng.
These few remarks throw |ight on the way by which the
present research must be pursued. The attempt must be made
to estab|ish the identity of this figure under the various names
that are given to its apparitions, for this very diversity supports
us in the study of re|igious orientations which suggest the same
type of individua| initiation whose fruit is reunion with the
Cuide of |ight. The spiritua| universe of lran, before and after
the advent of ls|am, here becomes of the greatest importance.
ln its recurrent expressions (Loroastrianism, Manicheism,
Hermetism, and Sufism) this figure points in one direction: to
the |ight of the North as the thresho|d of the beyond, to the
dwe||ings in the high North which arethe inner abodes secret-
ing their own Light. The mystic Orient, the Orient-origin is the
hcaucnly polc, the point of orientation of the spiritua| ascent,
acting as a magnet to draw beings estab|ished in their eterna|
haecceity toward the pa|aces ab|aze with immateria| matter.
This is a region without any coordinates on our maps. the
paradise of Yima, the Earth of |ight, Tcrra /uctda, the heaven|y
Earth of 1rqalya. The ways of approach to it are pre-sensed in
the sp|endor of a utsto smaragdtna, the outburst of green |ight
characteristic, according to Nam Kobr and his schoo|, of a
specific degree of visionary apperception. lts appearance may
precede or succeed the darkness at the approach to the po|e,
I1
I . Lrcntaton
the crossing of which is the supreme ordea| of individua| initia-
tion, in other words the theme comes either as a pre|ude or as a
seque| to the theme of the b|ack Light, as we sha|| hear it
described b|ow by two masters of lranian Sufism. Since the
theme is as ferti|e as it is exemp|ary, we sha|| on|y point out
iere som

of thc connections that open up before us. To go
mto them m detai| wou|d ca|| for other |ines of research.
The passing from the b|ack Light, from the |uminous
Night:

to the bri||iance of the emera|d vision wi|| be a sign,
accordmg to Semnni, of the comp|eted growth of the subt|e
organism, the resurrection body hidden in the visib|e physi-
ca| body. Exact|y here the connection between the experience
of co|ored phousms and the physio|ogy of the man of |ight is
unvei|ed. the seven subt|e organs (latqa), the seven centers
typifying the Abodes of the seven great prophcts in the man of
hght. The growth of the man of |ight thus recapitu|ates in-
wa
}
d|y

the who|e

He of Prophecy. The idea of this growth,

which rs the hberatmn of the man of |ight, can be read even in
certain t
)
pes

f iranian p

inting (from Manichean painting to

t

he Persian m:mature). fma||y, the physio|ogy of the man of

|igh
,
t, whose g
,
rowth is accompanied by co|ored photisms each
havmg a pre

rse mystica| significance, is an integra| part of a

genera| doctnne of co|ors and of the very experience of co|or.
We
P
oint this o

t br

ief|y and at the end of this chapter because

this
.
:s not the f:rst time that a meeting takes p|ace between the
gemus of Coethe and the lranian genius.
l 2
11
,
Fart/auartwit/mc.allthcdays
cjmylq.
-Psa|m 23 (22):4,
11 N^ L1 1l1
^1 11b l1111
! . 1he Hermetic Ieo of Pegect Noture
Use of the word syncretism |eads easi|y to abuse. lt is used
most often as a substitute for reasoned argument to avoid
further consideration of some proect nob|y conceived to re-
store int/cprcscntdoctrines genera||y accepted as be|onging to
a bygone past. Yet nothing f|uctuates more than the notion of
past, it depends actua||y on a decision, or a pre-decision,
which can a|ways be surpasscd by another decision which re-
stores a future to that past. The who|e history of gnosis
throughout the centuries is rather |ike that. The restoration of
an orienta| theosophy (/ikmat al-ls/rq) by Sohravardi in the
twe|fth century was not exempt from such sweeping and unde-
served udgment on the part of those who were ab|e on|y to
acquaint themse|ves rapid|y and superficia||y with his work.
Certain|y, as with any other persona| systematization, one finds
e| ements in Sohravardi's s ystem that are obvious|y
identifiab|e~they be|ong to Hermetism, Loroastriani sm,
Neop|atonism, the Sufism of ls|am-but the organization of
these materia|s into a new structure is directed by a centra| in-
tuition, as origina| as it is consistent. This centra| intuition is
made exp|icit in the form of a number of figures, amongst
which the ro|e assumed by the Hermetic figure of the Perfect
Nature (al-ti/ ' al-tmm) is especia||y noteworthy. An essentia|
l 3
l l . hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
detai|. the Arabic tradition of Hermetism is the on|y one that
a||ows us to give this figure its context. from it we |earn that
Perfect Nature is the heaven|y parcdrcs, the Sage's Cuide of
|ight. To understand its ro|e and manifestation, it is necessary
to picture to onese|f the anthropo|ogy from which it is insepar-
ab|e, an anthropo|ogy whose hero is the man of |ight, he|d cap-
tive by Darkncss and strugg|ing to free himse|f from Darkness.
The entire ideo|ogy and experience centered on the manifesta-
tion of Perfect Nature thus presuppose the idea of the man of
|ight and his |iving experience of the cosmic adventure. On|y
then can one understand how the coup|e comes to be oined in
the dialcgicunigof man of |ight and his Cuide to which we find
so many references in Arabic Hermetism down to the time of
Sohravardi.
We can fo||ow the presence of the idea of the man of |ight
even further in the Sufism of Nam Kobr, where the Arabic
expressions s/ak/sminnr and skak/snrniare the equiva|ent
of the Creek expression metvo 'v0poo. The Creek term
figures in the Hermetic documents transmitted to us by
Losimos of Panopo|is (third century), the famous a|chemist
whose teaching is based on the meditation of physica| meta|-
|urgica| operations as mode|s or symbo|s of invisib|e processes,
of spiritua| transmutations. This doctrine refers both to a
Christian Cnosticism represented in this case by the Books of
the Hebrews, and to a Hermetic P|atonism represented by the
Ho|y Books of Hermes. Common to both is an anthropo|ogy
from which the fo||owing idea of the man of |ight emerges.
there i s the earth|y 3dam, the outer man of f|esh (op
ktvo'y0poo) subect to the E|ements, to p|anetary inBuences,
and to fate, the four |etters comprising his name encipher
the four cardina| points of the earth|y horizon. And there is
the man of |ight (metvo'y0poo), the hidden spiritua|
man, the opposite po|e to corporea| man: hs. The homonyms
o, |ight, and o, man, thus bear witness in |anguage itse|f to
the existence of the man of |ight, the individua| par exce||ence
(the spiritua| hero corresponding in this sense to the Persian
avnmard)3dm is the archetype of carna| men, Phs (whose
own persona| name was known on| y to the mysterious
Nicotheos) is the archetype, not of humans in genera|, but of
men of|ight, the e.
l 4
! . 1he Hermetic Ieo of Pegect Noture
Phs, innocent and peacefu|, pre-existed in paradise, thc
archons tricked him into c|othing himse|f in the corporea|
3dam. But the |atter, exp|ains Losimos, was the man whom the
Creeks ca||ed Epimetheus and who was advised by his brother
Prometheus-Phs not to accept the gifts of Leus, name|y, the
bond which wou|d ens|ave him to fate, to the powers of this
wor|d. Prometheus is the man of |ight, oriented and orienting
toward |ight because he fo||ows his own guide
.
of |ight. Those
who have on|y physica| hearing cannot hear hrm, for they are
subect to the power of fate, to the co||ective powers, on|y those
who have spiritua| hearing, that is, senses and organs of h
&
ht,
hear his summons and his advice. And this a|ready, we notrce,
points to a physio|ogy of the man of |ight and of his subt|e
organs.
. =
As for more precise information about the Cm+e of Lrght,
we gather it both from Losimos and from the Cnostrcs
.
to whom
Losimos himse|f referred. lt is, in fact, the man of hght who
speaks through the mouth of Mary Magda|ene when, in the
course of the initiatic conversations between the Resurrected
Christ and his discip|es, she assumes the predominant ro|e con-
ferred on her in the book of the Pistis Scp/ia, the New Testa-
ment of the re|igion of the man of |ight. The power w
.
hi

h
issued from the Savior and which is now the man of hght wrthm
us . . . . My Lord! Not on|y does the man of |ight in me have ears
but my sou| has heard and understood a|| the
"
ords that thou
hast spoken . . . . The man of |ight in me has gmded me, he has
reoiced and bubb|ed up in me as if wishing to emerge from me
and pass into thee. [ust as Losimos p|aces on the one hand
Prometheus-Phs opposite his guide of |ight who is the son of
Cod and on the other the earth|y 3dam opposite his guide,
the +ntimimcs, the counterfeiter, so in the book of the Pistis
Scp/ia: lt is l, dec|ares the Resurrected
.
On

e, who brought
thee the power which is in thee and whtch .ssued from the
twe|ve saviors of the Treasury of Light.
By the same inversion and reciprocity which in Sufism
makes the heaven|y Witness simu|taneous|y the one Con-
temp|ated and the Contemp|ator, the man o
.
f |ight ap
P
ea
'
s
both as the one guided and the guide, thrs
'
cm
"
unc
"
tu
idicmatum forewarns us that the bi-unity, the dra|ogrc umty,
cannot be taken as the association of Phs and carna| Adam,
l 5
I I . hc Man ol
ght and Hs Gudc
who fo||ows another guide. The Light cannot be compounded
with the demonic Darkness, the |atter is Phs's prison, from
which he strugg|es to separate himse|f and which wi|| return to
its primordia| negativity. The syzygy of |ight is Prometheus-
Phs andhis guide, the son of Cod. This very fact a|so points
c|ear|y to a structure, which has neverthe|ess been subect to a||
kinds of misunderstandings. The power which is in thee, in
cac/on of you, cannot refer to a co||ective guide, to a manifes-
tation and a re|ationship co||ective|y identica| for cac/on of the
sou|s of |ight. Nor, ajartiari,can it be the macrocosm or univer-
sa| Man (lnsn kalli) which assumes the ro|e of heaven|y
counter-part of cac/ microcosm. The infinite price attached to
spiritua| individua|ity makes it inconceivab|e that sa|vation
cou|d consist in its absorption into a tota|ity, even a mystica|
one. What is important is to see that it refers to an ana|ogica|
re|ationship presupposing jaurterms, and this essentia||y is ust
what is so admirab|y expressed in the ange|o|ogy of Va|entinian
Cnosis. Christ's Ange|s are Christ himse|f, because each Ange|
u Christ re|ated to individua| existence. What Christ is for the
s

u|s of Light as a who|e, each Ange| is for each sou|. Every

ume one of these conunctions of sou| and Ange| takes p|ace,
the re|ationship which constitutes the p|eroma of Light is re-
produced. 'The re|ationship is in fact so fundamenta| that it is
found again in Manicheism, and is a|so what, in Sohravardi's
orienta| theosophy, makes it possib|e for us to conceive the
re|ationship between the Perfect Nature of the mystic and the
archetypa| Ange| of humanity (identified with the Ho|y Chost,
the Ange| Cabrie| of the Qornic Reve|ation, the active Inte||i-
gence of the Avicennan phi|osophers) . What this figure repre-
sents in re|ation to the tota|ity of the sou|s of |ight emanated
from itse|f, each Perfect Nature represents respective|y for
each sou|. The concept of this re|ationship is what we are
guided toward by the Hermetic texts in Arabic concerning Per-
fect Nature.
)he most important of these texts known today is a work
attrbuted to Mariti. the G/yat al-Hakim (the Coa| of the
Sage), composed no doubt in the e|eventh century, but from
far more ancient materia|, since it informs us in detai| about the
re|igion and ritua| of the Sabans of Harran. There a|ready
Perfet Nature is described as the phi|osopher's Ange|, his
l
}1. 1he Hermetic Ieo of Perfect Noture
iuitiator and tutor, and fina||y as the obect and secret o| a. l
hi|osophy, the dominant figu
!
e ,n the Sage's persona| reh-
gi . Again and again, the descrptmn sou

ds th
.
fundameta|
uote. his Perfect Nature can on|y revea| rtse|f person to
ue whose nature is perfect, that is, to the man of |i
8
ht, their
re|ation is this unus-am/a in which each of the two srmu|tane-
us|y assumes the position of the l and the s]-image an+
mirror. my image |ooks at me with my own |ook, l |ook at rt
with its own |ook.
Thc lirst thing you havc t

.
do in rc.atio
[
t
_
ourscll,

is to
mcditatc attcntivcly on thc sp:

:tu

l cnttt
Y
(ruhun

tuto-ku, your
angcl') which rulcs you and wh:ch ts associatcd with your
.
star

-
namcly your Pcrlcct Naturcwich thc sagc ucr

cs mcntions 1
his book, saying. Whcn thc microcosm which ts man bccomcs
pcrlcct in naturc, his soul is thcn thc homologuc

ol tjc

su

stationcd in Hcavcn, whosc rays shcd hght on all honzons. Stmi-
larly, Pcrlcct Naturc riscs in thc soul, its

rays strikc and pcnctratc
thc lacultics ol thc subtlc organs ol wisdom, thcy attract thcsc
lacultics, causc thcm to risc in thc soul, ust as thc rays ol thc s

n
attract thc cncrgics ol thc tcrrcstrial world and causc thcm to nsc
in thc atmosphcrc
Thus it is suggested that between Perfect Nature and its sou|,
there wi|| be a re|ationship-as formu|ated in the psa|m com-
posed by Sohravardi to his own Perfect Natur

-such
.
that the
Bearer of the Chi|d is simu|taneous|y the Chr|d who rs Born,
and vice versa.
Wisc Socratcs dcclarcd that Pcrlcct Naturc is callcd thc sun ol thc
philosophcr, thc original root ol his bcing and at thc samc timc thc
0runch springing lrom him. Hcrmcs was askcd. uow docs on

c
achicvc knowlcdgc ol wisdom? How can onc bnng tt down to this
world bclow?' Through Pcrlcct Naturc,' hc answcrcd. What
.
is
thc root ol wisdom?' Pcrlcct Naturc.' What i s thc kcy to wts-
dom?' Pcrlcct Naturc.' What thcn is pcrlcct Naturc?' hc was
askcd. lt is thc hcavcnly cntity, thc philosphcr's Angcl,

on oincd
with his star which rulcs him and opcns thc doors ol wisdom lor
him, tcachc. him what is dillicult, rcvcals to him what is right, in
slccping as in waking. ''
We have ust heard Hermes speak of the phi|osopher's Sun,
and in Nam Kobr, the homo|ogue of Perfect Natur

, the
Witness in Heaven, the suprasensory persona| master, r s de-
scribed as the Sun of mystery, the Sun of the heart, and so
forth, and in one of his ecstatic recita|s, SohravardI wi|| te|| us
l 7
I I . hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
when and how this sunrises which is not the sun of the earth|y
east or west. Perfect Nature is so sure|y the u|timate secret that,
as we read on, we are a|so to|d how it is the one part of mystica|
theosophy revea|ed by the Sages exc|usive|y to their discip|es
and never mentioned, whether ora||y or in writing, outside
their circ|e.
!t fo||ows that every account of the attainment of Perfect
Nature represents an actua| performance of the drama of initi-
ation, whether enacted in the dream state or in the waking
state. !t is attained at the center, that is, in a p|ace fi||ed with
Darkness which comes to be i||uminated by a pure innerLigbt.
One such account in the same work is Hermes' recita|, where it
is said.
Whcn l wishcd to bring to light thc scicncc ol thc mystcry
and modality ol Crcation, l camc upon a subtcrrancan vault lillcd
with darkncss and winds. l saw nothing bccausc ol thc darkncss,
nor could l kccp a|ight bccausc ol thc violcncc ol thc winds. Lo
and bchold, a pcrson thcn appcarcd to mc in my slccp in a lorm
ol thc grcatcst bcauty. '' Hc said to mc. Takc a lamp and placc it
undcr a glass to shicld it lrom thc winds, thcn it will givc thcc light
in spitc ol thcm. Thcn go into thc undcrground chambcr, dig in
its center and lrom thcrc bring lorth a ccrtain Cod-madc imagc,
dcsigncd according to thc rulcs ol Art. As soon as you havc drawn
out this imagc, thc winds will ccasc to blow through thc undcr-
ground chambcr. Thcn dig in its lour corncrs and you will bring
to light thc knowlcdgc ol thc mystcrics ol Crcation, thc causcs ol
Naturc, thc origins and modalitics ol things. At that l said, 'Who
thcn art thou?' Hc answcrcd. l am thy Ieqect Auture. ll thou
wishcst to scc mc, call mc by my namc. '
-
The same account a|so appears, word for word, in a text
attributed to Appo||onius of Tyana ( Ba|ins in Arabic) . Here
the ordea| of persona| initiation consists of the efforts of the
man of |ight, Fbs, before whom the Darkness of the primor-
dia| secret is transformed into a Night of |ight. It is in this effort
toward the center, the a/e, and the Darkness at the approach
to the po|e, that the Cuide of |ight, Perfect Nature, sudden|y
shows itse|f to him and te||s him what to do to bring |ight into
this Night. to dig for the Image which is the primordia| reve|a-
tion of the H/scanditum. Having put his |amp under a g|ass, ' as
prescribed by Perfect Nature, the initiate enters the subterra-
nean chamber, he sees a Shaykh, who is Hermes and who is bis
au image, sitting on a throne and ho|ding an emeraH ta/t
l d
! . 1he Hermetic Ieo o Pegect Noture
which bears an inscription in Arabic, the Latin equiva|eut O
which is. bac est secretum mundi et scientia Hrtu naturae. ' Jhc
identification of the man of |ight and his Cuide of |ight is estab-
|ished by making Fbsinto the |ight-bearer, opo for
.
it is
both to him and through him that Perfect Nature, his gmde,
revea|s that it is in itse|f the secret. the secret of the |ight of the
inaccessib|e divine Night.
Thenceforth they are so intimate|y united that one and the
same ro|e is p|ayed in turn, even simu|taneous|y, by Hermes
and his Perfect Nature. This is what is suggested in Sohravar-
di's writings where Perfect Nature is described, particu|ar|y in
the passionate|y |yrica| psa|m referred to above and in the 'S

-
bean |iturgies conveying know|edge of the same charactersuc
situation. Hermes is the prophet of Perfect Nature, by initiat-
ing him to wisdom, his Perfect Nature taught h.m how to wo
!
-
ship itse|f, taught him the form of prayer by which to ca|| for
.
it
and cause it to appear (a Hermetic dhikr) , this persona| worship
is what Hermes transmitted to the Sages, instructing them to
perform among themse|ves, at |east twice a year, this persona|
|iturgy of their Perfect Nature. Thus we fmd a Sa~an hturgy
addressed to Hermes himse|f, invoking him in turn m the very
same words in which he had been taught by his Perfect Nature
to address it. ' Here we have an experientia| testimony, far bet-
ter than a theory, provided by the performance of a prayer, of
the re|ationship suggested by Sohravardi's own psa|m, where
he addresses Perfect Nature simu|taneous|y as the one who
gives birth and the one who is born. The same re|ationship, as
we sha|| see, is imp|icit in the specifica||y Sufi notion of the
sbbid, the witness-of-contemp|ation. the Sufi contemp|ates
bimeq in contemp|ating the theophanic witness, the Con-
temp|ator becomes the Contemp|ated and vice ve
!
sa, a mystica|
situation expressed by the wonderfu| Eckhartian form

| a.
The seeing through which I know hi m is the same seemg
through which he knows me.
A particu|ar|y fu| | and origina| deve|opment of the thcme
of Perfect Nature is found in a phi|osopher who hved a htt|e
bfore SohravardI, name|y Ab'|-Barakt Baghddi, a subt|e
and very individua| thinker of ]ewish origin, converted |

te in
|ife to Is|am, who died abut 5l l l 5 at the age of mnety.
Since we have dea|t with him at greater |ength e|sewhere, ' we
l 9
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
sha|| on|y reca|| here how the theme of Perfect Nature seeps
into his work in regard to the prob|em, inherited from Av-
icenna and the Avicennans, of the Active lnte||igence. When
the Active lnte||igence of the Avicennans is taken to be the
same as the Ho|y Spirit, and the |atter the same, in the Qornic
Reve|ation, as the Ange| Cabrie|-in other words, the Ange| of
Know|edge as being the same as the Ange| of Reve|ation-far
from |eading to a rationa|ization of the Spirit, it raises again, on
the contrary, the who|e prob|em of noetics in terms of ange|o|-
ogy. Thereupon a further question arises. why shou|d there be
on|y one Active l nte||igence? To answer this question ca||s for a
decision as to whether a|| human sou|s are identica| in species
and essence, whether each sou| differs from another in kind, or
again whether they are not perhaps grouped essentia||y in
spiritua| fami|ies composing many different species.
This is why thc ancicnt Sagcs . . . initiatcd into things thc scn-
sory lacultics do not pcrccivc, maintaincd that lor cach individual
soul, or pcrhaps lor scvcral togcthcr having thc samc naturc and
allinity, thcrc is a bcing in thc spiritual world which throughout
thcir cxistcncc watchcs ovcr this soul and group ol souls with
cspccial solicitudc and tcndcrncss, lcads thcm to knowlcdgc, pro-
tccts, guidcs, dclcnds, comlorts thcm, lcads thcm to victory, and
this bcing is what thcy cal|cd Ieqect Auture. This lricnd, dclcndcr
and protcctor is what in rcligious tcrminology is callcd thc ngel.
A|though here the aspect of intimate union is not so exp|icit|y
stressed, the theme neverthe|ess faithfu||y echoes the Hermetic
teachings, it defines the situation which wi|| resu|t, according to
SohravardI, from the re|ationship to be estab|ished between the
Ho|y Spirit, the Ange| of Humanity, and the Perfect Nature of
each man of |ight. Whether it is referred to as the divine Being
or as the archetype-Ange| , no sooner does its apparition revea|
the transcendent dimension of spiritua| individua|ity as such,
than it must take on individua|ized features and estab|ish an
individuated re|ationship. from that very fact, a direct re|a-
tionship is estab|ished between the divine wor|d and this
spiritua| individua|ity, independent|y of the mediation of any
earth|y co||ectivity. Some sou|s |earn nothing except from
human masters, others have |earned everything from invisib|e
guides known on|y to themse|ves.
ln SohravardI's vast body of writings, there are three pas-
2
}1. 1he Heetic Ieo of Pegect Noture
sages in particu|ar that throw |ight on the t|e

me of Per|ec

t Na-
t ure, not theoretica||y, but as a figure in a visionary exper
'
e
''
e
as one who speaks in answer to a prayer. The most exphct h
n the Baak a[ Canversatians ,' ' where Sohravardi undoubte+|y
a||udes to the Hermetic text quoted a few pages back. a |umm-
ous form appears to Hermes, it proects or breathes into him
the know|edge of gnosis. To Hermes' question, Who then are
you? it answers, l am your Feqect Nature. " And in anoth

r
passage
we find the invocation addressed by Her

es

to hrs
Perfect Nature amidst the peri|s that come to try hrm m the
course of a dramaturgy of ecstasy, an a||usive dramatization of
an initiatic ordea| experienced in a secret persona| wor|d
(wherein Hermes may then perhaps be a pseudonym for
SohravardI) . Now the baur as we|| as the /ace of this visionary
episode evoke the symbo|s of the North to indicate the passage
to a wor|d beyond the sensory wor|d. This episode is the most
striking i||ustration of the theme w

re a:

ra|
/
z.ng hcre.

Perfec

;
Nature, the guide of |ight of the spntua| mdivrduahty, o

pens
its transcendent dimension by making possib|e the crossmg of
the thresho|d . . . (see a|so in[ra lll) . The person to whom the
appea| is addressed in this initiatic ecstasy is the same
-
Perf

ct
Nature addressed in the psa|m composed by Sohravardr , whrch
is perhaps the most beautifu| prayer ever dir

cted to th

Hnge/ .
ln this sense it is a persona| |iturgy, conformmg to the mstruc-
tions which, say the Sabans, were a |egacy from Hermes to
the Sages. '
Thou, my lord and princc, my most holy angcl, my prccious
spiritual bcing, Thou art thc Spiri
'
wh

gav

birth to mc, and
Thou art thc Child to whom my spnt g:vcs birth . . . Thou who
art clothcd in thc most brilliant ol divinc Lights . . may Thou
manilcst Thyscll to mc in thc most bcautilul (or in thc highcst) ol
cpiphanics, show mc thc lght ol Thy dazzling lacc, bc lor mc thc
mcdiator . . . lilt thc vcils ol darkncss lrom my hcart . . .
This conunction is what the spiritua| seeker experiences when
he reaches the center, the a/e, the same re|ationship is found
again in [a| |oddIn Rumi' s mystici sm and in the
"
ho|e
Sohravardian tradition in lran, as we |earn from the test:mony
of Mir Dmd, the great master of theo|ogy at lspahan in the
seventeenth century. lt is a re|ationship in which the mystica|
sou| , as Maryam, as ftima, becomes the mother of her
2 l
I I . hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
father, amma/i-ba. And this again is the meaning of the verse
in lbn 'Arabi. l created perception in Thee on|y that therein l
might become the obect of my perception.
Z0
This re|ationship, inexpressib|e except in paradoxica|
terms, is the one toward which the same fundamenta| experi-
ence consistent|y tends, notwithstanding the diversity of its
forms. Again, Sohravardi dramatizes the search for this ex-
perience and its attainment in a comp|ete short work. a
visionary recita|, a spiritua| autobiography entit|ed Recita/a[tbe
Occidenta/Lxi/e.This recita| is re|ated not on|y to the texts of the
Hermetic tradition, but a|so to a text eminent|y representative
both of gnosis and of Manichean piety, the famous Sanga[tbe
Fear/ in the book of the Hcts a[Tbamas . A|though it is true that
such a book cou|d not but be re|egated by officia| Christianity
to the shadowy rea|m of Apocrypha, it can neverthe|ess be said
to express the /eitmativ of a|| lranian spiritua|ity sti|| a|ive in
SuIsm.
Z I
Some may see in the Sanga[tbeFear/a preIguration of
Prsifa|'s quest, Mount Sa|vat, emerging from the waters of
Lake Hmun (on the present-day frontier of lran and Af-
ghanistan) has been |ikened to the Mountain of the Lord
(Kb-eKbweb) , where the fravartis watch over the Larathus-
tran seed of the Savior, the Saasbant to come, as the Mans
victaa/is , it was the point from which the Magi began their
ourney, bringing lranian propheto|ogy back to the Christian
Reve|ation, it connects at |ast the memory of King Con-
dophares and of the preaching of the Apost|e Thomas. What is
certain is that on the one hand Sohravardi's Recita/ a[tbe Lxi/e
begins where Avicenna's Hay i/n\aqznended, and that on the
other hand the Recita/ a[ tbe Lxi/e is so c|ose|y para||e| to the
Sang a[ tbe Fear/ that everything takes p|ace as though
Sohravardi himse|f had ust been reading the story of the
young lranian prince sent by his parents from the Orient to
Egypt to win the Pear| without price.
The young prince sheds the robe of |ight which his parents
had |oving|y woven for him, he arrives in the |and of exi|e, he is
the Stranger, he tries to go unnoticed yet he is recognized. they
feed him the food of forgetfu|ness. And next comes the mes-
sage carried by an eag|e, signed by his father and by his
mother, the queen of the Orient, and by a|| the nob|es of
22
!. 1he Heetic Ieo o Pegect Noture
Parthia. Thereupon the prince remembers his origin and the
|ear| for which he had been sent on his mission to Egypt. And
t hen comes the departure from Egypt, the exodus, the great
keturn to the Orient. His parents send two emissaries to meet
him and bring him the robe he had |eft behind when he de-
parted. He does not remember what it was |ike, having been a
sma|| chi|d when he took it off.
And bchold, saw it altogcthcr n mc and was altogcthcr in
it, lor wc wcrc tuo, scparatcd lrom onc anothcr but ncvcrthc|css
on/ one, ol similar lorm . . . l saw also that all thc movcmcnts ol
gnosis wcrc taking placc in it and saw lurthcr that it was about to
spcak . . l saw that my staturc had grown to lit thc way it was
madc and in its rcga| movcmcnts it sprcad ovcr mc.
- -
Without doubt the author thus expressed i n the most direct
way and with a happy simp|icity the bi-unity of Perfect Nature
(here represented by the robe of |ight) and of the man of |ight
guided by it out of exi|e, a bi-unity which is in fact inexpressib|e
in the categories of human |anguage.
A|| these themes recur in Sohravardi's Recita/a[tbe Occiden-
ta/Lxi/e.
Z3
Here a|so the chi|d of the Orient is sent into exi|e in
the West, symbo|ized by the city of Qayrawn, which is the
same as the city mentioned in the Qorn as the city of the
oppressors. Recognized by the oppressors' peop|e, he is put in
chains and thrown into a we|| from which he can on|y emerge
at night for f|eeting moments. He a|so experiences increasing
power|essness due to fatigue, forgetfu|ness, and disgust. Then
comes his fami|y's message from afar, carried by a hoopoe, in-
viting him to set out without de|ay. Thereupon, in the b|azing
|ight that awakens him, he departs in search of that Orient
which is not the east on our maps but which |ies in the cosmic
north (just as the lranian Sages, the guardians of the orienta|
theosophy, derive their epithet Orienta| from an Orient
other than geographic east). To return to the East is to c|imb
the Mountain Qf, the cosmic (or psycho-cosmic) mountain,
the mountain of the emera|d cities, a|| the way up to the
heaven|y po|e, the mystica| Sinai, the Emera|d Rock. Sohravar-
di's maor works make this topo|ogy c|earer to us (see infra lII) .
this Orient i s the mystica| Earth of Hurqa|y, Terra /ucida,
situated at the heaven|y north. This is the very p|ace where the
23
I I . hc Man ol ght and Hs Ludc
meeting occurs between the pi|grim and the one who gave
birth to him (and to whom the psa|m quoted above is ad-
dressed) , his Perfect Nature, the persona| Ange|, who revea|s
to him the mystica| hierarchy of a|| those who go before him in
the suprasensory heights and at the same time, pointing to the
one immediate|y before himse|f, dec|ares. He contains me ust
as l contain you.
The situation is simi|ar. in both recita|s the exi|e, the
stranger, faces up to the powers of oppression which try to
force him to forget and to conform to the demands of their
co||ective mastery. The exi|e was at first a heretic, but when the
criteria are secu|arized and become socia| criteria, he is no
more than a madman, a misfit. from then on his situation is
curab|e and the diagnosis is not hindered by such distinctions.
And yet mystica| consciousness has avai|ab|e a criterion of its
own which makes it irreducib|e to these de|usive assimi|ations.
the prince of the Orient in the Sanga[tbeFeat/and the Recita/a[
tbeLxi/e knaws where he is and what has happened to him, he
has even tried to adapt, to disguise himse|f, but he has been
recognized, he has been forced to swa||ow the food of forget-
fu|ness, he has been chained in a we||, in spite of a|| that, he wi||
understand the message and knows that the |ight which guides
him (the |amp in Hermes' underground chamber) is not the
exoteric day|ight of the city of the oppressors.
One further examp|e wi|| be given here to support the fact
that this is the /eitmativ of lranian spiritua|ity (the image of the
we// appears again constant|y in Nam Kobr) . We have ust re-
ferred to the para||e| between the Hcts a[ Tbamas and Sohravar-
di's Recita/. This same para||e|ism reappears e|sewhere. A com-
pi|ation which in its present form cannot have been made ear-
|ier than the seventh/thirteenth century, and whicl is pre-
sented as an Arabic e| aboration of a Sanskrit text, the
Hmttakunda, inc|udes a short spiritua| romance which in fact is
none other than the text of a recita| e|sewhere wrong|y attrib-
uted to Avicenna, entit|ed Rismt a/-Ma/d wa'/-Ma'd, The
Epist|e of the Origin and the Return," a tit|e borne by many
phi|osophica| works in Arabic and Persian and which from a
gnostic point of view, can a|so be trans|ated Cenesis and
Exodus, that is, the descent to the earth|y wor|d, into occi-
24
}1. 1he Heetic Ieo of Pegect Noture
denta| exi|e, and the deattute from Egypt, the return bame.
Here the stranger is sent on a mission by the |ord of his
country of origin (the Orient) and before his departure re-
ceives instructions from his |ord's wise minister. The p|ace of
exi|e is the city where the peop|e of the outer and inner senses
and of the physio|ogica| energies appear to him as a crowd of
active and agitated peop|e. At |ast, in the heart of the city, he
finds himse|f one day before the throne of the shaykh who
ru|es the country. He comes near and speaks to him, the same
gestures and words respond to his own gestures and words. He
rea|izes that the shaykh is himse|f (see above, the initiate recog-
nizing his own image in the image of Hermes) . Then sudden|y
the promise made before his departure into exi|e is remem-
bered. In his bewi|derment, he encounters the minister who
had given him his instructions and who now takes him by the
hand. P|unge into this water for it is the Water of Life! On
emerging from the mystica| bath he has understood a|| sym-
bo|s, deciphered a|| codes and finds himse|f once more before
his prince. Be we|come! says the prince, Henceforth you are
one of us. And having cut in two the thread spun by a spider,
the prince puts it together again, saying. l x l .
This i s a|so the [atmu/a that we suggested above, because he
who deciphers it holds the key to the secret that preserves him
both from pseudomystica| monism (whose formu|a is l l )
and from abstract monotheism which i s content to superim-
pose an Lnssutemum on the mu|titude of beings (n + l). !t is
the cipher of the union of Perfect Nature and the man of |ight,
which the Sanga[ tbeFeat/ so exce||ent|y typifies. We were twa,
separated from one another, and yet an/ ane , of simi|ar
form. Even without having to consider Avicenna as the au-
thor of this spiritua| romance, it nonethe|ess confirms the
meaning of his Recita/a[ Hayy i/n\aqzn. A|though it has been
so weak|y interpreted as to make it impossib|e to discern in this
Recita| anything beyond an inoffensive phi|osophica| a||egory
on the interpreter's |eve|, it neverthe|ess has a deeper sense
which shines through page after page, because, as in the other
Recita|s of the Avicennan tri|ogy, Hayy ibn Yaqzn points a
finger to the same Otient to which Sohravardi's recita|s redirect
us.
25
. hc Man ol ght and s Gudc
2. 1he No o Hermes on the 8hepher o Hermos
The archetypa| figure exemp|ified by the apparition of Perfect
Nature assumes therefore in respect to the man of |ight, Fbs,
throughout the entire ordea| of his exi|e, a ro|e best defined by
'
he wo
.
rd noigv, the shepherd, the watcher, the guide. This
ts precise|y a word which ca||s to mind both the pro|ogue of the
most famous of the Hermetic texts and that of a Christian text
"
hich is perhaps its echo. In each case the sequence of episodes
ts the same. first the visionary's meditation, his withdrawa| to
the center of himse|f, the moment of dream or ecstasy inter-
mediate between waking and s|eep, then the apparition and
the interrogation, then the recognition. In the same way the
Ncsappears before Hermes whi|e his bodi|y senses were he|d
in bondage during a deep s|eep. It seems to him that a being
of enormous size approaches, ca||s him by name and asks.
What dost thou wish to hcar and scc, and to lcarn and know
through thought?' But thou, who art thou?' am IotmunJer
t hc `ou\ with absolutc sovcrcignty know what thou wishcst ana
| am with t hcc

cvcrywhcrc . ' Suddcnly cvcrything opcncd bc-

lorc lL H an mstant, and

saw boundlcss vision, cvcrything
havmg bccomc scrcnc and oyous hght, and having sccn this light,
bchold was lillcd with lovc lor it
-
"
Referring to the Coptic term from which the name Poimander
is derived, it cau be uuderstood as the heaven|y Naus , as the
shepherd or as the wituess, but it is sure|y the same vision wit-
nessed by those o| the ! ranian Spiritua|s who speak sometimes
of Perfect Nature, as iu Sohravardi's Hermes, sometimes of the
witness in Heaveu, o| the suprasensory persona| Cuide, as in
the works o| N am kobr and his schoo|.
At one time the Canan of Christian Scriptures inc|uded a
charming |itt|e book, the Sbeberd a[Herma, especia||y rich in
symb

|ic visions, today this |itt|e book, exi|ed |ike Fbs in per-
son, fmds a p|ace on|y in the Cananof ideas of persona| re|igion
where it appropriate|y be|ongs beside the Hcts a[ Tbamas . Her-
mas is at home, seated on his bed in a state of deep meditation.
Sudden|y a strange-|ooking personage enters, sits down at his
side and a
.
nnounces. I have been sent by the Most Ho|y Ange|
to hve bes:de thee a|| the days of thy |ife. Hermas thinks that
the apparition is trying to tempt him.
2
}2. 1he Ne o Hees on the 8hepher
Who art thou thcn? For know to whom havc bccn
trustcd ' Thcn hc said to mc. Dost thou not rccognizc mcr`
No ' `l am thc Shcphcrd to whosc carc thou hast bccn CM~
trustcd. ' And whilc hc spokc, ht: u:]ect chungeJ, and bchold | CL~
ognizcd the one to uhom l huJ 0een entru:ted. '
Whether or not one is wi||ing to see in the pro|ogue of Hermas
a Christian rep|ica to the Hermetic Poimander, the fact re-
mains that Christo|ogy was not origina||y quite what it |ater be-
came. It is not at a|| by chance that in the |itt|e book of Hermas
the expressions Son of Cod, Archange| Michae|, Most
Ho|y Ange|, and Magnificent Ange| are interchangeab|e
The vision of Hermas goes back to the conceptions dominated
by the figure of Cbristas-Hnge/as ,and the situation thus defined
offers the fo||owing ana|ogy of re|ationships. the shepherd of
Hermas is re|ated to the Magnificent Ange| as, in Sohravardi,
the Perfect Nature of Hermes is re|ated to the Ange| Cabrie|,
the Ange| of Humanity, the Ho|y Spirit.
The theme of Cbristas-Hnge/as is a|so the theme of Christus-
astar, so we|| i||ustrated in primitive Christian art, where
Christ is represented by the figure of HermesCreabaras (with a
|amb on his shou|ders, his head ha|oed by the seven p|anets,
the sun and the moon at his sides), or as Attis, with a shepherd's
staff and a f|ute, viewed both in meditation and mystica| ex-
perience (Psa|m 23 and [ohn l 0. I I - l ) as a true damcn are-
dras ,a persona| protector, everywhere accompanying and |ead-
ing the one in his care, as Poimander says. I am with thee
everywhere. Hermas' exc|amation on recognizing the one
to whom he has been entrusted seems to a||ude to a spiritua|
pact conc|uded at the time of an initiation. Then a|so we are re-
minded of the specifica||y Manichean expression of the
twofo|d theme. of Christ as the Heaven|y Twin of Mani and
of the form of |ight which each of the E|ect receives on the
day when he renounces the powers of this wor|d. The conunc-
tion of these two themes introduces us to the heart of the pre-
Is|amic Iranian representations, their |ater recurrences are
evidence of the persistence of the archetype whose exemp|ifi-
cations a|ways reproduce the same situation. the conoining of
guide of |ight with man of |ight effected in terms of arientatian
toward a primordia| Orient which is not simp|y the geographic
east.
27
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
3. Frovorti on no/kyrie
The Loroastrian re|i gion of ancient l ran offers us the
homo|ogue or rather the perfect, c|assic exemp|ication of what
the Hermetic figure of FeqectNatute or of the sbebetd hera|ds
and represents. However, in ana|yzing it, one must beware of
the diHicu|ties of a twofo|d task. ln the first p|ace Perfect Na-
ture as guide and heaven|y partner of the man of |ight has
heretofore appeared to us as essentia||y immune to any con-
tamination by the Darkness. ls there not however a oint re-
sponsibi|ity? As soon as it is c|ear|y stated, a second question
fo||ows. what if the man of |ight fai|s to maintain his effort and
fa||s victim to the Darkness, what if Fbs is fina||y captured and
overcome by the earth|y, carna| Adam? This question finds an
answer first in the sequence of events in Loroastrian individua|
eschato|ogy and again in the interpretation of the co|ored
photisms by Nam Kobr and his schoo|, according to whether
the co|ors unvei| or on the contrary concea| the suprasensory
persona| Cuide

To guard against any possib|e misunderstand-
ing, |et us say immediate|y that what these answers show is that
the act of seeing changes according to whether it is the act of
the man of |ight, Fbs, or on the contrary the act of the carna|
and ma|eficent Adam who, by proecting his own shadow on
the heaven|y figure and by interposing thus this shadow, is
himse|f the one that makes this figure invisib|e to himse|f, that
dis-figures it. lt is within man's power to betray the pact, to cast
a darkened |ook on the whiteness of the wor|d of |ight, thereby
hiding it from his own gaze, but this is the |imit of his power,
and this ho|ds true in the case of the sbbidin Sufism as we|| as
of the eschato|ogica| figure of Danain Loroastrianism.
ln the second p|ace, we sha|| have to define the re|ationship
between two figures that are of equa| va|ue as archetypes, those
which are designated respective|y as Ftavatti and Daena. We
cannot go deep|y into this theme here, but must conne our-
se|ves to indicate how the prob|em arises and how certain texts
a||ow us to foresee a so|ution in accordance with the schema
veried up to now

The Ftavattis" are, in Mazdean cosmogony, feminine en-
tities, heaven|y archetypes of a|| the beings composing the Cre-
ation of |ight. Each being having passed from the heaven|y or
2d
}3. Frovorti on no/kyrie
subt|e (mnk) state to the materia| and visib|e state _tik,a ma-
teria| state which in the Mazdean conception imp|ies by itse|f
neither evi| nor darkness, the |atter being proper to the
Ahrimanian counter-powers, which are themse|ves a spiritua|
order)-ach being has his[tavatti in the heaven|y wor|d which
assumes the ro|e of his guardian ange|. What is more, a|| the
Ce|estia| beings, gods, ange|s and archange|s, even Ohrmazd
himse|f, have their respective [tavatti . Syzygies of |ight, |ight
upon |ight. Ohrmazd revea|s to his prophet Larathustra that
without the concurrence and assistance of the fravartis he
wou|d not have been ab|e to protect his Creation of |ight
against the assau|t of the counter-creation of Ahriman. Now,
the very idea of this warfare is dramatica||y unfo|ded when we
come to the fravartis of human beings. ln the pre|ude to the
mi||enniums of the period of mixtute, Ohrmazd offered them
the choice from which their entire destiny originates. they
cou|d either |ive in the ce|estia| wor|d she|tered from the rav-
ages of Ahriman, or e|se descend to earth there to be incar-
nated in materia| bodies and strugg|e against the counter-
powers of Ahriman in the materia| wor|d. Their answer to
this proposa| was the es which gives their name its fu|| mean-
ing, most significant|y for our purpose. tbasewbabavecbasen. l n
practice the [tavatti incarnated i n the terrestria| wor|d fina||y
became identified in re|igious representations pure|y and sim-
p|y with the sou|.
But then the question inevitab|y arises. how to conceive of
the bi-dimensiona| structure characteristic of the beings of
|ight, if the fravartis in person, the heaven|y archetypes, by
descending to earth, are identified with the earth|y dimen-
sion? ln other words, if, in the case of humans, the archetype
or ange|, on |eaving the high ramparts of heaven, is the terres-
tria| person himse|f, does he not in his turn need some guard-
ian ange|, a ce|estia| redup|ication of his being? lt seems that
Mazdean phi|osophy has in fact entertained this question. One
so|ution might be in some way to conceive of the earth|y union
of fravarti and sou| as one in which the former remains im-
mune from a|| Ahrimanian contamination. ' However, when
we consider the fundamenta| situation that is the basis for the
entire meaning of human |ife as it is experienced once the
fravarti and the sou| are actua||y identified, the question is
29
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
much too comp|ex for a so|ution to be found in a mere
phi|o|ogica| inventory of existing texts.
A phi|osophica| approach is itse|f ca||ed for by the es-
chato|ogica| intervention of Dan (an Avestan name, whose
form in midd|e lranian or Peh|evi is Dn) . Etymo|ogica||y sne
represents the visionary organ of the sou|, onto|ogica||y, the
|ight that makes seeing possib|e and the |ight which is seen. She
u the pre-terrestria| vision of the ce|estia| wor|d and is thus
te/igian and [aitb avowed, the very faith which was chosen by
the fravarti, she is a|so the essentia| individua|ity, the ce|estia|
transcendent l, the figure which, at the dawn of its eternity,
sets the be|iever face to face with the sou| of his sou|, because
tea/izatian unfai|ing|y corresponds to [aitb. A|| the other in-
terpretations of the personage of Daen cu|minate in this and
thereafter cease to conf|ict with each other. According|y, there
is the posthumous episode at the entrance to the Chinvat
Bridge, the apparition of the heaven|y maiden, a primordia|
figure, who is at the same time witness, udge, and retribution.
Then who art thou, whose beauty outshines a|| other beauty
ever contemp|ated in the terrestria| wor|d? l am thine own
Dan. l was |oved, thou hast made me more |oved sti||. l was
beautifu|, thou hast made me sti|| more beautifu|, and embrac-
ing her devotee, she |eads him into the Abode-of- Hymns
(Gatatman) . This ast mattem dia|ogue again reminds us of the
reci procity of the Civi ng-Bi rth/Being-Born re|ationshi p
ana|yzed above. ln contrast, he who has betrayed the pact con-
c|uded prior to existence in this wor|d sees himse|f in the pres-
ence of an atrocious figure, his own negativity, a caricature of
his ce|estia| humanity which he has himse|f muti|ated, extermi-
nated. a human abortion cut off from its[tavatti,which is to say
a man without a Dan. The Dan remains what she u in the
wor|d of Ohrmazd, what the man sees who has cut himse|f off
from her, who has made her invisib|e to himse|f, is fitting|y his
own sbadaw, his own Ahrimanian darkness, instead of his ce|es-
tia| mirror of |ight. This is the dramatic meaning of Mazdean
anthropo|ogy.
A Mazdean text giving the best so|ution of the comp|ex
situation regarding the physio|ogy of the man of |ight suggests
to us a tri|ogy of the sou|, that is, of the spiritua| or subt|e or-
ganism of man (his mnckib), independent of his materia| physi-
3
}3. Frovorti on n o/kyrie
ca| organism. first|y is the Sou| on the way (uvan-i t ), | hat
is, the one that is met on the wa to the Chinvat Bridge, which,
eschato|ogica||y and esctatica||y, is the thresho|d of the beyood,
|inking the centetof the wor|d with the cosmic or psycho-cosmic
mountain. There can b no doubt, therefore, that this indeed
refers U Daaa guiding the sou| in the ascent |eading to the
northernmost of heights, the Abode-of-Hymns, the region o|
the nfinite Lights. And then there is the sou| referred to in
the text as the sou| outside of the body (tuvn-i/tntan) , and
fina||y the sou| which is the sou| in the body (tuvn-i tan) .
These |atter two descriptions correspond t o two aspects of the
same sou|, that is of the fravarti incarnated in a terrestria| or-
ganism, ru|ing the |atter |ike an army commander (the Ls-
ab/ad of the Isbtqin, the begemanikan of the Stoics), and
sometimes escaping from the body in dream or in ecstatic an-
ticipation to meet, during this f|eeting exodus, the Sou| on the
way, that is, the Dan who guides it, inspires it, and comforts
it.
The tota|ity represented by their bi-unity is therefore |ight
upon |ight, it can never be a composite of Ohrmazdian |ight
and Ahrimanian darkness, or in psycho|ogica| terms, of con-
sciousness and its sbadaw. lt can be said that the fravarti iden-
tified with the terrestria| sou| is re|ated to the ange| Dan in
the same way as Hermes is re|ated to Perfect Nature, Phs to
his guide of |ight, Hermas to his shepherd, the exi|ed prince
to the Robe of |ight. There is additiona| confirmation in that
the lranian theme is high|y reminiscent of Tobias and the
Ange|. The theme is inexhaustib|y fruitfu|, for it expresses a
fundamenta| human experience, wherever it is experienced
the same symptom reappears, te||ing of the fee|ing of indi-
vidua| transcendence prevai|ing against a|| the coercion and
co||ectivization of the person. Therefore it has homo|ogues
both in the re|igious universes re|ated to that of the ancient
lranian re|igion, and in those of its successors, reactivating and
transva|uating the fundamenta| concepts.
ln Mazdean terms, Daen-fravarti, as the pre-existentia|
fate of man, represents and is the ho|der of his xvatnab, in
order to convey very brief|y the fu| | significance of this specifi-
ca||y Mazdean notion, it is best to reca|| the twofo|d Creek
equiva|ent which it was given. |ight of g/a ((o) and [ate
3 l
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
().Nowhereprecise|ywehavearepresentationthatbrings
theIranianandtheNordictheogonyintoaccord. Inboththere
are simi|ar visions of ce|estia| feminine entities bearing and
keeping the power and destiny ofa man. Fravartis and a/-
ries . Perhaps these figures wi|| fina||y give the |ie to the au-
stere critics who consider that to associate feminine features
withtheAnge|makesthe|attereffeminate."Suchcriticismin
fact presupposescomp|ete incapacitytoconceiveofthepower
inquestion, having|ostthemeaningoftheAnge|,manwithout
a[ravarti (which may be the state ofmankind through
.
out an
entireepoch)can no |ongerimagineanythingbutacancature
ofthis figure. In anycase the themeofcomparativeresearch
consociatingFravartisandWa|kyries,wou|drevea|a||itspoten-
tia|ities on|y on condition ofsearching, even ofca||ing, for its
ref|oweringinthecourseoftime.Wereca||hereaconversation
with the |ate Gerhard van der Leeuw, who himse|f, as a good
phenomeno|ogist, cou|d doustice to Richard Wagneron this
point. As he pointed out, and as we who||y agreed, though
Wagnertreatedthe ancientSagasin a very persona| manner,
heat |easthada penetratingand subt|ecomprehensronofthe
ancient Germanic be|iefs. In the figure of Bri\nnhi|de he
created a beautifu| and moving figure ofan Ange|, Wotan' s
thought," a sou| sent forth by God, vis--vis the hero she is
certain|ytheauthenticF/ga,ho|dinghispowerandfateinher
hand, her apparition a|ways signifying the imminence ofthe
beyond. Whoseesmebidsfarewe||totheday|ightofthis|ife.
ThoushastseenthefierygazeoftheWa|kyrie, nowthoumust
departwith her." Inthe samewaythe Iranianecstatic meets
Dacnon|yontheroadtotheChinvatBridge,onthethresho|d
ofthebeyond, HermesmeetshisPerfect Natureon|yinamo-
ment|eadinguptothesupremeecstasy.
Any rationa|istinterpretation wou|d go astray here in re-
ducingthis Figure to ana||egory,onthe groundsthat itper-
soniies"theactandactionofman.Bynomeansisitana||egor-
ica| construct, but a primordia| Image thanks to which the
seekerperceivesawor|dofrea|itieswhichis neither thewor|d
ofthe senses nor the wor|d ofabstract concepts. This power
fromthedepthsnecessari|yrecursnoton|y,aswehaveseen,in
theorienta| theosophy" ofSohravardi,butevenintheworks
ofcertaincommentatorsontheQorn (inTabari'sgreatTa[sir
32
}+. 1he Heoven/y 1oin (Moneism on Mon|c/e|o)
onsra l 0. 9 there is to be found word for word the Avcs| an
episodeoftheastmartem meetingwith Dacn),and morc s
y
s-
tematica||y sti|| in Ismae|ian Shi'ite gnosis. Ismae|iao ao-
thropo|ogyrepresentstheearth|yhumanconditionasabouo-
dary statebtween two things. potentia|ange|orpotentia|de-
mon. Atthec|imacticpoint, Ismae|iananthropo|ogyspontane-
ous|y |inksupagainwiththeLoroastrianrepresentations. And
indeed, itisthec|assica| Mazdean tri|ogythatNasiroddinTsi
reproducesin speakingofwhatbecomesofthe faithfu|adept
after death. His tbaugbt becomes anHnge/ proceeding from
the archetypa| wor|d, his seecb becomes a sirit proceeding
fromthisAnge|,hisactian becomesa/adproceedingfromthis
spirit."Onceagaininthesameway,thevisionofDacnatthe
ChinvatBridgecanberecognizedfeatureforfeature,thistime
intheAnge|in|oveab|eand beautifu|formwhobecomesthe
companionofthcsou|fora||eternity.Andthusthegnosisof
Is|amicIran

on|yservestoreactivatethefeaturesofaFigure
who is |ikewise the pre-eminent figure in Mandeism and in
Manicheism.
+. 1he Heoven/y 1oin (Moneism on Monicheum)
InMandeangnosis,everybeingin the physica|universehasits
counterpart in the heaven|y Earth of Mshunia Kushta, inha-
bited by the descendants ofa mystica| Adam and Eve (Hdam
kia,Lvaka:ia) . Everybeinghashisarchetypa|Figure(ma/d'
dmutba) there,and the |atter sometimescommunicateswith its
earth|y counterpart (as for examp|e in the episodeofthe gir|
awakened andwarnedbyhersisterin MbuniaKubta") .After
theexitus at death, the earth|y person abandons his body and
takes on the subt|e body ofhis heaven|yH/ter Lga, whi|e the
|atter, rising to a higher p|ane, assumes a body ofpure |ight.
When the human sou| hascomp|eteditscyc|eofpurifications
and when the sca|es ofAbathur Muzania bear witness to its
perfectpurity,itentersthewor|dofLightandisreunitedwith
its eterna| Partner. I gotowardsmy |ikeness/And my|ikeness
goestoward me, /He embraces me and ho|ds me c|ose/As ifI
hadcomeoutofprison. "'
Simi|ar|y, the heaven|y Prtner (qarin) or Twin (taw'am) is
the dominant figure in the propheto|ogy and soterio|ogy of
33
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Gudc
Manicheism. It is the ange| who appearsto Mni when he is
twenty-fouryearso|dandannouncesthatitistimeforhimto
manifest himse|fand bid men hearhisdoctrine. Greetings
to you, Mni, from myse|fand from the |ord who sent me to
you. "The |ast wordsofthe dying Mni a||uded tothis. "Icon-
temp|ated my Doub|e with my es a[ /igbt. " Later, in their
psa|ms, his community sing. We b|ess your partner-Com-
panion of |ight, Christ, the source ofour good." MnI, |ike
Thomas in those same Hcts which inc|ude the Sang a[ tbe
Feat/, hasCbtistas Hnge/as as his heaven|y Twin, who informs
himofhisvocation,ustasthe prophetMohammedwastore-
ceivethereve|ationfromtheAnge|Gabrie|(andtheidentifica-
tionCbtutas-Ga/tie/ is by no means unknown in gnosis.) Now,
Christos Ange|os is the same in re|ation to Mni (in eastern
Manicheism the Virgin of |ight is substituted for Christos
Ange|os),asisthetaw'am, theHeaven|y Twin, "inre|ationto
eachoftheE|ectrespective|yandindividua||y.ItistheFormof
|ight which the E|ect receive when they enter the Manichean
community through the act of so|emn renunciation of the
powersofthiswor|d.AtthepassingawayofoneoftheE|ect,a
psa|m is sung in praise of thy heaven|y Prtner who fai|eth
not." In Catharism it is hewho isca||ed theSititus sanctus or
ange/icu: oftheparticu|arsou|,ascarefu||ydistinguished from
theSitustincia/is , the Ho|y Spirit referred to in invoking
thethreepersonsnamedintheTrinity.
!hat iswhy, sinceManvabmed (thearchange| Vohu Manah
o|/oroastrianism,the Nous)iswithoutdoubtaccordingtothe
Eastertextsthee|ementof|ight,andassuchbothoutsideand
ioside thesou|, the situation can be correct|y defined on|y by
precrviogthefourterms required by theana|ogypointedout
abvc. !he greatManvabmed is to the tota|ity ofthe sou|s of
| gh| ( t hcCa/umnag/atiae) whateacb Manvahmed (notthe co|-
|ectivii y; i to its terrestria| I. " Here again itcan be said that
ea hM anvabmed (orSititustincia/is)asinSohravardIPerfect
Na| ur is re|ated to Gabrie| , the Ho|y Ghost andAnge|ofhu-
man | y. !his lorm of |ight thus fu|fi||s the same function as
P | Nature. Each one ofthe E|ect is guided by itthrough-
ou| and |yond, it is the supreme theophany. It is the
guid who initiates him by causing conversion (e:uoty) to
peo i rat hisheart,itistheNas|ightcomingfromabove,the
34
}+. 1he Heoven/y 1oin (Moneism on Monicheum)
ray of the sacrosanct oo:p which comes to i||uminate,
purify, and guide the sou| toward the Earth of |ight (Tetta
/ucida) from which it came at the beginning of time, and to
which it wi|| return, reassumingitsorigina|form. "Thiswise
guideistheFormof|ightwhich is manifestedin exttemis tothe
E|ect, the image of|ight in the semb|ance ofthe sou|," the
Ange| bearing the diadem and crown", it is, for each ofthe
E|ect, the heaven|y Sophia or Virgin of |ight (the dominant
figure a|so in the bookoftheFistis Sabia) . And Manicheism
exp|icit|ygivesthis figure its Loroastrian name, thusconfirm-
ingthe Loroastrian visionwheretheDana ofa beingof|ight
comes to meethim afterdeath in the form ofamaiden who
guideshim. "'
A||wehaveusttried tobringtogether here-too rapid|y,
tooa||usive|y~shou|d be comp|eted by reference to sti||other
texts, moreaccessib|enodoubtthanthosea||udedtoabove,as
forinstancethepassagesintheFbaedaandTimaeusofP|atoand
the commentary on these in the fourth chapter ofthe third
Lnnead, in which P|otinus speaks ofthe damn atedtas into
whose care we are given, and who is the guide ofthe sou|
throughout |ife and beyond death. Mention shou|d a|so be
made of the beautifu| deve|opment of the same theme in
Apu|eius(DeDeaSactatis , l ) , dea|ingwiththehighergroupof
da`mns to each ofwhom the care ofone human individua| is
entrusted and who serves as its witness (testis) and guardian
(cutas) . No|essessentia|forourpurposearethetextsinwhich
Phi|oofA|exandriaca||stheNau: thetrueman,themanwithin
man. Weexperience thisbama vetus who dwe||s in the sou|of
eachofus,nowasanarchonand king,nowasaudgeaward-
ingthecrownafter|ife'sbatt|es, onoccasionhep|aysthepart
ofa witness (p) , sometimes even ofa prosecutor. Fi-
na||y, mention must be made ofthe notion ofsaksbin in two
Upanishads. The man in man" is a|so theeyewitness, |ook-
ing on at, but not invo|ved in, not su||ied by the actions and
inner states of the man, whether in the waking state or the
dream state, in deep s|eep or in ecstasy. Two friends with
beautifu|wings,c|ose|yentwined,embracingoneandthesame
tree, oneeatsitssweetfruits, theotherdoesnoteat,but|ooks
on. "Thesak:bin istheguide, thehumanbingcontemp|atesit
and is united with it to the degree that a|| his defects are ef-
35
. hc Man ol ght and Hs Ludc
facedinit, itisthehomo|ogueofPerfectNature,ofthesbbid
astheformof|ight.
The word witness" (pp=, testu, sbbid) has been men-
tioned severa| times, which a|ready suggests what a|| these re-
currences o| the same Figure have in common~from the
Loroastriao visionofDacntothecontemp|ationofthesbbid
inSu|ism. Where thiswitnessofcontemp|ationbecomes,as in
Nm Kobr, thetheophanicwitnessofwhatisseeninvision,
the |uoctioo itsname imp|iesis madeevenc|earer. accordmg
towhet herthesou|invisionseesitas|ight,oronthecontrary
seesoo| ydarkness,thesou|itse|ftestifies,byitsvision,[aror
against its own spiritua| rea|ization. Thus the witness in
Heaveo is ca||ed the sca|es ofthe suprasensory" (miun a/-
gba/) , the beautyofthebeingwhoisthewitnessofcontemp|a-
tioois|ikewi eameansofweighing,sinceitprovesthecapacity
or iocapa ity o|the sou| to perceive beauty as theophany par
exce| |eoce.
A| | t hes texts converge toward theepiphanyofthe same
Figur whose verydiverse names revea|ratherthanconcea|its
ideotity. the phi|osopher's Ange| or Sun, Dacn, Perfect Na-
ture, per ooa| master and suprasensory guide, Sun of the
heart, et . A| | these signs ofconvergence provide the indis-
pensab|e ootext for a study of the phenomeno|ogy of the
visiooaryexperience in Iranian Sufism,whereperceptions of
co|ored |ights are the manifestation ofthe persona| spiritua|
guide (sbakb a/-gba/ in NamKobr,astdgba/inSemnni) .
|t was i mportaotto show that the examp|esofthis experience
are|i okedwithoneandthesametypeofessentia||yindividua|,
persooa|spiritua|initiation.Further,asthereunionoftheman
o||ightaod his guide, hisheaven|ycounterpartandthe tran-
sceodeot di mension of his person, this experience has
seemed to us ariented andaenting in a definite direction, to-
ward those Earths"whosedirectioncanbe suggestedon|y by
symbo|s~thesymbo|softheNorth.
l oe||ect we havetriedto showthestructureandpremises
onwhich the |iberationofthemanof|ight, Prometheus-Pbs ,
depends.The|iberationasaneventwi||nowmakec|earertous
thea:entatian onwhichitdepends.Wesha||needtorecognize
to wbat region thesuprasensory guide forminga pairwith its
terrestria| doub|e" be|ongs, and in what direction it is re-
3
}+. 1he Heoven/y 1oin (Moneism on Monicheism)
vea|ed,name|ythe regionanddirectionfromwhichPbs origi-
natesandbacktowhichhisguidehasto|eadhim. In thewrit-
ings ofNam Kobr, we find again the image ofthewe// into
which theexi|eofthe Sohravardian recita|is cast. Theq[ective
emergencefromthcwe||beginswhenasupernatura|green/igbt
shinesatits mouth. Ear|ierwe |earned in Sohravardi both the
baur when the event takes p|ace and thedirectian iodicated by
this experience ofradica| individuation, experienced as a re-
union with the persona| Form of Light. Midnight Sun and
heaven|y po|e. the symbo|s of the Nartb taken together wi||
show usthedirectionofthe mysticOrient , that is, the Orient-
origin, which has to be |ooked for not on the earth|y p|ani-
spheres,butatthesummitofthecosmicmountain.
37
111
,
N11l1 b1 ^1
I11b ^ L1
!. 1he 6osmic North on the uriento/ 1heosophy o
8ohmvor ( ! ! 9!)
TheAvestantermHijanem |aab ( Peh|evi

