Zhuhr Suhbah (1)
Nawaytu 'l-arba`een, nawaytu 'l-`itikaaf, nawaytu 'l-khalwah, nawaytu 'l-`uzlah,
nawaytu 'r-riyaada, nawaytu 's-salook, lillahi ta'ala al-`Azheem fee hadha '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)
As-salaamu `alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh. O Muslims! Allah (swt) gave an order, “Yaa Muhammad, say, ‘Allahu Ahad, there is no one except Me, the Creator’.” It is Maqaam al-Ahadiyyah, a Unique Level. We know Maqaam al-Wahdaniyyah to be everything that you see around you, which indicates Allah’s (swt) Creation, His Touch: in yourself, your friend, your brother or your sister, you see Allah’s Greatness in everyone! Look at this building, this image or this picture; you can know that Allah (swt) has inspired a certain person to do a certain task, no one else can do it. This is Maqaam at-Tawheed: He is the One Who created everything. Maqaam al-Ahadiyyah is the Level of Uniqueness. Al-Ahad al-Ahad, al-Fardu ‘s-Samad, He is describing Himself by Himself by saying, “I am Ahad, One.” Tawheed indicates The One, it explains about The One, but The One we do not know, other than Asmaa’ullah al-Husnaa that we know Him through. What is His Essence, what is the Essence coming out of His Knowledge? Allah has sent a messenger.
لَقَدْ جَاءكُمْ رَسُولٌ مِّنْ أَنفُسِكُمْ
Indeed, there has come to you a Messenger from among yourselves. (at-Tawbah, 9:128)
In another qira’ah, it is anfasikum, “Allah has sent you a messenger from within you that is most precious.” No one can be precious the way the Prophet (s) is, it is only the tashkeel, the vowel that we put over the letter that changes the meaning. Anfusikum, “within you,” anfasikum, “the most precious within you.” What did Allah send him for? With a knowledge that is Siraajan Muneera, a Lamp that is always bright and only Allah knows what comes out from it. Siraajan Muneera is a Lamp that is shining. The Sun is also shining, but let us explain: who is better, the Sun or the Prophet (s)? The Prophet (s) is Siraajan Muneera, but who is higher, the Sun or Noor an-Nabi (s)? The Light of the Prophet (s) is higher!
If you look today at the latest pictures of the Sun, you see the Sun exploding, every second these red color explosions are coming out. If the Sun is exploding, what is causing it? The heat of that has to express itself and come out from the Sun. Then what do you think of the Prophet (s)? He is better than the Sun, every moment knowledge is coming out through him, but you need someone to know it, understand it and find it. The mountains erupt in the Sun all the time and the temperature is 50 million degrees Centigrade in its core. What do you think about the Prophet (s)? Did he pass through the Sun in his Mi`raaj? Yes, he did. Why? Because he is Siraajan Muneera, is a Light that never stops, it is always shining. Allah sent him as a Mercy for Humanity, for guidance. He said, qudwatan li ‘s-saliheen. It is a good example for everyone. He didn't say, “qudwatan li ‘l-muttaqeen,” or “li ‘l-musharabeen,” but “saaliheen.” It means he is a Guide for the Righteous, to raise them to the level of understanding with that level of knowledge that is coming with every moment. It is like we explained about the eruptions of the Sun to dress the pious and sincere ones, to make them understand what he says.
Not only that, Allah raised Prophet’s name with His Name. If you go to school and they say “this student will sit with this student, his name is this”, and he says, “I don’t want to sit near this trouble maker, I want to sit with a clever one,” and the clever one does not want to sit with the lazy one, but that is for us to understand. Allah (swt) has put the Prophet’s (s) name with His Name and now it is not only that He is raising him, it immediately puts him in a place that is especially created for the Prophet (s) as a servant, an `abid. Allahu wa ‘l-Ma`bood.
The Prophet (s) is the podium of knowledge for `ulama, he is the fountain of knowledge, the fountain of everything. So what we have to learn from that is that the best way to make Allah pleased with us as our Creator is to follow what they are asking us.
وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا
Leave what Prophet (s) forbade and take what he ordered. (Surat al-Hashr, 59:7)
It means that you take anything the Prophet (s) gave to you. You cannot say, “I take this and I don’t take this.” This khitaab, advice is for two kinds of people: people of Shari`ah, for them to increase their `ilm, to raise their Tazkiyat an-Nafs, Purification of the Self, as Sayyidina `Ali, karam Allahu wajha, said in order that you be successful and know that you have purified yourself, you have to have four elements, disciplines, in order that you can prove to yourself that you are at the beginning of your apprenticeship.
So Sayyidina `Ali (r) said, “Do you want to reach these levels? Then you must follow four principles. If you follow them, you will reach where they want you to reach.” And all of these principles are according to the Sunnah of the Prophet (s). That part, which is the Sunnah, will make you be like a magnet attracted to Allah’s (swt) Mercy and the Prophet’s (s) Gaze, because the Prophet (s) observes the `amal of the Ummah. So Sayyidina `Ali (r) said that if you want the Prophet (s) to look at you, then you must have four principles.
1. As-Sakoot, To be silent. First of all, what is most important? It is not to talk. Don’t open your mouth, as-sakoot; first is silence. It is said of sakoot, “If to talk it is like silver, then sakoot, silence is from gold.” Being silent means be with your self, remembering Allah and His Prophet (s). That is what you need, this is your saqoot. Not when you are teaching or advising; that is okay, but to have this principle in order to be lifted higher, be quiet, especially in front of your teacher.
2. As-Sima`a, To listen. Second is as-sima`a, to listen. Remain silent with everyone and then listen to what they say. Everyone says something, everyone has a complaint about someone: the teacher, the students, the class or life, you don’t see anyone except that they are complaining. Is this not correct? So Sayyidina `Ali (r) said that if you want to improve, don’t talk. So when you are silent, then you will listen. They say one word from east one from west, hence the whole world; they even criticize all the way back to Sayyidina Adam (a) in their talks. “Yaa Sayyidina Adam (a), why did you eat from the Tree? You made us to come on Earth.” They even found something to say about that! And the Prophet (s) said:
الفتنة نائمة لعن الله من أيقظها
Fitna is dormant and Allah curses whoever awakes it. (Al-Rafi’i; al-Ajlouni in Kashf al-Khafaa.)
3. An-Nadhar, To observe. Third is to observe, an-nadhar. Remain silent, listen and observe how they are reacting: is it okay or not? What you are doing or what you are not doing, like someone who plays chess. So when you watch them, sometimes they take two or three days to make one move, is it not? Why then don’t you spend time to move your tongue in the right direction? So remain silent, listen and observe. `Ilm al-Yaqeen, `Ayn al-Yaqeen, Haqq al-Yaqeen, Knowledge of Certainty, Vision of Certainty, and Reality of Certainty. You will reach the ocean by keeping these three principles. After two or three days of silence, listening to each other’s heart, the chess players finally make their move. I gave that example to understand.
4. Al-Haraka, To act/move. When you are silent and listening you are observing, then at that time you give your opinion, because it might be the best of opinions. So when you are arguing with someone and cannot come to a good result or understanding, by following this way Allah (swt) will dress you from Heavenly Knowledge as He dressed Sayyidina Khidr (a).
