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International Mevlana Symposiuın Papers
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Birleşmiş Minetler 2007 Eğitim, Bilim ve Kültür MevlAnA CelAleddin ROmi
Kurumu 800. ~um Yıl Oönümü
United Nations Educaöonal, Scientific and aoo:ı Anniversary of
Cu/tura! Organlzatlon the Birth of Rumi
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The root of all things: Letters, words, speech
Pilar Garrido Clemente 1 Spain
Kun, the divine command of creation
Kun: "Be!", "come into being!" This is the general creative com
ınand of Go d that initiates the coming in to being of all creatures in the Universe
(kawn), their entry into the world, the realm of actual existence, from the dimen
sion of pure possibility. Therefore, God gives existence to all beings in the
Universe by means of:His Word: Be this! Be that! Each thing exists, then, at the
very moment that God names it and commands it to be1 by means of the spe
cific kun that corresponds to it. Thus, the Order of the Universe is based up on the
Order of God. It is the Divine W ord that establishes the Order, commands all
beings to come into existence and arranges their degree and disposition. This ini
tial Word of God, the imperative kun, is the generative and unifying principle of
the order of all manifestation. The diversity of the articulated words or names -
which are the different beings of the Universe - is, therefore, inherently unified
by the primordial intrinsic unity of the all-engendering Word, which is an attrib
ute of God as the Speaker. The whole of existence is, consequently, a single dis
course. Thus, the world is united by the Word: a unified visian of the casmos is
a unified word-view. 2
1 As the Qur'an shows in different verses Gad has created the World through His Word saying to each being/creature "Be! (kun) ".See 0: 2: 117, 3: 47, 3: 59, 7: 44, 15:98, 16:40, 19:35,36:82,39:66 and 40:68. 2 Or using the term Pablo Beneito formulated in his writings, a unifıed logovision. See P. Beneito, Ellenguoje de /as alusiones: amor, compasian y belieza en el sufismo de lbn 'Arabi, Murcia: Editora Regional de Murcia, 2005, p. 60.
1118 A5 is well known, Rumi had a close relation of friendship with Şadruddin
Qünawi, the most eminent disciple of Ibn 'Arabi (a. C. 1165-1240). Acording to
some texts studied by ümid Safi or Gerald Elmore, Ibn 'Arabi himself was con
nected to Shamsuddin Tabnzi. Thus, Andulusian Sufism was present in Konya
through Ibn 'Arabi's teaching.
In this paper, I'm going to speak of Ibn Masarra's Kitiib al-IfurüP Ibn
Masarra al-Jaball (883-93 1) may be considered the first eminent Master whose
teaching established an Andalusian Sufi tradition. This book on the Isolated
Qur'anic letters, often quoted by Ibn 'Arabi, is the first major work that has sur
vived on this essential matter.
The word, the book, the universe
The Divine Word is manifested in the revealed Book. This concept is the condi
tion of possibility4 that underli es the Sufi exegesis of letters presented here. The
primordial Matrix of Scripture is manifested and actualised in the written and
recited Book; but it is also manifested in the Bo ok of the Universe, the revealed
Bo ok of Creation that shows the signs on the horizons (ii.fiiq), and is equally man
ifested in the interi or of the human microcosm. The human being, according to
Ibn Masarra in his R. al-I'tibiir (The Epistle of Interpretation}, is an interpreter
(mu 'tabir), who deciphers the signs of these three dimensions of the Book, w hile
contemplating the correlations established among them. Lil,ce Sahl al-Tustan,5 in
his writing on the letters, or Ibn 'Arabi in different passages of his works, Ibn
3 See on this author and his complete works, Pilar Garrido, Estudio, traducciôn y ediciôn de la obra de lbn Masarra de Côrdoba: la ciencia de fas Jetras en el sufismo (Doctoral Thesis), Universidad de Salamanca, 2007. 4 As a paradigmatic model of this attitude, see Marcos el Gnôstico in Iren eo de Lyôn, Contra fas herejfas, 1, 14 -16, in Los Gnôsticos, vol. 1 (introduction, translation and notes from Jose Montserrat Torrents), Madrid: Gredos, 1983. See also Evange/io de la Verdad lll in Biblioteca de Nag Hammad i ll. Evange!ios, hechos, cartas (translation by Francisco Garcia Bazan), Madrid: Trotta, 1999. 5 See G. Böwering, The Mystical Vision of Existence in Classical Islam: The Qur'anic Hermeneutics of the Şüfı Sahl at-TustarT, Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, 1980 and M. K. Ja'far Risatat ai-J:Iurüf in Minal-turas al-şüfı li-Sahl b. 'Abd Allahai-TustarT (The Sufi Legacy of Sahl b. 'Abd Allah ai-TustarT. Study and Critical ed.), Cairo: Dar ai-Ma'arif, 1974, pp. 366-375 (Faşl fı 1-Qur'an pp. 372-373 and Ma _a' min al-ism ... , pp. 373-375).
