Part 10

An almost complete list of Al-Ghazali’s writings as well as of the translations of his works into other languages, especially Hebrew, Latin, French, German, and English, is given in the appendix.[59] Before we speak of some of his more important works a summary will interest the reader. The _Jawahir al-Koran_ (Jewels of the Koran) contains observations on some of the verses of the Koran which have special value; the _ʾAqida_ is a statement of the articles of the Moslem faith, and was published by Pococke in his Specimen; the Precious Pearl (Al-Durrat Al-Fakhira) is a treatise on the last judgment and the end of the world, _i. e._, his eschatology—and has been translated and published by L. Gautier. The morality and theology of the mystics are codified in the _Ihya ʿulum id-din_ (Revivification of the Religious Sciences). The _Mizan Al-ʿamal_ (The Balance of Works) has been translated into Hebrew by Ibrahim bin Hasdai of Barcelona, and published by Goldenthal. The _Kimiya as-saʾada_ (Alchemy of Happiness) is a popular lecture founded on mysticism; this work which was originally written in Persian, has been twice translated into English, by H. A. Homes in 1873 and more recently by Claud Field. _Ayyuha ’l-walad_ (O Child!) is a celebrated moral treatise, which has been translated into German and published by Hammer-Purgstall. Among works on jurisprudence, his treatises on Shafiʾite law have earned great reputation in the Moslem world; his _Basit_, _Wasit_, and _Wajiz_ are all abridgments of them. In the domain of philosophy, the _Tahafut al-Falasifa_ (Collapse of the Philosophers) is an attack on the adherents of the Greek Philosophy; it has been edited by DeBoer. The _Maqasid al-Falasifa_ (Aims of the Philosophers) is a sort of introduction to the above. The text has been published by G. Beer, and a Latin translation by Gondisalvi is in existence, which was printed in Venice in 1506. _Al-Munqidh min ad-Dalal_ (The Deliverer from Error), written after the author commenced his life as a teacher at Nishapur for the second time, describes the development of his philosophy. It was translated and published by Schmolders in his “Essay on the Schools of Philosophy Among the Arabs”; a second and greatly improved translation was published in the _Journal Asiatique_ for 1877, by the learned savant, Barbier de Meynard. More recently it appeared in English under the title “The Confessions of Al-Ghazali.” It is one of his shortest but most famous books and can be compared with the “Confessions” of St. Augustine, or John Bunyan’s “Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners.” Several of Al-Ghazali’s numerous works are very brief, in the shape of epistles or tractates.

Among his shorter works the following may be mentioned: _Al-ʾAdab fi Din_, a short treatise on the ethics of politeness, prepared for the use of his pupils. It speaks of the ideal pupil, the ideal teacher, of the ethics of eating, drinking, marriage and the religious life. A smaller work already mentioned is the _Risala Ayyuh’ Al-Walad_ (“O Child!”). In it he defines faith and works and distinguishes between them. A curious passage occurs in the introduction which reflects on Al-Ghazali’s accuracy of statement, or at least raises the question as to which “Gospel” he refers to. He says: “O my child, live as you please for you are already dead; love whom you wish, for you are bound to be separated; and do what you will, for you are sure to be judged for it. Verily I saw in the Gospel of Jesus (upon Him be prayers and peace) that He said, ‘From the hour in which the dead is put upon the bier until the time when he rests on the edge of the grave God will ask him forty questions, the first of which is, O my servant, you have purified yourself to appear before men many years and not for one hour have you purified yourself for my gates, and every day a voice was sounded in your ears saying, “What you do for others why do you not do for me who surrounds you with my mercy!” but you were deaf and not willing to hear.’”

