GRAND MASTERS
OF SUFISM

GRAND MASTERS
OF
SUFISM

Abdul Qadir Geylani

SECRET OF SECRETS

images and images

Ahmed er Rifai

GUIDANCE TO MYSTICISM

TRANSLATED
by

Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Taner Ansari

Coordinating Editor: Shaykha Elizabeth Muzeyyen Brown

Editors:

Es-Sharifa Es-Shaykha Muzeyyen Ansari

Shaykha Elizabeth Muzeyyen Brown

Melinda Krokus, M.Div.

David Sander, Ph.D.

Cover, Book Design and Illustrations: Shaykha Elizabeth Muzeyyen Brown

eBook Editors:

Es-Sharifa Es-Shaykha Muzeyyen Ansari

Shaykha Sheila Khadija Foraker

Grand Masters of Sufism

A Qadiri Rifai Book of The Holy Trail Series

First published in 2008 by Ansari Publications

Copyright © 2008 Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Taner Ansari Tarsusi er Rifai el Qadiri All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission to make copies of any part of this publication should be mailed to:

Shaykh Taner Ansari

c/o Ansari Publications

PO Box 833

Nassau, NY 12123

eISBN: 978-0-9849622-1-1

Published by Ansari Publications

PO Box 833, Nassau, New York 12123, USA

www.ansaripublications.com

ansaripublications@gmail.com

First eBook edition, 2013

Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

Dedicated to the Mother and Father

of

Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani

Dedicated to the Mother and Father

of

Shaykh Ahmed er Rifai

Dedicated to my Dear Ancestor

Kadizade Mustafa Efendi

Thank You to Our Generous Donors

Hazreti Abdul Qadir Geylani Hazreti Ahmed er Rifai

This portrait is reproduced from a photograph of a painting attributed to a painter named Bellini, who lived during the Ottoman era. The painting reportedly depicts a vision of the two Shaykhs that the artist experienced.

Hazreti Abdul Qadir Geylani

Seyyid Muhyiddin Abu Muhammad Abdul Qadir al Geylani was born in Nayf in Geylan, Persia in 470 A.H. (1077 C.E.) Because he was born on the Night of Power (Laylatul Qadir) during the holy month of Ramadan, he was named Abdul Qadir. His father was Seyyid Musa Jangi Dost and his mother was Ummul Khayr Fatima bint al-Shaykh Abdullah Sumi. Both of his parents were seyyids (descendants of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him), and his lineage is called the Silsilatil Zahab (or Thahab), meaning “Golden Chain.”

Abdul Qadir Geylani is accepted as one of the four qutbs (poles of spiritual power) of all time. He was known as the Gavsul Azam (The Supreme Helper), Qutbul Rabbani (the Divine or Devout Spiritual Pole), Sultanul Awliya (King of the Saints) and Qutbul Azam (The Greatest Spiritual Pole of Power). He was also known as Bazul Eshep (the Grey Hawk).

As a young man, Hazreti (The Esteemed) Geylani traveled to Baghdad, at that time the world’s scientific and cultural center, and studied Islamic law, theology, and khalwa (spiritual seclusion). Hz. Geylani’s first Shaykh was Hammad ibn Muslim al-Dabbas. His many other teachers include Abu Said Mubarek bin Ali al-Mukharrami (Mahzumi), from the Hanbali School. After having spent twenty-five years in spiritual seclusion at the ruins of Burjul Ajemi in Baghdad, he spent eight years of rigorous spiritual training with the great Hz. Abu Said Mahzumi.

When Hz. Geylani was 51 years old, Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, appeared to him and gave him the order to preach to the people of Baghdad. The shy and reclusive Sufi scholar then experienced a miraculous transformation at the hands of the Prophet and of the Prophet’s son-in-law, Hz. Ali. His first sermon was unlike anything the people of Baghdad had heard before. As he uttered the words, “Let us leave the past and look at our situation now; let us be in the present,” the people started crying and screaming, so great was the divine magnetism he radiated. He became known for inducing ecstatic states among his listeners.

Abdul Qadir Geylani continued to give sermons in Baghdad for forty years. He became famous throughout the Islamic world for his lectures, poems, books and spiritual power. Innumerable miracles are attributed to Hz. Geylani, and many walis (saints; spiritually advanced people) have been raised under his guidance, both during his lifetime and to this day spiritually. He is considered to be the greatest Sufi who has ever lived, and his treatises on Sufi and Islamic philosophy are among the most highly authoritative.

In 561 A.H. (1166 C.E.), on the ninth day of Rabiulahir, when Hz. Geylani was 91 years old, the beloved Shaykh passed away. They buried him at night because of the gathered crowds that had made it impossible during the day. His son, Seyyid Abdul Wahhab led the funeral prayers. Hz. Abdul Qadir’s last words were: “O my beautiful children, stay away from me. I am here with you but there are many unseen people standing around me; make space for them. There are many blessings in being with these unseen people.” Hz. Abdul Qadir gave salaams (greetings) to the unseen people and cried out, “La ilaha illa ‘llah Muhammader rasullullah,¹ Allah, Allah, Allah!” and passed from this world. His tomb in Baghdad is inscribed with the following poem by the famous Sufi, Bahauddin Naqshband:

The King of this world and the hereafter is Shah Abdul Qadir

The head of the children of Adam is Shah Abdul Qadir

Sun, moon, heavens, the throne and the pen,

They all get their light from the heart of Shah Abdul Qadir.

Hazreti Ahmed er Rifai

Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Ahmed er Rifai was born in the first half of Rajab in the Muslim year 512 A.H. (1119 C.E.) in the town of Ummu Abeyde in the province of Basra, Iraq. His father was Seyyid Ali Abu’l Hasan. His mother was Fatima ul-Ansari bint Yahya Nijjeri. Both of his parents were seyyids (descendants of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him).

Before Ahmed er Rifai’s birth, his maternal uncle, a famous shaykh named Mansur Rabbani, had a vision of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and was told that his sister would have a male child who would be famous and be known by the name “Rifai.” When the child reached the proper age for Sufi studies, he should be sent to Shaykh Aleyyul Vasiti for education and training.

Ahmed er Rifai’s father passed away when his son was seven years old. Shaykh Rabbani took him under his care for some years and when he was older he sent his nephew to Shaykh Vasiti, in accordance with his vision. Ahmed er Rifai showed ability and wisdom beyond his age when he began his education under Shaykh Vasiti. The shaykh saw many miracles come through the boy and said that many blessings came through him for everyone. Hazreti (The Esteemed) Rifai soon acquired a high maqam (station; spiritual level) by explaining the book of the Shafi School called Tanbih.

One of the many miracles that occurred through Hz. Ahmed er Rifai gave him the name “Ebu’l Alemeyin” (the Father of Two Banners). In the year 555 A.H., when he was 43 years old, Hz. Rifai went on Hajj, the Islamic pilgrimage. He did not wear the usual traveling clothes of seyyids, as was customary so that others would recognize their lineage connected to the Prophet, peace be upon him. There was a certain section of the Prophet’s tomb in Medina that only seyyids could enter. The guard at the door would not allow him in because he was not recognized as a seyyid. Saddened by this, Hz. Rifai yelled towards the Prophet’s tomb, “As-salaamu alaykum, ya jeddi (Peace be on you, O my ancestor).” The Prophet answered, “Walaykum salaam, ya waladi (And peace be on you, O my son).” Muhammad’s, peace be upon him, hand came out of the tomb and Hz. Rifai kissed it. When people saw this miracle, they went into a state of wajd (ecstasy) and began stabbing themselves with their swords and knives. When the ecstasy passed, many people were sprawled on the ground covered with blood, and Ahmed er Rifai went around restoring them to normal health. After that, Hz. Rifai became famous for possessing the gift of healing. He is also known as the Father of the Lame (Beynennas or Ebu’l Arca [Turkish spelling]).

Ahmed er Rifai is known as one of the four major tariqa pirs (heads of Sufi orders) as one of the aqtab al-arbaa (Four Great Qutbs, or spiritual poles). His cousin Abdul Qadir Geylani was also counted among these distinguished spiritual leaders.

One day someone asked Hz. Geylani, “O Hazreti, what is love?” Hz. Geylani told the person to go ask this question of Seyyid Ahmed er Rifai. After sending Hz. Geylani’s salaams (greetings) to Hz. Rifai, he asked, “What is love?” When Ahmed er Rifai heard this question, he stood up, saying, “Love is fire, love is fire.” He began whirling until he passed into the unseen and disappeared. When the person saw this, he was disturbed because he did not understand what was happening. At that moment, the spiritual presence of Abdul Qadir Geylani appeared and told him to look for the spot where his cousin Ahmed er Rifai had vanished, and to pour rosewater on that spot. The person did this and within a couple of moments, Seyyid Ahmed er Rifai appeared, whirling in the exact same place. When the man went back to Baghdad, he visited Hz. Geylani, who asked him, “Did you see love? My brother Seyyid Rifai has reached stations that many walis (saints; spiritually advanced people) have not been able to reach.”

Seyyid Ahmed er Rifai likewise deeply loved and respected his cousin and told his students that whoever visited Baghdad without visiting Hz. Geylani’s tomb would not be welcomed by Allah or by him.

Ahmed er Rifai possessed many virtuous traits. He was a paragon of humility and empathy. He always forgave bad deeds, fed the hungry, dressed the naked, visited the sick, and attended all prayers for the dead. Hz. Rifai often stayed and talked with the poor. He gave good advice even to his enemies and greeted them when he met them. When he talked to people, young or old, he always spoke with great respect. He treated orphans as if he were their own father. If his murids (Sufi students) had needs, he took care of them. He wore a patched robe out of humility and cleaned the mosque with his own hands. Although he is known mostly for his love, compassion and healing power, he also authored at least three books on spiritual topics.

Hz. Ahmed er Rifai passed to the other side on Thursday, Jamadi al-Awwal 22, 578 A.H. (1183 C.E.), in the town of Wasit in Basra, Iraq.

Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Taner Ansari Tarsusi
er Rifai el Qadiri

Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Taner Mustafa Ansari Tarsusi er Rifai el Qadiri was born in Tarsus, Turkey, to a devout Muslim family of Seyyids (descendants of Prophet Muhammad). He completed his university studies in Michigan, where he helped found the Muslim Students Association of the United States and Canada. He was initiated into the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa in Istanbul under Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Muhyiddin Ansari, from whom he received his license to teach Sufism. His spiritual lineage also includes the Naqshbandi, Mevlevi, and Bektashi orders. Under his Shaykh’s orders, Shaykh Taner founded a new order of the Ansari Tariqa of the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa. Shaykh Taner and his wife Es-Sharifa Es-Shaykha Muzeyyen Ansari travel to and have established centers of the order in the United States, Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Tanzania, Mauritius, Germany, Australia, and the United Kingdom.

Shaykh Taner teaches Sufism and the Holy Quran and gives weekly talks internationally through live classes on the Internet. He also holds regular lectures and congregational zikr. He has spoken about Islam and Sufism, alternative healing, and sustainable living in radio interviews, at churches, synagogues, schools and universities, among them Harvard University, Humboldt State University, Napa Valley College, Boston University and has given several presentations at the Annual Sufism Symposium. Shaykh Taner is also a healer. Along with his wife Shaykha Muzeyyen Ansari, he has presented healing workshops worldwide for healers and health professionals and anyone else interested in the healing arts.

He is the author of several books in print and e-books.

His book on Sufism, The Sun Will Rise in the West: The Holy Trail (Ansari Publications, October 2000 explains in clear, concise language the mysteries of the Sufi path.

His book What About My Wood: 101 Sufi Stories (Ansari Publications 2003) is a collection of Sufi teaching stories, many of which are based on real life experiences of his students and former shaykhs.

His latest book, Grand Masters of Sufism (Ansari Publications 2008, e-book 2013) contains his translations of Abdul Qadir Geylani’s Secret of Secrets and Ahmed er Rifai’s Guidance to Mysticism.

His Alternative Healing: The Sufi Way (Ansari Publications 2007, revised second edition 2012, e-book of second edition 2012) has remedies and health tips for those interested in spiritual healing.

His commitment to the environment and self-sustainability resulted in a book he compiled titled Surviving 2012 & Beyond: A Must Have Survival Book (Ansari Publications 2010).

He is currently translating the Holy Quran into modern English from the Sufi perspective. The first sura to be published as a booklet in 2013 is Ya Sin.

Shaykh Taner is presently engaged in the building of the main center of the Tariqa in upstate New York. Plans are for the center to be an environmentally friendly model of sustainability. He and his family reside at the main center in upstate New York.

Translator’s Preface

Introducing Sufism to the modern world was given to me as an assignment by my Shaykh Muhyiddin Ansari. I want to be as true to the authentic tradition as possible, while using the common, science-oriented language of our time.

To understand Sufism now, you need to know how it was originally arranged and distributed by the grand masters of Sufism. The grand masters of Sufism are Abdul Qadir Geylani and Ahmed er Rifai. May Allah be pleased with them. They inspired my heart to rewrite their books together in English. This is the textbook of Sufism.

There are many secrets in the production of this book. I thank the Pirs for having me write this book and my wife Muzeyyen for her contribution in the writing and editing stages. I also thank the editors for staying loyal to the original style of the authors. When you read this book, it is as if you are reading it in Arabic. May Allah guide us all.

—Shaykh Taner Ansari

Editor’s Notes

Shaykh Taner Ansari was charged with bringing together two extraordinary texts within one volume, the result being a comprehensive study of the Sufi path. Secret of Secrets (Sirr’ul-Asrar) by Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani has been known and loved by English-speaking readers for many years. Guidance to Mysticism (Al-Burhan ul-Mu’ayyad, lit. Confirming Proof) by Shaykh Ahmed er Rifai has not. In the present volume, this book makes its debut in English.

The English translations of these books are based primarily on Ottoman Turkish renderings of the original Arabic works. By virtue of the fact that the translator generously benefits from the spiritual connection (rabita) to the original authors, a connection inherent in the relationship established by initiation into both the Qadiri and Rifai Sufi orders (tariqas), the nuances in meaning of the texts have been rendered more faithfully than may otherwise be available with strictly literal translations.

One of the goals in the production of this volume is to preserve Sufi terminology in the original Arabic, precisely so that students of Sufism can learn the intricacies and richness of the concepts. In every chapter, key words are italicized and followed by the English translation in parentheses. Translations are omitted after the first use within a chapter. It is noted that repeated translations throughout the volume may seem overly repetitious in a linear reading of successive chapters. However, the style allows for any chapter to be read out of sequence, without the reader having to go back and search for the meaning of a term or refer to a glossary. For ease of reading, occasionally a word’s translation is dispensed with in a single footnote

Though most of the Sufi terminology is rendered in Arabic transliteration, some words are in the Turkish spelling format in deference to the Turkish roots of the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa and its teachings.

The special format of Guidance to Mysticism bears some explanation. The translation was first introduced via the Internet during weekly talks by Shaykh Taner Ansari. This dynamic process spanned several months, one chapter at a time. The manner in which Shaykh gave his commentary varied. During some sessions, the Shaykh did a second reading of a chapter with his commentary; at others he peppered the commentary throughout a single reading. He felt that some chapters needed no commentary, and others prompted a student question-and-answer session. The translation herein reflects the flavor of these online sessions. The Shaykh’s comments will be found in brackets unless the commentary was written separately.

In both Secret of Secrets and Guidance to Mysticism, quotes from the Qur’an are followed by the sura and ayat (chapter and verse) citation in parentheses.

Footnotes have been added by the editors, unless otherwise specified. They generally refer to figures who were well-known by the authors’ contemporary readership but may not be in the present day. Even so, Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani mentions some texts and personages whose origins we have been unable to ascertain.

Finally, I strongly emphasize that there is no gender implication in the use of “he” as opposed to the cumbersome “he/she” or “(s)he” throughout the text. The style was adopted for the sake of simplicity. It is assumed that everything said in these books pertains equally to women and men. In Arabic, the word “Hu” is used to refer to Allah in the third person; there is no gender implication in the word. Unfortunately, there is no such word in English.

I thank my beloved Shaykh Taner and my esteemed Pirs the authors for the blessed opportunity to help in this project. May Allah grace them with His favors always. I also thank dear Shaykha Muzeyyen Ansari, Melinda Krokus and David Sander for their invaluable editorial expertise, and Rosie Nurgul White, Carol Janan Taylor and Salma Amelia Hanson for their keen eyes. May Allah bless them all.

—Shaykha Elizabeth Muzeyyen Brown

SECRET

OF

SECRETS

Sirr’ul-Asrar

by

Abdul Qadir Geylani

Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

imagesPreface images

All praise belongs to Allah, because He is powerful and a Lord who gathers all knowledge within Himself. He is the foremost Creator and He is wise, generous and compassionate. He also sent the Qur’an, which contains guidance to the straightest path, and zikr (remembrance [of Allah]), which is full of wisdom. May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon the unlettered Muhammad. He is the one who completes the chain of messengers and saves people from confusion. He is the most honored among the prophets, and has been granted the most honored book. His high guidance has led those who seek. His friends were full of goodness and were chosen. May peace and blessings be upon these great people as well.

In reality, knowledge is the one thing most honored among all that is valuable. It holds the highest degree; it is the most expensive jewelry. Spiritually, it brings the highest profit. Why? Because you can reach the unity of Allah, Lord of the Worlds, with knowledge. Furthermore, accepting the prophets and messengers is done through knowledge. May peace and blessings be upon them.

Alims (people of knowledge; scholars) are Allah’s chosen people. He chose them for his religion. He gave the light of knowledge to them. He separated them from the people, because they are the inheritors and the khalifas (appointed representatives) of the prophets. They are the group that was made master of the people by the messengers. At the same time, they possess the highest understanding of the prophets. Haqq Ta’ala (The Sublime [High] Truth that is Allah), when praising the people of knowledge says:

“…Then we left the book to such people whom we have chosen from among our servants… some of them wrong themselves, some of them take the middle path, and some of them are ahead in doing good.” (Fatir 35:32)

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says the following when he is praising them:

“…the possessors of knowledge are the inheritors of the prophets. People of the heavens love them. The fish in the oceans ask forgiveness for them until Judgment Day.”

Allah the Most High in another ayat-i kerim ([Turkish spelling] generous verse of the Qur’an) defines the possessor of knowledge in saying:

“Verily, it is the possessors of knowledge who are in awe of Allah.” (Fatir 35:28)

In another honorable hadith (tradition or saying), our Prophet, peace be upon him, says:

“Allah the Most High will gather people on Judgment Day and He will separate the scholars among them and say: ‘O possessors of knowledge, I gave you my knowledge because I knew you. I did not give it to you to torment you. Go directly to paradise; I forgive you.’”

I praise the Lord of the Worlds in that He gave His servants degrees to protect them [in the life of the world and society]. Likewise, He granted degrees of closeness for the arifs (knowers in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostics).

Some of our students asked me to prepare a book that will answer all of their needs. To go along with their wishes, we prepared this short book. The purpose is to meet their, and others’, needs and to give healing. We named it Sirr’ul-Asrar Fima Tahtaju Ilayh’il-Abrar (Secret of Secrets That Was Felt to Be Needed by the Elite). It was so named because in it we tell the truth about our religion and our path. This is the knowledge that has always been desired.

I divided the book into twenty-four sections after the preface, because the Kalimat Tawhid ¹ (Word of Unity) has twenty-four letters in Arabic, as the night and the day have twenty-four hours.

Introduction: Creation in the Worlds Beyond Is Explained

May Allah make you successful in the deeds He loves and enjoys. Understand and learn what I say. Allah the Most High first fashioned the light of Muhammad, peace be upon him, from the light of His beauty. Allah the Most High expresses this in a hadith qudsi (wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) thus:

“I created Muhammad’s spirit from the light of My countenance.”

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, expresses this as “Allah first created my spirit (ruh). Allah first created my light (nur). Allah first created the pen. Allah first created intellect (aql).” All of these mean only one thing: the Reality of Muhammad (Haqiqat-i Muhammad), in other words, the truth or essence of Muhammad, peace be upon him. While this is so, he was given certain names. He was called “Light,” because he was away from the darkness that is hidden under the attribute of Jalal (Allah’s Power). Allah the Most High mentions this as:

“There comes to you from Allah light and a book that explains everything openly.”(Ma’ida 5:15)

He was called Aql, because he understood everything. He was called the Pen, because knowledge spread with him; then he was the means to transfer knowledge into letters. The spirit of Muhammad (Ruhu Muhammad) is the essence of the creation’s beginning and the essence of the universe. The Prophet, peace be upon him, points this out to us as:

“I am from Allah and the believers are from me.”

Allah the Most High created all of the spirits from the spirit of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in the divine world (alem-i lahut) in the best possible construction (ahsan-i taqwim [from Tiin 95:4]). In the world mentioned above, he [Muhammad] is the name for the whole of humanity. He, peace be upon him, is the homeland. Allah, four thousand years after this creation, created the Throne from the light of Muhammad’s eye. He created the rest of the universe from the Throne. Then He lowered the spirits that are created into the lowest part of the universe, in other words, into the world of bodies.

“Then we sent him to the lowest of the low.”

(Tiin 95:5)

In other words, He lowered that light from alem-i lahut to alem-i jabarrut (the archangelic world). He wrapped these souls, created between these two borders, with forms made from the light of jabarrut. This spirit is called ruhu sultani (the royal soul). He then sent them with this wrapping into the alem-i malakut (the angelic world). He put wrappings on them made from the light of malakut and this spirit is called ruhu seyrani. ² Then he sent them into alem-i mulk (the material or bodily world) and wrapped them with the wrappings of this world. This is called ruhu jismani (the corporeal soul), and from this He created the bodies. The following generous verse from the Qur’an says the following about these situations:

“From it We created you, into it We return you, and from it We will bring you out another time.”

(Ta Ha 20:55)

After all these happenings, Allah the Most High ordered these souls to get into this body. The following ayat (verse of the Qur’an) points this out as:

“I blew into him from My spirit.” (Saad 38:72)

Time passed and these spirits increased their relationships with the body and they forgot their word [promise] because of this. In reality, Allah created them and asked them “Am I not your Lord?” and they answered, “Yes.” This is the word that they forgot. They could not return to the real motherland, but the Most Merciful and the Source of Help for created beings felt mercy for them and sent spiritual books for this reason. He wanted to remind them of the homeland. The following generous ayat points this out:

“And remind them of the days with Allah.”

(Ibrahim 14:5)

This refers to the days when these spirits were with Allah.

Many prophets came and completed their term in this world. Their purpose was to explain the situation and to wake people up. But as time passed, fewer and fewer people made zikr of Him or turned to Him. Fewer and fewer people showed interest in and desire for that realm; only a few could reach it.