Pilar Garrido Clemente Tlıe raat of all tlzings: Letters, ıvords, speeclı
Masarra declares at the beginning of his Risiilat al-I'tibiir that the entire Universe
is a Book, whose lerters are the divine speech.
This correspondence - which is simultaneously a relation of identity and dif
ference- between the Divine Word, the Universe and the Book, is the background
of all Sufi hermeneutics. Certainly, the same can also be said in relation to other
esateric schools within Islam, as well as in the other Religions of the Book.
As Rumi says in his Flhi mii fih: "The root of all things is speech and words.
You know notlıing of speech and words and consider them insignificant. But
speech is the fruit of the tree of action, for words are bom from action. Go d most
High created the world from a Word, for He said, 'Be!' and it is".6
The Arabic letters of revelation
Like Tustar'f or Ja'far al-Şadiq among Muslim authors who preceded him, and
Ibn 'Arabi, Rumi and many later authors, Ibn Masarra explores the symbolic
meanings of the Arabic lerters, as these are precisely the signs that, providen
tially, have been used to articulate the Islamic revelation, which is his funda
mental domain of study. Although the author does not mention this fact explic
itly, it is understood that the revelation re-establishes the providential and orig
inal character of the Arabic language, w hi ch serves as its verbal support.
Letters as the principles of all created beings
Thus, in the scriptural esateric tradition all beings are considered to be words of
the Creator and the Universe is seen as His discourse. According to Ibn Masarra,
who in this case resorts to the authority of Sahl al-Tustaıi, lerters are the princi
ples of all things (uşül al-ashyii 1, the origins of their constitution. 8
6 See A. J. Arberry, Discourses of Riimf(Fihi mii fiht), London: John Murray, p. 75. 7 See Pilar Garrido, "El tratado de las letras (Risolat a/-lıunıj) del sufi Sahl Al-Tustari" en la Aııuario de Estıidios Filo/6gicos, Universidad de Extremadura, Caceres, 2006, volumen XXIX, pp. 87-100. 8 See Ib n Masarra, Kitiib Khowiişş of-l;ıuriif wo-l;ıoqii'iqi-hii wo-uşiili-hii in ed. M. K. Ja'far, Kitiib Khawiişş al-l;ıuriif wa-l;ıaqii'iqi-hii wa-uşiili-hii in Min qaziiyii 1-fikr
1120 The letters from which the names are composed are not mere conventional
elements of ordinary language: they are the providential, original principles by
means of w hi ch the world is originated. Therefore, the letters are, in reality, the
Materia Prima of all creation, consubstantial with the Divine W ord.
The fourteen isolated letters of the Qur'an
In his K. Khawiişş aHıurüj, lbn Masarra does not deal with all the twenty-eight
letters of the Ara b i c alphabet. Rather, he only comments on half of them, that is,
on fourteen letters, the so-called initial letters (awii'il al-qur'iin or fawiitib)
which appear at the very beginning of twenty-nine Qur'anic süras. These letters
have led to numerous exoteric and especially esoteric9 interpretations, while they
have also been one of the most important and en during stimuli for the develop
ment of the Science of Letters in Islam.
Apart from the terrus awii'il (which refers to the letters as principles) and
fawiitib (a term which evakes opening keys, keywords that encode and decipher,
or spiritual openings), these fourteen letters (corresponding symbolically to the
fourteen lunar mansions), are also called isolated letters (muqatta'a), since they are
traditionally recited pronouncing their full name - for example, al if liim mfm -, as
separate signs that do not form words, even though they are strung together
graphically. On the other hand, these letters are somehow "separated" from the
rest of the letters and from the remaining Qur'anic text, due to this exclusive
condition that distinguishes them from ordinary language.
lbn Masarra, following the example of Tustari, also calls them seeret or
interior letters (biitina), as opposed to the other fourteen, which are conceived as
apparent or external (ziilıira). It is understood that these interior letters - as they
are not pronounced forming words - correspond to the spiritual realm of divine
al-isliimi, Diriisa wa-nuşüş, Cairo: Maktabat Dar ai-'Uiüm, 1978, p. 317, and ed. P. Garrido, "Edici6ry critica del K. Jawiişş al-J;ıurüfde lbn Masarra", in ai-AndalusMagreb: Estudios Arabes e Jslıimicos, n' 14 (2007), p. 63 (ms. p. 135). 9 On this subject see the excellent study by J. D. Pearson on the interpretation of the mysterious letters, especially canceming the view of the orientalists, in his article "AI-Kur'an", EJ2, pp. 413-416. Although 1 disagree with same of Pearson's approaches, his questions and final conclusions (pp. 415-416) seem to me very relevant and revealing.
