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perfections and spiritual energies, thus returning his inborn nature (= innate disposition) (fiáš rat) to its initial purity1. Shams al-DÄŤn Muhammad Ä€mulÄŤ, the author of the encyclopaedic work ÂŤNafÄ â€™ÄŤs al-funĹŤnÂť, writes in the chapter on futuwwat: ‌from the point of view of the true meaning, fatÄ is the one who has reached the perfection of his inborn nature and the end of what is his perfection. Consequently, as long as the servant is predominated by his caprice (hawÄ ) and [bodily] nature, and the muddy admixtures of the mortal human being (bashar) are manifest in it (his nature. – J. E.), he is in the rank of a boy (ᚣ abÄŤ). When he ascends from this station and his inborn nature becomes free from the adversities and maladies of the soul, and the deficiencies and evil attributes, he reaches the rank of the youth (fatÄ ), because the faculty of the meaning of the human being has reached its perfection in him, and the virtues have been actually obtained by him, [in the same way] as formal faculties and bodily perfections are [fully] obtained by a youth. And “the young manâ€? (javÄ nmard) is called “the master of heartâ€? (ᚣ Ä á¸Ľ ib-i dil), because, when the inborn human nature reaches its perfection, it is called “heartâ€?, therefore [God] said: “Behold, he (Abraham – J. E.) approached his lord with a sound heartâ€? (37:84) [Qur’an 2000: 377]; and when he ascends from the station of heart and, through the manifestations of the Divine Attributes, the attributes of heart are obliterated from him, and he reaches the station of spirit (rōḼ) and becomes the master of witnessing (ᚣ Ä á¸Ľ ib-i mushÄ hada), he obtains the rank of “old manâ€? (shaykh), because shaykh is one whose bodily faculties have become weak, whose blackness (i. e., black hair – J. E.) has changed to whiteness, and who has approached the [state of] annihilation (fanÄ â€™), and the master of witnessing has also approached the [state of] annihilation and, through the [illuminations of the] divine lights, the darkness of his attributes has become white and illuminated, and his faculties and attributes, through the [predominance of the] attributes of the Real, have become weak and insignificant. Hence, beginning of walÄ yat (“friendshipâ€?) is impossible before reaching the end of futuwwat (“valourâ€?)Âť [Ä€mulÄŤ 1991: 60–61]. As we see, futuwwat is regarded by the author as a middle station between the stations of boy and old man, or those of novice and master. FatÄ is one, who is at the mid-point of the path. Hence, futuwwat is by no means the ultimate limit of perfection, accessible to human being. Rather, it 1 To some extent, the notion of futuwwat can be, perhaps, conveyed by the English word ÂŤvalourÂť, in which case fatÄ itself should be rendered into English as a ÂŤvaliant manÂť. This, however, would be a very vague and approximate translation.
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is a propaedeutic (introduction) to Gnosis (‘irfÄ n) and Sufism (taᚣ awwuf)). The main objective of fatÄ is to restore his inborn nature (fiáš rat) to its initial purity, before it, as God’s trust (amÄ na) to the human being, must be returned to its true owner. Hence, the proper region of humanism (and moral philosophy) is the station of futuwwat. Henry Corbin was, therefore, absolutely right when he wrote that, in the Islamic thought, ÂŤthe moral philosophy, together with the highest possible ideal (i. e., the ideal of humanism. – J. E.) it can suggest, should be sought in the treatises on futuwwatÂť [Ibid.: 8]. Several personages in the Qur’an are described as fatÄ (pl. fitya). One of them is Abraham, described thus in the verse: ÂŤThey (the people of Abraham’s tribe – J. E.) said: “We heard a fatÄ (‘youth’) talk of them: he is called Abrahamâ€?ÂŤ (21:60) [Qur’an 2000: 267]. Another (collective one) is the companions of the Cave, called fitya in the following two verses: 1) ÂŤBehold, al-fityatu betook themselves to the Cave: they said: “Our Lord! Bestow on us mercy from Thyself and dispose of our affair for us in the right way!â€?Âť (18:10) [Ibid.: 235]; 2) ÂŤWe relate to thee their story in truth: they were fitya who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidanceÂť (18:13) [Ibid.: 236]. Though the literal meaning of the word – ÂŤa youthÂť – is applicable in all cases, it should be noted that both Abraham and the companions of the cave are portrayed in the Qur’an as the true professors of God’s oneness (muwaḼḼ idĹŤn) and the defendants of God’s case in front of their people, not merely as ÂŤyoung peopleÂť, i. e. physically unripe individuals. Elsewhere, the Qur’an tells us about the Covenant that was concluded between God and the children of Adam: ÂŤWhen thy Lord drew forth from the Children of Adam – from their loins – their descendants, and made them testify concerning themselves [saying]: “Am I not your Lord [who cherishes and sustains you]?â€? – they said: “Yea, we do testify!â€? [This], lest ye should say on the Day of Judgement: “Of this we were never mindfulâ€?Âť (7:172) [Ibid.: 132]. Hence, it is evident that the futuwwat of Abraham and the companions of the cave lies, first of all, in their faithfulness to this preeternal agreement – the Covenant of Alastu (Alastu meaning ÂŤAm I notÂť in Arabic). FatÄ is one who remains faithful to the agreement in whatever circumstances. Hence, faithfulness (wafÄ â€™) is apparently his most important characteristic. It is impossible for him to choose any associates to God, as his tribesmen have done, since, by doing so, he would break his word: ÂŤYea, we do testify!Âť This does not in any way contradict the definition of futuwwat which was given above (ÂŤthe achievement of the perfection of