Because we are animated and because we do things, at least in appearance, and because we think, we conclude that we somehow act independently. When this conclusion comes to you, it is at the heart of misunderstanding the nature of existence. Once we believe that we are the actor, we are the doer, we are the giver, the purveyor; we lose sight of Haqq, reality.
The steps in Sufism are: shari’at, tariqat, haqiqat and marifat. Haqiqat is when you begin, finally, to have some sight of reality as opposed to sight of only the illusory nature of things and our own perceived illusory involvement of things. So, when we have some idea of reality and we spend some time contemplating reality, we see that we are not the movers, we are not the givers, we are dependent on the grace, and the glory, and the mercy, and the compassion, and the kindness and the love of our Lord in all that we do.
It is said that Allah is in the constant maintaining and sustaining of this world and all of existence, and if he abandoned that maintaining and sustaining for an instant, all that is would disappear. But in his mercy, and in his kindness, and in his divinity and in his love he does not abandon that maintenance and that sustenance.
So, to understand the interaction of divinity with us and to understand the nature of Allah’s love for us, we have to understand that from existence to every instant of our existence, from the beginning through the entire span of our existence, it is His love that maintains it and sustains it. And every act that we do, every action that we do, every thought that we have, every move that is made is made because of His love and allowance of those acts to be…
