Ecology and Tasawwuf

Shahidan Radiman School of Applied Physics Faculty of Science and Technology UKM E-mail: shahidan@ukm.my
Bengkel PengIslaman Ekologi dan Kajian Alam Sekitar anjuran ASASI (10-11 Mei 2008, EiMAS , UKM)

The quintessence of ecology was, of course, expressed in the Koran: BismillahirRahmanirRahim -Eat, drink, but do not waste. (7: 31)

Content of Talk
I. Statement of Current Ecology Problems around the World II. Background of Talk III. The less known world of Tasawwuf IV. Ecological Ethics to be developed from Tasawwuf V. Tasawwuf in Modern Pespective and the Future. VI. Conclusions

I. Statement of Current Ecology Problems around the World

The roots of our ecological crises are axiomatic : they lie in our belief and value structures which shape our relationship with nature , with each other and the lifestyles we lead Ziauddin Sardar , Islamic Futures p218 , 1985.

 can we check this threat to our planet simply by introducing stricter legislation against pollution , industrial waste and nuclear spills? Can we reverse the degradation of our environment by adopting conservationist policies on both national and international levels? O could it be that the whole ecological imbalance betokens the spiritual and teleological crisis of modren civilisation itself? Does it require fundamental revision of our own way of life , our cherished goals , indeed our very conception of ourselves and the world? Parveez Manzoor , in Touch of Midas, 1985 ( Edit. Z. Sardar)

 This

There is no consensus about the form which in environmental ethic should take. There have been long (and inconclusive) debates about whether an environmental ethic should be a (Kantian) ethic of principles to guide our actions with respect to the natural world, or a utilitarian ethic of consequences according to which our activities with respect to the natural world should be concerned above all with mitigating destructive environmental consequences, or a virtue ethic according to which we should be primarily concerned with the development of virtuous dispositions for 2 agents when they make choices that affect the natural world. Each of these approaches has been explored at length and each of them has been found to be problematic.

gives rise to the need of ecological ethics:

Approaches to Ecological Ethics

1.

Process Ecological Ethics (Christian viewpoint) Process metaphysical systems are mostly theistic, though even in the Whiteheadian camp there are also non-theistic versions (esp. Donald Sherburne). For our purposes, we may distinguish a spectrum of views from minimal religious naturalism' (Stone, 1993) to various maximal possibilities. Minimal religious naturalism talks in terms of immanent and transcendent resources for the task of living together in the natural world, without specifying a single metaphysical source for these resources. There is in our lives, for example, a lure towards goodness, truth and beauty, and perhaps something analogous to this further down the line.

There are a variety of maximal theistic versions, Whitehead, Hartshorne, Cobb, Griffin, Suchocki, the Christian Trinitarianism of Joe Bracken to mention some of them. Typically and deriving from Whitehead, God is noted as principle of limitation providing a kind of focus for the cosmic process; also as principle of possibility and of novelty within the process. There is also a fairly common division made between the Primordial Nature and the Consequent Nature of God, with sometimes also a Projective or Superjective Nature.thrown in. Roughly, this comes down to, God as Creative, God as Receptive and God as Responsive. There is also the God as Primordial Qualification of Creativity of the Belgian philosopher Jan Van der Veken.

1.

2.

3.

Originally published in 1972, Is It Too Late? A Theology of Ecology, by John B. Cobb, Jr., was the first single-authored book-length environmental ethics text to deal with the ecological crisis. Originally published in 1989 by Prentice Hall, Foundations of Environmental Ethics, by Eugene C. Hargrove, is an investigation of the history of ideas behind environmentalism generally and environmental ethics specifically. Max Oelschlaeger is the author of The Idea of Wilderness, The Environmental Imperative, and Religion in a Time of Ecological Crisis and the editor of The Wilderness Condition

