This is research for modern understanding of Mathal based upon the ancient books of Arab:
والمِثال: القالَبُ الذي يقدَّر على مِثْله..
Ibn Al-Manzur Afriqi (Lisan Al-Arab)
Mithal is the form against which what is similar is measured/compared/decreed. ( Like a mold, shapeless takes shape from the mold)
Al-Ghazali
“I say (it is my opinion): Since the universe of Shahada (Observables) became an ‘elevator’ towards the universe of Malakut (Spiritual Realms) and Suluk (Voyage) of Sirat-Al-Mustaqim (The Straight Path) refers to this upward glide i.e. the Din (Religion, way of spiritual life) and the resting-places of the Divine Guidance, therefore if there was no relationships and connections between these universes how could then be any form or glide from one to the other?
Due to the Divine Mercy there is‘equivalence’ between the realm of Shahada (Observables) and Malakut (Realm of Spirits) i.e. entities in one realm are corresponded to the entities in the other realm! Perhaps an entity in the Malakut (Realm of Spirits) has multitudes of corresponding entities in this world. Therefore a metaphor (e.g. entering and exiting the light) becomes an ‘exhibited display’ of an analog (of something in the other universe) and therefore corresponds to an entity in another universe and this correspondence is called Al-Mutabaqah.
To understand these analogs/metaphors demands full and thorough examination of all existing entities in all universes completely and there is no way any human intellect can understand it. ( What Ghazali means is that the map is global and only global understanding can add up to complete understanding and there is no way the human intellect can have such global cognizance. )”
وأقول: لما كان عالم الشهادة مرقاة إلى عالم الملكوت، وكان سلوك الصراط المستقيم عبارة عن هذا الترقي؛ وقد يعبر عنه بالدين وبمنازل الهدى- فلو لم يكن بينهما مناسبة واتصال لما تصور الترقي من أحدهما إلى الآخر- جعلت الرحمة الإلهية عالم الشهادة على موازنة عالم الملكوت: فما من شيء من هذا العالم إلا وهو مثال لشيء من ذلك العالم. وربما كان الشيء الواحد مثالا لأشياء من عالم الملكوت. وربما كان للشيء الواحد من الملكوت أمثلة كثيرة من عالم الشهادة. وإنما يكون مثالا إذا ماثله نوعا من المماثلة، وطابقه نوعا من المطابقة. وإحصاء تلك الأمثلة يستدعي استقصاء جميع موجودات العالمين بأسرها، ولن تفي به القوة البشرية وما اتسع لفهمه القوة البشرية.
Conformal Maps, as examples, were used to render the concepts of the mapping/projecting between the Malakut (Realm of Spirits) and Shahada (Realm of observables). They are used for mapping the spherical surface of the earth to a flat area in order to make accurate geographic maps where the angles are preserved.
Similarly the Muqabala and Mutabaqa are mapmaking tools at our disposal to map the realm of spirits into our corporeal here to understand what is happening i.e. friendship of Allah and how it is supplied and used and how friendship of other than Allah abused.
Another way some scholars and Sufis have laid out this concept is:
For every entity in the spiritual realm there is a counter-part in our material universe. So there is something in spiritual realm i.e. peacock but has a counterpart here the living peacock.
From one of my own spiritual experiences this Mutabaqa was experienced with a different texture:
In infinite past (Qidam) there was a creature i.e. peacock, at this present moment there is an extant biological FOSSIL of that creature (in Qidam) which we know as the bird peacock.
Indeed each one of us is as such anyway. For each one of us there is counterpart in the spiritual realm. Or each one of us is a living fossil of a terrific creature in infinite past.
Remark: As the regular fossils are simply hardened caricature of an original magnificent creature, us the human beings are the soft-tissued caricature fossil of an incredible creature in spiritual realm!
Salaam Shaikha
I believe your suggestion is fairly valid within this context and usage of Mutabaqa.
‘all-embracing entities’ need to be explained more but I think you have a good concept here
Wondering about the mutabaqa, Jalal. Could they be small/local phenomena in the physical universe corresponding to all-embracing entities in the malakut? It seems to me that might be possible but I’d be glad of your take on that.
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