Preface

3. Reflections of an Encounter

An encounter of the yearning souls, to share a taste of the Divine... It was a night illuminated brighter than day! The sun of a spiritual dimension was gently on the rise as the eager made their way to a home they had never been to before.

All naturally nervous from excitement to share how they know 'Him' and eagerly curious to find out how 'He' is known by others... How is 'He' perceived to be? How is it possible to express 'His' existence? What about 'His' essence? These where only a few of the questions that were on the minds of all the believing seekers...

As the destination drew close, darkness had already fallen on the humid, spring mid-week night of the physical world. But the light of belief, both in the hearts and minds of the guests, had long surpassed the darkness that surrounded them; indeed it was with this light that they had found the address without losing their way in a suburb they were strangers to. There they were, 15 minutes early, at 91 Champion St, a place they were seeing for the very first time, yet strangely, a place they all felt as though they had been to just the day before.

The door was opened and a soft inviting face welcomed them. The sincerity of this inviter helped clear away the fearsome anxiety amongst the guests, only leaving room for a little sweet excitement to stimulate the appetite, as a feast for the soul awaited them.

Others soon arrived one by one until they were nine, including the facilitator. All then gathered with greetings around the table ready to taste the food for the soul, all eager to exchange the good title of the ONE.

"The One and Only,
The absolute Holy free from all faults, free from limitation,
Most Gracious
Most Compassionate
Most Merciful...
Transcendent yes, but ever so personal and near...
Allah, The God, the One with Beautiful names and Perfect attributes!
The One known because He wants to be known,
The One whom has made Himself be known!!!
Glory be to Him alone!"

As the clock kept ticking and the rules were reminded, the passion for true friendship only expanded and the spirit's hunger grew as the facilitator wished blessings upon the attendees. "Fifteen minutes to serve your sweets, to express your taste and to present how He has made Himself to be known in the flavour of Islam... then the honour is exchanged and 15 minutes to reflect this time with the taste of Christianity."

Plates of Divine sweet talk gently moved across and around the table. So harmonious was the aroma of dialogue, so sweet was the taste of familiarity in beliefs that unity gently touched all hearts... And as the question and answers were shared like a summer dessert over coffee, learning, reflecting, understanding and peacefully digesting the different spices of faith, everyone only gained more appetite...

Then a sincere one amongst them, obviously blessed with instant inspiration and surely burning with passion, humbly said: "It is as though They are here with us, each on one side of the table. I felt a soft breeze, a tender touch so sweet. It is as if they are smiling at us, inshaAllah (God willing) they are pleased with us... So beautiful, so beautiful."

"Who?" they asked.

"Muhammad and Jesus peace be upon them!"

A kind sister from the Catholic Church, surprised and without hesitation replied: "Of course He is here! If two people gather the third is He, if four gather the fifth is He... if nine gather the tenth is He."

So much was shared into an hour, yet one hour had felt like one minute no one wanted to leave. No one was satisfied, but if all the hours of all the time created had been given to them, and if all the words of all creation was offered for their use, it still would not have been enough to express Him, nor to satisfy their hearts' yearning for Him. For only Allah will suffice.

Then, as if to wrap up the night with heavenly beings, a compassionate brother full of marvel and certainty shared the awesome Hadisi Kutsi (sacred saying from God) about how the Blessed Angels would gather around the people who met to talk about their Lord, and how the angels witnessed the meeting and expressed their testimony to Allah in full detail of what was going on in the meeting... and in return how Allah was truly pleased with that community.

A sweet scent of gratitude filled the air, smiles of delight lifted the faces that were saddened from departure. Then with a sense of spiritual perplexity, everyone thanked each other as they parted looking forward to meeting again in four weeks time.

A little long, but short to truly give the nights worth

Thank you all

Amine Atalay
September 2003