the subtle centres of the heart

5/27/2018 The Subtle Centres of the Heart

1/7

The Subtle Centres of the HeartAbu Bakr Siraj ad-Din Cook

In the Name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful.

!he ori"ins of the la #$if reflect the ori"ins of the uni%erse as a &hole.' (irst there &as the spiritual &orld

)lam al-amr*, other&ise kno&n as the uni%erse of command, then came the uni%erse of creation )lam al-

khalq*. !hen Allah created the human bein" and endo&ed this creation &ith ten la #$if capable of

apprehendin" both uni%erses. (i%e of these la #$if are located belo& the Di%ine !hrone )al-+arsh* in the

uni%erse of creation )lam al-khalq*, these bein" air, fire, &ater, earth, and the nafs. !he other fi%e la #$if

belon" to uni%erse of command )lam al-amr*, located abo%e the Di%ine !hrone.

!hese la #$if )sin"ular la fa* belon"in" to the uni%erse of command are collecti%el kno&n as the subtle

centres of the heart and are the focus of this &ork. !he are the qalb, r,sirr, khaf, and akhf. Initiall the

la #$if &ere luminous' but &hen Allah connected them &ith the bod their li"ht started to be filteredthrou"h the influences of the phsical &orld' and as a result &ork must be done to acti%ate them. !ra%ellin"

alon" the Sufi path consists of successi%e openin"s of each of the la #$if.

Besides bein" kno&n as the subtle centres of the heart, the la #$if are also referred to as the senses of

spiritual perception. !he phsical heart is the centre of the phsical bod/ connectin" to all areas of the bod

throu"h the blood. Similarl, the spiritual or"an is the centre of the human bein". !hus, the heart can be

understood as the centre of our spiritual a&areness. 0ust as the human has fi%e phsical senses to access and

understand the material &orld, so too does the spiritual centre ha%e fi%e senses. !his analo" is attested to in

the 1ol 2ur$an &here Allah sas, !rul it is not their ees that are blind, but their hearts' )3345*. !hese

faculties allo& us to kno& spiritual realities beond &hat the senses or intellect can offer'. !his is

confirmed b Allah sain" 6e sho& them 7ur si"ns in the )furthest* re"ions )of the earth*, and in their o&nsouls' )489:*.

!he la #$if are also kno&n as subtle substances. !hat is, the are ;ualities that ha%e subtlet, "entleness,

and refinement'. 0ointl the comprise the subtle bod )jism la fa or al-la fah al-insnyah *.


2/7

of the Sufi path' and is onl perfect &hen e%er atom of the dhkir$s bein" is absorbed and annihilated in

the remembrance of Allah.'

Dhikr has successi%e sta"es. Startin" &ith dhikr al-lisn, remembrance &ith the ton"ue, mo%in" to dhikr al-

qalb, remembrance &ith the heart, to dhikr ar-r, remembrance of the spirit, and so on &ithin each

successi%e la fa. 1o&e%er, it should be understood that dhikr is a medicine for the soul, and the phsicianmust learn his art b practice rather than from books'. Beond this, there are particular moral injunctions and

spiritual practices correspondin" to each la fa desi"ned to +bri"hten$ it'.

@no&led"e of, and &orkin" on the la #$if is essential for spiritual de%elopment. 6e are told that for those

&ho are initiated into the esoteric teachin", the importance of &orkin" on the la #$if )subtle centres of the

heart* is crucial for an spiritual de%elopment &ithin the Sufi teachin"'. Sh#h 6al All#h, ma Allah be

pleased &ith him, informs us that, the better one is ac;uainted &ith such faculties, the better one is able to

refine them'. It is for this reason that this article has been &ritten.

!he la #$if ha%e been collecti%el referred to as the la if as-sitta , the si subtleties. !he inclusion, beond

the abo%e-mentioned fi%e, is the nafs. race of Allah, the ma attain their

"oal. It is interestin" to note that the colour of the nafs is blue and seen from space this &orld of ours is a

blue dot, indicatin" the earth as the abode of the nafs. !reated correctl the nafs can aid us in achie%in"success, but left to its o&n de%ices it &ill "uarantee our demiseE

(urthermore, blue is smbolic of the indefinite. 1ence &e ha%e the indefiniteness of the blue sk. !he

indefinite is an out&ard radiation' and thus an epression of distance' &hich takes on the ne"ati%e aspect

of remoteness from >od'.


