Remembrance of Allah — Page 91
Twenty-two Methods of Concentration in Prayers 91 idle and none of them is engaged in doing its work, the defect develops that various and sundry thoughts become excited. The reason for this is that when one sense is functioning, then the thoughts related to the other senses do not arise. This is indeed the reason why that sense stops other thoughts from transpiring. Thus, when the eyes are occupied in performing their task during S al a t and are involved in seeing, then vari- ous and sundry thoughts will not arise in the mind. This fact has come to light these days through an actual physical exper- iment, but look, keeping this natural wisdom in mind, 1,300 years beforehand the Holy Prophet s as had given the instruc- tions to keep the eyes open during S al a t. Moreover, he realized that when that particular sense is engaged in operation, the individual will escape assorted thoughts. Had the sense of smell been employed, it would have been necessary first to arrange for scents, but then the sensing abil- ity of the nose cannot be delimited. If different people who would be present together offering the S al a t or passing by, were users of different scents, then, the attention, instead of being focused, would be wandering from one side to the other. Just like the sense of the nose, the sense that the ear possesses also cannot be delimited. It is not in the power of man that he should only hear what he wishes to hear and refuse to hear what he does not wish to hear. Whatever number of sounds that arise at any given time, man is forced to hear them all. Rather, if many sounds ascend at once, a man can hear nothing at all. Thus, if ears are allowed to work, they will either hear all the sounds or nothing at all. However, in contrast to these senses, eyes are under man’s