And there is nothing but it glorifies Him with praise.

My Dear, Loyal, Curious Brother, Re’fet Bey!

You ask in your letter about the Ten Subtle Faculties. It is not appropriate to give instruction in the Sufi way at present; there are in any case the works of the scholars of the Naqshbandi way about the Ten Subtle Faculties. Our duty at the present time is the discovery of mysteries, not the relating of existent matters. Don’t be offended, I cannot give the details. I shall only say this much, that Imam-i Rabbani defined the Ten Subtle Faculties as the heart, spirit, inner heart [sirr], khafi, akhfa, and a faculty related to each of the four elements in man, and discussed briefly the progress of one faculty in each stage of the spiritual journeying.

I myself observe that there are numerous subtle faculties in man’s comprehensive disposition and vital potentialities, of which ten have become famous. The philosophers and ‘externalist’ scholars, even, took those Ten Faculties as the basis of their theories in another form, calling them the five external senses and five internal senses, which are the windows or samples of those Ten Faculties. In fact, man’s ten subtle faculties, which are known by both the learned and ordinary people, are related to the Ten Subtle Faculties of the Sufis. For example, if faculties like the conscience, nerves, emotions, intellect, desires, power of animal appetites, and power of anger are added to the heart, spirit, and inner heart, the Ten Subtle Faculties are shown in another way. There are many other faculties in addition to these, like the sense of premonition, and various motive and appetitive powers. If the reality of this question was described, it would be very lengthy, and as I have little time, I am compelled to cut it short.

As for your second question, about the aspect of things which looks to themselves, and the aspect which looks to their Maker [mânâ-yi ismî and mânâ-yi harfî], they are explained at the start of all books on Arabic grammar. So too there are ample explanations of them, together with comparisons, in the works of the science of reality, called The Words and Letters. For someone intelligent and exacting like yourself, further discussion would be superfluous. When you look in the mirror, if you look at it for the glass, you will intentionally see the glass; in it, Re’fet will strike the eye secondly, indirectly. Whereas if your purpose is to look at the mirror in order to see your blessed face, you will intentionally see lovable Re’fet. You will exclaim: “So blessed be God, the Best of Creators!”¹ The glass of the mirror will strike your eye secondly and indirectly.

Thus, in the first instance, the glass of the mirror is ‘the meaning which looks to the thing itself’, while Re’fet is its ‘significative meaning’. In the second instance, the glass of the mirror is ‘the significative meaning’, that is, it is not looked at for itself, but for another meaning; that is, the reflection. The reflection is ‘the meaning which looks to the thing itself.’ That is, it is included in one respect in the definition “it points to a meaning in itself.” While the mirror verifies the definition of its ‘significative meaning’, which is “it points to the meaning of another.”

According to the Qur’anic view, all the beings in the universe are letters, expressing through their ‘significative meaning,’ the meaning of another. That is, they make known the Names and attributes of that Other. Soulless philosophy for the most part looks in accordance with ‘the meaning which looks to the thing itself,’ and deviates into the bog of Nature. However... I do not have the time now for much talk. In fact, I cannot even write the final and easiest and most important part of the Index. Convey my greetings to your study companions, in particular, Husrev, Bekir, Rü_dü, Lütfü, Shaykh Mustafa, Hâfiz Ahmed, Sezâi, the Mehmed’s, and the Hojas. I pray for the blessed innocents in your household.

The Enduring One, He is the Enduring One!

Your brother,

S a i d N u r s i

FOOTNOTE

1. Qur’an, 23:14.