rn- |) designates
thecrad|eandoriginoftheAryan- Iraniansinthecenterofthe
centra|kesbvar (ar/is , zone) . Those who have attempted to de-
termine its position on geographic maps have run into great
difficu|ties, no convincing so|ution has been obtained in this
way, forthefirstandgoodreasonthattheprob|emof|ocating
it |ies in the rea|m of visionary geography. The data pre-
sented here re|ate to a primordia| and archetypa| Image, that
is,to the primary phenomenon ofatentatian we referred toat
theoutset(sura I, 1) . ItisthisImagethatdominatesandcoor-
dinatestheperceptionofempirica|data,itisnottheotherway
round, thatacquireddata, geographica|andcu|tura|, produce
the Image. The Image gives physica| events their meaning, it
precedesthem,itisnottheythatgiveriseto it.Thisinnoway
imp|ies that it is a question of mere subectivity in today's
|oose usage ofthis word. It indeed refers to an organ ofper-
ception to which a definite p|ane or region of being corre-
sponds as its a/ect, a region which is represented in a |ater
e|aboration of Iranian phi|osophy as the heaven|y Earth of
Hurqa/a.Toarientourse|vespersona||y,itwi||bebesttoinquire
39
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal IoIc
firstofa||intotheeventsthattakep|acein
_
rn-Vc, ofwhich
the
[
ertinentonesareasfo||ows.
Ern-Vc isthep|aceofthememorab|e|iturgiesce|ebrated
by Ohrmazd himse|f,bythe heaven|ybeings,bythe|egendary
heroes. Itwas in
_
ran-Vc that Yima the beautifu|, Yima the
dazzing|y beautifu|, thebestofmorta|s, receivedthecommand
toconstructanenc|osure,thevar,wherethee|iteofa||beings,
themostbeautifu|, themostgracious,wou|dgathertobesaved
from the dead|y winter un|eashed by the demonic powers so
that they might one day repeop|e a transfigured wor|d. (|en-
didd2. 2 l ff.) Thisvar orparadiseofYimais|ike awa||edcity,
with houses,storerooms,andramparts. It hasagateand|umi-
nescentwindowswbicbtbemse/vessecreteaninner/igbtwithin,for
itisi||uminatedbothbyuncreatedandcreated|ights.I tsinhab-
itantsseethestars,moon,andsunriseandseton|yonceayear,
and that is why a year seems to them on|y a day. Every forty
years, from each pairofhumans, anothercoup|eisborn, con-
sistingofama|eandafema|e.Anda||ofthese beings|ivethe
mostbeautifu|of|ivesintheunchangingvarof Yima."
Certain|y we mightbetemptedtohearanechointhisde-
scriptionofaprimaeva|soournoftheIraniansinageographic
far north, the memory ofa dawnofthirty days precedingan
annua|sunrise. However,theindicationsarestrongerthatitin
factreferstothethresho|dofasupranatura|beyond. thereare
uncreated |ights, a wor|d that secretes its own |ight, as in
Byzantine mosaicsthego|d i||uminates the enc|osed space be-
cause the g|ass cubes are reinforced with go|d |eaf, a shadow-
|ess country peop|ed with beings of |ight who have reached
spiritua| heights inaccessib|e to earth|y beings. They are tru|y
beingsofthe beyond, wherethe shadow which ho|dsthe|ight
captiveends,therethebeyondbegins,andtheverysamemys-
teryisencipheredinthesymbo|oftheNartb. Inthesameway
theHyer/areans symbo|ize men whose sou| hasreached such
comp|etenessand harmonythatit isdevoidofnegativity and
shadow, it isneitheroftheeast norofthewest.)ustasin In-
dian mytho|ogya|sowehearofthepeop|eoftheLttara-kurus,
thepeop|e ofthe northernsun,who havefu||y and idea||yin-
dividua|ized features, a peop|e composed oftwins |inked to-
gether, typifyingastateofcomp|etenessexpressed a|soby the
formandthe dimensionsoftheircountry. anearth|yparadise
4
}!. 1he 6osmic North
in the Far North whose shape, |ike the var ofYima, |ike thc
emera| d ci ti es )ba|q and )bars, | i ke the Heaven| y
)erusa|em, isaperfectsquare.
Otherevents in
_
rn-Vc . Larathustra (Loroaster), having
reachedtheageofthirty,yearnsfor
_
rn-Vcandsetsoutwith
a numberofma|e and fema|ecompanions.Thenatureofthe
spacestheytraverse,thedateofthemigration(homo|ogous,in
the annua| cyc|e of the ca|endar, with the dawn of a mi|-
|enium)showussomethingmoreandbetterthanapositivist
history. whatwehavehere isaseriesofhierophanies.To |ong
for
_
rn-Vc isto|ongfortheEarthofvisionsinmedicmundi , it
istoreach thecenter, the heaven|yEarth,where the meeting
takes p|ace with the Ho|y Immorta|s, the divine heptad of
Ohrmazd and his archange|s. The mountain ofvisions is the
psycho-cosmic mountai n, the cosmi c mountain seen as
homo|ogoustothe human microcosm. Iti sthe Mountain of
dawns" from whose summit the Chinvat Bridge springs forth
to span the passage to thebyond,at thevery spot where the
aurora| meetingoftheange| Dacnand herearth|y egotakes
p|ace. Here, therefore, the Archange| Vohu-Manah (Persian,
abman, Exce||ent Thought," e'uuoto) enoins the visionary-
prophettocastoffhis robe, thatis, his materia| bodyandor-
gansofsensoryperception,becausein
_
rn-Vc itisthesubt|e
body of |ight that is the seat and organ ofevents. And it is
there,in medic mundi and at the summitofthe sou|, that the
Larathustrianseedof|ightispreserved,whichistheX vaab of
thethreeSaasbant,thefutureSaviorswhobyacosmic|iturgi-
ca|actwi||bringaboutthetransfigurationofthewor|d.
These same categories ofthe transcendenta|active Imagi-
nation give formto the perceptions through which something
inthenatureofaphysio|ogyofthe manof|ight"isrevea|ed.
Bymakingpsycho-cosmichomo|ogationpossib|e,thisimagina-
tion has served as the basis ofsymbo|ic constructions, desig-
natedbythetermmanda/a, which serveto supportthementa|
rea|izationsachieved through meditation. Some ofthese con-
structions were gigantic, as we know. The famousziqqrt of
Baby|onia typified the cosmic mountain with seven stories
whose co|ors corresponded respective|y to those ofthe seven
Heavens, thus a||owing the pi|grim, ritua||y, to c|imb to the
summit, that is, to the cu|minating point which is the cosmic
4l
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
north, the po|e round which the earth revo|ves. I neach case,
the |oca| zenith cou|d be identified with the heaven|y po|e.
Stuas (as in Borobudur) are constructions ofthe same kind,
their symbo|ic architecture typified theouter covering ofthe
universe and the secret, inner wor|d whose summit is the
center of the cosmos. Last|y, invo|ving the same homo|ogies,
there is the microcosmic temp|e, ca||ed by theIsbrqin the
temp|e of|ight" (baka/ a/-nr) , the human organism with its
seven centersor subt|e organs. the sevenmtqa (in[ra VI, l ) , or
inner Heavens, resting one upon another, each with its own
co|or, each identified as the microcosmic seat of one ofthe
great prophets. Man and the wor|d are thus who||y repre-
sentedasevo|vingaround avertica| axis, from this viewpoint,
the idea ofahorizonta||inearevo|ution wou|d appeartota||y
devoid ofmeaning and direction- nonented. The Abode-of-
Hymns, the Earth of Hurqa|y, the Heaven|y)erusa|em, d-
s~nd progressive|yindirectre|ationtotheascent ofthemanof
|ight. The space enc|osed in the 360-degree sphere is the
homo|ogue which on the cosmic sca|e materia|izes a secret,
supernatura|carumsticumofbeingsandorgansof|ight.
_
rn-Vc, theparadiseofYima,thespiritua|rea|mofsubt|e
bodies, has been a constant and absorbing theme of Iranian
meditationfortheadeptsofLarathustrainthedistantpast,the
adeptsoftheSohravardian theosophyofLight,andthinkersof
theShaykhischoo|inShi'iteIran.Theideaofthecenterofthe
wor|d,the|egendarythemeofthecentra|keshvardetermining
theorientationoftheothersixkesbvars arrangedarounditand
|aterseparatedfromoneanotherbythecosmicocean,hashad
a continuous phi|osophic deve|opment. The most important
phase ofthis deve|opment is perhaps the moment when, in
Sohravardi'sorienta|theosophy",theP|atonicIdeasareinter-
pretedintermsofLoroastrianange|o|ogy.
Betweenthewor|dofpurespiritua|Lights(Lucesvictaria/es ,
the wor|d ofthe Mothers" in the termino|ogy ofIshroq) and
thesensoryuniverse,attheboundaryoftheninthSphere(the
SphereofSpheres) thereopensamundu: imgna/is whichisa
concrete spiritua| wor|d of archetype-Figures, apparitiona|
Forms, Ange|s ofspecies and ofindividua|s, by phi|osophica|
dia|ecticsitsnecessityisdeducedand its p|ane situated, vision
ofitinactua|ityisvouchsafedtothevisionaryapperceptionof
42
}!. 1he 6osmic Nouh
theactiveImagination.Theessentia|connectioninSohravardi
which|eadsfromphi|osophica|specu|ationtoametaphysicsoI
ecstasya|soestab|ishes the connection between theange|o|ogy
ofthis neo-Loroastrian P|atonism and the idea ofthe mundus
imagna/is . This,Sohravardidec|ares, is the wor|d to which the
ancientSagesa||udedwhentheyaffirmedthatbeyondthesen-
sory wor|d there exists another universe with a contour and
dimensions and extension in a space, a|though these are not
comparab|ewith the shape andspatia|ity aswe perceive them
in the wor|d ofphysica| bodies. It is the eighth"kesbvar, the
mystica|EarthofHurqa|ywithemera|dcities, itissituatedon
the summit of the cosmic mountai n, which the traditions
handeddowninIs|amca||themountainofQf.
There is amp|e supportingevidence that this was indeed
themountainformer|yca||edA|borz(L//urz,inAvestanHa7iti
Bareza) , geographica||y,the name todaydesignatesthechainof
mountainsin northern Iran. But thisorographica|factisirre|-
evantto thevisionarygeographyoftheancient|egendswhich
te||usofthemarve|ousraceinhabitingthemountain'scities. a
race as ignorant ofthe earth|y Adam as ofIb|Is-Ahriman, a
racesimi|artotheAnge|s,androgynousperhaps,since without
sexua| di0erentiation (see the twins ofthe paradise ofYima
andoftheUttara-kurus),andhenceuntroub|edevenbydesire
forposterity. The minera|s in theirsoi|and the wa||s oftheir
citiessecretetheirown|ight(|ikethetor ofYima) , theyhaveno
need ofanyouter |ight, whether fromthe sun,the moon, the
stars, or the physica| Heavens. Theseconcordant signs estab-
|ishthe heaven|y topographyofthissupernatura|Earthonthe
boundaryofthe Sphere abovethe p|anetary Heavensand the
Heaven ofthe innumerab|e Fixed Stars, which encompasses
the entire sensory universe. The mountain of Qf is this
Sphere ofSpheres surroundingthe tota|ity ofthe visib|e cos-
mos,anemera/drack,castingitsref|ectionoverthewho|eofthe
mountainofQf,isthekeystoneofthisce|estia|vau|t,thepo|e.
Now, in theRecita/ a[tbe Occidenta/ Lxi/e, whose very tit|e
poi nts to the fundamenta| meani ng of the 'ori enta|
theosophy,"thisisprecise|ythemountainwhichtheexi|emust
c|imbwhenheissummonedat|asttoreturnbame,toreturnta
bimeq. He hastoreachthesummit,theLmeraHRack thatrises
up before him |ike the trans|ucent wa|| of a mystica| Sina,
43
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
there, aswe have a|ready seen (suta II, l ) , onthethresho|dof
the p|eroma o|light,thepi|grim meets his PerfectNature,his
Ho|yGhost,inanecstasyofanticipationcorresponding,inthe
Mazdeandramaturgy,tothe meetinginthedawnwiththece-
|estia| Person, at the entrance to the Chinvat Bridge. This
thresho|d opensonto the c|imateofthe Sou|,"a wor|d made
who||y o|a subt|e matter" of|ight, intermediate between the
wor|d o|the Cherubinic pure Lights and the wor|d ofbsis ,
which inc|udescorruptib|esub|unarmatteraswe||astheastra|
matteroftheincorruptib|e Heavens.Thisuniverseofbsts in
itsentiretyformsthecosmicOccident , theotheruniverse isthe
Otient, which begins at the c|imate ofthe Sou|, the eighth"
c|imate.
Thustheparadisa|EarthofLight,thewor|dofHrqa|y,is
an Orient intermediate between the |esser Orient," which is
thesou|'srisingtothehighestpointofitsdesireandconscious-
ness, and the greater Orient," which is the further spiritua|
Orient, the p|eroma ofpure I nte||igences, the sou|'s risingto
suta-cansciausness . Thetwofo|d symbo|ic meaningofthemid-
night sun (suta I, 2) corresponds to this structure ofOrient
risinguponOrient. Indeed, sincetheeighthc|imate,thece|es-
tia|EarthofHurqa|y,issaidtobeintheOtient,andsincethe
directionindicated to usisthatofthecosmicnorth,thesum-
mitofthewor|d, "itcertain|ydoesnotrefertothe Eastaswe
are accustomed to |ocate it on the terrestria| map. Here the
Orientis atiented towardthecenterwhichisthetopmostpoint
ofthe cosmic dome, thea/e. it is the Emera|d Rock at the
summitofthemountainofQf.To reachitonehastosucceed
in c|imbing the mountainust as the pi|grim reaches itin the
Recim/a[ tbeLxi/e, byobeyinga summonsidentica|tothesum-
monsreceivedbytheexi|edprinceinthc Sanga[tbeFeat/inthe
Hct a[ Tbamas (suta I I , l ) . This orientation pertains to a
visionary geographyoriented to the c|imateofthe Sou|," the
p|aceoftheemera|dcities,i||uminated bythebri||ianceofthe
inner |ight that they themse|ves secrete. This Sutasensa
OtientgovernstheprimaryphenomenonoftheGnostic'sorien-
tationtowardhiscountryoforigin. TheOtient-atigin identified
withthecenter,withtheheaven|ynorthpo|e,hera|dsaccessto
the beyond, where vision becomes rea| history, the history of
thesou|,andwhereeveryvisionaryeventsymbo|izesaspiritua|
44
!. 1he 6osmic North
state, or, as theIsbtqin say, it is the c|imate where what is
bodi|ybecomesspiritandwhatisspiritua|acquiresabody. "'
Northern Light, origina| |ight, pure inner |ight coming
neither from the east nor the west. the symbo|softhe north
open spontaneous|y around that centra| intuition which isthe
intuition ofthe center. The exodus from the we//, the ascent
that|eads to the Emera|d Rock and towardthe ange|, Perfect
Nature,beginsinthedarknessofnight.Theourneyismarked
by the vicissitudes whichtypify the statesand the peri|softhe
sou| undergoing this initiatic test. Themidnigbtsun bursts into
f|ameattheapproachtothesummit-theprimordia|Imageof
inner|ightthatfiguredsoprominent|yintheritua|ofthemys-
tery re|igions(seesuta I I , l . the|ightcarriedby Hermes into
the heartofthe underground chamber). Thisis how itcomes
to pass for Hermes, the hero oftheeschato|ogica|ecstasy de-
scribed by Sohravardi, from which we have a|ready gathered
evidence(suta II, l ) insupportofthehermetictradition, and
whichre|atesthevisionwhereinHermesrecognizedhisPerfect
Nature in the beautifu| and mysteriousspiritua| entity which
manifesteditse|ftohim.
Sohravardigivesmoreparticu|arsconcerningthisvisionin
one of his maor works.

In this case, Hermes kept vigi| a||

night|ong,meditatinginthetemp|eof|ight"(baka/a/-nt,his
own microcosm) , butasunshonein this night. Whenthepi|-
|arofdawn"burstforth,thatistosay,whenthebeingof|ight
brokedown the wa||softhe temp|e" thatenc|osed him (here
weareremindedoftheca/umnaG/atiaeofManicheisminwhich
reascentofthe e|ements of|ightcoincideswith the descentof
theCrossofLight) , HermessawanEarthbeingswa||owed up
andwithitthecitiesoftheoppressors"drowninginthedivine
wrath.Thisdownfa||ofthesensory,materia|wor|d,oftheOc-
cident ofcorruptib|e matter and its |aws, reca||s the scene de-
scribedintheRecita|oftheoccidenta|exi|e.here,thearriva|at
thecasmicnattb,attheEmera|d Rock,thresho|dofthebeyond,
ishera|dedbytheoutburstof|ightofthemidnightsun"(asin
Apu|eius.media nacte vidisa/emcatucantem) . The midnightsun
is the i//uminatia matutina, the bri||iance ofdawn rising in the
Orient-originofthe sou|,thatis,at thea/e, whi|ethecitiesof
the oppressors arebeing swa||owed up. Here the autata can-
sutgens rising at the Emera|d Rock, at the keystone of the
45
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
heaven|ydome,istheaurara /area/is inthe Heavenofthesou|.
Before this unknown horizon Hermes was fu|| of fear and
cried out. Save me, you who have given birth to me| " ( In
Sohravardi'spsa|m, aswereca||,heappea|stohi sPerfect Na-
ture in the very same way.) And Hermes hears this answer.
Seizeho|dofthecab|eofthe ray of|ightandriseto thebat-
t|ementsoftheThrone." Hec|imbs up, and |o| underhis feet
werean Earth and a Heavcn. A Heavenand anEarthwhere,
with Sohravardi's commentators (Shahrazri and Ibn Kam-
muna) , we recognize the mundus imagina/is , the autonomous
wor|d of the archetype-Figures, the Earth of Hurqa|y she|-
teredby thebatt|ementsoftheThronewhichistheSphereof
Spheres,thec|imateoftheSou|revo|vingaroundtheheaven|y
po|e. In the Sabeantextsofthe pseudo-Maritiwea|so reada
descriptionofthePerfectNatureasthephi|osopher'sSun,and
NamKobr wi|| referto the witness in Heaven" asthe sup-
rasensorySun,theSunoftheheart,theSunofthespirit.
In regard to this Orient-origin, oriented vertica||y toward
the po|e as the thresho|d ofthe beyond, where the inner, the
esoteric |ight shines in the divine Night, the |itera|," geo-
graphic East wou|d then typify the da/igbt of exoteric con-
sciousness,aspower|essinoppositiontothedivine Nightofthe
Ineffab|e as against the nocturna| depths ofthe dark Psyche,
hencetheconfusionbtweenthesetwonights,sincebyitsvery
nature this Day cannotco-existwith Night, itcanexiston|yin
the inevitab|e a|ternation ofdays and nights, ofrise and de-
c|ine. But here we have another |ight, that of the Emera|d
Rock. ( In Isma'i|ian Shi'ite gnosis, another symbo|ism wi|| a|-
|udetothesunrisinginthewest,"fromthesideofnight,but
there it wi|| referspecifica||ytothe Imm who isthea/e, the
keystone and axis of the esoteric hierarchy.) The midnight
sun"typifiestheinner|ight,thatwhichissecretedbytheabode
itse|f(asbythevarofYima),initsownsecretway. Thatiswhy,
as we said, this suggests a new way ofeva|uating the Orient-
Occident contrast. here Nordic" man isno |ongerthenordic
manofethno|ogy,butistheOrienta|"inthea/arsenseofthe
word, thatis, theexi|ed Gnostic, thestrangerwho refusesthe
yokcoftheoppressors"bcausehehasbeensenttothiswor|d
forapurposewhichtheycannotrecognize.Andthatiswhywe
havea|readyhada premonitionofthesignificanceofthisfun-
4
}1. 1he 6osmic North
damenta|arientatian, guidingvisionand actua|izationin the di-
rectionofanascentwhichconf|ictswithourhabitua|notionsof
dimensionsoftime,ofevo|ution,ofhistorica|actua|ity.
Is not the senseofa|| mythsofreintegratian henceforth af-
fected by thisorientation: For the tota|ity of man'sbeing, the
transcendent persona| dimension he discerns in the northern
|ight, in the midnight sun," is not mere|y the sum tota| of
orientandoccident,of|eftandright,ofconsciousanduncon-
scious. The man of|ight'sascentcausesthe shadesofthewe//
wherehe washe|dcaptiveto fa||back into themse|ves. Hermes
doesnotcarryhissbadaw with him, he discardsit, forherises
up, and corresponding|y the cities of the oppressors" sink
downintotheabyss.Anditisdifficu|t,wemustconfess,toread
with equanimity certain interpretations of the caincidentia a-
asitarum where comp|ementaries and contradictories are ap-
parent|y indiscriminate|y |umped together under the head of
qasita. To dep|orethatChristianityiscenteredonafigureof
goodnessand|ightand entire|y over|ooksthedarksideofthe
sou|wou|d be no|essva|idan eva|uation ifapp|iedto Loroas-
trianism. But how cou|d reintegration consist in a comp|icity
between, a tota|ization" of Christ and Satan, Ohrmazd and
Ahriman: Eventosuggestsuch a possibi|ityistoover|ook the
factthat even under the reign ofa figure of|ight the satanic
forces remain in operation-those for examp|e who tried to
prevent Hermes' escape from the depths ofthe we|| and his
ascent to the batt|ements oftheThrone. And it is exact|y for
thisreasonthatonehastoaffirmthatthere|ationshipofChrist
toSatan,OhrmazdtoAhriman,isnotcomp|ementarybutcon-
tradictory.Comp|ementarye|ementscanbeintegrated,butnot
contradictoryones.
Itwou|dseemthatthe misunderstanding in the rstp|ace
concernsthe natureoftheDa whoseconstraintsaredep|ored,
and consequent|y the remedies ca||ed for. From this pointof
view the distinction made c|ear to us by certain Iranian Sufi
masters between |uminous Night,orb|ackLight,and unqua|-
ifiedb|ack,b|acknesswithout|ight(ira VandVI) , isessentia|
topreventusfromgoingastrayandtokeepusariented toward
the po|e. TheDaywhoseconstraintsaredep|ored, and whose
ambiguity isobviousbecause itobeys the demonic|awofcon-
straint, is the exoteric Day where ready-made notions are ac-
47
. Mdnght 5un and LcIcstal IoIc
cepted and taken for granted. De|iverance from it |iesin the
esotericNightofhiddenmeanings,whichisthenightofsuper-
consci ousness, not of unconsci ousness, for it is not the
Ahrimanian Night,buttheNightIneffab|e,theNightofsym-
bo|s, which a|one can pacify the dogmatic madnessesofDay.
Rationa| dogmatic excitement and irrationa| |unacy cannot
compensate for one another. The tota|ity symbo|ized by the
midnightsun"istheDeus a/scanditus andtheAnge|Logos,or,
intermsofShi'itegnosis,thea/e,theI mm,whichbrings|ight
into the night ofthe inner wor|d. Nothing short oftota| dis-
orientation cou|d resu|t in confusing the night of the Deu
a/scanditu with the Ahrimaniannight,the Ange| Logos with a
reve|ation of Ahriman or a reve|ation comp|ementary to
Ahriman.Thatiswhytheo|dIranianZernismwhichhasbeen
socomp|acent|yadmiredonthepretextthatitimp|iesaphi|os-
ophyofunitytran

scendingdua|ism,cou|don|yappearabsurd
and grotesque in the eyes ofthe Loroastrians. The word esa-
tesm, sooften misused,refers to the unavoidab|e necessityof
expressing the reintegration of the human being in symbo|s.
|uminous night and midnight sun, twins of the paradise of
Yima,themanof|ightandhisguide,thethemeofandrogyny,
thereunionofAdamandthece|estia|Sophia,towhomhewas
btrothed in his youth. " But one essentia| fact has to be re-
membered. Faust, renavatu: in navam in[antiam, is reborn in
Heaven,"wheretheSabiaaete appears, theredemptionof
Faustis not a sum tota|" ofFaust and Mephistophe|es. The
counterfeiter, the Hntimiman, is not Fbs's guide of |ight, it
bringscontradiction,itisnotcomp|ementary.
Ifthediversityofthese expressionsisstressedhere, a||too
brief|y, itisbecause ofthe impressionthattheorientation re-
quired in this search by the very nature of its theme and
sources, encounters ateverystepthesamedifficu|tiesderiving
from the sameconfusionordisorientation. Thiscan butpro-
|ongandstrengthenthe|awsoftheexotoricDayagainstwhich
theSohravardianHermesexertshiseHorttobefree,bybreak-
ingwith the pre-estab|ished andgenera||y accepted view. One
cannot concoct history out of Hermes' visions. Nor can
HermesandtheprinceoftheSanga[tbeFear/beadaptedtoa
socia| context. To attempt to do so is, as it were, to prevent
themfromarientingthemse|ves,andfromunderstandingwbere
4d
}!. 1he 6osmic North
theyare,andtomakethemforgetthewe||intowhichthey have
ben thrown. The Day|ightturnedon them in this way is not
the |ight ofthe Emera|dRock, and thatiswhy this Daycannot
enterintocombinationwiththeNightofSymbo|s.Thebi-unity
isHermesandhisPerfectNature,itisnotHermesandtheCity
ofthe oppressors, nor Hermes and the we|| into which the
oppressors have thrown him. Hedoes notemergea|onefrom
thiswe||, sti|||essdoes heemerge inacrowdanden masse, he
emerges from itasa pair,thatistosay,inthecompanyofthe
guide of|ight,by whatever name, among his many names, he
makeshimse|frecognized.
Thatiswhythepossibi|ityofreachingthecosmicnorth,the
Emera|d Rock, isessentia||y |inked to the bi-unitary structure
of human individua|ity, potentia||y inc|uding a transcendent
dimensionof|ight( Hermesand hisPerfect Nature, the Mani-
cheanadeptandhisFormof|ight,etc. ) . Thepowersofdoubt
and forgetfu|ness, underthedifferentnamesthatcoverthem
up through the ages, the powersofthe exoteric Day and the
powersoftheNightwithout|ight,doa||theycan tostif|eand
annihi|atethispotentia|ity.Thisiswhyonemayno|ongereven
g|impsethenatureofthe|uminousNight,theb|ackLightspo-
ken ofby certain Sufis, and which isin no way a mixture of
divineLightanddemonicshadow.To saythatwhatisbe|owis
an imitation ofwhat isabove isnotto saythatwhatisbe|owis
whatis above. Thenigbt ofreecteddemonicdepths,or on the
contrary the horror ofthed inspired by the fascination of
thesedepths-these perhapsare the two impotencesto which
occidenta|man succumbs. Itisnotbycompoundingthemthat
onefindsthe|uminousNightoftheOrienta|,"thatistosay,of
the northern man, northe nightofthe intra-divineheights
(in[ra VandVI) .
Thestress|aidonthesymbo|ofthea/e,onthedoub|econ-
ste||ation of the Bear and theFa/estar in the hierognosis of
Sufism, succeeds in convincing us of this. We find here the
samehomo|ogationasinthecosmicmountainwhosea/eisthe
cu|minating point. The same |aw ofpsycho-cosmic structure
makes the menta| circumambu|ations around the heart, for
examp|e, homo|ogousto those made around the Temp|e,and
tothe rotation ofthe heaven|ydome about its axis. Proected
onthezenith,theprimordia|Imageofthecenterthatthemystic
49
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
experiences in himse|f, around which he inward|y revo|ves,
thena||owshimtoperceivethe Po|estarasacosmicsymbo|of
therea|ityofinner|ife.InnersanctuaryandEmera|dRockare
then simu|taneous|y the thresho|d and p|ace oftheophanies,
the po|eoforientation,the direction fromwhichtheguideof
|ightappears.Wesha||seehimappearinthiswayinthevisions
of a great Sufi master of Shirz, and it cou|d |ikewise be
ana|yzedby aphenomeno|ogyofprayer|inkedtothefactthat
the Mandeans, the Sabeans of Harran, the Manicheans, the
BuddhistsofCentra|Asiatakethe north astheQi//a (theaxis
oforientation)oftheirprayer.
But here again our phenomeno|ogy of the north, ofthe
a/e, shou|d prec|ude any dangerofthe disorientation which,
aswehaveuststressed,canmanifestasthetemptationtocon-
fusethenorthernsun,themidnightsun,withacaincidentiaa-
asitarum, as an artificia| iso|ation of contradictions instead of
comp|ementaries. Since this fictitious conci|iation remains in
fact on the exoteric |eve|, the break away" demanded by the
vertica| dimension oriented toward the north is not consum-
mated. Hermes departs from the Occident," but it is not by
carrying hissbadaw a|ongwith him thathe rises to thebatt|e-
mentsoftheThrone. Becausethenorth,thepo|e,isabove,"it
a||ows the recognition ofwbere the shadow is, be it the indi-
vidua|shadowofthe|owerfunctionsofthescbe,ortheco||ec-
tiveshadowofthecityoftheoppressors. "Buthowcou|dthis
ustify saying that wbat makes the shadowvui//e and shows in
whatdirection it |iescou|d a|sobe the very samesbadaw? Far
from it,whatindicateswbere the shadowis,ischaracterizedas
being itse|fsbadaw/ess. Ifthe cosmic north is the thresho|d of
the beyond, ifit is the paradise ofYima, how cou|d it be the
p|aceofHe||:Hermesrises, he|eavestheIn[euminitsp|ace,
be|ow him, in the wor|d which he has |eft. There is neither
ambiva|ence nor ambiguity, the opposition between Loroas-
trianism and Lervnism hasbeen reca||edabove, andifsome-
thingofthe |atter survived andbore fruit in the gnosis ofIs-
|am,itwasthankstoashiftingof|eve|,aradica|a|terationofits
dramaturgy,freeingthefie|dprecise|yfortheorientationhere
envisioned.
Certain|y there are mytho|ogica| data in which the nartb
5
}!. 1he 6osmic North
takes on a meaning contrary to that which we are ana|yzing
here. Buttherecou|dthenbenoquestionofambiva|enceun-
|ess thesu/ect remainedidentica|. One shou|dtherefore have
started by constructing, more or |ess fictitious|y, and by sub-
stantia|izing, a co||ective Psyche, in ordertoaffirmits perma-
nenceand identityinthea|ternationofitscontrarytendencies.
Theambiva|enceofthesymbo|ofthenartb wou|ddependon
thisonesubect,signifyingnowthethresho|doftheparadiseof
|ife,nowthethresho|dofdarknessand hosti|epowers.Unfor-
tunate|y, wou|d one not thereby fa|| into the trap ofthis in-
ventedandcomp|acent|yacceptedpictureofthesituation:For
whatexistsin fact, rea||y, concrete|y and substantia||y, isnota
co||ectivitybutindividua|sou|s, that is, persons each ofwhom
can he|p another to find his own way out ofthe we||, but as
soonasthereisawishbysometoimposetheirwayonothers,
thesituationbecomesoncemorethatofthecityoftheoppres-
sors" in the Sohravardian ta|e. This notion of a co||ective
Psyche,invo|vingthedisorientationofsymbo|s,isagainon|ya
resu|t ofthe forgetting and consequent |oss ofthe ascending
vertica|dimension,forwhichanevo|utionaryhorizonta|exten-
sionissubstituted.Thevertica|dimensionisindividuationand
sacra|ization, the other is co||ectivization and secu|arization.
The firstis ade|iveranceboth from the individua| and from
theco||ectiveshadow. IfHermeshadacceptedtoremainatthe
bottom of the we||, he a|so, we must conc|ude, wou|d have
taken the cosmic north, the po|e, for He||. But this is by no
means to say that Heaven is He||, what he wou|d have per-
ceived wou|d have been nothing but the co||ective shadow
proectedonthe po|e andprevcntinghimfromseeingit,that
is,fromseeinghisownpersonof|ight(astheunb|ieverinthe
Chinvat Bridge sees on|y hisowncaricatureinstead ofseeing
Dacn, as the Sufi novice sees on|y darkness unti| the green
|ightshinesatthemouthofthewe||) . Iftheregionofthepo|eis
whatit forete||stotheSufi,itcanforete||thecontraryon|yifa
shadowdarkensit, the shadow precise|yofthose whorefuseto
makethe ascent to which Sufism invites them. To castoffthe
shadowisnottoreturntowardtheshadow,orientationcannot
bdisorientation.
5 l
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
2. |isions o the Po/e in Pz|ehn o8hrz ( !209)
Some of the visions described by Ruzbehn of Shirz in his
Diatium situa/e i||ustrate the symbo|ismofthea ina par-
ticu|ar|y exp|icit way. In a dream, or rather in a state inter-
mediatebetween wakingands|eeping,thetota|ityofcreatures
is revea|ed to him as though they were assemb|ed within a
house, therearemany|ampswhich giveoffabright|ight,buta
wa|| preventshimfromreachingthem.Then hemountstothe
terrace o|the house which ishisown dwe||ingp|ace, there he
finds two very beautifu| personages who appear to b Sufi
shaykhsand in whom he recognizesbisawnimage~a verysig-
nificantdetai|.Togetherthethreepartakeofakindofmystica|
repast, consistingofpurewheatbread andoi|so subt|ethatit
was |ike a pure spiritua| substance. Subsequent|y, one ofthe
two shaykhs asks Rzbehn if he knows what this substance
was. As he does not know,the shaykhinforms himthatitwas
'oi| from the canste//atian a[ tbe Beat which we gathered for
you. "After emergingfrom his dream Ruzbehn continuesto
meditate upon it, but it took him some time, he confesses, to
understand that there had been in it an a||usion to theseven
a/es (qt/, more genera||y the seven a/d/) in the heaven|y
p|eroma, and that God had dispensed to him the pure sub-
stanceoftheirmystica|station,thatistosay,hadadmittedhim
to the rank oftheseven masters ofinitiation and intercessors
whoareinvisib|yapportionedtoourwor|d.
Thcn jhc writcs], l conccntratcd my attcntion on thc constcl-
lation ol thc Bcar and l obscrvcd that it lormcd tIt apcrturcs
through which Cod was showing himscll to mc. My Cod! 1 cricd,
what is this? Hc said to mc. thcsc arc thc tIt apcrturcs ol thc
Thronc.
)ustas HermesinSohravardi'srecita|isinvitedto c|imbto
thebatt|ementsoftheThrone,sohereRuzbehn,bingadmit-
tedtothe numberofthe sevenH/d/surroundingtheFa/e (in
Shi'itetermsthehidden Imm") , isintroducedtothesummit
of the mysterious and invisib|e spiritua| hierarchy, without
which |ife onearthcou|d notcontinueto exist. The Ideaand
the structure ofthis mystica| hierarchywhichdominatesSufi
theosophyandespecia||y,inShi'ism,Shaykhitheosophy,corre-
spond to theideaand structureofanesoteric astronomy, the
oneandtheotherexemp|ifythesamearchetypa|Imageofthe
52
}2. |isions o the Po/e in Pz|ehn o8hrz (!209)
wor|d. Ruzbehnaddsthesefurtherdetai|swhichconfirmthat
whatheperceivesin hisvisionofthea/e,ofthecosmic north,
is i ndeed the thresho|d of the beyond and the p|ace of
theophanies.
Lvcry night [hc writcs], l continucd altcrwards to obscrvc
thcsc apcrturcs in Hcavcn, as my lovc and ardcnt dcsirc impcllcd
mc to do. And lo! onc night, l saw that thcy wcrc opcn, and saw
thc divinc Bcing manilcsting to mc through thcsc apcrturcs. Hc
said to mc, manilcst to you through thcsc opcnings, thcy lorm
scvcn thousand thrcsholds (corrcsponding to thc scvcn principal
stars ol thc constcllation) lcading to thc thrcshold ol thc angclic
plcroma (mhkut). And bchold show myscll to you through all
ol thcm at oncc.
Thus the visions ofRuzbehn i||ustrate a twofo|d theme.
that ofthea/e andthatofthewa/at , the initiation" whose
keystoneisthea/e, groupingand graduatingaroundhimthe
membersofapureLcc/esiasitua/is , whoremain unknownto
ordinarymenandinvisib|etotheireyes.TheuseoftheArabic
termqat/,axis"(namata/-Qat/. thepo|eStar),hereevokesthe
image of the mi | | pivot fixed into the |ower stationary
mi||stone,andpassingthroughacentra|openinginthehigher
mobi|e mi||stone, whose rotation it governs. The heaven|y
domeisthehomo|ogue ofthismobi|ee|ement,whi|ethepo|e
Star represents the aperture through which an idea| axis
passes.Thestarsc|osesttothepo|eStarparticipate inits pre-
eminenceandareinvestedwithspecia|energyandsignificance
(the invocations to the conste||ation of the Bear in certain
Gnostic or magica| documents testify to it) . These seven stars
have their homo|ogues in the spiritua| Heaven. We haveust
seen Ruzbehn describe them as the seven po|es," whereas
these seven mysterious personages are usua||y designated as
thesevenH/d/ who, fromcyc|etocyc|e, aresubstitutedinsuc-
cession for one another.)ust as the conste||ation ofthe Bear
dominatesandsees"thetota|ityofthecosmos,theyarethem-
se|vestheees throughwhichtheBeyond|ooksatthewor|d. '
I t isat this point that thistwofo|d themeand the spiritua|
doctrineofRuzbehnconoin. In the|atterwefindthethcme
common to the entire specu|ative mysticism of Sufism, espe-
cia||ystressedinIbn'ArabI,oftheDeusa/scanditus ,thehidden
Treasure," aspiring to revea| himse|f, to be known. However,
this very reve|ation gives rise to a dramatic situation in which
53
I I I . Mdnght 5un and LcIcstal IoIc
thedivineBeingandthebeinginwhichandthroughwhichhe
revea|shimse|faresimu|taneous|yimp|icated, for Godcannot
|ookatanatbet thanhimse|f,norbeseenbyanatbet thanhim-
se|f. The Hw/i, the initiates," graduated in the different
spiritua|degrees,areprecise|ytheees atwhichGod|ooks,be-
cause they are the eyes through which He |ooks. Through
themourwor|dremainsawor|datwhichGod|ooks,"andthis
isthe meaningofthe mysteriousaffirmationthatiftheywere
not,ifthereceasedtobethea/e (thehiddenImm)whoisthe
keystone of the invisib|e Heavens which they a|| combine to
form,ourwor|dwou|dco||apseinfina|catastrophe.Itisrather
difficu|tcertain|ytofindinour|anguagestwotermsthatfaith-
fu||y render the meanings ofthe wordswa/at andHw/i.
Theideaofinitiation,"thatofasoda|ityofinitiates,"invisib|e
andpermanentfromcyc|etocyc|eofprophecy,bysubstitution
ofone for another individua|ity, seems best fitted to awaken
their resonances. The theme is especia||y important in Shi'ite
immo|ogy, anditisa|soShi'iteSufismthatoffersthebestpos-
sibi|ity ofa study in depth. And these terms suggest another
connection. Litera||y the word Hw/i means Friends". the
PersianexpressionHw/ia-eKbad meanstheFriendsofGod."
The very same term was app|ied to themse|ves in the four-
teenthcenturybyanentirefami|yofSpiritua|sintheWest.A||
inhabitthesameheightsinaccessib|etothosewhoareunaware
of their atientatian, |ike the Friend ofGod" in O/et/and, the
high country," where Goethe's inner vision wi|| neverthe|ess
know how to find these heights, in a great poem which re-
mainedunfinished. dieCebeimnisse(theSecrets).
There are manytraditionsreferringto this peop|e ofin-
itiates" unknown to theverymen whom theyexistto protect.
Rzbehn deve|oped these traditions in the pro|ogue to his
greatworkonthePradoxesofthemystics. "Theyaregener-
a||ysaidtobe 360innumber,correspondingtothe360divine
Names,the360daysandnightsoftheyear,the360degreesof
theSpheremeasuringtheday-nightcyc|e.A||thevariationsof
this number have symbo|ic meanings. To pick one of the
simp|estforms,wewi||quotethefo||owing.
Cod [writcs Rzbchn], posscsscs on carth three hunJreJ eea
or pcrsons whosc hcart is consonant with thc hcart ol Jum ; [ort
whosc hcart is consonant wth thc hcart ol ^oaea ; aeven whosc
54
J. 1he Po/e os the A/oe o the Ange/ 8roosho
hcart is consonant with thc hcart ol 0ruhum ; [tve whosc hcart is
consonant with thc hcart ol Gu0rtel; three whosc hcart is consonant
with thc hcart ol ^tchuel; one (thc ]ole) whosc hcart is consonant
with thc hcart ol Seru]htel.
The sum of356 persons is raised tothe tota| of360 by four
figures
.
of prophets who, according to Is|amic esotericism
meditatingontheQornicreve|ation, havethecommoncharac-
teristicofhavingbeencarriedoffa/ive fromdeath. Enoch (that
istosayIdrIs,identifiedwithHermes),Khezr, E|i|ah,andChrist.
J. 1he Po/e os the A/oe o the Ange/ 8roosho
A few years ago, a |earned Loroastrian carefu||y investigated
this symbo|ism ofthea/e and its spiritua| conste||ation. The
extremeinterestofhisstudy|iesinthefactthatitopenedanew
path|eadingfromtheLoroastrianre|igiontotheSufismofthe
Is|amized Iran. In fact, the work ofSohravardhasa|ready
shown us the path, which he himse|f and in person opened
intentiona||y and historica||y. Here the dominant figure, the
veryonewhichshowsthewayinquestion,isthatofa\azata or
Ange|" ufthe Avesta, who, a|though not be|onging to the
supreme heptad ofthe Amahraspands (the Immorta| Saints,
the Archange|s"), occupies a particu|ar|y outstanding rank,
name|y the ange| Staasba (Peh|eviStsb, Persian Satsb) , who
hasbecomeidentifiedinIs|amizedIranwiththeange|Gabrie|.
Heisrepresentedasapriest-ange|,with theyouthfu|features
commontoa||Ce|estia|s,andour|earnedParseeidentifieshim
astheAnge|ofinitiation(wam at) ,theange|Sraosha'spreroga-
tives,thesitu: ofhisabode,thespecificityofhisfunction,area||
features that wou|d seem to imp|y the existence in Loroas-
trianism itse|fofan esoteric doctrine professed by the repre-
sentativesofacu|tinwhichhewasthecentra|figure.
The Avesta (\asbt 57) has him dwe||ingin triumphon the
summitofthehighestofmountains(HataitiBateza, theH//arz).
We have a|ready | earned that thi s very abode i s 'se| f-
i||uminatedwithin,andadornedontheoutsidewithstars",and
itisthecosmicmountaindescribedinanAvestanhymn(\asbt
I 2. 25) asthe mountainaround which the sun,the moon, and
the stars revo|ve. Neryoseng, who trans|ated the hymn into
Sanskrit, identifies it with Mount Meru. The Avesta and tra-
55
. Mdnght 5un and LclcstaI Iolc
ditions here enrich this theme ofthe cosmic mountain with a
newdetai| . the factthat thereat its summit,atthe po|e,atthe
po|estar, is the abode ofthe Ange|Sraosha. Fromthatpoint
on, the deve|opmentofour research a||owsus to understand
the fo||owing for ourse|ves. since hierocosmo|ogy p|aces the
dwe||Ing ofthe ange| ofI nitiation in the cosmic north, and
sincehierognosis perceivesinhispersonthea/e, itgoeswith-
outsayingthatthearriva|atthesummitofmysticinitiationhas
to be experienced, visua|ized and described as arriva| at the
po|e, at the cosmic north. And here exact|y is where we can
g|impse a |ink ofcontinuity between Loroastrian spiritua|ity
centered on the ange| Sraosha and the spiritua| universe of
Sufism centered around the po|e. We in fact quoted above,
whi|e pointing out the existence ofvariants in regard to the
numberandnamingofthepersons,thetraditionswhichbring
outtheesoterichierarchies,theinvisib|esupportsofourwor|d
centered around thea/e. Onthe one hand, the po|e isthere-
fore thesitus oftheange|Sraosha(whothuswou|dcorrespond
to the ange| Seraphie|) , on the other hand this is the qua|it-
cationgiven inSufismtothegreatshaykhofaperiod(eventhe
shaykh ofa Sufi community, a tariqat, insofar as the |atter is
taken as the homo|ogue ofa microcosm) , and for this reason
the po|e is considered in Sh'ite Sufism as representing the
hiddenImm.
Another point ofinterest in the Loroastrian scho|ar's re-
searchwasthathedrewattentiontoa para||e|ismbetweenSufi
hierocosmo|ogy and certain Taoist concepts, and it is a|so in
Centra| Asian Sufism that the idea ofthewa/at is the most
firm|yrootedandamp|ified(notab|yafterHkimTermezi, d.
d9d, inwhosewritingsthenumberofthefortyH/d/isparticu-
|ar|y significant) . The Taoisttraditionsrefertoseven spiritua|
ru|ers|oca|ized"intheconste||ationoftheBear. TheC|assic
ofthe Pivot of)ade" gives a spiritua|doctrineto|d inits very
tit|e, which refers to the NorthStar,thepivotofHeavenre-
vo|vingonitse|fandcarryinga||theheaven|ybodiesa|ongwith
itinitsrounddance." Anditneverceasestosuggestremarka-
b|ecorrespondenceswithSufiesotericconcepts.Onbothsides
we notein fact thatthespiritua|hierocosmosexemp|ifiesthe
same schema as the cosmos of astronomy. the wor|d is ar-
ranged|ikeatentrestingonacentra|axisand four|atera|pi|-
56
J. 1he Po/e the A|oe o the Ange/ 8roosho
|ars(awtd) .Thefunctionofthepersonageswhoexemp|ifythe
|atteristorevo|vearoundthewor|deverynightandtoinform
theQat/ whatsituationsrequirehis he|p. Bettersti||, symbo|ic
numero|ogy shows a tru|y striking concordance between the
numerica| configuration ofthe mystica| pa|ace ofMing-Tang
(theha||of|ightwhichisatonceatemp|e and anastronomica|
observatory) and thearrangementofthe figuresin the mystica|
hierarchya|readyenumeratedhere.

Thus,ontheone hand,theange| Sraosha watchesoverthe

s|eeping wor|d, he is the guardian ange| and the head ofa
brotherhood ofmigrants who keep watch" on the wor|d and
for the wor|d, they are described by a term referring to their
ho|y poverty, the Avestan term drigu (Peh|evidrigsb, Pzend
dasb) , theequiva|entofwhich in modern Persian isdaisb,
dervish,"thenameby which a||IranianSufisaresti||referred
totoday. thepoorinspirit."Onthe other hand, this brother-
hoodrepresentsagroupwhichisinvisib|etoordinarymenand
whichexemp|ifiesthe very imageofthecosmosunfo|ded,rest-
ing |ike a tent onits axis and atits peak Sraosha's own abode,
the cosmic north secreting its own |ight." The symbo|s of
Taoism, Loroastrianism,and Sufism are a||in accord with this
samerepresentation.
Andso the heaven|yEarths" from whichwe have a|ready
(sura II)seenFormsof|ight appearanddescendtowardtheir
earth|y Doub|esare a||, |ike Hrqa|y,theeighth"c|imate,re-
gions ofthe cosmic north, which means thresho|ds ofthe be-
yond. In Manicheism there is the Earth ofLight, Terra /ucida,
situatedinthekingdomof|ight. It isgovernedbyadivinityof
eterna||ight, surroundedby twe|veSp|endors. Like Hrqa|y,
|ike the Paradise of Yima, a|| the beauties ofour terrestria|
Earth are inc|uded in it, but in the subt|e state, as pure |ight
without an Ahrimanian shadow. Andust as, when the Mani-
cheans take as their Qi//a the sun and the moon, it does not
meanthattheyareworshippingthesunandthe moon butthat
they|ookuponthemasthepre-eminentvisib|erepresentatives
ofthe wor|d of|ight, so when they take the north asQi//a it
meansthattheyare turningtowardtheTerra /ucida, thedwe|-
|ingofthekingofLight.Wehavea|readymentionedtheidea|
wor|dofthe Mandeans,Msbunia Ku:bta, awor|d intermediate
|tween our wor|d and the universe of|ight, this is a wor|d
57
. Mdnght 5un and Lclcstal Iolc
peop|edby adivineraceofsuperhumans,beingswithasubt|e
body invisib|e to us, descendants ofthe hidden Adam (Adam
kasia) , and we|earnedthat amongthem eachearth|ybeinghas
his Twin of|ight. Thismundu: imagina/is a|so hasits guardian
spirit(itsdmutba) , its kingof|ight, Shish|am Rba,ust as Hibi|
Liwais the guardianspiritoftheEarth (andthereare striking
ana|ogies between the actians ofHibi| Liwa and those ofthe
youngprinceintheSanga[tbeFear/). Now,theMandeansa|so
be|ieve that thisEarth of|ightisin the north, separated from
ourwor|d by a high mountainofice, whi|e they make itc|ear
that it is between Heaven and Earth," this be|iefpoints out
precise|y thatwhat isinquestion isnot the earth|y north, but
the cosmic north. `The theme ofthe Green Is|and (a/-azirat
a/-kbadr) shou|da|sobe reca||ed here, the Green Is|andbeing
thedwe||ingofthehiddenImm. "
No doubt itwou|d take a who|e book tobring together a||
the evidence showing the significance ofthe Orient as supra-
sensory Orient,Orient-origin, Orient thatconsequent|yhasto
be |ooked for in the heights, on the vertica| axis because it is
identified with thepo|e, the cosmicnorth,asbeingathresho|d
ofthe wor|ds beyond. Thisarientatian wasa|readygiventothe
Orphicm,sts . WefinditinthepoemofParmenideswherethe
poetundertakesaourneytowardtheOrient.Thesenseoftwo
directions, right and|eft, the Orient and Occident oftheCos-
mos,isfundamenta|inVa|entinianGnosis.Buttamakeane'swa,
ta tbe rigbt, tawardtbe Orient,sti//meanstagauward,thatistosay
in the direction of the po|e, because in fact the Occident
typifiesthewor|dbe|ow,thewor|dofsensorymatter,whereas
the Orient typifies the spiritua| wor|d. Ibn'ArabI ( l 240) sym-
bo|ica||y g|orifies hisown departure for the East, theourney
whichtook him from Anda|usiatowardMeccaand)erusa|em,
hesawas hisIsr, comparingittoanekstasi whichrepeatsthe
Prophet's ascentfrom Heaven to Heaven, upto the Lotusof
the boundary."

Here the geographic, |itera|" East becomes

the symbo|oftherea|" Orientwhich isthe heaven|y po|e de-
scribedin Sohravard's recita|ofthe Exi|easthe ascentofthe
mountainofQ[totheEmera|dRock.
Another very great Iranian Sufi master, 'A|i-e Hamadni
(d. 7dl l 3d5), in a treatise on dreams, speaks of the Orient
whichis the veryipseity(/awi,at)ofthewor|d ofMystery,thatis
5d
}3. 1he Po/e os the A|oe o the Ange/ 8roosho
tosayofthesupra-sensorywor|d,ofthatOrientwherethePer-
fectOnesrise. E|sewhere he speaksofthis same Orientasthe
ipseityoftheinvisib|ewor|dwhichisthesourceoftheemana-
tionofbeing,descending to theOccident ofthewor|dofbodies,
bytheeightdegreesorAbodesofthewor|dsofthe a/artand
oftheMa/akt." Inthe same way,when Avicennaasks Hayy
ibnYaqzn(whop|aysinrespecttohimthepartp|ayedbyPer-
fect Nature inrespect to Hermes) what hiscountry is, the an-
swer refers to the Heaven|y)erusa|em, Hayy ibn Yaqzn, the
personificationofthe Active I nte||igence, is an Orienta|", he
be|ongs to that Orient" the steps to which he shows to the
philosopher, his discip|e, mountingoneabovetheotherfrom
thewor|d ofearth|y matter.

