The Stranger Without a Sunset

🌼🔆🌼The Parallel World of Imam Reza (AS)🌼🔆🌼
🔹The Night of Imam Reza’s (AS) Martyrdom
📅 Date: 1404/06/02 – 30 Safar 1447
✨ Gathering: Meshkat-e Noor
🎤 Speaker: Master Ali Saei
📝 Some of the topics discussed at the gathering:
The Night of the Martyrdom of the Sun of Suns 🕯

اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ عَلَى عَلِیِّ بْنِ مُوسَى الرِّضَا
الْمُرْتَضَى الْإِمَامِ التَّقِیِّ النَّقِیِ‏ وَ حُجَّتِکَ
عَلَى مَنْ فَوْقَ الْأَرْضِ وَ مَنْ تَحْتَ الثَّرَى
الصِّدِّیقِ الشَّهِیدِ صَلاَةً کَثِیرَةً تَامَّةً زَاکِیَةً
مُتَوَاصِلَةً مُتَوَاتِرَةً مُتَرَادِفَةً کَأَفْضَلِ
مَا صَلَّیْتَ عَلَى أَحَدٍ مِنْ أَوْلِیَائِکَ‏.

Sovereign of hearts, our master, Imam Reza (AS). We offer our condolences to the celestial realm with blessings upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.
اللهم صلّ علی محمّد و آل محمّد.

Imam Reza: the adornment of the faithful 👑

Imam Reza, the Imam of adornment, the Imam of honour, the Imam of joy; Imam Reza, the ruler whose reign knows no sunset, the “neither east nor west” of the Light Verse, Reza, sovereign of love, the joy of joys, king of delight; he is the joy of eternity, the secret of laughter; adornment, the adornment of the faithful beside the Pool of Kawthar, the one who adorns the believers. Reza is that exalted being whom Allah has painted in the hearts of His faithful: «… و لکنّ الله حبّب…» Allah has made the heart a sanctuary adorned with Imam Reza (AS) and the Pure Imams; and Reza himself is the adornment of the faithful. He adorns them; the first and last adornment is Imam Reza.

The world of Reza and parallel worlds 🌌

It is God’s world; among the wondrous worlds of God, in the vastness of the Almighty’s vision, is Reza’s: a parallel world alongside all the others. How many worlds do we have? Through which worlds do we journey? If we feel love for Imam Reza (AS) in our very being, that means we possess a world called the world of Reza. To know any one of the Pure Imams (AS) is to possess a world of our own. Each of the Imams has a world of their own, and we journey alongside these parallel worlds. Reza cannot be God’s proof, while I am **a believer ** and yet do not live in the Imam’s world. I live in the world of Imam Reza (AS); my journey and spiritual wayfaring are under the radiance of that Imam. At the same time, with that Imam and in trans-temporality—that is, simultaneously and beyond time—I journey through parallel worlds, living with each of the Pure Imams (AS). In which of these worlds am I asleep, and in which of these parallel worlds am I awake? I must be awake in all these parallel worlds. Had I been, I would have fought beside the Master of Martyrs (AS), attained martyrdom at his side, sat at his sermons, and journeyed through his mysteries. Thus, in truth, I am the Greater World; this mystery was unveiled to us by the All-Knowing, the Commander of the Faithful (AS). We are beings of many worlds, living in several worlds at once. We experience different states; yet perhaps in some of these worlds we are asleep, and in others we are dead, without knowing it. Our parallel states in these worlds do not interfere with one another. Indeed, human beings inhabit the parallel worlds of God’s proofs.

Neglecting the life of Reza ⚠️

We have parallel lives; we know nothing of ourselves. What is the secret of self-knowledge? What is it that I must know? What is this self that I must come to know? If I know it, I will understand. The power God has bestowed upon this self enables it to live, journey and grow in every world, without the worlds interfering with one another in any way. To be heedless of Imam رضا (AS) is to be heedless of a greater world called “رضا”. Let us not be heedless of the life of رضا, lest we become dead to that world. To be heedless of Imam رضا (AS) is to die in the world of Imam رضا (AS). With my whole being, I ought to feel an intimacy with Imam رضا. If I do not, then I am either dead, half-dead, on my deathbed in the world of رضا, or asleep and unaware. This exalted being is رضا, this Greatest Name of God. His blessed being is a cry of “يا جميل”; his exalted being is a cry of “يا جليل”. His blessed being is the living embodiment of God’s beautiful names. For us, Imam رضا is one of God’s works of creation. I must be transformed by that work into the work of رضا before I can claim to be under the authority of رضا. If I am not transformed by him, then I am not under his authority.

