16 July 2025
Dear Companions on the Path,
If the world were flat and square we might be having a different conversation.
Then perhaps we could speak of a “center of the world” and “corners of the world.” But the reality is, the Earth is spherical. On the surface of a sphere, the center is everywhere.
Whenever a particular nation, race, or religion proclaims its paramountcy, a round-Earther is bound to recognize the subjectivity of the claim.
Of course, it can be endearing to hear partisans of one or another identity bloc express their enthusiasm for their chosen project. In a spirit of sympathetic joy, one is moved to share in their delight. The charm quickly dwindles, however, when self-love veers into other-hate.
Or even other-apathy. Sometimes when children and other non-combatants are killed in the thousands, the reason is hate. Other times the reason seems simply to be apathy—the attitude that only one’s own people matter, and others’ tragedies can be brushed off as collateral damage.
But the world isn’t a flat square, it is a sphere, and the center is everywhere. If there is a special center, since we know that God is the Most Merciful and Compassionate it must be where the greatest pain is.
Today the epicenter of human pain is Gaza, where large numbers of civilians have been killed, humanitarian aid is subject to a blockade, and airstrikes continue to wreak carnage. Ukraine, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, Sudan, South Sudan, and East Turkestan are major pain points as well.
This cannot continue. Let us pray, and work, not only for ceasefires on all fronts, but also for a global movement for truth and reconciliation wherever systemic discrimination, seizure of property, unjust detention, torture, terrorism, and heavy-handed militarism have shredded the fabric of the human community.
The planet’s shape is a clear sign. On this round Earth, everyone’s well being is as important as our own.
Yours ever,
Pir Zia
Just as our bodies are particles of the universe in which we live, our minds are particles of the universal mind and our souls are particles of the universal soul. And just as each cell contains the code of the whole body, each configuration of body, mind, and soul contains the imprint of the universal being and lives in ongoing communion with it, if only unconsciously. Zoom option still available! More details and registration.
As we deepen our spiritual study, we are initiating a series of one-day retreats on themes core to the Sufi path. Join us for this initial retreat with Pir Zia Inayat Khan on an essential practice—the contemplation and recitation of the Asma al-Husna: The Beautiful Names. During our one-day retreat, we will begin to explore the practice of wazifas through both spiritual teachings and recitation led by Pir Zia. More details and registration.
We are delighted to announce the addition of a new member to the Inayatiyya International Board: Waseem Mahmood, who has been a murid with the Inayatiyya for the last few years. Read more…
This month, we would like to share news of a new book by Amat-un-Nur Naila Hayat Noon that has been published recently. Read more…
Akhenaten, Zoroaster, Mani, Julian, and Shahab ad-Din Suhrawardi flourished in divergent times and places and articulated their insights in different terms. What they shared, however―and shared with other mystics across the world—was a many profound intuition of the spiritual significance of light. Even as human culture transforms around us with the passing of years, the sensation of light―in the skin, in the eyes, in the brain, and in the soul―remains the perpetual and universal bath in which our bodies and minds are immersed. More details and registration.
The Zephyr is a monthly newsletter of the Inayatiyya, an interfaith mystical fellowship with branches worldwide. For more information, please visit us at inayatiyya.org.
