Chapter Eighteen: Wilayat

The discourse on Wilayat (spiritual guardianship) is profoundly expansive, intricate, and the source of manifold effects and consequences, impacting both worldly well-being and eternal felicity, salvation, and redemption in the hereafter.

Wilayat: The Pinnacle of Spiritual Discourse

The domain of Wilayat constitutes one of the foremost branches of religious and spiritual perfection. The true custodians of faith are the living divine saints (Awliya), who embody the living divine truth, the Exalted Reality, and the pristine religion of God, untainted by the embellishments of ritualism. Mere religious rites and ceremonies, steeped in hollow formalism and superficiality, serve as the greatest impediments to attaining their true gnosis.

Any religion, including Islam, devoid of a living Wali (spiritual guardian), conceals divine truths. As articulated in a renowned tradition: “Whoever dies without recognizing the Imam of their time dies the death of ignorance (Jahiliyya).” This narration underscores the imperative of attaining gnosis of the divine Wali of one’s era and submitting to their spiritual authority, far beyond merely knowing their name.

Gnosis of the living and present divine Wali actualizes an unadulterated and pristine understanding of faith. This gnosis surpasses mere affection for the Wali and carries a weightier significance. The discourse on Wilayat and its outward manifestations is rational and philosophical, not merely devotional or conventional. Miracles and prophetic tidings serve only to provide assurance and validation. The Day of Judgment will be a source of regret for those ignorant of the living Wali who possesses divine qualifications.

Wilayat: Inner Proximity and Divine Relation

Wilayat is neither political ambition nor propaganda, sensationalism, or clamor. Rather, it is an intimate proximity to God that infuses the divine essence into an individual, rendering them godly, adorned with divine attributes and names, and realized through purity, love, and true unity. This effect manifests as proximity, connection, intimacy, nearness, and attainment.

A divine Wali is one who possesses proximity, unique election, and attainment, and who has been divinely bestowed with the outward titles of Wilayat. Religion is the path of the living and present divine Wali, and true religious devotion entails submission to them—a submission that activates a primordial, innate, living, articulate, and expressive truth within the individual. This is not the spectacle of coffins displayed in ever-renewed rituals of “Imam-slaying” for heightened emotional outpouring, intensified sensationalism, or the expenditure of unmitigated cruelties. A religion severed from living divine saints becomes nothing more than a public theater, a performance blending spectacle, elegiac concerts, and communal feasting. And so it is in the context of hypocritical posturing and contrived affectation.

Wilayat is the inner visage of the Exalted Reality and His manifestations. The essence of the Exalted Reality is His Wilayat, and the highest and most sublime degree of absolute and universal Wilayat belongs to the possessor of intrinsic and true Wilayat, namely the Exalted Reality, which is His Lordship. He has no Wali above Him; rather, He is the Wali of every manifestation.

Wilayat is the inner relationship of a phenomenon with the Exalted Reality, grounded in proximity, love, affection, and gnosis. The root of Wilayat is divine favor and belovedness. The subsequent degrees of Wilayat are derivative, relative, and contingent upon the proximity and belovedness of divine saints. Intrinsic love and divine favor form the foundation of Wilayat and infallibility. The Wilayat of the Exalted Reality is His intrinsic love and affection.

To possess Wilayat is to be endowed with divine decree and love. Every manifestation possesses a decree through which it partakes in Wilayat, proximity, and a degree of relation to the Exalted Reality. Its rank, identity, and essence are defined by this decree and Wilayat.

Wilayat is the resemblance to the Exalted Reality and proximity based on belovedness, indeed attainment unto Him. A Wali-Allah (Friend of God) is one whose creaturely aspect is oriented toward divine proximity and truth, having attained divinely bestowed stability through the annihilation of their creaturely aspect and the subsistence of their decreed existence in divine proximity and love. The greater this proximity, expansiveness, love, and unity, the stronger and more intense the Wilayat becomes. This proximity engenders a correspondence between God and the divine Wali, and in proportion to their Wilayat, the knowledge, power, and other divine names and attributes are absorbed and manifested within them.

Proximity to the Exalted Reality causes resemblance, absorption, and the manifestation of divine attributes in the Wali. Through their divine proximity, the possessor of Wilayat finds within themselves the capacity and actualized potential for the Exalted Reality to manifest His true names and attributes in them.

Every Wali, within the scope of their Wilayat, holds natural and intrinsic superiority and precedence over those under their guardianship, as well as natural proximity and love.

Wilayat and the Wali stem from proximity, and proximity stems from love. Proximity and love encompass intrinsic superiority, governance, and the explication of divine decrees.

The Divine Identity of Wilayat

Wilayat is an identity that accompanies every determination yet transcends every rank, referred to as the “Essence of He” or simply “He,” with its spiritual stations ascending to an identity beyond rank and station.

A divine Wali is one whose indeterminate spirit mirrors the divine essence, surpassing the manifestation of any name, attribute, or their expressions, though inseparable from divine names and attributes. The determination of every name is a manifestation of their determination. However, the station they occupy has neither name nor form; it cannot be articulated nor comprehended by intellect. Any allusion to it—akin to the manifesting station of the Exalted Reality in His indeterminate and determinate Lordship—diminishes its true stature.

In the descent of manifestation, there is a manifesting descent and a manifested descent, which are essentially equivalent. The Muzhir (Manifestor) is the divine names, which are necessary and identical to the divine essence. The first Muzhir is Ahadiyya (Absolute Unity), which manifests the first Mazhar (Manifested), namely the Seal of Prophethood. Wahidiyya (Unity of Names) manifests other prophets according to its names. One must not conflate the Muzhir and the Mazhar. Ahadiyya is the determination of singularity, and the station of the Seal is likewise singular; the Seal of Prophets is one, eternal, and everlasting. The creaturely Mazhar of Ahadiyya is singular and admits no plurality, being the station of the Seal of Wilayat. It is impossible for a prophet to emerge after the mission of the Seal. One must not confuse the Mazhar (divine names and attributes) with the Muzhir (the possessor of the Seal). According to sacred law, the Seal pertains to the fourteen infallible saints, who are a single light. The station of the Seal is also primordial, for the final cause is the cause of the efficient cause.