From obligations to the supererogatory devotions of رضا 📿

I must not be content with the bare minimum. It is obligatory to be under his imamate, but I must go beyond the obligatory acts and reach the supererogatory devotions of رضا. I must attain these devotions so that God’s greatness, majesty and glory may be manifested within me. Yes, the obligatory acts must be performed; but supererogatory devotions are the path that carries us to the love of God. This is a hadith qudsi: No servant draws near to Me through anything like the performance of the obligations I have prescribed. Allah, the Lord of Majesty and Honour, declares emphatically that whoever wishes to draw near to Him must perform their obligations in the best possible way. Thus, whoever fulfils their obligations becomes one who is brought near to God: «فَإذَا أَحبَبتُه…». When that same believer turns to supererogatory devotions, they become devoted to performing recommended acts. When they enter the realm of supererogatory and recommended acts, I come to love them—that is, I make their being a locus for the manifestation of My proofs. Their being becomes a treasury of God’s proofs; their being becomes عَینُ الله، أُذُنُ الله، یَدُ الله. Then the sun of رضا rises from within the human soul. Yes, when a person enters the land of love, lovers enter the sanctuary of their heart; their heart becomes a private retreat for God’s lovers.

If someone has رضا, what do they lack? 💠

Now, if I move from the supererogatory observances of God’s laws to the supererogatory devotions of God’s proofs, and dwell in the land of God’s proofs—what wonders beyond words might unfold! How far might I reach? If I truly know رضا—if I come to know رضا—my being will become a treasury of suns. I will reach God’s most exalted private retreat; I will become a valley of God’s love. If someone has رضا, what do they lack? They have everything. What wonders رضا can work! God Himself has placed رضا in our hearts; let us not drive it out of our hearts. How does رضا leave our hearts? When we have a substitute for رضا, there is no longer room for رضا to remain in our hearts. When I become enamoured of this world, it means I have driven رضا away from myself. Every one of God’s proofs dwells in my heart; my heart is privy to the worship of each and every one of God’s proofs. If I guard that heart, I will hear the whispered prayers of every one of God’s proofs. But alas for my lower self: I have become so enamoured of this world that I have made my heart too small for this world; there is no room left for رضا. رضا needs a vast and pure land. A narrow, impure land is no dwelling place for رضا; it is no dwelling place for our master, Baqiyyat Allah al-Aʿẓam, may my soul be sacrificed for him.

The Ark of Salvation 🚢

It is contentment; God has adorned it: «…و زَیَّنَهُ فی قلوبِکم». And contentment itself is an adornment; it is the adornment of the believers. It adorns us; this adornment from God adorns us in this world and in the Hereafter. It is God’s supreme artist, the artist of beauty. Contentment is a matchless artist; it is God’s undying jewel, a jewel of light, forever radiant, never setting. Though it is a stranger, it is unsetting. It is the child of the one endowed with “a magnificent character”: «و إنّک لعلی خُلُقٍ عظیم». A vessel among the vessels of His Eminence Muhammad al-Mustafa:
اللهم صلّ علی محمّد و آل محمّد.
«منزلتُ أهلِ بیتی فیکم کمَنزلةِ سفینةِ نوح؛ من رکبها نجا، و من تخلّف عنها غرق». Indeed, contentment is a vessel among the vessels; this is a turbulent sea, and it keeps us safe from every danger. Every age and every era has its own storms. We must always be aboard Imam رضا’s ship, aboard the ship of his wilayah, aboard the ship of his words. By God, his words carry us through the mire of dark thoughts so gently that the human spirit hardly senses it; this is a ship made of light, of the very substance of light. When we listen with the ear of the heart to a single one of His Eminence’s luminous words, it carries us through the darkness of doubt and idolatry and brings us to the shore of salvation. The ship of رضا saves us from the storms of thought, belief, politics, knowledge, and the ethics of servitude. In this age, we cannot do without the ship of رضا. Whoever travels through this world of existence without the ship of رضا will drown. Whoever leaves the ship of رضا will not board the ship of the Imam of the Age.
اللهم صلّ علی محمّد و آلِ محمّد.

نورُ الإمام فی قلوبِ المؤمنین 🌞

We have a great treasure called رضا; we have a great light, a great store of wealth called رضا. When will we draw upon this great treasure from God? God has granted us both abundance and abundance—He has given us both wealth and all that we need to sustain it. When will we benefit from this wealth and treasure? By God, the Pure Imams (AS) are God’s light. By God, they are that very light of God which He sent down: «والله نورُ السموات و الأرض». By God, they are the illumination of the heavens and the earth. So far, we have understood this: the Pure Imams (AS) are God’s light; they are God’s sent-down lights, the very lights with which Allah has illuminated the heavens and the earth. I want to feel what a tremendous treasure and wealth I possess: «نورُ الإمام فی قلوبِ المؤمنین…»—I have repeated this blessed hadith time and again, but the ego and Satan become a veil, keeping me from reflecting on the oceanic depths of this blessed hadith: “The light of the Imam in the hearts of the believers is brighter than the radiant sun at midday”; and «هُم واللهِ یُنوّرون قلوبَ المؤمنین»—by God, they illuminate our hearts; and “—and God keeps their light veiled from whomever He wills”; «»—and their hearts sink into darkness. Indeed, the hearts of the believers are where the lights of God’s proofs shine.

