The Fourth Luminous Degree of HasbiyyaRefers to the Qur’anic expression Hasbunallāhu wa Ni‘mal-Wakīl, meaning “Allah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Disposer of affairs."

Once, when the afflictions of old age, exile, illness, and defeat shook my very being, they came upon me at a moment of heedlessness. I was overcome by the painful fear that my own existence, to which I was so deeply attached, along with the existence of all other creatures, was passing into non-existence.

In this state, I turned once again to the verse:

حَسْبُنَا اللّٰهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكٖيلُAllah is sufficient for us, and He is the best Protector. — The Qur’an 3:173

It was as though the verse said to me:

“Reflect upon my meaning, and look through the lens of īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar)..”

I looked, and through the lens of īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar)., I saw that my insignificant existence, like that of every believer, is in reality a mirror reflecting boundless existence. Through an infinite expansion, it becomes a means of attaining countless forms of existence. It is a word filled with wisdom, bearing many enduring fruits of existence more precious than itself.

With the certainty of ilm al-yaqīnCertainty through knowledge; a level of certainty attained through reliable knowledge, evidence, and reasoning, without directly witnessing or experiencing the reality concerned., I understood that, through this bond of belonging, even a single moment of such a life is as precious as an existence that endures forever.

For through the awareness bestowed by īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar)., I came to understand that my existence is a work of art fashioned by the Necessarily Existent One, a manifestation of His Divine artistry. Through this realisation, I was freed from dreadful fears, countless separations, and the innumerable sorrows arising from them.

I also understood that I am connected to all beings, particularly living beings, through countless bonds of brotherhood arising from the Divine acts and Names manifested in creation. Thus, I came to know that within every temporary separation from all that I love, there lies, in reality, an enduring reunion.

In this way, through īmānFaith; belief in the six articles of faith: Allah, His angels, His revealed scriptures, His prophets, the Hereafter, and divine decree (qadar). and the bond of belonging it establishes, my existence, like that of every believer, acquires the radiant light of countless forms of existence untouched by separation. Even when my own existence passes away, those other beings continue to exist, and I find contentment as though I myself had remained.

In short, death is not separation, but reunion; it is a change of dwelling place, the sprouting of an enduring fruit.