A Detailed Guide for the Path to Allah In the Name of Allah the Merciful, the Mercy-giving

Sharh al-Hikam al-`Ata'iyya Written by, Shaikh Ibn Abbad al-!undi "rahmatullahi alaihi# $ %he Guiding &el'er (oundation )**)-)**+ General and unre,tricted 'ermi,,ion for the unaltered du'lication of thi, te-t i, granted. "In 'lain /ngli,h0 Make a, many co'ie, a, you 1ant for free.# %ran,lated under the ,u'ervi,ion of Abu 2anit al-Sharif al-&a,ani In the Name of Allah the Merciful, the Mercy-giving Author3, Introduction %he 'oor ,ervant in need of Allah Mo,t &igh 1ho de'end, on Allah for the forgivene,, of hi, ,in,, Shaikh Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Abdullah ibn Ibrahim ibn Abbad al-Nafa4i al-!undi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,ay,0 All 'rai,e i, for Allah Who alone ha, ma5e,ty and glory, the 6ne Who de,erve, the 7ualitie, of 'erfection, Who i, free from 'artner,, e7ual,, and com'arable,, 'urified from the attribute, of tem'oral thing, ,uch a, change, tran,location, connectivity, and di,location, 8no1er of the un,een and vi,ible, the Great, the Mo,t &igh. And may 'eace and ble,,ing, be u'on our leader Nabi Muhammad "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#, the guide out of error, on hi, family, on hi, com'anion, for 1hom action, became ,incere and ,tate, became 'ure, and on all tho,e that follo1 them in their 'rai,e1orthy attribute,... After1ard,0 When 1e ,a1 the book of 1i,dom "a,cribed to the fully reali4ed Shaikh, imam, the kno1er and friend of Allah ... 1ho acted by 1hat he kne1, Shaikh Abu al-(ahl %a5 al-Din Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Abd al-8arim ibn Ata3Illah "rahmatullahi alaihi#

from Ale-andria among the be,t of 1hat ha, been 1ritten about the kno1ledge of the 6nene,, of Allah, being the mo,t ,'lendid of 1hat every traveler and di,ci'le ha, tried to under,tand and memori4e "a, it i, ,mall in ,i4e but tremendou, in kno1ledge containing 6nene,, and clear the e-'re,,ion, 1ay, of the and beautiful to ,u'erb &im meaning, and tho,e clarifying the 'ath of tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah and declare &i, traveler, e-clu,ively devoted to 1or,hi'#, 1e began to 1rite ,ome note, to act a, a commentary for ,ome of it, a''arent meaning, revealing a ,mall glimmer from it, da44ling brilliant light,. &o1ever ,ince the 1ord, of Allah9, friend, and ,cholar, are folded over guarded ,ecret, and hidden gem, of 1i,dom 1hich can not be uncovered e-ce't by them, 1e are unable to do 5u,tice to all of 1hat i, contained in the book in it, internal core. %he reality of the,e affair, doe, not become 'lain e-ce't by receiving in,truction from them "i.e. the ,'eaker, of the 1ord,#. We do not claim 1ith the,e 1ord, 1e are relating : to be

e-'laining the ,tatement, of the author; nor do 1e ,ay that 1hat 1e are mentioning actually ,ho1, their vie1,: (or if 1e had claimed ,uch, it 1ould have been bad manner, on our 'art making u, de,erve blame "We a,k Allah refuge from thi,.#. We have e-'o,ed our,elve, to danger and harm by a''roaching ,omething that i, not fit for u, "i.e. commenting on the 1ord, of the leader, from the 'eo'le of Allah Mo,t &igh 1ithout fear and 'recaution#. !ather, 1e are ,im'ly relating in thi, book 1hat 1e our,elve, have under,tood from their 1ord, and 1hat ha, come to u, of their kno1ledge and vie1,. If 1e accurately re're,ent the true 'icture and ,tumble u'on the hidden ,ecret, it i, among the ble,,ing, that 1e are unable to encom'a,, in thankfulne,,:. 6n the other hand, if 1e mi,, the 'icture and aren3t guided to tho,e <correct= 1ay,, 1e a,cribe it to our o1n fault, and ignorance: %he re,'on,ibility lie, only on u, 1hile they are free <of blame= from 1hat 1e ,aid and intended.

If thi, i, our goal, for the 're,ence of ,afety <from error=, 1hich 1e de'end on, it i, fitting that 1e fir,t relate the ,tatement of the author in it, full te-t. %hen, 1e follo1 it u' by our ,tatement, in narration form: In our narration, 1e 1ill u,e method, that detail hi, ,tatement,. We 1ill al,o u,e allu,ion, that are more obviou, than hi, allu,ion, ,o that our e-'lanation of 1hat he mention, may be under,tood, not that it i, it, confirmed true e-'lanation. Along 1ith thi,, 1e 1ill mention many ,tatement, <of other,=, 1hich 1e kno1 about ,o that the benefit may be com'lete for the 'ur'o,e 1e have ,et out for. A, 1e vie1 it like an obligation, 1e 1ill al,o inform the reader of the re'eated meaning, and the interrelatedne,, and ,e'aratene,, of the author9, ,tatement,. We have 'laced the core te-t and the e-'lanation on the ,ame 'age,. So, the co'yi,t of thi, book ,hould follo1 the method, 1e have laid do1n0 &e ,hould 1rite the 1ord, of the author in a different color than the color of our e-'lanation>. Alternatively, he can 1rite them 1ith t1o different 'en, 1ith varying thickne,,. ?oth method, 1ill fulfill 1hat i, re7uired and be clo,er to 1hat i, de,ired kee'ing the benefit of the 'lacement order of the te-t. Allah i, the giver of ,ucce,,. %here i, no lord be,ide, &im and no good e-ce't &i, good. In addition to the tremendou, demand for and ,ignificance of thi, book mentioned in the beginning of thi, introduction, the rea,on I began 1riting thi, commentary and took the re,'on,ibility of com'o,ing and collecting it "kno1ing full 1ell of Allah Mo,t &igh9, over'o1ering 1ill and de,tiny 1hich the ,ervant doe,n9t have a 'lace of e,ca'e or refuge from# 1a, that ,ome com'anion, con,tantly 'e,tered me and re'eatedly a,ked me to do thi,. Since they have ,ound vie1, in thi, 'ath and hold 'ure love for the 'eo'le of reali4ation, I an,1ered their re7ue,t and fulfilled their ho'e,, a, Allah Mo,t &igh 1illed, ruled, decreed, and made

obligatory. May Allah benefit them and u, 1ith 1hat &e cau,e, to flo1 from our t1o hand, and may he not make it an argument again,t them and u, <in the ne-t life=. We ,eek forgivene,, from Allah Mo,t &igh for a''roaching thi, daunting ta,k, 1hich hold, much danger. We ,eek refuge in &im from falling into the ,nare of the accur,ed enemy <i.e. the devil=. We a,k &im for ,ucce,, and that &e make u, ,tand on the road of con,tant rectitude and turn, u, a1ay from doing 1hat 1ill incur blame and re'entance. Since &e ha, ble,,ed u, to be member, to of their noble 'ath, let u, let a,cribe u, our to lineal their connection their a,cri'tion, cling

tailcoat,, and let u, try to travel their 1ay, We ho'e that &e give u, a bit of reverence and love for them by honoring them and being righteou, 1ith them. We al,o ho'e that he doe, not de'rive u, of their interce,,ion, take u, out from the ,helter of their clo,ene,, to &im, force u, a1ay from their noble door, and turn u, a1ay from their ,trong 'ath. %hey are the 'eo'le 1ho,e com'anion, "1ho ,it 1ith them# do not become 1retched0 > In the electronic ver,ion, 1e have 1ritten the ba,e te-t in the color red. %hi, ,hould ,ho1 u' a, a ,lightly different ,hade in monochrome 'rinter,. I own a title by holding them dear. Their feet are above the foreheads. If I am not among them, then at least I have A standing and an honor for loving them. 6 Allah, 1e try to come clo,er to @ou by loving them, ,ince they love @ou. %hey did not love @ou until @ou loved them. So by @our love for them, they reached their love for @ou. We haven9t reached 1hat they reached in loving @ou e-ce't in the 'ortion of love that @ou have given u,. %herefore, com'lete for u, thi, love until 1e meet @ou, 6 Mo,t Merciful. May Allah ble,, and give much

'eace to our leader and ma,ter Nabi Muhammad, the la,t of the 'ro'het,, and to hi, 'ure goodly family and tho,e 1ho follo1 them till the la,t day. %hi, i, 1here I ,tart. With Allah alone i, ,ucce,, and from &im i, guidance to the even 'ath. %he author ,ay,0

>. Among the ,ign, of de'ending on action, i, lo,ing ho'e in 're,ence of a ,li'. I ,ay0 !elying on Allah Mo,t &igh i, a characteri,tic of tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah and declare &i, 6nene,,. !elying on other than &im i, a characteri,tic of the ignorant and heedle,, no matter 1hat thi, other thing may be including kno1ledge, action,, and ,'iritual ,tate,. A, for the kno1er, of Allah 1ho declare Allah9, 6nene,,, they function in accordance 1ith clo,ene,, to and direct vi,ion of Allah, ga4ing to1ard, their Aord 1hile annihilating them,elve,. When they ,li' and fall or become heedle,,, they 1itne,, the %ruth Mo,t &igh9, full di,'o,al of them and the overrunning of &i, decree, on them. Similarly 1hen an act of obedience emanate, from them or they e-'erience ,'iritual 1akefulne,,, they do not 1itne,, them,elve, and do not ,ee their 'o1er or ,trength. %hi, i, ,o becau,e the remembrance of their Aord 'receded <the e-ternal obedience= in their heart,. %hey are 1ell content 1ith the overrunning of &i, decree, on them and their heart, are at 'eace due to &i, light,, 1hich have glimmered over them. <Bon,e7uently=, they do not differentiate bet1een the t1o ,tate, <i.e. ,li', and obedience= becau,e they are dro1ned in the ocean of &i, 6nene,,. %heir fear and ho'e ha, become e7ual. So, their fear doe, not dimini,h due to their avoiding di,obedience, neither doe, their ho'e increa,e due to their 'erforming good.

%he commentator on al-Majalis ,aid0 %he kno1er, of Allah e-i,t through Allah. &e ha, taken cu,tody over their affair. So 1hen obedience emerge, from them, they do not ho'e for re1ard ,ince they do not ,ee them,elve, a, doing the action. Aike1i,e 1hen do1nfall manife,t, it,elf from them, the blood money i, o1ed by the killer. %hey do not 1itne,, other than &im in hard time, or ea,y time,. !ather, their e-i,tence i, through Allah, their ga4e i, fi-ed on &im, their fear i, reverence of &im, and their ho'e i, being in good relation, 1ith &im. A, for other than them, they remain 1ith them,elve, attributing action, 'ortion to and them,elve,. again,t %hey ,eek to a,,ign for them,elve, on a them,elve, like1i,e. %hey rely their

action, and are content 1ith their ,'iritual ,tate,. So 1hen they e-'erience a ,li', their ho'e decrea,e,. Aike1i,e, 1hen they act in obedience they hold their act a, their greate,t 're'aration and ,tronge,t reliance. Doing ,o, they hang by the ro'e, of cau,e, and are veiled from the Aord of lord, due to their ,e'aration <from &im=. Whoever find, thi, ,ign in him,elf, let him recogni4e hi, <lo1= ,tation and rank, and not tran,gre,, hi, limit and claim a ,'ecial ,tation among tho,e brought near <to their Aord=. &e i, only of the regular 'eo'le of the right hand. %here ,hall come indication, of thi, notion in other 'lace, of the 1ord, of the author may Allah ,anctify hi, ,ecret. Shaikh3, Abu Abd al-!ahman al-Salami "rahmatullahi alaihi# and

&afi4 Abu Na im al-A,fahani "rahmatullahi alaihi# have mentioned that Sidi @u,uf ibn &u,ayn al-!a4i "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CA 'er,on o''o,ed me in ,'eech and ,aid, 9@ou 1ill not be able to obtain the goal from your 1ork, until you re'ent.9 I re'lied, 9/ven if re'entance 1a, knocking on my door, I 1ould not grant it 'ermi,,ion to enter in an attem't to ,ave my,elf 1ith it from my Aord. /ven if truthfulne,, and ,incerity 1ere t1o ,lave, of mine, I 1ould have ,old them both regarding them a, in,ignificant. %hi,

i, ,o becau,e if I 1ere in Allah9, un,een kno1ledge bli,,ful and acce'ted, I 1ould not be left behind becau,e of committing ,in, and mi,deed,. And if I 1ere in &i, 8no1ledge 1retched and abandoned my re'entance, ,incerity, or truthfulne,, 1ould not make me bli,,ful. Indeed, Allah ha, created me a, a human being 1ithout having had action, or interce,,or, for me to1ard, &im. %hen, &e guided me to &i, religion, 1hich &e &im,elf i, 'lea,ed 1ith a, &e ha, ,aid0 DWhoever trie, to ,eek other than I,lam a, a religion, it 1ill not be acce'ted from him and &e 1ill be among the lo,er, in the hereafter.E <Al-2ur9an +0FG= If I am a freeman and mentally ca'able, it i, more 'ro'er for me to rely on &i, favor, and genero,ity and not on my defective action, and ,ick attribute,. %rying to match our action, 1ith &i, bounty and genero,ity i, <a ,ign= of our meager recognition of the Mo,t Generou, and ?ountiful.9C I ,ay0 %hi, narration and other, ,imilar to it might ,trike the ear, of tho,e 1ith no reali4ation in the 'ath of the folk <a, odd=. %hu,, he 1ill deny it, conce't, not believe it or refu,e to acce't it. Additionally, he 1ill u,e thi, to claim a ,'iritual ,tation for him,elf. In ,uch a ca,e, both of the t1o condition, <i.e. ,li', and obedience= 1ill cau,e him harm and danger. So, let a ,ervant 1ho doe, not have an in,ight in thi, 'ath fear Allah le,t he ,hould deny 1hat 1e have mentioned and fall into o''o,ition to the high ,cholar, and friend, of Allah. %hi, 1ill al,o di,tance him from Allah Mo,t &igh and might cau,e him to claim a ,'iritual ,tation 1ithout attaining it, being firm in it, or 1eighing it 1ith the ,cale that 1e have 5u,t 'ointed out. %hi, ty'e of behavior i, found in ,omeone 1ho ha, not 'roved true to the ,'iritual ,tation of annihilating him,elf. In thi, ca,e, he 1ill 'er'etrate tho,e thing, that anger Allah Mo,t &igh, over,te' &i, limit,, and 1ill make thi, an argument again,t him,elf in blunder and ignorance. %hi, i, al,o an entrance to hy'ocri,y from 1hich 1e ,eek the 'rotection of Allah glorified be &e, the Mo,t &igh.

). @our 1anting to leave 1orldly mean, 1hile Allah i, kee'ing you in them i, due to a non-obviou, lu,t. And your 1anting to engage in 1orldly mean, 1hile Allah i, kee'ing you from them i, a fall from high ,'iritual ambition. Worldly mean, are the act, by 1hich one trie, to obtain one, material need,Hde,ire,. Aeaving 1orldly mean, entail, not bu,ying one,elf 1ith ,uch act,. If the %ruth Mo,t &igh ha, e,tabli,hed ,omeone in earning a living and thi, 'er,on de,ire, to leave thi, <mean, of income=, hi, de,ire i, a non-obviou, lu,t. It i, among the lu,t, becau,e it i, not in concurrence 1ith 1hat Allah ha, 1illed for thi, 'er,on. It i, not obviou, becau,e thi, 'er,on did not intend a 1orldly gain; rather, he only intended to come clo,er to Allah Mo,t &igh by being in a ,ituation that i, more elevated in hi, o'inion. &o1ever, he ha, not ke't to 'ro'er eti7uette by o''o,ing Allah Mo,t &igh9, Will in kee'ing him in hi, current ,tate and al,o by trying to ,eek a high 'o,ition 1hich he i, not fit for at the 're,ent time. %he telltale ,ign of Allah9, kee'ing a 'er,on in 1orldly mean, i, that hi, mean, of income i, ,teady-flo1ing and the fruit and 'rofit of hi, 1ork i, at hand. While earning a living, he al,o find, ,ecurity for hi, religion and doe, not crave 1hat other, have. &e al,o ha, good intention, for 5oining blood tie,, hel'ing 'oor 'eo'le, or ha, another u,eful <Shariah= 'ur'o,e connected 1ith 1ealth. A, for the 'er,on 1hom the %ruth Mo,t &igh ha, e,tabli,hed in ab,tinence from 1orldly mean,0 if he de,ire, to leave hi, life of not earning a living, it ,ho1, a decline in hi, ,'iritual ambition and hi, bad eti7uette. %hi, de,ire <to engage in 1orldly mean,= i, al,o in accordance 1ith hi, obviou, lu,t,. Ab,tinence from 1orldly mean, i, a high ,tation in 1hich the %ruth Mo,t &igh ha, e,tabli,hed ,'ecial ,ervant, of &i, among tho,e 1ho declare the 6nene,, of Allah and kno1 &im. So 1hy doe, he 1ant to de,cend from thi, high ,tation

that Allah ha, e,tabli,hed him in to the rank, of the lo1er cla,,I %he telltale ,ign of Allah9, kee'ing him in ab,tinence from 1orldly mean, i, hi, 'er,i,tence in it and hi, yielding it, fruit,. Among i,olation9, fruit, are0 good free time, 'urity of heart, and being free from mi-ing 1ith 'eo'le. S'iritual ambition i, a ,tate of the heart. It i, ,trength of 1ill 'o1er and i, 1hat 're,,e, one to obtain de,ired goal,. It i, high 1hen attached to high thing, and lo1 1hen it i, attached to lo1 thing,... %he author of al-Tanwir ha, ,aid0 8no1 "May Allah have mercy u'on you# that it i, the 1ay of the enemy <Shaitan= that he come, to you and ridicule, 1hat Allah ha, e,tabli,hed you in and a,k, you to ,eek other than it to confu,e your heart and ,'oil your time. &e doe, thi, by a''roaching tho,e engaged in earning a living and tell, them, CIf only you left earning a living and 1ent off in i,olation, the ,'iritual light, 1ould ,hine for you and your heart, and innermo,t being, 1ould become 'ure.C &e 1ould al,o ,ay, CSo and ,o and ,o and ,o did like thi,.C &o1ever, thi, ,ervant 1a, not meant for nor had the ,trength for ab,tinence from 1orldly mean,; hi, 1ell being 1a, in earning a living. When he leave, gaining a livelihood, hi, faith i, rocked out of him and hi, certainty de'art, from him. &e then turn, to a,king 'eo'le <for money= and become, heavily concerned about hi, 'rovi,ion. Bon,e7uently, he i, al,o forced to break family tie,. %hi, 1a, the real aim of the enemy. &e only come, to you in the form of an advi,or a, he came to your 'arent, a, Allah Mo,t &igh ha, informed0 And he ,aid, C@our Aord ha, not 'rohibited you from thi, tree e-ce't that you may become t1o angel, or become immortal.C And he ,1ore to them, CI am indeed an advi,or to you.C <Al-2ur9an J0)*-)>= Similarly, he a''roache, tho,e 1ho ab,tain from 1orldly mean, and ,ay, to them, CKntil 1hen 1ill you leave earning a livingI Don9t you kno1 that leaving a mean, of income cau,e, one9, heart to

look at 1hat i, in the hand, of 'eo'le and o'en, the door to craving <1hat other, have=I @ou are not able to deliver relief, ,ho1 altrui,m, or di,charge your dutie,. In,tead of 1aiting for other 'eo'le to give you ,omething, other, 1ould ,tart 1aiting for you to give them ,omething, if only you ,tarted earning a living:C %hi, ,ervant had good free time; ,'iritual light, 1ere ,'read for him, and he 1a, free from mi-ing 1ith 'eo'le. &e remain, in ,uch a ,tate until he return, to earning a living at 1hich 'oint it, grimine,, ,trike, him and it, darkne,, engulf, him. Additionally, the regular 1orker doe, <far= better than him. %hi, i, becau,e thi, 'er,on 1alked a 'ath and then left it; he intended a goal and then turned a1ay from it. So, under,tand thi, and cling to Allah0 DAnd 1hoever cling, to Allah, i, guided to the ,traight 'ath.E <Al-2ur9an +0>*>= %he devil "Shaitan# only 1ant, to 'revent 'eo'le from being

content 1ith their 're,ent condition. &e 1ant, to 'u,h them out of 1hat Allah ha, 1illed for them into that 1hich they have 1illed for them,elve,. <8no1 that= 1hatever Allah enter, you in, &e take, charge of hel'ing you 1ith it. Bonver,ely, 1hatever you enter into by your,elve,, &e leave, you to fend for your,elf in0 And ,ay, C6 my Aord, make me enter 1ith a true entering and make me e-it 1ith a true e-iting. And a''oint for me from @ou a 'o1er and a hel'er.C <Al-2ur9an >J0F*= Knder,tand that the true entering i, that 1hich you do not enter into by your,elf and the true e-iting i, like1i,e. What Allah re7uire, of you i, that you ,tay in that 1hich &e ha, e,tabli,he, you in until the %ruth Glorified be &e take, charge of dra1ing you out, 5u,t a, &e took charge of 'utting you in. It i, not fitting that you leave earning a living, but that the mean, of income leave you, a, one of them ,aid, CI tried to leave 1orldly mean, ,uch and ,uch number of time,. &o1ever, each time I

came back to it. %hen, 1orldly mean, left me and I have haven9t ever ,ince returned back to it.C %he author "May Allah be 1ell-'lea,ed 1ith him# ,aid, CI entered u'on my Shaikh <i.e. Shaikh Abul Abba, al-Mur,i "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1ith a firm determination to leave 1orldly mean, ,aying to my,elf, 9!eaching Allah in thi, ,tate of being involved in e-ternal kno1ledge <e.g., 5uri,'rudence= and mi-ing 1ith 'eo'le i, a far ,hot.9 &e ,aid to me, 1ithout me having a,ked him, 9%here 1a, a 'er,on 1ho accom'anied me 1hile engaged in e-ternal kno1ledge and having leader,hi' in it and he ,till ta,ted ,omething of thi, 'ath. &e came to me once and ,aid, 9Sidi, I 1ant to leave the ,tate I9m in right no1 and ab,tain from 1orldly mean, to accom'any you.9 I then ,aid, 9%hat i, not ho1 thing, 1ork. !ather, ,tay 1here you are and 1hatever Allah ha, a''ortioned for you at our hand, 1ill ,till reach you.9 %he author continued, 9%he Shaikh then looked at me and ,aid, 9%hi, i, ho1 the voraciou,ly truthful are. %hey do not come out of anything until the %ruth "Glorified be &e# take, charge of dra1ing them out.9 I then left him and found that Allah had clean,ed my heart of tho,e thought, I 1a, having. I then found re,t in ,urrendering to Allah Mo,t &igh, a, they are a, the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, 9Peo'le 1ith 1hom their com'anion, do not become 1retched.9 C %hi, i, the author9, ,tatement, in al-Tanwir. %hey are beautiful 1ord,. We 'laced it here in it, full te-t and length, ,ince the author him,elf clearly e-'lain, the meaning of hi, 1ord, in thi, hikma through hi, o1n e-'erience,. We 1i,h that all of the thing, he talk, about 1ere e-'lained by him like1i,e.

+. /ven the ,1ifte,t of ,'iritual 1ill, cannot 'ierce the 1all, of de,tiny. S1ift ,'iritual 1ill, are 'o1er, of the ,elf by 1hich thing, are brought about 1ith the 'ermi,,ion of Allah Mo,t &igh. %he Sufi, call thi, ty'e of 1ill himma. So they ,ay, CSo and ,o tran,ferred hi, himma on ,uch and ,uch affair. Bon,e7uently, thi, affair 1a, accom'li,hed for him.C %hing, do not ha''en due to the,e ,1ift ,'iritual 1ill, 1ithout being decreed and 'rede,tined <from Allah=. %hi, i, 1hat 1e mean 1hen 1e ,ay, C?y the 'ermi,,ion of Allah Mo,t &igh.C %he,e ,'iritual 1ill, do not infringe u'on the 1all, of 'rede,tined decree, nor do they 'ierce them. %he friend, of Allah often 'o,,e,, the,e ty'e, of ,'iritual 1ill, a, gift from &im. 6ther, 'o,,e,, ,uch 1ill, a, a mean, of Allah mi,leading them ,te' by ,te' into &i, 'lot, a, i, the ca,e for the one 1ho inflict, 1ith the evil eye or 1ho 'ractice, ,orcery. It i, verified that the evil eye i, a reality and ,o i, ,orcery, and the meaning <of the,e t1o term,= i, 1hat 1e have 5u,t mentioned. %he main 'oint i, that the ,ervant ,hould reali4e that the,e ,'iritual 1ill, are only e-ternal cau,e, that have no intrin,ic effect,. %he,e 1ill, do not carry out action,. !ather, the real 'erformer of action, i, only Allah Mo,t &igh. &e 'erform, action, 1ith the e-ternal cau,e, 're,ent and not by u,ing the,e cau,e,. It ,eem, that the author "May Allah have mercy u'on him# narrated the,e 1ord, before hi, ne-t ,tatement about egocentric 'lanning ,o that he may inform you that egocentric 'lanning i, u,ele,,. If the abovementioned ty'e of ,'iritual 1ill, do not benefit in 'iercing the 1all, of 'rede,tined decree,, ho1 ,hall egocentric-'lanning benefitI Whatever ha, no benefit i, ,u'erfluou, and i, not fit to be bu,ied 1ith. Additionally, tho,e of intellect find ,uch thing, tediou, and tiring. (or thi, rea,on, the author ,ay,0

L.

!elieve your,elf of 'lanning0 Don9t try to do 1hat Someone

/l,e ha, undertaken for you. /gocentric affair, i, 'lanning on the 'art i, of ,o 'eo'le becau,e for their 1orldly taken

blame1orthy.

%hi,

Allah

ha,

re,'on,ibility for them in thi, matter. &e a,k, of them that they di,entangle their heart, from it and engage in carrying out &i, 1or,hi' and the thing, &e ha, made them re,'on,ible for. /gocentric 'lanning mean, that the ,ervant decree for him,elf ,tate, that he 1ill be in "concerning hi, 1orldly matter,# according to hi, de,ire, and fancie,. &e al,o 'lan, for 1hat he con,ider, i, fit for the,e ,tate, including ,'iritual condition, and action,. &e even 're'are, for thi, and 'ay, great attention to it. %hi, 'lanning i, a great drudgery that he ha, e-'edited for him,elf. It may be that mo,t of 1hat he decree, for him,elf doe,n9t ha''en. A, a re,ult, hi, o'inion <about the Divine= become, ruined and hi, effort i, gone to 1a,te. %hen, <he may fall= into leaving 1or,hi', o''o,ing divine la1,, arguing about de,tiny, and 1a,ting <year, of= hi, life. All thi, 're,,e, the intelligent 'er,on to leave and avoid egocentric 'lanning and cut off it, mean, and cau,e, of e-i,tence. Sidi Sahl ibn Abdullah and "rahmatullahi "one alaihi# ,tate ,aid, over CAeave another#

egocentric-'lanning

'referring

becau,e the,e t1o thing, make 'eo'le9, live, trouble,ome.C Sidi Abu &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIf you have to 'lan, 'lan that you 1ill not engage in 'lanning.C %hi, matter i, the foundation of the 'ath, the main ,ummary, and the totality of it. %he ,'eech <of the ,cholar,= on thi, matter i, lengthy. We have limited our,elve, to 1hat 1e mentioned here becau,e the author "May Allah have mercy on him# 1rote an entire book about thi, ,ub5ect. &e called it, al-Tanwir Fi Isqat al-

Tadbir "The enlightenment abo t leaving !lanning#, and did an e-cellent 5ob 1riting it. &e came ,o clo,e to the cru- of the matter a co'y. G. @our ,triving for 1hat ha, already been guaranteed to you and that one doe, not need the other book, <about thi, ,ub5ect= in the 'ath. /very di,tingui,hed di,ci'le ,hould obtain

your negligence of 1hat i, demanded of you are ,ign, of the lo,, of your in,ight. %he thing guaranteed for the ,ervant i, hi, 'rovi,ion by 1hich hi, e-i,tence i, maintained in thi, 1orld. It i, guaranteed becau,e Allah ha, taken charge of it and freed the ,ervant, from it. &e doe, not demand that they e-ert effort in ,triving for it or that they 'ay undue attention to it. %he thing, demanded from the ,ervant are action, by 1hich he trie, to reach ha''ine,, in the &ereafter and clo,ene,, to Allah, ,uch a, 1or,hi' and obedience. It i, demanded becau,e the ,ervant i, entru,ted 1ith earning it, ,triving for it, 'aying attention to it, condition,, it, cau,e,, and it, 'ro'er time 'eriod,. %hi, i, ho1 the 'attern of Allah ha, 'revailed u'on &i, ,ervant,. Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,0 DAnd ho1 many a creature there i, that doe, not carry it, o1n 'rovi,ion. Allah 'rovide, for it and for you al,o.E <Al-2ur9an )M0N*= And &e Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid0 DAnd man ,hall have only 1hat he ,trive, for.E <Al-2ur9an G+0+M= It ha, been narrated in ,ome tradition, that Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,, CMy ,ervant, obey Me in 1hat I have commanded you and do not try to inform Me of 1hat i, be,t for you.C It ha, al,o been narrated from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# CWhat i, the condition of 'eo'le, 1ho honor the affluent and con,ider the 1or,hi''er, in,ignificantI %hey act by the 2ur9an in that 1hich i, in accordance to their de,ire,. A,

for that 1hich i, in conflict 1ith their de,ire,, they leave it. %hey believe in 'art of the book and di,believe in 'art of it. %hey ,trive for that 1hich i, obtained 1ithout effort "among thing, de,tined, 1ritten life ,'an, and 're-a''ortioned 'rovi,ion# and do not 1ork for that 1hich i, only gained by ,triving "e.g. 'lentiful re1ard, a''reciated effort, and trade that 1on9t 'rove unfruitful#.C Sidi Ibrahim al-8ha11a, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, CAll

kno1ledge i, in t1o ,tatement,0 "># ")# Don9t 1ork for 1hat you9ve been ,ufficed and Don9t neglect 1hat i, demanded of you.C

So 1hoever undertake, 1hat i, re7uired of him concerning 1hat 1e mentioned "i.e. ,triving for 1hat i, demanded and freeing u' the heart from 1hat i, guaranteed#, hi, in,ight 1ill be o'ened for him and the light of the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= 1ill ,hine in hi, heart. &e 1ill al,o obtain the utmo,t goal. A, for the 'er,on 1ho doe, the o''o,ite <of 1hat 1e 5u,t

mentioned=, hi, in,ight 1ill be 1i'ed out and hi, heart 1ill become blind. %he 'roof for thi, i, hi, action. In,ight i, the ,ight of the heart, 5u,t a, 'hy,ical vi,ion i, the ,ight of the eye,. A, for the ,ight of the heart, it only ga4e, to1ard, the ultimate con,e7uence, of affair,. %he con,e7uence of affair, i, for tho,e 1ho dre,, in Allah. So, 1atchfulne,, of Allah i, 1hat the ,ervant ,hould ,trive for and not he,itate or ,to' ,hort becau,e of 1hat bar, from it. %he it author i, not "May to be Allah have mercy on him# u,ing the 1ord

C,trivingC indicate, that ,eeking 'rovi,ion 1ithout ,triving for included in hi, ,tatement. %hi, i, becau,e

,eeking 'rovi,ion

'rovi,ion by

i,

'ermi,,ible doe, not

and to

allo1ed. the

So,

,eeking of a

it,elf

'oint

effacement

'er,on9, in,ight; but, if along 1ith it the ,ervant fall, ,hort in di,charging 1hat he i, commanded to do, then it doe,. %he author ,ay, in al-Tanwir concerning &i, Mo,t &igh9,

,tatement0 DAnd command your family to 'ray, and 'er,i,t in it. We 1ill not a,k you about 1orldly 'rovi,ion. !ather, 1e are the one, 1ho 'rovide for you.E <Al-2ur9an )*0>+)=, It mean, that you ,hould undertake 6ur ,ervice, and We 1ill undertake for you the allotment of your 1orldly 'rovi,ion. So, the,e are t1o thing,. %he fir,t i, 1hat Allah ha, guaranteed for you, ,o do not become overly 1orried about. %he ,econd i, 1hat &e ha, demanded from you, ,o do not neglect it. Whoever bu,ie, him,elf 1ith 1hat i, guaranteed for him in,tead of 1hat i, re7ue,ted of him, hi, ignorance ha, become great and hi, heedle,,ne,, ha, 1idened. &e i, al,o le,, likely to be 1oken u' by ,omeone 1ho trie, to rai,e him. !ather, it i, a right on the ,ervant that he bu,ie, him,elf 1ith 1hat i, demanded from him in,tead of 1hat i, guaranteed for him. When Allah Glorified be &e 'rovide, for the 'eo'le of re5ection, ho1 1ill &e not 'rovide for the 'eo'le that ,ee &imI When Glorified be &e ha, given ,u,tenance to the 'eo'le of di,belief, ho1 1ill he not give ,u,tenance to the 'eo'le of faith. @ou ,hould kno1 that the 1orld i, guaranteed for you "i.e. your ,hare i, guaranteed for you by 1hich your e-i,tence i, u'held#. <In contra,t=, the hereafter i, demanded of you "i.e. action, for it a, 'er Allah9, Statement0 DAnd ac7uire 'rovi,ion, for the be,t of 'rovi,ion i, fear of AllahE <Al-2ur9an )0>MJ=#. &o1 1ill your intellect or in,ight become firm if you 'ay undue attention to 1hat ha, been guaranteed to you letting thi, divert you from 1hat i, demanded of you among the affair, of the hereafter. Kntil ,ome of them have ,aid, 9Indeed Allah Mo,t &igh ha, guaranteed for you the

1orld and a,k, of you the hereafter. So 1oe be to the one 1ho guarantee, for u, the hereafter and demand, from u, the 1orld.9 C N. Don9t let the kee'ing back of ,omething you are fervently a,king for make you de,'air. &e ha, guaranteed an an,1er to your 'rayer, in tho,e thing, &e choo,e, for you, not in tho,e thing, that you choo,e for your,elf, and at the time &e 1ant,, not at the time you 1ant. %he ruling of the ,ervant i, that he ,hould not choo,e anything again,t the 1ill of hi, Ma,ter. Aike1i,e, he ,hould not a,,ert the ,uitability of one condition over another. %hi, i, becau,e he i, ignorant in all 1ay,. D%he ,ervant ,ometime, di,like, a thing 1hich i, good for him and ,ometime, love, a thing 1hich i, bad for him.E <Al-2ur9an )0)>N=. Sidi Abul &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CDo not choo,e from your affair anything; rather, decide not to choo,e. Additionally, flee from thi, deci,ion, from your fleeing, and from all thing, to Allah Mighty and /-alted be &e.C <Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid=, C@our Aord create, 1hat &e 1ill, and choo,e,.C <Al-2ur9an )F0NF= A man entered u'on Sidi Abu Abba, al-Mur,i "rahmatullahi alaihi#

1hile he 1a, e-'eriencing ,ome 'ain. %he man ,aid, CMay Allah relieve you, Sidi.C %he Shaikh ke't 7uiet and did not re,'ond to him. Sub,e7uently, the man ke't 7uiet for a 'eriod of time, and then again ,aid, CMay Allah relieve you, Sidi.C Shaikh Abu alAbba, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CA, for me, I haven9t a,ked Allah for relief from my affliction 1hile you have. Oerily, 1hat I am in right no1 i, relief. %he Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# a,ked Allah for relief and thereafter ,aid, 9%he re'a,t of 8haybar kee', revi,iting me, and no1 it ha, cut my aorta.9 6ur leader Sayyidna Abu ?akr "radhi3Allahu anhu# a,ked Allah for relief and thereafter died 'oi,oned. 6ur leader Sayyidna Kmar

"radhi3Allahu anhu# a,ked Allah for relief and thereafter died ,tabbed. 6ur leader Sayyidna Allah for relief Ali and Sayyidna "radhi3Allahu Kthman "radhi3Allahu anhu# a,ked died ,laughtered. Allah for 6ur leader and anhu# a,ked relief thereafter

thereafter 1a, a,,a,,inated. So 1hen you a,k Allah Mo,t &igh for relief a,k &im in vie1 of &im already kno1ing 1hether <or not= it i, for you.C !ather, the ,ervant ,hould ,urrender him,elf to hi, Ma,ter and kno1 that the choice i, for &im in all of hi, condition,, even if thi, o''o,e, hi, o1n aim, and de,ire,. So 1hen he 'ray, and re7ue,t, ,omething from &i, Aord in 1hich there i, ,ome benefit, he ,hould become convinced of being an,1ered. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid0 DAnd your Aord ,ay,, call u'on Me and I ,hall an,1er you.C <Al-2ur9an L*0N*= &e Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid0 DWhen My ,ervant a,k, you of Me, verily I am nearby. I an,1er the 'rayer of the ,u''licator 1hen he call, u'on Me.C <Al-2ur9an )0>FN= Sayyidna Pabir "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, related that he heard the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aying, CNo one ,u''licate, 1ith a 'rayer e-ce't that Allah give, him 1hat he a,ked for or hold, back a ,imilar amount of evil from him a, long a, he doe,n9t 'ray for a ,in or cutting off family tie,.C Sayyidna Ana, "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, narrated that the Pro'het of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CNo ,u''licator make, a 'rayer e-ce't that Allah an,1er, hi, 'rayer, turn, a1ay a ,imilar amount of evil from him, or take, a1ay from him ,ome of hi, ,in, in accordance 1ith the 'rayer, a, long a, he doe,n9t 'ray for a ,in or cutting off family tie,.C If thi, i, the ca,e, being an,1ered i, ab,olutely attainable for every ,u''licator according to the true 'romi,e, 1hich ha, <5u,t= been mentioned. &o1ever, Allah i, in charge of an,1ering 'rayer,. &e an,1er, them 1hen &e 1ill,, and ,ometime, being denied or

e-'eriencing a delay count, a, an an,1er or a giving, a, tho,e 1ho have under,tanding of Allah Mo,t &igh kno1. So, let not the ,ervant de,'air of the bounty of Allah Mo,t &igh 1hen he i, denied or <forced= to 1ait even if he earne,tly 'er,i,ted in hi, 'rayer and re7ue,t. Sometime,, the delaying <of 1hat he a,ked for= until the hereafter i, better for him. It ha, been related in ,ome account, that the ,ervant 1ill be rai,ed u' and Allah 1ill ,ay to him, CDid I not command you to 'ut your need, in front of meIC %he ,ervant 1ill an,1er, C@e,, and I did 'ut my need, in front of @ou.C %hen, Allah Mo,t &igh 1ill ,ay, C@ou haven9t a,ked for anything e-ce't that I have an,1ered you concerning it. &o1ever, I granted you ,ome of it in the 1orld and 1hat I didn9t give you in the 1orld i, ,tored u' for you. So, take it no1.C %he ,ervant 1ill then ,ay <u'on ,eeing 1hat i, ,tored u' for him=, CWould it be that &e didn9t fulfill any of my need, in the 1orld.C %he forbiddance ha,tening an,1er, to 'rayer, ha, been related from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# in hi, ,tatement, C/ach one of you i, an,1ered a, long a, he doe, not try to ha,ten, ,o he ,ay,, 9I 'rayed and <my 'rayer= 1a, not an,1ered.9C Nabi Mu,a "alaihi ,alam# and Nabi &arun "alaihi ,alam#

,u''licated again,t Pharaoh about 1hich Allah ha, informed, C6ur Aord, efface their 1ealth and bind their heart, ,o they 1ill not believe until they ,ee the 'ainful 'uni,hment.C <Al-2ur9an >*0FF= %hen Allah inform, <u,= that &e an,1ered their 'rayer, 1ith &i, Statement "Glorified be &e and /-alted#, C?oth of your 'rayer,9 have been an,1ered, ,o ,tand firm and do not follo1 the 1ay of tho,e 1ho do not kno1.C <Al-2ur9an >*0FM= <%he ,cholar,= have ,aid that bet1een the ,tatement, C?oth of your 'rayer,9 have been an,1eredC, and the de,truction of Pharaoh 1a, a 'eriod of forty year,.