The work of light: from the tiniest particle to the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary ✨

What do these lights do? These lights pierce all the darkness; they illuminate the heavens and the earth; they reveal to us all the realities of existence. What does light do? If light does not fall upon food, we cannot taste it. Light must shine on food for us to taste it; it must shine for us to enjoy the food. If light does not shine upon a mother’s heart, her heart is not moved to compassion. If light does not shine upon the human mind, a person cannot think; they cannot walk. If light does not shine upon our hearts, upon our eyes, our hearts and eyes see nothing. If it does not shine upon our ears, the ear does not hear, or, if it hears, it does not understand. All understanding we gain is through the light. If it does not shine upon our sense of taste, we cannot taste. If it does not shine upon our hearts, if it does not shine upon every cell of our souls, the cells of our souls cannot find their way. If it does not shine upon an electron, the electron cannot rush or move; there would be no atoms, no molecules. The greatness of this light is beyond anything I have said. By this light, one can behold all the heavens; by this light, one can reach Sidrat al-Muntahā and attain the knowledge of the first and the last. Indeed, we possess such an immense treasure. God has placed that treasure in our hearts. We have either imprisoned it, or we have done something so wrong that God has cast a veil over it, and our hearts have sunk into darkness without our knowing.

Is Reza a stranger? Is that sun that never sets a stranger in our hearts, or are we strangers to him? Or have we ourselves driven him into exile, made him the most estranged of the estranged? Indeed, the existence of this love is the manuscripts of Reza**; where is the *Comprehensive Book of Reza*? Let us turn our attention to that comprehensive book. What have we done at the beginning of Reza’s book that we now go searching for the book of Reza’s community? I seek the manuscript of Reza—that exalted manuscript, the comprehensive manuscript of Reza, which holds many secrets: Reza’s hidden and manifest realities. When a person dives into the ocean of Imam Reza’s (AS) words, they explore the jewels of the first and the last. Let us visit the sea of Reza’s wisdom; let us listen to his counsels.

Small sins, great roads 🚫

«Among the sins…» Why have we become separated from Reza? Sins have cut us off from Reza’s path; they have led us astray. We have lost our way; we have lost the Reza of our souls; we have extinguished the lamp of Reza in our hearts. «» Imam Reza (AS) says: The sins we regard as trivial—the very small sins—are paths that lead to great sins. Whoever commits a small sin will have a path opened to committing great sins. Whoever restrains themselves from a small sin will keep the way to great sins closed. Whoever opens this small path has opened a small breach in their heart toward sin. That breach will grow wider and reach the great gateway to the gravest sins. «» Whoever does not fear minor, small sins will not fear greater sins either. “It’s only a little thing; it doesn’t matter…” Whoever says this opens the road to a sea of sin; they will drown themselves in the mire of sin and bring disgrace upon themselves. «…» Even if God had not warned people of Hell or promised them Paradise, it would still have been right—indeed, obligatory—to obey Him and not disobey Him.

Gratitude for the blessing; gratitude to the Bestower 🤲

Even if there were no Paradise and no Hell, we would still have reason to obey Him and flee from disobedience: because of His bounty toward you, and the care He has shown you; the love and generosity He has bestowed upon you; و إحسانِه علیهم—and the goodness He has done you. And beyond all that, there is this subtle expression from the Imam: «و ما بَدَأهم…»—because He brought them into being. Yes, God brought me into being. I did not exist; He made me exist, brought me into being, gave me my beginning. What was I, after all? I was nothing. He originated me—how wondrous!—He gave me my beginning. What a marvel: I have been given such a station! How, then, can I give thanks for having been brought into being? «هُو منع الذی مُستَحِقَّه»—and because He has bestowed upon us blessings we did not deserve. Yes, He originated us—gave us our beginning—and then brought us forth anew; He made us fresh; He created us so that each of us would have no equal. He has made every single one of His creatures unlike the others; each is unique. God originates; He originates His new creations—that is, He makes fresh whatever He has brought into being (the two expressions «بدا» and «بدع» are used in this passage; since this is transcribed from audio, there may be an error)—and He has also created us. On one side He has برعان; on another He has زرعان; on yet another He has زرعان. What He has done for us, and continues to do, goes on unfolding; He extends His will to us. What was I? How, then, can I give thanks for all this supreme kindness—none of which I deserved? So, gratitude for the blessing of existence means obedience: in gratitude for the gift of my existence, my creation, my continued being, my nurture and care; because He has turned His attention to me; He has reminded me. «»—Whoever fails to give thanks to God’s creatures for a blessing received through them has not given thanks to Allah, Mighty and Majestic. We must therefore give thanks to Him by expressing gratitude for the kindness we receive through God’s servants: gratitude for material, intellectual, spiritual and religious blessings. For every kindness that reaches us through a servant of God, we should give thanks to that servant—to God’s righteous servant, the one through whom, at every moment, the presence of God sends us provision and care, the ever-connected means. How can we give thanks for the blessing of the Imam of our time? Let us thank the Imam of our time at every moment; let us turn toward him. Wherever we are in this world, let us turn our faces toward our master; let us show our gratitude to him, and thank him for being the vessel of God’s mercy. What would become of us if he were not there?

