Sufi Glossary of Terms

Sufi Glossary of Terms
Aab - Farsi ‫ آب‬āb: water, river; sparkle, luster, elegance; dignity. (in some texts as aab)

(fjs1, jtp1)

ab-i hayat - Farsi/Arabic ‫ اب حیاة‬āb-i hayāt: water of life, immortality, fountain of life, spiritual
discourse, inspired knowledge. (fjs1,jtp1)
Abul Ala - Arabic: Syrian-born poet and philosopher Abū al-'Alā Ma'ārī (927-1057).
acharya - Sanskrit आचचारर ācārya: 'knowing the rules', spiritual guide; a title suffixed to the name
of a learned person, such as Shankaracharya. (mw131)
adhikar - Sanskrit अधधिकचार adhi-kāra: authority, privilege, right. (mw20)
advaita - Sanskrit अददत advaita: 'no duality', without duality; sole, unique; oneness of spirit and
matter, oneness of the supreme soul (paramātman) with the human soul (jivātman). The
philosophy that everything is God, that there is nothing other than God. (mw19)
The aim of all religions and philosophies is the understanding and the realization of unity. The
Vedanta philosophy teaches advaita: there is no such thing as 'two'; the whole is one and the
same being. In the Bible it is said, 'I and my Father are one,' which means unity...
from The Sufi Message, Volume VII, Self-Realization
ahamkara - Sanskrit अहङ्कचार ahamm-kāra: self-consciousness, sense of self, concept of
individuality, ego-attachment; pride, egotism; arrogance, haughtiness; conceit. (in some texts as
ahankar)

(mw124, rsm71)

ahriman - Farsi ‫ اهرمن‬ahriman: seducer, demon, devil; the principle of evil; that which is opposed
to the principle of good. (fjs124)
Ahura Mazda - Avestan (ancient Persian) ahura-mazda: ' Lord Wisdom', Wise Lord. The supreme
God in the ancient Persian monotheistic religious system taught by Zoroaster (Zarathushtra)
sometime around 1000 BC. Ahura Mazda is said to be the beginning and the end, the creator of
everything which can and cannot be seen, the Eternal, the Pure and the only Truth. Also referred
to as Ormuzd. (see also ahriman) (the Farsi term yazdān also refers to God)
akasha - Sanskrit आकचाश ākāśa: free or open space, openness; sky, atmosphere. Esoterically
referred to as 'accommodation' or 'capacity' (a place for something to exist), and the word
'scope' is often used to describe the vast opportunity provided by the akasha. (mw126)
To make a place is to make an Akasha ... When you make yourself an Akasha for God to be enshrined in, that is the
only purpose for which this body was made. It was made that God might take charge of it, might be awakened in

this body. By doing this one fulfills that purpose, one opens this place for God, one makes it the places for God, and
says, 'Now You be enshrined in this place; it belongs to You, You made it.'
from Sangatha II, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)
The word capacity refers to the unconfined basis for experience, as in the moment just before something takes place.
... The analogy for this is a bright mirror, a readiness for experience to unfold without any preconception whatsoever.
from Samten Gyatso, as recalled by Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Buddhadharma Fall 2005

akbar - Arabic ‫ اﻛﺒر‬akbar: greater, greatest in estimation, rank or dignity; older, senior-ranking.
(see also Allahu Akbar) Also, Akbar was a great Mogul emperor of India (1542-1605 AD). From the
Arabic root k-b-r meaning to be great, large, famous; to gain in significance, become important;
to exceed in age, be older; to become too great, burdensome. (hw948, ao476, ewl2587)
akhlaq - Arabic ‫ اﺧﻼﻖ‬akhlāq (plural of khulq): manners, disposition; morals, ethics, virtues. (hw299,
fjs26, jtp30)

akhlaq-i Allah - Arabic/Farsi Akhlāq-i Allah means the manner of God, or Divine Manner.
aladdin, alauddin - Arabic ‫ عﻼ ء الدين‬alā'-ud-din : nobility of faith. alā' = noble, high standing,
high ranking; u = genitive suffix, often translated as of; din = faith, religion, duty (also written as
alaoddin, alauddin) (hw749)
al-hamdulillah - Arabic al-hamdulillāh: Common translations include: All praise is for Allāh, All
praise is to Allāh. This phrase is made of five parts: al = the; hamd = praise, commendation, or
extolling the virtues of; u = genitive suffix denoting that the previous word (hamd) is the subject
of the phrase; li = to, for, unto, on account of; and llāh = Allāh. (also see the Arabic Devotional Terms
web page for more phrases)

(hw238, jtp481)

al-kimia - Arabic al-kīmiyā': chemistry; alchemy; the philosopher's stone. (possibly from Greek
xhmia)

(hw997, fjs1070, jtp890)

alam-i mithal - Arabic 'ālam-i mithāl: the world of visions, world of dreams, world of ideals.
(fjs1172)

Allah - Arabic ‫ ﷲ‬allāh: the Arabic proper name for the Supreme Deity. The exact derivation of
this word is unclear, but it is likely related to the Aramaic Alaha and to the ancient Hebrew El.
(hw30)
Note: For those who may be uncomfortable with the word Allah, it may be helpful to note that in the Semitic
language of Aramaic which Jesus most likely spoke, the Aramaic word which is translated as God in the European
bible was actually Alaha. According to some linguists, the word Alaha which Jesus spoke would have had the ending
"a" softened or not pronounced at all, leading to the pronunciation "alah". Since the Arabic language was largely
derived from the earlier Aramaic (much the same as Aramaic was derived from the earlier Hebrew), the modern
Arabic word Allah is likely derived from the earlier Aramaic pronunciation "alah". Indeed, Allah of the Qur'an and
Alaha of Jesus refer to the same One. In contrast, the word "God" is a relatively new, and perhaps unfortunate,
European invention which has been the source of much misunderstanding and conflict.

Allahumma - Arabic ‫ اللمهم‬allāhumma: O' Allah (often used rather than yā Allāh). (hw30)
Allahu akbar - Arabic allāhu akbar: Commonly translated as: Allāh is Greater, Allāh is Great, or
Allāh is Most Great. This phrase is made of three parts: Allāh = the Supreme Deity; u = a suffix
denoting that Allāh is the subject of the phrase; and akbar = greater, greatest in estimation, rank
or dignity; older, senior-ranking. This phrase is called Takbīr. (hw948, ao476, ewl2587)
ammara - Arabic ‫ امارة‬ammāra (feminine of ammār): commanding, ordering, domineering,
headstrong. This term is often used to describe the carnal, sensuous aspect of the nafs. (used in
the Qur'an 12:53) (fjs97, jtp79, hw34)
amin - Arabic ‫ آمین‬āmīn: in this we trust, in this we have faith; amen; be it so. From the Arabic
root a-m-n meaning to be faithful, reliable, trustworthy; to reassure, safeguard, guarantee. (hw36,
ao34)

amr - Arabic ‫ امر‬amr: command, order, decree; power, authority; affair, concern, transaction;
event, occurrence, act; fact, circumstance. The phrase Amr-i Allah could be translated as
command of Allah, or act of Allah. (hw33, fjs99, jtp81)
anfas - Arabic ‫ انفاس‬anfās (plural of nafas): breaths, respirations; voices, words. (hw1156, jtp93)
anvar - Arabic ‫ انوار‬anwār (plural of nūr), Farsi anvār : lights, gleamings, rays of light.

(hw1183,

fjs116, jtp99)

anzar - Arabic ‫ انظار‬anzār (plural of nazar): visions, sightings; glances; perceptions, insights.
(hw1144, fjs111)

apsara - Sanskrit अप्सरसस apsaras or apsarā: 'between the waters and the clouds', a class of female
divinities who inhabit the sky, heavenly nymphs, fond of water, the wives of the Gandharvas.
They change their shape at will, and are said to dance (and/or sing) for Indra. (in some texts as
Upsara)

(mw59)

aqibat - Arabic ‫' ءاقﺒة‬āqibah, Farsi 'āqibat: end, termination, conclusion, outcome, consequence;
coming after, recompense, reward, future life. (hw733, fjs830, jtp757)
arsh - Arabic ‫' عرش‬arsh: throne, throne of God; a place of abiding; palace, citadel; buttress,
support. (hw704, fjs842)
artha - Hindi/Sanskrit अरर artha: advantage, profit, benefit, use, utility; concern, business, affair,
matter; substance, property, wealth, opulence; worldly prosperity. (incorrectly spelled ardh in some papers) (mw90,
mcm27, jtp39)

ashiq - Arabic ‫' عاشﻖ‬āshiq ( from the root 'ishq): lover, fancier, fan, sweet-heart; one filled with
divine love. (hw719, fjs830)

ashraf - Arabic ‫ اشراف‬ashrāf (plural of sharīf): distinguished, eminent, noble, high-bred,
honorable, honest. (hw545)
asman - Farsi ‫ آسمان‬āsmān: heaven; sky, the celestial orb, the canopy of heaven. In esoteric terms,
this is often used much the same as the Sanskrit akasha, to describe capacity or accommodation
(see akasha). (fjs60, jtp53)
asrar - Arabic ‫ اسر‬asrār (plural of sirr): secrets, mysteries, something concealed; secret thoughts,
innermost thoughts, or, as E. W. Lane variously put it: private knowledge; something inserted in
the interior; a pleasure, or delight, and dilation of the heart, of which there is no external sign.
(hw471, fjs57, ewl1337)

asrar ul-anasir - Arabic ‫ اسرار العناصر‬asrār ul-'anāsir: from asrār (plural of sirr) meaning secrets,
mysteries, u indicating that asrār is the subject of the phrase, al meaning the, 'anāsir (plural of
'unsur) meaning elements, constituents: secrets of the elements. (hw471,760, fjs57, 868)
asura - Sanskrit आससर asura: spiritual, divine; supreme spirit; evil spirit, demon.

(mw121, rsm69)

asvara - Sanskrit अस्वर asvara: not loud, indistinct; in a low tone. (in some texts as Asura) (mw124)
atish - Farsi ‫ آتش‬ātish: fire, light; fire of love, passion; splendor (in some texts as atesh)

(fjs13, jtp16)

atman, atma - Sanskrit आत्मनस ātman: singular masculine ātmā: the breath; essence, nature,
character; understanding, intellect; the soul, individual soul; the highest personal principle of
existence. Prefixes are often used to help clarify the meaning, such as jīvātman (living, personal
soul), mahātman (great soul), paramātman (supreme spirit). (hw135)
In the Vedanta the soul is called by three names which denote its three aspects, Atma, Mahatma, Paramatma. Atma is
the soul conscious of the life on the surface, Mahatma is the soul conscious as well of the life within, Paramatma is
the consciousness that is the soul of souls, conscious of the Absolute within and without, the God of the knower, the
Lord of the seer.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Manifestation

Avicenna - Avicenna: a Latinized version of the name ibn Sīnā (980-1037 AD), a great Persian
mystic, physician, philosopher and scientist.
Avicenna, the great physician of ancient times, on whose discoveries medieval science was based, was a Sufi who
used to sit in meditation, and by intuition he used to write prescriptions .
from The Sufi Message, Volume IV, Health

avatar - Sanskrit अवतचार avatāra: incarnation, appearance of a deity on earth, any new unexpected
appearance; descent, descent of a higher consciousness, descent of a deity from heaven. (mw99,
jtp102)

avidya - Sanskrit अधवद a-vidyā: 'not-knowing', ignorance, false understanding, spiritual
ignorance. (mw108, rsm64)
azam - Arabic ‫ اعظم‬a'zam: greater, bigger, paramount, supreme, most important. (see also ism-i
azam)

(hw729, fjs75, jtp60)

Bbad - Farsi ‫ باد‬bād (from Sanskrit vāta) : air, wind, breeze; breath, name of an angel presiding over
the winds. (in some texts as baad) (fjs137, jtp118)
bad - Farsi ‫ بد‬bad: naughty, bad; wicked, evil.

(fjs160, jtp138)

banda - Farsi ‫ بنده‬banda (from Sanskrit bandha): bound, fastened, restrained; servant, slave.

(fjs202,

jtp170)

bandagi - Farsi bandagī: slavery, bondage, servitude; service; devotion, adoration, worship,
praise; compliment, salutation; humility, lowliness; or, as an intj. My service to you! good-bye!
thank you! (fjs202, jtp169)
baqa - Arabic ‫ بقا ء‬baqā': remaining, staying, lingering, abiding; continuation of existence;
immortality, permanence. (hw84)
The ideal perfection, called Baqa by Sufis, is termed 'Najat' in Islam, 'Nirvana' in Buddhism, 'Salvation' in
Christianity, and 'Mukhti' in Hinduism. This is the highest condition attainable, and all ancient prophets and sages
experienced it, and taught it to the world.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Spiritual Liberty

baqi bi-Allah - Arabic bāqī bi allāh: bāqī = everlasting, eternal, immortal; bi= by means of,
through, from; pemanence from Allah, eternal existence in Allah. (ao60)
basarat - Arabic ‫ بصارة‬basāra, Farsi basārat: perception, discernment.

(hw75, fjs190)

basir - Arabic ‫ بصیر‬basīr: seeing, having eyesight; discerning, knowledgeable; having insight;
acutely aware. The name al-Basir refers to Allah as the All-Knowing, All-Seeing, All-Perceiving.
(also see basīr in 99 Names of Allah)

(hw75)

bast - Arabic bast: spreading, extending, expanding, unfolding. (the opposite of kabs)

(hw72)

batin - Arabic bātin: inner, interior; secret, hidden, concealed. (Bātin is pronounced baatin, while a
similar word batīn, pronounced bateen, means fat, corpulent, gluttonous.... quite a difference!) (also see bātin in
99 Names of Allah) (hw79)

ba-yaki - Farsi ba-yakī: ba=with, by, through, yaki=oneness, unity.

(fjs135, 1535)

bayat - Arabic bai'at: profession of loyalty, oath of allegiance; initiation as a disciple of a
religious guide. (hw105, jtp210)
Devotion requires an ideal, and the ideal of the Sufis is the God-ideal. They attain to this ideal by a gradual process.
They first take bayat, initiation, from the hand of one whose presence gives them confidence that he will be a worthy
counselor in life and a guide on the path as yet untrodden...
from The Sufi Message, Volume X, The Different Steps

Bayazid - Bayazid: Bayazid Bastami (777-874 AD) Sufi saint and mystic from Bastam in eastern
Persia (Iran). A prayer from Bayazid:
Oh, Allah, how long will this 'you' and 'I' remain between You and I,
Take this 'I' from me so all that remains is 'You'.
baz - Arabic bāz: hawk, falcon, eagle. In esoteric terms, one who soars above, a wayfarer of the
heavens. (hw100, fjs144, jtp121)
Bhagavad-Gita - Sanskrit
bhagavad-gītā; Song of the Blessed One, Song of Krishna,
Celestial Song. A mystical poem (part of the Mahabharata) in which Lord Krishna summarizes
the great Vedic teachings for Arjuna. Often simply referred to as the Gītā. (mw744)
bhakti - Sanskrit

bhakti: attachment, trust; homage, devotion, worship. (mw743)

bhandara - Hindi भण्डचारचा bhandārā: a meal for the holy ones; a feast of the sanyāsīs.
bhavasagara - Sanskrit

(jtp192, rsm755)

bhava-sāgara: 'ocean of worldly existence', sea of worldly life.

(mw749)

bi-charagi - Farsi ‫ بیچارگی‬bī-chāragī; bī = without, chāra = remedy; helplessness, inability,
incapacity (in some texts as vecharagi, becharagi, becharegi) (fjs216)
bismillah - Arabic bismillāh: Commonly translated as: In the name of Allah. A phrase made of
the following: bi = with, to for, in, through; ism = a distinguishing mark, name, light, vibration,
essence; llāh = Allāh. (also see the bismillah web page for more insights)
bodhi - Sanskrit

bodhi: perfect knowledge, wisdom; enlightened intellect, learned, wise.

(mw734)

bodhisattva - Sanskrit
bodhisattva: one who is on the way to perfect knowledge, a
Buddha-to-be, one whose essence is perfect knowledge. Derived from bodhi meaning perfect
knowledge or enlightened; and sattva meaning essence or true essence. The Spirit of Guidance.
(in some texts as Bodhisatva or Buddhi Sattwa)

(mw734)

Brahma - Sanskrit
brahma: the personal creator; one the triad of personal gods (Brahma the
Creator, Vishnu the Maintainer, Shiva the Destroyer). (see also Vishnu and Shiva below) (mw738)

Brahmachari - Sanskrit brahma-cari: student of sacred study; one who observes the vows of
sense-control; the first of the four stages of spiritual life.
Brahman - Sanskrit
brahman; literally, growth, evolution, swelling of the spirit; the SelfExistent, Absolute, Eternal. (mw737)
brahmin - Sanskrit
brahmin: belonging to Brahma; knower of Brahma, possessing sacred
knowledge; a member of the Hindu priestly caste. (mw741)
buddhi - Hindi budh: Sanskrit
buddhi: reason, discernment, the power of forming and
retaining conceptions; perception, comprehension, understanding, thought, opinion, reflection. (in
some texts as Buddh)

(mw733, jtp141)

buddha - Sanskrit buddha: awake, awakened, conscious, enlightened one. Generally used to
refer to Siddhārtha Gautama (c. 560 BC), who is also known as Shakya Muni (sage of the Shakya
clan) or Buddha. (mw733)
Bullah Shah - Abdullah Shah (1680-1758 AD) Sufi poet and Qawwali, born near Bahawalpur,
Pakistan. His message was one of truth, love and compassion. His guide was Hazrat Shah Inayat,
a well-known Qadiri Sufi and gardener by profession. Bullah asked his guide, "I wish to know
how to realize God." Inayat Shah replied, "What is the problem in finding God? One only needs
to be uprooted from here and replanted there." The tomb of Bullah Shah is in Qasur, Pakistan.
(often written as Bulleh Shah)
You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved!
You alone exist, I do not! Like the shadow of a house in ruins,
I revolve in my own mind.
If I speak, you speak with me:
If I am silent, you are in my mind.
If I sleep, you sleep with me:
If I walk, you are along my path.
Oh Bulleh, the spouse has come to my house:
My life is a sacrifice unto Him.
You alone exist; I do not, O Beloved!

buraq - Arabic burāq: the donkey-like creature upon which Muhammad is said to have ascended
one night from Jerusalem to heaven and then returned to Mecca. (see also miraj) (hw67, fjs168, jtp144)
buzurg - Farsi buzurg: great, venerable, noble; elder, aged; wise man, holy man, saint, sage.
(jtp153)

Cchaitanya - Sanskrit

caitanya: consciousness, intelligence; soul, spirit; the Soul.

(mw402)

chakra - Sanskrit
cakra: wheel; discus or sharp circular weapon; circle, ring; mystical circle or
diagram; circular energy centers of the body. (mw380, jtp435)
chela - Hindi
celā: (feminine celī): servant, attendant; pupil, disciple, follower. (possibly
derived from Sanskrit ceta, meaning servant, slave) (jtp471, rsm329)
cherag - Farsi
chirāgh, charāgh: lamp, light; guide, director. The term cherag is also used to
refer to one who is ordained in the work of the Universal Worship of the Sufi Movement. (also see
sirāj below, and see Universal Worship below)

(fjs389, jtp428)

The work of a cherag is to help a person to live...
from Addresses to Cherags, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)
Chishti - The Chishti Sufi Order was founded (c 900 AD) in the city of Chisht (a small town
near Herat, Afghanistan) by Abu Ishaq Shami whose teacher sent him from Syria to spread the
Sufi message. The Chishti Order is one of the oldest Sufi orders currently existing, and often
makes great use of sound and music in its practices.
After receiving instruction in the five different grades of Sufism, the physical, intellectual,
mental, moral, and spiritual, I went through a course of training in the four schools: the Chishti,
Naqshibandi, Qadiri, and Suhrawardi. I still recall this period, under the guidance of so great and
merciful a Murshid, as the most beautiful time of my life.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XII, My Initiation in Sufism

Ddakhl dar maqulat - Farsi/Urdu dakhl dar ma'qūlāt: 'intrusion into intellectual matters',
interference, interruption. (in some texts as dakhl dar makulat) (jtp507)
darood - see durood
daya - Sanskrit

dayā: sympathy, compassion, pity; mercy, clemency; kindness.

(mw469, rsm479)

dervish - Farsi ‫ درويش‬darvesh: poor, indigent, beggar, religious mendicant. (in some texts as
darwish)

(fjs516, jtp514)

deva - Sanskrit deva: (female devī) heavenly, divine; a deity, god; a god on earth, divine
being. From the Sanskrit root div which means light; brightness; sky, heaven. (mw492, jtp558, mw478)
dharma - Sanskrit dharma: duty; that which is held fast; conduct; established decree; virtue,
morality, good works; religion; ethical precepts, sacred duty. From the ancient root dhri meaning
to bring forth; hold, carry, bear, support. It is said that the ultimate meaning of dharma is to be in
total harmony with Life, allowing the Divine Essence and Divine Will to flow through one's

thoughts and actions, and consciously allowing one's own dharma to be in full accord with the
Divine Dharma (rta-dharma). (dharma is written as dhamma in Pali.) (mw510, mw519, jtp542)
In Sanskrit religion is called Dharma, which literally means duty. To give a definition of what religion is one can say
that it is an unswerving progress towards the ideal.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XI, Ideal
The divine life has a certain capability to give life, and it gives this life as teaching to the children of earth, and this
teaching is called Dharma, religion. Religions are many and different from one another, but only in form, for water
is one and the same element, and formless, only it takes the shape of the channel which holds it and which it uses for
its accommodation; and so the name water is changed into river, lake, sea, stream, pond, etc. So it is with religion;
the essential truth is one.
from Religious Gatheka 3, Religion, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)
When man has risen to the stage of development where he can be the perfect instrument of God, when nothing of his
own being stands in the way of the direct impulse that comes from within -- that spirit may be called perfect. That
which is most precious, that which is the purpose of man's life is to arrive at that state of perfection when he can be
the perfect instrument of God.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XIV, Divine Impulse

dhikr - please see zikr

(hw358)

dholak - Hindi ढढोलक dholak: a small drum.

(jtp573, rsm430)

dil - Farsi ‫ دﻞ‬dil: heart, soul; mind; valor; the center. (see also qalbi)

(fjs530, jtp522)

din (deen) - Arabic ‫ دين‬dīn: creed, belief, religion. It is said that there is only one dīn; that which
is the natural, intended, proper manner of life, acting in harmony with the will of the Creator and
thereby in harmony with all of creation. The classical Arabic root d-y-n signifies that which is
obedient, abased, submissive; doing service for; acting well towards; and also signifies receiving
a loan, being indebted, repaying a debt. Thus dīn signifies repaying our debt to our Creator
through humble submission and loving service. To do so, it is a common Sufi practice to strive to
be like a perfect mirror, reflecting all of the magnificence and glory back to the Beloved and into
this world, illuminating any darkness. Hazrat 'Ali said 'The love of the wise is a religion (dīn)
with which Allah is served.' (Note that Arabic dīn is essentially identical in meaning to the Sanskrit dharma)
(hw353, jtp558, ewl942)

dipak - Sanskrit ददीपक dīpaka: kindling, inflaming; illuminating, lighting. (mw481)
dua - Arabic ‫ دعا ء‬du'ā': prayer, request, plea; supplication (to God); an invocation of good, a
blessing, benediction; wish; congratulation, salutation. (in some texts as do'a) (hw327, fjs527, jtp518)
dunya - Arabic ‫ دنيا‬dunyā: literally 'nearest', the present world, the present life or state of
existence; the people of this world, people; a whole world, a multitude; worldly enjoyments,
temporal possessions. (hw340, fjs539, jtp529)

durood - Farsi ‫ درود‬durūd: benediction, blessing, mercy; prayer; praise (esp. of Mohammad);
thanksgiving; congratulation; salutation. (in some texts as darood or darud) (fjs515, jtp514)
dvija - Sanskrit

dvi-jā: twice born.

(in some texts as duija)

(mw504)

Eetekad - Arabic ‫ اعتقاد‬i'tiqād: trust, dependence, faith, confidence, belief. (verbal noun from root 'q-d: to put together, join) (hw735, fjs73)

Ffana - Arabic ‫ ﻓنا ء‬fanā': passing away, cessation; destruction, annihilation; vanishing, extinction;
nonexistence; obliteration of the self (ego). (hw854, ewl2451, fjs939)
fana-fi-Shaikh, fana-fi-Rasul, fana-fi-Allah - Arabic: fanā'= passing away, cessation; destruction,
annihilation; fī = in, into, among, together with.
[The Sufi's] aim in life is to release the captive soul from the bondage of limitations, which he accomplishes by the
repetition of the sacred names of God, and by constant thought of his divine ideal, and an ever-increasing love for
the divine Beloved until the beloved God with His perfection becomes manifest to his vision, and his imperfect self
vanishes from his sight.
This he calls Fanā, the merging in the ideal. In order to attain the final goal he gradually raises his ideal, first to
Fanā-fī-Shaikh, the ideal seen in a mortal walking on the earth, and he drills himself as a soldier before battle in
devotion to his ideal.
Then comes Fanā-fī-Rasūl, when he sees his ideal in spirit, and pictures Him in all sublimity, and fashions Him with
beautiful qualities, which he wishes to obtain himself. And after this he raises it to Fanā-fī-Allāh, the love and
devotion for that ideal which is beyond qualities and in which is the perfection of all qualities.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Sufism

faqir - Arabic ‫ ﻓقیر‬faqīr: poor, needy; beggar; ascetic, dervish, itinerant monk, one living on
whatever is given. (in some texts as Fakir) (hw846, fjs935)
fazl - Arabic ‫ ﻓضﻞ‬fazl, v.n.: remaining over and above, exceeding, being redundant; excelling;
excess; a remnant, remainder; excellence, virtue, accomplishment; learning, wisdom, science; a
gift, present, favor, grace, bounty. Inayat Khan described fazl as "the word of illumination".
From the Arabic root f-z-l meaning to have a remainder, have over-abundance; to exceed,
surpass; to be excellent, superior, exquisite; to ascend beyond. (hw840, fjs932, jtp782, ewl2411)
fikr - Arabic ‫ ﻓکر‬fikr: thinking, cognition, reflection, meditation, contemplation. Inayat Kan used
this term to describe silent repetition, such as a wazifa. (in contrast to zikr, which he used to
describe spoken repetition) (hw848)

firishta - Farsi ‫ ﻓرشته‬firishta: an angel, a messenger, an apostle. The phrase Firishta Khaslat
means angelic character. (in some texts as Farishta) (fjs919)
Firdausi - Persian poet Abu al Kasim Mansur used the pen name Firdausī (934-1020). After
Persia had been under Arab control for many years, Sultan Mahmud of Ghazna was concerned
that the Persian history would be lost, so he commissioned Firdausī to write the 60,000 verse
epic poem Shāh nāma (Book of Kings) recording the deeds of legendary Persian kings and
heroes, which is considered to be the first modern Persian literature. (Also written as Firdawsi or
Firdousi)

Ggandharva - Sanskrit
gandharva: heavenly guardian of the Soma. The Gandharvas are the
husbands of the Apsarasas in Indra's heaven; they make known the divine secrets, and are
responsible for ecstatic states. Gandharvas are known as the heavenly singers or celestial
musicians. (mw346)
Ganga - Sanskrit
gangā: literally swift-mover; the sacred river Ganges (India). In Hindu
mythology it is said that the Goddess Gangā descended to the Earth in the form of a River to help
alleviate the suffering of humanity. (mw341, jtp919)
gardish - Farsi ‫ کردش‬gardish: turning round, revolving, conversion, motion; turn, change; a bend;
vicissitude; reversion; adverse fortune; wandering about, vagrancy. (fjs1080, jtp903)
garm - Farsi garm: hot, glowing, burning; ardent, zealous, excited, active, lively. (fjs1084, jtp904)
gatha - Sanskrit

gātha: a song; a verse, stanza.

(mw352)

Gautama - Siddhārtha Gautama, known as Buddha. Siddhārtha's mother died shortly after his
birth, and her younger sister, Gautami, raised the young prince, who was then called Siddhārtha
Gautama. (see Buddha)
gayan - Sanskrit
gāyana: a singer, a praiser, a talker. The name of a volume of aphorisms
and poetry written by Hazrat Inayat Khan. (mw352)
gayatri - Sanskrit
gāyatr: song, hymn; a hymn composed in the gāyatrī meter. The Gayatri
mantra from the Rig Veda is perhaps the most well known, yet there are also Gayatri mantras to
many other deities such as Shiva, Durga, Agni, etc. (also see the Gayatri page) (mw352, jtp894)
ghaib - Arabic ghaib: hidden, unseen, concealed, invisible. (in some texts as ghayb) (hw806)
ghairat - Arabic ‫ غیرة‬ghaira, Farsi ghairat: jealousy, to guard jealously; care of what is sacred or
inviolable; a sense of honor; courage. (hw807, fjs901, jtp774)

Ghalib - Arabic ghālib: dominant, overpowering; triumphant, victorious. Famous poet Mizra
Asadullah Beg Khan Ghalib (1797-1869 AD) who wrote in Urdu and Farsi, a master of the ghazal
form, court poet for Bahadur Shah Zafar. (hw796, fjs879)
ghar-i hira - Arabic ghār-i hirā': literally 'cave of inquiry'. The name of the mountain cave
northeast of Mecca where the angel Gabriel first began to recite the Qur'ān to Muhammad. From
ghār meaning cave, cavern, den; and hirā' meaning seeking, inquiry, investigation. (in some texts as
Gar-i Hira)

(hw804 and 202, jtp768, fjs414)

There is a still greater and deeper experience: when a person is in a wilderness, near rocks in the desert, where there
is no sound even of birds or beasts, when there is absolute silence. In the East, did not all the prophets from the time
of Abraham, Moses, David, and in the time of Christ and Muhammad, all the prophets of the Old Testament and the
New, and of the Qur'an, receive their inspiration from the same source? The history of Moses on Mount Sinai, the
Prophet of Nazareth in the wilderness, the Prophet Muhammad on Ghar-i Hira, did they not all drink from the silent
life?
from The Sufi Message, Volume VII, Silent Life

ghaus - Arabic ‫ غوث‬ghauth, Farsi/Urdu ghaus: call for help; helper; one who aids, delivers from
difficulty, removes trouble or affliction. (in some texts as ghous) (hw804, ewl2306)
Ghazali - Arabic ‫ غزال‬ghazāl: gazelle; rising sun; the name of a Persian village in Tūs (where alGhazālī was born). Persian mystic, writer, jurist, theologian Abu Hamīd Muhammad ibn
Muhammad al-Ghazālī (1058 - 1111 AD). (sometimes written al-Ghazzali) (hw788, fjs887)
ghilman - Arabic ‫ غلمان‬ghilmān (plural of ghulām): servants, pages, waiters; lads, youths.

(hw798,

fjs893)

ghiza - Arabic ‫ غﺬاﺀ‬ghidha': Farsi/Urdu ghiza: food, diet, provision, victuals; aliment,
nutriment.
(hw781, fjs882, jtp769)
Music is called Ghiza-i-ruh, the food of the soul, by Sufis. Music being the most divine art elevates the soul to the
higher spirit; music itself being unseen soon reaches the unseen; just as only the diamond can break the diamond, so
musical vibrations are used to make the physical and mental vibrations inactive, in order that the Sufi may be
elevated to the spiritual spheres.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Spiritual Liberty

gita - Sanskrit
Bhagavad-Gita)

gītā: song, sacred song or poem, sacred doctrines in metrical form. (see also
(mw356, jtp942)

githa - Sanskrit
gīthā: a song. The name given to a series of privately circulated esoteric
papers by Hazrat Inayat Khan (which are generally given by a teacher when the student is ready)
gopi - Sanskrit
go-pī: female cowherd, cowherdess (especially applied to the companions of
the playful juvenile Krishna); wife of a cowherd; milk-maid, dairy-maid; protectress, female
guardian. (mw368, jtp922)

grihasta - Sanskrit
grha-stha: living in a house, householder. The second of four phases of
life, in which one is a householder, raising a family. (in some texts as gruhasta)
guna - Sanskrit guņa: a quality, attribute or characteristic. The character of each being is
described by three gunas: sattva (purity), rajas (passion) and tamas (lack of understanding). (mw357,
jtp915)

gunbad - Farsi gunbad, gunbaz: arch, vault, cupola, dome, tower; an arched gateway; a triumphal
arch; bud of a flower; a cup. (in some texts as gunbad) (fjs1098, jtp916)
guru - Sanskrit guru: heavy, weighty, large, great; important, serious; valuable, prized;
venerable, honorable, respected; honorific appellation of a spiritual guide; a spiritual guide.
(mw359, jtp905)

Hhabib - Arabic ‫ حﺒیب‬habīb: friend; beloved, sweetheart, lover; darling; dear one. From the Arabic
root h-b-b meaning to evoke love or liking; to endear; to make lovable, dear, attractive; to show
affection. (hw179)
Note: The phrase "habībī Allāh" could be translated as "my beloved Allāh", while the phrase "habīb allāh" or
"habībullāh" could be translated as "beloved of Allāh" or "loved by Allāh".

Hafiz - Arabic ‫ حاﻓظ‬hāfiz: keeper, guardian, preserver, caretaker. The great Sufi poet,
Shamsuddin Muhammad Hāfiz, born in the early 1300's in Shiraz (Iran). (hw222, fjs408)
hairat - Arabic haira, Farsi hairat: amazement, astonishment; bewilderment, confusion,
perplexity; wavering (between two things). (hw258, fjs435, jtp483)
hajj - Arabic ‫ حخ‬hajj: setting out, going towards, pilgrimage, the Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca.
(hw184)

hal - Arabic ‫ حال‬hāl: (plural ahwāl) state, mood, attitude, circumstances, condition. Mystics often
use the term hāl, or al-hāl, to refer to the state of ecstasy. From the Arabic root h-w-l meaning to
change, undergo a transformation; to shift, grow, pass by. (hw252, fjs408)
halal - Arabic ‫ حﻼل‬halāl: being legal, a lawful thing; the opposite of haram; sanctioned by
Islamic law; suitable for food, lawful to eat (hw232, fjs427, jtp480)
halqa - Arabic halqa: a circle, a ring, hoop; assembly of people; a fraternity. (in some texts as halka)
(hw235, fjs428, jtp481)

hama man am - Farsi hama man am: literally "all I am"; everything is me. The esoteric meaning
is that God is all, and all is God. (in some texts as humamanarn) (fjs1512, fjs1316, fjs96)
Christ said, 'I and the Father are one'. That does not mean that Christ laid claim to Godhood for His own person. It is
what the dervishes call 'Hama man am', which means all is He and He is all. There is not an atom in the universe that
He is not. We must recognize Him, we must respect Him in every face, even in the face of our enemy...

from The Sufi Message, Volume VI, Struggle of Life

hamd - Arabic hamd: praise, commendation. (see also al-Hamdulillah above)

(hw238)

hamin ost - Farsi ham-īn ost: literally "even this He is" or "likewise this He is". The esoteric
meaning is that God is all, and all is God. The same idea is also commonly written as hama ost,
meaning everything is He, each is He, or all is He. (in some texts as naminaust) (also see hama man am )
(fjs1507, fjs132, fjs120, jtp1236)

hamsa - Sanskrit hammsa: swan, flamingo, goose, a bird of passage; a person of exceptional
qualities; spiritual preceptor; soul or spirit. (also transliterated hansa) (mw1286)
haqiqat - Arabic haqīqat: (plural haqā'iq) true state of affairs, true nature, essential quality,
essence; spiritual truth (which is unchangeable and unchanging). (also see Marifat) (hw224, fjs426)
haqq - Arabic haqq: truth, rightness, correctness; authentic, real, right; due share, what ought to
be; al-Haqq is one of the beautiful names of Allāh: The Truth, The Reality. (also see al-Haqq in 99
names of Allah) (in some texts as haq or hakk)

(hw224, jtp479)

haram - Arabic harām: unlawful, forbidden, prohibited; wrong-doing; illegitimate.

(hw210, fjs414)

Hashimi Arabic ‫ هاشم‬hāshim: one who breaks bread into broth; surname of an ancestor of
Muhammad, on account of his breaking bread for the benefit of the poor at the time of a great
famine. Sayyed Muhammad Hashimi, a Sufi mystic, was Inayat Khan's friend and academic
teacher in Sufi literature.
Maulana Hashimi was his great friend and ustad, who taught him the Persian and Arabic literature of the ancient
Sufis and being a great mystic, recognized in Inayat what other friends of his (Ramyar and Hafiz Khan) though his
great friends and admirers, were at a loss to understand. But Hashimi knew that something was being prepared in
Inayat for the years that were in store for him, which was beyond words or imagination.
from Biography of Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan, Part I, Youth, p72

hatha - Sanskrit hatha: force, effort; obstinacy, persistence; inevitable necessity. (pronounced hot-ha)
(mw1287)

hauz-ul kausar - Arabic haud-u al kauthar, Farsi/Urdu hauz-u al kausar: ocean of abundance,
fountain of wine. (see also Kauthar) (in some texts as Hauzu 'l Kausar) (hw249, ao479)
haya - Arabic hayā': modesty, bashfulness; timidity, shyness; avoiding that which is distasteful or
improper. ( hw256, fjs434, jtp482)
Haya is the finest feeling in human nature, which is called modesty.... Modesty is life itself; a life which is
conscious of its beauty yet inclined to veil it in all its forms is modesty. At the same time modesty is the proof of
sincerity and of prudence. The immodest man cries aloud, 'I am the light' and is finished in a moment. The diamond,
shining in its light constantly, never says a word about its light... a modest person very often will not raise his voice,
out of dignity; or say things, out of consideration and respect.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XIII, Modesty

hayvanat - Arabic haiwān, plural haiwānāt, Farsi hayvānāt: living, life,: brutes: animal nature,
(As opposed to insānīyat which means human nature, humanness.) (hw257, fjs436)
hayy - Arabic hayy: living, lively, animated, energetic; al-Hayy is one of the beautiful names
of Allāh: The Ever-Living, The Everlasting. (also see al-Hayy in the 99 Names of Allah) (hw256)
hazrat - Arabic
hadrat, Farsi hazrat: presence, dignity, majesty; a title applied to a great
person, similar to titles such as your Excellence, your Majesty, your Highness. (Hazrat is the typical
Farsi/Urdu pronunciation of the Arabic hadrat.)

(fjs422, jtp478, hw215)

hijrat - Arabic hijrat: departure, exit, emigration, separation. Hijrat Day: Inayat Khan departed
from India, headed for America, on September 13, 1910. (hw1194, fjs1490, jtp1221)
hosh bar dam - Farsi hosh bar dam: thinking of breath, attention upon breath. (hosh =
understanding, mind, attention, thinking; bar = with, upon, into; dam = breath, vitality, lifeforce) (in some texts as hosh ba dam, or hosh bar dum) (fjs1518,166,534, jtp1241,143,525)
hu - Arabic (formal) huwa or (common) hū: he, it; the Arabic third person personal pronoun;
often used to refer to Allāh; also considered to be a mystical sound, often used in chants such as
Hū Allāh or simply Hū. (hw1215, ao596, jtp1239)
This sound Hu is the beginning and the end of all sounds, be they from man, bird, beast, or thing...
The Supreme Being has been called by various names in different languages, but the mystics have known him as
Hu, the natural name, not man-made, the only name of the Nameless, which all nature constantly proclaims. The
sound Hu is most sacred; the mystics call Ism-i Azam, the name of the Most High, for it is the origin and end of
every sound as well as the background of each word. The word Hu is the spirit of all sounds and of all words, and is
hidden within them all, as the spirit in the body. It does not belong to any language, but no language can help
belonging to it. This alone is the true name of God, a name that no people and no religion can claim as their own.

from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Abstract Sound

hu - Sanskrit hu: to worship, honor, make a sacrifice to (especially to pour butter into the fire);
to offer oblation. (mw1300)
hu - Sanskrit hū: to call upon, invoke, summon; call by name. (The Sanskrit hu is thought to be the
root of the modern word 'God')

(mw1301, jtp1239)

hur - Arabic ‫ حور‬hūr, hūrīya, Farsi hūrī: houri, nymph, virgin of paradise. (hw247, fjs433, jtp482)

I -ilm - Arabic 'ilm: knowledge, learning; information; perception, cognition. The Arabic root '-l-m
means to know, have knowledge, be informed, be acquainted with, find out about. (hw743)
ilham - Arabic ilhām: inspiration, divine revelation From the Arabic root l-h-m meaning to
devour, swallow up; to inspire. (hw1033, fjs96, jtp78)
Inspiration is the inner light which reflects itself upon the heart of man; the purer the heart is from rust, like a clean
mirror, the more clearly inspiration can be reflected in it. To receive inspirations clearly the heart should be prepared
by proper training. A heart soiled with rust is never capable of receiving them. There are five kinds of inspiration:
1. Ilhāmi 'Ilm -- inspiration of an artist and scientist
2. Ilhāmi Husn -- inspiration of a musician and poet
3. Ilhāmi 'Ishq -- inspiration of a devotee
4. Ilhāmi Rūh -- inspiration of a mystic
5. Ilhāmi Ghaib -- inspiration of a prophet
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Spiritual Liberty

iman - Arabic īmān: faith, belief; sincerity and firmness of belief. From the Arabic root a-m-n
meaning to be faithful, reliable, trustworthy; to reassure, safeguard, guarantee. (hw36)
In an Eastern language there is a word which is very difficult to translate: iman. It is not exactly faith or belief; the
nearest word one can find for it is conviction, a conviction that cannot be changed by anything, a conviction that
does not come from outside. One always seeks for conviction, one asks, 'Will anybody convince me, will this thing
convince me?' Nothing convinces, nobody convinces. Conviction is something that comes from one's own heart and
it stands above faith and belief...
from The Sufi Message, Volume XIV, Heart Quality

imam - Arabic imām: prayer leader; model, standard, criterion; that which is followed. From the
Arabic root a-m-m meaning to go, to go see, to go to a place; to follow an example. (hw32)

inayat - Arabic ‫' عناية‬ināyat: concern, care; grace; assistance, aid; guarding, preserving; careful,
painstaking, meticulous; a gift, present, favor, bounty. From the Arabic root '-n-y meaning to be
concerned; feel concern; take care of, tend to, look after, to devote one's attention. (hw762, fjs869,
jtp766)

inkisar - Arabic inkisār: being broken, shattered, broken open; repentant. In esoteric terms: the
breaking of the ego; humility, selflessness. (in some texts as enkesar or enkessar) (hw968, fjs113, jtp94)
insan - Arabic insān: man, mankind, human being. From the Arabic root a-n-s meaning to be
tame, companionable, friendly, sociable. (hw39, fjs110, jtp92)
ishq - Arabic ‫' عشﻖ‬ishq: love; passionate love; unconditional love that is oblivious to any
shortcomings. (also written as Ishq) (in some texts as Ishk) (hw719, fjs850)
ishq Allah mabud Allah - Arabic ‫' عشﻖ ﷲ معﺒود ﷲ‬ishq allāh ma'būd allāh: 'ishq = unconditional
love; ma'būd = beloved, worshiped, adored. Literally, Allāh is Love, Allāh is Beloved. (also written
as ishq Allah mabud Allah)

(hw719, hw686)

The Sufi in the East says to himself, 'Ishq Allah, Ma'bud Allah, which means 'God is Love, God is the Beloved', in
other words it is God who is Love, Lover, and Beloved.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XI, Love

ism - Arabic ism: (plural asmā') name, appellation, attribute. Based on the Arabic root (variously
reported to be s-m-w or a-s-m) which indicates the means by which something is distinguished,
whether by use of an identifying mark, or by being raised up high so that it may be distinguished,
and would include a word, name, reputation, light or vibration; all of which point toward the
very essence of something, the inherent qualities and signs of the existence of something, the
underlying reality of something. (hw498, fjs59, jtp52)
ism-i azam - Farsi/Arabic ism-i a'zam: greatest name, ultimate word. (also see ism and azam)
There are also words, which no language can claim for its own. This is true of the word Ism-i Azam, which means
the word of power. No one can claim this word as belonging to his language; it is a word, which belongs to no
language... All other words have been derived from it, for Ism-i Azam is the spirit of all words; it is the root of all
other words.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XII, The Word

ism ur-rasm - Arabic ism u al-rasm: the philosophy of the word, the manner of the word, the
doctrine of the word. (also see ism and see rasm)

All down the ages the Yogis and seers of India have worshipped the Word-God, or Sound-God, and around that idea
is centered all the mysticism of sound or utterance. Not alone among Hindus, but among the seers of the Semitic, the
Hebraic, races the great importance of the word was recognized. The sacred Name, the sacred Word, were always
esteemed in the Jewish religion. Also in Islam, that great religion whose mysticism the West is only beginning to
discover, one finds the doctrine of Ism ur-rasm which translated is the 'doctrine of the mystical word'.
from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Power of the Word

Islam - Arabic ‫ اسﻼ م‬islām: submission, resignation, reconciliation (to the will of Allah). From the
Arabic root s-l-m meaning to be flawless, unimpaired, intact, sound, whole, complete; to have
well-being; success. The Arabic word salam and the Hebrew shalom have arisen from the same
ancient Semitic root. (hw497)
ittifaq - Arabic ‫ اتفاق‬ittifāq: agreeing, consenting; concord, harmony, congruence, accord; meeting
one another. (in some texts as ettefaq) (hw1272, fjs15)

JJain - Jainism is an ancient religion, deeply rooted in India, that teaches that every living thing
has an eternal soul, and thus the Jains practice harmlessness to avoid harm to any living creature.
The Jains believe in religious tolerance, saying that no one view can fully express reality.
Jabril - Arabic jabrīl or jabra'īl: The angel Gabriel, archangel of the messengers. A compound
word based on Arabic versions of the ancient Hebrew roots, variously interpreted as signifying:
God is my Strength, God's Warrior, God's Might; the Arabic root j-b-r is based on the Hebrew gb-r meaning mighty, strong, powerful, proud, warrior; and the Arabic 'īl is based on the Hebrew
'el, meaning the One God. (in some texts as Jebrail or Jibra'il) ( hw133)
jafr - Arabic jafr: parchment for writing; fortunetelling, the art of divination from written
characters. (hw151, fjs365, jtp382)
jalal - Arabic jalāl: majesty, sublimity, splendor, glory, loftiness. (in some texts as jelal)
jam - Farsi jām: cup, chalice, goblet, drinking vessel; mirror.

(hw152, ao100)

(fjs350)

jam-i Jamshed - Farsi jām-i jamshīd: the cup of Jamshīd. The mirror-like reflecting cup of the
mythical Persian king Jamshīd in which he saw the reflection of the events of the whole world,
past, present or future. (Also called jām-i jamshed or simply jām-i jam) (in some texts as Yami Jamshed)
(jtp372)

jamal - Arabic ‫ جمال‬jamāl: beauty, handsomeness, grace, elegance. (The Prophet Muhammad
said: Truly, God is beautiful, and God loves beauty.... inna allāha jamīlun yuhibbu al-jamāl) (in
some texts as jemal) (hw163, ao102, fjs370)

jamil - Arabic ‫ جمیﻞ‬jamīl: beautiful, elegant, comely, pleasing; good, fair; becoming; courtesy.
(The Prophet Muhammad said: Truly, God is beautiful, and God loves beauty.... inna allāha
jamīlun yuhibbu al-jamāl) (hw163, jtp390, fjs372)
Jamna - Sanskrit jamnā: a river in India, also called the Yamuna. (see also sangam)
japa - Sanskrit

japa: whispering, muttering; softly reciting scriptures or prayers. (mw412)

jata nada - Sanskrit jāta-nāda: jāta means 'brought into existence by', and nāda means sound. In
esoteric terms sound existed first, and sound brought light into existence; thus jāta-nāda refers to
light. (also written as Jatanada) (mw417, mw534)
Jilani - Farsi jīlāni: Abdul Qādir Jīlāni (1077-1166), the great Islamic scholar and mystic, born in
Jīlān (Iran). The Qadiriyya Sufi order was founded upon his teachings.
jinn - Arabic jinn: invisible beings, either helpful or harmful, that affect the lives of human
beings. From the Arabic root j-n-n meaning to cover, hide, conceal, veil. (in some texts as djinn)
(hw164)

jivan - Sanskrit jivan: to be alive, to live. The phrase jivan mukta means: one who is liberated in
this life: jivan = living, mukta = let loose, set free.
jnana - Sanskrit

jñāna: knowing; knowledge; especially transcendent knowledge. (mw426)

KKaba - Arabic ‫ ﻛعﺒة‬ka'ba, ka'bah, Farsi/Urdu ka'bat: cube, cubic structure. Often used to refer to
al-ka'ba, which is also called kabatullāh. The sacred al-ka'ba in Makkah (Mecca, Saudi Arabia) is
a 15 meter high cubic structure made of granite, covered with black silk and gold embroidery,
and around which the great Masjid al-Haram was constructed. At the time of Muhammad, the
Quraish used the al-ka'ba as a shrine to their various tribal gods. After years of conflict with the
Arab tribes, Muhammad was eventually able to dedicate al-ka'ba as an Islamic house of worship.
(in some texts as Kaaba or Ka'aba)

(hw973)

Kabatullah - Arabic ka'bat-u-allāh: literally 'cube of Allāh'. (see kaba above)

Kabbala - Hebrew ‫ ק לבללה‬qabbala, qabbālāh: received, accepted; received doctrine, tradition;
mystical teachings of rabbinical origin, often based on an esoteric interpretation of the Hebrew
Scriptures, largely developed after the 7th century AD. (also written as Kabala, Kabbalah, Qabala,
Qabalah, Caballah)

kabs - Arabic kabs: pressure, pressing, squeezing, compressing. (the opposite of bast)

(hw949)

kafi - Arabic kāfin, kafīy; Farsi kāfī: sufficient, enough; suitable, fit; capable, able, qualified;
adequate, all that is needed. (see also Additional Wazaif) (jtp802, hw977)
kafir - Arabic ‫ ﻛاﻓر‬kāfir: irreligious, unbelieving, atheist; ungrateful.

(hw975)

kalgi - Farsi/Hindi kalgī; an ornament attached to a turban, plume, crest, jewel; comb (of a
cock) (in some texts as kalaggai, kalagai) (fjs1043, rsm177)
kala - Sanskrit कचाल kāla: a fixed or right point of time; proper season, time of departure; time,
epcoh, season, age; a small measure of something; fate, destiny; Time personified; one of the
names of Yama, the king of death. (mw278, jtp802)
kalam - Arabic kalām: talking, speaking, addressing; statement, remark, words, speech, talk,
conversation; a salutation. (hw982, fjs1040)
Kali - Sanskrit
kālī: black, dark colored; epithet of the goddess Durga (invincible one), wife
of Shiva (the destroyer), goddess of destruction, the power (shakti) with which Shiva acts. (mw278,
jtp804)

Kalidasa - Sanskrit कचाधलदचास kālidāsa: Kālidāsa is generally considered as India's finest poet and
dramatist, and is often referred to as Kavikulaguru (Preceptor of All Poets). Many estimates of
the date of his work place it in the 4th or 5th century AD.
kalima - Arabic kalima: word, speech, address; utterance, remark; saying; announcement. The
Arabic phrase variously written as lā ilāha illā Allāh Muhammad ur rasūlu Allāh or lā ilāha illā
Allāh Muhammadun rasūlu Allāh is often called the First Kalima or Kalima Tayyib (pure words,
noble saying), shown below as inscribed on Saudi Arabia's national flag. (hw981, ao348)

kalpa-vriksha - Sanskrit
kalpa-vrikśa, kalpa-taru: the wishing tree, tree of plenty, one of
the trees of Indra's paradise (svarga) capable of fulfilling all wishes; a productive or bountiful
source. (in some texts as kalpa-vraksha) (mw262)
kama - Sanskrit
kāma: wish, desire, longing, attachment; love, affection; pleasure,
enjoyment. (mw271)

kamal - Arabic kamāl: perfection; completeness, completion, consummation, maturity, ripeness.
(in some texts as kemal)

(hw985)

kamala - Sanskrit

kamala, Hindi kamal: lotus, lotus flower.

(mw252, jtp849, rsm169)

Kamsa - Sanskrit
kamsa: king of Mathurā who murdered six of Devakī's sons, became a foe
of Krishna, and was ultimately slain by Krishna. (mw241)
karma - Sanskrit
karman: act, action; obligation, occupation; work, labor, activity. In Hindu
philosophy, the law of cause and effect (that one reaps what one has sown) is often called karma.
From the root kri meaning to do, accomplish; create, make; bring to completion. (mw258)
kauthar - Arabic kauthar: (intensive form of kathar), Farsi/Urdu kausar; literally means
copiousness, multitude or abundance. (in some texts as kouthar, or kausar) (hw 954, ao479)
In spiritual terms, kauthar refers to the abundance of good, or abundant blessings, that Allah has promised to those
who pray sincerely and devote their lives selflessly to the good of humanity. Esoterically, this is the Divine wine.
Also, the name of Chapter 108 of the Qur'an. In the hadith, al-kauthar is variously likened, to a river, a lake, or a
fountain, while also saying that these attributes are just a portion of the great goodness of al-kauthar. One of the
sayings of Muhammad (hadith), as narrated by Sahl bin Sad, says: I heard the Prophet saying, "I am your
predecessor at al-kauthar, and whoever will come to it, will drink from it, and whoever will drink from it, will never
become thirsty after that."

kavi - Sanskrit कधव kavi: sage; gifted with insight, enlightened, wise, prudent, seer, prophet;
singer, poet. (mw264, jtp857)
Khadija - Arabic khadīja: The name of the first wife of the Prophet Muhammad. Also the name
of Inayat Khan's mother (in 1896 photo below). (in some texts as Khatija or Khatidja)

khak - Farsi khāk: earth, dust, soil, ground; little, precious little; peaceful; low, humble. (in some
texts as khaak)

(fjs 440, jtp484)

khalif - Arabic khalīfa: deputy, representative; successor, vicegerent, caliph. (hw298, fjs473, jtp493)
khalwat - Arabic khalwah, Farsi khalwat: privacy, loneliness, solitude, seclusion (in some texts as
khilwat or khilvat)

(hw301, fjs472, jtp493)

khalwat dar anjuman - Farsi khalwat dar anjuman: solitude within the crowd. (khalwat =
solitude, seclusion; dar = in, within, among; anjuman = multitude, assembly, congregation)
some texts as khilwat or khilvat)

(in

(fjs472,506,106)

khanda peshani - Farsi khanda peshānī; (khanda = laughing, smiling; peshānī = forehead)
Literally: laughing forehead, or smiling forehead. (fjs 477,266, jtp 494,300)
khamosh - Farsi khāmosh: silent, dumb; discreet; tame; extinguished; as an interjection: Hush!,
Be quiet! (in some texts as khamush) (fjs443, jtp485)
khaslat - Arabic khaslat: quality, characteristic, trait, (natural) disposition, talent. (hw282, jtp490)
khatm - Arabic ‫ ﺧتم‬khātm, khātam: seal; end, close, conclusion. The name of one of the prayers
given by Inayat Khan. (also see prayers in the Gayan) Notes: 1) The "kh" at the beginning of the word is
pronounced much like the ch in the Scottish word loch. 2) Three similar sounding Arabic words are: khatm (end,
conclusion, finish, seal), khātm (concluding, finishing, sealing) and khātam (the best, the most perfect, the last, the
conclusion, the final portion). Since these words all sound essentially the same to those who are not proficient in
Arabic (such as Murshid Inayat Khan's students who transcribed his words), we do not know for certain which of
these words Murshid actually intended. However, the transliteration khātm is now being used in some newer
publications. My own belief is that the intended form was likely khātam. (previously in some texts as khatum)
(hw264, jtp487, fjs447, ewl 702)

khatir - Arabic ‫ ﺧاطر‬khātir: "what occurs in the mind", thought, inclination, choice; regard,
consideration, favor. (fjs484, hw287)
khayal - Arabic khayāl: thought, idea; vision, apparition; fantasy, imagination. (in some texts as
Khyal)

(hw310, fjs491)

khayali - Arabic khayālī: imaginary, ideal; visionary, conceptual; fanciful, unreal, chimerical.
(hw310, fjs491, jtp498)

Khayyam - Umar ibn Ibrahim al-Khayyami (Omar the son of Abraham the tent-maker) Omar Khayyam
(1048-1131 AD) was an astronomer, mathematician, philosopher and poet who lived in Nishapur
Persia (now Iran) and wrote many mystical verses in the quatrain style called rubā'ī, the
collection of which are called rubā'īyāt.
Khizr - Arabic al-khidr, Farsi/Urdu al-khizr: legendary saint, prophet and teacher, often said to
have been a companion of Moses (see Qur'an 18:65-82), considered to be a fountain of life and of
spiritual understanding. Sometimes called the 'green man' because barren lands turned verdant in
his presence. (hw283, jtp490, jtp494)
Khuda - Farsi ‫ ﺧ دا‬khudā: 'self-created', Supreme Being, God; lord, master, ruler. (also written as
Khoda)

(fjs448, jtp487)

Khulq - Arabic khulq: nature, disposition, character, temperament; noble character, morality.
(hw299, fjs472)

Khusrau - Abul Hasan Yaminuddin Khusrau (1253-1325 AD), also known as Amir Khusrau, a Sufi
mystic and a spiritual disciple of Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi,. Amir Khusrau was not only one

of India's greatest poets, he is also credited with being the founder of both Hindustani classical
music and Qawwali. (also written as Khusro or Khusraw)
Khusru - Shah Khusru (531-579 AD), king of Persia, widely respected for both his extensive
knowledge and his profound wisdom.
The history of Khusru, the old king of Persia, who was both Prophet and king shows this. His feeling was, 'My
subjects are my children; more than my children, nearer and closer than my children; their interest is my interest, for
them I live, for them I was born. My whole life is for them.' The whole life of the country was based on that
example, that king's ideal.
from The Sufi Message, Volume VII, Democracy

khwaja - Farsi khwāja: lord, master, owner; honorific title of distinction; venerable elder;
teacher, preceptor. (fjs479, jtp494)
kibriya - Arabic kibriyā': grandeur, glory, magnificence, supremacy, majesty; pride, haughtiness,
arrogance. From the Arabic root k-b-r meaning to be great, famous; to gain in significance,
become important; to become too great, too burdensome; to exceed in age, be older. (in some texts
as kibria or kibriyya) (hw948))

kimia - (see al-Kimia)
kismet - Arabic ‫ قسة‬qisma, Farsi qismat: allotment, portion, lot; fate, destiny

(fjs970, hw893)

kosha - Sanskrit
kośa: a cask, bucket, a vessel for holding something; store-house; case,
covering; dictionary, lexicon; a sheath, one of three bodily sheaths. (mw314)
Krishna - Sanskrit
kŗşņa: dark, black; the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, often represented as a
young and amorous cowherd with flowing hair and flute. (see also Vishnu) (mw306, jtp825)
The life of Krishna is an ideal. It gives the picture of the life of a perfect man. The real meaning of the word Krishna
is God. The man who was identified with that name was the God-conscious one who fulfilled his message in the
period in which he was destined to give it.
from The Sufi Message, Volume IX, Krishna

kshatriya - Sanskrit
kşatriya: a member of military or reigning order, which forms the basis
of the second caste. (mw325)
kun bi ismi allah - Arabic kun: let there be, let it be, be! The phrase kun bi ismi Allah means
Be! In the name of God. (erroneously in some texts as kun ba ismi allah or kum ba ismi allah) (hw994, fjs1052,
jtp850)

kun fa yakun - Arabic kun: let there be, let it be, be! The phrase kun fa yakūn means (Allah
says) Be! And it is. (see Qur'an 36:82) (hw994, fjs1052, jtp850)

kursi - Arabic kursī: chair, seat, bench, arm-chair; the base of a pillar, pedestal. From the root k-rs meaning to lay a foundation; to connect together. (hw962, fjs1023)
kushad - Farsi ‫ ﻛشاد‬kushād: opening, uncovering, disclosure, revelation, expansion.

(fjs1031, jtp 835)

Inspirations are reflected upon mankind in five ways:
1. Kushād dar Khayāl - in the wave of thought - (disclosure by thought)
2. Kushād dar Hāl - in emotions and feelings - (disclosure by mood)
3. Kushād dar Jamāl - in the sufferings of the heart - (disclosure by beauty)
4. Kushād dar Jalāl - in the flow of wisdom - (disclosure by majesty)
5. Kushād dar Kamāl - in the divine voice and vision - (disclosure by perfection)
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Spiritual Liberty

kushi - Farsi kushī: killing, slaying. (used as the last member of a compound term such as nafs-kushi, which
means ego-killing)

(jtp838, fjs1035)

Llahut - Arabic lāhūt: godhead, divinity, divine nature, deity.

(hw1002, fjs1114)

la ilaha illa-llah - Arabic lā ilāha illā Allāh: The four individual words in the phrase lā ilāha ill
allāh have the following meanings: lā = no, not, none, neither; ilāha = a god, deity, object of
worship; illā = but, except; allāh = Allāh. Typical translations include: There is no god but Allāh;
There is nothing to worship or adore except Allāh. This phrase is often called tahlīl (acclaim, cry
out with with joy), and is used in the Qur'an in sūrah Muhammad (47:19). (also see the tahlil web page)

lauh - Arabic lauh: rising, appearing, shining; being manifest; tablet, signboard. (in some texts as
louh)

(hw1035, fjs1131)

lawwama - Arabic lawwāma: stern critic, severe censurer, one who is constantly blaming others
or accusing himself, vindictive. This term is often used to describe the self-reproaching aspect of
the nafs as it begins to resist carnal desires. (used in the Qur'an 75:2) From the Arabic root l-wm meaning to blame, censure, rebuke, reprimand. (in some texts as lauwama) (hw 1037, ao521)
layam - Sanskrit
layam: to disappear, be dissolved, perish, be destroyed; be absorbed; be
concealed. One of the three states: Srishti (creation), Sthiti (abiding), and Layam (dissolution)
(mw903)

Laila - Arabic lailā, Farsi laile, Urdu lailī; a woman's name. Lailā and Majnūn are lovers in a
classical Middle-Eastern love story. (this love story was the inspiration of an Eric Clapton love song called

Layla)

(hw1041, fjs1135, jtp975)

Mmabud - Arabic ‫ معﺒود‬ma'būd: worshiped, served, adored; the deity. From the Arabic root '-b-d
meaning to serve, worship, adore, venerate, idolize, deify. (see also mahbub) (hw686)
Madani - Arabic madanī: literally 'from Medina': Sayyid Muhammad Abū Hāshim Madanī was
the murshid of 'Ināyat Khān. Madanī was from Medina (Saudi Arabia), lived in the Purānā Pul
(old bridge) quarter of Hyderabad (India), and was the murīd and khalīfa of Sayyid Muhammad
Hasan Jīlī Kalīmi. Hazrat Madanī died in October 1907, and was buried in his neighborhood,
near the dargāh of Qādiri saint Miyān Paysā.
When asked how to recognize a godly person Hazrat Madanī replied: "'It is not what he says and it is not what he
seems to be, but it is the atmosphere that his presence creates. That is the proof. For no one can create an atmosphere
which does not belong to his spirit.'"
Hazrat Madanī reminded his murīd 'Ināyat: "There is only one virtue and one sin for a soul on this path; virtue when
he is conscious of God, and sin when he is not."

mahatma - Sanskrit
mahātman, singular masculine mahātmā: great soul, high-minded,
noble. Also used as a title for great beings, such as Mahatma Mohandas Gandhi. The prefix mahā
means great, large, abundant, important, high, eminent. (also see atman) (hw796)
mahbub - Arabic ‫ محﺒوب‬mahbūb: beloved, dear, lovable, desirable; favorite; beloved one, lover.
From the Arabic root h-b-b meaning to evoke love or liking; to endear; to make lovable, dear,
attractive; to show affection. (also written as Mahboob or Maheboob) (hw179, ewl497)
mahesh - Sanskrit

maheśa: great lord, great god; Shiva. (in some texts as maheish) (mw802)

mahtab - Farsi mah-tāb: the moon, splendor of the moon, moonlight, full moon.