3/7

Qalb

!he ;alb is the subtle essence or subtle centre of the heart. It is the supra-rational or"an' &hich utilises

spiritual discernment and intuition to percei%e the transcendent realities. !he ;alb is an isthmus )al-barFakh*

cau"ht bet&een this &orld and the net, bet&een the influence of the nafs and the r= . Normall the heart is

+%eiled$, blackened b sin, tarnished b sensual impressions and ima"es, pulled to and fro bet&een reasonand passion' as a result of the do&n&ard pull of the nafs. (or, if %ictor is not &on here, there is no access

to the hi"her dimensions of the subtle self ecept for brief flashes,' as Allah sas e%er time the li"ht

)helps* them, the &alk therein, and &hen darkness "ro&s on them, the stand still, and if Allah &illed, 1e

could take a&a their facult of hearin" and seein"/ for Allah hath po&er o%er all thin"s' )33G*. !he "reater

the purification of the heart the more recepti%e it is to the irresistible attraction of the celestial spirit' &hose

po&erful attraction on the heart endea%ours to "uide it to&ards the kno&led"e of Allah'.

!he heart is the sanctified centre of the human. Hart of the spiritual stru""le is keepin" &atch o%er the

heart' &ith the aim bein" to arri%e at the point &here &e ne%er allo& an intruders to enter their sanctified

hearts'. !he "oal is to become the Herfect Man &here the heart becomes the Di%ine !hrone )al-+arsh*

around &hich circle the spiritual realities'. 1ere &e see one aspect of the adth M earth and M 1ea%enscontain Me not, but the heart of M belie%in" sla%e contains Me'. Before this centre is sanctified, it is the

;alb that "ains the first certaint as to the eistence of the true self' for it is &ithin this or"an that the

+child$ of the true self is born'.

B eaminin" the &ord root for ;alb &e can epand our understandin" of this la fa. !he root for ;alb

includes the meanin"s +to turn a thin" upside-do&n$, +to be baked on one side$, +to be restless$, +re%erse/

in%ert/ &ron" side$, +placin" one in front of the other$, &hence the epression qibla, as &ell as +mould$,

&hich "i%es the in%ersion of +ne"ati%e$ and +positi%e$ in the process of mouldin"'.

!he function of the ;alb is dhikr. Its stren"th increases one$s capacit for dhikru llh, the remembrance andin%ocation of Allah. !he remembrance &ith the heart )dhikr al-;alb* occurs &hen the dh#kir contemplates

the Beaut and Majest of Allah and ma be s&eet &hen Beaut re%eals itself or a&esome &hen Majest

dominates'.

It can also be said that the ;alb kno&s Allah/ it is the site of kno&in" )ma+rifa*. Ibn +A #$ All#h sas that

the hearts and the innermost centres of bein" are the places &here li"hts arise' for ma+rifa is a li"ht &hich

Allah casts into the heart of &homsoe%er 1e &ill'. In order to enact this Ibn +A #$ All#h sas, empt our

heart of otherness and 1e &ill fill it up &ith illuminations and insi"hts'.

!he cleansin" of the heart forms the spiritual endea%our of the earlier sta"es of the journe' so that once

the heart has been purified the tra%eller )s#lik* is in a state of preparedness and recepti%it to recei%e&hate%er Allah &ills to send'. 7ne aspect of this is purifin" our emotional life. As this la fa opens &e

open oursel%es to an inner spaciousness' &hich allo&s us to come in touch &ith a sense of essential,

objecti%e hope'. !he aim of this cleansin" is to erase e%erthin" that hinders the pure lo%e of Allah.

!he colour of the ;alb is ello&. ello& is the most luminous of the primar colours and has been

consistentl been used to smbolise Di%ine Consciousness or Intelli"ence, hence the site of ma+rifa. !he ;alb

is pulled both up b the r= and do&n b the nafs, and this is reflected in their respecti%e colours as ello&

remains latent in red and blue'.


4/7

!he ;alb is related to the sense of hearin" and corresponds to the little fin"er. !he little fin"er corresponds to

humanit in that humans are as &eak as the little fin"er, and in constant need of support'. !he connection

bet&een the little fin"er and hearin" can be found &hen makin" &u =$, &here the seeker cleans their ears

out &ith their little fin"ers.

Its location is on the left side of the chest, &ith some bein" so specific as to locate it t&o fin"ers &idth belo&the left breast.

R

!he r= is the subtle essence or centre of the spirit. It is in opposition to the nafs in that the r= endea%ours

to pull the heart );alb* to&ards Allah, &hilst the lo&er self )nafs* eerts a do&n&ard pull on the heart'. As

this la fa opens one disco%ers that the heart contains a point of contact &ith the infinite dimension of Spirit,

the source of all ;ualities'. !he human spirit is also Allah$s Spirit because Allah breathed 1is Spirit into

man' and for this reason it can be said that the r= is both uncreated' and created'. !he created r=

prostrates to the uncreated ?ni%ersal Spirit )ar-r al-ilh * from &hich it has emer"ed.

