UNITY

Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim

Light upon Light – the Mystical Symbolism of the Olive

by Usama Hasan

Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim

1. Light upon Light

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth.

The Parable of His Light is as if there were a Niche and within it a Lamp:

The Lamp enclosed in Glass: the glass as it were a brilliant star:

Lit from a blessed Tree, an Olive, neither of the east nor of the west,

Whose oil is well-nigh luminous, though fire scarce touched it:

Light upon Light! Allah guides whom He will to His Light:

Allah sets forth Parables for humanity: and Allah knows all things.[1]

As Abdullah Yusuf Ali says, the above Qur’anic verse contains,

This glorious parable of Light, which contains layer upon layer of transcendental truth about spiritual mysteries. No notes can do adequate justice to its full meaning. Volumes have been…