فَوَجَدَا عَبْدًا مِّنْ عِبَادِنَا آتَيْنَاهُ رَحْمَةً مِنْ عِندِنَا وَعَلَّمْنَاهُ مِن لَّدُنَّا عِلْمًا
So they found one of Our Servants on whom We had bestowed Mercy from Ourselves and whom We had taught knowledge from Our Own Presence. (Surat al-Kahf, 18:65)
So the best of `amal is to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet (s). This is Sunnah: be quiet! Prophet (s) said:
روى البخاري في صحيحه عن سهل بن سعد رضي الله عنه أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: من يضمن لي ما بين لحييه وما بين فخذيه، أضمن له الجنة
Anyone who is able to control what is between his jaws and what is between his legs, I will guarantee for him Paradise. (Bukhari, Muslim)
“I guarantee anyone who saves his tongue and private parts.” It means observing constant silence. We have to follow the Sunnah, we can take one path and follow that from all paths, like an `alim. I am speaking of `Ilm az-Zhahir, of course Mawlana Shaykh Nazim (q) is our guide. You have to follow the guides who came from the Prophet (s), not those who come from music or from things that have nothing to do with religion, no! You must follow a way that came directly from the Prophet (s). If you follow one Hadith, it will make you happy in dunya and Akhirah. How many ahadeeth are there? Every Hadith has a physical meaning, an interpretational meaning and a secret meaning, and `ulama know that. These different ways came to us from the Sahaabah (r) and `ulama who are acting upon what they are teaching, not that they are not acting on it; in their family and community they have to act on what they are teaching. If they say that prayers are obligatory, then they have to perform their prayers. So the Prophet (s) showed us the way to be successful. Allah (swt) has mentioned:
وَمَا آتَاكُمُ الرَّسُولُ فَخُذُوهُ وَمَا نَهَاكُمْ عَنْهُ فَانتَهُوا
Leave what Prophet (s) forbade and take what he ordered. (Surat al-Hashr, 59:7)
You have to take one way, that is why he said:
وَأَلَّوِ اسْتَقَامُوا عَلَى الطَّرِيقَةِ لَأَسْقَيْنَاهُم مَّاء غَدَقًا
If they had (only) remained on the (right) Way, We should certainly have bestowed on them rain in abundance. (Surat al-Jinn, 72:16)
On the way to Siraat Mustaqeem, everyone has a siraat, it is not that we all have one siraat. How many cars do you see moving on the highway? There are many lanes and from one lane, one overrides the other; they take over from the right or from the left. So it is the way, but the siraat is one. So take one from these `ulama whom Allah has described:
أَلا إِنَّ أَوْلِيَاء اللّهِ لاَ خَوْفٌ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلاَ هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ
Behold! Verily on the Friends of Allah there is no fear, nor shall they grieve. (Surah Yunus, 10:62)
It is mentioned by Ka`ab al Akhbar:
علما امتي كانبيا بني اسرائيل
The scholars of my nation are like the prophets of the Children of Israel. (Ihya of Imam Ghazali)
The same topic mentioned in another way:
العلماء ورثة الانبياء
The (genuine) scholars are Inheritors of the Prophets.
`Ulama are inheriting from the Prophet (s), find one and follow. Today people are teaching and are not following, but they are teaching Islamic religion.
وكلّ من رسول الله ملتمسا غرفا من البحر أو رشفا من الدّمي
All of them partake from Allah’s Messenger a handful of his oceans or a sip from his continuous rains. (Imam al-Busayri, Burdah ash-Shareefah)
Some people take more and more lanes in knowledge. That is why from the beginning of the Message of Islam, too many enemies came to the Prophet (s). They tried their best to demolish the religion, even the Ka`bah, before Islam. They tried doing many different things by accusing Muslims of this or that and Muslims are innocent from such accusations. They bombarded us and Islam with numerous atheist ideas that they are teaching in universities and schools. We have to be careful what we are taught, in order to keep our children safe from falling into problems. They use something today very nice for teaching, but at the same time, corrupting it in order to demolish religion, or does it give benefit to Islam? On the contrary, this technology and what they now call ‘civilization,’ is corrupting people, especially our friend there, all day on the computer.
All these corruptions and ideas--Marxist, Socialist, Communist, Western or any other kind of ideas that are coming are mostly targeting the Middle East--are meant to destroy Islam so that no one would understand it, but they can come and understand if they like. So we are looking for scholars who can destroy these ideas to save us and save Muslims everywhere from this kind of understanding.
