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tawakkull · 3 months

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ISLAM 101: Spirituality in Islam: Part 190

Another Way of Journeying and Initiation

Some make spiritual journeys by refining and developing the inner faculties, while others purify the carnal self within, causing it to take certain steps. In both these ways, suffering for certain periods is essential to reach the rank of perfection and to become a perfect human being. Yet there are other ways, different from these two ways, to reach the ranks and stations and the favors and blessings that come through spiritual journeying and suffering. Among these ways, there is one which is based on the way of the Prophet’s Companions and may be regarded as a manifestation of the truth of Messengership.

Helplessness, poverty, affection, reflection, zeal and thankfulness are the basic elements of this way. Helplessness means being aware of one’s inability to do many of the things that one wants to do, and poverty denotes the awareness of the fact that it is God Who is the real Owner and Master of everything. Embracing everybody and everything because of Him is affection, while reflection is thinking deeply, analytically and systematically about and meditating on the outer and inner world, with a new excitement everyday. Zeal is the great, ardent desire and yearning to reach God and to serve in His way. Always thanking God for His bounties and proceeding to Him in full consciousness of all His blessings during the journey is thankfulness.

According to Bediuzzaman Said Nursi,[1] this way is more direct and safer. Helplessness is a path of light leading to being loved by God that is safer and quicker than love; in it the more one perceives one’s helplessness, the more quickly one will reach one’s goal. Poverty is an inexhaustible treasure which, to the extent of one’s consciousness of it, will lead one to the protection and direction of the All-Merciful and His infinite Power much sooner and more safely than the greatest discipline, efforts and endeavors could. Affection is deeper and more sincere than love. No traveler having this feeling, which is a manifestation of Divine Compassion, has ever been left halfway. Reflection is the way of the enlightened spirits who relate everything to wisdom through study and the observation of one’s inner world and the outer world. As for zeal, it is the characteristic of those who are always conscious of the points or senses of reliance and asking for help that are innate to them. These two senses always remind of God. Those endowed with zeal never become desperate or disappointed. And finally, thankfulness is returning with gratitude all the blessings of God that we receive almost gratis.

The essence of the way can be summed up as: “I am helpless, You are the All-Powerful; I am poor, You are the All-Wealthy; I am needy and in straitened circumstances, You are the All-Compassionate; I am bewildered and seeking a way out, You are the only Goal Which is sought and to be reached.” It is not possible for those who are aware of their helplessness, poverty, neediness and bewilderment to see themselves as pure or of being of any rank, thus it is not possible for them to be heedless or forgetful of God while knowing that whoever forgets Him is forgotten and bound to forget him or herself also. Nor is it possible for them to attribute to themselves the accomplishments with which God has favored them, using the pretext of their endeavors, nor to ascribe their evil and sins to Destiny, thus regarding themselves as existing independently of God.

According to Bediuzzaman, this way can be dealt with from the viewpoint of the following four disciplines:

Making efforts to see the carnal self as not being purified and sinless, as against its innate tendency to see itself as pure and sinless. Being careful and resolved to forget oneself when and where one should forget and remember oneself when and where one should remember. Being well aware of the fact that God creates everything–good and evil–and is the only source of all good. Thus, one should attribute to oneself all one’s sins and evil as being caused by one’s own person, albeit it is God Who has created them, and all good and all accomplishments should be attributed to God, and one should be thankful. Whatever state one is in and whatever rank one reaches during one’s journey, one should know that both one’s existence and merits are but a shadow or a shadow of the shadow of the lights of Divine Existence, and that all aspects of one’s existence are a mirror of the manifestations of His Knowledge and Existence. Now let us explain these points in accordance with the approach of Bediuzzaman:

The first discipline: The carnal self in its nature is fond of itself, and only loves and has relations with others because of itself. The self-love of the carnal self is so great that its adoration of itself is like the adoration of God felt by a sincere believer devoted to the One Who absolutely deserves worship and who should be sought. It never shows inclination to acknowledge its errors and always sees itself as being pure and free of error. So, one should wage the major (greater) jihad against such an attitude, always criticizing and questioning it, softening and melting it in the blast-furnace of self-criticism and self-supervision in order to reshape it. One should never see oneself as free and absolved of errors and sins, and the acceptance of this is, in fact, the tap under which it should and can be cleaned. Only by doing so can one’s innate positive potentialities be developed.

If we continuously seek purification in seeing ourselves as prone to evils and errors, angels and other spiritual beings will greatly appreciate our decency and cleanliness, and, as stated in a Prophetic saying,[2] they will come down from all sides to shake hands with us. If, by contrast, we are so heedless that we see ourselves as clean and infallible, we will inevitably be representatives of a loathsome nature from which even devils will keep aloof in disgust. As Mawlana said, human beings are such that sometimes they become like the Devil under the influence of satanic impulses, and sometimes they are on a par with angels at the summits of spiritual life.

The second discipline: A person with an unpurified, evil-commanding carnal self may be forgetful of the most vital matters, which should never be forgotten, and such a person does not even want to recollect them, while pulling up from the heart matters that should never be remembered. Human beings should always think of serving God’s cause, of being earnest in their deeds, of their responsibilities to the people around them, and of death and what lies beyond it. They should uproot from their spirit hatred, jealousy, worldly ambitions, greed, and carnal desires. Only by doing so can human beings keep their innate tendency toward spirituality alive, and hold themselves back from rousing the satanic tendencies within them.