Early Books on Theocentric Approaches

More recently , Ecological Ethics in general: 1.Earth's Insights: A Multicultural Survey of Ecological Ethics from the Mediterranean Basin to the Australian Outback (Paperback) by J. Baird Callicott (Author) "Since the 1960s, those Western scholars who responded professionally to industrial civilization's environmental crisis have argued that an implicit environmental ethic has existed in many..." Publisher: University of California Press (December 29, 1997) Language: English ISBN-10: 0520085604 ISBN-13: 978-0520085602 2. Ecological Ethics: An Introduction (Paperback) by Patrick Curry (Author) Publisher: Polity (November 11, 2005) Language: English ISBN-10: 0745629083

Ecological Ethics
Something is rightwhen it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community; it is wrong when it does otherwise. (Leopold, 1966)

Some remarks by Ecologists/Environmentalists

Constructing a sustainable world is a challenge to society on many levels. It is a philosophical challenge to construct a robust set of beliefs and values which provide support for the principle of sustainability. It is an economic challenge to build the technological infrastructure to support human flourishing in a sustainable world. This will increasingly be identified with a carbon-neutral economy. -William Grey , Univ. of Queensland.

We also need environmental philosophy

Celia Deane-Drummond in The Ethics of Nature (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 2004) says the following: ..to be credible an environmental philosophy needs to have four key components. These consist of: (a) a theory about what nature is; (b) a theory about human beings; (c) a theory of value and evaluation of human action; (d) a theory of method, or standards against which claims are to be tested or confirmed. (p31)

Islam as a holistic religion have it all (ethics , philosophy etc)

Of

course we can start with the syariah , the law and regulations but we shouldnt neglect the other 3 aspects ( tareqah , makrifah and haqiqah , the reality of things) It is the point of this talk to stress on the tasawwuf , the last 3 aspects mentioned , as the way of the Sufi.

II. Background of Talk

Islam comes from the Quran and the Prophet s.a.w (Sunnah) in 4 forms: Syariah the rules and regulations and jurisprudence Tareqah the Sunnah of doing the rituals Makrifah what Rasulullah s.a.w put in the heart Haqiqah gnosis of Allah s.w.t ,what Rasulullah s.a.w feeled.

The Syariah has always been stressed in many forms of Islamic law , however the tareqah , makrifah and haqiqah aspects has generally been neglected by the Ummah. (It is also for this reason that the Ummah has undergone a declination) The repositories of these has been the Sufis of various tareqah al muktabarah e.g Naqshabandi , Chisti , Shadzili, Ahmadi , Rifai, Shattari and others.

Religion approach towards Ecology Crisis has been started by Mary E.Tucker and John Grim , Harvard Divinity School who started to Conference series Religions of the World and Ecology since 1996. (see Tucker and Grim, Daedalus , Fall, 2001)
The approach of Tasawwuf or Sufism has aspects of Universality especially among those of the Samawi Religions . (see S.Nomanul Haq , Daedalus , Fall 2001)

One main result of the Religions of the World and Ecology conference series is a book :

Islam and Ecology : A Bestowed Trust Edited by R.Foltz,F.Denny dan Azizan Baharuddin , Harvard Univ. Press , 2003.

An important aspect in Sufism is the following :

Advice of the Nobles Apostle (s) to Abu Dharr Ghifari, may God be pleased wide him:

`Worship God as if you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, then worship Him as if knowing that He sees you.'

A hadith qudsi which is central in Sufi literature

Allah

s.w.t says I was a Hidden treasure , I loved to be known , so I created the world in order to become known It has now become a doctrine in Sufi literature that the world is created via the Act of Love (we will discuss this aspect from alFarghanis viewpoint later)

Example of Newpaper report on the role of religion concerning the environment Environmental ethics, religion and survival By Vivian Pulle On 27th June 2007, the Daily Mirror in an introduction to Judge Weeramantrys article entitled Islam, the environment and the human future, called for readers to contribute towards achieving inter religious understanding through readers themselves contributing articles on the attitude to problems concerning the environment of one or other of the great world religions which have occupied a long standing, respected place among the indigenous population of Sri Lanka. Judge Weeramantrys presentation on Islam made to the World Future Council in Hamburg was offered as a case in point. Without contesting the excellence of the presentation, one note nevertheless that religion can contribute to the cause of human survival only in the long term. The word problem no longer adequately describes the seriousness of the current global situation. What we have on our hands today is a global emergency and one may legitimately ask what this kind of discussion can contribute to the worlds predicament. The world needs action and needs it fast.

