Arafah, Mysticism, and God’s Final Reserve

Will the sun of the morning of Arafah rise for one who has no knowledge of the Imam of his own time?

This difference in outlook produces many differences. Among them is that worship in the Shi‘i school rests upon knowledge and a sound outlook. If worship is without insight and knowledge from God Almighty, deeds and acts of worship are entirely without value; and if they are not accompanied by recognition of the truth, praying and committing a forbidden act are regarded alike. In reality, worship without knowledge of the Creator and recognition of the truth is merely a lifeless ritual with no value. It brings neither elevation nor perfection, and such worship and servitude will not bring humility, submission, and fairness. A clear example can be seen today among the followers of Saqifah who, despite their claim to worship and lordly monotheism, have gained no share of humanity or monotheistic propriety and commit the most savage crimes of humankind.

The Day of Arafah is a time for knowledge of divine unity. Standing at Arafat is an opportunity to find oneself, to express humility and submission before the Divine Presence, and to attain knowledge of divine unity. Arafat is the land of knowledge and the valley of recognition; hence it is the place where knowledge from God Almighty descends. For in this valley servants confess the oneness of the Divine Presence, and in this land they confess that they have wronged themselves. It is in this land that Adam’s repentance was accepted.

When Prophet Adam, having become distant from the proximity of the Divine Presence, descended from the garden of Paradise to earth, he spent forty days each morning prostrating atop Mount Safa with tearful eyes. Gabriel (peace be upon him) descended and asked: “Why do you weep, Adam?” He said: “Why should I not weep, when I have descended from God’s proximity into this world?” He said: “Repent before God and return to Him.” He asked: “How?” On the eighth of Dhu al-Hijjah, Gabriel took Adam to Mina. Adam remained there overnight and set out for the plain of Arafat in the morning. When leaving Mecca, Gabriel taught him how to enter ihram and pronounce the talbiyah. When the afternoon of Arafah arrived, he called Adam to perform ghusl and, after the afternoon prayer, invited him to stand at Arafat and taught him the words through which Adam repented—the words he had received from his Lord: “Subhanaka Allahumma wa bihamdika, la ilaha illa anta, ‘alimtu wa zalamtu nafsi wa‘taraftu bi dhanbi, ighfir li innaka anta al-ghafur al-rahim.” There is no god but You; I did wrong and wronged myself. Now I confess my sin; forgive me, for You are Forgiving and Merciful.

Adam (peace be upon him) continued praying and shedding tears in supplication until sunset. When the sun set, he went with Gabriel to Mash‘ar and spent the night there. In the morning he rose at Mash‘ar and began to pray, until he was finally forgiven.

Yes! By uttering the sacred word of divine unity, “la ilaha illa anta,” Prophet Adam entered the fortress of divine unity. His important act at Arafat was that he humbly entered this stronghold, and whoever enters this fortress of divine unity is safe from divine punishment. Adam’s saying “la ilaha illa Allah” caused God to return to His mercy because Adam possessed knowledge and recognition of these words. In the words of Imam al-Rida (peace be upon him), entry into the fortress of divine unity is conditional upon conditions, and without those conditions no one can enter this stronghold. Adam knew these conditions well; in other words, his divine unity was accompanied by the conditions of divine unity. For Adam is the one about whom God Almighty says, “And He taught Adam all the names.” God taught Prophet Adam all the names. Therefore, he entered Arafat with knowledge and recognition and uttered the word of divine unity. Hence, other narrations state that the words uttered by Adam (peace be upon him) were an adjuration of God by the Five Pure Ones. These narrations do not conflict with one another: one group mentions the word of divine unity, while the second recalls the condition for entering the fortress of divine unity.

Arafah will have no mysticism without knowledge of God, and standing at Arafat must be a gnostic standing; otherwise, no mercy will descend from God. Much can be said about knowledge of God, but here a narration from Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him) is mentioned that offers a comprehensive definition of knowing God. It explicitly states that if such knowledge is absent, worship of God is based on misguidance. Abu Hamzah says that Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him) told me: “Only one who knows God worships God; and those who do not know God worship Him in misguidance, like this group of opponents; their worship is misguidance.” I asked: “What is knowledge of God?” Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him) said: “Believing in God, Mighty and Majestic, believing in His Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), loving Ali (peace be upon him), following him and the Imams of guidance, and seeking refuge in God, Mighty and Majestic, from their enemies—this is how God, Mighty and Majestic, is known.” (1) Therefore, as long as the rightful Imam is not recognized and affirmed, and dissociation from their enemies is not declared, God has not been known.

From one perspective, refusing the proof and Imam appointed by God Almighty is equivalent to denying God and disregarding His sovereign and divine decree. Therefore, one who accepts and affirms that guardian, and demonstrates practical commitment by declaring dissociation from the enemies of that divine proof, has known God and believed that He alone is the Lord, that God appoints His successor on earth, and that God deserves obedience. Such a person therefore possesses knowledge and recognition of God Almighty, and his deeds and worship hold great value before God Almighty.

From another angle, God Almighty has appointed a means and a cause for everything. This divine practice also operates in the matter of knowledge. This means that God Almighty has established gates for knowledge of Himself, without which knowledge of God cannot be attained. It has been said that whoever seeks to enter by a gate other than that gate is called a thief; and a thief will not be admitted at Arafah into Arafat, the valley of mysticism.

That house is the house of divine knowledge, which cannot be entered except through its gate. The Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) are the gate of divine knowledge. Amir al-Mu’minin Ali (peace be upon him), in a sermon describing the Ahl al-Bayt, says: “We are the gates ... Houses are not entered except through their gates; whoever enters them other than through their gates is called a thief.”

God Almighty can be known only through knowing the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). Thus Imam al-Baqir (peace be upon him), in his answer to Abu Hamzah, describes recognition and love of Amir al-Mu’minin (peace be upon him) and the pure Imams, as well as dissociation from their enemies, as pillars of knowing God Almighty.

Therefore, the Day of Arafah and the land of Arafat become a valley of knowledge when the leader of the pilgrims—the living gate to knowledge of God, the Imam of the Age—is recognized.

Arafah is understood when one confesses one’s shortcomings and failures before that final divine reserve. Arafat brings down mercy when the pilgrim at Arafat is seeking to find the Imam of his own time.

Given this, what would an Arafah and Arafat without the Imam of the Age be? Can one enter the land of Arafat without the gate that God has appointed for knowledge? Will the sun of the morning of Arafah rise for one who has no knowledge of the Imam of his own time? On the Day of Arafah, wherever allegiance is pledged to the Imam of the Age and one takes one’s place on the front of divine unity, it will have the value of Arafat. Arafah without knowledge of the Imam of the Age will have no mysticism.

What value and standing could the Arafah and Arafat have for the people from which Imam Husayn (peace be upon him), the Imam of the people in the year 61 AH, departed toward Karbala? Their failure to aid and pledge allegiance to the Imam of their time in the year sixty-one AH means that standing at Arafat brought them no share of the knowledge and mercy of God Almighty. For the Master of Martyrs separated from the pilgrims with only a few companions, while the pilgrims did not understand that they were circumambulating a “House” whose “gate of knowledge” had set out toward Karbala. Had they truly loved God and sought Arafat, they should have journeyed to Karbala. Thus narrations state that God first looks upon the visitors of Abu Abd Allah (peace be upon him), then turns His merciful regard toward the land of Arafat.

Al-Kafi (Islamiyyah edition), vol. 1, p. 180, chapter “Knowledge of the Imam and referring back to him.”