Manuscript volume 12 · Page 287

أصحاب موطن الظاهر، فذهلوا عن الجواب لقرينة حال موطنهم، ولو وفوا به كان أحسن في حقهم، فنبههم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم على الأكمل في موطنه. وهو المعلم، فنعم المؤدب.

فمن أراد تحقيق ملك الآلاء فليتدبر سورة الرحمن من القرآن، وينظر إلى تقديم الإنس على الجن في آيتها، وقوله -تعالى-: ﴿خلق الإنسان﴾ [الرحمن: ٣] أيضا، فابتدأ به تقديرا، ومرتبة نطقية تهمما به على الجن، وإن كان الجن موجودا قبله (وهذا) يؤذن بأنه، وإن تأخرت نشأته، فهو المعتنى به في غيب ربه؛ لأنه المقصود من العالم؛ لما خصه به من كمال الصورة في خلقه باليدين، وعلمه الأسماء، والإفصاح عما علمه بقوله: ﴿علمه البيان﴾ [الرحمن: ٤] .

وبعض أصحابنا يطلق ملك الآلاء على ما يحصل للعبد من مزيد الشكر على نعم الله، فذلك القدر لمن حصل له يسمى ملك الآلاء، فهو ملك الشاكرين. فمن شكر نعم الله بلسان حق (فهو صاحب ملك الآلاء)، وناب الحق مناب العبد من اسمه الشكور: وهو شكره لعباده على ما كان منهم من شكرهم على ما أنعم عليهم، ليزيدوا في الأعمال في مقابلة شكره، فيكون ما جازاهم به من ذٰلك على قدر علم الشاكر بالمشكور. والله هو الشاكر في هٰذا الحال، وهو العالم بنفسه. فالجزاء الذي يليق بهذا الشاكر -لو جوزي- هو الذي يحصل لهؤلاء الشاكرين الذين لهم هٰذا

the people of the outward domain. They were distracted from answering through the accompanying condition of their domain. Had they fulfilled it, it would have been better for them. God's Messenger, God bless him and grant him peace, thus alerted them to what is more complete in its proper situation. He is the teacher: how excellent an instructor in courtesy!

Whoever wishes to realize the dominion of bounties should ponder Sūrat al-Raḥmān in the Qurʾan, observing the placing of humans before jinn in its verse, and also His saying, exalted is He, “He created the human being” [55:3]. He thus begins with him in determination and in the order of utterance, out of solicitude for him above the jinn, although the jinn existed before him. This indicates that, although his constitution came later, he is the object of care in his Lord's unseen, for he is what is intended by the world. He was singled out for completeness of form through being created with the two hands, taught the names, and given expression of what he knew, through His saying: “He taught him articulate expression” [55:4].

Some of our companions apply “the dominion of bounties” to the increase in gratitude for God's blessings that the servant attains. This measure is called the dominion of bounties for whoever attains it: it is the dominion of the thankful. Whoever thanks God for His blessings with the tongue of the Real possesses the dominion of bounties. The Real acts in the servant's place through His name the Thankful: this is His thanking His servants for their thanking Him for the blessings He bestowed upon them, so that they may increase in works in response to His thanks. His recompense to them for this is according to the thanker's knowledge of the one thanked. In this state God is the thanker, and He knows Himself. The recompense appropriate to this thanker, were He recompensed, is therefore what those thankful people who possess this