As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh.
How are you, Dallas? May Allah (swt) always keep you together. Muslims have to be together here and have to be together on Yaumu ‘l-Qiyamah. They have to help each other over there and they have to be all together in Jannah, inshaa-Allah. Rasoolullah (s) said the Muslim to the Muslim is like the building, they support each other. Where are they? Muslims are not supporting Muslims nowadays. May Allah (swt) allow the Muslims to understand the example of the Prophet (s) and to understand what he was about.
Let’s start with the name. Where do you start? Mashaa-Allah, they read Qasidatu ‘l-Burdah. Everybody reads Qasidatu ‘l-Burdah and loves Qasidatu ‘l-Burdah. What does Sayyidina Imam al-Busayri (q) say about Rasoolullah (s)? He understood what Rasoolullah (s) is according to his knowledge. Nobody can understand what Rasoolullah (s) is about. That’s why when you say prayers, you say, “Allahumma salli `alaa Muhammad. Yaa Rabbee, You send the prayers.” Because if you want to respect somebody, if you want to honor someone, if you want to praise someone, you have to know who they are.
Why do I say Sidi Anwar is an excellent singer and nasheed reciter? Because I see him, I hear him, I experience his work. Who saw Rasoolullah (s)? Who heard Rasoolullah (s)? Who experienced the work of Rasoolullah (s)? No one. It is Allah (swt) that heard Rasoolullah (s). It is Allah (swt) that saw Rasoolullah (s). It is Allah (swt) that saw the work, evaluated the work of Rasoolullah (s). Therefore, He is the One who can send the praises and the blessings upon him according to how He knows him. That’s why we say, “Yaa Rabbee. You send the prayers on Rasoolullah. Allahumma salli `alaa Sayyidina Muhammad wa `alaa ali Muhammadin wa sallim.”
Sayyidina Imam al-Busayri (q) understood that you can never know the degree of Rasoolullah (s) and he said it in Qasidatu ‘l-Burdah. Fa inna fadla Rasoolulillahi laysa lahu hadhu fa yaghrib anhu natiqum bi faami. What does it mean? Mashaa-Allah, Muslims are after songs. Okay, they all enjoy the melody. They enjoy the music. They enjoy the drumming. They all hop and jump. What is Imam al-Busayri (q) saying? He was Waliyullah by the way. Waliyullah is different from an `alim and knows the dhahir, yes. He knows Hadith, he knows fiqh, he knows usoolu ‘l-Hadith or whatever it is. He knows everything but how about the batin? There is an inner way that most Muslims are not aware of.
Sayyidina Imam al-Busayri (q) has taken that inner way and he looked and understood that nobody can bring praise as Rasoolullah (s) is worthy of. Nobody can bring praise and say it to Rasoolullah (s). That’s why he said, “Fa inna fadla Rasoolulillah.” The level of Rasoolullah (s), the degree, the rank, the highness, the excellency of Rasoolullah (s), laysa lahu hadhun. There is no hadh, limit. There is no border. Fa yaghrib anhu natiqum bi faami. Nobody who can speak by the mouth can explain it. No matter how much praise you can bring on Rasoolullah (s) and honor him, you will not be able to honor him as he deserves. That’s why we say, “Yaa Rabbee. You send the durood and praise on Rasoolullah (s).”
Start with his name. What does “Muhammad” mean? “Muhammad” means the one who has gathered all the mahammid, all the good praises, all the good characters, all the good manners, all the good features, all the good qualities. That is the meaning of the name Muhammad, somebody who has all the perfect characteristics that a human being can achieve or acquire. How about the name, “Muhammad,” the four letters? Nothing is haphazard. There is no randomness with Allah (swt).
Afahasibtum innama khalaqnakum abbatha. Do you think We have created you playing, randomly with no purpose?
أَفَحَسِبْتُمْ أَنَّمَا خَلَقْنَـٰكُمْ عَبَثًا وَأَنَّكُمْ إِلَيْنَا لَا تُرْجَعُونَ
Afahasibtum innama khalaqnakum abbathan wa innakum ilayna la turja’oon.
"Did ye then think that We had created you in jest, and that ye would not be brought back to Us (for account). (Surah Al-Mu’minoon, 23:115)
What does “Muhammad, meem, haa, meem, dal,” mean? Just take the name. This is from what Awliyaullah have said. Meem represents Malakoot. Malakoot is the Heavens. His name, meem, is Malakoot. Haa, Rahmah. The haa of Rahmah. Meem, Mulk, the world. Dal, dawaam, continuous. The four letters of his name signifies that he is the continuous mercy coming from Heavens onto earth, continuously and uninterrupted!