If a divine Wali is a true beloved, they are a comprehensive, perfect, and complete Mazhar for the hidden divine identity, in whom all names and truths are manifested. They are the simplest Mazhar, the closest and most proximate to the divine essence. In the Holy Quran, this comprehensive and perfect reality is termed ‘Aalin (the Exalted Ones), which is the station of true divine vicegerency and absolute derivative Wilayat. The Mazhar of this divine reality is the Wali of God, who, with their comprehensiveness, balance, expansiveness, and perfection, encompasses the manifestation of the absolute essence, divine names, attributes, and acts, as well as the realities of Lordship, the relations of names, the realities of divine effusion, and creaturely attributes. The divine Wali encompasses the station of synthesis and differentiation, prevailing over the realms of Lordship and the worlds of divine effusion. Thus, they alone can attain the station of absolute essential attainment.

The Intertwining of Wilayat and Infallibility

Wilayat is an inner reality, and its most prominent exemplars are the beloved and loving figures, whether infallible or not. All manifestations of existence and their phenomena possess a degree of Wilayat, but only the station of infallibility represents its consummate perfection, reserved for the perfected divine saints.

Infallibility, which is proximity to the divine reality and the Exalted Reality, characterizes all degrees of Wilayat. The Exalted Reality and His manifestations possess infallibility.

Wilayat and infallibility are intertwined, meaning that the Wilayat of any manifestation corresponds to its degree of divine proximity and infallibility, just as its infallibility corresponds to its degree of Wilayat.

Wilayat and infallibility are entirely divinely bestowed and cannot be acquired, though their manifestation may appear contingent and akin to acquisition. The proximity and Wilayat of any manifestation depend on its divinely bestowed purity.

Absolute necessary infallibility belongs to the Exalted Reality, while absolute derivative infallibility is established for the Seal and their saints. Every manifestation possesses infallibility relative to its degree of Wilayat. Based on this relative infallibility, they recognize the divine Wali according to their degree of infallibility, deem proximity to them obligatory, and submit to their authority.

The lowest degree of infallibility is justice and the capacity to enact equity, fairness, and chivalry, which, for robust, civilized humans lacking heart, love, and specific Wilayat, is a divine gift.

Wilayat: The Ever-Open Divine Path

The gate of intrinsic Wilayat, prophetic tidings, and knowledge of the unseen remains open, though the gate of prophethood is sealed. Indeed, the sealing of prophethood is accompanied by the openness of the path of Wilayat and the presence of living saints; otherwise, divine effusion upon the material world and its creatures would cease.

The gate of communion with the unseen realm, through both prophetic revelation and true visions, remains open for God’s chosen and favored servants. However, when one denies such a reality, even concerning divine saints, they naturally find the path to the unseen closed. The openness of this path implies the potential to possess this capacity, a capacity actualized and divinely bestowed in the saints, who benefit from it and can convey its truths to others. Thus, the perceptions, discernments, recognitions, visions, and intuitions of divine saints can be trusted and deemed authoritative under the conditions outlined in jurisprudence and my book Divine Management and Politics.

The Sublime Beloved Wilayat

In its loftiest dimension, Wilayat is the manifestation and emergence in the realm of essential existence and the essential, attributive, and active manifestations of the Exalted Reality, accompanied by love and blossoming within the framework of beloved mysticism. The mystical insights of this book are rooted in beloved mysticism—a mysticism that is not conceptual but grants instantiation, unity, and attainment to the Exalted Reality. Later, we shall discuss the true and essential beloved ones and their supra-mental and supra-cardiac awareness.

The divine Wali is the intermediary between the Exalted Reality and manifestation and effusion. The sublimity of Wilayat and its outward titles is not a common attribute like the faculty of thought, mental reasoning, or shared human emotions, nor a specific human quality like genius or poetic prowess, but a most exclusive attribute of the elect among true beloveds. This is because perfection demands comprehensiveness. Thus, these attributes are rarely found in anyone and require divine bestowal and appointment.

The Visages of Sublime Wilayat

Wila (proximity) entails nearness to the divine truth and manifests through servitude in five visages: Wali (saint), Nabi (prophet), Rasul (messenger), Imam (leader), and Khalifa of God (divine vicegerent), each differing in rank, as elucidated in my book Hypocrisy and Divine Religion.

Wilayat is the gate of the inner realm and lacks an independent outward visage. It manifests in the visages of messengership (a prophet with a scripture), prophethood (a prophet without a scripture), Imamate (the continuation of prophethood and recipient of divine inspirations), vicegerency (active religious management), and the visage of creation, shaping believers, disbelievers, and every manifestation.

Wilayat is the divider for prophethood, messengership, Imamate, and vicegerency, and is not ranked alongside these outward titles nor compared with them. These titles are effects and derivatives of Wilayat; a prophet or messenger cannot exist without Wilayat, and Wilayat is the effect of servitude in the sense of proximity and belovedness. Every prophet and Imam attains Wilayat in proportion to their belovedness and proximity, and their scope of Imamate and prophethood corresponds to their Wilayat. Just as Wilayat is never suspended, its outward titles, including prophethood, are never suspended. The Wali is the successor to the Exalted Reality. When Wilayat and infallibility manifest, they become messengership, prophethood, and Imamate, and when they gain authority, they become vicegerency. Vicegerency, management, and legislative Wilayat are never separate from intrinsic Wilayat, even in the era of occultation, and are its derivatives.

Divine Imamate

Imamate is the continuation of prophethood and messengership and the cause of their preservation. Every Imam follows the religion and mission of their prophet and is subordinate to it. With the expiration of a prophet’s prophethood, the Imamate of that prophethood also expires. The rank of an Imam and their spiritual and inner status require attention to and explication of the prophethood they follow.

