Suhrawardi - Three Treatises on Mysticism.pdf - Platonic Philosophy

CHAPfER III.
TRANSLATION
OF THE
NOTE OFSIMURGH
In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
With Him is
might and strength.
Praise be to the Bestower of life and the Creator of 11
existing things and blessing be upon the masters of Prophecy
and the leaders of prophetic appearance, upon the Master
of the great Sharl'a and the Guide of the exainplary path,
Muhammad, the Chosen Peace and benediction be upon
him.
Now to :
begin These are a few sentences written
about the states of the Brethren of Seclusion. And the
description thereof is limited to two parts: the first part is
about the Beginnings and tJte second part about the Ends.
This treatise is known as u The Note of Simurgh^ who
has no tongue. And if at the outset we were to give an
introduction about the state of affairs of this respectable
bird and his residence: the bright-minded have shown that
anyone who goes to the Mountain of Q&f 2 in the spring
season and renounces his nest and plucks off his feathers
with his beak 3 when the shadow of the Mountain of Q&f
1. For Simurgh cf. Encyclopaedia of Islam s.v. Simurgh.
2. Cf. Encycl. of Islam s.v. Qaf and Hibbatuddin ash-Shahr&st&nf,
Jabal Qaf, Baghdad 1346.
3. Cf. Mathnawi of Jal&luddin BUmi, Books V and VI (Text), ed.
by E. A. Nicholson, pp. 36-37.
l/T *