Understanding Mansur Al-Hallaj's Ana'l-Haqq In These Megalomaniac Times
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
10 April
2023
' I've Seen My Lord With The Eye Of My Heart,
And I Said, ' Who Are You? ' He Said, ' You.'
Mansour Al-Hallaj said just before his
execution
' There's Nothing Wrapped In My Turban But
God....'
' Allah Is He Who Flows Between The Pericardium
And The Heart, Just As Tears Flow From The Eyelids.'
Mansour Al-Hallaj
Ain Imaan
Hai An-al-Haq Ka Tarana Lekin/ Hai Yahi Kufr Agar Deeda-e-Mansour Na Ho (It's
quintessential faith/devotion if one proclaims An-al-Haq/ But the same can be
rank blasphemous if uttered by someone who's not as evolved as Mansour was).
Such is the
metaphysical and devotional impact of this ecstatic proclamation, An-al-Haq
(the equivalent of Upanishadic Aham Brahmasmi or I'm the Truth/God). Before
descanting upon Mansour's An-al-Haq for which he was decapitated on March 26,
922 AD (by the way he was born on March 26, 858 AD), it's imperative to
understand the import of Aham-Brahmasmi. Aham Brahmasmi is a term that is used
in Hindu and yoga philosophy to describe the unity of the Atman (individual
self or soul) with Brahman (the Absolute).
It is
typically translated as “I am Brahman” or less literally as “I am
divine.” It reflects the ultimate goal of yoga – union with the higher
self. Yoga itself means “union.” The Persian mystic Mansur was a Sufi and
there's no denying the fact that all Sufis were heavily influenced by eastern
or oriental mysticism. Here the objective is not to compare but to understand
the universality of mysticism which goes beyond all the conventional or
organized man-made faiths.
But the
magnanimity of Advait (non-dualism) of
Vedantic philosophy was not fully intelligible to Islam, at least in the
10th-century, which claimed to be a 'revealed' religion and early Sufism.
According to early Sufi theories (particularly Ḵarrāz) only God has the right to say
“I,” the utterance “I” is, in itself, blasphemy. Ḥallāǰ’s Ana’l-Ḥaqq was later generally understood as meaning “I
am God,” for Haqq had
become a frequently used equivalent of “God,” especially in the non-Arabic
areas. Hence, Ana’l-Ḥaqq was
interpreted as the most daring expression of man’s essential unity with God,
and is a key expression in the mystical poetry of Iran, Turkey, Muslim India,
and Indonesia wherever the theories of Waḥdat Al-Wujud “Unity of Being” were employed.
Rūmī, held
that Ana’l-Ḥaqq was the
expression of perfect selflessness (Fīhī Mā Fīhī); the mystic had
completely forgotten himself in God, so that his “I” was a sign of Divine
grace. Aham-Brahmasmi or An-al-Haq is the supreme level of faith where 'I' gets
completely dissolved. There remains no difference between the creator and
creation. It also suggests that humans have the capacity and capabilities to
become God and there's no impudence in it.
All mystics
believe that there's no barrier between the individual self and the Universal
soul. All are its parts. Every creature has the element/s of divinity and Har
Zarra Chamkta Hai Anwaar-E-Ilahi Se (Akbar Allahabadi): Every particle has
the pulchritude of divine effulgence. Mansur annihilated his Ego (the last of
human attributes to GO) and self to merge into cosmic consciousness. Only a
faithful of his level can empathise with his state of ecstasy when he
proclaimed, " I'm the Truth."
Mansur
could see godliness everywhere and in every breath. In fine, 'I'm the Truth' is
the end-point where spirituality and metaphysics lose into each other and get
dissolved into the vastness of divinity. Don't Sufis say, ' to be god is to be
good and vice versa?'
Since much
has been written on Al-Hallaj's seemingly impudent utterances in a state of 'Bekhudi'
(trance or a state of being self immersed, though this term from Islamic
mysticism is difficult to translate), modern scholars of Islam and even
psychologists have attempted to analyse Mansour's state of mind and the import of
his utterances.
Arabic
scholar Professor Sir Hamilton Gibb wrote an essay, ' Digging deep into the
psyche of Mansour Al-Hallaj'. He (Professor Gibb ) opined that while Mansour's
devotion was unquestionable, he was deluded to some extent. However, Gibb used
Mansour as a metaphor for ultimate piety and wrote, " While it's difficult
for the general people to emulate Al-Hallaj's example, it's advisable (for the
masses) to see god or any supernatural power or consciousness as an
ever-immanent spirit which doesn't and cannot exist separately.
Mansour
broke the typical Semitic dualism between the god and worshipper/s. Only the
Mansour like understanding of the immanence of divine spirit can help humans,
not just Muslims, evolve and become godlike." An-al-Haq also obliterates
the FEAR of god, the biggest impediment to reaching and understanding god and
godhood. To quote Abdul Hamid 'Adam', "Parda Utha Ke Ab Meri Masti Hai
Main Nahin/ Jis Se Tujhe Haya Thi Woh 'Haayal' Nahin Raha " (
......that 'barrier' has been demolished forever). Such sublimity is not
everyone's cup of tea. That's why, Mansour surpasses all. Someone aptly said, "Bandagi
Tab Tak Aur Uss Had Tak Karo/ Jab Tak Na Mansour Ban Ke Khuda Mein Tahleel Ho
Jao." In short, read and understand Mansour's profound philosophy to
annihilate your ego, which refuses to go.
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Slightly
Shorter Version Of This Article Was Published In TOI First.
------
A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in
comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed
articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including
Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-personalities/mansur-hallaj-anal-haqq-megalomaniac/d/129528
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