''Murāqabah'' ( ar, مراقبة, : "to observe") is an

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ma ...

methodology In its most common sense, methodology is the study of research methods. However, the term can also refer to the methods themselves or to the philosophical discussion of associated background assumptions. A method is a structured procedure for br ...

, whose aim is a transcendental union with

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

. Through , a person watches over their heart and soul, to gain insight into one's relation with their creator and their surroundings. is a tradition commonly found in (

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...

orders). The objective of is to purge one's base characters and develop lofty character in its place. According to tradition, it is said to have been the practice of

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mon ...

during his stay in the Cave of Hira before he met

Jibreel In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር� ...

Etymology and meaning

The word is derived from the base of . The base has the meaning of guarding and watching over with the expectation of noticing any change, unique qualities or abnormalities of a given thing. The word is also on verb scale three, which gives a connotation of exaggeration, overexertion, and partnership. This then implies that the one who is doing is diligent and hardworking with the expectation that someone else is also doing a similar task. In ancient Arabic, the word referred to one who would watch the night sky. They would scan the sky in hopes to see the first signs of early stars to begin their journey. Due to the intense heat and difficult terrain of the Arabian Peninsula, the ability to recognize the constellations and their seasonal divergences was a critical skill. In the classic poem, "the observer of the night is as vigilant as a fish in search of water". This etymology can be connected to the modern linguistical and technical meaning of what is understood to be today. Murāqabah is seen to be of twin perspectives, both with a connotation of persistence and exertion. According to al-Qushayrī () and al-Jurjānī () murāqabah is for one to be aware that their Lord is perpetually aware of His subordinates. Not only is the person continuously in a state of mindfulness but they are also cognizant that their Lord is aware as well, creating a reciprocal relation.

Decorum and etiquette

One of the most significant sentiments of the great philosopher and theologian Al-Ghāzālī () centers around God-consciousness; he propagates that it is the obligation of the creation to be in constant awareness of its Creator. That is to constantly obey him. The Creator's eternal knowledge encompasses the ephemeral existence of mortals, from before their conception to the ages after they have passed on. His Knowledge envelops the external, the internal and the metaphysical. He is the Lord and Creator, Glorified Be He. Once one understands this, they must follow a level of etiquette and protocol which are but not limited to: * Having humility (ar. ) and modesty (ar. ). * Staying silent and only speaking when appropriate, as it is mentioned in the narration, “the one who believes in Allah and the Last Day should only speak good or stay quiet”. * Resolve to do the best that one can in every action. * Rush to do good deeds and avoiding sin. * To be content with what one must deal with daily (ar. ). * Continuous reflection on one's internal state and the world around them. * Standing up for the truth. The physical benefits of is akin to the benefits of standard

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

. Metaphysically speaking, the intended result of is to refrain from any actions contrary to what is obligatory, and ultimately maintain one's mindfulness in a state that one's Lord finds them (in state of mindfulness) where He is pleased with them and not one where He is displeased with them. To continue to progress in one must be consistent for a lengthy period of time to experience the aforementioned benefits. Although it may prove difficult in the beginning, one may always regain their state of mindfulness after recognizing a change from their initial state.

Stages

Here are the ( ar, مقامات "stages") in which Sufis have broadly categorised their journey of ascension. The categorization is an arbitrary one, and each level is generally further divided into several sublevels. During the process of enlightenment, some stages can merge or overlap each other. * - Become one or annihilated in or with the master () or teacher (). * - Become one and annihilated with the Message or

Messenger ''MESSENGER'' was a NASA robotic space probe that orbited the planet Mercury between 2011 and 2015, studying Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field. The name is a backronym for "Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochem ...

. * - Become one and anihilated with or in Quran and its commandments. * - Become one and annihilated in or with God.

''Ghanūd''

This is the starting level of meditation. A person who starts meditation often enters a somnolent or sleep state ( ). With the passage of time, the person goes into a state between

sleep Sleep is a sedentary state of mind and body. It is characterized by altered consciousness, relatively inhibited Perception, sensory activity, reduced muscle activity and reduced interactions with surroundings. It is distinguished from wakefuln ...

and wakefulness. The person can remember seeing something but not specifically what it is. This topic is well known and practiced among secular scholars of dream interpretation.

''ʾIdrāk''

During ( "cognition"), with continuous practice of meditation, the sleepiness from meditation decreases. When the conscious

mind The mind is the set of faculties responsible for all mental phenomena. Often the term is also identified with the phenomena themselves. These faculties include thought, imagination, memory, will, and sensation. They are responsible for various m ...

is not suppressed by sleep and is able to focus, the person can receive the spiritual knowledge from his

subconscious In psychology, the subconscious is the part of the mind that is not currently of focal awareness. Scholarly use of the term The word ''subconscious'' represents an anglicized version of the French ''subconscient'' as coined in 1889 by the psycho ...

mind. At this stage, the person is unable to see or hear anything but is able to

experience Experience refers to conscious events in general, more specifically to perceptions, or to the practical knowledge and familiarity that is produced by these conscious processes. Understood as a conscious event in the widest sense, experience involv ...

or perceive it.

''Wurūd''

During ( "coming, beginning"), when (experience) becomes deep, it is exhibited as sight. The stage of starts when mental concentration is sustained and somnolence is at its minimum. As soon as the mind is focused, the spiritual eye is activated. The conscious mind is not used to see through the spiritual eye so concentration comes and goes. Gradually, the mind gets used to this kind of visions, and the mental focus is sustained. With practice, the visions/experience becomes so deep that the person starts considering himself a part of the experience rather than considering himself an

observer An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment. Observer may also refer to: Computer science and information theory * In information theory, any system which receives information from an object * State observer in co ...