Prophethood continued until it reached the great Ruhu Muhammad. He was the last of the messengers and he saved people from confusion. Allah the Most High sent him to the unaware people to open their sight and perception. The purpose was to wake these people up from their slumber and to invite them to Allah’s everlasting beauty and to His Person. The following ayat-i kerim gives reference to this situation, as it shows to our Prophet, peace be upon him, what path to take:

“Say! This is my path. It is based on seeing the truth. I invite myself and people who follow me to this path.” (Yusuf 12:108)

Likewise, our Prophet, peace be upon him, in a hadith sharif (honorable tradition) explains the purpose to us thus:

“My ashab (companions) are like the stars in the sky. Whichever you follow, you will follow the right path.”

Basira, spiritual insight or perception, comes from the eye of the spirit. For awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) it is opened from the place of fuad, the spiritual heart [the heart as the center of perception]. You cannot attain this with outer knowledge. You need further knowledge that comes gushing forth from the inner. The following generous ayat takes us to the essence of this matter:

“To him, we gave knowledge directly from us.” (Kahf 18:65) [ilm-i ladun (divine knowledge received directly from Allah)]

What humans need to do is to find these people of perception and get the necessary knowledge through inculcation. The one who is doing the inculcation has to be a wali (saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend [of Allah]), a murshid (enlightener; one who guides; a mature shaykh) and one who can give information about alem-i lahut (the divine world; the world of the essence of Allah).

Brothers and sisters, wake up! Take the path of repentance and ask for understanding from your Lord. Strive for this! Allah the Most High relates this to us with the following ayat-i kerim:

“Hurry for the forgiveness of Allah and the paradise as wide as the earth and the heavens, which are prepared for those who watch out for Allah’s good pleasure in their deeds.” (Aali ’Imran 3:133)

Get onto the path. Return to your Lord with these spiritual caravans. Soon, the roads will be blocked. You will not be able to find companions to be able to go to that realm. We did not come to this ruined world to sit. We are not sent here to eat, drink and to satisfy the unruly desires of our nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). Our Prophet, peace be upon him, is watching you. He is saddened by your situation. The following hadith sharif says:

“My worry is for my future followers.”

Two kinds of knowledge come to us. One is zahir (outer), the path of sharia, which means the rules and regulations that Allah has put into the universe. The other is batin (inner), which means marifa, or a deeper understanding; it is knowing with Allah’s knowing. Allah the Most High asks us to organize [or govern] our outer world in accordance with sharia, and to organize our inner world in accordance with marifa. What comes out of the unification of both is haqiqa, the reality and the truth. We can give the tree and its leaves as a metaphor. Because of them you can have fruit. The following generous ayat refers to what we mean:

“Two seas move and they meet, but there is an unseen barrier between them [insan-i kamil, the mature human being (author’s comment)]—they do not exceed their borders.” (Rahman 55:19-20)

We need to get both the zahiri and batini meanings together. Otherwise, we cannot attain haqiqa, reality, because it cannot be reached only with outer knowledge. We cannot reach the real goal. For ibada, worshipping or knowing Allah, to be complete, we need both sharia and marifa. Allah refers to this with this generous ayat:

“I created humans and jinns (unseen beings) only to worship me.” (Zaari-yaat 51:56)

In other words, “to possess knowledge about My essence.” Who can worship Him unless they have some sense of knowing Him? You attain marifa by cleaning your heart and opening the black curtains that cover the mirror of your heart. Then the secret treasure of the divine beauty starts to manifest. This manifestation happens in the essence of the secret of the heart. [secret of secrets or sirr’ul-asrar] Allah the Most High says in a hadith qudsi:

“I was a secret treasure; I wanted to be known, and that is why I created the universe.”

What we learn from this is that Allah created the human being for marifa, knowing. Knowing is of two kinds. One is having knowledge about the attributes (sifat) of Allah, the other is having knowledge of the essence (zat) of Allah. Through having knowledge about the sifat of Allah, there is corporeal pleasure, pleasure for the body, in this world and in the hereafter. On the other hand, having knowledge of Allah’s zat, His essence, earns pleasure for the holy spirit (ruhul quds) in the hereafter. Allah the Most High says in a generous ayat:

“We fortified him with holy spirit.” (Baqara 2:87)

The ones who carry knowledge of Allah’s zat have been strengthened with the holy spirit. These two ways of knowing that we mentioned are attained with two kinds of knowledge. One is outer (zahiri), the other is inner (batini). Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says the following about these two kinds of knowledge:

“Knowledge is two. One is on the tongue, and this is Allah’s hold upon His servants. The other is in the heart, and this is the one that is useful for the attainment of goals.”

Humans first need information about the outer laws and regulations through this science; you can attain knowledge about the zat of Allah in the world of attributes. Only after this [the outer laws] is it time for learning the knowledge of batin. With this knowledge, you attain the real, exact knowing of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) in the world of marifa. To reach this, you have to quit the things you do that are against the laws of religion. Furthermore, you must refrain from making mistakes that are against the adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation) of tariqa (the Sufi path). To be able to achieve this state, you must make your nafs and soul do what is difficult for them, keeping only Allah’s goodwill in mind. Allah points this out to us with the following generous ayat:

“So whoever hopes to connect to his Lord, let him or her do a righteous deed and not attribute any partners to Allah in the worship he or she does.”

(Kahf 18:110)

The world that is defined as alem-i marifa (the world of knowing or gnosis) is the world of lahut (the divine). This is the motherland, the world where the holy spirit, which is mentioned above, is produced. The state of the true human being is here. This is the place for the true human and this reality is put into the essence of the heart as an amanat (trust). Its existence is revealed through tawba (repentance) and talqin (inculcation). It manifests itself upon the repetition of the word of unity, La ilaha illa ‘llah (There is no god but God). First, you repeat this word of unity with your tongue, and then, when your heart is wakened, you do it with your heart.

The people of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism) called the states of holy spirit “tifl (child).” They called it “child” because of the following reasons:

This state is born in the heart; it gets educated there and grows there as a mother nurtures her child.

Education is mostly for children. The knowledge of marifa is taught to the child of that heart.

Children are exempt from outer sins. Likewise, the child of that heart is also exempt from shirk (attributing partners to Allah), ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance) and human mistakes.

The mentioned condition is found commonly in children. Because of this, that spiritual and clean condition is seen as angelic. After doing good actions, you enter paradise. Then Allah the Most High tells you that He is going to reward you with beautiful children. Here are the ayats that point this out:

“…around them beautiful children always play around…” (Waaqi-’ah 56:17)

“There await them ghilmans (handsome youths) as if they are hidden pearls.” (Tuur 52:24)

Another reason it is called “tifl” is because of the pleasant and clean state. This given name is metaphorical; it is seen as a human being because it has a relation with the body. Its elegance also caused it to get this name, then it changed the color of mankind [from earth to light]. When you look at the origins of this, you can better understand it. It is the real human being. It has a relationship to the True and High.

The real character of humanity is such a thing that for it there is no form or being of body (jismani or corporeality). Its existence does not constitute a veil for the essence of Haqq. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explained this as:

“I have a moment with Allah when, at that moment, neither an angel nor a prophet can get between us.”

What he is saying is that at that moment, even his prophethood, which is his human aspect, or archangelhood, which is his spiritual aspect, cannot enter in there. Neither can the light of lahut enter in there. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explained this world as such that Allah has a paradise where there are no beautiful buildings and you do not talk about honey and milk; there you simply gaze at the Divine Face. The following ayat confirms this:

“There are faces fresh and shining on that day, because they are looking at their Lord.” (Qiyaamah 75:22-23)

Another holy saying confirms this from a different angle:

“You are going to gaze at your Lord as if you were watching the moon. It is such a world that if an angel or a body gets in there, it will immediately burn.”

It is proper to mention the following holy saying:

“If I took the veil away from my Jalal face, everything I could see would be burned.”

As Jibril (Gabriel) said to our Prophet:

“If I move ahead one ant’s length more, I will burn immediately.”

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Returning to the Motherland

Human beings can be studied in two ways, material and spiritual. Material means the outer as matter. In this class, everyone is equal and subject to general terms [laws]. As for the spiritual existence, which is hidden in this corporeal form, a special situation occurs. The human, taken in general terms, can return to the motherland with certain spiritual degrees. To attain these degrees, they take the outer rules and regulations of religion as their means to proceed. Furthermore, they can get onto the spiritual path and into the realm of marifa (inner knowing or understanding; gnosis). Marifa is an especially high state. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, praises it thus:

“There is a wisdom that gathers everything in its essence and that is the marifa of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq).”

For the servant of Allah to reach it, he must not act boastfully.

We are going to divide the degrees of deeds that need to be done into three categories. These are called jannas (paradises). The first is the paradise of the material world (alem-i mulk). This is called Ma’wa. The second is the paradise in the angelic world (alem-i malakut). This is called Naim. The third is the paradise in the archangelic world (alem-i jabarrut). This is called Firdaws. What we mention here are the pleasures that cannot be perceived by the material body but can be achieved by gathering three kinds of knowledge within yourself: sharia (Islamic canonical law), tariqa (the Sufi path) and marifa.

It is time to mention the whole of the hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) that we mentioned above:

“That which gathers all goodness and wisdom is to attain knowledge (marifa) of Haqq and to act with it, then to know what is false and to avoid it.”

Now, let us mention a dua (prayer of supplication) that our Prophet, peace be upon him, used to say:

“O, Allah show us the truth and help us to act with it and show us the false and make it easy for us to avoid it.”

Likewise, in another honorable hadith he says:

“Whoever recognizes his nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) and goes against its improper desires, in reality will have known his Lord and obeyed him.”

That which has been told up to here is for the general public. There is also the situation and the state of people who have a higher aptitude, which we will explain below. We will call them insan (real or mature human beings). The place this real human being reaches is the complete closeness to Allah, the truth. This is also called tawhid (unity; oneness) in the realm of closeness, in the circle of lahut (the divine). This state exists in the life of this world as commonplace. In this state you should not perceive any difference between being sleep and being awake. Actually, when you go to sleep the spiritual heart finds an opportunity to return to the homeland. This spiritual travel can be complete or partial. Allah the Most High in an ayat-i kerim (generous verse of the Qur’an) says:

“Allah the Most High takes souls in two ways: while you sleep and when you die. He keeps the ones that are determined for death and sends the others back.”

Let us mention another hadith as a cross-reference:

“The alim’s sleep is better than the worship of an ignorant person.”

What we mean by alim here is the one who enlightens his inner being with the light of tawhid or unity; then with the tongue of the sirr (secret), which is hidden, he continues the zikr (remembrance; Sufi ritual remembrance of Allah through repetition of the divine names or attributes) of the names of tawhid without word or sound. This is the real human being. Let us share a few of the hadiths qudsi (wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) that mention this:

“The human being is My [hidden] secret and I am his.”

“The inner knowledge is a secret of one of My secrets. I put that in to the hearts of My servants. No one can know that state except Me.”

“I am as My slave assumes Me to be. I am with him when he looks for Me. If he mentions Me within himself, I mention him within Myself. If he mentions Me in a group, I mention him in a better group.”

One thing is derived from all of these hadiths. That is a quality that takes a small place in the presence or existence of the human being. It is the knowledge of contemplation, and it is the most important knowledge. Let us relate a few of the hadiths sharif (honorable traditions or sayings) our Prophet, peace be upon him, bestowed:

“One moment of contemplation (tafakkur) is better than one year of worship (ibada).”

“One moment of contemplation is better than 70 years of worship.”

“One moment of contemplation is better than 1000 years of worship.”

Success in everything is hidden in the essence of Haqq. We must explain the mentioned hadiths sharif because the same topic has been explained in different ways in these hadiths.

If someone thinks about anything that carries wisdom and how many pieces come to being from one of its pieces, and continues to think about how many other pieces come into being from these pieces, this is called contemplation and this is equal to one year of worship (ibada).

If someone thinks about the ibada that he performed and attains an understanding of its wisdom, this contemplation will be equal to 70 years of worship.

If someone thinks of the divine marifa and wants to attain a complete sense of understanding Allah the Most High, his contemplation will be equal to 1000 years of ibada.

This is the real science of knowing and understanding (ilm-i irfan). By ilm-i irfan I mean the state of tawhid (unity). The arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostic) reaches his beloved, the person that he desires, with this kind of contemplation. The result of this state is to spiritually fly into the realm of closeness.

Abids (worshippers in the physical sense; observers of the religious laws) walk to paradise. Arifs, on the other hand, fly to the realm of closeness. [The author inserts the following poem about this.]

The lovers have eyes in their hearts

No one else can see what they see

Different wings do they have

And they fly to their Lord in the realm of malakut (the angelic world)

This flight takes place in the inner realm of the arif. The ones who can reach this state are called “real human beings”. They are referred to as the beloveds and the intimates of Allah, as a bride and groom are intimate with each other. Beyazid al-Bistami ¹ says:

“People of knowledge are the intimates of Allah, as if they were bride and groom.”

In another narration it is said, the awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) are the intimates of Allah, like bride and groom. Only the groom knows the intimacy of the bride. The walis who possess knowledge are wrapped in the veil of this body. Allah the Most High says in a hadith qudsi:

“My walis are [hidden] under my domes; only I know them.”

Yahya bin Mu‘az Razi ² says:

“The wali is the basil of Allah; only the sincere people can smell this fragrance.”

They perceive that scent and desire their Lord. Their worship increases in accordance with their different characteristics. This is determined by purification, detachment from their existence and their annihilation. The closeness to Allah’s essence is proportional to the degree of detachment from the material world and the degree of passing into the realm of annihilation.

The more you get into the state of annihilation, the closer you get to Allah. The real wali is the one who reaches the state of complete nothingness and who gazes at the existence of Allah. In his person there is no power of choice, and within his essence there cannot be another existence besides Allah. He is confirmed with many miracles that are attributed to him, but is removed from everything on that level. Nothing is disclosed, because disclosure of Lordship (Rububiyat) is blasphemy. In the book called Mirshad it is said:

“All of the people who can show miracles are actually barred from these actions [in other words, they are not the real doers, Allah is]. For those who show miracles, it is as if they were menstruating women [secretive]. This may be so, but there are 1000 maqams (stations; spiritual levels) attributed to a wali and the first is the door of miracles. The one who passes through this can reach the others, otherwise he can reach none.”

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The Descent of the Human Being
to the Lowest of the Low

Allah the Most High formed the Holy Spirit in the divine world (alem-i lahut) in the best state, wished to send it to the world below, and did so. He did this so that the soul could find and increase its closeness in the headquarters of righteousness, in the presence of the powerful King. This is the place for awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) and anbiya (prophets).

Allah the Most High sent the holy spirit (ruhul quds) first into alem-i jabarrut (the archangelic world). It carried the seed of unity with it. There it was entrusted with the state of lighthood. [In the world that it visited, the state of lighthood was entrusted to the essence of ruhul quds.] It wore a robe from this realm. [It got characteristics of light and frequencies, along with the ability to transfer this energy to others.] In other words, it assumed properties from that realm.

The ruhul quds is called ruhu sultani (royal spirit) for the robe it wore in the jabarrut. It is called ruhu seyrani or revani (traveling or moving soul) for the robe it wore in alem-i malakut (the angelic world). From there it went into alem-i mulk (the material world), and there it wore the robe that was specially made for its essence [It assumed the properties of this realm; it is called ruhu jismani (the corporeal soul)]. The reason for this was so that the material world would not burn. This robe is the condensed material body.

The reason for coming into this lowest realm is to earn closeness and rank through the means of heart and body. It will come into this realm and put the seed of tawhid into the field of the heart and grow the tree of tawhid (unity; oneness) here.

“The body of that tree remains where it is; the branches fill the space of the secret, and there it gives the fruits of tawhid, for the sake of Allah.”

Allah then sowed the seed of sharia (Islamic canonical law [the criterion of right and wrong, true and false]). Allah wanted to grow the tree of sharia there, and He wanted the fruits to extend to the ranks and degrees.

When Allah the Most High ordered the souls to enter the corpses [or bodies], He allocated a special place for each of them. The place for ruhu jismani was made between the blood and the flesh. The place for ruhul quds was made in the secret (sirr). Both of these souls have different places in the body and they have their own business, merchandise and profit. These modes of business are ample and profitable. Allah the Most High explains them thus:

“They hoped to profit much in secret and in the open.” (Fatir 35:29)

It befits the human being to know what to do in this realm of bodies, and to understand, because in this realm whatever decree has been hung around his neck is what happens. In an ayat (verse of the Qur’an), the following has been stated for that human being who is full of passion and materialism:

“Does he not think of the time when the graves will be opened and everything he kept in his chest will be revealed?” (’Aadiyat 100:9-10)

“We put the summary of what humans will do around their necks.” (Banii Israa-iil 17:13)

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The Places of the Ruhs in the Bodies

The place of ruhu jismani (the corporeal soul) is the chest. It is concerned with outer perceptions. What it deals with is sharia (Islamic canonical law). What it does are the fardz, which are Allah’s orders according to the rules and regulations Allah the Most High employed to organize the outer system. This ruh, when performing these fardz, should make sure that it is not committing shirk (attributing partners to Allah). Regarding this, Allah the Most High said the following:

“May he not attribute partners to his Lord in his worship.” (Kahf 18:110)

Allah is one and He loves the one. In other words, He wants worship to be only for Him. Furthermore, in accord with this, deeds must be done without boasting. They should not be done so that others are aware of them. In addition, you should not look for any reward in return. The state of wilaya (protecting friend-hood; sainthood; being a wali) that will be attained performing these acts of worship belongs to the world of mulk (the material world). These states are the same from the depths of the earth all the way to the heavens. There are also some kawni karama (bodily miracles) that are particular to this realm, for example, to walk on water, fly in space, to travel a long distance in a short time, and to hear from a long distance. Another is to reveal secrets that are hidden in the inner world. These deeds can find some goodness in the hereafter. This includes heavenly houris (pure companions), kiosks [beautiful buildings], ghilmans (handsome youths), drink and other favors of paradise. These are the phenomena of the first janna, which is called Ma’wa.

The place for ruhu revani ¹ is in the heart. It deals with knowledge about the spiritual journey. This ruh works with the first four names that refer to Allah’s essence. As in the other twelve names there will be no voice, letter or speaking in these four names. Allah the Most High points this out:

“Either you say Allah or Rahman (The Most Merciful); whatever you call Him, all beautiful names belong to Him.” (Banii Israa-iil 17:110)

Again, He grants that all beautiful names belong to Him; call Him with them. All of these ayats (verses of the Qur’an) point to one thing. The thing to do is to work with the divine names, which means knowledge about the inner world. What is attained, in terms of knowledge, is the result of working with the tawhid (unity) names. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has given the following honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) about the divine names:

“Allah the Most High has 99 names; whoever counts them by heart will enter paradise.”

Another hadith of our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains the subject we are trying to reveal as:

“The lesson is one letter, but the repetition is a thousand.”

Twelve of these names refer to the essence of the sentence “La ilaha illa ‘llah” (There is no god but God), because the number of [Arabic] letters in this sentence is twelve. Allah the Most High gave three names for each letter that deals with the heart. Likewise every alem (realm; world) has three names. Thus, Allah the Most High anchored the hearts of the lovers in love. Allah explains this situation as follows: “Allah based the hearts of the believers in the world and in the hereafter upon a solid word, and Allah granted them the pleasure of nearness. He put the tree of tawhid upon their hearts. Its roots are seven layers or more below the earth, but as for its branches, they extend to the heavens, all the way to the ’Arsh (Throne of Allah) and further.” (see Ibrahim 14:24-27)

In a generous ayat, Allah says:

“It is like a pure tree—the roots are in the earth and the branches stretch into the heavens.” (Ibrahim 14:24)

The place for the ruhu revani is the life of the heart. It observes the alem-i malakut (angelic world). Some of the things it observes are the paradises and people in them, the lights of paradise, and the angels that are in paradise. Its conversation is about the inner world. It contemplates the inner meanings of the divine names. It converses without voice or letter. The place for this in the hereafter is the paradise Naim.

As for ruhu sultani (the royal soul), where it lives is fuad (the heart as the center of perception). What it deals with is marifa, or knowing. What it does is employ all of the divine names that are used as means by the heart for prayer and supplication. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains knowledge thus:

“Ilm (knowledge) is of two kinds. One is on the tongue; this becomes evidence of your thoughts and deeds, which Allah can use as proof or as criteria in your placement in Allah’s closeness. The other one is inner knowledge, and this is more beneficial.”

The real, beneficial information is within the framework of this knowledge. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, in another hadith says:

“The Qur’an has an outer and inner meaning.”

He again says:

“Allah the Most High sent the Qur’an in ten layers. Each successive layer is more beneficial and profitable, because it is closer to reality.”

The twelve names we are talking about are, in a way, what Moses, peace be upon him, said when he struck the rock and twelve springs gushed forth. Allah the Most High reveals this situation as:

“Moses asked us for water for his people and we told him to hit the rock with his staff. Then twelve springs sprung forth, and each tribe knew from where to get its water.” (Baqara 2:60)

Ilm-i zahiri (outer knowledge) is similar to passing rainwater. As for the batini (inner) ilm, it is a treasure with a solid foundation, and this is more beneficial than the outer ilm. Allah the Most High grants as an example:

“Barren earth has to be a proof of Our power to them. We gave life to it, and raised grain from it, and they eat therefrom.” (Ya Sin 36:33)

Allah the Most High created grains in the material world, which is the strength for the animal self. He also created grains in the spiritual realm, which is the strength and nourishment for the spiritual ruhs. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says in an honorable hadith:

“Whoever makes it to morning with ikhlas (see Ikhlas 112), springs of wisdom will flow into his tongue.”

As for the profit of the ruhu sultani, it is to gaze at the manifestation of the attribute of Jamal (Beauty) and to be in awe. Allah the Most High relates this as:

“Fuad did not deny what it saw.” (Najm 53:11)

The following hadith relates this in a different way:

“The mu’min (believer) is a mirror of Mu’min.”

What is meant by the first mu’min is the heart of the believing servant of Allah; by the second Mu’min, what is meant is Allah the Most High, Himself. Allah the Most High tells us one of His attributes is Mu’min thus:

“He is Mu’min and Muhaymin (The Protector).” (Hashr 59:23)

The residence of the ruhu sultani is the third paradise, Firdaws. As for the place of the action and station of the ruhul quds (the holy spirit), it is the sirr (secret). The nature of this spirit is told in the following hadith:

“The human being is My secret and I am his.” [I am hidden in the human being and he is hidden in Me.]

The merchandise of this spirit is ilm-i haqiqa (knowledge of the truth or reality). This ilm is at the same time the knowledge of tawhid (unity; oneness). What it does is continuously make zikr (remembrance) of the names of tawhid. This process is carried out through the language of the secret. There is no outer articulation as in the other languages.