Thisideaofthe Orient in the

AvicennanRecita|sisthusperfect|yinaccordwithSohravardi's
ideaexpressedinhisownorienta|theosophy",theOrienta|s"
arethose who, coming fromabove, returnthere after passing
throughtheinnerinitiationdescribedintheRecita|oftheoc-
cidenta|"exi|e.
Theyarriveatthisorienta|know|edge"('i/misbrqi) which
isnotare-presentativeknow|edge,butanimmediatePresence
ofthe known, inthewaythathewhoknowshimse|fispresent
tohimse|f. The Latin equiva|ent wou|dbe the expressioncag-
nitia matutina, used in Renaissance Hermetism and which a|-
readyfiguresinSt.Augustine'stermino|ogy. Whereastheeve-
ning know|edge, occidenta| ," cagnitia vesertina, is the outer
man's know|edge-know|edge of the outside of things-the
morningknow|edge, orienta|,"cagnitia matutina, isthe know|-
edge ofthe man of|ight, having attained the abode which
secretes its own |ight," that is to say the Emera|d Rock, this
beingthe know|edgewhich isse|f-consciousness. Thiscagnitia
matutina is in a sensecagnitiaa/aris , the auroraborea|isin the
Heavenofthe sou|. Thereexact|yisdiscovered thewayofac-
cess tothe deepest senseoftheSufisayingreca||ed here from
thebeginning.hewhoknowshimse|fknowshisLord,"thatis.
knowshisheaven|ya/e.
There isindeedacorre|ation between thediscoveryofthe
ego, theegoin the second person, theH/terLga, tbau, and the
upward vertica| direction~between interna|ization (the dis-
overyofthe Heavensofthe sou|)andorientationtowardthe
heaven|y po|e. If Sohravardi's orienta| theosophy" exp|odes
59
I I I . Mdnght 5un and LclcstaI Iolc
theschemaofPto|emaicastronomyandthePeripatetictheory
oftheI nte||igences,itisbecausetheuniverseofspiritua|beings
postu|atedbybothofthemisnotonthesca|eofthemu|titudes
oftheHeavenoftheFixedStars,theinfiniteLights"onwhich
Sohravardi'smeditationwasfixed. Butbyvisionaryappercep-
tionheassimi|atesthevisionsofLarathustraandoftheb|essed
kingKayKhosraw(oneofthe|egendarykingsofancientIran,
born in
_
rn-Vc), and goes beyond the schema of the as-
tronomy ofhis own time through the vision ofthe suprasen-
sory Heavens, orwhatinSufismisca||edtheesotericofeach
Heaven" (/tin a/amk) , the very Heavens which mark the
stages of the Prophet's heaven|y ascent or the ascent ofthe
mountain ofQf. The identification ofthe esoteric" Orient,
that is to say of the suprasensory Orient, cosmic north,
heaven|y po|e, is conditioned by the effective passing to the
innerwor|d, thatistosaytotheeighthc|imate,theC|imateof
theSou|,theEarthofLight,Hrqa|y.
Inthesameway,NamoddnKobremphasizesthisby de-
ve|opingthethemethat|ikecanon|ybeknownby|ike.
Do not bclicvc that thc Hcavcn you contcmp|atc in thc su-
prascnsory is thc visiblc outcr Sky. No, in thc suprascnsory (i. c. , in
thc spiritual world) thcrc arc othcr Skics, morc subtlc, blucr,
purcr, brightcr, innumcrablc and limitlcss. Thc purcr you bc-
comc within, thc purcr and morc bcautilul is thc Sky that appcars
to you, until linally you arc walking in divinc purity. But divinc
purity is also limitlcss. So ncvcr bclicvc that bcyond what you havc
rcachcd thcrc is nothing morc, nothing highcr still. ( 60)
And here is a sti|| more radica| statement ofthe princip|e of
innerness,makingeveryspiritua|rea|itysomethingasinherent
inthemysticashisown|ifeandhisowndeath.
Know that thc soul, thc dcvil, thc angcl arc not rcalitics out-
sidc ol you, you U7t thcy. Likcwisc, Hcavcn, Larth, and thc
Thronc arc not outsidc ol you, nor paradisc nor hcll, nor dcath
nor lilc. Thcy cxist in you, whcn you havc accomplishcd thc mys-
tical ourncy and havc bccomc purc you will bccomc conscious ol
that. ( )
Now, toaccomp|ishthismystica|ourney, isexact|ywhatinter-
na/ize is,
,
hatis,to comeouttowardonese|F', thatis whatthe
exadus is, theourney toward the Orient-origin which is the
heaven|ya/e, ascentofthe sou|outofthe we||," whenatthe
mouthofthewe||arisestheviiasmaragdina.
60
"Hndtberewasarain/awraunda/auttbe
tbrane,insigbt/ikeuntaanemera/d"
BookofReve|ation.4. 3
1,
N1b1L bN^H^l11^
]
. Nomon Ko|r (
]g
)
It seems that Namoddin Kobrwas the first ofthe Sufi mas-
terstofocushisattentiononthephenomenaofco|ors,theco|-
ored photismsthatthemysticcanperceiveinthecourseofhis
spiritua| states. He took great pains to describe these co|ored
|ightsandtointerpretthemassignsrevea|ingthemystic'sstate
anddegreeofspiritua| progress. Someofthegreatestmasters
ofthe Iranian Sufism issuing from this Centra| Asian schoo|,
notab|y Nam Dyeh Rzi, Na m Kobr's direct discip|e, and
A|oddaw|eh Semnni who fo||owed histarqat, have in their
turn i||ustrated this experimenta| method ofspiritua|contro|
which imp|ies at the same time an appreciation of the sym-
bo|ismofco|orsandtheirmutations.
Thisiscertain|ynottosaythattheirpredecessorswereun-
fami|iar with visionary experiences. Far from it. But the
anonymous short work of a shaykh (which must have been
written |ater than Semnni, since it refers to him by name)
bearswitnesstoanorthodox"teacher'sa|armatwhatseemed
to himan innovation.

' Sohravardi himse|f, at the end ofhis

mostimportantwork,whereinhisaimistorestoretheorienta|
theosophy," gives a detai|ed description ofthe experiences of
|ight, ofbatisms, that a mysticcan have, however, co|orsand
theirsymbo|ismarenotyetreferredto.

z
6I
V. Vso 5maragdna
The descriptions do not refer to physica| perceptions, Nam
Kobr a||udes severa| times to these co|ored |ights as something
seen with the eyes c|osed. They have to do with something
re|ated to the perception of an aura. Thcre is indeed affinity
and correspondence between physica| co|ors and auric (or au-
ra/, aurora|) co|ors, in the sense that physica| co|ors them-
se|ves have a mora| and spiritua| qua|ity and that what the
aura expresses corresponds to it, symbo|izes with it.' This
correspondence, this symbo|ism, is precise|y what makes rt pos-
sib|e for a spiritua| master to estab|ish a method of c

ntro| by
which to discriminate between suprasensory perceptions and
what we wou|d ca|| today ha||ucinations. Technica||y, one
shou|d speak of it as visionary apperception
,
T|e phen

me

on
corresponding to it is primary and primord:a|,
'
r
'
educrb|
.
e, ust
as the perception of a physica| sound or co|or rs irreducib|

to
anything e|se. As for the organ of this visi

nary appercep
!
:on
and the mode of being in which it can funct:on, these quest:ons
re|ate precise|y to the physio|ogy of the man of |ight, whose
growth is marked by the opening of what Nam Kobr ca||s the
senses suprasensory

To the extent that the |atter are the a

-
tivit of the subect himse|f, of t
.
he sou|, we

ha|| c

nc|ude th

s
study by brief|y out|ining an mterconnecuon w:th Coethe s
theory of physio|ogica| co|ors.
!t has to be understood, of course, that in the schema of the
wor|d presupposed and verified here by mysti
'
a| experi

nce,
the terms |ight and darkness, c|arity and obscurty, are neither
metaphors nor comparisons. The mystic rea||y and actua||y sees
|ight and darkness, by a kind of vision
.
that depends

n an
organ other than the physica| organ of s
'
ght. He ex
P
erences
and perceives the state from which h
.
e asp:res to rree h:mse|f as
shadow and darkness, as powers wh:ch attract h:m downward,
he perceives as |ight a|| the signs and premonitions hera|din

g
his |iberation, the direction from which it comes, a|| the appar-
tions that attract him upward. There is nothing questionab|e
about the arientatian of the wor|d experienced in the vertica|
dimension: at the summit the heaven|y po|e, at the nadir the
we|| of darkness where the e|ement of |ight is he|d captive (just
as in the Mazdean schema, the |ight is in the north, the shadow
aod darkness are in the south). That the entire schematization
is in perfect consonance with the Manichean cosmogony and at
62
} ! . Nomoin Ko|r ( !220)
the same time with the Sohravardian recita| of the Lxi/e, and
with the Sanga[tbeFear/ in the HctqTbamas , i s what the first
paragraph of Nam Kobr's great book te||s us. Learn, C my
friend, that the a/ect of the search (mard) is Cod, and th
at
.
the
su/ect who seeks (the subect who makes effort, marid) is
a hght
that comes from him (or a partic|e of his |ight) . ( l ) I n
other
words the seeker, the hero of the Quest, is none other than
the captive |ight itse|f, the man of |ight, o:etuo 'u0p
no.

This is the first /eitmativ of Nam Kobr's great work. Thts
partic|e of |ight aspires to free itse|f, to rise again to its origin.
What is depicted in those of the Persian miniatures where the
Manichean inf|uence can be detected (ira VI, l ) i s
thus
exact|y the same as what Nam Kobr perceives through
visionary apperception. A f|ame comes down frm the
Heavens to meet the f|ame |eaping up from the Earth, and at
their fiery meeting-point Nam discerns or foresees the pres-
ence of the heaven|y Witness, the suprasensory Cuide, who
is revea|ed in this c|imax as the homo|ogue of Perfect Nature,
the Nas, the otpqu, the guide of |ight of Prometheus-Phs.
There is a corre|ation between the escape of the man f
hght,
the co|ored photisms, and the manifestation of the hea
ve

|y
guide. This corre|ation itse|f intimates the condition
wh:ch
must precede a|| such experience: men must separate
them-
se|ves from the vei| that b|inds them.
Now, this vcil is not outsidc thcmsclvcs, it is a part ol
thcm,
and is thc darkncss ol thcir crcatural naturc ( I )
My lricnd, shut your cyclids and look at what you scc

| l you
tcll mc. ! scc nothing~you arc mistakcn You can scc vcry wcll,
but unlortunatcly thc darkncss ol your naturc is so closc
to you
that it obstructs your inncr sight, to thc point that you
do

not
disccrn what is to bc sccn. !l you want to disccrn it and to s

c tt 1
lront ol you cvcn with your cycs closcd, bcgin by diminishm
g
or
by putting away lrom you somcthing ol your naturc. But t h
.
c path
lcading to that cnd is spiritual warlarc. And thc mcanm
g ol
spiritual warlarc is putting cvcrything to work so as to rcp
cl thc
cncmics or to kill thcm. Thc cncmics in this casc arc natu
rc, thc
lowcr soul, and thc dcvil (2)
To reach the goa|, one must first arientaneseq. discern the
shadow and where the shadow is. This shadow is comp
se
d of
the three antagonists that have ust been named. Spiritua
|
war-
fare trains one to recognize the enemies, to know them by
63
V. Vso 5maragdna
name, to distinguish the forms in whichthey appear, and to
effect their transmutation. Actua||y these various works are
carried out synchronica||y rather than successive|y, progress
andresu|tsarecorre|ative. separationfromtheshadowandthe
fa||oftheshadow, manifestationofthe|ightsandoftheGuide
of|ight. Thisexact|ywi||serveasafina|warning nottoabuse
theideaandthewordsbadaw. theguideof|ightisnomorethe
shadowthanheisapositive"aspecto

ftheshadow.Thisfigure
requires us henceforth to recognize anatber dimension ofthe
person,nota negativity butatranscendence. Since NamKob-
r's bookisa spiritua|ourna|ratherthan adidactictreatise,a
diariumsiritua/e not un|ike that ofRuzbehn, the best we can
doisto sing|e out certain ofits|eadingthemes, their|inescon-
verge. Thethreeadversariescanon|ybedestroyedattheprice
ofaneffortthatattacksthediscordanttri|ogyofthesou|. The
motive power to fue| this effort is the |ight itse|f, that is, the
partic|eof|ight,themanof|ight,"e0ectingtheconversionof
|iketo|ike.Thedbikr,asaspiritua|technique,p|aysanessentia|
ro|e.Thespiritua|energygivenoffbythedbikr makespossib|e
theemergenceandascentfromthewe||, thisthemerecurswith
an emphasiswe havea|readypointedout. Thestagesofascent
are accompanied by the co|ored photisms that hera|d the
growthofthe subt|eorgansorcentersofthe manof|ight, at-
tractedtoandbythesupernatura|green |ightthatshinesatthe
mouthofthewe||.Attheendofthisascent,the phenomenaof
|ightmu|tip|y, hera|ding the reoiningwiththeheaven|yWit-
ness, at the a/e . Nam Kobr's entire doctrine perfect|y
exemp|ifies the archetype ofindividua| initiation pecu|iar to
Sufism.
2. Light on 8pirituo/ nogore
To recognizethe threeadversariesmeansactua||ytocatchsight
ofthem,toexerience theformsinwhichtheyappear.Farfrom
mere|yconstructingatheory,NamKobrdescribesrea|events
whichtakep|aceintheinnerwor|d,onthep|aneofvisionary
apperception"(mqma/-masbbada) , inanorderofrea|itycor-
respondingspecifica||ytotheorganofperceptionwhichisthe
imaginative facu|ty (Imaginatrix) . This exact|y is where
creatura| nature, natura| existence (wad), is at first sight
comp|etedarkness,whenitbginstobepurified,youwi||seeit
64
2. Light on 8pirituo/ nogore
take on before your eyes the appearance ofa //ack c|oud. So
|ongasitistheseatoftheDevi|(sbatn)ithasareddisbappear-
ance.Whenitsexcrescencesarecorrectedandannihi|atedand
|egitimateaspirationsare imp|anted in theirstead,youwi||see
that its appearance gradua||y whitens and it becomes a wbite
c/aud(acumu/us) . Asforthe|owersou|,atits first appearance,
its co|or is deep //ue, it seems to be an upsurge, |ike that of
water fromaspring. Ifthesou|istheseatoftheDevi|,it|ooks
|ikeatwofo|dupsurgeofdarknessandof [ire,withoutthepower
to show anything e|se, for there is no good in devi|ry. Now,
whatpoursforth fromthesou|overf|owsandspreadsoverthe
who|e ofa man's nature, this is why a|| spiritua| teaching de-
pends on the sou|. When the sou| is hea|thy and pure, what
f|owsfrom itisGood, andGoodnessgerminatesfrom natura|
existence, ifwhatf|owsfromitisEvi|, Evi|wi||germinate.The
Devi| isan impure fire mixed with thedarknexs ofimpiety in
monstrous form. Sometimes he takes the shape before your
eyesofagiganticNegro,terrib|eto|ookupon. Hemakesevery
efforttoenterintoyou. Ifyouwanttomakehimgiveup, recite
in your heart. 'C Thou, the he|p of those who ask, he|p me
(7).' For, asanothergreatSufi says. Satan|aughsata||your
threats. Whatfrightens himistoseea/igbtinaurbeart, "' that
istosay,whenyoubecomeawareofwhatheis. Nowaswehave
read (sura 67 quoted in[ine I I I , p. I 00- l 0l ) , he, |ike any
otherspiritua|rea|ity,isnotoutsideofyou,hisattemptstoen-
ter into you" are but one phase of the fight which is being
wagedwithinyou.
What this means precise|y isthattheshadowis in you. to
separateyourse|ffromtheshadowistobringaboutyourown
metamorphosis, and by this metamorphosis to make possib|e
theconunctionofthetwocurrentsoffirerisingandfa||ingto
meetoneanother.
Natural cxistcncc is madc up ol lour clcmcnts supcrimposcd
on onc anothcr, all ol which arc Jurkneaa. Larth, Watcr, Firc, Air,
and you yourscll arc buricd bcncath thcm all. Thc only way to
scparatc yourscll lrom thcm is to act in such a way that cvcry
rightlul part in you comcs togcthcr with that to which it rightlully
bclongs, that is, by acting in such a way that cach part comcs to-
gcthcr with its countcr-part. Larth rcccivcs thc carthy part, Watcr
thc watcry part, Air thc cthcric part, Firc thc licry part. Whcn
cach has rcccivcd its sharc, you will linally bc dclivcrcd ol thcsc
65
lV. Vso 5mara
[
dna
burdcns. Jhc thrcc advcrsarics di st urb thc innatc knowlcdgc ol
thc divinc, thcy Form an obstaclc bctwccn thc heurt and thc divinc
Throne, thcy prcvcnt thc conunction o| thc tuo rua oltght. Bc-
causc oF thcm, a man linds himscll at lirst in a statc ol total
spiritual blindncss ( I I )
Whatisatstakein metamorphosisis thereforewho||ythis.
either, the sou| havingsucceeded in separating itse|f, the man
of|ight effectsconunction with his guide of|ight, his witness
in Heaven" (sbbid[i'/-sam) , or e|se the sou| succumbs to its
darkness, remains in the embrace of its I b|s, its demonic
shadow. Toconvertane's awn Ib|s to Is|am," as Ab'|-Ma'r
and 'Attr expresses it, means to effect the destruction ofthe
|owersou|. Theindividua|hasnopowertodestroy Ib|sinthe
wor|d,buthecanseparatehissou|fromlb|sbydestroyingthe
shadowinhis sou|, forlb|scanwe|dhimse|ftothesou|on|yin
shadow. Everything depends therefore on theeffortdirected
tothecentra|adversary. thesou|,withitsIb|sononeside,and
natura| existence on the other. The stages ofmetamorphosis
aredetectedbymeansofthethreedifferentwordsusedinthe
Qorn to qua|ify the sou|, when the third of these qua|ities
f|owers, it can be takenthatthebeart (qa//) exists in actua|ity,
theheartisthesubt|ecenterof|ight,theThroneinthemicro-
cosm,andbythatveryfacttheorganandp|aceofconunction
withthe|ightoftheThrone.
J. 1he 1ri/og o the 8ou/
Three characteristicssituate and constitute the tri|ogy ofthe
drama ofthe sou|. There is the extravagant |ower sou|. na[s
ammra (l 2. 53) , |itera||y, the imperative sou|, the one which
commands"evi|,thepassionate,sensua||owerega.Thereisthe
b|aming"sou|.na[s /awwma ( 75. 2) , theonewhichcensures,"
criticizes, thisisse|f-consciousness, and is|ikened to theinte|-
|ect ('aq/) of the phi|osophers. Fina||y there is the pacified
sou|".na[s matma'anna (d9. d7) , thesou|whichinthetruesense
istheheart(qa//) , towhichtheQornaddressesthewords. C
pacifiedsou|,returntoyourLord, acceptingandaccepted. "

Thisreturn,whichisthereunionofthe two fierycurrents,is

exact|y whatisdescribed in one ofNam Kobr's most signif-
icantvisions.
Theextravagant|ower sou|, theega ofthecommonrunof

J. 1he 1rio/og othe 8ou/
men, remains such as it is so |ong as the effects ofspiritua|
warfarehavenotmadethemse|vesfe|t.Whentheeffectofcon-
tinuous prayer,hedbikr, penetrates it, it is as though a |amp
were|ightedinadarkeneddwe||ing.Thenthesou|attainsthe
degreeofb|amingsou|", itperceivesthatthedwe||ingisc|ut-
teredwithfi|thandwi|dbeasts, itexertsitse|ftodrivethemout
so thatthe dwe||ingmay be ready to we|come the |ightofthe
dbikr as its sovereign, this we|come wi|| be the pre|ude to the
openingofthepacifiedsou|(54).
Andtherearesignswhich makeit possib|etorecognizere-
spective|y byvisionary apperception each moment in thistri|-
ogy, each phase ofmetamorphosis. Thanks to these signs the
Spiritua|retainsperfectawarenessofhimse|f.
Know that thc lowcr soul prcscnts a sign that makcs it rccog-
nizablc by visionary appcrccption. it is a grcat circlc that riscs in
lront ol you, cntircly 0hck, as it wcrc ol tar. Thcn it disappcars,
only to arisc bclorc you again latcr in thc aspcct ol a black cloud.
But lo and bchold! gradually, at its arising, somcthing is rcvcalcd
at its cdgcs rcscmbling thc crcsccnt ol thc neu moon whcn onc ol
its horns appcars in thc sky through thc clouds. Littlc by littlc, it
bccomcs a complctc crcsccnt. Whcn thc soul has bccomc con-
scious ol itscll to thc point oF scll-udgmcnt, bchold it riscs to thc
sidc ol thc right chcck in thc aspcct ol a gloutng aun whosc hcat
may cvcn bc lclt on onc's chcck. Somctimcs it is visualizcd by thc
car, somctimcs bcForc thc lorchcad, somctimcs abovc thc hcad.
And this 0lumtng aoul is thc intclligcncc ('ql rclcrrcd to by thc
philosophcrs) (55).
As lor thc ]ucj]teJ aoul, it also prcscnts a sign which makcs it
idcntiliablc by visionary appcrccption. somctimcs it riscs in lront
ol you lorming as it wcrc thc orb ol a grcat lountain giving lorth
lights, somctimcs you visualizc it in thc suprascnsory rcalm as
corrcsponding to thc circlc ol your countcnancc, an orb ol light, a
limpid disk, similar to a pcrlcctly polishcd mirror. At timcs this
circlc may sccm to risc toward your lacc and thc lattcr to vanish
into it. Your lacc is thcn itscll thc pacilicd soul. Somctimcs, on
thc contrary, you visualizc thc circlc at a distancc, as though lar
rcmovcd lrom you in thc suprascnsory rcalm. Thcrc arc thcn
bctwccn you and thc circlc ol thc pacilicd soul a thousand stagcs,
il you wcrc to draw ncar to onc ol thcm, you would bc sct on lirc
(56) .
Fromhereontheendi s i nsight.Thepathwi||be|ongand
peri|ous, itisdifficu|ttodescribe, thatis, itisnoteasytocon-
nect. descriptionsofthe pathina|ogica|and rationa|orderin
7
V. Vso 5maragdna
which no moment wou|d over|ap another. Nam Kobr's
Diatium offers us rather the possibi|ity of deve|oping the theme
of each phase a|ternate|y, considering them successive|y from
severa| points of view, amongst which priority is given to that
which app|ies to the force that moves the mystica| pi|grim a|ong
the Way. from another point of view, to perceive the effects of
this spiritua| energy in him wi|| be a way of fo||owing the stages
of the ascent and the concomitant growth of the organs of
|ight, which mu|tip|ies ea isa the possibi|ities of visionary ap-
perception, |eading to the vision that proc|aims the integration
of bi-unity.
1. Like oith Like
So far we have been given the names of three organs or cen-
ters. the sou| (nas), the inte||ect ('aq/) , the heart (qa//) . Two
other centers, the spirit (/) and the transconsciousness (sitt,
the secret) take their p|ace in a who|e where their meaning
and function wi|| be made c|ear to us |ater in the writings of
Nam Kobr's discip|es (in[ta V, 2 and Vl, l ) . These are the
centers of a subt|e physio|ogy, recognizab|e by the co|ored
|ights which symbo|ize them. These are the organs which a||ow
the supreme princip|e to operate, in hierocosmo|ogy as in
hierognosis. |ike seeks to unite with |ike. A substance sees and
knows on|y its |ike, it can itse|f be seen and known on|y by its
|ike ( 10) . This is the princip|e which, according to Nam
Kobr, governs the fundamenta| intuition and sets it in opera-
tion. what is sought is the divine Being, the seeker is himse|f a
|ight coming from the divine Being, a partic|e of its |ight. The
statement and app|ication of the princip|e certain|y awaken
many consonances. We a|ready hear it in Empedoc|es. fire
can be seen on|y by fire. ln the Catu Hetmeticum (l ll20)
where the Nasdec|ares to Hermes. lf you do not make your-
se|f |ike Cod, you cannot understand Cod. ln P|otinus (Ln-
neadVl, 9, l l ) . The Princip|e can be seen on|y by the Princi-
p|e. ln the West it |eads us from Meister Eckhart to Coethe
(ita Vl, 2).
' A|i-e Hamadni, the great shaykh responsib|e for the
spread of Sufism in l ndia, formu|ates it brief|y in a way that is
particu|ar|y striking. The human being, he says, is a copy
d
1. Like ut/h
Ltkt
transcribed from the great Qorn
which
is the cosmos

v . y-
thing that constitutes this cospic
Qoro-
s
u
ras,

erses, woros,
|etters, vowe| signs-has an esoteric
and
an cxoterc aspect
ln cach
part ol a man whizh has
|
ccn p

riIicd, its cuun! t|-

part ol thc samc naturc is rc
c
ztcd, lo
n

thmg ca

n b
_
c sccn tX
ccpt by its likc. Thcrclorc, whcn

thc csotc
z
naturc mdrcatcd by H
man' s i nclinations and Iaclncs has
|
czomc
purc, hc cun-
tcmplatcs thcrcin
whatcvcr is ol thc
sam
c naturc i
_
n
.
thc macro-
cosm. Thc samc
applics to thc so
l, thc
hca
t, thc

spnt, thc trans-
consciousnc
ss, up to thc arzan

m (||]
thc
mncrmost placc
whcrc thc divinc
Attributcs
yh:zh mto8|
zatc arc
unvcilcd, and
whcrc it can bc said um Hta hran
g
'
atght

The parts
constituting th
c
human h
ing
can
even be re-
garded as fragments of their cospic cou
nter
|
arts
, each be|ongs
to a who|e from which it derives.
a
p h
obra thus estabhshes a
rea| connection between the fire of
passion and the inferna|
fire. the fire of vo|uptuousness, of h
'
n,
e
r
and
.
thirst, of
^
ic-
kedness and sensua|ity are parts of the u
ferna
| ftre. By fe

edmg
these fires a man increases his he||,
for
he|| is
not outstde of
him, man is his
own he|| ( l 30). Partic|cs
.
of dif(erent natures
are mutua||y repe||ent, the partic|e
s i

pr
'
soned
tn man are a
'
-
tracted to their |ike. The attracti
on, u
tts physica| aspect, b
magnetism, in its psychic aspect, the
year
9
ing
of |ike for |ike.
Actua||y the first
aspect is on|y the ex
otenc aspect of the sec-
ond, Nam Kobr is
thinking of the
seco
9
d aspe
ct when

he has
recourse to his favorite image of the
prc
c
r
us stone |ongmg for
the wor|d from which it was origina
||y ex
tracted.
for this
attraction is atiented
,towa
rd
the Hea
ven of the sou|,
the suprasensory Heaven, the inner

Heaven, or perh
]

P
s it i

better to
say the esoteric Heaven, t

c
|
se

e wor)

mn

r
shou|d give rise to the idea of a
subje
cttve
heaven |ackmg
any substantia|
rea|ity. Orientation to
ward the Heaven of the
sou|, toward the a/e
presupposes
and
brings
about this inward
movement
which is the return to the
vast wor|d
of:he sou|, the
passage to the esoteric. The subt|e
organ which en

e|ops th

e
heart and which Nam Kobr ca||s
the
Ho|y
Chost

m man b
identified
with this Heaven. The
subt
|e or
,an desrgnated as
Spirit is the
Heaven of the heart.
The
moveme
nt inward brings
about the passage from this wor|d
to
the wor|d beyond, f
'
om
the o
uter man to the man of |ight.
As
we have
noted, the rdea
9
V. Vso 5maragdna
of the spiritua| Heavens had a|ready |ed Sohravardi to exp|ode
the schema of Pto|emaic astronomy, and the same idea opened
the way to the Emera|d Rock for Hermes and the expatriate in
the Recita| of the Exi|e. This passage, this exadus , is what au-
thenticates and what is foreseen in the visions received by
visionary apperception, in which there are an above and a be-
|ow, Heavens and Earths. because oriented toward the po|e, a||
this no |onger has to do with the wor|d of obects of sensory
experience. The reascent of |ike towards its |ike (the ascent of
the co|umn of Light) traversing the entire cosmos, the return
of |ight to |ight, of precious stones to their origin. the an-
thropo|ogy which is its organ is the science that concerns the
man of |ight and is oriented toward the a/e. lf this were not so,
the mi'r of the prophet and the ascent out of the we|| are
uninte||igib|e and devoid of rea|ity. lf this is so, then mystica|
experience fi||s a function of cosmic sa|vation. Severa| essentia|
passages in Nam Kobr's treatises make this abundant|y c|ear.
Thc Ho|y Chost in man is a hcavcn|y subt|c organ. Whcn thc
conccntratcd powcr ol spiritua| cncrgy' ' is |avishcd on him, hc is
rcunitcd with thc Hcavcns and thc Hcavcns arc mcrgcd with him.
r rathcr, Hcavcns and Spirit arc onc and thc samc thing. And
this Spirit docs not ccasc to soar, to incrcasc, and to grow unti| it
has acquircd a nobi|ity highcr than thc nobi|ity ol Hcavcn. r
again wc cou|d say. in thc human bcing thcrc arc prccious stoncs
lrom cvcry kind ol minc, and cvcrything that aspircs to rcdis-
covcr its own origina| minc is ol thc samc naturc as thc |attcr
(59) .
But Nam makes it c|ear that wi|| and effort are necessary to set
free this attractive energy.
havc ncvcr contcmp|atcd Hcavcn 0elou mc nor utthtn mc,
un|css bclorchand thcrc had ariscn in mc an cllort and this com-
p|aint. why am ! not now in Hcavcn or grcatcr than Hcavcn? For
thcn thc nob|c prccious stoncs in cxi|c wcrc cxpcricncing a con-
suming nosta|gia lor thcir origina| homc and lound it again at |ast
(59). '
-
lt is therefore the termina| point of this reunion that
guarantees the orientation. Earths and Heavens of the sup-
rasensory rea|m, of the beyond whose thresho|d is the a/e.
Know that visionary appcrccption is twolo|d. thcrc is pcrccp-
tion ol what is bc|ow and pcrccption ol what is abovc. Bc|ow is thc
vision ol a|| that thc Larth (and by Larth | mcan hcrc thc su-
70
1. Like oith Like
prascnsory Larth Tena /uctJa, not thc Larth which is in I ht hy|-
ca||y visib|c wor|d)l a||, rcpcat, that thc Larth contai ns hy wuy
ol co|ors, occans, |uminarics, dcscrts, |andscapcs, citics, wclls, |o|-
trcsscs, ctc. Abovc, thcrc is thc vision ol a|| that thc Hcavcns ton-
tain. sun, moon, stars, constc||ations ol thc Zodiac, houscs u| | ht
moon. Now, you scc and disccrn nothing whatsocvcr cxccpt |y
mcans ol somcthing that is its |ikc (or which is a part ol it) . ! ht
prccious stonc sccs on|y thc minc lrom which it originatcd, i t
ycarns and is homcsick lor that a|onc. Thcrclorc whcn you cnvi -
sion a hcavcn, an carth, a sun, or stars, or a moon, know that thi s
is bccausc thc partic|c in you which comcs lrom that minc has
bccomc purc (60) .
There fo||ows the warning we have a|ready read (sura l l l , 3in
]ine) and which conditions a|| suprasensory experience. what-
ever the heavens you are contemp|ating, there are a|ways other
heavens beyond, there is no |imit.
Mutua| attraction and recognition of |ike by |ike. this |aw is
exemp|ified in mu|tip|e variations throughout Nam Kobr's
doctrine and mystica| experience. lt is the basis of a cam-
municatia idiamatum between the divine and the human, a reci-
procity of states which is very characteristica||y proected and
expressed in terms of spatia|ization and |oca|ization. Pure
spiritua| space arises from the state experienced, and the state
experienced is a visitation of the divine Attributes. Here we
may reca|| the Coptic Cnostic books of Ieu (third century), in
which the Emanations of the true Cod Ieu surrounding a
Treasury, the /aceof the true Cod, are themse|ves the p|aces or
abodes of the :not, the sou| of the mystic is we|comed there by
the co||ectors of the Treasury of Light, under their guidance it
|eaps from one /ace to another, unti| it reaches the Treasury of
Light. The mabdir, in Nam Kobr's termino|ogy, correspond
exact|y to those p|aces or abodes known to the gnostics. The
divine Being has different p|aces or abodes and they are the
/aces of the Attributes. You distinguish them from one another
by your own mystica| experience, for when you rise to this or
that p|ace, your tongue invo|untari|y utters the name of that
p|ace and of its attribute.
Here agai n, therefore, there are signs and indications
which make verification possib|e, as previous|y in the case of
each of the p|aces of the sou|, and as there wi|| be a|so for each
of the co|ored photisms
7 l
V. Vso 5maragdna
Thc hcart participatcs in cvcry divinc Attributc, and thcrc-
lorc in thc divinc Lsscncc. This participation docs not ccasc to
grow, and thc mystics di llcr lrom cach othcr according to thc
cxtcnt ol thcir participation. Sincc cach Attributc has its scat in
onc ol thc placcs or abodcs in qucstion, and sincc thc hcart par-
ticipatcs in cach ol thc divinc Attributcs, thcy arc cpiphanizcd in
thc hcart to thc cxtcnt that thc hcart participatcs in thcsc Attrib-
utcs. Thus Attributcs arc rcvcalcd to Attributcs, Lsscncc to Ls-
scncc (or thc Scll to thc Scll). n thc onc hand, thc Attributcs (or
placcs) contcmplatc thc hcart (causc it to bc prcscnt to thcm). n
thc othcr hand, thc hcart contcmplatcs thc placcs ol thc Attrib-
utcs (makcs itscll prcscnt to thcm). Thcophany is brought about
lirst by thcorctical knowlcdgc, latcr by visionary appcrccption,
whcthcr thc Attributcs makc thcmsclvcs witncsscs prcscnt to thc
hcart, or whcthcr thc hcart makcs itscll a witncss and prcscnt to
thc ]hcea ol thc Attributcs (6l ) .
This is a subt|e passage and hard to fo||ow at first, but ex-
treme|y important, because it is the pre|iminary out|ine of and
introduction to the subsequent account of the re|ationship of
the mystic with his heaven|y Witness which wi|| deve|op at the
summit of his inner ascent l n this re|ationship the Con-
temp|ator (sbabid) is simu|taneous|y the one who is Con-
temp|ated (mosbbd) , the one who witnesses is simu|taneous|y
the one who is witnessed, and this a|ready indicates that the
idea of the heaven|y Witness in Nam Kobr is no different,
in essence, from the idea of the Witness of contemp|ation
which orients the spiritua| view of other contemporary Sufi
masters.
furthermore, this re|ationship resu|ts from the idea that
the seeker is himse|f a partic|e of the divine light that is being
sought, it i||ustrates the princip|e of the Quest and of the rec-
ognition of|ike by |ike, which is amp|ified with extraordinary
power in other passages, ca||ing us to witness this reunianwhich
is the cu|minating moment of persona| initiation.
Thcrc arc lights which asccnd and lights which dcsccnd.
Thc asccnding lights arc thc lights ol thc hcart, thc dcsccnding
lights arc thosc ol thc Thronc. Crcatural bcing is thc vcil bctwccn
thc Thronc and thc hcart. Whcn this vcil is rcnt and a door to thc
Thronc opcns in thc hcart, likc springs toward likc. Light riscs
toward light and light comcs down upon light, unJ tt o ltght u]on
ltght` (Qoran 24. 35) (62).
Everything that we are ana|yzing may we|| be condensed in
72
7. 1he Function othe Dh| kr
those few |ines . a tota|ity which is |ight upon |ight,

- . l t ght
and shadow, in the perspective of the threefo.d ps
/
chrc d: m ` ^
sion, as we have again to emphasize in
'
onc|usmn (in[ra , | 0) o
Here are further inva|uab|e quotatrons.
Lach timc thc hcart sighs lor thc Thronc, thc Thronc si ghs
lor thc hcart, so that thcy comc to mcct . . . Lach pr

c
_
us
_
sIonr
(that is, cach ol thc clcmcnts o

thc

man ol light) wh:ch :s tn you

brings you a mystical statc or v:s:on 1 th

Hcavcn corrcspondtng
to it, whcthcr it bc thc lirc ol ardcnt dcs:rc, ol achght or ol lovc
(scc 83 quotcd tn[ru lV, 9) . Lach timc a ltght rtae

u] [rom ou, U
ltght comea Joun touurJ ou, and cach timc a llamc :scs lrom you, a
corrcsponding llamc comcs down toward you (scc lurthcr 83)
! l thcir cncrgics arc cqual, thcy mcct hall-way (bctwccn
i-avcn and Larth) . . . But whcn thc substancc ol light h

s grown
o
u thcn this bccomcs a Wholc in rcIation to what ts ol thc
1 yo g
l l
.
h H
samc naturc in Hcavcn. thcn it is thc substancc o
.
ig t 1

avcn
which ycarns lor you and is attractcd by youy

bght, and tt dc-
sccnds toward you. This is thc sccrct ol thc mystical approach (atrr
ul-aur, 63-64) .
A tru|y fascinating description, but how does

the Sufi reach

h
.
`
The most effective means of reahzauon offered to
t :s a:m.
h

h
him is the dbikr ( zekr) , continuous prayer T :s

s w at can
bring about the opening and then the growth of th:s sutstance
of |ight which is in you, to such a deg
!
ee that by at

tracu

g the
heaven|y Witness, its suprasensory Cmde, the reunion
^
:l| take
p|ace. The stages of growth of this organism of h
8
ht w:||

t|en
bmarked by the co|ored photisms, unti| the p

ruc|

of divine
|ight, the man of |ight within you, your o:etuo ou0pono,
sudden|y bursts forth
7. 1he Function o the Lhikr
Of a|| spiritua| practices. meditati

n on the

ayings o( th

Pro-
phet and on the traditions of Suf:sm, med:tate

d recitau

n of
the Qorn, ritua| Prayer, and so forth, the dbt

kr (zekr) :s the
practice most apt to free spiritua| energy, tiat :s,
'
o

a||

ow

the
partic|e of divine |ight which

is in tie

ysuc to re
J
om :ts hke.
The advantage of the dbikr is that it :s not restrct

d to any
ritua| hour, its on|y |imitation is the persona|

capac:ty of the
mystic. It is impossib|e to stu|y
.
the ques

uon

f c

|oreu
photisms without knowing the spntua| exercise
^
h:ch :s the:r
source. Everything takes p|ace, need|ess to say, m the gba/a,
73
IV. Vso 5maragdna
the suprasensory wor|d, what is in question here is so|e|y the
physio|ogy of the man of |ight. Nam Kobr set himse|f the task
of describing the cases and circumstances in which the fire of
the dbikt itse|f becomes the obect of mystica| apperception. As
opposed to the fire of the Devi|, which is a dark fire, the vision
of which is accompanied by distress and a fee|ing of over-
whe|ming oppression, the fire of the dbikt is visua|ized as a
pure and ardent b|aze, animated by a rapid upward movement
(d). On seeing it, the mystic experiences a fee|ing of inner
|ightness, expansion, and intimate re|ief. This fire enters into
the dwe||ing p|ace |ike a sovereign prince, announcing. l
a|one, and none other than . lt sets fire to a|| that is there to
be consumed, and sheds |ight on any darkness it may en-
counter

lf |ight is there a|ready, the two |ights associate with
each other and there is /igbtuan/igbt(9- I).
That is why one form of the diktabove a|| other, |eading in
actua|ity to the acquisition of this pure and ardent f|ame, con-
sists in repeating the first part of the sbabda,the profession of
faith. / i/ba i//'//b (Nu//us deus nisi Deus), and meditating
upon it according the the ru|es of Sufism.

ln lsmae|ian Shi'ite
gnosis, theosophica| dia|ectic was a|ready practiced with ex-
treme subt|ety by a|ternating the negative and affirmative
phases composing the first part of the sbabda,in order to open
up a path between the two abysses, the ta'ti/and the tasb/ib,that
is to say, between rationa|ist agnosticism and the |itera|
rea|ism of naive faith. By fo||owing this way, the idea of mediat-
ing theophanies is estab|ished, the hierarchy of the p|eroma of
|ight. Whi|e the transcendence of the Princip|e beyond being
and non-being is preserved in lsmae|ian gnosis, orthodoxy is
b|amed inasmuch as it fa||s into the most pernicious kind of
metaphysica| ido|atry, the very one it was so anxious to avoid.
ln the Sufism of Nam Kobr, the reiteration of the negative
part of the sbabda (nu//u: Deus) is designed to be a weapon
against a|| the powers of the na[s ammta (the |ower ego) , it
consists in denying and reecting a|| pretensions to divine pre-
rogatives, a|| c|aims inspired in the sou| by the instincts of pos-
sessiveness and domination. ln the positive part of the sbabda
(nuiDeus) on the other hand the exc|usive nature and powers
of the One and On|y One are affirmed.
Then there comes about the state a||uded to in a saying
74
7. 1he Function o the Dh| kr
tire|ess|y repeated by the Sufis, and fami|iar to us heLs f`
have read it in St. Pau| (I Cat.2. 9), where in fact it harks ha k l
the Reve/atiana[ L/iab. 'The mystic sees what the ey

h
'
s ooi
seen, hears what no ear has heard, whi|e thoughts rse . o h. s
mind which had never arisen in the heart of man, that h

l
say, of man who remains buried in the depths

of

atura| ex:s-
tence. for the effect of the [ite-/igbt of the dbtkt is to make
man c|airvoyant in Darkness, and this c|airvoyance forete||s
.
that the heart is being freed, is emerging from the we// of
ture but (|et us remember the Sohravardian Recita/a[ tbeLxi/e)
on|, a heart that ho|ds fast to the cab|e of the Qorn and to th

,
train of the robe of the dbikt'escapes from the we|| of nature

No doubt the practice of the dbiktin Nam Kobr's schoo|
inc|udes a|so a who|e system of techniques. m

vements
-
o( the
head, contro| of breathing, certain postures (m Se

nam for
examp|e, the seated position with crossed |egs, nght ian+
p|aced on |eft hand, the |atter ho|ding

the rigit |eg which ,

p|aced on the |eft thigh) possib|y reveahn
&
Taost mf|

ence.
By uninterrupted po|arization of the attention

n object, tie
obect fina||y imposes itse|f with such rorce

is imbued with
such |ife, that the mystic is attracted and is, as it were, abso
.
r|ed
into it. This is the phenomenon Rudo|f Otto found so stnkmg
when he had a|ready discerned a c|ear para||e| itween the
Sufi dbikt and the mpq :o Heou or 'lqoo practiced by the
* *
,
*

monks of Athos and in ear|y Chnstian monasticism.

The preponderant ro|e of the Suf, dbiktis ustified in that it
estab|ishes experientia||y the connection between the the
[
e of
the ascent from the we||, the po|ar orientation of the spi
.
ntua|
seeker and the growth of his body of |igit. The
P
o|ar onenta-
tion in this case signifies a|so and essentia||y an mwa
.
rd move

ment as the way of passing to the wor|d beyond. N

jm Kobra
describes by meticu|ous ana|yses and refe
'
ence
.
to
.
his persona|
experience this process of internahzat

on. it is a gradua|
deepening of the dbiktin three stages. As it was r

ca||ed ab

ve,
the phenomena described re|ate not to the
.
physica| orgamsm
but to the physio|ogy of the subt|e body and its or
&
ans

A first and sti|| incomp|ete phase of penetration is marked
by acoustic phenomena which
.
may be
P
ainfu|
.
and eve

dangerous. in such a case (as Najm was stnct|y advise+ by hi

s
shaykh) , it is abso|ute|y necessary to interrupt the dbtkt unu|
75
V. Vso 5maragdna
everything returns to norma| (45 ff.) The two other phases
are described as the fa|| or absorption of the diktfirst into the
beatt, then into the sitt, or secret, the transconsciousness.
When the dbikt is immersed in the heart, the heart is then
sensed as though it were itse|f a we|| and the dikt a pai| |ow-
ered into it to draw up water, or, according to another image
of the same experience. the heart is ' s ibn Maryam, and the
dbikt is the mi|k that nourishes him. Thus we find again the
theme of the birth of the spiritua| Chi|d (suta I I , I ) , a theme
whose equiva|ent is reiterated by so many mystics and which
|ed the Sufis to regard Mary am as the typification of the mystic
sou| (49). Other descriptions given by Nam Kobr speak of an
opening produced by the dbikton the top of the head, through
which descend on you first a darkness (of natura| existence),
then a fiery |ight, then the gteen /igbt of the heart (i/id. ) , or
again, of a wound in the side through which the heart and its
Ho|y Ghost escape |ike a horseman with his mount and make
their way up to the divine p|aces, (mabdita/-Haqq,the zot of
the Gnostics, suta) (50) . Let us not necessari|y infer that this
indicates some outer stigmatization. None of this takes p|ace in
the outer sensory wor|d, nor in the imaginary wor|d, but on|y
in the mundus imagna/is ('amm a/-mitb/), the imaginative wor|d
to which be|ong organs of the same nature in the human being,
name|y the centers of subt|e physio|ogy (the /atqa) . In a fina|
phase, the dbikt is interming|ed so intimate|y with the funda-
menta| being of the mystic that were the |atter to abandon the
dbikt,the dbiktwou|d not abandon him. Its fire does not cease
to b|aze, its |ights no |onger disappear. Without interruption
you see |ights rising and |ights descending. The f|ames of the
fire are a|| around you-very pure, very ardent, and very
strong (5 l ) .
. 1he 6reen Light
Lights ascending, |ights descending. the dbikt sinks down into
the we|| of the heart and at the same time |ifts the mystic up out
of the darkness of the we||. The simu|taneity of these concen-
tric movements forete||s the birth and growth of the subt|e or-
ganism of |ight. The descriptions become more comp|icated
and interwoven unti| they are reso|ved, as Nam Kobr te||s us,
in the visia smatagdina to which these movements are the pre-
76
. 1he 6reen Light
|ude. Ours is the method of a|chemy, dec|ares the shaykh. | |
invo|ves extracting the subt|e organism of |ight from beneath
the mountains under which it |ies imprisoned ( I 2) . It may
happen that you visua|ize yourse|f as |ying at the bottom of a
we|| and the we|| seeming|y in |ive|y downward movement. In
rea|ity it is you who are moving upward (i/id. ). This ascent
(reminding of the vision of Hevmes in Sohravardi, his ascent to
the batt|ements of the Throne) , is the gradua| emergence from
the mountains which, as we have a|ready been to|d (suta IV,
2) , are the four e|ementary natures constituting the physica|
organism. The inner states accompanying this emergence are
trans|ated into visions of deserts, even cities, countries,
houses, which come down from above toward you and |ater
disappear be|ow you, as though you were seeing a dike on the
shore crumb|e and disappear into the sea ( I 2) .
This correspondence i s precise|y what provides the mystic
with a decisive method by which to verify the rea|ity of his
visions, it is a guarantee against i||usions, for it demands the main-
tenance of a rigorous /amnce.
You comc to gazc with your own cycs on what you had until
thcn only known thcorctically, through thc intcllcct. Whcn you
cnvision yoursc|l as submcrgcd in a sca, and yct making your way
across it, know that this is thc climination ol supcrl|uous lctal
rcquircmcnts originating lrom thc clcmcnt Watcr. ll thc sca is
clcar and il suns or lights or llamcs arc drowncd in it, know that it
is thc sca ol mystic gnosis. Whcn you cnvision rain dcsccnding,
know that it i s a dcw which lal|s lrom thc ]hcea ol Divinc Mcrcy to
vivily thc carths ol hcarts slumbcring in dcath. Whcn you
visua|izc a llamc in which you arc lirst cntircly cngu|lcd and lrom
which you thcn lrcc yourscll, know that this is thc dcstruction ol
thc clcmcnts surrounding thc lctus that originatc in thc c|cmcnt
Firc. Finally, whcn you scc bclorc you a grcat widc spacc, an im-
mcnsity opcning onto thc lar distancc, whilc abovc you thcrc is
clcar purc Air and you pcrccivc on thc lar horizon thc colors
green, reJ, ellou, 0lue, know that you arc about to pass, bornc alolt
through this air, to thc licld ol thcsc colors. Thc colors arc thosc
ol thc spiritua| statcs cxpcricnccd inwardly. Thc color green is thc
sign ol thc lilc ol thc hcart, thc color ol ardcnt purc [tre is thc sign
ol thc vitality ol spiritual cncrgy, signilying thc powcr to ac-
tualizc. ll this lirc is dim, it dcnotcs in thc mystic a statc ol latiguc
and allliction lollowing thc battlc with thc lowcr cgo and thc Dcv-
il. Blue is thc color ol this |owcr cgo. \ellou indicatcs a lcsscning
ol activity. All thcsc arc suprascnsory rcalitics in dia|oguc with thc
onc who cxpcricnccs thcm in thc twolold |anguagc ol inncr |cc|-
77
V. Vso 5maragdna
ing (Jhouq) and visionary appcrccption. Jhcsc arc two com-
plcmcntary witncsscs, lor ou ex]ertence tnuorJl tn ouraeg uhot ou
tuuolt:e utth our tnner atght, onJ rect]rocoll ou touolt:e utth our
tnner atght grectsel uhot ou ex]ertence tn ourag ( I)
Thc shaykh formu|atcs in this way thc vcry |aw of /a/ance
which makcs it possib|c to authcnticatc thcsc visions of co|orcd
|ights, and is a|| thc morc ncccssary sincc it is a mattcr, not of
op;ica| pc

rccptions, but of phcnomcna pcrccivcd by thc organ

of mncr srght, /a/ance makcs it possib|c to discriminatc and dis-
tinguish thcm from ha||ucinations. Discrimination is in fact
cstab|ishcd to thc cxtcnt that thc inncr statc cxpcricnccd in
rca|ity is vcrificd by its corrcspondcncc with thc statc which
wou|d bc brought about by thc outcr pcrccption of such and
suci a co|or. To that cxtent, what is in qucstion is ccrtain|y no
u|uston but a rca| visua|ization and a sign, that is to say, thc co|-
oration of tea/ obccts and cvcnts whosc rca|ity, of coursc, is not
physica| but suprascnsory, psycho-spiritua|. This is why thcsc
co|orcd photisms arc in thc fu|| scnsc of thc word witnesses~
witncsscs of what you ate, of what your vision is worth, and
prcfigurc thc vision of thc pcrsona| hcavcn|y Witncss. Thc
importancc of thc co|or gteen (thc co|or of thc a/e) dcrivcs
from this who|c contcxt, sincc it is thc co|or of thc hcart and of
thc vita|ity of thc hcart ( I 4) . Now, thc hcart is thc homo|oguc
of thc Thronc, of thc a/ewhich is thc thrcsho|d of thc bcyond.
ono so wc rccognizc hcrc morc than onc fcaturc a|rcady figur-
mg m Sohravardi's Recita/a[tbeLxi/e.
Gteen is thc co|or that out|asts thc othcrs. From this co|or
cmanatc f|ashing, spark|ing rays. This grccn may bc abso|utc|y
purc or it may bccomc tarnishcd. lts purity proc|aims thc dom-
inant notc of thc divinc |ight, its du||ncss rcsu|ts from a rcturn
of thc darkncss of naturc ( I 5) . )ust as thc mountain of Qf
(thc psycho-cosmic mountain, suta l l l , l ) who||y takcs on thc
co|oration of thc Emcra|d Rock which is its summit (thc po|c,
thc cosmic north) , so is thc hcart a subt|c organ which rcf|ccts
suprascnsory things and rca|itics that rcvo|vc around it. Thc
co|or of thc thing is rcproduccd in thc subt|c organ (/atqa) it
faccs, ust as forms arc rcf|cctcd in mirrors or in purc watcr . . .
thc hcart is a |ight in thc dcpths of thc we// of naturc, |ikc
)oscph's |ight in thc wc|| into which hc was thrown ( l b) .
And so from thcn on, i n this |ight, thc vicissitudcs of thc
18
. 1he 6reen Light
asccnt out of thc wc|| bcgin to takc shapc. Thc first timc t ha|
thc we// is rcvca|cd to you it shows you a dcpth to which HO
dcpth pcrccivcd physica||y can bc comparcd. Whcrcas in |hc
waking statc you arc on thc way to bccoming fami|iar with it ,
whcn you visua|izc it in a statc whcrc thc outcr scnscs arc
undcr rcstraint (or missing, that is, in thc suprascnsory
gba/a) , you arc shakcn by such tcrror that you think you arc
abut to dic. And thcn, suddcn|y at thc mouth of thc wc|| thc
cxtraordinary gteen /igbt bcgins to shinc. From thcn on, un-
forgcttab|c marvc|s show thcmsc|vcs to you, thosc of thc
Ma/akt (thc wor|d of thc Hnimaecae/estes, thc csotcric aspcct of
thc visib|c hcavcns) , thosc of thc a/at (thc wor|d of the
Chcrubim, of thc divinc Namcs). You cxpcricncc thc most con-
tradictory fcc|ings. cxu|tation, tcrror, attraction. At thc cnd of
thc mystic way, you wi|| scc thc wc|| bc|ow you. ln thc coursc of
thc asccnt, thc who|c of thc wc|| is changcd into a wc|| of |ight
or of grccn co|or. Dark at thc bcginning, bccausc it was thc
dwc||ing-p|acc of dcvi|s, it is now |uminous with gteen /igbt,bc-
causc it has bccomc thc p|acc to which dcsccnd thc Angc|s and
thc divinc Compassion ( I 1) . Hcrc Nam Kobr tcstifics to thc
angc|ophanics which wcrc grantcd to him. thc cmcrgcncc
from thc wc|| undcr thc guidancc of four Angc|s surrounding
him, thc dcsccnt of thc sakina (thc sbekbina) , a group of Angc|s
who dcsccnd into thc hcart, or c|sc thc vision of a sing|c Angc|
bcaring him up as thc prophct was bornc up ( I 9-2 l ) . '
And thcn a|| thc spiritua| Hcavcns, thc inncr Hcavcns of
thc sou|, thc scvcn p|ancs of bcing which havc thcir countcr-
parts in thc man of |ight shinc mu|tico|orcd in thc rainbow of
thc visiasmatagdina.
Know that to cxist is not limitcd to a singlc act. Thcrc is no act
ol bcing such that abovc it onc docs not discovcr an act ol bing
cvcn morc dclinitc and morc bcautilul than thc onc prcccding it,
until linally onc rcachcs thc divinc Bcing. n thc mystic ourncy
thcrc is a uell corrcsponding to cach act ol bing. Thc catcgorics
ol bcing arc limitcd to scvcn, it is to this that thc numbcr ol thc
Larths and thc Hcavcns alludcs. Thcrclorc, whcn you havc
riscn up through thc scvcn wclls in thc dillcrcnt catcgorics ol
cxistcncc, lo and bcho|d, thc Hcavcn ol thc sovcrcign condition
(ro00o) and its powcr arc rcvcalcd to you. !ts atmosphcrc is a
green ltght whosc grccnncss is that ol a vital light through which
llow wavcs ctcrnally in movcmcnt towards onc anothcr. This
19
V. Vso 5maragdna
grccn c

lor is so i

tcnsc that human spirits arc not strong cnough

to bcar tt,

th
P
ugh :t docs not prcvcnt thcm lrom lalling into mys-
tic lovc w:th :t. And on thc surlacc ol this hcavcn arc to bc sccn
point

morc i

tcnscly reJ than lirc, ruby or cornclian, which ap-

pcar bncd up m groups ol livc. n sccmg thcm, thc mystic cxpcri-
cnccs nostalgia and a burning dcsirc, hc aspircs to unitc with
thcm ( ! B) .
/. 1he 8enses o the 8uprosensoq nor/
We sha|| understand the meaning of these g|owing conste||a-
tions after hearing a description where the theme of the ascent
out of the we|| is repeated from the point of view of the inner
states or events visua|ized in this way. What you visua|izc, ac-
cording to the shaykh's teaching, are the stages of your inner
ascent, that is, the very facts of your inner experience. Now,
what is the content of this experience? lt is the growth of the
man of |ight, the transmutation of his senses into organs of
|ight, into suprasensory senses. Here the physio|ogy of the
man of |ight, invo|ving a who|e doctrine of symbo|ic forms, re-
capitu|ates the itinerariumadvisianemsmaragdinam from another
aspect. ln other words, the co|ors characterizing the co|ored
photisms of visionary apperception signify, to put it brief|y, the
transmutation of the sensory by a transmutation of the senses
into suprasensory senses.
The process is minute|y described by Nam Kobr. lt can be
no more than summarized here. We a|ready know that there is
a strict interconnection between the fee|ing of a mystic state
and visionary apperception, the |atter being the visua|ization of
the former.
But thcrc is a dillcrcncc in that thc visionary appcrccption
prcsupposcs thc opcning ol thc inncr cyc by thc rcmoval ol thc
vcil whi

h darkcncd it, whcrcas thc lccling ol mystic cxpcricncc

(dauq) :s causcd by a transmutation ol thc bcing and ol thc spirit.
Thc mystical cxpcricncc is thc intimatc lccling that an cvcnt is
taking placc within you. This transmutation includcs a transmuta-
tion ol thc lacultics ol scnsory pcrccption. Thc livc scnscs arc
changcd into other aenaea ( 4! ) .
And what i s essentia| here can no doubt be expressed as
fo||ows. an inversion which brings about a suprasensory per-
ception of the sensory, that is, perception of the sensory in the
mundusimagina/is which Sohravardi ca||s the heaven|y Earth of
80
/. 1he 8enses o the 8uprosensoq nor/4
Hrqa|y (the Tern /ucida, in the cosmic north), fami|iar to u| l
visonary mystics such as, for examp|e, lbn 'Arabi, for whom I I
i s the p|ace of transfigurations, the p|ace where the imaginative
power (Imaginatrix) operates to produce scenes in which there
is no tinge of demonic, twi|ight fantasy.
Looking back brief|y, we can see the distance that has beeu
covered a|ong the mystic Way. At the beginning visionary ap-
perception is directed to the figures and images originating in
the sensory wor|d, |ater it direct|y perceives persons, essences
(dawt), and it is then (and the concomitance must be stressed)
that the co|ored photisms come about. More exp|icit|y. the in-
te||ect, |ike a hunter, begins by being on the |ookout for sup-
rasensory rea|ities (the ma'ani, the hidden, esoteric contents)
lt has a twofo|d net for catching them. the imaginative and the
representative facu|ties. The visua| facu|ty is as it were his dog,
his pointer. The imagination c|othes the ma'aniin appropriate
attire, for examp|e, it gives a contemptib|e enemy the form of a
dog, a nob|e and generous enemy the form of a |ion, etc. The
science of the ta'/ir of dreams is founded on this, the in-
terpretation of symbo|s, that is to say of indirect perceptions.
(42)
However, shou|d one say the events direct/ perceived in
Hrqa|y are an/ symbo|s? lf it is more fitting to say nothing
|ess than symbo|s, thereby referring to the qua|ity that causes a
thing to symbo|ize with another, does this not mean to say
that this synchronism a|ready postu|ates precise|y what fo||ows
from the inversion described above? Newsenses perceive direct/
the order of rea|ity corresponding to them. At this stage, in
fact, the inte||ect rea|izes how deceptive are the senses which
previous|y suggested to it that nothing is rea| except what is
physica||y seen, tasted and touched. Now it has discovered
another mode of sensory perception (ibsskbar) ,suprasen-
sory senses (bissgba/ia|| of this precise termino|ogy must be
noted) , and consequent|y an active lmagination, other than the
imagination that is forced to adhere to the data of the physica|
senses. The inte||ect now refuses to be|ieve in the data from the
prcvious way of sensing things. lt is no |onger interested in
hunting, since it perceives direct|y. Henceforth, spiritua|
rea|ities are disp|ayed to it in ca/ars,because the synchronism of
co|ors and inner vision is now estab|ished.
8 l
V. Vso 5mara
g
dna
! n sti|| other words, a decisive event has taken p|ace. the
co|ors are evidence of perfect interna|ization, perfect concor-
dance between the state experienced and the event visualized,
and this is what constitutes the transmutation of the physica|
senses into suprasensory senses or into the senses of the
suprasensory wor|d, into organs of |ight. The perception of
the co|ored photisms coincides with the moment when these
suprasensory senses come into action as the organs of the man
of |ight, of the partic|e of the divine |ight. A|| the ma'ni
return to their source in the heart, everything becomes fixed in
a sing|e co|or, the geen which is the co|or of the vita|ity of the
heart (43). Here again, in the inner Heavens of resp|endent
emera|d green, a star emerges, teddisb ut/e, the co|or that,
accordi ng to N_m Kobr, hera|ds the lnte| |i gence in its
twofo|d form. that of the macrocosm (Insn Ka/it, Hama
maimu) , name|y the Ange|-Logos, the theophany of the lnac-
cessib|e, and that of the microcosm, another name for the na[s
/awwma, which, as we have seen, being the |ight-consciousness
casting off the sbadaw, thus makes the state of pacified sou|
accessib|e to the heart whose vita|ity is proc|aimed by the green
|ight. The visionary coherence of the figures and images is
striking.
. 1he ur|s O Light
And so the event experienced (the ascent from the we||) and
the visua|izations (the co|ored photisms) are synchronic and
mutua||y verify each other, because they take p|ace at the same
time as the opening of the man of |ight, that is, of the organs of
|ight (the suprasensory senses) of his subt|e physio|ogy. Other
photisms described by Nam Kobr now te|| us of his growth,
which wi|| continue unti| the visua|ization of the lnvisib|e
Cuide, the heaven|y Witness, is reached. This growth is
proc|aimed by the vision of orbs of |ight forming the antithesis
to the circ|e of darkness perceived by the mystic in the begin-
ning, when his |ower ego (na[s ammta) was sti|| proecting a
shadow. Each of the senses transmuted into suprasensory
senses, or rather each of the subt|e organs of |ight correspond-
ing to the physica| senses, is hera|ded by a |ight which is proper
to it. Thus there is a |ight of speech, a |ight of hearing, etc.
82
. 1he ur|s O Light
(51). However, these |atter are not yet exp

r
i
enced in the
aspect of the geometrica| figures so
'
haracte
'
tstic of

ome of
Nam Kobr's visua|izatious, such

as
'
. rc
|
es wh:ch mamfest the
face in the fina| stage of the myst:c pt|gnmage. Amongst o
'
her
circ|es, there is the doub|e circ|e of the eyes, two orbs of hght
which appear wherever one turs, to the rig
l
t or t

the |eft.
There is the circ|e of the diviue |ight which ts mamfested as
equidistant from the two eyes. 1here is the circ|e of the vita|
neuma (d'itata/-tub) , etc. , 51)
The doub|e circ|e of the two eyes comes H be seen as of
predominant significance, for, to t
|
e degree
'
hat the ! nn

r
Heavens are purified, it becomes b:gger unti| tt shows the crr-
c|e of the comp|ete face and fina||y the auta of th

who|e per-
son of |ight. The phases of the appearance

f th:s orb of hg
|
t
a||ow us to make various pre|iminary comparsons. ! t passes,
fact, through stages of growth corresponding to th

phases

f
the Moon, starting from the new moon. Because thrs growth ts
simu|taneous|y the passage to the lnner Heavens ( Spirit and
Heaven are one and the same thing, we have been to|d) , the
mystic thus inward|y experiences the
.
twenty-eight |unar st