III.The less known World of Tasawwuf

The opposite of knowledge (scientific) is ignorance, while the opposite of marifa is denial. Marifa is the substance of knowledge attained through reflection, intuition, and inner perception. A person realizing marifa is imperceptible to others, who are without such knowledge. The following words are narrated in books concerning Sufism as a hadith qudsi-saying inspited by and received from God -

O humankind! One who knows his self also knows Me; one who knows Me seeks Me, and one who seeks Me certainly finds Me; one who finds me attains all his aspirations and expectations, and prefers none over Me. Oh humankind! Be humble that you can have knowledge of Me. One who renounces his self finds me. In order to know Me, renounce your own self. A heart which has not flourished and been perfected is blind.

In Sufism Tazkiyah an Nafs is particularly stressed and guided by a mursyid teacher to attain the maqam Ihsan there is a 100 stations to reach Allah as described by Sh. Abdullah Ansari of Herat, based on ayat 9 surah As Syams 91 : Qad aflahaman zakkaha
Lowness of ego and self-control as pointed out in ayat 45 surah al Baqarah 2:

Innaha lakabiratun illa alal khasiin

According to Ibn Qayyim al Jauziyah there are 4 jihad which is wajib upon a Muslim that is : to reduce the ego, the fight the nafs , to fight against syaitan dan do not fall prey into love of the world (hubuddunya)

It is also for this reason that Saidina Ali kar. was called Abu Turab (father of soil) by Prophet s.a.w

The road to Sufism is not easy

If you do not give up the crowds you won't find your way to Oneness. If you do not drop your self you won't find your true worth. If you do not offer all you have to the Beloved, you will live this life free of that pain which makes it worth living. - Shaikh Abu Saeed Abil Khair - "Nobody, Son of Nobody" - Vraje Abramian

Views of the 4 Imams of Mazhab regarding Sufism

Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal r.a praised Hariths al-Muhasibi by saying I have never heard words on the knowledge of haqiqah better than that from him . Imam Abu Hanifah r.a bacame a Sufi under the teaching of Imam Jaafar As Sadiq r.a, whereas Imam Shafie was the disciple of Imam Abu Hanifah r.a.

"Sufism" has been defined as a type of knowledge by the great Sufi masters. Shaykh Ahmad Zarruq, a 14th century Sufi who wrote "The Principles of Sufism" defined Sufism as, "a science whose objective is the reparation of the heart and turning it away from all else but God. Ibn 'Ajiba, one of the best known Sufi masters defined Sufism as "a science through which one can know how to travel into the presence of the Divine, purify ones inward from filth and beautify it with a variety of praiseworthy traits."

The conventional view is that the word originates from Suf (), the Arabic word for wool, referring to the simple cloaks the early Muslim ascetics wore. However, not all sufis wear cloaks or clothes of wool. Another etymological theory states that the root word of Sufi is the Arabic word safa (), meaning purity. This places the emphasis of Sufism on purity of heart and soul. Others suggest the origin is from "Ashab alSuffa" ("Companions of the Veranda") or "Ahl al-Suffa" ("People of the Veranda"), who were a group of Muslims during the time of the Prophet Muhammad s.a.w who spent much of their time on the veranda of the Prophet's mosque devoted to prayer.

The Sufis stressed on Inner rather than Outer dimensions

The position of the spiritual centers (Lataif) is as under:

The theory of Lataif was formulated during the early development of Sufism ( Hasan basri , Junaid al Baghdadi and others ) but was finalised by work of Syed Ahmad Sirhind and Shah Waliyullah Dehlavi

All creatures are under the dominion of Allah s.w.t.

In one hadith from Sunan Abu Daud Rasulullah s.a.w made dua : O Allah , I swear that all of Your makhluk are brothers !

One important principle in Sufism is to apply the akhlak of Allah to oneself:

Sadi, the famous Persian poetand Sufi , echoed the same sentiments when he said:

(Higher spiritual life is nothing but service of humanity, It is not (chanting) the rosary, (remaining on the) prayer carpet or (wearing) coarse garments.)

Shaikh Abu Said Abil Khair on of a Famous Khurasaian Sufi has his motto in life:

(Whoever causes grief to us, May his life get more and more happiness.)

Their approach towards human relationships is neatly expressed in the imagery of eyes:

(Learn from the eyes the way to develop unity and oneness. The two eyes appear different but their vision is one.) This reflect the view of many of the Sufi paths

Some of the early Sufi resources are the following: Al-Wasaya wa al-Ri'aya (The Advices and Observation of Rules) by al-Muhasibi, Al-Ta'arruf li-Madhhab Ahl al-Sufi (A Description of the Way of the People of Sufism) byKalabazi, Al-Luma' (The Gleams) by al-Tusi, Qut al-Qulub (The Food of Hearts) by Abu Talib al-Makki, and Al-Risala al-Qushayri (The Treatise) by alQushayri are among the precious sources that discuss Sufism according to the Qur'an and the Sunna.

After these great compilers came Hujjat alIslam Imam al-Ghazzali, author of Ihya' al'Ulum al-Din (Reviving the Religious Sciences), his most celebrated work. He reviewed all of Sufism's terms, principles, and rules, and, establishing those agreed upon by all Sufi masters and criticizing others, united the outer (Shari'a and jurisprudence) and inner (Sufi) dimensions of Islam.

Love (mahabbah) as the Cause of Self-Manifestation (tajalliyat) of the Absolute Mystery ( viewpoint of Said al Din al Farghani)

Said al Din Abu Uthman Muhammad al Farghani is the disciple of Sadr al Din al-Qunawi who is the foremost disciple of Ibn Arabi. When young he was initiated into Suhrawardiyya Order .

According to al-Farghani ( see Scattolin , JMIAS 29, 2006 pp33 -) the Original Love ( Gods love for Himself) coming from the Absolute Mystery was the original impulse that drove towards the completion of the process of manifestation (kalam al-zuhur).Such a process is compared to the flowing of the breath (nafas) in the act of breathing.

This creative breath by which everything comes into existence is caklled Nafas ar_Rahman ( Breath of the All-Merciful) and it is breathed from the Original Love (al mahabba al-asliyya) and the Essential mercy (al rahma al-Dzatiyya) of the Essence. The designation of the first two SelfManifestation of the Divine Essence are alahadiyya and al-wahidiyya ( this has been accepted by all Sufi Orders ) the 7 levels of manifestation , the First Manifestation (tajalli alawwal) of which is called reality of Realities ((haqiqat al-haqaiq). The station of the nearest (aw adna) is the station attained by Prophet Muhammad s.a.w , he alone reached the highest level of nearness i.e the Absolute Unity ( Ahadiyya ) whereas other prophets and saints can only reach the station of the distance of two extremes of the bow ( qab qawsayn) corresponding to the level of Related Unity ( al Wahidiyya).

Since the Universe and whatever is contained in it is created from Love , then everything is is related by Love and they should be in harmony and bliss . Islam in fact is the religion of Love as written in many Sufi literature . In fact, the prophet of Islam , Muhammad s.a.w is Habiballah ( the Lover of Allah) and he is rahmatul lil alamin Mercy for all the Worlds the Malaikah, the jinn, the man , the animal and the plant Kingdoms. We should learn and take example from the glorious life of Prophet Muhammad s.a.w about how he treated the animals and plants there are many hadiths about how animals and plants talk to him.

