Eleventh Note

Annihilation of the partial intellect and thus the ego and carnal self are thought to be the result of predestination, not free will. Some are chosen by God, while others are discriminated against by God. And while annihilation (Fana’) involves lots of pain and suffering, the pain and suffering actually amount to “mercy in the guise of wrath” in the sense that the outcome of it all is rebirth, resurrection, and salvation. Salvation is the greatest gift that anyone can ever offer to someone, and only God can offer it, no man can intercede for another without God’s will, hence the belief or the idea that the pain and suffering of Fana’ is actually “mercy disguised as wrath.”