We, travelers on the way to God, should see belief in God and living along the line of His good pleasure as a blessing, and concentrate on how we can please Him with all our thoughts, feelings, and actions. We should also try to lead our lives in His company, and by virtue of this company, we should continually seek new means to be always in close relationship with Him. We should always be aware of what Mawlana reminds us of: “There is a hidden One here; O heart, do not see yourself as alone.” Based on our relationship with Him, we should strive to transcend our limited nature in order to advance toward infinity, developing our drop-like existence into an ocean, and seeking the mysteries of the universal in our particular existence. If we lead such a life, the things that are seen as impossible to do are done and obstacles that seem insurmountable are surmounted. Particulars become reflections of and mirrors to the universal, and what we see as non-existent takes on the color of existence, a dew-drop excels the moon in reflecting the sun, earth becomes as elevated as the heavens, and our particle-like natures expand to the extent of the universe.

Mawlana, the prince of the lovers of God, advises us to transcend the corporeal dimension of our existence and discover the mysterious potentialities of our spirit, saying:

A pitcher which has found the way to the sea: Rivers prostrate themselves before it.

The third discipline: A carnal self that has not yet been able to step on the way to refinement through journeying in itself and the outer world, ascribes to itself whatever good and achievement it is favored with, while imputing evils and failures to either external factors and causes or its incorrect, stunted concept of Destiny. Instead of overflowing with thankfulness for whatever favors it receives, it inwardly collapses because of self-pride, conceit, and arrogance, and extinguishes its feelings of thankfulness to and praise for God. It contaminates its horizon with the filth of such bad morals, and ruins itself. Whereas, if the carnal self is able to attribute to God all the good and achievements and impute all evils, shortcomings and failures to itself, then it would be favored with blessing after blessing, even in the most unfavorable circumstances. What is necessary is that the carnal self should see that its perfection lies in its perception and acknowledgment of its imperfection, and that it should always be humble before and devoted to God. The carnal self should also overflow with thankfulness and zeal by perceiving and acknowledging that its power comes from its helplessness, and its richness lies in its innate poverty.

It is extremely important for us as believers to know that all our merits and accomplishments are from God, while all our imperfections and errors are from our own selves, and that we should keep our system of self-interrogation and self-control alive and active. So long as the travelers to God can do this, they will always yield fruit, even in the most unfavorable circumstances. Whereas, from the moment when aridity arises in the spiritual world of the carnal self, due to certain erosions, then only thorns will grow, even in the most favorable circumstances, and it will hoot like an owl, lamenting its loss.

If human beings were only physical beings, their concerns and worries about corporeality would be meaningful. Seeing a noble being as consisting only of a physical body means reducing it to the level of flesh, which is bound to disintegrate and rot away and be food for microorganisms. This is the most abominable form of despising the noblest and most honorable of all creation. But the actual fact of the matter is that humankind, by virtue of their creation, endowment, and potentials, are more valued and sublime than even the angels. Human beings are much more than being mere body; they are endowed with heart, spirit, and other inward spiritual faculties, with consciousness, intellect, perception, intelligence and other outer and inner senses and feelings. Human beings are an assemblage of values that transcends the physical dimension of their being. Human beings are such precious and well-endowed creatures that they can sometimes fly so high that even the angels desire to catch up with them; sometimes they can reach the peaks which separate the realm of mortal beings from eternity and infinity. Using their mental faculties to the utmost degree, they arrange travel to celestial bodies, and transfer sounds, voices and images from great distances, offering us the most beautiful melodies of time and space shrinking at great speed.

However, despite the extent of their capacity and exceptional nature, humans can fall into a net of hatred, grudges, greed, and lust, becoming the most wretched and abased of all beings. They can be wretched slaves and beggars, despite their nature and capacity to be the masterpieces of creation; they can become nothing more than worms creeping on the earth, despite their potential to be heavenly beings. But if they turn completely to God with all their inner dynamism, overflowing with thankfulness for all the good He has bestowed on them, and impute to themselves all the evils they may commit and shortcomings they may suffer, they can become perfected and be saved from those shortcomings through awareness and wakefulness, and by being cleansed under the taps of self-control and supervision. Then humankind can set up the tent of true humanity on the debris of evil feelings and passions, and express themselves through accomplishments, without ever losing their humility and feelings of nothingness before God. This also means discovering themselves anew at every attempt, being fully aware of themselves in their own depths, and experiencing a new revival at every moment. Mawlana sees this as the feet of the soul being freed from the fetters of corporeality and the spirit starting to become heavenly. A spirit which has become heavenly also attempts to arrange its own, inner world with its whole power of perception and consciousness, makes incessant efforts to repair the defects standing in the way of its perfection. Such a spirit travels sometimes in the realm that stands before the veil over existence and sometimes beyond it, and goes into ecstasies at every seeing of the depths of its heart. Every such seeing arouses in it a new desire to grow into perfection, and every desire a new zeal for self-renewal. It sees its heart as a home of God and utters:

The heart is the home of God; purify it from whatever is there other than Him, So that the All-Merciful may descend into His palace at night.

