Post by yusuf on Oct 14, 2019 7:57:57 GMT
As-Salaam alaikum,
As one undertakes the journey to Allah Ta'ala, there are three (3) stages of fana'... whereby one negates himself or herself, but only looks upon his Lord:--
(1) The first stage is transcendence of attributes (sifat), dispositions (akhlaq) and natural (taba'i) desires.
You attain to this by carrying out your duties, by striving hard and by opposing the carnal soul (al-nafs)
and denying it its desires through imposing on it unpleasant things.
(2) The second stage of fana is that you relinquish all thought of joy and pleasure that you may get in
obeying Allah's Commands. You attain to this stage when you comply to the demands of Allah purely
for His sake.
(3) The third stage of fana is that you cease to be conscious of your ecstatic experience (of Allah) as a
result of overwhelming vision of Allah's witness (shahid) to you. At this stage you die as well as live,
and you live in reality, for you die to yourself and live by Allah. Your personal characteristics (rasm)
survive, but your independent existence ('ism) vanishes."
Source: Abdel-Kadir, ''Rasa'il -l-Junayd''-page 55