Pilar Garrido Clemente The root of all t/ıiııgs: Letters, ıvords, speeclz
Mystery (ghayb), while the rest of the letters belong to the World of witnessing
('ii lam al-shahiida), as manifestation of the articulated language.
At the same time, they are known, particularly in European languages, as the
'mysterious' or 'enigmatic' letters, due to their symbolic character, open to different
interpretations. They are also known as the lurninous letters (nüriiniyya) - matrices
that illurninate the creation - in contrast to the other letters which are dark.
According to his interpretation of the context in which they appear, these
fourteen letters are, for Ibn Masarra, the portentous signs of the Book (iiyiit al
kitiib) par excellence. More than fifteen times in the Qur'anic text, a sequence of
isolated letters is followed by the statement "Those are the Signs of the Scripture ... "
(Q. 10: 1), or "That is the Scripture ... " (Q. 2: 2), and sirnilar expressions.
Like other formulae that appear at the beginning of different süras, these
letters may also be interpreted as divine oaths. Thus, -for example- by analogy
to the Qur'anic expressian "By the fig and the olive!'' which appears at the begin
ning of süra ninety-five, the letter nün in the first verse of süra sixty-eight might
be understood as "By the nün!" As we shall see, Ibn Masarra sametimes inter
prets the letters in his treatise in this way.
Of course, letters are present in Rumi' s discourse as a major symbolic realm.
He specifically refers to some of the mysterious letters of the Qur'an, for exam
ple in bo ok five of the Mathnawl. The letters here refer to the mysterious nature
of the realized human being. He says:
"This Alif-Lam-Mim and :çıa.· -Mim - these Letters become, on (real) com
prehension (of their meaning), like the rod of Moses.
The (other) letters resemble these Letters outwardly but are subject (to them)
in respect of the (sublime) attributes of the latter.
This Breatlı- i. e. the above-mentioned Letters -is (like the breath) of Jesus
(in its effects); it is not (like) any wing and breatlı that arises fromjoy or sorrow.
This Alif-Lam-Mim and I:Ia'-Mim have come from the presence of the Lord
ofMankind.
What resemblance has any (other) alif-liim to these? Do not regard them
with this (external) eye, if you have a (rational) soul.
Although they are composed of letters, and resemble the composition of
(words used by) the common folk, (yet they are not the same).
Muhammad is composed of flesh and skin; (but he is unique) although
every body is homogeneous with him in its composition.
1122 It hath flesh, it hath skin and bone; (yet) has this (ordinary) constitution the
same (qualities as his)?
(No); for in that constitution (of Muhammad) there appeared mirades by
which all (other) constitutions were vanquished.
Likewise, the composition of the (Letters) Ifti'-Mim in the (Holy) Book is
exceedingly lofty, while the atlıers are low (in comparison).
Because from this composition comes life, like the blast of the trumpet (of
Resurrection), (to those) in helplessness.
By the dispensation of God Ifti'-Mim becomes a dragon and cleaves the sea
like the rod (ofMoses)". 10
The degrees of letters, signs, paradi se and the nam es of God
In the introduction to his treatise, Ibn Masarra establishes a direct carrespan
dence between the degrees of the mysterious letters (which are the Signs par
excellence), the Qur'anic verses in general, the Names of God transmitted in the
revelation, the stages of sp iritual progress and the successive levels of Paradise,
all of which can be compared to a ladder.
As Pierre Lory explains, "Ibn Masarra emphasizes that 'the esateric science
of the Qur'an is the understanding of the Divine Names as exposed by the
Prophet'. He compares the ninety-nine names of God, enumerated by the
Tradition, to the step s of a stairway or a ladder stretched, between the believer
and Paradise. Each name is at the same time divided into intermediary degrees.