Gnosis of the universe

''Kashf / ʾilhām''

or ( "unveiling of arcane knowledge" or "intuition") is the stage of starting to get information that most other people are unable to observe. In the beginning, this occurs suddenly, without personal control. With practice, the mind gets so energized that it can get this knowledge by will.

''Shuhūd''

With (, "evidence") a person can get any information about any event/person at will. This stage is broadly categorized according to activation of the

senses A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the world through the detection of stimuli. (For example, in the human body, the brain which is part of the central nervous system re ...

: # The person can see things anywhere in the universe # The person can

hear Hearing, or auditory perception, is the ability to perceive sounds through an organ, such as an ear, by detecting vibrations as periodic changes in the pressure of a surrounding medium. The academic field concerned with hearing is auditor ...

things anywhere in the universe # The person can smell things anywhere in the universe # The person can

touch In physiology, the somatosensory system is the network of neural structures in the brain and body that produce the perception of touch ( haptic perception), as well as temperature ( thermoception), body position (proprioception), and pain. It ...

things anywhere in the universe. These are all spiritual senses, known as (senses of the innermost).

''Fatḥ''

With (, "opening, victory") closing eyes is no longer necessary for meditation. The person is freed from both space and time and can see/hear/taste/touch anything present anywhere in time and space.

Gnosis of Allah

''Fanāʾ''

During (, "extinction, annihilation"), through a series of stages () and subjective experiences (), this process of absorbation develops until complete annihilation of the self () takes place, and the person becomes , the "perfect man". It is the disintegration of a person's narrow self-concept, social self and limited intellect (feeling like a drop of water aware of being part of the ocean). The stage is also called ("extinction with the unity"), and ("extinction in the reality").

''Sair illallah''

During (, "journey towards the God") the person starts his spiritual journey towards the ultimate reality of the universe,

. It is also called .

''Fana fillah''

(, "extinction of the self in God") is one of the important phases of mystical experience is attained by the

grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninc ...

of God by a traveller on the mystical path. Now, the person becomes extinct in the

will of God The will of God or divine will is a concept found in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament and the Quran, according to which God's will is the first cause of everything that exists. See also * Destiny * '' Deus vult'', a Latin expression me ...

. It is important to mention that this is not

incarnation Incarnation literally means ''embodied in flesh'' or ''taking on flesh''. It refers to the conception and the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form or the appearance of a god as a human. If capitalized, it is the union of divinit ...

or union. Most Sufis passing through this experience have preferred to live in the greatest depth of silence, which transcends all forms and sounds and to enjoy their union with the beloved. * The highest stage of is reached when even the

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...

of having attained disappears. This is what the Sufis call "the passing-away of passing-away" (). The mystic is now wrapped in

contemplation In a religious context, the practice of contemplation seeks a direct awareness of the divine which transcends the intellect, often in accordance with prayer or meditation. Etymology The word ''contemplation'' is derived from the Latin word ...

of the

divine Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

essence Essence ( la, essentia) is a polysemic term, used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property or set of properties that make an entity or substance what it fundamentally is, and which it has by necessity, and without which it ...

. * Since it is a state of complete annihilation of

carnal Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act up ...

self The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this reference is necessarily subjective. The sense of having a self—or ''selfhoo ...

, absorbation or intoxication in God, the pilgrim is unable to participate in worldly affairs, and he is made to pass into another state known as (forgetfulness of annihilation). It is a sort of oblivion of

unconsciousness Unconsciousness is a state in which a living individual exhibits a complete, or near-complete, inability to maintain an awareness of self and environment or to respond to any human or environmental stimulus. Unconsciousness may occur as the r ...

. Since two negatives make one positive, the pilgrim at this stage regains the individuality he had when he started the journey. The only difference is that in the beginning, he was self-conscious, but after having reposed in the Divine Being, he regains that sort of individuality that is God-consciousness or absorbation in God. This state is known as , that is, living or subsisting with God.Alhaj W.B.S. Rabbani, ''Gems of Sufi Gnosticism''.

''Sair min Allah''

During (, "journey from the God") the person comes back to his existence. It is also called . What happens is the person's awareness of God increases so much so that he forgets his own self and is totally lost in his magnificence.

''Baqaa billah''

(, "eternal life in God The Creator") is the state in which man comes back to his existence and God appoints him to guide the humans. The individual is part of the world but unconcerned about rewards or position in the world. The doctrine is further explained in Sahih Bukhari, which states that God said: There is another verse from Qur'an that is used to explain this concept: When Sufis have come out of the state and enter , many of them have produced works of unsurpassed glory, especially in the fields of

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...

and

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

. Such works have crowned the

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups ...

of the entire

Islamic world The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. I ...

and inspired Sufis and non-Sufis for generations. As the great Persian Sufi

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

Hafez Khwāje Shams-od-Dīn Moḥammad Ḥāfeẓ-e Shīrāzī ( fa, خواجه شمس‌‌الدین محمّد حافظ شیرازی), known by his pen name Hafez (, ''Ḥāfeẓ'', 'the memorizer; the (safe) keeper'; 1325–1390) and as "Hafiz", ...

of Shiraz, fondly remembered as the "tongue of the unseen", said centuries ago: "He whose heart is alive with love, never dies". The ''

Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , si ...

'' says: