Venerated Enlightened Sufi Master Mansur Al-Hallaj (vegetarian): Love’s Prophet, Part 2 of 2

Al-Hallaj journeyed as far as India and China, spreading the Truth to many who recognized Him as an enlightened Master. Returning to Iraq, He made a second pilgrimage to Mecca, accompanied by some 400 disciples, and stood in front of the Kaaba for an entire year, hardly eating or drinking at all. He prayed to God, “O Lord. I know and worship none besides You. I am so grateful for the gifts that You have bestowed upon me, and my tongue cannot express my gratitude for them. So please thank Yourself, on my behalf.”

In Baghdad, al-Hallaj’s teachings took on an increasingly esoteric tone and inspired a movement for moral and political reform. He now often proclaimed, “I am the Truth,” arousing opposition from civil and religious authorities. In 908, al-Hallaj left Baghdad. However, three years later, He was detained in the caliph’s palace for 11 years.

Al-Hallaj’s principal works are all written in Arabic. His best-known is the “Book of al-Tawasin,” written while in detainment, using line diagrams and symbols to help convey the mystical experiences He could not express in words.

Al-Hallaj’s followers continued to visit seeking Divine counsel and teachings while corrupt political figures pursued His execution to gain favor with the established religious orthodoxy and people who opposed Him. The caliph agreed to the order, and al-Hallaj was sentenced to be executed. Just prior to His execution, al-Hallaj could be seen in a state of euphoria, dancing in His chains, knowing He would soon be returning to God. “God is real!” al-Hallaj said with every fiber of His being, “I am the reality of that beingness.”

In 2006, Supreme Master Ching Hai recounted Master al-Hallaj’s story.

To conclude this program, let us be inspired by this piece of al-Hallaj’s poetry: “I do not cease swimming in the seas of love, rising with the wave, then descending; now the wave sustains me, and then I sink beneath it; love bears me away where there is no longer any shore.” We pray that all enlightened Masters be protected from this day forward, and that all of Allah’s true Emissaries be honored and cherished by humanity as the Divine Treasures They are.