Your Third Question: Which ones were superior, the great interpreters of the Holy Law, or the ‘shahs’ of the true Sufi paths?

YOUR THIRD QUESTION

Which were superior, the great imams and interpreters of the Holy Law, or the ‘shahs’ and ‘spiritual poles’ of the true Sufi paths?

T h e A n s w e r : Not all the interpreters of the Law, but Abu Hanifa, Malik, Shafi‘i, and Ahmad b. Hanbal were superior to the shahs and spiritual poles. But in some respects, some wondrous spiritual poles like Shaykh Gilani attained more brilliant stations, in particular virtues. However, general virtue was the Imams’. Furthermore, some of the Shahs of the Sufi paths were also interpreters of the Law; it cannot therefore be said that all interpreters of the Law were superior to the spiritual poles. But it may be said that after the Companions and the Mahdi, the Four Imams were superior.