The Book of Stations

1. Mawqif 76 · A question from the Unseen: Paradise, Hell and the human make-up

   See the print: Damascus 1966, p. 149, Damascus 1966, p. 150, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 152, Cairo, vol. 1, PDF p. 153 (archive.org)

   ¶268
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   وَ رَ دَ وَارِدٌ غَيْبِيٌّ بِالْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ بِسُؤَالٍ، وَنَصُّهُ:

   A visitation from the Unseen came in the Sacred Mosque with a question, and its text is:

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   ›About the vowels: added by AI; uncertain words are underlined

   The source of this text, a printed edition or a manuscript, has few or no vowel marks, as is usual for such texts. The vowels shown were added by AI and checked against an independent grammatical analyser; the few words where the two disagree are underlined as uncertain. Choose “Unvowelled” under Aa to read the letters alone.

2. ¶269
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   الْاِيمَانُ بِالْجَنَّةِ وَالْجَحِيمِ وَالْعَذَابِ الْحِسِّيِّ، وَالنَّعِيمِ مِنْ ضَرُورِيَّاتِ الدِّينِ، الْمَعْرُوفَةِ عِنْدَ جَمِيعِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ، فَمَنْ جَحَدَ ذَلِكَ؛ فَهُوَ كَافِرٌ بِاِجْمَاعٍ•

   Belief in Paradise and Hell, and in sensory chastisement and bliss, is among the necessary tenets of religion known to all Muslims; whoever denies that is an unbeliever by consensus.

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3. ¶270
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   وَمِـنَ الْمَعْلُومِ الْبَيِّنِ، الْوَاضِحِ الْمُتَعَيِّنِ؛ أَنَّ الْبِنْيَةَ الْاِنْسَانِيَّةَ وَالنَّشْأَةَ الْآدَمِيَّةَ مُرَكَّبَةٌ مِـنْ:

   And it is known, evident, clear and certain that the human structure and the Adamic constitution are composed of:

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4. ¶271
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   صُورَةٍ هِيَ عَظْمٌ وَلَحْمٌ وَحَوَاسُّ ظَاهِرَةٌ وَبَاطِنَةٌ وَأَعْضَاءٌ يَدَانِ، وَرِجْلَانِ، وَعَيْنَانِ، وَأُذُنَانِ، وَلِسَـانٌ، وَنَحْوُ ذَلِكَ•

   a form, which is bone and flesh, outward and inward senses, and limbs: two hands, two feet, two eyes, two ears, a tongue, and the like;

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5. ¶272
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   وَرُوحٍ حَيَوَانِيَّةٍ شَهْوَانِيَّةٍ سُفْلِيَّةٍ، هِيَ مَحَلُّ الشَّهَوَاتِ وَالصِّفَاتِ الْبَهِيمِيَّةِ•

   an animal, appetitive, lower spirit, which is the seat of the appetites and the bestial attributes;

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6. ¶273
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   وَرُوحٍ قُدْسِيَّةٍ عُلْوِيَّةٍ هِيَ الْعَالِمَةُ مِنْ هَذِهِ الصُّورَةِ، وَهِيَ الْمُدْرِكَةُ لِلْخِطَابِ، الْمَقْصُودُ بِهِ وَبِالْجَوَابِ•

   and a holy, higher spirit, which is the knowing part of this form; it is what perceives the address and is intended by it and by the reply.

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7. ¶274
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   فَهَلْ تَقُولُونَ: الْمُعَذَّبُ هُوَ الْأَعْضَاءُ وَالْحَوَاسُّ؟!

   So do you say that what is chastised is the limbs and the senses?!

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8. ¶275
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   كَيْفَ وَالْحَقُّ تَعَالَى يَقُولُ: «يَوْمَ تَشْهَدُ عَلَيْهِمْ أَلْسِنَتُهُمْ وَأَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَرْجُلُهُمْ بِمَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ»

   How so, when the Real, exalted is He, says: "On the Day when their tongues, their hands and their feet will bear witness against them as to what they used to do" (Q 24:24)?

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9. ¶276
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   وَيَقُولُ: «شَهِدَ عَلَيْهِمْ سَمْعُهُمْ وَأَبْصَارُهُمْ».

   and He says: "their hearing and their sight bear witness against them" (Q 41:20).