The initiate's interior ascension from one degree to the other, and from one name
towards another, becomes thus the reference of his own spiritual progress: at
each step, the mystical understanding of a name produces a transformatian within the disciple". ı ı
This un derstanding of the meanings of the letters and of the Qur'anic vers
es is a transforming experience because it reveals to our consciousness what we
10 See R. A. Nicholson, The Mathnawfof Jalii/u'ddin Rümi, Cambridge: The Trustees of the "E. J. W. Gibb Memorial", 1982 (4' ed.), Book V, pp. 80-81. 11 See P. Lory, "lbn Masarra", in Dictionnaire critique de J'esoterisme, ed. Servier, J., Paris: PUF, 1998, p. 663.
Pilar Garrido Clemente Tlıe root of all tlıiııgs: Letters, ıvords, speeclı
originally are, since by virtue of the divine order kun, "be!", 12 "all the heavenly
and earthly creatures are fundamentally linguistic entities that are meant to be
read and decoded"Y
The first comprehensive exegesis of the isolated letters
We understand from Ibn Masarra's writings that the esoteric meaning of the !et
ters remains hidden to ordinary exoteric understanding, due to their distin
guished position as principles of Creation.
To realise the importance of this treatise, we should be aware that Ibn
Masarra was the first in the history of Islamic thought, as far as is known from
extant texts, to interpret methodically each and every mysterious Ietter of the
Qur'an within a comprehensive, uni:tying view. The author explains, classifies
and associates all the Ietters, establishing coherent categories, degrees and cor
respondences in an all-embracing ıvord-vieıv or logovision which presents them
as the fundamental scriptural reference of Islamic ontology and cosmology.
The K. Khaıviişş al-J;urüf is also the first general exegesis that deals with
the sequences of mysterious Ietters and explains them within their Qur'anic con
text, either in relation to the specific passages in which they are found - a par
ticular verse or a group of verses with whose content they are connected - or in
relation to the position in which they appear with respect to the rest of the
sequences, according to the order of the süras in w hi ch they are included. In fa ct,
the author dedicates two sections of his treatise to the interpretation of the !et
ters understood as degrees following their order of appearance. In the first enu
meration, the exegesis follows an ascending nurnerical order which, from an
ontological perspective, is a descending one, from the alif (süra 2) to the nün
(süra 68), while in the second enumeration the inverse order is followed, so that
it is an ascending order from a metaphysical perspective, although numerically
it is a descending one, starting from the nün and ending with the alif.
As in Ibn Masarra's Epistle on Interpretation (Risiilat al-I'tibiir), the cycle
12 Referring to Q. 2:117; 3:47 y 59; 6:73; 16:40; 19:35; 36:82 and 40:68. 13 . See P. Lory, /dem, p. 664.
1124 of descending manifestation and ascending interpretation is, thus, completed: the
ascent of the interpreter in his hermeneutic journey corresponds to the descent
of revelation. Ibn Masarra's commentary, like a never-ending inclusive circle,
comes back to the endless beginning.
The symbolic designation (kinaya)
The author interprets the symbolical meaning of the lerters according to differ
ent ways of signification (daliila). The main term which he uses to explain its sig
nification is kiniiya, i. e. metonomy (in this context, mainly, designating the
whole, a term, through its part, one of its lerters) in a symbolic sense. The lerter,
therefore, is conceived, in a certain way, as an abbreviation or initial.
In general, a lerter stands for a term - frequently a name - which begins
with the same lerter (for example, the liim from lawJ.ı) or which contains it (for
example, the tii' offitra, the nün of kun) and, consequently, the real meaning or
the degree that term designates.
Similarly Ibn Masarra transmi ts a tradition in which the sequence of lerters
can also be interpreted as an abbreviation of a complete phrase, but this is not
the way the author normally proceeds.
Sometimes, Ibn Masarra also explains the signification by the formal anal
ogy of the way lerters are wrirten. For example, the fa ct that the al if is not con
nected to the lerter that follows indicates the 'isolation' Qf the undifferentiate
Unity, and the graphic form of the lerter n ün, whose name - as a word - means
'fish', resembles the shape of a fish, according to the traditional image.
Ibn Masarra collects traditions which relate the lerters to the Divine Names
and provides a specific case using the composition of the name al-Rafımiin from
the sequences a-l-r, plus J.ı-m, plus n. The sequences of lerters of words are
anather possible kind of signification, but again this is not a characteristic pro
cedure of the Cordoban Master.