The truly and fully human beings cleanse the heart of foul concepts and images, adorn their “secret” with knowledge of God, illuminate their “private” with the torch of love and zeal, and make their “more private” utter loyalty. They are always occupied with the Beloved One, and ready to sacrifice themselves for His sake. This is their affliction, which is preferred to all cures; they are exhausted with the excitement of being on the way to Him. However, their affliction is sweeter than all cures, and their exhaustion is preferable to every rest or repose. Their affliction causes them to travel through deserts in quest of greater afflictions, saying:

I used to seek a cure for my inward affliction; They said: “Your cure is the affliction itself.” I used to seek something to sacrifice in the court of the Beloved; They said: “Your soul is the thing you seek to sacrifice.”

The soul also utters, as many have uttered:

I used to seek a cure for my affliction; I have come to know that my affliction itself is my cure. I used to try to find that which is hidden in my origin; I have come to know that my origin is that which is hidden.

Many have sung melodies of love about Him, and of separation from Him and yearning to meet with Him with all of their being, as if each part of their bodies were a flute.

Concerning this, Mawlana says:

O heart! You and your suffering for Him exist; ah, how nice it is always to be concerned with Him and suffering for Him! That suffering is, in fact, your cure. So, bear with all the afflictions and troubles coming from Him, without making the least complaint. So does He decree. If you have been able to trample your bodily desires, then you have killed the dog of your carnal self, which is the thing that should be killed.

The fourth discipline: The carnal self sees itself as if it were a being which exists independently. It sometimes adopts a manner so refractory and abased that every attitude and act it performs is disobedience and hostility to Him Whom it must unquestionably worship. In reality none other than Him has an independent existence of itself. Every existing being or thing, living or non-living, functions as a mirror to the Names of the Most Exalted Creator with respect to the level of life with which it is favored. Even though the human carnal self has an exceptional nature and capacity particular to itself among other beings, its existence with whatever it has is from Him, and subsists by Him alone. For this reason, with respect to itself, it is a zero in the face of Eternity, a shadow in the face of the Original Being, and is nothing in the face of the Truly Existent One. Its perception of this is the first step to the attainment of true existence, while thinking otherwise is a lethal stumbling. When one sees oneself as an independent being existing and subsisting by oneself, one rolls headlong into the dark abyss of non-existence. Yet, when one functions as a polished mirror to the Truth (having whatever is good and valuable as only a reflection from Him), one is en route to eternity. One smashes the tight frame around one and finds the light of the Existence of the True Being. Concerning this, Muhammad Iqbal[3] says:

In your essence, there is a substance from the Existence of God, and a ray from His manifestation. But for His ocean, I do not know where we would have been able to find this “pearl.”

The following couplet, whose author is not known, relates the matter to the famous saying, “He who knows himself, knows his Lord:”

Know your own self, if you desire to have knowledge of God; Only he who knows his own self, is one who has knowledge of God. Mawlana sums up the matter as follows: So long as a servant is annihilated with respect to his ego and conceit, It is impossible for him to attain true belief in God and His Unity. Unity does not mean union with God; it means freedom from ego. Whoever says otherwise, speaks a lie and cannot make falsehood truth.

To sum up, it is possible to say that, other than the way composed of love, suffering and similar essentials by which one can reach God, there is another way; this is the way of one’s perception and the acknowledgment of one’s own helplessness and poverty before God, and of affection and reflection. This second way is safer and more direct than the former one.

Travelers following such a way in consciousness of their helplessness turn to the One of Infinite Power with all of their being, each saying: “Hold me by the hand, hold because I cannot manage without You.” The more aware they are of their poverty, the more sincerely they take refuge with the Divine Wealth, and attribute to Him whatever in their possession is good and praiseworthy. They are in constant thankfulness and act zealously where others stumble because of their self-pride and utterances that are incompatible with the rules of Shari’a. Those who study deeply and reflect on their inner world and the outer world do not fall into pride (by ascribing any accomplishment and the favors they have received to themselves,) nor do they fall into mental and spiritual confusions by imputing evils to external causes or Destiny. On the contrary, they attribute to God all of their accomplishments and the favors they receive, rely on Him, and enjoy the pleasure of dependence on Him. As for evils, they ascribe them to themselves and turn to God with repentance, penitence and contrition, feeling pangs of separation from Him and pleasures in the expectation of again meeting with Him. Since they regard their existence as a shadow of the light of the Divine Existence, they never consider that they have independent self-existence, nor do they need to be preoccupied with such notions as Unity of Being and Unity of the Witnessed. With the conviction that their existence, with all its attributes and potentials and whatever endowment they have been granted, are all from Him, then they live with the pleasure or the hope of His company, and act in thankfulness for being on the way to Him. They never value or esteem easy behavior or utterances that suggest self-pride and self-complacency.

The basic essentials of this way were once expressed by the present author as follows:

O friends, come and listen, O friends! Our way is the way of zeal; The comrades satisfied with belief, Thorns are roses for us.

Thanks to Him, we have seen the Face of the Truth, And found the very essence of everything; We have adopted His every word as a principle; And His Speech is evidence for us.

All strength by which we are strong is His; We are known for His Name, by Which we act, And travel, going beyond the summits; All difficulties are easy for us to surmount.

We have no wealth but are extremely wealthy; And are noble and honored by relation to Him. Reflection is our way; and everything, wet or dry, Is a source of knowledge of God for us.