-
tions which correspond to the twenty-etght |etters of the Arabic
a|phabet, since the |atter, i nterpreted as |etters of the
phi|osophica| a|phabet, are engendered by the heaven of the
Moon ( | I | ) .
.
The doub|e circ|e of the |ight of the eyes (or eyes of hght)
grows as the mystic ourney progresses.
^
||usion
.
was made
above ( IV, 6 in[ine) to the seven categones o
|
bmg, to
'
h

seven heavens which have their counterparts m the mysuc s
inner wor|d. The growth of the orbs of |ight refers to the inner
ascent through seven strata, from each of which proceed t
l
e
|etters of each Heaven and which, according to Semnni (tn-
]ta Vl), are the mtq a, the subt|e organs o
|
th

physio|ogy of th
.
e
man of |ight. Furthermore, whatever their difference
.
s, ther

is
something in common between the circ|es of
.
which Nam
Kobr speaks and every other vision or diagram m the f

m of
a circ|e made known to us from other sources (Ha||a, the
Druses) , ust as there is homo|ogy of function between the
(
atqa
of SemnnI and the cbakta which are the centers of conscious-
ness and the organs of suprasensory perception in Mahayana
Buddhism.
83
V. Vso 5maragdna
When such and such a part of the inner Heaven gradua||y
becomes pure, the co|or of that Sky and its magnitude in re|a-
tion to the preceding Heaven become visib|e to the mystic, unti|
na||y the circ|e coincides with the entire face ( I I 5) ." lt may
even happen, for examp|e, when a state of happiness succeeds
distress, or when fear changes to fami|iarity, or when torpor is
succeeded by ardent desire, that a|| the circ|es of |ight of the
face are manifested at the same time. lt then seems to the mys-
tic that the August face itse|f is revea|ed to him, irradiated by
f|aming circ|es which surround it with hymns of praise. ln-
vo|untari|y he utters. 'C|ory be to me! C|ory be to me! How
sub|ime my state! '~when he finds himse|f who||y immersed
in this |ight. Or e|se, retaining a sense of himse|f, he wi|| utter
in the third person. 'C|ory be to him! C|ory be to him! How
sub|ime is his state! ' ( I I 5). "
v. 1he Heoven/y nitness
And so now we come to the innermost secret of the mystica|
experience, to the decisive event a|ready pre-sensed in the
sp|endors of the emera|d vision. The a|ternation between the
first and the third person, the substitution of the one for the
other, are on|y another way of stating the same paradox~
procreated-procreator, Contemp|ated-Contemp|ator-which
the theme of Perfect Nature had a|ready a||owed us to grasp as
being the supreme expression of individua| spiritua| initiation.
ln this rea|ization of reciprocity a|one can the features of the
August face be f|eeting|y g|impsed. a face of |ight which is
your own face because you are yourse|f a partic|e of lts |ight.
What the mystic, by virtue of his ardent desire, pursues and
experiences is not a co||ective re|ationship shared by a|| a|ike in
respect to a singu|ar obect, i s not a re|ationship identica| for a||
to which everyone has an equa| c|aim in respect to one and the
same obect. No, this re|ationship is unique, individua|, un-
shareab|e, because it is a re|ationship of |ove. lt is not a fi|ia|
re|ationship, but rather a marita/ one. An individua|, unshared
re|ationship of this nature can on|y be manifested, repre-
sented, and expressed by a figure which attest to the rea| pres-
ence of one a|one to one a|one and for one a|one, in a dia|ogue
unus-am/a. The figure of the Heaven|y Witness," of the su-
84
v. 1he Heoven/y nitness
prasensory persona| Cuide, thus guarantees with such ccrt at n|
y
a theophany perceived by |ove a|one, corresponding to a |c
i ng of marita/ re/atiansbi, that i ts most charactet s i .
manifestations-the f|aming of photisms bearing witness to thc
reunion of |ike with |ike-come about at the moment o| U
state of |ove carried to its c|imax. The mystica| experience dc-
scribed by Nam Kobr thus comes to accord with the forms
and experience of ce|estia| |ove in lranian Sufism.
Whcn thc circlc ol thc lacc has bccomc purc jwritcs thc
shaykh] , 'it clluscs lights as a spring pours lorth its watcr, so that
thc mystic has a scnsory pcrccption (i. c. , through tbc su
|
rasc

-
sory scnscs) that thcsc lights arc gushing lorth to irradiatc h:s
lacc. This outpouring takcs placc bctwccn thc two cycs and bc-
twccn thc cycbrows. Finally it sprcads to covcr thc who|c lacc. At
that momcnt, bclorc you, bclorc your lacc, thcrc is anothcr F

cc
also ol light, irradiating lights, whilc bchind its diaphanous vcil a
aun bccomcs visiblc, sccmingly animatcd by a movcmcnt to and
lro. ln rcality this Facc is your own lacc and this sun is thc sun ol
thc Spirit (ahuma ul-rh) that gocs to and lro in your body. Ncxt,
thc wholc ol your pcrson is immcrscd in purity, ana sudd

nly
)
ou
arc gazing at a pcrson ol light (ahukhmtn nr)
^
ho is als

t
'
radi

t-
ing lights. Thc mystic has thc scnsory ol this irradra-
tion ol lights procccding lrom thc wholc ol pcrson. ltcn thc
vcil lal|s and thc total rcality ol thc pcrson is rcvcalcd, and thcn
with thc wholc ol your body you pcrccivc thc w|olc. Th

op

cning
ol thc inncr sight (0uaru, thc visual organ ol l

ght) bcg:

s m thc
cycs, thcn in thc lacc, thcn in thc chcst, thcn m
'
hc cnnr

body
,
This pcrson ol light (ahukha nrcn) bclorc you is callcd in Suli
tcrminology thc suprascnsory GutJe (moouJJum ul-ghu0) . lt is al

o
callcd thc suprascnsory ]eraonul Nuater (ahukh ul-ghu0) , or agam
thc suprascnsory spiritual Sculea (m:dm ul-ghu0) () .
lt has been given many other names, a|| reminiscent of

the
midnight sun, the witness in the vision of Hermes descrbed
by Sohravardi (sura ll, I and l l l , I ) . Nam Kobr refe
'
s to the
Cuide of |ight as the Sun of the heart, the Sun of certamty, the
Sun of faith, the Sun of know|edge, the spiritua| Sun of the
Spirit.

And more exp|icit|y sti|| he says. Know that the mystic
has a Witness (sbbid). He it is who is ca||ed the persona| Mastcr
in the suprasensory wor|d. He carries the mystic up toward the
Heavens, thus it is in the Heavens that he appears (b9).
The persona| Cuide in the suprasensory wor|d is thus ex-
press|y designated as the sbbid. lt is a characteristic term in the
vocabu|ary of those spiritua| seekers who, in Sufism, shou|d
85
V. Vso 5maragdna
right|y b ca||cd thc faithfu| |ovcrs, bccausc of thc divinc
scrvicc thcy rcndcr to bcauty by contcmp|ating it as thc
grcatcst of a|| thcophanics. Whcn N am Kobr rcfcrs morc
prccisc|y to thc Witncss in thc Hcavcns (sbbid[i'/sam) , thc
hcavcn|y Witncss, this cpithct furthcr acccntuatcs thc csscntia|
aspcct of thc sbbid, of thc witncss of contcmp|ation, mcdi-
tatcd simi|ar|y by mystics such as Ruzbchn or Ibn ' ArabI, and
it immcdiatc|y p|accs thc origina| cxprcssion of thc shaykh's
visionary appcrccption in thc contcxt of lranian Sufism, |ast|y,
this dcsignation shou|d makc it impossib|c to distort thc idca of
thc Sbbid by an crroncous psycho|ogica| intcrprctation and
bring it down to thc notion of thc Doub|c as bcing thc sbadaw.
for a faithfu| |ovcr |ikc Ruzbchn of Shrz, cvcry bcauti-
fu| facc is a thcophanic witncss bccausc it is a mirror without
which thc divinc Bcing wou|d rcmain a Deus a/scanditu. lt is
|ikcwisc significant that in Nam Kobr thc Witncss in thc
Hcavcns shou|d bc prc-scnscd in thc aspcct of an outburst of
namc visua|izcd in thc Hcavcns, and accompanicd by a statc of
mtcnsc |ovc. Bctwccn thc hcavcn|y pcrson of thc Cuidc of |ight
and thc obcct-that is to say, thc carth|y pcrson |ovcd with a
cc|cstia| |ovc~thc rc|ationship is an cpiphany, sincc it cvcn
givcs risc to thc symptom visib|c to thc cycs of thc suprascnsory
scnscs of thc prcscncc of thc witncss in thc Hcavcns. Sincc
thc |attcr is visib|c to thc cycs of |ight'' on|y to thc dcgrcc that
thc man of |ight frccs himsc|f from thc crudc orc of darkncss,
thcrc is cvidcncc that cc|cstia| |ovc is thc tcachcr initiating this
|ibcration. This is why thc idca of thc sbbidfinds its p|acc in a
comp|ctc doctrinc of mystica| |ovc, bringing togcthcr thc
carth|y |ovcd onc and thc witncss in thc hcavcns manifcstcd
as thc Cuidc of |ight. Nccd|css to say thc phcnomcna hcrc
again havc to do with thc physio|ogy of thc suprascnsory
scnscs.
Lo

and bchold| jwritcs Nam Kobr] whilc soourning in
gypt, m

a small town o thc banks ol thc Nilc, l lcll passionatcly

m
.
lovc w:th a young g:rl. For many days, l rcmaincd practically
w
!
th

ut lood and without drink, and in this way thc llamc ol lovc
w:thm mc bccamc cxtraordinarily intcnsc. My brcath cxhalcd
llamcs ol lirc. And cach timc l brcathcd out lirc, | o and bhold,
lrom thc hcight ol hcavcn aomeone was also brcathing out lirc
which camc to mcct my own brcath. Thc two shalts ol llamc
blcndcd bctwccn thc Hcavcns and mc. For a long timc l did not
86
v. 1he Heoven/y nitness
know uho it was who was thcrc at thc placc whcrc thc two Ium N
camc togcthcr. But at |ast l undcrstood that it was my utlnr\\ tn
Heoven (B3).
Nothing cou|d i||ustratc bcttcr than this cxpcricnta| vcr-
ification what wc havc bccn givcn to undcrstand by thc thcmc
of thc coming togcthcr of |ikc with |ikc (sura lV, 4) . cvcry
timc a f|amc ariscs from you, bcho|d a f|amc comcs down from
thc hcavcns toward you
Anothcr of Nam Kobr's confcssions suggcsts to us in a
manncr no |css spccific thc conncction constituting cc|cstia|
|ovc, by introducing thc thcmc of thc sararsiritua/is.
dcpartcd" jhc writcs], and bchold, thcrc appcarcd to mc a
Hcavcn that rcscmblcd thc book ol thc Qoran. Four-sidcd ligurcs
wcrc inscribcd thcrcin, outlincd by dottcd lincs. Thc dots lormcd
somc vcrscs lrom thc aro To-ho ( 20. 39-4 l ) . l shcd thcc |ovc
lrom Mc, that thou mightcst bc bclorc my cycs whcn thy sistcr
camc to pass by. " Having undcrstood thcsc vcrscs, bcgan to
rccitc thcm And it camc to mc by inspiration that thcir mcaning
rclatcd to a woman kncw who borc thc namc ol Bono[aho, "
whilc hcr namc in thc suprascnsory rcalm was alo[ln ( l 0).
Do not |ook for thc mcaning of this |ast namc in somc Arabic or
Pcrsian dictionary, on|y Nam Kobr can cxp|ain it to us. Rc-
turning to thc thcmc of thc csotcric Namcs bornc by ccrtain
bcings in thc suprascnsory rca|m (I 76), hc intcrprcts thc
namc in qucstion as signifying thc '`Aycsha of hcr timc. Thc
vcry fact that thc carth|y woman bcars an csotcric namc, that
is to say, has a name in Heaven (a namc in thc suprascnsory
wor|d which is thc wor|d of thc Cuidc and of thc pcrsona| mas-
tcr), indicatcs, in a manncr that is as discrcct as it is c|oqucnt,
what cc|cstia| |ovc csscntia||y imp|ics. thc pcrccption of a bau-
tifu| bcing in hcr hcavcn|y dimcnsion, through scnscs which
havc bccomc organs of |ight, prccisc|y, thc organs of thc pcr-
son of |ight.
And that is why Nam Kobr's doctrinc of |ovc connccts cs-
scntia||y with thc doctrinc of thosc for whom, |ikc Ruzbchn,
human and divinc |ovc arc by no mcans opposcd to onc
anothcr as a di|cmma dcmanding that thc mystic makc a
choicc. Thcy arc two forms of thc samc |ovc, passagcs in onc
and thc samc book which onc must |carn to rcad (with cycs o|
|ight) . To pass from onc to anothcr docs not consist in thc
87
V Vso 5marag
dna
transfer of |ove from one a/ect to another, for Cod is not an
a/ect , Cod is the abso|ute Su/ect. To pass from one form of
|ove to another imp|ies the mtamatbasis a[ tbe su/ect, of the
'biq. This is what the entire doctrine of Ruzbhn' and that of
Nam Kobr are intended to indicate, so that we shou|d not be
surprised if, for the same reason, Nam does not make the
same distinction as do some devotees and pious ascetics be-
tween divine and human |ove. for the metamorphosis of the
subect reso|ves the apparent dissonances in the paradoxes, the
pious b|asphemies, of ecstatics in |ove. lt may be that the
|over, addressing the earth|y beauty, the obect of his |ove, cries
out. You are my Lord. l have no Lord but you! Perhaps those
are b|asphemous words, however, they arise from an emotiona|
state, from an inner compu|sion, which is neither conscious nor
vo|untary. These words are not uttered by the |over, but by the
|iving f|ame of |ove, for the fire of |ove is fed by the be|oved
and the |over can but speak in the inspired |anguage of the
moment. for you, l am |ost to the re|igious and profane
wor|ds, you are my impiety andyou are my faith, you are what
l was yearning for andyou are the end and fu|fi||ment of my
desire, auatemseq(antaan) . "The vehemence of this |yricism
is fina||y appeased in a |ong quotation from Ha|| . l am fi||ed
with wonder abut you and me, that through yourse|f you
make me as nothing to myse|f, that you are so c|ose to me that l
come to think that you are me. ( 8 l )
Sti|| further ( I 0I ) , Nam Kobr quotes another coup|et at-
tributed to Ha||. l am he (or she) whom l |ove, he (or she)
whom l |ove is me. The anonymous lranian commentator on
Rzbehn introduces this same coup|et to accompany the
theme of Mann when he has become the mirror of Cod
(the state of Mann to which the commentator re|ates the
same Qornic verses as those read by Nam Kobr in the con-
ste||ations of the inner Heaven as re|ating to his satatsititua/is ,
because he knew her heaven|y name). The shaykh expresses
this further by saying. lt may be that the |over is entire|y con-
sumed by |ove, then he is himse|f |ove (82). That is exact|y
the doctrine of Ahmad Chaz|I.
I
When the |over has become
the very substance of |ove, there is no |onger any opposition be-
tween subect and obect, between the |over and the b|oved.
That is the metamorphosis of the subect expressed by the
88
! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
Neop|atonic identity of |ove, |over and be|oved, and that lS t hc
divine form of |ove. When Nam Kobr describes the four Uh^
cending degrees of |ove, he is concerned with this metamor-
phosis. To wonder why he makes no distinction betweeu
human |ove and divine |ove wou|d be quite beside the point,
wou|d indicate the fai|ure to perceive the meaning of the con-
comitance experienced in the reunion of the two f|ames be-
tween Heaven and Earth, of the synchronism between the
manifestation of the Witness in Heaven, the suprasensory
Cuide, the Sun of the heart, and the know|edge of the
esoteric name, of the name in Heaven, of the earth|y be-
|oved. lndividua| initiation ends here in this inner reve|ation,
these are the steps proc|aimed by the co|ored photisms, from
the circ|e of darkness and the b|ue |ight of the |ower ego, sti||
given over entire|y to sensory and sensua| perceptions, up to
the visiasmatagdinaof the Throne iridescent in orbs of |ight. ln
this way one can foresee what is common to the profound|y
origina| spiritua|ity of Nam Kobr and that of his great con-
temporaries, Sohravardi, Ruzbehn, lbn 'Arabi.
! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
Among the expressions qua|ifying the heaven|y Cuide in re|a-
tion to the co|ored photisms, there is one, the suprasensory
Sca|es (mizn a/-gba/), that shows more particu|ar|y the
homo|ogy between Nam Kobr's heaven|y Witness and the
other manifestations of the same archetype ana|yzed above
(suta ll) , especia||y the manifestation which exemp|ifies it best
of a||, name|y, the figure of Daen-fravarti in Loroastrian
Mazdeism. furthermore the theme of the sca/es a||ows us to
recognize for certain wbatthe shadow is and wbete the shadow
is, it forces us to accept that three-dimensiona|ity of the inner
wor|d without which, as previous|y indicated, orientation to-
ward the a/e wou|d remain ambiva|ent and ambiguous, or
rather wou|d not in fact guarantee any senseof ditectian.
Nam Kobr stresses this symbo|ic qua|ification severa|
times. The entire question for us is to interpret correct|y what
the sca/es indicate. What in fact happens in the case where it is
said that the suprasensory Cuide shows himse|f, or rather hides
himse|f under b|ackness, darkness? The suprasensory Wit-
89
V. Vso 5maragdna
ness, the suprasensory Cuide, the suprasensory Sca|es. this is
what you are shown when you c|ose your eye|ids. According to
whether what appears to you is |ight or darkness, your witness
(sbbid) is |ight or darkness. Or, to put it more exact|y, in the
|atter case it means that you have no witness, no heaven|y part-
ner. he is not there at a||. This is exact|y why he is ca||ed the
sca/es , because by him the states of the sou| (or your ego) are
weigbedas to their purity or disfigurement."

As a ba|ance, its
ro|e is therefore to indicate whether there is excess or defi-
ciency in the spiritua| state, that is, whether |ight prevai|s over
darkness or vice vetsa (69) . lf it so happens that at the mid-
point of the mystica| ourney, the two circ|es of |ight of the eyes
appear, it is the sign of an exce||ent spiritua| state. lf they re-
main hidden, this concea|ment indicates a |ack, a preponder-
ance of the dark nature. furthermore, they may appear bigger
or sma||er, more frequent|y or |ess. a|| these variations corre-
spond to an excess or a deficit on the sca|es (70) .
The phases corresponding t o the transmutations of the sou|
can be recapitu|ated thus. At the beginning there may be dark-
ness (the man sti|| without |ight, without a witness, without a
fravarti). At the midpoint, two circ|es of |ight, increasing or
diminishing, at the |ast, comp|ete visibi|ity of the person of
|ight.
lt may happcn that this pcrson (thc Witncss) appcars to you
at thc bcginning ol thc mystical ourncy, but thcn you only scc a
black color, a black ligurc. Thcn it disappcars. But thc othcr (that
is, thc pcrson ol thc Witncss rcvcalcd to thc pcrson ol light) will
no longcr lcavc you, or, morc accuratly, you arc that pcrson, lor
it cntcrs into you, it is conoincd to you. l l, at thc bcginning, it
appcarcd to you as black in color, it was bccausc thc vcil ol your
own dark cxistcncc was hiding it. But whcn you makc this dark
cxistcncc disappcar lrom bclorc it, and whcn thc llamc ol thc
Jtkr and ol ardcnt dcsirc havc consumcd this barricr with lirc,
thcn thc purc cwcl is lrccd lrom its orc. Thcn it bccomcs a pcr-
son wholly ol light () .
The text is high|y condensed. lt echoes in a way the theme
of the robe of |ight, of the Sanga[tbeFeat/in the Hcta[Tbamas ,
at |east as the Song is rendered in a symbo|ic recita| in the En-
cyc|opedia of the 'Brethren of the pure heart and by
Nasiroddin Tsi.

' Here, once the garment of darkness has

been burned and consumed, the person of |ight becomes
90
! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
visib|e. There, the garment of wretchedness and d r| hav|ug
been shed at the moment of the return to the orient, IHCmys-
tery of the robe of |ight is exp|ained in terms that overcomc t h
difficu|ty of expressing the unus-am/a . twa, distinct from ou
another, yet but anein simi|ar form. Here a|so there is a dist| uc-
tion. the heaven|y Witness can disappear, be absent, whi|e yoo
remain there, without it. The ce|estia| Witness is a person o|
|ight and is visib|e on|y for and by your person of |ight (|ike cau
be seen on|y by |ike). The disc of darkness, the B|ack figure
sometimes visua|ized by the Spiritua| at the beginning of his
mystica| ourney, is nat the ce|estia| Cuide, the Witness in
Heaven. The b|ackness, or darkness, is precise|y the absence of
the Witness of |ight, the b|ack co|or is not the Witness, but the
sbadaw, not its shadow, but the Ahrimanian shadow (active
negativity) which prevents him from being seen. This shadow is
not he, but you, for it is the shadow proected by your na[s
ammta, the sensua| sou|, your |ower ego. Seeing on|y this
shadow, you cannot see your heaven|y Witness. And if he is not
present to you, how wou|d he see you, how wou|d you be pre-
sent to him? When he is your Witness, it is because you are
present to him, he is the Witness who contemp|ates you, you
are what be contemp|ates. But for that very reason he is simu|-
taneous|y present to you, he is what au contemp|ate. for he
contemp|ates you with the same |ook with which you con-
temp|ate him. Every mystic has attempted to formu|ate this
subt|e reciprocity of ro|es. Here the twofo|d nuance of the
word sbbid, the eye-witness" who attests, and the one who is
present," he|ps to express the dia|ogica| situation.

The Wit-
ness can on|y respond for you in the correspondence of a co-
response. This is why one cannot speak of a sbbid who is not
there, that wou|d b an absent presence. lf he is absent, if
on|y the B|ack figure is there, it is because you are without a
sbbid,without a co-respondent, or persona| Cuide. As a coro|-
|ary, his appearance and degree of visibi|ity are the sca/es
measuring what you tru|y are. |ight or darkness, or sti|| a mix-
ture of the two. Thereby (and this is important for understand-
ing the structure of lranian Sufism) the idea of the sbbid in
Nam Kobr unites, as emphasized above, with the idea of
theophanic witness, a witness of contemp|ation, for the mystica|
faithfu| |overs.
9 l
V. Vso 5maragdna
At that very point, in fact, the sbbid denotes the bing
whose beauty bars witness to the divine beauty, by being the
divine reve|ation itse|f, the theophany par exce||ence. As the
p|ace and form of the theophany, he bears witness to this
bauty to the divine Subect Himse|f, because he is present to
the divine Subect as His witness, it means that God is con-
temp|ating Himse|f in him, is contemp|ating the evidence of
Himse|f. So, when the mystic takes this theophanic witness as
witness to his contemp|ation, the former is the witness a[ divine
Beauty, present ta the divine Beauty contemp|ating itse|f in
him, it is God contemp|ating Himse|f in this contemp|ation of
the mystic directed toward His Witness. ' Na|m Kobr's idea
of a Witness in Heaven and Ruzbhn's idea of a theophanic
witness meet in the same testimony. In both cases the appari-
tiona| form changes according to the state of the contemp|ator.
Either the man has no sbabid. he sees nothing but shadow,
darkness, the B|ack, the form of his |ove is confined to the
sensua| form because of hi s i ncapaci ty to perceive the
theophany. Qust as in our day certain |oud assertions that art
no |onger has to refer to beauty fina||y crush their authors
under the who|e weight of the testimony that they are offering
against themse|ves.) Or e|se the man of |ight, the precious
gem having been freed from its ore, perceives his |ikeness.
the orb of |ight, the f|ames rising to the Heavens of the sou|. As
you |ook upon the sbbid, so does he |ook upon you, and such
you yourse|f are. Your contemp|ation is worth whatever your
bing is worth, your God is the god you deserve, He bears wit-
ness to your being of |ight or to your darkness.
So fina||y we hear again what was a|ready pre-sensed in the
Zoroastrian notion of Daen-fravarti. another dimension of
the sou|, the dimension of a sou| which has a persona| Witness
in Heaven, which is vouched for by this Witness to the extent
that his own being bears witness to him and for him. It wou|d
be impossib|e to rea|ize what this means if one were |imited to
the one-dimensiona| perspective offered by current psycho|-
ogy. The bi-unitary structure, whose symbo|, as we have seen, is
not I + I but I I , is the structure that postu|ates a dimension
of individua/ persona| ttanscendence,and as an idea quite differ-
ent, certain|y, from the idea of a transpersona| evo|ution. An
Initiation that is typica||y individua|, with degrees and a figura-
92
}! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
tion such as we have ust been brought to recognize, is sp ll-
ca||y what opens up this other dimension, it does not re|atc
essentia| individua|ity either to co||ective mediation or to aHy
socia|ized or socia|izab|e re|igious form. A|| depends opoo
whether our a/i/iq ta camrebend, our bermeneutics, has or has
not sufficient dimensions at its disposa|. According|y, a spirito-
a|ity as origina| as that of Nam Kobr, attentive to the percep-
tion of signs of this essentia| individuation in suprasensory co|-
ored photisms, may either orient our search toward a new
horizon or possib|y cripp|e it because of a misinterpretation re-
su|ting in disorientation.
Let us try to construct the diagram suggested to us from the
outset by the threefo|d structure of the sou| (sura IV, 3). On
the |ower p|ane. na[s ammra, the |ower ego, the imperative
scbe, apparent in the disk of shadow, the B|ack figure, the
b|ack c|oud turning to dark b|ue. On the upper p|ane. na[s
matma'anna,the pacified sou|, the green co|or, emera|d sp|en-
dor and orbs of |ight. Between the two. the sou|-consciousness
(na[seawwma)perceived in vision as a great red sun, this is the
inte||ect ('aq/),consciousness proper. In terms of the scas . the
witness in Heaven bcomes manifest to the extent that the
sou|-consciousness, p|aced in the center, empties the pan of
the sca|es containing the |ower sou|, and gives greater weight to
the pan of the pacified sou| which is the beart, that is to say,
the subt|e organ so named by the Sufis. And this is why it was
possib|e, from that point on, to give an unambiguous answer to
a first question. to whom did the shadow, the b|ack co|or
visua|ized at the bginning, be|ong? In other words, cou|d the
heaven|y witness ever have /een darkness? No, this darkness
was the darkness of your own nature, whose opacity was op-
posed to the transparency that conditions the reciproca| pres-
ence of the man of |ight to the guide of |ight and u|timate|y the
penetration of the Image of the Guide into you to the point
where it may be possib|e to say you are he (I I ) . And so it
was your own shadow, your Ib|is or na[s ammra which was
proecting and interposing a vei| that the f|ame of the dbikr
fina||y set on fire and consumed, this was the on|y thing that
was making the sbakb a/-gba/, your partner and heaven|y
counterpart, invisib|e.
But the transmutation that is effected by no means signifies
93
V. Vso 5maragdna
that thc o|d lblis, your lb|is convcrtcd to ls|am has bccomc
your sbakb a/-gba/, your witncss in Hcavcn. Convcrsion of
your lb|is (your na[s ammra) to Is|am is thc canditian anwbicb
thc sbakba!-gba/ can bccomc visib|c, which is not at a|| to say
that Ib|is bccomcs thc witncss in Hcavcn. Such a notion is
untcnab|c bccausc of thc fundamcnta| oricntation, thc po|ar
oricntation ana|yzcd hcrc at thc bginning. cithcr thc sou|-
consciousncss is not frccd from its shadow, thc ps amm ra, but
|oks at it and through it, thus sccing nothing but shadow, it
shadow, or c|sc thc shadow has subsidcd and thc sou| has riscn to
thc dcgrcc of matmaanwand sccs its own dimcnsion of|ight.
lf this is strcsscd to avoid confusion, it is bccausc a qucstion
wi|| incvitab|y arisc. It wou|d bc vcry tcmpting indccd to intcr-
prct thc triadic diagram of thc sou| rcca||cd abovc in tcrms of
consciousncss and thc unconscious and |cavc it at that. How-
cvcr, can thc phcnomcna of shadow and |ight, thc inncr pro-
ccss of which has bcn so minutc|y ana|yzcd by Nam Kobr
and thc Sufis of his schoo|, rca||y bc trans|atcd simp|y by spcak-
ing of consciousncss as thc rcgion of |ight and thc unconscious
as thc rcgion of shadow? Thc sou|-consciousncss (na[s mw-
wm) is p|accd bctwccn thc two. bctwccn thc |owcr sou| and
thc highcr sou|, to which and by which thc witncss in Hcavcn,
thc suprascnsory Cuidc, is madc manifcst. How cou|d onc pos-
sib|y say that thc 'two sou| s bctwccn whi ch thc sou|-
consciousncss is p|accd both bc|ongcd cqua||y to thc samc rc-
gion of sbadaw?Thc first is thc shadow that has to bc ovcrcomc
in ordcr for thc bi-unitary structurc to bc rcstorcd. Is it not
thcn this two-dimcnsiona|ity of thc sou| (a syzygy of |ights)
which itsc|f postu|atcs thc thrcc-dimcnsiona|ity of psycho-
spiritua| spatia|ity? In othcr words. docs not thc tri/og of thc
sou| (sura I V, 3) forcc us to admit at |cast oricntation, distinct
|cvc|s within thc unconscious, in ordcr to dctcrminc its struc-
turc? But how can onc introducc positivc diffcrcntiations into
what is ncgativc and ncgativity? A morc scrious dccision has to
bc madc, namc|y, to acccpt a|| that fo||ows from our diagram, if
wc wish to avoid thc mistakc, a|rcady pointcd out, of confusing
comp|cmcntary c|cmcnts with contradictory c|cmcnts, which
wou|d |cad to intcrprcting thc fravarti, or thc witncss in
Hcavcn, and lb|is-Ahriman as comp|cmcntary manifcstations
of thc samc Shadow.
94
! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
forcsccing thcsc dificu|tics, wc havc avoidcd hcr i w
things in particu|ar. ln thc first p|acc wc havc avoidcd rc|ai | ug
thc idca of thc witncss i n Hcavcn to what i s connotcd by | h
Ccrman tcrm Dae/ganger, prccisc|y bccausc of thc amb| go|ty,
thc shadow, attachcd to this tcrm. ln fact what wc arc spcak| ug
of i s a countcrpart, a cc|cstia|, transccndcnt countcrpart, rathcr
than a doub|c, thc idca of this hcavcn|y partncr is antithct|c
to thc Doub|c whosc ro|c is suggcstcd in a numbcr of fantast|c
ta|cs, and thcrc cou|d bc no qucstion of bringing thcsc antithc-
scs togcthcr to form onc Who|c. And indccd psycho|og|ca|
ana|ysis shows this Doub|c to bc thc manifcstation of thc pcr-
sona| unconscious, hcncc bc|onging to thc functions of thc
|owcr psychc, that is, thc na[s ammra, thc dark cnvc|opc, thc
shadow, cxact|y what thc dbikrhas to dcstroy by firc so that thc
Cuidc of |ight may bccomc visib|c. What prcvcnts thc rcunion
of twin |ights cannot bc onc of its constitutivc c|cmcnts.
ln thc sccond p|acc, in thc fcw phcnomcno|ogica| indica-
tions out|incd hcrc and thcrc, wc havc avoidcd any suggcstion
of a co||cctivc unconscious. Onc noticcs in fact a ccrtain tcn-
dcncy to acccntuatc in this cxprcssion thc adcctivc co||cctivc,
to thc point of giving it thc substantia|ity and virtucs of an hypos-
tasis. in so doing, it is simp|y forgottcn that thc purposc of
psychoana|ysis, as thcrapy for thc sou|, tcnds csscntia||y to fostcr
what it ca||s thc proccss of individuation. for thc samc rcason it
wou|d bc absurd to cxp|ain thc kind of individua| initiation pro-
pcr to Sufism by rc|ating it to somc co||cctivc norm, whcrcas its
who|c purposc is to frcc thc inncr man from such authority. Thc
prcdisposition to somcthing |ikc Sufism can cxist in a mu|titudc
of individua|s, but it is not for that rcason a co||cctivc disposition.
Thc obscssions of thc prcscnt day wi|| cnd by obscuring cvcry
spiritua| or cu|tura| phcnomcnon that docs not fit thcir casc.
As for thc construction of thc diagram, urgcnt|y rcquircd,
as wc forcsaw a |itt|c car|icr, so that our hcrmcncutics might
havc thc rcquisitc dimcnsions, wc shou|d now amp|ify it as fo|-
|ows. an anthropogony in which antithctic forccs (murdcrcr
and victim, for cxamp|c) obcctivc|y rcprcscnt onc divinc
primordia| rca|ity is onc thing, an anthropogony situating man
bctwccn two wor|ds is quitc a diffcrcnt thing. Man according to
lsmac|ian gnosis is an intcrmcdiary-potcntia| angc| or potcn-
tia| dcmon, his comp|ctc cschato|ogica| rca|ity is not thc sum o|
95
V. Vso 5maragdna
these two antithetica| virtua|ities. Man in Ibn ' ArabI's anthro-
pogony is |ikewise intermediate. situated between being and
non-being, between Light and Darkness, at the same time re-
sponsib|e and respondent to both sides, he is responsib|e for
the Darkness to t he extent that he intercepts the Light, but he is
responsib|e |or the Light to the extent that he prevents the
Darkness |rom invading and governing it. '
ln Na[m Kobr, the sou|-consciousness is a|so p|aced be-
tween the two. This being so, we need a diagram superimpos-
ing the p|anes, it is impossib|e to suppose that there cou|d be
one sing|e invisib|e area, inevitab|y and uni|atera||y situated
/e/aw the visib|e area, that is, the area of unconsciousness. A
number of manifestations surpassing and going beyond the
bounds of the conscious activity of the sou| have to be p|aced
not b|ow but a/ave cansciauness. There is a su/cansciauness or
in[racansciauness,corresponding to the |eve| of the na[s ammra,
and there is a suercansciauness or suracansciausness. corre-
sponding to the |eve| of the na[s matma'anna. In the physica|
order, the invisibi|ity of an obect may be due to a |ack of |ight,
it may a|so be due to an excess of |ight, to the dazz|ing effect of
being too c|ose to it. In the suprasensory" order, that of the
suprasensory senses" or physio|ogy of the man of |ight, the
same app|ies. On the one hand invisibi|ity (absence of the
J/m), which is the shadow, the Ahrimanian darkness, the ne-
gation or captivity of the |ight, opposed to this the invisibi|ity
that the discip|es of Nam Kobr ca|| the b|ack |ight," the pre-
origin of a|| that is visib|e, that is to say, of a|| |ight (in[ra,V). for
this very reason, the b|ack |ight is the antithesis of the
Ahrimanian darkness. ln both cases there is something that is
byond the |imits of consciousness. But in the first case the in-
visibi|ity, the absence of |ight, is a fact pertaining to su/can-
sciauness , in the second case, invisibi|ity due to an excess of
bn||iance, to bing too c|ose to the |ight, is a fact pertaining to
suercanciausness or transcanciauness. And the facts of super-
consciousness are individua| facts, individua||y, each sou| has to
overcome, as we|| as its own shadow, the co||ective shadow.
As an exemp|ary fact" among the facts of superconscious-
ness, it is necessary to reca||~though the word is genera||y
misused~the fact referred to by the idea of vacatianwith a|| its
mysterious, imperative, irrationa| and inexorab|e connotations.
96
! 0. 1he 8co/es on the Ange/
The idea of vocation serves perhaps better than any othci Ot
recapitu|ating a|| that is suggested by the idea of the Ang | ,
conveyed to us i n the theme of Dan as g|ory ((o) and
destiny (rvg), in the theme of the Perfect Nature o| IDt
Sohravardian Hermes, and fina||y in the theme of the Witncss
in Heaven, of the Sca|es of the suprasensory wor|d' ' by
Nam Kobr. In such a recapitu|ation, the essentia|, undeniab|e
idea of individua|ity is seen in fact as inseparab|e from ange|o |-
ogy because it provides a basis for the idea of the Ange| ust as
the idea of the Ange| is its own foundation.
On this basis, the idea of individua|ity stands firm in face o|
the attempts to ustify co||ectivization" and nomina|ist con-
cepts. lt saves us from the i||usion of b|ieving that it is enough to
escape from the individua| sphere and, by reaching the socia|
sphere, simu|taneous|y to reach the divine, for it is the reverse
of the mystic's view of the gradations of being as he sca|es the
mountain of Qa to the Emera|d Rock at its summit, and
emerges step by step above and byond the natura| rea|ms-
the vegetab|e wor|d, the anima| wor|d and the human species.
Step by step, a species is revea|ed which does not yet inc|ude
individua|s, then the individua| coexisting with the species that
dominates him, then the individua| coexisting with the species
he dominates. fina||y, from ascent to ascent, the return of the
man of |ight to his origina| p|eroma postu|ates the idea of a
non-specific individua|, of archetypa| individua|ity whose soar-
ing f|ight and power, by assuming a|| the virtua|ities of a
species, itse|f bcomes a unique examp|e. The idea of an indi-
vidua| who is himse|f his species is the idea of the Ange|. '
Leibnitz transposed it into the monadic concept of the sou| and
this is what tru|y makes it possib|e to understand the idea of
vocation as re|ationship with the archetype. Here exact|y this
specificity of an individua|ity being born at the end of a per-
sona| mystica| i ni tiation is made mani fest as a state of
dua|itude," a unu-am/astructure. This bi-unity is not a union
of two contradictory e| ements, Ohrmazdean | i ght and
Ahrimanian darkness, but a union of Ohrmazd and his own
fravarti, of twins of |ight, of the pacified sou|" and its witness
in Heaven," of Hermes and his Perfect Nature, of Phos and his
guide of |ight, consciousness and suercansciauness. And it is
|ight upon |ight."
97
,
1 U^Ib 1l
! . Light nithout Moaer
Essentia||y, what has ust been referred to as superconscious-
ness (si, k/a, in Sufi termino|ogy) cannot be a co||ective
phenomenon. It is a|ways something that opens up at the end
of a strugg|e in which the protagonist is the spiritua| individua|-
ity. One does not pass co||ective|y from the sensory to the su-
prasensory, for this passage is the birth and expansion of the
person of |ight. Without doubt a mystica| fraternity wi|| resu|t
from it, but does not exist before it ( Hermes is a|one as he en-
ters the subterranean chamber fo||owing the instructions of his
Perfect Nature, sun Il , I ) . As we have seen, this gradua| open-
ing is marked by certain theophanic |ights corresponding to
each stage. The correspondence of these |ights, the determina-
tion of their degree of presence by and for their witness" is the
very thing that thematizes the motif of the s//d. ' ' The
'super-individua|ity of the mystic, that is to say, the tran-
scendent dimension of the person, is conditioned by this
syzygic inseparabi|ity. Once the thresho|d has been crossed, the
prspective opns on the peripatetics of a secret history, the
stages of the spiritua| ourney, the peri|s and triumphs of the
prson of |ight, the occu|tations and re-appearances of his
s//d. To fo||ow these to the end in detai| wou|d require a
thorough study of the who|e of Iranian Sufism, whereas we
99
V. hc Black ght
must |imit ourse|ves here to pointing out some further essentia|
features borrowed from three or four of the great masters.
The dimension of superconsciousness is symbo|ica||y hera|ded
by the b|ack |ight, according to Nam Rzi and Mohammed
Lhqi, this constitutes the highest spiritua| stage, according to
semn

i, it marks tie most perilous initiatic step, the stage

immediate|y precedmg the u|timate theophany, which i s
hera|ded by the green |ight. I n any case there are obstac|es of
the highest significance between the visia smatagdina and the
'b|ack Light, due to their contiguity.
The idea of b|ack |ight (Persian nt-esib) is above a||
what ob|iges us to distinguish between two dimensions which
cou|d not be accounted for by a one-dimensiona| or undiffer-
entiatab|e unconscious. To the extent that the mystica| |an-
guage comes to symbo|ize with physica| experience, it seems
that the |atter perfect|y i||ustrates the idea of a po|arity not so
much between consciousness and the unconscious as between a
superconsciousness and a subconsciousness. There is one
darkness which is matter, and there is another darkness which
is an absence of matter. Physicists distinguish between the
//ackness of matter and the //ackness of the stratosphere. On
the one hand there is the /mck/ad,a body that absorbs a|| |ight
without distinction of co|or, this is what is seen" in a dark fur-
nace. When heated it passes from b|ack to red, then to white,
then to white-red. A|| this |ight is |ight absorbed by matter and
re-emitted by it. This is a|so so in the case of the partic|e of
|ight (the man of |ight, om) absorbed in the dark we||
(na[s ammta,suta I I I, 3),which according to Nam Kobr and
Sohravardi, is compe||ed by the fire of the dbikt to |ibrate the
partic|e, to re-emit it. This then is the b|ack figure, the we|| or
dark furnace, it is the |ower darkness, the infraconscious or
subonscious. But there is another |ight, a |ight-without-matter,
which becomes visib|e when re|eased from this a|ready made
matter that had absorbed it. The darkness above is the b|ack-
ness of the stratosphere, of ste||ar space, of the b|ack Sky. I n
mystica| terms, i t corresponds to the |ight of the divine Se|f
i

-itse|f (nt-e dt), the b|ack |ight of the Deus a/scanditus, the
|idd

n Treasure that aspires to revea| itse|f, to create percep-

tio

order to revea| to itse|f the obect of its perception," and
which thus can on|y manifest itse|f by vei|ing itse|f in the obect
I 00
! Light nithout Motter
state. This divine darkness does not refer therefore to the
|ower darkness, that of the b|ack body, the infraconsciousness
(na[s ammta), but to the b|ack Heavens, the b|ack Light in
which the ipseity of the Deu: a/scanditu: is pre-sensed by the
superconsciousness.
We therefore need a metaphysics of Light whose paths wi||
be mapped by the mystic's sititua/ exetience of co|ors, espe-
cia||y, in the present case, the experience of the Iraninn Sufis.
Their visionary apperception of co|ored |ights postu|ates an
idea of uteca/atconsisting of an acta[ /igbt which actua|izes its
own matter, that is, which actua|izes in differentiated stages the
potentia|ity of the hidden Treasure aspiring to revea| itse|f.
More certain and more direct than any other is the reference in
an ear|ier chapter that takes us back to the distinction estab-
|ished in one of the great mystica| Recita|s of A vicenna between
the Darkness at the approaches to the a/e" and the Darkness
reigning at the far West of matter. The |atter is the datkness
whose behavior in regard to |ight is described by physics, these
are the forces of darkness that retain the |ight, obstruct its pas-
sage, the forces of the b|ack obect which absorbs |ight and
which in the orienta| theosophy of Sohravardi is ca||ed by the
characteristic ancient Iranian term of /atzakb (screen, barrier).
On the other hand, the Darkness at the approaches to the
a/e"is the region of the b|ack Light, which exists before a||
the matter that it wi|| itse|f actua|ize in order to be received in it
and, in it, to become visib|e |ight. The antithesis is estab|ished
between the b|ack |ight of the po|e and the darkness of the
materia| b|ack body, and not simp|y between |ight and the
darkness of matter. Between the materia| b|ack body (typified
for examp|e by the na[s ammta) from which the |ight seeks to
escape and the pre-materia| b|ack |ight (that of the divine Ip-
seity) the who|e universe of |ights extends upwards and in their
actua|ity as |ights become co|ors in an autonomous state of |ife
and substantia|ity.
Since their entire effort tends to free them from a matter
which wou|d be foreign to their action and n which they are
sometimes captive (see in[ta VI, I , the meaning of Manichean
painting and its inf|uence on Persian miniatures), they do not
even need to sett|e on the surface of an obect which cou|d be
their prison in order ta/eco|ors. These |ights, made into co|ors
I 0I
V. hc BIack ght
in the very act of becoming |ight, have to be represented as
creating for themse|ves, out of their own |ife and nature, their
form and their space (that sissitudasititua/is , to borrow again
an expression of Henry More's, which is the p|ace of the su-
prasensory perceptions described by Nam Kobr and his disci-
p|es). These pure |ights ( forming, according to Sohravardi,
twofo|d order, |ongitudina| and |atitudina|, Mothers and ar-
chetypes) are, in the acta[/igbt which constitutes them, constitu-
tive of their own theophanic form (mazbat) . The acts of |ight
(photisms, ubtqt)actua|ize their own receptac|es which make
the |ight visib|e. Light without matter means here the |ight
whose act actua|izes its own matter ( again accordi ng to
Sohravardi, materia| bodies are never the sufficient reasons for
the properties which they manifest). l n re|ation to the matter
of the b|ack body, invested with the forces of obscurity,
Ahrimanian darkness, it is no doubt equiva|ent to an immate-
ria|ization. More exact|y it is matter in the su/t/e etheric smte
(mtq) , the act of the |ight, and not antagonistic to |ight, it is the
incandescence of the mundu imagina/is (c/am a/-mitb/), the
wor|d of autonomous figures and forms, the heaven|y Earth of
Hrqa|y which secretes its own |ight. To see things in Hr-
qa|y, as certain Sufi shaykhs say, is to see them in that state
which can on|y be perceived by the suprasensory senses
(suta lV, 7) .This perception is not a passive|y received impres-
sion of a materia| obect, but activity of the subect, that is, con-
ditioned by the physio|ogy of the man of |ight. ln this context
the Cothean doctrine of physio|ogica| co|ors (in[ta VI , 3)
finds its p|ace spontaneous|y.
We sha|| |earn further (ita V, 3) that the b|ack |ight is
that of the divine lpseity as the |ight of reve|ation, which makes
anesee. Precise|y what makes anesee, that is to say, |ight as abso-
|ute su/ect, can in nowise become a visib|e a/ect. lt is in this
sense that the Light of |ights (nt a/-anwt) , that by which a||
visib|e |ights are made visib|e, is both |ight and darkness, that is,
visib|e because it /tings a/aut visian, but in itse|f invisib|e.
Henceforth a|so when speaking of co|or as a mixture of |ight
and darkness, we shou|d not understand it as a mixture with
the Ahrimanian shadow, even if it were on|y the shadow of the
b|ack obect. The seven co|ors emerge on the |eve| of the most
transparent of bodies. This mixture is to b understood as the
I 02
2. 1he Doctrine o Photisms occoring to Nom Pz
re|ation of the act of |ight with the infinite potentia|ity which
aspires to revea| itse|f (l was a hidden treasure, l wanted to be
known), that is, as the epiphanic act in the night of the H/scan-
ditum. But this divine night is the antithesis of the Ahrimanian
darkness, it is the source of the epiphanies of the |ight which
the Ahrimanian darkness |ater seeks to engu|f. The wor|d of
co|ors in the pure state, that is, the orbs of |ight, is the tota|ity of
the acts of this Light which makes them |ights and cannot itse|f
be manifested except by these acts, without ever bing itse|f
visib|e. And a|| these receptac|es, these theophanic forms which
it creates in these very acts which make it manifest are a|ways in
corre|ation with the state of the mystic, i . e. , with the activity of
the partic|e of |ight in man which seeks to rediscover its
|ike. ' Perhaps we can g|impse the corre|ation which requires
us L the one hand to distinguish between the suetcansciaus
and the su/cansciau and on the other hand between the /mck
/igbt and the b|ackness of the /mcka/ect . And this comp|et

s the
summary of atientatian which we have sought to estabhsh m the
present essay-admitted|y in very imperfect terms.
2. 1he Doctrine oPhotisms occoring to Nom Pz
(!27)
Nam Rzi, ' direct discip|e of Nam Kobr, is the a

thor

f a
mystica| treatise in Persian sti|| in current use today m lran
.
ran
Sufism, wherein the chapters particu|ar|y re|ated to our sube
.
ct
dea| with visionary apperceptions (masbbadt) and the unvet|-
ings of the suprasensory (maksba[t) . ' Their /eit
"
tiv mak

s
the distinction btween the theophames or appantmns of dr-
vine |ights which are those of the Lights of Maesty and the
theophanies which are those of the Lights of Beaut,' uaesty
(i. e. rigor, inaccessib|e sub|imity) and Beauty (fascmatron, at-
traction, graciousness) . these are the two great categories of
attributes which refer respective|y to the divine Being as Deus
a/scanditus and as Deus teve/atus , Beauty being the supreme
theophany, divine se|f-reve|ation. '' ln fact they a
'
e insep

ra-
b|e and there is a constant interp|ay between the maccessrb|e
Maesty of Beauty and the fascinating Beauty of inaccessib|e
Maesty. The interp|ay is even such that Nam Kobr,
"
|en
comparing their re|ation to that of the mascuhne and femmme
I 03
V. hc Black gl
t
princip|es, perceives a transference corre >
ponding to a mutua|
exchange of the mascu|ine and feminine .
ttributes (4). And to
suggest that their twofo|dness is necessar
y for the spiritua| in-
dividua|ity to b born, he quotes this say
ing of the Sufi Ab-
Bakr Wsiti. The attribute of Maesty and the attribute of
Beauty interming|e, from their union tbe Spirit is born. The
son is an a||usion to partia| rea|ity, the fther and
mother an
a||usion to tota| rea|ity. ( 65) . Accord
i ng to Na m Rzi,
photisms, pure |ights and co|ored |ights, tefer to the
attributes
of Beauty, the b|ack |ight refers to the
attributes of Maesty.
He out|ines the physio|ogy of the man c
f |ight
concurrent|y
with the theory of the unvei|ings of the stprasensory wor|d.
first of a||, as a genera| ru|e, the caacity to perceive su-
prasensory |ights is proportionate to the degree of
po|ishing,
chief|y the work of the dikt,which brings
the beattto the state
of perfect mirror. I n the bginning these I
ights are
manifested
as ephemera| f|ashes. The more perfect t
he transparency (the
specu|arity) of the mirror, the more th
ey grow, the |onger
they |ast, the more diverse they become, un
ti| they
manifest the
form of heaven|y entities. As a genera| ru|e a|so, the source
where these Lights take shape is the spirit
a| entity of the mys-
tic, his tbniat, the very same, as we havc
seen (suta I l , I ) , in
Sohravardi and the Hermetists under the name of Perfect Na-
ture, the phi|osopher's Ange|. But bes
ides this we have to
take into consideration that every spiritu
a| state, every func-
tion, every fee|ing, every act, has its spiritu
a| entity, its Ange|
which manifests itse|f in the |ight proper to it.
Prophecy
(na/awwat) , Initiation (wam at) , the spirits
of the Initiates (Hw-
li) , the great shaykhs of Sufism, the Qor
n, the profession of
Is|am, the fide|ity of faith (imn) ,


even
every form of dikt,
every form of divine office and worship.
each one of these
rea|ities is expressed in a |ight proper to it.
In the description given by our author
of the suprasensory
phenomena of pure |ight, what we note iu short is the fo||ow-
ing. brief f|ashes and f|ames most ofteu
originate from the
|iturgica| acts (prayer, ritua| ab|ution, etc. ).
A |onger and bright-
er |ight is that from the Qorn or from thc ddt. There may be
visua|ization of the we||-known verse from
the chapter Light
(24. 35). The image of His |ight is that of a Niche
wherein
there is a |amp, the |amp is in a case of
g|ass .
. Here the
I 04
2. 1he Doctrine oPtim occoring to Nom Pz
Niche of |ights manifests a |ight of the prophecy or e|se of the
initiatic qua|ity of the shaykh. Tapers, |amps and |ive embers
manifest the different forms of diktor e|se are an effect of the
|ight of gnosis. A|| the forms of stars which are shown in the
Skies of the heart (smn-e de/) are, as in Nam Kobr, |ights
manifesting the Ange|, i . e. , the esoteric aspect of the astronom-
ica| Sky that is its homo|ogue (/tin-e[a/ak) . According to the
heart's degree of purity, the star may be seen without its Sky or
e|se with its Sky, in the |atter case, the Sky is the subt|e astra|
mass of the heart, whereas the star is the |ight of the Spirit.
The Conste||ated figures manifest the Hnimaecae/estes . Sun and
moon may appear in various positions, each of which has its
meaning. The fu| | moon in the Sky of the heart manifests the
effects of the initiation corresponding to the degree of |unar
initiation (wam at-e qamatia) , the sun manifests the effects of
the so|ar or tota| initiation (w.ka//ia) . Severa| suns together are
a manifestation of the perfect l nitiates (Hw/i-eka//i) . Sun and
moon contemp|ated together are the oint manifestation of the
form of the shaykh and the form of the abso|ute initiator.