New Paradigm Thinking in Science, by Fritjof Capra (These ideas are in line with the Syariah as well as Sufism )
The old scientific paradigm may be called Cartesian, Newtonian, or Baconian, since its main characteristics were formulated by Descartes, Newton and Bacon. The new paradigm may be called holistic, ecological, or systemic, but none of these adjectives characterises it completely. New-paradigm thinking in science includes the following five criteria - the first two refer to our view of nature, the other three to our epistemology.

1. Shift from the Part to the Whole In the old paradigm it was believed that in any complex system the dynamics of the whole could be understood from the properties of the parts. In the new paradigm, the relationship between the parts and the whole is reversed. The properties of the parts can be understood only from the dynamics of the whole. Ultimately, there are no parts at all. What we call a part is merely a pattern in an inseparable web of relationships. 2. Shift from Structure to Process In the old paradigm it was thought that there were fundamental structures, and then there were forces and mechanisms through which these interacted, thus giving rise to processes. In the new paradigm every structure is seen as the manifestation of an underlying process. The entire web of relationships is intrinsically dynamic.

3. Shift from Objective Science to "Epistemic Science" In the old paradigm scientific descriptions were believed to be objective, i.e. independent of the human observer and the process of knowledge.
In the new paradigm it is believed that epistemology - the understanding of the process of knowledge - is to be included explicitly in the description of natural phenomena. At this point there is no consensus about what the proper epistemology is, but there is an emerging consensus that epistemology will have to be an integral part of every scientific theory.

4. Shift from Building to Network as Metaphor of Knowledge The metaphor of knowledge as building - fundamental laws, fundamental principles, basic building blocks, etc - has been used in Western science and philosophy for thousands of years. During paradigm shifts it was felt that the foundations of knowledge were crumbling. In the new paradigm this metaphor is being replaced by that of the network. As we perceive reality as a network of relationships, our descriptions, too, form an interconnected network representing the observed phenomena.

5. Shift from Truth to Approximate Descriptions The Cartesian paradigm was based on the belief that scientific knowledge could achieve absolute certainty. In the new paradigm, it is recognised that all concepts, theories, and findings are limited and approximate. Science can never provide any complete and definitive understanding of reality. Scientists do not deal with truth (in the sense of exact correspondence between the description and the described phenomena); they deal with limited and approximate descriptions of reality.

Key concepts in Tasawwuf/Sufism

Muraqabah

Tawbah
Jihad

al-Nafs and the 7 nafs (and the Lataif). Stages in tazkiya to attain makrifah and seeing Reality as in the dua of Rasulullah s.a.w: O Allah , make me see the truth as truth and the batil as batil

The World of Nature (in Sufi literature): Water (sea , lakes , glaciers etc) the dominion of Khidr a.s Land (forests , hills, mountains , islands etc) the dominion of Ilyas a.s So, these resources are not be spoilt but looked after to respect these Prophets.

Nature and al-Quran: The Universe as a whole is Quran Tadwini whereas the real al-Quran (the Kitab) is Quran Taqwini.
If you destroy Nature, youre destroying the al-Quran. In fact, one day (near Kiamah) the Quran will be lifted! And thats when humanity is at its worst stage !

 Man

and God relationship: For man to reach God they need Muhammad s.a.w and also the anbiya a.s . Without them , you cannot do tawassul , no tabarruk , no selawat , no dua , etc. On the other hand , without Nature and environment , man would not be able to understand himself ( as a creature of God) and thereby will not be able to know God (as Creator).

The secrets to understanding God is through the tasbih of all the creatures : e.g Daud a.s do the tasbih followed by mountains and birds . Of course , at the higher and deeper level, the tasbih and dua of Angels are to be followed e.g dua Kanz al-Arash.
See for e.g Tasbih al Kawn by Dr. Ahmad Syauqi Ibrahim (Nahdhah , Cairo 2004) So, how can you know God if you destroy Nature?

