A R-RūH
According to the traditional doctrine of the 'science of letters', Allah created the world not by the alif, which is the first of the letters [of the Arabic alphabet], but by the ba, which is the second; and, in fact, although unity is necessarily the first principle of manifestation, it is duality that manifestation immediately presupposes, and it is between the two terms of this duality as between the two complementary poles of manifestation represented by the two extremities of ba, that all the indefinite multiplicity of contingent existences will be produced. It is therefore ba which is properly the origin of creation, and the latter is accomplished by it and in it, that is to say it is both the 'means' and the 'place,' according to the two meanings that the letter has when taken as the preposition bi [i.e., 'by' and 'in']. [1] The ba in this primordial role represents ar-Rūh, the Spirit, which one must understand as the total Spirit of universal Existence, and which is essentially identified as Light (an-Nūr); it is produced directly by 'divine commandment' (min amri 'Llah), and after it is produced, it is in every way the instrument by which this 'commandment' brings about all things, which are thus all 'ordered' in relation to it; [2] prior to it, there is then only al-amr, the affirmation of pure Being and the first formulation of the Supreme Will, since before duality there is only unity, as before the ba there is only
the alif. Now the alif is the 'polar' letter (qutbāniyyah), of which the very form is that of the 'axis' through which divine 'order' is carried out; [3] and the upper point of the alif, which is the 'secret of secrets' (sirr al-asrār), is reflected in the dot of the ba, inasmuch as this dot is the center of the 'first circumference' (al-dā̄rah al-awwaliyyah) that defines and envelopes the domain of universal Existence, a circumference, moreover, which seen in simultaneity in all possible directions, is in reality a sphere, the primordial and total form from which all particular forms will be born through differentiation.
If one considers the vertical form of the alif and the horizontal form of the ba, one sees that their relationship is that of an active principle and a passive principle; and this conforms to the axioms of the science of numbers on unity and duality, not only in the Pythagorean teaching, which is generally best known in this regard, but also in all other traditions. This character of passivity is effectively inherent in the double role as 'instrument' and universal 'place' of which we have just spoken; thus ar-Rūh, in Arabic, is a feminine word; but here we must be careful, for according to the law of analogy, what is passive or negative in regard to Divine Truth (alHaqq) becomes active or positive in regard to creation (alKhalq). [4] It is essential to consider here the two opposing faces, since it is precisely a question, if one may so express it, of the very 'limit' posed between al-Haqq and al-Khalq, a 'limit' by which creation is both separated from the divine Principle and united to it at the same time, according to the point of view from which it is envisaged; it is thus, in other words, the barzakh par excellence, [5] and just as Allah is 'the First and the Last' (al-Awwal wa alAkhir) in the absolute sense, so is ar-Rūh 'the first and the last' relative to creation.
This is not, of course, to say that the term ar-Rūh may not sometimes be taken in its more specific meanings, like the word 'spirit' or its more or less exact equivalents in other languages; it is thus that, notably in certain Koranic texts, some are led to think that it might represent a name of the Angel Jibrīl (Gabriel) or of another angel to whom this name of ar-Rūh might more especially be applied; and all this can assuredly be true according to the case or the application, for everything that is a participation or a specification of the universal Spirit, or that plays its role in a certain respect and in varying degrees, is also rūh in a relative sense, comprising the spirit insofar as it resides in a human being or any other particular being. However, there is a point to which many exoteric commentators seem not to have paid sufficient attention: when ar-Rūh is expressly and distinctly mentioned as beside the angels (almalāikah), [6] how is it possible to admit that in fact it is simply another angel itself? [7] The esoteric interpretation is that in such a case it is then a question of Mītatrūn (the Metatron of the Hebrew Kabbalah); moreover, this allows one to explain the ambiguity that arises in this regard, since Metatron is also represented as an angel, although, being beyond the domain of 'separate' existences, he must be truly something else and
more than an angel; and this, moreover, corresponds once again to the double aspect of the barzakh. [8]
Another consideration which agrees completely with this interpretation is this: in the representation of the 'Throne' (al-Arsh), arRūh is placed at the center, and this place is effectively that of Metatron; the 'Throne' is the place of the 'divine Presence,' that is, of the Shekinah which, in the Hebrew tradition, is the 'twin' [parèdre] or complementary aspect of Metatron. Moreover, one can even say that in a certain fashion ar-Rūh is identified with the 'Throne' itself, for by surrounding and enveloping all worlds (from which the epithet al-Muhīt is given it), it coincides with the 'first circumference' mentioned earlier. [9] This again recalls the two faces of barzakh: on the side of al-Haqq, it is ar-Raḥmān [the Infinitely Good] who sits on the Throne; [10] but on the side of al-Khalq [creation], it appears in a way rather as a refraction of ar-Rūh, which is in direct agreement with the meaning of the hadīth, 'He who sees me sees the Truth' (man raanī faqad raanī alHaqq). There, in fact, lies the mystery of 'prophetic' manifestation, [11] and it is known that according to Hebrew tradition, also, Metatron is both the agent of 'theophanies' and the very principle of prophecy, [12] which, expressed in Islamic language, amounts to saying that he is none other than ar-Rūh almuhammadiyyah [the spirit of Muhammad], within which all the prophets and divine messengers are one, and which, in the 'lower
world,' finds its ultimate expression in him who is their 'seal' (Khātim al-anbiā̄ wa'l-mursalīn), that is, the one who reunites them into one final synthesis that is the reflection of their principial unity in the 'higher world' (where it is awwal Khalqi' Llah, the last in the manifested order by being analogically the first in the principial order), and who is thus the 'lord of the first and the last' (seyyid alawwalīn wa'l-akhirin). It is thus and only thus that all the names and titles of the Prophet can be understood in their profundity, which names, in fact, are those of 'Universal Man' (al-Insān alKāmil), ultimately totalizing in him all the degrees of Existence as they have all been contained in him since the beginning: alayhi salatu Rabbil-Arshi dawman, 'May the prayer of the Lord of the Throne be upon him forever!'