Sun, moon and stars may appear as though immersed either in
the sea or in running water or on the contrary in motion|ess
water, sometimes in a we||. A|| the mystics recognize there the
|ights of their spiritua| entity. These \mmersions in a trans-
parent e|ement proc|aim the extreme purity of the heart, the
state of the pacified sou|, which, at the boundary, wi|| a||ow
the rays of the divine Lights to pierce through a|| the vei|s. This
is the meaning of the verse in the suta of the Star. The heart
does not be|ie what it has seen ( 53. I I ), " the mystica| sense
which sanctions the Prophet's visions (My heart has seen mv
Lord in the most bautifu| of forms) and the theophanies
vouchsafed to Abraham and Moses.
Nam Rzi knows it. it may be asked whether a|| these
theophanies take /ace in the inner, esoteric wor|d or rather in
the outer, exoteric wor|d? His answer is that anyone who asks
this kind of question remains far from the rea| situation where
the two wor|ds meet and coincide. ln one case it may be that the
suprasensory perception is awakened and stimu|ated by a sen-
sory perception, between the sensory (bissi) and the suprasen-
sory _ba/i) ,the exoteric (zbit)and the esoteric (/tin) , there is
synchronism and symbo|ism, these are even the foundation
I 05
V. hc Black ght
and criterion of visionary apperception. ln another instance, a
direct perception of the suprasensory by the organ of the heart
may come about without a sensory organ or physica| support
(see suta lV, I , auta and auric perception) . ln either case this
organ of the heart (with the spiritua| energy of the Imaginattix,
effects a transmutation of the sensory so that it is perceived in
Hurqa|y, on the p|ane of the mundus imagina/u, the imagina/
wor|d wherein what is corporea| becomes spirit and what is
spiritua| assumes a bdy (our method is that of a|chemy,said
Nam Kobr) . ' ' This is the meaning derived by spiritua| her-
meneutics from the verse on the Light. Cod is the |ight of the
Heavens and of the Earth (24. 35), for, in rea|ity and in the
true sense, what makes manqest (that is, |ight) and that which u
manqested (mazbat, the theophanic form), what sees and what is
seen are the divine Being himse| When the meaning of Abra-
ham's exc|amation. Tbis is m Latd has been mystica||y under-
stood, then sensory and suprasensory, exoteric and esoteric,
apparent and hidden, wi|| be one and the same thing.
Semnni perceives in another verse of the Qorn (4I . 53)
the very princip|e of the inward movement whereby every
outer datum becomes an event pertaining to the sou|, bringing
iistorica|, physica| time (zamn [qi) back to inner, psychic
trme (nmnan[asi) .This is the fina| end toward which a|| mystic
ways converge, it is the spiritua| abode where the gaze of the
one who contemp|ates the beauty of the Witness of contemp|a-
tion (sbbid) in the mirror of the inner eye, the eye of the heart,
is none other than the gaze of the Witness. l am the mirror of
thy face, through thine own eyes l |ook upon thy counte-
nance. The Contemp|ated is the Contemp|ator and vice
versa, ' ' we have a|ready attempted here to approach the se-
cret of this mystica| reciprocity, a paradox which cannot b bet-
ter expressed than in terms of |ight. Nam Rzi pursues the
attempt to the |imit.
!l thc light riscs in thc Sky ol thc hcart taking thc lorm ol onc
or ol scvcral light-giving moons, thc two cycs arc closcd to this
world and to thc othcr. ll this light riscs and, in thc uttcr|y purc
inncr man attains thc brightncss ol thc sun or ol many suns, thc
mystic is no longcr awarc ol this world nor ol thc othcr, hc sccs
only his own Lord undcr thc vcil ol thc Spirit, thcn his hcart is
nothing but light, his subtlc body is light, his matcrial covcring is
I06
2. 1he Doctrine o Photism occoring to Nom Pz
light, his hcaring, bis sight, his ha

d, his cxtcrior, his intcrior arc

nothing but light, his mouth and hs tonguc also.
The photisms of pure |ight thus described correspond to
the state of the heart which is that of the pacified sou|. The
co|ored photisms which Nam Rzi proceeds to describe rise
step by step from the moment when the spiritua| individua|ity
is triumphant|y freed from the |ower ego (ammtagi) and,

n
reaching the degree of consciousness (/awwmagi) , makes rts
way to the degree of the pacified sou|, the thresho|d of the
beyond (suta lV, 3). Then the mystic enters the first va||ey,
fo||owing an itinerary the successive stages of which are
marked by the visua|ization of co|ored |ights, |eading him to
the seventh va||ey, the va||ey of b|ack |ight. But here we
shou|d note certain features through which the origina|ity of
each of the lranian Sufi masters becomes apparent (paying no
heed to the immutab|e rigidity of a certain tradition put to-
gether in our day in the West) . Whereas Semnni connects
}
he
co|ored |ights to the seven centers or organs of subt|e physio|-
ogy (/atqa) , Nam Rzi re|ates them simp|y to spiritua| states.
He out|ines, however, in connection with the unvei|ings of the
suprasensory, a physio|ogy of the subt|e organs, of which in
his theory there are on|y [ive. What is more, the co|ored
.
hghts
are different|y graded and in a quite different order the
respective works of these two masters.
According to the Nam Rzi the co|ors visua|ized by the su-
prasensory senses are graded in the fo||owing order. at the
first stage, the |ight visua|ized is wbite/igbt ,it is the sign of Is/m.
At the second stage, e//aw/igbt ,this is the sign of the fideht
/
f
faith (imn) . At the third stage, the |ight is datk//ue (ka/d) , tt ts
the sign of bnevo|ence (ibsn). At the fourth stage, ti

|ight is
gteen,this is the sign of tranqui|ity of the sou| (the pacfred so

| ,
matma'anna). Perception of the green |ight thus agree

as to

its
meaning, if not as to its p|ace in the order of successron, wrth
the perception of the green |ight in Nam kobr's treatise (re-
garding Semnni's, see in[ta Vl, I ) . At the frfth stage

azute//ue
/igbt, this is the sign of firm assurance (qn) . At the srxth stage,
ted/igbt , the sign of mystica| gnosis, theosophica| .now|edge
(in Nam Kobr, it is the co|or of the Nau: , or acuve l

te|h-
gence) . At the seventh stage, //ack/igbt (nt-esib) , the srgn of
passio

ate, ecstatic |ove.

I 07
V. hc BIack ght
The first six steps thus correspond to the |ights which Nam
Rzi describes as |ights of the attribute of Beauty, theophanic
|ights which i//uminate. The b|ack |ight" is that of the attribute
of Maesty which sets the mystic's being on fire, it is not con-
temp|ated, it attacks, invades, annihi|ates, then annihi|ates an-
nihi|ation. lt shatters the supreme theurgy" (tamsm-e a'zam) ,
that is, the apparatus of the human organism, this term inci-
denta||y occurs a|so in Sohravardis vocabu|ary. Their conunc-
tion is however essentia| (see Wsiti's text cited above) , thus it is
inaccessib|e Maesty which is revea|ed in a||uring Beauty and
Beauty which is revea|ed Maesty. But this reve|ation presup-
poses a form, a receptab|e (mazbat) to receive it. Nam Rzi af-
firms that there is |ight and darkness wherever you |ook, and
that this is why the Qorn (in reference to |ight and darkness)
speaks not of a creation or created state (kbaqiat), but of a
primordia| estab|ishment ja'/iat,conditioning the very coming
into existence of being). Light and darkness are not things
a|ongside other things, but are categories of things. This pre-
|iminary orientation wi|| then save us from confusing the divine
Night, the abscondity of the Essence which causes |ight to be
revea|ed, and the darkness here be|ow, the demonic darkness
which ho|ds the |ight captive and does not a||ow it to escape.
This darkness is not what makes the |ight manifest, it re|eases it
when forced to do so. But if a|| |ight so re|eased is visib|e as
|ight, if therefore the |ight ca||s for a matter," a receptac|e to
condition this visibi|ity, then the matter in question is not that
of the |ower darkness. Here the importance is fe|t (as we have
been reminded many times) of the wor|d m subt|e matter, mun-
dusimagina/u (c/ama/-mitb/),in the cosmo|ogy professed by a||
our Spiritua| seekers. Subt|e matter" is the esoteric Heavens of
the heart, its astra| mass" and so forth. The suprasensory
phenomena of co|ored |ights are produced by this matter" be-
cause it is the act itse|f of |ight, not the antagonist of |ight. Di-
vine Night (Deu a/scanditu) , as the source and origin of a||
|ight (Deusteve/atus) , is not a compound of the demonic and the
divine. But this divine |ight, once revea|ed, may we|| fa|| into
captivity in Ahrimanian darkness. This drama is admirab|y de-
scribed by the Manichean cosmogony, as an ever-present
drama with inexhaustib|e variants, up to and inc|uding confu-
sion of the socia| with the divine.
I 08
2. 1he Doctrine oPhotisms occoring to N om Pz
As to the theory of the su/t/eatgans according to Nam Rzi,
whi|e differing from SemnnI's theory, it neverthe|ess opens
the way to the |atter. The theory proceeds essentia||
/
from
.
the
tradition (baditb) which states. God has 70,000 ver|s of hght
and of darkness, if he removed them the bri||iance of his face
wou|d burn up a|| that met his |ook." These vei|s are the tota|ity
of a|| the sensory and suprasensory universes (ma/kand ma/akt,
sbabadat and gba/at) . The figure which determines the
number qua/itative/, fo||owing the above tradition, is 70,000.
But there are variants, some traditions mention I 8,000wor|ds,
others 360,000wor|ds. ' Now, a|| these wor|ds are existent in
the inner wor|d of man, in his subt|e or esoteric (nabn /atin)
being, which inc|udes as many eyes" as there are wor|ds,
through these eyes" man perceives resp
"
c
'
ive|y each
.
of th

se
wor|ds, by the |iving experience of the spntua| state m which
each of these wor|ds becomes manifest in him. Thus he pos-
sesses 70,000 eyes", among which are the five outer senses
attached to the bodi|y rea|ities of sensory matter, the five inner
senses, the five energies of organic physio|ogy, but these, one
suspects a|ready, are on|y a sma|| part of the energies of the
who|e man to whom suprasensory senses" are avai|ab|e. And
so the term makba[t, unvei|ings," is never used by Sufis (as
Nam Rzi points out) in reference to obects of a perception
deriving from the three categories of facu|tie
.
s ust enum

ratcd,
but on|y in reference to suprasensory reahues. It thus :mphes
eaisa the idea of unvei|ings of suprasensory t

hings tiat come

about in the case of the sbi/-ekasb[, a term which agam cannot
be better trans|ated than by the word c|airvoyant."
When the c|airvoyant" commits himse|f to the tatqat or
mystica| ourney, fo||owing the ru|es of spiritua| warfare under
the direction of the master of initiation (w/i) and the shaykh,
be passes in succession through a|| these vei|s, a
}
each station
(mqm) an inner eye opens in him correspondmg|y, a

d he
perceives a|| the modes of bing or spiritua| states re|atmg to
that station. This perception is effected by the suprasensory
facu|ties or organs of the subt|e physio|ogy of the c|airvoyant,"
which in each generation are imparted to a sma|| group of hu-
mans. Wbile Semnni enumerates seven subt|e orgaus or /atqa,
Nam Rzi takes them as five on|y. the inte||ect, the heart, the
spirit, the superconsciousness (sitt), and the atcanum or trans-
I 09
V. hc Black ght
consciousness (kba[).Each of these suprasensory facu|ties per-
ceives its own wor|d, this is why we hear of an unvei|ing to the
inte||ect (kasb[-e 'aq/i, the maority of phi|osophers have not
gone beyond that), an unvei|ing to the heart (mak:ba[at-ede/,
visions of the various co|ored |ights) , unvei|ings to the spirit (m.
tbi, assumptions to heaven, visions of ange|s, perception of
past and future in their permanent state) , fina||y, unvei|ing to
the superconsciousness and to the atcanum. There the time
and space of the beyond are revea|ed, what was seen from this
side is seen from the other side. And a|| these organs are in-
termediate in regard to the others, each transmitting to the
next what has been granted and unvei|ed to itse|f, and the next
receives this in the form proper to itse|f, the further the mystic
progresses on the seven steps of the heart by conforming his
being to the mati/us divinis (takba//aq /i-akb/qH//b) , the more
these unvei|ings mu|tip|y for him.
J. B/ock Light in the Pose 6oren o Mystery
(!J! /)
The |ong Persian poem beari ng the tit|e of Co|shan-e Rz (the
Rose Carden of Mystery) , comprising about I 500 coup|ets, is
the work of Mahmud Shabestari. ' ' This work has been read
c|ose|y and continuous|y in lran unti| now, but its extreme con-
ciseness (in it the author answers many questions gathered by
one of his friends concerning the high doctrines of Sufism) has
motivated the writing of any number of commentaries. Among
these the most comp|ete and a|so the most frequent|y studied
in lran unti| today is that of Shamsoddin Lhqi, its scope and
content make it a veritab|e compendium of Sufism. ' '
A feature reported in the biography of Lhqi demonstrates
to what point the doctrine of co|ored photisms, showing the
mystic his degree of progress on the spiritua| way, is ref|ected
in the detai| of his dai|y |ife, it suggests to him in fact that he
can wear garments whose co|ors correspond to those of the
|ights successive|y characterizing his spiritua| state, the experi-
ence is thus trans|ated practica||y into the symbo|s of a persona|
|iturgy, coinciding with the very current of |ife. Qzi Nro||ah
Shoshtar:' ' re|ates that during the time when Shh Esm'i|
( lsmae|)' estab|ished his power in the province of frs (Per-
l l 0
J. B/ck Light in the Pose 6oren o Myste:y
sis) and Shirz, the sovereign wished to visit the shaykh. When
he met him, he asked. Why have you chosen a|ways to wear
b|ack c|othing? ln mourning for the lmm Hosayn, an-
swered the shaykh. But the king remarked, lt has been estab-
|ished that on|y ten days each year shou|d be devoted
.
to
mourning the ho|y lmm. No, rep|ied the shaykh, t(at

s a
human error. ln rea|ity the mourning for the ho|y lmam b a
permanent mourning, it wi|| not end unti| the dawn of the Res-
urrection.
Obvious|y one can hear in this answer testimony to the fer-
vor of a Shi'ite, at the heart of whose meditations remains the
drama of Karba|a, ust as the drama of Christ's Passion is at the
heart of Christian piety. But another intention can a|so be seen
in the wearing of this b|ack c|othing, an intention

corre

pond-
ing precise|y to the practice by certain groups m Suftsm of
wearing c|othing of the same co|or as that
.
of the hgit con-
temp|ated in the mystic station they had attamed. ln thts
.
way a
chromatic harmony is estab|ished between the esoterc and
the exoteric, the hidden and the apparent. Thus in the first
stages, b|ue (ka/w) c|othing was worn. ' ' At the highest stage
b|ack c|othing wou|d have corresponded to the b|ack |ight. ls
this then indeed the meaning which we find in this persona|
practice of LhiI, which so ast

nished
.
Shh
.
Esm'i|? A poem
composed by one of his own dtscip|es m praise of the shaykh,
seems indeed to confirm this. '
ln any case, the pages where Lhqi unfo|ds the theme of
the b|ack |ight in commenting on Mahmud Sh

bestari's poe
.
m
are of capita| importance when it comes to mak

ng a
.
c|ear dts-
tinction between the divine Night and the Ahrmaman Dark-
ness. ' The b|ack |ight is the |ight of the pure Essence in its
ipseity, in its abscondity, the abi|ity to perceive it depends on a
spiritua| state described asreabsorption in Cod qan[//b) ,
the state i n which Semnani perceives the danger of a supreme
ordea| from which, according to him, the mystic rises again on
the thresho|d of a visia smatagdina, the green |ight then being
raised to the rank of the highest |ight of the Mystery. Compara-
tive study of these visions is of exceptiona| interest, it wou|d ca||
for amp|e meditation and can on|y be out|ined here.
Whi|e fo||owing the exact words of the poet, lahri s com-
mentary as it deve|ops affords a g|impse of the precise |ines of
I I l
V. hc Black ght
its deve|opment as a series of steps. Three moments become
distinct, name|y, an effort to approach the idea of the b|ack
|ight from a|| sides, then to describe the superconsciousness it
postu|ates, an unknowingness which, as such, is knowing, |ast|y
this |uminous Night is identified with the state of mystica|
poverty in the true sense, the very sense in which the Sufi is
described as poor in spirit (daib,dervish, suta l l l , 3) .
To encompass the idea of b|ack |ight is a|| the more difficu|t
in that it bursts forth in a twofo|d way. lt irrupts in the presence
of things, it means a particu|ar way of seeing them, which pro-
vides the author with the theme of the /mck Face of beings
(sib-t'i) . And it irrupts in the absence of things, when the
inte||igence, turning away from what is manifested, endeavors
to understand ba is manifested and revea|ed. This is the
theme of pure Essence, of divine lpseity as a/sa/ute Su/ect ,
whose inaccessibi|ity the author suggests by speaking of exces-'
sive proximity and bedazz|ement. This is where the theme of
mystica| poverty brings a dcnouement to a dia|ectica||y inex-
tricab|e situation. the coexistence of the abso|ute Subect and
the individua| subects, of the One and the Many.
As for the first theme, there is no better means of p|acing it
than by referring to Shaykh LhJ[i's own testimony, since on
many occasions he i||ustrates his commentary with facts drawn
from his persona| experience. Here is his account of a vision.
! saw myscll [writcs thc Shaykh] prcscnt in a world ol light.
Mountains and dcscrts wcrc iridcsccnt with lights ol all colors.
rcd, ycllow, whitc, bluc. l was cxpcricncing a consuming nostalgia
lor thcm, l was as though strickcn with madncss and snatchcd out
ol myscll by thc violcncc ol thc intimatc cmotion and lccling ol
thc prcscncc. Suddcnly l saw that thc 0hck ltght was invading thc
cntirc univcrsc. Hcavcn and carth and cvcrything that was thcrc
had wholly bccomc black |ight and, bchold, ! was total|y absorbcd
in this light, losing consciousncss. Thcn l camc back to myscll.
The recita| of this vision at once suggests a comparison with
one of the gveat ecstatic confessions of Mir Dmd, there is
something in common between the b|ack |ight swa||owing up
the universe and MIr Dmd's perception of the great occu|t
c|amor of beings, the si|ent c|amor of their metaphysica| dis-
tress. "' The b|ack |ight revea|s the very secret of being, which
can on|y /e,as m-ta-/e,a|| bings have a twofo|d face, a face of
I I 2
J. B|ck Light in the Pose 6oren o Myste:y
|ight and a b|ack face. The |uminous face, the face of day, is the
on|y one that, without understanding it, the

common
'
u

of
men perceive, the apparent evidence of therr act of exrstmg.
Their b|ack face, the one the mystic perceives, is their poverty.
they have nothing with which to be, they cannot be su
.
ff.cient
unto themse|ves in order to be what they have to be, rt b the
inessenceof their essence. The tota|ity of their being is their day-
|ight face and their night face, their day|ight face is

he mak

in

g
of essence out of their inessence by the abso|ute Subect. Thrs b
the mystica| meaning of the verse in
.
the Qorn. Everything
perishes except His face (28. 88),that rs, except the face of hght
of that thing.
Now what those two faces show the visionary is the twofo|d
dimension of being precise|y ana|yzed in Avicenna's onto|ogy
as the dimension of necessary being and the dimension of con-
tingent" being. ln fact, there is strict|y speaking no 'c
.
o

n-
tingency." There is actua|ized possibi|ity, and every possrbrh
.
ty
to be actua|ized necessari|y exists from the very fact that its
perfect cause, its sufficient reason, is given. lt cou|d not
9
ot be.
However, this dimension of possibi|ity remains |atent m the
heart itse|f of the actua|ized possibi|ity, in the sense that its di-
mension of necessary being, its capacity to be, comes to it from
its connection with the Source from which it emanates, wnereas
its dimension of possibi|ity, that is to say, its metaphysica| indi-
gence, is perceived as soon as it regards itse|f-fictitious|y, t
,
o t
sure, and in a hypothetica| way~as separated from the Prmcr-
p|e whence its necessary being deri
"
es. As one know

s,
.
the en-
tire Avicennan theory of the processron of the cherubrmc lnte|-
|igences, the emanators of the Heavens and of the Earth, is
based on acts of contemp|ation directed to these dimensions
of inte||igibi|ity. The vi sionary irruption of this twofo|d
dimension-positive and negative-is the vision of the b|ack
|ight.
Even from the primordia| origin of the p|eroma, from the
eterna| instant of the arising of the first of the Inte||igences, the
first of the Kerobin, Ange|-Logos, the twofo|d dimension of
every existentia|ized being is a|ready manifest

d. its

face of
|ight and its b|ack face. This is what |ed certam !

aman Av-
icennans' to compare the Avicennan cosmo|ogy wrt| the Z

t-
vnist cosmo|ogy of ancient Iran. No doubt there b a dra-
l l 3
V. hc Black ght
grammatichomo|ogy as regardsthe form but, aswe have a|-
readynotede|sewhere,thiswou|dbcorrecton|yifreferredto
exorcised,"de-satanized"Zetvnism. Fortheb|ackface"that
showsitse|ffromthefirstactofbeingisnotAhrimaniandark-
ness,butthesecretofthecreatura|conditionthathasitsorigin
inthe darkness at the approaches to thea/e," that is, in the
very mystery ofthe setting up ofcreation. The Ahrimanian
darkness is in the extreme Occident," the region of mate-
ria|ized matter. ThatiswhyIhiiandthemysticonwhomhe
iscommentingrepeat,exact|yasAvicennasaidintherecita|of
Hayy ibn Yaqzn, thatinthis darkness at the approachesto
thepo|e"istobefoundtheWaterofLife.To findthiswe||spring
demands the penetration ofthe meaning ofthe twofo|d face
ofthings,and to understandthatisto understandatthesame
time the mystica| i mp|ications of Avicenna' s phi |osophy,
attestedbytheperspectivesitopeneduptoIranianspiritua|s.
Here a|as! is where the impoverished rationa|ism ofmodern
interpretersofAvicennaintheWestrevea|sitsimpotenceand
incurab|e b|indness. As LhJ|i says,onedoes not|earn to find
the Water ofLife in the Darkness simp|y by hearsay and by
readingbooks.
TheAvicennanana|ysisofthetwofo|ddimensionofestab-
|ished beingborefruitunti|thetimeoftherenaissanceofphi-
|osophyin Iraninthesixteenthandseventeenthcenturies. Itis
presentinthe metaphysicsof|ighte|aborated by Sohravardiin
termsofa metaphysicsofessence, aswe||asinthe workofhis
greatinterpreter, Mo||Sadr Shirzi (died I 640) , who gave
the existentia/ version of the orienta|theosophy." I t is tra-
ditiona||yrepeated,fromMo||SadrdowntoShaykhAhmad
Ahs'i,thefounderoftheShaykhiteschoo|inShi'ism,thatthe
actofexistingisthedimensionof|ightofbeings,whereastheir
quiddity is their dimension of darkness. And this cannot be
understoodwithoutgoingbackto the Avicennanorigins. The
metaphysica|indigenceofbeingsana|yzedinAvicennanonto|-
ogyistrans|ated andexperiencedby LhJ|iasa fee|ingofau-
thentic mystica| poverty. By experiencing this, the visionary
contemp|atesthemysteriousb|ackLightthatpermeatestheen-
tireuniverse, itiscertain|ynotthe Ahrimanianinversionand
subversion that transports him in ecstasy, but the Presence
whose suprabeing consists incauing-ta-/e and which for that
I l 4
J. B/ck Light in the Pose 6oren oMysteq
reason can never itse|f be caued-ta-/e, nor seen as being~
forever invisib|e whi|ecau:ingtasee in itspermanentactuation
ofeachactofbing.
That is why there is a profound connection between the
meaningoftheb|ackLightperceivedinthepresenceofthings
when they revea| to the visionary their twofo|d face, and its
meaningasheperceivesitwhenthingsabsentthemse|vesfrom
him andheturnstoward the Princip|e. Thesetwothemesare
so deep|y |inkedtogether that the second appears asthe basis
ofthe first. It is in the second sense that Lhii dec|ares that
b|ackistheco|orofthepuredivineIpseityinItse|f,inthesame
way thatto NamRzI thisco|orapp|ied on|y to the attributes
ofinaccessib|e Maesty, to theDeu a/scanditu. Whenhecom-
ments on this verse oftheRase Gatden a[Mste, "The/mck
co|or, if you fo||ow me, is /igbt of pure Ipseity, within this
DarknessistheWaterofLife" (v. I 23)~whatdoesLhqimean
in this case by speaking of a bedazz|ement and a b|indness
whose cause iscertain|y notextremedistancebuttoo greata
proximity: The eye ofinnervision, thesuprasensorysenses"
themse|ves,aredarkenedthereby.
To understand the shaykh's intentionandhistermino|ogy,
|et us first reca|| the imp|ications ofAvicenna's onto|ogy. the
metaphysica| indigence ofbings, theirinessence, imp|ying that
they wou|d have nothingwithwhich to b ifnecessary Being
didnotcompensatefortheir|ack.Wereferredustnowtothe
existentia|version ofthe Avicenne-Sohravardian metaphysics
inMo||Sadr. Sadrgivesthedeterminantmetaphysica|pre-
cedencetotheactofexisting,nottoquiddityoressence. Itcan
b said that Mo|| Sadr ofShirz, here ase|sewhere, revea|s
his own formation as anAvicennanstrong|y imbued with the
theosophyofSohravardiand with thatofIbn'ArabI. Butwe||
bforehimtherewereSpiritua|sinIranwhohadreadbothAv-
icenna and Ibn 'ArabI. LhqI was one ofthem, and no doubt
he wasab|etogvethe|ietomisinterpretationsinf|ictedinthe
Westonthe thought ofhis two masters, so different, inciden-
ta||y, fromeachother.Thefamousexpressionwabdata/-wad
does not signify an existentia|monism"(ithasnoconnection
either with Hege| or with Haecke|), but refers to the tran-
scendenta| unity ofbing. The act ofbing does not take on
differentmeanings, itremainsunique,whi|emu|tip|yingitse|f
I I 5
V. hc Black ght
in the actua|itiesofthe beings that it causes to be, an uncon-
ditioned Subect which is never itse|fcaused-ta-/e. So this too-
c|osenessspokenofbyIhqi, thebedazz|ementofb|ackLight,
is understood wheneveryactofbeingoreveryact of|ight is
rc|atedtoitsPrincip|e.
Inotherwords, |ightcannot/e seen, precise|ybecauseitis
whatcauesseeing. Wedonotsee |ight,weseeon|yits recepta-
c|es. Thatiswhy |ights visib|e onsuprasensory p|anes necessi-
tate the idea ofute ca/ats, as previous|y out|ined, which are
actua|izedeaisa bytheiractof|ightasreceptac|esthatarethe
matter" ofpure |ight, and not needing to fa|| into a matter
foreign to their actof|ight. This being so, it is impossib|e to
withdraw enough tosee the |ight which is the cause-q-seeing,
since inevery actofseeingitisa|readythere. This is the prox-
imity that the mystic speaks ofwhen heexpresses his amaze-
ment that you bring yourse|fso near to me that I come to
thinkthatyouareme"(suta IV,9).Wecanneithersee|ightwhen
thereisnothingto receive it, norwhere it isswa||owed up. By
tryingtop|aceourse|vesinfrontofthecaue-a[-seeing,whichitse|f
canbutremaininvisib|e,we find ourse|vesinfrontofDarkness
(andthatistheDarknessattheapproachestothepo|e"),forwe
cannottakeasana/ect ofknow|edgeprecise|ywhatenab|esusto
knoweachobect,whatenab|esanaeu toexistassuch.Thatis
whyLahi|Ispeaksofaproximitythatdazz|es.Ontheotherhand,
thedemonicsbadaw isnotthe|ight,itse|finvisib|e,whichcauses
seeing,butistheDarknessthatpreventsseeing,asthedarknessof
the subconscious preventsseeing.Theb|ack|ight,on the other
hand,isthatwhichcannotitse|fbseen,becauseitisthecauseof
seeing,itcannotbeobect,sinceitisabso|uteSubect.Itdazz|es,as
the|ightofsuetcansciausness dazz|es. Therefore itis said inthe
Rase Gatdn a[ Ms. Renounce seeing, for here it is not a
question of seeing." On|y a know|edge which is a theophanic
experiencecanbeknow|edgeofthedivineBeing. Butinre|ation
to the divine Ipseity, this know|edge is a not-knowing, because
know|edgepresupposesasubectandanobect,theseerandthe
seen,whereasdivineIpseity,b|ack|ight,exc|udesthiscorre|ation.
To transmute this unknowingness into know|edge wou|d b to
recognizewbathetruesubectofknow|edgeis,inasupremeactof
metaphysica|renunciation,where LhqI testifies to his senseof
theavetqofthedervishandtothefruitofhisownmeditationon
Ibn'ArabI.
l l
J. B/k Light in the Pose 6oren o Mysteq
Here one wi|| reca|| certain visionary apperceptions of
Nam Kobr. now the red sun stan|ing out on
.
a b|ack back-
ground, now the conste||ations turmng red ag

st the back-
ground ofan emera|d Sky, dazz|ingtohumanvision. we have
|earned from him that this red sunand these reddemng orbs
announce the presence ofthe Ange|-Logos or ofone oi the
ange|ic lnte||igences. Asin Hermes'vision, ange|ophany

isas-
sociated with the symbo| oftne midnight sun," of|um
!
nous
Night, because the first l nte||igence, the Ange|-Log

s, is the
initia| and primordia| theophany oftheDeus a/scandttus . The
profound meaning ofan episode in themi't ofthe Prop|et
thenemerges. The Ange| Gabrie|, as the ange|ofReve|auon
identified by a|| theIsbtqin with the ange| of Know|ed
.
ge,
|eadstheprophetasfarastheLatusa[tbe/imit.Hecannoth
.
i

-
se|fgo further, for he wou|d be consumed by fire. Now, it is
unthinkab|e that his theophanic being shou|d be consumed
andannihi|ated,thatwou|dmeanse|f-destructionofthedivine
rcve|ation. As Lhi|Iexp|ains,theAnge|doesnot havetocross
this[an ['//b, the test of reabsorption into
.
God. |he
theophanicformmustpersistinordertobemetwithagam at
the emergence from the supreme test, the sun becoming red
against a b|ack sky, as in Nam Kobr's vision. The ordea| of
this penetration, comprising an experience ofdeati and an-
nihi|ation is for man a|one toattempt, and marks his hour of
greatestp-ri|. Either hewi||be swa||owedu
P
indementiaorie
wi|| rise again fromit, initiatedinthemeanmgoftheophan

andreve|ations. Thisresurgenceis|atertrans|atedby Semnam

asanexa|tationfromb|ack|ighttogreen|ight. Bypassingthus
through the annihi|ation of annihi|ation, by p

ssi

g to the
Gabrie|ofyourbeing,"therecognitionoftheomdeisauth

en-
ticated ofthewitnessinHeaven,"thereddemngsunagamst
the background ofdivine Darkness. Ior this recognition im-
p|iesrecognitionoftheUnknowab|e,whichistosaymetaphys-
ica|renunciationandmystica|poverty.
ThcpoetoftheRaseGatdenqMste asks.W|

tcommon
measureistherebetweentheTerrestria|andthedivmewor|ds,
thatbeingunab|etofindknow|edgeshou|da|readyo|itse|fbe
know|edge:"(v. l 25) AndLhIIcomments.
Thc pcrlcction ol contingcnt bcing is to rc
k
rcss

| t s |usic
ncgativity, and to comc to know through r ts owo ookoowo
k
ocss

l l 7
V. hc BIack ght
!t mcans to know with thc ccrtainty ol cxpcricncc that thc aum-
mum ol knowlcdgc is unknowingncss, lor hcrc thcrc is inlinitc
disproportion. This mystical station is that ol bcdazzlcmcnt, ol
immcrsion ol thc obcct in thc subcct. !t is thc rcvclation ol thc
non-bcing ol that which has neter 0een, and ol thc pcrcnnity ol
that which has neter not 0een . . . !n rcality, thcrc is no knowlcdgc
ol Cod by onother than Cod, lor onother than Cod ta not. Thc ulti-
matc cnd towards which thc pilgrims ol thc divinc Way procccd,
is to arrivc at thc mystical station whcrc thcy discovcr that thc
actions, attributcs and ipscity ol things arc cllaccd and rcab-
sorbcd in thc thcophanic ray ol light, and whcrc thcy arc eaaen-
cj]teJ by thc vcry lact ol thcir csscntial dcstitution, which is thc
stagc ol absorption in Cod gonallah) , whcrc bcing is rcturncd
to bcing, non-bcing to non-bcing, in conlormity with thc vcrsc ol
thc Book. Cod commands you to rcndcr that which is hcld in
trust to whom it bclongs' ( 4. I ) .
Buttheonetowhomi t be|ongswi||befoundon|yoncondi-
tionthattheseventhva||eyisreached.
Thc scvcnth is thc vallcy ol mystical povcrty and ol [onc.
Altcr that you can go no lurthcr. !t has bccn said that mystical
povcrty is thc wcaring ol black raimcnt'
-
in thc two univcrscs.
This saying cxprcsscs thc lact that thc mystic is so totally absorbcd
in Cod that hc no longcr has any cxistcncc ol his own, ncithcr
inwardly nor outwardly in this world and bcyond, hc rcturns to
his original csscntial povcrty, and that is povcrty in thc truc scnsc.
!t is in this scnsc, whcn thc statc ol povcrty has bccomc total, that
a mystic can say that hc is Cod, lor that mystical station is whcrc
hc givcs divinc !pscity o0aolute mcaning (it is o0aolteJ ol all rcla-
tivation) . . . So long as thc mystic has not rcachcd his own negottt-
tt, which is complctc rcabsorption, hc has not rcachcd thc ]oatttt-
tq ol csscncilication by absolutc bcing, which is supcrcxistcncc
through Cod. To 0e non-0etng by onc's own cllorts is thc vcry samc
as to 0e through Cod. Absolutc non-bcing is manilcstcd only in and
through absolutc bcing. For any othcr than Pcrlcct Man acccss to
this dcgrcc is dillicult, lor Pcrlcct Man is thc most pcrlcct ol bcings
and thc vcry causc ol thc coming into cxistcncc ol thc world.
Thus the metaphysica| indigence ofthebeingis transfigured
intomystica|poverty,abso|ute|iberationfromthisindigence.
Howsha||I findwordstodescribesuchasubt|esituation:
LuminausNigbt,datkMidda ' '(v. I 25), criesthepoetfurtheron
in theRaseGatdna[Mste. Hiscommentatorknows whathe
means. foronewhohasexperiencedthismystica|stateana||u-
sionisenough,whereasanyonee|sewi||beab|etounderstand
on|y to the degree of his proximity to it. And Ihii is fasci-
I I 8
J. B/ck Light in the Pose 6oren o Mysteq
natedby this|uminousNight(sba/-etasban)whichisdark Mid-
day,amystica|auroraborea|isinwhichweourse|vesrecognize
oneofthese symbo|s ofthe north" which fromthebeginning
haveoriented oursearchtoward anOtient not to be found in
theEastofourgeographic maps. ItisindeedNigbt, since itis
//ack|ightandtheabscondityofpureEssence,thenightofun-
knowingness and ofunknowab|eness, and yet/uminaus night,
sinceitisatthesametimethe theophanyofthea/scanditum in
the infinite mu|titude ofits theophanic forms (mazbit) . Mid-
da, midd|eofthe Day, tobe sure, thatis, highnoonofmu|ti-
co|oredsuprasensory|ightwhichthemysticperceivesthrough
his organ of|ight, his innereye, as theophaniesofthe divine
Names,attributesandacts,andyetdatkMidda, sincethemu|-
titude ofthese theophanic forms are a|sothe 70,000 vei|s of
|ight and darkness which hide the pure Essence (see suta
NamRzi's reference to this number). TheNigbt of pure Es-
sence, devoid of co|or and distinction, is inaccessib|e to the
knowing subect as knower, since it precedes a|| his acts of
knowing. The subect thus is rather the organ by which the
Essence knows itse|fas abso|ute Subect. And /uminaus Nigbt
neverthe|ess,sinceit is whatcausesthesubecttobeby making
itse|fvisib|etohim, whatcaues himtaseebycausing himta /e.
Datk Midd of theophanic forms, certain|y, because |eft to
themse|ves they wou|d be darkness and non-being, and be-
cause in their very manifestation, they show themse|ves as
hidden! "
Butit i s impossib|e to divu|ge the secrets oftheophanies
andofdivineapparitions,thatistosay,thesecretsofthesbbid.
One who does so incurs on|y vio|ent reproaches and denia|s.
About the formsin which the traces oftheophaniesarepre-
sent,' ' certain|y I wou|d have much to say, but to besi|entis
preferab|e (v. I 29). TheRase Gatden a[ Mste thuscomes to
anend. A||Sufivisionariesagreewithhim, forheisa||udingto
the hypostasis ofthe divine Lights, whose co|ors, forms, and
figures specifica||y correspond to the spiritua| stateand voca-
tion of the mystic. This, therefore, is the very secret of the
sbbid, the Witness ofcontemp|ation, the witnessin Heaven,"
without which the Godhead wou|d remain in the state of
abscondityorabstraction, andtherewou|dbeno possibi|ityof
thatuatiq whichisthe |inkbetween |overandbe|oved,a |ink
I I 9
. hc Black ght
whichis

individua|andunshareab|e,andtowhicheverymystic
soui

sp
'
res. G

has no |ike (mitb/), but He has an Image, a

typrfrcatron (mitba/), dec|ares Iahi|I. This is the secret of the
Prophet'svisiontire|ess|ymeditated upon by so many Sufis. I
haveseen

my God

inth

mostbeautifu|offorms, "
t

s
attesting
that the drvme Bemg, wrthout form or moda|ity, is present to
tie ey

ofthe heart in a particu|ar form, moda|ity, and indi-

vrduat

on. rorafter
.
the experience ofthe reabsorption ofa||
theeprphamcformsmtheb|ack|ight"ofpureEssence,comes
theresurgencef

o
"
thedangerofdementia,frommetaphysi-
ca| and mora| mhrhsm, and from co||ective imprisonment in
ready

made forms, the mystic, having understood what it is

thatassurestheperennityofthedeterminationofapparition
_
|
forms,ofany givendistinctepiphanicform.Thisistheauthen-
ticrecognitionofthefigureoftheheaven|yWitness,thesbbid,
whose recurrences we have studied under many and various
names(suta, I I and I V, 9). And thatiswhy, in SemnnI, itis
by

nd the b|ack |ight, the crossing ofwhich he regards as

pen|ous m the extreme, that the visia smatagdina begins to
open.
I 20
1
11 b1N1 VL11b
L1 YL1V U11l
! . A|ooo|eh 8emnn ( ! JJ)
Hisisoneofthegreatestnamesin Iranian Sufism. Thanksto
his doctrine, the connection fina||y becomes c|ear between
visionaryapperceptions, graduatedaccordingto theirco|ora-
tion, and the physio|ogy of the man of |ight," that is, the
physio|ogyofthesubt|eorganswhosegrowthisnothingother
than the ontogenesis of the resurrection body." It is the
spiritua|hermeneuticsoftheho|yBookwhichgiveitstructure.
the spiritua| exegesis of the revea|ed text coincides with the
exadu ofthe manof|ight making hiswaystepbystep inward
toward thea/e, the p|ace of his origin. In other words, the
structure oftheseven esoteric meanings ofthe Qornexact|y
corresponds to the structure of a mystica| anthropo|ogy or
physio|ogy connectingseven subt|e organs or centers (/atqa) ,
eachofwhichistypifiedbyoneofthesevengreatprophets.
Having a|ready dea|t at some |ength e|sewhere with this
doctrineofSemnnI,wesha|| |imitourse|veshere to pointing
outitsessentia|features. ' Wesha||reca||on|ythattheshaykh
be|onged to a nob|e fami|y ofSemnn (a city sti|| f|ourishing
today, situated some 200 ki|ometers to the east of Teheran).
Bornin659/ l 26l , heenteredtheserviceofArgun,theMongo|
ru|er ofIran, as a page, at the age of fifteen, when he was
twenty-four, whi|e camping with Argun's army in front of
l 2 l
. hc 5cvcn Ir|hc|s ol Your Bcng
Qazwin, he underwent a profound spiritua| crisis, asked tobe
re|ievedofhisduties,and thereafter gave himse|fup onceand
fora||to Sufism. HehadhisKhnqh atSemnnitse|f,wherea
throngofdiscip|es came to him and where his memoryissti||
a|ive today, his sanctuary, a beautifu| Mongo| monument of
de|icateconstruction,wassti||extantunti|quiterecent|y.
ThattheQorn hasa spiritua| meaning, or rather severa|
spiritua| meanings, thateverythingexoterichasanesotericas-
pect, and thatthe mode ofbeingofthetrue be|ieverdepends
on his know|edge ofthese spiritua|meanings, was a|ready af-
firmed from theear|iestdaysof Is|am, itexpressesan essentia|
aspect ofSh'ism, from which Immo|ogy isinseparab|e, this
affirmation a|waysprovoked the disapprova|ofthe orthodox
Sunnite |itera|ists. It is founded amongst other things on the
hadith, orreported sayingofthe Prophet himse|f. the Qorn
hasanexotericandanesotericmeaningjan outerappearance,
a|itera|sense,andaninnerdepth,ahiddenorspiritua|sense}.
Initsturn,thisesotericmeaningitse|fhasanesotericmeaning
jthisdepth has adepth,in theimageoftheheaven|ySpheres
enfo|ded the one within the other], and so forth, up to the
sevenesotericmeaningsjsevendepthsofdepth] . "
Thefoundation andpractice ofthese spiritua| or esoteric
hermeneuticsareinfactboundupwithametaphysicsof|ight,
whose principa| source is thelshtaq ofSohravardI,and which
operatessimi|ar|yin thecaseofthe Ishrqiyun,theSufis,and
the Ismae|ians. In Semnni, the physio|ogy ofthe organs of
|ight, the mystica| anthropo|ogy, further accentuates the con-
nection. This phenomenon has its counterpart in Latin
Scho|asticism,whereinterestintreatisesonoptics,thetreatises
Deetsectiva, was fostered by the wish to a||y the science of
|ighttotheo|ogy,ust asitisa||ied here toQornichermeneu-
tics. The imp|ication ofthe |aws ofopticsin the study ofthe
scripturesinspired, forexamp|e,theexegesisofBartho|omew
ofBo|ogna. Whi|e in optics seven other modes ofparticipa-
tion ofbodies in |ight are known, Bartho|omew finds seven
corresponding modes of participation of the ange|ic and
human inte||ects in the divine |ight. "' Asin Pa|acios had a|-
readynotedtheessentia|affinitybetweenthehermeneuticsof
theIs|amicEsoteristsandthatofRogerBacon. Inneithercase
is there anythingin the |east arbitrary in their procedure, a||
I 22
! . A |ooo|eh 8 emnn ( !J J )
they do, inshort,isto app|y the |awsofopticsand perspective
k ' ' L k
` `
to thespiritua|interpretationoftheho|yboo s. i ewrse,it
isthe app|icationofthe|awsofperspectivethatmak

sitpossi-
b|e to produce diagrams ofthe spiritua| wor|d (as wrth the ls-
mae|ians or intheschoo|ofIbn'ArabI) . Anovera|| compara-
tiveresearch wou|d, ofcourse, haveto inc|ude heretheproce-
dures emp|oyed in the bib|ica| interpretations of Protestant
theosophists,suchasthoseoftheschoo|of )acobBoehme.
Unfortunate|y, what Semnni was ab|e successfu||y to
achieve is on|y partia||yexpressed inwriting. HisTa[sit,' in-
troducedbya|ongpro|ogueinwhichheexpoundshismethod,
actua||yon|ybeginsfromsta^I . Theauthor'sintentionwasto
continuethe unfinishedTa[sit ofNamoddIn RzI. Hehimse|f
foresaw c|ear|ywhata co|ossa| undertakingitwou|dbe toac-
comp|ishtheproect-acomp|etespiritua|
.
interptetationorthe
sevenesotericmeaningsoftheQorn. Hisreaderapprecrates
themagnitudeofthetaskwhi|eobservinghowtheauthort

kes
care to bring out the seven meanings step by step, not m a
theoretica|way,buta|waysconcernedtore|atethemtospiritua|
experience,thatis,toauthenticateeachmeaningbyre|atingitto
thetypeanddegreeofspiritua|experiencewhichcorresponds
to a |eve| ofthis or that depth (or height) . This degree itse|f
referstothesubt|eorganwhichisitsp|ace,"ustasitdoestothe
co|or ofthe |ight that hera|ds it, and is the evidence that the
hasarrivedatthisdegreeofvisionaryapperception.
.
The|awofcorrespondencesthatgovernsthesehermeneutrcs,
and whichis noneotherthanthe|awgoverninga||spiritua|in-
terpretation, canbestatedasfo||ows. thereisho

o|ogybetween
theeventstakingp|aceintheouterwor|dandthemnereventsof
the sou|, there is homo|ogybtween what SemnnIca||szaman
a[aqi, the time of horizons" or horizonta| time," name|y, the
physica| time of historica| computation governed by
the movement of the visib|e stars, and the zamn an[osi, or
psychic time, the time of the wor|d of the sou| , of the
o/e governing the inner Heavens. This is exact|y why each
outer factcan be |ed back" (the |itera| meaningofthe word
ta'wi/, used technica||y to describe spiritua| exegesis) to the
inner region" corresponding to it. That region isone of
.
the
series ofsubt|eorgansofmystica| physio|ogy, each ofwhich,
duetothehomo|ogyoftimes,isthetypificationofaprophetin
I 23
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hc|s ol Your Bcng
the human microcosm, whose image and ro|e it assumes. Fi-
na||y, each ofthese regions ororgans is marked by a co|ored
|ight which the mystic isab|e to visua|ize ina state ofcontem-
p|ation and to which hehasto |earn to b attentive because it
informshimastohisownspiritua|state.
The first ofthese subt|e organs (enve|opes or centers) is
ca||ed the subt|ebodi|yorgan (/atqa qa/a/ia; qa/a/, |it. the
mo|d"). Un|ike the physica|humanbody, it isconstituted by
direct inf|uxemanatingfromthe Sphereofspheres,the Sou|
ofthewor|d,withoutpassingthroughtheotherSpheres,orof
the p|anets or ofthe E|ements. Itcannotbegin to be formed
unti| after the comp|etion of the physica| body. having the
form ofa body, but inthe subt|e state, itis, soto say, theem-
bryonicmo|dofthenewbody,theacquired"subt|ebodyjism
maktasa/) . This is why in mystica| physio|ogy it is symbo|ica||y
ca||edtheHdama[aut/eing.
The second organ ison the |eve|correspondingtothesou|
(/atqa na[sia) , not the one which is the seat ofspiritua| pro-
cesses, but ofthe vita|, organic processes, theanima sensi/i/i,
vita/is , and which consequent|y is the center of uncontro||ed
desiresandevi|passions,as such,itisca||edna[s ammta inthe
Qorn,anditsro|ewasdescribedtousinNamKobr'stri|ogy
(suta I V, 3) . Thismeansthatthe|eve|towhichitcorresponds
on the subt|e p|ane is the testing ground for the spiritua|
seeker, inconfrontinghis|owerse|f,heisinthesamesituation
as Noah facingthe hosti|ity ofhis peop|e. When he hasover-
comeit,thissubt|eorganisca||edtheN aaba[aut/eing.
The third subt|e organ isthat ofthe heart (/atqaqa//ia) in
whichthe embryo ofmystica| progeny is formed,asa pear| is
formed in a she||. This pear| or offspring is none other than
thesubt|eorganwhichwi||be theTrueEgo,therea|,persona|
individua|ity (/atqa an'ia) . The a||usion to this spiritua| Ego,
who wi|| be the chi|d conceived in the mystic's heart, im-
mediate|y makes it c|ear to us why this subt|e center ofthe
heartistheH/tabama[aut/eing.
Thefourthsubt|e organisre|atedto thecenter technica||y
designated by the term sitt (/atqa sittia) , the secret" or
thresho|d ofsuperconsciousness. Itis the p|ace and organ of
intimate conversation, secret communication, confidentia|
psa|m"(mant) .itistheMasesa[aut/eing.
I 24
! . A|ooo|eh 8emnn| ( |6)
The fifth subt|e organ is the Spirit (tub, /atqa tubia) , be-
cause ofitsnob|erank, itisrightfu||ythedivineviceregent.itis
theDavida[aut/eing.
The sixth subt|e organ is re|ated to the center best de-
scribed by the Latin term atcanum (kba[i, /atqa kba[ia) . He|p
andinspiration fromtheHo|yGhostarereceivedbymeansof
thisorgan, in the hierarchy ofspiritua| states it is the sign of
accesstothestateofna/i, prophet. Itistheesusa[aut/eing, it
is he who proc|aims the Name to a|| the other subt|e centers
andtothepeop|e"inthesefacu|ties,becauseheistheirHead
and the Nameheproc|aimsisthesea|ofyourbeing,ustasin
theQorn( 3. 6) it is said that)esus, as the prophetbefore the
|astofthe prophetsofourcyc|e,wasthe hera|doftbe mstta-
bet,i. e. , oftheadventofthePrac|ete. '
The seventh and |ast subt|e organ is re|ated to the divine
centerofyourbeing, to theeterna|sea|ofyour person(/atqa
baqqia) . It is the Mab
_
mmad a[aut /eing. This subt|e divine
center concea|s the rare Mohammadan pear|," thatis to say,
thesubt|eorganwhichistheTrueEgo,andwhoseembryobe-
ginstobeformedinthesubt|ecenteroftheheart,theH/tabam
a[aut/eing. EverypassageintheQornwhichdefines the re-
|ationshipofMohammad with Abrahamthenoffers usan ad-
mirab|e examp|e ofthe inward movementactua|ized by Sem-
nni's hermeneutics, the transition from horizonta| time" to
the timeofthe sou|. " Itendsbyactua|izing,in the person of
the human microcosm, the truth ofthe meaning according to
which the re|igionofMohammadoriginates in the re|igion of
Abraham, forAbrahamwas neither)ew nor Christian, but a
pure be|iever(banq) , aMas/em ( 3. 60) ,"whichisto say that the
Abraham ofyour being" is |ed through the subt|e centers of
higher consciousness and ofthe atcanum (the Moses and the
)esus of your being) unti| he reaches your true Ego, his
spiritua|progeny.
Thus thegrowthofthe subt|eorganism,thephysio|ogyof
the man of|ight, progresses through the seven/atqa, each of
whichisoneoftheseventabetsqaut/eing. thecyc|eofbirth
and initiatic growth is homo|ogous to the cyc|e of prophecy.
Themysticisawareofthisgrowththanksto theapperception
ofco|ored |ights which characterize each ofthe suprasensory
organsorcenters,totheobservationofwhichSemnnIgaveso
l 25
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
much attention. These|igbtsare t be ieouous vei|s enve|oping
each of the /atqa, their co|oriog revea|s to the mystic which
stageofhisgrowthorourneyhehasreachedThestageofthe
subt|e
.
bodyatthe|eve|ofitsbirth,sti||veryc|osetothephysica|
orgamsm (thc Adam of your beiog") , is simp|y darkness, a
//ackness someti

es turning to smoke-grey, the stage of the

vrta|sou|(Noah)b //ue inco|or,thatoftheheart(Abraham) is
red, that of the superconscious (Moses) is wbite , that of the
Spirit (David) is,e//aw, thatofthe arcanum _esus) is/uminaus
//ack(asw

d., , th
.
isistheb|ack|ight,"the|uminousNight
aboutwhrchweweremformed byNamRzIaswe||as bythe
Rasec

+ o[M,ste and itscommentator,|ast|ythestage of

the divme center (Mohammad) is bri||iantgreen (the sp|endor
of the Emera|d Rock, suta I I I , l and IV, 6) for the co|or
green i
.
s the most appropriate to the secret ofthe mystery of
Mystenes(orthesuprasensoryunitinga||thesuprasensories) . "
We immediate|y notice three things. firstofa|| thattheco|-
ored |ig|ts, in
.
Semnnis account, differ in two ways from the
account m Na[m Rzi's treatise (sum V, 2). theirorderofse-
quenceisdiff

rentand
.
theirtermofreference. Unfortunate|y,
we cannot go mto detar| here. Second, an exp|icitdistinction is
maoe between the darkness ofthe//ack tbing (the b|ack obect
whrch

bsorbstheco|ors,ho|dsthesparkof|ight"captive)and
the/umina
"
s//ack, i.e., theb|ack|ight,|uminous Night,darkMid-
day,onwhrchaswehaveseen,Lhi|idwe||sat|engthinhisCom-
mentaryonShabestarisRoseGatden. Somewherebtweenthetwo
weg|impsedthesituationofthewor|dofco|orsinthepurestate
(suaV,l ) . Last|y,un|iketheauthorsustreca||ed,Semnnihasit
thatthcfina|

ystica|stationismarked, notby/mck/igbt butby

greenhght.Thrscor
'
e

pondsnod
.
oubttoadifferenceintheway
eachofthesedepthsb mner|yattamed,atiented.
The ru|e app|ying to this movement inward, the turning
awayfromthewor|dofhorizons"towardthewor|dofsou|s"
ispointedoutbySemnniasc|ear|yasonecou|dwish.
Lach timc you hcar in thc Book words addrcsscd to Adam
listcn to th
.
cm th

ough thc organ ol thc subtlc body . . . . Mcditat-

on th

t w:th wh:ch thcy symbolizc, and bc vcry surc that thc

csotcnc aspcct ol thc passagc rclatcs to ou, ust as thc cxotcric
aspcct
.
rclatcs to Adam in that it conccrns thc hon:on . . . . nly
thcn will you bc ablc to apply thc tcaching ol thc divinc Word to
I 26