In his “Alchemy of Happiness” there is a beautiful chapter on “Know Thyself.” The parable there used regarding man’s soul and the enemies that lay siege against it reminds one very much of Bunyan’s “Holy War.” The shortest of his works, as far as I am aware, is called _Al-Qawaʿid Al-ʾAshara_ (The Ten Articles); this has been frequently reprinted. It consists of ten principles of faith and conduct, and is scarcely longer than an ordinary letter. Of a similar character is _Risalat-ut-Tair_ the parable of the birds. His most celebrated treatise on ethics and conduct is entitled _Mizan ul ʿAmal_. It might be compared to the book of Ecclesiastes or the first chapters of the book of Proverbs. In the introduction Al-Ghazali shows the folly of those who neglect to secure the happiness of their immortal souls as well as the peril of those who despise faith in the world to come. The true way of happiness consists in knowing the right and doing it. The soul is a unit and its various powers are knit together and are interdependent. The path of the mystic unites true faith with true practice. He also speaks of the possibility of change of character through religious devotion and mentions the virtues that are to be cultivated and the vices to be shunned on this pathway to God and to true happiness.

To emphasize the importance of life with its brevity and the supreme importance of eternity Al-Ghazali says: “Suppose we imagine that the whole world is filled with dust and that a little bird should come and snatch up one atom of dust every thousand years. We know that there would be an end of its task, but nothing would have been taken away from the everlasting character of that eternity which has no end.” Although the moral teaching of this book is very noble, it is after all based entirely on the principle of salvation by works. There is no hint of the possibility of the transformation of character through regeneration of the heart, nor is the way pointed to the victorious life by overcoming temptation through a power that is not our own.

Of all his writings none is celebrated more justly than his greatest work “The Revival of Religious Sciences” (_Ihya ʿulum id Din_). It is a veritable encyclopædia of Moslem teaching and ethics and covers the whole range of Moslem thought. Many editions of this work have been printed and commentaries written on it, the most celebrated of which is by Mohammed-uz-Zubeidi Al-Murtadha, in ten large volumes. The work itself consists of four volumes of ten books each and has a total of over one thousand closely printed pages. Although widely read in its original form, popular demand has called forth several abbreviated compendia of the work. One of them entitled “A Homily for Believers,” by Mohammed Jamal-ud-Din of Damascus, is used as a text-book on Islam in the Theological Seminary of the American Mission in Cairo.

The first part of the original work is entitled “Things that pertain to worship”; the second part, “Things that pertain to practice”; the third part, “Things that destroy the soul,” _i. e._, the vices; the fourth part, “Things that deliver the soul,” _i. e._, the virtues. The contents are as follows:

“THINGS THAT PERTAIN TO WORSHIP”

I. _The Book of Knowledge_, which has seven divisions:

1. The Benefits of Learning.

2. What Kind of Knowledge is Forbidden and Permitted.

3. Theological Learning and Nomenclature.

4. Conditions of Debate and Controversy.

5. The Relation of Teacher and Pupil.

6. The Dangers of Learning.

7. The Mind and its Uses.

II. _The Book of Dogma_, which has four divisions:

1. The Moslem Creed.

2. Degrees of Faith.

3. God, His Being, Attributes, Work.

4. Faith and Islam.

III. _The Book of the Mysteries of Purity_, which has three divisions:

1. Purification from Unclean Objects.

2. Purification from Unclean States.

3. Purification from Unclean Matters that cling to the Body (finger-nails, ears, etc.).

IV. _The Book of the Mysteries of Prayer_, which has seven divisions:

1. The Benefits of Prayer.

2. Outward Observance of Prayer.

3. Conditions of Prayer.

4. The Imam.

5. Friday Prayers.

6. Miscellaneous Matters.

7. Special Prayers.

V. _The Book of the Mysteries of Almsgiving_, which has four divisions:

1. Kinds of Alms.

2. Conditions of Giving.

3. To Whom.

4. How they are Observed.

VI. _The Book of the Mysteries of Fasting_, which has three divisions:

1. Its Necessity.

2. Its Mysteries.

3. Obedience through Fasting.

VII. _The Book of the Mysteries of the Pilgrimage_, which has three divisions:

1. Its Benefits and Character.

2. The Order of Procedure.

3. Its Inward Significance.

VIII. _The Book of the Perusal of the Koran._

IX. _The Book of Zikr and Prayer._

X. _The Book of the Night Meditation._

“THINGS THAT PERTAIN TO PRACTICE”