Belief in all recognized prophets and their Imams across all eras is obligatory, but expired and abrogated prophethood and Imamate lack practical obedience. In the era of occultation, Wilayat and the obligation of absolute obedience pertain solely to His Eminence the Master of the Age (may God hasten his noble reappearance), and religion is derived through him.

The blessed heart of the Imam of the Age (may God hasten his noble reappearance) possesses such expansiveness that the material world, with all its phenomena and events, is but a small corner of that blessed heart. The Imam of the Age can touch and caress the heart of every phenomenon, from stones to humans, and bestow attention and favor upon them.

In the era of occultation, His Eminence performs special favors, intercession, rendering individuals receptive to obedience, or guiding and referring worthy individuals to a suitable mentor for their upbringing and guidance, provided they dispel heedlessness and occultation from themselves and turn their attention to His Eminence. Upon such attention, one finds themselves immersed in his Wilayat and love. He consoles some hearts and polishes and clarifies some minds. I will later discuss the structure of the Imamate’s Wilayat system.

The Flow of Divine Guidance in the Era of Occultation

It must be believed that His Eminence the Master of the Age (may God hasten his noble reappearance), who is the master of affairs, guides religion, society, and favored individuals through living divine saints. Through them, he manifests to seekers of truth, nurturing them under the sun of divine contemplation.

His Eminence keeps the divine light radiant in the world through living saints, ensuring that seekers of truth do not suffer a famine of gnosis and truth. Those who can partake of the blessing of “salvation” and redemption are those who, with a thirst for finding the Imam and through the intrinsic and inner attraction of Wilayat, discover the living and present saints who serve as the link between people and the Imam. Upon finding them, they must affirm them and embrace their love.

The living and present divine saints are the manifestation of the light of the hidden Imam (may God hasten his noble reappearance). With the aid of God’s proof, they have attained Wilayat, and the breath of the divine spirit has been infused into them. These divine saints, under the blessed shade of the hidden Imam, actualize the continuity of Wilayat.

The hallmark of these divine saints is their awareness, gnosis, and boundless love for God’s creation. The distinction of Shi’ism from other religions and sects, which are merely historical, lies in this foundational principle: it possesses both a hidden Imam and living, present saints, some of whom are beloved ones. Shi’ism is not merely a historical religion.

It is these divine saints who can guide humanity toward God, not scholars detached from the inner realm who lack tangible attainment of the truth. Today, the only religion that can endure and be accepted is the gnostic and loving school of God’s living saints. A religion without an Imam or living Wali cannot fulfill the ideal of “salvation” and guidance. In other words, any religion lagging behind Wilayat or lacking a true living Imam or Wali is not a divine religion capable of securing felicity for individuals. A misguided religion without a living Wali yields nothing but demagoguery, ignorance, tyranny, autocracy, hypocrisy, and corruption.

The degree to which a divine Wali, as the mirror of divine encounter, extends love to an individual determines their proximity to guidance, infallibility, and divine nearness. An individual’s degree of guidance, infallibility, and Wilayat depends on the measure of love bestowed upon them by the Wali of God.

This love encompasses those who fully and patiently accept the Wali’s spiritual upbringing—the pinnacle of their love—without any deviation. Removing darkness from the soul and spirit of devotees and enabling their attainment to the Exalted Reality and their true essence can be profoundly painful and time-consuming, yet this itself is a testament to the pure love of the saints for their devotees. One who perseveres in the love and affection of divine saints and savors it will be stripped of worldly desires, tasting and relishing truth-seeking, steadfastness in truth, renunciation of greed, and pure love.

If an individual accepts the true Wali of God, it is because God and the true Wali love them more than they love themselves and are closer to them than they are to themselves.

Thus, one of the characteristics of a true Imam and divine Wali is their boundless love for all, accompanied by pure and infallible perceptions. Consequently, if certain religious propositions are incompatible with individuals’ true felicity, the true Wali, who is the true lover of all, distinguishes the pure from the impure and the good from the bad through their own being. They explicate this scientifically and intersubjectively to establish a standard language or convey it to devotees through inner attraction and heartfelt transmission.

The Allure of the Divine Wali

Wilayat possesses an inner allure, and the divine Wali holds profound appeal for the hearts of believers and devotees of Wilayat. The believer’s inner being and subconscious yearn for the divine Wali, and the Wali yearns for them even more intensely.

This inner attractive force acquaints them with one another, fostering proximity, nearness, and intimacy.

Whoever is deprived of this inner and divinely bestowed allure, or neglects this sublime blessing, failing to recognize and join hands with the living Wali of their time, has not truly known goodness, love, gnosis, or truth, and has failed to grasp the meaning of life.

God’s living saints are the purifiers of creation; they bestow their light upon people with love, absorbing their darkness and rendering them pure, clear, and pristine. God continually grants them His light, love, infallibility, and proximity.

God’s saints act according to the nature of every thing and person, making them exceedingly gentle. They penetrate the depths of every individual’s heart, regardless of their religion, creed, or culture, but only those humans capable of receiving their profound love and affirming them, aligning their will with their God-centered will, attain guidance.

The Awareness of Divine Saints

The possessors of divine Wilayat are knowers of the collective and masters of particulars. They hold the secret of every talent and the key to its flourishing, possessing knowledge of all divine manifestations and descended words, and are cognizant of all phenomena and signs.

Their knowledge and gnosis are the descent of divine knowledge. Their science encompasses the collective determination of descent and the comprehensive attainment of absolute ascent, subject to their will in the material realm. They are fluent in the language of all particles and visages, from the minute to the vast. They are the comprehensive geomancy of manifestations, the complete divination of phenomena, and the astrolabe of the orbit of all signs. They have mastery over the secrets of letter combinations, which align with the composition of phenomena. Thus, one who does not bow their forehead to the sacred threshold of the intrinsic Wilayat of God’s saints has not amassed any purity or knowledge but is a soulless determination, incapable of aspiring to or attaining the knowledge and inner purity of this boundless, labyrinthine city of a thousand gates.