Sidi Abul &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid concerning Allah9, Statement0 C... ,o ,tand firm,C <above= that it mean, not to try to ha,ten 1hat both of you have a,ked for. And the ,tatement, C... and do not follo1 the 1ay of tho,e that do not kno1,C <i, referring to= tho,e 1ho try to ha,ten an,1er, <to their 'rayer,=. %he rank and 'ortion "i.e. the love of Allah and being in accordance 1ith &i, 'lea,ure# that the ,ervant receive, becau,e of merely 'er,i,ting in ,u''lication i, ,ufficient. It ha, been related from the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# that he ,aid, CAllah love, tho,e 1ho earne,tly 'er,i,t in ,u''lication.C Sayyidna Ana, ibn Malik "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, related from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C Sayyidna Pibril "alaihi ,alam# ,ay,, 96 Aord, your ,ervant, ,o and ,o, <i, a,king you=. So, (ulfill hi, need.9 Allah then ,ay,, 9Aeave my ,ervant alone, for I love to hear hi, voice.9C %he 'oint of thi, i, that Allah ha,ten, giving ,ome 'eo'le their need, becau,e &e di,like, their voice. So, let the ,ervant be afraid of thi, 1hen he i, trying to ,'eed u' the an,1er to hi, 'rayer. Sidi Abu Muhammad ,aid, C/veryone and i, ,u''licating 'reference like to Abd al- A4i4 al-Mahda1i "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1ho doe, not leave 1ith lured 1hen hi, 'reference <Mo,t 1hile &igh9,= <Allah the o1n become content the into the %ruth

being hi, the

gradually CSo <Mo,t

de,truction. ,ervant not i, 1ith

,ay,= about ,uch a 'er,on, 9(ulfill hi, need becau,e I do not hear of voice.9 %ruth 1ith hi, 'reference &igh= and

'reference, he i, an,1ered even if not given. And, action, are according to their final outcome. Sometime, being an,1ered ha, 'recondition, about 1hich the

,u''licator ha, no kno1ledge. %herefore, the an,1er i, delayed becau,e of not meeting the,e or ,ome other 'rere7ui,ite,. Among the,e 'rere7ui,ite, i, evincing a hard 're,,ed need. Some of

tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah have ,aid that 1hen Allah 1ant, to an,1er a 'er,on9, 'rayer &e make, them feel a hard 're,,ed need 1hile ,u''licating. A, for feeling a hard-'re,,ed need, the ,ervant can not reali4e it by him,elf in all condition,. 6ne of the ,cholar, defined the one 1ho feel, a hard 're,,ed a, the 'er,on 1ho rai,e, hi, hand, in front of Allah 1hile not regarding any <'reviou, good= action from him,elf. %hi, i, a noble ,tate and a lofty ,tation, 1hich i, hard to obtain for mo,t 'eo'le. So, ho1 ,hould 1hat i, built u'on it be reali4edI %he ne-t hikma ha, a reference to thi, meaning <about 'recondition, for being an,1ered=. J. Don9t let the nonoccurrence of ,omething 'romi,ed cau,e you doubt, about the 'romi,e, even if the time for it, occurrence 1a, ,'ecified, a, doing ,o may ,trike a blo1 to your in,ight and 'ut out the light of your inner ,elf. %he %ruth Glorified be &e doe, not break 'romi,e,. So, 1hoever 1a, 'romi,ed ,omething by hi, Ma,ter, and then thi, thing did not occur "even though it, 'articular time had been ,'ecified# ,hould not let thi, cau,e doubt, about the truthfulne,, of hi, Aord9, 'romi,e. %hi, i, ,o becau,e the occurrence of the 'romi,e might have been tied to <certain= cau,e, or 'recondition, 1hich the %ruth Mo,t &igh e-clu,ively kno1, about. %hu,, it i, obligatory for the ,ervant to recogni4e hi, <limited= rank and deal 'ro'erly 1ith hi, Aord. %he ,ervant ,hould al,o be at 'eace and re,t 1ith &im concerning &i, 'romi,e. &e ,hould not have doubt, about the 'romi,e and ,hould not let hi, belief, be ,haken concerning it. Whoever i, characteri4ed by the above i, ,omeone 1ho kno1, Allah having a ,ound in,ight and an illuminated innermo,t heart. Whoever i,n9t characteri4ed by thi, ha, the o''o,ite of 7ualitie, 5u,t mentioned.

F. When &e o'en, for you a 1ay of getting to kno1 &im, do not mind if the 7uantity of your action, le,,en in it, 're,ence. &e only o'ened thi, 1ay for you ,o that &e may make &im,elf kno1n to you. Do you not ,ee that &i, making &im,elf kno1n to you i, ,omething that i,,ue, from &im to you, 1hile action, come from you to &imI And 1here i, 1hat you are ,ending to &im in relation to 1hat &e i, ,ending to youI 8no1ledge of Allah Mo,t &igh i, the e'itome of de,ire, and the ultimate end of all ho'e, and aim,. So 1hen Allah Mo,t &igh direct, &i, ,ervant to1ard, it <by 'lacing him in ,ome di,liked condition= 1hat 'a,,e, :, it i, by among "of 1ith the abundant ble,,ing, and of the thi, given the ,ervant. %herefore, the ,ervant ,hould not care too much about him righteou, them# action, 'lenteou, <di,liked re1ard, connected becau,e

condition=. !ather, the ,ervant ,hould kno1 that Allah i, making him travel the 'ath of the ,'ecial 'eo'le brought near 1hich lead, gain to it the or a, reali4ation for may of the 6nene,, of Allah and to the certainty. <All thi, i, being done= 1ithout the ,ervant trying to 1orking they it. not Additionally, be ,afe from action,, internal 1hich ,ervant trie, to gain and 1ork for, don9t guarantee the ,ervant anything, calamitie,. Similarly if he i, re7uired to be ,incere in them, the re1ard he e-'ect, 'robably 1on9t be reali4ed 1hen he i, interrogated <on the Day of Pudgement=. So, ho1 can 1hat Allah ,end, be com'ared 1ith 1hat the ,ervant ,end, forthI /-am'le, of 1hat Allah ,end, are the tribulation, and hard time, a 'er,on i, afflicted 1ith that block the delight, of the 1orld from him and 'revent him from doing lot, of righteou, action,. %he <ty'ical= ,ervant de,ire, that he remain in the 1orld 1ith a good life in ,mooth condition,. &e al,o de,ire, that he ,hould ,eek the ha''ine,, of the hereafter 1hile being affluent in the 1orld "of cour,e along 1ith %a71a#. &i, lo1er ,elf 1ant, to 5u,t

engage

in

e-ternal

act,

of

obedience,

1hich

are

not

very

burden,ome nor cau,e hard,hi'. &e al,o doe,n9t 1ant hi, material delight, to be cut off nor hi, lu,t, to go unfulfilled. &o1ever, Allah de,ire, that &e 'urify the ,ervant from hi, lo1ly trait, and 'ut a barrier bet1een him and hi, blame1orthy the ,ervant characteri,tic,. from the trace <Allah of hi, al,o de,ire,= to to the e-tract e-i,tence

va,tne,, of 1itne,,ing Allah. %here i, no 1ay that the ,ervant can reach thi, ,tation in ab,olute 'erfection e-ce't by 1hat contradict, hi, de,ire, and muddle, u' 1hat he9, accu,tomed to. In ,uch a condition, he 1ill be 'erforming internal action, <,uch a, 'atience and contentment 1ith divine decree=, 1hich ,tand far a'art <in merit= from e-ternal action,. When he under,tand, thi,, he 1ill ackno1ledge that the choice and de,ire of Allah for him i, better than hi, choice and de,ire for him,elf. It ha, been narrated that Allah Mo,t &igh in,'ired to ,ome of &i, 'ro'het, "may Allah a44a 1a 5all ble,, them all#, CI afflicted my ,ervant 1ith a tribulation, ,o he 'rayed to Me. I then delayed the an,1er <to hi, 'rayer=, ,o he com'lained to Me. So I ,aid, 96 My ,ervant, ho1 can I ,ho1 mercy to you <by taking a1ay= the thing by 1hich I9m ,ho1ing My mercy.9 In the hadith of Sayyidna Abu &urayra "radhi3Allahu anhu#, the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CAllah ?le,,ed and &igh ,ay,, 9When I try my believing ,lave and he doe,n9t com'lain about Me to hi, bed,ide vi,itor,, I free him from My ,hackle and re'lace hi, fle,h for better fle,h and hi, blood for better blood. %hen, he can ,tart 'erforming action, ane1.9 C It ha, been narrated from Sidi Sa id al-Ma7bari "rahmatullahi alaihi# that he heard Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aying, CAllah ?le,,ed be &e Mo,t &igh ,ay,, 9When I try my believing ,ervant and he doe,n9t com'lain to hi, bed,ide

vi,itor,, I untie My knot <from him= and re'lace hi, fle,h 1ith better fle,h and hi, blood 1ith better blood. %hen I ,ay to him, 9Start ane1 in 'erforming action,.9 9 C &akim Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Ali al-%irmidhi "rahmatullahi

alaihi# ,aid, CI once got ,ick in my 'reviou, day, and 1hen Allah Mo,t &igh healed me, I com'ared to my,elf 1hat Allah 'lanned for me "i.e. thi, illne,, in thi, time 'eriod# and the 'lenteou, 1or,hi' 1hich I could have continued to do in thi, time 'eriod0 1hich of the t1o 1ould I choo,eI %hen, my determination 1a, correct, my certainty la,ted, and my in,ight ,to''ed <over the fact= that Allah Mo,t &igh9, choice i, of greater nobility, more tremendou, gravity, and of more beneficial con,e7uence,. &i, choice 1a, the illne,, that &e 'lanned for me, and there i, no blemi,h in it ,ince it 1a, &i, action. What a difference there i, bet1een being ,aved by &i, action 1ith you and trying to be ,aved 1ith your action by your,elf. When I ,a1 thi, 'oint, not 'erforming 'lenteou, 1or,hi' during the time of my illne,, became in,ignificant in my eye, com'ared to 1hat &e gave me. So the illne,, became in my eye, a ble,,ing; the ble,,ing, a favor; the favor, a ho'e; and the ho'e, an inclination <for affection to the Divine=. I then ,aid to my,elf, 9With thi, the <'reviou,= 'eo'le, endured through trial, in high ,'irit, in the 're,ence of the %ruth <Mo,t &igh=. And 1ith thi, reali4ation, they 1ere ha''y 1ith tribulation,.9 C %hi, i, the 1ay that Allah o'ened making &im,elf kno1n to &akim %irmidhi "rahmatullahi alaihi#. So, he 1a, ha''y 1ith it and 'referred it to 'lenteou, 1or,hi', and Allah kno1, be,t. When Allah Mo,t &igh ,end, do1n on the ,ervant ,ome trial,, let him be con,ciou, of 1hat 1e have 5u,t mentioned, 'lace it in front of hi, eye,, and rene1 it, remembrance until he obtain, the 'eace and tran7uility 1hich 1ill carry for him the burden, of thi, trial and remove it, bitterne,, from him. %hi, 1ill cau,e

him to ta,te the ,1eetne,, of it. At thi, time, hi, condition during hi, tribulation 1ill, the condition of the thankful out of 5oy and ha''ine,,. &e 1ill then ,ee that the right of thankfulne,, on him i, that he al1ay, try to 'erform the good action, that are in hi, <'re,ent= ca'ability. Bon,ider all that 1e have ,aid in relation to the ,tory that Abu al- Abba, ibn al- Arif "rahmatullahi alaihi# mention, in hi, book, Miftah al-Sa"adat wa Minhaj S l # Tariq al-Irada "%he 8ey to &a''ine,, and the Way to %ravel the Path of De,iring <Allah=#. &e ,aid in it0 %here u,ed to be a man in North1e,t Africa "May Allah kee' it e,tabli,hed 1ith I,lam# called Abu al-8hiyar "rahmatullahi alaihi#. &i, root, 1ere from Sicily 1hile hi, 'lace of ,tay 1a, ?aghdad. &i, age had e-ceeded ninety year, and he 1a, ,till a ,lave 1ho,e ma,ter did not free him. %hi, 1a, due to hi, o1n de,ire and choice. Ae'ro,y had ,'read all over hi, body, but the ,cent of mu,k could be noticed from him even from a far di,tance a1ay. %he 'er,on 1ho narrated thi, to me ,aid I ,a1 him 'raying on 1ater. %hen, I later met Sidi Muhammad al- A,fan5i "rahmatullahi alaihi# and I found him al,o to be a le'er. So I ,aid to him, 9Sidi it9, almo,t like Allah didn9t find a 'lace to ,end do1n &i, trial among &i, enemie, until &e ,ent it do1n u'on you "'lural# 1hile you "'lural# are among hi, ,'ecial friend,.9 &e ,aid to me, 98ee' 7uiet and don9t ,ay that. When Allah 'ut u, over the ,torehou,e, of giving, 1e did not find anything 1ith Allah more honorable and clo,er to &im than tribulation. So don9t be ,ur'ri,ed if you ,a1 the leader of tho,e ab,tinent, the 'ole of the 1or,hi''er,, and the imam of the friend, of Allah ... in a cave in the mountainou, land of %ar,u, 1ith hi, fle,h falling about and hi, ,kin e-creting 'u,, ,urrounded by flie, and ant,. ?ut at night, he can9t content him,elf enough 1ith remembering Allah and thanking &im for 1hat &e ha, given him of mercy ... %he author "May Allah have mercy on him# ,hall ,ay a fe1 thing,

<connected= 1ith thi, meaning and Allah i, the benefactor of ,ucce,,. M. Action, vary in kind becau,e ,ent ,'iritual in,'iration, vary in kind. Sent ,'iritual in,'iration, are 1hat 'a,, over heart, connected 1ith divine kno1ledge3, and ,'iritual ,ecret,. %he,e in,'iration, 'roduce variou, 'rai,e1orthy ,tate,. (or e-am'le, an in,'iration may 'roduce a1e, another affection, another contraction, another e-'an,ion, and ,o on ... Since the,e in,'iration, are varied, the ty'e, of action, that the,e in,'iration, bring about are al,o varied. /-ternal action, al1ay, follo1 from the internal ,tate, of the heart. %he author 1ill mention thi, later 1hen he ,ay,, DGood action, re,ult from good ,tate,...C <&ikma QLN=.

>*. Action, are but e-ternal form,, only given life by having true ,incerity in them. %he ,incerity of every ,ervant in hi, action, i, in accordance to hi, rank and ,tation. A, for him among the righteou,, the utmo,t level of hi, ,incerity i, that hi, action, are ,afe from evident and hidden 1ay, of ,ho1ing off and he doe,n9t intend conformity to the de,ire, of the ,elf. In,tead, he ,eek, 1hat Allah ha, 'romi,ed the ,incere 'eo'le, ,uch a, 'lentiful re1ard and a beautiful 'lace of return. Additionally, he flee, from 1hat &e ha, threatened tho,e 1ho mi- <other, 1ith Allah3, 1or,hi'=, ,uch a, 'ainful 'uni,hment and a bad reckoning of action,. %hi, i, a reali4ation of the meaning of Allah3, ,tatement0 D@ou alone 1e 1or,hi'.E <2ur3an >0L= %hat i,0 DWe 1or,hi' none but @ou and do not a,,ociate other, in @our 1or,hi'.E %he gi,t of hi, affair i, that 'eo'le are removed from hi, ,ight in 'erforming righteou, action, 1hile he ,till ,ee, him,elf in relation to the action, and relie, on them.

A, for him from tho,e brought near, he ,ur'a,,e, thi, rank until he doe, not even ,ee him,elf in hi, action. So, hi, ,incerity i, that he 1itne,,e, only the %ruth Mo,t &igh in creating hi, movement, and tran7uility 1ithout ,eeing for him,elf any force or ,trength. %hi, ,tation e-'ounded a, that of truthfulne,, by 1hich the ,tation of true ,incerity i, achieved. %he 'o,,e,,or of thi, ,tation i, being lead to tread the 'ath of divine unity and certainty. %hi, i, a reali4ation of &i, Mo,t &igh3, ,tatement0 D@ou alone 1e a,k for hel'.E <2ur3an >0L= Meaning, 1e do not ,eek hel' from other than @ou, not from our,elve,, our force, nor our ,trength. %he act of the fir,t 'er,on mentioned i, an action for Allah Mo,t &igh "li $lah#. %he act of the ,econd 'er,on i, an action thro gh Allah "bi $lah#. An act for Allah entail, re1ard 1hile an act thro gh Allah entail, coming clo,er to &im. An act for Allah i, a reali4ation reali4ation Allah i, an of of 1or,hi' ,'iritual of 1hile 1ill. an act an thro gh act for Allah Allah i, i, a a to Doing

characteri,tic of every 1or,hi''er 1hile doing an act thro gh attribute everyone 1ho intend, <clo,ene,, Allah=. An act for Allah i, carrying out the e-ternal command, 1hile an act thro gh Allah i, di,charging the internal one,. %he,e above mentioned 1ay, of e-'laining are tho,e of Shaikh Abul 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi#. %hu,, the difference bet1een the t1o ,tation, and their di,,imilarity in nobility and e-altedne,, i, made clear. %he ,incerity of every ,ervant i, the ,'irit of hi, action,. ?y the e-i,tence of thi, ,'irit do they come alive, become 'ro'er to cau,e him to dra1 nearer to the Divine, and become fit to be acce'ted. ?y the ab,ence of thi, ,'irit, hi, action, die, fall from the rank of being con,idered, and become mere figure, 1ithout life and form, 1ithout meaning.

Some

of

the

Shaikh3,

have

,aid,

DBorrect

your

action,

1ith

,incerity and correct your ,incerity by giving u' any claim, to having any force or ,trength.E %hen the author "May Allah have mercy on him# mention, the condition in 1hich the ,ervant i, ,incere in both ,en,e, of the 1ord. >>. ?ury your,elf in the earth of being hidden, for 1hat gro1, 1ithout being buried doe,n9t come to fruit. %here i, nothing more harmful to the di,ci'le than 'o'ularity and the ,'read of hi, re'utation. %hi, i, becau,e it i, among the greate,t ,elfi,h ,hare, 1hich he i, commanded to leave and fight hi, lo1er-,elf concerning. Aove of 're,tige and 'referring 'o'ularity i, in o''o,ition to the ,ervitude he i, a,ked for. Shaikh Ibrahim ibn Adham "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he 'er,on 1ho love, 'o'ularity ha, not been true to Allah.C Another one of them ha, ,aid, C%hi, 'ath of our, i, not fit for anyone e-ce't tho,e 1ho ,1ee' rubbi,h 'ile, 1ith their ,oul,.C Shaikh Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C?y Allah, the ,ervant ha, not 'roven true to Allah until he i, ha''y that hi, rank i, not noticed <by other,=.C 6ne of them ,aid, CI don9t kno1 of a man 1ho loved that he be recogni4ed, e-ce't that hi, religion left him and he 1a, e-'o,ed.C &e al,o ,aid, C%he one 1ho love, that 'eo'le kno1 him doe, not ta,te the ,1eetne,, of the hereafter.C Shaikh (udayl "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIt ha, reached me that Allah e-alted be &e ,ay, concerning ,ome of the favor, &e ,ho1, to hi, ,lave, 9Did I not be,to1 u'on you favor,, cover you, and make your remembrance ob,cure.9C

All of the,e thing,, 1hich return to the love of 'o'ularity and of ri,ing above other,, infringe u'on the ,incerity of the ,ervant in it, varying degree,. Sincerity i, either attained by di,regarding 'eo'le or by di,regarding the ,elf. %hi, i, not attained for the di,ci'le e-ce't by ob,curity and lo,ing hi, rank 1ith him,elf and 1ith other 'eo'le. If he i, not in thi, mode, he 1ill not be able to free him,elf of the un1orthy end,, 1hich drive him to try to 1in over the heart, of creation. %hi, i, becau,e he ,ee, a right for hi, ,elf over them, ,o hi, ,elf call, him to the,e un1orthy end, 1ith an im'erce'tible calling cau,ing hi, action, to be tainted 1ith ,ho1ing off. %he ,ervant i, not al1ay, a1are of thi, tainting, a, the author 1ill mention0 CPerha', ,ho1ing off ha, entered u'on you from 1here 'eo'le do not ,ee you.C <&ikma Q>N*= In accordance of 1ith your i, degree reali4ed of reali4ing you ob,curity, are able to your rid

,tation

,incerity

until

your,elf from even ,eeing your o1n ,incerity. In thi, regard, the bankru'tcy of the entire race become, clear e-ce't tho,e 1hom Allah Mo,t &igh ha, had mercy u'on. It i, clear that ,incerity i, e-tremely e-i,tence. Shaikh Sahl ibn Abdullah "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1a, a,ked, CWhich difficult on the ,elf and i, the rare,t thing in

thing i, mo,t ,evere on the ,elfIC &e re'lied, CSincerity. Since, the ,elf doe,n9t have any 'art in it.C Shaikh @u,uf ibn al-&u,ayn "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he

rare,t thing in the 1orld i, ,incerity. &o1 much do I ,trive to get rid of ,ho1ing off from my heart and it9, a, if it ,'rout, u' in it 1ith another color.C Shaikh Abu %alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CSincerity 1ith the ,incere i, to di,regard creation 1hen dealing 1ith the Breator "and the fir,t of creation i, one9, o1n ,elf#. Sincerity

1ith tho,e 1ho love i, that one not 'erform any action for the ,elf for that 1ould entail 1anting com'en,ation or e-'ecting ,ome ,elfi,h gain. (inally, ,incerity 1ith the 'eo'le 1ho declare Allah9, 6nene,, i, not looking at 'eo'le 1hile 'erforming action, and giving u' being at 'eace and finding comfort 1ith them in all condition,. When the ,ervant make, him,elf ob,cure and ,tick, to humility and lo1line,,, he ac7uire, a manner and di,'o,ition in 1hich he doe, not feel 'ain in being lo1 nor reli,h being humble. At thi, 'oint, hi, ,oul 1ill be 'urified and hi, heart illuminated by the light of ,incerity. &e 1ill reach the highe,t rank, of ,'ecialne,, and obtain a mo,t abundant ,hare of true love. Shaikh Abu %alib "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhen the ,ervant become, humble internally and con,ider, him,elf lo1 ,uch that he doe,n9t find for hi, humblene,, any ta,te nor for hi, lo1line,, any ,en,ation, humility and lo1line,, become hi, being. Such a 'er,on doe, not di,like blame from 'eo'le for ,ome ,hortcoming in him,elf, nor doe, he love 'rai,e from them ,ince he ha, no rank or ,tation 1ith him,elf. &umility and lo1line,, have become attribute, for him that do not leave him. %hey ,tick 5u,t a, the garbage man doe, to the garbage 'ile and the ,1ee'er doe, to hi, ,1ee'ing,. %he,e t1o occu'ation, are for him like any other occu'ation; and 'erha',, 'eo'le can boa,t about the,e occu'ation, by not looking at their defect,. ?eing characteri4ed by ,uch i, ,ign of tremendou, friend,hi' of hi, Aord for him... %hi, i, a 'rai,e1orthy and loved ,tation after 1hich follo1, the ,tation of di,covering the ,ecret, of the un,een.C %hen he ,aid, CWhoever9, ,tate 1ith Allah Mo,t &igh i, humility, he ,earche, for humblene,, and find, it ,1eet 5u,t a, the haughty 'er,on ,earche, for 'ride and find, it ,1eet. If humility leave, the former 'er,on even for an hour, hi, heart i, burdened becau,e hi, ,tate ha, left him, 5u,t a, the 'rideful 'er,on find, life

grimy 1hen he i, ,e'arated from 'ride, ,ince it i, 1hat give, hi, ,elf life.C If ,uch i, the ca,e, the di,ci'le ha, to lo,e hi, fame, ob,cure hi, remembrance, run a1ay from ,ituation, that ,'read hi, 'o'ularity, and indulge in ,ome allo1ed act, 1hich cau,e 'eo'le to di,regard him a, in the ,tory of the dervi,h 1ho the king of hi, time heard about. When the dervi,h found out that the king 1a, in ,ight di,tance, he a,ked for ,ome herb, and ,tarted eating them in an uncouth manner. When the king ,a1 him in ,uch a ,tate, he looked do1n u'on him, took him a, in,ignificant, and turned a1ay from him holding him in blame. %he te-t of thi, ,tory ,hall be mentioned after thi, in

e-'lanation of the author9, ,tatement0 CPerha', ,ho1ing off ha, entered u'on you from 1here 'eo'le do not ,ee you.C <&ikma >N*= %he leader, of %a,a11uf "May Allah be 'lea,ed 1ith them# have gone to e-treme, to cure the di,ea,e of attachment of fame to the heart, until they have u,ed thing, that are not recogni4ed in e-ternal Sacred Aa1. %hey ,a1 thi, a, 'ermi,,ible for them to do them,elve, and en5oin other, 1ith. An e-am'le i, the ,tory of the man 1ho 1ould enter the 'ublic bathhou,e 1earing fancy clothe, under hi, regular robe ,o that they 1ould ,ho1 <from underneath=; then, he 1ould 1alk around in a be1ildered ,tate a, if he 1ere a thief. When 'eo'le ,a1 him, they 1ould grab him, ,la' him on the back of the neck, and ,natch a1ay the fancy clothe, from him. found hi, heart... Some author, have ,aid, CIt i, 'ermi,,ible for ,omeone choking on a 'iece of la1ful food to hel' it do1n 1ith a gul' of 1ine in the ab,ence of other li7uid,, kno1ing full 1ell that 1ine i, &e became famou, among them a, the C'ublic-bathhou,e thiefC. It 1a, then that he

unla1ful, ,omething

5u,t

to

,ave be

thi,

tem'oral 1hen

life. one

Why may

,houldn9t lo,e the

,imilar

'ermi,,ible

everla,ting life and clo,ene,, to Allah Mo,t &igh.C When the ,ervant ,tick, to the,e e-erci,e,, hi, lo1er ,elf die,, hi, heart come, to life, and he come, clo,er to the 're,ence of hi, Aord and 'erfection. %he,e fruit, are the trait, of faith that hi, ,elf take, on. %hey become like hi, e,,ential characteri,tic, and are the re,ult of 1i,dom that Allah cau,ed to gro1 in the heart, of &i, ,ervant,0 CAnd 1hoever i, given 1i,dom, he ha, been given a 'lenteou, good.C <Al-2ur9an )0))M= Nabi RI,a "alaihi ,alam# a,ked hi, com'anion,, CWhere do you 'lant the grain ,eedIC %hey re'lied, CIn the earth.C Nabi RI,a "alaihi ,alam# then ,aid, C%hu, i, 1i,dom, it doe, not gro1 e-ce't in a heart that i, ,imilar to earth.C I ,ay0 Many ahadith have been narrated from the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 'rai,ing ob,curity and blaming 'o'ularity. Among the,e i, 1hat ha, been related from Sayyidna Abu Amama "radhi3Allahu anhu# that the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CAllah Mo,t &igh ,ay,, 9Indeed the merrie,t of My friend, i, the one 1ho ha, little 1ealth, but a fair ,hare of 1or,hi' "'raying#. &e 1or,hi', hi, Aord in an e-cellent manner and obey, &im in ,ecret. &e i, hidden among 'eo'le and not 'ointed to by finger,. &i, 'rovi,ion 5u,t ,uffice, and he i, 'atient...9 In a hadith narrated by Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu

anhu# that the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CPerha', a 'er,on 1ith di,heveled hair and ,habby clothe, 1ho i, re'ugnant in the eye, of 'eo'le if he ,1ore by Allah, &e 1ould fulfill "hi, de,ire#.C Sayyidna Mu adh ibn Pabal "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, narrated that the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, COerily even

a little bit of ,ho1ing off i, a,,ociating 'artner, 1ith Allah. Indeed, 1hoever i, ho,tile to a friend of mine ha, confronted Allah 1ith 1arfare. Allah love, the godfearing hidden 'eo'le 1hom 1hen ab,ent are not mi,,ed and 1hen 're,ent are not called u'on. %he light, of day do not kno1 them. %hey come out of every affair covered in du,t, in ob,curity.C Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, narrated a hadith in 1hich the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 'rai,ed, commended, and informed of the greatne,, of K1ay, al-2arni9, "radhi3Allahu anhu# affair. In thi, hadith he ,aid, DWhile 1e 1ere ,itting 1ith the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# in a circle of hi, com'anion,, he ,aid, RA man from the 'eo'le of Paradi,e 1ill 'ray 1ith you tomorro1.3E Sayyidna Abu &urayrah "radhi3Allahu anhu# commented, CI ho'ed that I 1ould be that man. In the morning, I 'rayed behind the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#. After1ard,, I ,tayed in the mo,7ue until everyone left e-ce't him and me. While 1e 1ere in thi, ,tate, a dark man in 'atched lo1er garment a''roached until he 'ut hi, hand in the hand of the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# and ,aid, 96 Pro'het of Allah, 'ray for me for martyrdom.9 %hen the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 'rayed for him. And 1e indeed noticed an acute ,cent of mu,k from him. I then ,aid, 96 Me,,enger of Allah, i, he the 'er,on <you mentioned earlier=I9 &e "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re'lied, 9@e,. &e9, a ,lave of ,uch and ,uch tribe.9 I ,aid, 9Aren3t you going to buy him and free him, 6 Pro'het of Allah.9 &e re'lied, 9&o1 can I do that 1hen Allah Mo,t &igh 1ant, to make him among the king, of Paradi,eI 6 Abu &urayrah, there are king, and leader, for the 'eo'le in Paradi,e, and thi, dark man ha, become among the king, of Paradi,e. 6 Abu &urayrah, indeed Allah Mighty and /-alted love, from &i, creation ... the hidden and the righteou, 1ith di,heveled hair, du,t covered face,, and hungry ,tomach, from <re,training them,elve, to= a la1ful living. When they try to enter u'on leader,, they are not allo1ed to do ,o. If they 'ro'o,e marriage to affluent

1omen, become

they

are

denied. <to

When

they they

are are

ab,ent, not ha''y

they

are

not

mi,,ed. If they are 're,ent, they are not called u'on. If they vi,ible 'eo'le=, about their vi,ibility. When they get ,ick, they are not vi,ited. And if they die, their funeral i, not attended.9 %he com'anion, a,ked, 9&o1 can 1e find ,uch a 'er,onI9 %he !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re'lied, 9It9, K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu#.9 %hey ,aid, 9What i, K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu#I9 %he

!a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re'lied, 9&e ha, blui,h black eye,, reddi,h hair, 1ide ,houlder,, i, of medium height, and ha, har,h ,kin. &e 'ut, hi, chin ne-t to hi, che,t, look, to the 'lace of 'ro,tration, 'ut, hi, right hand over hi, left, and read, the &oly 2ur9an 1hile crying over him,elf. &e 1ear, thread1orn clothe, and i, con,idered in,ignificant by 'eo'le. &e 1ra', a 1oolen garment around him and 1ear, a 1ool cloak. &e i, unkno1n among the d1eller, of the earth and kno1n among the d1eller, of the ,ky. If he ,1ore by Allah, &e 1ould fulfill hi, oath. &e ha, a gleaming 1hite ,'ot belo1 hi, left ,houlder. 6n the Day of !e,urrection Paradi,e.9; 1hen it it 1ill be be ,aid to to the ,ervant,, 9/nter 1ill ,aid K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu Ali

anhu#, 9Sto' and intercede. &e 1ill then 'lead to Allah on the behalf of a great multitude. 6 Kmar "radhi3Allahu anhu# and "radhi3Allahu anhu# 1hen you meet him, a,k him to 'ray for your forgivene,,; Allah 1ill forgive you.9C &e then narrated the re,t of the hadith. In another hadith, the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C%here 1ill be a man in my community called K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu#. A great multitude of 'eo'le 1ill enter in hi, interce,,ion. If he ,1ore by Allah, &e 1ould fulfill hi, oath. Whoever meet, him after me ,hould ,end my ,alutation, to him.C %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 1a, a,ked about hi, characteri,tic,. &e re,'onded, C&e ha, reddi,h hair, blui,h black eye,, and a 1orn 'air of 1hite clothe,. &e lived 1ith hi,

mother. &e u,ed to have leukoderma "a di,ea,e that cau,e, lo,, of ,kin 'igment#, but he 'rayed to Allah Mighty and /-alted and &e made it go a1ay e-ce't for the ,i4e of a dinar or dirham. &e i, con,idered in,ignificant, i, unkno1n in the /arth, but recogni4ed in the ,ky.C &e 1a, ,o ob,cure and 1eak that 'eo'le u,ed to make fun of and ridicule him. %hey u,ed to cau,e him in5ury and thought he 1a, fit for treachery and thievery ... Boncerning thi,, it ha, been related that K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu# u,ed to ,it 1ith a ,cholar from 8ufa, but then ,to''ed doing ,o becau,e he did not have enough clothe, to cover him. %he ,cholar gave him t1o 'iece, of cloth 1hich he acce'ted at fir,t, but gave back later ,aying, CPeo'le ,ay, 9Where did he get tho,e t1o 'iece, of cloth9 accu,ing of treachery.C At that time he u,ed to ,it 1ith the ,cholar, of Puri,'rudence and be in 'lain vie1 of 'eo'le. %hi, 1a, before hi, elevated rank and tremendou, ,ignificance 1a, kno1n. %hi, 1a, al,o before Sayyidna 'rai,ed him on the 'ul'it. When K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,a1 that 'eo'le kne1 of hi, ,tate, he fled and hid him,elf from them. &e covered u' hi, affair from them by ,he'herding camel, and the like. When a,ked about him, Sayyidna Kmar "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C%here i,n9t anyone among u, more ob,cure than him in remembrance.C When Sayyidna CA Kmar anhu# ,he'herd "radhi3Allahu met of him, they gra4ing anhu# a,ked and him and Sayyidna 1ho he 1a,. 1orker Ali &e of Kmar "radhi3Allahu anhu#

"radhi3Allahu re'lied,

animal,

hired

'eo'le,C and he covered u' the mention of K1ay,. When they a,ked him about hi, name, he re,'onded, CServant of Allah " Abdullah#.C When they ,'ecifically a,ked about the name hi, mother gave him, he did not an,1er them. When they informed him that the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# had de,cribed him and that they recogni4ed him, he ,aid, CPerha', that 'er,on i, other than me.C

When they ,aid that the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# told them about the gleaming 1hite ,'ot under hi, left ,houlder and they a,ked him to ,ho1 it to them, he did not find a 1ay out but to do a, they commanded. &e did thi,, and Allah kno1, be,t, in order to ,ho1 them 1ith their o1n eye, the correctne,, of the &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement and hi, truthfulne,, about telling of un,een thing,. %hi, ,ho1ing 1a, obligatory on him; if it 1ere not, he might of tried to 'retend for them like he did before about 1hat he 1a, a,ked. After thi, 1hen Sayyidna Kmar "radhi3Allahu anhu# a,ked him to

meet 1ith him and make that ,'ot a meeting 'lace bet1een them, he re'lied, C6 Bommander of the (aithful, there 1ill be no fi-ed meeting bet1een you and me. I don9t kno1 you and you don9t kno1 me after thi, day.C &e then returned the camel, to their o1ner, and left ,he'herding. &e dealt ,imilarly 1ith Sidi &arim ibn &ayyan "rahmatullahi

alaihi# 1hen he met him on the ,hore of the /u'hrate, and they became ac7uainted 1ith each other. &e ,aid to K1ay, "radhi3Allahu anhu#, CNarrate to me a hadith from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,o that I may memori4e it from you.C &e re'lied, CI don9t like to o'en thi, door u'on my,elf. I don9t 1ant to be a hadith narrator, a mufti, nor a 5udge.C When they fini,hed their conver,ation, Sidi &arim ibn &ayyan "rahmatullahi alaihi# a,ked him to meet regularly 1ith him. K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu# refu,ed. K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, CAfter today, I don9t 1ant to ,ee you looking for me and a,king about me. @ou go your 1ay and I9ll go mine,C Aater Sidi &arim "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,truggled to find him and ,earch for him, but 1a, not able to. Among the 1ondrou,ne,, of hi, affair i, that Allah made him attain thi, ,tate of being hidden and covered u' and 'erfected it

for

him after

hi, death

"1hile al,o

making him

a 'oint

for

reflection for later 'eo'le,#. Sayyidna

Abdullah ibn Salama "!A# ,aid,

CWe 1ent on a military e-'edition to A4erbai5an in the time of Kmar ibn al-8hattab "radhi3Allahu anhu# and 1ith u, 1a, K1ay, al-2arni "radhi3Allahu anhu#. When 1e 1ere returning, he got ,ick and ,ub,e7uently 'a,,ed a1ay. We ,to''ed and found a dug grave, 1ater flo1ing, and fragrance. We 1a,hed hi, body, ,hrouded him, 'rayed for him, and buried him. Aater, 1e ,aid to each other, 9We ,hould return, ,o 1e can remember 1here hi, grave i,.9 When 1e returned, 1e couldn9t find any grave nor any trace of him.C I ,ay, C%he narration, and utterance, concerning the 'rai,e of ob,curity and the blame of 'o'ularity are more than can be accounted for. %he author, of thi, kno1ledge have related much; ,o let the di,ci'le look at that a,king Allah for the be,t of ,ucce,,. %he e-'re,,ion, that the author "May Allah be 1ell'lea,ed 1ith him# u,e, here "i.e. burying in the ,oil, gro1ing of 'lant,, and, coming to fruit# are 1itty meta'horical e-'re,,ion,. >). Nothing benefit, the heart like ,olitude through 1hich it enter, the 'lain of thought. %reating the di,ea,e, of the heart i, obligatory on the di,ci'le. &i, di,ea,e, only come about by the force, of hi, environment overtaking him, ,uch a, kee'ing the com'any of o''o,ite,, being occu'ied 1ith the routine, follo1ing the de,ire, of the ,elf, and being at home 1ith the 'hy,ical 1orld. %he,e di,ea,e, can be treated in many 1ay,, but the mo,t e-treme and u,eful 1ay i, detaching one,elf from 'eo'le 1hile bu,ying one,elf 1ith contem'lation. Detaching one,elf allo1, one to avoid mi-ing 1ith 1hom mi-ing i, not 'ro'er and 1ith 1hom kee'ing the com'any of e-'o,e, one to danger,. So, the one 1ho detache, him,elf i, ,aved from di,obedience that accom'anie, mi-ing 1ith

'eo'le, ,uch a, backbiting, manife,ting the o''o,ite of 1hat i, hidden, ,ho1ing off, and 'retentiou,ne,,. &e i, al,o ,aved from being overtaken from vile trait, and lo1 characteri,tic,. Additionally, hi, religion and ,elf are ,aved from argumentation and other ty'e, evil and tem'tation,. Normally, the ,elf love, and ha,ten, to immer,e in the,e ty'e, of action,. %hu,, it i, obligatory for the one 1ho 1ithdra1, him,elf to kee' hi, tongue from a,king about the ne1, about 'eo'le, 1hat they are occu'ied 1ith, ab,orbed in, and devoted to. Al,o, he ,hould 'rotect hi, ear, from rumor, abounding in the land ... Aet him make ,ure that looking out for or ,earching for ,uch thing, doe, not engulf him. Al,o, he ,hould avoid the com'any of the 'er,on 1ho doe, not guard hi, ,'eech nor hold hi, tongue from backbiting in a minute 1ay "in,inuating ,lander and defamation again,t 'eo'le#. Such com'any 1ill make the clearne,, of hi, heart grimy and cau,e one to commit act, that anger the Aord. %herefore, let the one 1ho 1ithdra1, him,elf leave him, run a1ay from him a, if he 1ere running a1ay from a lion, and not gather 1ith him in a ,ingle 'lace. Aet him not become ac7uainted 1ith anyone 1ho doe, the aforementioned among tho,e 1ho are connected 1ith the religion. Needle,, to ,ay, one ,hould al,o avoid other tho,e not connected 1ith the religion. 6ne of the ,cholar, ,aid, C!efu,e to recogni4e tho,e you kno1 and don9t become ac7uainted 1ith tho,e you don9t kno1.C It ha, been narrated in a hadith, C%he e-am'le of a bad com'anion i, like the e-am'le of ,moke bello1,. If it doe,n9t burn you 1ith it, ,'ark,, it, foul ,mell 1ill be attached to you.C It ha, been narrated in the 'a,t narrative, that Allah Mo,t &igh in,'ired unto Nabi Mu,a "alaihi ,alam# C6 ,on of every brother or com'anion 1ho doe,n9t hel' Imran, be you in My attentive, 1ithdra1 your,elf 1ith ,ome brother,, and <kno1 that= righteou,ne,, i, for you an enemy.C

Allah in,'ired unto Nabi Da3ud "alaihi ,alam# a,king, CWhy i, it that you kee' to your,elfIC &e re'lied, C6 my God, I9ve for,aken 'eo'le for @our ,ake.C &e Mo,t &igh then ,aid, C6 Da3ud, be attentive, and 1ithdra1 your,elf 1ith ,ome friend,. &o1ever, don9t accom'any any friend that doe, not concur 1ith you in My righteou,ne,,; rather, he i, an enemy for you. <Such a friend= 1ill cau,e your heart to harden and make you dra1 further a1ay from Me.C ?y 1ithdra1ing, the ,ervant9, ,eriou,ne,, 1ill come together and hi, determination 1ill become ,tronger concerning Allah. In contra,t, mi-ing 1ith 'eo'le di,'er,e, ,eriou,ne,, and 1eaken, determination. It i, ,aid that verily the ,ervant tie, the knot, of the trait, of goodne,, in hi, ,olitude and act, by them. %hen 1hen he goe, out to the 'eo'le, they undo the,e, knot by knot. ?y the time he return, to hi, hou,e, all of the knot, are undone. It i, narrated from Nabi RI,a "alaihi ,alam#, CDon9t ,it 1ith the dead, le,t your heart, die.C &e 1a, a,ked, CWho are the deadIC &e re'lied, C%ho,e 1ho love the 1orld and de,ire it.C It ha, been narrated that the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C%he mo,t fearful thing that I fear for my community i, 1eakne,, of certainty.C Weakne,, of certainty only come, about by vie1ing tho,e 1ho are in forgetfulne,, of Allah and by mi-ing 1ith the head, of idlene,, and hardheartedne,,. Sidi Abu %alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he mo,t harmful, mo,t likely to cau,e de,truction, ,evere,t veil, and cau,e for dra1ing further a1ay that the ,ervant i, tried 1ith i, 1eakne,, of certainty concerning 1hat ha, been 'romi,ed of the un,een ... Bonver,ely, ,trong certainty i, the foundation of every good action.

'er,on among

thi, 'arty

,aid, CI

a,ked one

of the

,aint,

"abdal# 1ho are ,evered from all but Allah, 9&o1 doe, one travel the 'ath to reali4ation and attainment to the %ruthI9 &e re'lied, 9Don9t look at created thing, "i.e. 'eo'le#. Indeed looking at them i, a darkne,,.9 I inter5ected, 9%here9, no 1ay for me around them.9 &e re,'onded, 9%hen, don9t li,ten to their talk. Indeed their talk harden, the heart.9 I again ,aid, 9%here9, no 1ay for me around them.9 &e then ,aid, 9%hen, don9t conduct dealing, 1ith them. Indeed, dealing 1ith them i, a lo,, and de,olation.9 I re'lied, 9I am in their mid,t. I have to deal 1ith them.9 &e ,aid, 9%hen, don9t feel at home 1ith them. Indeed, feeling at home 1ith them i, de,truction.9 I ,aid, 9%hi, malady i, 1ith me.9 &e retorted, 96 you, you look at the 'layful, li,ten to the talk of the ignorant, deal 1ith the idle, and feel at home 1ith the 'eri,hing. De,'ite thi,, you 1ant to find the ,1eetne,, of obedience 1hile your heart i, 1ith other than Allah Mighty and /-alted i, &e. ?e gone, thi, 1ill never be.9 ?y 1ithdra1ing, the ,ervant9, ,ight 1ill be re,trained from

looking to1ard, the beauty and ,'lendor of the 1orld. Al,o, hi, mind 1ill be turned a1ay from finding 'lea,ant 1hat Allah Mo,t &igh ha, di,'rai,ed among the 1orld9, decoration,. %he ,elf 1ill be 'revented one9, by thi, glance from looking it, attentively and at the 1orld, it, rai,ing to1ard, com'eting 1ith

inhabitant, for it. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid0 CDon9t ,tretch your eye, to1ard, 1hat 1e have let 'air, of them en5oy...C <Al-2ur9an )*0>+>= No one ,hould con,ider thi, in,ignificant becau,e it can lead to tremendou, ailment, of the heart. Whoever dra1, a'art

from 'eo'le i, ,aved from the,e ailment, by the 'ermi,,ion of Allah Mo,t &igh. Shaikh Abu 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhen the leader, of ,truggle 1ant to ,afeguard their heart, from evil thought,, they ,to' looking at beautified thing,. %hi, i, a big 'rinci'le among them in ,truggling during e-erci,e,.C Sidi Muhammad ibn Sirin "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C?e a1are of e-ce,, glancing becau,e it lead, to e-ce,, de,ire,.C A man from tho,e 1ho kno1 the rule, of conduct ,aid, CWhoever ha, many glance, i, continuou,ly in ,orro1. Indeed, the eye i, a cau,e for tribulation. Whoever ,end, forth hi, ,ight a,k, for hi, o1n death ...C In thi, 1ay, the ,ervant, craving thing, from 'eo'le 1ill end and he 1ill de,'air of them. %he intelligent and a,tute vie1 thi, among the bigge,t advantage, of dra1ing a'art from 'eo'le. &o1ever, the benefit, of dra1ing a'art are not com'leted e-ce't 1ith engaging the heart 1ith contem'lation, 1hich i, de,ired at thi, 'oint. Dra1ing a'art i, a 'recondition and hel'er of contem'lation. 6f cour,e, thi, contem'lation ,hould occur after the di,ci'le ha, ac7uired 1hat he need, of the e-ternal Sacred Aa1 and give, due concern to internal manner, of conduct. Imam al-Gha4ali "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, mentioned a ,ati,factory Klum ,ection about thi, in The %oo# of &rawing A!art "8itab al- K4la# in hi, book The 'eviving of the 'eligio s S(ien(es "Ihya9 al-Din#, ,o let the di,ci'le look there. It ha, been narrated in a re'ort, CBontem'lation of one hour i, better than ,eventy year, of 1or,hi'.C And thu, it i, and Allah kno1, be,t.

Nabi RI,a ibn Mariam "alaiha ,alam# u,ed to ,ay, CPubilance be for the one 1ho,e ,'eech i, remembrance of the Divine, hi, ,ilence i, contem'lation, and hi, ,ight i, <a cau,e for= learning le,,on,. Indeed, the mo,t intelligent of men i, he 1ho make, hi, lo1er ,elf ,ub,ervient and 1ork, for 1hat i, after death.C Sayyidna 8a b "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, CAet the one 1ho 1ant, the nobility of the hereafter contem'late much.C It 1a, ,aid to Kmm Darda9 "radhi3Allahu anha#, CWhat 1a, the be,t action of Abu Darda9 %hi, i, "radhi3Allahu becau,e anhu#IC She lead, re'lied, to the CBontem'lation.C contem'lation

kno1ledge of the reality of thing,, make, the truth clear from the fal,ehood, and the beneficial from the harmful. With it, one can notice the hidden 'itfall, of the ,elf, the ,cheme, of the enemy "Shaitan#, and the dece'tion of the 1orld. Al,o 1ith it, one can become ac7uainted 1ith the 1ay, of freeing and 'urifying one,elf from the,e thing,. Imam &a,an al-?a,ri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CBontem'lation i, a mirror 1hich let, you di,tingui,h your good 7ualitie, from your bad one,. Al,o, one can reali4e the tremendou,ne,, of Allah mo,t &igh and &i, loftine,, by contem'lating about &i, ,ign, and creation. In addition, one can ,ee 1ith it &i, manife,t and hidden ble,,ing,. %hu, one can attain high ,tate, of being and the removal of the di,ea,e, of the heart. (inally 1ith it, one can remain ,teadfa,t in the obedience of one9, Aord.C I ,ay, CDra1ing a'art a, the author "May Allah have mercy on him# ha, mentioned al,o include, ,trict ,olitude and i, one of the four e,,ential, 1hich are a foundation for di,ci'le,. 6ne of the other three i,0 ")# ,ilence "1hich for mo,t 'eo'le doe,n9t come about e-ce't in ,olitude and dra1ing a'art#, "+# hunger, and "L# night vigil,. <If the di,ci'le ac7uire, the,e four=, he ha,

attained the entire medicine and caught u' 1ith the com'any of the friend, of Allah and the ,aint,. Shaikh ,aint,0 Sahl "># ibn hunger Abdullah of the "rahmatullahi ,tomach, ")# alaihi# ,ilence, ,aid, "+# CAll ,trict

goodne,, i, in the,e four 7ualitie,. ?y the,e, the ,aint, became ,olitude, and "L# night vigilance.C %he 'oet gathered them in hi, 'oem0 ) *o , the ran#s of the saints yo &on,t (rave it be(a se yo desire, +itho t having for a(tions any desire. are not fit for it. do not (om!ete. If with them in their states yo

The ho se of (loseness has its !illars divided. ) r leaders from the saints abide in it. Always between silen(e and drawing a!art. - nger and .ight vigilan(e above and a!art. >+. &o1 ,hall divine light ,hine u'on a heart 1ho,e mirror i, ,tam'ed 1ith the im're,,ion, of created thing,I 6r ho1 ,hall it travel to Allah 1hile chained in it, lu,t,I 6r ho1 ,hall it 1i,h to enter the 're,ence of Allah 1hile unclean,ed from the im'urity of forgetfulne,, of &imI 6r ho1 ,hall it ho'e to under,tand ,ubtle ,ecret, 1hile having not re'ented from it, mi,take,I It i, im'o,,ible to bring t1o mutually e-clu,ive o''o,ite,

together. Such a, trying to unify movement and ,tillne,, or light and darkne,,. %he,e thing, that the author "May Allah have mercy on him# ha, mentioned are o''o,ite, that do not come together. %hu,, the light of faith and certainty illuminating the heart i, an o''o,ite of the darkne,, that overtake, it by relying on material form, and created thing,. Aike1i,e, for the traveler to Allah Mo,t &igh to cut off hi, lo1er ,elf i, o''o,ite to letting hi, lu,t, and de,ire, have free reign.

Similarly, entering into the 're,ence of Allah re7uire, that the ,ervant3, internal ,elf be 'ure and removed from bad trait,, 1hich i, the o''o,ite thi, the of hi, condition cau,e, (inally, him of to im'urity be by not and remembering di,tanced &im; from im'urity Divine. removed

under,tanding

,ubtle

,'iritual ,ecret, come, about from godfearingne,,, 1hich i, the o''o,ite of 'er,i,ting in di,obedience and mi,take,. %here i, an allu,ion to thi, 'oint in &i, Mo,t &igh3, ,tatement0 D(ear Allah and Allah 1ill teach you.E <)0)F)= Al,o it ha, been re'orted in ,ome ahadith, DWhoever act, by 1hat he kno1,, Allah make, him inherit kno1ledge of 1hat he did not kno1.E Sidi @ahya ibn Ma in "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, DImam Ahmad ibn &anbal account "rahmatullahi that you alaihi# from met your Ahmad ibn Abu Abu &a1ari Sulaiman "rahmatullahi alaihi# and ,aid to him, R6 Ahmad, narrate to me an heard teacher "rahmatullahi alaihi#.3 Sidi Abu &a1ari "rahmatullahi alaihi# re'lied, R6 Ahmad, ,ay

S bhanAllah "glory be to Allah# 1ithout conceit.3 Ibn &anbal "rahmatullahi alaihi# then uttered S bhanAllah in a 'rolonged fa,hion 1ithout conceit. Ibn Abu &a1ari "rahmatullahi alaihi# then ,aid, RI heard Abu Sulaiman "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aying, 9When a 'er,on3, ,oul re,olve, u'on leaving ,in,, it move, about in the meta'hy,ical 1orld and return, to the ,ervant 1ith rare 'iece, of 1i,dom 1ithout any ,cholar teaching it any kno1ledge.9 %hen, Imam Ahmad ibn &anbal "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,tood u' and ,at do1n three time, and ,aid, RI haven3t heard in I,lam any narration more 1ondrou, to me than thi,.3 %hen, he mentioned the hadith 1e mentioned above0 RWhoever act, by 1hat he kno1,, Allah make, him inherit kno1ledge of 1hat he did not kno1.3 &e then ,aid to Ibn Abu &a1ari "rahmatullahi alaihi#, R@ou3ve ,'oken the truth and ,o did your Shaikh.3E

?ecau,e the,e thing, are o''o,ite,, the author "May Allah have mercy on him# marvel, at the one 1ho believe, that they can come together and at the one 1ho crave, to attain the rank, of the reali4ed ,'irituali,t, 1hile having the uglie,t fault,. >L. Breated thing, in e,,ence are darkne,,, only illuminated by the manife,tation of Allah in them. So, 1hoever ,ee, created thing, and ,ee, &im not in them, or 1ith them, or before them, or after them, i, need of light and the ,un, of divine kno1ledge are ,creened from him by the cloud, of 'hy,ical reality. None-i,tence i, darkne,, and e-i,tence i, light. So, the created univer,e by and in it,elf i, dark none-i,tence. It only become, illuminated e-i,tence by the light of the %ruth becoming a''arent in it. %he ,tate, of 'eo'le differ in thi, re,'ect. Among them are tho,e that do not 1itne,, anything but created thing, and are veiled from the Breator. %he,e ty'e of 'eo'le are 1anderer, in darkne,, veiled by the cloud, of the effect, of created thing,. 6ther, are not veiled from the Breator by created thing,. %hen, they in their 1itne,,ing &im are ,everal grou',0 Some ,ee the Breator before created thing,; the,e are the one, 1ho are guided to the effect, by the e-i,tence of the /ffector. 6ther, ,ee &im after created thing,; the,e are the one, 1ho are guided to the /ffector by the e-i,tence of the effect,. Some of them 1itne,, &im ,imultaneou,ly 1ith created thing,, %he ,imultaneity i, either of attachment 1hich i, 1itne,,ing &im in created thing, or of detachment 1hich i, 1itne,,ing &im in the 're,ence of created thing,. %he,e 're'o,ition, that have been u,ed "i.e. before, after, ,imultaneou,ly 1ith, in, and in the 're,ence of# are not to be under,tood a, 'ertaining to time or 'lace. %ime and 'lace are only for de,cribing created thing,. Al,o, the 1ord,

attachment

and

detachment

are

not

to

be

under,tood

by

their

common meaning,, ,ince they only mean thi, for created thing,. %he detailed de,cri'tion, of the,e affair, and the

differentiation bet1een the,e realitie, "a, they# are left to the ,cholar, 1ho are in charge of ,uch ,ub5ect,. So, let u, re,trict our,elve, to 1hat 1e have 5u,t mentioned. &ere i, the 'lace 1here many feet of 'eo'le have ,li''ed. %hey have talked 1ith groundle,, 1ord, and tried to e-'lain a1ay 1ith e-'lanation, unrecogni4ed by Sacred Aa1. %hu,, they fell into di,belief and blame1orthy innovation,. So, believe in the 'erfection of &im being far above everything and recogni4e the fal,ity of anything being like &im. &old firm to &i, "Mighty and /-alted# ,tatement0 D%here i, nothing like &im and &e i, the &earing, the Seeing.E <Al-2ur3an L)0>>= May &e be above all; there i, no god e-ce't &im. >G. Among 1hat ,ho1, you &i, ,ub5ugation "glory be to &im# of you i, that &e veil, you from &im 1ith that 1hich ha, no e-i,tence along,ide &im. %he ,aying, and allu,ion, of tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah and tho,e 1ho have reached reali4ation agree about 1hat 1e have 5u,t mentioned a little before thi,0 %he /verything e,,ence be,ide, the,e Allah thing, Mo,t &igh i, 'urely none-i,tent. of cannot e-i,t

along,ide Allah "glorified and e-alted be &e#. If they e-i,ted thi, 1ould be a,cribing 'artner, 1ith &im and calling to duali,m. %hi, belief <in the e-i,tence of other than &im= i, contradictory to the 'ure 6nene,, of Allah. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid0 CAll i, 'eri,hing e-ce't &i, countenance.C <Al-2ur9an )J0FF= %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C%he mo,t truthful ,tatement of the 'oet <Aabid= 1a,0

Isn,t everything besides Allah false/ And m st not every !leas re end/ 6ne of the kno1er, of Allah ,aid, C%he reali4ed refu,e to 1itne,, anything other than Allah becau,e of 1hat &e ha, made them 1itne,, of &i, eternal nature and encom'a,,ing 'ermanency.C Sidi Abul &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIndeed, 1e ga4e to1ard, Allah 1ith the ,ight of faith and certainty and thi, ha, freed u, of any need for a 'roof of &i, e-i,tence. We u,e &im to 'rove the e-i,tence of creation. I, there anything in e-i,tence e-ce't the 6ne, the %ruthI We don9t ,ee 'eo'le. &o1ever if 1e mu,t ,ee them, 1e ,ee them like du,t 'article, in the air. If you ,earched them out, you3d find that they didn9t amount to anything.C &e al,o ,aid, C%he 1itne,,ing of Allah became very inten,e for me once, ,o I a,ked &im to veil that from me. It 1a, then ,aid to me, 9: !ather a,k &im to make you ,trong enough <to bear it=.9 So I a,ked &im and &e made me ,tronger.C Shaikh Ibn Ata3Illah "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid in hi, book, al-

Tanwir, C%he kno1er, of Allah don9t de,cribe thing, be,ide, Allah Mo,t &igh 1ith e-i,tence nor 1ith ab,ence, ,ince nothing e-i,t, along 1ith &im due to &i, Knity : and only thing, that e-i,t can be ab,ent. If the illu,ive veil 1ere torn a1ay, ,ight 1ould fail to find material form, and the light of certainty 1ould ,hine to cover u' the e-i,tence of created thing,.C %he,e 1ord, are an e-'lanation of 1hat he mention, in the book. 6ne of kno1er, ,aid, CIf I 1ere a,ked to ,ee other than &im, I 1ould not be able to; ,ince, there i, nothing other than &im to ,ee.C A 'oet ha, ,aid0 Sin(e I got to #now the 0od, I haven,t seen other than -im.

$i#ewise, other than -im doesn,t e1ist with Sin(e I (ame into So, today I am (onne(ted and joined. Another one ha, ,aid0

s.

nion, I haven,t feared se!aration.

Say2 ,Allah,, and leave (reated things and what they (ontain. If yo are beta#ing yo rself to rea(h !erfe(tion, e1!lore it, Then 3#now that4 all besides Allah when yo is mere none1isten(e in detail and totality. 5now that yo , the niverse, and all, if it weren,t for -im, wo ld be effa(ed and disa!!ear. +hoever has no e1isten(e in his essen(e, Then, his e1isten(e is im!ossible were it not for -im. The #nowers of Allah have be(ome annihilated, so they see not, Anything besides the 6ro d and the -igh. They see other than -im in tr th as !erishing, in the !resent, the !ast, and the f t re. %he ,cholar, have 1ritten many book, clarifying thi, matter : both in metered ver,e and 'ro,e. /veryone e-'lain, it according to hi, o1n ,i''ing and ta,ting. We a,k Allah to re1ard them 1ell. AminS After 1e have ,ettled thi, matter, 1e find that mo,t 'eo'le have been veiled from Allah All Mo,t of &igh the,e (rom by their 1orldly lu,t,, are &i, <e-'ectation,= of rank, in the hereafter, and <de,ire,= for high <,'iritual= counted ,tation,. the thing, thi,, be,ide, 1e Allah among none-i,tent. recogni4e

overma,tering 'o1er a, one of &i, name, i, the Sub5ugator "al2ahir#. If the veil 1ere lifted from the,e 'eo'le, they 1ould be annihilated from them,elve, and their 1him,, ,ub,i,ting 1ith their Aord a, &i, true ,ervant,.

Shaikh Abu Sa id ibn al-9A rabi "rahmatullahi alaihi# re'lied 1hen ,lave, a,ked ,o about they annihilation, him forget CAnnihilation the 1orld, i, the that the tremendou,ne,, and magnificence of Allah become a''arent to the make hereafter, ,'iritual ,tate,, rank,, ,tation,, remembrance,, hi, intellect, hi, ,elf, all thing,, hi, being annihilated from the,e thing,, and even hi, being annihilated from annihilation. %hi, i, due to hi, con,ciou,ne,, being dro1ned in the Divine Immen,ity.C %he ,cholar, have noted that annihilation i, of three ty'e,0 "># annihilation in action,, a, they ,ay, 9%here i, no 'erformer of action, be,ide, &im.9, ")# annihilation in the divine attribute, meaning hearing, in there i, no or real living, kno1ing, be,ide, &igh. ca'able, Allah, have 1illing, and "+# ,eeing, ,'eaking Allah thing Mo,t

annihilation in the ?eing of Allah, meaning that there i, nothing e-i,tence be,ide, %hey recited concerning thi,0 So, he is annihilated7 then, he is annihilated7 then again, he is annihilated7 Th s, his annihilation be(omes !ermanen(e. Sidi Muhyi al-Din "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhoever ,ee,

'eo'le a, having no action, of their o1n ha, trium'hed. Whoever ,ee, them a, having no life of their o1n ha, achieved. (inally, 1hoever ackno1ledge, them a, none-i,tent ha, reached <the Goal=.9... >N. &e &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile manife,ted everythingI "># &o1 can it be imagined that

,omething could veil &im 1hile &e a''ear, through everythingI ")#&o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile &e i, evident in everythingI "+# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile &e i, a''arent to everythingI "L# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile &e i,

the Manife,t before the e-i,tence of everythingI "G# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile he i, more evident than anythingI "N# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile &e i, the 6ne along,ide Whom i, nothing el,eI "J# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile &e i, clo,er to you than everythingI "F# &o1 can it be imagined that ,omething could veil &im 1hile, if not for &im, nothing 1ould e-i,tI "M#I, it 'o,,ible for e-i,tence to a''ear in nothingne,,I ">*# 6r i, it 'o,,ible for thing, that have a beginning to hold their ground 1ith &im Who ha, the 7uality of beginningle,,ne,,I ">>#. <%he follo1ing ,entence, ,hould be read in con5unction 1ith the ,u'er,cri't, in the above te-t.= >. &e ha, endo1ed everything 1ith the light of e-i,tence 1hile it 1a, before in the darkne,, of nothingne,, a, 1a, mentioned before. ). %hu,, the deducer, 'rove &i, e-i,tence 1ith created thing,0 We ,hall ,ho1 them 6ur ,ign, on the hori4on, and in them,elve,... <Al-2ur9an L>0G+=. +. &e endo1, everything 1ith &i, beautiful attribute, and name,. L. &e i, a''arent in the aura of that thing. (or thi, rea,on, it i, 'ro,trating to &im and glorifying &i, 'rai,e, but 1e do not under,tand it. G. %he Manife,t "al-Dhahir# i, a 'ermanent name for &im, before time and forever. N. %rue e-i,tence i, undoubtedly more evident than nothingne,, in every ,ituation.

J.

/verything

be,ide,

&im

i,

nothingne,,

and

ha,

no

true

e-i,tence. F. &e encom'a,,e, you and hold, u' your being. M. %he beholder, of Allah u,e &im to 'rove the e-i,tence of created L>0G+= >*. Nothingne,, i, darkne,, and e-i,tence i, light. %hey are mutually e-clu,ive o''o,ite,. >>. (al,ehood cannot hold it, ground 1hen the truth become, thing, a, Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,0 DI,n3t your Aord ,ufficient that &e i, a 1itne,, over all thing,IE <Al-2ur9an

a''arent a, Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid0 DSay0 %ruth ha, come and fal,ehood ha, di,a''eared. Indeed, fal,ehood i, ever 'eri,hing.E <Al-2ur9an >J0F>= Mighty be &e ha, al,o ,aid, DWe hurl truth at fal,ehood, ,o it trium'h, over it. %hu,, fal,ehood di,a''ear,.E <Al-2ur9an )>0>F= I ,ay0 In thi, ,ection of the book from the ,tatement, DBreated thing, in e,,ence are darkne,,...E <&ikma Q>L= to here, the author ha, done an out,tanding 5ob. &e ha, brought 1hat eye, find comfort in and ear, reli,h. &e mentioned all of thing, connected 1ith the manife,tation of Allah and fal,ified the veiling 7ualitie, of every darkne,, and light. &e ha, ,ho1n you in it the %ruth 1ith the ,ight of an eye1itne,,. &e ha, rai,ed you from the ,tation of faith to the highe,t rank, of ,'iritual e-cellence. All of thi, ha, been done u,ing the briefe,t of 1ord,, the mo,t elo7uent of e-'re,,ion,, the mo,t 'erfect clarification, and the mo,t ,ubtle motion,. If there 1ere nothing but thi, ,ection in the book, it 1ould have been a ,ufficient healing. May Allah re1ard him 1ell on our 'art. %hen, he ,aid0

>J.

Whoever

1i,he,

that

,omething

other

than

1hat

Allah

ha,

brought about ha''en in the 're,ent time, ha, not left ignorance a bit. When Allah Mo,t &igh e,tabli,he, the ,ervant in a ,ituation among the ,ituation,, 1hich the Sacred Aa1 doe, not blame, he ,hould ,tick to good manner, by choo,ing to remain in it and be 'lea,ed 1ith it. &e ,hould al,o be attentive of Allah by guarding over the ,ituation9, 'ro'er manner,. Aet him be in accordance 1ith Allah9, de,ire for him until -e i, the one 1ho take, him out of it. Sidi Abu Kthman "rahmatullahi alaihi# aid, CSince forty year,,

Allah ha, neither ke't me in a ,ituation 1hich I di,liked, nor 'ut me in another one 1hich I dete,ted.C %he ,tory of the author "May Allah have mercy on him# 1ith hi, Shaikh, Abul Abba, al-Mur,i "rahmatullahi alaihi#, ha, been mentioned earlier <&ikma Q)=. %he ,tory narrated the author9, determination to 1ithdra1 from the 1orld and leave hi, occu'ation 1ith e-ternal kno1ledge. %he Shaikh9, re'ly ha, al,o been already narrated and <hi, re'ly= i, among the fruit, of the kno1ledge of Allah Mo,t &igh and ac7uaintance 1ith &i, Aord,hi'. If the ,ervant dete,t, the condition he i, in, long, to get out if it by him,elf, and de,ire, that ,omething other than 1hat Allah ha, of brought hi, about ,hould Mighty ha''en, he ha, be reached %he the e-tremity of ignorance of hi, Aord and ,ho1n bad manner, in the 're,ence Ma,ter and /-alted &e. Sufi, con,ider thi, de,ire to o''o,e the ruling of the 're,ent time among the greate,t ,in, of the elect. %hu,, it i, obligatory on the ,ervant to ,urrender to the ruling of Allah Mo,t &igh in the 're,ent time. %hi, ,urrender i, among the manner, of ,lavehood and 1hat the kno1ledge of Allah nece,,itate,.

%he above di,cu,,ion demon,trate, one of the 1ay, the Sufi, u,e the 1ord CtimeC. Shaikh Abul 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CSome time, they mean by the 1ord CtimeC 1hat bum', into them from the free di,'o,al of the %ruth 1ithout their o1n choice. %hey ,ay, 9So and ,o i, <one= 1ith the ruling of the CtimeC.9 %hey mean that he ha, ,urrendered hi, 'reference to 1hat a''ear, from the un,een. %hi, i, for tho,e thing, that Allah Mo,t &igh did not order them to do in connection 1ith right, of the Sacred Aa1. Aeaving 1hat one9, ordered to do, making the order a mere i,,ue of de,tiny, and not caring about one9, ,hortcoming, i, a de'arture from I,lam: If one i, hel'ed by the time, then it i, actually time for him. &o1ever if one i, burdened by time, then it i, for him <a ,ource of= loathing.C %hi, ,tatement of Shaikh Abul 2a,im "rahmatullahi alaihi# i, in agreement 1ith 1hat the author of the book ha, mentioned. Allah i, the grantor of ,ucce,,. >F. Po,t'oning action, until the 're,ence of free time i, from the fooli,hne,, of the ,elf. When the ,ervant i, bu,ied by ,ome condition "among the variou, condition, of hi, 1orldly life# from doing a good action and 'ut, it off 1aiting for freedom from hi, activitie,, 1hereby he ,ay,, CWhen I become free, I9ll 'erform the action.C, he demon,trate, a folly of the ,elf. :%he ,ervant9, fooli,hne,, i, due to the follo1ing rea,on,0 %he fir,t i, hi, 'referring thi, 1orld over the hereafter. %hi, 'reference i, not among the ,tate, of the ,en,ible believer, and i, in conflict 1ith 1hat i, demanded of him. Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,, C?ut you 'refer the life of the 1orld 1hile the hereafter i, better and more la,ting.C <Al-2ur9an FJ0 >N->J=

%he ,econd i, hi, 'utting off the action until hi, <e-'ected= free time. 6ften, he 1ill not find re,'ite until death ,natche, him a1ay. Al,o, hi, activitie, might increa,e ,ince the activitie, of the 1orld lead to one another, a, it i, ,aid0 .ot one has f lfilled from the world his aim. And neither do aims end e1(e!t with other aims. %he third rea,on i, that if he doe, get ,ome free time, hi, determination for the action might change and hi, intention might 1eaken. Al,o, there i, in the 'o,t'onement an element of claiming inde'endence from Allah and ,eeing for one,elf ,ome 'o1er or ,trength ... !ather, it i, obligatory on the ,ervant that he ru,h to 'erform action, in 1hatever condition he i, in and ,ei4e the fir,t available o''ortunity before death overtake him ,uddenly or he lo,e, hi, chance. &e ,hould al,o rely on Allah Mo,t &igh in making action, ea,y for him and in removing the barrier, bet1een the action, and him: >M. Do not a,k &im to take you out of a condition ,o that &e

u,e, you in another. If &e 1anted you, &e 1ould have u,ed you 1ithout taking you out. When a 'er,on i, in a ,tate that doe,n3t conform to hi, de,ire, regardle,, of 1hether the ,tate i, connected 1ith religion or the 1orld, he ,hould not 1ant to come out of it by him,elf. %hi, coming out 1ould lead him to o''o,e the command of the 're,ent time 1anting to make ,omething other than 1hat Allah ha, brought about ha''en, a, 1e have mentioned before <in hikma Q>J=. %hi, i, true a, long a, the re7ui,ite noted earlier hold,. "i.e. %hi, ,tate ,hould not conflict 1ith a command from Sacred Aa1 or cau,e one to commit a 'rohibited act.#

Al,o, he ,hould not o''o,e the command of the 're,ent time by re7ue,ting hi, Ma,ter to take him out of hi, current ,tate and u,e him in another, ,ince thi, i, choo,ing again,t Allah Mo,t &igh. %he ,ervant ha, no choice in thi, matter. !ather, he ,hould kee' good manner, 1ith Allah and 'refer &i, de,ire for him over hi, 'reference for him,elf. At thi, time, he 1ill reali4e the ,tation in 1hich he 1ill become ac7uainted 1ith the love of Allah Mo,t &igh and &i, de,ire for him. %hu,, &e 1ill u,e him in a loved 1ay 1hile the ,ervant ,tay, in hi, 're,ent condition. At thi, 'oint, Allah3, utili4ation of him 1ill be in accordance to &i, de,ire not the ,ervant3, de,ire for him,elf and thi, i, better. %he author ,ay, in al-Tanwir narrating from one of the di,ci'le, that the di,ci'le u,ed to ,ay, DI 1i,h I could leave all mean, of earning and 5u,t be given t1o loave, of bread each day.E &e meant by thi, to be free of the fatigue of earning a living. %he di,ci'le then ,aid, DI 1a, ,ub,e7uently im'ri,oned. %hen 1hen I 1a, in 'ri,on, I 1a, given t1o loave, of bread each day. My ,tay became 'rolonged until I became unha''y. So one day, I thought about my affair and it 1a, in,'ired to me, R@ou a,ked K, to give you t1o loave, of bread each day, but you didn3t a,k K, for relief. So, We gave you 1hat you a,ked for.3 I then a,ked for forgivene,, for thi, and returned to Allah Mo,t &igh. Shortly after1ard,, I heard a knock on the door of the 5ail cell and 1a, delivered from the 'ri,on.E %he author comment, on thi, narration, DSo learn a le,,on from thi, 6 believer and don9t re7ue,t that &e take you out from an affair and make you enter another a, long a, your current ,tate i, in accordance 1ith Sacred Aa1. (or a,king &im to take you out 1ould be kee'ing bad manner, 1ith Allah Mo,t &igh. !ather, be 'atient le,t you demand e-it <from your condition= by your,elf and be given 1hat you a,ked for 1hile being denied re,t in it. Perha', a leaver of ,omething and an enterer into another ,eeking

to find fortune and re,t may become fatigued and be faced 1ith hard,hi' a, a 'uni,hment for 'referring <thing, for him,elf=.E %hi, i, 1hat the author ha, ,aid in al-Tanwir and it i, like an e-'lanation of 1hat he mention, here. (or thi, rea,on, I have related it. )*. %he ,'iritual drive of the traveler doe, not 1ill to ,to' 1ith 1hat i, revealed to it e-ce't that the voice, of higher reality call out to him, CWhat you ,eek i, ,till ahead of you.C Neither do created thing, ,ho1 their beauty e-ce't that their realitie, call out to you, CWe are but a tem'tation, ,o di,believe not.C %he traveler to Allah Mo,t &igh i, e-'o,ed to ,'iritual light, and ,ho1n ,ecret, during hi, 5ourney. If hi, ,'iritual 1ill ,eek, to ,to' 1ith the,e thing, revealed to it thinking that they 1ill make him reach the utmo,t goal and the end of divine kno1ledge, the voice, of higher ,'iritual reality cry out to him, DWhat you ,eek i, ,till in front of you, ,o 'roceed earne,tly in the 5ourney and don3t ,to'.E Aike1i,e if out1ard created thing, di,'lay their beauty to the traveler and he incline, to1ard, them ..., their inner realitie, cry out to him, CWe are but a trial, ,o di,believe not. <allu,ion to al-2ur9an )0>*)= !ather, turn your eye, a1ay from thi, not 'aying attention to it and continue on your 5ourney and travel.C 8no1 that a, long a, you ,till have a ,'iritual a,'iration and 1ill, you are ,till on the 'ath and have not yet reached the de,tination. If you are annihilated from the,e t1o thing,, then indeed you have arrived. &o1 beautiful i, the ,tatement of Shaikh Abul &a,an al-%u,tari "rahmatullahi alaihi# about thi,0 &on,t t rn in yo r jo rney to anything besides Allah.

And ta#e -is remembran(e as a fortress. &on,t linger in any s!irit al station. It,s a veil, b t strive in the jo rney and as# for hel!. 8very time yo see a ran# revealed to yo , %e a!art from it, sin(e we have left its li#e. And say I do not want anything besides *o . ... I ,a1 ,ome good 1ord, from Sidi Abul &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# related to 1hat the author "May Allah &ave Mercy on &im# here mention, in their ... te-t, and a, I thought are I 1ould narrate them there ,ublime

benefit, and noble meaning, in them. &e "May Allah be 1ell'lea,ed 1ith him# ,aid, C8no1 that 1hen you 1ant a 'ortion of 1hat the friend, of Allah Mo,t &igh have, you have to give u' 'eo'le altogether e-ce't tho,e that guide to Allah Mo,t 1hich &igh 1ith ,incere direction the and 1ell-ba,ed the action, In don9t contradict 2ur9an nor Sunnah.

addition, you have to turn a1ay from the 1orld entirely 1hile not being among tho,e that turn a1ay from it in order that they may be given ,omething. !ather, in turning a1ay be a ,ervant of Allah commanded by &im to leave &i, enemy. If you 'ractice the,e t1o 7ualitie, "i.e. "># turning, a1ay from 'eo'le and ")# con,idering the 1orld in,ignificant#, ,tand ,teadfa,t 1ith Allah being a1are of &im, re'enting to1ard, turning &im, to kee'ing &im, and your duty, a,king to for &i, forgivene,,, la1,. %he ,urrendering

e-'lanation of the,e: 'oint, i, that you become a ,ervant of Allah in 1hat you 'artake and leave. Al,o, you ,hould 1atch your heart ,o it doe,n9t ,ee anything in the kingdom that i,n9t &i,. If your heart ,ee, ,uch, the voice, from the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= ... 1ill call out, 9@ou have been blinded from the right 'ath.9 &o1 can you claim to be <di,charging your duty to be= 1atchful of Allah 1hen you have

heard

&i,

,tatement0

9And

Allah

i,

ever

1atchful

over

everything.9 <Al-2ur9an ++0G)= When you reali4e thi,, ,hame 1ill overtake you cau,ing you to re'ent to1ard, &im ... So, ,tick to re'entance 1hile guarding your heart that it not ,ee the like of thi, from you in any ,ituation le,t you return to 1hat you left. If you conform to all of the,e guideline,, voice, from the %ruth Mo,t &igh 1ill call out, C!e'entance a''eared from &im and fre7uent turning to the Divine follo1ed it from &im.C <Al,o kno1 that= occu'ying your,elf 1ith your o1n 7ualitie, i, a veil from your goal. At thi, 'oint, your attribute, 1ill become a''arent and you 1ill ,eek 'rotection 1ith Allah from them a,king &im for forgivene,,, turning to1ard, &im. Seeking forgivene,, 1hile i, re7ue,ting to &i, a cover from If your you o1n ,eek

attribute,

returning

attribute,.

forgivene,, and turn to1ard, &im, &e 1ill call u'on you ,hortly, 9Submit to My command,, leave arguing 1ith Me, and be ,teadfa,t 1ith My de,ire abandoning your o1n. Aord,hi' take, charge of ,lavehood, ,o be like a bonded ,lave not able to do anything. (or 1hen you ,ee for your,elf ,ome 'o1er, I 1ill leave you to fend for your,elf. I am a1are of all thing,.9 If you act in accordance to thi, and ,tick to it, you 1ill look u'on ,ecret,, 1hich almo,t cannot be heard from anyone in the univer,e. )>. @our a,king &im i, a charge again,t &im. @our a,king for &im i, <due to= your ab,ence from &im. @our a,king for other than &im i, due to your lack of mode,ty in front of &im. @our a,king from other than &im i, due to being far from &im. %here are four 1ay, the ,ervant a,k, and all of the,e are faulty0 "># a,king from Allah, ")# a,king for Allah &im,elf, "+# a,king for other than &im, and "L# a,king from other than &im. <A, for the fir,t=, a,king for ,omething from &im i, an accu,ation

"charge# again,t &im. If the ,ervant 'ut hi, tru,t in Allah to ,end him hi, need, 1ithout a,king, he 1ould not demand anything from &im. <A, for the ,econd=, a,king for Allah &im,elf i, <a ,ign= of being ab,ent from &im, ,ince the 'er,on already in &i, 're,ence doe, not a,k <for Allah=. <A, for the third=, a,king for other than &im ,ho1, a lack of mode,ty on the 'art of the ,ervant. If he 1ere mode,t in front of &im, he 1ould 1ithdra1 from 1hat &e di,like, ,uch a, a,king for other than &im. Not mentioning other than Allah nor 'referring anything over &im are among the ty'e, of mode,ty that &e ha, a right to. (inally, a,king from other than Allah i, due to the ,ervant9, remotene,, from &im. If he 1ere clo,e to &im, other, 1ould be far from the ,ervant and he 1ould not a,k anything from them. %herefore, all a,king i, faulty according to tho,e 1ho declare Allah9, onene,, and kno1 &im, regardle,, of 1hether thi, a,king i, concerned 1ith the %ruth or creation. &o1ever, the e-ce'tion, are a,king in order to kee' good manner, 1ith Allah, to do ,o a, an act of 1or,hi', to follo1 Allah9, command <al-2ur9an L*0N*=, and to e-'re,, one, need and 'overty. In the,e ca,e,, a,king Allah ha, no fault in it. )). you. ?reath, are minute interval, of time that ,ucce,,ively come over the ,ervant a, long a, he i, alive. So, every breath that he take, i, a ve,,el for a decree from the decree, of the %ruth Mo,t &igh that &e carrie, out, 1hatever it may be. Allah Mo,t &igh3, command, and decree, have immer,ed the ,ervant3, minute,. All the,e moment, re7uire from him obligatory right, from the right, of Allah Mo,t &igh that he ha, to undertake. %he ,ervant i, re,'on,ible for the,e right, and hi, ,erie, of breath, are an entru,ted 'ro'erty belonging to the %ruth. When the ,ervant <reali4e, thi,=, there remain, no domain for him to 'lan out hi, Not a breath you take, e-ce't &e ha, a decree to 'a,, over

1orldly affair,, nor any 'lace left for follo1ing hi, lu,t, and de,ire,. )+. Do not 1ait for freedom from your current condition, ,ince

that 1ill 'revent you from being mindful of &im 1here &e ha, 'laced you. When Allah 'lace, a ,ervant in a condition among the condition,, it i, obligatory for him to fulfill it, right, and ,tick to good manner,. &e ,hould not 1ait for another time in 1hich he 1ill be free from hi, current ,tate, ,ince ho'ing for another time 1ill 'revent him from fulfilling the right, and obligation, of the 're,ent time he i, 'laced in. %hi, ho'ing for another time i, o''o,ite to 1hat i, demanded of him. So, let the di,ci'le avoid thi,. Abu &af, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, D%he true di,ci'le i, the one 1ho i, in accord 1ith the command of the 're,ent time. When ,omething come, to 'reoccu'y him a1ay from the command of the 're,ent time, he ha, an aver,ion to it and i, 1ary of it.E Shaikh Sahl ibn Abdullah "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, DWhen night

dra1, u'on you, don3t ho'e for the day until your night ha, become ,ound, you3ve di,charged the right of Allah in it, and you3ve been ,incere in it to your,elf. Similarly 1hen you enter the morning, do like1i,e.E Shaikh Sahl "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1a, a,ked about 1hen the di,ci'le find, re,t. &e re'lied, DWhen he doe,n3t ,ee any time other than the time he i, 're,ently in.E Shaikh Al-?agha1i "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,ay, in hi, e-ege,i,

about &i, Mo,t &igh3, ,tatement, DAnd We te,t you 1ith mi,fortune and <1ith= good.C <Al-2ur3an )>0+G=, it mean,0 hard time, and ea,y time,, health and ,ickne,,, and 1ealth and 'overty. It i, al,o ,aid it mean,, RWe te,t you 1ith 1hat you like and di,like

,o that We may ,ee your thankfulne,, in 1hat you like and your 'atience in 1hat you di,like.3E )L. Don9t find the occurrence of trouble, ,trange a, long a, you

are in thi, 1orld, for the 1orld doe, not e-'o,e e-ce't 1hat de,erve, it, attribute and nece,,arily ha, it, 7uality. Allah Mo,t &igh a''ointed the 1orld a, an abode for trial and tribulation ,o that everyone 1ould 1ork according to 1hat had been 'reviou,ly ordained for him and be re'aid hi, re1ard in the abode of the hereafter. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, CAnd 1e te,t you 1ith evil and good a, a trial.C <Al-2ur9an )>0+G= %he action, of every 'er,on in the 1orld are either in o''o,ition to hi, de,ire, or in accordance 1ith them. Inevitably by 'erforming action, or leaving them, one incur, liked or di,liked thing,. So, among the nece,,itie, of the 1orld i, the e-i,tence of di,liked thing,, hard,hi',, and turbidity. In ,hort, the 1orld i, com'ri,ed of delu,ive matter, that 'eo'le3, di,'o,ition, tend to follo1. &o1ever, the 1orld cannot ,u''ort all of <it, inhabitant9,= 1ant, becau,e of it, re,triction,, ,carcity, 7uickne,, of 'a,,ing, and tendency to ,li' a1ay. %herefore, it, 'eo'le com'ete among them,elve, to obtain it cau,ing their live, to become grimy 1hile they are unable to fully reali4e their aim,... Di,liked event, e,,ential to the 1orld are not to be taken a, ,trange ,ince only that come, forth from the 1orld 1hich de,erve, it, characteri,tic and nece,,arily carrie, it, attribute. %he 1i,dom behind thi, 1ill be narrated along 1ith the author9, ,tatement, C&e ha, only made it a 'lace for other than &im and a ,ource for turbidity ,o that you may con,ider it in,ignificant.C <&ikma Q))M=

In ,ome ,torie,, it ha, been narrated that Imam Pa far al-Sadi7 "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, CWhoever ,eek, that 1hich 1a, not created make, him,elf tired and i, not given <it=.C &e 1a, a,ked about 1hat thi, thing 1a,. &e re'lied, C!e,t "rela-ation# in the 1orld.C %hey have recited in thi, meaning0 *o see# rest in the ho se of fatig e.