“If you say it aloud (or not), he surely knows the sirr (secret), and that which is akhfa (the most hidden; secret of secret).” (Ta Ha 20:7)

These are two places in the heart. Only Allah knows the situation of this spirit.

The profit of this spirit is the attainment of the spiritual baby. What it sees and observes is the countenance of Allah the Most High. It gazes at both the attributes of Jalal (Power) and Jamal (Beauty). This observation is through the eye of the secret. In this way faces gaze, glowing, at their Lord. No comparison can be made there. He [Allah] sees and hears.

When a person finds his goal, he falls under the management of aql (intelligence; mind; the power of understanding and discrimination). Hearts go in awe. Tongues are fettered; he cannot find the strength to relate these situations. The reason for this is that Allah is beyond the examples seen.

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About Ilms

Ilm-i zahiri (outer knowledge or science) is categorized into twelve sections; likewise batini (inner) knowledge is classified into twelve sections. These are distributed [by Allah] among His ordinary or chosen servants according to their abilities.

We are going to divide knowledge into four types and will try to explain them.

First are the outer rules and regulations and other conditions put forth by sharia (Islamic canonical law).

Second are the inner conditions of the above. I call it ilm-i batini (inner knowledge) and ilm-i tariqa (knowledge of the Sufi path).

Third is the inner itself. I call it marifa (inner knowing or understanding; gnosis).

Fourth is the inner within the inner. I call this haqiqa (reality; truth).

You have to find the paths that reach there; learn them and know them. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has a hadith (saying or tradition). Let me mention that. It is the right time that I mention it.

“Sharia is a tree, tariqa is its branches, marifa is its leaves and haqiqa is its fruits.”

As for the Qur’an, it contains all of it through tafsir (interpretation; commentary on the Qur’an) and taw’il (deeper analogical decoding). The author of Majma’ [a book that was extant during the time of the author] says:

“Tafsir is for ordinary people, but taw’il is for the khas, the chosen ones. The reason for this is that the chosen servants are rooted (rasikh) in spiritual knowledge.”

“Rasikh” means that they are dedicated, perseverant, are able to make deductions in this knowledge, and are authorized to do so. They are like the date tree. The roots are solid in the earth, but as for the branches, they soar towards space. The roots mentioned here get established in the essence of the heart.

The word waraasikhuuna in the ayat (verse of the Qur’an) [Aali ‘Imran 3:7] refers to the word “illallah” (only Allah).

The author of Tafsir and Kabir Tafsir (The Great Commentary on the Qur’an) [books extant during the time of the author] says:

“If the door in this ayat were opened, all of the doors for the realm of Batin will have been opened.”

As for the servant of Allah, he is assigned to act according to rules. He needs to perform actions that are against the nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) within four circles [spheres or sections], as we will explain here.

In the circle of sharia, nafs gives doubt. In the circle of tariqa (the Sufi path), it orders you to comply in your antagonistic fight against nafs. It makes you think that you are a wali (saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend [of Allah]) or messenger and makes the dervish (Sufi initiate of a certain level) run after vain claims. In the circle of marifa, it commands other outrageous things. It attempts to claim Lordship. It makes you fall into hidden shirk (attributing partners to Allah). In a generous ayat, Allah the Most High grants:

“Have you seen one who makes his vain desires god?” (Furqan 25:43)

As for the circle of haqiqa, that is different. Neither nafs nor Shaytan (Satan) can get in there; even the angels cannot enter that place. Anything besides Allah’s Essence burns there. Gabriel, peace be upon him, when explaining this to our Prophet, peace be upon him, says:

“If I move one ant’s length further, I will be burned.”

The servant of Allah in this situation is relieved from the enmity of nafs and Shaytan. He is submerged into sincerity and salvation. Allah the Most High relates Shaytan’s words as:

“I swear by your might that I will lead all astray except your sincere slaves.” (Saad 38:82-83)

The servant of Allah cannot reach haqiqa unless he possesses ikhlas (sincerity; purity), because human traits can dissolve only with the manifestation of zat (the essence or Person of Allah). The elimination of ignorance can be attained by having knowledge and understanding of the zat of Allah. This cannot be attained through education [studying books]. Allah the Most High teaches without means, just as it happened to Nabi Khidr (Prophet Khidr), peace be upon him. Allah gives knowledge from His presence, and so the servant becomes an arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostic) and worships with ihsan (goodness). The one who reaches this realm can observe the sacred ruhs. He sees Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. He converses about everything in creation, from the beginning to the end, with him. The other prophets also give him the good tidings of wuslat (reaching union with the Beloved, Allah). When Allah the Most High mentions them, He says:

“Their friendship is so good.” (Nisaa 4:69)

The person who cannot find this ilm (knowledge) within himself cannot be an alim (person of knowledge; scholar), even if he reads a million volumes. The reward that you acquire by the understanding of zahiri ilms can only take you to paradise. There, only the nur (light) of the divine attributes is manifested. The alim, with outer knowledge, cannot get into the forbidden, private [holy] quarters. He cannot reach the realm of closeness, because he must be in a state of flying, and to fly you need two wings. The servant of Allah is the one who works for and with zahiri and batini knowledge, and reaches the realm we are talking about. Allah the Most High says in a hadith qudsi (holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an):

“O My servant, if you want to be included in my harem (intimate quarters), do not get stuck in mulk (the material world), malakut (the angelic world) or jabarrut (the archangelic world).”

The reason behind this is that alem-i mulk (the material world) is the shaytan (devil) of the alim, alem-i malakut is the shaytan of the arif, and alem-i jabarrut is the shaytan of the one who has attained haqiqa. Whoever contents himself with one of these will be expelled from the dergah (center; meeting place). This is how it is in the presence of Allah. What I mean is that this person has lost the opportunity to be in closeness to the divine essence; his advancement with respect to degrees has ceased. The fact is that he had wanted closeness. He cannot reach that realm in this condition because he did not wish for what truly should have been wished for. He has only one wing.

For those who reach the intimacy of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq), there are so many rewards that no eyes have seen, no ears have heard, and no human heart has known their names. That is the paradise of nearness. No houris (pure companions for those in Paradise, as mentioned in the Qur’an; heavenly virgins) or kiosks [beautiful buildings] are there.

What a human must do is know where he stands and refrain from claiming for himself what he does not deserve. Hz. Ali ¹ says:

“May Allah have mercy on those who know their limits, know how to hold their tongues, and do not waste their lives.”

For those who possess knowledge, it is necessary to understand the reality of humanity, which is called tifl-i maani (child of the spirit or heart; spiritual child), to be educated by repetition of the attribute of tawhid (unity; oneness), and to pass through the material world to reach the spiritual, sacred world. That is the world of secrets. There is no one in that place except the Person, the essence of Allah. There is no other land there; that place is an open field. The spiritual child, tifl-i maani, flies there. He sees strange and wondrous things there, but it is not possible to relate them to others. That is the maqam (station; spiritual level) of the people who have reached fana (annihilation; ending; being absorbed) to their own existence. This is how it is to look from the angle of wahdat (oneness). In seeing Allah’s countenance, one’s own mortal body disappears. When your eyesight is taken by the sun, you cannot see yourself. What can a nafs be left with, facing the manifestation of Allah’s Jamal (Beauty [countenance])? Nothing.

Isa [Jesus], peace be upon him, says:

“In order for a human being to pass into malakut, he must be born twice. The birds are also born twice.”

What is meant by these words is the birth of the spiritual world in the human being. That [spiritual world] emerges from the real ability of the human being. And that is the secret of the human being. Its existence is born from the unity of sharia and haqiqa, just as a baby is produced by the joining of two secretions. Allah the Most High revealed the following ayat to explain this to us:

“We created man from a mingling secretion, in order to try him.” (Insan 76:2)

After this understanding is attained, it will be easier to pass through the sea of creation and get to the depths of amr (command). Compared to the spiritual world, all the other worlds are only a portion of reality.

There, after all of this is understood, the light and nourishment of spiritual and ilm-i ladun (knowledge from the Presence of Allah) are radiated throughout the universe, with no letter or voice.

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Tawba and Talqin

Up to here, the degrees of creation have been explained. You must know that each and every one of them can be attained by repentance (tawba). In addition, it is necessary for tawba to be complete. You also must receive talqin (inculcation) for the paths [toward attaining these degrees] from those who possess the knowledge and who have the authority. Allah the Most High has granted:

“He imposed on them the word of taqwa (piety; cautiousness for fear of offending Allah).” (Fath 48:26)

That word is the sentence “La ilaha illa ’llah” (There is no god but God). The thing to do is to find the person of authority who is the keeper and master of it, and to receive it from him. Also, the place into which you receive it must be clean and pure of all else. There should only be the word of jalal (power), “Allah,” there.

Above all, you must differentiate between the words pronounced by the awaam (common people; the general populace) and the words pronounced by this person of heart. Furthermore, you must pay attention to the manner in which they are said and pronounced. Even when these words carry the same meaning outwardly (zahiri), they are completely different inwardly (batini). The word that issues forth from the master and others cannot be the same.

The heart finds life when it receives the seed of tawhid (unity; oneness) from a heart that is alive; that seed is healthy. No plant comes out of a seed that has not matured. “La ilaha illa ‘llah,” as mentioned in [the following] two different places in Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an), points to the essence of what we are trying to explain:

“When ‘La ilaha illa ‘llah’ is recited to them, they get scornful.” (Saaffaat 37:35)

This ayat refers to the outer situation. In other words, it is for the awaamm. In another place it is granted as:

“Know that ‘La ilaha illa ‘llah’ and ask forgiveness for your sins and for the sins of believing men and believing women.” (Muhammad 47:19)

The talqin that we mentioned takes place through the means of this ayat. This is granted to the khawass (chosen people; those who are singled-out; plural of khas) servants of Allah.

Regarding the inculcation of zikr (remembrance; Sufi ritual remembrance of Allah through repetition of the divine names or attributes): Hz. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, was the first who asked for this path. He wanted our Prophet, peace be upon him, to teach him the path that is the most valuable and the one that takes us closest to Allah. Upon this request, our Prophet, peace be upon him, waited for Jibril (Gabriel) to come. He came and inculcated into him [the Prophet] the word of tawhid [La ilaha illa ’llah] three times. Jibril pronounced the word three times and our Prophet repeated it three times. After that, our Prophet, peace be upon him, taught Hz. Ali how to say and do this. Later the sahaba (companions of the Prophet) came and he taught them the same sentence. To explain the meaning of this, one day he professed:

“We are coming from the little jihad (struggle) and going into the big jihad.”

When he said this, he meant the war against the nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). One day that Great Prophet said to one of the companions:

“My biggest enemy is the one between my two ribs.”

Divine love cannot be attained until the enemy within the body dies. The body must first be cleansed of the nafs at the levels of ammara (commanding nafs [the first level]), lawwama (blaming or self-criticizing nafs [the second level]), and mulhama (inspired nafs [the third level]). You need to be cleansed from animalistic manners, especially gluttony, drinking too much, excessive sleep and being involved in activities that are not useful. Next, you must rid yourself of manners such as anger and belligerence, which are considered to be traits of wild animals. You also must abolish manners considered to be those of Shaytan (Satan), such as vanity, bragging, jealousy, revenge, and so forth. Furthermore, you have to protect your heart and body against sickness, and be clean. The person who has been purified in these ways is cleansed of the mistakes considered to be the main and most substantial sins. He will be among the servants who are repentant, clean and pure. In a generous ayat, Allah the Most High grants:

“Allah loves the repentant. He loves those who purify themselves.” (Baqara 2:222)

The one who repents of his outer concrete sins must not fall under the threat described in the following words:

“Although he has repented, he is not truly repentant.”

This sentence is related with a minor exaggeration. It means that the person has not repented to the extent that the khas (chosen one) has repented. The likeness of the person who outwardly repents but does not get into the essence of the matter is as the man who cuts weeds but leaves the roots intact; the weeds will grow back bigger. The person who completely rids himself of shortcomings, especially bad habits, takes the roots of the weed out. Hence, it definitely will not appear again.

When the weeding takes place, spiritual talqin from a sage is considered to be a tool. The person into whom the talqin is made extinguishes everything he possesses within himself other than the zat (essence; person) of Allah. He who does not uproot the bitter tree may not attain the sweet tree. Allah says:

“We coin similitudes for humankind that they may reflect.” (Hashr 59:21)

In another ayat, it is granted:

“He [Allah] is such that He accepts repentance and overlooks errors.” (Shura 42:25)

He also grants:

“Whoever repents and believes, and does a good deed, Allah changes the bad deeds of such people into goodness.”(Furqan 25:70)

Repentance is of two kinds: the repentance of the awaam and the repentance of the khawass. The tawba of the awaam is done with zikr and serious work. Thus you pass from rebellion into obedience, consequently from Jahannam (Hell) to Janna (Paradise). Furthermore, real tawba is attained by giving up the comfort of the body and subjecting the nafs to laborious deeds.

The tawba of the khawass presents a different situation. They are in a station superior to the states of those who seem to be good. Degrees disappear for them; they have reached complete nearness. They leave corporeal pleasures and reach the flavors of spiritual bliss. This flavor or pleasure is leaving everything but the essence (zat) of Allah aside, attaining a relationship with Him, and gazing at Him with the eye of sure knowledge.

The tastes, flavors and pleasures mentioned above are considered earnings of the material existence, but the very self of that material body is a sin, as is, consequently, what it earns. There is such a great saying:

“Your existence is such a sin that no other sin can compare.”

Some sages, may Allah have mercy on them, say:

“The good deed performed by the one who has not reached the station of nearness is a sin compared to the good deed of him who has reached that station.”

Because of this, our Prophet, peace be upon him, used to ask forgiveness (istighfar) a hundred times a day. Allah the Most High said the following to the Prophet, peace be upon him, so that we in turn can act with it:

“Ask forgiveness for your sin.” (Muhammad 47:19)

Another word of advice: Ask Allah to annihilate the existence that you attribute to yourself. This hal (state of being; situation; status) is called inaba (conversion; sincere penitence). Inaba is leaving everything besides Allah’s essence behind and thus returning to Allah. Furthermore, it is entering into His home of nearness and gazing at the divine countenance. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says the following in defining these exalted servants:

“Allah has some servants whose bodies are on earth while their hearts are under the Throne.”

The reason why their hearts are under the Throne is because in the [material] world one cannot see the divine essence. The attributes of the divine [manifestation of essence] can be observed in the mirror of the heart. Hz. Umar, ¹ may Allah be pleased with him, in this matter says:

“My heart saw my Rabb (Lord) with my Rabb’s nur (light).”

Qalb (the heart) is a mirror for the manifestation of the attribute of Jamal (Beauty). Another name used in this realm is mushahada (observation; witnessing). For this to happen you need talqin from a sage approved by previous mature sages who have reached the realm of wuslat (union with the Beloved, Allah). This person must be one who, after reaching that realm, is sent back to this world to bring incomplete people to maturity by the order of Allah. The means through whom this descending help takes place must be our Prophet, peace be upon him, himself.

The sending of such an assigned wali (saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend [of Allah]) to people is a special situation. Their invitation [or teaching] is not for everyone. In this they are different from the prophets, because the prophets are sent for both the awaam and the khawass servants. Furthermore, the prophets are completely free in conducting their business. Walis are not free. They must obey the prophets. It is said that the wali who tries to declare his independence in reality wants to be in the same station as a prophet, which is how such a desire takes him to kufr (disbelief; infidelity; blasphemy).

The comparison that the Prophet made between the alims (people of knowledge; scholars) among his umma (community; nation) and the prophets of Israel carries a different meaning. The prophets who came after Prophet Musa (Moses) were sent to enforce the religious procedures established by him. They did not apply a new sharia (Islamic canonical law), but upheld the established one. Likewise, the alims of this nation are sent to the khawass servants, but they present the religious rules in a new way. They continue to perform the duties plainly, and they aspire to lead the people in attending to the beautiful practices that are the foundation of the religion. They enjoin them to clean their hearts, which happens to be the main place where marifa takes place. These alims, like the ahli suffa ² give information as our Prophet, peace be upon him, taught. The ashabi suffa reached such a state that they would expound upon the mysteries of the Prophet’s Mi’raj (Night Journey, the Prophet’s, peace be upon him, sacred tour of the universe and to the Presence of Allah) before he had told any one about it.

Walis also possess the wilaya (protecting friend-hood; sainthood; being a wali) of the Prophet. This is because the state they carry [within them] is a part of prophethood. Their inner realm is in trust of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

As you listen to [or read] what is being told, do not think that everyone who possesses outer knowledge will reach this state. The inheritors of the Prophet whom we are describing are even closer to the Prophet than those who are genetically close to him. The one who is a complete inheritor of the Prophet is at the level of a son, who is spiritually the closest. The outer lineage falls short compared to this lineage. The son carries the secret of the father both inwardly and outwardly. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains this situation as:

“There is such knowledge that it is like a hidden treasure. Only those who have knowledge of the zat of Allah know it. When that secret is mentioned to those who possess dignity and might, they do not deny it.”

This ilm (knowledge) was put into the heart of the Prophet, peace be upon him, during the night of Mi’raj. He hid this secret so profoundly that he put it behind twenty thousand veils. He did not reveal this secret to anyone except his closest companions and the ahli suffa. It is because of the baraka (blessings) of this secret that the sharia ordinances will exist and survive until Judgment Day. This ilm-i batini (inner knowledge) will lead you to that secret. The subjects of ilm and marifa are considered the shells of that secret.

The one who possesses ilm-i zahiri (outer knowledge) is also considered to be a kind of inheritor. Some of the zahiri alims are keepers of fardz (obligatory religious duties). Some others are at the maqam (station; spiritual level) of zawil arham (preservers of relations), and they protect the outer knowledge. They invite servants to Allah by good advice.

As for the alims who follow the ahli sunna (people who learned by observing the example of the Prophet), their lineage stretches all the way to Hz. Ali, because he is the headquarters of ilm. The door of the wise invitation is there. Allah the Most High endows in a generous ayat:

“Invite them to the path of Allah with wisdom and goodly advice. Reason with them in a better way.” (Nahl 16:125)

The alims’ words are the same in essence but differ in the details.

There are three interpretations [of ilm] we would like to tell you about, which are present in the ayat mentioned above. These classes of ilm are united in the person of our Prophet, peace be upon him. Be assured that no one besides him can bear this situation. We are going to mention these assignments [types of knowledge] below with some interpretation of our own.

The first: ilm-i hal (knowledge of the spiritual state). This is the essence of things. It is given to the ones who are courageous. These courageous ones work diligently not to lose this state. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said in describing these courageous ones:

“The himmah (miraculous influence; spiritual will) of the courageous ones will move mountains.”

What is meant by “mountains” here is the weight of the heart. Requests are met through their prayers, and whatever they do not want disintegrates. This generous ayat explains their situation:

“Whoever is given wisdom is verily given much good.” (Baqara 2:269)

The second: This is the skin of the essence that is mentioned above. This is given to the possessors of the ilm-i zahiri. To give good advice, to enjoin goodness, forbid indecencies and such are considered to be their work. The following honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) describes this group thus:

“The alim gives his advice [teaching] with knowledge and adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation); the ignorant gives his teaching with anger and abuse.”

The third: This degree [of knowledge] is considered to be the shell over the skin. This is the job of the rulers in the realm of outer justice and politics. The ayat mentioned earlier, “Reason with them in a better way,” points to this situation.

These [degrees] are the manifestations of the attribute Qahhar (The Subduer, Destroyer; Allah’s name Al-Qahhar), and they protect the order of religion. Their likeness is the green shell of the walnut. Carriers of the outer knowledge are like the hard shell that protects the essence of the walnut.

As for the alims of the batin (inner), they are considered the essence. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says in an honorable hadith:

“You must sit in the alims’ gatherings. You must listen to the words of the wise. As Allah the Most High gives life to the earth by rain water, He revives dead hearts through wisdom.”

He grants again:

“Wisdom is the lost property of the believer; he picks it up wherever he finds it.”

The words that issue from the tongues of the arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense) descend from Lawhi Mahfuz (The Protected Tablet). That is the realm of jabarrut (compelling power; the archangelic world). It is calculated in degrees.

The sentences that run forth from the courageous ones who reach Allah gush from the highest maqam. That is the land of nearness. There are no intermediaries in that place.

Everything will return to its origin. For this reason, in order to accomplish the revival of the heart, it is necessary to find the possessor [master] of talqin. This is fardz. The following honorable hadith of our Prophet, peace be upon him, points out that:

“Ilm is fardz for every Muslim, man or woman.”

What is meant by the ilm that is fardz is the knowledge of marifa and closeness to Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq). Only what is needed of the other ilms is fardz, such as the ilm of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), which is necessary for the completion of the obligatory ibada (worship).

Allah the Most High is pleased when His servant throws off his passion for degrees and maqams. May he not show any inclination to any of the degrees. Allah the Most High in a generous ayat says:

“Tell them, I don’t want any fee for what I do, only kindness and loyalty to the relations [near ones].” (Shura 42:23)

According to certain interpretations, what is meant by these “relations” (qurba) is the understanding of nearness to Allah.

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The Path of Tasawwuf

The reason why they [Sufis] are called ahli tasawwuf (the people of Sufism) is because they have made their inner beings to be lit up by the nur (light) of tawhid (unity; oneness) and marifa (inner knowing; understanding). The second reason is their connection to the ashabi suffa. ¹

Another reason may be that in the beginning they wore lambskin. They wore lambskin in the middle degrees of the path. The ones who come to the later, higher levels of tasawwuf wear old patched clothes.

As their outer forms are like that, so are their inner beings. They also follow degrees of regimen in eating and drinking. The author of Majma’ ² gives the interpretation that:

“For the people of piety [or asceticism] (ahli zuhd) what is suitable is to eat and wear coarse things.”

The people of marifa must be soft and courteous, because they are the resting places for human beings. They have to follow the sunna (way or exemplary actions of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him). They are seen in the first rows [as the prominent are seen praying in the mosques], so that the ones who first look to them will not lose their way. The ones in the front row [at prayer in the mosque] must dress nicely and look with gentleness. They are in the maqam (station; spiritual level) of ahadiya (unique oneness).

The word tasawwuf is made up of four letters: t, s, w, f. Ta (the letter t) is for tawba (repentance). There are two kinds: the tawba that is zahiri (outer) and the tawba that is batini (inner).

Zahiri tawba affects all of the outer senses in speech and in action that may be taken away from sinning or doing bad deeds, and transforms them into obedience. The state of rebellion should be abolished and the state of obedience should be established.

