Kitāb al-Safīnah al-Nūḥīyah fī al-sakīnah al-rūḥīyah
Chapter Four: On the Allusions of the Masters of Hearts, in the Manner Proper to Them
Medieval Aḥmad ibn Khalīl al-Khuwayyī ArabicAnd such a person's soul (nafs) is at one time commanding and at another reproaching. Likewise the soul at peace has degrees above degrees, just as the commanding soul has descents below descents.
Gate Four: On the Allusions of the Masters of Hearts, according to the Manner that is Theirs
They affirmed four degrees for man: the soul, the spirit (rūḥ), the heart (qalb), and the secret (sirr). The soul is that which commands to evil; the spirit is that which prompts to good-doing; the heart is that which turns toward God and advances upon Him; and the secret is that which arrives at Him, oblivious of all that is other than Him even were it set before him. The soul is ignorant of the signs of God; the spirit is knowing of the clear proofs of God; the heart is acquainted with subtleties; and the secret has vision of realities.
The soul is a darkened niche; the spirit is clear glass; the heart is a shining lamp; and the secret is light through and through. The soul is a betrayer of the trust of God; the spirit is a trustee over the treasury of God; the heart is a discerner; and the secret is a free disposer. The mark of the soul is much eating and drinking and the preferring of diversion and play; the mark of the spirit is patience and prayer, and the compelling of the soul to acts of worship; the sign of the heart is taking delight in departure; and the sign of the secret is gladness in every state. Among the fastidious there are those who wish to add to the ranks, and so say: the soul of the soul is below the soul, and the secret of the secret is above the secret; and likewise you say the spirit of the spirit and the heart of the heart. It is as though this were an allusion to what we have mentioned, that the commanding soul has descents and the soul at peace has degrees; and the verification of these allusions is what we have mentioned.
So the soul is that which commands, the spirit is as it were the reproaching soul, and the heart is the soul at peace.