Anather important means of signification in his treatise, which in a way pre
cedes what has been already explained, is the contextual meaning. The lerters have
a special meaning (1) depending on the group of the isolated lerters-according to
their position in the sequence - and (2) their Qur'anic context. Therefore, the
order in w hi ch the lerter appears in relation to the order of the süras corresponds
Pilar Garrido Clemente The root of all tlıings: Letters, ıvords, speeclz
to a progression of degrees; the fact that one lerter repeats itself in different
sequences a certain number of times indicates its relation to a reality that implies
this number (for example, when the 'ayn is repeated twice it indicates the exis
tence of two types of 'ilm, 'Science', a term whose first lerter is 'ayn); and, last
ly, the group of verses that appears following a sequence of lerters, to which it
is inseparably linked, also reveals its meaning.
The two halves of the Qur'an
In relation to the mysterious lerters, Ibn Masarra distinguishes two parts or
'halves' 14 (niifj of the Qur'anic text. He explains that the second part begins with
the lerter kiif, which initiates the sequence of isolated lerters in süra nineteen,
and ends with in terms of the nün of süra sixty-eight. This is the last of the iso
lated lerters appearing in the Qur'an. Thus, in the first half (which also happens
to correspond, approximately, to the first physical half of the Qur'an), there are
a total of five isolated lerters (alif lam mfm şiid rii '), that appear in nin e
sequences, all of which begin with the lerters al if lam, as in the Arabic definite
artide and the name Allah.
Ibn Masarra explains that these five lerters of the first part are the sublime,
Supreme Signs (al-iiyiit al-kubra), the five principles that correspond to the world
of Mystery, whereas the isolated lerters of the second part of the Qur'an, includ
ed between the kiif and the nün of the divine command ku n, logically correspond
to the realm of manifestation. The second part contains thirteen of these lerters,
that is, all of them, including those mentioned previously, except for the lerter rii'.
The rii' is the only o rı e of the fourteen lerters to appear exclusively in the first part
of the Qur'anic text, and its six appearances are related to the six days ofCreation.
Thus, the four mfm-s that symbolise the angels carrying the Throne are
mentioned in the first part, whereas the four that correspond to the carriers of
the Footstool (the domain of the duality of manifested existence) are mentioned
in the second part.
14 lnvestigators have not been able to observe this fact before bec:ause in one of the key references to the term nişf, as both the manuscript c:opy and the Egyptian edition of the text read şinf(type, ki nd) due to a mistaken inversion of the letters.
1124 of descending manifestation and ascending interpretation is, thus, completed: the
ascent of the interpreter in his hermeneutic joumey corresponds to the descent
of revelation. Ibn Masarra's commentary, like a never-ending inclusive circle,
comes back to the endless beginning.
The symbolic designation (kinaya)
The author interprets the symbolical meaning of the lerters according to differ
ent ways of signification (daliila). The main term which he uses to explain its sig
nification is kiniiya, i. e. metonomy (in this context, mainly, designating the
whole, a term, through its part, one of i ts lerters) in a symbolic sense. The lerter,
therefore, is conceived, in a certain way, as an abbreviation or initial.
In general, a lerter stands for a term - frequently a name - which begins
with the same lerter (for example, the lam from law~) or which contains it (for
example, the tii' of.fitra, the nün of kun) and, consequently, the real meaning or
the degree that term designates.
Similarly Ibn Masarra transmi ts a tradition in which the sequence of lerters
can also be interpreted as an abbreviation of a complete phrase, but this is not
the way the author normally proceeds.
Sometimes, Ibn Masarra also explains the signification by the formal anal
ogy of the way lerters are wrirten. For example, the fa ct that the alif is not con
nected to the lerter that follows indicates the 'isolation' oJ the undifferentiate
Unity, and the graphic form of the lerter n ün, whose name - as a word - means
'fish', resembles the shape of a fish, according to the traditional image.
Ibn Masarra collects traditions which relate the lerters to the Divine Names
and provides a specific case using the composition of the name al-Ra~miin from
the sequences a-1-r, plus ~-m, plus n. The sequences of lerters of words are
anather possible kind of signification, but again this is not a characteristic pro
cedure of the Cordoban Master.
Anather im portant means of signification in his treatise, which in a way pre
cedes what has been already explained, is the contextual meaning. The lerters have
a special meaning (1) depending on the group of the isolated lerters-according to
their position in the sequence - and (2) their Qur'anic context. Therefore, the
order in which the lerter appears in relation to the ord er of the süras corresponds
Pilar Garrido Clemente The root of all tlıiııgs: Letters, ıvords, speeclı
to a progression of degrees; the fact that one letter repeats itself in different
sequences a certain number of times indicates its relation to a reality that implies
this number (for example, when the 'ayn is repeated twice it indicates the exis
tence of two types of 'ilm, 'Science', a term whose first letter is 'ayn); and, last
ly, the group of verses that appears following a sequence of letters, to which it
is inseparably linked, also reveals its meaning.
