The painful story of sufi poem Hallaj rh.
‘An-al-Haq’ (I am the truth) – this statement would be the death of Mansur Al-Hallaj.
A Sufi poet, teacher and philosopher, Hallaj was executed on the orders of an Abbasside caliph for uttering these words, taken to mean Hallaj as claiming himself to be God. After more than a decade of imprisonment, Hallaj was eventually executed publically in Baghdad in the year 922.
He is seen by many as a revolutionary writer and teacher of his time, when practices of mysticism were not meant to be shared publically. Yet he remains a controversial figure, revered by Rumi, hated by many, he was labeled an intoxicated Sufi and is still read today.
Soon, Modern Times Stage Company in Toronto will be presenting the last night Hallaj spends in prison.
The play is written by Peter Farbridge and Soheil Parsa and directed by the latter. “He is given a choice to recant his beliefs or be executed. We try to work out his dilemma,” explains Farbridge.The play will explore Hallaj’s quest. “Was he inspired by a spiritual notion or was he more of a mad man?” asks Farbridge, a question he says is never answered in the play. – Video by Modern Times Stage Company.
"What earth is this
so in want of you
they rise up on high
to seek you in heaven?
Look at them staring
at you
right before their eyes,
unseeing, unseeing, blind."
"Creatures perish
in the darkened
blind of quest,
knowing intimations.
Guessing and dreaming
they pursue the real,
faces turned toward the sky
whispering secrets to the heavens.
While the lord remains among them
in every turn of time
abiding in their every condition
every instant.
Never without him, they,
not for the blink of an eye --
if only they knew!
nor he for a moment without them".
"God said to him [Eblis], 'You have become proud.' He replied, 'If I had been with you but a moment my pride would have been justified; I have been with you for centuries."
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