Failed is he who see#s what is not. Some elo7uent 'eo'le have ,aid, C%he ,eeker of ,afety in the abode of ruin and de,truction i, like the one rolling in the du,t a, ,nake, and ,cor'ion, a''roach.C Sayyidna Ibn Ma, ud "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C%he entirety of the 1orld i, a cau,e for di,tre,,, ,o 1hatever ha''ine,, come, out of it i, a ,econdary gain.C Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CI don9t find ,ur'ri,ing un'lea,ant 1hat come, to me from the 1orld. I have come u'on a fundamental 'rinci'le0 %he 1orld i, a 'lace of an-iety, ,orro1, and tribulation. It i, entirely bad and i, e-'ected to thro1 at me everything I di,like. If it 1ere to give me everything I love, thi, 1ould be an e-ce'tion; el,e, it, original ,tate i, 1hat I mentioned fir,t.C Sidi Abu %urab "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C6 'eo'le, you love three thing, 1hile they are not for you. @ou love the ,elf, but it belong, to it, de,ire,. @ou love the life ,'irit, but it belong, to Allah. (inally, you love 1ealth, but it belong, to your inheritor,. In addition, you ,eek t1o thing, <in the 1orld= 1hich you do not find0 "># re,t and ")# ha''ine,,. %he,e t1o thing, are only in Paradi,e.C

%hu,, it i, obligatory for the ,ervant not to 're'are him,elf for re,t in the 1orld nor ,hift to1ard, 1hat call, to ha''ine,, and intimacy in the 1orld. !ather, he ,hould act according to the &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement narrated from Sayyidna Abu &urairah "radhi3Allahu anhu#0 C%he 1orld i, the 'ri,on of the believer.C /-'ecting trial, in life make, ea,y for the ,ervant 1hat he actually come, acro,, and give, con,olation to him 1hen 1hat he de,ire, in not found ... Aet the di,ci'le meet 1hat come, to him of the,e <unde,irable= matter, 1ith 'atience, contentment, and ,ubmi,,ion to the divine decree. Allah 1illing, ,hortly the affair <i.e. life= 1ill come to an end and he 1ill receive 'lenteou, re1ard from Allah Mo,t &igh. Allah Mo,t &igh i, the Giver of ,ucce,,. Shaikh Ahmad ibn Abu al-&a1ari "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CSidi Abu Sulaiman al-Darani a "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid to a me, 9A little hunger, little in,ufficient clothing, little

humiliation, a little 'atience, and the day, of the 1orld 1ill e-'ire for you.9 C 8no1 that 1hat 1e mentioned concerning 'atience i, the ,um of all merit, and the ba,i, of all : noble and e-alted benefit,. Allah Mo,t &igh ,aid, CAnd the beautiful 1ord of your Aord became com'lete for the Bhildren of I,rael a, they 1ere 'atient.C <Al2ur9an J0>+J= &e Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid, CWe made among them leader, guided by 6ur command 1hen they 1ere 'atient.C <Al-2ur9an +)0)L= Al,o, mighty be the 6ne 1ho ,aid, C6nly the 'atient are fully 'aid their re1ard 1ithout re,triction.C <Al-2ur9an +M0>*= In en5oining Sayyidna Ibn Abba, "radhi3Allahu anhu#, the

Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CIf you are able to 1ork for Allah 1ith contentment in certainty, do ,o. If you are not able, be 'atient becau,e there i, a lot of good in 'atience 1ith 1hat you di,like.C 8no1 that victory come, after 'atience, relief after di,tre,,, and ea,y time, after hard time,.

Sayyidna

Kmar ibn al-8hattab "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid to a man,

CIf you are 'atient, Allah9, command 1ill 'a,, and you 1ill be re1arded. If you are irritated, Allah9, command 1ill be decreed and you 1ill be 1eakened.C Imam Ali "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, CPatience i, a riding animal

that doe,n9t fall flat on it, face and a ,1ord that doe,n9t bounce off <it, target=.C Sayyidna Ibn Abba, "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C%he be,t of

're'aration i, 'atience enduring hard,hi'.C In ,ome narration, it ha, been ,aid, CWaiting for relief <during hard,hi'= 1ith 'atience i, 1or,hi'.C Whoever em'loy, 'atience during di,a,ter, and count, it among hi, bigge,t 're'aration, and mean, i, correct in hi, mind,et and ,ucce,,ful in hi, effort. Bontra,tingly, 1hoever i, irritated 1ith calamitie, and agitated 1hen heavy blo1, de,cend i, 1orking to1ard, 1hat increa,e, him in harm. Such a 'er,on 1ill ac7uire a burden and re1ard 1ill ,li' a1ay from him, and ho1 great i, the lo,,, a, i, ,aid0 +hen a misfort ne befalls yo , bear it with !atien(e, For how m (h greater is the misfort ne of not being !atient with a trial. It i, al,o ,aid0 *o are rewarded for losing a loved one.

So, don,t let the reward !ass away while the loved one doesn,t ret rn. )G. No aim i, halted that you ,eek through your Aord and no aim

i, made ea,y that you ,eek through your,elf.

Whoever carrie, out hi, need, through Allah Mo,t &igh, take, ,helter 1ith &im, and tru,t, &im in all affair,, Allah ,uffice, him all 'rovi,ion. /very remote goal come, clo,e to him and every hard matter become, ea,y for him. <Bontra,tingly=, 1hoever re,t, to1ard, hi, o1n kno1ledge and intelligence and relie, on hi, o1n ,trength and 'o1er, Allah let, him fend for him,elf, abandon, him, de'rive, him of &i, ,ucce,,, and di,regard, him. Bon,e7uently, hi, goal, are not met and hi, aim, are not made ea,y. %hi, i, kno1n for certain from te-t, of Sacred Aa1 and variou, <'er,onal= e-'erience,. I ,ay0 %he ,tatement of the author "May Allah have mercy on him# in thi, matter i, general including every aim from religiou, one, and 1orldly one, that return to religion. %he mo,t noble of the,e 'ur,uit, and the one 1ith the mo,t barrier, and 'lace, for ruin i, that of the di,ci'le trying to tread the 'ath to divine unity. %hu,, clinging and returning to Allah Mo,t &igh in all <of the 'ath9,= 'art, i, more fitting and obligatory. %herefore, it i, certainly relevant and im'ortant that the author 7ualify thi, general ,tatement 1ith one that ,ingle, out the matter 1ith more 1ord,. (or thi, rea,on he ,ay,0 )N. 6ne of the herald, of ,ucce,, in ending, i, returning to Allah Mo,t &igh in beginning,. %he di,ci'le ha, a beginning and an ending 'oint <in the 'ath=. &i, beginning i, the 'eriod of hi, travel <on the 'ath= 1hile hi, ending i, hi, reaching <Allah=. Whoever correct, hi, beginning by returning to Allah Mo,t &igh, relying on &im, and a,king &im for hel' "a, 1e have mentioned before#, 'ro,'er, and ,ucceed, in hi, ending reaching Allah Mo,t &igh. %hu,, he i, ,aved from turning back or being cut off. 6ne of the Shaikh, ha, ,aid, C&e 1ho turn, back, turn, back only from the 'ath. If they had reached <Allah=, they 1ould not have turned back.C Whoever doe, not correct <hi,

travel= 1ith 1hat 1e have mentioned concerning clinging to the %ruth and fleeing to &im from hi, o1n ,elf and other creation i, cut off and forced back to 1here he came from. 6ne of the ,cholar, ,aid, CWhoever imagine, that he 1ill reach Allah Mo,t &igh through other than &im i, cut off. Whoever ,eek, hel' from hi, o1n ,elf in the 1or,hi' of Allah Mo,t &igh i, left to fend for him,elf.C %hu,, it i, obligatory on the traveling ,ervant to make the reliance of hi, affair the ,eeking of hel' from Allah Mo,t &igh. %he traveler ,hould not ,ee any 'o1er or ,trength for him,elf in abundant 1ork, or ,mall one,. %hi, i, the ba,i, of the travel on 1hich it, 'rece't, are formed. )J. Whoever9, beginning ,hine,, hi, ending al,o ,hine,.

%hi, i, another 1ay of ,aying ,omething ,imilar to 1hat ha, 5u,t 'a,,ed. %he ,hining of the di,ci'le9, beginning i, through hi, returning to Allah Mo,t &igh in hi, im'ortant affair, and relying on &im in hi, mi,fortune,. %he ,hining in hi, ending i, reaching clo,ene,, to &im and coming into &i, 're,ence. )F. What i, enclo,ed in the hidden inner-,elf a''ear,

e-ternally. %hi, kno1n trace, divine a,,e,, ,tatement ... %hi, of 1hat de,cribe, a ,ign by 1hich the ,tate of the the of

di,ci'le "traveler# and 1hat hi, inner-,elf i, made u' of can be i, becau,e Allah and the e-terior in heart, i, a and ,ho1 1ant, mirror for inner-,elve, u'on to the kee' interior ... (ace, hold, the mark, of 1hat cover, the heart. %he enclo,e, light, by kno1ledge3, the un,een inevitably him 1ho body hi,

'art,. %hu,, the vi,ible 'art of the ,ervant can be u,ed to 'art com'anion,hi', deal 1ith him, or the like. Abu &af, "rahmatullahi

alaihi#

,aid,

C/legant

e-ternal

manner,

are

,ign,

of

elegant

internal manner,.E %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CIf the heart of thi, <'er,on= humbled, hi, limb, 1ould <al,o= humble.C When Abu &af, "rahmatullahi alaihi# arrived in Ira7, Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# came to him and ,a1 the com'anion, of Abu &af, "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1aiting on him follo1ing hi, direction 1ithout fault. Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C6 Abu &af, you have taught your com'anion, the manner, <di,'layed in front= of king,. &e re'lied, CNo 6 Abul 2a,im. !ather, elegant e-ternal manner, are ,ign, of elegant internal manner,.C I ,ay0 It i, more ,tre,,ed that the di,ci'le become a1are of hi, o1n ,elf, u,e hi, in,ight about it, and not be du'ed into imagining that hi, internal ,elf can become 'ro'er 1ithout hi, e-ternal ,elf al,o being ,o. Whoever claim, to have kno1ledge of Allah Mo,t &igh and &i, love in hi, heart 1hile the fruit, of thi, do not a''ear on hi, e-terior "e.g., being cra4ed 1ith &i, remembrance, ru,hing to follo1 &i, command, having e-uberance due to &i, 're,ence, re5oicing 1ith the certainty of &i, 1itne,,ing, running a1ay from ob,tacle, that bu,y from &im, and forgetting about intermediarie, 1hich di,tance from &im# i, fal,e in hi, claim, taking hi, de,ire a, hi, god. If <in addition to thi,= he i, characteri4ed by the o''o,ite of the aforementioned 7ualitie, and leave, 1ith hi, e-terior the road of moderation, he i, even more untruthful in hi, claim. &i, ,tate i, clo,er to hy'ocri,y and 'olythei,m. Shaikh Abu C%alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CAllah ha, de,cribed the di,believer, a, tho,e 1ho 1hen Allah alone i,

mentioned, their heart, become con,trained and 1hen other than &im i, mentioned, they re5oice. &e ha, al,o de,cribed them a, tho,e 1ho 1hen Allah Mo,t &igh i, mentioned in &i, unity and ,ingularity, they de,'i,e thi, and di,like it. <Bontra,tingly=, 1hen other than &im i, a,,ociated 1ith &im, they find it true. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, DAnd 1hen Allah alone i, mentioned, the heart, of tho,e that don9t believe in the hereafter feel di,gu,t and 1hen other than &im are mentioned, they re5oice.E <Al-2ur9an +M0LG= &e al,o ha, ,aid, D%hat i, becau,e 1hen Allah alone 1a, called u'on, you di,believed and if &e 1a, a,,ociated 1ith, you believed.E <Al-2ur9an L*0>)= Di,belief "kufr# i, actually the act of covering u' and

a,,ociating ",hirk# i, mi-ing "i.e. mi-ing 1ith &i, remembrance the remembrance of other than &im#. %hen &e <Mo,t &igh= ,aid, D<?ut= the command i, for Allah, the &igh, the Great.E <Al-2ur9an L*0>)= &e i, the &igh in &i, tremendou,ne,,, the Great i, &i, reign. %here i, no 'artner 1ith &im in &i, dominion and &i, be,to1al. &e ha, no e7ual 1ith &im from &i, ,ervant,. Among the im'lication, of thi, ,tatement and under,tanding it, direction i, that the believer, re5oice and their brea,t, become e-'anded and ,'aciou, 1hen they Allah di,like i, it mentioned and their in &i, unity feel and ,ingularity. %hi, i, an <Bonver,ely=, 1hen mean, and cau,e, other than &im are mentioned, heart, di,gu,t. accurate ,ign. So, recogni4e it in your heart and the heart, of other, for it 'oint, to the 're,ence of Allah9, unity or of ,ubtle 'olythei,m in the heart :.C I ,ay0 %hi, matter that the 1ord, of Shaikh Abu %alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# mention i, among the greate,t marker, and cleare,t ,ign, about the truthfulne,, of the truthful and the fal,ity of the liar.

In thi, ,ection, 1e 1anted to take the o''ortunity to mention the,e ,trange ... and unfamiliar 'oint,, due to the ,trangene,, of faith in thi, vile time 1hen delu,ion and ignorance ha, overtaken tho,e a,,ociated 1ith religiou, kno1ledge and bounty. It 1a, 1ell that 1e narrated the,e 1ord, in ,hort form ,o that the traveling di,ci'le may act according to them and follo1 the cleare,t of 'ath, in being ,incere to hi, Aord in hi, faith. %reat from in like manner and all ,tatement, <in thi, book= 1ho,e the

a''ro'riatene,, doe, not a''ear to you ,o that you may be ,afe o''o,ition your a,'iration may ri,e above 1hat 'eo'le 1ith di,ea,ed heart, are enamored 1ith. May Allah ,ave u, from that 1ith &i, favor and bounty. )M. What a difference there i, bet1een him 1ho u,e, Allah to 'rove <the e-i,tence of other,= and him 1ho u,e, <other,= to 'rove Allah9, e-i,tence. %he former kno1, reality for Whom it i,; ,o, he affirm, the matter from it, origin. %he latter ha,n9t yet reached "kno1ledge of# &im. 6ther1i,e, 1hen 1a, &e ab,ent that &i, e-i,tence needed to be 'roved and 1hen 1a, &e far that other, 1ould be needed to reach &imI %he children of Nabi Adam "alaihi ,alam# in the fir,t coming forth, the beginning of their creation, and their coming out from the bellie, of their mother, are ,tam'ed 1ith ignorance and the ab,ence of kno1ledge. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, CAnd Allah take, you out from the bellie, of your mother, 1hile you do not kno1 anything.C <Al- 2ur9an >N0JF= %hen, Allah 'ick, ,ome of them for &i, ,'ecial attention and make, them fit for &i, clo,ene,, by the mean, of ac7uiring kno1ledge referred to in &i, Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 CAnd &e a''ointed for you hearing, ,ight, and heart,.C <Al-2ur9an >N0JF= %hi, i, 1hat make, them reali4e the connection and obligate, for them the clo,ene,, 'ointed to in &i, Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 CSo that you may be thankful.C <Al-2ur3an >N0JF= <In addition=, &e made them into t1o grou',0 "># tho,e

de,ired and ")# tho,e 1ho de,ire; or you may ,ay0 "># tho,e attracted and ")# tho,e traveling. &o1ever in reality, both grou', are being attracted <to Allah=. Allah Mo,t &igh ,aid, CAllah dra1, to1ard, &im 1hom &e 1ill, and guide, L)0>+= %ho,e 1ho de,ire "i.e. the traveler, to Allah Mo,t &igh# are veiled from their Aord during their 5ourney by ,eeing other than &im <a, e-i,tent= and the effect, of &i, action,. %he created univer,e i, a''arent to them and "in their o'inion# i, e-i,tent 1hile the %ruth Mo,t &igh i, ab,ent from their vi,ion, ,o they are unable to 'erceive &im. Bon,e7uently 1hile they are a,cending, they u,e the created univer,e to try to 'rove &i, e-i,tence. A, for tho,e 1ho are de,ired "i.e. tho,e attracted <to Allah=#, the %ruth Mo,t &igh face, them 1ith &i, mo,t noble Bountenance and make, &im,elf kno1n to them. So through &im, they kno1 &im. When they become kno1er, of &im in thi, manner, thing, other than &im are veiled from them. %herefore, they do not ,ee the,e other thing, and u,e &im to 'rove the e-i,tence of them 1hile they are de,cending. %hu, i, the condition of the t1o faction,. What a difference there i, bet1een them. "Meaning, the di,tance bet1een them i, great.# %hi, i, becau,e the 'er,on 1ho u,e, Allah to 'rove the e-i,tence of other than &im recogni4e, the truth "i.e. <Allah9,= nece,,ary e-i,tence# for Whom it belong, "i.e. for the 6ne Who e-clu,ively affirm, the ha, the attribute "i.e. the of beginningle,, eternity# from and it, matter non-e-i,tent effect,# to1ard, &im the one 1ho turn, 'enitently.C <Al-2ur9an

origin "i.e. the /ffector 1ho,e e-i,tence i, real#.

%he one 1ho u,e, other thing, to 'rove Allah9, e-i,tence i, in a ,tate o''o,ite to 1hat 1e 5u,t mentioned, ,ince he trie, to 'rove the e-i,tence of the 8no1n by u,ing the unkno1n, and the /-i,tent by u,ing the non-e-i,tent and the A''arent by u,ing the concealed. %hi, condition i, due to the 're,ence of hi, veil, hi, ,to''ing 1ith cau,e,, and hi, not reaching clo,ene,, <to Allah=. 6ther1i,e, 1hen 1a, &e ab,ent that &i, e-i,tence needed to be 'roved u,ing thing, 're,entI 6r 1hen 1a, &e far that clo,e-by created thing, 1ould be needed to reach &imI 6r 1hen 1a, &e mi,,ing that effect, 're,ent 1ould be the one, 'ointing to &imI <In thi, conte-t=, one of them ha, ,aid0 I am ama9ed at him who wants a witness for *o , +hen it is *o who have made him witness everything.

%he author ,ay, in $ata,if al-Minan, C8no1 that 'roof, are only for him 1ho ,eek, the %ruth, not for him 1ho 1itne,,e, &im. %hi, i, becau,e the eye1itne,, i, freed <from needing 'roof,= by the clarity of hi, vi,ion. 8no1ledge i, <fir,t= gained by the mean, that are needed to reach it, then in it, end it become, like ,econd nature. A, thing, e-i,t in the material 1orld 1hich do not need to be 'roved given their clarity, it i, more fitting for the Breator of material thing, to be free from needing 'roof, <for &i, e-i,tence=....C %hen he ,aid, CAnd among the ,trange,t of <idea,= i, that created thing, are needed to reach &im. It baffle, me, for do they have any e-i,tence in front of &im that they can make <one= reach &imI 6r do they have more clarity than &im that they be the one, that make &im a''arentI If created thing, hel' <one= to reach &im, it i, not becau,e of their o1n intrin,ic 7uality, but becau,e &e &im,elf ha, a''ointed for them the ability of conveyance... &o1ever, divinity. nothing &e i, really the Wi,e make, <one= reach &im e-ce't &i, <for

6ne Who

laid do1n

the cau,e,

thing,= 1hich are for tho,e 1ho ,to' 1ith them; tho,e 1ho,e abilitie, have not 'ierced the veil. +*. CAet the one 1ho ha, much ,'end from itC <Al-2ur9an NG0J= <de,cribe,= tho,e 1ho have reached &im 1hile C1hoever9, ,u,tenance i, narro1ed ,hould ,'end from 1hat Allah ha, given himC <Al-2ur9an NG0J= <de,cribe,= tho,e traveling to &im. %hi, i, a nice allu,ion to the ,tate of the t1o 'artie,. When tho,e 1ho reach Allah Mo,t &igh come out from the 'ri,on of ,eeing other than &im into the va,tne,, of &i, onene,, and into 'erfect 'erce'tion, the limit of their vi,ion e-'and, and they ,'end from their va,tne,, ... "of kno1ledge a, they 1i,h#. %he traveler,, <on the other hand=, have a ,traitened 'rovi,ion of kno1ledge and under,tanding and are im'ri,oned in the narro1 ground of fancie, and form,. %hu,, they ,'end from 1hat Allah give, them of ,traitened 'rovi,ion. +>. %ho,e 5ourneying to &im are guided by the light, of turning

to &im 1hile tho,e 1ho have reached &im have light, from facing &im. %he fir,t grou' i, o1ned by the light, 1hile the ,econd o1n, the light, ,ince they are for Allah and nothing el,e0 CSay, 9Allah9, then leave them in their u,ele,,ne,, 'laying.C <Al2ur9an N0M>= Aight, of turning to &im are 1hat emanate, from the traveler, to Allah Mo,t &igh of act, of 1or,hi', dealing,, bearing hard time,, and ,truggle,. A, for light, from facing &im, they are 1hat come from Allah to them of becoming ac7uainted 1ith, dra1ing clo,er to, befriending, and loving &im. %he fir,t grou' are ,lave, of the light,, ,ince they need them in reaching their de,ire. %he other grou' o1n the light,, a, they are free from needing them, and are for Allah and nothing el,e. %hi, meaning 1ill be related 1hen the author ,ay,, C@ou are 1ith created thing, a, long a, you

do not 1itne,, the Breator. (or 1hen you 1itne,, &im, created thing, are 1ith you.C <&ikma )LF= Allah Mo,t &igh ,aid, CSay, 9Allah,9 and leave them in their u,ele,,ne,, 'laying.C <Al-2ur3an N0M>= <%rue= unifying of Allah i, by di,regarding other than &im and i, the reality of certainty. Seeing other than Allah i, u,ele,,ne,, and 'lay, 1hich are among the attribute, of liar, and hy'ocrite,. Allah Mighty and Aofty ,ay, about them, CAnd 1e u,ed to engage in u,ele,,ne,, 1ith the idle.C <Al-2ur9an al-JL0LG= Allah Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid, C?ut they are in doubt 'laying.C <Al-2ur3an LL0M= %hen he ,aid "May Allah be 1ell 'lea,ed 1ith him#0 +). @our eagerne,, to kno1 the fault, hidden 1ithin you i,

better for you than your eagerne,, to kno1 the un,een 1orld veiled from you. It i, befitting for the di,ci'le to be eager to kno1 the fault, of hi, ,elf hidden from him and to ,earch for them. %hi, i, the right of the %ruth Mo,t &igh on him, ,o he ,hould be avid for thi, and ,hould ,'end on it <the bulk= of hi, concern. <Doing ,o=, hi, action, 1ill become 'ure from the calamitie, of the heart, hi, ,tate, clear from turbidity, ignorance and delu,ion 1ill be negated from him, and hi, in,ide 1ill cea,e to be a field for evil.

Imam Abul &amid al-Gha4ali "rahmatullahi alaihi# mentioned in hi, book, 'iyaat al- .afs, a ,ection de,cribing ho1 a 'er,on can become a1are of hi, fault,. So, let the di,ci'le look in thi, book. %he gi,t of it, content i, four thing,0 %he di,ci'le can ,it in front of a Shaikh 1ho ha, in,ight about fault, and calamitie, of the heart and a''oint him a, a 5udge over hi, ,elf and follo1 the Shaikh3, direction.

%he di,ci'le can kee' the com'any of a ,incere friend and make him a 1atcher over hi, ,tate, and action, ,o that he may inform the di,ci'le of 1hat remain, hidden from him of hi, blame1orthy ,hortcoming,. %he di,ci'le can find out about hi, fault, from hi, enemie,, ,ince ,uch thing, undoubtedly flo1 on their tongue,: <(inally=, he can learn of ,uch thing, from mi-ing 1ith 'eo'le. In ,uch a ,tate, he 1ill be able to regard their bad characteri,tic,. When he ,ee, the,e characteri,tic, in them, he 1ill ackno1ledge that he too ha, all of the,e, ,ince the nature, of human, re,emble each other in thi,. And ,ometime, 1hat a''ear, to him in hi, o1n ,elf i, greater than 1hat he ,ee, in other,. In the,e ca,e,, the di,ci'le 1ill try to 'urify him,elf and di,tance him,elf from the,e attribute,. %hi, i, a ,ummary of 1hat he mentioned. %hen, he note, that all the,e ,trategie, are for him 1ho ha, not found an a,tute Shaikh that kno1, Allah, ha, concern for other,, and i, ,incere about the I,lamic religion. %hi, Shaikh ,hould be done training him,elf and occu'ied in ,incerely training the ,ervant, of Allah. A, for the di,ci'le ,eeking the un,een 1orld veiled from him "e.g. concealed de,tiny and ,ubtle kno1ledge3,#, it i, a ,elfi,h 'ortion, 1hich he ha, no right to from Allah Mo,t &igh. Aet the di,ci'le be 'lea,ed 1ithout it and let him not occu'y hi, mind or ,en,e, 1ith it. Al,o, he ,hould not find re,t in or de'end on 1hatever ha''en, to a''ear to him from the un,een 1orld, ,ince thi, i, among the fault, that infringe on ,lavehood. (or thi, rea,on, they have ,aid, D?e a ,eeker of continual 'racticing of I,lam "i,ti7ama# and don3t be a ,eeker of miracle,. @our lo1er ,elf get, e-cited about and ,eek, miracle, 1hile your Ma,ter ,eek, that you continually 'ractice I,lam. It i, better to be

1ith

the right

of your

Ma,ter than

to be

1ith your

,elfi,h

'ortion.E Among the ,torie, about thi, 'oint that 1e have mentioned i, 1hat ha, been related in the tale, of the 'eo'le of I,rael from Wahb ibn Munabbah "rahmatullahi alaihi# that a man from the children of I,rael fa,ted for ,eventy year, e-ce't for ,i- day, in each year. %hi, man a,ked Allah ?le,,ed and &igh be &e to ,ho1 him ho1 the devil, are em'o1ered over 'eo'le. When the 1aiting for a re,'on,e became 'rolonged, he ,aid, DIf only I 1ould become a1are of my fault, and ,in, that are bet1een me and my Aord, it 1ould have been better than thi, affair that I a,ked about.E So, Allah ,ent an angel to him 1ho told him, DIndeed Allah Mo,t &igh ,ent me to you and &e ,ay, to you, R%he,e 1ord, of your, that you uttered are more beloved to me than <all= your 1or,hi' that ha, 'a,,ed.3 Allah ha, o'ened u' your ,ight, ,o look :E <%he man then ,a1= the armie, of the Devil had encircled the earth and there 1a,n3t any one among 'eo'le e-ce't that the devil, 1ere ,urrounding him like flie,. So, the man a,ked, D6 Aord, 1ho 1ill be ,aved from thi,IE &e <Mo,t &igh= re'lied, D%he gentle-hearted religiou,ly-'recautiou, 'er,on.E %he elucidation that miracle, are not ,ought, nor re5oiced over by high-minded ,cholar, 1ill come 1hen the author ,ay,, DNot everyone 1ho,e electhood i, e,tabli,hed ha, had hi, liberation com'leted. <&ikma >>>= ++. %he %ruth "Mo,t &igh# i, not veiled. !ather, it i, you 1ho

i, veiled from looking at &im. If anything veiled &im, it 1ould cover &im u'. If anything could act a, a cover for &im, &i, e-i,tence 1ould have a re,trictor. ?ut, everything that re,trict, another i, in control of it 1hile &e i, in control of all &i, ,ervant,.

%he e-i,tence of a veil on the %ruth Mo,t &igh i, im'o,,ible. %he author ha, 'roved thi, 'oint by 1hat he mention, here. %hi, argument i, clear and not difficult to under,tand. Bonver,ely, the 're,ence of a veil on the ,ervant i, nece,,arily 'art of hi, being, ,ince the ,ervant i, no i, none-i,tent a, 1a, nonmentioned before; and there connection bet1een

e-i,tence and e-i,tence. &o1ever if Allah 1ill, to rai,e thi, veil from 1hom &e 1ill, and at the time &e 1ill,, the ,ervant ,ee, the 6ne CWhom nothing i, like and &e i, the &earing, the Seeing <al-2ur9an L)0>>=C. %hi, i, among the thing, one mu,t believe. +L. Aeave every trait of your human nature that contradict, your

,lavehood ,o that you may an,1er the call of the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= and be clo,e to &i, 're,ence. %he trait, of human nature that are connected 1ith religion are of t1o ty'e,0 "># tho,e that are connected to the e-ternal ,elf of the ,ervant "i.e. hi, limb,# 1hich are called action, and ")# tho,e that are connected 1ith hi, internal ,elf "i.e. hi, heart# 1hich are called belief,. (urther, tho,e trait, that are related to hi, e-ternal limb, are of t1o ty'e,. %he fir,t i, 1hat agree, 1ith the divine command and i, named obedience. %he ,econd i, 1hat di,agree, 1ith the divine command and i, named di,obedience. (urther tho,e trait, that are related to hi, interior are al,o of t1o ty'e,. %he fir,t i, 1hat agree, 1ith reality and i, called <,incere= faith. %he ,econd i, 1hat di,agree, 1ith reality and i, called hy'ocri,y and ignorance. %he branch of ,tudy that deal, 1ith the e-ternal a,'ect of the ,lave i, called "in technical vocabulary# Puri,'rudence "fi7h#.

Similarly, a,'ect i,

the

branch

of

,tudy

that

deal,

1ith

hi,

internal t1o

called

Internal

Purification

"ta,a11uf#.

%he,e

a,'ect, com'ri,e the totality of the ,ervant. (urthermore, hi, e-ternal ,elf nece,,arily follo1, the 1ay of hi, internal being. %hi, i, becau,e the heart i, like the king and the limb, are like it, ,oldier, and citi4enry. It i, cu,tomary for the citi4en, to obey the king in 1hat he order, and ,hun, again,t. %he Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# a''ri,ed <u,= of thi, meaning 1hen he ,aid, CIn the body i, a 'iece of fle,h. When it i, ,ound, the 1hole body i, ,ound; and 1hen it i, corru't, the 1hole body i, corru't. I, not <thi, 'iece of fle,h= the heartIC %he ,oundne,, of the heart can only come about by clean,ing it from all blame1orthy trait,, ,mall and large. %he,e blame1orthy trait, from the trait, of human nature are the one, that the author "May Allah Mo,t &igh have mercy u'on him# indicate, contradict ,lavehood. %he,e trait, brand their bearer 1ith the mark of hy'ocri,y and di,obedience. Such trait, are many among 1hich are0 "># 'rideful arrogance, ")# ,elf-conceit, "+# ,ho1ing off in good 1ork,, "L# boa,ting about good 1ork,, "G# malice, "N# re,entful envy, "J# loving 're,tige, and "F# loving 1ealth. (urthermore, many vile branche, ,'rout from the,e root

blame1orthy trait,, ,uch a,0 "># enmity, ")# hatred, "+# humbling one,elf in front of rich 'eo'le, "L# di,daining 'oor 'eo'le, "G# leaving clinging to Allah a, ,oon a, 'rovi,ion reache, one, "N# fearing a dro' in one9, ,ocial rank, "J# greed, "F# ,tingine,,, "M# feeling one i, going to live indefinitely, ">*# overbearing rudene,,, ">># di,liking the truth due to arrogance, ">)# rancor, ">+# di,loyalty, front ">L# for vain com'etition, ">N# ">G# 'utting an u' a ,u'erficial other,, e-'re,,ing attitude

different from 1hat one i, hiding, ">J# hardne,, of heart, ">F#

har,hne,,, ">M# coar,ene,,, ")*# forgetting about Allah, ")># roughne,,, "))# ficklene,,, ")+# ha,te, ")L# rage, ")G# 4eal for 1rong, ")N# being annoyed 1ith other,, ")J# not having much mercy, ")F# having little ba,hfulne,,, ")M# leaving contentment, "+*# loving leader,hi', "+># trying to be higher than other,, "+)# coming to the aid of one9, ego 1hen e-'o,ed to humiliation, "++# lo,ing control of one,elf 1hen o''o,ed in ,'eech, and the many other ,imilar blame1orthy lo1 trait,. %he root cau,e of all the branche, and the ,ource of it, ,'ring, i, only ,eeing one,elf <a, an e-i,tent entity 1ho i, at the center affair. of life9, root e-'erience,=, i, 1hat being 'lea,ed 1ith to the ,elf, making a big deal about it, rank, and rai,ing the 1orth of it, %hi, cau,e, di,believer, di,believe, hy'ocrite, to commit hy'ocri,y, the di,obedient to di,obey, and the one 1ho thro1, off the noo,e of ,lavehood <to Allah= from hi, neck to thro1 it off. %he author "May Allah have mercy u'on him# 1ill mention thi, 'oint in the ne-t hikma. %he traveler ,hould look to1ard, 1hat 1ill clean,e the lo1er ,elf and 'urify it from among the training e-erci,e, and ,y,tematic ,truggling techni7ue, that have been elucidated in book, about internal 'urification. Shaikh Abu %alib "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he di,ci'le

doe,n9t become among the ,ucce,,ively changing holy men "abdal#, until he e-change, the trait, of "claiming# lord,hi' for the trait, of ,lavehood, the trait, of the devil, for the trait, of the believer,, and the di,'o,ition of bea,t, for the action, of ,'irituali,t, ",uch a, reciting litanie, and gaining ,'iritual kno1ledge#. After ,uch an e-change, he 1ill become among the ,ucce,,ively changing holy men 1ho are brought clo,e.C &e continued by ,aying, C%he 1ay to do thi, i, for him to take control of hi, lo1er ,elf. ?y taking control of it, it 1ill become ,ub,ervient to him and he 1ill have ma,tery over it.

If you 1ant to take control of your ,elf, don9t give it reign. !ather, make thing, hard for it and don9t make thing, ea,y for it. If you let it have reign, it 1ill control you. If you don9t con,train it, it 1ill take you over. If you 1ant to gain victory again,t it, don9t let it have it, 1him,, but hold it back from the favorable thing, it, accu,tomed to. If you don9t firmly gra,' it, it9ll go off 1ith you. If you 1i,h to be ,tronger than it, make it 1eak by cutting off it, ,u''ort, and kee'ing it back from 1hat it love,; other1i,e, it9ll become ,tronger than you and 1re,tle you do1n.C So 1hen the di,ci'le doe, the,e thing, in the manner that the ,cholar, of the heart have laid out and ,tick, to the ta,k, that they have commanded him 1ith, hi, heart 1ill become clean and hi, ,elf 1ill become 'ure. &i, ,elf 1ill then take on the beautiful characteri,tic,, 1hich 1ill make him look beautiful among the ,ervant,, and 1ith them he 1ill obtain clo,ene,, to hi, Aord "a, much a, he could 1i,h for#. If ,uch i, the ca,e, 'rai,e1orthy trait, 1ill be manife,t on him, ,uch a,0 "># humblene,, for Allah, ")# ,ubmi,,ivene,, to &im, "+# reverence for &i, command, "L# kee'ing to the limit, &e9, ,et, "G# a1e of &im, "N# fearing &im, "J# feeling lo1 in front of &i, lord,hi', "F# ,incerity in ,lavehood addition, ,oftne,,, to the "L# &im, "M# contentment 1ill be 1ith &i, decree, by of the and ">*# ,eeing Allah9, favor u'on him in &i, holding back and giving. In ,ervant characteri4ed va,tne,, follo1ing "N# attribute, 1hen dealing 1ith 'eo'le0 "># 'ity, ")# mercy, "+# gentlene,,, "G# brea,t, forbearance, "J# bearing their harm, "F# 'rotecting their right,, "M# u'rightne,,, ">*# tru,t1orthine,,, ">># de'endability, ">)# affection, ">+# calmne,,, ">L# ,obriety, ">G# genero,ity, ">N# magnanimity, ">J# ba,hfulne,,, ">F# cheerfulne,,, ">M# ,incerity, ")*# kee'ing the heart ,ecure from ill thought, about them, and other attribute, of faith by 1hich the ,ervant reache, the utmo,t

bli,,, beauty, and more. ) When one of them die,, another human take, their 'lace. I ,ay0 %he,e t1o thing, "i.e. taking on good trait, and leaving bad trait,# i, 1hat the 'eo'le of Allah "May Allah be 1ell 'lea,ed 1ith them# term Cadorning one,elf 1ith good trait,C and Cem'tying one,elf of bad trait,C. %hey al,o ,ometime, call the latter 'urification and the former embelli,hment. %he,e t1o affair, are the reality of traveling the 'ath, 1hich they talk about. An allu,ion to thi, 'oint 1ill be mentioned along 1ith the author9, ,tatement0 CIf it 1ere not for the battlefield, of the lo1er ,elve,, the travel of tho,e traveling 1ould not come to be :C "&ikma Q)LL#. So, 1hen thi, travel i, reali4ed for the di,ci'le and end, u' at the be,t of abode,, hi, ,lavehood to hi, Aord "Mighty and Ma5e,tic be &e# i, al,o reali4ed. So, nothing other than &im o1n, or en,lave, him. %hu,, he ri,e, in clo,ene,, to hi, Aord to the noble,t of 'lace, a, a d1elling 'lace and re,idence. In ,uch a ca,e 1ill the ,ervant be a, the author ,tate, "in thi, hikma# C<be able= to an,1er the call of the %ruth.C %hu,, &e 1ill call on him by the title of C6 ,laveC and the ,ervant 1ill an,1er hi, Ma,ter u,ing the title of C6 Aord, I am at your ,ervice.C &e 1ill then be true in hi, an,1ering and reali4ed in hi, a,cri'tion <i.e. the a,cri'tion of being a ,lave of Allah=. Al,o, the ,ervant in ,uch circum,tance, 1ill Cbe clo,e to &i, 're,enceC, ,ince he 1ill be far from hi, lo1er ,elf 1hich trie, it, be,t to flee and run a1ay from &i, 're,ence. When the %ruth "Mo,t &igh# make, him ,tand in the ,tation of ,lavehood, he 1ill obtain the rank of clo,ene,, to the 're,ence of <&i,= Aord.. %he ,ervant 1ould then be ,aved from being overburdened and it 1ould be ea,y for him to act 1ith the action, of the elect. &e 1ould become adorned e-ternally and internally 1ith the noble,t of adornment, ac7uiring the merit of re,embling the higher gathering <i.e. of the angel,=.

Allah Mighty and Ma5e,tic ha, ,aid0 C%ho,e in &i, 're,ence aren9t too 'roud to 1or,hi' &im, nor do they get tired. %hey ,ing 'rai,e, by night and day never cea,ing.C <Al-2ur9an )>0>M-)*= Allah Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid0 CIndeed tho,e in the 're,ence of your Aord aren9t too 'roud to 1or,hi' &im. %hey glorify &im and 'ro,trate to &im.C <Al-2ur9an J0)*N= Allah "Mighty be the ,'eaker# al,o ,ay,0 C%hey don9t di,obey Allah in 1hat &e command, them 1ith, but do a, they are ordered.C <Al-2ur9an NN0N= So, the rank of ,lavehood made them <i.e. the angel,= get thi, ,'ecialne,,. %he ,ame i, the ca,e for tho,e among the be,t of the 'eo'le of Allah 1ho take on the beautiful characteri,tic, of the angel,. not Although the latter grou' %he <unlike the angel, ,avedC and and 'ro'het,= i, only 'artially ,aved from act, of di,obedience and divinely 'rotected. term, C'artially Cdivinely 'rotectedC have been differentiated <by the ,cholar, of thi, kno1ledge=. %he difference i, 1hat Shaikh Abul 2a,im al2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# mentioned0 C%he divinely 'rotected one never commit, a ,in 1hile the 'artially ,aved 'er,on doe, e-'erience ,li', "i.e. act, of di,obedience# on rare occa,ion,. &o1ever, thi, 'artially ,aved 'er,on doe, not 'er,i,t in ,in,0 C%ho,e are the one, that re'ent to Allah ,hortly "after1ard,#.C <allu,ion to al-2ur9an L0>J= And Allah Mo,t &igh ha, de,cribed &i, ,'ecial ,ervant, "'urified and tried# in noble ver,e, 1ith a lofty and tremendou, de,cri'tion and &e ha, 're'ared for them for thi, much good. &e Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, C%he ,ervant, of the Merciful are the one, that 1alk in the earth humbly and 1hen the ignorant confront them, they ,ay, 9Peace.9C u' to &i, ,tatement, C%herein they ,hall d1ell forever, a beautiful 'lace of re,t and ,tay.C <Al-2ur9an )G0N+-JN= @ou ,hould al,o look at 1hat the ,cholar, of e-ege,i, have ,aid about the,e ver,e, and al,o at 1hat tho,e that take derivative mean, have ,aid. A, for tho,e 'eo'le other than <in the category the ver,e,

mention=, they are ,lave, of their lo1er de,ire,, en,laved by

their 1orldly ,elfi,h gain,. Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,0 C&ave you ,een the one 1ho take, hi, de,ire a, hi, god:C <Al-2ur9an )G0L+= %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, a, i, related from him, CWretched i, the ,lave of the gold coin and 1retched al,o i, the ,lave of the ,ilver coin:C %hi, latter grou' of 'eo'le are the ,lave, of the counted number of thing, mentioned in &i, Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 C%here i,n9t anything in the heaven, and the earth e-ce't that it come, to the Merciful a, a ,lave. &e ha, enumerated them and counted them in number. /ach one of them ,hall come on the Day of !e,urrection alone.C <Al-2ur9an >M0M+-MG= 8no1 that the travel to the 're,ence of the 8ing of king, doe, not take 'lace e-ce't for him 1hom Allah Mo,t &igh ha, given ,ucce,, to kno1 hi, o1n lo1er ,elf and the blame1orthy attribute, that make it u'. Whoever kno1, thi, about hi, lo1er ,elf continue, to vie1 it 1ith ,u,'icion, not giving it the benefit of the doubt taking 'recaution, again,t it. If the ,ervant doe,n9t do thi,, he 1ill fall into act, of di,obedience and ,in, from 1hence he 'erceive, not. %he author "May Allah Mo,t &igh have mercy u'on him# bring, thi, 'oint to attention 1ith hi, <ne-t= ,tatement0 +G. %he of origin and not every i, of act every i, of act being of di,obedience, 1ith the %o ,'iritual ,elf. kee' %he and the

unmindfulne,,, origin ab,tinence

lu,t being

'lea,ed 1ith the

obedience, 'lea,ed

,'iritual

1akefulne,,,

,elf.

com'any of an unlearned 'er,on 1ho i, not 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf i, better for you than to kee' the com'any of a learned 'er,on 1ho i, 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf. (or 1hat kno1ledge doe, a learned 'er,on 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf haveI Aike1i,e, 1hat ignorance doe, an unlearned 'er,on

not 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf haveI ?eing 'lea,ed 1ith the ,elf i, the origin of every blame1orthy trait and not being 'lea,ed 1ith it i, the origin of every 'rai,e1orthy one. All tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah and the ,cholar, of the heart are in agreement about thi, 'oint. %he rea,on for thi, i, that being 'lea,ed 1ith the ,elf lead, one to cover u' it, fault, and bad trait, and to con,ider it, ugly a,'ect, to be agreeable a, i, ,aid0 The eye of (ontentment is dim-sighted (on(erning fa lts, Not being 'lea,ed 1ith the ,elf lead, to the o''o,ite of thi,, ,ince the ,ervant in ,uch a ,tate i, ,u,'iciou, of hi, lo1er ,elf, trie, to find out it, fault,, and i, not deluded by the act, of obedience and ,ubmi,,ion that he e-'erience,. A, the ,econd 'art of the above-7uoted ver,e i,0 As the eye of dis(ontent tears the veil e1!osing bad traits. So, 1hoever i, 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf find, it, ,tate 'lea,ing and find, re,t in it. And 1hoever doe, ,uch, ,'iritual unmindfulne,, overtake, him. Bon,e7uently, hi, heart i, ,1erved from 1atching over hi, thought, cau,ing ba,e de,ire, to overrun the ,ervant. Since the ,ervant doe,n9t have the a1arene,, of the Divine and religiou, reminder, to fend off and force a1ay the,e ba,e de,ire,, he i, overcome by them. Whoever i, overcome by hi, ba,e de,ire, undoubtedly fall, into act, of di,obedience. %he origin of all thi, i, being 'lea,ed 1ith the ,elf. 6n the other hand, 1hoever i, not content 1ith the ,elf, doe,n9t find it 'lea,ing, and doe,n9t find re,t in it. Whoever i, characteri4ed by thi, latter de,cri'tion i, ,'iritually a1ake, ready for une-'ected event, and occurrence,, and 1atchful over hi, thought,. In ,uch a ,tate, the fire of hi, ba,e de,ire, die, do1n, ,o it doe, not have any coercive 'o1er over him. %he

,ervant

can

then

be

characteri4ed

1ith

ab,tinence.

