The Language of the Future

Sufi Terminology by Murshid F.A. Ali ElSenossi

hulul
Incarnation

(Hulul). This word implies the indwelling of the Divine in man, which is the entering of one thing into another. Incarnation (Hulul) and unification are considered to be heretical doctrines. They have been condemned by the Men of Allah; those who know that 'the slave remains the slave and the Lord remains the Lord' no matter how close they are to each other, and that 'Only Allah knows Allah, and only Allah sees Allah, and only Allah worships Allah'. He who is lost in Allah, is not Allah Himself. The hululis are the adherents of the doctrine of incarnation.

See also: Hu Spiritual Concert Unificationism Union Union of Union

'He'. Hu stands for the Essence Itself. It stands for 'He Who is Absent'. Dhikr of 'Hu' is one of the most powerful words of Remembrance. When the lover is annihilated in the Essence Itself, there is no duality, no dhikr of 'Hu' - only Oneness, only the Beloved. When 'He' is no longer absent, who is there to call to? The Principle insofar as It is Itself; the Essence beyond the Qualities. The mystery of Ipseity, of Essentiality, of Aseity.
Hu

(Sama'). The spiritual concert or 'audition' or 'listening'. This term refers specifically to the Sufi gatherings where music and song are employed as a means of opening the heart to inrushes of knowledge and awareness. During the spritual concert, the listener may experience ecstasy and find Allah, The Real within that ecstasy. However, before true ecstasy can be experienced the listener must be spiritually mature, having been prepared through discipline and perpetual Remembrance of Allah. Without this initial contraction of spiritual endeavour the expansion of ecstasy will not be real. The Spiritual Concert is not suitable for the novice. True Sama' is a bird which flies from Allah to Allah. Allah is the singer and Allah is the hearer. At this Divine Feast the singer and the hearer become One.
Spiritual Concert

(Ittihad). 'Unificationism' or the 'coming together of two things'. Ittihad is considered to be an heretical doctrine in that it presupposes the existence of two independent beings, and this is in contradiction to the concept of Unity of Existence or Oneness of Being (Wahdat al Wujud). When taken to mean 'union' then ittihad is used in the sense that things are non-existent and their existence is Allah's. It may also refer to the experience of oneness with Allah.
Unificationism

(Wasl/Wusul). Union or joining. This term contains the idea of duality because of the joining, or union, between two. In complete union there is no duality whatsoever. Therefore, wasl is inferior to complete union. Through being the Divinity, Allah is perpetually in a state of wasl with engendered existence. "He is with you wherever you are" (The Qur'an 57:4).
Union

(Jam' al Jam'). Gathering of the gathering. Jam' al jam' is the experience of union devoid of all distinctions, even of the idea of being one with Allah. This is the station of 'Two Bows' Length', the station of Perfection which is attained only by the greatest Perfect Men, who are the Prophets and the great saints. The Gathering of the gathering is also known as 'The Station of Great Glory'. This is also Unity in Multiplicity. Annihilation in totality in Allah – in the Presence of the Divine Beauty. This is the opposite of farq (separation). This is Unity without separation. To gather that which belongs to Allah within you and surrender all of it to Him is real surrender. In the cosmos, there is nothing but Allah, His Names and His attributes. In short, this is called jama’. When we say jam’, it is the centre of multiplicity.
Union of Union
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