العافیة؛ الملکُ الخفیّ 👑

In Fiqh al-Riḍā, it is written: «»—in the weighty book Fiqh al-Riḍā, we are counselled as follows: Ask God, your Lord, for well-being in this world and the next; that is, well-being in this world and the next—freedom from pain and hardship in this world and the next, outward and inward health. Let us ask God for this, both in this world and in the Hereafter. Then he relates a tradition from Imam al-Riḍā (AS)—how beautiful this tradition is: Riḍā, the scholar of the Household of Muḥammad—اللهم صلّ علی محمّد و آلِ محمّد. «»—for this well-being is a hidden kingdom. What beautiful words from Imam al-Riḍā (AS)! So I was a ruler, and had no idea; I possessed well-being, I was healthy, free of pain—and I did not know that I was a king! I had no idea I was a king. «لم یُعرَف بها»—when this well-being, this hidden kingdom, is present, I possess it; I am healthy, it abides within me. I feel no pain, I have no hardship. When I am king, I do not know that I am king; I am unaware of this well-being, and pay it no heed. And ****—when it *is concealed*, when this well-being slips away, then I become aware of it; I realize that my *hidden kingdom* is lost. I have become a beggar. I was a king, and now I must beg. I did not value being a king, being a ruler! And when it is absent, its worth becomes known. There is more to the tradition; but, God willing, what particular kind of well-being does the Imam also point to? There is a particular well-being of which we are unaware: the well-being of the entire created world—its health, its freedom from pain and calamity—depends upon that sacred being. Yes, the Imam of our time—the Imam of every age—is the well-being of every age. Every single person in that community may be a ruler, a king, without knowing it. I, who am under the guardianship of the Imam of my time, am aware of him; by God, I am king of earth and heaven! I do not realize it. With him, I rule over this whole created world; without that Imam, I am a beggar—I am nothing. With that Imam, I have no pain, illness, or hardship. With him, I attain sincere servitude to God; and only through serving God does a human being become ruler of earth and heaven, with the earth and heavens made subject to them. Yes, the Imam’s guardianship has become an established kingdom within us: with God’s proof, everything; without God’s proof, nothing—nothingness.

More sin, more calamity 🌪

“When servants invent new sins—when they commit a new sin, one that had not existed before—أحدث God brings upon them affliction. He brings upon them such affliction as they had never known before. We find ourselves beset by new trials, calamities and pains that had no precedent. Yes, every new sin is accompanied by a new affliction; whoever sins will be afflicted in proportion to that sin, or more. Seek out a new sin, and you will find yourself afflicted with an incurable pain. And as for this age of multiplying sins, it has its counterpart: afflictions multiply; the multiplication of sins is accompanied by a multiplication of pain and affliction.” How many people are beset by hardship; how many incur God’s wrath without even knowing it. Where did I go astray? I have no idea. I reckon everything up; I account for it all. All my deeds are in balance. So where do all these sufferings, all this wrath, all these falls come from? If we look closely, we understand: “I gave the wealthy man a warm, lavish greeting, but my greeting to that poor, unassuming Muslim was half-hearted, listless. That was the particular slap I received—though I did not know it. I had angered my Lord, but I did not realise.” Whoever visits me—despite the distance, coming from a far-off land to visit me—و شاء الله… مزاری… أتیهِ یومَ القیامة فی ثلاثِ مواقف—at three moments on the Day of Resurrection, I will come to meet him—to visit him: ****—to save him from every *terror*, to deliver him from every dread: *—when the records of deeds are handed out to the right and the left—و عندَ الصراط—at the Bridge of Ṣirāṭ, when people stumble—و عندَ المیزان—and at the Balance—I myself will be the weight on the scales of his reckoning*.