They are the archetype of the cosmos, aware of the secrets of the scriptures and surpassing the canvas of material nature. The keys to the unseen are in their divine hands, and every divine desire is inscribed upon the tablet of their hearts. The secret and hidden essence of every phenomenon lies latent and dormant in their manifestation.

They are the lexicon of books of knowledge and intuitive gnosis, and the blessed verse “Its knowledge is with my Lord in a Book; my Lord neither errs nor forgets” describes one of their attributes.

The springs of knowledge flow from their ocean of truth, and the orchard of phenomena bears fruit through their gnosis. By the sovereignty of the divine names of the Exalted Reality, they are the expanders of the earth and the raisers of the heavens. The possessors of Wilayat guide wayfarers to the realm of beholding attributes and annihilation in the divine essence, and all divine attributes and descriptions bear witness to their luminosity. All states diversify through the transformation of their states.

The geometry of the flight of the angelic and celestial realms is in their hands, and every phenomenon, through them, is neither confined by the trap of transcendence nor ensnared by the web of similitude. They are cognizant of the narrative of every phenomenon, guiding each to its unique truth through the measure of love, serving as interpreters of divine utterances from inception to manifestation, as befits them. They are free from error and are the complete divine proof upon creation. Every goodness is a reflection of them. As absolute and complete manifestations, they surpass every finite and infinite phenomenon. They are the treasury of eternal knowledge, granting each according to their capacity and in accordance with their justice, serving as the sole mediators of all means.

They are the speaking book, and guiding phenomena is but one of their infinite attributes. Through them, every wayfarer perceives the darkness of their inner obscurity and the taint of their sins, gaining awareness of the secret chamber of their destiny, becoming cognizant of their spiritual stations, and recognizing the provisions for their eternal abode. They are the absolute manifestation of the truth of existence, beholding every small and great thing with equal vision, and are the supreme divine archetype, with all archetypes being a droplet of their Lordship.

Annihilation and Subsistence in God

They possess annihilation in God (Fana fi-Allah) and subsist through His subsistence. The possessors of intrinsic Wilayat are neither gods to be called their Lord (for they lack essential existence and independence, being only the complete manifestation and perfect expression of existence, free from any basis for exaggeration by aware devotees), nor are they like other phenomena that, in this path, are tainted by the distortions and deficiencies of the material realm. Rather, they are the complete determination and the determination of complete perfection, possessing all the perfections of existence collectively, serving as mediators of all means, with their gaze fixed solely on the divine identity.

The household of absolute Wilayat and divine endeavor possesses a spiritual breath that both annihilates and grants subsistence. They are the “Breath of the Merciful” of the Truth, through which all phenomena are aroused.

They decree auspiciousness or misfortune upon the dust of every force and capacity of every particle, determining the destiny of phenomena, with the celestial realm of every phenomenon worshipping at their command.

They call the sun of the spirit and the moon of the heart of lovers toward the Exalted Reality. They are the essence of every phenomenon, the expander of every creation, and the vast expanse of every divine affair.

The obedient, through their governance, offer submission, and the manifestations of majesty, through them, descend to perdition. Terrestrial mountains are raised by them, and soils are fashioned into symbols by their manifestations. Streams of goodness flow in obedience to the possessors of Wilayat, and the branches of every phenomenon are composed through their favor, bearing fruit from the blossoms of the unseen, for they are the decree and destiny of every phenomenon.

The cascade of manifestations and the radiance of all agents and reflectors derive their brilliance from them. They are the radiant sun of absolute favor, shining from the zenith of the orient of the unity of the truth of existence—the station of the essence. The moon of every phenomenon reveals its visage in their expansive manifestation, and the ship of monotheism navigates the turbulent waves of the material realm, forging its path.

The possessors of absolute Wilayat and endeavor draw the pearl of gnosis from the aspirations of the hearts of the virtuous, embodying the living current in all phenomena and mirroring the unseen and the manifest. They know which attribute corresponds to which divine name and which outcome serves which phenomenon.

The Arbiter of Justice

Divine saints are the manifestation of intrinsic divine names, tasked, by the grace of the Exalted Reality, with shaping capacities. Every form manifests in the visage of their absolute Wilayat and the endeavor of their journey, and the dazzling stars of divine names shine and emerge in the celestial sky of their realm.

They are the perfected saints and the perfect among divine saints, the “arbiter of justice” and the essential center of the beauty and majesty of truth. All divine manifestations are virtuous words springing from them.

The secret chamber of every mystery harboring an aspiration is illuminated by their Wilayat’s attraction, and the geometry of every phenomenon is fashioned according to their determined blueprint, seated upon the throne of guidance. Their Wilayat is the martial force of every believer against the armies of self-centeredness. Yet, when phenomena entered the abode of the world, they plunged into forgetfulness, weaving the long threads of desire and ignorance around themselves.

It is the Wilayat of intrinsic saints that transforms the hovel of self-centeredness into the lofty palace of truth-finding, consigning every feeble structure of ruin to oblivion and stripping the dignity from all oppressors. Their Wilayat shatters creaturely determinations with the manifestation of their truth, guiding believers and devotees, according to their capacity, to the effusion of their merciful existence, uniting them with the Muhammadan truth in the expanse of manifestation. Intrinsic beloveds draw the spirits of devotees, according to their individual distinction, shedding desires and passions, to the assembly of Wilayat and the perfection of guidance. Every journey and spiritual path culminates in a station of selflessness and the infinite pure love of these saints. They are cognizant of phenomena and the means of guiding them through the stations of wayfarers’ journeys.

Every limited flame is illuminated by the light of the possessors of Wilayat, and every wayfarer, beholding the moon of their countenance, relinquishes selfhood and surrenders to the conquest of proximate nearness. Their wrath is the deprivation of recognizing their station, which is estrangement from joyous virtues and, indeed, the most lethal pain.

The Secret of the Divine Saints’ Ecstasy

The Wilayat of intrinsic beloveds is the secret of divine prophets and the key to their ecstasy. The truth of their “absolute Wilayat” takes form in the Wilayat of every prophet, guiding them from before their mission until after the Resurrection.