]
. A|ooo|eh 8emnn ( | 6)
yourscll and to cull it as you would a branch |adcn with |tcshly
opcncd llowcrs.
Andhecontinuesinthesamestrain, fromprophettoprophet.
The app|ication ofthis ru|e governing the movement in-
wardwi||itse|fshowuswhyandhow,fromthepointofviewof
the Is|amic Sufi Semnni, to pass through the //ack /igbt
typifiedby the )esus ofyour being" is the sign ofa decisive,
nottosaydramaticstep,butisnottheu|timatestageofgrowth.
The comp|ete fu|fi||mentofpersona| initiationcomesto pass
on|y when there is access to the seventh mtqa, the one en-
ve|opedinthemostbeautifu|co|orofa||"mera|dsp|endor.
In fact,Semnniviewsthe|eve|ofthesubt|eorgantypifiedas
the'jesusofyourbeing"asbcingexact|ytheperi|ousdistract-
ing stage whereat Christians in genera| and certain Sufis in
Is|am have been mis|ed. Itis worth our whi|e to |isten atten-
tive|ytothiseva|uationofChristianityasformu|atedbyaSufi,
foritdiffersprofound|yfromthepo|emicsutteredbytheoffi-
ca| heresy-huntingapo|ogists who denyva|idity to a|| mystica|
fee|ing.Semnni'scritiqueismadeinthenameofspiritua|ex-
perience, everything takes p|ace as though this Sufi Master's
aimweretoperfecttheChristianta'wi/,thatis,to|eaditback,"
toopenthewayat|asttoitsu|timatetruth.
Byastrikingcomparison,Semnniestab|ishesaconnection
betweenthetrapintowhichtheChristiandogmaoftheI ncar-
nationfa||sby proc|aimingthebamaauia andbyafIirmingthat
's ibn Maryam isGod, and the mystica| intoxication inwhich
suchasHa||cryout. I amGod"(Hn'/-Haqq) . Thesedangers
are symmetrica|. On the one hand the Sufi, on experiencing
the[a'//b, mistakesitfortheactua|andmateria|reabsorp-
tionofhumanrea|ityinthe godhead, ontheother, theChris-
tianseesa anofGodintohuman rea|ity.' ThisiswhySem-
nniperceives on the one side and the other the same immi-
nentthreatofanirregu|arityinthedeve|opmentofconscious-
ness.TheSufiwou|dneedanexperiencedshaykhtohe|phim
avoidtheabyssandto|eadhimtothedegreethatisintruththe
divinecenterofhisbeing,the/atqa baqqia,wherehis higher,
spiritua| Ego opens. Ifnot, the spiritua| energy beingwho||y
concentratedonthisopening,itcanhappenthatthe|owerego
is |eft a prey to extravagant thoughts and de|iri um. The
l 27
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hc|s ol Your Bcng
sca|es" (suta IV, I 0) are then comp|ete|y unba|anced, in a
fata| moment of |ooking back, the newborn higher Ego suc-
cumbstowhathadbeenovercomeandperishesinthemoment
oftriumph. Andthisisust astrue inthemora|domainas in
respecttothemetaphysica|perceptionofthedivineandofbe-
ing. It is a premature rupture of the process of growth, a
fai|ed initiation. " One cou|d say that the morta| danger de-
scribedbySemnnionbothsidesistheverysamesituationwith
which the West came face to face when Nietzsche cried out.
Godisdead."
Thisthenistheperi|whichconfrontstheSpiritua|seekerin
the mystica| station ofthe //ack /igbt or /uminaus datkness. To
sumupbrief|y Semnni'sconc|usion(Cammenta: tasta I I2) ,
one cou|d put i t as fo||ows. i fboth Sufi and Christian are
menacedbythesamedanger, itisbecause thereisareve|ation
and an opening up ofthe Ego corresponding to each ofthe
/atqa.Thedangerinthiscasecorrespondstothemomentwhen
the Egomakesits appearance (taa//i) on the |eve| ofthe at-
canum (whoseco|orisb|ack|ightandwhoseprophetis)esus) .l f
in the course ofspiritua| growth intoxication" has not been
comp|ete|ye|iminated,thatis,thesubconsciousa||urementsof
the|eve|ofthetwofirst/atqa,thena|owermodeofperception
continues to function and Abraham's ourney may remain
foreverunfinished.Thisiswhythemysteryofthetheophany,
the manifestationofthe Ho|y Ghostinthevisib|e formofthe
Ange| Gabrie| appearing in Maryam, his breathing into"
Maryambywhich)esusismadeRbH//ab (SititusDei)~aIIof
this-wasnotperceivedbytheChristiansintheirdogmaofthe
l ncarnation on the |eve| oftheatcanum (/atqa kba[ia) . They
sawitonthe|eve|ofdatabe|ongingsti||tothe|eve|ofthefirst
twomtqa. Their dogma wou|d have the birth ofthe one God
take p|ace materia||y on earth, " whereas the )esus ofyour
being''isthemysteryofthespiritua|birth.i. e. , oftheassump-
tion to Heaven. They saw the eventin thezamn [qi, not in
thezamn as, that is, onthesuprasensory p|anewhere the
rea|eventtakesp|acewhich istheadventofthe Sou| into the
wor|doftheSou|.TheSufi|ikewise,onthesame|eve|,deviates
from the metaphysica| poverty, mystica| nakedness, which as
we have seen (suta V, 3), is the secret ofthe b|ack |ight. He
shoutsHna'/-Haqq (I am God) instead of saying, as Ibn 'Arabi
I 28
} ! . A/ooo/eh 8emnn ( |6)
remindshim,Hnsitta/-Haqq. Iam God'ssecret, thesecret,
thatis, whichconditionsthepo|arityofthe twofaces, the face
of|ightand thefaceofdarkness,becausethe divineeingcan-
notexistwithoutme,norIexistwithoutHim.
Thesymmetryofthedangersisref|ected inacorrespond-
ing symmetry ofspiritua| therapeutics. The mystic has to be
carriedaway"to the higherspiritua|Abode(topass from the
b|ack Lighttothe green |ight), so that the nature ofhis True
Egomayberevea|edtohim,notasanegowiththegodneadas
its predicate, so to say, but ..s being the organ and p|ace of
theophany, this means that he wi|| have become fit to be in-
vested in his |ight, to be the perfect mittat, the organ ofthe
theophany. This isthestateofthe friend ofGod," ofwhom
the divine eing can say, according to the inspiredbaditb, so
oft-repeatedbytheSufis. I amtheeyethroughwhichhesees,
theearthroughwhichhehears,thehandbywhchhetouches
. . . " Thisdivinesayingcorrespondstothemystic's.IamGod's
secret."Semnnifindshisinspirationregardingthesespiritua|
therapeuticsinaversewhichhegreat|yva|uesandinwhichthe
essenceofQornicChristo|ogyisexpressed. Theydidnotki||
him, they did not crucify him, they were taken in by the ap-
pearance, Godcarriedhimofftowardhimse|f(4.I 56), "i.e. , he
carried himoffa|ivefromdeath. On|yanauthenticspiritua|
rea|ism," suprasensory rea|ism, can penetrate the arcanum of
this verse. Itdemands aa/at orientation rising above the di-
mensionwhich istheon|ythingab|e to ho|dusback from the
rea|ity oftheevent , name|y, the horizonta|" dimensionofhis-
tory.Onthecontrary, whattheSufiisseekingisnotata|| what
wehypothetica||yca||thesenseofhistory,"buttheinnersense
ofhis being and ofevery being, not the materia| rea|ity, the
datum ofearth|y history-making (in thezamn qqi) , but the
eventinHeaven"whicha|onecansaveearth|yman and bring
himhome."
Thatbeingso,whenyou|istentosomeofGod'ssayingsto
hisfriend the Prophet,or a||usionsto them,|istentothem,see
themthrough the subt|eorganwhich isthedivine in you, the
Mabammad a[ aut /eing" (/atqa baqqia) . The formation of
heaven|y man is comp|eted in that subt|e center. It is in that
veryp|acethatthesubt|ebodygrowstoitsfu||stature,thebody
acquired"bythemysuc'sspiritua|practiceandwhichcontains
I 29
. hc 5cvcn |ro
|
hc|s ol Your Bcn
g
thccsscntia|hcart," thcspiritua|chi|dofthc3/ra/amajaur
/cing, ' thc onc bci ng who is ca pab|c of assumi ng thc
thcophanic function ofpurc mirror (spccu|arity," mir'ia) . '
Thc conncction bctwccn spiritua| hcrmcncutics and mystica|
physio|ogy isfu||yrcvca|cdThc undcrstanding ofthc hiddcn
mcaningsand thcgrowthofthcsubt|corganism hiddcninthc
human bcing dcvc|op concurrcnt|y-thc growth from pro-
phctto prophct" cu|minatinginthc fu|| prophctic staturc. A||
thc factors in ScmnnI's thcosophica| cosmo|ogy havc to bc
takcn into account hcrc. As thc hiddcn mcanings gradua||y
comctobc undcrstood, thcorgansofthcsubt|cphysio|ogyrc-
ccivc cncrgics fromunivcrscs prcccdingthc scnsory univcrsc,
thcscunitcwiththcorgansofthcbodyofimmorta|ity"which
arc at thc corc of thc mystic's pcrson much bcttcr than thc
starsofhisfatc,"sinccthcyarcthcprophctsofhisbcing."
At this mystica| stagc, havingrcachcd his pcrfcct spiritua|
staturc,thcmysticno|ongcrnccdstomcditatconthcu|timatc
latqa, sincc from thcn on hcl thcMohammad ofhisbcing.
Atthisvcry pointwc sccthcfu||mcaning,inScmnnI,ofthc
thcophanicfigurcwchavccomctorccognizcundcrmanyand
variousnamcs,whichScmnnIforhispartca||sthcastdg/a/i,
thc suprascnsory mastcr or pcrsona| guidc. This figurc is
c|car|y thc s/ak/ al-g/a/ , thc Guidc, thc witncssin Hcavcn"
ofwhomNamKobr'svisionsinformcdusScmnnIdi scrcct|y
suggcstsitsfurthcrro|candfunction.
]ust as thc physical scnsc ol hcaring jhc writcs] is a ncccssary
condition il thc hcarcr is to undcrstand thc cxotcric mcaning ol
thc Qorn and rcccivc thc to[alr lrom his outcr, visib|c mastcr (oa-
tdJ ahohoJ) , so thc intcgrity ol thc hcart, ol thc inncr hcaring is a
ncccssary condition il thc inspircd Spiritua| scckcr (molhom) is to
undcrstand thc csotcric mcaning ol thc Qorn and rcccivc thc
to'ul ol his inncr suprascnsory mastcr (oatdJ gho0).
This passagc, so admirab|y condcnscd and a||usivc, thus
makcs itc|car that thc inspircd mystic's rc|ationship with his
asmd g/a/i isthcsamcas Mohammad'src|ationship with thc
Ho|yGhostwhichwashisinscparab|ccompanion,ustasitwas
for)csus. Thisiswhythcsuprcmc/atq aofthcsubt|corganism
isa|so rc|atcd to thcLotusofthc Limit,"thcp|accwhcrc thc
Prophct saw thc angc| Gabric| standing in Pradisc (53. I 4) ,
anda|sowhythcprc-cmincnccofihcco|orgrccn,hcra|dingthc
I 30
2. 1he nor/ o 6o/ors oo the Moo ) tg//
highcstmystica| station, issupportcd byan a||usion to | hc ra[-
ra[, thcgrccn drapcrysccnbythcProphctcovcri ngt hchorizon
ofthc Hcavcns,atthcmomcntofhisfirstvisionofthc Angc|.
And it is immcdiatc|y c|car a|sowhy thclatqa or subt|c organ
known as thc 'Mohammad of your bcing shou|d, from
anothcraspcct,bc dcscribcd as thclatqaa/ra'clia, thc angc|
Gabric|ofyourbcing."Hcrcthclatqaa/ra'clia is,forthcmys-
tic,rc|atcd with thcAngc| ofRcvc|ationustas Pcrfcct Naturc
is rc|atcd with thc Angc| of Humanity in SohravardI's hcr-
mcncutics(supra II, I ) . Itcana|sobc undcrstood whysomany
Sufis,from)a||RumItoMIrDmd,havcsccnthcannuncia-
tionofthc Ho|yGhost-Gabric|to Maryaminthcirmcditations
asanannunciationtocvcrymysticsou|.Butonccangofurthcr
a|so and conc|udc thatthcthcophanic figurc ofthc Angc| of
Rcvc|ation in prophcto|ogy,thcAngc|ofknow|cdgc inthco-
ricnta| thcosophy" of thc ls/rqn, is hcrc thc Angc| of
spiritua|cxcgcsis,thatistosay,thconcwhorcvca|sthchiddcn
mcaningofprcviousrcvc|ations, providcdthatthcmysticpos-
scsscsthccarofthchcart,cc|cstia|"hcaring(malakti) .To this
cxtcntthcAngc|hasthcsamcspiritua|functionasthcImmin
ShI'ism, thcwam at ofthc Imm as thc donor ofthc hiddcn
mcaning, and it wou|d sccm that ShI'itc Sufism a|onc makcs
thcidcaofthcwalatc|carfroma||sidcs.Butonccansaythat
ScmnnI's spiritua| doctrinc and mcthod comcs in thc cnd to
thc radica| inncrrca|ization both ofprophcto|ogy and ofIm-
mo|ogy. Andthisa|onciswhatmakcsa Mohammadan. "
Hc who has bccomc conscious ol this lotgo, who has rcachcd
it by ourncying, stcp ty stcp, by wingcd l|ight or ccstasy, who has
a||owcd thc powcrs ol a|| his subt|c organs to opcn in lrccdom
lrom thc taint ol i||usion and rc|ativity, who has a||owcd thcm to
bc dcmonstratcd as thcy shou|d bc dcmonstratcd in thc purc
statc, hc it is indccd who can tru|y bc ca||cd a Mohammadan.
thcrwisc, makc no mistakc, do not bc|icvc that thc lact ol uttcr-
ing thc words 'l allirm that Mohammad is Cod's Mcsscngcr" is
cnough to makc you a Mohammadan.

. 1he nor/ o 6o/ors oo the Moo o Light

Thc prcccding ana|yscs havc rcpcatcd|y shown us that thcrc
wasan affinity, somctimcssubt|c, somctimcscxp|icit, bctwccn
Sufi sm a nd Mani chci sm rcvca|cd in thci r physi cs and
I 3I
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
metaphysics of|ight. It wou|d b a fascinating task to pursue
thetracesofthisaffinityiniconography, morefascinatingsti||
ifwe notice the cross-references between Sufism and Chris-
tianity,whichwecaneasi|yforeseeare|eadingustowardChris-
tianrepresentationsnota|togetherthoseofofficia|andhistori-
ca|Christianity. Semnni'sindicationswou|da|readysufficeto
put us on the track. The centra| truth ofChristianity may be
conceivedintermsofhypostaticunionofdivinityand human-
ity, itmaybethoughtoutinterms oftheophany(taa//i) . The
firstwaywasthatofthe GreatChurch, weneedhard|y reca||
how this appeared in theudgment of the who|e of Is|amic
theo|ogy. Thesecondwaywas fo||owed bythosewhorefused
theimp|iedcontradiction,whethertheyhappenedtobeVa|en-
tiniansorManicheans,anApo||inariousofLaodiceaor,among
the ProtestantSpiritua|s,aSchwenckfe|doraVa|entin-Weige|.
Thi s does not in the |east mean that they deve|oped a
mytho|ogica| Christo|ogy, they affirmed the idea of a cato
Cbtitisitua/is .
I fwewishtounderstandtheimportofthecriticismsvoiced
by a Sufi |ike SemnnI, as we|| as the profound intentions of
Shi'ite I mmo|ogy, thiswayofrepresentingitiswhatwehave
to keep in mind, for itimp|iesgreatconsequencesfor the sci-
enceofre|igionsin genera|. Thisspiritua|izedrea|ism" hasat
itsdisposa|thewho|esubstanceoftheheaven|yEarthofHr-
qa|y" forgiving /od to the psycho-spiritua| and to spiritua|
events.WehaveseenSemnnirevea|thedangerexact|ycorre-
spondingto thatwhich threatens Sufism. no|onger indeed a
an'//b, butonthecontrarya[an, ofthe divineinhuman
rea|ity. IfSemnnhadused a modernman's termino|ogy, he
wou|d have spoken of historicization, secu|arization, socia|-
ization-notasofphenomenatakingp|aceamongothersinthe
zamn[qi, thehorizonta|time"ofmateria|historicity,butas
of the phenomenon itse|f of the fa|| of the zamn an[osi, a
psycho-spiritua|time,intothezamn[qi. In otherwords,fa|-
|ingfromeventswhichatem bythehistoryofthesou|toahistory
whichismadebyouterevents. Thefirstareinnowaymytho|ogy,
andtheiconographythatrepresentstheminnowayconsistsof
a||egories.But,ofcourse,intentionsandproceduresdifferpro-
found|yaccordingto theoneor theothercategoryofevents.
A|readyonecangetanideaofthecontrastbyreferringonthe
l 32
2. 1he nor/ o6o/ors on the Mon o Light
one handto theiconographyoftheCbtistuuvenis ofthevery
first centuries of Christianity (a few types were mentioned
above, I I , 2) and on the other hand, either, in the Eastern
Church,totheiconographyoftheantoktatotendowedwitha||
the attributes of maturity and viri|ity,' or, in the Western
Church,totheiconographyofthesufferingandcrucified)esus.
Whatthe|attertrans|atesisthetendencytoattributetothe
divinethehuman rea|ityofeveryday|ife, eventoitsconfusions
andmiseries. theideathatGodcou|don|ysavemanbybecom-
ingmaninthissense. Incontrast,whatthefirsttrans|atesisthe
ideathatGodcanon|ycomeincontactwithhumanitybytrans-
figuring the |atter, that the sa|vation of man imprisoned in
AhrimanianDarknesscanbenothingotherthananassumption
toHeaven,operatedbythea||-powerfu|attractionofthedivine
Light, without the|atterhavingto norbeingab|e to be made
captive,forthenthepossibi|ityofsa|vationwou|dbeabo|ished.
The preparation and expectation ofthis triumph are exact|y
what fi|| the acts ofthe Manichean dramaturgy ofsa|vation.
Thissoterio|ogy, the|iberationofthepartic|esof|ight"taken
up from their prison and at|ast reoiningtheir|ike, isexact|y
that of a Sohravardi and of a Semnni. Hence thei r
metaphysicsof|ightsurroundingtheirphysio|ogyofthe man
of|ight,itse|fcenteredaroundthepresenceortheattractionof
a Perfect Nature or ofa witness in Heaven," who is for the
individua|ityofthemysticthehomo|ogueoftheheaven|yTwin
ofMni,thatisto say, Christorthe Virginof|ight.Thisreturn
of|ight to |ight" as a suprasensory event is what Manichean
paintingintended to make avai|ab|e to sensory perception. I f
iconographyrevea|sanaffinitybetweenitsmethodsandthose
of Persian miniatures, this wi|| show us another affinity in
depth.
Andsothisdeepaffinity,discernib|eintheaffinitybetween
thetechnica|processesofManichean iconographyandPersian
miniatures, is the very one which operated in the eighth and
ninth centuries ofour era, aithin the spiritua| circ|es where
Shi'itegnosis wasformed. '

Thevery same ideawhichdomi-

natesShi'itephi|osophy,thatofthe Imm and ofImmo|ogy,
determinesastructuretowhichthreefundamenta|themesare
avai|ab|e,inwhichtheaffinitybetweenShi'itegnosisandMan-
icheangnosisisdiscovered. Ofthesethreethemes, the theme
l 33
\ . hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
of the wa/at is perhaps dominant, because it crysta||izes
arounditthethemeofthecyc|esofProphecyandthethemeof
thespiritua|sciencesofnature,a|chemy,andastro|ogy, which
arethebases ofManicheancosmo|ogyand5io|ogy.
The theme of the wa/at has a|ready come up here,
whetheraproposofthevisionofthesevena/d/,thesevenstars
near the a/e, according to Ruzbehn, or apropos of the
esoterichierarchy,organizedintheimageofthece|estia|dome
whose keystone is thea/e (the hidden I mm) and which fi||s
thefunctionofcosmicsa|vation(suta I I I , 2 and 3). Wesawit
appearagain,afewpagesago,aproposoftheideaoftheinner
master,astdgba/i, theange|Gabrie|ofyourbeing,who,in
his ro|e ofinitiator in thehiddenmeaningofthe reve|ations,
appeared in Semnni as the inner Imm and besides as an
interiorizationofImmo|ogy.Wehavea|readypointedoutthe
difficu|tyoftrans|atingsimu|taneous|ytheaspectsconnotedby
the term. the difficu|ty is due no doubt to the fact that the
imp|iedstructurehasnothingexact|ycorrespondingtoitinthe
West, except among the Spiritua|s incidenta||y referred to
above. This re|igious structure isquite different from a|| that
we habitua||y designate by the word Church, it provides in
eachofthecyc|es ofProphecy (na/awwat) , acyc|eofInitiation
(wa/at) to the hidden meaning ofthe revea|ed |etter. Shi'ite
gnosis,asaninitiaticre|igion,isaninitiationinadoctrine. This
is why it is particu|ar|y unsatisfactory to trans|ate, as isoften
done, wa/at as ho|iness. What this term connotes, name|y
thecanonicideaofho|iness,isveryfarfromthepoint.a/at
as an initiation and as an initiatic function, is the spiritua|
ministry ofthe Imm whose charisma initiates his faithfu| in
the esotericmeaningofthe prophetic reve|ations. Better sti||,
the Immate i this very meaning. The Imm as wa/i is the
grand master, the master of initiation (thus transposed to
another|eve|,the twofo|d exotericacceptationofthewordwa/i
can beconserved. on the one hand,friend,companion, on the
other,|ord,protector) .
The second theme, that ofthe cyc|es ofReve|ation, is im-
p|ied in theveryidea ofthewa/at. Thewam at postu|ates in
fact, as we haveustsaid, a theory ofthe cyc|es ofProphecy.
propheto|ogyand Immo|ogyaretwoinseparab|e|ights.Now,
this theoryofcyc|esofReve|ation,a|thoughinIsmae|iangnosis
I 34
}2. 1/e nor/ o 6o/ors on the M on o Light
it hasfeaturesremindingofthethemeofthe|etusFtabeta in
EbioniteChristianity, iswe|| known to be a Manicheantheory.
On the other hand, the physio|ogy ofthe man of|ight, the
growth ofsubt|e organs, is mode||ed in Semnni, as we have
seen,onthissametheoryofcyc|esofProphecy.Thesubt|eor-
gans are respective|y the prophets of your being. their
growth into a 'body of resurrection, in striking corre-
spondence with the cyc|e ofresurrections oftheadeptin Is-
|amic gnosis, is the microcosmic actua|ization and the know|-
edgeofthecyc|esofProphecy.
Fina||y, as the third theme, a|chemy and astro|ogy, as the
spiritua| sciencesofnature, are fundamenta|totheManichean
soterio|ogy of |ight, we have a|so heard Nam Kobrca|| the
seekerthe partic|e of|ight imprisonedin Darkness,andde-
c|arethathisownmethodwasnoneotherthanthatofa|chemy.
This a|chemica| operation is what produces the aptitude for
visionaryapperceptionofthesuprasensorywor|ds, thesebeing
manifestedbythefiguresandconste||ationswhichshineinthe
Skiesofthesou|, theSkyoftheEarthofLight.Thesespiritua|
conste||ations are the homo|ogues of those interpreted in
esoteric astronomy (suta I I I , 3), thus exemp|ifying on both
sidesoneandthesamefiguredominatingtheImagamundi . the
Immwhoisthea/e,ustasintermsofspiritua|a|chemyheis
theStoneortheE|ixir.
Thesearethethreethemesconstructedonpara||e||inesin
Manicheangnosisandin ShI'itegnosis,whichamplifyandex-
p|icate the fundamenta|motifofthetbeaban, whose presup-
positionsandimp|icationshavebeenreca||edabove. Now,this
theophanic fee|ing common to Shi'ism and to Sufism (and
whichtriumphs particu|ar|y in Shite Sufism), determines the
ShI'ite apperception of the person ofthe Imm, as it deter-
mines the apperception ofbeauty in those ofthe Sufis, disc|-
p|esofRzbehnofShIrzforexamp|e,towhominparticu|ar
we have restricted the designation fede|i d'amore. Con-
sequent|y we have to appea| to this same fundamenta|
theophanic fee|ing in order toaccount for common pictoria|
techniquesiniconography.ThepersonoftheImm (thatisto
say,theeterna|Imminhistwe|vepersona|exemp|ificationsin
the case of Twe|ve-Imm ShI'ism) is the pre-eminent the-
ophanicform,mazbar) . Thepersonofthesbabid, thebeautifu|
I 35
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
being chosen as the witness of contemp|ation, is for the
fede|e" his persona| theophanic form, in the course ofthis
study we have identified this figure under diverse names.
Thereissomethingincommonbetweenthechiva|ricdevotion
that binds the Shi'ite adept to the theophanic person of the
Imm andthe |ovingservice thatbinds the mystic|overtothe
earth| y form through whi ch the pre-emi ncnt di vi ne
Attribute-beauty~isrevea|edtohim.Thehistorica|originsof
this mutua| inc|ination wi|| perhaps never be definitive|y
c|arified, itisestab|ishedatthetimeandinthespiritua|circ|es
that we have reca||ed above. What ho|ds the attention ofthe
phenomeno|ogist is the testimony of states experienced, the
Manichean fee|ing ofthe drama ofthe universe was particu-
|ar|y fitted to deve|op the fee|ing of a persona| covenant of
fide|ity, the who|e ethicofShi'ism and Iranian Sufism cu|mi-
nates in the idea ofavnmard, that is to say of spiritua|
chiva|ry."
Iromhereon,itbecomespossib|etofu||yeva|uatethetes-
timony that we owe to a writer ofthe e|eventh century, Ab
Shakr S|imi, a writer who describes for us how the Mani-
cheansofCentra|Asiaweremarkedbyaformofworshipwhich
was the passionate adoration they professed in regard to
beauty and a|| beautifu| beings. In our day obections have
been raised to this testimony which cance| themse|ves out by
thefactthatthey show pure|yandsimp|yaconfusionbetween
the imp|ications of the Manichean physics of |ight and with
whatwe habitua||y thinkofin the Westin terms ofhypostatic
union. Hencethewarningthatwerepeatedatthebeginningof
thepresentchapter.thepurephi|o|ogisthadbetterkeepoutof
the c|osed fie|d of phi|osophy than enter it with i||-adapted
weapons. ' '
I fone thinks in termsoftheophany (taa//i, zabr), not i n
termsofhypostatic union,onei sspeakingon|yofacorporea|
receptac|e(mazbar) , whichfi||sthero|eandfunctionofamirrar.
This receptac|e, cara sititu/is , can be perceived in various
ways, thea|chemy ofwhich Nam Kobrspeaks producesthe
aptitude for this perceptionby workingontheorgansofper-
ceptionofthecontemp|ator(forwhichand throughwhich, as
wehaveheardNamRzidec|are,eventsareatthe same time
sensoryandsuprasensory) . Thisiswhywehavebeenreminded
I 36
2. 1oe nor| o 6o/ors oo toe Moo o Ligot
many timesthat thevisionvariesinproportiontotheaptitude.
yourcontemp|ation isworth what youare. And sothe Ismae-
|ian authors, Ab Ya'qbSeestni among others, |ay stress, as
though to foresta|| the above-mentioned i||-founded obec-
tions, on the fact thatbeautyisnotan attribute immanent in
physica| nature, nora materia|attributeofthe f|esh, physica|
beautyisitse|faspiritua|attributeandaspiritua|phenomenon.
Itcanbe perceivedon|ybytheorganof|ight, perceptionofit
effects,as such, from now onthe passage fromthe sensoryto
the suprasensory p|ane. Perhaps Ab Shakr's description
exaggeratesindetai|someofthefeaturescommontotheMan-
icheans and the Ha||ian Sufis, but, as L. Massignon wrote,
his description summarizes the essentia| character of that
pecu|iardeve|opmentofcrysta||ineaestheticsentimenta|ity,as
transparent as a rainbow, which Is|amderived from a rather
dramatic Manichaean concept, that of the imprisonment of
partic|esofthedivine|ightinthedemoniacmatrixofmatter."
Here we have the fundamenta| esthetic fee|ing, persisting
in a variety of deve|opments, which is here expressed by a
common pictoria| technique. Mni has been traditiona||y re-
garded in Is|m as the initiator ofpainting and the greatest
master of that art (in c|assica| Persian, the terms nagrestn,
nagr-kbneb,areusedassignifyingthehouseofMni"todes-
ignate a ga||ery of paintings, a book of painted pictures) .
Everyoneknowsthatthepurposeofhispaintingwasessentia||y
didactic, it was intended to|ead visionbeyondthe sensory. to
incite|oveandadmirationoftheSonsofLight,"horrorofthe
Sons ofDarkness. " The |iturgica| i||umination so high|y de-
ve|oped by the Manicheans was, essentia||y, ascenographyof
the|iberation ofthe|ight."Withthisaim in view, the Manic-
heanswere|edto represent |ightin theirminiaturesby preci-
ous meta|s. If we associate the persistence ofthe Manichean
techniqueanditsdecorativethemeswiththeresurgenceofthe
Manichean physics of |ight in the orienta| theosophy" of
Sohravardi, and above a|| in certain psa|ms composed by
him,'

then wewi||be the better ab|e to keep in mind |onger

a||thatissti||beingsuggestedbythese|inesofL. Massignon.
Thc art ol Pcrsian miniaturcs, without atmosphcrc, without
pcrspcctivc, without shadows, and without modcl|ing, in thc
mctallic splcndour ol its polychromy, pcculiar to itscll, bcars wit-
I 37
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
ncss to thc lact that its originators wcrc undcrtaking a kind ol
alchcmic sublimation ol thc particlcs ol divinc light imprisoncd in
thc mass ol thc picturc. Prccious mctals, gold and silvcr, comc
to thc surlacc ol thc lringcs and crowns, ol thc ollcrings and
cups, to cscapc lrom thc matrix ol thc colours.
Escape, ascent andde|iverance. this is a|sowhat visionsof
co|ored |ights hera|ded for Nam Kobr, co|ors in the pure
state, suprasensory, freed from the Ahrimanian darkness of
the//ack a/ect whichhad absorbedthem,and restored,ustas
they were opened up to the divine Night ai the approach to
thepo|e,"intheTea/ucida whichsecretesitsown|ight"(suta
I I I , I ) . In this pure |uminescence we recognize one Iranian
representationabovea||others. theXvaab, the|ight-of-g|ory
which, from their first beginning, the beams of|ight estab|ish
in their being, ofwhich it is at once the g|ory ({o) and the
destiny () (supra I I , 3) . This iswhat in iconography has
been represented as the |uminous nimbus, the auta g/atiae
whichha|oesthekingsand priestsofthe Mazdeanre|igion,this
way ofrepresentingit has been transferred to the figures of
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as a|so the heaven|y figures of
primitive Christian art. It is the Xvatnab that forms the
vermi||ion-go|dbackground ofmany Manichean paintings of
Turfanand ofthepaintingsincertain Persianmanuscriptsof
theschoo|ofShIrz,surviva|softhece|ebratedmura|paintings
oftheSassanids.
Letusmakenomistakeastothemeaningofthesered-go|d
backgroundco|ors,whenwefindthemagaininthego|dback-
ground of the Byzantine icons and mosaics. Whether it is a
questionofthenimbusofpersonagesorofthevisionarygeog-
raphy of what has been ca||ed xvaab |andscapes" (Strzy-
gowski) ,itremainsa|waysaquestionofthesametransfiguring
|ight. |ights returning to their origin or |ights descend-
ing to meet them as far as the surface ofthe obects out of
whichtheyattractthem.Thereisneithercontrastnorrupture
intheidea, on|ythe pro|ongation andpersistenceofone and
thesameidea. Iorinthewho|eofEasternChristianitythereis
a|ways a |atent monophysitism in which |ies the same and im-
perative desire for transfiguration, cata sintua/is Cbtisti, of
whichthe an //b ofSufismisperhapsatoncetheprevision-
ingortheaccomp|ishment. Iorcontrastandrupture,wehave
I 38
J. 1he Physio/ogica/ 6o/ors Accoriog to 6oethe
to |ook e|sewhere. there where the Shadow and tbe shadows
havedefinitive|ybanishedthis|ightfromiconography.
J. 1he Physio/ogico/ 6o/ors Accoriog to 6oethe
Wesha||notattempttorecapitu|atethe|eadingthemesofthe
present study, ourconcernis not to come toconc|usions, the
aim of true research is to open the way to new questions.
Among the questions which remain to be formu|ated or de-
ve|oped, there is one that at this very moment spontaneous|y
arises.Whatwehaveana|yzedreferringtovisionaryappercep-
tions, suprasensory senses, subt|e organs or centers that de-
ve|op in conunction with a growing interiorization-in brief,
a|| the themes constituting a physio|ogy of the man of
Light"-have shown us that the co|ored photisms, the supra-
sensory perceptions ofco|ors in the pure state, resu|t froman
inner activity of the subect and are not mere|y the resu|t of
passive|yreceivedimpressionsofamateria|obect.Whoeveris
fami|iar with or in sympathy with Goethe's Fat/en/ebte (his
tbeaorratherhisdacttinea[ca/ats)inevitab|ywonderswhether
thereisnotafruitfu|comparisontobeattemptedbetweenour
'physio|ogy of the man of |ight and Goethe's idea of
physio|ogica|co|ors."
Let us keep in mind some of Nam Kobr's principa|
themes,forexamp|ethattheobectofthesearch isthedivine
Lightandtheseekerishimse|fapartic|eofthis|ight, thatour
method isthe method ofa|chemy, that|ike aspirestoits|ike,
that |ike can b seen and known on|y by its |ike. It certain|y
seems then that Goethe had himse|fmapped out theway for
anyone wishing to respond to the Iranian Sufi's invitation to
penetratetothe heartoftheprob|em.
Thc cyc jwritcs Cocthc], owcs its cxistcncc to light. From an
auxiliary, scnsory apparatus, animal and ncutral, light has callcd
lorth, produccd lor itscll, an organ likc unto itscll, thus thc cyc
was lormcd by light, ol light and lor light, so that thc inncr light
might comc in contact with thc outcr light. At this vcry point wc
arc rcmindcd ol thc ancicnt lonian Shool, which ncvcr ccascd to
rcpcat, giving it capital importancc, that likc is only known by likc.
And thus wc shall rcmcmbcr also thc words ol an ancicnt mystic
(hat l would paraphrasc as lollows.
I 39
. hc 5cvcn Iro|
hcts ol Your Bcng
ll thc cyc wcrc not by naturc solar,
How should wc bc ablc to look at thc light?
!l Cod's own powcr did not livc in us,
How would thc divinc bc ablc to carry us oll i n ccstasy?`' "
One can|eave ittothe IranianSufis whohavebeenquoted
here to make for themse|ves the spontaneous association of
theirtestimonywiththatoftheanonymousmysticofo|dwhom
Goetheca||saswitness.Theideaofaphysio|ogyofthemanof
|ight,"asout|inedinNamKobr'stheoryofthesuprasensory
senses and Semnni's theory of subt|e organs enve|oped in
co|or, |inks up with Goethe's vast scheme, where the author
assigns priority to the physio|ogica| co|ors" in heading his
greatwork and, inits amp|ification, even treatsexp|icit|ythe
mystic significance ofco|ors and ofthe experience ofco|ors.
Thepointisthatthetermphysio|ogy"innowayrefershereto
some kind of materia| organi sm, but to something that
rationa|istsciencetriestodowithoutinacceptingnothingapart
from sensory, empirica| dataexceptabstractideasavai|ab|e to
the ordinary mind. Goethe |ikewise begins by reminding us
that the phenomenon he designates as the phenomenon of
physio|ogica| co|ors" has ben known for a very |ong time,
unfortunate|y, due to the radica| |ack of an appropriate
phenomeno|ogy,ithasbeenneithercomprehensib|enorgiven
its proper va|ue, there hasbeen discussionofca/ates adventici ,
imaginatii, bantastici , vitiaugitiva,acu/atsectta, etc. I nshort,
these co|ors have been regarded as something ofan i||usory,
accidenta|,insubstantia| nature, andre|egatedtothe rea|mof
dangerousfantasies,becauseaconceptoftheuniversewherein
physica| rea|ity is regarded as tota| rea|ity, in fact, no |onger
a||owsthe suprasensory to be seen otherwise thanas spectra|.
In contrast, we have here |earned to see somethingquite dif-
ferentinthesuprasensorywor|dofwhichour Sufis havebeen
speaking. And this something quite different" is in accord
with what isaffirmed in theFat/en/ebte, whichpostu|ates that
the co|ors referredtothereinas physio|ogica|" pertain to the
subect, to theorgan ofsight, to the eye whichis itse|f|ight,"
and what ismore,thattheseco|orsaretheveryconditionsof
theactofseeing,which remainsincomprehensib|e ifit is not
viewedasaninteraction,areciproca|action. '
l 40
J. 1he Ph,sio/ogico/ 6o/ors Accoring to 6oethe
Thetermphysio|ogica|,"app|iedtoco|orsforthisreason,
gradua||ytakeson itsfu|| meaningandustification to the de-
greethatthenotionofthesubect"inquestionunfo|ds.There
isessentia||ya refusa|toadmit pureexteriorityorextrinsicity,
asiftheeyedidnomorethanassive/ ref|ecttheouterwor|d.
The perception ofco|oris an action and reaction ofthe sou|
itse|fwhich iscommunicated to the who|ebeing, an energyis
thenemittedthroughthe eyes, a spiritua|energythat cannot
be weighed or measured quantitative|y (itcou|d be eva|uated
on|y by the mystica|sca/es ofwhich Nam Kobr has spoken,
suta IV, I 0) . Theco|orsweseeinbodiesdonotaffecttheeye
asiftheyweresomethingforeigntoit,asifitwereamatterof
an impression received pure|y from outside. No, this organ is
a|wayssosituatedastoproduceco|orsitse|f,toenoyap|easant
sensationifsomethinghomogeneoustoitsnatureispresented
toit from outside" ( [760). And this because co|ors on|y occa-
siona||y modify the |atent determinative capacity or power
whichistheeyeitse|f. Theaffirmationreturnscontinua||yasa
/eitmativ to the fact that theeye at this point producesanother
co|or,itsawn co|or. Theeyesearchesatthesideofagivenco|-
ored space for a free space where it can produce the co|or
ca||ed for by itse|f. This is an effort toward tota|ity invo|ving
thefundamenta||awofchromaticharmony, ' ' andthisiswhy
ifithappensthatthetota|ityofco|orsispresented to theeye
from the outside as an obect, the eye takes p|easure in it be-
cause at such a momentits own activity is presented to itas a
rea|ity"( [808) .
Is therenotasimi|arphenomenonoftota|ityinthereunion
ofthetwofiery|ightsissuingtheone from Heaven,theother
from the earth|y person, which NamKobrperceivedas the
theophanicformofhiswitnessinHeaven"(suta IV,9) ,thatis
to say,ofthe heaven|ycounterpart conditioningthe who|eof
his being: And whatustifies the comparison are the very
wordsoftheo|dmysticadoptedbyGoetheandparaphrasedin
theintroductiontohisownbook.
Fromthe mutua|exchangebetween|ikeand |ike, fromthe
interaction thus suggested in genera|, the idea ofspecific ac-
tions begins to become c|earer, these actions are never arbi-
traryandtheireffectsaresufficienttoattestthatphysio|ogica|
l 4 l
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcng
co|or" as suchis an experience ofthesou|, that is, a spiritua|
experienceofco|oritse|f.
From thc idca ol polarity inhcrcnt in thc phcnomcnon, lrom
thc knowlcdgc that wc havc rcachcd ol its particular dctcrmira-
tions, wc can concludc that particular imprcssions ol colors arc
not intcrchangcablc, but that thcy act in a spccilic way and must
producc conditions having a dccisivc spccilic cllcct on thc living
organism. Thc samc applics to thc soul (Gemtt) . cxpcricncc
tcachcs us that particular colors producc dclinitc mcntal imprcs-
sions. '
-
Thesearetheimpressionsonwhich themeaningsofco|ors
arebased,risingbydegreestotheirmystica|meaning,thevery
meaning which has he|d the who|e attention ofour Iranian
Sufi masters.Onthesubectofthesemeanings,theFat/en/ebte
conc|udesinaseriesofadmirab|epages.A||thathasbeensaid
hasbeenanattempttoshowthateachco|orproducesadefinite
effectonthe human beingand by thatvery factrevea|s itses-
sentia| nature to the eye as we|| as to the sou|. Itfo||ows that
color can be used for certain physica|, mora|, and aesthetic
purposes. " It can a|so be used for another purpose which
makesuseoftheeffectandexpressessti||betteritsinnetmean-
ing, name|y, the sm/o/ic use which Goethe carefu||y distin-
guishes from thea||egorica| (incontrastwith our habit, which
unfortunate|y is moreoften than not to confusea||egory and
symbo|) . '
Finally i t will bc casy to lorcscc that color can assumc a matt-
col atgntconre. l n cflcct, thc schcma in which thc divcrsity ol col-
ors is rcprcscntcd suggcsts thc archctypal conditions (Ur-
terhultntaae) that bclong cqually to man's visual pcrccption and to
naturc, that bcing cstablishcd, thcrc is no doubt that onc can
makc usc ol thcir rcspcctivc rclationships, as ol a languagc, il onc
wishcs to cxprcss thosc archctypal conditions, which do not ol
thcmsclvcs allcct thc scnscs with thc samc lorcc or with thc samc
divcrsity. '
And this is in fact the |anguage in which the coiored
photismsspoketoa||NamKobrdiscip|es,becauseco|orisnot
a passive impression, but the |anguage of the sou| to itse|f.
Thus,intheheptadofco|ors,SemnnIperceivedtheheptadof
theorgansofthemanof|ight,the heptad oftheprophetsof
hisbeing."
The fina| pointmadeby Goethe maya||owustoperceive
I 42
J. 1he Physio/ogico/ 6o/ors Accoring to 6oethe
howthe spiritua|experienceofco|orcaninitiateinthereve|a-
tionofthe witness in Heaven,"the heaven|y Guideofwhom
Sohravardi,NamKobr,Semnni,havea||spoken.
ll thc polarity ol ycllow and bluc has truly bccn graspcd, il in
particular thcir intcnsilication into rcd has bccn wcll notcd and it
ha bccomc clcar how thcsc oppositcs tcnd toward one anothcr
and rcunitc in a third color, thcn it cannot bc doubtcd that thc
intuition ol a prolound sccrct is bcginning to dawn in us, a
lorctastc ol thc possibility that a spiritual mcaning might bc at-
tributcd to thcsc two scparatc and mutually opposcd cntitics.
Whcn thcy arc sccn to producc green bclow and reJ abovc, onc can
hardly rclrain lrom thinking that onc is contcmplating hcrc thc
carthly crcaturcs and thcrc thc hcavcnly crcaturcs ol thc Llohtm
(9l 9) .
Onceagainthewordsoftheanonymousmysticadoptedby
Goethe are what enab|e ustoforeseethetota|convergencebe-
tweenGoethe'sdoctrineofco|orandthe physicsof|ightofour
Iranian mystics, on whose side it represents a tradition going
backtoancientpre-Is|amicPersia. Theindicationswehavere-
ceivedweree|usive.Quiteanumberofquestionswi|| remainin
the air, but it was worth whi|e taking the necessary steps to
open them. To the extent that Goethe's optics is an an-
thropo|ogica| optics," itrunscountertotherequirements and
habitsofwhatisca||edthescientificmind,andwi||continueto
do so. Itisthe scientists'businessto pursuethe aimthey have
setforthemse|ves. Buthereweareconcernedwithadifferent
question, adi0erentaim, commonto those who have experi-
encedinsimi|arfashiontheactionofLight."
Thisaimisthesuperexistenceofthehigherpersona|indi-
vida|ity,attainedbyreunionwiththeindividua|'sowndimen-
sionofLight,hisface of|ight,"thatgivestheindividua|ityits
tota|dimension. For this reuniontobe possib|etheinc|ination
towardthepo|ardimension"musthaveopenedintheterres-
tria| being, the inc|ination hera|ded by fugitive f|ashes of
superconsciousness. The physio|ogy ofthe man of|ighttends
toward this opening-this is what Semnni was expressing
when he spoke ofthe spiritua| chi|d which the Abraham of
yourbeing"mustprocreate. NamKobradmitshavingmedi-
tated for a |ongtimebefore he understoodwbo was this|ight
thatflamedinthe Skyofhis sou|whi|e the f|ameofhisown
bei

g was rising to meet it. If he understood that the |ight

I 43
. hc 5cvcn Iro
|
hcts ol Your Bcn
g
saugbt was there, it was because he knew wba wasseeking the
|ight. He himse|fto|d us this. What is sought is the divine
Light, the seekeris himse|fa partic|e ofthe |ight. "IfGod's
own power were not |iving in us, how wou|d He be ab|e to
transport us in ecstasy:" The mystic ofo|d who inspired the
pro|ogueoftheFat/en/ebtewasaskingthesamequestion.
The|itera|concordanceoftheevidencea||owsus ,sofar,to
consider the investigation of the origins and causes of the
physio|ogica|co|ors"as the search for experimenta| verifica-
tionofthe physio|ogyofthe manof|ight, thatistosayofthe
phenomenaofco|ored|ightsperceivedandinterpretedbyour
Iranian Sufis. On the one side and on the other, the same
Questofthemanof|ight,andtheanswertobothhasbeen,so
to speak, giveninadvanceby Mary Magda|en, in thebookof
theFistisSabia,whenshesays.Themanof|ightinme, "my
beingof|ight," has understoodthese things, hasbroughtout
themeaningofthesewords(suta I I , I ) . Whoissought:Whois
theseeker:Thetwoquestions,be|ongingtogether,cannotre-
main theoretica|. Ineverycasetherevea|ing|ighthaspreceded
therevea|ed|ight, andphenomeno|ogydoesnomorethanun-
cover|aterthea|readyaccomp|ishedfact.Itisthenthatthefive
senses are transmuted into other senses. Suetata te//u sideta
danat . And the earth transcended brings us the gift of the
stars"( Boethius).
! 44
L1b
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4. bcc dvicenno, l. , gg. 28! -284, Y. bCOll, Hermetico, N (LxOIU,
! 986) . ! 06 (LIcck lcxl), ! 08, ! 22, ! 24- ! 25, _. HuSka, 7obulo Smorogdino
(mclUclDI_, ! 926),gg. 26-28(LcIuaD lIaDSlallOD).
. 'o=vozoq ( IlSlD_, caSl), U0t (SclllD_, WcSl), o='pzo (lDc caI,
DOIlD) , p = coppo (ulUUay,SOulD).
6. bcc LaIl bCDulUl, Kqtisch-gnostisc

eSchri[ten, , DieFistisSohio .
,
. , 2
te
I 45
Notcs
AutIagc barbcttct . . . von WatcrJtI( crItn, l 94), pp. l d9, I. l 2, 20, I. 33
22 l , I . 30.
T. 5cc ourEnIsm m imnie. arem sittuels et hi/osqhiqm (lns. LaItmard,
l 9Tl ) , , k. , Lh. V , lc Kcctt dc I'cxt occtdcnta ct la gcstc gnostguc,
Hans 5odcrbcrg,LoReligion des Cothores ( lppsaIa, l 949), p. 249. 5ccaIso thc
rathcrobscurc vcrsc30 tn 7he Gosel occording to 7homos , p. 2l otthc cdttton
cttcdabvc (and thc anxtcty provokcd tn Aphraatc, thc lcrstan 5agc,` trans.
]. Oorcs, p. l T).
8. lscudo-Magrt,DosZieldes Keisen,I, Arabtschcrcxt, hrsgb. v. HcIImut
Ktttcr, Studien der ibliothek Korburg, X (lctpztg, l 933). hts ts thc workot
whtch a mcdtcvaI lattn transIatton was pubItshcd undcr thc tttc otFicotrix
(Arabtcyroti F 'op;, Htppocratcs). 5cc aIsooutstudyRituelsobeen et
exegeseismelienneduntuel,Eronos]ohrbuch,X X(urtch. Khctn-VcrIag, l 9l ) .
9. Ibid. , p. l 93. hc cnttrc chaptcr conccrntng thc lcrtcct Naturc t ssup-
poscd to bc dcrtvcd trom a Kitob ol-IstomoUi, tn whtch Artstotc pours out
advtcc to Acxandcrand tnstructs htm how to tnvokc hts lcrtcct Naturc, toI-
IowtngthccxampIcotHcrmcs.
l 0. Ibid. , p. l 94;SccEn Islomironien,loc.cit.
l l . hcsc arc thc vcry words whtch arc rcportcd tn thc wcI-known"hoJth
otthcvtston`to havcbccnuttcrcd by thc lrophct, 5cc ourCreotiveImogination
in the Su[um qIbn 'drobi, trans. trom thc lrcnch by Kaph Mannhctm, o-
Itngcn 5crcs, XL ( lrtnccton, N.]. . lrtnccton Lntvcrstty lrcss, l 99), p. 2T2
tt. (hcrcattcrabbrcvtatcdasSu[irmo[Ibn 'drobi).
l 2. DosZieldes Keisen, p. l 88.
l3. 5ccthcwcII-known vcrsc tnthc_oran, thcltght(24. 3),partotwhtch
hasbccntncIudcdhcrcasthccptgraphto Lh. . hctmagcotHtsItghttsasa
ntchc w-rctn tsa Iamp. hc amp tstn a gIass. hcgIasstsas ttwcrc ashtntng
star. . . .
l 4. 5cc]. Kuska,7obulosmomgdino, pp. l 34- l 3 (Arabtc tcxt) and pp. l 38-
l 39 (Lcrman trans. ). hcLuardcdabct` (lowh moh[uz d. 22) on whtch thc
archctypcotthc _oran tswrtttcn, has bccn tdcnttttcd by somcadcptswtth thc
7obum smorogdino. Kcgardtngthc cmcraId brtIItancc shtntnghcrc tn thc ntght,
comparc thc rcIatonshtpbtwccn thc grccn Itghtand thcbIackItght" tn5cm-
nan,in[ro V .
l . 5ccthctcxtscttcd tnourEnIslomironien, , k. , LI. andV .
l . 5ccdvicennu lt. , pp. 88-90.KcgardtngAbu'I-arakat,sccprtnctpaIy5.
ltncs,Nouvellesetudessur. . . dbu'l-orokotol-oghdod, MemoiresdloSocietedes
Etudes uives , (lrts, l 9), Stumes in dbu'l-orokot ol-oghd ds Foetics ond
Metohsics, ScntoHierosolmitono,V_crusaIcm, l 90).
l T. 5ccourcdtttonotthtswork tn5ohravard,Oero metohsico etmstico, ,
ibiliothecoIsm mico,XV (lctpztg-stanbu, l 94) . 44.
l 8. n thcooko[Elucidotions(Kimb ol-7olwhot)cd. tbtd. , p. l 08, # 83.
l9. 5ccEnIsm mironien, , k. ,Lh. .
20. lorthccontcxtotthtsthcmc,sccourSqismo[ Ibn 'drob(supra, n. ll ) ,
pp. l 9- l T3 and p. 34, n. T0. 5cc aIso En Islam ironien, , k. V. Lh. ,
LontcsstonscxtattgucsdcMrOamad.`
2l . 5ccdvicenno,lt. , p. !T tt. , and M. K.]amcs,7hedoctholN 7esto-
ment (Lxtord, l 90),pp.4l l -4l .
22. H. lctscgang, LGnose,trans.]. GoutIIard(lrts, l9l ),p. 249.
I 46
Notes
23. oth thc Arabtc tcxt and thc paraphrasc tn lcrstan wcrc pubItshcd tn
voI . ot our Oeuvres hilosohiques et mstiques ot 5hthaboddtn Yahya
5ohravardi, tbItothcguc rantcnnc, (chcran-lrts, l 92), scc thc Fro-
kgomnertn lrcnchatthcbgtnnngotthcb k,p.8tl.,andEnIsk mimnm,U,k.
H, Ch. II. Wc havc pubtshcd a transIatton tnto lrcnch otthc whoIc cycc ot
5ohravard's mysttca rccttaIs undcr thc tttIcL'orchonge emourre, Oocumcnts
sptrttucIs, l4 (lrts.layard, l 9T).
24. hctcxtcntttIcd Khowdol-Hooh (hcLtstcrn otthc Watcr otlttc),lo
version orobe de l'dmrtokund, was pubItshcd by Yusut Hosayn t n thcjouol
osiotique 2 l 3 ( l 928). 29l - 344. hcrc ts aIso an unpubItshcd vcrston ot tt tn
lcrstan. KcgardtngthcattrtbuttontoAvtccnna,scc L. L. Anawatt,Essoide bib-
liogrohie ovicennienne (Latro, l 90), p. 24,no. l 9T.
lorturthcr dctatIs on thccontcnt otthts brtct rano-ndtan sptrttuaI ro-
mancc, partsotwhtchaIrcady cxtst tn 5ohravardiand whtch cIcar tttItngotthc
mss makcs tt tmposstbc to attrtbutc to Avtccnna, scc our study Four une
mothologede losintuolitesh'ite,Eronos-johrbuch, XXX (urtch, l 9l ), Lh. V.
andEnIslomironien, , k. , Lh. V , .
2. hc tormua I x I t sasogtvcnby Kzbhanasthatotthccsotcrtctowd.
5cc our studyon thc 5uttsm otKuzbchan ag ot5hiraz tnEn Ismm ironien,
, k. , Lh. V, .
2. Foimondres , 2-4, T-8. Corus Hermeticum (cd. A. O. Nock, trans, A. ].
lcstugtcrc) (lrts, l 94) . Tand9.
2T. Marttn Otbct us,Der Hirt des Hermos , (btngcn, l 923), p. 49l . Lrcck
tcxt cd. MoIIy Whtttakcr, Die oostolischen Iater, (BcrItn. Akadcmtc-Vcrag,
l 9) . 22, Iisio V, l tt.
28. 5cc thc psychoIogtcaI commcntary ot M. -l. von lranz, Die Fossio Fer-
etuoe, toIIowtng L. L.]ung,dion, Untersurhungen zur Smbolgeschichte (Zurtch,
l 9l ) , pp. 43-438. LnChristos-dngelos scc Marttn Wcrncr,DieEnLtehungdes
christlichenDogos ,2ndcd.(crn, l 93),pp. 322-388.
29. Frovorti ts thc ortgtna torm otthc word, whtch, duc to an crroncous
assoctatton wttha stmtIartcrm,wastradtttonaIIy spcItFrovoshi (tn modcrn lcr-
stan,[oFohor,[orhor) .
30. lor what toIows,scc our two studtcs tn whtch rctcrcnccstothcorgtnaI
tcxts arc gtvcn. Le 7ems cclique dons h mozdisme et dona l'Ismoelisme, Eronos-
johrbuch, XX (Zurtch, l 92. l 9 tt. (cttcd hcrcattcr as 7ems clique) and our
bokSirituolod ond CelestiolEorth, trans. trom thc lrcnchby Nancy lcar-
son, oIItngcn 5crtcs, XL . 2 (lrtnccton, N.]. . lrtnccton Lntvcrstty lrcss,
l 9TT): 40tt. (cttcdhcrcattcrasSirituolod).
3l . KcgardtngthtsgucsttonwccouIdspcIoutthcanthropoogygtvcnt n thc
undhishn (thc Mazdcan ook ot thc Lrcatton), whcrctn man ts satd to b
composcd ot tvc torccs. oody, sou, sptrtt, tndtvtduaItty, and guardtan sptrtt
(torthctcxts scc H. 5. Nybcrg,Questionsdecosmogonieetdecosmologiemozdenes ,
tnjoumlosiotique Yl 4( l 929) . 232-233) . hts ts, tn short, thc cttort attcmptcd
by thc dastur ].]. Modt, tn 7heReligous Ceremonus ondCustoms o[ theForsees,
2nd cd. ( ombay, l 93T), pp. 388-40l . ut htsanaIystsotthcsptrttuaIconstttu-
tton otman` tatIs to gtvc a sattstactory ptcturcotthc posthumous rcIattonot
thc travartt to thc souI, whatts morc, tt says nothtngabout thc cptsodcotthc
mccttngwtthandrccogntttonotDon.5o tt sccms thatthcrc tsa dctccttnhts
schcmattzatton,andthatthcsoIuttonhastobcthoughtouttnanothcrway.
32. 5cc H. W atIcy,Zoroostrion FroblemsintheNinth-Centutook (Lxtord,
I47
Notcs
!948) ,gg. ! ! 0- ! ! 5 (lcxlSOZupam29:9aDUlurlnidrntk 28. 8) . LCOuISc,
DuCD DOIc SlIcSS lDaD lS gOSSlDlc DcIc SDOulU D glaCcU OD lDc Uala OlDc
gIODlcDgOScUaDUlDcDcaDlD_OlDcSOlullODgIOgOScU.
88. LDlDISlOg_IagDy,SccOuI5QtrrluIUcdj, g. 27.
84. L. VaD UcI LccuW,hdncmncIc_tc dHeIt_cn ! 6(1DlD_cD, ! 988) ,g.
!25.
85. PaS1IOUU1D S, 1he Haudalu'l 1aahm ccmmcnIj caIkd 1aaauuurI, cI-
SlaD lcxl cU. Dy W VaDOW (LclUcD-ODDay, !950), gg. 44, 65, 70, Scc OuI
1emQacItque, g. 2! 0. , DD.86,89aDU ! 00.
86. bccalSOlDclDcDcOlDcDcaVcDlyhcurlD PaS1IS1, H_hzcanym,LD.
77, uDlICallODS O lDc LDlVcISlly O cDcIaD, LLL (cDcIaD, ! 885 S. D. ).
47-48.
87. . b. LIOWcI,1hemandacanrcjraqandran (LxOIU, !987),gg. 54-55.
88. bccmcDIl-LDaIlcSucCD,Lemantchetame,acn jcndaleur, aadcclnnc (IIS,
! 949),gg.48-44,aDU OuILnaIamtr&ntm, , k. , LD. N, 4.

89. H mantchaean aaIm-Ucck, l. , cU. L. H. L. PllDIIy (blull_aIl, ! 988):
42, !.22.
40. bccgIlDClgallylDclcxlSCOllcClcUDyLcOI_lO YlUcD_IcD,1hereal lchu
manah and lhe HQcalIe cj cd ( \ggSala, !945), gg. ! 7 . , 25 . , 88 . , maDS
bOUcIDcI_,0HeIt_tcndeaCalharea (LggSala, ! 949),gg. ! 74., 2 ! ! H.,247.
4! . mcLn aIam ranten, , k. , LD. N , 4, aDU YlUcD_IcD, q. ctl. , gg.
! 9-20. tllCulaIly IclcVaDl aIc lDc DODOlO_lcS aDOD_lDc lIlaUS lSSulD_ IOD
caCD OlDc lVc `talDcIS OI uDUaDcDlal aICDclygcS (KQhaIam, LD. N , gg.
84-86).ll SlDclDa_cOlI_Dl(DODOlO_ucOlDcNlI_lDOLl_Dl)lDal`cVOkcS
lDc lDIcc PD_clS OI UclllcS CODlD_ lO Dccl ODc OlDc lcCl al lDc DODcDl O
UcalD. PaIlcD_lDlcISluUylDaDlSgOSSlDlcDcIcCOulUD DaUcCODCcIDlD_lDc
LDOSllC lDcDc O lDc PD_cl aS lDc DcaVcDly HIler L_c aDU SaVlOI. POlc lDc
COIIcSgODUcDCc DclWccD lDc LDOSllC lcIDS om, oopn, 'oq,
'qcmu (reclcr) aDU lDc uDUaDcDlal IaDIaDlcID UcSl_DalID_ lDc uDCllOD O
lDcSaVIOIaDU _ulUc OlDcSOul : Qaranak (lD %aDUcaD, ]0t0nk0, YlUcD_IcD,
g. ctl. , g. 79. ). D DOUcID cISlaD.Qaruardn, lO DOuIlSD, lO cUuCalc,]0t0
kardan,lO lakc CaIc O.
42. DllO, @ucd delenua Qcltcn tnrtdtarr acleal, D_llSD IIaDS. Dy t. m. LOlSOD
aDU L. m. YDlllakcI, , 1heLceb CIaatcaI Ltbrarj (LaDDIlU_c, %aSS., 1950).
2! 6-2! 9.
48. PaDcly 5uelaualara-UQantahad aDU Klhaka-UQanrahad, Cll. Dy tIllz
%clcI, lD lDc_IcalWOIkQuOlcU DlOW lt DOlc64.
. % LPLm bLP PPL LLbPL LL
44. tOI lDc `aIlD O ScVcD kcSDVaIS, lDc CaIlO_IagDlC gIOCcSS, aDU lDc
IccIcDCcSlO lDclcxlS,SccOuI5QtnluaIUcdj, gg. l7-24.
45. tOIlDclcxlS,Scctbtd. , gg.82-86.
46. btd., g 78 . , 84 . , bcc OuIrcIe_cmeneaau ccuurea QhtIcaghtquea el
mjaltqueade5chrauarm (auQra D. 28), gg. 89-55,CODCcIDlD_ lDc SlIuCluIc OlDc
glcIODa O Ll_DlS, aDU g. 85 . OD lDc CODDcCllOD DclWccD lDcHectmI cj Ihe
cctdenlaILxtIe aDU lDc PVlCcDDaDHectmIcj Maj d aqmn. Yc alSO lDlcDU lO
guDlISD SDOIlly a lIaDSl3llOD O bODIaVaIU1S _Ical DOk Mtkml m 1hrq (lDc
`OIlcDlal lDcOSOgDy), lO_clDcI WllD lDc LlOSScS O %Olla baUIa bD1Ia21 (U.
640),lDclallcIDlD_cQualIDlDgIlaDCc lOaDOIl_lDalWOIk(SccOuIcU.aDU
l 48
Neas
lIaDS. O lDc Lture dea Qcnclraltcna mclaQhjatquea (Ktlab aI-maaha'tr), lDl.
IaDlcDDc,7(cDcIaD-aIlS, ! 964),DlI. ,g. 40.
47. PS %ODScD tay2 (aD IaDlaD bD1llc lDcOlO_laD OlDc ScVcDlccDlD CcD-
luIy) IcgcalS, bcc OuI5ujtam qbn 'Hrab, g. 85! . bcc lDc lIaDSlallOD O lDlS
lcxllDOuI5QtrluaIUcdj, gg. ! 76- ! 79.
48. DDO. 88 O lDc Ucck cj LIuctdaltcna`(aDOVc D. ! 8), a lcxl O lDc Dl_DcSl
lDgOIlaDCc.
49. mc OuInlrmucltcn lO lDc _Ical WOIk OHu2DDaD,Le_aamtn dca tdeIea
d'amcur, lDllOlDcQuc IaDlcDDc, N , cISlaD lcxl guDllSDcU lD COllaDOIallOD
WllD %OD. %OlD aDU lIaDS. O lDc lISl CD. ( cDcIaDaIl S. PUIlcD-
%alSODDcuVc, ! 958),g. 87H. bccaIsoLn1aIamtranten, , k. ,LD. .
50. Uaml Aa'ah,lDcCODSlcllallODO lDc caI(\ISa %a_OIaDU \ISa%lDOI).
5! . LODgaIc lDc lcxl uScU aS aD cgl_IagD Dy aD alCDcDlSl O lDc ScVcD-
lccDlD CcDluIy lD DlScUlllODOPlCDOlaS laDcl.LlutdebanlIaQtdemalanncum,n
mnucrcbabeI. 5eQlcmtaltccuItaunlcmtnt,qutdacurrunltnumueraamlerram (Ctl.
Dy L. L. _uD_, er etal der ychcIc_te, lD Lranca-_ahrbuch, 7
-
N) ( !947.

