Manifestation of the Friend

Subtle Spirit

part 4

The heart is the realm of divinity

The late Aqa Wa‘iz-Zadeh Khwansari who was a prominent theologian, spiritualist and sermonizer, was extremely attached to the Imam. One day he stated to me to go with him to meet Haj Aqa Ruhollah. We were received by the Imam. With regard to their past friendship the Imam stated to him that: “Mr. Wa‘iz-Zadeh, because of our friendship with you, we have always been privileged whether from your academic debates or whether from your literary verses.”‌ As soon as the Imam had spoken these words, the late Wa‘iz-Zadeh began to recite a ‘Ruba‘i’ as follows:

“Every one catches your hair and I your curls, Every one seeks your face and I your eyebrow; In the cycle of a full twelve moon;

There is one blessed moon and that is your looks.”‌

In answer the Imam would immediately recite this Rubaie: “I opened my eyes from a deep sleep,

Look! The doors of sedition have opened;

Don’t attend the congregation prayer, for I fear,

You’ll kill the prayer leader and break-up the ranks of the worshippers.”‌ Next the late Wa‘iz-Zadeh recited the verses from Moulavi that:

“Listen to the flute that narrates,

And complains about separations.”‌ In reply the Imam stated:

“Don’t listen to the flute which is the means of the miserable, Listen to the heart which is the realm of divinity;

For if the flute burns, it becomes a heap of ashes,

Whereas if the heart burns, it becomes the home of the beloved.”‌

This is the blessing of God

One day in Paris, the Imam came out of the house while it was snowing heavily. When the Imam entered the open space, one of the French policemen who was carrying an umbrella came near and wanted to hold the umbrella over the Imam’s head.

External Sophistication Sometimes he would use fragrance on his shirt In my opinion, perhaps the most distinguishing quality of the Imam was his aversion to all kinds of hypocrisy, public deception and pretension. The Imam wore clean clothes. Not once did I see the smallest stain or dirt on his clothes. The Imam firmly believed that shoes should be polished and socks should be appropriate. He wore his turban properly and once in a while would use fragrance on his shirt. In sum, he would appear in public in a clean and pristine appearance.

He was the essence of cleanliness and hygiene

The Imam was extremely clean to the extent that one of his outstanding features was hygiene. We remember right from his youth that he was an essence of cleanliness and hygiene. At that time when we were small, the streets were muddy and the seminary students in mud up to their knees and their robes would be muddied. But he would walk and take steps so gently in the lanes that at times; for instance, about ten specks of dirt would cling to

his robe. He would bring the robe into the room, place it in front of the heater and when the specks would dry we would remove them and clean them with a stain remover.

He would always clean his shoes with a napkin

Whenever the Imam wanted to be received at the shrine in Najaf, he would clean his shoes with a napkin. He also placed a mirror in the front yard that he would use to look into to comb his beard. He would also use fragrance and leave the house. He would even not neglect the non-obligatory acts and would always tell us to perform them. Sometimes I would visit the house of the Imam twice a day. However, whenever we wanted to go to his house we never went directly because we thought that if he saw us in that state, he would ask us the reason for our unkempt appearance and why we looked so horrible and that we must look proper and disciplined. We would always try to look neat and proper so that when we met him, we were neat and in appropriate attire.

His clothes for official duties was separate

When the Imam came to his room from the Husseiniyyah, his robe was different and his turban was different. If he came three or four times to the Husseiniyyah, yet he would not sit with that same robe in his room. Rather, he would remove his clothes and fold them neatly, put his turban over them and cover it with a white sheet of cloth and then sit down. Again when he is told that the crowd had arrived, he would get up, remove his clothes and change into the clothes reserved for official duties meaning that he was extremely meticulous.

Source:

The Book "Manifestation of the Friend: A collection of memoirs about Imam Khomeini (R.A)"

Other Links:

Manifestation of the Friend: Subtle Spirit (part 5)

Manifestation of the Friend: Subtle Spirit (part 6)