In Nature/Universe is reflected infinitude of Gods Name and Attributes.

Grand Unification scheme in High Energy Physics and Anthropic Principles in Cosmology all point towards Tawhidic principle.

These Tawhidic principles are revealed by concrete physical laws but yet defy understanding e.g CP violation , quantum non-locality etc. So , you need Nature to understand yourself to understand and attained Allah ( liqaullah)

 We

understand Nature by Duality e.g wave-matter , time-space, deterministic-chaotic , BosonFermion etc , so is God known through duality (of opposites) : The First The Last , the Outer the Inner , the Creator the Annihilator etc.

So, if you destroy Nature , you wont be able to understand God. Even if you dont destroy Nature ( i.e you preserve them) you wont understand God until you experience it yourself like Sufis do!

 As

revealed by studies in Quantum Mechanics and Complexity , tasawwuf bring you back to your nature (fitrah) and the Universe and Nature is that fitrah heritage ( the macrocosmos) to which your are suppose to be identified ( make identical to you , because you are microcosmos). So, you must be harmonious to Nature !

Either you believe/practice Wihdatul Wujud or you believe/practice Wihdatus Syuhud , you have to be with Nature !
Quantum Mechanics (operational at Cosmological scale as well as femtoscale), causality as exemplified by Al-Ghazali is occasionalistic ! Quantum Cosmology and Transplanckian footprints suggest

I was a hidden treasure and I wanted to be known .

Universality of Gods Law at all lengthscale

This idea of Universality ( from galazy formation of bacterial colonies and shapes of leaves) is exemplified in Fractals and Multifractal .

At the abstract level , this universality comes in the form of Renormalisable theory and universal critical indices. If you destroy nature and the environment , then you will destroy evidence of these at some lengscales !

What chastisement for those who destroy Gods sculpture?

We

all know what is the chastisement for those who paint or sculptor figures ( not allowed in Islam ). What do you expect (on the other hand) a person or people who destroy Gods sculpture and creations ( the flora and fauna , landscapes etc )?

IV. Ecological ethics to be developed from Tasawwuf

In

general it can be said that once human behaviour is under Gods pleasure , everything else will be harmonious to him and this start by being able to inculcate the traits of mahmuda and destroying/leaving the traits of mazmuma.

A model of Hakim Tirmidhi (kitab Manazil al Ubbad min al- Ibadah)

Steps Action/ exemplified
1.Tawbah** Comes after muraqabah -Rasulullah s.a.w perform Istigfar 70x daily 2. Zuhud live economically Look into the life of the Sahabah r.a Taken by disciples of Malamatiyya (the path of the blame)

3.Jihad/tazkiya al-Nafs Lower oneself to the point of abd ( slave of Allah)

4. Love (hubb) of Allah (and Rasulullah s.a.w) 5. Control of Nafs 6. Tawaqqul 7. Nearness (qurb) to Allah ** a surah in the al-Quran

Exemplified by al-Hariths al Muhasibi

Exemplified by Rabia al Adawiyya , Rumi , Ibn Arabi, Ahmad al-Ghazali The nafs is 1000x stronger than syaitan Total reliance to Allah s.w.t and no dependence on own effort Alim rabbani know what God want from you every second

Knowing and then attaining the accepted Nafs a model base on 7 types of Nafs The 7 types of Nafs are : 1.Nafs i-ammara ( The commanding self) 2. Nafs-i-lawwama (The regretful self) 3. Nafs-i-mulhamma (The inspired self) 4. Nafs-i-mutmainna ( The contented self) 5. Nafs-i-radhiyya ( The pleased self) 6. Nafs-i-mardhiyya (The pleasing self) 7. Nafs-i-kamaliyya /safiyya (The complete/pure self)

Sufis know that the lowest accepted nafs by Allah is Nafs-i-mutmainna. So, you must at least attain this nafs.
1.

