Purity of the Outward and the Inward

■ Purity of the Outward and the Inward

Purity (ṭahārah) is not merely the washing of the limbs, nor only the adornment of the soul with noble character.

It is the purification of perception until the servant witnesses that every blessing, every movement, every act, and every perfection is from Almighty Allāh, while he himself remains established in complete servitude (ʿubūdiyyah).

The outward is purified with water.
The inward is purified with knowledge.
The heart is purified with remembrance (dhikr).
The spirit is purified through sincere devotion.
The innermost secret (sirr) is purified by witnessing the perpetual Divine self-disclosures (tajalliyāt).

▪︎ Imam Abū al-ʿAzāʾim, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, said:

“Purity for those of conduct and behavior, which when fully achieved unlocks the symbols of existence, removes veils, and reveals the tangible evidence of certainty, begins with knowledge of what you must believe. Purity is not attained except through knowledge.”

Knowledge, however, is not merely the accumulation of concepts. It is the removal of illusion. The greatest illusion is the claim of ownership.

The Akbarian masters teach that nothing possesses existence independently, not even for the blinking of an eye.

Shaykh al-Akbar Muḥyiddīn Ibn ʿArabī, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, explains throughout al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyyah and Fuṣūṣ al-Ḥikam that creation is renewed at every instant through the Nafas al-Raḥmān (the Breath of the All-Merciful).

Every moment is a fresh Divine self-disclosure (tajallī), and no creature endures except through the continual bestowal of existence by Almighty Allāh.

Thus, what truly belongs to the servant?

The hand did not move except by His power.
The eye did not perceive except through His light. The foot did not walk except by His permission. The heart did not remember except through His grace.

▪︎ As Almighty Allāh says:

“And you did not throw when you threw,
but it was Allāh who threw.”
(Glorious Qur’ān 8:17)

▪︎ And He also says:

“And if a fly should snatch something away from them, they could not recover it from it.”
(Glorious Qur’ān 22:73)

If creation cannot recover what a fly has taken, despite its apparent existence, then how can it claim independent power over anything?

▪︎ Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, said:

“There is nothing in your control except your helplessness and your poverty before Him.”

This helplessness is not humiliation but honour. This poverty (faqr) is not deprivation but wealth.

▪︎ The Messenger of Almighty Allāh ﷺ said:

“Poverty is my pride.”

Although the scholars differ regarding the authenticity of this narration as a Prophetic ḥadīth, the Sufis have long employed it to express the spiritual reality that true honour lies in recognising one’s complete need before Almighty Allāh.

Shaykh Ibn ʿArabī teaches that every created thing is a maẓhar (locus of manifestation) of one or more Divine Names.

Knowledge, strength, beauty, mercy, wisdom, and generosity are not possessions of the servant; they are reflections of the Divine Attributes appearing according to each servant’s preparedness (istiʿdād).

The mirror possesses no light. It only reflects the sun. Likewise, every perfection witnessed in creation belongs to Almighty Allāh alone.

▪︎ Imam ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAlawī al-Ḥaddād, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, said:

“Know that your states are not your own creation; they are gifts from Allāh. When He grants you purity, protect it with humility and gratitude, not pride and claim.”

The servant therefore strives with all his strength while claiming nothing for himself.
He worships with complete sincerity. He exerts himself in obedience. Yet inwardly he witnesses that success itself is a Divine gift.

This is the balance between Sharīʿah and Ḥaqīqah. Between effort and reliance.
Between servitude and witnessing.

Imam Ṣadr al-Dīn al-Qūnawī, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, writes in Miftāḥ al-Ghayb that every Divine self-disclosure is received according to the preparedness of the heart.

Thus purification is not changing Almighty Allāh’s giving, but enlarging the vessel that receives His grace. Purify, therefore, not only your garments but your perception.

When food satisfies you…
When water quenches your thirst…
When sleep restores your body…
When clothing covers you…
When prayer fills your heart…
When fasting disciplines your soul…

Attribute none of it to yourself.
See only your need.
See only His generosity.
Everything is from Him.
Everything is through Him.

Everything returns to Him.

▪︎ Shaykh Aḥmad Zarrūq, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, said:

“Whoever sees his deeds as from himself is veiled from his Lord. Whoever sees them as from his Lord is blessed with sincerity.”

The purified servant therefore strips himself not only of sins but also of subtle claims.

He abandons self-admiration. He abandons reliance upon his spiritual states. He abandons pride in his worship. He abandons even witnessing his own sincerity. He remains only
a servant standing before his Lord in complete poverty (faqr), incapacity (ʿajz), and need (iftiqār).

These are the garments of those who truly know Almighty Allāh.

As Almighty Allāh says:

“And for the one who fears standing before his Lord are two gardens.”
(Glorious Qur’ān 55:46)

The outward scholars speak of two gardens in the Hereafter. The people of spiritual unveiling also recognise two gardens within the journey itself: The Garden of perfect servitude.
The Garden of intimate knowledge (maʿrifah).

Whoever enters the first is prepared for the second. Whoever tastes the second never abandons the first. For every unveiling increases humility. Every tajallī increases bewilderment (ḥayrah). Every blessing increases gratitude. Every act of worship deepens poverty before Almighty Allāh.

As Shaykh al-Akbar Ibn ʿArabī, may Almighty Allāh sanctify his secret, reminds us, every instant is a new creation, every breath a fresh manifestation of Divine generosity.

Thus the purified heart witnesses the meaning of the Divine Word:

“Every day He is upon some affair.”
(Glorious Qur’ān 55:29)

Not that Almighty Allāh changes, He is exalted above all change, but that His acts of creation, sustaining, guiding, forgiving, giving life, causing death, and unveiling His Names are renewed without end.

May Almighty Allāh purify our outward through obedience, our inward through sincerity, our hearts through remembrance, and our innermost secrets through witnessing His continual Divine self-disclosures, until nothing remains in our perception but gratitude, servitude, and love for Him.

And Almighty Allāh knows best.