The venerable prophets endured trials and tribulations through the fervor of their longing for them and found salvation through the triumph of their sovereignty. The truth of divine prophets lies in them, who embraced every hardship through the triumph of their unity, a truth not identical but concomitant with divine Lordship.

The mark of every prophet’s mission derives from them, and all that manifests from them mirrors the visage of Ali’s majestic might.

They were the origin of Adam, and when the angels heard their names, they prostrated before them.

The grace of Joseph’s radiant beauty was theirs, both when he was in the well and when he captivated Zulaikha, finding solace through their virtuous names.

They were the gaze of Salih and Hud, who brought forth a she-camel for one people and inflicted painful torment upon another.

They were the ones who struck Lot’s people such that their loftiest place became their lowliest.

They were the vision of the patriarch of divine prophets—Abraham, the idol-breaker—and his monotheistic zeal when the realm of the “secret of Wilayat” prevailed over him, rendering him independent of all else, and through that Wila, he said “No” to Gabriel.

They were Moses’ scribe, upon whom prophethood was adorned, and the teacher of Khidr, whose Wilayat held sway over him.

They taught Jesus knowledge in infancy, made his tongue eloquent, and raised him to the heavens.

The Ever-Flowing Light

The heart of true saints is perpetually in contemplation of the essence and the virtuous names and attributes of the absolute truth. All celestial phenomena are a manifestation of their emergence.

The light of intrinsic beloveds flows through all, and every truth and purity finds only them. They are the universal divine manifestation, ever-present in every moment and attribute, encompassing every phenomenon with all its secrets, mysteries, modes of life, and manners of servitude, both individually and collectively, while all visages of transformation, transition, and manifestation belong to these venerable ones.

They are the core of every phenomenon, granting each what befits their rank. Their secret pervades every phenomenon, and the realm of all manifestations, despite their diversity, is uniform in this regard. All virtuous attainments spring from the ocean of their mercy, leading to manifestation. Thus, they hold proofs over every phenomenon, prominent on their forehead and secure margin. The expanse of divinity and the pillars of all celestial phenomena are founded upon the role of their Wilayat, and every terrestrial capacity derives its manifestation from celestial tablets through their aid.

They are the resurrection of phenomena, their Wila the tumult of the final assembly, where phenomena gather in a subordinate realm around them, taking on a collective visage.

The Sweetness of Truth and the Crystallization of Unity

Intrinsic saints are the divine archetype for which “There is nothing like His likeness” leaves no parallel. They are not ensnared by the manifestation of any name, bound by any form, or trapped in the web of any similitude. They are the sweetness of truth and the crystallization of unity.

Obedience to intrinsic saints is ordained in the realm of divine knowledge. They were the first phenomenon, with the visage of hierarchical manifestation accompanying them, and every inception and culmination of divine manifestation derives from them.

They are the absolute manifestation and divine throne, guiding the creaturely aspect of phenomena toward the divine Lordship through the light of manifestation. The gates of the celestial fortress and the enduring paradise of the essence are opened by the power of their Wilayat.

Angelic intellects bow at the slopes of their lofty sacred realm, becoming dust-dwellers at the door of their mercy. The sun of the truth of existence shines upon the hearts of the worlds from their threshold, and wherever a command reaches its fulfillment, it is through them that it is accomplished.

They are the throne of the divine house, around which the inhabitants of the divine realm and the dust-dwellers of the material world flourish through circumambulation.

The fount of religion is purified by their Zamzam, and the misguided among humankind, clinging to the abyss of their dark ignorance, are recognized by the light of their majestic manifestation.

Their virtuous names are words that, when uttered, lighten the burden of sin and open the gate of repentance to all. One who seeks recourse to them calls upon the Exalted Reality not by individual names but by all His beautiful names, for they are the station of the synthesis of syntheses, all being manifestations of the greatest name and comprehensive attribute, possessing all ranks of names in the assembly of differentiation: “To God belong the most beautiful names, so call upon Him by them, and leave those who deviate concerning His names. They will be recompensed for what they used to do.”

The Great Secret of Creation

Intrinsic and true beloved saints are the love of the Exalted Reality, the secret of life, the great mystery of creation, and the enigma of servitude, purifying the webs of disgrace, fame, illusion, and delusion with the alms of Wilayat.

These divine lights are the pilgrimage of every phenomenon, through which all phenomena, by touching the black stone of their heart, draw near to them and emerge from the veils drawn over their essence.

They arouse the dead with the chime of their call to the assembly of manifestation, entwining one realm with another and blending them with the Muhammadan truth.

The stars of virtuous divine names and attributes adorn the firmament of their intermediary realm. Their true realm is the banquet hall of beholding intrinsic names and the station of the essence.

The possessors of intrinsic Wilayat set intrinsic forces in motion with the earthquakes of truth, causing springs of discovery and insight to flow from their embrace.

If they wield the Dhulfiqar, they possess a soul flourishing from unity, and beyond that, from the station of the essence. The slain of majesty praise their arms, and the living of beauty, pursuing the manifestation of their countenance, attain an eternal gaze.

They are the gatekeepers of God’s city, unlocking the locks of hearts with a glance, setting the butterflies of the paradise of beauty in flight, and issuing permits to the perdition of majesty. Water through them brings life to parched-lipped thirsters.

They bring forth fruit from celestial gardens for the ruin-dwellers of gnosis, guiding them to the refuge of the mountain of divine self-sufficiency.

From the radiance of their intuition flows a river of light. With the call of unity, they rob phenomena of their senses, leading them to eternal subsistence in the assembly of the merciful breath. They are the unsolved divine enigmas, attuned to the unseen essence, embracing absolute visages, the core of every manifestation, the visage of every book, and the knower of every word.

