The World of Spirits

عالم ارواح

The World of Spirits ('Alam al-Arwāh) is a vast realm of non-material being, superior to and encompassing the material world. The spirits (arwāh) were created by the Divine command (amr), not from any pre-existing material. They are created realities — not eternal — but of a far more subtle and luminous nature than bodies.

Standard of Priority and Posteriority (Mi'yār al-Taqaddum wa al-Ta'akhkhur): Among the levels of the World of Spirits, a hierarchy of priority exists — not necessarily temporal priority (which came first in time), but ontological priority (which is more fundamental in being).

The Supreme Spirit (Rūh A'zam): At the apex of the World of Spirits is the Supreme Spirit — the comprehensive spirit from which all other spirits, in a sense, derive. This is also called the Rūh Muhammadī — the Muhammadan Spirit — for it is the first and most comprehensive manifestation of the Divine Light in the realm of creation.

The Supreme Essence ('Ayn A'zam): Related to the Supreme Spirit, this refers to the most comprehensive fixed archetype — the 'ayn Muhammadī — the ontological reality of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as the first and foremost self-disclosure of the Divine.

The Universal Intellect ('Aql al-Kull): The Universal Intellect is the first level of intellectual creation — the supreme intelligence that encompasses all possibilities of rational being. It receives the Divine outpouring (fayḍ) and distributes it to lower levels of being.

The Universal Soul (Nafs al-Kull): Below the Universal Intellect is the Universal Soul — the creative and generative principle of the natural world, animating and governing the processes of nature.

Universal Nature (Tabi'at al-Kull): The Universal Nature is the principle governing the physical and elemental constitution of the world — heat, cold, moisture, dryness — the fundamental qualities from which physical things are composed.