I. The Ethics of Eating and Drinking.

II. The Ethics of Marriage.

III. The Ethics of Trade.

IV. Things that are Allowed and Forbidden.

V. Ethics of Friendship and Conversation.

VI. The Life of Seclusion.

VII. The Ethics of Journeying.

VIII. The Ethics of Music and Poetry.

IX. On Favours and Offenses.

X. The Ethics of True Living and the Virtues of the Prophet.

“THINGS THAT DESTROY THE SOUL”

I. The Wonders of the Heart.

II. The Exercise of the Soul.

III. The Dangers of the Two Desires, namely, of the Appetite and of Lust.

IV. The Evils of the Tongue.

V. The Evils of Anger and Envy.

VI. On Despising the World.

VII. On Despising Property and Greed.

VIII. On Despising the Love of Honour and Hypocrisy.

IX. On Despising Vanities.

“THINGS THAT DELIVER THE SOUL”

I. The Book of Repentance.

II. The Book of Patience and Thankfulness.

III. The Book of Fear.

IV. The Book of Poverty and Asceticism.

V. The Book of the Unity of God.

VI. The Book of Love.

VII. The Book of Good Intent and Sincerity.

VIII. The Book of Self-examination.

IX. The Book of Meditation.

X. The Book of the Remembrance of Death.

Especially the third and fourth parts of his great work show us Al-Ghazali as a mystic and a preacher of righteousness. His ten books on “Things that deliver the soul” furnish material from which it would not be difficult to collect a beautiful anthology or a daily calendar of spiritual thoughts. Such a rosary of pearls from Al-Ghazali’s works might well be used for devotion by Christians as well as by Moslems.

[Illustration: A facsimile page of the Ihya (Vol. II, page 180, Cairo Ed.). It gives a diagram of the prayer _kibla_ and the rules to be observed in facing it correctly.]

Another most interesting book is that on the names of God, entitled _Al-Maksad ul-Asna Sharh-Asmaʾ-Allah ul Husna_, “The Highest Aim: the Explanation of the Beautiful Names of God.” The book is divided into three parts of which the first deals philosophically with the meaning of the word “name” and its distinction from the naming of the thing and the thing named itself: also how it is possible for God to have many names and yet to be one essence. The second part of the book is the longest and treats of the ninety-nine names of God in order showing how they are comprehended in the seven attributes and the one essence. The third part is brief and shows that there are really more than ninety-nine names, but that this was the number fixed upon for good reasons. And finally there is a section telling how God may and may not be described.

Al-Ghazali teaches in this book _that the imitation of God’s attributes is the highest happiness for the believer_. There are three degrees in the knowledge of God, and in this respect he says: “The virtues of the righteous are the faults of the Saints”; by which he means that the nearer we approach to God the more perfect is our standard of character. The three degrees of knowledge are (1) intellectual, (2) that of admiration and attempted imitation, (3) that of actual acquirements of God’s attributes such as the angels. Nearness to God is by rank and degree, not in regard to position or place. He quotes with approval the famous saying of Junaid: “No one knows God save God Himself Most High, and therefore even to the best of His creatures He has only revealed His names, in which He hides Himself.” He says that two statements are true in regard to God and the believer. The true believer must say, “I know nothing but God,” and “I know nothing of God.”

The last book Al-Ghazali wrote was the _Minhaj al-ʾAbidin_ or “Guide of True Worshippers.” It is said to have been written for those who could not understand the _Ihya_ and deals with the creed and ritual of Islam from the standpoint of the mystic. Our illustration shows in facsimile the first page of this celebrated work from a recent Cairo edition. On the margin of the text we have the Beginner’s Guide, already spoken of. These two works of Al-Ghazali are very popular and have recently had an increasing circulation.