The Arduous Task of Speaking

Speaking of the special divine saints—who are the gateways of knowledge and gnosis and the collective manifestation of the noble divine messenger—is an arduous and formidable virtue. These gateways, each a manifestation of the other and a visage of unity, though each possessing a unique divine determination, are a single light, unbound by any barrier, aware of the state of every citizen of this city of a thousand gates.

Intrinsic beloved saints are the hidden treasures of the celestial realm, the storehouses of virtue in the material world, and the abodes of truths and the Muhammadan truth. The holy spirit in every state has received goodness from them, yet it is neither a statement, a discourse, nor a recitation. It is He who orchestrates the discourse.

The Meaning of Truth-Seeking through Wilayat

A truth-seeker is one who, within the limits of their capacity and degree of Wilayat and infallibility, finds the living Wali of God, endowed with divine truth, and moves within the orbit of their Wilayat. Divine Wilayat is the current of pure love with God’s election, while forbidden Wilayat is the current of greed and avarice that has gained dominance, supremacy, force, and autocratic power.

Political Leadership and Management

Divine saints can undertake social and political leadership against the oppressions and transgressions of the unjust and corrupt, based on divine decree. Only they can fulfill this responsibility without violating its purpose or harming the people, even sacrificing their lives in this path.

The guidance and religious leadership of the movement for justice and opposition to oppression, as well as political management, rest upon living divine saints. Such a task is beyond the capacity of those who have not attained the intrinsic, divinely bestowed, and true degree of Wilayat.

The duty of leadership does not fall upon non-saints, and whoever interferes in it is liable for all financial and human losses and distortions incurred.

How can silent religious teachings, not directly affirmed by the infallible or a living divine Wali, or a religion severed from its true and living possessor, possess living authority and efficacy without succumbing to the peril of autocratic human domination? Non-gnostic and non-Wilayat-based jurisprudence, if it gains dominance, not only fails to resolve the problems of people and society but becomes pregnant with thousands of problems and impasses. Can knowledge detached from intrinsic and divinely bestowed Wilayat address justice, love, and the soul’s predicaments?

It is the divine Wali who can engage in constructive struggle against oppression and corruption. In constructive opposition to oppression, there is both the discipline, reprimand, and silencing of the oppressor to abandon their injustice and realize justice, even love, and the awakening of the oppressor and evildoer to the reality that this struggle is the consequence of their oppressive and malevolent actions. Throughout this struggle, fairness, justice, mercy, compassion, love, and enlightenment are observed, potentially reforming the oppressor or at least rendering them incapable of further oppression and evildoing. However, if oppression and evil are countered with evil and non-constructive conflict, the oppressor and evildoer will never be reformed, and new centers of malevolence will continually emerge.

Greedy humanity naturally seeks to seize others’ interests and exploit everything for personal gain. To prevent individuals’ rights from being trampled by human avarice and greed, especially by the ignoble, and to discern the correct path, divine decrees, and the path to eternal felicity, one must refer to the living Wali of God. Otherwise, their journey toward felicity and salvation will be fraught with greater errors.

The Foundation of Divine Management and Politics

The foundation of divine management and politics rests upon the true personality of the living possessor of Wilayat, not on religious teachings detached from their living possessor. The living and present Wali infuses the spirit of Wilayat and the content of their gnostic and infallible awareness into the soul of religion, society, and people, aligning humans with the truths of gnostic religion and heartfelt faith. They safeguard gnostic religion from the dangers of worldly eclecticism, supremacists, fossilization, and the violence of superficialists, maintaining the boundaries of religion with worldly people and preventing its contamination with fossilization and violence. Thus, the existence of a practical manual and its implementation or governance does not render a government divine or an individual religious. Divine management and politics are grounded in the personality of their true possessor, and without them, one should not speak of divine or religious management. A religion without its true and living Wali lacks vitality and efficacy. I have elaborated on this truth, with all its dimensions, in my two-volume book Divine Management and Politics.

Self-Care and Divine Body Liberation

The Essence of Religion and Religiosity

Divine religion is a living and vibrant entity, characterized by its association with both the knower of religion and the religiously devout individual. Religion, akin to blood coursing through the veins of a living human, resides in the soul and essence of the devout, endowing them with vitality. It imparts a religious life and a meaning that transcends mere concepts, existing beyond the mind as a dynamic and ever-relevant framework for managing existence.

Religion is an innate divine gift, not a collection of static, rigid, or superficial texts confined to their apparent form, stagnant and independent of a living and active connection to their divine source, which is God. Nor is it detached from the living and active relationship with the human who seeks guidance through this innate and divinely bestowed religion, aspiring to embody a religious lifestyle. A text, in and of itself, lacks the capacity for interpretation or practical application without the conscious agent and their presuppositions, which endow it with meaning and purpose. I have elaborated extensively on the essence of religion and the nature of religiosity in my book Hypocrisy and Divine Religion.

Intimacy with Phenomena and Their Elevation

Humanity, endowed with a collective capacity—encompassing the ability to expand and unfold, to descend and ascend, to possess voluntary purity, inner gentleness, and the power to establish healthy connections and responsible relationships with authoritative assimilation—can, through love for phenomena and continuous intimacy with them, discern the innate language of their heart, essence, and dominant traits. By engaging with them sincerely and with committed devotion, humans can coexist and converse with phenomena in a state of heartfelt attachment. Through this intimacy, both parties reach a state of mutual fulfillment, enhancing each other’s purity, rather than engaging in a mere cohabitation devoid of commitment or driven by avarice.

The capacity for committed intimacy and empathy, which fosters fulfillment and purity, can provide the logic to comprehend the heartfelt language of phenomena, acquainting the individual with the gradational degree of Wilayat (spiritual guardianship) and its divine manifestation, which originates from the divine name Rabb (Lord). This lordship, in non-human entities, lacks the collective wholeness found in humans, instead granting each phenomenon a specific perfection and capacity.

