And when Moses sought water for his people We said “Strike the rock with your staff” and there exploded from it twelve fountains and each people came to know their drinking place “Eat and drink of that which God has provided and do not be degenerate in the earth seeking corruption.” One who is capable of extracting water from solid rock is capable of quenching thirst without water. But He made the trace or effect athar of the miracle manifest in [Moses] and connected him to the locus maḥall of calling for help. This in order for Moses to work with his self nafs in mov- ing the stone and give him responsibility in striking it with his staff. Thus there would be a measure of [human] effort involved in making His decree come to pass when he sought water for his people. Then the Real سبحانه wanted each people to follow a way sunna stick to their boundary ḥadd and not dispute with their companions. He singled out for each tribe a marker by which they would know their drinking place so that they would not go to each others' drinking places. When He had met their needs He bid them to be grateful to preserve the command and to stop choosing sin and so He said “and do not be degenerate in the earth seeking corruption.” The drinking places are different and each comes to their own so one drinking place is sweet and fresh another salty and bitter another clear and pure and another dried up with only a few drops. The water carrier for each people leads them and the scout of each party drives them on so the lower selves come to the watering places of desires and cravings the hearts come to the drinking places of piety and acts of obedience the spirits come to the watering places of unveiling and witnessing and the innermost selves come to the watering places of realities. The latter [innermost selves] are snatched from the being and outward markings al-kawn wa-l-marsūmāt [of humans] then from the sensory awareness and attributes al-iḥsās wa-l-ṣifāt [of humans] then annihilated in the reality of ecstatic finding and essence al-wujūd wa-l-dhāt.