The _Minhaj_ shows that Al-Ghazali at the close of his life had adopted the vocabulary of the mystics even for popular teaching. The various chapters are called “stages” in the progress of the soul towards salvation and peace. The first stage is that of knowledge, then follows repentance, a list of the hindrances on the road to God, things that delay the soul in its onward progress, such as the world and its allurements, the flesh, the devil, the senses. Other hindrances are the cares of gaining a living, the perplexities and troubles of life, while the last stages in the road of the mystic are those of praise to God under all circumstances, and earnest endeavour to attain to the reality of the experience of His presence.

So difficult is the road which Al-Ghazali describes that he says: “Some seekers can only finish these stages in seventy years, some in twenty, some in ten. Others there are, however, whose souls are so enlightened, so free from the care and perplexity of the world, that they finish the journey and arrive at the goal in a year, a month, what do I say, in an hour; so that they awaken like the Companions of the Cave, and the change they see in themselves and those about them is to them as a dream.”

His teaching on prayer as given in the _Ihya_ certainly rises very high above that of the ritualist who puts all his attention on the punctiliousness of outward observance. “Prayers are of three degrees, of which the first are those that are simply spoken with the lips. Prayers are of the second kind when with difficulty, and only by a most resolute effort, the soul is able to fix its thoughts on divine things without being disturbed by evil imaginations; they are of the third kind when one finds it difficult to turn away the mind from dwelling on divine things. But it is the very marrow of prayer when He who is invoked takes possession of the soul of the suppliant, and the soul of him who prays is absorbed into God, to whom he prays, and, his prayer ceasing, all consciousness of self has departed, and to such a degree that all thought whatsoever of the praying is felt as a veil between the soul and God. This state is called by the Sufis ‘absorption,’ for the reason that the man is so absorbed that he takes no thought of his body, or of anything that happens externally, or even of the movements of his own soul, but is first engaged in going towards his Lord, and finally is wholly in his Lord. If even the thought occurs that he is absorbed in the Absolute it is a blemish, for that absorption only is worthy of the name, though they will be called, as I well know, but foolish babbling by raw theologians, are yet by no means without significance. For consider: The condition of which I speak resembles that of a person who loves any other object, such as wealth, honour, or pleasure. We see such persons so carried away with their love, and others with their anger, that they do not hear one who speaks to them, nor see those passing before their eyes. Nay, so absorbed are they in their passion that they do not perceive their absorption; you necessarily turn it away from that which is the object of it.”

Elsewhere Al-Ghazali says: “The commencement of this life is the going to God; then follows the finding Him, when the absorption takes place. This at first is momentary, as the lightning swiftly glancing upon the eye, but afterwards, confirmed by use, it introduces the soul into a higher world, where, the most pure essential essence meeting it, fills the soul with the images of the spiritual world, while the majesty of Deity discovers itself.”

The evident sincerity and the moral earnestness of Al-Ghazali shown in his works and in the extracts which we have quoted, surely explains in a large degree why his influence has been so deep and permanent, far greater than that of the merely intellectual philosophers, such as Averroes. While he discouraged scholastic philosophy, he encouraged moral philosophy. The reader will remember how he carried a book of ethics with him on his journeys. After his death several famous ethical treatises were composed which derived much from him. Claud Field says “the most important of these is the ‘Akhlaq-i-Jalali,’ by Jalaluddin Asaʾad Aldawani, which has been ably translated into English by Mr. W. F. Thompson. The ‘Akhlaq-i-Jalali’ itself is largely a translation into Persian from the Arabic, the original of which appeared in the tenth century under the name of ‘Kitab-ut-Taharat.’ Two centuries after it was translated into Persian by Abu Nasr, and named ‘Akhlaq Nasiri,’ enriched with some important additions from Avicenna. In the fifteenth century it assumed a still further improved form under its present name, the ‘Akhlaq-i-Jalali.’”[60]