The vitality of the cosmos is Wilayat, and even monotheism (Tawhid) is measured by the criterion of Wilayat, its unique vitality, and its exclusive and particular relationship with the Lord. The love of every phenomenon is proportionate to its degree of Wilayat. Wilayat constitutes the essence, truth, and core of every entity. Each phenomenon, according to its degree of Wilayat, possesses divine proximity, grace, and beauty. Every beauty, resilience, stature, specific and gradational delicacy, and every perfection is a manifestation of its Wilayat. The greater the perfections, beauty, and allure of a phenomenon, the more pervasive and resolute its general Wilayat, and the greater its predisposition to accept specific Wilayat. A phenomenon’s defense of itself is its Wilayat, which has taken the form of unity. Wilayat is the actual degree of every phenomenon. Its higher degrees manifest in the forms of prophet (Nabi), messenger (Rasul), leader (Imam), vicegerent (Khalifa), and the absolute and universal divine Wali (guardian), culminating in the Seal of Wilayat, where all the perfections of the perfect human are actualized.

Every flower, thorn, plant, fire, ash, rain, sea, and human—their might, perfection, zeal, wrath, vitality, decree, and duty—are defined by their Wilayat. The measure and weight of each is equivalent to its Wilayat, which is the grace of its essence.

Every phenomenon and manifestation has a divine decree, and every decree entails a corresponding duty and guidance suited to its nature. There is no phenomenon devoid of a divine decree, allegiance, code, duty, or guidance. Understanding a manifestation or phenomenon requires recognizing its decree, and by discerning its allegiance, proximity, distance, and relationship with the Exalted Truth, its relativity and contingency are determined. This allows for the assessment of its awareness, will, aspiration, and love, as well as the evaluation of its capacities and Wilayat, revealing the divine dominion of names that governs it—a dominion that bestows unique and exclusive perfections upon each phenomenon. It is not solely the divine human who possesses Wilayat; even animals and plants exhibit Wilayat over one another, meaning that some, in addition to general Wilayat, are endowed with specific Wilayat. Each phenomenon, according to its specific Wilayat, has a unique remembrance and affinity with a particular Imam, seeking proximity to them. Not all have the capacity to seek proximity to the Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him). Each must find their specific Imam.

A human maintains vitality only by avoiding attachment or companionship with those lacking specific Wilayat, even if they harbor no aversion toward them, for such entities are, in the general course, sources of loss and detriment. Those confined to general Wilayat, even if they possess apparent beauty according to general Wilayat, lack true charm and ultimately draw the observer toward unhealthy desires and lust, nothing more. They lack dignity, nobility, and grace. Those who lack receptivity to specific Wilayat and their Imam are equivalent to or lower than phenomena and animals devoid of specific Wilayat.

Those endowed with specific Wilayat are captivating and alluring to those with sound hearts. Among animals, those possessing authority, beauty, and articulation are endowed with specific Wilayat. Pigeons are such creatures. Tigers, lions, and leopards, endowed with specific Wilayat, possess authority, beauty, and delicacy, and even their ferocity stems from love. The nature of certain animals is compatible and familiar with the possessors of specific Wilayat.

The pig, like the monkey, lacks specific Wilayat. The pig, an omnivorous animal, not only consumes impurity but delights in and derives pleasure from it. Consuming impurity brings inner darkness. This animal, with its diabolical intelligence, finds no pleasure in pure and wholesome sustenance.

The leopard, endowed with specific Wilayat, is a slayer of the strong and remains unprovoked unless challenged. Even the lion does not exhibit this trait. Some, by nature, disposition, or ethics, harbor an inherent aversion and disgust toward harming the weak, whether friend or foe, while others, regardless of faith or disbelief, are oppressors and tormentors of the weak. For a mouse, a cat is a weak-slaying predator, but it flees at the sight of a dog.

The leopard roars at an animal larger than itself but shows no sensitivity toward the weak. It remains unprovoked by those aligned with it, but if a larger entity confronts and threatens it, it becomes enraged. At times, the leopard even roars at the clouds or the moon in the sky; yet, the same leopard ignores a small, weak creature unless it is extremely hungry. Today, cancer has become prevalent because the body is excessively provoked. Television, cinema, advertisements, economic pressures, poverty, excessive activity, and stress-inducing tasks stimulate the body. Cancer in the body is analogous to the leopard in nature. Humans must be adaptable and flexible to possess the natural requisite for survival.

The lion, endowed with specific Wilayat, is granted strength, heroic valor, dignity, composure, and sovereignty over the jungle, though it cannot soar like an eagle or overpower an ant lodged in its claw. Trained by nature, the lion possesses the requisite for prolonged survival. It is not self-destructive and, when sated, does not tear apart another animal, unlike a wolf, which attacks any creature and revels in savagery. The lion does not harm another animal despite its natural capability and strength. Although tigers and leopards may not be inferior to the lion in muscular strength, neither possesses the lion’s chivalry and grandeur. The Commander of the Faithful (peace be upon him) is called the Lion of the Realm of Wilayat for this reason, as he is the helm and anchor of the ship of existential phenomena, bringing tranquility and balance.

With its robust physique and form aligned with its body, the lion maneuvers as if it were a professional athlete. The lion embodies abundance and, due to its physical vitality, is endowed with strength and patience. One who becomes self-sufficient is abundant, even if they possess nothing tangible.