The two halves of the Qur'an
In relation to the mysterious letters, Ibn Masarra distinguishes two parts or
'halves>~4 (nişj) of the Qur'anic text. He explains that the second part begins with
the letter ktif, which initiates the sequence of isolated letters in süra nineteen,
and en ds with in terms of the n ün of süra sixty-eight. This is the last of the iso
lated letters appearing in the Qur'an. Thus, in the first half (which also happens
to correspond, approximately, to the first physical half of the Qur'an), there are
a total of five isolated letters (al if lam m im şiid rii '), that appear in nin e
sequences, all of which begin with the letters alif lam, as in the Arabic definite
article and the name Allah.
Ibn Masarra explains that these five letters of the first part are the sublime,
Supreme Signs (al-iiyiit al-kubrii.), the five principles that correspond to the world
of Mystery, whereas the isolated letters of the second part of the Qur'an, includ
ed between the ktif and the n ün of the divine comman d kun, logically correspond
to the realm of manifestation. The second part contains thirteen of these letters,
that is, all of them, including those mentioned previously, except for the letter rii'.
The rii' is the only o rı e of the fourteen letters to appear exclusively in the first part
of the Qur'anic text, and i ts six appearances are related to the six days of Creation.
Thus, the four mını-s that symbolise the angels carrying the Throne are
mentioned in the first part, whereas the four that correspond to the carriers of
the Footstool (the domain of the d uality of manifested existence) are mentioned
in the second part.
14 lnvestigators have not been able to observe this fact before because in one of the key references to the term nişf. as both the manuscript copy and the Egyptian edition of the text read şinf(type, ki nd) due to a mistaken inversion of the letters.
1126 This partition reminds us of the hadith in w hi ch Go d Himself explains that
the Fiitiba is divided into two halves: the first half, containing praise, belongs to
the Lord, while the second, containing supplication, belongs to the servant. 15
About the "three sciences" mentioned in this treatise
The Book of the Letters' Meanings, their (Metaphysical) Realities and their
Principles (Kitab Khawaşş al-l)urüf wa-J;ıaqa'iqi-ha wa-uşüli-ha) is a short, but
dense and comprehensive treatise about the symbolic meaning of the fourteen
isolated letters of the Qur'an. It belongs to the tradition of Sufi texts that deal
with the knowledge of reality and with the sublime and subtle truths through the
interpretation of letters, understood as matrices of the word and of the Creation.
This co n ception of the es oteri c character of the luminous letters takes us to the
very heart of Ibn Masarra's thought, which presents the Materia Prima of the
world as a reality which is consubstantial with the Divine Word.
As Lory explains, when commenting on the text of the Kitiib al-Ifurüf, this
"is definitely not presented as a philosophical treatise. The purpose of the work
is not an argument that uses a sequence of demonstrative reasoning. Instead, it
makes use of meditations and intuitions that spring from analogies provided by
Qur'anic data. In fact, Ibn Masarra announces clearly from the beginning of his
treatise that the Qur'an provides human beings with a unifYing science, divided
in to three types of (religious) knowledge: ( 1) the Science of ~ordship and its con
templative perceptions; (2) prophetic science, its signs and allusions, and (3) the
science of trial or testing, which consists of legal manda tes" .16
Lory interprets that the purpose of Ibn Masarra's spiritual teachings is to
raise the disciple from the third state (that of an ordinary believer, a level which
corresponds to the science by trial) to the first one (the condition of an accom
plished mystic, a level corresponding to divine science), by means of the second
stage: prophetic science. He adds: "It is a question, therefore, of directing the read-
15 See lbn 'Ara bi, Divine sayings: The Mishkiit al-anwiir af lbn 'Arabi, ed. and trans. S. Hirtenstein and M. Notcutt, Oxford: Anqa, 2004, pp. 49 (English) and 24-25 (Ara b i c). 16 See P. Lory, "lbn Masarra", in Dietion na i re critique de l'esoterisme, ed. Servier, J., Paris: PUF, 1998, p. 663.
