that all religion should be devoted to Allah. Even if that is his aim, he does not follow the Sharia of Allah, Mighty and Majestic, and His prescribed way. Rather, he seeks some form of authority in the world: either authority through power and influence, or authority through unveiling and disclosing hidden matters. Or he seeks to obtain what he desires and ward off what he dislikes by whatever means, or aims at some form of worship and devotion, whatever its manner. His energies are devoted to seeking help and placing his trust in Allah insofar as these help him achieve his aim. Thus, he is either ignorant or unjust, neglecting some of what Allah has commanded him and committing some of what Allah has forbidden.

This is the condition of many who engage in devotion, practise Sufism and spiritual poverty, and perceive Allah’s predestination and decree but not His commands and prohibitions. They perceive that created things subsist through Allah, that they need Him, and that He sustains them; yet they do not perceive what He has commanded and forbidden, which of their actions Allah loves and approves, and which He hates and finds displeasing.

Hence, many among them experience unveiling, exert influence, and perform extraordinary feats, while casting off some aspects of the Sharia and contravening some of its commands. If one of them goes further, he falls into permissiveness and the abandonment of religious restraints. He may even proceed to corrupt his belief in Allah’s oneness, lapsing into union and restricted indwelling, as has happened to many shaykhs. Statements leading to this can be found in the words of the author of “Manāzil al-Sā’irīn” (The Stations of the Wayfarers) and others.

Some of them may embrace “absolute union and the doctrine of the unity of existence,” believing that Allah is absolute existence, as the author of “al-Futūhāt al-Makkiyya” (The Meccan Openings) says at its beginning: