The visible formulations of Islam are therefore both enlivened by the spiritual and moral force behind them, and so they are the manifestations of this force and at the same time they are the means of attaining these spiritual and moral qualities; this can be said to constitute their main purpose. Thus these two aspects of Islam are mutually generative, each one producing the other. It can be seen from the Word of Allah, the Qur'an, that wherever something concerning man's outward actions is decreed, its inward content and purpose is also stressed. Take Prayer for instance. Allah says: "Observe Prayer for my remembrance" (20:14); or "The believers have attained success; who are lowly in their prayers" (23:1, 2), emphasising that the object of Prayer is not the mere outward performance, but to remember Him with a humble heart. In the case of fasting Allah says: "Fasting has been decreed for you, as it was decreed for those who came before you, that you may be God-fearing" (2:183). Regarding sacrifice on the occasion of Pilgrimage (Hajj), He says: "It is not their blood or their flesh which reaches Him, but the devotion from you" (22:37). On the subject of marriage: "It is one of His signs that He has made for you mates of your own kind that you may find peace in them, and He has created affection and kindness between you" (30:21). On spending for the poor: "They (the righteous) give food to the needy, the orphan and the prisoner, for the love of Him. They

say: We feed for the sake of Allah only, and desire no reward or thanks from you" (76:8, 9). If we reflect on these and other similar indications in the Qur'an, we are led to the conclusion that if it is necessary to develop within ourselves those qualities which are their soul; that these two are complementary and one cannot exist in a sound state without the other. When the word Shariat is used, one immediately calls to mind the basic beliefs of Islam, without which a person cannot be reckoned a Muslim, and the external decrees comprising forms of worship, rules of behaviour and civil and criminal laws. In short it is the outwardness of Islam which is normally referred to by this term. But we have seen that within this outer Shariat there exists an inner Shariat of equal importance, which constitutes both its inspiration and its goal. Like the word "Ilm" (Knowledge) which originally comprised both the inward realisation of divine truths as well as outward knowledge of Islamic tenets, the term "Shariat" (the road) should really include the devotion of the heart to Allah as well as specific beliefs, and the attainment of moral excellence as well as submission to the law. But just as "Ilm" came to mean only book knowledge, so "Shariat" came to mean only the law; as a result, the Sufis, the devotees of the spirit of Islam, began to use the word Ma'rifat' for inner relationship with God, and in place of the word "Shariat" they chose the word Tariqat (the path) to

denote the way to spiritual perfection. Just as the outer "Shariat" consists of two parts, belief and practice, so also does the inner "Shariat" manifest itself in two main fields.