Plains, residences, and deserts, All voices mention Him throughout the universe, Roses of all colors that have opened, Each is a message to us from Him.

You know us from serving God with utmost zeal; Our work is always thinking of Him, And what we will always do and declare: His Book is the guide for us.

We have found Him and submitted to Him; And been saved from grief and despair; We were sullied but have been cleaned; His Mercy is the ocean in which we were cleaned.

O Lord, accept my repentance, and clean me of the dirt, answer my prayers, secure my place in religion, guide my heart, make my voice always speak the truth, and root out all kinds of hatred and envy from my heart. And bestow Your blessings and peace on our master and support Muhammad, and his family and Companions altogether.

[1] Bediuzzaman Said Nursi (1877-1960) is the most famous and one of the greatest Muslim thinkers and scholars of the 20th century. He wrote about the truhts and essentials of the Islamic faith, the meaning and importance of worship, morality, and the meaning of existence. He is very original in his approaches. (“The Words”), (“The Letters”), (“The Gleams”), and (“The Rays”) are among his famous works. [2] Al-Muslim, “Tawba,” 12-13; Al-Tirmidhi, “Qiyama,” 59. [3] Muhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) is one of the most outstanding Muslim thinkers and activists of the 20th-century Muslim world. He studied in England and wrote many books. The Reconstruction of the Islamic Thought is the most well-known among them.

#allah #god #islam #muslim #quran #revert #convert #convert islam #revert islam #reverthelp #revert help #revert help team #help #islsmhelp #converthelp #how to convert to islam #convert to islam #welcome to islam

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jami-attirmidhi · 2 months

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JAMI’at-TIRMIDHI: The Book on Legal Punishments: Hadith 1847

Narrated Rafi' bin Khadij:

That he heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) say: "There is no cutting of the hand for fruits or palm marrow."

Reference: Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1449

In-book reference: Book 17, Hadith 32

English translation : Vol. 3, Book 15, Hadith 1449

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lifeofresulullah · 6 months

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The Life of The Prophet Muhammad(pbuh): The Battle of Khandaq and Afterwards

The Expedition of Ghaba

(6th year of the Migration, the month of Rabiulakhir)

While Abu Dharr was herding the camels (about twenty camels) of the Prophet with his son in the meadow of Ghaba, Uyayna b. Hisna’l-Fazari attacked them with forty-six cavalrymen, martyred Abu Dharr’s son and took all of the camels.

The Prophet was informed about the situation. He sent a group of cavalrymen under the command of Sa’d b. Zayd after the attackers immediately. The Prophet said to Sa’d, “Follow the polytheists that attacked until I and the people catch up with you.”

After the cavalrymen set off, the Prophet appointed Abdullah b. Umm Maktum as his deputy in Madinah and set off with a group of five hundred soldiers toward Ghatafan. They caught up with the enemy in a place called Dhu Qarad, which was two days away from Madina. They killed some of the enemy and got some of the camels back.

The Messenger of God stayed there for one more day and night in order to search the places nearby and returned to Madinah.

#allah #god #islam #muslim #quran #revert #convert #convert islam #revert islsm #revert help #revert help tesm #help #islsmhelp #convert help #how to convert to islam #convert to islam #welcome to islam

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basicsofislam · 3 years

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BASICS OF ISLAM : Cleanliness

The Prophet said that “cleanliness is half of faith.” Therefore, we should recognize the importance of both inward and outward cleanliness, and keep our living quarters and environment clean.

In Islam there is a great emphasis on cleanliness, both physical and spiritual. After the occasion of the first revelation of a verse of the Qur’an (“Read!”), the second verse to be revealed was a command about wearing clean clothing:

“O you cloaked one (who has preferred solitude)! Arise and warn! And declare your Lord’s (indescribable and incomparable) greatness. And keep your clothing clean! Keep away from all pollution” (Muddaththir 74:1–5).

The Islamic scholar Elmalili Hamdi Yazir interprets the word siyab (usually “clothing”) in this verse to signify the “soul” and the “heart.” Thus, he paraphrases the verse as

“keep yourself and your heart clean from sin and unrighteousness, stay away from unclean feelings that will ruin your good deeds, and clothe yourself in good morality so that your good works may be acceptable.”

But Yazir also sees no problem with a literal understanding of the verse, directly referring to physical and outward cleanliness, as well. Thus, it is highly likely that the verse is also a commandment to keep the body and its garments clean.

It is clear that this responsibility—to keep oneself clean, both from outward impurities as well as from sins, like ascribing part- ners to God, rebellion against God, hypocrisy, and so on—is a moral obligation demanded by Islam. Both types of uncleanness are mentioned together in another Qur’anic verse:

“Surely God loves those who turn to Him in sincere repentance (of past sins and errors) and He loves those who cleanse themselves” (Baqara 2:222).

The first requirement for deserving God’s love, entering His Presence, and being His servant is cleanliness. It is the first thing we must do to put ourselves in the correct state for performing obligatory daily prayers, which are the “ascension of the believer.” In the following verse God decrees performing ablution or taking a bath for this purpose:

O you who believe! When you rise up for the Prayer, (if you have no ablution) wash your faces and your hands up to (and including) the elbows, and lightly rub your heads (with water) and (wash) your feet up to (and including) the ankles. And if you are in the state of major ritual impurity (requiring total ablution), purify yourselves (by taking a bath)…. (Maeda 5:6)

With this verse the ablutions before ritual prayers became obligatory and all Muslims wash their hands, faces, mouths, noses, ears, necks, and feet before each of the five daily prayers.