Dal, dawaam. What is dawaam? I don’t know if we have Pakistanis here. Every other city in Pakistan has an abaad. India has an abaad. Abad means “forever.” Dal means dawaam, continuity. Continuity of what? Yaa Rabbee, of My Rahmah coming from Malakoot, coming from Heavens to earth. My Rahmah is continuously coming through the spirit, through the being of Muhammad (s). That’s just his name.
Rasoolullah (s) said, “I have two names: Muhammad and Ahmad.” In the Holy Qur’an, the two names that are mentioned are Muhammad and Ahmad. The others that are mentioned are Yasin, Taha and other names that Rasoolullah (s) called himself by that we have learned. Muhammad is the one who has gathered all of the good characteristics of a perfect human being. Ahmad is the one who can praise the Lord the highest. Ahmad. The one who can give the best hamd, praising of Allah (swt) is Rasoolullah (s). Why? Because he knows Him the most. Again, if you want to praise somebody, you have to know something about them. The more you know them, the higher your praise.
Who knows Allah (swt) more than Rasoolullah (s)? That’s why his name is Ahmad, the one who can give the highest praises. You have to understand, O Muslim, what are the meanings of names. Why did they choose Muhammad? Why did they choose Ahmad? Why did they choose Taha? What is the significance of that? That’s where spirituality comes in. That’s where Awliyaullah come in. They teach us a little bit more so that your love for your Rasool increases. Inshaa-Allah, our love for him increases.
Again, he is the one who gathered al-mahammid, all the good characters of everybody. That is why it is said that if you follow Rasoolullah (s), you will reach that perfect human being. What is the perfect human being? Not the ones that you see on the streets, no. Allah (swt) told Rasoolullah (s) in Surah Anam:
أُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ هَدَى ٱللَّهُ فَبِهُدَىٰهُمُ ٱقْتَدِهْ قُل لَّآ أَسْـَٔلُكُمْ عَلَيْهِ أَجْرًا إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرَىٰ لِلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
Oolaa’ika ‘l-ladheena hada ‘l-Llahu fa bihudaahumu ’qtadih qul laa asa’lukum `alayhi ajran in huwa illa dhikraa li ’l-`alameen.
Those were the (prophets) who received Allah's guidance: Copy the guidance they received; Say: "No reward for this do I ask of you: This is no less than a message for the nations." (Surat al-An`am, 6:90)
Follow their way. The way of whom? The way of Anbiya, the prophets who have preceded Rasoolullah (s). Why? Because every Nabi, every prophet was a perfect human being but one character was more visible than the other. Rasoolullah (s) was ordered to follow the ways of other Anbiya and his Ummah are ordered to follow him. To what? To acquire these characteristics of all prophets. Like what?
Rasoolullah (s) was ordered to follow the prophets because Sayyidina Nuh (a), for example, had sabr. They say, “Sufism, inner way, outer way. What is all of that? “Everybody is saying, “What is that? Love, passion, compassion. What is all of that? We don’t see it anywhere. We see the Muslims on TV. We see the Muslims in the news. That is what we understand Muslims are about.”
No, these are imperfect, naqis, Muslims who have a ways to go. Rasoolullah (s) was ordered to follow the ways of previous messengers to get these good characteristics from them. Sayyidina Nuh (a) was shakoor. Allah (swt) says in Surah Al-Isra:
ذُرِّيَّةَ مَنْ حَمَلْنَا مَعَ نُوحٍ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ عَبْدًا شَكُورًا
Dhurriyata man hamalnaa ma` Nuhin innahu kaana `abdan shakoora.
O you that are sprung from those whom We carried (in the Ark) with Noah! Verily he was a devotee most grateful. (Surat al-Isra, 17:3)
Nuh (a) was a thankful, grateful servant. Sayyidina Nuh (a) embodied shukr in himself. Rasoolullah (s) took on what Sayyidina Nuh (a) was more visible with and Rasoolullah (s) said, afalaa akoona `abdan shakoora, “Shouldn’t I be a thankful servant?”
It is a hint. Where are you? Are you shaakir? Are you thankful, O Muslim? If you are thankful, why are you on the streets yelling and screaming? Awliyaullah, Anbiyaullah, have followed the perfect human who is Rasoolullah (s) but on earth he was ordered to follow other messengers. Wa ‘t-taba`a millata Ibrahima hanifa.
وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ دِينًا مِّمَّنْ أَسْلَمَ وَجْهَهُۥ لِلَّهِ وَهُوَ مُحْسِنٌ وَٱتَّبَعَ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ حَنِيفًا وَٱتَّخَذَ ٱللَّهُ إِبْرَٰهِيمَ خَلِيلًا
Wa man ahsanu deenan mimman aslama wajhahu li ‘Llahi wa huwa muhsinu wa ‘t-taba`a millata Ibrahima hanifan wa ‘t-takhadha ‘l-Llahu Ibrahima khaleela.
Who can be better in religion than one who submits his whole self to Allah, does good, and follows the way of Abraham the true in Faith? For Allah did take Abraham for a friend. (Surat an-Nisa, 4:125)
Follow the way of Ibrahim. On earth, Rasoolullah (s) is showing you that Islam is not only following Rasoolullah (s), it is following him but also accepting all the others. That’s what so many people are unaware of, Muslims or non-Muslims. In Sufism as everybody calls it--there is no Sufism. Basically this is what you need to do in Islam. Islam is Sufism. Sufism is Islam. There is nothing out of it or in it. It’s the same. It’s deeper, as they say. It’s a deeper meaning of your religion. The deeper meaning of your religion is you have to go deep and dive to get inherent characteristics, inside characteristics. Shed off your egoistic characteristics. Shed off the satanic characteristics. Shed off the animalistic characteristics. These have to go.
What needs to come? First, your shukr needs to come. O Muslim, be like Sayyidina Nuh (a). He was a thankful servant. What else? Khilatu Ibrahim as they have said, the love of Sayyidina Ibrahim (a), the intimacy, the closeness, the proximity of Ibrahim (a) to Allah (swt). He said, wa ‘t-takhadha ‘l-Llahu Ibrahima khaleela.
Allah (swt) has taken Ibrahim as His intimate friend, close friend, beloved friend. Are you an intimate friend of Allah (swt) , O insaan? Check yourself. Are you following that way?
Rasoolullah (s) has taken on that khilla, that khaleel, the intimate, the beloved friend and he is habeeb, so he has followed them and taken on that khilla, that beloved, intimate friend of Allah (swt). If you are an intimate friend of Allah (swt), what is your characteristic? Shafaqah. Compassion. Mercy. On whom? On the people. Do you have compassion for others?
Allah (swt) said Sayyidina Ibrahim (a) was awwahun halim. He was so tolerant, so forbearing, so understanding, so patient. No matter what happened to him from his people, he always had an open heart. Do you have an open heart for your people? No. Work on truly following Rasoolullah (s). That is the inner way. This is the inner way.
If you take Rasoolullah (s) as a role model, you will be a perfect human on earth and a perfect friend to everybody. What else? Ikhlasu Musa, the sincerity of Musa (a). Wadhkuru fi ‘l-kitabi Musa, the sincerity of Musa (a).
وَٱذْكُرْ فِى ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ مُوسَىٰٓ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ مُخْلَصًا وَكَانَ رَسُولًا نَّبِيًّا
Wadhkuru fi ‘l-kitabi Musa innahu kaana mukhlasan wa kaana rasoolan nabiyya.
Also mention in the Book (the story of) Moses: for he was specially chosen, and he was an apostle (and) a prophet. (Surah Maryam, 19:51)
Mention in the Book Musa (a). He was a sincere one. He was a chosen one. He was a picked up one but he was sincere. Ikhlas. Of course, Rasoolullah (s) is mukhlis. Are you sincere in what you do? Do you mean what you do? When you say, “I’m doing this for Allah (swt).” Do you really mean it or are you doing it for riya’, let’s say?” Do you mean what you say? You have to be honest and sincere. You have to practice shukr. You have to practice ikhlas. And khilla, the intimate friendship with Allah (swt).
What do you do when you have a friend come over to your house? You’re all eyes and ears. “What is she going to say to me today? What does she have to show me?” You give your eyes and ears. When Allah (swt) is with you at every moment, do you open the Qur’an to say, “Let me see what Allah (swt) is going to tell me today. Let me see what Allah (swt) has for me today. Let me see what Allah (swt) will show me today.” Who opens the Qur’an? We open Whatsapp, Facebook and Instagram more. If you opened the Qur’an that much you would make khatm in one day.
Don’t worry, I do that too. I forgot my phone. I said, “Alhamdulillah.” I forgot it on the table, “Alhamdulillah.” Nobody to call, nobody to message, nobody to text. How nice. Who is going into khalwah with Allah (swt)? Okay, during the day I understand you cannot do it but do you have an excuse at night? Why don’t you wake up at night? Say, “Yaa Rabbee. I am with You. I have left everybody else sleeping. I’m done. I’m just with You. Half an hour, one hour, two hours, I’m with You.” Who does it?
