1-2275 In his talk he needlessly finds fault with Bāyazīd410, although Yazīd411 would

be ashamed of his existence.

How can anyone guide others if he or she has not walked the Path? [2.2.1]
5-1423 O, there are many ignorant hypocrites who have seen nothing of the Way of the
holy men except the woollen mantle (ṣūf412).

4-1448 He does not know the way, yet he acts as a guide: his wicked spirit sets the
whole world on fire.

4-1648 Hypocrisy is like lightning, and in its gleam the travellers cannot see the way.

4-1697 Do not act thus as a guide out of greed for amassing wealth and power: follow
behind, in order that the Candle (the true guide) may go in front of you.

4-1698 The Candle, like the moon, clearly shows the traveller’s destination, whether it
leads to the grain of spiritual welfare or to the snare of spiritual ruin.

4-1699 Whether you want it or not, as long as you are with the Lantern the form of
falcon and the form of crow become visible to you.

4-1700 Otherwise, beware, for these crows have lit the lantern of deception: they have
learned the cry of the white falcons.

4-1701 A man may learn the cry of the hoopoe, but where is the mystery of the hoopoe
and the message from Sabā413?

4-1702 Know the difference between the natural cry and the artificial one, know the
difference between the crown of kings and the crown (crest) of hoopoes.

410
The Persian Ṣūfī Master Ḥażrat Bāyazīd-e Basṭāmī, also known as Ḥażrat Abū Yazīd Ṭayfūr al-Bisṭāmī (ca.
804-874 CE), is one of the key figures in the history of Sufism, in that he founded what came to be known as
“the School of Intoxication (sukr)”, which flourished in Greater Khurāsān, as opposed to the equally influential
“School of Sobriety (saḥw)”, which was founded in Baghdad by the Ṣūfī Master Ḥażrat Junayd al-Baghdādī (ca.
830-910 AD).
411
Yazīd (ca. 645-683 CE): son of and successor to the first Umayyad caliph, Mu‘āwiya ibn Abī Sufyān (602-
680 CE). He was responsible for the martyrdom of Ḥażrat Ḥusayn, son of Ḥażrat ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, in 680 CE,
an event that marked the final split between Sunnī and Shī‘ī Muslims. But the true Ṣūfī wayfarer (sālik)
transcends the outer and conventional forms of religion. He isn’t bound to any religion, school of thought or a set
of beliefs. His religion is the religion of Love, which surpasses all forms. Even so, mystical lovers may use a
specific form of religion to come closer to Divine Love. But when they reach Love and become absorbed in it,
they are one, and they experience all as one. As Ḥażrat Mawlānā Rūmī states: “What is the means of ascension
to Heaven? This not-being. Not-being is the creed and religion of the lovers.” Mathnawī 6-233.
412
Most orientalists and Ṣūfī Masters agree that the words “ṣūfī” and “taṣwwuf” are derived from the Arabic
word ṣūf, meaning “wool”. The early Ṣūfīs had a tendency towards asceticism and may have taken to wearing
simple, coarse woollen garments, following the example of contemporary Christian monks and ascetics, who
abounded in the Near East.
413
Sabā = Sheba – an ancient kingdom in south-western Arabia, mentioned in the Bible and the Qur’ān, in the
story of the Prophet Salomon/Ḥażrat Sulaymān and the Queen of Sheba/Sabā.

157