Just as we should keep our body and the clothes we wear clean, we also need to keep our living quarters and the places where we worship clean. The Qur’an says,

“O children of Adam! Dress cleanly and beautifully for every act of worship…” (A’raf 7:31).

God’s Messenger made it an obligatory practice to bathe at least once a week (this was at a time when frequent bathing was uncommon).

He also instructed people to “keep your environment clean” and urged them to maintain the shared community spaces as well. A hadith recounts his words on this subject:

“Avoid two cursed things,” he said, and when the Companions asked “What two things?” he replied, “Relieving oneself on the road where people pass by, or in a shady place (where people take a rest).”

Prophet Muhammad, who was “the Living Qur’an” and who embodied Qur’anic morality, as with everything, was the best of examples in cleanliness. He was very careful about his own cleanliness and whenever he lay down or got up, day or night, he washed his mouth and nose, brushed his teeth and made ablutions. In particular he emphasized that cleaning the teeth is crucial not only for the health of our mouth, but also to please God; moreover, he taught that the first thing a person should do on waking from sleep is to wash their hands. He was also careful to dry his limbs on a towel after washing. God’s Messenger paid close attention to cleanliness throughout his life; he would wear clean, nice clothes whenever he out went in public, particularly to the mosque or to visit someone. He used pleasant scents and avoided eating onions, garlic or smelly foods before going out.

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riyad-as-salihin · 3 years

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Riyad as-Salihin, The Book of Visiting the Sick, Book 6, Hadith 55

Chapter: Charity on behalf of the Deceased and Praying for him

'Aishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported:A man said to the Prophet (ﷺ):

"My mother has died suddenly. I think that if she were able to talk (alive) she would have given in Sadaqah (charity). So, if I give Sadaqah now on her behalf, will she get the reward?" The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said, "Yes (she will be rewarded for that)." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

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dailytafsirofquran · 3 years

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Tafsir Ibn Kathir: Surah Al-Baqarah Ayah 21-22

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

21. O mankind! Worship your Lord (Allah), Who created you and those who were before you so that you may acquire Taqwa.

22. Who has made the earth a resting place for you, and the sky as a canopy, and sent down water (rain) from the sky and brought forth therewith fruits as a provision for you. Then do not set up rivals unto Allah (in worship) while you know (that He alone has the right to be worshipped).

Tawhid Al-Uluhiyyah

Allah says;

O mankind! Worship your Lord (Allah), Who created you and those who were before you so that you may acquire Taqwa.

Allah mentioned His Oneness in divinity and stated that He has favored His servants by bringing them to life after they did not exist.

He also surrounded them with blessings, both hidden and apparent.

Who has made the earth a resting place for you, He made the earth a resting place for them, just like the bed, stable with the firm mountains.

And the sky as a canopy, meaning, `a ceiling'.

Similarly, Allah said in another Ayah,

And We have made the heaven a roof, safe and well-guarded. Yet they turn away from its signs (i.e. sun, moon, winds, clouds). (21:32)

And sends down for you water (rain) from the sky, meaning, through the clouds, when they need the rain, and brought forth therewith fruits as a provision for you. Hence, Allah caused the various types of vegetation and fruits to grow as a means of sustenance for people and their cattle.

Allah reiterated this bounty in various parts of the Qur'an.

There is another Ayah that is similar to this Ayah (2:22), that is, Allah's statement, It is He Who has made for you the earth as a dwelling place and the sky as a canopy, and has given you shape and made your shapes good (looking) and has provided you with good things.

That is Allah, your Lord, so Blessed be Allah, the Lord of all that exists. (40:64)

The meaning that is reiterated here is that Allah is the Creator, the Sustainer, the Owner and Provider of this life, all that is in and on it. Hence, He alone deserves to be worshipped, and no one and nothing is to be associated with Him.

This is why Allah said next, Then do not set up rivals unto Allah (in worship) while you know (that He alone has the right to be worshipped).

The Two Sahihs record that Ibn Mas`ud said, "I said to the Messenger of Allah, `Which evil deed is the worst with Allah?'

He said, To take an equal with Allah, while He alone created you.''

Also, Mu`adh narrated the Prophet's statement, Do you know Allah's right on His servants?

They must worship Him alone and refrain from associating anything with Him in worship.

Another Hadith states, None of you should say, `What Allah and so-andso person wills. Rather, let him say, `What Allah wills, and then what so-and-so person wills.

A Hadith with the same Meaning

Imam Ahmad narrated that Al-Harith Al-Ashari said that the Prophet of Allah said,

Allah commanded Yahya bin Zakariyya to implement five commands and to order the Children of Israel to implement them, but Yahya was slow in carrying out these commands.

`Isa said to Yahya, `You were ordered to implement five commands and to order the Children of Israel to implement them. So either order, or I will do it.'

Yahya said, 'My brother! I fear that if you do it before me, I will be punished or the earth will be shaken under my feet.' Hence, Yahya bin Zakariyya called the Children of Israel to Bayt Al-Maqdis (Jerusalem), until they filled the Masjid.

