Al-Batin (Sufism)
Description
The believer is aware of Allah as the inward, the hidden. Even though all can see signs of existence, His essence is hidden. The knowledge, mind and understanding of the created are too limited to really comprehend the creator who is unlimited. Allah should only be contemplated in His attributes. Because all things are from Him, nothing can truly be known fully in its essence – attempts to do so finally end in awe.
Context
A mode of mystical awareness in the Sufi tradition associated with the seventy-sixth of the ninety-nine names of Allah. Contemplation of this name in the Naqshbandiyya order follows the stages of major saintship, and the strengthening and widening of the internal spiritual state through contemplation of the name az-Zahir. It implies superior saintship or saintship of the angels.