Divine manifestation (tajalli) is the attainment of inner light as a result of special Divine gifts. This is experienced by travelers on the way of Truth who are committed to prayer. Tajalli is not only the manifestation of Divine mysteries under the lights of Divine knowledge (marifa), but also that they are known in one’s conscience and are visible by the heart, where Divine names and attributes reveal themselves. Every traveler can attain these mysteries in proportion to their inclinations and current spiritual level.

Hunting is for things that are not in one’s possession. Those who have awakened to Divine truths or are on that path, are on constant watch for manifestations, mysteries, grace, blessings, knowledge, love, and spiritual delight from God. Others who have been defeated by heedlessness and live a life uninformed of truths, however, neither feel the ever-blowing winds of manifestation nor do they feel the thrill of filling their heart with a Divine benefit or radiance.

We can use “hunting” for attaining other qualities and virtues, too, like good character, mindfulness of the true spirit of faith, observance of the rights of God and His servants, to practice what one knows in theory, and to attain true sincerity and excellence. These are virtues the value of which we cannot truly appreciate. Hunting these virtues is impossible if a heart has fallen prey to fatal viruses like ostentation, pretentiousness, and fake behavior, and thus has lost its balance. Those who are in search of these virtues first have to save themselves from falling prey to evil and the carnal soul by constantly keeping their hearts pure and clean.

Secluded spots

Hunting is practiced in secluded, deserted places. It is important to find a place of seclusion where Divine manifestations are abundant, and where one can explore the horizons of the life of heart and spirit.

This does not mean it is not possible when there are others around. We can even say there are many blessings and gifts that are earned by worship conducted together with others, gifts that cannot be gained by individual worship. There are times when the enthusiasm of one individual can have an effect on the whole congregation. The sincere appeals of a prayer leader or the heartfelt tears of a person may contribute to heavenly atmosphere for the whole community. Many have lived such experiences during their visit to the Holy Ka‘ba in Mecca or the tomb of the Prophet in Medina. In such places, hearts soften and resonate with profound feelings, and eyes shed tears. When one happens to be in such a moment and hearts are open to manifestations, he or she has to make the best of themselves, in hopes of benefitting from this shower of blessings. Nevertheless, it is always a possibility that one may fall to pretentiousness when among others, which may fail you in your “hunt.” At times, even one’s overflowing feelings, amplifying voice, and even sometimes tears, are not immune from such viruses.

A soul devoted to hunting illuminations and manifestations from the Truth does his or her best to seek lonely corners or travel to serene places of solitude for moments of one-on-one togetherness with their Lord. With all awareness of being servants before God, they stand for prayer in places where no one but He sees and hears. As they stand, bow, and prostrate for a long time and removed from the world, they sometimes forget if it is their first or second prostration. At that moment of most nearness to the Divine, they glorify Him from all shortcomings. “Do not let our hearts swerve…” (Qur’an 3:18) they pray, maybe a hundred times, in the words of their Lord about matters they feel concerned. “My Lord, I have been unfair to myself by not living up to my best. I have done unfitting things. I ask Your forgiveness!” They voice their inner self. Our Lord shows favor upon such an inclination of His servants and their prayers are never left unanswered. Thus, we could perhaps say such a move by a servant is a hunt for manifestations, while moments of prostration are the most convenient times for such a hunt.

The bright darkness of the night

Nights provide some of the most convenient periods for manifestation hunting. Our biological heart, soul, and the spiritual heart (al-latifa al-Rabbaniyya) all enter a state of metaphysical resonance beyond expectations when involved with deep contemplation during the night. Reunion with God happens, if at all, at night. The brightest of all work is done in the heart of darkness. Distances are covered at night. Ascension to the heavens is possible at night. There was perhaps no single night which the Messenger of God, Prophet Muhammad, did not celebrate in prayer and contemplation, peace be upon him. At times, he would recite the verses towards the end of the Chapter “the Family of Imran,” which urge us to contemplate on the universe and creation; he would do maybe one recitation after another, turn his eyes to the heavens, and cry in witness of the Divine glory. He spent long hours at night standing, bowing, and in prostration.