Pilar Garrido Clemente The raat af all tlıiugs: Letters, ıvords, speeclı
er of the Qur'anic text towards the esateric meaning of the holy Book, through
the transmutation of the comman meaning of the verses, so that the general
exhortations may have an intimate, profound impact on the soul of the Sufi". 17
W e may note that, in other passages of this treatise, Ibn Masarra mentions, on
the one h and,· the sdence of Go d ('ilm Allah), represented by the letter liim that sig
nifies the Tablet (law~ı), and on the other, the two sciences, the science of the Unseen
('ilm al-ghayb) and the science of mallifestation ('ilm al-shahiida) which are men
tioned together in the Qur'iin and which are represented by the letter 'ayıı. This let
ter is only mentioned twice among the seventy-eight isolated letters (including the
repetitions). So we have three sciences corresponding to the three just mentioned:
the divine; the prophetic or esoteric; and the science of trial or exoteric.
lbn Masarra in lbn 'Arabi's KWib a1-Mim wa-1-waw wa-1-nün
Let us examine a particularly important example of the influence that Ibn
Masarra's treatise on letters had on the work of the Shaykh al-Akbar, Ibn 'Arabi,
who would later become the main exponent of the science of letters in Sufism.
In his book On the esateric meaning of the letters mim (M), waw (W) and
nün (N) (Kitab al-Mim wa-1-waw wa-l-nün), 18 Ibn 'Arabi e:xplains that the sci
ence of letters is a kind of knowledge which is reserved for the prophets and the
awliya', the Friends og God~ He says:
"This science of letters is a truly sublime station that confers the divine
knowledge of Being, which. corresponds to the contemplation (mashiihid) of the
mfm, the wiiw and the nün. The first letter of the names of these letters is the
same as the last one, so that they have neither beginning nor end. 19
Therefore, you must know -may God help you- that the letters are one of
the secrets of God -great is His Majesty- and that the science of letters is one of
17 See Lory, Jbid. 18 See lbn 'Ara bl, Le Livre du Ml m, du Wöw et du N ün, intro. and trans. by Ch.-A. Gilis, Paris: Albouraq, 2002. This treatise, which 1 have been working on in collaboration with Pablo Beneito, is to be published in its fırst critica! edition translated into Spanish. 19 The identity of the beginning and the end establishes a principle of circularity. In his edition, based on a single manuscript, Gilis reads shöhid instead of mashöhid (See lbn 'Ara bl, Le Livre du Ml m (ed. Gilis, p. 38).
1128 the more elevated sciences preserved among the treasures of God.20 It belongs to
the preserved science by w hi ch only the prophets (aııbiyii') and the fıiends of Go d
(awliyii') whose hearts are pure are distinguished. Al-I:Iaki:m al-Tirmidhi said
about it that this is the science of the holy Friends of God ('ilm al-awliyii')"Y
Tirmidhl, whose Book of the DeptTı ofthings22 is availableina French trans
lation, appears here as a distinguished representative of this science of the
Friends of God. Ibn 'Arabi, while recalling the great oriental Sufi thinker, sug
gests that the science of letters is the science of the awliyii' par excellence, that
is, the highest of sciences.
Further on in the same work, Ibn 'Arabi explains that his discourse deals with
the mysteries of the letters, and not with their sympathetic properties (khawiişş),
and mentions precisely, by way of example, the style of Ibn Masarra. He says:
"Our discourse speaks about their secrets [the meanings of the Arabic let
ters]. W e follow in this a path (tarfqa) like the way of Ibn Masarra al-Jabali and
other masters. It is not about their sympathetic, functional properties (khawiişş),
because speaking of the possible uses ofthings usually leads to suspicion (tuhma)
and allegations against the author [accused ofbeing an impostor] (takd1ıfb)".23
This mention of Ibn Masarra is truly significant. First of all, as in other ref
erences in his Futübiit al-makkiyya and other works, Ibn 'Arabi shows that he
knows of Ibn Masarra due, in particular, to his Treatise on the letters, which he
may have had the opportunity to read, or perhaps was simply transmitted to him
orally. It is also worth pointing out that only Andalusian Sufi thinkers refer to
Ibn Masarra and daim to have been inspired by him, whereas the faliisifa,
Andalusian or otherwise, never do.
On the other han d, the fa ct of mentioning Ibn Masarra - like the prior men
tion of Tirmidhi - in relation to the exclusive science of the awliyii', reveals a pro
found recognition of his co ndition of walf, Friend of Go d and spiritual master. Ibn
20 Referring to Q. 15:20. 21 See lbn 'Ara bl, Le Livre du Mi m (ed. Gilis), p. 40. This is my translation.
Concerning this reference to al-~aklm ai-Tirmidhl, see also D. Gril, "La science des lettres", in Les illuminations de La Mecque, ed. M. Chodkiewicz et al., Paris: Sindbad, 1988, p. 423 and note 93. 22 See al-~aklm ai-Tirmidhl, Le livre de la profandeur des choses, (ed. and trans. G. Gobillot), Villeneuve d'Ascq (Nord): Presses Universitaires du Septentrion, 1996. 23 V. lbn 'Ara bl, Le livre du Mi m (ed. Gilis), p. 56. This is my translation.
