Mujaddid's Final Ontology

Mujaddid's Final OntologyA Mujaddid is a figure believed to be sent by Allah at the start of every Islamic century to revive and purify the religion. Sheykh Ahmad Sirhindi, a 17th-century Indian Muslim scholar, who is also known as the "e;Great Mujaddid"e; (the "e;Renewer"e;), is often considered the mujaddid of the second millennium of Islam. The concept of "e;Mujaddid's Final Ontology"e; refers to the theological and philosophical ideas of Sheykh Ahmad Sirhindi. It specifically focuses on the seven-descent metaphysical system he developed just before his death, which diverged significantly from his earlier thought and contrasted with the prevailing monistic philosophy of Ibn Arabi. The Mujaddid and his earlier ontologyHe was initially known for his theory of wahdat al-shuhud (unity of witnessing). This concept stated that the "e;oneness"e; experienced by Sufi mystics is a subjective state of spiritual consciousness, not an objective reality. Shift to the "e;Final Ontology"e;Towards the end of his life, Sirhindi reportedly moved away from wahdat al-shuhud and developed a "e;final ontology"e; that introduced a new system of seven descents (tanzzulat). This was a radical shift from the five descents of being (wahdat al-wujud), or unity of existence, espoused by the influential Sufi philosopher Ibn Arabi. The key features of Sirhindi's final ontology included two additional initial descents before Ibn Arabi's five. This framework suggested a more gradual and complex process of creation in contrast to Ibn Arabi's scheme which described a process of emanation where creation unfolds directly from the mind of God. His final ontology rejected Ibn Arabi's monistic view, asserting that God and existence are distinct. In this system, existence itself is a creation (khalq), not an aspect of the divine essence. This is in stark contrast to Ibn Arabi's wahdat al-wujud, which equates God with existence itself. For Sirhindi, God exists by His person, while all contingent things are created by His will. Sirhindi's final ontology emphasized that all descents, and therefore all creation, are contingent and newly originated. This maintains a strict separation between the eternal, uncreated God and the temporal, created universe. Ibn Arabi viewed the first two descents as taking place in the mind of God, which effectively makes them eternal and on the level of God.