(fjs1352, jtp1098)

majzub - Arabic ‫ م ﺠﺬوب‬majdhūb, Farsi majzūb: attracted; possessed, lunatic; carried away,
absorbed in, lost in; one who is attracted by Divine grace and has lost all worldly concerns. From
the Arabic root j-dh-b meaning to attract, captivate, win over. (in some texts as madzub) (hw138, fjs1176,
jtp1002)

Majnun - Arabic majnūn: possessed by jinn, mad, fanatic; madly in love; Lailā and Majnūn are
lovers in a classical Middle-Eastern love story. (hw164, fjs1179, jtp1004)
makhluqat - Arabic makhlūq, plural is makhlūqat: creatures, created beings. From the Arabic root
kh-l-q meaning to create, make, originate; shape, form, mold; invent. (hw300)
malak - Arabic ‫ مﻷك‬mal'ak, malak: messenger, envoy: angel (from the root l-'-k meaning to send
as a messenger) (hw1000, jtp1065)

Manavi - Arabic ‫ معنوی‬ma'nawī, Farsi ma'navī: important, ideals, spiritual, profound spiritual
meaning. Rumi's great mystical work is often referred to as Masnavi-i Ma'navi which means
couplets of profound spiritual meaning. (see also Masnavi and Rumi) (hw762)
mantiq - Arabic mantiq: speaking, manner of speaking, articulating; an oration; eloquence; logic,
reasoning. The great Persian poet Fariduddin Attar wrote Mantiq-ul-tair, The Conference of the
Birds. (hw1143, fjs1329)
mantra, mantram- Sanskrit
mantra: 'instrument of thought', sacred text, song of praise, Vedic
hymn or chant; spiritual instructions; mystical verse or incantation. (the word mantra is a noun that
depicts an 'instrument of thought' in general, while the word mantram is a specific declination of the noun (singular
accusative) that refers to one specific thing that is being used.) (mw785, jtp1071)

manushya - Sanskrit

manuşya: human, man, human being. (in some texts as manusha)

(mw784)

marifat - Arabi ma'rifat: knowledge, knowing, learning; gnosis; perception, cognition; art, skill,
craft; means, cause, reason. (in some texts as marefat) (hw709, jtp1048)
Shariat means the law which is necessary for the generality to observe, in order to harmonize with one's
surroundings and one's self within. ..
Tariqat means the understanding of law besides the following of it. It means that we must understand the cause
behind everything we should do or not do, instead of obeying the law without understanding it. ...
Haqiqat means knowing the truth of our being and the inner laws of nature. This knowledge widens man's heart. ...
Marifat means the actual realization of God, the one Being, when there is no doubt anywhere.
from The Sufi Message, Volume IX, Muhammad

Masnavi - Arabic ‫ مثنوی‬mathnawī, Farsi masnavī: a specific rhyming poetic form which uses
pairs of rhymes; often used to refer to the great mystical work of Jalāluddīn Rūmī. Derived from
the Arabic root th-n-y meaning double. (see Ma'navi and Rumi below) (hw128, fjs1173, jtp1001)
mawla - Arabic mawlan, Farsi mawlā: lord, master, ruler; patron; judge, magistrate; the Supreme
Lord. (also written as maula) (hw1289, fjs1347, jtp1093)
Mawlabakhsh - Farsi mawlābakhsh: ('God-gifted'; mawlā means lord, master; bakhsh means
bestower, giver) Inayat Khan's maternal grandfather, Sho'le Khān Mawlābakhsh (1833-1896 AD),
was one of India's greatest musicians, founded the first Academy of Music in India, invented the
music notation system bearing his name and worked to restore the fundamentals of traditional
Indian classical music. (also written Maula Bakhsh or Maulabakhsh)
mawlana - Farsi mawlā-nā: ( mawlā means lord, master; nā indicates a place where something is
found) 'where mastery is found', my master, our master, our lord (title given to judges, heads of
religious orders, esp. to Jalāluddīn Rūmī ). (also commonly written as maulana, molana or mevlana)
(fjs1348, jtp1092)

maya - Sanskrit
māyā: deception, illusion; illusory image; the wondrous power by which
One appears as many. (mw811)
Mecca - Arabic Makkah: Mecca. An ancient sacred city where Abraham lived, Makkah was the
birthplace and early home of the Prophet Muhammad. Considered as the holiest site for Muslims,
Makkah is the site of the sacred Ka'ba and is the annual destination for several million Muslims
on the pilgrimage called Hajj. Usually written as Makkah al-Mukarramah, Mecca the Revered,
Mecca the Most Honored. (hw1075)
mihrab - Arabic mihrāb: the archway or niche in a mosque which indicates the direction to
Mecca (Saudi Arabia), the direction in which one should face during prayers. From the Arabic
root h-r-b meaning battle or combat. Thus the term mihrāb indicates the place of doing battle. (in
some texts as mehrab) (hw195)

miraj - Arabic al-mi'rāj: the ascension. Refers to the Night Journey of Muhammad from Mecca to
Jerusalem and then ascending through the realms of the seven heavens, beyond the limit of
forms, the Sidrat al-Muntahā, to within a bow-span's length or nearer to the presence of Allāh.
From the Arabic root '-r-j meaning to ascend, rise, mount. (in some texts as Meraj) (hw704, ao365)
miskin - Arabic ‫ مسکین‬miskīn: Lowly, humble, submissive; meek; poor, needy, indigent; beggar,
humble; a dervish (in some texts as mequin or meskin) (hw1067, jtp1035)
mithal - Arabic ‫ مثال‬mithāl: resembling, similitude; example, standard; image, picture, vision;
parable, allegory. (see also alam-i mithal) (hw1074, fjs1172)
moksha - Sanskrit
mokśa: emancipation, liberation, freedom from; deliverance; release;
relinquishment, abandonment. (mw835)

Muhammad - Arabic ‫ محمد‬muhammad: praiseworthy, much praised, commendable, laudable.
The Prophet Muhammad who received the Qur'an from the angel Gabriel (Jibrīl). (in some texts as
Mohammad or Muhammed)

(hw238)

Muinuddin - Arabic mu'īn-u-al-dīn: The name Mu'īnuddīn literally means 'helper of the religion'.
Mu'īnuddīn Hasan Chishtī, the Sufi mystic who established the Chishti Order in Ajmer (India)
around 1190 AD. (see also Sayings of Muinuddin Chishti) (in some texts as Moinuddin)
Among the Sufis there was a great saint, Muinuddin Chishti of Ajmer. At his grave music is played, the Hindus and
Muslims go their on pilgrimage. This shows that the religion of the knowers of truth is the religion of God.
from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Music

mukta - Sanskrit mukta: let loose, set free; liberated, emancipated, gone, vanished. (mw820)
mukti - Sanskrit
mukti: setting free, liberation, deliverance; throwing off, casting off;
abandonment. (mw821)
muni - Sanskrit
muni: One who is moved by inner impulse; an inspired or ecstatic person;
sage, seer, acetic, monk. (mw823)
Munkar - Arabic ‫ منكر‬munkar; one of the angels of death who interview the dead in their graves
(along with Nakir); denied, not recognized, disavowed. (hw1171, fjs1334)
muntaha - Arabic ‫ منتهي‬muntahā: end, conclusion; boundary, extremity. From the Arabic root n-hy meaning to prevent, forbid, stop, hinder, prohibit, restrain. Also see Sidrat al-Muntahā. (in some
texts as manteha) (ao580, fjs1323)

mureed - Arabic ‫ مريد‬murīd: aspirant, disciple, follower, seeker, adherent. From the Arabic root
r-w-d meaning to walk about, look for, search for. (hw425)
murshid - Arabic ‫ مرشد‬murshid: advisor; leader; spiritual guide, guide to the right way; master of
a spiritual brotherhood. From the Arabic root r-sh-d, to be on the right way, be well guided,
follow the right course. (hw395)
muruwwat - Arabic murā'āt, Farsi/Urdu muruwwat: consideration, regard, politeness;
benevolence, kindness, generosity; etiquette, respect, virtue. (hw401, fjs1219, jtp1026)
mutmainna - Arabic mutma'inna: at rest, calm, peaceful. This term is often used to describe the
tranquil aspect of the nafs that begins when one rises above the lower states of ammara and
lawwama. (used in the Qur'an 89:27) From the Arabic root t-m-'-n meaning to calm, pacify, be
tranquil, be still, quiet; to rest from. (ao343, hw664)
mutrib khush - Farsi mutrib khush: mutrib meaning musician, minstrel; a singer; who or what
causes one to dance and skip about for joy; khush meaning sweet, delightful, pleasing.
Beginning words of a widely known and highly revered ghazal, generally attributed to Hafiz,

which contains the oft quoted refrain tāza ba tāza naw ba naw. (see The Hafez Poems of Gertrude Bell,
pg 81)

(fjs1260, jtp496)

O, singer of delightful voices, sing a song every moment new, new, fresh, fresh.
from Sangatha II, Saluk, The Good Nature Against Life in the World

mutu - Arabic mūtū: die! (imperative) This word is used in the traditional saying mūtū qabla an
tamūtū, which means die before you die. (mutu qabla an tamutu was in some texts as mutu kabla anta mutu)
muwakkal - Arabic muwakkal: to whom power is delegated, or trust is committed; agent,
vicegerent, deputy. In esoteric terminology, muwakkals are agents, elemental beings, who are
charged with the power and authority to carry out one's thoughts and accomplish the desired
results. (hw1284, jtp1092)
As in the physical being of an individual many small germs are born and nourished which are also living beings, so
in his mental plane there are many beings, termed Muwakkals, or elementals. These are still finer entities born of
man's own thoughts, and as the germs live in his physical body so the elementals dwell in his mental sphere. Man
often imagines that thoughts are without life; he does not see that they are more alive than the physical germs and
that they have a birth, childhood, youth, age and death. They work for man's advantage or disadvantage according to
their nature. The Sufi creates, fashions and controls them.
from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Vibrations

Nnabi - Arabic nabī: a prophet; one who informs; one who is informed; a clear and evident way.
From the root n-b-a' meaning to utter in a low voice; to be exalted, elevated. (also see Nabi and
Rasul web page)

nada - Sanskrit

(ewl2752, fjs1386, hw1100/1105)

nāda: any sound or tone. (mw534)

There is a phrase in the Sanskrit language which says 'Nada Brahma,' which means, 'the mystery of creation was in
Nada,' which means, 'in the word.'
from Social Gatheka II, 43, The Power of the Word, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)

nafas - Arabic nafas: (plural anfās) breath, respiration; voice. (see also pasi anfas below)

(hw1156, jtp1144, )

nafas-i garm - Farsi nafas-i garm: from nafas meaning breath, i meaning of, garm meaning fiery,
lively. (see also nafas and garm) (in some texts as nafs-i-garm) (fjs1415,1084, jtp1144,904)

nafs - Arabic nafs: (plural nufūs) the individual, the petty self, personal identity, ego; mind;
human being; soul, breath (of life). (used in compound terms such as nafs-kushi, which means ego-killing)
(hw1155, jtp1144)

The Sufi's base the whole of their teaching on the crushing of the ego which they term Nafs-kushi, for therein lies all
magnetism and power.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Blessed are the Poor

nafsaniyat - Arabic ‫ نفسانیة‬nafsānīyah, Farsi nafsānīyat: animalism, carnality, sensuality; passion,
anger; egotism. In contemporary Arabic, this term is also used to describe psychology. (hw1156,
fjs1416, jtp1144)

najat - Arabic ‫ نﺠاة‬najāh, Farsi najāt: escape, liberation, deliverance, rescue, salvation. (similar to
Sanskrit mukti)

(hw1110, fjs1387, jtp1124)

Nakir - Arabic ‫ نكیر‬nakīr: one of the angels of death who interview the dead in their graves (along
with Munkar); disavowal, rejection; loathsome, disgusting. (hw1170, fjs1423)
namaz - Farsi namāz: prayers (especially the Muslim prayers said five times a day), adoration,
worship, devotion, service, obedience. (in some texts as nimaz) (fjs1425, jtp1153)
Nanak - Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1539 AD) founder of the monotheistic Sikh religion. (see Sikh below)
naqshi - Farsi naqshī, from Arabic naqsh: painted, ornamented; done attentively; exposed,
divulged; planned, characterized. (hw1162, fjs1419, jtp1146)
Naqshbandi - Farsi ‫ نقشﺒندی‬naqsh-bandhī, naqsh-bandiyyā: one of the four earliest Sufi orders;
followers of the Sufi path of Bahauddin Naqshband Bukhari.
nar - Farsi/Hindi nar (from Sanskrit nara): male, masculine; mankind. (fjs1394, jtp1128, mw528)
nar - Arabic nār: conflagration, fire; gunfire. (from the same n-w-r root as nūr)

(hw1183)

nari - Sanskrit nārī: woman, female; wife. (jtp1113, mw537)
nari - Arabic nārī: fiery, full of fire, blazing, hellish. (from the same n-w-r root as nūr)

(hw1183)

nasihat - Arabic nasīhat: counsel, sincere advice, admonition, moral, precept, friendly reminder.
(hw1137, fjs1407, jtp1142)

nautch - anglicized version of Hindi nāc (nāch), from Sanskrit nrtya: dancing.

(jtp1112, rsm551)

nazr - Arabic ‫ نﺬر‬nadhr, Farsi nazr: vow, offering, dedication, gift (from an inferior to a
superior), consecration, dedication to God, promise to God. (hw1118, fjs1394, jtp1128)

nazar bar qadam - Farsi nazar bar qadam: watch every step, see where you're going. (nazar =
looking at, turning the gaze toward, attending to, observing; bar = with, upon, into; qadam =
foot, step) (hw1144,877, fjs1410,166,958, jtp1143,143,789)
nazar-i bad - Farsi nazar-i bad: the evil-eye. (nazar = looking at, turning the gaze toward,
attending to, observing; bad = bad, wicked, naughty) (fjs1410,160, jtp1143,138)
nirvah - Sanskrit
nir-vah: (nir = out, away, away from; vah = lead, guide, conduct ) to lead
out of, save from; to flow out of; to bring about, accomplish; to be successful, overcome
obstacles. (mw557)
nirvana - Sanskrit
nir-vāna: (nir = out, away, away from; vāna = going, moving; as a
blowing breeze or rolling waters) put out, vanished; calmed, quieted, tamed; blown out,
extinguished, perfect calm, highest bliss; annihilation of desires and passions. (in some texts as
Nirwana)

(mw557)

nritya - Sanskrit

nrtya: dancing; gesturing, acting.

(mw568, jtp1130)

nur - Arabic ‫ نور‬nūr: (plural anwār) light, ray of light, illumination, gleam, glow. From the Arabic
root n-w-r meaning to light, to fill with light, illuminate, clarify, enlighten. (hw1183)
nuzul - Arabic ‫ نزول‬nuzūl: descending, going down; dismounting, climbing down; stopover,
sojourning. In esoteric terms, 'urūj and nuzūl are two complementary conditions which represent
the natural ebb and flow, with 'urūj being responsive, and nuzūl being expansive, expressive; for
example with the breath 'urūj is inhaling and is nuzūl exhaling. (hw1123, fjs1398, jtp1136)

OOm - Sanskrit
om:
aum; Om appears first in the Upanishads as a mystic monosyllable
used as the object of profound religious meditation, the highest spiritual effects being attributed
not only to the whole word but also to the three sounds a, u, m of which it consists. In later times
is used as the mystic name for the Hindu triad, the union of the three gods Brahma, Vishnu and
Shiva. Also considered as a divine affirmation of respectful assent sometimes translated by 'yes,
verily, so be it' (in this sense compared with Amen), and also regarded as a divine salutation as
'hail!'.
(hw235)

Oh Lord, dweller within;
You are the light
In the heart's lotus,
Om is your very self,
Om holiest word,
Seed and source of the scriptures.