486-
487). LDc CaDDOl Dclg IclallD_ lDc lDcDc O lDc ScVcD HbdaI (WDO D_Dlly
lIaVcISc lDc WOIlU lO lDOID lDc gOlc) lO lDc lcxl OZcCDaIlaD, `DOSc ScVcD
aIc lDccycSOlDcLOIU,WDlCD IuD lOaDUIOlDIOu_D lDcWDOlccaIlD (4.!0),
OIa_alD ` . . . lDcSlODc lDal DaVclalUDOIc_OSDua,ugODODc SlODcSDallDc
ScVcD cycS (ZcCD. 8. 9).
52. tOIlDc CODlcxl OlDlSUOlIlDc lD Hu2DcDaD, SccLn aIam tranten, ,
k. , LD. . l CODlalDS lDc bD1'llcOYalayal aDU lDcCuIIcDl bul lUca O
Htmjal. DcIc Wlll D uIlDcI OCCaSlOD DlOW (tnjr& N , 2) lO IcCall WDy lDc
IcQucDl lIaDSlallOD O lDc ODc OI lDc OlDcI WOIU Dy `SaDCllly aDU O

aI
(gluIalHuItja) Dy SalDl lS lDaOcQualc. Dc lcIDntltaltcn S

cDS l
_
.
IcCagtl

-
lalc DcSl lDc lDgllCallODS O lDc WOIU uamjal. D WclVc-DaD bDI tlc _DOStS,
lDc `CyClc O DlllallOD (d 'tral aI-uaIajal) UODlDalcU Dy lDaDOlO_y SuCCccUS
lDc CyClcS OgIOgDcCy WDlCD WcIc CODglclcU WllD lDc `bcal OlDc IOgDclS.
LD lDc UcVclOgDcDlOlDlS lDcDc lD LaD1_1 (lDc WOIk CllcUDclOW M DOlc ! ! 8)
aDU ODlDcIclallODSDlg Su__cSlcU WllD LOclDcS gOcD aDU`lDc IlcDUOLOU
OLDcIlaDU, Scc OuI WOIkLnaIamtranten, N, k. N , LD. .
58. tOI lDc lcxlOlDlS lIaUlllOD, Sccq. ctl. , k. , LD. . DcIc aIc
DuDcIOuS VaIlallODS lD lDc cDuDcIallOD aDU ClaSSllCallOD O lDcSc DySllCal
DIcIaICDIcS.
54. _. L. LOygcc,CuIuandLe_cndr cjHnctenlran amChtna (ODDay, !986),
gg. ! 6! - ! 88.
55. azala ( cISlaD md) lllcIally. `aUOIaDlc. YDcD, lD CODOIDlly WllD
gOSl-SlaDlC lIaUlllOD, lDc cQulValcDl _lVcD OI lllSlDcDOllODOHn_eI (cISlaD
jOeahla), WDalDuSl Dc IcDcDDcIcUaIc DOl SO DuCD lDc aD_clS OlDc lDlc aS
lDctt-Hn_eItOIOCluS.
56. bcclDcUla_IaD SclugDy_. L.LOya]cc,cQ.ctl. , g. | 66.
57. LIOWcI, cQ. ctl. (auQra D. 87),gg. 9, 56,825. l SccDS llllD_ lO DcDllOD
DcIc lDc OIDOWOISDlggIaCllCcUDyaDlUcal ScClOgDllOSOgDcIS, IccIIcU lO
lD lDc DCyClOgcUla OlDckhuan aI 5aja (lDc `IclDIcD WllD guIc DcaIlS).
DcSc gDllOSOgDcIS aggcaI lO D alODCc baDcaDSgcIDcalcU Dy PcOglalODlSD
aDU, aS ll WcIc, gIc-SDacllaD lDcOSOgDcIS. D lDc COuISc O caCD DODlD lDcy
CclcDIalc lDIcc DOly Dl_DlSCOIIcSgODUlD_lO lDc gDaScS OgDc %OOD (lDclISl
Dl_Dl, lDc DlU-DODlD Dl_Dl, aDU laSlly lDc Dl_Dl DclWccD lDc lWcDly-llD Uay
O lDc DODlD aDU lDc lISl Uay O lDc OllOWlD_ DODlD). Dc Illual OD caCD
I 49
Notcs
ngbt|sd|vdcd nto tbrcc pcrods. tbclrsttbrd sdcvotcd to mcdtaton |n
onc'sprvatcoratory,tbcsccondtb|rdtomcdtatonontbc"cosmcscrpturc
undcr tbc sky, turnng onc's lacc toward tbcpoleStor. Tbc |ast pcr|od s dc-
votcd to cbantng lroma pb||osopbca|bymno|ogy (tbc"praycrolP|ato, tbc
"praycrolIdrs-Hcrmcs,tbc"sccrctpsa|molArstot|c, ctc. ). Tbccboccol
tbcpoleStor asqibm (tbcaxsolorcntatonoltbcpraycr) sccmstoponttotbc
SabsmoltbcscSagcs, tbcrca|cndarconlrmstbsmprcsson.Scca|soRoro'il
IHwon ol-So[o lV (Caro, !928) . 808-804, and lor lurtbcr dcta|s our study
Rituelsobeen et eegese ismoelienne du rituel,Eronos-johrbach, XlX/!950 ( ! 95! ) .
209ll.
58. SccSu[ism qbn 'drob, pp. 46-58 ("Tbc P|grmto tbc Orcnt), and p.
806n. 87.
59. Tbstrcatscol'A|HamadnbasbcnstudcdbyfrtzMccr,Die helt
d

er Crbilder bei 'dlomod

n,Eronos-]ohrbuch,XVl ll( ! 950): ! ! 5- ! 72, scc par-

tcu|ar|y p. !67. frtz Mctcr quotcs (p. 92 ol tbc work ctcd bc|ow n. 64) a
trcat|sc a|so by 'A| HamadnI cntt|cd Hoshrio ol-ruhono wo-mohrib ol-
trmono. tbcDnntolsprtua|rca|tcsandtbcDccidntolmatcra|rca||t|cs.
60. Scc ourdvicenno, Pt. l, p. !87ll. , partcu|ar|y 8, !0, 2 ! and 22, l. ll,
p.8! 9ll.
lV. VlSlOSMARAODlNA
6! . lt s tbc brclanonymous trcatsc studcd morc tban a ccntury ago
(Zeitchpt der Deutschen Morgenmndischen Gesellrcho[t, Vo| . !6 [Lcpzg, ! 862).
285-24! ) by f|cscbcr, Ceberdie[orbigen Lichterscheinungen der Su[i's, accordng
totbcLcpzg Ms. ! 87. DevoriisluminibussingulorumgroduumSu[icorumprqriis.
62. Scc ourcdton olHikmot ol-Ishrq (Deuvresphilosqhiques et mstiques de
Sohrovord, l l , supro n. 28, 272). lntbswork, lltccncatcgorcs ol pbotsms
wbcbmystcscancxpcrcnccarcdcscr|bd andtbcautbor'sconc|usonstbat
"aI| tbs pcrta|ns to tbc |aws oltbceighth c|matc, wbcrc tbc marvc|ous c|tcs
]aba|q,]abars,andHrqa|yarctoblound.
68. SccOcrda Wa|tbcr,FhonomenologederMstik (O|tcn, !955), pp. 68- 7!
and ! 5!- ! 55, andourana|ytca|rcvcwoltbswork ntbcRevuedl'histoiredes
religiona Qanuary-Marcb !958), pp. 92- ! 0! . Scc a|so Mrcca E|adc's va|uab|c
study,Sigaj]icotionsde m"lumiereinteeure", Eronos]ohrbuch, XXVl( !958). pp.
l 89-242. Vctor Zuckcrkand|'ssubstanta|work,SoundondSmbol (Ncw York,
!956),a|socontansorgna|pbcnomcno|ogca|obscrvatonsoltbc"ntcntons
olco|or(p. 6! ll. ). Tbcrcarccross-rclcrcnccsna||tbcscstudcswbcbbavca
bcarngonour purposc. Notbcngab|ctogo ntotbcm lurtbcrbcrc,wc sba||
bavctorcturntotbcmatsomcotbcrtmc.
64. A|| tbc parcntbctca| rclcrcnccsn tbctcxtoltbcprcscntcbaptcrrclcr
totbccxcc||cntcdtonby frtzMccr,DieFowo'ihol-omolwojowotihol-om ldes
Nom od-dn ol-Kubro, Akadcmc dcr Wsscnscbaltcn und dcr L|tcratur,
Vcrllcnt||cbungcn dcr Orcnta|scbcn Kommss|on, lX (Wcsbadcn, !957).
Tbsva|uab|c cdt|on, togctbcr wtb a Ocrman commcntary, s a major con-
trbutontotbcstud|csolSulsm.Wcbavcas|gbtrcscrvatonastothclormol
tb

tt|cadoptcd bytbc cdtorncontrastto tbatoltbcmgortyoltbcmanu-

npts. Wc9 wouId prclcr:Fmm m-]ml . . . andtbustakc t to mcan: 7m
blossomso[Beouqondmepequmes qMoest, wbcb mcanstbatwtbouttbcb|os-
somngolBcauty as tbcopbany man cou|d notapproacb tbc sub|mty oltbc
Deusobsconmtus.Conccrnngtbcsctwocatcgorcsolattrbutcssccaganitqta V,
I 50
Notes
2. Tbc aspcctsolFreandlichkeit andErhobenheit dcrvc rcspcctvc|ytomtbctwo
lundamcnta| Attrbutcs, but tsccms to uscsscnta| to prcscrvc tbcr prmary
mcanng(wtboutwbcba||tbctcxtsrc|at|ngtobautyastbcopbanyn Rzb-
bn and lbn 'Arab wou|d b ncomprcbcnsb|c). Wc can gvc bcrc on|y tbc
brclcst g|mpw olNgm Kobr's bograpby. Born n 540/! !45, bc spcnt tbc
lrst part ol bs |lc n |ongourncys (Nsbapur, Hamadn, Ispaban, Mccca,
A|cxandra) n tbc coursc olwbcb bc acqurcd bssprtua|tranng. But tbc

tradtonsconccrnngtbcordcrandt|ncraryolbstravc|sdvcrgctotbcpont
tbat tbcy arc dllcu|t to rcconstruct wtb pcrlcct cobcrcncc. Hc rcturncd to
Xwrczmnabout580/ ! ! 84. fromtbcnon,a||bsactvtytookp|accnCcntra|
Asa, wbcrc bc bad a tbrong ol lo||owcrs, scvcra| ol wbom bar ||ustrous
namcs.Tbcrcssomccvdcncctondcatctbatbcrccognzcdon|ytwc|vcgrcat
d|scp|csassucb(sccipro n. ! 09).Tradtonsrc|atcbsbcrocdcatbdurngtbc
borrb|c scgc olXwrczm by tbc Mongo|s n 6! 7/ ! 220- ! 22 ! . Wc oursc!vcs
dcvotcd an cntrc coursc at tbc Eco|c dcs Hautcs-Etudcs ( ! 958- ! 959) to tbc
mportanttrcatscbyNamKobrmadcacccssb|ctousnfrtz Mccr'scdton.
HcrctbasonIybcnpossb|cto|ndcatctsprncpa|tbcmcs.Sccdnnuoirede
lo Sectiondes Sciences Religieuses,Eco|c pratqucdcsHautcs-Etudcs, !959-!960,
p.75ll. Aslortbcb|p|artyoltbcdvncattrbutcs jomolandjoml,tbcrcsan
cxactcquva|cnccnKabba|ab,sccOcrsbomO.5bo|cm,DntheKobbolohondin
Smbolum,trans.byRa|pbManbcm(London, !960),p.79ll.
65. Conccrn|ngtbs tcrm, scc ourSum o[b 'drobi, pp. | 58, ! 79 ll. , ! 87
ll. ,wbcrctbcnccdlor tbsnco|ogsmscxp|a|ncd.
66. On tbc tbrccaspccts olno[s (tbc sou|) scc itqro 8. Takcnby tsc|ltbc
wordno[s cxpandsbcyondourcurrcntnotonolsou|. lntsbgbcraspcct,tbc
sou| stbcbcart(Arabcqolb, Pcrsandel, OcrmanGemut). ln tsntcrmcdatc
aspcct, t s tbc ntc||cct ('oql), conscousncss. ln tbc prcscntcontcxt, tdcsg-
natcstbc|owcrpsycbc.
67. Among many otbcr cxamp|cs (t may a|so bc rcca||cd bcrc bow
Zaratbustra put Abrman to l|gbt by rcctng tbcdhunovoi:o, sccIendid d
XlX), frtz Mc|cr rcca||s (q. cit. , p. !62)ancpsodc tbat lgurcs n tbc S|avc
vcrs|onoltbcIimdJeetEvoe. wbcntbcDcv|trcsto |urcEvcawaylromtbc
Tgrsbybsta|k,Evcdocsnotuttcras|ng|cwordnrcp|y.
68. On tbc mystca|cxcgcss oltbs vcrsclrom bc Qorn scc ourSu[umo[
bn'drob,p. ! 82.
69. A pcrlcct|y po|sbcd mrror (speculum) n wbcb tbcmagc tbat s rc-
l|cctcd s botb wbat sccs and wbat s sccn. t s tbc leitmotq ol a|| speculotive
mystcsmattcmptngtocxprcsstbc"dua|tyoltbcunus-ombo,tbc sccrctoltbc
bcavcn|yolter ego, lrom tbc lna|c oltbcSong o[the Feorl to tbc motloltbc
shokhol-ghobntbcprcscnttrcatsc.
70. Scc tbc tcxtoltbcRisolotol-insonol-komil (Trcatscontbc pcrlcct man)
ol 'A|Hamadn(supta n. 59), gvcnbyfrtzMccr,q. cit.dnhong, p. 288, no.
5.
7 ! . Himmo

Conccrnngtbsnoton,sccourSusmo[Iba'drob,p.222ll.
72. As an ||ustratonoltbcsamctbcmc,wc sbou|dctcarcmarkab|ccascol
"syncbronctybtwccnoncolNam Kobr'sdrcamsandadrcam olbsown
sbaykb,'Am mrBad|Is. ` wasnmyrctrcatandbbo|d, cxpcrcnccdccstasy
(|t.,"l wcntaway,astbcautbor a|wayssays nsucb cascs). was rascd to tbc
bcgbts and bcbo|d, tbcrc wasa rsng sun bclorc mc. was |cd nto tbs sun,
I 5 l
Motcs
altcrbavngcxpcrcnccdtbctrcmcndousntcnstyoltscncrgcs.Latcr!qucs-
toncd tbc sbaykb ('Ammr) about tbs. Hc sad to mc. 'O|ory bc to Ood| !
myscll bad tbc lo||ow|ng vson n a drcam. I sccmcd to bc stro||ng n tbc
sacrcdtcrrtoryolMccca. Youwcrcwtb mc and tbcsunwas n tbcmdd|col
tbcSky.Tbcnyousadtomc. L sbaykb! Doyou know wbo ! am? !sad. Wbo
arcyou?Yousad.IomthotsunintheSk.Tbcnmysbaykbrcoccdtbatourtwo
vsons bad syncbronzcd. Hcsad. '!wasusbcrcd ntotbcwor|doltbcbcart. !
carrcdontbc batt|clorL ngbt altcr ngbt. ! obscrvcd tbcSky attcntvc|y
unt|tcntcrcdntomynncrwor|d,and !cxpcrcnccd tbat IomtheSk.And!
obscrvcdtbcSkytbrougboutotbcr ngbts untl l sawtbc|owmc,ustas ! bad
sccn tabvc mc. And ! obscrvcdtbc Eartb ngbtaltcr ngbt, and ! sougbt to
dscovcrtast s, unt|twascngu|lcd nanorbollgbt(58).
78. Conccrnng tbs cxtrcmc|y mportant comparson scc Frtz Mccr, q.
cit. , p. 79,andCarl Scbmdt,Kqtisch-gnostische Schn[en ! (Bcr|n, !954).a
ersteuchdesjeu,Cb. 89, p. 294,azwmteuchdesjeu,Cb.42,p. 808.
74. !ntbcRisolot ol-so'ir (F. Mccr, p. 20! , n. 5) Nam Kobr rccommcnds
addnglrom tmc to tmc tbc sccond part. "And Mobammad s Ood's Mcs-
scngcr.Wcsbou|dtakcntoaccount,ontbspont,tbcncrcasngcomp|cxty
ol tbc lormu|a n ccrtan Sb'tc crclcs, tbc !mm s mcntoncd as tbc wol
dlm h, "Frcnd ol Ood, "ntator, cvcn Ftma as"Lgbt olOod. Ocncra||y
spakng,Sb'tcdoctrncandpractccnc|udcatrp|cshohodot . l) attcstatonol
tbc Dvnc Unty; 2)attcstaton oltbc probctc msson, 8) attcstaton oltbc
hom otoltbc!mms.
75. Scc Hcrzog, Reolencklqoie[urrotestontirche 7heologie undKirche 8rd
cd.,XV!, 25I , l. 49ll. , E.Tsscrant,dscensiond'Isoe (Prs, I909),p. 2 ! ! , notc
on l l .84(rcmncncc oltbcRmelotion o[Elqoh n St. Pu|,accordngto Or-
gcn, rcmnsccncc ol !saab, accordng to St. ]cromc. dscensio enim Isoioe et
docol@sisElioehochobenttestimonium).
76. Nam Kobr'sRisolotilo'l-ho'im, quotcdbyF. Mccr,dnhong, p. 295,no.
20.
77. Ibid. , p. 202, L. Massgnon,L'ided /esrit dom l'Islom, Eronos-johrbuch
X!!!/ ! 945. 279(tbcTaost nllucncc was pontcd out by H. Maspcro, scc also
suro !!!, 8,conccrnnganotbcrpossb|cTaostnllucncc).
78. F. Mccr, q. cit. , p. 204, Rudoll Otto, Sunde und Urschuld (Muncb,
! 982),p. I40ll.
79. Tbcbimma.sccsuro n. 7 ! .
80. MadoddnBagbdd(quotcdbyF.Mcc:,p.244),nbs7objotol-bororo,
9 mcntonsasbaykb's sayng,wbcrcntbcgrccnco|orscbaractcrzcdastbc
Iastvc|oltbcsou|. Ontbcprc-cmncnccoltbsco|ornScmnn,sccin[ro V!,
l .
8! . "Knowtbatlourangc|srase tbcmystctowardstbsmystcstaton~tbc
Abdcoltbc |ord|ycondtonand olpowcr. oncon bs rgbt, onconbs|clt,
onc abvc bm, onc b|ow bm . . . ( !9) . On tbs quatcrnty rcprcscntng a
symbIsm oltbc ccntcr, scc ourcommcntary on tbc "Conlcssons cxtatqucs
dc Mr Dmd" (suro n. 20), a sm|arangc|c tctrad lgurcs n tbcSummum
onum ol Robrt F|udd, !629 cd. "Usua||y tbc Angc|s comc lrom bbnd.
Somctmcstbcycomclrom abvc. Tbcsamclor tbcSokno. tbssagroupol
Angc|swbodcsccndntotbcbcart,tbcradvcntbrngsancxpcrcnccolquct
andpcacclu|ncssntotbcbcart. Tbcytransportyououtolyoursc|lsowbo||y
tbatyoubavcnoIongcranylrccdomtomovcorspcak, nopossb|tyoltbnk-
ngolanytbngotbcrtbantbcdvncBcng(2!)."AnAngc|carrcdmcaway.
l 52
Notes
Hc camc up bbnd mc, took mc n bs arms and carrcd mc oll, tbcn bc
turncd toward mylaccand gavc mcakss. Hs lgbtsparklcdnmynncrvcw.
Tbcnbc sad. !n tbcnamcolOod, tbanwbomtbcrcsnootbcr,tbcCompas-
sonatc, tbc Mcrclul. Tbcnbc roscupwtbmcaltt|cbgbcr. Tbcn bcsctmc
downagan(28).
82. Conccrnng tbc scvcn Hcavcns, sccQorn 67. 8and78. !2, conccrnng
tbc scvcn Eartbs, So[not ihur ol-dnwr, !, 6

! . For an amp|lcation ol tbs

tbcmcntbcSbaykbtcScbool,sccourSirituolod,p.802,n. 86.
88. Tbs s tbc gcncra| tbcmcolourbook,Sit:tuolod, rclcrrcd tontbc
prcvousnotc,scca|soSu[ismo[Ibn'drob,p.850,n. | 0.
84. ComparctbctcxtoltbcRisolotilol-ho'im,quotcdby f.Mccr,p. 97, n. 2.
85. Tbc samctbcmc s lundamcnta| nSobravard and bs grcatcommcn-
tator, Mo|| Sadr Sbrz. sprtual rca|tcs must bc obscrvcd n a propcr
manncr, ustasmatcralrca|tcscadloranappropratcmctbodolobscrvaton.
86. Scc 44 and 70. Attcntion sbould bc drawn bcrc to an mportant
trcat|scbyoncoltbcmastcrsoltbc !rananSbaykbscboololtbc|astccntury,
Sbaykb Mobammad Karm Kbn Kcrmn,ontbcco|or rcd. tbcoptcalpbc-
nomcnon, ts csscncc and naturc, ts symbo|c and mystca| mcanngs, ctc.
(Risolo-equm-ehomro) . Comparc tbs wtbtbcrcd |gbt tbatstbcdomnant
notc ntbc vsons ol "Oncngbt ! sawsomct
g
ngcnvc|opng tbc
Hcavcns. !twasa rcd |gbt. !askcd:Wbatstbat? Hc to|d mc. !ts
tbcc|oakolMagnlccncc. SccEnIslomironien,!!!, Bk. !!!, Cb. !V.
87. Soncacbcascwcarcto|dabouta|gbtprocctcdbytscorrcspondng
organ, oncoltbcsubt|corgansoltbcbodyol|gbt, tbcvsua|zatonolwbcb
corrcspnds to tbc momcnt wbcn tbcsc organs bcomc ndcpcndcnt oltbc
pbysca| bdy'sscnsoryorgan. "Tbc |gbtolbcarngdocs notbavcacrcu|ar
lorm. tconsstson|yoltwo pontsollgbtwbcb makc tbcr appcaranccbc-
bndtbcdoub|ccrc|coltbctwocycs(57). Asntbccascoltbcotbcrscnscs,
tbs "vsua|zaton oltbc acoustc pbcnomcnon w|l bc obscrvcd n tcrms ol
suprawnsory pbyso|ogy. Tbc "pbyso|ogy oltbc man ol |gbt, accordngto
Scmnn, scstab|sbcdonabasscommon toal|tbc scnscs, butdcvclopsqutc
dllcrcnt|yncacbcasc.
88. On tbs corrcspondcncc, scc F. Mccr,o. cit. , p. 67, n. I , Pul Kraus,
jobir ibn Hoyon, !! (Caro, !942), ndcx, our own study on Le "Livre du
Gloriew"dejobir ibn Hoyon,Eronos]ohrbuch, XV!!! ( ! 950) . 75 ll. , ls. MarIt
(suro n. 8),DoZieldesheisen,p.46.
89. Tbssoncoltbcwcll-known"outragcoussayngsoltbcgrcat lranan
mystc, Ab Yazd Bastm (d. 26!/875), n our cdton ol Rzbcbn Baq|-
Sbrz, Commentoire sur les orodoxes dessou[is (Shorh-eShothot), lcrsan tcxt
wtbFrcncbntroducton,Bb|.!rancnnc,X!!(Tcbcran-laris, | 966).
90. Consdcrab|c rcscarcb rcmanstobcdoncon tbcvarouswayso|nam-
ng tbslgurcntbcscboo|olNam Kobr. Tbcshokh ol-ghab appcarsagan
n 'Azz Nasa0, scctbctcxt7onzlol-orwoh,quotcdby F. Mccr, p. | 88, H. I, and
dnhong,pp.298-294,no. ! 8. !nSemnon(in[ro,V!, I ) tsca|lcdustodghob.
9! . Scc tbc tcxtoltbcRisolotilo'l-ho'imquotcdby f. Mccr, pp. | 85- ! 86and
dnhong,p.298,no. ! 7.
92. On tbsdcaoltbcsbbid,accordngto Rt:zbbn,sccourworkEnIslom
ironien, !II, Bk.!II, Cb.!II, V, V| -6.
98. 'Ayna|-QoztHamadn(d. 525l | ! 8| ), Abmad Cbazl's lavortc dsc-
p|c (and wbo, |kc Sobravard, dcd a martyr's dcatb), rclatcs an ana|ogous
I 53
Notcs
v|s|on|n b|s bok,tbc7omhdat. Attb|smyst|cstat|on,bcsa|d,"lsawa||gbt
cmanat|nglrom tbcd|v|ncbc|ng,ands|mu|tancous|yl sawa||gbtr|s|nglrom
mysc|l. Tbctwo ||gbtsmctand b|cndcd togctbcr, andtbcrc appcarcda lorm
olsucb bautytbat lorsomct|mcl rcma|ncddazz|cd tbcrcby(c|t. f. Mc|cr,p.
l l 4, n. l ) . lt|ss|gn|l|canttbat'Ayna|-Qoztcndstb|spcrsona| rcco||cct|on by
an a||us|onto tbc wc||-knownhodth ol tbc v|s|on,wbcrc tbc Propbctdcc|arcs.
"lsawmyOod|ntbcmostbcaut|lu|ollorms. Scc.our Su[ttmo[Ibn'Arob, p.
272ll.
94. Ghibto . As wc bavc alrcady po|ntcd out, tb|s |s tbc tccbn|cal tcrm by
wb|cb Nam Kobr rclcrs to cacb ol b|s v|s|onary cxpcrcnccs. "dcparturcs
lromtbcscnsorywor|d,"cntranccs"| ntotbcsuprascnsorywor|d.
95. TbcscQorn|cvcrscsrclcr to tbccp|sodcolMocsb|ngrcscucdlrom
tbcwatcrs. Tbcway |nwb|cbtbcvcrscsarcrcpcatcd|n|so|atcdlragmcnts|s|n
accordancc,olcoursc, w|tbtbcv|s|onary's| ntcnt|on. Rzbcbna|sog|vcsusto
undcrstand tbat tbc words "l sbcd ontbcc |ovc lrom Mc cbaractcr|zccc|cst|a|
|ovc. tbccxcgcs|s oltb|s vcrsc |s to bc lound |n tbc lact tbat Mannbas b-
comc a"m|rror olOod,bcausc b|sb|ngbasbccomctbc purc substancc ol
|ovcgosmin,270in [ine). Bcs|dcs,tbcpassagcconta|nsanotbcrleitmotiv| mpor-
tant |n Nam Kobr, tbat ol tbc "suprascnsory boks wr|ttcn by Ood |n
Hcavcn. Namknowsscvcraloltbc|r t|t|cs, onc may bab|c to rcadtbcm(just
||kc tbc Qorn|c vcrscs quotcd bcrc) |n tbc ||ncs and l|gurcs out||ncd by tbc
stars|ntbc Hcavcns oltbcsoul( 7l -72). f. Mc|cr (pp. I 84-l 85)rcm|ndsus|n
tb|sconncct|onoltbccascol ]ustnus Kcrncr'sSccrcssolPrcvorst.
96. Tb|s Pcrs|an word dcs|gnatcs tbc v|o|ct (l|owcrand co|or). Conccrn|ng
tb|sotbcr|mportanttbcmcoltbccsotcr|cnamcs,orbcavcn|ynamcs,brncby
ccrta|nbc|ngs,sccf.Mc|cr,pp. l 85- l 86.
97. SccEnIslomironien, l l l , Bk. l I I , Cb. Vl, 7,and myIntroduction to josmin
(suta n.49)and tbctrans|at|onoltbc l|rstcbaptcroltbatbook.
98. Dwond'ol-Holm , cd.Lou|s Mass|gnon|n jouolosiotique 2l 8( l 98 l ) , no.
80. Tbctcxtgvcnby NamKobr bassomc var|ants,sccf.Mc|cr,p. 89oltbc
Arab|ctcxt.
99. Dwon,ibid. no. 57. Scc ourcd|t|onoltbcjosmin,Gloss . 95, p. l 70. Tbc
twol|ncsarcsomctmcsattrbutcd to Hal|,somct|mcsto Mann, somct|mcs
quotcdanonymous|yastbcyarcby Ruzbbn'scommcntator. "Wbcntbcmys-
t|c rcacbcs pcrlcct|on |n |ovc,' bc says, "tbc two modcs olbc|ngbccomconc
wbo|c|nb|m. Tbcnbccr|csout. 'l am tbconcyboml |ovcandtbconcl |ovc
|sl , wcarctwosp|r|ts |mmancnt|noncbdy.'Tbattbcsc||ncs maybavcbccn
addrcsscd toan cartb|y pcrson,asSarr tcst|l|cs, nomorc tbanbcarsout,lar
lrom contrad|ct|ng|t, tbc tbcopban|c|dcaol|ovc,sccEnIslom ironien l I I , Bk.
l l l , Cb. Vl, 7.
l 00. Tbc grcat myst|c, l|cry sou|, nottobc conluscd w|tb b| sbrotbcr, tbc
tbco|og|an,AbHm|dObaz|.Tbc Pcrs|antcxt Sowonih byAbmad-cObaz|
(d. 520l l l 26) (dhonsmen ubermeLiebe) was cd|tcd by Hc||mut R|ttcr, |nib-
liothecoIslomico, l5 (Istambu|-Lc|pz|g, l942).Wc bavcmadcatransIat|onol|t,
asyctunpub||sbcd.
l 0l . Tbcanalogyw|tb tbc Mazdcan |dca makcs |tsc|llc|t |ncontcxt, cspc-
c|a|ly|nccrta|n |ntcrprctat|onswb|cb NamKobr g|vcsolBkbarz's v|s|ons.
Scctbc passagc|ntbclattcr'sKoqa'iol-kholwot,quotcd byf. Mc|cr,p. l 86and
dnhong,p. 292,no. I 6. "Attbatmomcnttbc lorccoltbc|nd|v|dua||ty(qowwot
ol-'on) |s rcvca|cd, tbat |scal|cd tbcsurosensosun, andwb|cb|s tbcscoles lor
wc|gb|ngact|ons and tbougbts. A man can rccogn|zcby mcans oltbcsc sca|cs
I 54
Notes
wbctbcr b|s |nncr statc sbows an cxccss or a dcl|c|t, wbctbcr bc |s salc and
soundor|ndangcrolpcr|sb|ng,wbctbcrbc|sontbcr|gbtpatborbasstraycd,
wbctbcr bc |sla|tblu|orunla|tblu| and d|sso|utc,wbctbcr b|s bcart|sd||atcd
ord|strcsscd, wbctbcrb|sgoa||sncaror|sst|||laroll,wbctbcrbc|srccctcdor
acccptcd, wbctbcr bc| smak|ngprogrcssor |sstand|ng st|||. ln sbort, bc can
d|scrm|natcbctwccn||gbtanddarkncss.
!0!a. Wcarcrclcrrngtotbcsymbo||crcc|ta|dcvclopcdbyNasrTsattbc
cndoloncolb|sbooks|nPcrs|an(Koshoesh-Nomeh, unpub||sbcd) .
l02. Sccrclcrcnccsabovc|nnotc92.
l08. Ibid. , tbcwbo|colRzbcbn'sbook,7hejessomine qtheFoith[ulinLove
(suro n. 49), lormsasctt|nglortb|s tbcmc, olwb|cb only tbcbarcoutl|nccan
bcg|vcnbcrc.
l 04. lbn'Arab,Kitobol-FotuhotolMokko,Cb. 860, Ca|rocd|t|on, I 829,Vo|.
l l l , p.274ll.
l 05. furtbcrto n. l 0l abovc, onc w|||rcca|| bcrc tbc conncct|on |n Cbr|st|an
|conograpby bctwccn tbc symb|or attr|butc oltbcscoles and tbc Arcbangc|
M|cbac| (wbosc ||turgcal lcast, Scptcmbcr 29, a|socomcs undcr tbc zod|acaI
s|gn L|bra). Tb|s wc|gb|ngoltbcsou|swaswbat|cdtbcZoroastran scbo|ar,].
]. Mod|,tomakcacomparat|vc studyoltbc l|gurcoltbc Arcbangc| M|cbac|
and tbatolM|tbra |n Zoroastr|an|sm.St. Michoelo[ theChnstions onJMimroo[
meZoroostnons.d comonson goumolo[ thednthq. Soc. o[ombo, Vo|. Vl, pp.
287-254).
I 06. A|ltbcscconncct|onsbavcbccnadm|rab|y|nd|catcd|na||ttlcbokw|tb
wb|cb wc do notcnt|rc|y agrcc on a|| po|nts but towards wb|cb wc lcc| sym-
patbct|cbcausc|t|soncoltbcrarctrcat|scsonangc|o|ogywr|ttcn|nourt|mc
andbcausc|t|slortbcmostpart|nsp|rcdbybcartlc|tdarng. Eugcn|od'Ors,
Introduccin o lovidoongelico, cortos o unosoledod (Bucnos A|rcs, l 94 l), csp-
c|a||ypp.87-40and62-68.
V. THE BLACK LlOHT
l 07. Tb|s |s a coro||ary oltbc tbcmc oltbc know|cdgc ol||kcby||kc, |n
Rzbbnaswc||as'lbnArab,alundamcnta|tbcmc|stbattbctbcopban|csol
tbcNamcsandAttr|butcsa|waysandcsscnt|a||ycorrcspondw|tbtbcsp|r|tua|
statcoltbconctowbomtbcyarcrcvca|cd.
l08. Scctbccxcc||cntart|c|cby]can-Lou|sDcstoucbcs,L'ombreetlolumiereen
hsique, |n tbc vo|umc Ombre et Lumiere, pub|. by tbc Acdcmc scptcntrona|c
(Pr|s, l 96l ),pp. l 5-20.
l 08a. Hcrc|t|sl|tt|nga|sotobrngto m|ndtbccorrclat|on btwccn tbcacts
ol||gbtorol||lum|nat|on (uhroqot)andtbcactsolcontcmp|at|on(moshonodt)
|ntbccosmogonyolSobravard.
l 09. Namoddn 'Abdo|lab|bnMobammad|bnSbbwarAsadIRz, known
as Dycb (d. 654ll 256), onc oltbc twc|vc grcatd|sc|p|cs wbom,accord|ngto
onctrad|t|on, NamKobracccptcd assucbby namc (scc tbc wr|t|ngsolHo-
saynXwrczm,quotcdby f. Mc|cr,p.44,n. I ) ; bc ||vcd |atcr|n Hamadn,at
tbc t|mc oltbc Mongo| |nvas|on bc rctrcatcd to Ardab| (tbc crad|c ol tbc
Salav|d dynasty, on tbc prcscnt Russo-lran|an lront|cr, wcst oltbc Casp|an
Sca),tbcn |nAs|a M|nor, bc was |ncontactw|tb SadroddnQonyawand]aI|
Rm'sc|rc|c. Bur|cd |nBagbdd. H|scb|clworkasamyst|c, bs|dcsaQornic
commcntary,|squotcdb|ow.
l l0. CbaptcrsXVllland XlXoltbcMirsodol-'Ibod,pub|.bySbamsol-'Oral
(Tcbcran, l 8l 2s.b.j l852I b. l988A.D.|),pp. l 65- l 78.
I 55
Notc
I I I . Conccrnng tbcsc two catcgorcs ol dvnc attrbutcs, scc abvc n. 64,
rcmarksconccrnngtbcttIcolNamKobr'strcarsc.
l l 2. Tbcrc s anmportanttbcoIogcaI dstncton btwccn tbc twodcas ol
sm m andmon,tbcsccondbcngtbc pcrlcctonoltbclrst. ln SbtctbcoIogy
mon,latb(asnldcItyandconldcncc), mpIcstbcadbcrcnccoltbcbcartto
tbc pcrsonoltbcboIymom as dwliy, tbcntatorstotbc bddcn mcanngol
tbc propbctc rcvcIatons, totaI latb n tbc Sb'tc scnsc prcsupposcs tbc
tbrccloIdsbabadt(abvc,notc74).
l l 8. hol-emotloq. lnSb'tctcrmnoIogywom ot stbcprcrogatvcoltbc m-
matc,tbccbarsmaoltbclmmaswol,ncIudngtbclmmolourdaywbos
bddcnandnvsbIc(wcsupro l l l , 2and 8, andipro Vl, 2). ltsmpossbIcto
dscussbcrc tbc rcIanonsbps btwccn SbtctcrmnoIogyand tbatolSulsm
as sucb, nor tbc Sb'tc prcsuppostons, at Icast Iatcnt, n cvcry tbcosopby
wbcrctbcdcaolwm tcntcrs. NaturaIIytbcSbtcSulsboIdaprccscopn-
onontbspontandontbccxtcnsvcuscoltbctcrmdwlio. Hcrcwcnotctbc
cmpbass on tbc symbIs oltbc sun and moon, wbcb n gcncraI symbIsm
lgurc rcspcctvcIy tbc mascuInc and lcmnnc. ln lsmacIan Sb'tc gnoss
(wbcrctbccxprcssond'i-emotloq ssomcwbat rcmndngoltbccxprcsson n
qucstonbcrc), tbcl mmasntatortotbcbddcn mcanng, dspcnsatoroltbc
"Igbt ottbc woluot," s rcprcscntcd as "sprtuaI motbcr ol tbc adcpts."
Ftma,tbcdaugbtcroltbc propbctandtbc motbcroltbcboIyl mms,stbc
"conlIucnt ol tbc two Igbts," tbat ol propbccy and tbat ol ntaton. ln
TwcIvc-lmm Sbtc gnoss, tbc Iarwom ot stbat oltbc lmm, tbc Iunar
wom ottbatoltbcadcpts(Lbj,q. cit.in[ro n. l l 8,pp.8l 6-8 l 7), sccEnslom
ironim l , Bk.l , Cb. Vl , 2 and lV,Bk.Vl l , Cb.l , 8.
l l4. Sccrcl.supro notc47.
l l 5. Sccrcls.supm notc92.
l l 6. Wbatsnqucstonbcrcarc tbcpIancsorunvcrscsolatransccndcntaI
cosmograpby, wbIc tbc l 8,000 worIds n lsmacIan gnoss, dcnotc unvcrscs
loIIowng onc anotbcr lrom a cycIc olcppbany (dowrol-Lsh[} to a cycIc ol
ocuItaton (dowrol-sotr), or lrom oncrcIgon to anotbcr, onccvIzaton to
anotbcr. Eacboltbcsc lormsascparatcunvcrsc,andonIybyspcakngolonc
npartcuIarcanoncsaytbattbadabgnnng(scc NasrTs,7mowworut,p.
48oltbcPcrsan tcxt). Tbclgurc 860,000rclcrstoamcgacycIc(Kowr,A'mv)
and

concurrcntIytotbc860dcgrccsoftbcSpbcrc,sccnkzbbntbclgurc
860rclcrstotbc numbrollntatcswbo lromonc prodto anotbcrarc tbc
"cycs"tbrougbwbcbOodIooksattbcworId. Aslortbclgurc 70,sccEnslom
ironien, l l l , Bk. l l l , Cb. l l l . On tbc tbcmcol l 8,000worIds n KabbaIab, scc
Ocrsbom5boIcm,LesOgnesJmKobbole, pp. 476, 490.
l l 7.
)
abmd

Sb

bstar,grcatmystcsbaykbolAzcrbaan,IvcdprncpaIIy
atTabnzand dcdm 720l l 820,attbcagcol88, nSbabstar,wbcrc bstomb
stIIcxsts. HsgrcatpocmwasmotvatcdbytbcqucstonsolMrHosaynSdt
lt

s sgnlcanttbat btb oltbcsc mcn wcrc rcgardcd by tbc lsmac-

as bavmgbccn oltbcrpcrsuason,sccourcdtonolan unlnsbcd ls-
m

acIan c

mmcntary on Golrhon-e Roz, pubIsbcd n our 7rilogie ismoelienne,

BbI, lramcnc, lX, Tcbcran-Prs, l 96l , lsmacIsm bavng survvcd n lran
undcrtbcUirqo (tbccIoak)olSulsm, or loncprclcrs, Sulsm bavng takcn
onccrtanaspcctsolacrypto-lsmacIsm.
l l 8. Tbs commcntary, rc-cdtcd scvcraI tmcs n lran, bas agan bcn tbc
obcctolarcccnt

dtonundcrtbccarcolMr.KayvnSam',Mo[otih ol-iz
(Tcbcran, l 957), m a bautluI voIumc ol 96 804 pagcs. Sbamsodn
I 56
Noas
MobammadOlnLb, natvcoltbcrcgonU tbcsoutbwcstoltbcCaspan
Sca,wasan cmncnt sbaykboltbc NrbakbsbyabOrdcr, bc was

cvcnoncol
tbc succcsrs olSayycd Nrbakbsb asbcadoltbc Ordcr. Hc dcd and was
burcdatSbrzn9l 2l l 506-07. Numcrouspagcsoltbscommcntatjarctob
loundtransIatcdnour7rilogeismoelienne.
l l9. Qz NroIIab Sbosbtar sonc oltbc grcat lgurcs ol

b'sm
-
n

tbc
Salavd pcrod (bs Incagc was tr

ccd b

ack to tbc lourtb Sb

ttc

am Ab
ZaynoI-'Abdn). Hcdcd amartyrm lnda, bytbcordcrol]abangr, rn l 0l 9l
l 6l0. Sccourntroductioa totbcjosmin olkzbbn, p. 78, n. l 24. ln btsgrcat
coIIccton ol bograpbcs, Mojcltr ol-Mu'minn, bc gvcs vaIuabIc nlormaton
abutourautbor.
l 20. Sbb Esm'I (bom 892l l 487, dcd 980l l 524, grcat-grandson tbrougb
bs motbcrolKaIo]oanncs Comncnus, Iast CbrstancmpcrorolTrcbzond)
was, as wc know, tbc rcstorcr ol lranan natonaI unty somc nnc bundrcd
ycarsaltcr tbc coIIapsc oltbcSassandsblorc tbc armcs ollsIam. lt was bc
wbo madc TwcIvc-lmm Sb'sm tbc natonaI rcIgon ol lran. Hc was onIy
lourtccnattbc tmc olbscoronaton n Tabrz (905l l 500) , tbc ngbt blorc
tbc ccrcmony, somc oltbosc cIosc to bm, and cvcn somc Sb'tc tbcoIogans,
warncdbmagansttbcdangcrollormuIatngtbcSb't

prolcss

nollatbn
actytbcgrcatmaortyolwbownbabtantswcrcSunmtcs.To tbstbcadoIcs-
ccnt answcrcd. "l am commttcd to tbs acton, Ood and tbc lmmacuIatc
lmmsarc wtb mc, and l lcar no onc" (scc E. O. Brownc, Litot Histoq o[
Fersio,lV,p.58).
l 2l . Kobud-pushon, tbc "bIuc-cIotbcd," s. a currcn
}
Pcrsa

wayol nat
"
ng
Suls, rclcrrngtotbcrcustomolwc

rngbIuccI

tbmg,v

nous

cxp

Ianauons
bavcbcngvcnoltbspractcc. Hcrcttbasapr

ccscmcanmg,bm
Q
maccord
wtb a gcncraI symbIsm oltbc coIor olcIotbmg. Tbus t

c mcamng

ltbc
coIor bIuc (n NamKobrasnScmnn) makcsbIuccIotbmgappropnatcto
tboscwboarcstIIntbclrststagcsoltbcmystcIlc. Fortbatvcryrcasononc
canundcrstandtbcmaIcousbumorolHlczwtbrcgardtotboscoltbcSuls
wbo ma

c a rcguIarbabt olwcarng cIotbng oltbatct.Ior. wcrc tbcy tobc

takcnaspcopIcwboncvcrgotbyondtbclrststagcsoltbcmystcIlc?Ontb

c
otbcr band, wbcn tbc grcat mystc poctolSbrz dcscrbcs tbc status ol bs
mastcras "rosc-coIorcd" r-e Golrong) asopposcdto tbcwcarcrsolbIuc, bc
wasaIIudng to tbscustomolcbangngtbc "IturgcaI"coIorolpcrsonaI cIo-
tbng toaccord wtb progrcsson tbcsprtuaI patb. Sccou

ntr

ducnon to)os-
min olkzbbn,pp. 56-62 (wbcrccxactIytbc cIuc to t
|
ctdcnuty

ltbcF.r-e
Golmng pcrbaps aIIows us to conncct Hrcz

to tb

tonuut ol Ruzbba
[
ol
Sblrz, in tarc aIso rccaIIcd scvcraIcsscnuaI tdcasm tbc symboIsmolHalcz
wbcb bas bcnsounlortunatcIy msundcrstood ntbcWcstby smpIylorgct-
tng bow and wby bs Dwn couId bavc bccn uscd as a BbIc

by tbc l
|
anan
SulsuntIourday). TbspractccscxprcssIyattcstcdtoby NagmKobra,wbo
dstngusbcstwocatcgorcsoltbccoIorbIuc.kbm (dccpbIuc) andozro
9
(sky
bIuc, azurc), scctbcpassagc lrom bsddbol-Mondu quotcd by F. Mccr, p.
l 26, n. 7. bIackandbIuc (siyh okbud)coIorcd cIotbngarc tobworn wbcn,
tbanksto tbc sprtuaIwarlarc, tbcIowcrpsycbc (no[s ommro) basbcnovcr-
comc,astbougboncwcrcnmournnglort.Tbcmcanngstbcrclorcnottbc
samc as n tbc casc ol Lb, bcrc bIack docs not rclcr to tbc bgbcr stagc
wbcrconcspcaksol"bIackIgbt.lnabgbcrsprtu

aIAbd

wb

rctbc mystc
gans acccss to tbc transIunar worIds

by conccnt
P
uon ol bts spntuaI cncrgy
(himmot),NamKobrconncctstbsw:tbtbcwcanngolazurccoIorcdcIotbmg.
lncvcrycwwc musttakc ntoaccount tbc symbIc aIc oltbc co|ors, but
I 57
Notcs
thcy canvary,aswc havcsccnhcrc, trom oncmastcrtoanothcr. ln5cmnan
thchghcstcoIorsthccoorgrccn.
! 2
,
hs s thc pocm otMua ana guotcd by Mr. Kayvan5am', p. 9 ot
hs mtroducuon to thc Golshon-e Roz (suro n. l ! 8) . Lthcr works rctcrrcd to
thcrcn show how vsons otcoIorcd Ights havc ncvcrccascd to ntcrcst thc
lranans.
l 23. lp. 94- l 02otthccommcntarynthccdtonrctcrrcd to,whchwcshaII
nowanaIyzcwthoutpartcuIarrctcrcnccs,coupIcts l 23- l 29(notmcntoncdn
thscdton)otthcRoseGordeno[Mstet.
l 24. 5cc thc sccond ot thc cstatc Lontcssons` ot Mr Oamad En Islom
ironien, lV, k. V,Lh. l , 4.

l 2. 5ayycd Ahmad 'AIaw, pupIand son-n-IawotMr Oamad, scc ourdv-

tcenno,pp.8-0.
l 2. LtcraIy, 'thcbIackcoorotthcaspcct`, thsstatcmcntcanbc rcIatcdto
thc tact thatLai[ habtuay w

rc

bIackcIothng,thsbcngthcoutward sgn

tthcmctaphystcaI povcrtywhtch5 thcgrcatcstotrchcs tor thcbcngcsscn-

ttaIzcd by thc dvnc bng ot thc Lodhcad. hc thcmc ot'back ght` rc-
mmdsushcrcotthc paradoxcaItorm n whch onc otthc mostanccnt5h'tc
gnostcs, Hshambn5aIm]awaIg, propoundcd hsdoctrnc: Lod hashuman
tormanda bod

y, a suitIc body, notcomposcdottIcshandbIood,butotspar-

khng, radtant hght. Lkc thc human bcng, Hc has tvc scnscs, but thcy arc
subtc organs. Hc h
-
a
]
abundant back har whch sblock light (nuraswod). 5cc
thccontcxtmourSqismo[Ibn 'drob, p. 38! t.,n. ! 2.
! 2T. Moshhod: paccotthc prcscncc ot thc shahtd, whcrc thc wtncsstcsttcs
to i sprcscncc and to thc prcscncc to whch hc s prcscnt (hcncc thc pIacc ot
tcstmony ot hcrctorc ts thcshohidas pIacc and torm (mozhor)
otthcoghany thc bcmgotpcrtcct bauty choscnas wtncss otcontcm-
pIaton.
l 28. Lnthc mystcaIcontcxtotthshomth, scc ourSqism o[Ibn'drob, p. 2T2
tt.
l 29. lor morc dctaIs on thc doctrncs ot 5cmnan, scc our workZn Islom
ironien, 2 l l , k. l V, Lh. lV. l nt can bc tound n dctaI aI thc rctcrcnccs1o
thc worksot5cmnan,stIIn manuscrpt,n lcrsanand n Arabc, thcsc rctcr-
cnccswIInotbc rcpcatcd hcrc.
l 30. t. Lson. Histo o[ Chnstion Fhilosoh in theMiddle dges (Ncw York.
KandomHousc, !9), pp.34l -342.
l 3 l . 5cc MgucI Asn lIacos, Obros escogidas I (Ibn Massorro su escuelo)
(Ma

drd,

!94), pp. ! 9- l 0, on thc Ous mous ot Kogcr acon and thc

s
)
mtua mtcrprctattonotthc lshragyun. Lonccrnng thc sccnccotpcrspcc-
tvcasthc most tundamcntaIotthc sccnccsotNaturc,scc KaouILarton,L'ex-
eriencehsiquechez Rogerocon (lars, l 924), pp. T2-T3, and L'exenencems-
ttque del tllumtnotmn mteneure chez Roge ocon (lrs, l 924), pp. 2l 4tt. (thc
scvcndcgrccsotnncrsccncc), 2,30tt.
l 32. lntact thc wordm[sr dcsgnatcsthcItcracxcgcssccntcrcdaroundthc
canoncaI l samcsccnccs. Athough oncgcncraIyrctcrsto 5cmnan's7o[sr, t
woudbcmorc approprtatctospcak oths7o'wl (to'wl,ctymoIogcay, mcans
to rcconduct,` to Icad somcthng back to ts orgn, to ts archctypc). Ln thc
[
hrcc dcgrccs ot hcrmcncutcs. to[sr, to'wl, and to[bm, sccEnIslomimnien,
mdcxs.v.
l 33. lnl samc cxcgcss thc wordForokletos s takcn tobc a dctormaton, by
I 58
Netes
thc Lhrstans, otthc wordFetklitos (loudotissimus F Ahmad F Mohammad).
hc vcrscs( l 4. l and 28, l . l ) ot5t.]ohn'sLospcIwoud thus rcad as thc
announccmcntotthcadvcntotthc5caIotthc lrophcts. ln5h'tcgnoss, thc
laracIctcqoroqlt) sdcnttcdwththcwcItthl mam(thchddcnandawatcd
lmam) whowI rcvca thc csotcrc mcanng otthc KcvcIatons, scc ourrcport
on L'idee du Foroclet hilosohie imnienne, prcscntcd at thc Longrcss on
lranoIogy,Komc,Acadcmyotthc Lncc, AprI l 9T0,andpubshcdindttidel
Convegno internozionole sul temo. Lo Fersio nel Memoevo (Komc. Accadcma
nazonacdcLncc, l 9Tl ), pp. 3T-8.
l 33a. hs ntcrprctaton, ngongto thcvcryroot, procccdscguaIytrom a
dccp pcnctraton ot lsamc thcoogy. lt wouId bc ntcrcstng to makc a com-
paratvc studyotthc lunc thcmcotkroot(lhIp. 2. tt. ) , thcsemetisum
exinonivit" whch was such a thorny prObIcm tor Luthcran thcoIogar\s n thc
nnctccnth ccntury, scc artcc by Loots, Kenosis , n Hcrzog,Reolencl. rot.
7beol. undKirche,3rdcd. , X, 24-23.
l 34. Ln thc thrcc bodcs otthc human bcng. body otorgn, carthIy and
pcrshabIc, body otacgustonor truton, body otrcsurrccton, and on thc
anaIogywth thc physcsotrcsurrccton` nthc5haykhs,sccEnIslomimnien,
l l l , k. l V,Lh. lv, .
l 3. Ln thcsc obscrvatons conccrnng conography, scc our Su[ism o[Ibn
'drob,pp. 2Ttt.and 3T9tt. , n. Tto l 2.
l 3. 5cc Lous Massgnon, hc Lrgns ot thc ranstormaton otlcrsan
lconography by lsIamc hcoIogy. thc 5h'a 5chuootKta and tsManchcan
Lonncxons` (n Arthur Lpham lopc,d Sut o[Fersion drt, Vo. V, lt. l X,
Lh. 49jLxtord Lnvcrsty lrcss, 2nd cd. , l 94- ! 9|, pp. l 928-! 93, partcu-
IarIypg. ! 933-l 93),whowasthc trstto throwghtonthc roIcotKtaatthc
orgn ot pantng n lsIam, and to show thc vauc ot thc tcstmony ot Abu
5hakur 5am guotcd bcow. hc l ranan mottotthcXvooh Icads us how-
cvcr hcrc to a dttcrcnt ntcrprctaton ot thc connccton ot ths conography
wthwhatthcgodbackgroundsotyzantncconographysuggcst.
l 3T. 5ccourIntroduction tojosmin,pp.and 20.
l 38. hsonc, tor cxampc. 'Kasc upthcdhikr otthc Lght, hcIpthc pcopc
otLght, gudc thc Ighttoward thc Lght.` 5ccourFrolegomenesItothcWorks
ot5ohravard(supran. l T) , p.4.
l 39. Forbenlehre, Kroncrs aschcnausgabc, VoI. 2. 5chrttcn ibcrdcNatur
gcordnct und ausgcwahIt von Lunthcr lpscn (5tuttgart, l 949),Einleitung, p.
l T.(Wccamcacrosstoo atctobabctousc thcrcavcryntcrcstngnumbcr
otthc rcvcw7riodes l l l, 4, wntcr l 9,dcdcatcd to thc sprtua cxpcrcncc
otcoIors.` hc artccs n ths numbcrottcr strkng corrcIatonswth thc prc-
scntrcscarch. )
!40. Ibid. , I to3. Lctusrcca vcrybrctIyoncotthcsmpIcstcxpcrmcnts
dcscrbcdat thc outsctotLocthc'swork.Ln a purc whtc shcctotpapcrpacc
or draw a ds ot untorm coor, bIuc tor cxampIc, conccntratc your gazc
txcdy and attcntvcIyon ths dsc. 5oon thc pcrphcry bcgns to gow wth a
rcddsh-ycIow Ight thatsvcrybrIantbut cxtrcmcy dccatc, so dcIcatc that
t s not aways possbc to gvc t a namc. hs rdcsccnt Ight (physoIogcaI
coIor) sccms to bc tryng to 'cscapc` trom thc coIorcd dsc (rcca hcrc thc
tcchngucotManchcan pantng). ltsuccccdsand bccomcsacompctcorbot
ght` whch, havng bccomc dctachcd, sccms to tIuttcr on thc whtc papcr
around thc coIorcd dsc. ltoncabruptIy rcmovcs thc dsc (assumngtto bca
scparatc pccc)oncthcn pcrccvcsonythcorbotths physoogcaIcoIor.
I 59
Notcs
l 4l . IbtJ. , 80. Whcnthccyc sccsa coIortttstmmcdtatcyacttvatcd and ts
ttttcd by naturc to Qroducc unconsctousIy, ncccssarty, anothcr coIor, whtch,
togcthcr wtth thc gtvcn coor, tncIudcs thc totatty ot thc ctrcIc ot coIors. A
stngccoIor Qrovokcsnthccyc,througha sQcctttcscnsatton, thccttort toward
gcncraItty. 80. I n ordcr to bccomc consctous ot thts totatty and sattsty
ttsct, tt scck at thc stdcotcachcoorcd sQaccasQaccwtthoutcoIortn ordcrto
Qroducc thc coor tt rcgutrcs.` (5cc thc cxamQc gtvcn abovc tn notc l 40.)
80T: hcrccxacty onc ttndsthc tundamcnta IawotthcwhoIcDarmonyot
coIors, oIwhtch cach onc otus maybccomcconvtnccd through QcrsonaI cx-
Qcrtcncc, bytrytngthc cxQcrtmcnts tndtcatcd tn thc scctton otthts book dc-
votcdtohsiologicolcolors ."
l 42. IbtJ. , T l -T. T3. o cxQcrtcncc QcrtcctIy thcsc dcttnttc and
mcantngtuI cttccts,oncmustcomQIctcIysurround thccycswttha stngccoIor,
oncts, torcxamQIc, tnaroomaII otonccoIor,or oncooks througha coorcd
gIass,oncts thcn oncscIttdcnttttcd wtth thccoIor, Uc coIorbrtngs thc cycand
aIsothc mtnd tntountson.`htsmayrcmtnd usotNczam`s grcatQocm(otthc
twcItth ccntury),Ho[t Fokor (hc 5cvcn cauttcs), tn whtch thc 5assantd Qr-
tncc ahramLrvtstts scvcn QaIaccs, cach otwhtch rcsQccttvcytscnttrcy thc
coIorotoncotthc scvcn QIancts, tncach otthc scvcn`QaIaccs,a Qrtnccssotonc
otthcscvcncItmatcs,drcsscd aIsotn thc corrcsQondtngcoIor,tcIIs thc Qrtncca
Iong story contatntng many tndtcattons. hc Qocm tII ustratcs thc adagc Iita
coehtus comomno, and Qrovtdcs onc ot thc mottts most trcgucnty uscd tn
lcrstanmtntaturcs.
l43. IbtJ., 9l -9l T. (N. 8abovcrctcrs to an tmQortantstudyby an rantan
shaykhotthcIastccntuonthcsymboItsm(to'wl)otthccoIorrcd.)
l 44. IbtJ. ,8l 9, cndtng as toIIows: "hc mathcmattctans Icarncd thc vaIuc
andthcuscotthctnangIc, thctnangIc ts hcId tngrcatvcncrattonby thc mys-
ttcs, many thtngscanbc schcmattzcdtnthctrangIc, and tnsuch a way thatby
duQItcattonand tntcrscctton wcgctthcanctcntand mystcroushcxagon.`
l
U1U1LlV ^1Y
Allbcry, Charlcs Robcrt Ccci l , cd. n Manichean Isa/m-ook , ! ! ,
Stuttgart I 938.
As|n Palacios, Migucl. U/tas escogidas l (i/n Masarra su escue/a) , Ma-
drid I 946.
Bailcy, Harold Waltcr. Zorastrian Iro//em in the Ninth-Centu ooks,
xlord I 943.
Carton, Raoul. L'exerience hsique chez Roger acon and
!
'exerience
mstique de l'i//umination interieure chez Roger acon, Pars I 924.
Dcstouchcs, ]can-Louis. Articlc cntitlcd L'om/re et m /umire en h

iq

e
in thc volumc cntitlcd Um/re et Lumire publ. by thc Acadcmc
Scptcntrionalc, Paris I 96 I .
Dibclius, Martin. Der Hirt des Hermas (Tibingcn I 923) , Crcck tcxt cd.
by Whi ttakcr, MollyDie aosto/ischen | ater ! , Bcrl i n,
Akadcmic-Vcrlag I 956.
Drowcr, Lthc| Stclan a. The Mandaeans o[lraq and lran, xlord ! 937.
Lliadc, Mircca. Study cntitlcd Signjications de /a /umire interieure ,
Franos-qahr/uch XXV!/I 957 ( I 958) , pp. I 89-242.
Fcstugicrc, Andrc-]can, trans. Ioimandres in Coqus hermeticum ! , cd.
by Arthur Darby Nock, Pris I 945.
Flcischcr, Hcinrich Lcbcrccht. Le/er die [ar/igen Lichterscheinungen der
Su[i's altcr Lcipzig manuscript I 87. De tariis /umini/us singu/orum
graduum Su[icorum roriis i