To purge Nafs-i-ammara you have to throw away the following : false pride (takabbur) , greed (hirs) , jealousy (hasad) , lust (shahwa) , backbiting (ghibah) , stinginess ( bakhil) and malice (keena). This is just a stage of awakening, nafs-i-lawwama Nafs-i-mulhamma is the stage of action and you need the following qualities ( laid down by Saidina Abbas Ibn Abdul Mutallib r.a): (i) tajil (swiftness) in doing good deeds (ii) tahqir (contempt) you must look at your own good deeds with comtempt (iii) secrecy (ikhfa) you must keep secret all your good deeds forever

1.

3. Nafs-i-mutmainna this is the ideal beginning stage for a Sufi 4. Nafs-i-radhiyya one is pleased with whatever comes from Allah s.w.t and doesnt live in the past opr future and become ibn waqt. The Sufi will say Ilahi anta maqsudi waridhaka matlubi 5. Nafs-i- mardhiya here , the akhlaq of the person follows that of Rasulullah s.a.w and Allah s.w.t . He is at peace with humanity and Nature. 6. Nafs-i-kamaliyya the person is dressed with the attributes of Insanul Kamil (the Perfect Man) exemplified by Rasulullah s.a.w and the anbiya a.s

Examples from the various Sufi orders

A. The Qadiriyya Order This order emphasize (i) emptying the sirr from all thoughts other than God (ii) purification of self from blameable , animal and satanic qualities. Human spirit comes from alam Amr and reflect Divine Effulgence , thus the hearts and lataif must be clean. B. The Naqshabandiyya Order Emphasize on contemplation . Concentrate on reality . Constant remembrance of God is the most important achieved through exercise of suluk.

C. The Chistiyya Order

Emphasize on the Love of Allah (mahjub , mahbub). To create this love they started by doing zikir bil jahr (loud zikir) to burn the heart at times they need to listen to Sama ( sufi music ). In general all the Sufi orders agree that the final stage of ibadah is liqaullah (meeting with Allah) in this world which can be achieved by various means of mujahadah and prescirptions from the mursyid teacher.

V. Tasawwuf in Modern Pespective and the Future.

In applying tasawwuf/sufism to population , the level of acceptance should be considered since and to this fact and truth refers the following tradition which is accepted unanimously both by the Shi'ah and the Ahl al-Sunnah: .

[We prophets have been commanded to speak to the people in accordance with the level of their intellects.]

The fact is that:

.

[Nothing except good is to be found with Allah.] And:

.

[As to evil, ugliness and darkness, they derive solely from ourselves.]

Hence it has been stated in traditions that the main product of faith is affection for God's creation:
...

[O my God, I beseech You to grant me Your love and the love of those who love You.] All creatures love Allah and do zikir to Him and only Man and Jinn that are forgetful.

Voices of Sufi Poets about Nature

Hakim Sanai of Ghazna: Follow The Path "Do not speak of your heartache-for He is speaking. Do not seek Him - for He is seeking. He feels even the touch of an ant's foot; If a stone moves under water-He knows it. If there is a worm in a rock He knows its body, smaller than an atom. The sound of its praise, and its hidden perception, He knows by His divine knowledge. He has given the worm its substance; He has shown you the path of the Teaching."

Khwaja Abdullah Ansari of Heart: "From the unmanifest I came, And piched my tent, in the Forst of Material existence. I passed through mineral and vegetable kingdoms, Then my mental equipment carried me into the animal kingdom; Having reached there I crossed beyond it; Then in the crystal clear shell of human heart I nursed the drop of self in a Pearl, And in association with good men Wandered round the Prayer House, And having experienced that, crossed beyond it; Then I took the road that leads to Him, And became a slave at His gate; Then the duality disappeared And I became absorbed in Him."

Hafiz We are the companions of His Beauty We are the guardians Of Truth. Every man, plant and creature in Existence, Every woman, child, vein and note Is a servant of our Beloved A harbinger of joy, The harbinger of Light.