That Al-Ghazali was a careful student of nature is evident in all his writings. Those portions of the Koran which deal with natural theology and the proof of God’s existence from the starry heavens, from the fertile ground, the animal creation, and the sea with its terrors, especially seem to appeal to him. One of his books is entitled _Al Hikmat fi Makhlukat Allah_ (The Wisdom of God Shown in the Marvels of Creation). It is one of his shorter writings but full of beautiful passages on the glory of the starry heavens, the earth and the sea, and the four primal elements. One long chapter is devoted to embryology and the physical wonders of the human frame. Another is on birds, another on quadrupeds and on fishes. The conclusion of the whole treatise is the argument from design, for the goodness and greatness of the Creator as shown in His works. What he says in regard to the benefits to be obtained from gazing into the starry vault may be compared with David’s words in the eighth and the nineteenth Psalms. Says Al-Ghazali: “To look up into the vault of heaven drives away anxiety, removes the whisperings of Satan, takes away idle fear, reminds us of God, brings the heart to magnify Him, banishes evil thoughts, cures pessimism, comforts the passionate, delights the lover, and it is the best _Kibla_ for those who call to God in prayer.”

Al-Ghazali was also a dogmatic theologian and controversialist. He wrote a commentary on the Koran in forty volumes, never printed; and a dozen books against various heretics, including one entitled: “The Best Reply to Those Who Have Tampered with the Gospel.” Al-Ghazali, who was himself cursed for alleged heresy, is memorable among the theologians of Islam in that by his breadth of sympathy he forbade the cursing of Yazid, the notorious slayer of Hussein, Mohammed’s grandson, and gave his opinion in these words: “It is forbidden to curse a Moslem: Yazid was a Moslem. It is not certain that he slew Al-Husain, and it is forbidden to think ill of a Moslem. We cannot be certain that he ordered his death; really we cannot be certain of the cause of the death of any great man, especially at such a distance of time. We have also to remember the party spirit and false statements in this particular case. Again, if he did kill him, he is not an unbeliever because of that; he is only disobedient to God. Again, he may have repented before he died. Further, to abstain from cursing is no crime. No one will be asked if he ever cursed Satan; if he has cursed him he may be asked, Why? The only accursed ones of whom we know are those who die infidels.”[61]

Among his books against the philosophers we must mention three which are closely related to one another. They are the _Maqasid-ul-Falasifa_, a statement of the true teachings of the philosophers and a presentation of their views of the world; the _Tahafut ul Falasifa_ which overthrows their views and shows that they are untenable to those who would follow Islam with heart and mind; the _Qawaʾid_, which shows the truths that must be built up to take the place of the errors of the philosophers. In the first-named book, according to Macdonald, he “smites the philosophers hip and thigh, turns their own weapons against them and goes to the extreme of intellectual scepticism; seven hundred years before Hume he cuts the bond of causality with the edge of his dialectic and proclaims that we can know nothing of cause or effect, but simply that one thing follows another.”

Al-Ghazali’s great work “The Revival of Religious Sciences,” caused great scandal in Andalusia. There the intolerance of the learned passed all bounds because of the narrowness of their views. Their theology was limited to minute knowledge of Canon Law. They had no place for the religion which Ghazali preached, which was personal and passionate, a religion of the heart. When he attacked contemporary theologians busy with questions of legality and the externals of religion, he touched these pharisees of the law at the quick and they not only squirmed but screamed loudly. According to Dozy, “the Kady of Cordova, Ibn Hamdin, declared that any man who read Al-Ghazali’s book was an infidel ripe for damnation, and he drew up a _fatwa_ condemning all copies of the book to the flames. This _fatwa_, signed by the _Fakihs_ of Cordova, was formally approved by ʾAli. Al-Ghazali’s book was accordingly burnt in Cordova and all the other cities of the Empire, and possession of a copy was interdicted on pain of death and confiscation of property.”

But this opinion was not shared by Moslems elsewhere. In his lifetime and especially after his death his works against philosophy and his great exposition of Islam found ever larger circles of readers and commentators.

He has been accused, and not without good reason, both by Moslem writers and European critics, of carelessness and inaccuracy in his quotations and references to other books.[62] One of the charges brought against him by his assailants is that he falsified Tradition. Macdonald’s judgment is very charitable when he says that “he quoted from memory too freely, because he was a man of too large a calibre to watch his quotations and they were loose to the end of his life.”