He sat on the balcony, thanked Allah and praised him and then said,

`Allah ordered me to implement five commandments and that I should order you to adhere to them. The first is that you worship Allah alone and not associate any with Him. The example of this command is the example of a man who bought a servant from his money with paper or gold. The servant started to work for the master, but was paying the profits to another person. Who among you would like his servant to do that Allah created you and sustains you. Therefore, worship Him alone and do not associate anything with Him.

I also command you to pray, for Allah directs His Face towards His servant's face, as long as the servant does not turn away. So when you pray, do not turn your heads to and fro.

I also command you to fast. The example of it is the example of a man in a group of men and he has some musk wrapped in a piece of cloth, and consequently, all of the group smells the scent of the wrapped musk.

Verily, the odor of the mouth of a fasting person is better before Allah than the scent of musk.

I also command you to give charity. The example of this is the example of a man who was captured by the enemy. They tied his hands to his neck and brought him forth to cut off his neck. He said to them, 'Can I pay a ransom for myself?' He kept ransoming himself with small and large amounts until he liberated himself.

I also command you to always remember Allah. The example of this deed is that of a man who the enemy is tirelessly pursuing. He takes refuge in a fortified fort.

When the servant remembers Allah, he will be resorting to the best refuge from Satan.

Al-Harith then narrated that the Messenger of Allah said, And I order you with five commandments that Allah has ordered me.

* Stick to the Jama`ah (community of the faithful),

* listen and obey (your leaders) and

* perform Hijrah (migration) and

* Jihad for the sake of Allah.

* Whoever abandons the Jama`ah, even the distance of a hand span, will have removed the tie of Islam from his neck, unless he returns. Whoever uses the slogans of Jahiliyah (the pre-Islamic period of ignorance) he will be among those kneeling in Jahannam (Hellfire).)

They said, "O Messenger of Allah! Even if he prays and fasts?''

He said,

Even if he prays, fasts and claims to be Muslim.

So call the Muslims with their names that Allah has called them: `The Muslims, the believing servants of Allah.'

This is a Hasan Hadith, and it contains the statement, "Allah has created and sustains you, so worship Him and do not associate anything with Him in worship.''

This statement is relevant in the Ayat (2:21-22) we are discussing here and support singling Allah in worship, without partners.

Signs of Allah's Existence

Several scholars of Tafsir, like Ar-Razi and others, used these Ayat as an argument for the existence of the Creator, and it is a most worthy method of argument. Indeed, whoever ponders over the things that exist, the higher and lower creatures, their various shapes, colors, behavior, benefits and ecological roles, then he will realize the ability, wisdom, knowledge, perfection and majesty of their Creator.

Once a Bedouin was asked about the evidence to Allah's existence, he responded, "All praise is due to Allah! The camel's dung testifies to the existence of the camel, and the track testifies to the fact that someone was walking. A sky that holds the giant stars, a land that has fairways and a sea that has waves, does not all of this testify that the Most Kind, Most Knowledgeable exists''

Hence, whoever gazes at the sky in its immensity, its expanse, and the various kinds of planets in it, some of which appear

stationary in the sky - whoever gazes at the seas that surround the land from all sides, and the mountains that were placed on the earth to stabilize it, so that whoever lives on land, whatever their shape and color, are able to live and thrive – whoever reads Allah's statement, And among the mountains are streaks white and red, of varying colours and (others) very black. And likewise, men and Ad-Dawabb (moving (living) creatures, beasts) and cattle are of various colours. It is only those who have knowledge among His servants that fear Allah. (35: 27-28)

Whoever thinks about the running rivers that travel from area to area bringing benefit, whoever ponders over what Allah has created on earth; various animals and plants of different tastes, scents, shapes and colors that are a result of unity between land and water, whoever thinks about all of this then he will realize that these facts testify to the existence of the Creator, His perfect ability, wisdom, mercy, kindness, generosity and His overall compassion for His creation. There is no deity worthy of worship except Allah, nor is there a Lord besides Him, upon Him we rely and to Him we turn in repentance. There are numerous Ayat in the Qur'an on this subject.

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ISLAM 101: Spirituality in Islam: Part 5

Muhasaba (Self-Criticism or Self-Interrogation)

Muhasaba literally means reckoning, settling accounts, and self-interrogation. In a spiritual context, however, it takes on the additional meaning of the self-criticism of a believer who constantly analyzes his or her deeds and thoughts in the hope that correcting them will bring him or her closer to God. Such a believer thanks God for the good he or she has done, and tries to erase his or her sins and deviation by imploring God for forgiveness and amending his or her errors and sins through repentance and remorse. Muhasaba is the very important and serious attempt of asserting one’s personal loyalty to God. It is recorded by Muhy al-Din ibn al-‘Arabi, author of al-Futuhat al-Makkiya (The Makkan Conquests), that during the early centuries of Islam, righteous people would either write down or memorize their daily actions, thoughts, and words, and then analyze and criticize themselves for any evil or sin they had committed. They did this to protect themselves from the storms of vanity and the whirls of self-pride. They would ask God’s forgiveness after this self-analysis, and would repent sincerely so that they might be protected against future error and deviation. Then they would prostrate in thankfulness to God for the meritorious deeds or words that the Almighty had created through them.