!he r= is most consistentl seen as a dormant spiritual facult. !he illumination of the r= comes about

throu"h constant praer and %i"il. !his results in purit from mental distractions and projections as &e

dissol%e self-ima"es, our narcissistic fictions' and learn to keep our thou"ht processes in ali"nment &ith

the Di%ine Jealit'. !he luminosit of an indi%idual depends upon the de"ree of acti%it of their r= . !he

illumination of the r= results in spiritual stren"th, freedom from fear of people, and concentration to&ards

Allah.

!he s#lik enters the state of unconditional and pure lo%e for Allah )ma abbah*. !his lo%e transforms the

murd from +the one &ho desires Allah$ into the mur#d, +the one &hom Allah desires$'. It is out of this lo%e

that +ish; de%elops.

!he colour of the r= is red. !he smbolism of red partl coincides &ith that of fire', hence the burnin" of

lo%e for Allah. Interestin"l, the ternar nafs, ;alb, and r= corresponds to the triad of primar colours,

&hich can be seen to form to"ether a harmonious totalit' in that to take a&a red ... the perfect balance

&ould be broken in the direction of too much cold/ the absence of blue &ould make for ecessi%e heat/

&ithout ello&, the residue &ould be too ponderous'.

!he r= is related to the sense of si"ht and corresponds to the rin" fin"er. It is said that the rin" fin"er

corresponds to the station of the seal of faith )m#n* that is en"ra%ed on the rin" the spiritual seekers

smbolicall &ear', for it is the station of the people of ar;a, the true spiritual seekers, &ho &ear the rin"

of absolute faith in their "uide'. As the r= opens and our self-ima"es dissol%e &e be"in to see therelationship bet&een Allah$s Spirit and the human spirit.

Its location is on the ri"ht side of the chest, &ith some bein" so specific as to locate it t&o fin"ers &idth

belo& the ri"ht breast.

Sirr

!he sirr is the subtle secret or mster hidden in the innermost centre of consciousness or bein" of the

human. 6e are told that it is the hidden place &here Allah manifests 1is mster to 1imself' and that it is

the point of secret communication bet&een Kord )rabb* and 1is sla%e )+abd*'. It is also kno&n as the ;alb

al-;alb, the heart of the heart.

!he sirr is the site of &itnessin" and its cleansin" makes kashf )un%eilin"* possible. 6ith the openin" of the


5/7

sirr it becomes possible to be"in to discern the Jeal from the illusor'. !hrou"h the openin" of the sirr &e

be"in to see the Di%ine Jealit more clearl in the multiplicit of forms'. !his is kno&n as kashf ba ar

&here an incident, a place, a human &ord or action, a sanctified person ma be the place for this %isual

un%eilin"' as it takes place throu"h Allah$s creation'.

Ibn +A #$ All#h sas that li"hts are the ridin"-mounts of hearts and of their innermost centres' such that&hen Allah discloses 1imself to his sla%e, the latter not onl increases his kno&led"e of Allah but also

increases his earnin" and intense lo%e of Allah'. !he rain"-out of li"hts are in accordance &ith the

purit of the innermost bein"', &ith the purit of the sirr increasin" throu"h contemplatin" Allah, focusin"

on 1is names and attributes in perpetual remembrance. !hrou"h this purification one$s attention is di%erted

a&a from the mundane, becomin" firml fied on the spiritual realm.

!he openin" of the sirr marks a distinct chan"e &ithin the consciousness of the indi%idual. It is marked b

the de%elopment of true &ill. reen is the

result of &hen ello& is brou"ht to bear on blue, thus the openin" of the sirr is connected to the subju"atin"

of the nafs b the ;alb. >reen is neither hot nor cold and thus does not recede like cold colours nor does it

project for&ard like &arm colours. >reen is in the middle of the spectrum.

!he sirr is related to the sense of touch and corresponds to the middle fin"er. !he middle fin"er, the hi"hest

of all fin"ers, corresponds to the 1ol Hrophet Muhammad, &ho is the hi"hest spiritual authorit. In this

sense it can be said that the hi"hest authorit is manifested as the superior hei"ht of the middle fin"er'.Its location is in the middle of the chest, bet&een the ;alb and the r= . !his la fa has also been located at the

solar pleus.

Khaf

!he khaf is the innermost secret or consciousness. 6e are told that it is a di%ine subtlet that lies hidden

&ithin the spirit ... placed there in trust b Allah to be a&akened and actualised onl &hen the lo%er has been

o%er&helmed b Di%ine Ko%e )+ish;*.