When

he

become, ab,tinent, he avoid, all that Allah ha, forbid and guard, over all that Allah ha, commanded. %hi, i, the <real= meaning of obeying Allah Mighty and Ma5e,tic. %he origin of all thi, i, not being 'lea,ed 1ith the ,elf. A, the ,ervant i, further reali4ed in kno1ing hi, lo1er ,elf, hi, ,tate become, more 'ro'er and hi, ,tation ri,e,. Many ,tatement, "more than can be enumerated# have been related from the big ,cholar, and elect leader, concerning blaming their o1n ,elve,, accu,ing it <of bad=, and not being 'lea,ed 1ith it. Abu &af, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhoever doe,n9t con,tantly accu,e hi, ,elf <of 1rong= all the time, o''o,e it in all condition,, and drag it to 1hat it di,like, for the re,t of it, day, i, deluded. Whoever look, at hi, ,elf finding anything of it 'lea,ing ha, de,troyed him,elf.C &o1 can the intelligent 'er,on be 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf 1hile the noble ,on of the noble <i.e. Nabi Po,e'h "alaihi ,alam#= ,aid, CI don9t find my ,elf free of blame. Indeed the ,elf i, ever commanding evil.C <Al-2ur9an >)0G+= Abu &af, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CMy vie1'oint about my ,elf for the la,t forty year, ha, been that Allah look, at me in a di,'lea,ed manner and my action, are a 'roof for thi, <vie1=.C Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CDon9t find re,t in your lo1er ,elf even if it obey, you in obeying your Aord.C Sidi Abu Sulaiman al-Darani "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CI have not been 'lea,ed 1ith my ,elf even for a glance of an eye.C It i, related from Shaikh Sari al-Sa7ati "rahmatullahi alaihi# that he ,aid, CI look at my face ,o many number of time, a day

fearing

that

it

ha,

become

devoid

of

,'iritual

light

a,

'uni,hment for me.C &e al,o ,aid, CAmong 'eo'le are tho,e that if half of them died <,'iritually=, the other half 1ould not be alarmed. I don9t count my,elf e-ce't among them.C %here are many other ,imilar ,tatement, from the Shaikh, of the 'ath "May Allah be 1ell 'lea,ed 1ith them#. Shaikh Abu Abd al-!ahman al-Salami "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1rote a

volume, ,mall in ,i4e, great in benefit, about the fault, of the ,elf and the mean, by 1hich one can treat them. So, let the di,ci'le look at it. Al,o, Imam collected in healing ,tatement, Abdullah al-&arith al-Muha,ibi the fault, of the ,elf, it, "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1rote a book named al-.aa,i in 1hich he trick,, delu,ion,, and evil. &e brought to attention the effaced and forgotten 1ay, of the early good Mu,lim, "May Allah Mo,t &igh be 1ell 'lea,ed 1ith them# of ,earching out, looking for, and regarding 1hat can make action,, ,tate,, and ,elve, more 'ro'er. In addition, he inform, of ho1 they guarded over the 'urification of their innermo,t being, and heart, and 1ere cautiou, about even the ,malle,t of ,in,. Imam Abu &amid al-Gha4ali "rahmatullahi alaihi# 7uoted from it a ,ection in hi, book relying on it, very 1ord,, te-t, and ,tatement,. &e began thi, by fir,t 'rai,ing the author a, he i, fit and clarified "for the 'er,on ignorant of Imam al-Muha,ibi "rahmatullahi alaihi# hi, merit by ,aying, CSidi al-Muha,ibi "rahmatullahi alaihi# i, the learned 1riter of the Mu,lim 'eo'le in the kno1ledge of dealing 1ith one9, Aord. &e 'redated all of the ,cholar, 1ho ,tudied the fault, of the ,elf, di,ea,e, of the heart that enter into action,, and delu,ion, that enter into act, of 1or,hi'. &i, ,tatement, are fit to be narrated a, are. &e 1a, ,ingular in hi, time for kno1ledge and 1or,hi'. &e 1a, the ,elect in hi, time for religiou, 'recaution and ab,tinence. My ma,ter al-&a55 the Abba, ibn and Amir "rahmatullahi alaihi# fre7uently urged 'utting into 'ractice of the truth and reading

correctne,,

contained

in

the

above-mentioned

book.

think

heard him ,ay one day, 9No one act, by 1hat i, in it e-ce't a friend of Allah.9 6r he might have ,aid ,omething ,imilar to thi,.C So, let the di,ci'le, take to reading it a, a litany and be covetou, about acting by 1hat it contain,, a,king Allah Mo,t &igh for hel', ,ucce,,, and rectitude. &i, intention ,hould be to become ,elf and ,incere to hi, Ma,ter in trying to fi- u' hi, internal to ,tand on the foothold of truth in <all= hi,

condition,. Aet the di,ci'le make hi, t1o travel com'anion,0 "># reading book, about Internal Purification and ")# being clo,e to the 'eo'le of Internal Purification by bond, of friend,hi' and ac7uaintance. Doing ,o 1ill ,trengthen the light of hi, faith and certainty and negate hi, inattentivene,, in day-to-day religiou, activitie,. Nothing take, 'recedence over thi, e-ce't 'er,onally obligatory act, and 1hat 7uiet, do1n hi, lo1er ,elf ",uch a, undergoing kno1ledge fatigue# that : Aet du,t him not bu,y him,elf of hi, 1ith aim, other and thro1, u'on the face

obligate, for him the breaking of hi, covenant, and oath,. &o1 many 'eo'le no1aday, are falling on their face <due to ,uch thing,=. %hey have ,1erved a1ay from the 1ay of the 'eo'le of Allah, ,o much ,o that it ha, made them ac7uire vile trait, and tremendou, di,ea,e, of the heart all of 1hich lead, them to de,truction, 1retchedne,,, and hy'ocri,y until the Day of Meeting "Pudgement#. Such thing, have marked them a, liar, in their claim that they are ,eeking 1ith their act, the 'lea,ure of their Ma,ter. So, be a1are of them and let them be1are : (or thi, rea,on the author ,aid, C%o kee' the com'any of an unlearned 'er,on 1ho i, not 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf i, better for you than to kee' the com'any of a learned 'er,on 1ho i, 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf. (or 1hat kno1ledge doe, a learned 'er,on 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf haveI Aike1i,e, 1hat ignorance doe, an unlearned 'er,on not 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf haveIC

%he de,ired aim of com'anion,hi' i, only an increa,e in one9, ,tate and the ab,ence of a decrea,e in it, a, the author 1ill mention in hikma L+ "CDon3t kee' the com'any of any one 1ho,e ,tate doe, not u'lift you nor hi, 1ord, guide you to Allah.C# 8ee'ing the com'any of ,omeone 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf, even if he i, a ,cholar, i, 'lain damage and ha, no benefit. %hi, i, becau,e hi, kno1ledge ha, not benefited him and hi, real ignorance, 1hich obligate, him to be 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf, i, of the utmo,t harm. It i, a, if 1hen he mi,,ed the kno1ledge 1hich could ,ho1 him hi, fault, "to make him un'lea,ed 1ith him,elf#, he mi,,ed all of kno1ledge altogether. Similarly, kee'ing the com'any of ,omeone 1ho i, not 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf, even if he i, e-ternally ignorant, i, ,heer good in 1hich there i, all benefit. %hi, i, becau,e hi, ignorance i, not harmful "to other,# and the real kno1ledge, 1hich obligate, him to not be 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf, i, of the utmo,t benefit. It i, a, if after gaining thi, kno1ledge, he ha, no ignorance at all. +N. ?eam, of in,ight make you 1itne,, &i, clo,ene,, to you. In,ight itself make, you 1itne,, your non-e-i,tence in front of &i, e-i,tence. (inally, the core of in,ight make, you 1itne,, only &i, e-i,tence, making you di,regard your non-e-i,tence or your e-i,tence. %he beam, of in,ight are the light, of the intellect. In,ight itself i, the light of kno1ledge. (inally, the core of in,ight i, the light of the %ruth <Mo,t &igh=. So, the intelligent 'eo'le 1ith the light of their intellect ,ee them,elve, along 1ith their Aord a, being clo,e to them "i.e. clo,e in &i, kno1ledge and full a1arene,,#. Similarly, the ,cholar, 1ith the light of their kno1ledge ,ee them,elve, a, non-e-i,tent in vie1 of the e-i,tence of their Aord.

(inally, the ,'iritually reali4ed 1ith the light of the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= 1itne,, the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= and they don9t ,ee anything el,e 1ith &im. +J. Allah e-i,ted and there 1a, nothing 1ith &im and &e i, no1

a, &e ha, al1ay, been. %ime frame, are imaginary con,truct, 1hich have no real

e-i,tence. %he 'oint here i, that there i, nothing along 1ith Allah Mo,t &igh, due to &i, over1helming onene,,0 .othing besides the Tr th remains e1istent. .othing is (onne(ted over there and nothing is se!arate. The !roof of sight has (ome with that. For I see not +ith my eyes e1(e!t -is eye when I loo#. !elated to thi, 'oint, the author 1ill mention <in hikma >L>=0 C%he created univer,e i, affirmed through &i, affirmation and 1i'ed out in relation to the over1helming onene,, of &i, ?eing.C %hen, the author "May Allah ,anctify hi, ,ecret# ,ay,0 +F. Don9t let the ob5ect of your ho'e, be other than &im, ,ince ho'e, do not 'a,, the Mo,t Generou, by. &igh ambition, di,dain rai,ing need, to other than the Mo,t

Generou,. In reality, there i, no generou, one be,ide, Allah Mo,t &igh. Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he generou, one i, he 1ho free, you of the need to a,k.C Shaikh Al-&arith al-Muha,ibi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he

generou, one i, he 1ho doe,n9t care to 1hom he give,.C It i, al,o ,aid, C%he generou, one i, he 1ho doe,n9t foil the ho'e, of the ho'eful.C

%he mo,t com'rehen,ive of the definition, of genero,ity i,0 C%he generou, one i, he 1ho 1hen able to take vengeance, forgive,; 1hen 'romi,e,, fulfill,; and 1hen give,, give, far more than 1hat 1a, ho'ed for. &e doe,n9t care ho1 much he give, or to 1hom he give,. If a need i, ,ought from other than him, he i, not content. (inally, if ,omeone ,eek, ,helter and 'rotection 1ith him, he doe,n9t neglect them; rather, he make, them inde'endent of all other mean, and interce,,or,.C Since no one ha, the right to the,e de,cri'tion, e-ce't Allah Mo,t &igh, it i, fitting that the ho'e, of the ho'eful don9t di,regard &im, ,eeking out other than &im. +M. Do not a,k another to relieve a need that &e &im,elf ha, 'laced over you. &o1 ,hall another lift 1hat &e &im,elf ha, 'lacedI And ho1 can he 1ho i, unable to relieve hi, o1n need, relieve tho,e of anotherI When Allah Mo,t &igh 'lace, you in need or 'ut, you in an

unde,irable ,ituation, kno1 than none can relieve it e-ce't &im. It i, im'o,,ible for another to lift 1hat &e ha, 'laced "in accordance 1ith &i, onene,, 1hich dictate, that there i, no real 'erformer of action, be,ide, &im and that &e ha, full control over &i, affair unable to be overcome by anyone#. It i, al,o im'o,,ible that another 'er,on relieve the need 1hile he him,elf can3t relieve hi, o1n need,, due to hi, o1n 1eakne,,. It i, among the im'o,,ible thing, for you to have your need relieved by another needy 'er,on like your,elf. Some have ,aid, CWhoever relie, on tem'orary thing, i, in

delu,ion and kno1 that everything be,ide, Allah i, tem'orary.C Allah i, the Aa,ting and ?eginningle,, Who never cea,ed to e-i,t nor 1ill &e ever become non-e-i,tent. &i, act, of be,to1al and bounty are both continuou,. So, don9t de'end on anyone e-ce't the

6ne Who continue, to be,to1 you 1ith bounty : in every breath and moment of time. Sidi Ata al-8hara,ani "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CI met Sidi

Wahb ibn Munabbah "rahmatullahi alaihi# on the road. So I told him to narrate to me a brief narration 1hich I may memori4e. &e re'lied, 9Allah in,'ired to Nabi Da3ud "alaihi ,alam#, 9I ,1ear by My might and ma5e,ty that no ,lave among My ,lave, a,k, Me for hel' in,tead of a,king My creation "1hich I can di,cern from hi, intention#, e-ce't I a''oint for him a relief from hi, di,tre,, and a 1ay out, even if the ,even heaven, and all tho,e therein and the ,even earth, and all tho,e therein 1ere to 'lot again,t him. I al,o ,1ear by My might, ma5e,ty, and tremendou,ne,, that no ,lave among My ,lave, ,eek, 'rotection 1ith one of My creation in,tead of ,eeking 'rotection 1ith Me "1hich I kno1 from hi, intention# e-ce't that the ro'e, of the ,even heaven, are cut off from him, the ground under him give, 1ay, and I don9t care in 1hich valley he 'eri,he,.9 9 C Sidi Muhammad ibn al-&u,ayn ibn &amdan "rahmatullahi alaihi#

,aid, CI 1a, in a gathering 1ith @a4id ibn &arun and there 1a, a man at my ,ide 1hom I a,ked, CWhat i, your nameIC &e re'lied, CSa id.C I then a,ked him, CWhat i, your ,urnameIC &e re'lied, CAbu Kthman.C I a,ked him, CWhat9, the ,tory and ne1, 1ith youIC &e ,aid, CMy money ha, run out.C I a,ked him, CWho do you e-'ect i, going to hel' you out in your ,ituationIC &e re'lied, C@a4id.C I then told him, C&e 1on3t a,,i,t you 1ith your need. @our re7ue,ting him 1ill not ,ucceed and he 1ill not fulfill your ho'e,.C &e then a,ked, CAnd ho1 do you kno1 thi,I May Allah have mercy u'on you.C I re'lied, CI read in a book that Allah Mighty and Ma5e,tic ,ay,, 9I ,1ear by My might, ma5e,ty, magnanimity, genero,ity, and e-altedne,, over the throne in My high ,tation, I 1ill cut off the ho'e of every ho'er that ho'e, <for hel'= from

other

than

Me

in

de,'air.

,hall

clothe

him

the

cloth

of

humiliation among 'eo'le, turn him a1ay from My clo,ene,,, and cut him off from My connection. Doe, he ho'e from other than Me in difficultie, 1hile <the de,cent of= hard time, i, in My control and I My,elf can turn it a1ayI &e i, ho'ing for other than Me and hi, mind i, trying to knock at the door, of other than Me 1hile the key, to all door, are 1ith Me. All door, are locked 1hile My door i, o'en for 1homever call, u'on Me. I, there anyone that ho'e, in Me to relieve difficultie, and I cut him offI 6r i, there anyone 1ho knock, on My door and I don9t o'en it for himI I have made My creation9, ho'e, bet1een Me and them connected. /ven ,o, you <My ,ervant= are attached to other than Me 1hile I have ,ecured for you your ho'e, and you ,till are not ha''y 1ith My guarding over you. I have filled the heaven, 1ith angel, that don9t tire of My 'rai,e and I have commanded them not to clo,e the door, bet1een My ,ervant, and Me. Still, My ,ervant, don9t rely on My ,tatement. Doe,n9t <My ,lave= kno1 that 1hoever i, afflicted 1ith a difficulty among My difficultie, that no one can take it a1ay e-ce't MeI So, 1hy do I ,ee him turning a1ay from Me 1ith hi, ho'e,I And 1hy do I ,ee him di,tracted 1ith other than MeI I gave him out of My genero,ity 1hat he didn9t even a,k for. %hen, I took it a1ay and he didn9t a,k Me to return it. !ather, he a,ked other than Me to get it back. Do you think that 1hen I give 're,ent, 1ithout fir,t being a,ked that I 1on9t an,1er the ,u''licator 1hen I9m a,kedI Am I ,o mi,erly that My ,lave think, of Me a, chea'I Don9t I o1n the 1orld and the hereafterI I, not mercy and bounty in My controlI Are not <the trait, of= magnanimity and genero,ity for MeI Am I not the ob5ect of ho'e,I So, 1ho 1ill cut off the ,ervant9, ho'e, from MeI Doe, it not fill the ho'er, 1ith ho'e that if I ,aid to the 'eo'le in My heaven, and My earth, 9&o'e in Me.C %hen, I gave each 'er,on among them 1hat they all together thought about that My kingdom

1ould ,till not decrea,e even by a limb of a ,mall ant. &o1 ,hall a 'erfect kingdom 1hich I maintain decrea,eI &o1 1retched are tho,e that de,'air of My mercy. Al,o, ho1

1retched are tho,e 1ho di,obey Me and don9t kee' 1atch for Me 'er,i,ting in the unla1ful not feeling ,hame from Me.9 %he man then re7ue,ted, CPlea,e 1rite thi, narration do1n for me.C So, I 1rote it and ,aid, C?y Allah, I 1on3t 1rite any more narration, do1n after thi,.C I <i.e. Sidi Ibn Abbad "rahmatullahi alaihi#= ,ay0 %he ba,e that thi, meaning i, built on i, the reali4ation of the ,lave in the ,tation of e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh. (or thi, rea,on, the author "May Allah have mercy on him# mention, after thi,0 L*. If you don9t e-'ect the be,t from &im due to the e-cellence

of &i, attribute, e-'ect the be,t from &im by ,eeing ho1 &e deal, 1ith you. (or ha, &e accu,tomed you to anything but good or ha, &e be,to1ed u'on you anything but favor,I /-'ecting the be,t from Allah mo,t &igh i, one of the ,tation, of certainty be,t from and 'eo'le concerning of thi, are of t1o ty'e,0 and "># di,tingui,hed and ")# common. %he di,tingui,hed 'eo'le e-'ect the Allah becau,e &i, high 7ualitie, lofty characteri,tic,. %he common 'eo'le e-'ect the be,t from Allah becau,e &e ,ho1er, ble,,ing, on them and ,ho1, them &i, bounty and genero,ity. %he difference bet1een the t1o ,tation, i, obviou,. (or thi, rea,on, it i, not feared for the fir,t grou' to change <their o'inion about Allah= 1hile it i, feared for the ,econd grou' to do ,o. Since, the 'eo'le of the fir,t ,tation "1hen they became reali4ed in the kno1ledge of Allah Mo,t &igh and obtained the light, of certainty by 1hich their heart, became tran7uil and their ,oul, calm# had no ,'ace left in them to accu,e Allah and no 'lace left to think badly of &im.

Bonver,ely, the 'eo'le of the ,econd ,tation haven9t been lifted above looking at the e-ternal action, <of Allah=. Bon,e7uently, varying action, of Allah have varying effect, on them. So, many a time 1hen ,omething di,'lea,ing ha''en, to them, the ,trength of their heart, 1eaken,. %hu,, they are not com'letely free of thinking badly about Allah and letting their lo1er ,elve, 1hi,'er to them leading them to be an-iou, and im'atient. So, let the ,ervant in ,uch a ,tate look at the meaning of Allah9, ,tatement0 CAnd 'erha', you di,like ,omething 1hile it i, better for you.C <Al-2ur9an )0)>N= and the like, of thi,. Al,o, let him give more 1eight to the more common ,tate <of Allah manife,ting &i, bounty= than to the le,, common ,tate <of Allah 'utting him in a di,liked ,ituation=. Sidi Abu Muhammad Abd al A4i4 al-Mahda1i "rahmatullahi alaihi#

,aid, C/-'ecting the be,t from Allah entail, cutting off ba,ele,, doubt, about 1hether ,omething 1ill ha''en or not. Since ba,ele,, doubt, are killer, : Whenever you allo1 them to reign, you have 'eri,hed by your,elf. Al,o included in thi, ,ame category i, li,tening to the 1hi,'er, of Satan and the lo1er ,elf.C I ,ay0 /-'ecting the be,t i, re7uired from the ,ervant concerning hi, 1orldly affair and hi, affair in the ne-t 1orld. A, for hi, 1orldly affair, it i, by 'utting faith in Allah to bring to him benefit, and comfort, 1ithout much labor and toil. A, for light effort, allo1ed <in trying to gain benefit, and comfort,=, they are and he may get re1arded for them, a, long a, the,e

effort, don9t make him mi,, ,u'ererogatory and obligatory act, of 1or,hi'. A, for hi, affair in the ne-t 1orld, it i, by being ,trong in ho'e that hi, good action, 1ill be acce'ted and he 1ill be fully re1arded in the 'lace of re1ard and recom'en,e. %hi, e-'ectation 1ill lead him to ru,h to follo1 Allah9, command and 'erform righteou, action,, finding them ,1eet, 5oyful, 'lea,ing, and ea,y to do energetically.

@ahya ibn Mu3adh "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he mo,t de'endable of ho'e, i, the ho'e of the ,ervant in hi, Aord and the mo,t true of e-'ectation, i, e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh.C Among the o''ortunitie, for e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh "in 1hich it i, not 'ro'er for the ,ervant to leave it# are the time, of hard,hi', trial,, and de,cent of mi,fortune, in 1ealth and body. Doing ,o 1ill make the ,ervant avoid falling into an-iety and di,contentment. %hi, meaning 1ill be related in hikma >*N0 CWhoever a,,ume, that &i, gentlene,, i, ,e'arate from &i, de,tiny doe, ,o out of hi, ,hort-,ightedne,,.C Al,o among the greate,t of time, for e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh i, during death. It ha, been narrated in a hadith, CAet not any one of you die e-ce't that he i, e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh.C Additionally in the hadith narrated from Pabir "radhi3Allahu

anhu#, it ,ay,, CWhoever among you i, able to e-'ect the be,t from Allah 1hile dying ,hould do ,o.C %hen he recited thi, ver,e0 CAnd that a,,um'tion of your, 1hich you a,,umed about your Aord ruined you.C <Al-2ur9an L>0)+= (urthermore, Allah Mo,t &igh ha, been narrated to have ,aid, CI am a, My ,ervant think, of Me. So, let him think about Me a, he 1ill,.C Shaikh Abu %alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIbn Ma, ud "radhi3Allahu anhu# u,ed to ,1ear by Allah that no ,ervant e-'ect, the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh e-ce't that &e give, him the be,t. %hi, becau,e all good i, in Allah9, control. When Allah give, the ,ervant the ,tate of e-'ecting the be,t from &im, &e ha, al,o given the ,ervant 1hat he i, e-'ecting. %hi, i, becau,e the 6ne Who let him e-'ect the be,t i, the 6ne 1ho 1anted to make him reali4e hi, e-'ectation.C

It

ha,

been

narrated

from

Shaikh

Abu

al-Na,r

ibn

&ayyan

"rahmatullahi alaihi# that he ,aid, CI 1ent out to vi,it Sidi @a4id ibn al-A,1ad "rahmatullahi alaihi# in hi, ,ickne,, and I met <on the 1ay= Sidi Wathila ibn al-A,7a alaihi#. So, 1e both entered lying him u'on on him. "rahmatullahi alaihi# We found When So, Sidi Sidi Sidi @a4id @a4id Wathila 1ho it turned out al,o 1anted to vi,it Sidi @a4id "rahmatullahi "rahmatullahi ,tarted alaihi# to hi, hi, bed. hand.

"rahmatullahi alaihi# ,a1 Sidi Wathila "rahmatullahi alaihi# he motioning 1ith "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1ent to1ard, him and ,at on the bed. Sidi @a4id ibn al-A,1ad "rahmatullahi alaihi# then took hold of both of Sidi Wathila9, "rahmatullahi alaihi# hand, and 'ut them on hi, o1n face. Sidi Wathila "rahmatullahi alaihi# then ,aid, 9I 1ant to a,k you you.9 ,omething.9 Sidi Sidi @a4id "rahmatullahi alaihi# alaihi# then then re'lied, 9Nothing 1ill you a,k that I kno1 about e-ce't I9ll an,1er Wathila "rahmatullahi a,ked, 9What9, your o'inion of Allah Mo,t &igh <in thi, ,tate=I9 &e re'lied, 9?y Allah, my o'inion about &im i, good,9 &e then told @a4id "rahmatullahi alaihi#, 9!e5oice, for I heard the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,ay, 9Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,0 9I deal 1ith My ,ervant a, he e-'ect, of Me <both= if he e-'ect, good and if he e-'ect, bad.9 C It ha, been narrated from Sayyidna Abu Sa3id al-8hudri

"radhi3Allahu anhu# that he ,aid, C%he Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# vi,ited a ,ick 'er,on and a,ked him, 9What do you e-'ect from AllahI9 %he ,ick 'er,on ,aid, 96 Me,,enger of Allah, I e-'ect good.9 &e "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# then ,aid, 9/-'ect from Allah 1hat you 1ill, for indeed Allah ?le,,ed and &igh <deal,= 1ith the believer a, the believer e-'ect, &im to.9 Sayyidna Abu &urairah "radhi3Allahu anhu# related that the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C/-'ecting the be,t from Allah i, from the e-cellence of 1or,hi''ing Allah.C

,ay0

%he

ahadith

and

tradition,

about

ho'ing

<in

Allah=,

e-'ecting the be,t from Allah, and about the va,tne,, of &i, mercy are more than can be enumerated. !eading ,uch te-t, i, among the thing, that ,trengthen the di,ci'le in thi, ,tation. So 1hoever 1ant, healing in thi, matter ,hould read the cha'ter on ho!e in : t al- : l b ".o rishment for the -earts# and Ihya" al-,;l m al-&in "'evival of the 'eligio s S(ien(es# : %hen the author "May Allah have mercy on him# clarifie, the method by 1hich the ,ervant become, reali4ed in the ,tation of e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh. %hi, reali4ation i, obtained by ,ticking to the door of Allah and clinging in one9, heart to &i, onene,,. &e allude, to the fact that thi, i, the ultimate 'lea,ure and the end of all de,ire, and not 1hat the lo1er ,elf ,eek, of under,tood 'lea,ure, and de,ire,, 1hich 7uickly fade a1ay and vani,h. %he author <in the ne-t hikma= a,,ert, that not acce'ting thi, fact i, due to the blindne,, of the heart, 1hich de,erve, to be marveled at by every 'o,,e,,or of intellect0 L>. A,toni,hing indeed i, <the act of= him 1ho trie, to run a1ay from the 6ne Who i, al1ay, 1ith him and in,tead ,eek, the com'any of tho,e thing, 1hich are bound to never remain 1ith him0 C(or it i, not the eye, that go blind; rather, it i, the heart, in the brea,t, 1hich go blind.C <Al-2ur9an ))0LN= %he running of the ,ervant from hi, Ma,ter by turning to1ard, hi, lu,t, and follo1ing hi, de,ire, i, a re,ult of blindne,, in hi, heart and ignorance of hi, Aord. %hi, i, becau,e he ha, e-changed 1hat i, higher for 1hat i, lo1er and he 'referred the tem'orary over the 'ermanent. If he had in,ight in hi, heart, he 1ould have 'referred the /ver-la,ting over the 'eri,hing and he 1ould have done 1hat the magician, of Pharaoh did 1hen they believed in their Aord and did not 'ay attention to 1hat Pharaoh 'romi,ed them concerning 1orldly honor, gift,, being brought clo,e <to Pharaoh=, and ennoblement. Additionally, they did not

give a darn about 1hat he threatened them 1ith concerning 1orldly 'uni,hment, death, and crucification on the trunk, of date 'alm,. !ather, they ,aid, CWe 1on9t 'refer you over 1hat ha, come to u, of clear ,ign, and over the 6ne 1ho created u,.C <Al-2ur9an )*0J)= And they ,aid, CAllah i, better and more la,ting.C <Al2ur9an )*0J+= %he heart, of the,e magician, became enlightened and they began to 1itne,, their ?eloved; ,o, 1hat ha''ened 1ith them ha''ened. L). Do not travel from one created thing to another created thing being like the donkey 1ho turn, the mill,tone "the ground it move, from i, the ,ame ground it arrive, at#. !ather, travel from created thing, to the Breator0 CAnd to your Aord i, the final de,tination.C <Al-2ur9an G+0L)= Al,o reflect on the ,tatement of the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#0 CSo, 1hoever9, emigration 1a, to Allah and &i, Me,,enger, hi, emigration 1a, really to Allah and &i, Me,,enger. And 1hoever9, emigration 1a, to the 1orld ,o that he may obtain it or to a 1oman ,o that he may marry her, for.C hi, So emigration under,tand 1a, the really to1ard, of 1hat him he and emigrated ,tatement

contem'late thi, affair if you have under,tanding. Working for re1ard,, rank,, high degree,, and ,'iritual ,tation, i, a defect in one9, ,tate and an im'urity in one9, ,incerity. %he 'er,on 1ho 1ork, for ,uch i, a traveller from one created thing to another. %he rea,on for ,uch 1rong motivation, i, the 'er,on ,till give, re,'ect to hi, ego and 1ant, it to obtain a high rank or ac7uire by it, effort, a divine gift. All the,e aforementioned aim, are among the created thing,. And all crated thing, are e7ual in their being other than &im, even if ,ome of them are ,'iritual illumination,. %he author9, ,triking of the ,imilitude of a donkey and a

mill,tone i, a 1ay of e-aggerating the re'ul,ivene,, of tho,e 1ho 1ork to1ard, created thing,. It i, al,o a ,ubtle 1ay of calling

them to have good manner, 1ith Single Bom'ul,or ,o that they reali4e the meaning of &i, Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 CAnd to your Aord i, the final de,tination.C <Al-2ur9an G+0L)= If they reali4e the meaning of thi, ver,e, they 1ill make &im the end of their travel and make &im the devotion of their heart,; their action, 1ill <be free from all 1rong aim,= and only be a 1ay to fulfill the obligation, of their ,lavehood and the right, of &i, Aord,hi'; they 1ill not run to their ego,H,elve, in any ,tate. %hi, i, the reali4ation of the ,'ecial ,incerity that i,,ue, from ,eeing &i, onene,,. May Allah make u, among tho,e 1ho e-'erience ,uch 1ith &i, grace and bounty and &e i, able to do all thing,. %he hadith that the author mention, further clarifie, the 'oint li,ted earlier. And it al,o contain, an i,,ue de,erving reflection and contem'lation and Allah kno1, be,t. %he ,econd 'art of the hadith 'oint, to the fact that tho,e 1ho emigrated for other than Allah or &i, Me,,enger "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# have no ,hare in the arrival and clo,ene,, to 1hich tho,e 1ho emigrated to1ard, Allah and &i, Me,,enger "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# have. It i, a, if the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# mentioned the 1orld 1hich the emigrant 1i,he, to obtain or the 1oman 1hich he 1i,he, to marry to allude to all ,elfi,h gain, finding fault 1ith making them end, no matter 1hat the,e ,elfi,h gain, are : %he &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement Chi, emigration i, then for Allah and &i, Me,,engerC indicate, the travel from created thing, to the Breator. %hi, i, 1hat i, de,ired of the ,ervant a, ha, been clarified. A, for the &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement Chi, emigration 1a, really to1ard, 1hat he emigrated forC, it ,ignifie, remaining 1ith created thing, and moving from one created thing to another. %hi, i, 1hat the ,ervant i, commanded again,t in a ,ubtle manner. So, let the di,ci'le have high ambition, and intention, until he doe, not even turn to glance at anything other than &im.

A man re7ue,ted Sidi Abu @a4id "rahmatullahi alaihi#, C/n5oin me 1ith ,omething.C &e re'lied, CIf &e give, ,omething to you from 1hat i, bet1een the throne and the ground, ,ay to &im, 9No. !ather, it i, @ou that I 1ant.9 C Sidi Abu Sulaiman al-Darani "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIf I 1ere given a choice bet1een entering the &igh Garden and t1o unit, of 'rayer, I 1ould have cho,en t1o unit, of 'rayer. %hat i, becau,e in the &igh Garden, I am 1ith my ,elfi,h 'ortion, 1herea, in the t1o unit, of 'rayer, I am 1ith my Aord.C Shaikh Al-Shibli "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C(ear the 'lot of Allah <again,t you= even in &i, ,tatement 9/at and drink,9 <al2ur9an JJ0L+=.C &e meant by thi, that do not be dro1ned in your ,elfi,h 'ortion,. !ather, be in everything for &im and not for your,elf. So, &i, Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement C/at and drinkC even if it i, e-ternally an ennoblement and ble,,ing, it i, internally a te,t and trial to ,ee 1ho i, actually in it for &im and 1ho i, in it for hi, ,elfi,h 'ortion. %hen, the author "May Allah Mo,t &igh be 'lea,ed 1ith him# ,ay,0 L+. Do not accom'any him 1ho,e ,tate doe, not lift you nor hi, 1ord, guide you to Allah. %he author talk, here about the rule of com'anion,hi' 1hich i, a big 'rinci'le among the 'rinci'le, of the 'eo'le of Allah. In thi, rule are many benefit, for 1hich rea,on the ancient and modern 'eo'le of Allah 'ay due attention to it. %he author a''ri,e, u, of the benefit, of com'anion,hi' in hi, ,tatement CDo not accom'any him 1ho,e ,tate doe, not lift you nor hi, 1ord, guide you to AllahC. %he lifting of ,tate, and the guiding to Allah i, the benefit of com'anion,hi'. %he meaning of an u'lifting ,tate i, that it, 'o,,e,,or ha, an a,'iration connected 1ith Allah and i, above created thing,. Such a 'er,on doe, not re,ort to other than Allah Mo,t &igh in fulfilling hi, need,.

Aike1i,e, he doe, not de'end on other than Allah in all of hi, affair,. Peo'le have been di,regarded by hi, eye,. So, he doe, not ,ee from them the ability to harm or benefit. (urthermore, hi, o1n ,elf ha, been di,regarded from hi, eye,. So, he doe, not ,ee for it any action, nor doe, he demand for it a ,elfi,h 'ortion. &e i, in all hi, action, riding the Sacred Aa1 1ithout going to e-treme, or neglecting it. %hi, i, the ,tate of tho,e 1ho kno1 Allah and declare &i, onene,,. So accom'anying him 1ho,e ,tate i, thu, "even if hi, e-ternal 1ork, and ,u'ererogatory action, are fe1# free from danger, lead, to a 'rai,e1orthy end, and 'ull, in every benefit both in religion and the 1orld. %hi, i, becau,e a 'er,on9, nature i, derived from other 'eo'le9, nature,. %he ,elf naturally love, to follo1 tho,e 1ho,e ,tate it find, 'lea,ing. &o1ever, the 'er,on being accom'anied doe, not need to be 'erfect in all of the li,ted attribute, ,ince almo,t no one i, like that. It i, enough for the accom'anied to ,ur'a,, the accom'anying in the,e attribute,. So the accom'anied ,hould be of a higher ,tate and more correct ,'eech. Who ever i, not de,cribed by the li,ted 'rai,e1orthy attribute, and only function, according to e-ternal reality i, of no benefit in com'anion,hi'. !ather, ,uch a 'er,on may increa,e the accom'anying in bad ,ince he 1ill call the accom'anying to 'ut on a ,ho1 and beautify him,elf for the accom'anied. All of thi, lead, to committing enormou, ,in, of the heart; and ,in, of the heart are much more ,evere than ,in, of the limb,. Sidi @u,uf ibn al-&u,ayni al-!a4i "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIt i, more beloved to me that I meet Allah <on the Aa,t Day= 1ith all the e-ternal act, of di,obedience than to meet &im 1ith a tiny amount of di,,imulation <i.e. 'utting on a ,ho1 for 'eo'le= :C

Some of the ,cholar, have ,aid, CDon3t a,,ociate 1ith any one e-ce't him 1ith 1hom you increa,e in 'iety and don9t decrea,e in your ,tate...C Some have ,aid, C?e 1ith the ,on, of the 1orld according to e-ternal eti7uette. ?e 1ith the ,on, of the hereafter according to e-ternal kno1ledge. (inally, be 1ith the kno1er, of Allah in any 1ay you 1ant.C It 1a, ,aid to one of the righteou,, CSo and ,o love, you and mention, you often.C &e re'lied, C%hi, 'er,on i, beloved to me, I re,'ect him, and ackno1ledge hi, 1orth. &o1ever, it i, better for me to meet the Devil one thou,and time, than to meet him even once.C It 1a, then a,ked, C&o1 i, that ,oIC &e re'lied, I fear that I 1ill try to 'ut on a ,ho1 for him and he for me.C Al-Shaikh Abu %alib al-Makki "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%hi, grou' of ,cholar, of the heart do not kee' com'any e-ce't 1hen both ,ide, agree on four 'oint,0 a# %hey do not find fault 1ith eating con,tantly 1ithout kee'ing ,u'ererogatory fa,t,. b# %hey do not find fault 1ith fa,ting con,tantly 1ithout

interval day,. c# %hey do not find fault 1ith ,lee'ing all night 1ithout getting u' to 'ray.

d#

%hey

do

not

find

fault

1ith

'raying

all

night

1ithout

,lee'ing. : All condition, are e7ual in your com'anion9, ,ight,. So, your com'anion doe, not increa,e hi, re,'ect for you due to your fa,ting and ,tanding for 'rayer at night. Additionally, your com'anion doe, not decrea,e hi, re,'ect for you due to your eating con,tantly or ,lee'ing all night.C %he ,cholar, of the heart ,ay, CIf the accom'anied increa,e, hi, re,'ect for the accom'anying 1ith ,eeing an increa,e in ,'iritual 1ork, and decrea,e, hi, re,'ect for the accom'anying 1ith ,eeing a decrea,e in ,'iritual 1ork,, it ,afer both of their religion, to ,e'arate and i, further a1ay from ,ho1ing off in good 1ork,. %hi, i, becau,e the lo1er ,elf innately love, 'rai,e and di,liked blame. 6ne of it, tribulation, i, that it 1ant, it, ChighC ,tate to be ,een by other, by making a''arent 1hat i, con,idered 'lea,ing in front of 'eo'le. It doe, thi, to court, 'rai,e and avoid blame.C So if one accom'anie, a 'er,on along 1ith 1hom one9, lo1er ,elf doe, the aforementioned, it i, not from the Path of the truthful nor i, it the de,ire of the ,incere. !ather, ,taying a1ay from ,uch 'eo'le i, more 'ro'er for the heart and ,afer for one9, religion. 8ee'ing the com'any of ,uch 'eo'le corru't, the heart, decrea,e, faith, and 1eaken, certainty. Such com'any i, a cau,e for ,ho1ing off in good 1ork, and it i, thi, ,ho1ing off 1hich make, religiou, action,, futile, 1orthle,,, and obligate, one to be di,regarded from the eye of the Po,,e,,or of Ma5e,ty. Sidi Sufyan al-%ha1ri "rahmatullahi alaihi# u,ed to ,ay, CWhoever deal, 1ith 'eo'le goe, to and forth in front of them. Whoever goe, to and forth in front of them, 'ut, on a ,ho1 in good 1ork, for them. Whoever 'ut, on a ,ho1 for them fall, into that 1hich they have fallen and 'eri,he, a, they have 'eri,hed.C

A 'er,on of 1i,dom u,ed to ,ay, CDon9t take a, brethren 'eo'le 1ho change their dealing, 1ith you 1hen they are in four ,tate,0 "># in anger, ")# in contentment, "+# in avarice, and "L# in ca'riciou, de,ire :C In another 'lace he ,aid, CWhoever 1hen choo,ing a brother or a com'anion con,ider, 'lenteou, e-ternal ,'iritual action, or ,to', 1ith e-ternal 'erfect ,tate, ha, 'roved hi, ignorance of thi, Path 1hich goe, dee'er into higher realitie,. %hi, i, becau,e e-ternal action, and ,tate, fluctuate 1hile the higher reality of the heart ,tay, con,tant after the reaching <of Allah=. If in addition to hi, ignorance of the Path he lack, the kno1ledge of true brotherhood dre,,ing u' hi, action, and 'utting on a ,ho1 for 'eo'le in order that he may have a lifted rank in their ,ight, he 1ill enter into ina''arent a,,ociation of other, 1ith Allah; and a,,ociating other, 1ith Allah 1ill take him out of the reality of Allah9, onene,,. So, hi, foot ,li', after having a firm hold and he i, di,regarded from the ,ight of hi, Aord; ,o, &e doe, not take charge of hi, affair.C %he lo1er ,elf i, tribulated 1ith loving 'rai,e and commendation and having it, rank affirmed by di,'laying it, <good= attribute,. A com'anion that call, a 'er,on to ,uch i, among the mo,t accur,ed and harmful 'eo'le to him. 6ne of them become, a trial for the other. So, let them ,e'arate ,ince hi, com'anion i, ignorant. Aet a 'er,on not kee' ,uch com'any 1ho 1ill decrea,e hi, ,tate and cau,e calamitie, of the heart to enter u'on him. !ather, ,uch a 'er,on ,hould ,tay by him,elf and be true in hi, ,tate regardle,, of 1hether it i, high or lo1 1ithout coming near any one - but not ,evering one,elf entirely from everyone. %hi, i, better for him and lead, to more 'rai,e1orthy con,e7uence,. %he intention of the author corre,'ond, to 1hat 1e have mentioned. %he accom'anied ,tate and 1ord, ,hould both i,,ue from hi, attachment to Allah.

Sidi Sahl ibn

Abdullah "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C?e1are of

accom'anying three ty'e, of 'eo'le0 "># heedle,, o''re,,or,, ")# hy'ocrite reciter, of the 2ur9an, and "+# ignorant Sufi, "i.e. tho,e that claim to have traveled a Path but have no kno1ledge#.

Sidi @u,uf ibn al-&a,an al-!a4i "rahmatullahi alaihi# a,ked Sidi Dhu al-Nun al-Mi,ri "rahmatullahi alaihi# about 1hom he ,hould accom'any and Sidi Dhu al- Nun "rahmatullahi alaihi# re'lied, CSomeone from 1hom you don9t hide anything from 1hat Allah kno1, about you.C Sidi &amdan of al-2a,,ar the 'eo'le "rahmatullahi of Allah. alaihi# %hey ,aid, the C8ee' one the 1ith

com'any

give

,hortcoming, many e-cu,e, and don9t overly e-tol the one 1ith many e-celling attribute,.C %he allu,ion in the latter 'oint i, that by accom'anying them, one can overcome conceit in one9, 1ork,. Imam Punayd "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhen Allah 1ant, good for a di,ci'le, he give, him the com'anion,hi' of the 'eo'le of Allah and kee', him from the com'anion,hi' of the <boa,tful= reciter, of the 2ur9an. Sayyidna Ali ibn Abu %alib "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C%he 1or,t

of friend, i, he 1ho make, you 'ut on an untrue gui,e in front of him and make, you re,ort to e-cu,e-giving.C &e al,o ,aid once, C%he 1or,t of friend, i, him 1ith 1hom hi, friend, don9t feel home 1ith :C %he conclu,ion of all thi, i, that by accom'anying the 'eo'le of Allah, one can obtain the mo,t 'erfect of benefit, a, i, not the ca,e 1ith other than them of the 'eo'le a,,ociated 1ith religion or kno1ledge. %hi, i, becau,e they have been ,'ecially endo1ed 1ith the realitie, of Allah9, onene,, and kno1ledge of &im 1hich

other, do not ,hare. Additionally, the utmo,t ho'e i, that their ,tate 1ill flo1 into tho,e that accom'any them ,ince it i, ,aid, CCWhoever i, reali4ed in a ,tate, tho,e around him ,hare in it.C Whoever ,it, in front of the fragrance maker9, ,ho' doe, not fail to find 'lea,ant aroma,. %hi, i, 5u,t talking about being in their 're,ence and ,itting ne-t to them; ,o, 1hat do you think about actually accom'anying and becoming ac7uainted 1ith themI Some of the ,cholar, have de,cribed ,uch 'eo'le by ,aying, C%he 'er,on of Allah i, he 1ho doe, not kno1 of other than Allah either in thi, life or the ne-t. Additionally, he doe, not ,ee 1ith Allah any one el,e. /verything ha, become ,ub,ervient to him 1hile he ha, not become ,ub,ervient to anyone. &e ha, been given control over everything 1hile nothing control, him. &e take, a 'ortion from everything 1hile nothing take, a 'ortion out of him. %he turbidity of everything become, 'ure and ,erene for him 1hile nothing make, hi, 'urity and ,erenity turbid. %he 6ne ha, bu,ied him a1ay from everything el,e. %he 6ne ha, become ,ufficient for him from everything el,e.C !evie1 the,e characteri,tic, and ,ee ho1 great and lofty they are, ho1 noble i, the ,tate of him 1ho i, characteri4ed by them, and ho1 rare are ,uch 'eo'le in e-i,tence. May Allah make u, benefit from ,uch 'eo'le. May &e be,to1 u'on u, their ble,,ing,. In accom'anying ,uch 'eo'le, the di,ci'le obtain, an increa,e 1hich doe, not come about 1ithout them, even if he 1ere to engage in ,'iritual ,truggle, and variou, ty'e, of 'ain bearing e-erci,e,: Sidi Abul Abba, al-Mur,i "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CWhat need

do I have of Alchemy 1hen by Allah I accom'anied 'eo'le 1ho can 'a,, by a 1ithering tree and 'oint to it and it ,tart, bearing 'omegranate, from that very in,tance. So, 1hoever accom'anie, ,uch 'eo'le ha, no need for alchemy. : %he friend of Allah 1hen &e 1ill, <through Allah= can free one of all need,.C

&e al,o ,aid, CIt only take, me one glance at a 'er,on to make him free of all need,.C &i, teacher, Shaikh Abul &a,an al-Shadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CAbul man. Abba, ?y "rahmatullahi Allah, a de,ert alaihi# d1eller i, a ,'irituallyto him and 'erfected come,

urinate, on hi, ,hin,, but the evening doe,n3t come u'on thi, de,ert d1eller e-ce't that Abul made him reach Allah.C We 1ill later mention in hikam Q>F+ about the author9, "i.e. Sidi Ibn Ata3Illah "rahmatullahi alaihi## accom'anying of Sidi Abul "rahmatullahi alaihi# and 1hat Sidi Abul Abba, Abba, Abba, "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha,

"rahmatullahi alaihi# made him reach by the ble,,ing of merely hi, ga4ing at the author. LL. Perha', your ,tate i, bad, but a''ear, to you to be good becau,e your com'anion i, even 1or,t than you. %hi, hikma note, the greate,t of the calamitie, that can enter the heart of the 'er,on 1ho goe, again,t 1hat 1e have 'reviou,ly mentioned - 1ho goe, ahead and accom'anie, ,omeone 1ho,e ,tate i, lo1er than hi,. %hi, calamity i, to find the ,tate one i, in agreeable, 1hich cau,e, the 'er,on to be 'lea,ed 1ith him,elf by ,eeing it, 're,umed 1ell-being. A, 1e mentioned before "in hikma Q+G#, thi, act i, the root of all evil. LG. No action from an ab,tinent heart i, ,carce and no action

from an avid heart i, 'lenteou,. %he 1orth of action, i, according to the ,tate of the heart of tho,e 1ho 'erform them. So, act, of obedience that emanate from

tho,e

ab,tinent

in

the

1orld

are

really

'lenteou,

even

if

'hy,ically in,ignificant. Similarly, good action, 1hich emanate from tho,e avid for the 1orld are really in,ignificant even if 'hy,ically 'lenteou,. %he rea,on for the above i, that tho,e ab,tinent remain ,afe from the calamitie, of the heart that infringe u'on the ,incerity of their action, "e.g., ,ho1ing off in good 1ork, 'eo'le, 'utting on a ,u'erficial front for other,, and ,eeking 1orldly return, from religiou, 1ork,#. %he ab,tinent con,ider ,uch thing, in,ignificant; ,o, their action, are acce'ted and their ,mall 1ork, are made 'lenteou, for them. 6ne the other of hand, the tho,e avid for the 1orld their e-'erience action, and

calamitie,

heart

1hich

invalidate

infringe u'on their ,incerity cau,ing their action, not to be acce'ted. So, their a''arently 'lenteou, action, become ,mall and in,ignificant. %he leader of the believer,, Sayyidna Ali ibn Abu %alib

"radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C?e more concerned about the acce'tance of an action than you are of the action it,elf. No action i, ,mall 1hich i, done 1ith god-con,ciou,ne,,. &o1 ,hall an action 1hich i, acce'ted be ,mallIC Allah Mo,t &igh ha, de,cribed the believer, a, having 'lenteou, <action, and re1ard,= for their ,incerity and lack of ,ho1ing off in front of 'eo'le. It ha, been ,aid concerning Allah Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 C6 you 1ho believe, remember Allah 1ith 'lenteou, remembrance.C <Al-2ur9an ++0L>= that they ,hould remember &im 1ith ,incerity; ,o, ,incerity here i, called 'lenteou,. Sincere remembrance i, that 1hich ,ingle, out 1ith full intention the Bountenance of Allah, the %remendou,.

Allah

ha,

al,o for

de,cribed

the

hy'ocrite, and

a,

remembering off in

Allah of

,cantily

their

in,incerity

,ho1ing

front

'eo'le. &e Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid0 C%hey 'ut on a ,ho1 for 'eo'le and do not remember Allah e-ce't a little.C <Al-2ur9an L0>L)= It ha, been narrated from Ibn Ma, ud "radhi3Allahu anhu# that t1o unit, of 'rayer from the ab,tinent ,cholar are better than the 1or,hi' of the regular 1or,hi''er, even if the latter 1ere continuou, and never-ending. Some of the Bom'anion, ,aid to the fir,t 'o,t-Bom'anion

generation, C@ou 1or,hi' and ,truggle more 'lenteou,ly than the Bom'anion, of the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#, but they 1ere better than you.C It 1a, a,ked, C&o1 i, that ,oIC %he re'ly given 1a,, C%hey con,idered the 1orld more in,ignificant than you do.C Some of the Bom'anion, al,o ,aid, CWe ,earched out all action,, but 1e didn9t find anything in thi, 1orld or the ne-t more likely to convey one <to the goal= than con,idering the 1orld in,ignificant.C Sidi Abu Sulaiman al-Darani ""rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CI a,ked Shaikh Ma3ruf al-8arakhi "rahmatullahi alaihi# about tho,e 1ho obey Allah, by 1hich mean, are they able to obeyIC &e re'lied, C?y e-tracting the <love of= the 1orld from their heart,. If anything of the 1orld 1ere in their heart,, not even one 'ro,tration from them 1ould be 'ro'er:C Al-Shaikh Abu Abdullah al-2urai,hi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid,

CA 'er,on com'lained to one of the righteou, that he doe, good action, but doe, not ta,te any ,1eetne,, in hi, heart.C %he righteou, 'er,on re'lied, C%hi, i, becau,e you have "in your heart# the daughter of Ibli, "i.e. the 1orld# and the father <often= vi,it, the hou,e of hi, daughter <and ,he re,ide, in your

heart=. And hi, entering into her hou,e doe, not bring anything but de'ravity.C Sidi Abu Muhammad ibn Sahl "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C%he

'er,on 1ho doe, not love the 1orld i, given the like of the re1ard of the ,cholar, and 1or,hi'er, together; then, the re,t of the believer, have the like, of only a 'ortion of 1hat he got. No one on !e,urrection Day 1ill be in a better ,tate than the ,cru'ulou, ,cholar 1ho did not love the 1orld.C LN. /-cellence in action, i, a fruit of e-cellence in ,'iritual ,tate,. becoming ,u''ort=. /-cellence in action, 1ith i, fulfilling manner, of all of their to obligatory Allah Mo,t (urther, reali4ed e-cellence in the in ,'iritual of the ,tate, come, from ,tation, de,cending <Divine

'recondition,

'ro'er

,lavehood

&igh. It i, al,o to avoid ,eeking ,elfi,h 1orldly gain, and al,o re1ard, in the hereafter. /-cellence in ,'iritual ,tate, i, that they be ,afe from the di,ea,e, of the heart, free from egocentric claim, and be ,tam'ed 1ith the ,tam' of truthfulne,,. ?ecoming reali4ed in the ,tation, of de,cending <Divine ,u''ort= i, by the heart imbibing 1hat the %ruth <Mo,t &igh= ,end, do1n to it of the ,tation, of kno1ledge and Divine cognition cau,ing all doubt, to be annulled. %he,e three thing, mentioned above follo1 one after another. %hi, i, 1hat al-Imam Abu &amid "rahmatullahi alaihi# meant 1hen he ,aid, C/very ,tation of certainty i, connected to ,ome kno1ledge, a ,'iritual ,tate, and good action,. So, kno1ledge yield, a ,'iritual ,tate and a ,'iritual ,tate yield, a good action.C %hi, ,tatement of the author i, a ty'e of evidence for 1hat he mentioned <in the 'reviou, hikma= about the ab,tinent and avid 'er,on0

LJ. Don9t leave verbal remembrance of Allah for lack of 're,ence of heart 1ith Allah in it. %hi, i, becau,e your neglecting &i, verbal remembrance i, 1or,e than your lack of 're,ence of heart in &i, remembrance. And it i, 7uite 'o,,ible that &e lift you from mere verbal remembrance to remembrance in a ,tate of ,'iritual 1akefulne,,- and from remembrance 1hile in ,'iritual 1akefulne,, to remembrance 1hile e-'eriencing Allah9, 're,ence and from remembrance 1hile e-'eriencing &i, 're,ence to remembrance in ab,ence of everything be,ide, &im. CAnd that i, not hard for Allah.C <Al-2ur9an >L0)*= Practicing verbal remembrance of Allah i, the ,horte,t <and

ea,ie,t= Path leading to &im and i, a ,ign of &i, friend,hi'. It i, ,aid that remembrance of Allah i, the <red= car'et leading to &i, friend,hi'. Whoever ha, been led to the remembrance of Allah ha, already been led to 1hat the <red= car'et lead, to. And 1hoever i, de'rived from the remembrance of Allah ha, been di,tanced from &im. A 'oet ,aid0 'emembran(e of Allah is the greatest door that yo enter<

$eading to Allah. So wat(h over it with all breaths. Imam Abu 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid,

C!emembering Allah i, the label of friend,hi' 1ith &im, the light ,ource for reaching &im, the reali4ation of true di,ci'le,hi', and a ,ign for a correct beginning and a 'ure end. So, there i, not anything beyond remembering Allah. All 'rai,e1orthy attribute, return to remembering Allah and have it a, a ,ource. %he merit, of remembering Allah are more than can be enumerated. It 1ould have been ,ufficient if there 1ere nothing more than Allah Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement in &i, Mighty ?ook0 C!emember Me and I 1ill remember you.C <Al-2ur9an )0>G)= and &i, Mo,t &igh9,

,tatement narrated from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#0 CI deal 1ith My ,ervant a, he e-'ect, Me to and I am 1ith him 1hen he remember, Me. If he remember, Me in him,elf, I remember him in My,elf. If he remember, Me in a gathering, I remember him in a gathering better than it. If he dra1, nearer to Me by a hand-,'an, I dra1 nearer to him by an arm9, length. If he dra1, nearer to Me an arm9, length, I dra1 nearer to him one arm,-,'an. If he come, to Me 1alking, I come to him running.C %hi, hadith ,ay i, in both among Sahih the Mu,lim and Sahih ?ukhari. %he ,cholar, that ,'ecial 7ualitie, of remembering

Allah i, that it i, not tied do1n to any 'articular time unlike other act, of 1or,hi'. So, there are not any time <e-ce't a fe1= that the ,ervant i, not re7ue,ted to do ,o, either 1ith an obligatory re7ue,t or an o'tional one. Sayyidna Ibn Abba, "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, CAllah in,cribed

all obligatory act, 1ith an kno1n 7uantity and condition, in 1hich one i, e-cu,ed from them - e-ce't 'racticing remembrance,. (or it, Allah did not 'ut do1n a kno1n 7uantity beyond 1hich one cannot 'ractice it nor did &e e-cu,e anybody from it - e-ce't the 'er,on 1ho i, not con,ciou, or ,ane. !ather, &e ha, commanded &i, ,ervant, to remember &im at all time,0 DSo remember Allah ,tanding and ,itting and on your ,ide,.E <Al-2ur9an L0>*+=C &e Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid0 C!emember Allah 1ith much

remembrance.C <Al-2ur9an ++0L>= T 1hich mean, to remember &im by night and day, at land and at ,ea, 1hile traveling and 1hile at home, in 1ealth and in 'overty, in health and in ,ickne,,, in 'rivate and in 'ublic, and in all other condition,. %he 2ur3anic /-egete Mu5ahid ,aid that Cmuch remembranceC in the ver,e mean, that one never forget, Allah. It ha, been narrated from the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# that he ,aid0 8ee' making 'lenteou, remembrance of Allah until it i, ,aid that you are cra4y.

%hu,, it i, fitting for the ,ervant to make much remembrance in all of hi, condition,, engro,, all of hi, time in it ,ince leaving and neglecting it i, 1or,e than being ab,ent-minded 1hile 'racticing it. So, he ,hould remember Allah Mo,t &igh 1ith hi, tongue even if he lack, 're,ence of heart in it. Perha', remembering Allah 1ith lack of 're,ence of heart may lift him to remembering Allah 1ith attentivene,, "1hich i, a de,cri'tion of the intelligent#. And 'erha', remembering Allah 1ith attentivene,, may lift him to remembering Allah 1ith 're,ence of heart "1hich i, a de,cri'tion of the ,cholar,#. (inally 'erha', remembering remembering Allah Allah 1ith 1hile 're,ence being of heart from may lift him to the ab,ent other than

!emembered "1hich i, the rank of the reali4ed kno1er, and friend, of Allah#. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, alluded to thi, 'oint 1hen &e ,aid, CAnd remember your Aord 1hen you forget.C <Al-2ur9an >F0)L= - 1hich mean, forget other than Allah 1hile remembering &im. At that 'oint, you are truly a rememberer of Allah. In thi, ,tation, the remembrance of the tongue ,to', 1hile the ,ervant i, 1i'ed out in ,eeing Allah : Shaikh al-Wa,iti "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid alluding to thi, ,tation, C%he one, 1ho make remembrance of Allah <1ith their tongue,= are more heedle,, than tho,e 1ho forget everything including their verbal remembrance, <in annihilating them,elve,=: Sidi Abul Abba, ibn al-?ana9 "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid in hi, to Shaikh Abdul I44 al-Din ibn Mudhaffar al-

introduction

Shafi i9, "rahmatullahi alaihi# book The 'ational Se(rets in the 6ro!heti( +ords 1hich I ,a1 in hi, hand1riting, CAmong the be,t ty'e of remembrance of Allah i, that 1hich ri,e, above thought,, being ,ent do1n from the !emembered &im,elf. "Aofty be &i, remembrance#.C %hi, i, the real silent dhikr according to the 'eo'le of Allah : %he elucidation of thi, i, that the heart 1hile remembering Allah i, free from everything all together. Nothing

remain, in it e-ce't Allah "Aofty be &i, remembrance#. In ,uch a ca,e, the heart become, the hou,e of the %ruth and i, filled by &im. So, verbal remembrance involuntarily manife,t, it,elf in thi, ,tate. At thi, 'oint, the clear truth i, tongue by 1hich the rememberer ,'eak,. If thi, rememberer ,tretched out hi, hand, it 1ould be a, if Allah 1ere hi, hand. If he li,ten,, it 1ould be a, if Allah 1ere hi, hearing. %he !emembered "Mo,t &igh# ha, fully taken charge and o1n, the heart and limb, of thi, 'er,on. So, &e make, them move in &i, 'lea,ure. &e ha, al,o taken full control over the attribute, of thi, ,lave; ,o, &e change, them a, &e 1ill, according to &i, de,ire,. %hi, i, 1hy verbal remembrance, emit them,elve, from the ,ervant 1ithout formal undertaking. Aike1i,e, act, of obedience are done energetically and in 'lea,ure 1ithout ,train. C%hat i, the bounty of Allah 1hich &e give, to 1hom &e 1ill,. And Allah ha, tremendou, bounty.C <Al-2ur9an GJ0)>= CAllah i, 1ith tho,e 1ho have godcon,ciou,ne,, and tho,e 1ho e-cel in good 1ork,.C <Al2ur9an >N0>)F=. Allah de,cribe, the heart of the mother of Mo,e, "alaihi ,alam# a, becoming em'ty like ,uch in &i, the %ruth9, ,tatement, CAnd the heart of the mother of Mu,a became em'ty.C <Al-2ur9an )F0>*= T meaning that it became em'ty him of everything 1ithout of 'rior Nabi e-ce't the remembrance of Nabi Mu,a "alaihi ,alam#. She almo,t ,'oke of him involuntarily !ather, here from leaving remembering verbal 'lanning. "alaihi remembrance Mu,a

,alam# 1a, an act of 'atience ,'ringing from the fact that Allah made her heart firm ,o that ,he may be among the believer,. <&e made her heart firm by= in,'iring to her that Nabi Mu,a "alaihi ,alam# 1ould be among the me,,enger,. %he,e <,tate, of the remembering= 1e are mentioning are

mile,tone, and ,tation, of a,cent 1hich only tho,e traveling the Path really kno1 e-'erientially. %he regular ,cholar, kno1 the,e

thing, by merely ackno1ledging their truth <1ithout e-'eriencing them=. So, be1are of denying the ver,e, of Allah le,t you become among the deaf and dumb in darkne,,. %he 6ne !emembered cannot be de,cribed by being non-e-i,tent, covered by a veil, enclo,ed in a 'lace, ,'ecific to a 'articular time, nor a, being ab,ent. &e i, not de,cribed by the fluctuating attribute, of created thing,. &e i, 're,ent 1ith &i, /ntity and attribute,. &e vie1, our 'rivate and ,ecret meeting,. &e i, clo,e to everything and clo,er to the one 1ho remember, &im than him,elf. %hi, i, becau,e &e e-i,tentiate, him, kno1, about him, ha, full 1ill and 'o1er over him, and 'lan, hi, affair, out. &e created creation, but their attribute, do not fit &im. &e brought into e-i,tence the great number of thing,, but their innate meaning, do not re,trict &im. Glory be to &im. &e i, the &igh, the Great. <end 7uote of Shaikh Abul Abba, "rahmatullahi alaihi# about the third ,tation of the ,tation, of remembering Allah=. So, it i, not fitting for the ,ervant to con,ider it a far ,hot that he reach thi, noble ,tation. It i, not hard for the 8no1ing Giver of <S'iritual= 6'ening, to make him reach ,uch. %hu,, the ,ervant ,hould undertake e-ternal mean, <,uch a, verbal remembrance,= and it i, left to Allah to rai,e the veil. LF. Among the ,ign, of the heart9, death i, leaving ,adne,, over mi,,ed act, of obedience and leaving regret over ,li', into di,obedience. When the heart i, alive 1ith faith, it feel, ,ad about the act, of obedience that it mi,,e, and regret, the ,li', into di,obedience it e-'erience,. %hi, al,o dictate, the 're,ence of ha''ine,, 1hen one i, u,ed <by Allah= for act, of obedience from evil act, of di,obedience. It ha, been narrated in a hadith, CWhoever9, good deed make him ha''y and bad deed, make him ,ad, he i, the believerC <al-&akim= If the ,ervant doe, not have

,adne,, about mi,,ed o''ortunitie, and regret for committing bad deed,, he i, dead of heart. %hi, i, becau,e the action, of the ,ervant "good or bad# are ,ign, for the 're,ence of Allah9, 'lea,ure or anger for the ,ervant. When Allah Mo,t &igh give, the ,ervant the ,ucce,, to 'erform good act,, the ,ervant i, made ha''y by it ,ince it i, a ,ign for &i, 'lea,ure for him. In ,uch a ca,e, hi, ho'e 'redominate,. And 1hen Allah Mo,t &igh abandon, and doe, not 'rotect the ,ervant letting him commit act, of di,obedience, the ,ervant i, made ,ad ,ince it i, a ,ign for &i, anger. In ,uch a ca,e, hi, fear 'redominate,. &o'e 'u,he, the ,ervant to earne,tly 1ork to1ard, obedience. &o'e doe, not dictate that one leave act, of obedience and leave ,adne,, over 1hat one ha, mi,,ed of act, of obedience due to feeling ,afe from the 'lot of Allah in delu,ion. (ear 'u,he, the ,ervant to regret go to becau,e e-treme, to one ha, avoid act, of of the

di,obedience. (ear doe, not dictate that one 'erform act, of di,obedience leaving de,'aired Mercy of Allah. In the hadith of Sayyidna Abdullah ibn Ma, ud

"radhi3Allahu anhu# he ,aid, CWhen 1e 1ere 1ith the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#, a 'er,on came u'on u,, kneeled hi, camel, and then 1alked to1ard, the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#. 6 Me,,enger of Allah, I hurried my camel for nine day,. I drove it to1ard, you for ,i- making my night ,lee'le,, and my day full of thir,t. I have no1 'ut do1n my camel to a,k you about t1o thing, 1hich have been making my night, ,lee'le,,.C %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# a,ked, 9Who are youI9 %he man re'lied, 9Uayd al-8hayl "Uayd of the &or,e,#.9 %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re,'onded, 9!ather, you are Uayd al-8hayr "Uayd of good#. A,k your 7ue,tion for 'erha', it i, enigmatic.9 %he man ,aid, 9I have come to a,k about the ,ign by 1hich one kno1, that Allah 1ant, <good= for one and the ,ign by 1hich one kno1, that Allah doe, not 1ant <good= for one.9 %he

&oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re'lied, 9/-cellentS &o1 did you find your,elf thi, morningI9 &e ,aid, 9I found my,elf thi, morning loving good and it, 'eo'le, loving that it be acted by, and yearning for it. When I do a good act, ,mall or big, I am ,ure that it 1ill be re1arded.9 %he &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, C%hi, i, the very ,ign <you a,ked about= Uayd. If &e 1anted bad for you, &e 1ould have made you inclined to1ard, it. In ,uch a ca,e, &e 1ouldn9t care in 1hich valley you 'eri,h. CUayd then ,aid, C%hi, i, enough for me.C &e then made off 1ith hi, camel. LM. Don3t let a ,in become ,o great in your eye, that it 'revent, you from e-'ecting the be,t from Allah Mo,t &igh. Whoever kno1, hi, Aord con,ider, hi, ,in ,mall in relation to &i, genero,ity. Bon,idering a ,in great on the 'art of it, commiter i, of t1o ty'e,. %he fir,t i, that it ,eem, ,o great that it 'u,he, him to make re'entance from it, ,to' doing it, and making a firm determination not to return to it, like. %hi, ,ort of con,idering a ,in great i, 'rai,e1orthy. Additionally, it i, a ,ign of faith in a ,ervant a, 1e have mentioned 'reviou,ly <in the e-'lanation of the la,t hikma=. Sayyidna Abdullah ibn Ma, ud "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, C%he

believer ,ee, hi, ,in, a, big a, the ba,e of a mountain fearing that he 1ill be re7uited for them. And the 1icked ,ee, hi, ,in like a ,mall fly on hi, no,e, 1hich he ,hoo, off <not thinking much of it=.C It i, ,aid, C/very time an act of obedience i, con,idered ,mall <by it, doer=, it become, big 1ith Allah.

Similarly, every time that an act of di,obedience i, con,idered big <by it, doer=, it become, ,mall 1ith Allah Mo,t &igh.C %he ,econd ty'e of con,idering a ,in big i, that 1hich cau,e, one to de,'air and make, one think badly of Allah Mo,t &igh. %hi, ,ort of con,idering a ,in bug i, blame1orthy and infringe, on true faith. In reality, it i, 1or,e for him than hi, ,in,. %he rea,on for thi, ty'e of con,idering a ,in great i, ignorance of the attribute, of the Ma,ter, the Giver of good, the Generou,, and Magnanimou,. %hi, <act of ignorance= i,,ue, from con,idering one,elf great and dra1ing an analogy ba,ed u'on one9, intellect and con5ecture. If one 1ere a real kno1er of Allah, he 1ould con,ider hi, ,in, in,ignificant in relation to &i, genero,ity and bounty. &o1 im'ortant i, the ,ervant or of 1hat great value i, he that he can fall into a ,in 1hich hi, Aord cannot 'ardon or it i, ,o big that &e cannot forgive. %he author ,ay, in hi, book al-Tanwir, C8no1 that &e ha, to have ,ome ,lave, in &i, dominion for 1hich &e can erect &i, forbearance, ,ho1 &i, mercy to and forgive, and make fit for being re,cued by the 'lea,ure of other, on the Day of Pudgement. Knder,tand the &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement, 9?y the 6ne in Who,e hand i, my life, if you 1ere not to ,in, Allah 1ould have made a1ay 1ith you and brought a 'eo'le 1ho ,in and then a,k Allah Mo,t &igh for forgivene,, ,o that &e may forgive them.9 Al,o under,tand the &oly Pro'het9, "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,tatement, 9My 'leading <on the Day of Pudgment= i, for the 'racticer, of enormou, ,in, from my community.9 A man came to the teacher Shaikh Abul &a,an al-Shadhili

"rahmatullahi alaihi# and ,aid, 9Sidi, 5u,t ye,terday ,uch and ,uch ,in, 1ere on our limb, <before 1e 1ere guided to the Path= :9 %he man ,eemed to find it ,trange that ,uch could ha''en.

Shaikh Abul &a,an "rahmatullahi alaihi# re'lied, 9It i, a, if you 1ant that Allah Mo,t &igh not be &igh di,obeyed not be in &i, kingdom. in &i, Whoever love, that Allah Mo,t di,obeyed

kingdom love, that &i, forgivene,, not be made manife,t and the 'leading of the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# not be. &o1 many a ,inner 1ho,e bad deed, and act, of di,obedience are many, but the divine Mercy i, 1ritten for him. %he Aord di,'lay, mercy to the ,ervant in accordance 1ith the ,trength of hi, faith, even if the ,ervant kno1ingly di,obey,.9 C %herefore, it i, not fitting for the ,ervant to con,ider hi, ,in, ,o great that it lead, him to de,'air from &i, mercy e-'ecting bad from &im. !ather, he ,hould re'ent to hi, Aord from it and return from it to &im. In a hadith, the Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CIf it 1eren9t for the fact that a ,in i, better for a believer than being conceited about hi, good action,, Allah Mo,t &igh 1ould never let a ,in get in bet1een &im and a believer.C (rom thi, you kno1 that ,in, 'revent a 'er,on from being conceited about hi, good act,, 1hich i, the greate,t veil bet1een the ,lave and hi, Ma,ter. %hi, i, becau,e the conceited 'er,on look, u' to him,elf and not u' to hi, Aord thinking hi, act, of obedience and 1or,hi' are great, finding re,t in them. Sin, in the other hand make the ,ervant have fear and 1arine,, making him flee to Allah Mo,t &igh a1ay from hi, o1n ,elf. Bonceit turn, the ,lave a1ay from Allah Mo,t &igh 1hile ,in, turn him to1ard, &im. Bonceit drive, him to1ard, hi, o1n ,elf 1hile ,in, drive him to1ard, hi, Aord. Bonceit lead, him to con,ider him,elf inde'endent 1hile ,in, lead him to 'overty <i.e. in need for Allah9, mercy=. %he mo,t beloved attribute of the ,lave to Allah Mighty and /-alted i, the ,lave9, 'overty to1ard, &i, ma,ter. %he noble,t of the ,tate, of the believer i, that 1hich thro1, and drive, him to1ard, &im.

G*. No ,in i, ,mall if &e ,ho1, you 5u,tice and no ,in i, big if &e ,ho1, you benevolence. When high divine attribute, become manife,t, the action, of tho,e 1ho 'erform them become futile. So 1hen the divine attribute of 5u,tice manife,t, it,elf on 1hom &e hate, and de,'i,e,, hi, good 1ork, become futile and hi, ,mall ,in, become enormou, <in &i, ,ight=. Aike1i,e 1hen the divine attribute of benevolence manife,t, it,elf on 1hom &e love,, hi, bad deed, vani,h and hi, big ,in, become ,mall one, <in &i, ,ight=. Sidi @ahya ibn Mu adh "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIf &e make, the ,ervant, mea,ure u' to &i, 5u,tice, no good deed, are left for them. Aike1i,e if &i, benevolence reache, them, no bad deed, are left for them. Abd among hi, ,u''lication, 1a,, CMy God if you love me, my ,in, are forgiven and if @ou de,'i,e me, my good action, are not acce'ted.C And ho1 beautiful i, the ,tatement of Shaikh Abul &a,an alShadhili "rahmatullahi alaihi# <in the &i4b al-?ahr "a.k.a. hi4b al-kabir#=, CAnd make our bad deed, of tho,e 1hom @ou love and do not make our good deed, tho,e of 1hom @ou hate. (or good deed, are u,ele,, along 1ith @our hatred and bad deed, do not hurt along 1ith @our love.C And among the 'rivate ,u''lication, of the author i,0 6 my God ho1 many an act of 1or,hi' I 'erform or ,'iritual ,tate I erect e-ce't that @our 5u,tice de,troy, my de'endence on it and @our benevolence free, me from need of it. G>. No action i, more likely to be acce'ted than that 1hich you become ab,ent from and 1ho,e 're,ence you deem in,ignificant. %he manu,cri't, that 1e have read CNo action i, more likely <to benefit= heart, than that 1hich:C %he meaning of thi, ver,ion i,

that the heart doe, not turn to1ard, nor con,ider ,ignificant the action de,cribed by 1hat the author mention,. In not turning to1ard, it and di,regarding it, the heart remain, 'ro'er and i, free the ,lavery of ,eeing the action. In ,uch a ca,e, the heart remain, 1ith it, Aord and not 1ith the action. %he author 1ill mention a fe1 1ord, along thi, line later <in hikma QGM=. &o1ever mo,t 'robably the author 1rote CNo action i, more likely to be acce'ted than that 1hich :C ?ut, the co'yi,t made a tran,'o,ition error changing the 1ork a((e!ted "7abul# to hearts "7ulub# : %he meaning of thi, ver,ion i, that the ,afety of the 1ork, from internal calamitie, i, a condition for their acce'tance - a, their 'erformer in ,uch a ca,e i, actually godfearing and CAllah only acce't, from the god-fearingC. <Al-2ur9an G0)J=. Action, are only ,aved from internal calamitie, by accu,ing the ,elf of not fulfilling their right, and ,eeing it, ,hortcoming, in it. Bon,e7uently, the 'erformer become, ab,ent from the action and con,ider, it, 're,ence in,ignificant. So, he doe, not find re,t in it nor de'end on it. If the 'erformer of the action i, not de,cribed by ,uch, but rather look, u' to1ard, it, con,ider, it great, and forget, about Allah Mo,t &igh9, favor in giving him the ,ucce,, to 'erform it, thi, make, him fall into ,elf-conceit cau,ing hi, action to become 1orthle,, and hi, effort 1a,ted. Sidi Abu Sulaiman al-Darani "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C/very time I find an action of mine 'lea,ing, I ,earch it out <for fault,=.C Ali ibn al-&u,ayn "May Allah Mo,t &igh be 1ell-'lea,ed 1ith him# ,aid, C@our ,eeing an action i, a 'roof that it 1ill not be acce'ted from you. %hi, i, becau,e an acce'ted action i, rai,ed u' beyond your ,ight. Aike1i,e, your not ,eeing an action i, a 'roof for it, acce'tance.C

A kno1er of Allah 1a, a,ked about the ,ign of an acce'ted action and he an,1ered, C@our forgetting about it and your di,regarding it totally.C %he evidence for thi, i, in Allah Mo,t &igh9, ,tatement0 %o &im a,cend, the goodly 1ord, and the righteou, action. &e rai,e, it u' to &im. <Al-2ur9an +G0>*=. So the ,ign of Allah Mo,t &igh rai,ing u' an action i, that nothing of it remain, 1ith you. If ,omething of it remain, in your ,ight, it ha,n9t been rai,ed u' to &im - for there i, a great difference bet1een your 're,ence and &i, 're,ence. %hu, it i, fitting for the ,ervant that 1hen he 'erform, an action it become, forgotten over t1ice according to 1hat 1e have mentioned about accu,ing the ,elf and ,eeing it, ,hortcoming, until the ,ervant9, action i, acce'ted. G). &e only make, ,'iritual e-'erience, come over you ,o that 1ith them you may come to &im. A ,'iritual e-'erience i, 1hat come, to the heart concerning divine kno1ledge and ,'iritual ,ubtletie, to 'urify the heart and clean,e it until it i, fit for entering Allah9, 're,ence. %hi, i, becau,e the divine 're,ence i, unreachable by heart, made turbid by created thing, and ,tained 1ith the filth of other,. %hu,, &e only made the ,'iritual e-'erience come to you ,o that you may 1ith it come <to &im=. G+. &e make, ,'iritual e-'erience, come to you ,o that &e may ,ave you from the hand of other, and free you from ,lavery to created thing,. Breated thing, and thing, other than &im try to ,natch and ,teal you a1ay <from &im=. %hi, i, becau,e of your love for them, your finding re,t in them, and your de'endence on them. %hu,, &e ,end, you ,'iritual e-'erience, to deliver you from the hand of tho,e

that ,ei4ed you and free you from the control of tho,e that ,hackled you. %here i, an allu,ion to thi, 'oint in the ,imilitude that Allah Mo,t &igh ,trike, in the e-am'le of the di,believer in &i, ,tatement0 DAllah ,trike, the e-am'le of a ,lave in 1hich there are many o1ner, 1ho argue 1ith each other and the ,lave 1ho belong, ,olely to one man. Are the t1o e7ual in e-am'leIE <Al-2ur9an +M0)M= So, 1hoever i, delivered from the hand of other, and freed from ,lavery to e-i,tential realitie,, no created thing ha, a 'art or ,hare in him; rather, he belong, ,olely to Allah Mighty and Ma5e,tic. GL. &e ,end, you ,'iritual e-'erience, to take you out of the 'ri,on Allah. %he 'ri,on of the ,ervant i, beholding him,elf and 1atching out for hi, ,elfi,h gain,. %he e-'an,e of beholding Allah i, that the ,ervant become, ab,ent from ,eeing him,elf by beholding the %remendou,ne,, of Allah Mo,t &igh, beholding &i, Ma5e,ty, and beholding &i, u'holding creation in it, movement, and re,t. Sidi Abul 2a,im al-Na,rabadhi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, C@our 'ri,on i, your lo1er ,elf. When you leave it, you find endle,, rela-ation.C %he author 1ill mention thi, 'oint in hikma Q)LJ. GG. S'iritual illumination, are the riding 'latform, of heart, and innermo,t being,. %he light, of faith and certainty are vehicle,, 1hich carry the innermo,t being, and heart, to the 're,ence of the 8no1er of the Kn,een. %he,e are the aforementioned ,'iritual e-'erience,. of your e-i,tence into the e-'an,ivene,, of beholding

GN. Aight i, the army of the heart a, darkne,, i, the army of the lo1er ,elf. When Allah 1ant, to give victory to &i, ,ervant, &e hel', him 1ith the armie, of light and cut, off from him the ,u''ort of darkne,, and other, Aight i, unifying Allah and having certainty 1hile darkne,, i, a,,ociating other, 1ith Allah and having doubt. %he heart ha, an army and the lo1er ,elf ha, one. %he 1ar bet1een the t1o armie, i, a conte,t. So 1hen Allah 1ant, to give victory to hi, ,ervant, &e fill, hi, heart 1ith it, armie, <of light= and cut, off from the lo1er ,elf the hel' of it, troo', <of darkne,,=. When Allah 1ant, to abandon the ,ervant, the matter i, the o''o,ite of 1hat 1e mentioned. An e-am'le i, 1hen the heart incline, to1ard, a 'rai,e1orthy action 1hich i, 'ainful in thi, 1orld but re1arded 1ith 'lea,ure in the ne-t 1orld and the lo1er ,elf incline, to1ard, a blame1orthy action that i, 'lea,ureful in thi, 1orld but re7uited 1ith 'ain in the ne-t 1orld, the t1o armie, engage in a fight. Aight from the command of Allah Mo,t &igh run, to the ,ide of the heart and darkne,, from the 1hi,'er, of Shaitan and hi, gathering race, to the hel' of the lo1er ,elf. %hen, the t1o battle line, engage. If a 'rede,tined command of bli,, from Allah Mo,t &igh reache, the ,ervant fir,t, the heart i, guided by the light of Allah Mo,t &igh and con,ider, thi, 1orld9, affair, trivial <a, com'ared to the ne-t=. %hu,, the heart act, by 1hat it i, inclined to1ard, even if it i, 'ainful in thi, 1orld a, it ho'e, for 'lea,ure in the ne-t 1orld 1ith it. Aike1i,e if a 'rede,tined command of 1retchedne,, from Allah - and 1e a,k Allah for refuge from ,uch - reache, the ,ervant fir,t, the heart neglect, the light and the darkne,, blind, it from the benefit in the hereafter, becoming deluded by the 1orldly 'lea,ure. %hu,, the ,ervant act, by 1hat the lo1er ,elf 1a, inclined to1ard, even if

it may cau,e 'ain in the hereafter ,eeking it for it, 1orldly 'lea,ure. When the t1o battle front, meet and the fighting bet1een them i, inten,e, the ,ervant ha, no 1ay out e-ce't to flee to and take refuge 1ith Allah Mo,t &igh remembering &im much, truly de'ending on &im, and ,eeking 'rotection 1ith &im from Shaitan. In the,e five 'a,t hikma,, the author ha, re'eated a ,imilar meaning 1ith different 1ord,. %hi, i, hi, habit in many 'art, of thi, book. May Allah be 1ell 'lea,ed 1ith him. GJ. Aight reveal,, in,ight 5udge,, and the heart a''roached or turned a1ay. %he,e three differing term, are u,ed to convey three di,tinct idea,. Aight hel', remove the veil from un,een ,'iritual thing, until they become clear and are vie1able. In,ight "1hich i, the ,ight of the heart# hel', to 5udge the correctne,, of 1hat i, vie1ed. (inally, the heart can a''roach by acting by 1hat in,ight ,ee, or it can dra1 back by not acting by 1hat in,ight ,ee,. GF. Aet not an act of obedience make you glad becau,e it came from you. !ather, be glad for it becau,e it came from Allah to you. Say0 With the bounty of Allah and &i, mercy, let them be ha''y. It i, better than 1hat they ama,,. <Al-2ur9an >*0GF= ?ecoming ha''y 1ith an act of obedience i, of t1o ty'e,. %he fir,t i, becoming ha''y 1ith it by ,eeing it coming from Allah a, a ble,,ing and favor. %hi, ty'e of ha''ine,, i, 'rai,e1orthy and i, de,ired for the ,lave. %hi, ty'e of ha''ine,, i, a 1ay of thanking Allah for the act <of obedience=.

%he ,econd ty'e i, becoming ha''y 1ith it ,eeing it a, coming from one,elf by one9, o1n 'reference, choice, 'o1er, and ,trength. %hi, ty'e of ha''ine,, i, blame1orthy and i, forbidden again,t. %hi, ty'e of ha''ine,, ,ho1, ingratitude to1ard, Allah9, ble,,ing. It i, al,o counted among 'rideful conceit, 1hich i, kno1n to make action, 1orthle,,. So, becoming ha''y 1ith it in the ,econd ,en,e i, like becoming ha''y 1ith nothing. In the end of thi, book the author 1ill mention the 'rai,e1orthy and blame1orthy ty'e, of being ha''y 1ith a ble,,ing. GM. &e ha, cut off tho,e traveling to &im and tho,e 1ho have reached &im from ,eeing their good action, and ,'iritual ,tate,. A, for the traveler,, it i, becau,e they have not reali4ed ,incerity 1ith Allah in them. A, for tho,e that have reached &im, it i, becau,e &e ha, made them ab,ent from them by their ga4ing to1ard, &im. Allah ble,,ed both of the above mentioned 'artie, by cutting them off from ,eeing their action, and ,tate,. Doing ,o, &e ha, made them remain 1ith &im and not 1ith other than &im. &e ha, done ,uch 1ith tho,e that have reached &im 1ith their accord and 1ith the traveler, 1ithout their accord - CAnd to Allah 'ro,trate, everyone in the heaven, and earth 1illingly or un1illinglyC <al2ur9an >+0>G=. &e ha, cut off tho,e that have reached &im from ,eeing their action, and ,tate, by making them 1itne,, &im in the 're,ence of &i, clo,ene,,. Whoever ,ee, &im doe, not ,ee anything other than &im along 1ith &im ,ince it i, im'o,,ible that a 'er,on ,ee &im and al,o ga4e at other than &im. Similarly, &e ha, cut off tho,e traveling to &im from ,eeing their action, and ,tate, by making them ackno1ledge their

in,incerity and egoti,tic claim, in them. So, the traveler, are al1ay, accu,ing them,elve, of not fulfilling the right, of their good action, or not 'urifying their ,'iritual ,tate,. Shaikh al-Nah5a1ri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CAmong the ,ign, of the 'er,on 1hom Allah ha, taken charge of in hi, ,tate, i, that the 'er,on ,ee ,hortcoming, in hi, ,incerity, unmindfulne,, in hi, remembrance,, decrea,e in hi, truthfulne,,, la-itude in hi, ,'iritual ,truggle,, and lack of care in ,ho1ing hi, need for Allah. So, he con,ider, all of hi, ,tate, di,'lea,ing and increa,e, in needine,, to Allah to bring him to hi, goal until he become, annihilated from other than &imC Sidi Abu Amr I,ma3il ibn Na5id "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CNo

one ha, a 'ure ,tanding in ,lavehood until he ,ee, all of hi, action, a, being a ,ho1 for 'eo'le and all of hi, ,tate, a, being fal,e claim,.C Sidi Abu @a4id "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CIf only a ,ingle verbal declaration of Allah9, onene,, 1ould become 'ure from me, I 1ould not 1orry about anything after1ard,.C A narration from Shaikh al-Wa,iti "rahmatullahi alaihi# allude, to the,e t1o ,tate,0 Shaikh al-Wa,iti "rahmatullahi alaihi# Kthman entered Ni,abur and a,ked the com'anion, of Sidi Abu

"rahmatullahi alaihi#, CWhat did your Shaikh u,e to en5oin you to doIC %hey an,1ered, C&e u,ed to en5oin u, to ,tick to act, of obedience 1hile ,eeing ,hortcoming, in them.C Shaikh al-Wa,iti "rahmatullahi alaihi# re'lied, C&e en5oined you 1ith 'ure fire 1or,hi'. &e ,hould have in,tead commanded you to be ab,ent from your 1ork, by ,eeing the 6ne Who make, them come about.C %he teacher Shaikh Abul 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, CShaikh al-Wa,iti "rahmatullahi alaihi# only 1anted to ,ave them from 'o,,ible ,elf-'ride in action, <by looking at them=. &e

did not mean to invalidate the act of ,eeing ,hortcoming, or to break one of the 'ro'er manner, <1ith Allah9, friend,=.C N*. ?ranche, of humiliation only gro1 high from ,eed, of

avarice. %he 1ord the author u,e, for high mean, tallne,,. It i, ,aid, C%he date tree become, high and lofty 1hen it become, tallC. Allah Mo,t &igh ,ay,, CAnd the date tree, ,o high:C <Al-2ur9an G*0>*= %he 1ord branche, i, the 'lural of branch, 1hich i, 1hat ,'ring, forth from the trunk of a tree: %he 1ord ,eed i, a germ 1hich i, ,o1ed in the ,oil. All of the,e 1ord, are u,ed a, meta'hor,. <Avarice i, 1anting 1hat i, in the hand, of other 'eo'le.= Avarice i, among the greate,t 'er,on9, calamitie, ,lavehood. of the lo1er ,elf 1hat and i, infringe, in the on the of !ather, 1anting hand,

'eo'le i, the ,ource of all other calamitie, of the heart ,ince it only come, about by 'ure attachment to 'eo'le, ,eeking re,ort 1ith them, de'ending on them, and becoming ,lave, to them. %hi, involve, an utterly va,t amount of humiliation and it i, not 'ermi,,ible for the believer to make him,elf lo1 <for other than Allah=. Additionally, 1anting 1hat i, in the hand, of 'eo'le contradict, higher faith. &igher faith offer, dignity <backed by Allah=. %he dignity that the believer, are characteri4ed by only come, about by their rai,ing their ambition, <above created thing,= to their Ma,ter, by their heart, becoming tran7uil 1ith &im, and their reliance on &im and not other than &im. %hi, i, the dignity that Allah ha, granted hi, believing ,lave. Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, C%o Allah belong, all might, to &i, me,,enger, and to the believer,:C <Al-2ur9an N+0F= N>. Nothing dra1, you like illu,ion.

N). @ou are free from 1hat you have no ho'e for and a ,lave for 1hat you are avid. N+. Whoever doe, not a''roach Allah by <regarding= the gentle act, of &i, grace i, dra1n to &im by the chain, of tribulation,. NL. &e 1ho i, ungrateful for ble,,ing, e-'o,e, him,elf to lo,ing them 1hile he 1ho i, grateful tie, them do1n <from e,ca'e=. NG. (ear from the 're,ence of &i, goodne,, to1ard, you de,'ite your continuou, mi,behavior 1ith &im a 1ay of gradually mi,leading you. CWe ,hall gradually lead them <to de,truction= from 1hence they 'erceive not.C <Al-2ur9an NF0LL= NN. Among the ignorance of the di,ci'le i, that he break, the rule, of eti7uette and u'on ,eeing the 'uni,hment delayed, he ,ay,, CIf thi, 1ere bad eti7uette, it 1ould have cut off the divine hel' and obligated being di,tanced.C ?ut, it may cut off the divine hel' from 1hence he kno1, not - even if it only 'revent, an increa,e. (urther ,till, the di,ci'le may be di,tanced 1ithout kno1ing it - even if it i, by leaving him alone to do 1hat he 1ant,. NJ. When you ,ee a ,lave 1hom Allah ha, long e,tabli,hed in regular 1or,hi', do not undervalue the gift hi, Ma,ter ha, given him if you do not ,ee on him the mark of the kno1er, of Allah nor the glo1 of the lover, of Allah. (or if it 1ere not for <Allah9,= ,ent ,'iritual hel', he 1ould not have been able to 1or,hi' <for ,o long=. NF. A faction Allah ha, e,tabli,hed for &i, ,ervice and a faction &e ha, cho,en for &i, love. CWe ,end ,u''ort to the,e and tho,e from the giving of Allah and the giving of Allah i, not re,tricted.C <Al-2ur9an >J0)*=

NM. S'iritual e-'erience, are almo,t al1ay, ,ur'ri,e, ,o that the ,lave, do not lay claim to them from their o1n 're'aration,. J*. Whoever you ,ee an,1ering he ,ee,, all and 7ue,tion, mentioning he i, a,ked, he

de,cribing

all

event,

everything

kno1,, recogni4e from the,e action, hi, ignorance. J>. &e only made the ne-t 1orld the domain for re1arding &i, believing ,lave, becau,e thi, 1orld cannot fit 1hat &e 1ant, to give them and &e con,ider, them higher than to re1ard them in a domain that 1ill not remain. J). (inding fruit, from 1ork, in thi, life i, a ,ign of their acce'tance in the ne-t life. J+. If you 1ant to kno1 your rank 1ith &im look to 1hat &e ha, e,tabli,hed you in. JL. When &e grant, you obedience and free, you of need from it, kno1 that &e ha, ,ho1ered &i, ble,,ing, on you e-ternally and internally. JG. %he be,t thing you can a,k &im i, 1hat &e a,k, of you. JN. ?eing ,ad about mi,,ing act, of obedience 1ithout ri,ing to 'erform them i, a ,ign of delu,ion. JJ. %he kno1er of Allah i, not he 1ho 1hen he motion, find, the %ruth clo,er to him than hi, motion. !ather, the kno1er of Allah i, he 1ho doe, not have a motion due to hi, being annihilated in &i, e-i,tence and vani,hed by &i, 1itne,,ing. JF. &o'e i, 1hat i, accom'anied by action; el,e, it i, 5u,t a fancy.

JM. %he goal of the kno1er, of Allah Mo,t &igh i, to be true in &i, ,lavehood and to fulfill the right, of &i, lord,hi'. F*. &e give, you ha''y e-'an,ion ,o that you 1ill not get

accu,tomed to ,ad contraction and &e give, you ,ad contraction ,o that you do not <re,tfully= ,tay 1ith ha''y e-'an,ion. And &e e-tract, you from both of the,e ,tate, ,o that you may be for &im and nothing el,e. F>. %he kno1er, of Allah are more fearful in ha''y e-'an,ion than in ,ad contraction. (e1 are tho,e 1ho limit them,elve, to 'ro'er manner, in ha''y e-'an,ion. F). %he lo1er ,elf take, it, 'ortion from ha''y e-'an,ion 1hile it ha, no en5oyment in ,ad contraction. F+. Sometime, &e an,1er, you but <in reality= 1ithhold, and

,ometime, &e 1ithhold, from you but <in reality= give,. FL. When &e o'en, the door of under,tanding to you &i,

1ithholding become, &i, giving. FG. %he 'hy,ical 1orld i, on the to' ,urface a faVade and beneath i, a cau,e for caution. %he lo1er ,elf i, tricked by it, faVade 1hile the heart i, cautiou, of 1hat i, beneath. FN. If you 1ant 'o1er that doe, not go a1ay, do not try to get 'o1er <from thing,= that go a1ay. FJ. %he real miracle folding <of the earth= i, that the ,'an of your 1orldly life i, folded u' and you ,ee the ne-t life clo,er to you than your o1n ,elf.

FF. Acce'ting material benefit from 'eo'le i, de'rivation and being denied material benefit from Allah i, grace. FM. Allah i, high above that &e deal 1ith a ,lave in ca,h and re1ard him only 1ith a 'romi,e of credit. M*. It i, enough of a re1ard for your obedience that &e cho,e you to 'erform the act. M>. What &e o'en, u' to their heart, and ,end forth of &i, intimacy during 1or,hi' i, enough of a re1ard for the 1or,hi'er,. M). Whoever 1or,hi', &im for gain or to 1ard off 'uni,hment ha, not fulfilled the right, of &i, attribute,. M+. When &e give,, he make, you 1itne,, &i, benevolence and 1hen &e 1ithhold,, &e make, you 1itne,, &i, coercion. &e i, making &im,elf kno1n to you and a''roaching you 1ith gentlene,, in both ,tate,. ML. ?eing denied only cau,e, you 'ain ,ince you do not under,tand Allah9, rea,on for 1ithholding. MG. Perha',, &e o'ened for you the door of 1or,hi' but did not o'en for you the door of acce'tance; and 'erha',, &e decreed for you a ,in and it became a rea,on for your reaching &im. MN. Di,obedience follo1ed by feeling lo1 and in need i, better than obedience follo1ed by 'ride and arrogance. MJ. %1o ble,,ing, are nece,,arily univer,al for all created

thing,0 "># the ble,,ing of being fir,t created and ")# the ble,,ing of continuou, ,ub,i,tence.

MF. &e ble,,ed you fir,t by creating you and then by continuou,ly kee'ing you e-i,tent. MM. Need i, your intrin,ic attribute and e-ternal cau,e, only remind you of ,uch. Intrin,ic need doe, not go a1ay by incidental cau,e,. >**. %he be,t of your time, i, the time in 1hich you ,ee your 'overty and are 'u,hed back to your humility. >*>. When &e make, you feel you do not fit in 1ith 'eo'le, kno1 that &e 1ant, to o'en for you the door of intimacy 1ith &im. >*). When &e cau,e, your tongue to ,u''licate, kno1 that &e 1ant, to give you. >*+. %he kno1er of Allah al1ay, feel, e-treme need <for &im= and he find, no re,t in other than &im. >*L. &e ha, illuminated the e-terior, 1ith the light of &i, action, and illuminated the interior, 1ith the light of &i, attribute,. (or thi, rea,on, the e-ternal light, fade and ,et 1hile the light, of the heart, and innermo,t being, do not ,et. It i, ,aid0 The s n of the daylight sets at night b t the s n of the hearts does not go away. >*G. Aet the fact that &e i, trying you ,often the 'ain of trial,. %he 6ne from Whom the trial, have come i, the ,ame a, the 6ne Who 1ant, the be,t for you. >*N. Whoever think, that &i, gentlene,, i, ,e'arate from &i, de,tiny i, only ,hort,ighted. >*J. It i, not feared for you that the Path become, confu,ing. It i, feared for you that your 1him, overtake you.

>*F. Glory be to the 6ne Who had hidden the ,ecret of being ,'ecial 1ith the cover of coar,e humanne,, and ha, become manife,t 1ith &i, tremendou, lord,hi' by obligating ,lavehood. >*M. Do not com'lain to your Aord about a delay in an,1ering your re7ue,t,. manner,. >>*. When &e make, you follo1 &i, command e-ternally and give, you com'lete ,urrender to &im internally, &e ha, given you a tremendou, ble,,ing. >>>. Not everyone 1ho9, ,'ecialne,, i, 'roven ha, fini,hed &i, training. >>). No one look, do1n on 1or,hi' e-ce't the ignorant. %he !ather, blame your,elf for ,ide-,te''ing 'ro'er

,'iritual fruit, of 1or,hi' are found <forever= in the ne-t life 1hile the 1or,hi' it,elf cea,e, 1ith the end of thi, 1orld. And it i, more befitting to concern one,elf 1ith the o''ortunity 1hich 1ill cea,e to e-i,t. &e ,eek, from you 1or,hi' and you ,eek from him ,'iritual fruit,. What i, the rank of 1hat you ,eek com'ared to 1hat &e ,eek,I >>+. Sent divine ,u''ort i, in accord 1ith your level of

're'aredne,, and ,'iritual illumination, are in accord 1ith the 'urity of your innermo,t being. >>L. When the heedle,, 1ake, u' <in the morning=, he ,ee, to 1hat he ,hall do and 1hen the intelligent 1ake, u', he ,ee, to 1hat Allah 1ill do 1ith him. >>G. Per'etual 1or,hi''er, and the e-ternally ab,tinent are

e,tranged by everything <in thi, 1orld= ,ince they are ab,ent

from Allah in everything. If they ,a1 &im in everything, they 1ould not be e,tranged by anything. >>N. &e ha, ordered you in thi, 1orld to regard creation and &e 1ill unveil to you in the ne-t 1orld the 'erfection of &i, /ntity. >>J. &e kne1 that you 1ould not be able to 'ractice 'atience concerning <,eeing= &im. So, &e, made you 1itne,, <in thi, 1orld= 1hat i, a''arent of &im. >>F. When the %ruth kne1 that you get bored, &e made 1or,hi' of multifariou, color. And &e kne1 about your 1or,hi' binge,; ,o, &e 'revented you from it at certain time, - ,o that your concern 1ould be to e,tabli,h 'rayer and not 5u,t 'ray. Not every 'er,on 'raying ha, e,tabli,hed 'rayer. >>M. %he formal 'rayer 'urifie, the heart from the dirt of ,in, and o'en the door to the un,een.. >)*. %he formal 'rayer i, a 'lace for intimate conver,ation <1ith Allah=, for inten,e 'urification, for e-'an,ion of the field, of innermo,t being,, and for the ,hining of bright light,. &e kne1 your 1eakne,,; ,o, &e decrea,ed their number. ?ut, &e al,o kne1 your need for them; ,o, &e increa,ed their ,'iritual 1orth. >)>. When you re7ue,t a com'en,ation for your action, you are a,ked to 'rove that you are true in it. And it i, enough for a 'er,on to remain ,afe <from 'uni,hment 1ithout any re1ard=. >)). Do not a,k to be re1arded for an action 1hich you do not create. It i, enough of a re1ard for your action, that &e acce't, them.

>)+. When &e 1ant, to di,'lay &i, bounty on you, &e create, and a,cribe, it to you. >)L. %here i, no end to your blame if &e leave, you to your,elf and there i, no end to your 'rai,e if &e di,'lay, &i, genero,ity on you. >)G. Bling to the attribute, of &i, lord,hi' and become reali4ed in the attribute, of your ,lavehood. >)N. &e ha, forbid you from claiming that 1hich i, not your, of 1hat 'eo'le o1n. Would &e then allo1 you to lay claim to &i, attribute, <1hich &e o1n,= 1hile &e i, the Aord of the 1orld,I >)J. &o1 ,hall normal la1, break for you 1hen you have not broken from your,elf your habit,I >)F. %he <be,t= ,tate i, not in your re7ue,ting <&im=. %he <be,t= ,tate i, that you be given e-cellent manner,. >)M. &e ha, not re7ue,ted from you anything like your feeling a hard 're,,ed need. And there i, no 7uicker 1ay to get divine gift, than feeling lo1 and in need. >+*. If you 1ere not to reach &im until after all your bad trait, vani,h and your claim, di,a''ear, you 1ould never reach &im. !ather 1hen &e 1ant, you to reach &im, &e cover, your trait, 1ith &i, trait, and make, you reach &im 1ith that 1hich i, from &im to you and not that 1hich i, from you to &im. >+>. Were it not for &i, beautiful covering no action of your, 1ould be fit for acce'tance. >+). @ou need &i, forbearance more 1hen you obey &im than 1hen you di,obey &im.

>+L.

Divine

covering

i,

of

t1o

ty'e,0

">#

cover

from

di,obedience and ")# a cover in di,obedience. %he common 'eo'le a,k Allah Mo,t &igh for the latter fearing that their rank in the eye, of 'eo'le may fall. %he elect 'eo'le a,k Allah for the former fearing that their rank in the eye, of the 8ing and the %ruth may fall. >+G. %he 6ne Who accom'anie, you doe, ,o kno1ing your fault, full-1ell. %hi, i, none other than your Ma,ter, the Generou,. %he be,t com'anion i, &e Who ,eek, you 1ith &i, com'anion,hi' and doe, not ,eek to get ,ome <material= thing from you. >+N. If the light of certainty ,hone for you, you 1ould ,ee the ne-t life ,o clo,e to you that you need not travel to it. And you 1ould ,ee the beautiful thing, of the 1orld being ,hattered by their inevitable end. >+J. @ou are not veiled from Allah 1ith anything e-i,tent.

!ather, you are veiled from &im by imagining that ,omething i, e-i,tent along 1ith &im. >+F. If &e 1ere not a''arent in the 'hy,ical 1orld, eye,ight 1ould not have gra,'ed it. If &i, attribute, 1ere to become manife,t, the 'hy,ical 1orld 1ould vani,h. >+M. &e ha, made a''arent everything ,ince &e i, the &idden. And &e ha, folded u' the e-i,tence of everything ,ince &e i, the A''arent. >L*. &e ha, 'ermitted you to vie1 1hat i, in the 'hy,ical 1orld; but, &e ha, not allo1ed Aook at you 1hat to i, ,to' in the 1ith their 'hy,ical <al-2ur9an ,tructure. CSay0 heaven,C

>*0>*>= May &e o'en for you the door of under,tanding. &e did not

,ay, CAook at the heaven,C le,t &e 'oint you to the e-i,tence of 'hy,ical bodie,. >L>. %he 'hy,ical 1orld i, affirmed through &i, affirmation and it i, 1i'ed out in relation to the 6nene,, of &i, /ntity. >L). Peo'le 'rai,e you for 1hat they think i, in you. So, blame your,elf for 1hat you kno1 i, in you. >L+. When the believer i, 'rai,ed, he become, ,hy in front of Allah that he be 'rai,ed 1ith ,omething he doe, not ,ee in him,elf. >LL. %he mo,t ignorant of 'eo'le i, he 1ho leave, 1hat he kno1, for certain in e-change for 1hat 'eo'le only gue,, about. >LG. If you are 'rai,ed for 1hat you are not 1orthy, 'rai,e Allah for 1hat &e i, 1orthy. >LN. When the e-ternally ab,tinent are 'rai,ed, they enter ,ad contraction a, they ,ee the 'rai,e a, coming from 'eo'le. When the kno1er, of Allah are 'rai,ed, they enter ha''y e-'an,ion a, they ,ee the 'rai,e coming from the 8ing and the %ruth. >LJ. If 1hen given to, you enter ha''y e-'an,ion and 1hen

1ithheld from, you enter ,ad contraction, u,e thi, a, a 'roof for your 'ara,itic nature and lack of truthfulne,, in your ,lavehood. >LF. When you fall into a mi,deed, do not de,'air of attaining continuou, obedience 1ith your Aord. It may be the la,t mi,deed decreed for you. >LM. If you 1ant &im to o'en for you the door of ho'e, look to1ard, 1hat &e ha, ,ent you. When you 1ant &im to o'en for you the door of fear, look to1ard, 1hat you have ,ent him.

>G*. Many a time you gain benefit, in a night of ,ad contraction 1hich you do not gain in the bright day of ha''y e-'an,ion C@ou do not kno1 1hich one of them i, more beneficial to youC. <Al2ur9an L0>>= >G>. %he domain of ,'iritual light, are the heart, and the

innermo,t being,. >G). Aight 'laced in the heart come, from the trea,ure, of light from the un,een 1orld. >G+. Some light let, unveil, for you &i, action,. 6ther light unveil, for you &i, attribute,. >GL. Perha', the heart, can 'rematurely ,to' 1ith ,'iritual

light, like the lo1er-,elve, are veiled by the coar,e 'hy,ical 1orld <both, are other than &im=. >GG. &e ha, hidden the light, of the innermo,t being, 1ith the coar,e human e-terior, ,o that they 1ould not lo,e their value by being made 'lain and by being 'o'ularly mentioned. >GN. Glory be to &im Who doe, not guide to &i, friend, e-ce't 1hom &e 1ill,. And &e doe, not make any one reach &i, friend, e-ce't he 1ho &e 1i,he, to make reach &im. >GJ. Perha',, &e let you ,ee the un,een meta'hy,ical 1orld but veiled you from ,eeing the ,ecret, of &i, ,ervant,. >GF. Whoever ,ee, the ,ecret, of the ,ervant, and doe, not try to imitate divine mercy, hi, ,eeing ,uch i, a trial for him and a rea,on for mi,fortune to befall him.

>GM. %he 'ortion of the lo1er ,elf in act, of di,obedience i, 'lain and kno1n 1hile it, 'ortion in act, of 1or,hi' i, hidden and ,ecret. And treating a hidden <di,ea,e= i, difficult. >N*. Perha', ,ho1ing off in good 1ork, ha, entered u'on you 1here 'eo'le do not ,ee you. >N>. @our 1anting 'eo'le to kno1 your ,'ecialne,, i, a 'roof for your lack of truthfulne,, in your ,lavehood. >N). Oani,h from ,ight the eye, of 'eo'le on you 1ith the eye of Allah on you. And be ab,ent from their coming to1ard, you by ,eeing Allah a''roaching you. >N+. Whoever kno1, the %ruth 1itne,,e, &im in everything. Whoever i, annihilated in &im i, ab,ent from everything. Whoever love, &im doe, not 'refer anything over &im. >NL. %he %ruth i, only veiled from you due to &i, being e-tremely clo,e. >NG. &e i, only veiled <from you= due to &i, being too obviou, and &e i, hidden from 'hy,ical ,ight due to the tremendou, light <of &i, /ntity=. >NN. Do not ,u''o,e your ,u''lication 1ill cau,e &im to give le,t your under,tanding ,uffer. !ather, ,u''licate to &im to ,ho1 your ,lavehood and to fulfill the right, of &i, lord,hi'. >NJ. &o1 can your later ,u''lication be a cau,e for &i,

'rede,tined givingI >NF. A 're-eternal command i, high above needing an e-ternal cau,e.

>NM. &i, ,'ecial concern for you i, not due to anything you have done. Where 1ere you 1hen &i, ,'ecial concern and care took charge of youI %here 1a, no ,incerity in action, in &i, 'reeternity nor the 're,ence of ,'iritual ,tate,. At that time, there 1a, only mere benevolence and great gift, >J*. &e kne1 that &i, ,lave, 1ould 1ant to kno1 1ho &i, ,'ecial concern i, for. So, &e ,aid, C&e choo,e, for &i, mercy 1hom &e 1ill,C <al-2ur9an )0>*G=. ?ut, &e kne1 if &e left them at that they 1ould leave 'erforming action, de'ending only on the 'reeternal command. So, &e ,aid, CIndeed the mercy of Allah i, clo,er to tho,e 1ho 'erform e-cellently.C <Al-2ur9an J0GN= >J>. 6n &i, volition de'end, everything and &i, volition de'end, on nothing. >J). Sometime, manner, dictate for them to leave ,u''lication relying on &i, 're-decided divi,ion and due to them being bu,y 1ith &i, remembrance. >J+. 6nly he 1ho can forget i, reminded and only he 1ho can neglect i, told to be attentive. >JL. %ime, of need are the celebrating day, of the di,ci'le. >JG. Perha',, you gain benefit, in time, of need 1hich you do not gain in fa,ting and 'rayer. >JN. &aving <hard 're,,ed= need, i, the domain for divine gift,. >JJ. If you 1ant divine gift,, rectify your feeling of need. CBharity i, only for the 'oorC. <Al-2ur9an M0N*= >JF. ?ecome reali4ed in your attribute, and &e 1ill ,trengthen you 1ith &i,0 !eali4e your humility and &e 1ill ,trengthen you

1ith &i, 'ride. !eali4e your inca'ability and &e 1ill ,trengthen you 1ith &i, ability. !eali4e your 1eakne,, and &e 1ill ,trengthen you 1ith &i, 'o1er. >JM. Perha', a 'er,on 1ho ha, not obtained con,tant rectitude <in belief,, action,, and ,tate,= may be given miracle,. >F*. %he ,ign that the %ruth ha, e,tabli,hed you in a ,tate i, that it i, al1ay, 're,ent and you are able to rea' it, fruit,. >F>. Whoever in,truct, gaining ,trength from hi, good deed, i, ,ilenced by bad deed,. Whoever in,truct, gaining ,trength from Allah9, goodne,, i, not ,ilenced by mi,deed,. >F). %he ,'iritual light, of the 1i,e men travel fa,ter than their 1ord,. Wherever the light fall,, there under,tanding i, reached. >F+. /very ,tatement ,'oken ha, a covering de,cribing the heart of the one uttering. >FL. Whoever ha, 'ermi,,ion to in,truct, hi, e-'lanation, are under,tood by the ear, of 'eo'le and hi, allu,ion, a''ear to them lofty. >FG. Perha', ,'oken higher realitie, a''ear 1ith a lo,, of light if you do not have 'ermi,,ion to e-'re,, them. >FN. %heir e-'lanation, and the later are ,'oken to due the to ,udden overflo1ing and

,tate, or for guiding a di,ci'le. %he former ha''en, to the traveler, reali4ed. >FJ. S'iritual in,truction i, nouri,hment for the li,tener,. And you 1ill not get e-ce't that 1hich you <are ready= to imbibe. ha''en, 1ell e,tabli,hed

>FF. Sometime, the beginner de,cribe, a ,tation of 1hich he only ha, had a ,mall ta,te and ,ometime, the advanced de,cribe, it after having in it reali4ation. And the 6nly the one 1ith in,ight >FM. %he traveler ,hould not ,'eak about hi, ,'iritual

e-'erience, ,ince that 1ill decrea,e their effect on hi, heart and detract from hi, truthfulne,, 1ith &i, Aord in them. >M*. Do not ,tretch your hand to take ,omething from 'eo'le unle,, you ,ee that the Giver through them i, your Ma,ter. And in ,uch a ,tate, take 1hat i, in agreement 1ith <e-ternal= kno1ledge. >M>. %he kno1er of Allah often i, ,hy from a,king hi, Ma,ter to relieve hi, need ,ufficing him,elf 1ith &i, 1ill. So, 1hy 1ould he not be ,hy from a,king &i, creation for hi, need,. >M). When you are confu,ed about t1o matter,, follo1 the one harder for the lo1er ,elf. (or only the rightful duty i, ,eem, hard for it. >M+. Among the ,ign, of follo1ing one9, de,ire, i, ,'eeding

to1ard, mandub act, of 1or,hi' 1hile being la4y about 1a5ib act, of 1or,hi'. >ML. &e tied do1n 1a5ib act, to ,'ecific time, ,o that you 1ould not be de'rived <their re1ard= from 'rocra,tination. And &e left for you other time ,o that ,ome choice <in 'erforming action,= 1ould remain for you. >MG. &e kne1 that <mo,t of = &i, ,lave, are not ,elf-motivated in ,eeking &im; ,o, &e obligated for them obedience to &im. &e 'u,hed them to1ard, &im 1ith the chain, of obligation. @ou Aord i, amu,ed by a 'eo'le 1ho are 'u,hed to Paradi,e in chain,.

>MN. &e ha, obligated for you to ,erve &im but in doing ,o &e ha, only obligated for you to enter &i, Paradi,e. >MJ. Whoever find, it im'o,,ible that Allah 1ill ,ave &im from hi, lu,t, and take him out of hi, heedle,,ne,, ha, declared divine 'o1er im'otent. CAnd Allah i, able over all thing,C <al2ur9an >F0LG= >MF. Perha', &e engulfed you in darkne,, <after being in light= ,o that you recogni4e the tremendou, ble,,ing &e ha, given you. >MM. Whoever doe, not recogni4e ble,,ing, in their 're,ence i, reminded of them in their ab,ence. )**. Do not let ,ho1er, of ble,,ing, ,tun you a1ay from being thankful for them a, that 1ill lo1er your rank. )*>. Au,t, gaining firm ground in the heart i, a di,ea,e hard to cure. )*). Au,t, are not driven from the heart e-ce't by terrifying fear or re,tle,, longing. )*+. Pu,t like &e doe, not like an action done for other, along 1ith &im, &e doe, not like a heart 1ith other, in it along 1ith &im. %he in,incere action, &e doe, not acce't. %he in,incere heart, &e doe, not a''roach. )*L. Some light i, granted 'ermi,,ion to reach and ,ome light i, granted 'ermi,,ion to enter. )*G. Sometime, ,'iritual light de,cend, but find, the heart

filled 1ith image, of 'hy,ical thing, and thu, goe, back to 1here it came from.

3The wise sayings of Ibn "Ata,illah are =>? in n mber. +e !ray that we are able to ma#e available Shai#h Ibn "Abbad,s (ommentary on all of these sayings for the benefit of the 8nglish-s!ea#ing !eo!le.4

Appendix I - The Role of Self-Induced Thought %ismillah al-'ahman al-'ahim Section 0: Introduction

ontrol in the !ath

8no1 that the 'art, of the din are three0 "># I,lam, ")# Iman, and "+# Ih,an a, e-'lained in the 0 iding -el!er. %he 1ay of the Path to Allah i, to in,truct the a,'iring di,ci'le to fir,t rectify the out1ard, of hi, I,lam and Iman, 1hich con,i,t of hi, 'erforming righteou, action, and holding correct belief,. !ectifying the,e t1o 'art, of the din i, a 'rere7ui,ite for obtaining the everla,ting fruit, of the third. It i, not that a 'er,on 1ith incorrect action, or ,'uriou, belief, cannot Arif in re'licate the ,tate of an "Arif "advanced kno1er of Allah# or demon,trate ,'iritual 'ro1e,, com'arable to that of an thi, 1orld; but, it i, that thi, 'er,on 1ho ha, ,ki''ed the 'rere7ui,ite, 1ill be de'rived from the true fruit, of Ih,an 1hich only evince them,elve, in the ne-t 1orld, the everla,ting hereafter. %hu,, the ',eudo- Arif may a''ear identical to the true- Arif in thi, 1orld; but, the ',eudo- Arif "1ho firmly hold, onto ,'uriou, belief, and 'er,i,t, in di,obedience to hi, Aord 1ithout re'entance# may very 1ell find him,elf in the &ellfire "1ith it, 'hy,ical and ,'iritual 'uni,hment,# 1hile the true- Arif "1ho fulfilled the 'recondition, of I,lam and Iman# 1ill be 'laced in the highe,t of all garden,, @annah al-Firda s, and be given the o''ortunity to rea' the fruit, of hi, ,tate of RIrfan "both 'hy,ically and ,'iritually# for eternity 1ithout any 'ain in any form 1hat,oever.

With

that ,aid

and done,

1e have

decided to

'lace the

main

method, for reaching

Irfan or Ma3rifah in thi, A''endi- kno1ing Arif 1ithout fulfilling the 5u,tification for laying the

full-1ell that ,ome of the in,incere may re'licate the ,tate,, e-'erience,, and abilitie, of the 'recondition, of Ih,an. And our

method, 'lain and bare i, three-fold0 "># the number of highly7ualified teacher, 1ho are 'romoting the ,y,tematic ,tudy and di,,emination of thi, kno1ledge ha, dro''ed ,har'ly "even though teacher, 1ho vaguely kno1 ho1 to achieve the end re,ult of Irfan are ,till a large number#, ")# 1e have 1arned the in,incere that the con,e7uence of ,ki''ing I,lam and Iman 1hile 5um'ing directly to Ih,an i, nothing le,, than torment in the grave and 'uni,hment in the &ellfire, and "+# 1e have 1ell-e-'lained the danger of treading the Path 1ithout a teacher in the Guiding &el'er and thu, e-'ect that u,er, of thi, A''endi- already have a 7ualified teacher in the Path to Allah. Section 1: Unraveling the Puzzle 8no1 that Allah create, ,y,tematically and not ha'ha4ardly. %he human body i, a 'ar-e-cellence highly-,o'hi,ticated machine that 1hen in the hand, of a highly-7ualified kno1ledgeable individual, the body can 'erform miraculou, ta,k, and ,urvive that the in mo,t the daunting of circum,tance,. Similarly, the human mind i, a 'are-cellence e-tremely-advanced ,u'ercom'uter 1hen control of an ade't u,er can e-ert it, influence on the 'er,on9, body, heart, ,oul, and ,urrounding circum,tance, 1ith ama4ing efficacy. Aa,tly, the ,'iritH,oul or r h i, the greate,t gift given by Allah to human, and unlike the body and the mind, it can tran,cend time and ,'ace being engro,,ed in the timele,,, formle,,, and endle,, ,ea of Allah9, /ntity.

So the 'u44le that ha, ve-ed the learned of mankind ,ince their ince'tion i, If I am s (h a wondro s (reation of Allah with an ama9ing body, mindAheart, and so l, how (an I a(hieve my f ll !otential/ %hi, A''endiand i, de,igned to to lay ,ummari4e the the an,1er for a to thi,

7ue,tion

de,igned

ground1ork

larger

,y,tematic reference 1ork <1ritten 1e ho'e by ,ome other ,cholar of the 're,ent or future=. %he an,1er to thi, 7ue,tion in brief i,0 0aining mastery over the f ll !otential the of one,s body, mindAheart, of one,s and so l and is done thro gh imagery. In thi, A''endi- for 'ur'o,e, of brevity and ,ticking to the ,ub5ect matter at hand, 1e 1ill not e-amine ho1 thought, and mental imagery can be u,ed to effect change, in the human body. Similarly, 1e 1ill not delve into ho1 control over one9, r h can allo1 one acce,, information from and effect change, in the 'hy,ical and meta'hy,ical 1orld,. We ho'e that the,e ,ub5ect, 1ill be dealt 1ith in the longer 1ork 1e mention above. !ather, our main goal here i, to unravel the ,ecret, of the human ,'iritual heart and the human ,'iritual ,oul. We 1ill e-'lain ho1 the human mind can unlock the,e ,ecret, and effect change, on the ,'iritual heart and the ,oul through controlled thinking and u,e of mental imagery. And 1e 1ill e-'lain ho1 the di,ci'le can u,e controlled thinking and imagery to hel' reach hi, end goal, 1hich i, kno1ledge "ma3rifah# of Allah, along 1ith the regular regimen, of dhikr "remembrance,#, "'hy,ical mudhakarah and ",'iritual mura7abah teaching,#, over mu5ahadah ,truggle,#, "1atching (ons(io s (ontrol tho ghts mental

one,elf# taught by the teacher, of the Path.

Section 2: What are thoughts and what is mental imagery? @ou mu,t fir,t reali4e that a thought i, made u' of t1o in,tance, of mental imagery 5oined together by a link. In other 1ord,, mental imagery i, the building block of thought,. 6r another 1ay of ,aying it i, that a thought i, an affirmation of a link bet1een t1o di,tinct ob5ect, of mental imagery. A thought i, cry,talli4ed by your confirming it a, true and e-i,tent. A, an illu,trative e-am'le, one may con5ure u' the image of a cool hidden garden 1ith date 'alm, and a 1ater 'ool. Ne-t, one may con5ure u' the imagine of one9, 'er,on. %hen, one may link the image of the garden 1ith the image of one9, 'er,on 1ith the simple thought0 I am in the garden. No1, into one may link together more than a t1o ob5ect, 1ith of mental t1o

imagery in a complex thought. /ach com'le- thought can be broken multi'le ,im'le thought, "i.e. thought 5u,t ,im'le in,tance, of mental imagery linked together#. An e-am'le of a com'le- thought i, I am rela1ing nder the shade of the date !alm with my feet di!!ed in a (ool water !ool. We can break thi, above com'le- thought into the follo1ing five ,erie, of ,im'le thought,0 I am rela1ing. I am in a garden. I am nder the shade of a date !alm tree. My feet are di!!ed in a water !ool. The water !ool is (ool to the to (h. In thi, ,ection, 1e have only given e-am'le, of thought, of 'hy,ical thing,, you may dra1 an analogy to thought, about non'hy,ical idea,. Aearning thi, definition of thought, and mental

imagery i, a 'rere7ui,ite for learning ho1 to u,e thought, and mental imagery a, a tool in the Path. Section 3: States o 8no1 that your the !eart heart i, directly affected by the

,'iritual

con,ciou, thought, that your mind engage, in. In other 1ord,, thought, are the 'ilot of the heart and can lead the heart into 'rai,e1orthy and blame1orthy ,tate,. <A, a ,ide note in the advanced ,ection, of the Path, imagery can become the 'ilot of the r h able to make it travel and 'erform de,ired ta,k,.= Section ": #aining $ontrol o %houghts and &ental Imagery

6nce on reali4e, that thought, and imagery control one, heart and ,oul, the obviou, 7ue,tion ari,e, about ho1 one can u,e thi, fact to1ard, one9, advantageI %he common man can e-erci,e only minimal control over the

thought, and mental imagery that hi, mind engage, in. So little i, thi, control that the common man outright denie, that anybody could have greater control over the thought, and imagery hi, mind engage, in. A, a re,ult, he fail, to ,ee ho1 he could u,e hi, o1n thought, and mental imagery to affect the ,tate of hi, heart, ,oul, and body. In the Path, 1e teach di,ci'le, that total "or clo,e to total# thought and imagery control i, 'o,,ible in the mind. &o1ever, to achieve ,uch involve, 'racticing rigorou, continuou, e-erci,e,. We 1ill outline ,ome of the,e method, and e-erci,e, in thi, ,ection. ?ut, before 1e do that, 1e 1ould ,tate that the goal, of the,e e-erci,e, are three0

a# Give the di,ci'le the ability to actively mani'ulate any 'ree-i,ting thought train or mental image changing it to have any de,ired characteri,tic. b# Give the di,ci'le the ability to actively introduce any

thought or mental image into hi, mind totally re'lacing any 'ree-i,ting thought or image. c# Give the di,ci'le the ability to com'letely ,to' hi, active con,ciou, thought, 1henever he 1ill, and for ho1ever long he 1ill, re'lacing it 1ith a 'hy,ical void. /-erci,e > %he 'ur'o,e of thi, e-erci,e i, to teach the di,ci'le goal "a# above. %he di,ci'le mu,t ,tart 1atching over hi, thought, all day and night long ,hooting for a ,core of G**. &e 1ill revie1 hi, thought, to make ,ure that hi, mind doe, not beautify or find 'lea,ing any a,'ect of the 'hy,ical 1orld "i.e. dunya#. Additionally, he 1ill make ,ure that hi, mind doe, not find having leader,hi' in any affair in the 1orld a, de,irable. A, ,oon a, hi, mind conclude, that an ob5ect in the 'hy,ical 1orld or leader,hi' in the 'hy,ical 1orld i, 'lea,ing and de,irable, he 1ill mani'ulate the image of thi, ob5ect or 'o,ition of leader,hi' to make it a''ear unde,irable and re'ul,ive. If he 'erform, thi, mani'ulation 1ithin N* ,econd,, he ha, ,ucceeded in obtaining one 'oint. If he reali4e, only after ,i-ty ,econd, that hi, mind found ,omething in the 'hy,ical 1orld 'lea,ing or leader,hi' of it de,irable, he 1ill lo,e one 'oint. %he di,ci'le 1ill ,tart 1ith 4ero 'oint, and 1ork hi, 1ay u' to G**. %he di,ci'le 1ill 'erform thi, e-erci,e for a minimum of forty day. In order to count a 'oint in hi, favor, the thought about the de,irable 'hy,ical ob5ect or leader,hi' mu,t have occurred 1ithout the di,ci'le9, con,ciou, volition. In other 1ord,, the

bad

thought

mu,t

have

occurred

out,ide

of

the

di,ci'le9,

con,ciou, control. It i, obviou, that in order kee' track of the 'oint,, the

di,ci'le 1ill need to kee' a ,mall diary in 1hich he 1rite, do1n the date and a fe1 detail, about the bad thought and 1hether or not he 1a, able to ,ucce,,fully counter it 1ithin N* ,econd,. &e 1ill kee' a running tally of hi, ,core until he reache, G** or reache, forty day,. /-erci,e ) %he 'ur'o,e of thi, e-erci,e i, to teach the di,ci'le goal "b# above. %he di,ci'le 1ill 'ractice the follo1ing e-erci,e for forty ,ucce,,ive /-erci,e + Section ': (emaining Sa e While $ontrolling %houghts Self-induced thought control can be a 'hy,ically ,tre,,ful

e-erci,e on the mind. It i, not out of the realm of 'o,,ibility that e-treme negative effect, evince them,elve, on the 'er,on engaging in ,elf-induced thought control. Among the 'o,,ible negative effect, of thi, e-erci,e are0 aW ?rain ,troke bW /-treme change in 'er,onality Xe.g., from 5ovial to cynical or ,adi,ticW cW (ainting ,'ell, dW /-treme lo,, of body 1eight or 'hy,ical ,ickne,,

eW Mental di,order fW Aa',e, into a tem'orary coma Xlike an e'ile'tic fitW %o avoid the,e e-treme ,tate, the di,ci'le mu,t make ,ure that he ,to', hi, thought control e-erci,e, a, ,oon a, fatigue or 'ain manife,t them,elve, in hi, brain or body. (or e-am'le, if he ,tart, having ,har' or dull 'ain, in hi, u''er head, he ,hould ,to' hi, e-erci,e immediately and not take the ri,k of falling into one of the above negative ,tate,. Additionally, the di,ci'le ,hould learn ho1 to take continuou, rela-ing breath,. In other 1ord,, he ,hould change hi, normal 1ay of breathing a, follo1,0 aW %ry to breathe mo,tly or e-clu,ively through the no,e a, o''o,ed to the mouth bW %ry to breathe 1ith dee' and ,lo1 rela-ing breathe, in,tead of fa,t and ,hallo1 breath, cW %ry to kee' 'ro'er u'right tor,o 'o,ture 1hile breathing dW %ry to reduce the number of breath, needed in one minute Xe.g., to >* inhale, and >* e-hale, or lo1erW If the di,ci'le follo1, the breathing techni7ue outlined above, he i, much le,, likely to fall into an e-treme negative ,tate 1hile attem'ting to control hi, thought, and mental imagery Additionally, 1hen the di,ci'le feel, that he i, becoming too inten,e, he ,hould ,often hi, ,tate by re'eatedly uttering 'eace and ble,,ing, on the Pro'het in Arabic until hi, ,tate cool, do1n. &e may u,e the follo1ing dhikr to do thi,0 Allahumma ,alli ala Muhammadin "ibbi l-7ulubi 1a da1a9iha

Wa Wa

afiyati l-abdani 1a ,hifa9iha ala alihi 1a YaSbihi 1a ,allam.