As for batini tawba, it can be said that it is the purification of the heart and moving into complete approval and obedience. It is superior to zahiri tawba. By conversion of the state of badness into goodness, the maqam of ta is completed.

Sad (the letter s) refers to the state of spiritual tranquility [pleasure]. This also can be studied in two ways, as can the letter ta. One is the purity of heart and the other is the purity of the secret [hidden]. The tranquility of the heart is found in being removed from human worries caused, for example, by eating and sleeping too much. Dealings such as these pull the heart toward dunya (the material world). Thinking about worldly affairs tires the heart. We can also show that such occupations as earning a lot of money, excessive sex, and loving your children and family are among the cares that throw the heart into the world and tire it. If these things that are mentioned are found in a heart, it cannot reach the stage of purity and cleanliness.

Purification of the heart is done by zikr (remembrance) of Allah. This zikr must be first done jahri (outwardly; aloud) and then it can be passed into khafi (silent; hidden) zikr.

Allah the Most High grants in one of the generous ayats (verses of the Qur’an):

“Believers are those who, when Allah is mentioned, their hearts vibrate [shake].” (Anfaal 8:2)

Another meaning of this shaking or vibrating is awe. Awe starts with the heart finding the state of wakefulness. If it [the heart] wakes up out of needless sleep, and is purified and glows, the symbols of the actions concerning good and evil can be etched in it. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says in an honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet):

“The alim (person of knowledge; scholar) observes, but the arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostic), on the other hand, concentrates on polishing his heart.”

As for the purification of sirr (the secret; the hidden), it is to stay away from any actions other than relating to Allah’s zat (essence; person). That is sowing Allah’s love into the heart; it is continuing the names of tawhid with the language of sirr. When this state also is achieved, the maqam of sad is completed.

Waw (the letter w) is referred to as the state of wilaya (protecting friend-hood; sainthood; being a wali ³). This state is based upon the purity of the realm of the inner being. Allah the Most High says the following for those who have found the state of wilaya:

“As for the awliya (plural of wali) of Allah, there is no fear and there is no grief.” (Yunus 10:62)

Again He says:

“For them may there be good tidings in this world and in the hereafter.” (Yunus 10:64)

The end of the state of wilaya is to be redesigned with divine manners. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, in pointing out this meaning, said:

“Obtain divine behaviors [manners] in this state. Found there is the stripping off of human attributes and the wrapping into divine attributes.”

Allah the Most High in a hadith qudsi (holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) explains this thus:

“If I love a servant of mine, I become his eyes, ears, tongue, hand and feet. He sees with Me, hears with Me, talks with Me, holds with Me and walks with Me.”

Be cleansed of all things except Allah’s zat [only be interested in Allah’s essence; do not wear anything else]. The following generous ayat explains this maqam in a better way:

“Truth came and falsehood vanished. Falsehood is bound to melt away.” (Banii Israa-iil 17:81)

After this, the maqam of waw is attained.

Fa (the letter f) stands for the maqam of fana (annihilation; ending; being absorbed). It means being eradicated, melting away among the divine attributes. When human attributes disappear, the attributes of ahadiya (unique oneness) take their place.

In reality, Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) the Most High never disappears or ends. Among all of these happenings, the servant finds baqa (everlastingness) with the baqi (eternal) Creator. He reaches His rida (goodwill); the qalb (heart) reaches life by the everlasting sirr.

“Everything except His face will perish.” (Qasas 28:88)

This generous ayat is witness to this claim. Most likely, he is gone to His existence through rida. Good deeds are done for His existence, His goodwill is sought, and thus he has reached His zat. What remains is one who is radi (content).

The good deed gives birth to the life of real humanity, which is defined as tifl-i maani (child of the spirit or heart; spiritual child). Allah the Most High grants:

“Good words reach Him, good deeds ascend to Him.” (Fatir 35:10)

No matter what deed it may be, if it is not done for Allah, it is shirk (attributing partners to Allah). It destroys the doer.

When the state of fana is attained, baqa is completed. This baqa is in the realm of nearness. Allah defines that realm as:

“In the headquarters of righteousness, in the presence of the powerful king.” (Qamar 54:54-55)

That place is in the realm of lahut (the divine) and has become the station for the prophets and the walis. There, Allah is with the righteous and true.

When the one who has been created later unites with the eternal, he cannot conceptualize a body there. When the state of faqr (poverty) is completed, the pure stay with Haqq forever. Allah the Most High explains the everlasting pleasures of their state as:

“The ones who enter Paradise and stay there forevermore.” (A’raf 7:42)

Again, Allah grants:

“Allah is with the patient.” (Anfal 8:66)

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Zikr Is Related

Allah the Most High says, “Make zikr of Him as he has guided you.” (Baqara 2:198).This generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an) shows the way to the ones who want to make zikr (remembrance) of Him. Another meaning of this ayat is to make zikr of Him in accordance with your spiritual level.

The following hadith sharif (honorable tradition) was granted by our Prophet, peace be upon him:

“The most valuable zikr is the one done by me and the prophets before me: La ilaha illa ‘llah.”

This shows us the best zikr. It means there is no other Allah (God), but Allah Himself.

There are levels special to each station of zikr. These zikrs are either done jahri (outwardly; aloud) or khafi (silently; hidden), in other words, either with open voice or by the heart.

Zikr is made first by the tongue, then it passes to the nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). Next it comes to the heart, then it passes to the ruh (spirit; soul). Then it happens in the realm of sirr (the secret), deeper even than the heart, then in khafi (the hidden) and later in the khafi of khafi. These zikrs are given degrees in accordance with Allah’s guidance.

The zikr done with the tongue is similar to the one done with the heart. If it is being done through the tongue, it is known that Allah is not forgotten in your heart.

When the zikr is done through the nafas (breath), zikr is done inwardly. There is no letter, and no voice is heard. It is done with inner motion and feeling.

The zikr of qalb (the heart) is to feel the manifestation of Jamal (Beauty) and Jalal (Power) in the heart’s essence.

The product of the zikr done with ruh enables you to attain the light manifestation of Allah’s Jalal and Jamal attributes.

The zikr done in the realm of sirr takes you to observance of the divine attributes.

The khafi zikr (silent zikr done by the heart) brings you to the observance of the light that shines at the zat (essence; person) of ahadiya (level of unique oneness), at the headquarters of the righteousness of the mighty Sultan. The zikr that is called the secret of secrets allows you to reach the reality of the station of haqq al-yaqin (sure knowledge received in the heart directly from Allah). You must know that no one besides Allah can peer into this secret of secret state, which is called khafi al-akhfa (secret of the secret state). The following generous ayat relates this as:

“He knows the secret and the deeper secret.” (Ta Ha 20:7)

This phenomenon encompasses all of the ilms, and all of the [spiritual] purposes [or intentions] reach there.

As a consequence of making the zikrs described above, a different kind of ruh finds a chance for manifestation. It is more latif (subtle; pleasant; gracious) than all of the other ruhs related above. They call this tifl-i maani (child of the spirit or heart; spiritual child).

Furthermore, it is the host who invites you to attain the stations and states described above, and from there to the zat of Allah.

This spiritual state is not found in everyone, but only in the khawass (chosen) servants. The following ayat-i kerim (generous verse of the Qur’an) explains this to us:

“He places that ruh into the hearts of his servants He chooses.” (Mu’min 40:15)

This ruh is stationed in the realm of Power. It occupies space in the realm of mushahada (observation; witnessing). It is also a property of the realm of haqiqa (reality; truth). It does not show any tendency toward anything except the zat of Allah. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says the following to explain these phenomena:

“Dunya (the material world) is forbidden [unlawful] to the people of akhira (the hereafter). Akhira is unlawful for the people of dunya. Dunya and akhira both are unlawful to those who would want Allah’s zat.”

This ruh is tifl-i maani. Reaching Allah happens through this.

In order to protect the decrees of sharia (Islamic canonical law), it is necessary to make the body follow the straight path. It is necessary to continue doing the zikrs of Allah openly or secretly, day or night. It is fardz (obligatory) to do zikr of Allah for those who are seeking the path to Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq). The following generous ayat shows us why this is necessary:

“Make zikr of Allah standing, sitting, and reclining.” (Nisaa 4:103)

He grants again:

“They make zikr of Allah standing, sitting or reclining, and contemplate the wisdom of the creation of the heavens and the earth.” (Aali ’Imran 3:191)

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The Conditions of Zikr

The person who is making zikr (remembrance [of Allah]) must take complete ablution [ghusl, ablution of the body]. He must state the sentences of the zikr emphatically. He must raise his voice. The nurs (lights) of this kind of zikr make a place in the heart of the zakirs, the people who make zikr, and their hearts find everlasting life with that nur. Allah the Most High, in describing how they find this life says:

“They will not die again after the first death.” (Dukhan 44:56)

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said the following when he described the people who make the zikr of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) and the possessors of belief:

“Mu’mins (believers) do not die, they only pass from this temporary (fani) world into the forever world (baqa).

He grants again:

“Nabis and walis (prophets and saints) pray salat (formal Islamic prayer) in their tombs as they do in their homes.”

What this means is that they do munaajaa (appeal humbly; praise Allah, seeking love). The salat mentioned in this honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) is not the one that is performed on earth with ruku’ (bowing) and sajda (prostration); it is, on the contrary, munaajaa. And this munaajaa is one of the characteristics of servitude.

Marifa (inner knowing or understanding; gnosis) comes from Allah. The possessor of irfan (divine knowledge; knowledge through marifa) becomes one of the intimates of Haqq after he finds this state. He achieves this state by doing constant munaajaa to Haqq with a heart that is alive. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has described this situation to us as:

“My eyes sleep but my heart does not.”

It is proper to relate the following honorable hadith about marifa:

“To that person who dies while learning, Allah assigns two angels. They teach him ilm-i marifa (knowledge of deep spiritual understanding) until Judgment Day. He is resurrected as an alim (person of knowledge; scholar) and an arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostic).”

Here, what is meant by “two angels” is the ruhaniya (spirituality) of our Prophet, peace be upon him, and his nuraniya (state of light) by way of his wilaya (protecting friend-hood; sainthood; being a wali). This is because an angel cannot get into the realm of marifa. Let us mention another honorable hadith about this:

“Many people die ignorant but are resurrected from their graves as alims and arifs. Many people, on the other hand, die as alims but are resurrected from their graves as ignorant, impious and bankrupt.”

The following ayat explains this situation better:

“In the life of the world you consumed your good things with pleasure, thinking they would give you comfort, but today you will be rewarded with a humiliating punishment.” (Ahqaf 46:20)

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains the meaning of what is mentioned above in an honorable hadith thus:

“Deeds are connected to intentions. A believer’s intention is better than his action. A sinner’s intention is more troublesome than his action.”

Intention is the foundation of deed [action]. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains this as:

“Doing a good thing from a good base produces good. Doing a bad action from a bad base produces trouble.”

It is timely that we mention another generous ayat here:

“We give the life of the hereafter to whoever wants it, and increase the blessing for his effort in this direction. We give the life of the world to those who ask, but they will have no portion in the hereafter.” (Shura 42:20)

What one needs to do is find the one who is capable of talqin (inculcation), and receive the heart from this person. That will enable him to earn the life of the hereafter. He must do this in the life of this world, without delay. This is because this world (dunya) is the place for sowing what you will reap in the hereafter. If you do not sow here, you can reap nothing there. What is meant by “place” above is the spiritual and material being.

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Seeing Allah, Seeing the Divine Manifestation
and the Attainment of It

This seeing is of two kinds. One is seeing the manifestation of the attribute of Jamal (Beauty) without means. The other is attaining knowledge of the manifestation of divine attributes in this world through the means of the mirror of the heart. These attributes are observed by the eye of the heart (fuad) as the manifestation of the light (nur) of the aspect of Jamal. Allah the Most High tells us about this sight with the following generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an):

“Fuad did not deny what it saw.” (Najm 53:11)

The following honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) is also important as to the visualization of the divine manifestation:

“Mu’min (believer) is a mirror to Mu’min.”

Here, what is meant by the first “mu’min” is the heart of the believer, and what is meant by the second “Mu’min” is Allah the Most High Himself.

Whoever reaches the level to see the manifestation of the attributes [of Allah] can see the person or face [meaning essence], of Allah without the means of form or shape. These statements are confirmed by the beloved servants of Allah. Hz. Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, says:

“My heart saw my Lord through the nur of my Lord.”

Hz. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, says:

“I will not serve an Allah who I do not see.”

All of these sayings tell about the visualization of the divine attributes. If someone saw the sunlight coming through the window and said, “I saw the sun,” it is not a lie. Allah the Most High sent the following generous ayat as an example related to the manifestations of attributes:

“The allegory of his light is a window where there is a substance that gives light. This substance is in a glass; that glass is as it were a shining pearl, kindled from a blessed olive tree of neither the east nor the west.” (Nur 24:35)

What is meant by this window [an opening or niche where you put a lamp, like a window in the old houses] is the heart of the believing servant. It is said that what is meant by the lamp is the sirr (secret) in the essence of fuad. That sirr is the very ruhu sultani (royal spirit).

What is meant by the first glass that is mentioned is the fuad. Because it is encompassed completely by nur, Allah compares it to a pearl. The source of that nur being taken and kindled from a blessed olive tree means the pure state of tawhid (unity; oneness). This is received without means through the tongue of sacredness.

In actuality, our Prophet, peace be upon him, received the glorious Qur’an through the tongue without the help of a messenger [i.e., without means]. The reason why Jibril (Gabriel) brought it later was for the general benefit, recognizing especially [the skepticism of] unbelievers and hypocrites. The following generous ayat reveals that the Qur’an was first given without means:

“Know that you received the Qur’an from the presence of the One who is Hakim (The Wise; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Hakim) and Alim (The All-Knowing; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Alim).” (Naml 27:6)

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, had received the revelation from the Source before Jibril, peace be upon him, brought the Qur’an to him. While Jibril was transferring the revelation, our Prophet, peace be upon him, would find it already in his heart; he would recite it before he received it from Jibril, peace be upon him. Because of this, the following ayat was sent:

“Do not make haste with the Qur’an before its revelation is completed.” (Ta Ha 20:114)

It is because of this wisdom that, on the night of the Mi’raj (Night Journey, the Prophet’s, peace be upon him, sacred tour of the universe and to the Presence of Allah), Jibril could not cross sidrati al-muntaha (the lote tree of the utmost boundary mentioned in Qur’an [Najm 53:14]).

“If I take one more step further I will burn.”

He said this and left our Prophet, peace be upon him, to journey on his own. Allah the Most High describes the tree in the above-mentioned ayat as:

“of neither the east nor the west.” (Nur 24:35)

In other words, He attributes to it no limit or nonexistence, and you cannot think that it rises or sets. Recall that one of Allah’s defining traits is that He “has no beginning and no end.” In His essence there is no place for nonexistence. His attributes must be so as well. This is so because those adjectives or attributes are His light, His manifestations. They coexist with His essence.

In order to worship Him fully, the veils over the heart must be removed. Then the heart gets nourishment from the divine light. As for the ruh (spirit; soul), it gazes on the attributes of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) from a lofty window.

Apart from all else, the purpose of the creation of this world is to see the hidden treasure. The hadith qudsi (holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) pertaining to this was mentioned before. Let us repeat this because it is important:

“I was a secret treasure, I wanted to be known, and I created the creation to know Me.”

What He means is, “Let them get to know My attributes in this world, but as for seeing My essence, that will happen in the other. There will be no veil or means there.” Inshallah (if it be the will of Allah), He will be gazed at by the eye of sirr, called tifl-i maani. The following generous ayat confirms this meaning:

“That day, some faces will glow as they gaze at their Lord.” (Qiyama 75:22-23)

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has related the following honorable hadith:

“I saw my Lord in the shape of a handsome young man.”

What this refers to is tifl-i maani. The manifestation of the Creator is like that. It manifests that way in the mirror of ruh. Shape is considered a mirror to ruh; it becomes a means between the manifester and the one who observes the manifestation. Otherwise, Haqq the All-High is removed from appearing in a form or being defined with the characteristics of objects.

The shape is a mirror. The one who is seen is neither the mirror nor the observer. Try to understand, because this is the subject of the world of sirr, which takes place in the alem-i sifat (the world of attributes). As for the world of essence, all of the means burn and disappear. The ones who are in that realm cannot perceive anything but the essence of Allah. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains this better:

“I perceived my Lord through my Lord.”

In other words, with His light. The reality of the human being is considered to be the intimate of this nur. The following hadith qudsi tells us about this:

“The human being (insan) is My sirr and I am his sirr.”

Our Prophet’s following hadith sharif (honorable hadith) is also important in this subject:

“I am from Allah and mu’mins (believers) are from me.”

Let us also mention the following hadith qudsi while on the subject:

“I created Muhammad from the nur of My countenance.”

What is meant by “countenance” here is the sacred essence that is manifested by the attribute arham (the one who acts with the most mercy). He reveals the attribute arham with the following hadith qudsi:

“My mercy surpassed My wrath.”

Hazreti Rasul (The Esteemed Messenger, Muhammad), peace be upon him, is the nur of Haqq. Haqq the Most High related the following ayats and hadith qudsi about His nur:

“We sent you only to be a mercy for the worlds.” (Anbiya 21:107)

“There came to you from Allah nur and a book that reveals everything.” (Ma’ida 5:15)

“If it were not for you, I would not have created the heavens.” (Hadith Qudsi)

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The Veils of Nur and Zulmat (Light and Darkness)

In a generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an) it is granted that, “Whoever is blind in this world will be blind in the hereafter.” (Banii Israa-iil 17:72) What is meant by blindness here is the blindness of the heart. Let us mention a generous ayat that explains this:

“The eyes in the head do not go blind; the eye of the heart in the breast goes blind.” (Hajj 22:46)

The only thing that causes hearts to go blind is forgetting the pact that we made with the Creator and falling into ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance). The main reason for ghafla is not knowing the real nature of the divine decree. The reason for this ignorance is our being subjected to invasion by dark attributes (sifati zulmani). We can enumerate some of these dark attributes. They are pride, revenge, jealousy, stinginess, vanity, backbiting, gossiping, lying and many more evil deeds.

These attributes are what make human beings fall into the lowest of the low. To be rid of these evil situations, it is necessary to keep the mirror of the heart clean. This cleanliness is attained by tawhid (unity; oneness), acting with ilm (knowledge), and an internal and external struggle waged against nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). You must continue this struggle until the life of the heart is attained by the nur (light) of tawhid. At this stage, the nur of the attributes of Allah appear. After this, the homeland (watani asli) is remembered. Then the human being yearns to return to his homeland. He gets there with the help of Rahman (The Most Merciful; Allah’s name or attribute Ar-Rahman) when the day comes.

When these dark attributes are lifted, what is left is nur; he becomes a seer by way of ruh (spirit; soul). He then will be submerged into nur with the nur of the divine attributes.

The heart has two eyes. One is sughra (smaller); the other is kubra (bigger). Through the sughra, we observe the manifestation of divine attributes and names. As for the kubra, we observe the phenomenal happenings in alem-i lahut (the divine world; the realm of the essence of Allah) and the land of nearness through the nur of tawhid and ahadiya (unique oneness).

For a human being to reach these levels, he needs to be cleansed of the human attributes that are considered related to nafs. The degree of attainment within this realm depends on how far he can distance himself from the attributes of nafs.

Reaching there does not mean the same as one object reaching another, or the ilm reaching the known and the intellect reaching logic, or conjecture reaching the imagination. Here, reaching wuslat (union with the Beloved, Allah) happens to the extent that you have stripped yourself of everything other than Allah’s zat (essence; person). In this situation there is no closeness, nearness, joining, separating, opposition or direction.

Highly exalted is He! What is hidden is in His manifestation. When the manifestation is veiled, it is apparent. His being known is hidden in His not being known.

Whoever happens to attain the nur we are talking about in this world, and tames his nafs before the Court and the accountability in the next world, will be among the saved. Otherwise, he will not overcome the difficult situations and burdens in this world or in the next. The torment of the grave comes upon him and he goes through a hard accounting. His good deeds and bad deeds are inspected finely. Furthermore, the bridge of Sirat (the bridge over Hell on the way to Paradise) beckons, along with many other difficult trials of the hereafter.

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Sa’ada and Shaqawa

You must know that all people are found within one of two categories: The good [who are happy] and the bad [who are unhappy]. These two qualities also exist in every human being.

When a person’s purity [sincerity] and good deeds become predominant and his selfish desires and feelings are replaced by spiritual qualities, his shaqawa (misery; wretchedness), or evil side, is converted into sa’ada (goodness; happiness), or good side. On the other hand, if the opposite of what we mentioned above happens, his shaqawa overcomes the sa’ada.

When both sides are equal, the ultimate hope is for goodness [that he will be good in the end]. The following generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an) explains it for us:

“Whoever brings one good deed gets a tenfold reward in return.” (An’am 6:160)

If Allah the Most High wishes, He can grant more, and for this person a court for judgment and measurement is established. On the other hand, for the one whose nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) stays converted to spiritual states, there will be neither a need for measuring, nor a court. He comes and goes into paradise without having to account for his deeds. This phenomenon is best explained with the following generous ayat:

“The one whose good deeds are heavier is in a pleasant existence.” (Al-Qariah 101:6-7)

The person whose bad deeds outweigh the good will suffer in proportion to his evil deeds, but he will be saved from the fury and torment and will enter paradise if he has belief.

What we mean by sa’ada and shaqawa is good and evil. These are not constant in a person. Goodness can be turned into evil and evil into goodness. As our Prophet, peace be upon him, granted: good can be bad and bad can be good. The one who has more goodness finds sa’ada and becomes good, the one who has more evil finds shaqawa and becomes bad.

For the one who repents and holds onto good deeds, his state of shaqawa turns into sa’ada. It is a matter of destiny that both good and evil, in other words, sa’ada and shaqawa, are hidden in everyone’s existence; all people possess both qualities. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, avows the following:

“The one who is sa’id (good; happy) is sa’id in his mother’s womb; the one who is shaqi (bad; miserable) is shaqi in his mother’s womb.”

While the situation remains like this, no one has the right to exploit this subject, because this subject is related to fate (qadar). If you go to extremes, it will take you to disbelief. No one has the right to take qadar for granted and abandon good deeds. It is not proper for one to say, “If I was written to be among the good, the good deed I am going to do today is useless; likewise, if I was written to be among the bad, goodness will not help.” It is not befitting to say, “However I was before [whatever I was created for] will happen; now I cannot help nor hurt it.”

On this subject, Adam, peace be upon him, and Iblis (Shaytan or Satan) can be given as an example. Iblis attributed his deed to qadar, became an unbeliever and was banished [from the presence of Allah]. Adam, peace be upon him, blamed the mistake on himself, received mercy and was saved.

