Similar to other Sufi doctrines, Fana is based on first-party Islamic teachings. Specifically, the
Quran says: Fana was defined by
Abu Nasr as-Sarraj thus:
Al-Hujwiri states the following: So according to these early Sufis, Fana was interpreted as a recognition of the will of God, or the abandonment of being conscious of one's self, replacing this with contemplation on God alone. However, according to Al-Hujwiri, vision of the divine can not occur without hard work on the part of the seeker. Such vision is combined with "ilm al-yaqin", or knowledge of certainty. This station leads to "ayn al-yaqin" (vision of certainty) and then the station of "
ma'rifah" (
gnosis), until one arrives at haqq al-yaqin (reality of certainty), the stage of the friends of God (
Wali Allah). This stage of haqq al-yaqin is what Al-Ghazali expressed as fana' kulli and fana fi al-tawhid. For Al-Ghazali, as with Al-Junayd before him, this meant recognition of God as the sole agent of the Universe. However Fana fi al-Tawhid does not mean 'fusion', 'identification', 'incarnation' etc. Rather, for Al-Ghazali, God could not be known through speculation in the manner of the philosophers, nor through the claims of union brought by al-Bistami and al-Hallaj, rather God could be known through his self-unveiling (khasf) through the personal process of observation (mushahadah). Al-Sarraj condemned the idea of incarnation and fusion (the unionist interpretation below): This visionary interpretation has been qualified by some thinkers as a "moderate form of Islamic mysticism", whereas the next interpretation is considered an "extravagant form of mysticism".
Fana as union Another interpretation is that of Fana as being united with the One or the Truth. The two famous exponents of this who contended that fana is total union (ittihad) were
Al-Bistami and
Al-Hallaj. The interpretation of Fana ascribed to
Rumi is as follows: In his book, Ain-ul-Faqr, Sultan Bahoo gives his interpretation of Fana:
Hossein Nasr holds that this interpretation is the highest spiritual truth. ==Similar concepts in eastern religions==