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10. ¶277
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    وَالشَّاهِدُ الصَّادِقُ يُكْرَمُ وَلَا يُهَانُ، فَكَيْفَ يُعَذَّبُ بِالنِّيرَانِ•

    A truthful witness is honoured and not humiliated; so how should he be chastised with the fires?

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11. ¶278
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    أَمْ تَقُولُونَ: الْمُعَذَّبُ هُوَ الرُّوحُ الْبَهِيمِيُّ الْحَيَوَانِيُّ الشَّهْوَانِيُّ•

    Or do you say that what is chastised is the bestial, animal, appetitive spirit?

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12. ¶279
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    كَيْفَ؟! وَهُوَ غَيْرُ مُدْرِكٍ، وَلَا عَالِمٍ بِالْأَوَامِرِ الشَّرْعِيَّةِ، وَلَا مَقْصُودٍ بِالْخِطَابِ؟!

    How so?! It does not perceive, nor does it know the commands of the Law, nor is it intended by the address!

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13. ¶280
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    وَلَوْ كَانَ مَقْصُوداً بِالتَّكْلِيفِ لَكَانَتِ الْحَيَوَانَاتُ الْعُجْمُ دَاخِلَةً تَحْتَ هَذِهِ التَّكَالِيفِ الَّتِي نَحْنُ مُكَلَّفُونَ بِهَا•

    Were it intended by the obligation, the dumb animals would fall under these obligations that are laid upon us.

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14. ¶281
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    وَلَا قَائِلَ بِهِ مِنْ عُلَمَاءِ الْمَذَاهِبِ، اِذِ الرُّوحُ الْحَيَوَانِيُّ غَايَةُ مَبْلَغِهِ طَلَبُ الْمُلَائِمِ لِلطَّبْعِ، وَلَا خَبَرَ لَهُ بِمَا وَرَاءَ ذَلِكَ•

    No scholar of the schools holds this, since the utmost reach of the animal spirit is seeking what suits its nature, and it has no knowledge of what lies beyond that.

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15. ¶282
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    أَمْ تَقُولُونَ: الْمُعَذَّبُ هُوَ الرُّوحُ الْقُدْسِيُّ الْعُلْوِيُّ الْمُخَاطَبُ الْمُجَاوِبُ؟!

    Or do you say that what is chastised is the holy, higher spirit, the one addressed, the one who replies?!

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16. ¶283
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    كَيْفَ؟! وَالْحَقُّ تَعَالَى يَقُولُ: «وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِي» «قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ أَمْرِ رَبِّي»

    How so?! The Real, exalted is He, says: "and I breathed into him of My spirit" (Q 15:29), "Say: The spirit is from the command of my Lord" (Q 17:85).

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17. ¶284
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    فَكَيْفَ يُعَذَّبُ رُوحُ اللَّهِ، وَأَمْرُ اللَّهِ، مَعَ هَذِهِ الْاِضَافَةِ الْمُؤْذِنَةِ بِأَعْظَمِ تَشْرِيفٍ، وَأَكْبَرِ تَكْرِيمٍ؟!

    So how could the Spirit of God and the Command of God be chastised, given this annexation that announces the greatest honouring and the highest ennobling?!

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18. ¶285
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    أَجِيبُوا مَأْجُورِينَ، وَأَزِيلُوا حَيْرَةَ الْمُتَحَيِّرِينَ•

    Answer, and be rewarded, and remove the bewilderment of the bewildered.

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19. ¶286
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    فَكَانَ الْجَوَابُ: أَنَّ جَوَابَ هَذَا السُّؤَالِ؛ لايَجْرِي بِهِ قَلَمٌ، وَاِنَّمَا يَكُونُ مِنْ قَلْبٍ اِلَى قَلْبٍ، وَمِنْ فَمٍ اِلَى فَمٍ•

    The answer was that the answer to this question is not set down by any pen; it passes only from heart to heart and from mouth to mouth.

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Translations, word glosses and term notes are AI-generated (Claude) and marked as such; no published translation is reproduced.Word analysis is automatic (CAMeL Tools), guided by the text's vowelling. How this text was established.