The Cognitive Connection of Insān-e Kāmil (the Complete Person) with True Monotheism: A Perspective from Rāz-e Shīrāzī

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 ph.D student theology and islamic studies- comparative religious studies and mysticism

2 (Ferdowsi University of Mashhad)

3 Department of Philosophy and Islamic Wisdom, Imam Khomeini International University, Qazvin

4 Associate Professor, Department of Comparative Religions and Mysticism, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

10.22111/jrm.2025.51062.1255

Abstract

Reaching true monotheism (tawḥīd) is arguably among the most exalted and fundamental goals within mystical and Sufi traditions. Mīrzā Abu'l-Qāsim-e Rāz-e Shīrāzī-ye Ḥosaynī-ye Sharīfī-ye Dhahabī, a 13th/19th-century mystic, emphasizes tawḥīd as light and associates it with the entrusting of divine authority to a purified heart. This suggests that the heart of the Insān-e Kāmil serves as the locus for the illocal (lā-makān) ocean of divine essence. Because God is limitless, He cannot be fully contained within any realm, physical or spiritual, except within the expansive heart of the Insān-e Kāmil. According to the prophetic ḥadīth, "Whoever knows himself, knows his Lord," Rāz-e Shīrāzī emphasizes the importance of self-knowledge and self-recognition as a pathway to knowing God. However, he assumes that the soul's inherent limitations prevent the manifestation of its innate light and essence. Consequently, transcending the limitations of the self and attaining God necessitates guidance from the Insān-e Kāmil. The Insān-e Kāmil, understood as a manifestation of the Muhammadan and Alid luminaries and their pure descendants, embodies all four levels of tawḥīd: tawḥīd-e athari (monotheism of works), tawḥīd-e afʿālī (monotheism of actions), tawḥīd-e ṣifātī (monotheism of attributes), and tawḥīd-e dhātī (monotheism of essence). Thus, knowing the Insān-e Kāmil offers one avenue (among others) for knowing and acknowledging the Almighty. According to Rāz-e Shīrāzī, this is primarily facilitated through the principle of murābiṭa (bilateral spiritual connection). This essay employs a descriptive-analytical approach, using library resources to explain Mīrzā Abu'l-Qāsim-e Rāz-e Shīrāzī's method of knowing God.

Keywords

Comparative Study of Religions and Mysticism

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 15 February 2026

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History

  • Receive Date: 12 February 2025
  • Revise Date: 10 April 2025
  • Accept Date: 28 May 2025

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