O my eye, what is sleep; come, wake up at night
Watch the stars, see their travels at night

Look and observe all this wisdom in the universe
Find its Artist and be impressed with Him at night

During the day, you become heedless
Occupied with many things other than Him

Be ashamed of the Beloved, the Master of your heart,
free yourself from heedlessness

Sleeping unmindfully does not befit a lowly servant
Speak to the All-Merciful in compassion at night

If you love the Self-Sustaining One, do not sleep all night
So you may, my soul, live with the Ever-Living One at night

Lovers are awake at night; you too do not sleep
So the Beloved appears at the sight of your heart at night

The heart is the home of the Lord, purify it
So He may descend upon His throne at night

Eat less, sleep less, reach amazement, and free yourself
Then find a life of eternity and be His guest at night

Come near to people for God, day and night
O Hakki, burn in the fire of love at night

Ibrahim Hakki

Place, time, and the person’s state of being

For travelers on the path on the way to Truth, it is important to make the best of times when our hearts are softened, and our eyes and souls are filled with glory. Just as being at places like Ka‘ba, Arafat, Muzdalifa, and at the tomb of the Prophet and celebrating times of abundance like the Night of Power (laylat al-Qadr) or the special moment on Friday, are important for Muslims, it is equally important to benefit from moments when one is in spiritual states like compassion, immersion, passion, and stupor with Divine presence. These are the best of times to offer invocations.

Answer: If we first look at the literal meaning of this aphorism, we can say the following:

Roses only grow in soil. As it is not possible for a rose to grow from granite, marble or iron, it also cannot grow from silver, gold, emerald or ruby even though these materials are held by people as so precious.

Actually, the fact that people are buried in the soil when they die, suggests the same meaning. The body of a deceased person is not cast aside; rather it is buried in the ground so that it grows otherworldly roses in the beyond. Whether you attribute it to the truth about the last coccyx bone[1] or some other interpretation. Human beings contain such an essence that God Almighty resurrects them through it. However, one who has let himself decay spiritually in this world, will not be able to grow as a rose in the realm of Paradise.

The pinnacle of servanthood: Prostration

Soil represents both modesty and humility. Although it is trampled underfoot, with God’s permission and grace it serves as a source of life for people and other beings. Therefore, if a person is like the soil, as long as he remains modest and sees himself as nothing despite any position he is elevated to, as long as he remains a humble servant to God, he will always rise and bear fruit. However, a person who assumes greatness and tries to fly in the air will fall headfirst one day.

In this respect, a person must be humble in accordance with the favors and blessings that God has bestowed upon him. You can visualize this truth by thinking about the essential movements in Prayer. For example, a person who makes the opening takbir, “Allahu Akbar,” sees his position before God as insufficient and humbly bows before Him in a form of reverence. Afterwards, the person virtually says: “My God I am so thankful to You, for You have given me the opportunity to worship You thus, how great You are! How exalted You are! Given that You are the only One who is great, what falls to me is insignificance. However, I cannot express this while standing on my feet. Here I lower myself before You as much as possible.” With these feelings, the person prostrates before his Lord. Then he says: “O God, Thanks are for You my Lord, for Your blessing me with the opportunity to worship You thus. How great You are! How exalted You are!” Then he sits back beseechingly. As if the person has caught a glimpse of Him, he finds the first prostration insufficient and prostrates himself again.

Remember the following saying of the Prophet Muhammad, the Pride of Humanity, peace and blessings be upon him: “The closest that a servant of God is to his Lord is while he is prostrating.”[2] Thus he stated that there is no state in which a person can be closer to God other than prostration. This meaning is expressed in a poem as:

Head and feet
both on the ground,
The road to closeness to God is
Where the Prayer rug kisses the forehead.

The disaster of laying claim to achievements

So how close a person will be to God is determined in accordance with the degree of his modesty and humility. Actually, this is the general attitude of a genuine believer when confronted with the showers of blessings bestowed by God. Such a believer becomes more and more humbled before the infinite blessings of the Beneficent Lord, he places his head on the ground and declares his nothingness before the Infinite.

