The Quran in Faṣṣ Idrīs

﴿وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ إِنِّى جَاعِلٌ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً ۖ قَالُوٓا۟ أَتَجْعَلُ فِيهَا مَن يُفْسِدُ فِيهَا وَيَسْفِكُ ٱلدِّمَآءَ وَنَحْنُ نُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِكَ وَنُقَدِّسُ لَكَ ۖ قَالَ إِنِّىٓ أَعْلَمُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ﴾

• إِنِّى جَاعِلٌ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً¶3

  He cites the appointment of a vicegerent on earth as the example of loftiness of rank given to the human being.

﴿ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌ وَلَا نَوْمٌ ۚ لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ﴾

• فَهُوَ العَلِيُّ¶3

  This echoes the divine name al-ʿAlī as it occurs in verses such as 'wa-huwa al-ʿaliyyu al-ʿaẓīm'.

• العَلِيُّ¶4

  This is the divine name al-ʿAliyy as in the Throne Verse 'wa-huwa al-ʿaliyyu al-ʿaẓīm', which he analyzes as height by essence.

• فَهُوَ العَلِيُّ¶5

  The divine Name al-ʿAlī echoes the Throne Verse's 'wa-huwa l-ʿaliyyu l-ʿaẓīm'. Ibn ʿArabī interprets it as an intrinsic height of the Essence that is not relative to anything.

﴿بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱتَّقُوا۟ رَبَّكُمُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍ وَٰحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيرًا وَنِسَآءً ۚ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِى تَسَآءَلُونَ بِهِۦ وَٱلْأَرْحَامَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا﴾

• وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا¶9

  The verse on the creation of Eve from the single soul is used to argue that Adam united with none but himself.

﴿وَلِلَّهِ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ فَٱدْعُوهُ بِهَا ۖ وَذَرُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُلْحِدُونَ فِىٓ أَسْمَـٰٓئِهِۦ ۚ سَيُجْزَوْنَ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ﴾

• ومن أسمائهِ الحسنى¶4

  This echoes the Qurʾanic 'most beautiful names' (al-asmāʾ al-ḥusnā; also 17:110, 20:8, 59:24) to introduce al-ʿAliyy as one of God's names.

﴿وَلِلَّهِ غَيْبُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَإِلَيْهِ يُرْجَعُ ٱلْأَمْرُ كُلُّهُۥ فَٱعْبُدْهُ وَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَيْهِ ۚ وَمَا رَبُّكَ بِغَـٰفِلٍ عَمَّا تَعْمَلُونَ﴾

• إِلَيْهِ يُرْجَعُ ٱلْأَمْرُ كُلُّهُۥ¶3

  He gives this as a further example of loftiness of rank: all affairs return to God.

﴿وَرَفَعْنَـٰهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا﴾

• وَرَفَعْنَـٰهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا¶1

  The verse about Idrīs is quoted as the proof-text for 'height of place', which Ibn ʿArabī then locates in the sphere of the sun.

• وَرَفَعْنَـٰهُ مَكَانًا عَلِيًّا¶3

  He quotes the verse on Idrīs's elevation as the case of loftiness of place.

﴿ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ عَلَى ٱلْعَرْشِ ٱسْتَوَىٰ﴾

• ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ عَلَى ٱلْعَرْشِ ٱسْتَوَىٰ¶3

  He cites the Throne verse as the example of loftiness of place, since the Throne is the highest of places.

﴿أَمَّنْ خَلَقَ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ وَأَنزَلَ لَكُم مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَنۢبَتْنَا بِهِۦ حَدَآئِقَ ذَاتَ بَهْجَةٍ مَّا كَانَ لَكُمْ أَن تُنۢبِتُوا۟ شَجَرَهَآ ۗ أَءِلَـٰهٌ مَّعَ ٱللَّهِ ۚ بَلْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ يَعْدِلُونَ﴾

• أَ إِلَهٌ مَعَ اللَّهِ¶3

  He quotes the refrain of 27:60–64 as an instance of God's unrivalled loftiness of rank.

﴿وَلَا تَدْعُ مَعَ ٱللَّهِ إِلَـٰهًا ءَاخَرَ ۘ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ كُلُّ شَىْءٍ هَالِكٌ إِلَّا وَجْهَهُۥ ۚ لَهُ ٱلْحُكْمُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ﴾

• كُلُّ شَىْءٍ هَالِكٌ إِلَّا وَجْهَهُۥ¶3

  He cites the verse as an example of God's loftiness of rank.

