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No rational person disputes this much, for it is something perceptible and apprehensible. It is the lowest degree of acknowledging Allah—indeed, of acknowledging the existence of anything whatsoever—and the lowest degree of worshipping Him, loving Him, and drawing near to Him. Yet, beyond this, do the heart and the knowing, loving spirit move, or is their only movement a mere transition from one state to another?

The first is the position of Muslims in general and the majority of humankind.

The second is the view of the philosophers and their followers, who hold that the spirit is neither inside the body nor outside it, and neither moves nor remains at rest. The majority, however, acknowledge that it moves toward whatever is loved and sought. Most speculative theologians acknowledge that it moves toward honoured places where the traces and lights of the beloved become manifest, as the hearts and bodies of those who know Allah move toward the heavens, mosques, and similar places. Likewise, these move toward the beloved himself when he is a created being, such as a prophet, an angel, or someone else. Both groups acknowledge the Lord’s self-disclosure and His manifestation to the hearts of those who know Him, which is