Ghazzatfs Alchemy of Happiness. 



85 



Although these four sentences are in appearance very short, 

 yet there are no others that embrace so much of the know- 

 ledge of God. Since from the consideration of the free- 

 dom and independence of your own spirit, you have learned 

 the freedom and independence of God, you have in conse- 

 quence learned the meaning and import of the sentence, 

 " Glory to God." Seeing that from the sovereignty which 

 you exercise over your own spirit, you have learned the 

 sovereignty which God exercises, and know that all causes 

 and instruments are subject to his power, and that all out- 

 ward and inward mercies, which are incalculable and in- 

 numerable, are from him, you therefore know the meaning 

 and import of the phrase, " God be praised." As you know 

 also that all things are of his creation, that his government 

 extends over all things, and that without his will no motion 

 or change can affect any thing, you see the meaning of the 

 words, " There is no God but God. " Listen now to the ex- 

 planation of the sentence, " God is the greatest. " 



Do not suppose that, from all that has hitherto been 

 said, you can understand the greatness of God. His great- 

 ness and power are above and beyond the comprehension 

 of the mind and wisdom of man. Moreover the phrase 

 " God is the greatest" does not mean that God is larger 

 than other things : it is a sin to indulge in such a belief. 

 It is as much as to say, that there are large things, but that 

 God is larger than they are. The holy meaning of the 

 phrase " God is the greatest " is that God is so great, that 

 he cannot be known or comprehended by the mind or un- 

 derstanding, or be compared with any thing, — that the 

 knowledge of God cannot be attained by means of the know- 

 ledge which a man has of his own soul (which God forbid ! ), 

 that a knowledge of his attributes cannot be attained from 

 a knowledge of the attributes of man, and that his inde- 

 pendence and holiness cannot be compared with the inde- 

 pendence and holiness of man in any form whatever. God 



