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Our Way Is to Be Together

Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani

10 November 2012 Lefke, Cyprus

Zhuhr Suhbah

Allahumma salli `alaa Sayyidina Muhammad hatta yardaa Sayyidina Muhammad.

A`oodhu billahi min ash-Shaytaani 'r-rajeem. Bismillahi 'r-Rahmaani 'r-Raheem.

Nawaytu 'l-arba`een, nawaytu 'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu 'l-khalwah, nawaytu 'l-`uzlah,

nawaytu 'r-riyaadah, nawaytu 's-sulook, lillahi ta`alaa fee haadha 'l-masjid.

أَطِيعُواْ اللّهَ وَأَطِيعُواْ الرَّسُولَ وَأُوْلِي الأَمْرِ مِنكُمْ

Atee`oollaha wa atee`oo 'r-Rasoola wa ooli 'l-amri minkum.

Obey Allah, obey the Prophet, and obey those in authority among you. (Surat an-Nisa, 4:59)

I have to say that I am not a shaykh, I am not anything, and I am like you: one of Mawlana's mureeds, and also the title “mureed” is too high, so we say we are ‘lovers’ of Mawlana Shaykh and that we will be happy to be connected to him in dunya and Akhirah, and that the Greatness Allah (swt) gave to His Prophet (s), His awliya and to Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q) was granted.

Important, VIP people come here to visit Mawlana Shaykh, and that is something to tell us we are nothing! Important people come from far away to get a blessing from Mawlana Shaykh in order to teach us how important Mawlana is in our life, and we say we hope that Mawlana will recover quickly and get health and power for the great days coming in front of us.

This morning when we visited him, he sent salaams to all of us, and spoke some declarations that indicate a big change coming, in the world in general and in the Middle East in particular. These changes will be for the best, for people and for human beings. Grandshaykh, may Allah bless his soul, said that one thing important to say is that Shah Bahauddin Naqshband, may Allah bless his soul, said 12,000 times in his life:

طريقتنا الصحبة والخير في الجمعية

Tariqatunaa as-suhbat wa 'l-khayru fi 'l-jami`yya.

Our way is companionship (to be together in association) and the best is in the gathering (the association).

Shah Naqshband (q) mentioned two meanings here regarding “the best is in association.” The first is “as-suhbat.” The Sahaabah (r) are called “Sahaabah” because they were Companions of the Prophet (s); had they not accompanied him even one time, if they only came in front of the Prophet (s) and accepted him, still they are called “Saahib,” (“Sahaabah” is plural). i.e., those who were with the Prophet (s). Because they were even one time with the Prophet (s), the Sahaabah (r) were able to receive that honor to make them friends with the Prophet (s). Also awliyaullah who are on the highest level of sainthood have received secrets from the Prophet (s), or we can say drops of this secret of companionship from which all of us are considered friends of our shaykh, ashaab ash-shaykh. This is not on the same levels as companionship of the Prophet (s), but tariqatunaa as-suhbat, Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) was looking to that secret that the Sahaabah accompanied the Prophet (s) and that Allah (swt) said in Holy Qur'an:

إِلاَّ تَنصُرُوهُ فَقَدْ نَصَرَهُ اللّهُ إِذْ أَخْرَجَهُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ ثَانِيَ اثْنَيْنِ إِذْ هُمَا فِي الْغَارِ إِذْ يَقُولُ لِصَاحِبِهِ لاَ تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللّهَ مَعَنَا فَأَنزَلَ اللّهُ سَكِينَتَهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَيَّدَهُ بِجُنُودٍ لَّمْ تَرَوْهَا وَجَعَلَ كَلِمَةَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ السُّفْلَى وَكَلِمَةُ اللّهِ هِيَ الْعُلْيَا وَاللّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ

Illa tansuroohu faqad nasarahullahu idh akhrajahulladheena kafaroo thaniyy ithnayni idh humaa fi 'l-ghaari idh yaqoolu li-saahibihi laa tahzan inna allaha ma`ana fa-anzala ’Llahu sakeenatahu `alayhi wa ayyadahu bi-junoodin lam tarawhaa wa ja`ala kalimata 'Lladheena kafaroo ’s-sufla wa kalimatullaahi hiya al-`ulya w 'Llaahu `azeezun hakeem.

If you help him not, still Allah helped him when those who disbelieve drove him forth, the second of two, when they (Prophet and Abu Bakr) were in the cave, and he said to his companion, "Be not sad (or afraid), for surely Allah is with us." Then Allah sent down His sakeenah (calmness, tranquility, peace) upon him, and strengthened him with forces which you saw not. (Surat at-Tawbah, 9:40)

When the Prophet (s) and Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (r) were migrating from Mecca to Madinah and stayed in the cave, the Prophet (s) told his saahib, “Don’t fear and don’t grieve.” As mentioned before, the Prophet (s) told the Sahaabah (r), “You are my Sahaabah, but my lovers are to come later after me, and believe in me without seeing me.” So it is enough to meet the shaykh one time to be Sahaabah of the shaykh, which is not the same as being the Sahaabah (r) of the Prophet (s), but we are friends, sons of the shaykh.

And that is their responsibility, to throw guidance into our hearts, even with just one meeting. Doctors give energy injections; you know about that. I know many presidents around world go to Switzerland to get these energy injections; they are old and they become strong. Awliyaullah have spiritual injections that are strong enough to give to you once in your life to be with them in dunya and Akhirah! That is why Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) said, tariqatunaa as-suhbat, “Our way is to be together,” just as the Prophet (s) said, yadullaahi ma` ala-jama`ah, “The Hand of Allah is over the group,” and in another hadith, “Allah's Hand is with the group.” So that is why he said, wa ‘l-khayru fi 'l-jama`ah, “Good is with the group.” If you are alone, the manifestation of Allah's Mercy is not the same as for a group, which is why one prayer in jama`at is equal to 27 prayers. We just prayed Salaat azh-Zhuhr in jama`at, which is like you prayed 27 times. So whenever there is an association and people gather together, then Allah sends His Manifestation of Mercy on us.

... And when you pray and say, “Allahu Akbar,” you are continuously praying and trying your best to be present in Allah's Divine Presence. So there is no spying during prayer, but as soon as prayer is finished, you begin to speak bad about each other, but Prophet (s) said:

عن ‏ ‏أبي هريرة ‏ ‏رضي الله عنه ‏أن رسول الله ‏ ‏صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏ ‏قال ‏ ‏إياكم والظن فإن الظن أكذب الحديث ولا تحسسوا ولا تجسسوا ولا ‏ ‏تناجشوا ‏ ‏ولا تحاسدوا ولا تباغضوا ولا تدابروا وكونوا عباد الله إخوانا.

Iyyakum wa’zh-zhann fa-inna azh-zhanna akdhab al-hadeeth wa laa tahasasoo wa laa tajasasoo wa laa tanaajashoo wa laa tahaasadoo wa laa tabaaghadoo wa laa tadaabaroo wa koonoo `ibaadullaahi ikhwaana.

Beware of suspicion for it is the worst of false tales, and don't look for the other's faults, and don't spy and don't hate each other, and don't desert (cut your relations with) one another. O Allah's slaves! Be brothers! (Narrated by Abu Hurayrah. Bukhari)

Forget about what happened in the past, let your day be a new, happy day in which Allah (swt) and His Prophet (s) are happy with you! So every time Sayyidina Shah Bahauddin Naqshband (q) began a new association, he recited, Tariqatunaa as-suhbat wa ’l-khayru fi 'l-jami`yya, “Our way is companionship and the good is in the gathering.” As soon as he established this, he then recited, Atee`oollaha wa atee`oo 'r-Rasoola wa ooli 'l-amri minkum, “Obey Allah, obey the Prophet (s) and those who are in authority.” This has two meanings: to “obey Allah” means to obey whatever has been obligated upon you, and to “obey the Prophet (s)” means to obey what the Prophet (s) (said or did, the sunnah). To “obey those in authority” means to obey the political and spiritual leaders.

Grandshaykh (q) said, “When you say ‘atee'oollah’ you carry the secrets of 500 ma`amoorat, good manners that Allah (swt) ordered you to do in your life. As soon as you read it, it is as if you obeyed Allah in the 500 obligations and left the 800 forbiddens.” In Islam there are 500 ordered actions and 800 bad manners and forbiddens. When you read that verse of Holy Qur'an, the first tajalli is that whatever sins you have committed in the past 24 hours are erased, as if you fulfilled 500 obligations and left 800 forbiddens.

So why do we become sad when Allah (swt) has guided us to such saints? It is already a reward and an honor for us that they didn't chase us away from the door and say, “We don't want you here!” They accepted us without testing us and anyone who gets a test must fail, so don't say “I won.” Everyone will get a test, make a mistake and be questioned.

عَنْ عَائِشَةَ ، أَنّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ، قَالَ : " مَنْ حُوسِبَ عُذِّبَ " ، قَالَتْ عَائِشَةُ : يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ، فَأَيْنَ قَوْلُهُ : فَأَمَّا مَنْ أُوتِيَ كِتَابَهُ بِيَمِينِهِ { 7 } فَسَوْفَ يُحَاسَبُ حِسَابًا يَسِيرًا { 8 } سورة الانشقاق آية 7-8 ، قَالَ : " ذَلِكُمُ الْعَرْضُ ، وَلَكِنَّهُ مَنْ نُوقِشَ الْحِسَابَ عُذِّبَ " ، رَوَاهُ الْبُخَارِيُّ فِي الصَّحِيحِ ، عَنْ سُلَيْمَانَ ، وَرَوَاهُ مُسْلِمٌ

Sayyida `Ayesha (r) asked Prophet (s), “Yaa Rasoolullah, are we not going to be questioned?” He answered, “Don't say that! May Allah not let us be questioned.”

The Prophet (s) said in that hadith:

Man hoosiba `udhdhib.

Whoever gives account surely will never be able to pass.

So for sure, whoever is questioned is going to fail and find punishement. Ask Allah (swt) not to question you, as that is the most dangerous! If audited, no one will be able to pass as they might find a mistake even in a normal life! Allah will not show us just one mistake, He will show us infinite mistakes! So our du`a is, “Yaa Rabbee, don't let me be questioned!” because if you get questioned and audited, you will be punished. So we say alhamdulillah that we are here without a test; we were accepted and are under their mercy, their wings, their arms. They accept you because you entered a place that became holy, as Allah (swt) said in Holy Qur'an:

كُلَّمَا دَخَلَ عَلَيْهَا زَكَرِيَّا الْمِحْرَابَ وَجَدَ عِندَهَا رِزْقاً قَالَ يَا مَرْيَمُ أَنَّى لَكِ هَـذَا قَالَتْ هُوَ مِنْ عِندِ اللّهِ إنَّ اللّهَ يَرْزُقُ مَن يَشَاء بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ

Kullamaa dakhala `alayhaa zakariyya ’l-mihraaba wajada `indaha rizqa. qaala yaa maryamu anna laki haadha qaalat huwa min `indillaahi inna Allaha yarzuqu man yashaa'u bi-ghayri hisaab.

Whenever he (Zakariyya) entered her prayer niche, he found with her provision. He said, "O Mary! From where does this come to you?" She said, "From Allah, for Allah provides sustenance to whom He pleases without measure." (Surat Aali-`Imraan, 3:37)

When you enter here you find rizq, provision, which is not limited to only eating and drinking; but your presence will be here even after you leave. Allah (swt) will create angels to sit here and make istighfaar on your behalf until the Day of Judgment! This place is not empty; if Mawlana Shaykh were to open our eyes, we would be able to see what they are saying.

