Spiritual Liberty and Pakistan

By Ayeda Naqvi - Daily Times - Lahore, Pakistan
Tuesday, November 13, 2007

The human psyche is a microcosm of the universe: what works at a micro level also works at the macro level.

And Pakistan is no exception. When the exoteric fails, try the esoteric: you will wish you hadn’t wasted so much time in the first place.

For we have tried the legal, the political, the socio-economic and the analytical. We have been worn down by the cynical, the alarmist and the negative. And we are still confused. Isn’t it time for another approach?

One that is neither western nor eastern or limited to the consciousness that created the problem in the first place? Is it possible that the predicament we face is not the problem but a symptom of a larger malady that inflicts us all at an esoteric level?

Maybe it is time to step outside of ourselves and look at ourselves (and yes, we are part of the problem) from another perspective.

Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, is a path that allows us to do so. Also known as a “path to perfection”, Sufism is a discipline that leads us through the steps necessary to help shed the idea of the “false self” which stands between us and perfection.

And the main obstacle is our ego. Known as the nafs, the concept of the ego is central to Sufism. For associated with it are all things worldly — power, position, wealth and approval — that entice us, promising satisfaction but delivering only restlessness.

The lowest form of the nafs is known as Nafs al Amarra, or the bossy self. This part of the false self is impulsive, demanding, controlling and seeks nothing but its own gratification. It has been likened to Freud’s “Id” as it is wild, uncontrollable, uncompromising and always puts itself first.

The Nafs al Amarra can be seen in the little boy at the toy store who cries and screams and stamps his feet and holds his breath until he gets what he wants. But, more appropriately, it can be seen in Pakistan’s latest political crisis in which all the major actors see only their own benefit, lashing out desperately to mark what they consider their territory.

Musharraf is willing to do anything as long as he remains President, some judges are willing to sacrifice anything as long as they remain the supreme voice and our politicians are willing to say anything as long as they remain the sole beneficiaries.

Did I mention that this was the lowest, rawest form of the ego, also known as man’s animal nature?

The next level of the nafs is known as Nafs al Awamma, or the unsure self. Unlike the first stage, this stage is marred with self-doubt and self-criticism.

The Nafs al Awamma internalises rules and limitations. It can be depressed, hampered, restricted and inhibited because it considers the reactions of others. Like Freud’s “Ego”, this self is one that is easily suppressed because it lacks the belief in its own inner wisdom.

And so it is not surprising to see our religious establishment manipulating our doubting selves, instilling fear and guilt into insecure minds already plagued with self-doubts.

Take the literalist version of religion being exported to Pakistan and being taught in our madrassas (as well as by a very popular ladies religious group). That version sells because it ends all doubts and answers all questions.

The fact that it answers them wrongly is irrelevant to those plagued with doubts. The fact that it labels everyone as a sinner who is damned to hell until or unless he/she follows a narrow minded interpretation of religion is irrelevant.

All the Nafs al Awamma wants is certainty. And it will follow anyone who provides it.

So if Nafs al Amarra is our bossy, controlling self and Nafs al Awamma is our unsure, insecure, hesitant self that allows us to be manipulated, what do we aim for? Nafs al Mutmaina.

This is the natural self, which is not moved by the addictive compulsion of gratification (Id) or the restraining authoritarianism of self-doubt (Ego).

Likened to Freud’s “Super Ego,” the Nafs al Mutamaina is one that already exists within us; it just has to be recognised.This self is one that has broken free from the shackles of self-doubt as well as of self-righteousness.

And as the aspirant evolves towards higher levels of consciousness, he is able to achieve spiritual liberty, the aim of Sufism.

Freedom from oppression, both inner and outer, spiritual liberty refers to a state of consciousness in which man is able to recognise and overcome all obstacles that impede his spiritual growth.

This is a state in which man is no longer slave to materialism. The ephemeral binges — cars, houses, designer-wear and collagen laden lips — that Nafs al Amarra thrives on, are no longer dictated by the pleasure principle.

And free from the demands of his self-gratifying self, he is able to recognise the rights of others, be proactive and fight for a better world.

The human psyche is a microcosm of the universe: what works at a micro level also works at the macro level. And Pakistan is no exception.

Ayeda Naqvi has a double masters from a joint NYU and Princeton programme in Journalism and Near Eastern Studies. She has been a journalist for 16 years and a teacher of literature.