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Question: The
Qur’ān states: “I am the best of creators” (Aḥsan
al-Khāliqīn). This verse implies the existence of other agents who engage in
acts of creation. If the attribute of creation is also granted to beings other
than Allah the Almighty, what is the ontological status of such a faculty,
given that the Divine act of creation is without peer?
Answer: The
Qur’ānic proclamation that Allah the Almighty is “the best of creators” .
The Divine act of creation (takhliq ilāhī) is absolute, unmediated, and
free from any dependency on means.
Whatever
exists in the Divine Will of Allah the Almighty—in its precise form,
attributes, and configuration—comes into being the moment He wills its
existence. He commands it into being, and in obedience to that command, all the
necessary means and elements of creation manifest themselves and collectively
bring into reality that very form of creation which pre-existed in the Divine
Consciousness of Allah the Almighty. The usage of the plural form khāliqīn
(creators) in the Qur’ān indicates that creation, in a metaphorical or
secondary sense, is possible for human beings. However, this creativity is
radically contingent. For instance, modern technological advancements—such as
the invention of electricity. When the human intellect engaged with the latent
potential of electricity to generate derivative forms of creation, it gave rise
to an immense proliferation of phenomena—numbering in the billions—each
representing the operational actualization of abstract principles within the
framework of contingent causality.
Allah
the Almighty brought electricity into existence ex nihilo through His Command
"kun" . Humanity, in contrast, reflects upon this creation,
engages with its properties through the faculty of intellect and contemplation
(tafakkur), and brings forth countless innovations. These human
productions— such as the radio, television,
and digital technologies—are not original creations but rather secondary
manifestations of the primordial Divine Creative Act. In reality, human beings
operate within the bounds of taṣarruf—that
is, active manipulation and reconfiguration—of divine knowledge Ilm al-Asmāʾ
that have already been brought into existence by Divine Will. Ilm al-Asmāʾ
signifies the divinely bestowed knowledge granted to Adam, comprising the
archetypal principles and formulas of creations underlying existence. When the human being,
through profound contemplation and intellectual immersion, engages this
knowledge, it enables an operative mode of taṣarruf—a
conscious interaction with creation—through which novel realities and secondary
creations come into being.”
"The
Knowledge of the Names (ʿIlm al-Asmāʾ) constitutes the primordial epistemic
framework, the ontological foundations and inner realities of which were
divinely conferred upon humankind by Allah the Almighty. Yet, access to this
gnosis is conditional upon the human capacity for contemplative engagement (tafakkur)
within the domain of knowledge itself."
Allah
the Almighty stated in The Holy Qur’ān: “We sent down iron, in which there
is great countless benefits for humanity.” Those who recognize the latent
potential within iron and engage it through deep study and reflection come to
unveil its seemingly infinite capacities. Once actualized, iron undergirds the
very architecture of modern civilization—from infrastructure to weaponry.
This
represents an act of influence (taṣarruf)
within the domain of resources, specifically referring to those entities whose
tangible existence is manifest to our perception. Just as iron possesses a
concrete existence, light similarly manifests as a distinct and substantial
entity. By transcending the confines of material resources or extending beyond
the scope of their scientific understanding, an individual, upon acquiring
knowledge of the fundamental properties of Divine energy (light), can, in a
manner akin to the influence in metals such as iron, bring into existence an
array of complex and advanced technologies. Just as iron has been harnessed to
create machines, vehicles, explosives, and rockets, so too can the principles
of light be employed to generate a vast range of innovative creations, enabling
the manipulation of a previously unimagined spectrum of natural
phenomena." In the context of material resources, human beings engage in
the manipulation of raw elements—such as gathering gold or iron particles and
subjecting them to specific processes to achieve desired transformations, such
as the gold. This process is an illustration of influence (tasaruf) within the
domain of tangible resources. However, an individual possessing the ability to influence
(tasaruf) the fundamental properties of light is not constrained by the
conventional processes of aggregation and transformation. Instead, such a
person through the intellectual faculty, accumulates and isolates specific
configurations of divine lights, which, when integrated, influence the
intrinsic properties of gold. By directing these configurations with focused
intent, the individual actively manifests the material transformation of
'gold,'.
It
has been established that Allah the Almighty, in His capacity as the Sole
Creator, is entirely independent of any external resources in the act of
creation. When Allah decrees the existence of something, all necessary
resources for its manifestation automatically come into being by His Divine
Command. This contrasts with the role of humanity, whose task is to interact
with and manipulate Allah’s created resources. Human manipulation occurs in two
primary ways: first, through the confinement of material elements within the
bounds of existing resources, which are then gathered and restructured to form
new creations; second, through the influence in Divine light—an ethereal and
metaphysical medium. The latter method involves the harnessing and channeling
of Divine light’s fundamental properties, wherein the individual directs and
aligns its inherent energies to generate novel phenomena or structures. Thus,
while human creation is inherently dependent on pre-existing elements, the
ability to interact with the deeper, more abstract dimensions of reality—such
as Divine light—reflects a more advanced form of creative engagement with the
cosmos. This means that anything which is established upon certain lights can
be manipulated by moving those lights, and this method of manipulation is
related to the "nasma" (spiritual essence) within the human being.
The
science of nasmah forms the core of what is traditionally known as spirituality
(ruḥāniyyah).
Human, therefore, is a created being endowed with a delegated potential to act
upon the universe—not as an originator, but as a vicegerent (khalīfah)
who exercises derivative creativity within the Divine matrix. Because this
creative potential is pre-inscribed in the Divine Knowledge, and because
secondary manifestations continuously emerge from the human being, Allah the
Almighty proclaims Himself:
“Aḥsan
al-Khāliqīn – The Best of Creators.”
Khwaja Shamsuddin Azeemi
Nearly three decades ago, the esteemed spiritual scholar and blessed guide, Khwaja Shamsuddin Azeemi (R.A), inaugurated a mission of public service with the objective of liberating humanity from afflictions, psychological distress, and physical ailments. For ten years, he remained in contemplative retreat, silently advancing this sacred commitment to the service of creation (khidmat-e-khalq). As the hearts of the people began turning toward him, he employed the medium of mass communication. In 1969, this initiative was formally introduced to the public through newspapers and spiritual journals. According to conservative estimates, through written correspondence and face-to-face interaction—particularly via national publications and the Roohani Digest—Hazrat Azeemi has extended spiritual guidance and healing to over 1.4 million men and women, addressing intricate personal crises and intractable medical conditions. Today, it is not uncommon that wherever a few individuals gather, and a seemingly insoluble dilemma or incurable illness is mentioned, someone inevitably suggests: “Establish contact with Azeemi Sahib—the matter will be resolved.”
Through the grace of Allah the Almighty, the spiritual affinity with the Prophet (P.B.U.H), and the continued beneficence of the blessed guide, four volumes of Roohani Daak (Spiritual Correspondence) have now been compiled. The first volume is hereby presented to you for contemplation and benefit.