So with association, Allah (swt) is making us friends of our shaykh, to inherit the tajalli that came on the Prophet (s) and his Sahaabah (r) and taking out all our sins. As soon as you put your foot inside the masjid, it is as if you left the 800 forbiddens and did 500 ordered actions! That is a good tiding from awliyaullah, who do things we are not able to see because we are blind, but they are not as they have opened up the curtains. They opened our curtains as well, but left one veil, which is why we do not see things clearly as the images are fuzzy. May they open for us to see more, and may Allah guide us as the Prophet (s) said, “The Hand of Allah is with the Group.” So we hope to be under Allah's Mercy, as He said:

وَرَحْمَتِي وَسِعَتْ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ فَسَأَكْتُبُهَا لِلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَ وَيُؤْتُونَ الزَّكَـاةَ وَالَّذِينَ هُم بِآيَاتِنَا يُؤْمِنُونَ

Rahmatee wasi`at kulli shay fasa’aktubuhaa li’Lladheena yattaqoona way’utoona’z-zakaata wa’Lladheena hum biaayaatinaa y’uminoon.

My Mercy encompasses everything, that Mercy I shall ordain for those who do right, and practice regular charity, and those who believe in Our signs. (Surat al-A`raaf, 7:156)

May Allah (swt) make us from among those who believe and not from those who question, as questioning is problematic. If you want to question, too many issues will come and block you from being steadfast on the highway. When you question, you are exiting from Sirat al-Mustaqeem. Today in Islamic universities they teach students to question everything, calling it banaa, “constructive questions.” There is no questioning in Islam! If you read the entire Holy Qur'an from beginning to end, you will find Prophet (s) did not ask a single question from Allah (swt)! Tariqah is to follow what you have been ordered!

In 1990, when I received the order from Mawlana to go to America, I came to him and he said, “Since you didn't ask for it, you go.” So I didn't question it and went. As soon as we got there, we began to face problems. This gentleman here took care of me and with Mawlana's barakah and Allah's Care, opened many, many things. I left Lebanon in August 1990 and returned in December 1991, and told Mawlana Shaykh that I cannot do it. He instructed me to go back, so I went back and then he took care of me, and now I am taking care of him (by looking after so many affairs in this dunya, which he has left). He took me across the ocean to the other side and until now it continues. When you don't question the order of the shaykh, that will take you very far! May Allah not make us to question anything.

One time Mawlana told me to go to Africa. I said to myself, “What am I going to do in Africa?”

He gave me a picture and said to me, “Find this shaykh.”

I gave that picture to Ahmad Fouad, the pilot, and said, “Go to Ghana and find this shaykh.”.

He went and came back and said, “I did not find him anywhere. I went to muftis and different mosques, but no one knows him.”

Then when I went to Ghana, a man came running to me as soon as I landed at the airport. I took out the picture and asked him, “Is this you?”

He said, “Yes, that is me. I saw in a dream many years ago, when I was very young to come here and meet Mawlana Shaykh Nazim al-Haqqani (q). Since that time, I have been following his orders that come to me in dreams.”

I do not know how Mawlana Shaykh got that picture! That person runs a school for orphans and its condition is may be suitable for a stable, a place to put sheep and cattle. In fact, you would not even put your sheep in such a place, and it is his school. You could not believe there could be a school worse than a stable! Mashaa-Allah, he is taking care of 300 children, teaching them Arabic and Shari`ah, taking them all the way to Grade 12.

I told this to Mawlana and he asked, “Do they have water?”

I said, “No, they do not, they bring water in containers.”

Mawlana said to tell them to dig a well. When I told him, he said, “All these masajid tried; they are Salafi and they didn't find water.”

I said, “Mawlana said dig, so dig.”

He said, “We need a machine to dig and it will cost around 10,000 Euros.”

Mawlana sent the money and they dug and found water at 45 metres and a width of six feet and now that water is going to all people in the village. That man has been following Mawalna through dreams for sixty years!

Allah (swt) opened for us many things in America: centers for dhikr and other big things that are coming in the near future. May Allah guide all of us, Muslims and non-Muslims, to reality.

Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.

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