Abdul Rahman Jami (Diwan):

Who is man? The reflection of the Eternal Light. What is the world? A wave on the Everlasting Sea.

How could the reflection be cut off from the Light?

How could the wave be separate from the Sea?

Know that this reflection and this wave are that very Light and Sea.

Jalaluddin Rumi: Listen for the stream that tells you one thing.

Die on this bank. Begin in me the way of rivers with the sea.
Translated by Coleman Barks - from "Say I Am You"

The Real Tawhid from Rabia

O Lord, If tomorrow on Judgment Day You send me to Hell, I will tell such a secret That Hell will race from me Until it is a thousand years away. O Lord, Whatever share of this world You could give to me, Give it to Your enemies; Whatever share of the next world You want to give to me, Give it to Your friends. You are enough for me.

O Lord, If I worship You From fear of Hell, burn me in Hell. O Lord, If I worship You From hope of Paradise, bar me from its gates. But if I worship You for Yourself alone Then grace me forever the splendor of Your Face. Rabia al-Adawiyya, translation by Andrew Harvey and Eryk Hanut - 'Perfume of the Desert'

We can learn many things from the Quran

1.

2.

3.

The story of Sulaiman a.s who heard the ants . This means , please do not destroy the fauna ! The story about Maryam r.a who got dates from the palm tree that goes down to her .This means , please the flora can speak and help us (especially during Food Crisis!) The genetic conservation work of Nuh a.s who brought the animals in pairs and also the plants (in some tradition).

VI. Conclusions
1. The modern society need to believe in miracles i.e all of Nature are doing the zikir to Allah s.w.t and they response to us in a positive or negative way. ( Even in High Energy Physics we believe strings and membrane vibrations = plethora of particles (baryons and mesons) = zikir to Allah s.w.t , since mass existence is still a mystery ( due to non-discovery of Higgs boson yet).

3. The true heritage for the Malay world which became Islamised by exemplary Sufis as the Wali Songo (Nine Saints) and much later by the ahlul baits from Hadhramauts (Yemen) who still become the repository of makrifah and knowledge of the Haqiqah (in various pesantrens/khanaqah) in Nusantara should be public supported and modernised , to not only Islamised knowledge and implementations of Ecology Management but also its basic philosophy and understanding of the Reality behind this beautiful work of Allah s.w.t.

2. Not just Nature and Ecology but

humanity in general need to be imbued to aspects of Sufism. This already started with the works of sincere Western Islamist or Sufi researchers like Annemarie Schimmel , William Chittick, Claude-Addas , Michael Sells, Nicholas Heer , Martin Lings (now Abu Bakar Sirajuddin) , Michael Chockiewidz , Stephen Hirstenstein and many others. Unfortunately , the Malay world has stopped and stooped from such works and scholarship started by Hamzah Fansuri and continued by Abdul Rauf Singkel , Yusof Taj al-Khalwati and Daud al-Fathani.

Acknowledgements: I would like to thank the Workshop Committee and Management Committee of Akademi Sains Islam Malaysia for giving me the opportunity to present some of my ideas about Ecology and Tasawwuf .

FINALE

To the audience , Thank you very much for willing to listen to us and May Allah s.w.t accept all of our prayers and efforts.

Brief CV
Phd (Cambridge) , 1990 Expt. Physics BSc (London), 1982 Theoretical Physics
Research Interests: Soft-condensed Matter , Instrumentation & Material Physics specifically

Nanomaterial Synthesis and Applications Complex Fluids and Nanotechnology Applications And Small-angle Scattering Techniques (Xray,neutrons, synchrotron)
Islamic Interests:

Tasawuf and Sufism specifically that of Ibn Arabi and Najamudin Kubra and Sufism in Nusantara. Currently I have 8 MSc and 7 Phd students (main supervisor) and another 5 postgrad students (cosupervised)