On the Supreme Rafraf (al-Rafraf al-Aʿlā)

In the name of God, the All-Merciful, the Ever-Merciful.

Know that the Supreme Rafraf is an expression for the divine place-rank (al-makāna al-ilāhiyya) among the existents.

And [it is] of the essential matters that the Divinity required by itself; then it is not of a single kind, but many kinds.

But every kind of it is called a Supreme Rafraf, and every Rafraf is an expression for the divine place-rank -- even if its requisite differs, for it is, from the standpoint of its essential affair, the very [same] place-rank.

And there is no preferring of some of it over some, because preferring occurs only in the requisites of the Attributes and the Names.

And these are matters that are the essentialities of the Real, so there is no mutual preference between them -- like Grandeur (al-kibriyāʾ), for example, and Might (al-ʿizza) -- because the Rafraf is an expression for each of them.

So it is not correct to say that Might is more excellent than Grandeur,

nor is it said that Grandeur is more excellent than Might.

And likewise the essential Magnificence (al-ʿaẓama al-dhātiyya); for each of the likes of that is an expression for the requisite of the Essence for itself, for the lofty divine place-rank. And in my saying "for the divine place-rank" there is a restriction of the essential requiring.

Because the Essence has, in itself, two requirings:

an absolute requiring,

and a restricted requiring.

As for the absolute requiring:

it is what it merits for itself, without regard to Divinity, nor All-Mercifulness, nor Lordship, nor the likes of that.

Rather, these are absolute requirings, stripped of the Essence's requiring them [as] a kind of the kinds of perfections. So they are like existence, for example, and simplicity, and pureness, and Oneness (al-aḥadiyya).

And the likes of that, of what the Essence required for itself.

And the restricted requiring:

it is what the Essence required for itself, but by a kind of the kinds of perfections -- like Divinity, All-Mercifulness, and Lordship; and like Might, Grandeur, and Magnificence, for example, for the divine place-rank; and like Knowledge, the existential pervading, and Encompassing, for the All-Merciful place-rank -- and other than that of what it merits for its Essence,

by a divine, or All-Merciful, or Lordly regard, or other than that of His Names and descriptions. So understand.

And know that the restricted requirings also return to absoluteness, because He (glory be His and exalted) required all of that for His Essence.

So the Divinity is a requisite for His Essence, and the All-Mercifulness is a requisite for His Essence.

And likewise what is other than the two of them, of the ranks; and everything that a rank of the ranks required was a requisite for the Essence, without restriction.

Because the rank is of the requisites of the Essence, so what it required was of the requisites of the Essence -- because He (glory be His and exalted) merits these things not for [any] perfection, nor for [any] deficiency, but for His Essence; and His perfections are essential matters.

So all the requisites are essential, absolute requisites; but since there were matters that the Essence requires absolutely, and matters that the Essence requires in which regarding them for a rank or place-rank is correct,

we said: the essential requisites are two kinds -- absolute and restricted. So understand.