noonespecial Posted October 29, 2015 (edited) Its a copy and paste from wiki - but i cant think of any real commentary beyond the dry facts , just find it fascinating that the basic tenets of western occultism were put into an official form in 1000AD. Their symbol is the Pentagram. ----- The Druze conception of the deity is declared by them to be one of strict and uncompromising unity. The main Druze doctrine states that God is both transcendent and immanent, in which he is above all attributes but at the same time he is present.[78] In their desire to maintain a rigid confession of unity, they stripped from God all attributes (tanzīh). In God, there are no attributes distinct from his essence. He is wise, mighty, and just, not by wisdom, might and justice, but by his own essence. God is "the whole of existence", rather than "above existence" or on his throne, which would make him "limited". There is neither "how", "when", nor "where" about him; he is incomprehensible.[79][page needed] In this dogma, they are similar to the semi-philosophical, semi-religious body which flourished under Al-Ma'mun and was known by the name of Mu'tazila and the fraternal order of the Brethren of Purity (Ikhwan al-Ṣafa).[33][page needed] Druze do not believe that the esoteric meaning abrogates or necessarily abolishes the exoteric one. Hamza bin Ali refutes such claims by stating that if the esoteric interpretation of taharah (purity) is purity of the heart and soul, it doesn't mean that a person can discard his physical purity, as salat (prayer) is useless if a person is untruthful in his speech and that the esoteric and exoteric meanings complement each other.[88] The Druze strictly avoid iconography but use five colors (“Five Limits” خمس حدود khams ḥudūd) as a religious symbol: green, red, yellow, blue, and white. Each color pertains to a metaphysical power called ḥaad, literally 'a limit', as in the boundaries that separate humans from animals, [clarification needed] or the powers that makes the animal body human. Each ḥaad is color-coded in the following manner: Green for ʻAql "the Universal Mind/Intelligence/Nous", Red for Nafs "the Universal Soul/Anima mundi", Yellow for Kalima "the Word/Logos", Blue for Sabiq "the Potentiality/Cause/Precedent", and White for Tali "the Future/Effect/Immanence". The mind generates qualia and gives consciousness. The soul embodies the mind and is responsible for transmigration and the character of oneself. The word which is the atom of language communicates qualia between humans and represent the platonic forms in the sensible world. The Sabq and Tali is the ability to perceive and learn from the past and plan for the future and predict it. The colors can be arranged in vertically descending stripes (as a flag) or a five-pointed star. The stripes are a diagrammatic cut of the spheres in neoplatonic philosophy, while the five-pointed star embodies the golden ratio,phi, as a symbol of temperance and a life of moderation. Edited October 29, 2015 by noonespecial 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
