M6:2446 — انبیا بودند ایشان اهل ود / اتحاد انبیاام فهم شد

Translation: They were prophets, people of wadd (divine love); [through this experience] the unity of the prophets became clear to me. Meaning: This verse, narrated by the dreaming Jew, describes the climax of his mystical vision where, despite apparent multiplicity, he grasps the essential unity and shared essence of divine prophets, rooted in love and divine affection.

This verse appears at the apex of the Jewish traveler's profound dream, which Mowlana narrates with such vivid detail that it almost feels like an account of his own mystical experience. In his dream, the Jew sees Moses leading him to Mount Sinai. Then, all three—the narrator, Moses, and the mountain—dissolve into an immense light. The mountain fragments, giving rise to sweet water, healing springs, and a branch that flies towards Arafat. Following this series of awesome manifestations, the narrator sees the plain at the foot of the mountain teeming with beings, all resembling Moses, staff in hand and cloak on shoulder, crying out "Arini"—the very plea for divine vision that Moses uttered at Sinai. Yet, a moment later, their forms shift, and the narrator attains a deeper realization: "They were prophets, people of wadd (divine love), and the unity of the prophets became clear to me."

This insight is profoundly significant. The term wadd signifies love, affection, and profound friendship. Thus, these prophets are united not merely by their messages, but by their very essence, by the divine love that blazes within their beings. This unity is not a superficial, formal one, but an existential and spiritual oneness. The forms initially appear multiple—all Moses-like, then shifting to individual shapes—but their inner reality, which is wadd, remains singular. This aligns perfectly with Mowlana's concept of the "pluralism of salvation," which he expounds later in this same narrative: that a sincere intention and a true will towards spiritual ascent, regardless of apparent jurisprudential frameworks, ultimately leads one to the Goal. All sincere seekers, people of wadd, are ultimately united in heart and path.

I have often remarked that wahy (revelation) in Mowlana's view is not always verbal. Here, the manifestations of light, the shattering of the mountain, and the shifting forms are themselves a type of qawl-e thaqīl (a heavy word, a weighty pronouncement) and a non-verbal revelation that transforms the narrator's soul, granting him unmediated knowledge. In this dream, Mount Sinai, as Mowlana describes it and as is found in the Torah, does not physically vanish; this manifestation and pulverization of the mountain is an introspective, visionary experience occurring within the realm of the soul, not in the external world. This emphasizes the inner, esoteric nature of such mystical experiences. This understanding of the unity of prophets has deep roots in the Quranic teaching, "We make no distinction between any of His messengers" (2:285), and Mowlana elevates it to the pinnacle of gnostic experience, where we witness unity not only in their mission but in the very truth of their being and love.

Key takeaways

• The essence of prophethood is divine love and affection (wadd), which unifies all prophets.
• Direct mystical experience is itself a form of non-verbal revelation (wahy) and a "heavy word" (qawl-e thaqīl) that transforms the soul.
• The unity of prophets transcends apparent multiplicity, pointing to a oneness in their essence and inner experience.
• Mowlana grounds the concept of "pluralism of salvation" in pure intention and divine love, where diverse paths lead to a single destination.
• Profound spiritual experiences, such as the mountain dissolving, are often visionary and internal, not physical events in the external world.