Self-criticism may also be described as seeking and discovering one’s inner and spiritual depth, and exerting the necessary spiritual and intellectual effort to acquire true human values and to develop the sentiments that encourage and nourish them. This is how one distinguishes between good and bad, beneficial and harmful, and how one maintains an upright heart. Furthermore, it enables a believer to evaluate the present and prepare for the future. Again, self-criticism enables a believer to make amends for past mistakes and be absolved in the sight of God, for it provides a constant realization of self-renewal in one’s inner world. Such a condition enables one to achieve a steady relationship with God, for this relationship depends on a believer’s ability to live a spiritual life and remain aware of what takes place in his or her inner world. Success results in the preservation of one’s celestial nature as a true human being, as well as the continual regeneration of one’s inner senses and feelings.

A believer, in his or her spiritual and daily life, cannot be indifferent to self-criticism. On the one hand, he or she tries to revive his or her ruined past with the breezes of hope and mercy blown by such Divine calls as: Repent to God (24:31) and: Turn to Your Lord repentant (39:54), which come from the worlds beyond and echo in his or her conscience. On the other hand, warnings as frightening as thunderbolts and as exhilarating as mercy are contained in such verses as: O you who believe! Fear God and observe your duty to Him. And let every soul consider what it has prepared for the morrow (59:18) bring the believer to his or her senses and make one alert once again (against committing new sins). In such a condition, a believer is defended against all kinds of evil, as if enclosed behind locked doors.

Taking each moment of life to be a time of germination in spring, a believer seeks ever-greater depth in his or her spirit and heart with insight and consciousness arising from belief. Even if a believer is sometimes pulled down by the carnal dimension of his or her being and falters, he or she is always on the alert, as is stated in: Those who fear God and observe His commandments, when a passing stroke from Satan troubles them, they immediately remember (God), and lo! they are all aware (7:201).

Self-criticism resembles a lamp in the heart of a believer, a warner and a well-wishing adviser in his or her conscience. Every believer uses it to distinguish what is good and evil, beautiful and ugly, pleasing and displeasing to God. Through the guidance of this well-wishing adviser, the believer surmounts all obstacles, however seemingly insurmountable, and reaches the desired destination.

Self-criticism attracts Divine mercy and favor, which enables one to go deeper in belief and servanthood, to succeed in practicing Islam, and to attain nearness to God and eternal happiness. It also prevents one from falling into despair, which will ultimately lead to reliance on personal acts of worship to be saved from Divine punishment in the Hereafter. [1]

As self-criticism opens the door to spiritual peace and tranquillity, it also causes one to fear God and His punishment. In the hearts of those who constantly criticize themselves and call themselves to account for their deeds, this Prophetic warning is always echoed: If you knew what I know, you would laugh little but weep a lot. [2] Self-criticism, which gives rise to both peacefulness and fear in one’s heart, continuously inspires anxiety in the hearts of those who are fully aware of the heavy responsibility they feel the anxiety voiced as in: If only I had been a tree cut into pieces. [3]

Self-criticism causes the believer to always feel the distress and strain expressed in: Earth seemed constrained to them for all its vastness, and their own souls straitened to them (9:118). The verse: Whether you make known what is in your souls or hide it, God will bring you to account for it (2:284) resounds in every cell of their brains, and they groan with utterances like: I wish my mother had not given birth to me! [4]

While it is difficult for everyone to achieve this degree of self-criticism, it is also difficult for those who do not do so [to be sure that they will be able] to live today better than yesterday, and tomorrow better than today. Those who are crushed between the wheels of time, whose present day is not better than the preceding one, cannot perform well their duties pertaining to the afterlife.

Constant self-criticism and self-reprimand show the perfection of one’s belief. Everyone who has planned his or her life to reach the horizon of a perfect, universal human being is conscious of this life and spends every moment of it struggling with himself or herself. Such a person demands a password or a visa from whatever occurs to his or her heart and mind. Self-control against the temptations of Satan or the excitement of temper are practiced, and words and actions are carefully watched. Self-criticism is constant, even for those acts that seem most sensible and acceptable. Evening reviews of words and actions during the day are the rule, as are morning resolutions to avoid sins. A believer knits the “lace of his or her life” with the “threads” of self-criticism and self-accusation. [5]

So long as a believer shows such loyalty and faithfulness to the Lord and lives in such humility, the doors of heaven will be thrown open and an invitation will be extended: Come, O faithful one. You have intimacy with Us. This is the station of intimacy. We have found you a faithful one. Every day he or she is honored with a new, heavenly journey in the spirit. It is God Himself Who swears by such a purified soul in: Nay, I swear by the self-accusing soul! (75:2).

[1] Translator’s Note: If one despairs (of Divine mercy) concerning his or her eternal life because of his or her sins, relief from Divine punishment is sought. Such a person then remembers and relies on past good deeds. However, this way is utterly inadequate, for only through Divine mercy can one be saved from God’s punishment and enter Paradise.