Sidi Anwar recited in the Mawlid that Allah (swt) comes down as He knows. This is for our understanding. He comes down to the closest sky and He says, “Do you need anything so I can provide you with it?” You come to me, you come to him, you come to that one and that one, “Please pray for us.” Pray to Allah (swt). He is coming down every night asking, “Do you need anything? Hal min talabi haajatin fa uneelahul-mataalib. Is there anybody asking for something? I am the One. I am the Samad.” Do you know what Samad means? Everybody goes to Him. Every need goes to Him. He is the One Who can provide for you. Allahu ‘s-Samad. Al-masmoodu ‘ilay, the One that everybody has to go to in order to get whatever they want. Even your wujood, your existence is by Him. Go to Him.
Ikhlas is for Musa. Khillatu Ibrahim, the intimacy of Ibrahim (a). Be intimate with Allah (swt). What else? Sidq. Honesty. Sayyidina Isma`eel (a) was saadiqa ‘l-wa`d. He kept his word. He was a truthful one. He was an honest one. Allah (swt) said:
وَٱذْكُرْ فِى ٱلْكِتَـٰبِ إِسْمَـٰعِيلَ إِنَّهُۥ كَانَ صَادِقَ ٱلْوَعْدِ وَكَانَ رَسُولًا نَّبِيًّا
Wadhkuru fi ‘l-kitabi Isma`eela innahu kaana saadiqa ‘l-wa`di wa kaana rasoolan nabiyya.
Also mention in the Book (the story of) Isma'il: He was (strictly) true to what he promised, and he was an apostle (and) a prophet. (Surah Maryam, 19:54)
You can find it in Surah Maryam. Where is your sidq? The inner way is to learn truthfulness. Don’t cheat. Don’t lie. Don’t play games. Don’t trick people. Muslims and non-Muslims, this is the best thing they do nowadays. Nobody keeps their word, nobody tells the truth. Everybody plays games with others.
What else? What was Sayyidina Ayub (a) famous for? Sabr, patience. Sayyidina Ya`qub (a) was also famous for sabr. He said, fa sabrun jameel. “I will be on the most beautiful pattern of patience.” Where is your patience, O Muslim? You don’t learn this by reading books. That’s what is called the inner way. It’s not by reading, it’s by feeling, experiencing, and for that you need a murshid. Not any murshid. There are so many fake murshids around the world and around this country too.
You meet somebody who has seen Rasoolullah (s) as Sayyidina Imam al-Busayri (q) has seen him but he kept adab. He humbled himself and said, “I saw him in a dream.” They see him. They hear him. Others don’t believe it. Don’t believe it, it’s up to you, whatever you want, but he kept humble and he said, “I saw him in the dream.”
The real Waliyullah is the one who followed Rasoolullah (s) and acquired all of these perfect characteristics and is teaching it to others. That’s what we need to find. What else? Sayyidina Dawud (a) apologized to Allah (swt). Fastaghfara Rabbahu.
قَالَ لَقَدْ ظَلَمَكَ بِسُؤَالِ نَعْجَتِكَ إِلَىٰ نِعَاجِهِۦ وَإِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ ٱلْخُلَطَآءِ لَيَبْغِى بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ وَقَلِيلٌ مَّا هُمْ وَظَنَّ دَاوُۥدُ أَنَّمَا فَتَنَّـٰهُ فَٱسْتَغْفَرَ رَبَّهُۥ وَخَرَّ رَاكِعًا وَأَنَابَ
(David) said: "He has undoubtedly wronged you in demanding your(single) ewe to be added to his (flock of) ewes: truly many are the partners (in business) who wrong each other: Not so do those who believe and work deeds of righteousness, and how few are they?"...and David gathered that We had tried him: he asked forgiveness of his Lord, fell down, bowing (in prostration), and turned (to Allah in repentance). (Surah Saad, 38:24)
“Yaa Rabbee. I made a mistake. Forgive me.” Ihtidar, apology. You have to come to Allah (swt) always with apologies. “Yaa Rabbee. I apologize. I meant it or I didn’t mean it, I don’t know, but I hurt somebody today. I did something wrong today. I apologize. It won’t happen again.” Allah (swt) will cover.
