From the Many to the One

The outside world pulls us in a hundred different directions which causes internal conflict and division. According to the well-known saying of Christ,
عليه السلام


"A house divided against itself shall fall".


The message of monotheism is to turn away from the many to the One.

“Whoever makes his aspiration one aspiration… God suffices him for aspiration in this world. Yet whosoever is dispersed in his aspirations, in whichever valley of the world he may perish, God has no concern for him”
- Muhammad ﷺ
Source: Ibn Majah 4106, Hakim 3715

Normally, the mind is dazzled by the many external objects of this world, leading to a kind of idolatry (idolising external images). The mind disintegrates like particles dispersing from a centre as it pursues these objects. The centre of the mind (or the centre of consciousness) is Divine and it is here that we move from disintegration to wholeness, from idolatry to oneness, and from multiplicity to Unity. The Buddha emphasised the importance of developing a “one-pointed” mind (ek-aggata). Regular mindfulness of the One compels the mind to reverse this outflowing stream of consciousness back unto its luminous source.

Ramana Maharshi shares some important insight on the topic of developing a one-pointed mind,

“Holding on to a single thought... If a single thought prevails, all other thoughts are put off and finally eradicated... Dhyana [meditation or mindfulness] is the chief practice... Dhyana means fight. As soon as you begin meditation other thoughts will crowd together, gather force and try to sink the single thought to which you try to hold.

The good thought must gradually gain strength by repeated practice. After it has grown strong the other thoughts will be put to flight. This is the battle royal always taking place in meditation." [Source: Talks with Ramana Maharshi, Talk 371]

The Last Prophet ﷺ describes this inner battle (jihad) to be greater than any external war. He also said,

"He who remembers amongst the heedless is like a fighter amongst the fleeing" 

[Source: Ibn ‘Adi in al-Kamil (5:1745)]

Notes

* The Ka’aba, the house of God and centre of the Muslim world, is also a symbol of what lies within our own inner centre, namely the heart which is also a house where Divinity resides. The Muslim obligation to face the Ka’aba five times a day and the pilgrimage to this holy house in Mecca has an immense impact upon the soul, facilitating the inward turning and movement towards our own sacred centre. 

* "The most fundamental unit of our society, the family... is breaking up to an ever greater degree, because there are so few people [today] who possess an integrated inner being" 

- Seyyed Hossein Nasr [Source: The Integration of the Soul, p. 1-2]

Divisions in the outside world are reflections of our internal division and discord.