Of Shems Tebreez the following story is told. He raised a King’s only son from death by throwing his mantle over him and ordering him “Rise by my order.” For this he was summoned before the ecclesiastical court and sentenced to be flayed alive. When the sentence came to be executed, no knives could cut him, his body was invulnerable. It is related, that he ascended in spirit to heaven and the Prophet directed him to undergo his punishment, which he subsequently did. He directed the doctors of Law, himself, how to begin to cut the skin from his feet, or rather made the incision himself. When they had thus flayed him, he requested his own skin, be given to him as the letter of the law was fulfilled, and they gave it to him. Of this he made his Khirqeh or derwish’s habit, threw it over his shoulders, and went away.
After that the doctors of law ordered everybody to give him nothing to eat, drink, &c. He thus remained for some days without food, &c. At last he found a dead ox and cut out a piece, but as no one dared give him fire, he ordered the sun to descend from the firmament and come nearer to broil his meat. The sun obeyed—but the prince and people fearing the consequences implored him to relieve their sufferings by ordering the sun to return to its station. He granted their request.
TEXTS FROM REPRESENTATIVE SUFIS.
Al-Ghazzali (Abu Hamid Muhammed ibn Muhammad ibn Ahmad al Ghazzali,) surnamed Hujjatu ‘l-Islam (“the proof of Islam”). He was born at Tus A. D. 1058 and died A. D. 1111.—
The following are his own words: “I said to myself: the aim of my life is simply to know the truth of things; therefore I must ascertain what knowledge is. * * I then said to myself ‘the only hope of acquiring incontestable convictions is by the perceptions of the senses and by necessary truths.’ Their evidence seemed to me to be indubitable. I soon began to examine the objects of sensation and speculation to see if they were beyond doubt and doubts crowded in upon me, that my incertitude became complete. * * I abandoned the senses, therefore, having seen all my confidence in their truth shaken. * * * Perhaps, said I, there is no assurance but in the notions of reason, viz., in first principles. * * * Upon this the senses replied: ‘What assurance have you that your confidence in reason is not of the same nature as your confidence in us? May there not be some other judge superior to reason? The non-appearance of such a judge is no proof of his non-existence.’ * * * I came to reflect on sleep, how during sleep we give to visions, reality and consistence, and have no suspicion of their untruth. On awaking we see they were nothing but visions. What assurance have we that all we feel and see and know when we are awake does actually exist?”
Al Gazzali had now come to disbelief and distrust of the world of sense. He gave his wealth away, left Bagdad and retired into Syria, to the desert, where he spent two years in solitary struggle, combating his passions, purified his heart and prepared for another world. He attained freedom. Afterwards he said: “The life of man passes through three degrees. The first or infantile state is that of pure sensation; the second is that of understanding, and the third that of reason, where the intellect perceives the necessary truths, &c. But there is a fourth state, beyond these three, in which man perceives the hidden things, that have been, and that will be and the things that escape both the senses and reason. This state is Freedom.”
AL GAZZALI: ALCHEMY OF HAPPINESS.
Chap. I. On the knowledge of the soul, and how knowledge of the soul is the key to the knowledge of God.