Phenomena endowed with specific Wilayat, according to their degree of manifestation, possess simple and complex awareness, natural decrees and duties, and innate glorification. Some can ascend to the level of an abstracted soul and its attributes, including comprehensive and abstracted awareness. All animals, and even plants, possess simple awareness and perception. However, animal perception does not grant them the capacity for voluntary complex perception, analysis, or articulation—that is, an inner state where the heart is actively engaged voluntarily and collectively, enabling voluntary abstraction, linguistic conventions, or an alphabet. Their perceptions are innate, self-sustaining, and confined to a specific framework, and their dominant emotions and sentiments are particular. Each animal and species possesses specific natural capacities, advanced innate complexity, and, accordingly, will and choice within the boundaries of those awarenesses. They lack the collective and divine capacity; instead, each species and individual within it holds a preserved station that neither ascends nor descends, living out its nature with a will defined within the boundaries of that station. Thus, one must not conflate this natural perception, innate and self-sustaining attention, and limited, simple will with the capacity for voluntary and divine analysis, although some animals can naturally and innately attain general rational understanding and heartfelt perception. However, they lack the collective, divine, and voluntary nature even at the level of the heart. Animals predominantly possess particular, imaginative perception, distinguishing objects and phenomena in their immediate presence and possessing particular discernment. For instance, they perceive specific, immediate dangers in their environment but, for some, the concept of danger in general is absent. Certain advanced animal species can engage in mental and abstract thinking, grasp general concepts and rationality at the level of body and animal soul, and understand general danger, self-preservation, and protection against it—an ability distinct from the voluntary heartfelt analysis unique to humans. Thus, learning and training are meaningful for such animals. Amidst this, God, as per the verse “Every day He is in a new affair” (Quran 55:29), engages with every phenomenon, and its unfolding and resolution are by divine will.

Humans can possess, in their psychic life, a perception stronger than the sensory perception of animals. The distinction between the human heart and the animal heart lies in the human heart’s capacity to acquire divine attributes—voluntary, sacred, and luminous—or satanic and fiery attributes, whereas the animal heart possesses natural and innate attributes regulated by the laws of nature and divine ordinances. Universal divine laws and nature prescribe natural decrees and duties for animals. Humans, through will and choice, can attain piety, godliness, and submission to God’s decrees, but the attribute of piety is neither requisite for animals nor angels, who reside in a fixed station. Animals lack divine attributes and do not pursue divine decrees with a will freer than their instinctive and natural boundaries; rather, their animal attributes, such as fear, hope for survival, or even dreaming, are governed by nature’s order, within a limited will, and in particular matters.

Heartfelt analysis can endow humans with the capacity for comprehensive, voluntary awareness, enabling them to gain knowledge of anything they will and granting them a voluntary order, even at the level of divinely bestowed infallibility. This voluntary expansion is absent in animals, who can neither desire everything nor gain awareness of everything they desire. A dog, according to its gradational capacity, can naturally and innately smell phenomena up to a radius of approximately 50 kilometers, possessing an olfactory power akin to human fingerprinting, discerning the unique scent of each phenomenon and perceiving its natural and instinctive needs. However, its other senses are not effective at this range, and it lacks the choice to activate them, not transcending its instinctive and natural needs. In contrast, a flourishing human can render all their sensory perceptions effective over hundreds of kilometers through their collective capacity, aspiration, and will. A human is a capable human; otherwise, an inactive, powerless human, devoid of the ability to effect change or act and reduced to mere emotions, is not truly human.

It is noteworthy that a divine human can attain the perception of what decree or gift—be it mercy or wrath—God has ordained for them. Sensory perception is distinct from heartfelt discovery and intuition, and the two must not be conflated.

Animal vitality is a unique form of life, observable and knowable through experience. An animal, if endowed with animal vitality, is an animal, and one who consumes a living animal engages in animal-eating. However, once that vitality departs and the animal dies, it becomes a carcass or meat, and one who consumes it is not an animal-eater but a meat-eater. This vitality exists in humans as well, and it is possible for a human, in human form, to exhibit nothing but animal attributes, lacking human attributes—namely, voluntary movement based on divine decrees. Animal vitality has no termination but undergoes transformation, transitioning from the apparent material realm to the inner realm, shaping the animal’s posthumous existence according to its actions and affinity with Wilayat. It is received at the expansive table of the Exalted Truth’s mercy, with dignity and care, and sustained appropriately.

Animal vitality is elevated through human vitality. Through resolute will and lofty aspiration, humans can stir those endowed with animal vitality to strive and surrender, guiding them toward divine servitude with their effective and potent breath, making divine vitality tangible for them. Hence, it is said: “Through us, God is worshipped.” The blessed countenance of the Commander of the Faithful brings guidance, growth, and development to all phenomena, from inanimate objects and plants to those endowed with animal vitality. Every phenomenon, in this manner, is subject to both ascent and descent, as each possesses allegiance, a decree, and a remembrance. For instance, it is said that a clean garment resides in its specific remembrance and vessel of Wilayat, but if it becomes soiled and loses its purity, it undergoes a change in station, losing its remembrance of Wilayat. Through wise choice or poor discretion, humans assign stations to other phenomena, either elevating these divine manifestations or casting them into degradation and regression. Even a cook preparing food with their hands imparts their bodily attributes and purity to the food. For example, consuming food prepared by the delicate hands of a beautiful, affectionate, and pure-hearted woman is refining and delicacy-enhancing, distinct from food prepared by hands lacking purity and delicacy or with malice and resentment. Inanimate objects, plants, and animals are all in ceaseless motion and journey, singing melodies of love, affection, and devotion or lamenting separation in a specific rhythm, mode, and tune. They are drawn to their kindred and capable counterparts with desire and passion, and every moment of their existence is a tumult of awareness and a spectacle of power and yearning. However, inappropriate and intrusive human interference can drag them into stagnation and sorrowful obstruction, even reducing their desire and passion to lethargy and weakness. Spring, the season of vitality, renewal, and rejuvenation, is the peak of animals’ natural festivity and love in a communal system, and time and place, like humans, subject them to peaks and nadirs. A perfect human, endowed with the pinnacle of specific divine Wilayat, can elevate phenomena and even alter their kind, bringing a plant or animal to the threshold of humanity. Animals, by their innate and natural constitution, possess divine proximity and distance and exist in a degree of love and contentment. Animals, in their divine proximity and distance, are subject to gradation and relativity and, according to their self-sustaining knowledge, awareness, and capacity in the material realm of requisite, transformation, and adaptability, possess a station. Divine proximity and distance are not exclusive to humans. Ultimately, however, the perfect divine human will guide every phenomenon to its decree and purpose. A divine human, endowed with Wilayat, monotheism, and the decree of guidance, leaves no one astray on the path and ensures that all their companions attain and are delivered to their destination.