It is necessary for every Muslim not to dwell on the intricacies of qadar. The one who falls into these states falls into confusion and remains in doubt. Then he is also in danger of going back to unbelief (zindiq).

Every Muslim must be convinced that Allah the Most High is Hakim (The Wise; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Hakim). Whatever a human being sees happening in this world is a product of His wisdom. Insan, the human being, has to know that in this house we call the world, Allah even produces unbelief, discord, immorality and such to show His power, and that there is a wisdom behind all of this that He knows. The occurrence of these phenomena is a great mystery. Allah the Most High manifests His power. No one except our Prophet Mustafa, ¹ peace be upon him, can understand or know these things fully.

There is a story:

One of the people of understanding and knowledge was supplicating to his Creator, “O God, the decree is Yours, the will is Yours and it is You who created the knowledge I possess in myself.”

After saying this, he heard this voice within himself, “O my servant, what you say is due to your tawhid (unity; oneness).”

The servant then said, “I made a mistake, I sinned, and I wronged myself.”

After this confession, he heard the voice say, “And I forgive you and have mercy on you.”

What is necessary for everyone who possesses iman (belief) to know is that all of his good deeds are accomplished with the help of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq). If he is doing evil, he should know that it is from evil desires of his nafs. If he acknowledges this, he becomes one of the servants of Allah the Most High who are mentioned in this generous ayat:

“These are the servants of Allah who, when they sin or wrong themselves, remember Allah and ask for forgiveness. Who can forgive sins except Allah?” (Aali ’Imran 3:135)

If the servant sees his nafs as the source of all badness, he will benefit and be saved. Having this attitude is better than accusing the One whose name is Aziz (The Victorious; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Aziz) [which is what Shaytan did], because He is the Creator.

What our Prophet, peace be upon him, said—“the bad and the good are known in the wombs of their mothers”—calls for explanation. What is meant by “mother” here are the four elements that give birth to the living. Two of these elements are water and earth. These foster iman, bring ilm (knowledge) and give life. They then cultivate humility in the heart.

As for the second pair, fire and air, they are the opposites of water and earth; they burn and kill. It is Subhan (Allah The Exalted, Glorified) the All-High who brings them together in the body. See how He keeps the water and fire together, how He holds the light and darkness in clouds. Let us mention a generous ayat:

“It is He who shows the lightning that you behold with fear and hope, and it is He who makes heavy, loaded clouds.” (Raad 13:12)

One day they asked Yahya bin Muaz Razi: ² “How [by what means] did you understand Allah?” He explained: “Through how the opposites come together.” It is because of these opposites that insan (the human being) becomes the mirror of Haqq. He manifests both Jamal (Beauty) and Jalal (Power). He [the human being] encompasses the whole universe in his being. Once again, from the same wisdom, the human being is called the “composite being” and the “big realm (alem).” This is because Allah the Most High created him with qahr (overcoming or compelling force) and lutf (subtlety; tenderness), which are considered His two hands. As the human being is created in that way, he must be a mirror of both aspects. He reflects both kasafat ([Turkish] toughness; hardness) and latafat ([Turkish] softness; gracefulness). The human being, in contrast to the other creation, is the place for the manifestation of all of the attributes. All created entities other than human beings are created in a single dimension.

He created Iblis and his descendants from the attribute of qahr. From the attribute of lutf the angels are created. They are the manifestations of the attributes of Al-Subbuhul Quddus (The Glorified Holy One). From the attribute of qahr, Iblis and his ilk are created; they are the places for the manifestation of the attributes of Jabbar (The Compeller; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Jabbar). Because of this they did not prostrate to Adam, peace be upon him; they showed vanity.

Since humans harbor both high and lowly qualities in their essence, neither anbiya (prophets; plural of nabi) nor awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) are exempt from making mistakes. Only prophets, after they embrace their prophethood and messengerhood, are innocent of serious sins, but not of small mistakes. Awliya are not innocent of them. [This means they may commit sins and mistakes. It does not mean that all awliya are sinners, but that they are not immune from sinning.] It is said that the awliya, after reaching full maturity, are protected from sinning. Shaqiq al-Balkhi,³ may Allah be pleased with him, says:

“The signs of sa’ada are five: a soft heart, crying easily, living piously without inclining to this world, being less hopeful and having haya (modesty; sense of decency or shame).”

Likewise, he says the signs of shaqawa are four:

“He betrays what is entrusted with him, does not keep his promises, adds lies to his words, and swears [uses offensive words] when he argues.”

Also, that shaqi (bad; miserable; wretched) person does not forgive his friends’ mistakes, because ’afwa (pardon; forgiveness) is the highest of religious manners. Furthermore, Allah the Most High has ordered our Prophet, peace be upon him, to forgive:

“Take up ’afwa, give orders for goodness and stay away from the ignorant.” (A’raf 7:199)

The command to “take up ’afwa” is not only limited to our Prophet, peace be upon him; it carries a general meaning. It is for the whole umma (community; nation) of Muhammad, peace be upon him. If a sultan says, “do this work in this way” to one of his deputies or governors who is assigned to spread his message, all nations under the sovereignty of the governor have to do that thing in the same way, even though the order may have been given to the governor.

This faqir (poor, humble person) wants to give some explanation about the order, “take up ’afwa.” “Take up” means to make it your habit. Whoever makes a habit of ’afwa, has taken a name upon himself that is one of the names of Allah [Al-’Afu, The Forgiver], and that is ’afwa. In a generous ayat, it is granted:

“To the one who forgives and turns to rehabilitate himself, Allah personally will give his reward.” (Shura 42:40)

You must know well that sa’ada can be turned into shaqawa and vice versa by upbringing, training and education (tarbiya). We understand this from the following honorable hadith:

“All children are born of an Islamic ⁴ nature, but their mothers and fathers call themselves Jews, Magians or Christians.”

This honorable hadith shows us that everyone has the ability for goodness and badness. Because of this you cannot pass a judgment such as: this person is completely bad or all good. What is right to be said about this is the following:

“If someone’s goodness outweighs his badness, he attains happiness; if the badness outweighs the goodness, the opposite occurs.”

The one who says other than these words is considered to be in error. This does not mean that human beings can get into paradise without good deeds, or will be put into fire without sins. Such a belief is against Islamic principles, because Allah the Most High promised paradise for His people who believe and do good, and fire for those who deny and attribute partners to Allah. The following generous ayat shows us the way in this subject:

“Whoever does good, does good for himself. Whoever does bad, does bad for himself.” (Jathiya 45:15)

Allah grants again:

“This day everyone will be rewarded for what they did. There will be no wrongdoing this day.” (Mu’min 40:17)

Again:

“What is left for insan is whatever he puts forth.” (Najm 53:39)

He grants again:

“Whatever good you send forward for yourselves, you will find it with Allah.” (Baqara 2:110)

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The Fuqara Class

Why is this group called “Sufi”? What is the wisdom behind it? That is what we are going to talk about in this section.

Some say it is because they wear wool clothes, or it is because they took their hearts away from worldly problems. Others say it is because on Judgment Day they will stand in the first row of nearness.

In reality, there are four worlds [realms]: alem-i mulk (the material world), alem-i malakut (the angelic world), alem-i jabarrut (the archangelic world) and alem-i lahut (the divine world), which is the realm of haqiqa (reality; truth).

Likewise, there are four kinds of ilm (knowledge): ilm-i sharia (knowledge of Islamic canonical law), ilm-i tariqa (knowledge of the Sufi path), ilm-i marifa (deep spiritual knowledge) and ilm-i haqiqa (knowledge of reality and truth).

The souls are also in four categories: ruhu jismani (the corporeal soul), ruhu seyrani (the traveling or moving soul; also ruhu revani), ruhu sultani (the royal soul), ruhul quds (the holy spirit or soul).

Likewise, tajalli (manifestations) are observed in four categories: tajalli al-athar (manifestations in the outcome), tajalli al-af’al (manifestations in the action), tajalli al-sifat (manifestations in the attributes) and tajalli al-zat (manifestations in the essence).

In the same way, aql (the mind or intellect) is in four categories: aql al-ma’ash (the mind of the world), aql al-ma’ad (the mind for thinking of what is beyond, i.e., the hereafter), aql al-ruhani (the mind of the soul) and aql al-kull (the collective mind).

There are correlations among these four sections mentioned above. Some people are related to [connected or belong to] the first section of the four categories of ilm, ruh, aql and tajalli. This means they are in the first janna (paradise), which is called Ma’wa. The ones connected to the second section of each are considered to be in the second janna, Naim. The ones connected to the third section are considered to be in the third janna, Firdaws.

The ones who are attached to the ni’ma (benefits; blessings; favors) in the sections mentioned above could not see the true aspects of the material world. On the other hand, the people of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq), the ones who possess irfan (divine knowledge) and who tasted the state of true faqr (poverty) ran away from all of this. They reached the world [realm] of haqiqa; they attained nearness and did not concern themselves with anything besides the zat (essence; person) of Allah. They obeyed the command, “Run to Allah,” the order of Allah. In this context, our Prophet, peace be upon him, granted:

“Dunya (the material world) and akhira (the hereafter) are haram (forbidden) for the one who is looking for Allah.”

His proclaiming these as haram does not mean that they are literally forbidden. The ones who requested [or who sought] Allah’s zat prevented their nafs’ (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) demanding anything from dunya or feeling love for its temporary existence. This is the real meaning of the honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him). Those great ones [sages] say: “Dunya is a creation. We are also created. How can one who is in need ask help of another needy one? In this situation, what the created should do is look for the Creator.”

About the group of fuqara (plural of faqir, a poor, humble person) the following hadith qudsi (wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) is important:

“My love and existence is their love.”

In turn, our Prophet’s, peace be upon him, following honorable hadith is also important:

“Being a faqir is my pride. I boast about it.”

The poverty we are talking about here is not the same as lacking worldly, material things [the poverty of not having enough money or possessions]. The real meaning is to leave everything except the zat of Allah the Most High and to take up your needs with Allah the Most High. It is to let go of all of the favors pertaining to dunya and akhira.

The purpose of the state that has been described is to show us the meaning of annihilation in the zat of Allah the Most High. That is, he should have nothing in his nafs for his nafs’ sake, and nothing should have a place in his heart except Hu (Allah; analogous to the third person pronoun “He” or “Him,” except that it implies no gender). How beautifully Allah the Most High expresses this in the following hadith qudsi:

“I do not fit into the heavens and the earth, but I fit into the heart of my believing servant.”

What it means by “believer” (mu’min) here is to clean your heart of human attributes and abolish that foe. When it achieves this, Haqq enlarges that heart and fits His existence in there. The following words of Beyazid al-Bistami ¹ explain the deep meaning of this hadith qudsi very well:

“If the ’Arsh (Throne of Allah) and the ones around it were to be put into a corner of the heart of the one who possesses irfan, he would not even feel its weight.”

The ones who love these beloved servants will be among them on the day of the hereafter. The insignia [or sign] of loving them is making sohbet (fellowship) with them, and it shows deep yearning for Allah the Most High. In a hadith qudsi it is granted that:

“The yearnings of the abrar (good; righteous) increased in Me; I also yearn much for them.”

These great people have three kinds of clothing, which we mentioned in the third section. As for what they do, it can be studied in two ways, one particular to those who are new to this path and the other to those of the middle degree. The deeds of the beginners are a combination of good and bad. The deeds of those of the middle degree are full of goodness. Not only that, they are covered with the outer orders of our religion and they are adorned with spiritual nurs (lights) in their depths. The clothing they wear varies as well. Sometimes it is white, other times a mixture of red and sometimes green.

These are the conditions of the beginners and intermediate ones. The one who has found the last [most advanced] degree has no color or form. He is like the sunlight—the sun has but one color. His light is devoid of color, and his clothing does not accept color. Perhaps the proper color would be aswad (black), which does not accept any hue. This is a sign of the complete attainment of the realm of fana (annihilation; ending; being absorbed). This aswad is a purdah (veil) for his nur of irfan (light of direct knowing), as the night is the veil for the sun. In an honorable ayat (verse of the Qur’an), it is granted:

“We made the night as a garment [cover] and we made the day for sustenance.” (Naba 78:10-11)

There is a sign in this for those who have discovered the essence of aql and ilm.

The ones who are close to Haqq live life as if they are in prison in this world. They feel alienated. Their life is spent in woe and sadness. They live while they endure cruelty, abuse and adversity. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains their condition with the following honorable hadith:

“The world is a prison for the mu’min.”

In this land of torment and cruelty it is suitable to wear black. It is befitting for the travelers of this path to wear black and to put on a black turban. This garment and turban is the proper clothing for bala (calamity; misfortune; trial).

It is more appropriate, however, for the one who loses many of his spiritual abilities to wear black [as a sign of mourning]. Human beings not only can lose the ability to observe and see Haqq, which is particular to this realm, they may also destroy their everlasting life. They extinguish their love and yearning, and become separated from the ruhul quds, the holy spirit. For them, the condition of togetherness and nearness is being lost. For those who are subjected to all of these adversities, the thing to do is to wear the clothing of mourning. This is because they lose their welfare in the hereafter. The woman who has lost her husband has to mourn for four months and ten days. This is a matter of this world. What about the one who loses his well-being in the hereafter? He should mourn forever. What our Prophet, peace be upon him, granted, “The possessors of ikhlas (purity; sincerity) are face to face with a great danger,” fits the conditions of these people beautifully.

What has been described are the characteristics of the group [category] of fuqara who have passed into the realm of fana and lost their existence. This poorness is great. It enhances the human being’s essence with beauty. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants:

“Faqr is a blackened [humbled; incomplete; obscured] face in both worlds.”

What this means is that it [the blackened face] does not accept other colors apart from itself. It only accepts the nur of the divine countenance. Similarly, a [black] beauty mark on the face enhances one’s beauty.

Afterwards, when those people who reach the nearness of Haqq gaze at the Jamal (Beauty) manifestation of Haqq, their eyes do not accept other than Him. They cannot look with love at others. Their beloved then becomes the only thing present—Allah. In both worlds, this is their condition; they find His existence alone as their goal. Now [at last] they have become insan (a human being).

Allah the Most High created insan to know Himself. In this situation what insan needs to do is to perceive the wisdom of his creation and try to find the meaning in its depths. He should know what kind of assignment he must perform in both worlds, so that he will not waste his life in useless endeavor. This is so that he will not feel sorry after death, so that he will not be drowned in endless yearning and will not regret wasting his life.

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Taharat

Taharat means purification [cleanliness]. The cleanliness here is of two kinds. One is outer cleanliness, which is the one mentioned in the outer precepts of religion that are carried out with water. As for the other [purification], it is done through tawba (repentance), talqin (inculcation) received from a great person, and inner purification. In addition, it is necessary to take a spiritual path.

According to the rules of sharia (Islamic canonical law), wudu (ritual ablution) is annulled by the secretion of najas (impurity; filth, e.g., urine or feces). In that event, you must renew your ablution. The following honorable hadiths (traditions or sayings of the Prophet, peace be upon him) concerning the renewal of your ablution are meaningful:

“For whomever renews his wudu, Allah the Most High shines his light of iman (belief).”

“Wudu upon wudu is light upon light.”

After the wudu in the outer is annulled, it is renewed. There are occasions when the spiritual wudu is also broken [annulled]. It is annulled by bad deeds and lowly habits. It is possible to count vanity, bragging, backbiting, gossip and slander among the things that annul the spiritual wudu. In addition, the mistakes that the eyes, hands and feet make can also be counted [as pollutants] in this category. As our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants: “These eyes commit zina (adultery).” The renewal of this [inner] wudu is made by sincere tawba. It is done by quitting all of these troublemaking mistakes. To be sorry [to be in a state of repentance] is attained by asking forgiveness and getting away from bad habits.

For the salat (formal Islamic prayer) of the possessor of irfan (divine knowledge) to be complete, he must protect his tawba against the invasion of the catastrophes counted above. Allah the Most High grants:

“This is promised for those who repent and keep their repentance.” (Qaaf 50:32)

The occasions for outer ablution are determined. They depend on the time of day or night. The duration of inner wudu is as long as life. What is meant by life here is the life of the world and of the hereafter. Thus it is forever. In reality, life after this [worldly one] has no end.

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The Meaning of Salat in Sharia and Tariqa

Salat (formal Islamic prayer) in tariqa (the Sufi path) is understood by the following decree, “Continue with salats, especially middle salat.” (Baqara 2:238)

The goal of salat according to the ordinance of religion is the fundamental principle performed with the outer senses, with corporeal actions. They [the actions] are standing up (qiyam), reciting Qur’an (qira’at), bowing down (ruku’), prostrating (sajda), sitting (qu’ud) and repeating the words by voice. All of these are the actions pertaining to salat. Salat is composed of all of these activities, and because of this it is ordered [by Allah] in the plural as: “Continue with salats.”

The meaning of salat in the realm of tariqa is the heart’s attainment of being in the presence of tranquility forever. [Another meaning is to be in the presence of Allah the Most High.]

The term middle salat mentioned in the above ayat (verse of the Qur’an) is the one that we are about to explain. It is the salat of the heart because the heart is in the very middle of the body. It takes its place among right and left, bottom and top, sa’ada (goodness; happiness) and shaqawa (misery; wretchedness). Among all of these the heart shows a middle position. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, granted:

“The hearts of the children of Adam are between the two fingers of Rahman (The Most Merciful; Allah’s name or attribute Ar-Rahman); He turns them whichever way He wishes.”

As it is derived from the above ayat and honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him), the most important deed is the salat of the heart. If someone making salat keeps his heart unaware of the real salat, his [outer] salat is also fasad [spoiled; corrupted]. When this fasad occurs, the salat-induced tranquility of all of the senses is spoiled. The following honorable hadith backs up our words about this:

“Salat is performed only with the tranquility of the heart.”

This is so because the one who performs salat appeals to his Creator. As for the place of appeal (munaajaa) within the existence of the human body, it is the heart. When the heart is unaware, the spiritual value of the salat that is performed dies. The peace and tranquility (huzur) that the outer senses will receive from the salat disappears. Because the heart is the center, the rest follows it. We understand this from the following honorable hadith:

“There is a piece of flesh in the body of the son of Adam that, when it finds goodness, the whole body is relieved. When it is bad, his whole existence loses its goodness.”

Wake up! That piece of flesh is the heart.

In sharia (Islamic canonical law), salat is done at certain times. It is performed five times throughout each cycle of day and night. It is sunna (according to the way or exemplary actions of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) to perform this salat in a masjid (place of prayer; mosque) with a jama’a (congregation), having the intention to not be ostentatious. You must turn to the qiblah (direction towards Mecca), leave the idea that others see and hear you doing this, and perform the salat in this nature.

The time of the salat of tariqa is infinite. It continues for a whole lifetime. Its masjid is qalb (the heart). As for its jama’a, it is the batini (inner) powers that continue reciting the names of tawhid (unity; oneness) with the inner tongue.

As for the imam (leader of prayers), it is the desire and yearning in the heart. Its qiblah is Hazrat Ahadiya (The Great Uniqueness) and the divine countenance.

The real, true qalb is the one that can perform this salat. A head and ruh (soul; spirit) such as this are always busy with salat. Qalb neither dies nor sleeps. It continues its assignment [asleep or awake]. The salat of qalb happens because of its life. There is no voice, no standing nor sitting there. It talks to Allah the Most High, accepting the Prophet, peace be upon him, as leader with the generous ayat:

“Only You do we worship and only from You do we ask for help.” (Fatiha 1:5)

Al Kadi, when explaining this ayat, says:

“Here there is a sign of the hal (state of being; situation; status) of the possessor of irfan (divine knowledge). He passes into the realm of ahadiya from ghayb (the unseen). Glorified and exalted is He!”

That vast qalb is the addressee for many qudsi (divine; holy) addresses. One of them is such as our master the Prophet, peace be upon him, has granted:

“The prophets and walis (saints; spiritually advanced people; protecting friends [of Allah]) perform salat in their graves as they did in their homes in their worldly life.”

In other words, they supplicate to Allah the Most High in the life of their qalb.

When both kinds of salat come together, it becomes complete and its reward is great. He [the one making salat] lives the realm of nearness in his material [corporeal] situation. The one who prays in this way attains the name abid (worshipper) outwardly and the name arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense) inwardly.

When the salat of sharia does not come together with the salat of tariqa, it is incomplete. Its reward is only the attainment of degrees. It cannot find nearness in the realm of the divine presence.

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Tajrid: The Realm of Detachment and Isolation
and the Purification of Marifa

This purification [or cleansing] is of two kinds. One kind of purification is to possess irfan (divine knowledge; knowledge through marifa, inner knowing or understanding) of the divine sifats (attributes) and the other is the purification for attainment of the realm of zat (essence; person [of Allah]).

The purification for understanding (irfan) can be attained by talqin (inculcation) taken from someone, and by cleaning the mirror of the heart from human and animalistic details through the divine attributes.

It is after this hal (state of being; situation; status) that looking at the great attributes of Allah the Most High by the eye of qalb (the heart) is attained. When this is attained, that eye sees the reflection of the attribute of Jamal (Beauty) in the mirror of the heart. The honorable hadiths (traditions or sayings of the Prophet, peace be upon him) we are about to mention points to what we want to explain:

“The mu’min (believer) sees with the nur (light) of Allah.”

“The mu’min is a mirror to Mu’min (Allah’s name or attribute Al-Mu’min).”

“The alim (person of knowledge; scholar) embroiders; the arif (knower in the spiritual or inner sense) polishes.”

When the purification of the heart is completed by continuous zikr (remembrance) of the divine names, the marifa of the divine names is attained. This attainment depends on an observation in the mirror of the heart.

As for purification for understanding the divine zat, it is necessary to continue doing zikr of the tawhid (unity; oneness) names [of Allah] for its attainment. The tawhid names are three.¹ These are the last three names of what are said to be the twelve divine names. It is necessary [to say these] through the eye of sirr (the secret). Only after this happens is it possible to gaze at the nur of tawhid with the eye of sirr.

When the anwar (plural of nur) of divine zat are manifested, the human qualities melt down [are eradicated]; they are completely embodied in nothingness. This is the maqam (station; spiritual level) of istihlak (extinction; being used up). It is annihilation beyond annihilation [similar to a black hole]. This manifestation annihilates all of the anwar except its own. Allah the Most High relates this to us:

“Everything except His countenance will perish.” (Qasas 28:88)

Allah grants again:

“Allah the Most High effaces what he desires and establishes firmly what he wants and with Him is the Ummul Kitaab (Mother Book; Main Book).” (Ra’d 13:39)

After this hal, what is left is the ruhul quds (holy spirit). It gazes with Allah’s nur. It looks at Him, looks from Him, looks with Him and looks for Him. In these gazings, there is no form or comparison [relativeness]. In an honorable ayat (verse of the Qur’an), it is granted:

“There is none like Him.” (Shura 42:11)

After all of this, there is only a pure and absolute nur left, beyond which cannot be described. That is because it is the realm of extinction. The aql (intelligence; mind; the power of understanding and discrimination) cannot have the means to relate anything about it. There is no intimate besides Allah the Most High. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, tells us about his hal as:

“There comes a time with Allah the Most High and me such that no prophet, messenger or angel can enter there.”