Pilar Garrido Clemente Tlıe root of all tlıiııgs: Letters, ıvords, speeclz
'Arabi also shows his close relation to the thought of Ibn Masarra, when he con
firms that he follows in the treatment of this privileged science a way like Ibn
Masarra's (ka-tanqat Ibn Masarra). It is understood that this methodological
resemblance comes from the fact that both masters approach the lerters from the
same hermeneutic perspective, taking into consideration their symbolic, meta
physical and cosmological meaning, rooted in the same scriptural background of
the Qur'an. Therefore, it is not a question of providing information ab out the prac
tical applications or powers (khawiişş) of the lerters, which is the domain of sym
pathetic medicine or alchemy. lnstead, the intention is to penetrate the metaphys
ical meanings of the lerters and their spiritual realities in the Qur'anic context.
According to the manuscript which is stili extant, the title of Ibn Masarra's
treatise about the lerters (which is simply called Kitiib al-Ifurüf, Book of Letters,
by Ibn 'Arabi in his Futübiit), begins in the following way: Kitiib Khawiişş al
~ıurüj. .. , which can be translated as The Book of the properties of the letters ...
Taking into consideration the above-mentioned arguments, the fact that the first
term of the title is precisely the word khawiişş, which is used in the domain of
practical sciences with the meaning of 'natural properties', might be confusing.
However, given the content of the text, it seems clear that the term khawiişş,
which Ibn Masarra used in the title according to the manuscript, represents here
the symbolic qualities of the lerters, w hi ch are, in reality, their meanings, and not
their practical properties or powers. In K. Khawiişş aHıurüfthe meanings of the
lerters may only be consideted to have 'practical application' either inthesense
that assimilating their realities produces a transformatian within the disciple, or
in the sense that the lerters have an active function in the divine W ork of
Creation as its constitutive elements. This particular meaning can in fact be relat
ed to spiritual alchemy, understood as a metaphysical science.
Evaluation of the intluence of lbn Masarra's treatise on lbn Arabi's thought
According to Denis Gril, who has studied the development of the science of let
ters in Islam in the time preceding the master from Cordoba, his interpretation
of each group of isolated lerters "results from his own inspiration". On the other
hand, in relatiim to the possible influence of this personal exegesis on the work
..
1130 of Ibn 'Arabi, Gril considers the content of the interpretations of Ibn Masarra to
be "only partially reflected in the thought of Ibn 'Arabl".24
However, from a different perspective, taking into consideration the
integrity of the text, Claude Addas comments as follows: "Referring to certain
passages in the Kitiib al-Ifurüf, we cannot fail to be struck by the similarities.
When, for instance, Ibn Masarra brings up the notian of kawıı, the existential
fiat, or [the notian of] habii', the primordial dust which he and others regard as
constituting the materia prima, or the connection between the manifestation of
creatures arising out of this materia prima and the setting out of the lerters, or
when he underlines the connection between the 28 lerters of the Arabic alpha
betand the lunar cycles, every reader familiar with the Shaykh al-Akbar's works
will recognise themes running through his writings".25
Nevertheless, given the fact that these ideas were already present somehow
in the thought of Sahl al-Tustan or, in so me cases, in the Rasii 'il of the Ikhwan
al-Şafii.', Addas also points out that "it would be wise not to exaggerate, but also
not to minimise, the influence of Ibn Masarra on the thought of Ibn 'Ara bi". 26 I
agree with this view on the marter.
To conclude, let me point out that knowledge of the harmony of the mys-
terious Lerters fo und in the Qur'an, through the teachings of Ibn Masarra, might
serve as a mirror for a visian of universal harmony.
24 See Gri i, "La science des lettres ... ", 11/uminations, p. 428. 25 See Ad das, "Anda i us! Mysticism and the Rise of lbn 'Ara bl", in The Legacy of Muslim Spain, ed. S. Khadra Jayyusi, Leiden: Brill, 1993, voL ll, p. 919. 26 See Addas, lbid.
Pilar Garrido Clemente Tlıe root of all tlıiııgs: Letters, words, speeclı