Wa nuri l-abYari 1a Siya9iha

%he above dhikr mean,0 6 Allah, ,end you 'eace and ble,,ing, on the Pro'het, %he treatment of the heart, and their medicine, %he relief of the bodie, and their cure, %he light of the eye, and their illumination And on hi, family and com'anion,. If the di,ci'le follo1, the three recommendation, outlined thi, ,ection, he 1ill greatly reduce the chance, of ac7uiring a negative ,tate 1ith hi, attem't, at thought control. Section ): *voiding +lameworthy states o 8no1 that your to mind9, it, in it, inner the heart level, %he u,e, ,yllogi,tic that are

deduction

reach

conclu,ion,.

conclu,ion,

reached and affirmed in your mind have direct affect, on the ,tate of your heart and body. Section ,: *chieving -raiseworthy states o this? Section 2: Where does -hysical struggle /mu3ahadah1 Path? Section 10: Where does watching over onesel /mudha0arah1 it in? the &ind and /mura4a+ah1 it in? Section 11: Where does the Shai0h and his s-iritual teaching Section 12: #oing to *llah 5eyond the 6imits o !eart <This A!!endi1 is still nder (onstr (tion.= it in the the heart it in to all o

Section .: Where does ver+al remem+rance /dhi0r1

Appendix II - Imam al-#a$a$i's "rahmatullahi alaihi# Introduction to His %ook of !rophetic &hikr Al-Adh#ar "%he !emembrance,# Written by, @ahya ibn Sharaf an-Na1a1i "rahmatullahi alaihi# Introduction All 'rai,e i, for Allah, the 6ne, the Bom'eller, the Mighty, the (orgiving, the Decreer of de,tinie,, the Di,tributor of affair,, the Wra''er of the night around the day in 1hich i, an enlightenment for tho,e 1ith heart, and eye,, the 6ne 1ho arou,ed from &i, creation 1hom &e cho,e and made him enter the elect grou'. &e gave the o''ortunity to 1hom &e 'icked from &i, ,lave, and made him among the righteou,. &e gave ,ight to tho,e 1ho loved him and made them ab,tain from thi, 1orld. %hey ,trove for &i, 'lea,ure, 're'ared for the la,ting abode, avoided 1hat anger, &im, and 1ere on their guard again,t the &ellfire. %hey tried 1ith earne,tne,, to obey &im and ,tuck to hi, remembrance by evening, early morning, and during the changing of condition, in the hour, of the night and day. So, their heart, became ,hining 1ith gleaming light,. I 'rai,e &im and I tran,mit 'rai,e for all of &i, ble,,ing,. I a,k &im for an increa,e in &i, favor, and &i, genero,ity. I bear 1itne,, that there i, no god e-ce't Allah, the %remendou,, the 6ne, loved Prai,e the Self-Sub,i,tent, and Allah bo,om and the Mighty, mo,t be the Wi,e. of And I bear mo,t the 1itne,, that Muhammad i, &i, ,ervant, me,,enger, ,incere friend, one, of friend, &i, favored u'on creation, on all of generou, of the forerunner, and tho,e that follo1ed ,ub,e7uently. 'eace him, 'ro'het,, on the family of each, and on all the good 'eo'le.

After1ard,0 Allah, the %remendou,, the Mighty, and the Wi,e ha, ,aid, D!emember Me and I 1ill remember you.E <Al-2ur3an )0>G)= And &e Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, DI have not created the 5inn nor human, e-ce't that they 1or,hi' Me.E <Al-2ur3an G>0GN= So, it i, kno1n from thi, that among the be,t - or the be,t - condition of the ,ervant i, hi, remembering the Aord of the 1orld, and hi, 'reoccu'ation 1ith remembrance, related from the !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#, the chief of the me,,enger,. %he ,cholar, "May Allah be 'lea,ed 1ith them# have 1ritten many book, about action, by night and day, 'rayer,, and remembrance,. %he,e book, are 1ell kno1n among the "arifin "tho,e 1ho recogni4e Allah#. &o1ever, ,eeker, intended form the the,e of to book, have ha, been lengthened of 1ith chain, I of for of have ,uch tho,e

tran,mi,,ion, and re'etition,. Bon,e7uently, the ability of the kno1ledge make fell ea,y ,hort for the,e book,. thing, tho,e de,irou,

kno1ledge. So, I began to 'ut together in thi, book in a ,hort main 'oint, that "have been# mentioned concerned. I have cut ,hort mo,t of the chain, of tran,mi,,ion of 1hat I mention in 'reference of brevity. %hi, i, becau,e thi, book i, 1ritten for 1or,hi' not for becoming ac7uainted 1ith chain, of tran,mi,,ion. !ather, mo,t 'eo'le di,like tran,mi,,ion chain, even if they are ,hort. %he ob5ective, are learning remembrance,, acting by them, and elucidating mi,conce'tion, for tho,e ,eeking the right 'ath. I ,hall mention, inshaAllah, in,tead of the long chain, of tran,mi,,ion 1hat i, more im'ortant than them and 1hat i, often overlooked0 the clarification of the sahih hadith, the hasan one,, the da"if one,, and the m n#ar one,. %hi, i, 1hat %hi, mo,t 'eo'le i, 1hat need to ,tudent kno1 <,ince, gain, from they can the not

determine thi, them,elve,= e-ce't the very fe1 among the &adith ,cholar,. the righteou,

ma,ter memori4er, and the community of ,killed ,cholar, 1ho can be de'ended u'on. I ,hall add, inshaAllah, ,ome of the 'reciou, 5e1el, from the kno1ledge of &adith, delicate 'oint, of (i7h, im'ortant all of fundamental thing, 'rinci'le,, in a clear e-erci,e, 1ay ,o of that the it ,oul, i, and manner, that tho,e 1ho follo1 the 'ath em'ha,i4e. I ,hall mention the,e ea,ily under,tood by the general 'eo'le 1ho are ac7uainted 1ith (i7h. %here i, a narration in Sahih al-Mu,lim on the authority of Sayyidna Abu &urayrah "radhi3Allahu anhu# that !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, DWhoever call, to guidance ha, a re1ard ,imilar to the re1ard, of tho,e 1ho follo1 it and thi, doe, not decrea,e anything from the "follo1er3,# re1ard.E &ence, I 1anted to hel' the 'eo'le of goodne,, by making it, 'ath ea,y, by 'ointing it out, and by elucidating ho1 one travel, it... I 1ill include in the beginning of the book ,ome im'ortant ,ection, that the reader of thi, book and other, intere,ted need to kno1 about. When I mention a com'anion of the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 1ho i, not famou, among the non-,cholar,, I make kno1n that he in fact i, a com'anion ,o that there i, no doubt about hi, com'anion,hi' of the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#. I only mention in thi, book the ahadith that are in the famou, book, 1hich are the foundation of I,lam. %he,e book, are five0 Sahih al-?ukhari, Sahih al-Mu,lim, Sunan Abu Da1ud, al-%irmidhi, and al-Ni,aa3i. &o1ever occa,ionally, I narrate from different book, ,ome of 1hich are famou, 1hile other, are not. A, for the divi,ion, and the chain, of tran,mi,,ion,, I do not mention them e-ce't in rare ,ituation,. I al,o do not tran,mit from the famou, foundational book, the da"if ahadith e-ce't in rare circum,tance, 1ith notification of it, 1eakne,,. Mo,t of the time, I only 7uote the sahih ahadith from the,e book,. (or thi,

rea,on,

ho'e

that

thi,

book

1ill

be

de'endable

,ource.

(inally, I do not mention any ahadith in a cha'ter e-ce't tho,e that clearly ,hed light on the matter at hand. I a,k Allah, the Generou,, for ,ucce,,, a,,i,tance, hel',

guidance, and ,afeguarding. I al,o a,k &im to make the good I intend to do ea,y and to continue &i, varied grace on me. I al,o a,k &im to gather my loved one, and me in the 'lace of nobility and <to give u,= all of the thing, that bring ha''ine,,. Allah i, ,ufficient for me and i, a 1onderful tru,tee. %here i, no force nor ,trength e-ce't 1ith Allah, the Mighty, the Wi,e. <%hi, i,= 1hat Allah ha, 1illed; there i, no 'o1er e-ce't 1ith Allah. I 'ut my tru,t in Allah, cling to &im, a,k &im for hel', and entru,t &im 1ith my affair. I a,k &im to ,afeguard my religion, my ,oul, my 'arent,, my brother,, my loved one,, all tho,e 1ho have be,to1ed grace on me, all of the Mu,lim,, and all that &e favored them and me 1ith from the matter, of the &ereafter and thi, 1orld. <I ,ay thi,= becau,e 1hen &e i, given ,omething for ,afeguarding, &e 'rotect, it; &e i, the be,t of 'rotector,. <Nece,,ary %hing, %hat the &ha#ir "6ne Who Practice, &hi#r#

Should 8no1= Section > The ommand to !ractice Sincerity And &e'elop (ood Intentions )or

All Actions !u*lic And !ri'ate Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, DAnd they 1ere not commanded e-ce't to 1or,hi' Allah ,incerely 1hile being u'right.E <Al-2ur3an MF0G= And &e Mo,t &igh ha, al,o ,aid, DNeither the meat nor the blood "of the ,acrificed animal,# 1ill reach Allah. !ather, it i, your

God con,ciou,ne,, that reache, &im.E <Al-2ur3an ))0+J= Ibn ver,e i, that rather your intention, reach &im.

Abba,

"May Allah be 'lea,ed 1ith him# ha, ,aid that the meaning of thi,

Shaikh &afi4 Abu al-?a7a3 "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, re'orted to u, that Sayyidna intention, and Kmar ibn al-8hattab "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid 'er,on ,hall have 1hat he intend,. So, that !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, DAction, are but by every 1hoever migrated intending Allah and &i, Me,,enger, hi, migration i, for Allah and &i, Me,,enger. And 1hoever migrated intending 1orldly gain or marriage to a 1oman, hi, migration i, for 1hat he intended.E %hi, i, a sahih hadith 1ho,e correctne,, i, agreed u'on. It collect, together tremendou, 'oint, of im'ortance and i, one of the ahadith on 1hich the central 'ivot 'oint of I,lam i, located. %ho,e from the salaf and tho,e 1ho follo1ed them "May Allah have mercy on them# liked to begin their book, 1ith thi, hadith. %hey did thi, to inform the reader of the im'ortance of good intention, <in learning= ,o that he 1ould take care and concern about thi, 'oint. We have been told by Imam Sa3id Abd al-!ahman ibn Mahdi

"rahmatullahi alaihi# that 1hoever de,ire, to 1rite a book, let him begin 1ith thi, hadith. Imam Abu Sulaiman al-8hattabi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, D6ur Shaikh, of the early time, u,ed to like to introduce every affair of religion 1ith of the it, hadith, general RAction, are but in by many intention,...3 circum,tance,.E It ha, reached u, that Sayyidna Ibn Abba, "radhi3Allahu anhu# becau,e a''licability

,aid, DA man i, only 're,erved according to the grade of hi, intention.E 6ther, have ,aid, DMen are only given <re1ard, or 'uni,hment,= according to the grade of their intention,.E

We have been narrated by the great ma,ter Sidi Abu Ali al-(adil ibn of Iyad "rahmatullahi alaihi# that he ,aid, D$eaving an action 'eo'le i, a,,ociating 'artner, 1ith Allah " shir##, and becau,e of 'eo'le i, ,ho1ing off "riya #, doing an action becau,e ,incerity i, that Allah ,ave, you from both of them.E Imam al-&arith al-Muha,ibi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, D%he truthful one i, he 1ho doe, not care if the e,teem he ha, in 'eo'le3, heart, goe, a1ay in order to make hi, heart more ,ound. &e doe, not love that 'eo'le ,ee hi,... good action, and he doe, not di,like that 'eo'le ,ee hi, bad action,.E Sidi &udhayfah al-Mar3a,hi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid,

DSincerity i, that the action, of a ,ervant become identical in both their e-ternal and internal dimen,ion,.E Imam Abu 2a,im al-2u,hayri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, DSincerity i, to ,ingle out Allah "the %ruth# Glorified be &e in hi, obedience 1ith an intention of doing ,o. It i, that the ,ervant de,ire, from hi, obedience to come clo,er to Allah the Mo,t &igh 1ithout 1anting anything el,e ,uch a, di,,imulating+ for the creation "other 'eo'le#. &e ,hould not de,ire commendation from 'eo'le, love of 'rai,e from creation, or any other ob5ective be,ide, coming clo,er to Allah.E %he great ma,ter Sidi Abu Muhammad Sahl ibn Abdullah al-%u,tari

"rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, DMany ,agaciou, 'eo'le have tried to e-'lain ,incerity, but they have not found anything other than thi,0 that the movement, and tran7uillity of the ,ervant be for Allah Mo,t &igh in 'rivate and in 'ublic. In ,uch a 1ay that hi, nafs, fancie,, and de,ire, for the 1orld do not 'lay a 'art in them. We have been narrated from Sidi Abu Ali al-Da77a7 "rahmatullahi alaihi# that ,incerity i, di,regarding the ob,ervation of 'eo'le,

and truthfulne,, i, 'urifying one,elf from the obedience of the lo1er ,elf. So, the ,incere one doe, not ,ho1 off, and the truthful one i, not conceited. Sidi Dhun Nun al-Mi,ri "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, D%hree of the characteri,tic, of ,incerity are0 treating 'rai,e and blame from the ma,,e, of 'eo'le e7ually, forgetting that action, can be ,een by other, 1hile 'erforming them, and e-'ecting the re1ard of action, in the &ereafter.E Sidi Sahl al-%u,tari "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, ,aid, D%he 'er,on 1ho mi,re're,ent, him,elf or another doe, not ,mell the fragrance of truthfulne,,.E %he ,tatement, of the ,cholar, on thi, ,ub5ect can not be

enumerated. &o1ever, 1hat I have 5u,t mentioned i, enough for him 1hom Allah grant, ,ucce,,. + <Di,,imulate0 to di,gui,e one3, intention, under a feigned

a''earance= Section ) +Acting on Supererogatory ,no$ledgeIt i, befitting for him 1ho find, out about ,ome ,u'ererogatory action that he 'erform it even if only once, ,o that he 1ill be counted among tho,e 1ho 'racticed it. Section + +Acting on The %asis of a .eak Hadith-

%he

,cholar, of

Sacred Aa1

and &adith

have ,aid

that it

i,

'ermi,,ible and meritoriou, to 'erform a ,u'ererogatory action... on the ba,i, of a 1eak hadith a, long a, it i, not forged.L &o1ever a, for the la1, concerning halal, haram, trade, marriage, divorce, and other ,uch matter,, one doe, not act e-ce't by a sahih or hasan hadith unle,, it i, to take a 'recaution in the above mentioned affair,. (or e-am'le, 1hen ,ome 1eak ahadith are related concerning the di,like of ,ome ty'e, of trade or marriage, it i, recommended that in one avoid, book the,e a ty'e,. hadith &o1ever, i, thi, i, ,till or not obligatory. I have only included thi, ,ection becau,e I note do1n thi, 1hether sahih, hasan, da"if. Sometime,, I do not mention thi, either out of forgetfulne,,, or for ,ome other rea,on. <In any ca,e=, I 1anted thi, 'rinci'le be e,tabli,hed 1ith the reader of thi, book. L &i, ,tatement0 a, long a, it i, not forged mean, that the hadith ha, ,evere 1eakne,, in it. So, it i, not 'ermi,,ible to act by a narration 1hich ha, been tran,mitted by a kno1n or ,u,'ected liar. %here are t1o other condition, for acting by ,uch a hadith0 "># that there i, ,ome authentic ,ource te,tifying to the acce'tability of it ,uch a, a general embodiment in the teaching, or a fundamental 'rinci'le and ")# that the 'er,on acting by it doe, not believe that it i, ,olid la1, rather he ado't, it a, a 1ay of being cautiou,. <%hi, footnote e-i,t, in the Arabic co'y of thi, book 'rinted by Daar ul-(ikr.=

Section L +The /xcellence of (roup 7hi0r-

Pu,t a, dhi#r i, meritoriou,, it i, al,o meritoriou, to ,it in the circle, of 'eo'le 1ho 'erform dhi#r. %he 'roof, of thi, are manife,t and ,hall anhu# be i, mentioned the enough in <of the of a a''ro'riate Sayyidna 'roof=. &e ,ection,, Ibn ,aid Kmar that inshaAllah. "radhi3Allahu &o1ever, hadith

!a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, DWhen you 'a,, by the meado1, of Paradi,e, gra4e therein. %he com'anion, a,ked, DAnd 1hat are the meado1, of Paradi,e, 6 !a,ulullahIE &e "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# re'lied, D%he circle, of dhi#r. (or indeed Allah ha, traveling grou', of angel, 1ho ,eek out the circle, of dhi#r, and 1hen they find them, they fully encom'a,, them <tho,e ,itting in the circle of dhi#r=. We have ,een narrated in Sahih al-Mu,lim that Sayyidna Mu3a1iya "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, D!a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# 1ent out to a circle of hi, com'anion, and a,ked, DWhat make, you ,it hereIE &i, com'anion, re'lied, DWe have ,at here to remember Allah and 'rai,e &im for guiding u, to I,lam and be,to1ing u'on u, favor,. &e "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# then ,aid, DDo you ,1ear by Allah that nothing ha, made you ,it here e-ce't thatI A, for me, I do not a,k you to ,1ear out of ,u,'icion for you. !ather, Sayyidna Pibril "alaihi ,alam# came to me and informed me that Allah the Mo,t &igh i, boa,ting about you over &i, angel,.E We have ,een narrated in Sahih al-Mu,lim that Sayyidna Abu Sa id al-8hudri "radhi3Allahu anhu# and Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu# 1itne,,ed that !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, DNo 'eo'le ,it together to remember Allah Mo,t &igh e-ce't that the angel, encom'a,, them, mercy cover, them, 'eace de,cend, over them, and Allah mention, them to 1homever i, 1ith &im. Section G

+!erforming 7hi0r Audi*ly .ith The Tongue And Silently .ith The Heart&hi#r can be 'erformed by the heart and by the tongue. &o1ever, the be,t dhi#r i, that 'erformed by both the heart and the tongue 1orking together. If for ,ome rea,on a 'er,on ha, to limit him,elf to one of the above, then it i, better to 'erform it u,ing the heart. Al,o, it i, not befitting that one leave, dhi#r 1ith the tongue becau,e he i, afraid that 'eo'le 1ill think he i, trying to ,ho1 off. !ather, he ,hould remember Allah 1ith both of them and at the ,ame that time (adil intend ibn Allah3, Iyad 'lea,ure. We have already mentioned "rahmatullahi alaihi#

,aid, D$eaving an action becau,e of 'eo'le i, ,ho1ing off ...E If the human being o'en, the door to regarding 'eo'le3, ob,ervation, and being cautiou, about there u,ele,, ,u,'icion,, verily mo,t of the door, of goodne,, 1ould be clo,ed to him. &e 1ould al,o lo,e out on a tremendou, thing from the im'ortant thing, of religion. %hi, i, not by any mean, the 'ath of the "arifin. We have ,een narrated in Sahih al-?ukhari and Mu,lim that

Sayyidah

A3i,ha "radhi3Allahu anha# ,aid that the ver,e, DDo not

make a clamor 1ith your salat, nor be com'letely ,ilent 1ith it.E <Al-2ur3an >J0>>*= 1a, revealed concerning ,u''lication "d "a#. Section N +(enerality of The .ord 7hi0r%he virtue of dhi#r i, not confined to ,aying la ilaha ill Allah, Alhamd lillah, Allah A#bar, or other ,imilar 1ord,. !ather, every ,ervant 1ho act, according to the obedience of Allah Mo,t &igh i, a rememberer "dha#ir# of Allah. %hi, i, 1hat Sayyidna Sa id ,aid. ibn Pubayr "radhi3Allahu anhu# and other ,cholar, have

Sidi

Ata3 "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, D%he a,,emblie, of dhi#r

are the a,,emblie, of halal and haram "tho,e that teach ho1 to buy, ,ell, 'ray, fa,t, marry, 'erform 'ilgrimage, and the like#.E Section J +%a sir of the Ayah0 1Indeed0 the 2uslim 2en and 2uslim .omen ... The 2ale Remem*erers of Allah And The )emale Remem*erers of Allah...Allah Mo,t &igh ha, ,aid, DIndeed the Mu,lim men and Mu,lim 1omen ...E, until &i, ,tatement, Dand the male rememberer, of Allah and the female rememberer, of Allah much, &e ha, 're'ared for them a great re1ard.E <Al-2ur3an ++0+G= We have ,een narrated in Sahih al-Mu,lim that Sayyidna Abu

&urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid that !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, D%he m farrid n have out,tri''ed <and gone far ahead=.E %he com'anion, a,ked, DAnd 1ho are the m farrid n 6 !a,ulullahIE Allah much.E %hi, i, one of the ayah, 1hich the reader of thi, book ,hould take care to learn. %here have been variou, inter'retation, of thi, ayah. Imam Abul &a,an al-Wahidi "rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, related that Sayyidna Ibn Abba, "radhi3Allahu anhu# ,aid, D%he meaning i, that they remember Allah after the end of each 'rayer, by the morning and evening, in their bed,, 1henever they 1ake u', and 1henever they leave ha, or enter their home,.E i, Ata3 Allah Sidi Mu5ahid the "rahmatullahi ,tanding, alaihi# their alaihi# and ,aid, DA 'er,on Sidi five in not among &e re'lied, D%he male and female rememberer, of

rememberer, of Allah much until he or ,he remember, Allah 1hile ,itting, ,aid, i, lying tho,e do1n.E the "rahmatullahi fulfilling &igh3, Mo,t ha, DWhoever among 'ray, 'rayer,

right,

mentioned

,tatement, D... and the male rememberer, of Allah and female

rememberer,

of

Allah

much...E

%hi,

i,

1hat

Imam

Wahidi

"rahmatullahi alaihi# ha, tran,mitted. Sayyidna Abu Sa3id al-8hudri "radhi3Allahu anhu# ha, related, D!a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, RWhen a man 1ake, u' hi, 1ife in the night and they both 'ray - or he 'ray, T t1o ra#"a together. of %hey Allah alaihi#, are much. 1ritten %hi, among hadith the i, male mash r; alaihi#, it in and Abu female Da3ud Ibn their rememberer, Ma5ah

"rahmatullahi com'ilation,. Imam Abu

Na,a3i alaihi#

"rahmatullahi have

and

"rahmatullahi

related

Kmar ibn al-Salih "rahmatullahi alaihi# 1a, a,ked about

the mea,ure by 1hich a 'er,on become, a male or female rememberer of Allah much. So, he an,1ered, DWhen one 'er,i,t, in 'racticing the remembrance, "adh#ar# related ,oundly <from the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#= in the morning, in the evening and in variou, time, and condition, by night and day..., he become, among the male and female rememberer, of Allah much. And Allah kno1, be,t. Section F + onditions in .hich It is !ermissi*le to !ractice 7hi0r%he ,cholar, have come to a con,en,u, on the 'ermi,,ibility of dhi#r u,ing the heart and the tongue for the 'er,on 1ith minor ritual im'urity "hadath#, the 'er,on 1ith ma5or ritual im'urity "j n b#, to ,aying a#bar the 1oman undergoing men,truation, Allah#, and 1omen e-'eriencing 'o,t-child-delivery di,charge. %hi, ruling a''lie, S bhanAllah "e-tolling "glorifying Allah#, Alhamd lillah and the like. "'rai,ing Allah#, la ilaha ill Allah "declaring Allah3, onene,,#, Allah ,u''lication, &o1ever, recitation of the 2ur3an i, unla1ful for the 'er,on 1ith ma5or ritual im'urity, the 1oman undergoing men,truation, and the

1oman e-'eriencing 'o,t-child delivery di,charge. %he ruling of unla1fulne,, i, the ,ame 1hether one recite, a little bit or a lot. It i, the not 'ermi,,ible 2ur3an in to recite heart even 'art 1ithout of an ayah. any &o1ever, it i, 'ermi,,ible for the above mentioned 'er,on, to recite their 'ronouncing 1ord, ... 6ur com'anion, "the ,cholar,# have ,aid that it i, 'ermi,,ible for both the 'er,on 1ith ma5or ritual im'urity and the 1oman undergoing men,truation to ,ay over the affliction of a calamity0 inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji" n "Indeed, 1e are from Allah and to &im 1e 1ill return#. <%he,e 1ord, are from the &oly 2ur3an, )0>GN=. It i, al,o 'ermi,,ible for both of them 1hile riding an animal to ,ay0 s bhana ladhi sa#h-#hara lana hadha wa ma # nna lah m qrinin wa inna ila rabbina la m nqalib n "Glory be to the 6ne 1ho ha, made thi, ,ub,ervient to u,. We 1ere not able to do it <our,elve,=. Indeed, to our Aord 1ill 1e return <Al-2ur3an L+0>+->L=#. It i, al,o 'ermi,,ible for them 1hile ,u''licating to ,ay 2 rabbana atina fid d nya hasanatan wa fil a#hirati hasanatan waqina "adhaban nar "6ur Aord give u, good in thi, 1orld and good in the hereafter, and ,ave u, from the &ellfire <Al-2ur3an )0)*>=#. <%he above= are 'ermi,,ible for the 'er,on e-'eriencing ma5or ritual im'urity and the 1oman undergoing men,truation a, long a, they are not intending to recite the 2ur3an. ?oth of them can al,o ,ay bismillah and Alhamd lillah a, long a, they are not intending to recite the 2ur3an. %hi, 'ermi,,ibility i, the ,ame 1hether they are intending to 'erform dhi#r or not. %hey only commit a ,in 1hen they intentionally recite the 2ur3an. It i, al,o 'ermi,,ible for them to recite ver,e, 1ho,e recitation ha, been abrogated ,uch a,0 %he old man and the old 1oman, 1hen they commit fornication, ,tone both of them. <%hi, ver,e i, not included in the 2ur3an=. When both of the,e 'eo'le do not find 1ater <A, for the men,truating 1oman, thi, a''lie, only u'on com'leting her men,trual cycle.=, they can 'erform tayyamm m "dry ablution# and then recite 2ur3an. If he e-'erience, minor ritual im'urity after

'erforming dry ablution, he can ,till recite the 2ur3an <from memory= 5u,t a, if he had taken a bath and then e-'erienced minor ritual im'urity. Al,o, it doe, not matter 1hether he 'erformed dry ablution due to a lack of 1ater 1hile at home or 1hile traveling... %hi, i, becau,e dry ablution can take the 'lace of a 'urificatory bath "gh sl#. If the 'er,on e-'eriencing ma5or ritual im'urity find, 1ater after 'erforming dry ablution, it i, obligatory on him to u,e the 1ater. %hi, i, becau,e recitation of the 2ur3an and all the other thing, that are not 'ermi,,ible during ma5or ritual im'urity become unla1ful for him until he take, a 'urificatory bath. !ecitation of the 2ur3an i, 'ermi,,ible for a 'er,on 1ho 'erform, dry ablution and 'ray,, then again 'erform, dry ablution for either e-'eriencing minor ritual im'urity or for another obligatory 'rayer and the like. <%he reader ,hould alaihi# note i, at a thi, ,cholar 'oint of that Imam an-Na1a1i ,chool of "rahmatullahi the Shafi i

5uri,'rudence. At ,uch a dee' level in the branche, of Sacred Aa1, one u,ually find, ,ome difference of o'inion.= %hi, i, the correct ,chool of thought... A, for the 'er,on 1ith ma5or ritual im'urity 1ho doe, not find 1ater nor anything to 'erform dry ablution 1ith, he 'ray, in hi, <im'ure= condition becau,e of the ,acredne,, of the time <in 1hich the 'rayer mu,t be offered=. ?ut, recitation of the 2ur3an 1ould not be 'ermi,,ible for him out,ide of 'rayer. Al,o, it i, unla1ful for him to recite more than S rat al-Fatihah... %he,e branche, of Sacred Aa1 have been mentioned becau,e they are related "to the ,ub5ect matter at hand#. I have mentioned them in ,hort form, but there are com'lete 'roof, in the book, of (i7h for the,e. And Allah kno1, be,t. Section M +The %efitting State of the 7ha0ir-

It i, befitting that the dha#ir be de,cribed by the be,t of attribute,. So if he i, ,itting ,ome1here, he ,hould face the qiblah 1ith a feeling of lo1line,,, humblene,,, 'eace of mind, ,eriou,ne,,, and 1ith hi, head bo1ed do1n. &o1ever, it i, 'ermi,,ible to 'ractice dhi#r in other than the,e condition, and there i, no aver,ion in it. !ather, if a 'er,on 1ithout any e-cu,e, leave, the above-mentioned condition,, he i, leaving a more meritoriou, act. %he 'roof for there being no aver,ion in 'racticing dhi#r in other than the above mentioned condition, i, Allah Mo,t &igh3, ,tatement0 Indeed, in the creation of the heaven, and the earth and the alternation of the night and day are ,ign, for tho,e of intellect. %ho,e 1ho remember Allah 1hile ,tanding, ,itting, and lying do1n on their ,ide. And they 'onder over the creation of the heaven, and the earth. <Al-2ur3an +0>FM>M*= It i, al,o recorded in Sahih al-?ukhari and Sahih al-Mu,lim that Sayyidah A3i,ha "radhi3Allahu anha# ,aid, D%he Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# u,ed to recite the 2ur3an reclining on my la' 1hile I 1a, undergoing my men,trual cycle.E In another account, ,he ha, been re'orted to ,ay, D... hi, head 1a, re,ting on my la' 1hile I 1a, undergoing my men,trual cycle.E It i, al,o related that Sayyidah A3i,ha "radhi3Allahu anha# ,aid, DIndeed, I recite my 'ortion of the 2ur3an 1hile I am lying do1n in bed.E Section >* +Attri*utes of the !lace 3ne !erforms 7hi0r inIt i, befitting that the 'lace 1here one 'erform, dhi#r be em'ty "of everything that 'reoccu'ie, one and cau,e, evil thought,# and be clean. It i, im'ortant to re,'ect the dhi#r and the 6ne being remembered. (or thi, rea,on, dhi#r in the ma,5id and other noble 'lace, i, commendable. Imam Palil Abu May,ara "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,aid, DAllah i, not remembered e-ce't in fine 'lace,.E Al,o, It i, befitting that the mouth "of the dha#ir# be clean. If

there i, ,ome di,ta,te or odor in it, one remove, it 1ith a tooth ,tick. If there i, ,ome im'urity in it, one remove, it by 1a,hing 1ith 1ater. It i, di,liked "ma#r h# to 'erform dhi#r 1ithout 1a,hing the im'urity, but it i, not unla1ful " haram#. %he ,ame rule a''lie, to recitation of the &oly 2ur3an... Section >> +Recommenda*ility of 7hi0r in All %ut a )e$ onditions-

&hi#r i, liked in all condition, e-ce't a fe1 e-ce'tional ca,e, noted in Sacred Aa1. We ,hall allude to ,ome of the,e ca,e, and leave the re,t for another ,ection, inshaAllah. (rom among the e-ce'tion, 1hen dhi#r i, offen,ive "ma#r h# are 1hile one i, ,eated 1hile to 'erform to nature3, a ,ermon, call, 1hile during ,e-ual for intercour,e, li,tening ,tanding

'rayer "!ather, one ,hould be bu,y 1ith reciting the 2ur3an#, and 1hile do4ing off. Note that dhi#r i, not offen,ive in the ,treet nor in the bathhou,e. And Allah kno1, be,t. Section >) +The Importance of %eing Attenti'e to .hat 3ne Says%he main ob5ective of dhi#r i, 're,ence of heart. So, it i, befitting that thi, be the de,ired goal of the dha#ir, and he endeavor to achieve it. &e ,hould al,o 'onder over 1hat he ,ay, and try to under,tand it, meaning. Pondering over dhi#r i, de,ired a, it i, de,ired 1ith recitation of the &oly 2ur3an becau,e the ,ignificance of both of them i, intert1ined 1ith their meaning. %hi, i, 1hy the choice correct 'o,ition i, for the dha#ir to lengthen the ,tatement, la ilaha ill Allah, ,o that he can 'onder over it. %he ,aying, of the salaf and tho,e 1ho

follo1ed

,ub,e7uently

about

thi,

,ub5ect

are

many.

And

Allah

kno1, be,t. Section >+ +The Importance of onstancy in 7hi0r-

It i, befitting for the 'er,on 1ho mi,,e, hi, regular 'ortion of dhi#r "in an a''ointed time of the day or night, after 'rayer, or during ,ome other condition# to make it u' 1hen he i, able to. &e ,hould not forget about it and neglect it. !ather 1hen he become, u,ed to adhering to it, he 1ill not let it be mi,,ed. Bonver,ely, if he i, carele,, about 'erforming it, it 1ill be ea,ier for him to mi,, it during it, time. It i, recorded in Sahih al-Mu,lim on the authority of Sayyidna Kmar ibn al-8hattab "radhi3Allahu anhu# that !a,ulullah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, DWhoever over,le't and mi,,ed hi, 'ortion of the 2ur3an at night, but then recited it bet1een Fajr and dh hr 1ill get the ,ame amount of re1ard a, reciting it at night.E Section >L The /'ents &uring .hich it is %etter to 4ea'e 7hi0r and Return to it After the /'ent Has !assed When ,omeone greet, the dha#ir, he ,hould 'au,e to return the greeting and then continue hi, dhi#r. When ,omeone ,nee4e, in hi, 're,ence, he ,hould ,ay

"yarham #Allah# and continue hi, dhi#r. %he ,ame i, true 1hen one hear, ,omeone making a ,ermon, hear, ,omeone making the call to 'rayer, or the call to commence "In,tead, he ,hould re'eat the 1ord, of the caller# ... Additionally, 1hen the dha#ir ,ee, a

1rong, he ,hould 'au,e to correct it. When he ,ee, a good, he ,hould 'au,e to guide to it. If ,omeone a,k, the dha#ir for ,omething, he ,hould 'au,e to an,1er him. <In all ca,e,=, he return, to hi, dhi#r <after the event ha, 'a,,ed=. If ,omeone i, do4ing off... he ,hould ,to' 'racticing hi, dhi#r. Section >G +)aint Audi*ility is a 2inimum !rere5uisite for 4egislated 7hi0r to *e Accepted-

8no1 that legi,lated "by Shari"ah# remembrance,; either in 'rayer or out,ide of it, either obligatory or 5u,t meritoriou,; are not accounted for until one 'ronounce, them. What 'ronouncing them mean, i, that one <at lea,t= hear, one,elf given that he i, ,ound of hearingG. <%he information after thi, ,ection 'ertain, to the re,t of Imam Na1a1i3, "rahmatullahi alaihi# book 1hich i, indi,'en,able to the ,eriou, rememberer of Allah and &i, Me,,enger "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# much. I ,hall, inshaAllah, mention 5u,t one more 'oint that Imam

Na1a1i "rahmatullahi alaihi# ,tate, before ,tarting hi, book. &e ,ay, that he ha, 1ith the grace of Allah heard mo,t of the ahadith he 1rite, in thi, book "1ith connected chain, back to the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam## from the ,cholar, he ha, learned from. %hi, 1ould further 'rove hi, 1orthine,, of 1riting a book that relie, heavily on the ,aying, of our &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam#.=

G %hi, i, al,o the Shafi i ,cholar, vie1. %he Maliki ,cholar, ,tate that the minimum i, the movement of the tongue even if one i, not able to hear one,elf. See Note, of Source, for Guiding &el'er ver,e >)0L>). Appendix II - #ames of Allah /xplained *y I*n 6u7ay al-,al*i 8rahmatullahi alaihi9 hapter : Boncerning the ?eautiful Name, of Allah the Mo,t &igh ?y, Ibn Pu4ay al-8albi "rahmatullahi alaihi# %he Me,,enger of Allah "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# ,aid, CIndeed Allah ha, ninety-nine name,. Whoever encom'a,,e, them enter, Paradi,e.C %he,e name, have been mentioned ,'ecifically and in their number in a hadith narrated by &akim %irmidhi "rahmatullahi alaihi# from Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu#. %he ,cholar, have di,agreed about 1hether the,e 'articular name, 1ere narrated directly from the &oly Pro'het "alaihi ,alat 1a ,alam# a, in the hadith or 1hether the narration of the,e name, i, arre,ted 1ith Sayyidna Abu &urairahh "radhi3Allahu anhu#. %hi, di,agreement ari,e, becau,e Allah ha, name, other than the 'articular one, mentioned. Among them are the one, narrated in the &oly 2ur3an and &adith. 6ther name, are derived from &i, Action,. Allah9, name, and attribute, in ,im'le term, can be divided into three ty'e,0 "># %ho,e about &i, ?eing, ")# %ho,e about the attribute, of &i, ?eing, and "+# %ho,e about the attribute, of &i, Action,.

Allah9,

name,

and

attribute,

in

more

detailed

term,

can

be

divided into ten categorie,0 "># %he name that 'oint, to &i, ?eing "e.g. CAllahC, it i, ,aid that thi, i, Allah9, Greate,t Name.#, ")# Name, that 'oint to &i, 6nene,, "e.g. %he 6ne, %he SelfSub,i,tent, %he Single# "+# Name, that 'oint to &i, State of being alive "e.g. %he

Aiving, %he (ir,t, %he Aa,t#, "L# Name, that 'oint to &i, originating creation and thi, i, a more ,'eciali4ed attribute of Aord,hi' "e.g. %he Breator, the Sha'er, the 6riginator#, "G# Name, that 'oint to &i, Po1er "e.g. the Able, the Avenger, the 6ver'o1er#, "N# Name, that 'oint to &i, Will Po1er "e.g. the 6ne Who 1ill,, the Doer of 1hat &e 1ill,, the 6ne Who &old, ?ack, the 6ne Who S'read,#, "J# Name, that 'oint to &i, Bon,ciou,ne,, "e.g. %he All-8no1ing, the All-&earing, the All-Seeing#, "F# Name, that 'oint to &i, Greatne,, "e.g. the Aofty, the

%remendou,, the Great, the &igh#, "M# Name, that 'oint to &i, 8ingdom "e.g. the 8ing, the 61ner, the Inde'endent#, and ">*# Name, that 'oint to &i, Mercy "e.g. the Merciful, the MercyGiving, the (orgiving, the 6ne Who acce't, re'entance, the Giver#