In this respect, those who have dedicated themselves to serving their religion, country and people must never lay claim to achievements, no matter how high a position they are promoted to. They must always retain humility and not entertain any expectations other than God’s good pleasure. They must not attach their hearts to any worldly or otherworldly returns. People devoted to serving humanity on the path of truth must not cherish any ideas such as, “Let me settle this worldly affair of mine; let me have a house where I can live comfortably; let my child achieve this advantageous position…” In addition, they must not associate the services that they carry out with entering Paradise or being saved from Hell, as they must expect these as unmerited favors from Divine grace, providence and protection.

Those who fill their pockets and form money pools whilst claiming they are serving the nation, are obviously lying as their actions show. They seek to gain worldly positions and have expectations such as popularity, applause, appreciation and becoming the center of attention for the services they carry out. These denote hypocrisy, egotism and daring to be so insolent as to bargain with God. Those who lay claim to success and achievements, which are but Divine favors, who ascribe these to their own cleverness, intellect, perspicacity and sagacity and thus boast like pharaohs, may have this opportunity today. However, tomorrow they will lose in utter failure what they have in their hands today. Just as they insolently stick their noses in the air today, tomorrow they will eat humble pie with their noses rubbing in the dust. This is the Divine Custom, which has never changed.

Fertilizing roses

It is out of the question for a real believer to take advantage of certain accomplishments for personal gain, or to grow insolent and boastful with the lightheadedness of victory. In the face of favors bestowed by the Divine, a real believer acts with considerations such as, “I wonder whether I can propagate a suitable environment to encourage new roses to flourish by returning to the soil with my roses, flowers, leaves and roots?”

When the famous literary master, Necip Fazıl, referred to himself, he would say: “And take me as some manure.” I never forget this statement of his. Despite being aware of his greatness, cherishing such ideas is very important in indicating his modesty, effacement and humility. This is how a believer should see himself. Even if a believer becomes a rose garden and flourishes so vigorously that nightingales flock all around and start singing for him, he must still have the awareness to fall back to the soil in modesty as rose petals for the sake of making new roses grow. It is our duty, in the face of the bountiful showers of blessings bestowed by God, to further deepen our effacement, modesty and humility. When others talk about us with appreciation, we should be able to say, “How strange, what did we do wrong that these people are singing our praises, which to us is like swearing!”

From the perspective of causality, if we are to ascribe the services carried out to a cause other than God Almighty, they should be ascribed to the concord and unity between believers. One should remember that God Almighty accepts concord and unity as an expectant look directed toward Him, and He responds positively to those who turn to Him. Concord and unity are the most important means of Divine guidance and assistance.

Consider the meaning of the verse: “He has attuned their (the believers’) hearts. If you had spent all that is on the earth, you could not have attuned their hearts, but God has attuned them. Surely He is All-Glorious with irresistible might, All-Wise” (al-Anfal 8:63). As it is also pointed out here, what really matters is God’s help, protection and guarding. As long as we commit to Him, He will favor us bounteously, turning our one into thousands. He expresses His greatness by letting a drop carry out a task, which would normally require an entire sea. Similarly, He may employ an atom instead of a sun, or an ant instead of a rhinoceros; because one of God’s ways of expressing His greatness is through realizing great tasks by using very little things.

When the Pride of Humanity passed on from this world, his Companions numbered no more than 34,000. However, they were able to successfully deal with the Byzantines and Sassanids, the superpowers of the time. They then gained an important position among the world powers and put the balance of power in a new order. Moreover, they overcame eleven cases of massive rebellions. During his short caliphate of less than two and a half years, the blessed Abu Bakr suppressed all of these insurrections and maintained law and order.

Become so merged with the soil that even your grave will be unknown

God is sufficient, the rest is empty desire. We do not need applause, appreciation or flattery. We must serve God with the utmost humility and modesty, become fixed on gaining His good pleasure and then be buried in soil again in order to serve as a seed for a new rose. Let alone seeking appreciation in our lifetime, we should not even have such a desire and expectation as, “Let a huge crowd attend my funeral.” You should even regard the conventional statements during your funeral ceremony about your being a good person as idle talk and never forget that what really matters is maintaining a sound relationship with God Almighty.