- Shankara

Ppadishah - Farsi pād-shāh: protecting lord; a prestigious title applied, often applied to an
emperor, monarch or king. (also written as padshah, in some texts as badishah ) (fjs229, jtp216)
pari - Farsi ‫ پری‬parī: winged; a good genie, jinn, fairy. (in some texts as peri)

(fjs246, jtp258, rsm610)

paramatma - Sanskrit
paramātman, masculine singular paramātmā: supreme soul . The
prefix parama means highest, most excellent, last, final, supreme, ultimate. (see also atman)
(hw588)

Parsi - Middle Persian pārsī: meaning 'from Persia'. Parsi is the name given to the Zoroastrian
community in India who originally fled the religious persecution of eighth century Persia as
Islam when being imposed as the religion of the state. Interestingly, the Arabs, who lacked a "p"
sound in their alphabet, used the letter "f" instead, and thus created the word Farsi. (jtp217)
parwana - Farsi parvāna or parwāna: a moth, particularly such as fly about a candle at night; a
royal patent or diploma; a grant or letter under the great seal from any man in power; a license,
permit, warrant, written order or commission. (in some texts as parvana or parveneh) (fjs245, jtp255)
pas-i anfas - Farsi pās-i anfās: consideration of breaths. This expression is made from: pās
meaning watch, guard, observer, respect for, consideration of; i meaning of; and anfās (plural of
nafas) meaning breaths, respirations. (fjs230 and 112, jtp217 and 93)
payghambar - Farsi ‫ پیﻐامﺒر‬paighām-bar: message-bearer, envoy, messenger, prophet. From Farsi
paighām meaning message, report; news; advice; and bar meaning carrier, porter, bearer. (fjs268,
jtp300)

pir - Farsi

pīr: an old man; a founder or chief of a religious group or sect. (fjs264)

prakriti - Sanskrit
prakriti: literally "making first"; the original or natural form of anything;
the original producer of the material world, which consists of the three gunas. (mw654)
prana - Sanskrit

prāna: the breath of life, spirit; vitality; vigor, energy.

(mw705)

propkar - Sanskrit
paropakāra: assisting others, benevolence, charity; action for the
benefit of others, selfless service. (mw588, jtp256)
puja - Sanskrit
pūjā: honor, worship, respect, reverence, veneration, homage (to superiors),
adoration (of the gods). (mw641)
Puja is the name of the Hindu form of worship, which is from the beginning to the end a symbolical expression of
what the seeker has to perform in the path of spiritual attainment.

from The Sufi Message, Volume XIII, Symbology

pul-sirat - Farsi pul-sirāt: a bridge over which the righteous will pass to heaven and the wicked
will enter hell on judgment day. From Farsi pul meaning bridge, and Arabic sirāt meaning way or
path. (in some texts as Pulserat) (jtp266, rsm638)
Punjab - Punjabi punj-āb: punj meaning five, and āb meaning water; a reference to the five rivers
flowing through the area in northwest India known as the Punjab.
purana - Sanskrit पसरचाण purāna: ancient; a class of scriptures. The 18 major purānas, probably
written around 300 to 1000 AD, are divided into three groups, each exalting one member of the
Hindu Trinity. (mw635)
purusha - Sanskrit
purusa: human being, mankind; a person; the personal and animating
principle in beings; soul, spirit; the Supreme Soul; spirit as passive spectator of the creative force
of prakriti. (mw637)

Qqadr - Arabic ‫ قدر‬qadr: measuring, determining; deciding, choosing, comparing one thing with
another; measuring out; portion, part. Although qadr is considered by some to indicate destiny or
pre-determination, Inayat Khan uses qadr to describe the limited, measured-out, part of life
called free-will. (in some texts as kadr) ( hw873 fjs957, jtp788)
There are two forces in the universe, Qazā, the divine force that is working through all things and beings, and Qadr,
the free will of the individual.
from The Sufi Message, Volume V, Qaza and Qadr

qalam - Arabic qalam: cut reed (for writing), pen; pencil; painter's brush. Esoterically, the pen
with which God writes upon the heart, providing the source of inspiration. (in some texts as kalam)
(hw922, jtp794)

qalbi - Arabic qalbī: of or pertaining to the heart; cordial, warm, sincere; heart- (when used in
compounds). From the root q-l-b meaning to turn over, turn about; fluctuate, change, transform,
transmute; heart, core, essence. (see also dil) (hw918, fjs983, ewl2552)
qayamat - Arabic ‫ قیامة‬qiyāmah, Farsi qiyāmat: resurrection, last day; calamity, turmoil,
upheaval. (hw936, fjs997)
qaza - Arabic ‫ قضا ء‬qadā', Farsi/Urdu qazā': divine decree, predestination; fate, destiny; fatality;
death; decree, mandate, judgment. In esoteric usage, qazā is often used to describe the unlimited,
Divine aspect of life. (see also Qadr) (in some texts as Kaza or Qadha) (hw904, fjs974, jtp792)

Quran - Arabic al-qur'ān: guidance for mankind as given to the Prophet Muhammad. From the
Arabic root q-r-' meaning to read, recite; deliver, transmit, convey, proclaim. (in some texts as Koran
or Qur'an)

(ao448)

qutb - Arabic ‫ قطب‬qutb: axle, axis; pole; lord, chief; the center around which something revolves.
From the Arabic root q-t-b meaning to concentrate, or pull together, into one point. (hw905, fjs976,
jtp792, ewl2541)

qutbiyat - Arabic ‫ قطﺒیة‬qutbīya, Farsi qutbīyat (inf noun from qutb): the state of poleship, being
the cardinal pole, being the center around which something revolves. (in some texts as kutubiyat)
(hw905)

RRadha - Sanskrit
raga - Sanskrit

rādhā: prosperity, success; the name of Krishna's favorite gopī.

(mw876, jtp581)

rāga: color, passion, joy; loveliness, beauty; musical melody. (mw872)

rahm - Arabic rahma: pity, compassion, forgiveness; sympathy, understanding; divine mercy.
The root r-h-m also indicates womb; that which provides protection and nourishment, and that
from which all of creation is brought into being. (hw384)
Rahmat - Arabic rahmat: The name of Inayat Khan's father: Rahmat Khān Pathān (in photo below).

rakhs - see raqs
rakshasa - Sanskrit
from. (mw871)

rākşasa: evil being, demon; something to be warded off, or guarded

Rama, Ram - Sanskrit
rāma, Hindi rām: causing rest; dark-colored; pleasing, charming,
lovely; the name of several Hindu deities considered to be incarnations of Vishnu; often
indicating the seventh incarnation of Vishnu as described in the famous epic poem, the
Ramayana, as the ideal of dharma and virtues. Frequently called Lord Rama or Shri Rama, his
wife is Sita. (mw877, jtp583)

Rama, the great prophet and ideal of the Hindus, was at the same time an example of the incarnation of a godhead.
The character and history of Rama is described by Valmiki in the great epic Ramayana. The training, which was
given to Rama by a great Rishi named Vashishta, was in order to bring forth that kingdom of God which is hidden in
the heart of man. In this respect Rama was not only an ideal for the Hindus of that particular age, but a model to
mold the character of those who tread the spiritual path in any age.
from The Sufi Message, Volume IX, Rama

Ram Das - Śri Samarth Rāmdāś, (1608-1681 AD) Marathi saint, poet and religious leader. His
works include Manache Shlok (Verses to the Mind), Dasbodh and Aatma Ram.
raqs - Arabic
raqs: movement, dancing. From the Arabic root r-q-s meaning to dance, to
dance with joy, to set to a swinging motion, to move. (in some texts as rakhs) (hw410)
rasa - Sanskrit rasa: the essence, essential nature, best part; a mixture, potion, essential fluid;
mercury. The term Rasa Shastra means the science of the essential nature, the teachings of the
essence. (see also Shastra) (mw869)
rasm - Arabic ‫ رسم‬rasm: plan, pattern; law, canon, rule, doctrine, regulation, precept; habit,
custom, manner. (hw392, fjs576, jtp592)
rasul - Arabic
rasūl: messenger, envoy, emissary, delegate. In esoteric terms, rasūl is
generally considered to be the highest grade of world-wide messenger, a step above nabī. From
the Arabic root r-s-l meaning to contact, to get in touch; to transmit, to send word; to pour forth;
freely flowing. Often phrased as al-Rasūl or Rasūl Allah when used to refer specifically to
Muhammad. (also see Nabi and Rasul web page) (hw391)
ravaj - Arabic ‫ رواج‬rawāj, Farsi/Urdu ravāj: custom, practice, that which is current; in great
demand, easy to sell; in circulation. (hw422, fjs590)
rind - Farsi rind: skeptic, rogue, libertine. In esoteric terms, there are two general types of Sufis,
the Rind and the Salik; the Rind follow a path of disregarding worldly matters, while the Salik
are engaged in worldly matters. (jtp600)
Those who are called fakirs all belong to the Rind. Their life consists in learning to disregard all worldly things. A
person fears most being without such things.. so this is the first thing to learn to disregard.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XII, The Life of a Sage

risalat - Arabic risālāt: mission; high goal, noble task, divine mission.

(hw391)

riyazat - Arabic riyāda, plural riyādāt, Farsi riyāzāt: practices, exercises; religious exercises,
austerities, devotions. (hw426, jtp610)

roza - Farsi roza: daily allowance, a day's worth; a fast; fast-day. In Arabic, fasting is called
saum. (fjs594, jtp605)
rubaiyat - Arabic rubā', Farsi rubā'ī, plural rubā'īyāt: The singular form rubā'ī denotes being in
groups of four, a quatrain, a stanza of four lines; while the plural rub'īyāt denotes a volume of, or
collection of rubā'ī. (fjs567, jtp586)
ruh - Arabic rūh: breath, wind, inspiration; breath of life; spirit; soul; human life; essence;
divine inspiration, revelation. The ancient Semitic roots (which also led to the Hebrew Ruach
and Aramaic Ruha) point toward the ideas of expansion and dilation; something that comes and
goes; movement from the center to the circumference; wind, breath, soul, spirit; that which
moves, stirs, animates, inspires, transports. (See also Spirit.) (hw423, ao225, fdo450)
Rumi - Arabic rūmī: literally meaning from Rum, Byzantine. Commonly used as the name of the
great mystical poet Jalāluddīn Muhammad Rūmī (1207-1273 AD). He was born in Balkh ( now
northern Afghanistan), so many Persians and Afghans refer to him as Jalāluddīn Muhammad
Balkhī.

ryazat - see riyazat

S-sadhana - Sanskrit
sādhana: leading straight to the goal, guiding well; effective;
accomplishment, performance; summoning; adoration, worship; winning over, mastery.

(mw1201,

jtp623)

sadhu - Sanskrit
sādhu: going straight to the goal, hitting the mark; peaceful, secure; correct,
pure; virtuous, honorable, righteous; kind, gentle; saint, sage, seer. (mw1201, jtp623)
Sadi - from Arabic sa'd: prosperity, being auspicious, a fortunate aspect of the stars. The Persian
Sufi poet Muslihuddīn Mushrif ibn Abdullāh, often called Sa'dī, was born in Shīrāz (Iran) around
1175 AD. A student of Sufi master Shahābuddīn Suhrawardī, Sa'dī produced many great works

including Bustān and Gulistān. (the pseudonym Sa'di is said to be in honor of his patrons, the
ruler of Iran Sa'd bin Zangī and the ruler's son Abū Bakr bin Sa'd) (in some texts as sa'adi) (fjs682,
jtp661)

Saddiq - see Siddiq
saf - Arabic sāfin, Farsi sāf : clear, pure; untroubled, undisturbed, serene. Some say that sāf
may have been the root from which the word Sūfī has arisen. (see Suf and Sufism) (hw606, jtp742)
sahib - Arabic sāhib: associate, companion, friend; owner, possessor; lord, master; often used in
India as a title of courtesy, equivalent to Mr. and Sir. (in some texts as saheb) (hw588, fjs778, jtp741)
sahib-i dil - Farsi sāhib-i dil: literally 'master of the heart'; a godly person, one having great piety;
courageous. The awakened heart, the master-mind. (see also sahib and dil above) ( fjs778, jtp741)
sajada - Arabic ‫ سﺠد‬sajada: to bow, prostrate, bow in worship, worship. (hw463)
saki - see saqi
salat - Arabic

salāt: prayer, praying.

(hw612, fjs792)

salik - Arabic ‫ سالك‬sālik: going, traveling; traveler, devotee; open not obstructed. From the
Arabic root s-l-k meaning to travel, to follow (a path), to enter upon a course or road; to behave;
to proceed, to set foot (on); to clarify, disentangle. In esoteric terms, there are two general types
of Sufis, the Rind and the Salik; the Rind follow a path of disregarding worldly matters, while
the Salik are engaged in worldly matters. (hw495)
The Salik is a person who believes that he can be a sage and at the same time follow his worldly occupation. His
work is making his life amidst the responsibilities of everyday affairs, and at the same time he does this for higher
purpose; his mind is fixed on higher aspirations even while in the world. Every act in all the affairs of life is directed
towards higher purpose; His mind is fixed on higher aspirations even while in the world.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XII, The Life of a Sage

sama - Arabic samā': listening, hearing, receiving. Often used to refer to the musical portion of a
Sufi gathering. From the Arabic root s-m-' meaning to hear; learn, be told, listen, pay attention to.
(in some texts as suma; also written as sema)

(hw501)

sami - Arabic samī': hearing, listening; hearer, listener. (see also as-samī', one of the 99 beautiful names
at http://wahiduddin.net/words/99_pages/sami_26.htm )

(hw501)

samadhi - Sanskrit
sam-ādhi: connection, alliance; completion; joining, putting together,
union with; bringing into harmony; contemplation, profound meditation, intense absorption.
(mw1159, jtp672)

samsara - Sanskrit
sam-sāra: wandering through; passage, course; worldly existence,
worldly life, worldly illusion. (mw1119)

Sangam - Sanskrit
sam-gama: 'coming together', confluence. The confluence of the three
holiest rivers in India: the Ganges (Gañgā), Yamunā (Jamnā) and the mythical Sarasvati. Located
near Allahabad (Prayag), this site is also known as also called tri-venī, and is often called King of
Pilgrimages (Tirth Rāj), where the great sacred festival Maha Kumbh Mela is held every 12
years.

sangita - Sanskrit
sam-gīta: (sam=together, gita=sung) sung together; sung in harmony; a song
sung by many voices; a concert. (mw1129)
sanyasa - Sanskrit
sam-nyāsa: laying aside, putting down, abandonment, renunciation. The
ultimate phase of life. One who is on this path is called a sanyasi. (in some texts as sannyasa)
saqi - Arabic sāqin, Farsi ‫ ساقی‬sāqī: cup-bearer; wine-server or wine-pourer. Frequently used in
Persian poetry to describe the glorious Server who continually pours out the wine everlasting to
all of mankind. (in some texts as saki) (also see the Bowl of Saki web page) (hw485, fjs642, jtp625)
In the imagery of the Sufi poets, this tavern is the world, and the sāqī is God. In whatever form the wine-giver comes
and gives a wine, it is God who comes. In this way, by recognizing the sāqī, the wine-giver, in all forms, the Sufi
worships God. He recognizes God in friend and foe as the wine-giver.
from The Sufi Message, Volume X, Sufi Poetry

sat - Sanskrit sat: being, existing, occurring, happening; being present; belonging to; abiding,
lasting; real, actual, right true; the truly existent. (mw1134)
sati - Sanskrit
satī: your ladyship; virtuous and faithful wife; female ascetic; the goddess
Durgā or Umā, Truth personified. (mw1135)
sattva - Sanskrit
sat-tva: 'true essence'; the abode of goodness; purity. One of the three gunas.
Derived from sat meaning real, true, good; and tva meaning state of being, or abode of. (in some
texts as satva or sattwa)

(mw1136)

saum - Arabic saum: fasting, abstaining; ceasing work, keeping silence. Also the name of a
prayer given by Inayat Khan. (also see prayers in the Gayan) (hw621)

saut-i sarmad - Arabic saut-i sarmad: literally 'eternal sound'. From saut meaning sound, voice,
shout; and sarmad meaning everlasting, eternity.
Abstract sound is called Saut-i Sarmad by the Sufis; all space is filled with it. The vibrations of this sound are too
fine to be either audible or visible to the material ears or eyes, since it is even difficult for the eyes to see the form
and color of he ethereal vibrations on the external plane. It was the Saut-i Sarmad, the sound of the abstract plane,
which Muhammad heard in the cave of Ghar-i Hira when he became lost in his divine ideal.
from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Abstract Sound

shabda - Sanskrit
language. (mw1052)

śabda: sound, tone, music, note; to utter a sound, cry out; a word; speech,

shafi - Arabic shāfin, shafīy, Persian shāfī : health-giving, healing; restoring to health; distinct,
clear; relieving from doubt; a restorer, a healer. (see also Additional Wazaif) (jtp718, hw560, ewl1575)
shaghl - Arabic shaghl: work, occupation, employment, business; study; occupying, filling up;
keeping employed at. Inayat Khan uses this term to describe certain mystical concentration
exercises. (in some texts as shaghal or shagal) (hw556, fjs748)
shah - Farsi shāh: king, sovereign, emperor, monarch, ruler.