[2] Al-Bukhari, “Kusuf,” 2; Muslim, “Salat,” 112; Abu 'Isa Muhammad ibn 'Isa al-Tirmidhi, “Kusuf,” in Sunan, 4 vols. (Beirut, n.d.), 2. [3] Al-Tirmidhi, “Zuhd,” 9; Muhammad ibn Yazid al-Qazwini Ibn Maja, “Zuhd,” in Sunan, 2 vols. (Egypt, 1952), 19. [4] Muhammad Ibn Sa’d, Al Tabaqat al-Kubra, 8 vols. (Beirut, 1980), 3:360. [5] 7 In other words, all moments of one’s life are spent in self-criticism and con-stant awareness of what one says and does.

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ISLAM 101: Spirituality in Islam: Part 7

Firar and I'tisam (Fleeing and Taking Shelter)

Firar, which literally means to run away from something, is used in Sufism to denote the journey from the created to the Creator, sheltering from the “shadow” in the “original,” [1] and renouncing the “drop” to plunge into the “ocean.” [2] Further, it means discontent with the piece of glass (in which the Sun is reflected) and thus turning to the “Sun,” [3] thereby escaping the confinement of self-adoration to “melt away” in the rays of the Truth. The verse flee to God (51:50), which points to a believer’s journeying in heart and in spirit, refers to this action of the heart, the spiritual intellect. The more distant people are from the suffocating atmosphere of corporeality and the carnal dimension, the nearer they are to God, and the more respect they have for themselves. Let us hear from Prophet Moses, upon him be peace, a loyal devotee at the door of the Truth, how one fleeing to and taking shelter in God is rewarded: Then I fled from you [Pharaoh] when I feared you, and my Lord has granted to me the power of judging (justly and distinguishing between truth and falsehood, and right and wrong) and has made me one of His Messengers (26:21). Prophet Moses states that the way to spiritual pleasure and meeting with God and Divine vicegerency and nearness passes through fleeing.

Ordinary people flee to take refuge in God’s forgiveness and favor from life’s tumults and sin’s ugliness. They repeat or consider the meaning of: My Lord, forgive and have compassion, for You are the Best of the Compassionate (23:118). They seek God’s shelter in total sincerity, saying: I take refuge with You from the evil of what I have done. [4]

Those distinguished by their piety and nearness to God flee from their own defective qualities to Divine Attributes, from feeling with their outward senses to discerning and observing with the heart, from ceremonial worship to its innermost dimension, and from carnal feelings to spiritual sensations. This is referred to in: O God, I take refuge with Your approval from Your wrath, and with Your forgiveness from Your chastisement. [5]

The most advanced in knowledge and love of God and in piety flee from Attributes to Divine Being or Essence, and from the Truth to the Truth Himself. They say: I take refuge with You from You, and are always in awe of God.

All who flee seek shelter and protection. As consciousness of fleeing is proportionate to the spiritual profundity of the one fleeing, the quality of the destination reached varies according to the degree of the seeker’s awareness. Members of the first group end in knowledge of God. They remember God in everything they see and mention Him, cherish desires and imagine things impossible for them to realize, and finally come to rest at sensing the reality of: We have not been able to know You as knowing You requires, O Known One. They always feel and repeat in ecstasy:

Beings are in pursuit of knowledge of You, And those who attempt to describe You are unable to do so.

Accept our repentance, for we are human beings Unable to know You as knowing You requires.

Members of the second group sail every day for a new ocean of knowledge of God, and spend their lives in ever renewed radiations of Divine manifestation. However, they cannot be saved from the obstacles blocking them from the final station, where their overflowing spirit will subside. With their eyes fixed on the steps of the stairway leading to higher and higher ranks, they fly upward from one rank to another; however, they also tremble with the fear that they might descend. Members of the third group, freed from the tides of the state (see the chapter: Hal and Maqam) and drowned in amazement (see the chapter: Dahsha and Hayra), are so intoxicated with the “wine coming from the source of everything” that even the Trumpet of Israfil cannot cause them to recover from that stupor. Only one who has reached this rank can describe the profundity of their thoughts and feelings. Rumi says:

Those illusions are traps for saints, whereas in reality They are the reflections of those with radiant faces in the garden of God.

The “garden of God” signifies the manifestation of Divine Unity the manifestations of one, many, or all Divine Names throughout the universe. “Those with radiant faces” denotes the Divine Names and Attributes focused on a single thing or being. So, the meaning of the couplet is this: The traps in which saints are caught are manifestations of Divine Names and Attributes. These manifestations consist of illusions in the view of those blind to Divine truths. In the words of Sari Abdullah Efendi, the hearts of the Prophets and saints are mirrors that reflect the Names and Attributes of God. God also manifests His Names and Attributes as the Lord Ruler, Sustainer, and Master of the universe, making it a garden with the ever renewed beauties and charms that enrapture the Prophet and the saints.

[1] Sufis view the creation as a shadow of the original, the meaning, the origin, in the Knowledge of God. [2] Sufis consider everything in the world as no more than a drop, even a mirage, taken from an ocean. Material existence and pleasures are regarded as having the meaning and worth of a drop, while the other world and spiritual pleasures coming from Divine knowledge and love correspond to the ocean. [3] The piece of glass signifies Divine manifestations in the world, while the Sun signifies God, the Origin of these manifestations. [4] Al-Tirmidhi, “Dawa'at,” 15; Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn Shu'ayb al-Nasa'i, “Isti'adha,” in Sunan al-Nasa'i, 8 vols. (Beirut, 1930), 57. [5] Muslim, “Salat,” 222.

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