We should always keep a low profile and pass to the eternal realm thus. If possible, we should even wish our grave to remain anonymous like the great guide Bediuzzaman did. Remember that he said, “Let nobody know where my grave is, except for a few students of mine.” For God’s sake, what an admirable conception of Divine unity, what a wondrous relationship with God it is! Since he passed from this world, none but a few people know the whereabouts of his grave. He internalized the principle of extraordinary modesty, effacement and humility as a philosophy of life and led his life with an utterly low profile.[3]

If we have to have some expectations for the services we carry out let them be that the spirit of the noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is revived and pervades the four corners of the earth. However, even in this respect we should not insist that we personally see the results, but leave the issue to the decree of Divine Will. It is not correct to prioritize anything other than what He wills. We want and wish, but cannot know what He wills. Some souls with a propensity to be like coal will never embrace right guidance and become like a diamond, even if we wish it. Though we are resolute and persistent, so that God Almighty and His Messenger will set a throne in hearts, we leave the result to God alone and welcome His judgment and decree.

[1] Abu Hurayra, may God be pleased with him, narrated that the Noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, stated: “Everything of the human body will perish except the last coccyx bone (end part of the spinal cord), and from that bone Allah will reconstruct the whole body.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Kitab at-Tafsir, 1).

[2] Sahih Muslim, Salah, 215; Sunan Abu Dawud, Salah, 148; Sunan an-Nasa’i, Mawaqit, 35.

[3] Nursi, Bediüzzaman Said, The Rays, New Jersey: Tughra, 2010, p. 317; Nursi, Bediüzzaman Said, Emirdağ Lahikası (Supplement of Emirdağ), Istanbul: Şahdamar, 2010, vol. 1, p. 106.

The Qur’an verses refer to prostration as a sign of being free of arrogance: “Only they (truly) believe in Our signs and Revelations who, when they are mentioned of them (by way of advice and instruction), fall down in prostration, and glorify their Lord with His praise, and they do not behave with haughtiness. (32:15).

Prostration (sajda) is the way to show respect to the Creator – not only for human beings, but also for angels and other creatures: “Before God prostrates itself whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth of living creatures, and the angels (likewise, for) they are not arrogant.” (16:49).

Prostration has been practiced in Judaism and Christianity as well, sometimes with one’s knees and face on the ground, and sometimes as a full-body prostration: lying flat on the ground with the face down and the arms open. Even today in Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Anglican churches, and amongst Ashkenazi Jews, these practices continue. This makes sense, for the Qur’an talks about a promise that God took from the Children of Israel to establish the prayer (2:83).

In summary, putting one’s face on the ground as a sign of respect or as a part of worship has been one of the central practices in all Abrahamic religions. The Almighty God wants His servants to make it a frequently observed practice that we bow down and put our foreheads on the ground in worship of Him. The spiritual and psychological impact of a prayer of this form can be immense, particularly in the long term, and should be discussed at length in another essay. Here we would like only to point out the neurological aspect of prostration and its connections.

Another The Fountain article discussed the function of the frontal brain lobe (“The Sinning Forelock,” Issue 51, 2005) and its importance in forming ethical and moral values:

“Frontal lobotomy is the term used for the surgical removal of the frontal lobe in patients with emotional disorders (1). It may be difficult today to imagine that an invasive procedure like destroying a large portion of the brain can be employed as a therapeutic approach. Yet, in 1949 the Nobel Prize in medicine was awarded to Dr. Egas Moniz for his development of the frontal lobotomy technique. (Strange enough, Moniz himself was shot in the spine and partially paralyzed by a lobotomized patient.) Tens of thousands of people were lobotomized following World War II . Although frontal lobotomy did not significantly alter the patient’s IQ or memory functions, some other profound side effects emerged.”

The negative impacts of this surgical procedure on the personality of these patients were so serious that frontal lobotomies had to be abandoned after some years. Instances of local injury to the frontal lobes have clearly demonstrated that after losing parts of the forebrain, a human loses much of their moral values, ethics, and many of the general traits that make them human.

