The Language of the Future
Sufi Terminology
by Murshid F.A. Ali ElSenossi

huwiyyah
He - ness

(Huwiyyah). The Reality in the world of the Unseen. It is the Inward aspect of Abstract Oneness or Unity (Al Ahadiyyah). This is Being, totally Hidden and Unknowable. This is the Hidden Treasure. This is the placeless 'place' to which Allah's intoxicated lovers and sober knowers long to return.

See also: Abiding Allah Annihilation Hidden Hidden of the Hidden People of the Essence Slave Throne of the Essence Unity

Allah ( ALLAH )

God. The Principle insofar as It includes all of its possible aspects. The mystery of Divinity. This is the Supreme Name. The Name 'Allah' indicates both the Face of the Divinity which is turned towards His creation and the Face of the Unknowable Essence Itself which is Eternally turned away from creation. Allah is the All-Comprehensive Name which contains every Divine Name. This Name alone stands for Allah as He is in Himself. The Supreme Name 'Allah' may be the Greatest Name. It leaves out nothing whatsoever of the Reality that is Allah. Allah is the innermost reality or the meaning of everything manifest and non-manifest. Allah Alone is the Goal. Yet, Allah is Absolute and Infinite. Therefore the Goal always lies ahead of the travellers. They never reach It because It has no End. The Journey of return to Allah is a Journey of bewilderment in Bewilderment. The people of the Holy land of Mecca; the birthplace of the Beloved Prophet of Allah, Muhammad Ahmad al Mustapha, salutations, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him in every breath we take and in every blink of the eye we make; came to him in the beginning of his calling and said 'Tell us, who is your God?'. The revelation descended upon the Holy Prophet to answer this complex and powerful question "Qul Huwa Allahu Ahad, Allahu Samad, Lam yalid wa lam yulad, wa lam yakun lahu kufuwan Ahad". (In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate, Say: He is the One Unique Allah: God the Eternal, The Uncaused Cause of all that Exists.. He begets not, nor is He begotten; and there is nothing that could be compared unto Him (The Qur'an 112)

Annihilation ( fana' )

(Fana'). Self-annihilation or self-effacement or dissolution or passing away from self. Through being joined to Allah, the Real; man is annihilated from himself - the 'limited existence' of the traveller is overpowered by the 'absolute existence' of Allah, so that the traveller becomes unaware of his own self and the creation. Fana' is the last stage on the ascent to Allah. When travelling to the Source, the seeker passes through different levels of fana', each of which brings him closer to his Goal. There are hundreds, even thousands, of fana's. Every time a form of ignorance is removed to be replaced by knowledge, the murid has experienced fana'. He has tasted the annihilation of an ignorance. And, every moment of existence is in fact a moment which is pregnant with its own particular knowledge. So, for the aware one, each moment can be a fana'. However, within the higher teaching of Tasawwuf  there are three major types of fana', through which the murid must travel if he is to reach the Absolute. These are Annihilation in the Murshid/Spiritual Guide, Annihilation in the Messenger and Annihilation in Allah.

Hidden ( al-akhfa )

(Akhfa). The innermost consciousness. Al Akhfa is that 'place' where a knower sees Allah through Allah, yet, in Truth, it is only Allah Who Sees. It is equivalent to the Ultimate Unseen.

Hidden of the Hidden ( akhfa al-khafi )

(Akhfa al khafi). The most secret of the secret. The most hidden of the hidden. The most unseen of the unseen.

People of the Essence ( adh-dhatiyun )

(Al Dhatiyun). 'Those who have realised the Essence' are the slaves of Allah who drink directly from the Fountain of Camphor in Paradise. They are the People of Solitude of the Absolute Essence. Their love of Allah, being total and utter, remains constant in the face of opposites, because for them the opposites are joined. There is only Unity. There is only Allah as He is in Himself.

Slave ( al 'abd )

('Abd). The slave (and worshipper) is the one who is in a state of total and utter submission to the Will of Allah. After having been annihilated in Allah where all duality vanished and distinctions were erased, he returns to creation with perfect courtesy and with the Truth of Certainty that 'the Lord is the Lord and the slave is the slave'. When 'abd is translated as 'servant' it carries the implication that the servant can leave the service of his Master, if he so desires. However, the 'slave' is in total bondage, being utterly dependent upon his Master. All buying and selling transactions have been terminated. The slave belongs to Allah, completely, perfectly and unconditionally.

Throne of the Essence ( al-'arsh al dhat )

('Arsh al Dhat). The Throne of the Essence. This is the Divine Will which relates to nothing but Itself.

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