Continuing in his consideration of the problem of the day, Hazrat Inayat Khan now begins to look at the moral question, meaning the manner in which one may determine right action. The previous post in the series is here.
Those today in the world who observe any particular moral concepts have their peculiar ideas about them, which are either derived from their religion, race, community or family. And there are many others who do not observe the laws of religion or of the community. Many among them do not give any attention to this subject whatever. In this present age of materialism this idea is ever on the increase, that we are here in this world for some time, we don’t know why, and the only thing that seems to them easy and convenient is to eat, drink and make merry. It is for this reason that humanity is going from bad to worse, having no regard for the soul, God, or the hereafter. It seems those simple ones who make their life contented in their home, family or community, they only seem to observe principles, religious or social. But many in this world, just now, with all their education and advanced activity in the affairs of life, in commerce, politics and education, seem to have no regard for what may be called the moral principle.
It does not mean that humanity does not need the moral principle. Every soul needs it. It only means that the souls need it and yet cannot find it – firstly, for the reason of various religions having their own moral precepts, and in many things differing from one another – and at the present moment having less voice in the state, besides, every country having its own moral ideas peculiar to itself, each considering one’s own to be the right one and ignoring the truth of the other. Therefore the Sufi Message brings to humanity the moral of the time, the moral which does not limit itself in principles, fixed in words; but in this age the Sufi Order* strikes the note of the age. All of the morals are fountain drops, falling after having risen, but this moral which the Sufi brings is that stream which rises and falls into many drops. The Sufi Message therefore points out the foundation of moral, the spring of moral, instead of limiting moral to little drops rising and falling from the fountain.
When man begins to understand life the first thing that he does is to criticize and condemn a person who thinks and acts differently from the standard of moral he is accustomed to know. But when he becomes fully advanced, then he sees the moral of everyone from his [i.e. everyone’s] point of view, and he understands from that that there are so many grades of human evolution, and every grade of human evolution has its standard, and so, if a thing is not right by one standard it is right by another. Therefore he refrains from condemning anyone in this world.
This was seen in the life of Christ, that before the accusation came out of the lips of the accuser, the forgiveness of the Master arose before it. Forgiveness came up first, before justice. From whence did it come? Not only from love, because the perfect ones have balance of love and intelligence both. It is the limitedness of intelligence that is inclined to criticize and condemn. The intelligence which is developed first understands and places all things in their places, but afterwards seeks the reason behind all things. He sees the justification of all things. It is not the one who accuses, who persecutes, that will elevate man. It is the one who understands, who forgives, that will raise man from his standard of evolution.
The distinction between good and bad is made by the Sufi by consulting with himself, for the Sufi realizes that his soul, which is the Divine immanence, is nothing but joy; joy is its nature. And since it is joy itself, it seeks for it, rightly or wrongly. When it wrongly seeks, it seems to get it, but it does not get it. When it rightly seeks, it attains it, for that is the purpose of life.
The Sufi Movement does not call renunciation a great virtue, or see suffering pain as a great merit. No. It is foreign to the nature of the soul, it cannot be a virtue, it cannot be a merit. Yes, in attaining a certain joy, if it came that one had to go through pain and suffering, that is worthwhile. The pain or suffering or renunciation which leads to that joy to which he wants to attain – then it is no more suffering or pain or renunciation. It is only pain for what one wished to buy. And from this principle the Sufi understands that whatever be the action, if it is productive of joy, if the joy is everlasting, if the joy is dependable, it cannot be anything other than virtue. An action which is pain, which is suffering, however high it may seem, cannot be a virtue, because it is not the seeking of the soul.
To be continued…
*Hazrat Inayat Khan called his first organization, formed in London during the war years, The Sufi Order, but as his approach widened this began to change, and soon after this series of lectures was given he officially founded a new body called The Sufi Movement. The Sufi Order was dissolved as a separate organization, and the name was adopted for the Inner School Activity of the Sufi Movement.