This is the realm of tajrid (seclusion; separation). You shed everything except the zat of Allah, and the end of this is wuslat (union with the Beloved, Allah).

“Do tajarrud (get into seclusion) and find unity.”

The above hadith qudsi (holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) points to this meaning. What is meant by tajrid here is to attain complete annihilation of human qualities. It is to take up the divine attributes in your own realm [to cover yourself with divine attributes]. What our Prophet, peace be upon him, says: “Adorn yourself with divine manners” means: “Enwrap yourself with divine attributes.”

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Zakat

There is zakat (alms; poor-due) in sharia (Islamic canonical law) and there is zakat in tariqa (the Sufi path). According to the laws of sharia, a certain percentage of your worldly income is given to the needy.

As for zakat in tariqa, it is given from the earnings for akhira (the hereafter) and is distributed to the poor and needy of akhira. Zakat at the same time means sadaqa (charity). Allah the Most High has revealed this:

“Charity [offering] is the right of the poor.” (Tawba 9:60)

The charity given touches the hand of Allah the Most High even before it reaches the poor. What is meant by this is that it is accepted by Allah the Most High.

Now then, these great personalities donate the reward of their good deeds to Allah’s rebellious servants. Allah the Most High, on the other hand, manifests His forgiving attribute in proportion to their acts of salat (formal Islamic prayer), hajj (pilgrimage), tasbih (personal Sufi practice of zikr [remembrance of Allah]) and tahlil (declaration of unity). He covers their evil self [egotism, vanity and such].

Their generosity goes to such extremes that no existence belonging to them remains. They will have [expect] no reward or [admit to any] good deed. The person who enters into this path will have no existence of his own remaining. He lives a hal (state of being; situation; status) of bankruptcy (muflis). Allah the Most High is generous. He loves the generous. He loves the one who is bankrupted through generosity. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explained this as:

“The muflis is in the trust of Allah in both worlds.”

Here let us mention a dua (prayer of supplication) recited by Rabia Adawiya. ¹ She used to supplicate thus:

“O Allah, give my worldly share to the unbelievers. If I have any share in the hereafter, distribute it among Your mu’min (believing) servants. I only wish to make zikr of You in the world, and only to see You in the hereafter.”

Because the servant and whatever he is holding in his hand is temporary, they all together belong to the Master. On Judgment Day, every good deed will bring a tenfold reward. Allah the Most High reveals this as:

“Whoever brings a good deed will get a tenfold reward for it.” (An’Am 6:160)

Another meaning of zakat is the cleansing of nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). When the nafs is cleared of selfish, egotistical attributes, zakat finds its spiritual value.

A little worldly possession given in this world brings a manifold reward in the hereafter. This generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an) relays such a meaning:

“Who would give Allah [the Most High] a handsome loan so that He may give him a manifold reward?” (Hadid 57:11)

“Whoever purifies his nafs finds salvation.” (Shams 91:9)

The loan mentioned in the above generous ayat means the distribution of part of your worldly gains among some servants of Allah the Most High for the sake of goodness. In this distribution, only Allah the Most High’s beautiful countenance should be kept in mind and material gains should not be sought. Any goodness done or given for Allah the Most High’s servants must be given with compassion; it must not be done to make them indebted to you. Allah the Most High revealed this to us as:

“Do not render your charity null with reproach and abuse [to the one who receives it].” (Baqara 2:264)

Human beings should not request the benefits of worldly things for their good deeds. Another name for this is “infaq” (to spend one’s substance in alms or other good works; supporting others). The following generous ayat tells us why and how this is given:

“Unless you spend of that which you love, you will not be able to attain piety.” (Aali ’Imran 3:92)

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Fasting in Sharia and Tariqa

Fasting (sawm) in sharia (Islamic canonical law) is abstaining from eating, drinking and sexual intercourse.

The fasting of tariqa (the Sufi path) is to protect all of the senses, day and night, from all haram (forbidden) things or actions. It is to leave those things that are bad and unreasonable in the batin (inner) as well as in the zahir (outer). If one of the actions mentioned above occurs, the fasting is nullified. The fasting of sharia is temporary, but the fasting of tariqa continues for a lifetime. This is the real fasting, because our Prophet, peace be upon him, in one of his honorable hadiths (traditions or sayings) grants us:

“There are many people who fast, but they only attain hunger and thirst and nothing else.”

Therefore, many people who fast do iftar (breaking the fast at the end of the day) while others doing iftar are still fasting. In other words, they protect their senses from sliding into evil. They do not give aza (abuse) to other people with their hands or tongues. It is this kind of fasting that Allah the Most High describes thus: “Fasting is for Me; I will personally reward it.” Our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants the following for those who fast this greater kind of fasting:

“The one who is fasting has two joys: one at the time of iftar, the other at the time of sight [the time of seeing Allah the Most High in the hereafter].”

May Allah the Exalted grant us this kind of fasting and this kind of joy. Amin (Amen).

The people of sharia, when explaining this honorable hadith, say that what is meant by iftar is starting to eat when sun sets, and what is meant by seeing is seeing the crescent of the new moon at the beginning of the next month when eid (the holy days of celebration) begins.

The people of tariqa say that what is meant by iftar is entering paradise to eat the food bestowed there. May Allah the Most High give this to us all. Furthermore, [for these people] what is meant by seeing is gazing upon Allah the Most High openly with the eye of sirr (the secret). May Allah the Most High grant this seeing with His grace and generosity.

Apart from these types of fasting there are others called the fasts of haqiqa (reality; truth). That kind of fast is to not let the heart worship any other than Allah the Most High. It is, in the realm of sirr, not to observe any other love but His. This is because the human being is created for Him. He relates this to us as:

“The human being is My sirr and I am his.”

Sirr is a light of Allah the Most High; it does not allow inclination to any other than Him. Therefore, there cannot be a beloved other than Allah the Most High, there cannot be fondness for anyone else, and there cannot be anyone else to be wanted in this world or in the next.

When other than love for Allah the Most High enters qalb (the heart), the fasting of haqiqa is nullified; you must do it anew. You must renew your wish to attain His love in this world and in the next, because Allah the Most High decreed:

“Fasting is for Me; I will personally reward it.”

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Hajj: Pilgrimage in Sharia and Tariqa

In sharia (Islamic canonical law), hajj (pilgrimage) is visiting the bayt (house; the holy house of Allah in Mecca known as the Kaaba) in performance of the requirements. When the requirements are completed, you receive the reward (sawwab or thawwab). If one of the requirements is not met, the reward is nullified, because Allah the Most High wants all of the requirements completed.

“Complete the hajj and umra (visiting the Kaaba during a time other than the required month for hajj) for Allah.” (Baqara 2:196)

We can state the requirements of hajj as:

Ihram (the seamless garment worn by pilgrims during hajj)

Entering Mecca

Tawwaf al Qudum (perambulating around the Kaaba on arrival)

Standing at Arafat (the holy mountain) [all day until sunset]

Staying overnight in Muzdalifa (stopping point situated on the plain between Mina and Arafat)

Making a sacrifice (adha) at Mina

Entering the Sacred Place (Al Haram)

Again circling around the Kaaba seven times (tawwaf)

Drinking water from Zamzam (the well of Mecca)

Praying two rak’at of prayer at the Maqam (place of Abraham, peace be upon him)

After performing these, whatever Allah the Most High forbade during hajj becomes lawful (halal). The reward for performing hajj this way is protection from going to jahannam (hell). Allah the Most High has granted:

“And whoever enters there is safe.” (Aali ’Imran 3:97)

One more tawwaf is done after all of the requirements are counted, and then you return home. May Allah the Most High grant this to you and to us.

As for the hajj in tariqa (the Sufi path), ¹ there are preparations for the journey as well as necessary provisions and equipment. The first preparation is to be inclined toward a person of talqin (inculcation) and to get something [what is necessary] from him. The next task is doing zikr (remembrance [of Allah]) with the tongue, thinking of its meaning. What we mean by this zikr is the sentence, “La ilaha illa ‘llah.” After this, the heart springs to life. Remembering Allah the Most High within starts [and continues] until the inner realm finds its purity.

After attaining this purity, in order for the anwar (lights; plural of nur) of the attributes of Jamal (Beauty) and the Kaaba of sirr (the secret) to be seen, it is necessary to continue with the names (asma) of the attributes [of Allah]. This purification or cleansing job was enjoined upon the prophets Abraham and Ishmael, peace be upon them, with the following ayat (verse of the Qur’an):

“Clean my house for visitors.” (Hajj 22:26)

The Kaaba in the outer realm needs to be cleaned for those servants who would visit it. The Kaaba in the inner realm also needs to be kept clean for the observation of Haqq (The True). The performance of this cleansing is fitting for the human being and such a proper thing to do. It is superior to [all] other purifications.

After this, with the light of ruhul quds (the holy spirit), it is necessary to get into the ihram. Then one enters the Kaaba of the heart. Later, the tawaf of qudum is made as you continue to recite the second name, “Allah the Most High.” ² After this you go to the Arafat of qalb (the heart), which is the place of supplication (munaajaa). There you do qiyam (standing) with the third name, “Hu” (Allah; analogous to the third person pronoun “He” or “Him,” except that it implies no gender). The fourth name, “Haqq” (The True), also needs to be continuously recited. Then you connect between the fifth name, “Hayy” (The Alive One), and the sixth name, “Qayyum” (The Eternal Caretaker) and proceed to the Muzdalifa of fuad (the eye of the heart; the heart as the center of perception). After this you go to the secret mind between the two sanctuaries. You do qiyam there and sacrifice nafs-i mutmaina (the tranquil nafs, the fourth level of tasawwuf) by reciting the seventh name, “Qahhar” (The Subduer or Destroyer). The name “Qahhar” opens the door to nothingness and lifts the veils of kufr (unbelief). The following honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him) explains this condition very well:

“Iman (belief) and kufr each possess a maqam (station) on the other side of the ’Arsh (The Throne of Allah), and each of these constitutes a veil between the servant and the Lord. One is black and the other white.”

After this, the head of ruhul quds is barbered [shaven completely]. Here the eighth name, “Wahhab” (The Giver, Bestower), is recited. Then one enters the haram of sirr (the secluded, secret place) and here the ninth name, “Fattah” (The Opener), is recited. Then one enters the land of Akif (devoted; intently focused; the land of Akif is the place where devotion is confirmed) and i’tikaf (seclusion) is begun on the carpet of nearness and intimacy. Here is continued the recital of the tenth name, “Wahid” (The One). After this, the manifestation of the attribute Samad (The Receiver of Requests) is glimpsed with no shape or form. Then the tawwaf begins. It is done seven times. It is continued here with the recitation of the six teferruat ([Turkish] details) names ³ and the eleventh name, “Ahad” (The Unique). After this, the drink of the honor of nearness is partaken of. This drink is described by the following ayat:

“Their Lord gave them a pure and clean drink.” (Insan 76:21)

Here the cup is the twelfth name, “Samad.” After this, the veils are removed from the Everlasting Countenance. You gaze at Him with His own Light. There is no shape or likeness in this realm.

“Neither an eye has seen that realm, nor has an ear heard it or a human heart even remembered [that realm].” (Hadith Qudsi)

Communication with Allah is not brought about by letters or voice. The pleasure that the human heart cannot fine-tune is the pleasure at the time of seeing Allah the Most High; this is His address to you.

After this, the bad deeds turn into good, the ones that are haram (forbidden) during hajj become halal. These things take place through the recitation of the attribute of tawhid (unity; oneness). Allah the Most High grants:

“Except for those who repent and believe and do good; Allah the Most High will convert their evil deeds into good deeds.” (Furqan 25:70)

Then relief from doing deeds on behalf of nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) takes place; fear and grief vanish.

“Beware there is no fear or grief for the awliyaullah (saints; protecting friends of Allah; plural of waliullah).” (Yunus 10:62)

The above generous ayat points to this meaning: May Allah the Most High grant this hajj to all of us with His grace and generosity.

After this tawwaf has begun, it is completed with the repetition of all of the divine names, and the return to the homeland begins. This homeland is in the realm of quds (sacredness) and ahsan-i taqwim (the state of the best possible construction or creation). This job is done with the continuous recital of the twelfth name, which has a relation to the alem-i yaqin (realm of certainty).

These deeper explanations can only be made according to the capacity of the mind and the language or tongue. [In other words, the inadequate capacity of our mind and tongue could limit the explanations.] It is not possible to relate that which is beyond, because your mind and your intelligence cannot comprehend it. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants us:

“There are certain ilms (types of knowledge) that are like hidden treasures. No one except the ones who are familiar with the divine ilms knows them.”

When these ilms are mentioned, people of greatness do not deny them. The possessor of irfan (divine knowledge; knowledge through marifa) draws from the depths; the possessor of ilm takes from the surface. The knowledge of the person of irfan is the [hidden] secret of Allah the Most High. No one else knows what he knows. In a generous ayat it is granted:

“They cannot receive from this treasure of knowledge more than what He allows.” (Baqara 2:255)

The ones who get this are the anbiya (prophets; plural of nabi) and awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali). He grants again:

“He knows the sirr (secret) and akhfa (most hidden).” (Ta Ha 20:7)

He grants again:

“There is no other God but Him.” (Baqara 2:255)

He grants again:

“All Beautiful Names belong to Him.” (Ta Ha 20:8)

Allah knows best.

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Wajd and Safa: Ecstasy and Spiritual Enjoyment

On this subject there are generous ayats (verses of the Qur’an) and honorable hadiths (traditions or sayings of the Prophet, peace be upon him). Furthermore, many walis (saints; spiritually advanced people; protecting friends [of Allah]) said good words about this subject. Generous ayats:

“They revere their Lord, they get goose bumps, and their skins and hearts soften to the zikr (remembrance) of Allah.” (Zumar 39:23)

“When Allah expands the breast of a person, he follows the nur (light) from His Lord. Woe on those whose hearts are hardened against the zikr of Allah.” (Zumar 39:22)

Honorable hadiths:

“A jazba (appeal; enticement) that comes from Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) is equal to all the work of both worlds.”

“The one who does not experience wajd (ecstasy) has no life.”

Hz. Junayd ¹ says:

“When wajd in the inner realm meets divine manifestation (tajalli), the person is either in joy or in sadness.”

Wajd is of two kinds: jismani (corporeal) or ruhani (spiritual). Corporeal wajd comes from nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). It does not give you spiritual pleasure. It happens through the effect of the material senses. Those actions performed so that others see or hear them are the products of this kind of wajd, because there is irada (personal will) in them; the sense of being able to choose is not given up. Inclining towards these situations is not recommended.

As for the spiritual wajd, it presents a different situation. It takes place because of the overflow of true spiritual energy. This situation (hal) takes place mostly during a beautiful recitation or recording of a poem or during zikr. At this time the body has no power. The power of personal will and the ability to choose melts away. This kind of wajd is totally spiritual. It is good to go along with this wajd. Allah the Most High granted the following in relation to this:

“Give good tidings to my servants who hear the word and put its beauty into action.” (Zumar 39:17-18)

The sighing of lovers and the sweet voices of birds are always considered among the things that activate spiritual energy. For this and similar kinds of wajds there is no portion for nafs and Shaytan (Satan).

Shaytan performs the deeds of nafs in the dark. He holds no sway in the realm of the nur of mercy. In the realm of mercy, Shaytan melts like salt melts in water. Likewise, when “La hawla wa la quwwata illa billahil Aliyyil Azim” (“There is no power or strength in any other than Allah the Great”) is recited, again Shaytan disintegrates. In a generous hadith, it is told:

“The reciting of ayats and poems of love with wisdom and wistful voices [singing] give ruh the power of nur.”

What needs to be done is to join nur with Nur (Allah’s attribute of Light, An-Nur), in other words, to bring ruh [to be one] with that Nur. Allah the Most High, meaning this, says:

“Good women are for good men.” (Nur 24:26)

If the wajd that you feel originates from Shaytan or nafs, there is no nur there; there is only disbelief and confusion. Darkness belongs to darkness, in other words, to nafs. The ayat, “Bad is for bad [bad women are for bad men and bad men are for bad women]” (Nur 24:26) explains this.

Responsive actions due to wajd are two kinds. One is from the will of the person; the other is beyond his will or choice. The one called voluntary disposition is to act as if one is in wajd without having pain, ache or sickness in the body [i.e., without any physical symptoms of it]. This is not proper. Involuntary responsive actions happen with the effect of spiritual power. A person does not come to this hal by his own by will. The action of [the true] wajd, which is considered spiritual, overrides the outer senses. It is like the heat or fever that malaria causes. When that fever rises, it is not easy for one to bear it. The actions [movements] that occur at that time are beyond one’s will. The hal of wajd is a result of overpowering spiritual power. It is considered real and spiritual.

Wajd and sama’ (hearing; listening; known as the Sufi ritual of turning during zikr) are two tools that excite the hearts of the lovers and possessors of irfan (divine knowledge; knowledge through marifa). At the same time, they are the nourishment of lovers and the source of strength for those who are looking for Haqq. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, says in an honorable hadith:

“Sama’ is fardz (compulsory) for one group, sunna (following the way or exemplary actions of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) for another group and bid’a (religious innovation) for yet another group.”

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, in another honorable hadith grants:

“Whoever does not enjoy sama’ and the poetry recited in it, [the season of] spring and its flowers, or the ud (lute) and its vibrating sounds, has something wrong with his temperament.”

There is no medicine for the sick one described in this honorable hadith. He is lower than all of the animals, lower even than a donkey, because almost all animals enjoy beautiful tunes. When Prophet Daud (David), peace be upon him, sang, all of the birds lined up around him; they wanted to hear his beautiful voice. The following honorable hadith points out the importance of the hal of wajd:

“Whoever does not have wajd has no safa (pleasure) in religion.”

The hal of wajd is of ten varieties. Some are in the open—the signs are seen in outer actions. Some are hidden—they cannot be seen from the outside. The secret zikr of Allah the Most High and the secret recitation of Qur’an from qalb (the heart) can be given as examples of this.

Crying, feeling sadness, fear, melancholy, to feel bad for wasted time when Allah the Most High is mentioned, blushing or turning pale due to inner or outer conditions, wanting Allah the Most High, yearning for Him, feeling warmth in the body, and the states such as sadness and sickness that occur as a result of these are considered wajd.

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Al Khalwa and Al Uzla: Seclusion and Isolation

Both khalwa (seclusion) and uzla (isolation) are viewed from two perspectives: zahir (outer) and batin (inner). The outer meaning of the hal (state of being; situation; status) of khalwa is this: one imprisons himself in a place for the purpose of taking his nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) away from what it is used to, for the opening of the spiritual senses, to abstain from abusing people by his unruly habits, and for living apart from other people.

When he is undergoing this, he needs to have good intentions; by his own will he enters a state similar to that of being in the grave. The goal must be the goodwill of Allah. In his heart he must hold the wish of keeping the troubles that may come from his nafs away from his Muslim and mu’min (believing) brothers and sisters. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, explains this in one of his honorable hadiths (traditions or sayings):

“A Muslim is the one from whose hand and tongue the Muslim community is safe.”

Likewise, he should keep his tongue away from useless speech. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, tells us about this with the following honorable hadith:

“One’s peace is attained by his tongue. Likewise, his degradation is through his tongue.”

The person who possesses iman (belief) must protect his eyes from looking at what is haram (forbidden). He should not look at anything with evil intentions. He must protect his feet from stepping into evil. He must not let his ears hear evil. The fact that the senses can sin is revealed by the following honorable hadith of our Prophet:

“The eyes commit adultery.”

As a result of one of the senses sinning, on Judgment Day a bad person of dark forces is brought out from it. He will bear witness against it [the offending sense] in the presence of Allah. Then Allah the Most High will throw that person into hell and punish him. For those who repent for these deeds, Allah the Most High grants:

“Whoever keeps his nafs from evil desires, verily his place will be janna (paradise).” (Naazi’aat 79:40-41)

That gruesome-faced creation, after tawba (repentance), becomes a beautiful youth; he becomes one of the servants in paradise. The person [who has repented] is saved from the evil of this bad creation. There, the khalwa becomes a kind of fort that protects against mistakes; the deeds of the person who undergoes uzla remain proper; he becomes a pure servant. The following generous ayat (verse of the Qur’an) is so meaningful:

“Whoever wishes to meet his Lord, let him do good deeds and let him not attribute partners in the worship of his Lord.” (Kahf 18:110)

What has been described up to here is the outer meaning of the state of khalwa. It also has a batini (inner) meaning. The batini khalwa is possible by not letting any idea related to nafs or Shaytan (Satan) into the heart; by not putting deeds like eating, drinking or dressing into there; by keeping love for children, family, pets and [anything] that you have away from there.

Also, no deed should be done in order for others to see and hear it. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants in one of his honorable hadiths:

“Fame and what it brings are disaster. Leaving fame, running away from fame and what it brings are comfort [peace].”

The person who wishes to do batini khalwa with his free will should not put vanity, pride, egotism, revenge, indifference, backbiting, jealousy, abuse, anger and such into his heart. If one of these bad habits gets into the heart of the one who has chosen the state of khalwa, the state of khalwa will be tainted; his heart will be soiled. In addition, the goodness in his heart loses its purity; no goodness will be left in that heart. This fact is explained better with the ayat:

“Allah does not turn the deeds of the corrupt into good.” (Yunus 10:81)

Although the action may seem to be good outwardly, the one who does one of the mistakes counted above will be considered among the corrupters. The honorable hadiths that we will mention below are so beautiful:

“Bragging and vanity pollute iman.”

“Ghayba (backbiting) is worse than zina (adultery).”

“As fire burns and uses up wood, to begrudge also eats up the good deeds done.”

“Fitna (troublemaking; discord; divisiveness) is sleeping, May Allah damn the one who wakes it.”

“The stingy one cannot get into paradise even if he is an abid (worshipper).”

“Lying is hidden shirk (attributing partners to Allah).”

“Slanderers cannot enter paradise.”

There are many more honorable hadiths about bad habits and traits; we will contend with these only. This is the realm of caution. We need to be cautious and meticulous.

