#34 Ihsan: the Eyes and Heart of Faith

The Angel Gabriel approached Muhammad, peace be upon him, asking, “What is the meaning of Ihsan?” The Prophet replied, “It means you should worship God as though you saw Him. If you cannot do so, then always remember He sees you….” “You have spoken the truth,” responded the Angel.

Muslims are taught to strive towards the idea of Ihsan, yet not all achieve its actual state: constant spiritual awareness of God’s presence. The state of Ihsan is far more than believing in God, or constantly calling Him to mind. Rather it involves the actual ability to see and experience God’s presence in everything in creation.

Although a sound mind can aid a believer in search of God’s spiritual reality, the intellect can only provide knowledge about God. Direct knowledge, the experience of God Himself, can come only through the heart.

Referring to the spiritual heart, Prophet Muhammad described a “piece of flesh” that if it is good the entire human being is good, yet if it is corrupted, then the entire human being is corrupted. According to Islamic teachings, the spiritual heart is rooted near the physical organ. When the spiritual heart is transformed by faith, then the entire human being is transformed and oriented towards goodness in every thought and action.

God’s Mercy accompanies the believer throughout the faith journey, yet the first step in attaining an awakened spiritual heart is surrender, surrender of the vain ego that seeks to dominate all else according to its self-centred desires. The second step in faith is the ongoing effort of the believer to build a balanced life of healthy discipline wherein faith may take permanent root.

For Muslims this means following the teachings, practices and discipline prescribed by religion. Yet believers must often be reminded that the external practices of religion are not ends in themselves, but rather the tools to protect and cultivate the heart so that inward faith may take root and thrive.

An awakened heart perceives God’s qualities, as manifested in creation, and is aware of God Himself. Being aware means knowing and understanding the nature of God and His qualities. This awareness, in turn, generates love: to know God is to love Him, and to see His signature in creation is to hold that creation dear.

Although God’s presence permeates creation, Islam teaches that God, the Creator, is distinct from His creation. He is not confined to any limiting body, nor is the created, temporary universe the same as His uncreated, eternal Being. The relationship between God’s Unique Oneness and the multiplicity of creation can be fully grasped only by the heart. Although our intellects can explain or rationalize the concept of unity in multiplicity, it is only the awakened heart that has a clear vision of this reality, a reality grounded in the experience of loving surrender to His Presence.

In the Quran God informs us that only those will prosper who stand before Him with a pure heart. And in the Holy traditions God describes those who surrender to Him: “My bondsman keeps on getting nearer and nearer to me, until I make him My beloved, and at that stage I become his ears with which he listens, his eyes with which he sees, his hands with which he holds, his feet with which he walks.” Having attained Ihsan, these servants live through the reflection of God’s qualities rooted in their hearts: for the whole world cannot contain Allah, only the hearts of His servants.