What is the duty of those with power in their hands who can make a change? It is to increase the love of Allah and the Prophet (s) in their heart. Why were there no secular studies in previous times, there was only Qur’an, Hadith, Shari`ah and Fiqh, and people were living happily with no complaints. We have to follow the people who have one of these highways and pick the one who has a big highway. So follow the people of dhikrullah, as the people of dhikr have a big highway. Allah (swt) said:
إِنَّ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلاَفِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ لآيَاتٍ لِّأُوْلِي الألْبَابِ الَّذِينَ يَذْكُرُونَ اللّهَ قِيَامًا وَقُعُودًا وَعَلَىَ جُنُوبِهِمْ وَيَتَفَكَّرُونَ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ رَبَّنَا مَا خَلَقْتَ هَذا اطِلاً سُبْحَانَكَ فَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ
Behold! In the creation of Heaven and Earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding, those who remember Allah (always, and in prayers) standing, sitting and lying down on their sides, and contemplating the creation of the Heavens and the Earth, (saying), "Our Lord! You have not created (all) this without purpose! Glory to You! Give us salvation from the torment of the Fire.” (Surat Aali `Imraan, 3:190-191)
الَّذِينَ آمَنُواْ وَتَطْمَئِنُّ قُلُوبُهُم بِذِكْرِ اللّهِ أَلاَ بِذِكْرِ اللّهِ تَطْمَئِنُّ الْقُلُوبُ
Those who believe, and whose hearts find satisfaction in the remembrance of Allah. for without doubt in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find satisfaction. (Surat ar-Ra`d, 13:28)
He is stressing about dhikrullah in different surahs!
رِجَالٌ صَدَقُوا مَا عَاهَدُوا اللَّهَ عَلَيْهِ فَمِنْهُم مَّن قَضَى نَحْبَهُ وَمِنْهُم مَّن يَنتَظِرُ وَمَا بَدَّلُوا تَبْدِيلًا
Men that kept their covenant with Allah (swt) and some passed and some are waiting. (Surat al-Ahzaab, 33:23)
Men who keep their covenant with Allah are always strict on dhikrullah, never distracted.
إِنَّ لله ملائكة يطوفون في الطرقات يلتمسون مجلاس الذكر
There belong to Allah angels who circle the streets looking for gatherings of dhikr. (Bukhari)
There are angels whom Allah sends on the streets roaming, like [tracking mobile] phones. They know where you are, so what do you think about angelic power? Allah is sending angels to circumambulate Earth and wherever there are people of dhikrullah, they come down and say to each other, “Come on, there is a gathering here and here,” and they rub them with their wings. So anyone in dhikr is rubbed with the wings of angels, they sit with them and make dhikrullah until the Day of Judgement, and their dhikr will be written for those in that gathering. And then Allah (swt) says to the angels, “I make you witness, O angels, that I have forgiven them!”
So this century, `Asr, the ‘Century of Civilization,’ Allah has also sent Muslim scholars and teachers and we are seeing that it is picking up now. There are more teachers, more scholars, and awliya are teaching their followers who come to the meetings and they are making all the bad characters to drop. That is why everyone has to cut the trunk of all bad characters which are seventeen, I will mention them later. We have to cut that trunk which is al-ghadab, anger. Show me one that has no such characteristic. No, everyone has anger. If you are not angry with your wife or husband, or son or friend, you will be angry with yourself and in the end you will kill yourself. How many are like that, suicidal, because of anger.
So our way is to follow one of the ways of Tariqat al-`Uboodiyyah. That is why he said, “If they will be straightforward on the way,” it has many meanings here. Tariqah is mentioned many times in the Holy Qur’an, it is very clear: to follow a guide to guide you. And many scholars are invited by the awliya. So you have to keep following the Sunnah until you reach al-Madinat al-Fadhila. This author was trying to put principles in his book to create the ideal village, al-Madinat al-Fadhila, a city that is clean from all kinds of corruption. That is why we have to mention what are the characteristics, how we have to leave them, and how to apply it and move forward. This lecture inshaa-Allah we can continue tonight.
Wa min Allahi 't-tawfeeq, bi hurmati 'l-habeeb, bi hurmati 'l-Fatihah.
http://sufilive.com/Our-Way-is-to-Follow-the-Way-of-Ubudayyah--5832.html
© Copyright 2015 Sufilive. All rights reserved. This transcript is protected
by international copyright law. Please attribute Sufilive when sharing it. JazakAllahu khayr.