+Ish; is intense, o%erflo&in" and passionate lo%e of Allah. 0ust as Allah is infinite, +ish; is &ithout limit. As

rare as red sulphur, +ish; is the hi"hest sta"e before absorption in Allah' &hich burns a&a e%erthin" ofthe lo%er' and onl arises as a result of the actual %ision of the belo%ed.

!he function of the khaf is to percei%e the omnipresence of Allah. 6ith its openin" &e reco"nise that

e%erthin" &e lon" for is infinitel close' as infinite possibilities are contained &ithin a dimensionless point

accessible to us &ithin our o&n heart'. It brin"s about a state of peace and absolute stillness &ithin the

consciousness, &hich relates to the acti%it of intuition and objecti%e understandin"'.

All li"ht )n=r* enters throu"h the khaf, before spreadin" to the other senses. It is interestin" to note that in a

bab, the r= )spirit* enters throu"h the khaf, and &hen the r= departs the bod it lea%es the khaf last

of all'.

!he colour of the khaf is &hite. 6hite contains &ithin it the complete colour spectrum in harmon. 6e are

told that the khaf is hidden and that its acti%ation marks the +disappearance$ or +hiddenness$ from this


6/7

&orld'. Allah sas in the 2ur$an that Allah is the Ki"ht of the hea%ens and the earth' )34:9*. !his li"ht is

all that &e e%er see. !hus, &e could sa that li"ht obscures and hides e%erthin" other then itself. (or the

lo%er o%er&helmed b +ish;, e%erthin" other than Allah is obscured and hidden, makin" possible the %ision

of the Belo%ed.

!he khaf is related to the sense of smell and corresponds to the inde fin"er. It has been said that the indefin"er corresponds to the khaf because it represents the shah#da inde', the fin"er that &e lift durin" al#h

&hen recitin" the shah#da. !he shah#da, &hich defines ?nit )ta& d*, annihilates all that that is +other$ than

Allah. !hus, this correspondence bet&een the khaf and the inde fin"er reaffirms the disappearance from

this &orld.

Its location is bet&een the t&o phsical ees, just abo%e the eebro&s.

Akhf

!he akhf# is the innermost consciousness. 6e are told that it is that +place$ &here a kno&er sees Allah

throu"h Allah' and that its openin" contains the kno&led"e of the Supreme Bein"'. It is also kno&n as

akhf# al-khaf, the most secret of the secret or most hidden of the hidden, and is e;ui%alent to the ?ltimate

?nseen )ghayb-i ghayb*.

!he akhf# makes it possible for the r= to percei%e the closeness of Allah. 6ith the openin" of the akhf# &e

be"in to kno& oursel%es as a reflection of the Di%ine' as our ser%anthood is subsumed in Allah. !he akhf#

manifests ;ualities of compassion and lo%e, for one sees the Jeal beaut. !he Jeal beaut is the Jealit of

?nit', &here the Supreme Bein" manifests itself in e%er moment &ithout absence. (or &hen that is

before our phsical ee and the ee of the heart ... there is ?nit of !ime, ?nit of Hlace and ?nit of


7/7

and co%ered the bones &ith flesh, then 6e transformed him into a different bein"' )3:83-84*. (rom this &e

can see that the openin" of each successi%e la fa corresponds to the natural de%elopment of the human.

1o&e%er, the Herfect Man )al-ins#n al-k#mil* is an alto"ether different bein"'. It is throu"h the Herfect

Man that Allah enters the &orld' and this transformation from bein" human to becomin" a human bein" is

one of the supreme "ifts of Allah to his creation as 1e installs his %icere"ent )khalfa* on earth. !hus, &hile

the aim of e%er Sufi is to open the la #$if, their joint openin" is not the "oal of the Sufi path. Despite this, ithas been said that ha%in" completed his journe throu"h the la #$if, the disciple is then dominated b the

la fa that is stron"est in his nature'.

6e must kno& that perfect piet is not possible to attain &ithout de%elopin" one$s subtle entities )la #$if*,

&hich in turn depends upon the ac;uisition of inner kno&led"e )al-ilm al-b in *'. (urthermore, Sh#h 6al

All#h informs us that if ou &ish to kno& the path taken b those &ho ha%e reached the sta"e of

establishment and ha%e become heirs to the prophetic endo&ment, it is important that ou should realiFe that

this is not possible &ithout kno&led"e of these faculties'. Ma this article be of benefit for those stru""lin"

on the path to Allah, and ma Allah "rant us success in this life and the net. Amin.

About the author:

Abu Bakr Siraj ad-Din Cook has a Master$s De"ree in Hhilosoph from the ?ni%ersit of !asmania. 1e is

studin" ta a&&uf under the "uidance of his murshid, (. A. Ali

the subtle centres of the heart

Documents