(fjs726, jtp719)

shahbaz - Farsi ‫ شاهﺒاز‬shāh-bāz: royal falcon; generous, noble; a mythical bird.

(fjs726, jtp719)

Shahnama - Farsi shāh-nāma: The Book of Kings, an epic poem by Firdausī depicting the
legendary kings and heroes of Persia. (in some texts as shah-nameh) (fjs728)

shaikh - Arabic ‫ شیخ‬shaikh: venerable, elderly; chief, elder; title of honor, title of religious
dignitaries; master; saint; master of a Sufi order. (also transliterated as shaykh or sheikh) (hw580, ewl1629)

shakti - Sanskrit
śakti: power, ability, strength, might, energy, capability; faculty, skill;
power over; the energy or active power of a deity (often personified as the power of the wife).
(mw1044, jtp729)

Shankaracharya - Adi Śankara (788-820 AD), a great philosopher of India, a proponent of advaita
(see advaita). Often called Shankaracharya as a title of respect (see acharya).
shariat - Arabic sharī'at: law, justice; statute, ordinance. And more specifically, al-sharī'at refers
to the prescribed laws of Islam; the laws of Allah. (also see Marifat) (hw544, fjs743, jtp727)
sharif - Arabic ‫ شريف‬sharīf: (plural ashrāf) distinguished, eminent, noble, high-bred, honorable,
honest. (hw545)
shastra - Sanskrit
śāstra: order, command; precept, rule; teaching, instruction, good counsel;
sacred book, a body of teaching, science. ((mw1069)
shighra - Sanskrit शदीघसर śīghra: quick, speedy, swift. The term shighra-kavi means witty poet,
impromptu poet, improviser. (mw1077, jtp740)
Shiva - Sanskrit
śiva: the destroyer, assimilator; in whom all things lie; one of the principle
Hindu deities (Brahma the creator, Vishnu the preserver, Shiva the destroyer); personification of
time. (see also Brahma and Vishnu) (mw1074, jtp735)
shri - (see sri)
shuhud - Arabic ‫ شهود‬shuhūd, plural of shāhid: eye-witness; witnessing, being present. In esoteric
terms: beyond the witnessing of mankind; God's vision. (hw572, fjs771)
Out of Himself, God produced His manifestation, His means of becoming conscious; and now each manifestation of
Himself calls out, "I," not knowing its True Self. But when the individual intelligence frees itself from this delusion,
and recognizes its immortal existence, then it becomes master of all states of being; it becomes that ideal being
whose bliss cannot be equaled on earth nor surpassed in Heaven. This state in the experience of Intelligence, when
the knower becomes known to Himself is called Shuhud; and in this the aim of life is accomplished.
from The Sufi Message, Sangatha I, Tasawwuf (unpublished)

siddiq - Arabic siddīq: honorable, righteous, upright. An epithet referring to Abu Bakr (573-643
AD), the first khalif following the death of the prophet Muhammad. (in some texts as sadik) (fjs785,
hw594)

sidrat ul-muntaha - Arabic sidrat-u al-muntahā: sidrat meaning lote-tree, a shade tree; muntahā
describing the furthest boundary beyond which human knowledge cannot go, and no one knows
what is beyond that boundary. In sura al-najm this phrase is used to describe a tree in the seventh
heaven, near the abode of paradise, beyond which no human can venture. (fjs663)

sifat - Arabic sifa, plural sifāt: qualities, properties, attributes, features. From the Arabic root w-sf meaning to describe, depict, characterize. The phrase Sifāt-i Allāh refers to the attributes of
Allāh. (hw1256)
Sikh (Sikhism) - Punjabi, from Sanskrit shishya meaning disciple or student. A monotheistic
religion that originated during the 15th century AD in the Punjab of India, founded by Guru
Nanak Dev who taught a life of simplicity and honesty. The One God is called Ek Onkar, and is
often referred to as Wahe Guru (wonderful lord). By tradition, a Sikh man takes the surname
Singh (lion), and a Sikh woman takes the name Kaur (princess).
siraj - Arabic
sirāj: candle, lamp, lantern, light; candle wick; luminary; the sun. A title given
to one who officiates and takes care of the preservation of the Universal Worship service. (Used
in Qur'an 71:16, 25.61, 78:13, 33.46; quite similar to Farsi chirāgh)

(ewl1344, hw472, ao254, fjs667)

sirr - Arabic ‫ سر‬sirr (plural asrar): secret, mystery, something concealed; secret thought;
innermost being, inner essence or, as E. W. Lane variously described it: private knowledge;
something inserted in the interior; a pleasure, or delight, and dilation of the heart, of which there
is no external sign. (hw471, fjs57, ewl1337)
spirit - The word spirit is derived from the Latin spritus, meaning breath. (see also Ruh)
sri, shri - Sanskrit śrī: light, radiance; splendor, glory; used as a respectful title much like
reverend; used as an honorific prefix denoting holy or sacred. (mw1098)
subhan Allah - Arabic subhāna allāh: subhāna = praised, glory be to. Commonly translated as:
Praise the Lord!, May Allah be praised!, All glory is to Allah! This phrase is called tasbīh. (also
see the subhana allah web page for more insights)

(hw472)

sufi - Arabic ‫ صوﻓي‬sūfī: The exact etymology of the term sūfī is unproven, but is generally
thought to be related to the Arabic sūf which means wool, in reference to the simple wool cloaks
worn by early ascetics; another theory is that it is may related to sāf which means purity.
However, scholars have generally discarded the idea that sūfī could have been derived from the
Greek Sophia (wisdom). (hw620)
sufism - Arabic

tasawwuf: (‫ تصوف‬tas sawwuf) mysticism; the Sufi way of life.

(hw620)

I will say that there is one principle mission of Sufism, that is, to dig the ground under which the
light of the soul becomes buried. The same is the teaching of Christ, who has said, that no one
shall cover his light under a bushel, also. 'Raise your light on high.' ...
Sufism has as its object the uniting of life and religion, which so far seem to have been kept
apart... Therefore the teaching of Sufis is to make everyday life into a religion, that every action
in life may have some spiritual fruit.
from Social Gatheka 1, Sufism not Passivism, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)

Sufism, therefore, is the process of making life natural... By this process of Sufism one realizes
one's own nature, one's true nature... Sufism means to know one's true being, to know the
purpose of one's life and to know how to accomplish that purpose.
from Social Gatheka 7, Sufism, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)
suluk - Arabic ‫ سلوك‬sulūk: road, journey; behavior, demeanor, manner, conduct, attitude. From
the Arabic root s-l-k meaning to travel, to follow (a path), to enter upon a course or road; to
behave; to proceed, to set foot (on); to clarify, disentangle. (hw495, fjs694)
... the essence of morals and of religion and of education is one, and that one essence is the
manner of friendship. Sufis of all ages have named it Suluk, which means divine manner,
beneficence.
from In an Eastern Rose Garden, by Hazrat Inayat Khan
... the Sufis have learned the lesson of love, of devotion, of sympathy, and have called it the
cultivation of the heart. It is known by the word suluk, which means the loving manner.
from The Smiling Forehead, by Hazrat Inayat Khan
The method of attainment is to endeavor always to make others happy and by experiencing
happiness in the happiness of others. In the terms of the Sufi it is "Suluk".
from Constancy, an unpublished paper, by Hazrat Inayat Khan
surah - Arabic
sūrah, plural suwar: chapter, especially of the Qur'an. Literally, a container.
From the Arabic root s-w-r which means to enclose, surround, contain. (hw514)
sura - Sanskrit

sura: god, deity, divinity; goddess, angel; sun; sage.

(mw1243, jtp649)

svara - Sanskrit
svara: sound, noise; voice; tone; a musical note; air breathed thru the nostrils;
epithet of Vishnu; epithet of wife of Brahmā. (in some texts as Sura) (mw1285, rsm1050, jtp696)

TTaj Mahal - Urdu taj mahall: crown palace. From taj meaning crown, tiara, high-crowned cap;
and mahall meaning palace, mansion. A marble mausoleum completed in 1649 AD at Agra, India,
by the Mogul Emperor Shah Jahan, in memory of his favorite wife. (jtp304, jtp1010)

tala - Sanskrit

tāla, Hindi/Urdu tāl: musical time, meter, rhythm.

(mw444, jtp306)

Tisra, the rhythm of three beats
Caturasra (
catur-aśra ), the rhythm of four beats
Khanda (
khanda ), the rhythm of five beats
Mishra (
miśra ), the rhythm of seven beats
Sankirna ( sankīrna ), the rhythm of nine beats

talib - Arabic ‫ طالب‬tālib: seeker, pursuer; applicant; student; studious, curious; a beggar; an
inquisitor. (also called murīd or mureed) (hw659, fjs807, jtp750)
ta'lim - Arabic ‫ تعلیم‬ta'līm: information, advice; teaching, instructing, informing, schooling;
apprenticeship. (hw744, fjs310)
tamas - Sanskrit
tamas: darkness, gloom; ignorance, illusion, error; one of the three gunas,
or qualities of being, which results in lust, pride, sorrow, dullness. (in some texts as tammas) (mw438)
tanasukh - Arabic ‫ تناسخ‬tanāsukh: the succession of generation, transformation; transmigration,
reincarnation. (from the root n-s-kh meaning to transform, transmute) (hw1065, fjs326, jtp338)
Tansen - (1506-1598 AD) A highly acclaimed singer and musician of India, who developed the
classical style of Indian music, and was court musician for the Mogul Emperor Akbar who gave
him the honorary title of Mian.
taran - Sanskrit
tāran: causing or enabling to cross; helping over a difficulty; liberating,
saving; who or what causes or enables to cross, one who delivers, deliverer, savior; a raft, float;
crossing, passing over, reaching the opposite shore; salvation, deliverance. (jtp304)
tariqat - Arabic tarīqat: manner, means, way; system, creed, faith, religion. Plural tarīqāt denotes
a religious brotherhood, dervish order. (also see Marifat) (hw654, jtp752)
tasawwuf - Arabic

tasawwuf: Sufism; the Sufi way of life; mysticism. (also see Sufism above)

(hw620)

tasawwur - Arabic ‫ تصور‬tasawwur: imagination, visualization, fancy, fantasy, idea. (see also
tasawwuri below)

(hw619, jtp326)

tasawwuri - Arabic tasawwurī: of the imagination, existing in the imagination, pictured in the
mind; idealized. Often used to describe a Sufi practice of focusing the attention upon a certain
ideal (such as a spiritual teacher), visualizing the nature of that ideal, embodying that essence,
and allowing the essence of that ideal to flow freely through one's own life. From the Arabic root
s-w-r meaning to shape, fashion, create; represent, portray, depict. (hw619, jtp326)
tattwa - Sanskrit
tat-tva: true or real state; true principle, first principle; an element or
elemental property; essential nature, true essence. In esoteric terms, the word is considered to be
'tat-tvam' meaning 'that (is) thou'. (mw432, jtp310)
tawajjuh - Arabic tawajjuh: directing the steps (towards), turning (towards or to); attending (to);
regard; attention, consideration, countenance, favor, kindness. (in some texts as Tawajoh.) (fjs333, jtp342)
tawakkul - Arabic tawakkul: trust in, confidence in, depending upon; trust in God, resignation to
the Divine Will. (hw1284, fjs337, jtp343)
tawazu - Arabic ‫ تواﺿﻊ‬tawādu', Farsi/Urdu tawāzu': humbleness, modesty, humility, civility,
courtesy, attention, kind reception. (in some texts as tawazeh) (hw1263, fjs332, jtp341)
taviz - Arabic ta'wīz: protective charm, amulet; magic square; talisman; uttering the words of a
charm. (fjs310, jtp328)
trimurti - Sanskrit
tri-mūrti: having three forms or shapes (such as Brahma (creator), Vishnu
(maintainer) and Shiva (destroyer); or Srishti (creation), Sthiti (abiding), and Layam
(dissolution) ). (mw460, jtp320)
trishul - Sanskrit

tri-śūla: three pointed spear, trident; a three pointed spear used by Shiva.

(mw461, jtp318))

Tulsidas - Sanskrit tulasidas, Hindi तसलसदीदचास tulsidas: Indian poet and philosopher Goswami
Tulsidas (1532-1623 AD), whose Ramacharitamanasa (Tulsi-krita Ramayana) is often considered to
be the Ramayana in Hindi, and thus he is often regarded as an incarnation of Valmiki.
tyaga - Sanskrit त्रचाग tyāga: leaving, abandoning , forsaking; quitting; giving up, resigning;
sacrificing one's life. (in some papers as thiaga) (see also vairagya) (mw456)

Uummi - Arabic ummī: uneducated, illiterate, not knowing how to read or write. (hw32, fjs101, jtp83)
Universal Worship The religious activity of the Sufi Movement is called the Universal Worship, or the Church of All. Why is it so
named? Because it contains all different ways of worship and all Churches...
This Universal Worship which has been organized in the Sufi Movement was the hope of all prophets. The prayer
and the desire of all great souls was that the light given in all the different forms such as the Buddhist scriptures, the
Qur'an, the Bible or the teachings of Krishna or Zarathushtra, should be known by everyone. The work of the Sufi
message is to spread the unity of religion. It is not a mission to promote a particular creed or any Church or religion.
It is a work to unite the followers of different religions and faiths in wisdom, so that without having to give up their
own religion they may strengthen their own faith and focus the true light upon it.
The Universal Worship is not another Church to be included among the variety of existing Churches. It is a Church,
which gives an opportunity to those belonging to different religions to worship together. Also it gives practice in
paying respect to the great ones who have come from time to time to serve humanity.
from The Sufi Message, Volume IX, Universal Worship

urs - Arabic ‫' عرس‬urs : marriage, wedding, wedding-feast; union, coupling, joining. Used
metaphorically to refer to a death anniversary, especially of a Sufi saint. From a root which
points toward cleaving, being kept together. (ewl1998, hw704, fjs842, jtp760)
uruj - Arabic ‫' عروج‬urūj: ascending, climbing up, becoming high; ascent, ascension, rising,
exaltation. In esoteric terms, 'urūj and nuzūl are two complementary conditions which represent
the natural rhythm, with 'urūj being responsive, and nuzūl being expressive; for example with the
breath 'urūj is inhaling and is nuzūl exhaling. (hw704, fjs845, jtp760)

Vvairagi - Sanskrit
(rsm936, mw1025)

vairāgī: a religious devotee who has freed himself from worldly desires.