The first goal of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism) is to attain the purity of the heart; it is to throw out the unruly, empty desires of nafs. If one tames his nafs with khalwa, riyaza (diet), silence, and zikr (remembrance [of Allah]), Allah will submerge his heart, ilm (knowledge) and amal (deed) into nur (light). [In doing these practices, no one should be his own teacher.]

He must start the work with enthusiasm and have purity and sincere belief. He must follow the path that is pointed out by sages of the past, the ashab (companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him) and the ones who follow them, and the ones who act with what they know. When the believer, within the conditions we have mentioned, takes the path of tawba (repentance) and talqin (inculcation [by a shaykh or appointed Sufi teacher]) and purifies his heart, Allah the Most High relieves him of bad influences, his skin becomes latif (subtle), and the outer and inner senses become clean. The deeds he does ascend to the presence of the Divine Greatness and are accepted.

“Allah hears the one who praises Him.”

The above sentence points to the meaning that we are trying to explain. In explanation of this sentence it is said: “Allah accepted his request; He heard his praise; He gave him what he asked for.” The following ayat is so meaningful:

“Good words ascend to Him; Good deeds reach Him.” (Fatir 35:10)

What “good words” means is to protect your tongue from saying idle words, because the tongue is a tool for zikr of Allah; it is used to proclaim His Oneness.

“Prosperous are the believers, who do their worship with awe and who turn away from idle talk.” (Mu’minun 23:1-3)

These ayats are so valuable. Allah the Most High enriches the knowledge attained by good intention, the acting upon it, and the doer with His mercy. He gives him His nearness and increases him in degrees. He is happy with him and forgives him.

If the degrees that are mentioned are present in a person, that person’s heart is like the sea; it doesn’t change color with the slight abuse by human beings. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants in one of his honorable hadiths:

“Be like the sea, whose shape and state are not altered but where the ground troops of your nafs die.”

Pharaoh and his troops were also drowned. After all these states have been attained, the ship of sharia (Islamic canonical law) appears and sails safely in that great sea. And its holy ruh (spirit; soul) swims in its depths, finds the pearl of haqiqa (reality; truth), and from there reveals the pearl of marifa (inner knowing or understanding; gnosis). It reveals the coral of lataif (subtleties; exquisite finenesses; plural of latif). Allah the Most High grants us:

“From there come pearls and coral.” (Rahman 55:22)

In order for such a sea to be present in someone, the outer and inner states we have described must unite. When this state is complete, there will be no fasad (duplicity; corruption) in that heart. The tawba of a person who has found this state is complete. His knowledge is fruitful. His deeds will be useful. He will not have any tendency for evil left. If he errs or forgets, it is forgiven. Actually, in these situations, he asks forgiveness and feels sorry. He is in a state of complete nearness.

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Awrad Khalwati: The Litanies of the Path of Khalwa

Translator’s Comment:

In this chapter, Abdul Qadir Geylani lists the prayers and recitations said during khalwa (ritual seclusion). Since khalwa should be engaged in under the guidance of a shaykh or shaykha who prescribes practices particular to each student, the chapter will not be translated here.

— Shaykh Taner Ansari

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Dreams

The dreams you have while falling asleep or when you are in a deep sleep are not only real, but also beneficial. The following ayat (verse of the Qur’an) reveals that dreams are real:

“Allah the Most High, in truth, supported his Prophet with dreams. With Allah’s permission you will enter the Masjid il Haram (Sacred Mosque) safely.” (Fath 48:27)

The following ayat related through the tongue of Yusuf (Prophet Joseph), peace be upon him, is also important:

“I saw in my dream eleven stars…” (Yusuf 12:4)

Also, this honorable hadith (tradition or saying) granted by our Prophet, peace be upon him, is important:

“There is no prophethood after me; there will only be good tidings. The believers will either see these tidings in their dreams or they will be shown to them.”

The following generous ayat supports this honorable hadith:

“For them there are good tidings in the life of this world and in the hereafter.” (Yunus 10:64)

Furthermore, the following hadith granted by our Prophet, peace be upon him, confirms that dreams are real:

“Whoever sees me in his dream has indeed seen me, because Shaytan (Satan) cannot get into my shape.”

This means that Shaytan cannot represent those who follow him [Muhammad, peace be upon him] through the nur (light) of sharia (Islamic canonical law), tariqa (the Sufi path), and marifa (inner knowing or understanding; gnosis), and with the nur of haqiqa (reality; truth) and basira (open sight; acute discernment and perception).

The author of Mazhar [a book extant during the time of the author] says that this state [Shaytan’s condition] refers not only to the Prophet, peace be upon him. It cannot assume the shape of any being that is the manifestation of mercy, compassion, grace and guidance. All of the prophets, awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali), angels, the Kaaba (Allah’s sanctuary in Mecca), the sun, the moon, white clouds and the Qur’an are sacred entities that Shaytan cannot represent. This is because Shaytan is the place for the manifestation of Allah the Most High’s quality of qahr (to overpower, from Allah’s name or attribute Al-Qahhar [The Destroyer]). It can only represent confusion. If someone is a manifestation of Al-Hadi (The Guide), how can the opposite name Al-Mudhill (The Humiliator) represent him? No name can represent its opposite. We can give water and fire as an example here. As water cannot take the form of fire, fire cannot take the form of water. There is difference, repulsion and distance between them. Thus, Allah the Most High wants to separate the truth from falsity. In a generous ayat, it is granted:

“Thus Allah the Most High reveals [explains the true and false] by giving examples.”(Raad 13:17)

Shaytan’s representation of the attribute of Lordship and his coming out with a claim to this end comes from Allah the Most High. This is because Allah the Most High has the attributes of Jalal (Power) and Jamal (Beauty). Shaytan can only be seen with the attribute of Jalal because he is the manifestation of the attribute of qahr. Because of this, he claims the station of Lordship. This claim comes from the name Mudhill, as we have explained above. He cannot represent any name that contains traces of hidaya (guidance).

There is a lot to say here; it will take a long time if we get into details. There is a sign in the phrase “the ones who follow me” in the following ayat that is uttered through the mouth of our Prophet, peace be upon him:

“I and the ones who follow me are with the certainty of sight” (Yusuf 12:108)

This explains [reveals] and points to the mature murshid (enlightener; one who guides; a mature shaykh or Sufi teacher) who is the complete heir of the Prophet, peace be upon him. What he [Muhammad, peace be upon him] means is that “after me, the teaching [enlightening] is done by a person who possesses my inner insight.” What is meant here is one who possesses the complete state of wilaya (protecting friend-hood; sainthood; being a wali). The ayat, “A murshid who is a wali…” (Kahf 18:17), points to the same thing.

Dreams are of two kinds: anfusi (from the nafs), and afaki.¹ Anfusi dreams: These dreams originate from either good characters or bad characters. Good characters or habits are seen in the form of Janna (Paradise), the favors found in it, houris (pure companions; heavenly virgins), beautiful buildings, fields lighted in white, the sun, the moon, stars and such. All of these are related to the attributes of the heart. Some are the pleasures of the nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) defined as mutmaina (contented), and these are mainly animals and birds that can be eaten. This is because the favors for the nafs in Janna will be of this kind.

Many of the animals seen in dreams have come from Janna, for example, the bull that was sent to Adam, peace be upon him, for his use in farming. The camel also came from Janna and the horse, likewise, came from Janna, to be used for the greater and the lesser jihad (struggle; striving). All of these entities belong to the other world. In an honorable hadith, it is granted:

“The sheep is created from the honey of paradise, the camel from the nur, the cow from its saffron, and the horse from its basil.”

The mule is at the lowest level of the attribute of mutmaina. If somebody sees a mule in his dream, we understand that he is lazy in worship, that he favors his nafs and whatever he does is fruitless. Only if he repents and does good deeds will his actions be rewarded.

The donkey is made from the stone of paradise. It is created for the good of the descendants of Adam, peace be upon him. As long as it is in this world, it is a means to carry the deeds for the hereafter.

Talking to the ruh (spirit; soul) in a dream, as if you are talking to a beautiful youth, points to attaining the divine manifestation. This is because those who attain the nur of divine manifestation and enter paradise are [adorned] with such a beautiful form. In defining them, our Prophet, peace be upon him, says:

“They are of beautiful figure and with kohl on their eyelashes.”

Then again, our Prophet, peace be upon him, grants:

“I saw my Lord in the shape of a youth.”

Some sages describe this manifestation as Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) the Most High manifesting Himself in the mirror of ruh with the attribute of Rububiyat (Lordship). This is called tifl-i maani (child of the spirit or heart; spiritual child), because the body [material form] is the mirror of the teacher [educator, trainer]. At the same time, it is the means between him and his Lord. Hz. Ali says:

“If it were not for my upbringing [training] by my Lord, I could not have the sense of understanding of Him.”

For the fostering of spiritual upbringing [education] in someone, it is necessary to be connected to a teacher [trainer] in the outer world and to get inculcation from him. These are murshids (enlighteners; ones who guide; mature shaykhs), murabbis (trainers), nabis [or anbiya, plural of nabi (prophet)] and walis [or awliya, plural of wali (saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend)]. The lamp of qalb (the heart) and body starts burning [lighting up, glowing] when his education is attained. A distinct ruh is received from them. In a generous ayat it is granted:

“Allah the Most High sends ruh with his command on whom He will of his servants.” (Mu’min 40:15)

Therefore, it is necessary to look for a murshid for the inculcation of this ruh, through which the heart finds health. Imam al-Ghazali ² says:

“It is acceptable to see Allah the Most High as a beautiful form, with this deeper explanation.”

He again says:

“An entity that has been seen [in a dream] Allah the Most High creates as a symbol, according to the ability of the seer. That thing that is seen is not, in truth, Allah the Most High, because He is beyond being seen in this form. Seeing our Prophet, peace be upon him, happens in the same way. His being seen also occurs in different ways and forms; all of them are in accord with his [the dreamer’s] ability and state. In reality no one can see Hazrati Muhammad, peace be upon him, except the one who is a complete heir to him in ilm (knowledge), amal (deed; action), and hal (state of being; situation; status). These people can see him because this group is heir (warith) to him in every respect.”

In Sahih Muslim’s text [a voluminous and authoritative collection of hadiths] it is said, “It is acceptable if Allah the Most High is seen in dreams in a human or nurani (of light) form.” Likewise, He can manifest [Himself] in every attribute. He had manifested [Himself] to Moses, peace be upon him, as the attribute of speech in the form of fire through the jujube tree. At that time of manifestation, the speech attribute said to Prophet Moses, peace be upon him:

“What is in your hand O, Musa [Moses]?” (Ta Ha 20:17)

What was seen by Moses, peace be upon him, in the form of fire was actually nur (light). Why it was seen as fire was because of his understanding and his request, because he set out to find fire. For human beings, there cannot be a lower level than that of a tree. In that case, will it be a wonder if Haqq the Most High manifests [Himself] through one of his attributes of true existence to someone who has attained complete inner cleanliness? This is because this insan (human being), after doing purification, has left animalistic attributes and has become a real human being (insan-i kamil).

Some [similar] manifestations have happened to many walis who have found this state. One of these people is Beyazid al-Bistami, ³ may Allah have mercy on him. At the time of manifestation he was heard to say:

“My essence is Great, so Glorious is My name.”

On the other hand, Junayd al-Baghdadi ⁴ said:

“Under my cloak there is no one but Allah the Most High.”

There is much finesse [intricacy, detail] in this maqam (station; spiritual level). The particulars cannot be given here; it would take a long time if we set about to do so. Those fine points are of special interest to the people of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism). It is necessary to go through training, education and preparation in order for either divine manifestation or communication with the spirituality of our Prophet, peace be upon him, to occur. The one who has just begun the journey in this path cannot establish contact [communication] or relation with either Allah the Most High or our Prophet, peace be upon him, on his own. For this reason, the first thing that comes to mind is for him to be educated, trained and prepared by a wali, because there is a physical [personal, not corporeal] relationship between them.

If our Prophet, peace be upon him, were in this world in his body, that which is necessary could have been taken from him and we would not have needed anyone else. After he crossed to the other world, he went into the realm of isolation; contact cannot be established with him directly. The walis assigned for irshad (guidance toward the goal of spiritual enlightenment) are in a similar situation. When they also leave and move away from this world, direct enlightenment by them is not accessible to the seeker. If you are one of the people of understanding, understand it; if not, look for this understanding.

In order to overcome the dark state of your nafs with light, you must be intent on finding that understanding through ascetic discipline. This is because understanding is attained by light, not with its opposite [darkness]; nur comes to a neat and clean place; it falls into an honorable place. The beginner, because he cannot find this state on his own, definitely needs a wali.

The wali who is living has a connection with our Prophet, peace be upon him, in every respect. He directs the heritage and the maqam of irshad as long as he lives. There comes the help of guidance and servitude to him from the Prophet, peace be upon him. With this help he carries on the path of tasawwuf among people; understand this.

After this is such a deep secret that only the people [of enlightenment] can grasp it. The following ayat refers to this secret:

“Might and glory belong to Allah the Most High, and to his Messenger and the believers (mu’mins).” (Munafiqun 63:8)

The education and training of the ruhs is an entire job of its own. The place for ruhu ruhani (the ruh of ruhs) is qalb, ruhu sultani (the royal soul) is fuad (the heart as the center of perception) and ruhul quds is in the sirr (secret; hidden). Sirr is the means between Haqq and the servant. It acts as a translator of Haqq to creation [it interprets Haqq to khalq (the creation; the people)]. This ruh is related to the zat (essence; person) of Allah the Most High and plays the role of being His confidant.

As for the dreams due to bad habits, they show the attributes of the ammara and lawwama levels of nafs (the first two of the seven levels of nafs in tasawwuf). The ones who carry these attributes [qualities] often see wild animals, for example, lions, tigers, wolves, bears, dogs, pigs, rabbits, foxes, cats, snakes and scorpions.

Let us explain some of the qualities these animals represent:

Tiger: It shows vanity and pride. It means that the person [dreaming of it] is trying to show pride and superiority against Allah the Most High.

Allah the Most High explains to us about people who carry this quality:

“Those people who denied our ayats (portents) and cast pride against them, [for them] the gates of the heavens will not be opened. They cannot enter paradise until the camel passes through the eye of the needle.” (A’raf 7:40)

Those who cast pride against human beings also meet the same punishment.

Lion: It shows boastfulness and vanity against the people.

Bear: It represents rage; it signifies tyranny against the people under your control.

Wolf: It shows consumption without investigating if the things are halal (lawful) or haram (forbidden).

Dog: It relates to the love for dunya (the material world) and because of it, to abuse and wrath.

Pig: It is evidence of envy, revenge and passion; it shows being fond of lust.

Rabbit: It shows trickery and cheating in doing worldly business.

Fox: It is the same as the rabbit, with less naïveté than in the rabbit.

Leopard: It is evidence for ignorant zeal or undertaking and it is a sign of wanting to be in charge.

Cat: It represents stinginess and troublemaking.

Snake: It is a sign for lying and abusing the creation by the tongue, backbiting and enmity against human beings.

Scorpion: It is a sign of gossiping, mockery and degrading others.

Wasp: It points to secret abuse with the tongue against human beings.

The people of basira (open sight; acute discernment and perception) know the real face [the meaning] of these wild animals.

If a walker on the path of Haqq sees himself in his dream fighting against these dangerous wild beasts and not winning, he should continue doing ibada (worship) and zikr (remembrance; Sufi ritual remembrance of Allah through repetition of the divine names or attributes) until he is victorious over them. He must rid himself of worldly qualities.

Likewise, if he sees himself beating these animals and obliterating them, it means that he has left his mistakes behind and is not engaged in evil. Allah the Most High says the following for those who quit their bad deeds:

“Their sins are taken away from them; their essence is improved.” (Muhammad 47:2)

Again, if a walker on the path of Haqq sees these animals get into human form, he must understand that his evil deeds are converted into goodness. Allah the Most High grants the following regarding those who repent for their mistakes:

“Except the one who repents and believes and does good works, [for such as this one] Allah the Most High will change their evil deeds to good deeds.” (Furqan 25:70)

Therefore, he is rid of these abusive deeds. But one should not [ever] be certain of this salvation. Nafs will get stronger as soon as it finds an opening for mistakes and rebellion; it can put the wayfarer down. It erases the state of mutmaina. For this reason, Allah the Most High orders his servant to withdraw from all that is forbidden as long as he is in this world.

In dreams, it is possible to see nafs-i ammara (the commanding nafs; the first level of tasawwuf) as an unbeliever (kafir), nafs-i lawwama (the blaming or self-criticizing nafs; the second level) as Jewish, and nafs-i mulhama (the inspired nafs; the third level) as Christian.

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About the People of Tasawwuf

The people of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism) are described in two groups. ¹

The first are the Sunnis (those who follow the example of the Prophet, peace be upon him). These people, in speech and deed, conform completely with sharia (Islamic canonical law) and its meaning, which is tariqa (the Sufi path). The term “ahlis-sunna wal jama’a” (“the people of sunna and togetherness”) refers to them.

Some of those who belong to this group enter paradise with neither [appearance at] court nor punishment. Some of them enter with little punishment and little giving account of their deeds. They stay in hell for only a short time and pass into Janna (Paradise) right away. They do not stay in hell forever, as that is for unbelievers and hypocrites.

At this time, the ones who act with fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) are fewer than few. The true walkers on this path are known by two witnesses. One is zahir (outer) and the other batin (inner). The outer state must be fortified with religious rules. As for the batin state, the person has to know whom he is following as a teacher.

The being who must be followed is our Prophet, peace be upon him. He is considered to be the means between himself [the seeker] and Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq). This “means” is undoubtedly the spirituality of our Prophet, peace be upon him. Therefore, the spiritual suluk (spiritual path particular to an individual) has to proceed accordingly. His [our Prophet’s, peace be upon him] spirituality comes to the sage who is his complete inheritor, sometimes in jismani (physical), at others in ruhani (spiritual) form. In truth, Shaytan (Satan) cannot represent the form of our Prophet, peace be upon him. There are signs in this for the travelers to Haqq. You must pay attention so that you will not be traveling blindly.

Again, at this maqam (station; spiritual level), there are many fine points that differentiate between good and evil. Only its people [the people of this maqam] can understand these fine points.

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Final Words

As it is told in the following poem, the walker on the path to Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) must be intelligent, perceptive and understanding. This is how he should be:

Allah the Most High has intelligent, perceptive servants

They divorced dunya (the material world)

There are hardships that they fear

They are at sea

They consider adverse conditions as waves

They consider good deeds as a ship

And they grasp it

A traveler must always look to the end of the journey [his spiritual endeavor]. He also must consider carefully the deeds done at the beginning. He should not be deceived by the taste of the outer (zahir).

The people of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism) say that deeds belong to the one who created them. Since human beings do not have complete authority [or control], they must beware of being put into a different condition.

“No one deems himself secure from the scheme of Allah except those who have lost everything.” (A’raf 7:99)

The above generous ayat sets the basis for what we are saying. In a hadith qudsi (holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an) it is granted:

“O Muhammad, give good tidings to the sinners that I am Ghafur (All-Forgiving), and tell those who reach the level of the siddiq (loyal; truthful) that I am Ghayur (Jealous).”

The karamas (generosities; miracles or supernatural phenomena) of walis [or awliya, plural of wali (saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend)] and their state of being are true [real], but they cannot be secure from His scheme or from being led into sin step by step [by istidraj (incitation; a test of sincerity by forestalling the consequences of wrong action)]. Only the miracles shown by the prophets are secure from istidraj. It has been said: “The fear of passing one’s last breath in a bad state will obtain its passing [i.e., save him].” Hasan al-Basri ¹ says:

“Allah the Most High’s walis ascend to the highest degrees through fear [of offending Him]; with them, fear outweighs hope.”

As for the wisdom of this, there are dangers in being beguiled by human conditions. One’s path may be closed so subtly that he may not know it. He [al-Basri] grants again:

“A person is afraid of sickness when he is well, so his hope decreases; when he gets ill, his fear decreases and his hope is increased.”

Our Master the Prophet, peace be upon him, granted us, “If the hope and fear of the possessor of iman (belief) were weighed, they would be equal,” but at his last breath, with the help of Allah the Most High, his hope prevails. This is explained in the honorable hadith, “Those of you who are dying will surrender their last breath by having good dzan (assumptions) about Allah the Most High [i.e., by giving Him the benefit of the doubt],” because they understand the deep meaning of Allah the Most High’s words:

“And My mercy encompasses everything.” (A’raf 7:156)

“My mercy surpasses My wrath.” (Hadith Qudsi)

Since Allah the Most High is the best of those who show mercy, this assumption can be justified.

What the wayfarer must do is avoid Allah the Most High’s qahr [compelling power, wrath]. He should also present his existence to Him, place whatever he has before Him, and thus run away from Him to Him [seek refuge in Him from Him].

What is necessary for the salik (the one who is walking on his particular Sufi path or suluk) to do is to kneel in front of Him, shed his material self, confess his mistakes and prostrate himself in front of His door. If he does these things, he attains His generosity of grace and mercy, and his sins dissolve. This is because Allah is Beneficent, the Most Merciful, the Most Generous; He is the Everlasting and Great Lord and Sultan.

May peace and blessings be upon our Master the Prophet and his family. We praise Allah the Most High and relinquish our deeds to Him.

GUIDANCE

TO

MYSTICISM

Al-Burhan ul-Mu’ayyad

by

Ahmed er Rifai

Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

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The Honor of Aql

The greater alem (realm; world) is aql (intelligence; mind; the power of understanding and discrimination), and it is with you. You understand what and who you are in the context of where you exist with this aql. This is because, if your existence and your corporeality had not had the honor of including such a greater realm, you could not occupy your prime position or state of being. [This state is that of khalifatullah, the human being as representative of Allah on earth.] When you show an effort befitting the fleshly figure that possesses such a valuable realm, the greater alem that exists in you shines everywhere and can take you to great heights of accomplishment.

Allah has ordained all transactions based on aql. Whatever He gives, He gives according to aql; whatever He forbids, He forbids according to it. Union, separation, expansion, contraction are all connected to aql. It is the honor of the universe; it is the first created of all facets of humanity. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has professed, “Aql is the first creation.” If you make an effort for your name and honor to be elevated with this spiritual being you possess, and to avoid belittling your humanity, you will be saved from getting stuck behind veils and will be elevated.

Aql can possess and hold ilm (knowledge; science). For the created, the honor of ilm is with aql. Ilm is completed with aql. Imam al-Shafi ¹ said, “Reigning [sitting on the throne as a king] without aql is like sitting on garbage and, more than that, it is a post of humiliation.” Some say ilm is higher than aql. This saying pertains to the divine ilm, because divine knowledge is among the attributes of the eternal. [In other words, it is with Allah.] As for aql, it is created. If our aql and ilm are weighed, we find out that aql is on a higher level because if there is no aql, there is no ilm. If a person with aql falls down, we are sure that he will get up, but if a fool without aql falls, we are afraid that he may not be able to get up. [Aql is referred to metaphorically here, of course.]