Sayyidina Dawud (a) was famous for his apology for the mistake he had made. Sayyidina `Isa (a) and Sayyidina Sulayman (a) had tawwad`u, humbleness, humility, as if they don’t exist. Who has that nowadays? Which Muslim? They walk with heels. Have you ever seen a Muslim man walk with heels? I saw it. Why? To bring attention to themselves. “Oh, he’s coming. The big one is coming. The big shot.” Why? Where is the tawwad`u? Where is the humbleness? Where is the humility? The prophets had humbleness and humility. Where is your humbleness and humility, O insaan?
Sufism is not something different from Islam. Basically, it is Islam itself. Sayyidina Ali (r) said, the “Sufi” is the one who wears the soof. What is soof? Saad, waw, faa. Who knows Arabic here? Sayyidina Ali (r) said, “What does saad, waw, faa, mean?” Just like we said the holy name of Muhammad (s). What are the letters of “soof,” the ones who wear the wool? Soof means wool.
It is famous that the Sufis used to wear khirka. It’s like a jubbah or coat made out of wool. He said, “If you know what saad, waw, faa is about, you can enter that Sufi way. You can find your way to Allah (swt).” Rasoolullah (s) came to teach us the inner way. Awliyaullah have come to teach us the inner way. Sayyidina Ali (r) is one of the great Awliya. He said saad is sidq, sabr, safaa, truthfulness, patience and purity. How beautiful is that? Sidq, sabr, safaa.
Be a truthful one. Be a patient one. Your heart will reach purity. Practice that. Why? Wuddun wuroodun wafa’un. Waw is wud, love. Wurood, to reach a place and drink from that Love Ocean. Wafa. Allah (swt) will give you what He has promised you. He will pay you fully.
When you love Allah (swt) and you reach that fountain of love of Allah (swt), Allah (swt) will reward you with something that you don’t know about. It’s a grant from Him. Wafa. He will keep His end of the bargain.
In Sufism, in our Way, we try to be sadiq, truthful ones. We try to be patient, to reach purity. We try to love Allah (swt) and His creation. We try to reach that Love Ocean, to drink more from the love of Allah (swt) and Rasoolullah (s) for Him to keep His end of the bargain. What is His end of the bargain? He takes away your temporary being and He will give you an Eternal being. In Jannah you have an Eternal being, for everlasting life.
The faa is faqr, fard, fanaa. The first is poverty, neediness. “Yaa Rabbee. I need You for everything.” Rasoolullah said, al-faqru fakhree, “poverty is my pride. For everything I need my Lord. For everything I need Allah (swt).” That is As-Samad again. Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q) once told me, if Allah (swt) does not allow the breath to come out, what happens? You drop dead. If He doesn’t allow the breath to come in, what happens? You drop dead. You are between two breaths! You are a human being and your life is between two breaths. If the first breath doesn’t come out or doesn’t go in, you die. If the second breath doesn’t come out, you die. Even for your breathing you need Allah (swt). If you think you can breathe independent of Allah (swt) then why do you stop breathing at the end? Why do you die? Because Allah (swt) controls your breath, controls your heartbeat, controls your brainwaves, controls everything you are in His Power, in His Hands.
That is where we come in, the Sufis. We know that in each breath we have to mention our Lord’s Name, in and out, to give thanks to Him for giving us that power. You have to see yourself in need of Allah (swt) at all times. Fard, singleness, nothing in your heart but Him. What’s in your heart? No, leave that. Success. “What do people say about me? How do I look today? What am I going to eat today? Where am I going to have fun today? What am I wearing today? Which lipstick should I put on? Which kohl should I put on?” They are talking about men, not women. “Which mascara should I put on? Which foundation should I put on?” Men. You see them on TV with foundation pouring on their faces, dripping.
In your heart is you, “What do people think of me? How do I look? What did I say today? Was it good or was it bad?” You only think of yourself in dunya. That has to go. In your heart should not be you, in your heart should be Allah (swt). You are His servant. Fard, fana. Fana means you disappear from the equation. You’re not there anymore. You have given yourself to Allah (swt)’s Will. Whatever He wants, happens. That’s why He told Rasoolullah (s):
وَٱصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ فَإِنَّكَ بِأَعْيُنِنَا وَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ حِينَ تَقُومُ
W ’asbir li hukmi Rabbika fa innaka bi `ayyunina wa sabbih bi hamdi Rabbika heena taqoom.
Now await in patience the command of your Lord: for verily you are in Our eyes: and celebrate
the praises of your Lord the while you stand forth. (Surat at-Tur, 52:48)
Be patient on the decree of your Lord. Huqm is whatever Allah (swt) decided. You cannot change what Allah (swt) has decided. It’s predestined. It’s finished. It’s from Azal. Allah (swt) decided something for you: hard, easy, comfortable, uncomfortable. He is telling Rasoolullah (s), “You continue being patient for what I have decree. Don’t worry about yourself. You are in Our Eyes.” When somebody says, “I am in your eye,” what do you say? “Aw, how nice of you.”
Have you ever heard of Mulla Nasreddin Hodja? He lost his mule. He went out looking for his donkey and he saw a couple. A husband was telling his wife, “I see the whole world in your eyes.” Mulla Nasreddin said, “Please, can you check where my donkey is? Do you see my donkey anywhere?”
Fa innaka bi `ayyuninaa. “You are in Our Eyes?” What does that mean? “I am protecting you. I am watchful over you.” Yahfazha ‘l-Habeeb, as they have said. The lover will keep his beloved safe. If you are beloved to Allah (swt), why do you worry? He will keep you. He says you also will be in His Eyes. It means He is going to protect you from everything: fire, water, earthquakes, disasters or whatever is happening. He will protect you.
When you run to Allah (swt), ahtasara bi ‘l-Llah, as they have said. When you take Allah (swt) as your fort--don’t they say to their wives, “You are my fort”? Have you ever heard of that before? Maybe it’s in Arabic. “You are my fort.” That means, “You are my shelter. Whenever I have a problem, I come to you.” Take Allah (swt) as your shelter. When you come to Him as your shelter, He will protect you. When He is protecting you, you are seeing Him. Mushahaadah. When He is protecting you, you have to see Him because He is all around you, protecting you. If you see Him, you have reached Him.
Awliyaullah have said that Sayyidina Musa (a) asked, “Yaa Rabbee. How can I come to You?” He said, idhaa qasadtanee wasalta ilayya. “If you intend and direct yourself to come to Me, you arrived.” The minute you turn your heart to Allah (swt), you have arrived in His Presence. He is not a hundred miles away or a hundred miles up or a hundred miles down. He is not bound by directions. The minute you turn your heart to Him, you have found Him. That’s what you need to have in your heart, no more self.
The end of Sufism, as they say, is when you don’t see yourself in existence anymore. You see Allah (swt)’s work in action. Whatever He destined for all humanity, playing out in front of your eyes. You say, tawakkaltu alaa ‘l-Llah. “Yaa Rabbee. I put my trust in You.” And you say, “Shukran lillah. Yaa Rabbee, thank You for everything.” That’s what we do at the end. We say, “Yaa Rabbee, it’s in Your Hands. Nothing escapes You.”
Rasoolullah (s) was the perfect example of that. He was mustaghriq as they say. He was drowning in the ocean of Allah (swt)’s Asmaa wa ’s-Sifaat. He was seeing His actions at play. He was seeing His Beautiful Names manifesting themselves and he was seeing His Attributes. He reached to see Allah (swt) and the evidence of that is Mi`raj. Allah (swt) showed everything to him. That’s why he said:
كُلُّ مَنْ عَلَيْهَا فَانٍ
Kullu man `alayhaa faan.
All that is on earth will perish. (Surat ar-Rahman, 55:26)
Everything on it will cease to exist.
وَيَبْقَىٰ وَجْهُ رَبِّكَ ذُو ٱلْجَلَـٰلِ وَٱلْإِكْرَامِ
Wa yabqaa wajhu Rabbika dhu ‘l-Jalaali wa ‘l-Ikraam.
But will abide (for ever) the Face of your Lord,- full of Majesty, Bounty and Honour. (Surat ar-Rahman, 55:26)
Only the Face of your Lord remains. He said, “Rabbuka. The Face of Your Lord, the High, The Majestic, The Glorious, The Generous, remains.” Awliyaullah said when he said, “You, wajhu Rabbika,” that means Allah (swt) has shown Rasoolullah (s) a special Beauty for him and the ones that are following will see the Beauty of Allah (swt)’s Holy Face. Holy Face means His Names and Attributes. That’s the only thing you can see. Nobody can see Allah (swt) directly.
How do you get there? You get there with Dhikrullah. That’s why we do dhikr. That’s how you reach Allah (swt). When Allah (swt) wanted to talk about Himself, He said:
قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ
Qul huwa ‘l-Llahu Ahad.
Say: He is Allah, the One and Only. (Surat al-Ikhlas, 112:1)
We see it as such. Three Names: Hu, Allah, Ahad. Ahad is for the starters who have others in their hearts. Ahad means “One.” A mushrik on the outside and a mushrik on the inside. That’s what they call ash-shirku ‘l-khafi wa shirku ‘l-jaleel. Obvious shirk is when people worship statues, stones, rocks, moons, stars and whatever. That is obvious. But the hidden shirk is when you worship yourself, when you are in your heart. Have you ever heard of narcissists? He doesn’t have a mirror so what does he do? He used to go to the water and look at his own reflection. That’s where narcissism comes from. There was a man called Narcissus. He was into himself, worshiping himself.
You start with Ahad. “Yaa Rabbee. I’m taking everything out of my heart, including myself. It is only You.” When you are done with shirk then, “Allah. Allah.” When you mention Allah (swt), the next is Hu. There are no more names, it’s Him. There is nothing in this world but Him. There is nothing in the Heavens but Him. Lahu maa fi ‘s-samawati wa maa fi ‘l-ard.
It is only Allah (swt) in the Heavens and earth. It is only Allah (swt) that controls the Heavens and earth. The true mu’min that follows Rasoolullah (s) sees nothing except Allah (swt). That’s why we start by saying, Laa ilaaha illa-Llah, but at the end we start saying, Laa ilaaha illa-Hu. No more names because the name is also a limitation for Allah (swt). He is Mutlaq. He is untied by anything. He is not limited by names. Names are for us. He is outside of names. It is He. He, and you don’t have to specify what “He” means. It is Him. That’s Allah (swt). May Allah (swt) allow us to understand Him as we can.
I wanted to mention something about Rasoolullah (s) but I think it’s a little bit late. This is important to understand a little bit more about Rasoolullah (s). This is something I heard from Mawlana Shaykh Hisham. He said:
كُنتُ نَبِيًّا وَآدَمُ بَيْنَ الرُّوحِ وَالْجَسَدِ
Kuntu nabiyyan wa Adam bayn ar-roohi wa 'l-jasad.
I was a Prophet when Adam was between soul and body.
“I was a Prophet when Adam was between the soul and the body.” That means he was not created yet. The soul and the body had not come together yet. Adam was not made yet and Rasoolullah said, “I was a Prophet.” Rasoolullah (s) was created before Adam (a), if you understand the Hadith. Imam Ahmad has mentioned it in his Musnad. Kuntu nabiyyan. That means, “I was created and I was made a Prophet and I was given that prophethood and Adam was not even created yet.” Look at how your Prophet existed from the beginning, before anyone was in existence.
Awliyaullah went even further. He said Rasoolullah (s) witnessed the creation of Adam. He witnessed the honoring of Adam by Allah (swt). Rasoolullah (s) witnessed the admission of Adam (a) into Paradise. Rasoolullah (s) witnessed the expulsion of Adam out of Paradise. He has seen all of that. He existed and he was a Prophet. He was given the prophecy. Adam was not even created yet. Such a person has witnessed everything that happened after he was created. Not only that, he also witnessed Shaytan refusing to make sajdah for Adam. Rasoolullah (s) was seeing all of that as Awliyaullah have said. That’s all from the Hadith.
“I was a Prophet. I was created and I was given that prophethood or that messengerhood and Adam was not even created yet.” He saw Shaytan’s refusal to make sajdah to Adam. He saw Adam’s expulsion and coming down onto earth. As I heard from Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q), when Adam was--I don’t want to say “thrown out.” That is tarku ‘l-adab, against good manners. When he was told to come down, he came down so fast onto earth that the earth opened up to swallow him. Why? Because the earth was upset with the one who disobeyed their Lord.
When somebody is disobedient, everything around them becomes their enemy. Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q) said it was opening high and low so Adam would just sink and keep going because of the anger of the earth for its Lord. A voice came, “Yaa Adam! Say Bismillaahi 'r-Rahmaani 'r-Raheem.” It is said that Rasoolullah (s) was the means for Adam (a) to stop his descent way down into earth. When Adam said, “Bismillaahi 'r-Rahmaani 'r-Raheem,” he stopped on earth.
That voice came from Rasoolullah (s). Rasoolullah (s) was present when Musa (a) reached that fire. He reached the fire and said, innee anaa rabbuka fakhl`a n`alayk, “I am your Lord. Take off your shoes.”
إِنِّىٓ أَنَا۠ رَبُّكَ فَٱخْلَعْ نَعْلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ بِٱلْوَادِ ٱلْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًى
Innee Ana Rabbukafakhl`a n`alayk innaka bi ‘l-wadi ‘l-muqqadasi Toowaa.
