Sufi Love: Submission to the Beautiful

Extract

[...] Whoever hears it through the Real finds the road to the Real, and whoever hears it through the self falls into heresy Here again it is shown that the act of beauty must be done under submission to God, or else there can be no attainment of union with the Real. When a Sufi has been absorbed into the Real itself, and mystical union has taken place, the veil between God and servant has been lifted. Rumi's father, Baha Walad, guided Sufis to attain this vision through the assiduous practice of dhikr. [...]

[...] Sufi Love: Submission to the Beautiful The practical and esoteric dimensions of Islam intertwine in the Sufi tradition to forge a non-dual relationship between the worshipper and God. Sufis augment their adherence to the Q'uranic doctrine of submission to God (Islam) with a passionate love for “doing the beautiful” (ihsan), exemplified by the practices of dhikr and sama'. By remembering (dhikr) and reciting and hearing (sama') the various attributes of God, Sufis seek to understand their Beloved and remove the veils that stand between Creator and created. [...]

[...] It is Face' to begin with, so actually no annihilation occurs to the loving Sufi. The duality can be cut through only by complementing Islam with ihsan, as in Sufi practice. To do the beautiful- to perform acts of love towards God- is to live in full understanding of the Shahadah, and thus become a better Muslim. Rumi's writing explains this process: Love is that flame which, when it blazes up, burns away all except the everlasting Beloved. It slays “other than with the sword of no god. [...]