(vairāgin is vocative case, vairāgī is nominative case)

Vairagi means a person who has become indifferent; and yet indifference is not the word for it. It describes a person
who has lost the value in his eyes of all that attracts the human being. It is no more attractive to him; it no more
enslaves him.
from The Sufi Message, Volume I, The Angel-Man

vairagya - Sanskrit
vairāgya: aversion, loathing; indifference to worldly objects and worldly
life, freedom from worldly desires. (in some texts as vairagia) (mw1025)

Vairagya means satisfaction, the feeling that no desire is to be satisfied any more, that nothing on earth is desired.
from The Sufi Message, Volume VIII, Indifference-Vairagya
The Hindus call it Vairagya ... It is God's satisfaction in the manifestation which He wanted to create.
from The Sufi Message, Volume VI, Development of Personality

Vaishya - Sanskrit वदश्र vaiśya: one who settles on the soil; working man, business man; the third
of the four castes. (mw1026)
Valmiki - Sanskrit
vālmīki: Writer of the sacred Rāmāyana of India, a 24,000 verse epic
written in Sanskrit around 300 BC, which tells the story of Rāma and his wife Sītā who was
abducted by the demon Rāvana. It is said that Vālmīki had been a highway robber who, under the
guidance of Maharshi Nārada, became a holy-man.
vanaprastha - Sanskrit
vana-prastha: vana = forest, prastha = abiding, dwelling; retired life.
The third of four phases of life, in which one rises above one's worldly goals, and aspires to
greater goals. One who is on this path is called vanaprasthi. (in some texts as wanaprastha or
wanaprashta)

varna - Sanskrit वणर varņa: appearance, color, kind, nature; class of people, the caste system.
Veda - Sanskrit veda: knowledge, true or sacred knowledge; knowledge of sacred ritual; sacred
scriptures of the Hindus (Rig-Veda, Yajur-Veda, Sama-Veda and Atharva-Veda). (mw1015, jtp1208)
Vedanta - Sanskrit
vedānta: complete knowledge on the veda; end of the veda; the
Upanishads which are at the end of the veda; that which teaches the full scope of the veda; .
(mw1017)

viladat - Arabic wilāda: birth, childbearing, childbirth. Viladat is the Farsi/Urdu pronunciation;
Viladat Day means birth day. In Arabic, the general term for birthday, based on the same w-l-d
root, is maulid. (hw1286, fjs1479))
vilayat - Arabic wilāyah, Farsi/Urdu wilāyat, vilāyat: sovereign power, authority, rule,
guardianship; friendship, mystical union (esp. with God); realm, province. From the Arabic root
w-l-y which means to be near, be close, be adjacent, to border on. (hw1289, fjs1479, jtp1200)
vina - Sanskrit
vīnā: a variety of lute, the vīnā is one of the most important musical
instruments of India, often considered as sacred. Contemporary designs have four playing strings
and three drone strings. The body is generally carved from wood, and the upper removable
resonator is either carved or made from a gourd. (see photo below of Inayat Khan with vina) (mw1005,
jtp1211)

Vishnu - Sanskrit
visnu: the preserver; one of the principle Hindu deities (Brahma the
creator, Vishnu the preserver, Shiva the destroyer); personification of light and the sun. (see also
Brahma, Krishna and Shiva above))

(mw999)

Deep thinkers in all ages have recognized the three-fold aspect of nature. Teachers have called these three aspects by
different names according to their religious terminology, and they gave them an interpretation that suited the time
and the place. Tracing back this idea, we find that it already existed among the Hindus in very ancient times; they
called it Trimutri, and they personified these three aspects by giving them characters such as Brahma, the Creator,
Vishnu the Sustainer, and Mahesh or Shiva the Destroyer or Assimilator.
from The Sufi Message, Volume XI, Threefold...Aspects of Nature

Wwahhab - Arabic ‫ وهاب‬wahhāb: a giver, one who bestows; liberal, munificent; an epithet of God.
From the Arabic root w-h-b- meaning to give, donate, grant, present, endow. (also see al-Wahhāb in
99 Names of Allah)

(hw1291, fjs1482)

Ya Wahhabo, to make things go on which have stopped in their movement, to cause movement in affairs. ... Ya
Wahhab, to develop in a person's nature activity in movement. ... Ya Wahhabo, which is the word of progress. ...
One must picture sometimes with Ya Wahhabo the flowing life or running water, because that symbolizes progress
in life.
from the Sangita, and Sangatha papers, by Hazrat Inayat Khan (unpublished)

wajd - Arabic ‫ وجد‬wajd: strong emotion, passion, ardor, ecstasy of love; ecstatic state of rapture.
(in some texts as Wajad)

(hw1231)

wali - Arabic ‫ ولي‬walīy: one who is near, nearby; helper, benefactor, guardian, defender; sincere
friend, friend of God; saint, holy man. (hw1289, fjs1480)
wazifa - Arabic wazīfa: (plural wazā'if) daily ration; task, duty; assignment, lesson; job. An
esoteric practice of concentrating on certain Divine Attributes or Qualities in order to more
effectively express those qualities in every moment. (also see the Wazifa Practice web page) (hw1266)

wazir - Arabic wazīr : minister of state, vizier, counselor. From the Arabic root w-z-r meaning to
take upon oneself, carry a burden, support, help, assist, strengthen. (fjs1466, hw1247)
wudu - Arabic wudū': purity, cleanliness; ritual ablution before prayers. (hw1260)

X-

Yyad-i baiza - Arabic yad-i baidā, Farsi yad-i baizā: hand of purity, hand of brightness. Often
used to allude to the white hand of Moses (Exodus 4:6, Qur'an 7:108 and 27:12). (fjs221, jtp210)
yaj - Sanskrit yaj: to worship, adore, honor; to consecrate, hallow; to offer, bestow; to
sacrifice. (mw838)
yajna - Sanskrit yajña: worship, devotion, prayer, praise; act of worship or devotion, offering,
oblation, sacrifice; fire. (mw839)
yaki - Farsi ‫ يكي‬yakī: unity, oneness, unanimity.

(fjs1535)

yaqin - Arabic ‫ يقین‬yaqīn: belief, conviction; certainty, certitude; true faith. (hw1298, fjs1532)
yoga - Sanskrit
yoga: the task of yoking, connecting together; joining, junction, union;
concentration, meditation; spiritual practices as a means by which the human spirit may attain
union with the Supreme Spirit; the union of the individual soul with the universal soul. (mw856,
jtp1253)

yuga - Sanskrit yuga: an age, a time period; yoke, team; one of four epochs of time called
Krita Yuga (Satya Yuga), Tretā
Yuga, Dvāpara
Yuga, and Kali
Yuga. (mw854)

Zzabani shirin mulki girin - Farsi: zabān-i = of the tongue; shīrīn = sweet, gentle; mulk-i = one's
country, region; The word 'girin' is of uncertain origin; perhaps it is a poetic form of gir which
means 'to take'. Literally: A sweet tongue is a friend of the world.
zabh - Arabic dhabbāhh, Farsi/Urdu zabh: slaughtering, killing, butchering; slaughter by slitting
the throat. (in some texts as zebah) (hw355, fjs557, jtp577)
zafar - Arabic ‫ ظفر‬zafar: successful, victorious. Bahadur Shah Zafar (1775-1862 AD) the last of the
Mogul emperors in India, who presided over Delhi, and was a great Urdu poet. The term zafar is
also used in connection with the Zoroastrian talismanic device 'ilm-i zafar, the victorious
knowledge, also called Jam-i Zarathushtra, which is said to mystically reveal all past and future
through the use of a special book.

zakir - Araibc dhākir, Farsi zākir: a rememberer; a grateful person, a praiser of God. (fjs557,
jtp)
zamzam - Arabic zamzam: plenteous, copious, abundant. The name of a celebrated well at Mecca
(Saudi Arabia), also called Hagar's well. (also written zemzem) (hw443, fjs621, jtp617)
There is a tank in Mecca called 'Zamzam,' from which the prophets of all ages have drunk. They did not only drink
water, they received from it what had been put into it, and then they charged it with what they had to give to it. Even
now, pilgrims go there and receive that water as a blessing.
from The Sufi Message, Volume II, Voices

Zarathushtra - Persian prophet, called Zoroaster by the Greeks, who founded a monotheistic
religion, probably sometime around 1000 BC. The Zoroastrian religion prevailed across the
Persian empire until the empire was conquered by the Arabs who brought the religion of Islam.
(see also Ahura Mazda above) (in some texts as Zarathustra)

zaval - Arabic ‫ زوال‬zawāl, Farsi zavāl: end, passage; disappearance, cessation; departure, leaving
one place for another; declining, waning; perishing. (in some texts as zeval) (hw450, fjs627)
zat - Arabic ‫ ذات‬dhāt, Farsi zāt: essence, being, nature; possessor, owner; soul; personality, self.
From the Arabic root dh-w meaning endowed with, embodying, comprising; master of. (zāt is the
typical Farsi/Urdu pronunciation, while thāt is the classical Arabic pronunciation ). (hw363, fjs556, jtp576)

Zebunnisa - Arabic/Farsi zeb u al nisā, pronounced zeb-un-nisā: a compound made of the words
zeb = elegance, grace, beauty; u = of, al = the, and nisā = females, women. The poetess,
philosopher and mystic Zebunnisā (d 1689), daughter of Mogal Emperor Aurangzeb.
Zend - see Zend-Avesta
Zend-Avesta - A collection of ancient sacred Zoroastrian texts. As the priests added
commentaries (zend) to the original Avesta, they created what is known as Zend-Avesta. The
oldest portion of the Avesta, the Gathas, are the hymns said to have been composed by
Zarathushtra himself. (also written as Zand-Avesta or Zend Avesta)
zikr - Arabic ‫ ذﻛر‬dhikr, Farsi zikr: recollection, remembrance, reminiscence, commemoration;
mentioning, speaking of; mention of the Lord's name; invocation of Allah. Inayat Khan used this
term to describe spoken repetition, such as a wazifa. (in contrast to fikr, which he used to
describe silent repetition) (zikr is the typical Farsi/Urdu pronunciation of the Arabic dhikr, while thikr is the
classical Arabic pronunciation ).

(hw358, jtp577, fjs558)

Zoroaster - (see Zarathushtra)
zuhur - Arabic ‫ ظهور‬zuhūr: appearing, arising, springing up; coming to pass, manifestation.
fjs828, jtp756)

(hw683,

Zulaikha - Farsi Zulaikhā: the wife of Potiphar, her passion for Joseph is much celebrated in the
East, particularly in the Persian poetry of Nazāmī and Jāmī. (also written as Zuleikhā) (fjs620, jtp617)
zunnar - Arabic ‫ زنار‬zunnār: belt, sash; band or rope worn around the waist.

(hw445, fjs623)

al'Abd
Servant; symbolically, a mystic devotee of the Divine
'Adam
Immutably unmanifest; the Void
Adh-dhat
The essence or quiddity; that to which all qualities of a thing are referred
Adh-dhawq
Men of spiritual inclination; the faculty of intuition
al-'Adl
The Just, a Divine Name
al-'Afuw
Approving; the Pardoner, a Divine Name
al-Ahad
The One, a Divine Name; in Sufi thought, al-ahadiyah is Supreme Unity and the state of
uttermost absorption in the Divine
Ahl-al-haqaïq
The Divine Realities
al-Akhir
The Last, a Divine Name
'Alem al-khayal
Realm of the creative imagination

'Alem al-mithal
World of analogies, which corresponds to 'alem al-khayal
al-Ali
The Elevated, the Most High, a Divine Name
Allah
Literally, God; the primary of the Divine Names
Amr
Divine Order; the Divine Command, symbolized by the word of creation, kun, 'Be!'
al-Asma al-husna
Infinite in number; the Names of Beauty or the Divine Names
al-Awwal
The First, a Divine Name
al-A'yan
Eternal essences; the unchanging archetypes
al-'Ayn
Latent essence; the source
al-Azal
The One without Beginning; eternity
Baqa
Immortality in Deity
Barzakh
Bridge; symbolically, the link between two degrees of existence
Bashar

Mortal man
al-Batin
Inner, unmanifest, hidden, a Divine Name
Fana
The passing of the individual self into universal Being; renunciation of all desires
al-Fayd
Inexhaustible afflatus; the overflowing of Infinite Being
al-Furqan
Discrimination; revelation in general as shari'a, law
Fusus
Seals; settings for gems; bezels
al-Ghaffar
The Forgiver, a Divine Name
al-Ghafur
All-Forgiving, a Divine Name
Hadarat al-ghayb al-mudafi
The Divine Presence in the Unmanifest
Hadarat al-ghayb al-mutlaq
The Divine Presence in the Absolute and Unknowable
al-Hadarat al-jam'iyah
Divine Presence in its impartite integrity; see hadarat
Hadarat al-khayal
The Divine Presence in the realm of imagination

Hadarat ash-shabadat al-mutlaqah
The Divine Presence in the manifest
Hadith
Traditional saying of Muhammad handed down outside the Qur'an through known intermediaries
al-Hakam
The Judge, a Divine Name
al-Hamid
The Adored, the Praiseworthy, a Divine Name
Haqiqat al-baqaïq
The Reality of Realities; the highest Logos; the intangible barzakh between Divinity and
manifestation
al-Haqq
The One Reality; the Truth; the Real, a Divine Name
al-Haybah
Reverent awe; the contrary of al-uns
al-Hikam
Wisdom
al-Himmah
Conscious power of impressing ideas on the cosmos; spiritual will; the ardent turning of the soul
towards the Divine
al-Huwiyah
The Supreme Self
al-Ihsan
Spiritual vision; spiritual virtue

Ijtihad
Individual judgement
Ilah
Divinity; hence Allah ( al-Ilah )
Imam
Leader, especially in prayer
Insan
Man
al-Insan al-kabir
The Great Man, the macrocosm;
al-lnsan al-kamil
The Universal Man; the archetypal human being and the perfected man who has realized all
degrees of being
al-lradah
Wish
Islam
Surrender; submission
Isti'dad
Predisposition, receptivity
al-Jabbar
Establisher of Order; the Omnipotent, a Divine Name
al-Jam 'iyat al-ilahiyah
Divine synthesis
Jasad

Subtle form
al-Jawhar al-hayulani
Primordial substance
Jihad
Holy war
al-Kamal
The infinitude in which all realities are immersed; Divine plenitude
Kashf
Vision; instinctual intuition; the withdrawing of a veil
Kathif
Gross; corporeal; cf., latif
al-Kawmu khayal
'The world is Imagination'
Khalifah
The Representative of the Divine
Khalil Allah
Intimate Friend of Allah
al'Khaliq
The Creator, a Divine Name
Khatim al-awliya
Seal of the saints
Khatim ar-rasul
Seal of the messengers

al-Khayal
Creative imagination
al-Lahut
The Divine Nature inherent in humanity
Latif
Subtle; fine; cf,, kathif
Majmu
The Totality
al-Makan
Cosmic locus
Maqamat
Divine Stations or Names through which the Divine Essence is manifest
al-Mashi'ah
Will
al-Mishkat
Niche, tabernacle
Mubasbarah
Direct connection; that which makes one happy
Mumkinat
Possibilities, distinguished from necessities and contingencies
al-Muntaqim
Wrathful; the Avenger, a Divine Name
Nabi

Prophet
an-Nabi
The Prophet
an-Nafas ar-rahmani
Compassionate Breath; the manifesting principle of the Divine
an-Nafs
The individual soul; in contrast to ruh, spirit, it is the separative self
an-Nafs al wahidah
Single spiritual essence, the source of individual souls
al-Nasut
The corporeal form in which Spirit inheres; human nature
an-Nur
The Light, a Divine Name
al-Qabid
The Restrictor, a Divine Name
Qabil
Pure receptacle; passive substance
Qada'
Decree
Qadar
Destiny
Qadasa
Holiness

al-Qahhar
The Victorious, a Divine Name
al-Qalb
The Heart; the faculty of pure intuition
Qiblah
Appropriate direction; ritual orientation
al-Qidam
The Ancient of Days; eternity
al-Qur'an
Literally, recitation; in Sufi symbolism, immediate illumination, revelation as knowledge; the
Self as a united totality; the name of the sacred scripture of Islam
Quth al-arifin
The axis of true knowledge
Rabb
Lord; Deity in respect to man
Rahbur ul-'alam
Guide of the world
Rahmah
Compassion; pure mercy
al-Rahman
The Compassionate, the Beneficent, a Divine Name
Ramadan
Ninth month of the lunar year, requiring total abstinence from food and drink during the daylight
and only light refreshment after dark

ar-Ruh al-amin
Trustworthy spirit; a name of the archangel Gabriel
al-Ruh al-ma'nawi
The Intellectual Spirit
Ru'ya
Vision
Shahada
The word of witness, the Muslim profession of faith; 'There is no God but Allah; Muhammad is
his prophet'
Shari'a
Traditional law
Sijjin
Prison; in the Qur'an, sijjin refers to the inferior worlds
Sirr
Mystery, secret; in Sufi symbolism, the centre of consciousness
at-Tabi'ah
Universal Nature
at-Tajalli
Self-unveiling; Divine irradiation
Tanfis
To give relief
al-Tanzih
Transcendental understanding; withdrawal
Taqlih

Turning
Tasha'ub
Innumerable ramifications
al-Tashbih
Understanding mediated by analogy; affirmation
'Ubudiyah
Unwavering servitude; quality of the perfect servant
Uluhiyah
Divinity; the Divine Nature as a quality of Deity
al-Umar al-kulliyah
Universal ideas; archetypal realities
Umma
Community
al-Uns
Confiding intimacy; the contrary of al-haybah
Wahdat al-wujud
The Oneness of Being
al-Wahhab
The Bestower, the Giver, a Divine Name
al-Wahi
Divine inspiration
al-Wahid
The Unique, a Divine Name

al-Wahm
Illusion; conjecture; opinion
Wali
Saint
al-Wali
The Friend; the Ruler, a Divine Name
al-Wasi'
The All-Encompassing, the Vast, a Divine Name
al-Wujud
Beyond the aroma of manifest existence; the One
al-Zahir
The Manifest, the Apparent, a Divine Name; contrasted with al-batin, the Hidden