Wajd
Definition
Wajd — from the root meaning 'to find' — is the intense, overwhelmingly felt spiritual state that sometimes arises in moments of deep God-consciousness: a surge of love, longing, awe, or joy so powerful that the ordinary functioning of the mind is temporarily suspended. Al-Ghazali addresses wajd with characteristic nuance: he neither dismisses it as hysteria nor valorizes it as the goal. Genuine wajd is a real spiritual experience, a grace given in moments of particular divine nearness. But it is not a reliable measure of one's spiritual station — many people of lower station experience intense wajd while people of the highest station are characterized by a quiet, stable, profound peace rather than dramatic intensity.
As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Ghazali and the scholars of his school.
Appears in
2 books in the library
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