We can see this by looking at the case of Phineas Gage (2). According his doctor, who followed Gage for 12 years after the accident (until his death), “He is fitful, irreverent, indulging at times in the grossest profanity (which was not previously his custom), manifesting but little deference for his fellows, impatient of restraint or advice when it conflicts with his desires, at times pertinaciously obstinate, yet capricious and vacillating … His mind was radically changed, so decidedly that his friends and acquaintances said he was no longer Gage” (2).

It is interesting to note here that it is the forehead (forelock) that is mentioned in the Qur’an as the sinning part of the head: “No indeed! If he does not desist, We will certainly seize and drag him by the forelock; a lying, sinful forelock!” (Alaq 96:15-16).

On a different note, the benefit of exercise and physical therapy has been well established in neural disorders. The main rehabilitative effect of physiotherapy in stroke patients and other neurological disorders is the elevation of neural activity in the spinal cord and the brain, which in turn encourages the neurons to rewire, i.e. form new connections and replace the networks that have been lost due to injury.

If we look at the Hebbian theory of learning, or neural plasticity (3) – which can be summarized as, “neurons that fire together wire together” – we can understand that when a subset of nerve cells in the central nervous system are somehow made to fire almost simultaneously, through exercise or other means, they begin to form connections. As a result, in injured patients, these new connections form a neural network that replaces or substitutes for the functions that are lost after injury.

Recent neuroscience research also shows that the rehabilitative effect is highly correlated with an increase in the blood flow to the brain area that is affected by the injury (4, 5). Contrarily, the blood circulation increases in an area of the brain within a few seconds as a response to increased neural activity because of a heightened demand for oxygen and glucose. Indeed, one of the most successful imaging techniques, the BOLD (Blood Oxygen Level Dependent) fMRI technique, completely depends on this phenomenon. These basic findings in neuroscience teach us that there is a close relationship between the local blood flow in the brain and the neural functioning, and this is a part of the process of eventually forming new networks.

Going back to the concept of prostration, lowering one’s head and putting the forehead on ground can elevate the blood flow to the frontal brain areas simply by the hydrostatic effect. We all know how blood rushes to the head when the legs are raised when lying down in the supine position. The neurological outcomes of hydrostatic blood pressures may not have been studied so far, as suggested by the lack of publications on this topic. However, in light of all the other evidence above, it would not be surprising to find out that the new neural networks form faster under higher blood flows and pressure to a local brain area.

Let us now recall the topics discussed above: prostration in Abrahamic religions, the role of the frontal lobe in forming ethical values, and the effect of blood circulation in forming new neural connections. All of this points us in one obvious direction. Prostration, or sajda, can increase the neural activity and promote new connections in the frontal lobe, a center that is instrumental in forming moral values. And this could be the neural basis of becoming more religious as one practices prostration as a part of his or her prayers. It also makes complete sense that The Creator asks His servants to worship Him with prostration that would make them better human beings, not only because of the spiritual experience, but also by endowing them with brain connections through prostration which will then function as receiving ears to future inspirations.

References

1. Bear, M., F., Connors, B., W., Paradiso, M., A., “Neuroscience: Exploring the Brain,” second edition, Lippincott Williams& Wilkins, Baltimore, Maryland: 2001.
2. Harlow, J.,M., “Recovery from the passage of an iron bar through the head,” Publication of Massachusetts Medical Society, (1868) 2:329-347.
3. Zhang P, Yu H, Zhou N, Zhang J, Wu Y, Zhang Y, Bai Y, Jia J, Zhang Q, Tian S, Wu J, Hu Y.’ Early exercise improves cerebral blood flow through increased angiogenesis in experimental stroke rat model.,” J Neuroeng Rehabil. 2013 Apr 26;10:43.
4. Zheng Q, Zhu D, Bai Y, Wu Y, Jia J, Hu Y., “Exercise improves recovery after ischemic brain injury by inducing the expression of angiopoietin-1 and Tie-2 in rats.,” Tohoku J Exp Med. 2011;224(3):221-8.
5. Hebb, D.O.(1949). The Organization of Behavior. New York: Wiley & Sons.