In one of his letters Sharafuddin Maneri speaks of purity: ‘The first step
is to see that one’s body, clothes, and food are pure and lawful. All one’s
senses should be purified of sin and rebellion. As for one’s heart, it should
be cleansed of all blameworthy qualities, such as avarice, jealousy, rancour
and other similar things.When this first degree of purity has been achieved,
then the disciple has taken a step forward on the path of religion; when the
second degree of purity has been achieved, he has progressed, and with the
third degree, has taken the three steps.’
6
The essence of
tawba
is to turn the disciple from impurity to purity.The
purity of the heart is the final stage in this spiritual journey. God becomes
his constant guardian. He starts living under His ever-watchful eye.
In another letter Sharafuddin Maneri explains the difference between
the
shariah
and the
tariqa
. The
shariah
purifies the heart, cleanses it of all
moral evils like hypocrisy, avarice, greed and so on. The
shariah
or religion
deals with external conduct and bodily purification, while the
tariqa
or path
deals with the inner purification. The one is like matter or the body. The
other is like the spirit or the soul.
7
In letter 28th
8
, he writes of the importance of organizing one’s day
around the five prayers and spending time in the remembrance of God,
reciting the Divine names and in repentance. Part of the time should be
spent in the company of the master. In the evening, time should be set
apart for introspection and reviewing the gains and losses incurred during
the day in terms of spirituality. While going to bed one should continue
recitations, and one should try to get up in the latter part of the night
before dawn to perform
dhikr
.
6
Chapter 29: Purity, ibid,.pp. 115-116
7
Chapter 25: The Law and The Way; Chapter 26: The Law and the Truth, ibid., pp.101-107
8
Chapter 28: Fixing Ones’ Spiritual Routine from the Outset, ibid., pp. 111-115
Th e F i r d a u s i Or d e r 190