(
eitschrjt der Deutschen
Morgen/andischen Gese//cha[t I 6, Lcipzig I 862, pp. 235-24I .
Franz, Maric-Louisc. Die Iassio Ieretuae lollowing C. C. ]ung's nion,
Lntersuthungen zur Sm/o/geschichte, Zurich I 95 I , pp. 387-496.
Cilson,

ticnnc. Histo o[ Christian Ihi/osoh in the Midd/e nges , Ncw

York, Random Housc I 955.
!vanow, W., cd. Nasroddn Ts, The Rawdatu't Tas/m common/ ca//ed
Tasawwurat, Lcidcn-Bombay I 950.
]ung, Carl Custav. Der Geist der Ischo/ogie , Franos-qahr/uch X! V/ I 916
( I94 7), pp. 385-490.
Kraus, Pul .ja/ir i/n Hayan ! ! , Cairo I 942.
Massignon, Louis. L'idee de /'esrit dans /'ls/am, Franos-qahr/uch X! ! !/
I 945 ( \946), pp. 277-282.
Mcicr, Fritz. Die Fawa'ih a/-ama/ waawatih a/-a/a/ des Nam ad-dn a/-
Ku/ra, Wicsbadcn I957.
Nybcrg, Hcnrik Samuc|. Questions de cosmogonie et de cosmo/ogie maz-
deennes ,qournc/ asiatique 2 I 4/ I 929, pp. I 93-3 I 0.
rs, Lugcnio dc. lntroduccion a /a tida ange/ica, carta: a una so/edad,
Bucnos-Aircs I 94 I .
tto, Rudoll. Sande und Lrschu/d, Munich I 932.
l l
BbIography
Pincs, Salomon. StuJtea t
"
0u'l-Burukut ul-BughJuJ'a Ioettca unJ
^etu]hatca (Scn]tu Hteroaolmtmnu /I) , ]crusalcm ! 90.
Pucch, Hcnri-Charlcs. Le ^untchetame, aonqonJuur au Joctnne Pr: s
! 949.
J
J
Ringbm, Lars-l var. Grultem]el unJ IuruJtea , Stockholm ! 9 ! .
Rittcr, Hc

llmut, cd. Pscudo-Magrit, Dua Ztel Jea Hetaen l (StuJten dr

Bt0ltothek Hur0urg Xl l ) , Lcipzig ! 9JJ; Ahmad-c Chaza|
]hortamen u0er Jte Lte0e (Bt0ltothecu !alumtcu ! ) l stanbul-Lcipzig

! 942.
7
Ruska,]ulius. Tu0ulu amurugJtnu, Hcidclbcrg ! 92.
Schmidt, Carl. Ko]ttach-gnoattche Schpten l, Bcrlin ! 94.
Scholcm, G. Lea ortgtnea d lu Ku00ule, Pris ! 9.
Scott, Waltcr. Hermettcu l V, xlord ! 9J.
Sdcrbcrg, Hans. Lu reltgton Jea Cuthurea , Uppsa|a ! 949.
Van Dcr Lccuw, Ccrardus. Ihunomenologte Jea Reltgton Tbingcn
! 9JJ.
J
Walthcr, Ccrda. Ihunommologte dr ^attk, |tcn ! 9.
Wcrncr, Martin. Dte Lnntehung Jea chrtatltchen Dogmua 2nd cd Bcrn
! 9J.
J
" 7
Widcngrcn, Cco. The Greut |ohu ^unuh unJ the ]oatle o[ GoJ Uppsa|a
! 94.
J
Zuckcrkandl, Victor. SounJ unJ Sm0ol, Ncw York ! 9.
I 62
117
AbatburMuzana,88
ml.tbcscvcn,52,58,! 84, tbc
lorty,56
Ab'I-BaraktBagbddI, !9ll.
Ab'I-Ma'rI,66
AbSbakrSImI, ! 86,! 87, !59
n. I 86
Abrabam, 55, !05, ! 25, "olyourbc-
ng,"! 24- ! 26,! 28,! 80,! 48
absoIutcsubot, !02,! !2, ! ! 8
act.olI gbt, ! 0! , !02,! !6,actsolI-
Iumnaton(sbrgt),olcontcm-
pIaton, !08ll. ,oltbcLgbt,! 08,
! 48
ActvclntcIIgcncc,see!ntcIIgcncc
dcoq7bomas, seeSongo[tbeFearl
Adam,48,55,carnaI,28,corporcaI,
! 4, cartbIy, !4, ! 5, 28,48,
ctcrc,58, ! 26, andEvc(Man-
dcsm),88,andFbs, !4ll. ,"ol
yourbng,"! 24, ! 26
AbmadAbs'I,Sbaykb, ! !4
Abmad'AIawI,Sayycd,! 58n. I 25
Abrman,29, 47, 48, ! 5! n. 67,
Abrmanancountcr-pwcrs,29
Abunavarya, ! 5! n. 67
Ar(cIcmcnt),65,66,77
'mmal-mtbl,seemundusmagnals
aIcbcmy,8, 77, ! 06,! 84- ! 89
'AIIHamadnI,58,68
'AIIZaynoI-'AbdIn,Fourtblmmol
SbIsm, !57n. I I 9
AIIbrry,CbarIcskobrtCccI, !48
n. 89
aIoncwtbtbcaIonc,84
alterego (bcavcnIy),8,!0, 88,59, ! 5!
n.69.SeeaLaAngcI ,PcrlcctNa-
turc
Amabraspands(Zoroastranarcban-
gcIs),4 ! ll. ,55
'AmmrBadIIsI, ! 5! n. 72
Amrtakunda,24ll.
Am'l-Haqq (HaII), ! 27, ! 28, an srr
al-Haqq(lbn'AIabI), !29
androgyny,48
AngcI(tbc),82,97,!04,arcbctypc
olbumanty,!6, 20,27, 88-40(see
aLa OabrcI,HoIyObost,Actvc
l ntcIIgcncc),olknowIcdgcand
olrcvcIaton, !4 (seealsobd. ),
esotcrcAngcIol cacbHcavcn,
! 05, AngcI-Logos,7,48, ! ! 8, ! ! 7
angcIoIogy,6,20, 97, Zoroastran,48
angcIopbancs,79
AngcIs. tbclour, !47n. 8 ! , olCbrst,
! 6
anmemlestes, !05
anman(youarc),88, ! ! 6
antbropogony,95-96
dntmmon, 48
docalyseo[Eljjm, 75
ApoIInarousolLaodcca, ! 82
ApoIIonusolTyana(BaIIns), !8 ll.
ApuIcus,85,45
uql,see ntcIIcct
aqtm (pIcs),tbcwvcn,52
arcanum, transconousncss(U[),
69, ! 09- ! ! 0.Seealtomtq a
arcbctypc. Fgurc(mbd',dmutba),
88,42(seealtomundusmgmbs),
l magcs,5. Seeaha AngcI
Argun, ! 2!
dscmono[Imm, ! 52n. 75
AsInPIacos,MgucI,! 22
assumptonto Hcavcn, ! 88
astroIogy,! 84- ! 85
astronomy.csotcrc,52, ! 85,
PtoIcmac,60
'Attr,FarIdoddIn,66
Attcstor/Attcstcd,72
Atts,27
aura,62,! 85, glan, !88
auroraboreah,4, 5,46ll.,59, ! !9
Avcsta,55
Avccnna,84, ! ! 8, ! !4, (aprypbaI)
Esthq tbeOrgnandRemm,24
ll. ,mystcaIrcctaIs,6, Recmlo[
HayboYaqzn, 22,25,59, ! 0! ,
! ! 4,!48n.46
dul-eKh(FrcndsolOod),
54-55, !05
aumd,tbclour,57
'AynaI-QoztHamadnI, !58n.98
Bacon,kogcr, !22
BabrmOor, ! 60n. I 42
BaIcy, HaroIdWaItcr,! 47n. 82
Banalsba,voIct,87
BartboIomcwolBoIogna, ! 22
t, ! 0!
I 63
BastmI,AbYazId, ! 58n.89
Bcar,constcIIatonoltbc,49,52,58
Bcarng/Born, ! 7, !9,2 ! , 80,84
bauty,86,86-88,92, ! 08-!04, ! 08,
ndCx
!85- !86, !58n. I 27, as
tbcopbany,68ll. , sprtuacs-
scnccol, !87
bng.tbcbngbyond, ! 0ll. ,"tbc
oncwboncvcrbasnatbeen, ! ! 8
b-twccn,"manasa,88,95
bnb(sprtuaI), ! 28
b-unty, 7,9,28, 8! , 49,68, see aLa
unus-amba
bIack, 98, body,obcct,! 00- ! 08, !26,
!88, coIor, ! ! 5, tbcbIacklaccol
bcngs, ! ! 2,Iumnous,7,! 26,
!28
bIackncss.oltbcstratospbcrc, I00,
wtboutIgbt,47
bIazcs,rconngoltbctwo,68,
65-66, 72-78, 85-87, 89, ! 4! ,
!48- !44
bIndncss(sprtuaI),66
bIuc-Uad (tbc), Suls, !57n. I 2 !
bdy.acquircdsubtIc, ! 24, ! 29,! 59
n. I 84, olmmortaIty, ! 80,ol
orgn, ! 59n. I 84,rcsurrccton,
! 2! , !85, ! 59n. I 84, subtIcbody
olIgbt,4! , !06, !58n.87
Boctbus, !44
Bobmc, ]. , !28
Books(suprascnsory),wrttcnn
Hcavcn,87
BrnnbIdc,82
BuddbasandBodbsattvas, ! 88
Buddbism(Mabayana),88
BuddbstsolCcntraIAsa,50
Bundabisbn,antbropoIogyol, ! 47
n. 8I
Byzantnccons,mosacs,40, ! 88,
I 59 n. I 86
cardnaIponts,tbclour, ! , !4H.
caro siritualis, !82, ! 86,!88
Carton,kaouI, !58n. I 8 !
Catbarsm,84
ccntcr,5, !8,2! , 26, 4! H.,49
cbakras,88
CbnvatBrdgc,80-88, 4! , 44, 5!
cbvaIry(sprtuaIcbvaIry,avn-
mardi), ! 86
Cbrst, !6, 47, 55, !88, andMnI,27,
Cbntos-dngeks, 27, 84,Cbristus
uvenu,! 82- !88, Cbristus-Fastor,
27
Cbrstianty,47, !27, !82,Ebontc,
! 85, orcntaI, !88
Cbrstans. ! 27, !28
CbrstoIogy,27, Qornc, ! 29
Cbromatcbarmony, I I I , ! 4!
ctcsol tbcopprcssors,28-24,45,
47, 49-5! , prsonaIcty,25
crcumambuIaton,49
CImatc,TbcEgbtb,2, 44,57, 60.
Seealsamundusimaginahs
cIotbng,symbIsmolcoIorol,
! !0- ! ! ! , azurc,skybIuc, ! 57
n. I 2 I , bIack, I I I , I I 8, !57 n. I 2 I ,
bIuc, I I I , I 57 n. I 2 I , see aLa sym-
boIsmolcoIors
cIoud.bIack,65, 67, 98, gIowng,65,
olunknowng,7, !0,wbtc,65
cagitia.mtutina,59,akns, 59,ves-
tim, 59
coincmentiaagasitam, 47, 50
coIIcctvc,coIIcctvty, !0, coIIcctv-
zaton,8! , 5! , 97
coIor. IanguagcoltbcsouItotwIl,
! 42, mystcaI mcanng ol, I 40,
! 42- !48, purc, ! 0! , sprtuaIcx-
pcrcnccol,!42-!48,! 59n. I 89
coIors.arcbctypaIcondtons, !42,
aurc,62, bIuc(Lmandaztaq),
! 57n. I 2 ! , bIucandycIIow,p-
Iartyol, !48, grccn, ! 48, !57
n. I 2 ! , barmonyol, !60n. I 4I ,
IgbtsmadccoIors, I0I , mcntaI
mprconsol, ! 42, "pbysoIog-
caI,"62, !02,! 89-!44,ntbc
purcstatc, !08, ! ! 6,! 26,! 88,
! 89, rcd,!42- ! 48,tbcscvcn,
I02, !42,symbIc,notaIIcgor-
caI,uscol, !42H., syncbronsm
ol,8! , tbcworIdol, ! 8! - ! 89.See
aLasymbIsmolcoIors
CoIumn.olDawn,45,olLgbt,70,
columnaglonae, 5,84, 45
Comunicatiaidoamm,7 !
compIcmcntarcsandcontradc-
torcs,47, 50, 94
conscous,6
conscousncss,47, 98-94, 96-97,
99- ! 00
ContcmpIator/ContcmpIatcd,72, 84,
! 06
corrcspont!enccs, Iawol, ! 28
Coyacc, ]. C., !49 nn.54,56
CrossolLgbt,45
I 64
ndcx
CycIc.olcppbany,olocuItaton,
! 56n. I I 6, ollntaton, ! 49
n. 52, olntatcgrowtb, !25, ol
propbccy, !2, 54, ! 25, !84- !85,
oltbcwamat, ! 84
Dacn,97, nMancbcsm, 85, n
Mazdcsm, 80ll. ,TbcSouIon
tbcWay,80-8! , cxbatoIogcaIv-
sonol,80ll. , 88, 4! , and
Fravart, 80, 8! , 89,92
dim6naredros,27,85
darkncss,4-5, !4,28, 96, twoloId,6
ll., Abvc, !00,attbcskrtsol
tbcPoIc,6-7, I I , !8, !00- ! 0! ,
I I 4, I I 6, ! 88, dvnc,7, ! 00,! ! 7,
Bcncatb, !00,Abrmanan,8! ,
96, 97, !02- ! 08, ! 08, I I I , ! !4,
! 88, ! 88, dcmonacaI,9, !08,ol
tbcFarWcst, ! 0! , oltbcSubon-
scousncss,! !6. SeeaLaNgbt
dark noontdc, 5, I I 8, I I 9, ! 26
db(drigb, dtsb),dcrvsb, 57,
! !2, ! !6. SeeaLapovcrty
Davd"olyourbng," !25
Day.tbcworIdol,4,7, cxotcrc, !0,
24, 46-49,dcIvcranccoltbc"par-
tcIcsolLgbt," !88, !87
Dcstoucbcs,]can-Lous, ! 55n. !08
Ds abscomitu:,48,58,86, !00, !08,
I 08, ! ! 7, ! 50 n.64
dcvI(sbatn),68,65ll.
dikt(ukt),64, 67,78-76, !04,bIazc
oltbc,90ll. ,lrcoltbc,95, !00,
mmcrsonntotbcbcart,ntotbc
si,75ll.,Igbt ol tbc, I 04- I 05,
tccbnqucs,75ll.,oltbcLgbt,
! 59n. , Hcrmctst, !9, Sulc dikt
andTaosm,75,andtbcmonks
olAtbos,75
DbIus,Martn, !47n. 27
D-AngcI, ! 49n.55
dmcnson.byond,2,4, ol Igbt(b-
ng),oldarkncss(quddty), ! ! 4,
oltbcnortb,8,poIar,7,8, !48,
transccndcnt,pcrsonaI,6,!0, 20,
47,49,64,92, !00,vcrtca, ! , 8,
42, 50, 5! , 62
drcntaton,7,47-50, olsymbois,
5!
dvncattrbutcs,69,7! -72.SeeaLa
aml,aml
I 65
dmuma(tutcIarySprt, lmagc),58
Dg elganger, 95
drcams(ta'bitorsccnccol),8!
Drowcr,EtbcIStclana, !48n. 87
Druscs,88
duaIsm,48
duaItudc,97
dyads, ! 6
Eanb.cIcmcnt,65, ol Igbt, ! ! , 85,
57, olvsons,40-4! , bcavcnIy,
57, andIooltbcsuprascnsory,
70-7 ! . SeeaLa7etra /ucida
Ecclesmsiritualis, 58
Eckbart,Mcstcr, ! 9, 68
cgo,9- !0, Iowcr,66-67(seeaLa souI),
tbctruc, ! 24-! 25, !27- !28
EIburz(AIbrz), 18,55
cIcmcnts,tbclour,65
EIadc,Mrcca, !50n.68
EIjab,55
EIxr,!85
cIIpw,symbo, !0
Elobim, !48
EmcraId:kock,6,28,48-46,59,70,
78,97, !26,TabIct, !8
EmpcdoIcs,68
cncrgy (sprtuaI),70, 77, ! 4! , !57
n. I 2 I
Enocb(ldrIs,Hcrmcs),55
Epmctbcus, ! 5
rn-Vc,89ll.
csotcrc,48, ! 05-!06, I I I ,olcacb
Hcavcn,60,mcanngoltbcQo-
rn, ! 2! - ! 22,bcrarcby,46,52,
55, 57, !84
Esabbad, 8!
cvcnts. nHcavcn, ! 0, ! 29,ol tbc
souI, ! 06,!28- ! 29
EvI, 65
Exodus.oltbcmanolgbt,60, ! 2! ,
outol Egypt,28,24
cxotcrc, I05- ! 06, I I I , !22
cxpcrcncc(mystcaI),70,80
cyc(tbc).twIlIgbt, !89- !40, pro-
duccstsowncoIor, ! 4! , oltbc
bcart, !06, ! 20,nward, 80
cycs.olCodntbsworId,58-54, n-
wardcycsolman, !09
lacc.olIgbt, ! ! 8, !48, bIack, ! ! 2-
! ! 8
ndCx
[on[b (rcrptonntoOod),
I I l . I I 7 ll., I 27 ll. , I 82, !88
larcast(sprtuaI),48-44,larnortb,
40,larwcst(non-bng, bcII),6-7,
! 0! , ! !4
Forbenhbre, ! 89- ! 44
Fatc, ! 5
Ftma,2), ! 56n. ! ! 3
Faust,48ll.
Jedel d'omore, 8, 9! , ! 85
lcmnnc, ! 08- ! 04,! 56n. ! ! 8
Fcstugrc,Andrc-]can, !47n.26
Frc.cIcmcnt,65-66,77,darklrcol
tbcdcvI,74,lmyIgbtoltbc
dbdr, 78ll. ,nlcrnaIlrc(nward
toman),69
FIamcI, NcboIas, !49n. 5!
FIcscbcr,HcnrcbLcbcrccbt, l 50
n.6!
FIudd, kobrt, ! 52n. 8!
lorms,4, appartonaI,64ll. , ! 20,ol
Igbt,27,84-85, 49,57,
tbcopbanc, !02- !08, ! 06, ! ! 7,
! ! 9, ! 86, ! 4!
Franz,Marc-Louwvon,! 47n.28
FrcndolOod(ntbcObrIand),54
FrcndsolOod,seeduh-eKmd.
FrovortyaO r), 22, 28-82, 94,97,
andWaIkyrcs,8! -82
FyIga,82
OabrcI(arcbangcI). HoIyObost,Ac-
tvcl ntcIIgcncc, AngcIolbu-
manty, ! 6,27,J4,55,! 28, ! 80,
AngcIolknowIcdgcandrcvcIa-
ton,20, ! ! 7, ! 8! , "olyourb-
ng," ! ! 7, ! 8! , ! 84. See alra mtqa
gebtu'lio
Gortmn (AbdcolHymns),80,42
OcmstusPIctbo,Ocorgus,8
gcocntrsm,8
gtm(matcraIstatc), 29
ObazII,AbHmd, ! 54n. ! 00
ObazII,Abmad,88
OIson,Etcnnc, !58n. ! 80
gnoss.nlsIam, 50, lsmacIan,95,
! 84,! 56n. ! ! 6, Mancbcan, !88,
! 85, Sbltc,! 88- ! 85, ! 59n. ! 88,
VaIcntnan, ! 6,58
Ooctbc, ! 2, 54, 68, ! 89- ! 44
Oondopbarcs, 22
Oood, 65
Goseloccordngto7bomos, 8-4, ! 46
n. 7
OrccnsIand,58
OuardcdTabIct(LoubMob[),!46
n. ! 4
Oudcol Igbt,pcrsonaInward
gudc,suprawnsorygudc
(mqodmol-gbob, ostdgbobi,
sbokb ol-gbob), 9- ! ! , ! 5, 27, 86,
48, 50, 68, 64, 82, 85, ! 80- ! 8!
Ouomar,McbcI,7
badItb.oltbcvson, !05- ! 06, ! 20.
! 54n.98,oltbcscvcnctcrc
mcant.gs, ! 22
Halcz ol SbIrz, !57n. ! 2!
HkmTcrmczI(898),56
HaIIq(aI-), 88,88, ! 27
baIIucnatons,62, 78
bcarngoltbcbcart,! 8!
bcart(qalb),65,66,68,69,78,78,82,
98, ! 04, ! 09, ! 5! n.66. SeeaLa
latq a
Hcavcn. bIack, ! 0! , ! ! 7, nward,70,
82,oltbcbcart,69, !05, oltbc
robbqo, 79, oltbcsouI, 45, 59,
69
Hcavcns.nward,79, 88, ! 28, oltbc
bcart, ! 05, !08, oltbcEartbol
Igbt,oltbcSouI, !85, sprtuaI,
69,79,suprascnsory,60,tbc sc-
vcn,88
begemonkon, tbc, 8!
Hcrmas,26-27, 8 !
bcrmcncutcs(sprtuaI,ctcrc),98,
! 2! - ! 22, andmystcaIpsycboI-
ogy, ! 80
Hcrmcs, 8,26,68,Creqboros, 27,cc-
statcasccnsonol,nSobravardI,
5, 45, 47, 50-52,70,77, 85, and
tbcundcrgroundcbambr, !8,
24, 45,99,andtbcPcrlcctNa-
turc, ! 7- ! 9, 2! , 8! -82, 45-46,
48-49,SacrcdBoksol, !4,
SbaykboltbcpcrsonaIcty,25,
vsonolApoIIonus olTyana, !8
Hcrmctsm, ! ! , ! 8, nArabcIan-
guagc, !4, ! 6
bcxagon, ! 60n.44
HbIZwa,58
bcroosmoIogy,56,57, 68
bcroosmos,57ll.
l
ndcx
bcrognoss,6,56, 68
bcropbancs,4 !
bkmotol-sbrq,see "orcntaI''
tbcosopby
bmmo, 77, ! 5! n. 7 ! , ! 57n. I 2 !
bstorczaton, ! 82
bstoryoltbcsouI, ! 82
HoIyObost,nman, ! ! ,69.SeeaLa
OabrcI, HoIyObost
bomovus, tbcmannman,85
baausm, !27
Hosayn bn'AII,tbrdlmmol
Sbism, ! ! !
bourI(bcavcnIy), ! 48n.86
HrqaIy, ! !,28,89, 42-44, 46, 57,
80-8! , ! 02, ! 06, ! 82
Hypcrborcans,40
bypostatcunon, !82
lbIIs,48, 9,convcrtnglbIIstols-
Im, 66,94
lbnaI-'ArabI,MobyIddIn,22, 58,8! ,
86,89,96,! ! 5, ! 28,! 5! , n. (4,
!55n. ! 07, pIgrmtotbc Orcnt,
58
lbnKammna,46
conograpby, ! 82- ! 88, ! 85, ! 88- ! 89
lcu, Onostcboksol,7 !
.
Ikbunal-Sa[a ('?beBretbrenuttb
FureHeorts), 90,ttualo[tbe
Fblosqbs, !49- ! 50n.57
umnotomtutm, 45
lmagc:olIgbt,84-85,52,prmor-
daIl magcs,4-5,82,89.SeeaLa
arcbctypclmagcs
"magnaI,"seemundusmgnobs
magnary,5
.
lmagnaton,8! , acuvc,5,48,8! ,
transccndcntaIactvclmagna-
ton,80
magnatvclacuIty(lmagnatrx),
64, 8! , !06
lmm(ntbcSbitcscnsc),! 8! , ! 84,
! 85, tbclmmaspoIc,46,48,
! 56n. ! ! 2, tbcbddcntwcIltb
lmm,pIcolpIcs, 52, 54,56,
58, ! 59n. ! 88,tbcnward, ! 84,
l mmatc,! 84, ! 56n. ! ! 8,lm-
moIogy,54,! 22, ! 8! - ! 84
mmatcraIzaton, ! 02
mmcrsonoltbcobcctntotbcsub-
cct, ! !8
l ncarnaton, ! 27, ! 28
ndvduaIandspcccs,97
ndvduaIty(sprtuaI), !6, 20,99,
! 04, !07, ! 48
ndvduaton(csscntaI), 98,97
n[um, 50
nlraconxousncss,96, ! 0!
ntaton,58,54,ndvduaI,95,
laIcd, !28
ntcIIcct('aql),66-68, 98, ! ! 0, ! 5!
n.66.SeeaLamtqa
lntcIIgcncc.tbcFrst,tbcNau,7,
.
82, Actvc,20,59.SeealraOabrcI
lntcIIgcnccs,tbcoryoltbc,60, ! ! 8
ntcrnaIzaton,60, 75, 82, ! 06,! 27,
! 89, ol ImmoIogy, ! 8! , ! 84
lnvsbIcs(tbc), ! !
nwardmastcr(astgbobj,n-
vsbIc, 85,98-94, ! 80, ! 84.See
alraOudcolIgbt
nwardncssolIgbt,5
lonanscbooI, ! 89
'l sbnMaryam, 72, !27. Seeal:a
]csus
sbrq, 8, lsrqiun, 8! , 42, 45, ! ! 7,
!22
sm mandmn, ! 64
lsmacIans, ! 22, ! 56n. I ! 7, an-
tbropoIogy,88
sm[tin (csotcrcnamc),87
!smmokb(km baI-), !46n.9
lvanow,w. , ! 48n.85
]baIq,]bars,4 !
jatt, 59, 79
]brbnHayyn, ! 58n. 8
jal(dvncattrbutcsolrgor,
macsty), ! 08, ! 08, ! 86, ! 5! n.64
]aIIoddInkumI,2! , ! 8! , ! 55n. I 09
jam l(dvncattrbutcsolgracc,
bauty), ! 08, ! 08, ! 86,! 50- ! 5!
n.64
]awIIqI, HsbmbnSIm, !58
n. ! 26
]crusaIcm(bcavcnIy),4! , 42
]csus.Rdlmb, ! 28, ! 80, "olyour
bng,"! 25- ! 28. Seealramtyu
]ung,CarIOustav, ! 47n.28,! 49
n. 5!
I 7
KabbaIab, ! 56n. ! ! 6
KayKbostaw,60
ndCx
kenstryund of the dvne nto the
human realty), l27
Kembtm, 79, l l 3
Kesbvar(orHs, zone), 39, the seven,
42, l48 n.44, the central 42
`
the
eghth, 43

Khezr (Khadr, Khdr), 55
Kraus, Ful, l53 n. 88
Kh-e Khw]eh, 22
Ihjjl, 5hamddln Moh. , l, l l ,
l l 4- l l , l 2, hs vsons of the
bIack Ight, l l l - l l 2
mtu (subtle organs or centers), l2,
4, 83, the seven, 42, l7, l9,
qumHyu, m[sqa, l 24, l 29, quul
byu, und'tyu, l 24, ryu, l 25,
Nu]qu, l 25, l28, mqqyu, l 25,
l 27, l 29-l 3,)ubru'elqu, l 3l
latttudmaI and Iongtudnal order of
Lghts, l2
Lebnz, 97
Igature of the senses 2 79
Ike wth Ike, 4, 9-72, 87, l39, l 4l
Ltght, 4, 8, %, and darkness l8
`
whte, l7 ff. , bIue, 89, l07 ff., n
your heart, 5, of fre, 7, of the
tongue, of hearng, 82, of
prophecy, l4, of pure ssence
l l , l l l , l l 5, oftheophany, l ls,
ofthe wumyut, l 4, ofIghts, l3,
of the dbkr, 7, the northern 4
l l , 45, 47, of the Throne, o. o-
ward, l8, 4, 43, 45, 4, l39, yeI-
Iow
.

l 7 ff. , black (nr-esqb, the
anttthess of Ahrmanan dark-
ness), 5, 7, l l- l 2, 47, 49, 9,
l -l3, l 7-l8, l l - l 2, l 2-
l 29, Ohrmazdan, 3l , 97, of or-
gn,44-45, that makes one see
(ab
*
Iute sub]ect), l 2, l l, re-
v

aImg, reveaIed, l 44, red, l 7,

wtthout matter, l , l2, upon
hght, 29, 3l , 72, 74, 97, green, 7, 9,
37, 4, 7-79, 93, l, l 7, l l l ,
l l 7, l 2-l 27, l29
Ights: avendng and dexendng
72-73, l 38, colored, l , l 4, 08,
l l 2 (red, yeIIow, whte, bIue),
l 24, l 2 (se ubo photsms), of
eauty, Ma]esty, l 3-l4, of the
heart, of the Throne, 72-73, un-
l d
created, 4, nfnte, 3l , , pure,
l2, l 4, supransory, l l 9,
theophanc, 9, l 8
"lo". of Mercy, 77, ofthe true God
eu, 7l , dvne, 7
.
Lotus of the Imt, l l 7, l 3
Love. four degrees of, 89, human
and dvne, 87-88, mystcaI, 8-87
Luther, Mann, 4
Ma'ni,8l , 8z
Macroosm, l , 82
Mag, 22
Man. outward, carnaI (sarknosan-
mrqs), l4, Perfect, l l 8, unver-
sa!, I . See uIto bomo u~
Man of Ight gbounosanmrqos,
Smkbs nrni), l 2, l 4, l8, 25, 28,
3, 47, 59, 3, 4, 85, l l
l 3l -l 39, and the Perfect Natu:e,
25, axent of, 42, physoIogy of
4l , 2, 74, 8, 82, 83, l 2 l 2l
.
l 39- l4, l43. See ubo Fhs, mt[u
Ma
]
doddln aghddl, l 52 n.8
Ma]nn, 88, l 54 n.95
Ma]rltl (pudo-) l - l 7, 4, l53 n.88
Mamk,53, 59, 79
MandaIa, 3, 4l
Mandeans, Mandean gnoss 33 ff
5, 58
J

MnI (the prophet), 34, l 33, l 37
Manchean. cosmogony, 2,
dramaturgy of salvaton, l33
l 5, pantng, l2, l l - l2, l 33,
l 37- l 39, l 59 n. l4, physcs of
Ight, l 3, l37
Mancheans, l l , l, 2, 33, 34, 45,
5, 57, 58, l 3l , l37, of CentraI
Asa, l 3
Manvahmed, 34
Mary MagdaIene, l 5- l , l 44
Maryam, 2l , 7, l 28, l 3l
mavuIne, l 3-l4, l 5 n. l l 3
Maspero, Henr, l 52 n. 77
Magnon, Lous, l 37, l 52 n. 77, l 59
n. l 3
Matter (subtIe), 44, l 2, l8
Mazd

sm. trad
.
of thought, speech,
acuon, 33, trmd of souI on the
way, uI outsde the bdy uI
^
thn the bdy, 3-3l

Meter, Frtz, l 5 n.4, l 5l n.7, l52
1M. 73, 78, l53 n.88, 1 54 n. %
ndcx
Mnk (subtIe state), 29, Mnkb
(subtIe organsm), 3
Mephstopheles, 48
Meru, Mount, 5
Mng-Tang, mystcal palace of, 57
metaphyscs of Lght, l l , l 22, l 32,
l33
Mchael (archangeI), 27, 55, l 55
n. l5
Mlr Dmd, 2l , l l 2, l 3l , l 52 n. 8l
M'r)(heavenly assumpton otthe
Prophet), 3, 58, , 7
Mrror, l 4, l, l 29, l 5l n.9
MN (pre-eternal covenant), 3
Mthra, l 55 n. l 5
mxture perod), 29
Mod, ]. ]. , n.3l , l 55 n. l5
Mohammad. the Prophet, 34, l 3,
"ofyour bng," l 25, l29- l 3l
Mohammad Karlm Khn Kermnl,
l53 n.8
Mohammadan (the true), l 3l
Mohn Fayz, l49 n.47
Moksba[t(unveIngs of the supra-
senry), l3, l 7, l9- l l
Monophystsm, l 38
Mom Ictonhs,22
Mon, 7, 83
More, Henry, l2
Monand Mord(the eker and the
sought), 3, 8, l 39, l44
Moses, 55, l5, l54 n.95, "of your
bng," l 24, l 2
"Mothers," worId of the, 42, l 2
Mount 5aIvat, 22
Mountan. cosmc, 4l , 5 (seeubo
gd[), of dawns, 4l
Mshuna Kushta, 33, 58
Mundusmgmls('dmm ul-mttbdl), ,
42 ff. , 4, 58, 7, 8, l2, l,
l8
Na]moddln Kobr, 7, 8, l l , l7, 28,
3, 37, 4, , l -97, l, l2,
l l 7, l 39, l4
Na]moddln R(Dyeh), l , l,
l 3- l l, l l 5, l 23, l 2
names (eterc), nan.es n heaven,
87, 88, l 54 n.%
Na, Azlz, l 53 n.9
Naslroddlu Tsl, 33, 9, l5 n. l l
NaturaI exstence, 4,
Nature, 3, sprtual scences of, l 34,
l 35
Neoplatonsm, l 3
Neryoseng, 5
Nezml, l n. l42
Ncotheos, l4
Netzxhe, l 28
Nght, 7, the worId of, 4, of lght,
lumnous, 4, 5, 7, l2, l8, 47-49,
l l2, l l 7-l l9, l 2, esotcrc, 48,
of pure essence, l l9, of symbIs,
48, dvne, l9, l3, l8, l l l , l 38,
dvne nght of unknowng, of the
neffabIe, 9- l, 4, 48, of super-
conscousness, l, 48, Ahrma-
nan, 48, of the demonacal
depths, 49, wthout lght, 49,
dark, 7
"Noah of your bng," l24, l 2
north, 3, 4, as qtbm, 5, 57, as sym-
bl, 4, 5, cosmc north, abde
of the AngeI 5raosha, 5-57,
cosmc north, threshold of the
byond, 2, 5, , 7, 23, 39, 45, 49,
5, 53, 5, 58, 78, heavenIy, l, 23,
the sde oflght, 2. See ubo far
north
No (the), 34, of Hermes, 2, ac-
cordng to Phlo, 35
Nrbakhsh, Nrbakhshlyah (order
of the), l57 n. l l 8
Nybrg, Henrk 5amueI, l 47 n. 3l
observaton (ntrd)of the sprtual,
l53 n.85
Occdent, 4, symbI of the shadow,
the world bneath, 43-45, 5,
58-59. S~ ubo far west
Ohrmazd, 29, 4l , 47
optcs. Iaws of, l 22, anthropoIogcal,
l43
orbs oflght, 7, 82 ff., 93, l3, l 52
n. 72, crcIe of the dvne Ight, of
the vtaI pneuma, 83, doubIe cr-
cle of the two eyes, 83 ff., 9, cr-
cle of the face, 85-8, the August
Face, 84
organs or centers (subtle), organs of
lght, 8, 8, 82, l 2l , l 23 ff, l 3,
l 38, the fve subtIe organs (Na]m
R), l7, l 09- l l. See ubo md]u
Orent. symbI of the supranry
l 9
ndCx
worId,2,4,44,58-60,greatcr
Orcntgatm),IcsscrOrcnt
(Mamkm),ntcrmcdatcOr|cnt
(mundusimagnahs,cgbtbcI-
matc),44ll. ,mctapbyscaI,mys-
tcaI,2,8, ! ! ,28, 25, 87,Orgn,
6, 8, ! ! , 27, 87, 44, 45, 58. See aLa
larcast
"OrcntaI'(tbcStrangcr,tbcmanol
tbc"nortb"),46
"OrcntaIs' (ntbcmctapbyscaI
scnw),28, 59
orcntaIknowIcdgc,59,SobravardI's
"OrcntaI" tbcosopby, ! 8, ! 6,82,
42,59, ! 0! , ! !4
orcntaton, pbcnomcnonol, ! , 2,5,
7, ! ! , 27, 89, 44, 47, 48, 5 ! , 54,
58, 62,68H.,69, ! 08,! 08, I I ! ,
poIar,94, ! 29
Orpbsm,58
Ors,Eugcno d',! 55n. !06
Ostgbbi,86, ! 58n.90,sccOudc,
nwardmastcr
Otto,kudoIpb, 75
outwardmastcr(asmdsbabi),
vsbIc, ! 80
pantokrator, ! 88
ParacIctc, ! 25
paradoxcsoltbcmystcs,88
Prmcndcs,58
PrslaI,22
partncr(bcavcnIy),7, ! ! , 27,88,98.
SeeaLaAngcI,Oudc,PcrlcctNa-
turc
atvm(companon,gudc,savor),
! 48n.49
pcrccpton(suprawnsory), ! 02, ! 05,
suprawnsorypcrccptonoltbc
scnry,80, drcctpcrccpt|onol
tbcsuprawnsory,8! , ! 05, nd-
rcctpcrccpton,8!-82
PcrlcctNaturc,8-! 0,84,! 88, tbc
pbIosopbcr'sAngcI, ! 7- ! 8,
20-2! , 24, 86, ! 04, b-unty,28,
Bcarng/Born, ! 7, ! 9, tbcHoIy
Obostntbcshk,44,andtbc
arcbctyp-AngcIolbumanty, ! 6,
20,27, 84, ! 8 ! , andHcrmcs,2! ,
45,97,99,andtbcsukbn,85,
gudcolIgbt, !4, !8, 68, pcr-
sonaIIturgy, ! 9, modcsolman-
lcstaton, ! 7 ll. ,mavcnIypart-
ncr,27, SobravardI'spsaIm, ! 7,
! 9,2 ! ll. ,sunoltbcpbIosopbcx,
! 7,86,46,lnaIsccrctoltbc
Sagcs, ! 8
Pcrsanmnaturcs, ! 2,68,! 0! , ! 88,
!87-!88, !60n. !42
pcrspcctvc,Iawsol, !28
Fbed,85
PbIoolAIcxandra,85
pbIosopbcaIaIpbabcta[t) , 88
Fb s, ! 4- !6, ! 8- ! 9, 26, 28, 8! , 86,48,
68,97. SeeaLa ManolIgbt
pbot|sms, ! 02, olpurcIgbt,07,
coIorcd,sgnsolsprtuaIsmtcs,
7-9, ! 2, 28, 6! , 68, 64,7 ! , 78,78,
81,82, !07ll. , ! ! 0,! 89, !42.Se
masymbIsmolcoIors
pbysoIogy,ccntcrsolsubtIc, 75-76.
SeeaLalatqa,organs
Ficattix, ! 46n. 8
Pns,SaIomon, ! 46n. I 6
FstsSqbm, ! 5, 85, !44
PIato,8, 85, PIatonc!dcas,42,nco-
ZoroastranPIatonsm,48
pIcromaolLgbts,! 48n.46
PIotnus,85,68
Pomandrcs,26,27
poIc(symbIsmoltbc),tbrcsboIdol
tbcbyond,summtoltbc
csotcrcbcrarcby,2,7, ! 0, ! 8,
22, 44, 50, 52, 57, 64, 69,70, 89,
tbcbddcn!mm,48,52,54,56,
! 84, ! 85, Iousolorgn, ! 2 ! , "o-
rcnt,"6,bcavcnIy,2,5-8, ! ! ,42,
48,56,62,tbcscvcnpIcs(qm),
52, 58
poIycbromy, ! 87
povcrty(mctapbyscaI,mystcaI,n
tbctrucscnsc), ! ! 2- ! !5, ! ! 7-
! ! 8, ! 28. See aLa dnb
Prcwncc, ! !4, totbc worId, ! , 2,
buman,! -8, 5
ProIus, ! 49n. 55
?romctbcus, !5, ! 6,86, 68
Propbcts.tbcscvcngrcat,! 2, tbc
"scvcnpropbctsolyourbng,'
! 2! - ! 8! , ! 85
propbctoIogy, ! 84
psycbc. coIIotvc,5 ! , Iowcr, ! 5!
n.66,oburc,46
Pcucb,Hcnr-CharIcs, ! 48n.88
I 70
ndcx
Ql, Mountanol,28,48,44,58,78,
97
Qayrawn,28
QazwIn, ! 22
qbm. nortb,57, sunandmon,57
Qorn.sta20(7a-ba),87, vcrwol
tbcLgbt(24. 85),72,! 04, ! 06,
! 46n. I 8, sta 58(TbcStar), ! 05,
csotcrcandcxotcrcoltbc, ! 2! ,
!22, ! 80,cosmc,69
qatb(pI.aqtb),seepoIc
QucstlortbcOrcnt,2
ta[ta[, ! 8!
rcaIsm(sprtuaI), ! 82
rcaIty(suprawnsory),78, ! 09
rcntcgraton,mytbol, 47
kngbm,Lars-!var, ! 45n.2
kttcr,HcIImut,! 46n.8, ! 54n. l 00
robolIgbt,tbcmcoltbc,8! , 9! .
SeeaLaSanga[tbeFeatl
koscOardcnolMystcry(GaLban-e
Bz), ! !0- ! 20,!26
kuska, ]uIus, !45n.4, ! 46n. ! 4
kzbbnBaqIISbIrzI( ! 209),8, b2,
86,87,89,92, ! 84, ! 85, ! 5! n.64,
! 58nn.86,89, ! 54n.95, ! 55
n. I 07, ! 56 n. I !6
SabcanIturg|cs, ! 9, SabansolHar-
ran, ! 6,46,50, ! 49- ! 50n. 57
SadrSbIrzI(MoIIa), ! !4, ! ! 5, ! 48
n.46,! 58n.85
SadroddInQonyawI, !55n. !09
SagcsolanccntPcrsa,8
Sakina,dccntoltbc,79
Sakbin, 85
saIvaton(cosmc), ! 84
Saasbnt,22
Sassands, !88
Satan,47
ScaIcs.oltbcsuprascnsory(mizn
al-gbab), 86,77, 78,85,90,
92-98, 97, ! 28, ! 4! , ntbc
Zodac, ! 55n. ! 05
5bmdt, CarI, !45n.6, ! 52n.78
ScboIcm,OcrsbomOcrbard, ! 5!
n.64, ! 56n. I !6
5bwcncklcId,Caspar, ! 82
Scott,WaItcr, I45n.4
sccrctolmystcaIwaylaring(sittal-
sar), 78
wcuIar|zatonoltbcsprtuaI,5! ,
! 82
Sccrcssol Prcvorst, ! 54n. 95
SccstnI,AbuYa'qb, ! 87
ScIl(tbc),9
ScmnnI,AIoddawIcb( ! 886), ! 2,
86, 6! , 75, 88, ! 00, !07, ! ! ! , ! ! 7,
! 2! - ! 88, ! 58n.87
"scnscolbstory,' !0, ! 29
scnscs. pbyscaI, 8 ! , andorgansol
Igbt, ! 5, suprawnsory,62,80,
8! , 82, 86, 96, ! 02, ! 07, ! 09, ! ! 5,
! 89, ! 40.SeeaLalatqa,organs
ScrapbcI(arcbangcI),55,56
Scvcn(tbc).abdl,seeabd l;coIors,
! 02, subtIcorgans, ! 2(seeaLa
mtq a), pIancsorcatcgorcsolb-
ng,79,88,tbcscvcnpoIcs,apcr-
turcsoltbcTbronc, 52, csotcrc
mcanngsoltbcQorn, ! 28,
Eartbs, Hcavcns,wcIIs,79
wvcntbvaIIcy(tbc), ! 07, ! ! 8
SbabstarI(mabmd), ! ! 0ll. , !26
Sbadow(tbc),47, 50, 68-64, 82, 86,
89, 92-94, ! 89, Abrmanan,57,
9!, ! 02,coIIcctvc,5! , 96, dc-
monacaI, ! !6,ndvduaI,5! , 65
SbabEsm'II, ! !0- ! ! !
sbabt, 74,tbctbrccloIdSbI'tc,
! 52n.74, ! 56n. I I 2
Sb bid,sccWtncss
I 7 !
SbabrazrI,SbamsoddIn,46
JaUal-gbb,seeOudc,nward
mastcr, Wtncssn Hcavcn
sbaUism,42, 52, ! 58n.86
sbekbina,79
sbcpbcrdqaimn),26.SeeaLa AngcI ,
Oudc,PcrlcctNaturc
Sbqbetda[Hs,26-27
SbI'sm,52,54, ! 22, ! 8! , ! 85, SbI'tc
tbcosopby, ! 88
SbsbIam kba(k|ngolIgbt),58
SbosbtarI,QzINroIIb, ! !0
sgbt(nwardsgbt,basita), 85
Sna(mystcaI),28,48
Sky,Skcs,seeHcavcns
socaI,97, ! 08
soaIzatonoltbc sprtuaI, !0, ! 82
Socratcs, !7
Sodcrbcrg, Hans, !48n.40
SobravardI,SbbboddInYaby,
sbaUal-Isbtq ( ! ! 9! ),5,6,8,! 8,
ndCx
!6, 82, 84, 87, 42,! 00, !08, ! ! 5,
!22, ! 88, ! 84, ! 55 n. I 08a, Oera
membuaI, ! 46n. I 7,Oa
metohsim H, ! 47n. 28,! 50n. 62,
FsolmtotheFpectNoture,2! -22,
46, Recimlo[meOccidentolExile,
22ll. ,48-45,59, 68, 70, ! 48n.46
Smgo[theFeorl(lromtbcdctsq
7bms), 22-24, 84, 44, 48, 58, 68
SonsolLgbt,SonsolDarkncss, !87
Sopba(bcavcnIy),85, 48
smorsirituohs,87, 88
soriolo@, ! 88
souI(nu[s), 68,69,|owcrsouIor
Iowcrcgo(nu[s ammra), 68,65,
66, 67,74, 82, 9! , 98, 94, ! 0! ,
!07, ! 24, conscousncss(m[s
|awwma),66,67,82,98,94, ! 07,
paclcdsouIorbgbcrcgo(m[s
moma'yanna),66,67,82,98,94,
! 05, ! 07
SouIoltbcworId, ! 24
utb,tbcsdcolsbadow,62
spata|ty,spataIzaton, ! , 5
spccuIarty(mr'Iya), ! 80
seculum, see mrror
SpbcrcolSpbcrcs, 42, 48, 46, ! 24
sprt(m),68-70, ! !0. Seeoolotqa
Siritussonctusongelicu,Sit:tU rin-
ciohs,84
q itudosintuolis, !02
Sraosba(angc|),55ll.
star. Nortb,56,pIc, ! , 8,49,56
Stonc(aIcbcmy), ! 85
stoncs(prccous), 69-7 ! , 78
Strangcr,gnostctbcmcoltbc,22,
24, 46
Strzygowsk,]oscl, !88
stupas,42
subonscousncss,7, 96, !00,!08,
! ! 6, ! 28
substanccol|gbtnyou, 78
Suls, Sulsm, ! ! , ! 8,64,95, ! 22,
!82,Ccntra|Asan,56,!ranan,
2, 8, 47, 55, 85, 86, 99, !07, ! 89,
SbI'tc,54,! 8! , !85, ! 56n. I ! 8
Sun. ntbcmddIcoltbcsky, ! 5! -
! 52n. 72, ol tbcSprt,9, 46,85,
olccrttudc,olknowIcdgc,ol
latb,85,mdngbt,4, 5, 7, !0,
45-48, 50,85, olbgbknow|cdgc,
9,oltbcbcart,9,! 7, 46, 85,ol
tbcmystcry,9,! 7, Nortbcrn,50,
g|owng,67,rsngntbcwcst,
46,suprawnsory,46, ! 54n. !0! ,
sunandmon, ! 05, !06
supcrconscousncss, supracon-
scousncss,7,! 0,48,96,97,99,
!00, ! 0! , ! 08, ! 09, ! !0, ! ! 6, ! 26,
! 48
supcrcxstcncc, !48
supcrndvduaIty,99
symbIsmolcoIors,6! ll. ,ardcnt
lrc,77, bIack,67, 89-9! , ! 26,
b|uc,65,77, 98, ! 26,darkncss
andlrc,65,grccn,77, 78, 79,
82,98, !26,!80, ! 8! , g|owng
orb,rcdsun, ! ! 7, |umnous
b|ack,! 26,rcd,77,80, 82(purp|c
star),98, ! 26,! 60n. I 48, smokc
grcy, ! 26,voIct, 87, wbtc, ! 26,
yc||ow,77,! 26,SeeoltocoIors,
Igbt
symbIsoltbcnortb,2! , 86,87,45,
! !9
syncbronsm, !05
syncrctsm, ! 8
Syzygy,! 9, 2! , ol gbts,29,94, 95
TabarI,82
TabIct,seeEmcra|dTab|ct,Ouardcd
TabIct
TabrIz, ! 57n. I 20
m[sr, ! 58n. I 82
Taosm,56,57, 75
'u, ! 28,! 80, olCbr|stanty,! 27
TcmpIcoltbc|gbt,42,45
tcnt(cosmc), 57
7ea lucido,5, I I , 28, 85, 57, 58, 7! ,
! 88
tbcogony(!ranan,Nordc),82
tbcopbancknowIcdgc, ! ! 6
tbcopbancs, l I ,50, 58, 72, 92, !08,
!05, ! ! 7, ! 82, ! 86, ol Namcs and
Attrbutcs, I I 9, ! 55n. I 07
tbcrapcutcs(sprtua|), ! 29
tbcurgy(suprcmc), !08
Tbronc(tbc),66,72,78, ntbcmc-
rocosm,66
TII,Wa|tcr, !46n.6
7imaeus,85
tmc. outwardoltbcpbysca|wor|d
(mmn[q), !06,! 28, ! 28, ! 29,
! 82, nwardoltbcwor|doltbc
I 72
nJcx
souI(mmnon[os), !06,! 28,! 28,
! 82
Tobas,8!
Turlan, !88
transconscousncss,68,96, I09- ! ! 0
translguraton, ! 88, translgurng
|gbt, ! 88
transmutaton.olbng,80,oltbc
scnscs,80,82, !44
Trcasurc,tbcbddcn, 54-55
TrcasuryolLgbt,7!
trang|c, ! 60n. I 44
trdmcnsona|ty(psycbo-sprtua|),
6, 89, 98, 94, 96
Twn.bcavcn|y(tow'am), 38,
bcavcnIyTwnolMnI,27, !88,
olIgbt,58, 97
unconscous, 6,47, 48,94,95, ! 00,
co||cctvc,pcrsona|,95,ncgatvty
oltbcunconscous, 94
unconscousncss,7, I0
unvcrsaI(IogcaI),6
unknowngncsstbatsknowIcdgc,
! ! 6, ! ! 7, ! ! 8, ! ! 9
unus-ambo, 7,9, !7, 84,97, ! 5! n.69
Upansbads,85
UrsaMaor,UrsaMnor,see Bcar,
constc||atonoltbc
Uttara-kurus,40, 48
uxora|ty, 85, ! !9
VaIcntnans, ! 82
Van dcrLccuw,Ocrbard, 82
Vc|solLgbtandolDarkncss,tbc
70,000, ! 09, ! !9
I erusFrqhem, ! 85
Vrgn (tbc)olLgbt,84,85, !88
visio sm7gdnu, I I , !2, 77, 89, ! 00,
I I I , ! 20
vsonary.appcrccpton, 62,64,67,
68,70,72, 80, 8! , 86, ! 0! , !08,
! 06, ! 85,! 88, gcograpby, 89, 48,
44
vsonsolco|orcdIgbts,77,see
pbotsms
vsua|zatonsolnwardstatcs,77,
78, 80, !07, ! 24. See a/a pbotsms
|itaAde et Evae, I 5 ! n.67
voaton,97
VobuManab(Babman),84,4!
Wagncr,kcbard,82
wohdt ol-wow, ! ! 5
hom ot,58, ! 8! , ! 84, !49 n.52, ! 52
n. 74, l 56n. I I 8,so|ar, !05
wol, ! 84
Wa|kyrcs,82
WaItbcr,Ocrda, l 50n.68
WstI,AbuBakr, !04, | 08
Watcr.c|cmcnt,65-66, 77, olLlc,
25, ! !4,! ! 5
warlarc(sprtuaI),68,64, 67,!09,
I I I
Wcgc|,Va|cntn, ! 82
wc|I. magcandtbcmcoltbc,28, 24,
87, 45,47, 49,5! , 60,62,64,as-
ccntoutoltbc,70,76,77, 78-79,
b0,]oscpb's,78,olnaturc,75,ol
grccnIgbt,79
Wcrncr,Martn, !4 7n. 28
Wbttakcr,MoIIy, !47n. 27
Wdcngrcn,Ocorgo, ! 48n.40
wimot, ! 49n. 52
Wtncss(shhid),contcmpIatorl
contcmpIatcd, 28, 86,9! , 92,99,
olcontcmp|aton, !9,86, 72,86,
!06, ! !9, !20, !86, nHcavcn
(shhid[i'l-som),9, !0, !5, !7, 86,
46, 68, 64, 66,72,78, 82, 84, 85,
86, 9!-94, 97, ! ! 7, ! !9, ! 20, ! 88,
! 4! , !48, Tbcopbanc,86,86,92,
abscnccoltbc,90,9! . Seea/ra
scaIcsoltbcsuprascnsory,Pcr-
lcctNaturc
Wor|d.oltbcAngcI,6,oltbcSouI,
! 26,suprascnsorygbab),78-74,
79
worIds,tbc !8,000,tbc860,000,!09
Xvaab, 8! , ! 88, ! 59 n. ! 86, ol tbc
Saobattts,4 ! , Iandscapcs, !88
Xwrczm, !5! n.64
Xwrczmi,Hosayn,l 55n. I 09
lomto,55
Yma(vororparadscol), 5, I I ,40,
4! , 42, 48, 46, 48, 50, 57
you, 9, 59
Zaratbustra,Zoroastcr,8,29,4! , 60,
! 5! n.67
Zccbarab, ! 49n. 5!
Zcrvnsm, 48, 50, ! ! 8
ziqqrt,4!
Zoroastran. ndvdua|cbatoIogy,
28,sprtua|ty, 55, 56, !ran, 8
I 73
Zoroastransm, I I , I 8, 47, 50,55,
57, 92
Zosmos ol Panopo|s, I4, I 5
Zuckcrkand|,Vctor, I 50n.68
ndCx
l 74