"Verily I am yourLord! therefore (in My presence) put off you shoes: you are in the sacred valley Tuwa. (Surah Ta-Ha, 20:12)
Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q) said, “Take off your shoes,” was said by Rasoolullah (s). He was present there. Rasoolullah (s) was present with every messenger, even the she-camel of Salih (a). When he asked for the she-camel to come out from the mountain, he asked Rasoolullah (s). He made the request and that she-camel came out. Every nabi had Rasoolullah (s) with them and that’s what Imam al-Busayri has said. Wa kulluhum min Rasoolillahi multamisun. “All of them are asking Rasoolullah (s) for his support, for his giving.”
Anbiya and Awliya. Anbiya were the ones who preceded his birth and Awliya are the ones who came after his traveling to the other world. Anbiya and Awliya all take from Rasoolullah (s) according to their level. Either they take a handful from the oceans or they take little droplets of rain. Rasoolullah (s) was present with every prophet. He witnessed the creation of Adam (a) and he witnessed when prophets became prophets because every prophet was born and when they came to a certain age then they were given prophecy. He witnessed all of that, so everybody takes from him. This is Rasoolullah (s). There is no rasool like him. He is the one who supported all of them. He is the one who supports Awliyaullah.
May Allah (swt) let us walk in their footsteps to reach him. If you want to reach him, you have to get your shukr on standby, you have to get your sabr, you have to get your ikhlas, you have to get your sidq, you have to get your i`tidhaar, apology, you have to get your tawwad`u, humbleness and humility. If you get that, you are on the right path. If you don’t get that, find somebody who will teach you that. How do they teach you that? They take dunya from you. If they take dunya from you, you are very miskeen. Your greatness becomes nothingness when you have no money, no car, no house, no wife, no husband, nothing. What happens to you? You lose everything. You come down. That’s why sometimes Allah (swt) tests people. He takes their dunya from them to humble them down to the right way.
Don’t see everything bad happening as something like a punishment to you. No, it might be a hidden mercy, a mercy in disguise. May Allah (swt) forgive us. I think we talked too much. I don’t know if you remember anything I said. I don’t remember anything I have said but what I remember is Dhikrullah. Be busy with Dhikrullah and Allah (swt) will show you the way. Surah Ikhlas is the sincere way to Allah (swt). You should start from the back. Wa lam yakun lahu kufuwan Ahad. THere is no equal to Him. Try to see that. Try to experience that. There is no equal to Allah (swt). If you see your boss not equal to Allah (swt), if you see your prime minister not equal to Allah (swt), if your president is not equal to Allah (swt), if you see everyone not equal, that’s how you start. That means you don’t go to anybody anymore. You don’t seek their help. You don’t seek anything. There’s no equal. “I go to the Powerful One.” Who is the Powerful? Allah (swt). Wa lam yakun lahu kufuwan Ahad. There is nobody equal to Him.
If you start there, it means you have detached yourself from humanity and turned to Haqq. You have taken yourself from khalq and turned to Haqq. Start with Surat al-Ikhlas. Start from the back. Wa lam yakun lahu kufuwan Ahad. and then wa lam yoolad. He was not born. Because if you were born, before you were born, you would not exist. Non-existence does not happen to Allah (swt). Allah (swt) cannot be non-existent at any period of time.
Sayyidina `Isa (a) was not existent. Before he was born, where was he? Not on earth. There is no period of time that God can be non-existing. Wa lam yoolad means that non-existence never came upon Him. When Allah (swt) says, “I was not born,” that means, “I was never non-existing.” Start from there. Lam yalid. He did not give birth or He did not bear a child because to have a child, you need somebody of your kind. You need a human and another human and you get a human. Then you need a god and another god to get a god. There is nothing like that. There is nothing like Allah (swt). That’s why there’s nothing like Him. And then you go to As-Samad. That is the ascension you have to do.
Allah (swt). Ahad. And at the end, where do you reach? Hu. Everything is poof. All of you don’t exist. Inshaa-Allah, we exist. Where? In Jannah. We have come for the love of Rasoolullah (s) and Allah (swt) appreciates that. He will not leave you without Rasoolullah’s shafa`ah. May Allah (swt) grant us his shafa`ah always, here and Hereafter. Every difficulty that we have for the love of Rasoolullah (s), yaa Rabbee, lift the difficulties. Nothing is too hard for You. Everything is easy for You. You created the `Arsh as easily as You created an ant. Yaa Rabbee, it’s all in Your Power. Yaa Rabbee, lift all the difficulties. Allow our children to understand the value of Rasoolullah (s), the purity of Rasoolullah (s) and the way of Rasoolullah (s) and allow us to follow in his footsteps, yaa Rabbee, to Your Divine Presence.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
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