﴿فَلَمَّا بَلَغَ مَعَهُ ٱلسَّعْىَ قَالَ يَـٰبُنَىَّ إِنِّىٓ أَرَىٰ فِى ٱلْمَنَامِ أَنِّىٓ أَذْبَحُكَ فَٱنظُرْ مَاذَا تَرَىٰ ۚ قَالَ يَـٰٓأَبَتِ ٱفْعَلْ مَا تُؤْمَرُ ۖ سَتَجِدُنِىٓ إِن شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ مِنَ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ﴾

• فَانظُرْ مَا ذَا تَرَى¶9

  These are Abraham's words to his son about the dream of sacrifice. Ibn ʿArabī turns them into an address to the reader, telling him to look at what the passage shows.

﴿وَفَدَيْنَـٰهُ بِذِبْحٍ عَظِيمٍ﴾

• وَفَدَاهُ بِذَبْحٍ عَظِيمٍ¶9

  The verse 'We ransomed him with a mighty sacrifice' (وفديناه) is quoted in the third person and read to mean that the one who appeared as a man also appeared as the ram.

﴿قَالَ يَـٰٓإِبْلِيسُ مَا مَنَعَكَ أَن تَسْجُدَ لِمَا خَلَقْتُ بِيَدَىَّ ۖ أَسْتَكْبَرْتَ أَمْ كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلْعَالِينَ﴾

• أَسْتَكْبَرْتَ أَمْ كُنتَ مِنَ ٱلْعَالِينَ¶3

  He quotes God's question to Iblīs and takes 'al-ʿālīn' as evidence that loftiness belongs to some angels only.

﴿فَلَا تَهِنُوا۟ وَتَدْعُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱلسَّلْمِ وَأَنتُمُ ٱلْأَعْلَوْنَ وَٱللَّهُ مَعَكُمْ وَلَن يَتِرَكُمْ أَعْمَـٰلَكُمْ﴾

• وَأَنتُمُ ٱلْأَعْلَوْنَ وَٱللَّهُ مَعَكُمْ¶2

  Quoted to show that God is 'with' the believers in highness, which Ibn ʿArabī limits to highness of rank.

• وَلَن يَتِرَكُمْ أَعْمَـٰلَكُمْ¶2

  The close of the same verse, read as reassurance to those who work that their deeds secure height of place.

﴿هُوَ ٱلْأَوَّلُ وَٱلْـَٔاخِرُ وَٱلظَّـٰهِرُ وَٱلْبَاطِنُ ۖ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمٌ﴾

• الأوَّلُ وَالآخِرُ وَالظَّاهِرُ وَالبَاطِنُ¶6

  Ibn ʿArabī quotes the verse 'He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden' as the scriptural instance of al-Kharrāz's claim that God is known only by combining opposites.

﴿هُوَ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَخْرَجَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ مِنْ أَهْلِ ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ مِن دِيَـٰرِهِمْ لِأَوَّلِ ٱلْحَشْرِ ۚ مَا ظَنَنتُمْ أَن يَخْرُجُوا۟ ۖ وَظَنُّوٓا۟ أَنَّهُم مَّانِعَتُهُمْ حُصُونُهُم مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ فَأَتَىٰهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَمْ يَحْتَسِبُوا۟ ۖ وَقَذَفَ فِى قُلُوبِهِمُ ٱلرُّعْبَ ۚ يُخْرِبُونَ بُيُوتَهُم بِأَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَيْدِى ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ فَٱعْتَبِرُوا۟ يَـٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَبْصَـٰرِ﴾

• فَاعْتَبِرُوا¶11

  This echoes 'fa-ʿtabirū yā ulī l-abṣār', where the verse asks the reader to take heed, and here it bids the reader cross over from one aspect of the Real to the other.

﴿هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْخَـٰلِقُ ٱلْبَارِئُ ٱلْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ﴾

• كَالرَّبِّ وَالخَالِقِ وَالمُصَوِّرِ¶13

  Al-khāliq and al-muṣawwir come from the list 'He is God, al-Khāliq, al-Bāriʾ, al-Muṣawwir; His are the most beautiful names', which Ibn ʿArabī uses as examples of names that each have their own meaning while all referring to one Essence.

﴿لَا تُبْقِى وَلَا تَذَرُ﴾

• لَا تَبْقِي وَلَا تَذَرُ¶11

  In the Qurʾān the phrase describes Saqar, which spares nothing, and here it describes the one-and-many entity, which leaves nothing other than itself standing.

﴿بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ سَبِّحِ ٱسْمَ رَبِّكَ ٱلْأَعْلَى﴾

• سَبِّحِ ٱسْمَ رَبِّكَ ٱلْأَعْلَى¶2

  Quoted as a declaration of transcendence that keeps God's highness from being shared in the sense implied by 'with you'.