Aql is such that it understands the wisdom of religion. Hazreti Ali ² said, “Aql must possess [or include] religion, and religion must possess [or include] aql, because if religion is not comprehended by aql, it is not religion.” The religious decrees given to us by our Prophet, peace be upon him, command that there are some things “to do” and some “not to do.” Compliance with this doing and abstaining is determined by aql. [Who is going to determine what to do and not to do, when to do and not to do? The aql is going to determine this.]

You must ponder this: Is there someone with aql and intelligence, who has attained a peaceful nature, and who, after he has become aware of the wisdom of religious laws, will then deny these tenets? I swear, there isn’t any person like that. [No person with aql will deny these tenets.]

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

I am paraphrasing our Pir’s writings with my own words now. Our Pir (spiritual ancestor; head of a Sufi tariqa, or order) Ahmed er Rifai is talking about aql, the importance of aql. Aql is your brain, your thinking power, your knowing power. He is saying that there is a greater alem. That greater alem is aql, and this aql is within your possession. You understand who you are and what you are doing with this capacity. If your body and your existence didn’t include such a superior realm as aql, you wouldn’t be in the position of being the khalifa (appointed representative) of Allah on this earth. Why is this important? Because, as a khalifa, you have the means to reach Allah’s love and closeness, and unification with Allah. You have this opportunity if you use your brain.

That is why I’m so keen to send you this information about the unrestricted or infinite mind. Allah is infinite and He gave you the power of aql so that you could understand Him. Don’t believe those people who say, “We cannot understand Him.” If we cannot understand Him, why did Allah create us? We can understand Him, perhaps not completely, but we will have an idea of how great He is; we know the direction of His greatness in each one of His names or attributes. How do we know this? With aql. If your aql is stuck seeing the forms of the material or spiritual worlds, you cannot use the infinite capacity of your aql; the comprehension of your aql cannot be exploited to its fullest extent. That is why you must have an independent mind, which also helps you to have tolerance. You have to fight against your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature), and save yourself from the dominion of your nafs, so that you can be free, and think freely. Then you can understand.

This aql can take you to greater accomplishments. That is what our Pir is saying. And Allah is saying that what He ordained, including all the laws, rules and regulations in the world, depends on this aql. So, in other words, everything is logical; there is nothing that is not logical. Ilm based on science and fact is important. Aql is the honor of the universe and it is the first of the creation. But guess what—Our Pir is saying that Allah first created aql, that Allah first created the pen. In Secret of Secrets, our Pir Hz. (Hazreti, abbr.) Abdul Qadir Geylani says that all of this aql is manifested in Muhammad, peace be upon him. He is the manifestation of all of this. That is the Sufi connection. If you take Muhammad, peace be upon him, out of the picture, then you are out of the picture. Abdul Qadir Geylani says that this body of yours possesses aql, so don’t look down on it. If you use your aql, you will not be stuck behind veils and will instead be elevated. Aql possesses and holds ilm. Allah is Al-Alim (The All-Knowing) and He has ilm. He created aql so that we can understand His ilm, His knowledge, and then understand how knowledgeable He is. If it weren’t for this aql, how would we understand Allah? Allah wants us to understand. He doesn’t want us to blindly believe. Know what you are doing. Ilm is completed with aql. Imam al-Shafi says that if there is a king with no aql, he is not a ruler; he is just sitting on garbage and he is belittling and humiliating himself because his decisions are not logical. He will make himself a fool in front of everyone.

Another aspect of aql is that aql understands the wisdom of religion. Hz. Ali said that aql must include religion and religion must include, or possess, aql. If religion is not comprehended by aql, it is not religion. If you are not thinking about what you are doing, if you do not understand what you are doing, then it is not religion. Allah mentions in Qur’an-i Kerim ³ (The Generous Qur’an) those “who pay heed to their prayers.” That is what Allah is talking about: aql. You have to understand your prayers. What are you praying for? What is this prayer going to bring to you? What is the purpose of this prayer? Where will it get you? What are you saying? You are talking to Allah and Allah is talking to you. Can you feel that in your salat, in your prayer? If you don’t, you are wasting your time.

Shaykh Taner’s Responses to Student Questions

Student: How do you relate the aql to the heart?

Shaykh: That’s a good question. Aql pertains to the body overall. The heart is connected to Allah and gets the full information. That is ilm-i ladun, divine knowledge. And aql has to accept this and act with it.

Student: Does aql increase, decrease, or is it constant in terms of capacity?

Shaykh: It increases the more you use it and need it. If you don’t use it, you lose it. Your aql has one big job: to surrender to your heart, where Allah’s message is heard. Once your heart opens, that is your aql; you must use that. That is why you need to have a lot of data. You have to do research before you decide on matters.

Student: Does aql provide knowledge that you didn’t even know you had?

Shaykh: Aql is the power of understanding. Where will the knowledge come from? From Allah. How does it come from Allah? There are three ways of attaining sure knowledge (yaqin): ilm al-yaqin (sure knowledge gained through reading and study), ayn al-yaqin (sure knowledge gained through observation), and haqq al-yaqin (sure knowledge received directly in the heart from Allah). With ilm al-yaqin, you learn by reading and listening. With ayn al-yaqin, you learn by seeing, observing and experimentation. With haqq al-yaqin, Allah teaches you directly. This knowledge is called ilm-i ladun. Allah puts it into your heart. This is how you learn the knowledge. But who is going to know this knowledge? The aql will. The main job of aql is to surrender to Allah so that it can learn wisdom. The first step in learning wisdom is to surrender. La ilaha illa ‘llah (There is no god but God [the Muslim declaration of faith]) is the first step for everything. La ilaha illa ‘llah means that no one else but Allah is God. It means, “I am not God.” This is the first thing you must understand. Once you understand this, Allah will give you knowledge that you will understand and appreciate. Then love will come to your heart.

When Allah opens the eye of your heart to your inner weaknesses, it gives a signal to your aql that the aql can understand. Why does this happen? Because you are doing your tasbih (Sufi spiritual practice of reciting certain prescribed names of Allah), you are connected, you took a step to Allah and Allah walks to you; Allah opens your heart.

That is the other thing Allah does: He shows you to yourself, so that you will know where you are, who you are, and so that you will praise Allah more because of it. Others see things about you most of the time, but you don’t believe them. But when you see yourself truly, then you need to do something about it. That’s where aql comes in. When Allah opens your heart, the heart beams the knowledge about yourself to your aql. Then you make the intention in your heart to change, and Allah changes you.

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Good Akhlaq and Tawazu

There are three groups of intercessors who intercede on Judgment Day. One is the alim (person of knowledge; scholar); one is the khadim (one who serves); the third is the faqir-i sabur (one who is patient).

Whatever comes from the unseen and whatever descends from the heavens must be met positively and be accepted with contentment. Try to serve people as much as you can. Whoever does a deed for his Muslim brother or sister, seventy of his ill deeds will be overlooked on Judgment Day.

Be merciful to the feeble elders. Feel sorry for the state of the poor when you are rich and give them much sadaqa (alms; charity). With sadaqa, balas (calamities; misfortunes; trials) are dismissed by Allah. Show hospitality to the guest, because our Prophet, peace be upon him, has accepted this as ibada (worship).

Husn-i akhlaq (good behavior) is the best of deeds. It is said, “If you cannot make people happy with material things, make them happy with good akhlaq (manners, habits). The best of good deeds is good akhlaq.”

The people who have good akhlaq can attain the same level as people who worship and fast, without doing anything else. Good akhlaq is the best ibada after [next to] Allah’s fardz (compulsory) ibada.

If you do ibada in an irritable state, what good will it serve? Allah is not in need of anyone or anything. He is Al-Ghani (The Self-Sustaining One). At the door of servitude, what befits the servant is to wait at the door selflessly. When you are appealing to the Presence of Allah, you must be humble, in a state of fear and awe, admitting your powerlessness and poverty. If you go to the door of Allah, putting your deeds and your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) aside, with utmost humility, then maybe you will be accepted.

If you purify your human nature of meaningless and useless words, each of your words will ascend to the ’Arsh (Throne of Allah). Allah has ordained these things as directions for duas (prayers of supplication), as he ordained the Kaaba (Allah’s sanctuary in Mecca) as a direction for salat (formal Islamic prayer). Be careful with the words that come out of your mouth.

Wherever Allah directs the grace of His creation and the use of it is where He manifests His essence. There, grace and mercy are ordained and the generosity [of Allah] takes place in that person. You need to see yourself there, humble and poor, in awe. Wake up! In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) the meaning of the following ayat (verse) is so vast: “And in the heavens is your provision and that which you are promised.” (Zaari-yaat 51:22)

The person who loves Allah makes tawazu (humility; modesty) a habit for himself. He does not favor anything besides Allah. The person who worships sincerely stops boasting and being vain. Servitude is an attribute and the one who is acting with it does not favor anyone else but his master. Servitude is not intending to attain merits. Servitude is not seeing yourself as different from and higher than others. The perfection of servitude is in liberation. Liberation, on the other hand, is to not be dominated by maa siwa Allah (other than Allah).

Second Reading with Commentary by Shaykh Taner

There are three groups of intercessors who intercede on Judgment Day. [In the Hereafter there are intercessors who will say, “O Allah, please forgive this person.” And Allah will forgive that person for the love of the person who is interceding. Only those to whom Allah gives permission will intercede. And who are these people? These are three kinds of people.] One is alim [alims are able to intercede]; one is khadim [That’s why in our tariqa (Sufi order), the main thing is service. Our Shaykh keeps saying, “Serve, serve, serve.” My Shaykh told me, “Serve your students. Serve your teacher,” so I’d know how to serve. What will my students do when I serve them? So I’m telling you the same thing, “Serve your Shaykh and then serve your students.”]; the third is faqir-i sabur. [Faqir is, in the spiritual sense, poor and patient. He will also intercede.]

Whatever comes from the unseen and whatever descends from the heavens must be met positively and be accepted with contentment. [Positive thinking is a must for a Sufi. We have to have good dzan, which is the assumption that Allah is acting in our best interest. Think positively. Allah is not crude and Allah is not trying to torture you. He has a plan and He is applying His plan. We have a part in His plan and we have to play our part in accordance with His wishes. That is Islam. We have to be positive and accept it with contentment. Sufis have to accept Allah’s decree with a smile.] Try to serve people as much as you can. [When Allah wants it and when it’s possible, go to the deserving person first, then you can try to help the non-deserving ones.] Whoever does a deed for his Muslim brother or sister [or helps him/her in whatever he/she is doing], seventy of his ill deeds will be overlooked [Allah will forgive seventy of his bad deeds] on Judgment Day.

Be merciful to the feeble elders. [And we say, “Be merciful to everybody. Feeble or not, be merciful to the elders.”] Feel sorry for the state of the poor when you are rich and give them much sadaqa. [Give them help.] With sadaqa, balas are dismissed by Allah. [They are averted by Allah. Especially during Ramadan, the Muslim holy month, give sadaqa. Seyyids, descendents of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, like myself cannot accept sadaqa, or alms.] Show hospitality to the guest, because our Prophet, peace be upon him, has accepted this as ibada.

Husn-i akhlaq is the best of deeds. It is said, “If you cannot make people happy with material things, make them happy with good akhlaq. [Actually, you cannot make people happy with material things; you can make them happy with good akhlaq.] The best of deeds is good akhlaq.”

The people who have good akhlaq can attain the same level as people who worship and fast, without doing anything else. [The people who have good akhlaq, without doing anything else, can attain the same level as those who constantly engage in worship and fasting. All you need is good akhlaq; it is the same thing. The purpose of worship and fasting is to attain good akhlaq.] Good akhlaq is the best ibada after Allah’s fardz ibada.

If you do ibada in an irritable state [an unhappy state], what good will it serve? Allah is not in need of anyone or anything. He is Al-Ghani. At the door of servitude, what befits the servant is to wait at the door selflessly. [If you are a servant at the master’s door, you don’t think of yourself; you think of your master: “How am I going to serve him?”] When you are appealing to the Presence of Allah [when you want to be in His Presence], you must be humble, in a state of fear and awe [Allah banished those who showed pride. Shaytan (Satan) left. Allah punished those who didn’t have good akhlaq. Angels said, “Why are You doing this?” They questioned His judgment. Allah said, “Bow down.” Shaytan said, “Why are you doing this? I’m not going to bow down.” Adam said, “I’m going to eat this apple.” Allah said, “Out!” Adam, peace be upon him, said, “I’m sorry.” So when you want to be in the Presence of Allah, you have to be humble, in a state of fear and awe], admitting your powerlessness [You have to confess and accept, “I have no power, I’m sorry.”] and poverty. [“You have everything, I have nothing, all power belongs to You.”] If you go to the door of Allah, putting your deeds and your nafs aside, with utmost humility, then maybe you will be accepted. [You don’t go to the door of Allah by casting pride. “Hey,” knock, knock, “I am here! Shaykh, come here, let me in.” No, you come to the door of Allah in humility and in fear that maybe He will not accept you. But if you keep on knocking on the door, maybe he will open it.]

If you purify your human nature of meaningless and useless words, each of your words will ascend to the ’Arsh. Allah has ordained these [words] as directions for duas, as he ordained the Kaaba as a direction for salat. [What our Pir (spiritual ancestor; head of a Sufi tariqa or order) is trying to say is, “Clear up your tongue from meaningless and useless words. Useful words are the direction that Allah has ordained.” The next line is very important.]

Be careful with the words that come out of your mouth. Wherever Allah directs the grace of His creation and the use of it is where He manifests His essence. [Allah made creation. He gave the tasarruf (spiritual power; right of disposal), the power of execution, the power of usage, to the walis (saints; spiritually advanced people; protecting friends [of Allah]), to the prophets, to fathers, to mothers. Wherever He gave His grace, His grace can be used there, it can be taken there. He ascends into that direction where the execution of His grace is going to take place.] There, grace and mercy are ordained and the generosity [of Allah] takes place in that person. You need to see yourself there, humble and poor, in awe. Wake up! In Qur’an-i Kerim the meaning of the following ayat is so vast: “And in the heavens is your provision and that which you are promised.” (Zaari-yaat 51:22) [In other words, dua is important and good words are important. You have to clear your language and you have to have good akhlaq, say nice things, especially about Allah, and you must be content with what you get.]

The person who loves Allah makes tawazu a habit for himself. He does not favor anything besides Allah. The person who worships sincerely stops boasting and being vain. Servitude is an attribute and the one who is acting with it does not favor anyone else but his master. Servitude is not intending to attain merits. Servitude is not seeing yourself as different from and higher than others. The perfection of servitude is in liberation. Liberation, on the other hand, is to not be dominated by maa siwa Allah.

Additional Commentary by Shaykh Taner

I hope my students turn out to be grateful students, not ungrateful, because Allah doesn’t like ungrateful people. We are all here for Allah and, as you can see, Allah has all the power. He’s alive, He communicates, He’s merciful, wise and generous. Because He is generous, He doesn’t hold His wisdom from us. He’s not far from us and He shares His knowledge with us. We are grateful to Allah, especially in Ramadan when we fast. Then we can realize how merciful and generous Allah is. He has given us all this food, drink, time and effort. He gave us mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, teachers, shaykhs (Sufi teachers), lovers, beloveds. Most importantly, He gave us water to drink. We dirty ourselves, we sin. We still go to Allah to clean ourselves. Allah doesn’t mind cleaning us again with His air, with His shaykh, with whatever He has.

So how could we think that Allah is cruel? We give Allah nothing because we have nothing. He gives us everything. He shares Himself with us. We have no rights. Allah has rights on us. Whatever He gives us is a grace. You cannot say, “You gave me less and You gave the other person more.” First of all, it is not our right to have it. It is Allah’s grace. He gives some more, some less, but in the end everyone is responsible for what they have. The important thing is what you do with what you have been given. Are you sincerely working for Allah? Do you sincerely want Allah? Are you sincerely humble toward Allah? Do you sincerely obey Allah? Do you sincerely accept the decrees of Allah with contentment? Are you sincerely looking for His love? This is what is important.

Allah sees you; Allah sees your heart. Intention is important, so if you don’t have this intention, first ask for this intention from Allah. Have a relationship with Allah always. Start a relationship. Ask for what you don’t have, then ask for the next grace, then the next one. Keep intending to have the intention to accept Allah, to serve Allah and, as a Sufi, to love Allah.

Dua by Shaykh Taner

O Allah, please help us, please forgive us. Give us what is good for us and keep away what is bad from us. Protect us against our own nafs and against Shaytan (Satan), against the folk that envy us and have enmity against us. O Allah, please help us to see your Prophet Muhammad as our example and to follow his path. Help us to see the truth and accept the truth. Help us to see the false as false, and make it easy for us to avoid it. May Your peace and blessings be upon your Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and on all the other prophets and their families. We take refuge in You, our Protecting Friend, our Master. You are our Trustee. Please accept our prayers and forgive our mistakes, overlook all of our mistakes, help us to intend not to commit sins, and not to disobey you. Help our parents, mothers and fathers. Forgive them and our relatives, guide them. Guide us, guide our children, and guide humanity to Your straight path. You are able to do all things, O Allah. You are so loving and generous and You are the Giver. Here we open our hands and ask for Your forgiveness. Help us to clean our hearts, leaving only You in our hearts. Thank You for all Your blessings, thank You for Your prophets, thank You for Your walis, our Pirs, and all of the other shaykhs that you have sent to help us and to bring Your message. Thank you for Your angels and please forgive us and all our jinn (unseen being) brothers and sisters and my students. O Allah, thank You.

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The Protection and Goodness of the Tongue

In this age, the one who deserves envy is the one who knows the right time to talk, he who makes an effort to refrain from abusing his tongue/language [avoiding idle talk]. The policy followed by the one who is an arif (knower, in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostic) of Allah against his nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) is very great. The person who is an arif adjusts the words he is going to say before they come out of his mouth. If they are useful, he will speak them. If not, he will be quiet, because it is said, “Language is a lion. If you contain it, you will be saved. Otherwise, it will destroy you.”

The words of the arif polish your inner heart; his silence averts adversities. The arif always commands his people with righteousness. In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) Allah says, “There is no use in most of the words said unless they are about betterment, giving and righteousness.” (Nisaa 4:114)

Do not pretend you are someone else and do not use the language of alims (people of knowledge; scholars) and arifs [if you are not one of them] and thus make your heart as hard as Pharaoh’s. Use your language with adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation) by protecting your heart from everything that attracts Allah’s wrath. In every situation and with every deed, you must strive for goodness. Be good with Allah and with people, and even be good with your own nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). You must use good language, whether in a group or alone, at death, at resurrection or on Judgment Day—in short, at all times.

In your book of deeds everything, big or small, will be written. Know very well that everything hidden in hearts, and things looked at through a stolen glance—all secret things are apparent to Allah. In Qur’an-i Kerim, Allah says that He knows all things hidden in our chests and nothing is hidden from Him.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Allah showed His kindness to the people of Muhammad, peace be upon him, by holding them responsible only for their actions. They were not held responsible for their thoughts. Those who came before them were held responsible for their thoughts as well. The tongue is the means by which we bring our thoughts into the world of proofs. With the tongue, we confirm our thoughts. Our thoughts come to life in the material world by the tongue—at that point we are responsible. We need to use our tongues wisely.

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Appreciation of Favor

Never forget death, because taking death out of your mind is heedlessness. Ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance) is attained through lack of zikr (remembrance; Sufi ritual remembrance of Allah through repetition of the divine names or attributes).

In some divine books it is written: “The great Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) says, ‘O my servant, you worshipped me with the health I gave you, you benefited by the rizq (food; nourishment) I granted. If you only understood that whatever you wanted for your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature), you attained it solely because of My will; with My protection and guardianship, you made it through the night and until morning; you lived with My generosity and grace; you are raised up in My favor and carry on your existence with comfort. After all these favors I have granted you, why do you remember others and mention them and refrain from showing Me your gratitude?’”

O Son of Adam, death will reveal your secrets. Resurrection Day will relate your deeds. Death will rip away those veils you are hiding behind. Even if you commit a little sin, forget how small it is and try instead to see whom you rebelled against. Beware—know well who granted the rizq to you, no matter how small it is. Do not disregard the little sins. You would not know which one is a rebellion against Allah.

O Son of Adam, have you ever once rebelled and later thought of Allah’s wrath and renounced your rebellion? Have you ever reached out to the needy by giving of your possessions? Have you ever met those who abuse you with forgiveness? Have you ever been merciful to those who are in the process of betraying you? Have you taught your children good behavior? Have you been able to please your neighbors?

Allah does not look at [pay attention to] your outer self or your nasab (family lineage). The place where Allah’s gaze is directed is into your hearts. Allah is happy with His servant who has these qualities. All of these things will be revealed on Judgment Day.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Allah the Most High says in Qur’an-i Kerim, “How little you give thanks.” He continues, “If you give thanks, I will increase.” The time for giving thanks is especially when you receive a favor. This giving thanks is not only by words; it should also be with your being, your actions. If you can, share your favors with the less fortunate. Another aspect of appreciating favors is to remember them often and thus be humble. Humility is part of showing your appreciation. We all need Allah and Allah doesn’t need us. We are thankful to Him that He shares His kingdom with us.

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The Path of Haqq

Walking on the path of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) is like going [walking] from one country to another. The road may be uphill, downhill, straight or crooked. It may go through plains and mountains and through waterless places or deserts. On the road there may be places with plenty of water and greenery, with places good for camping, with vineyards and orchards. Since the country you are going to is still farther away, these places are spots only to see, stop and rest in, and then from which to continue.

Whoever likes one of these stops and stays there, or gets tired on the uphill part, does not go any further. In other words, if one is tired of the hardship or finds comfort in the ease, or busies himself with the vineyards or orchards, he cannot reach the intended destination. The path of Haqq is like this: If the hardships one meets do not stop the person and the pleasure of lust does not occupy him, one can reach his goal. If one gets drunk on the attention given to him by people, his success becomes a hindrance and takes him away from Allah’s direction. [This is also a good thing for my khalifas (appointed representatives), who want to be shaykhs (Sufi teachers), to know. When people give you attention, this is not for you. I want you to remember this. All of the attention is for your master because you are representing your master; it is not for you. So don’t get drunk with the attention. Humility, humility, humility. When Allah puts you on a higher level, you must be even more humble.] If one cannot withstand the hardships of the suluk (spiritual path particular to an individual), he is turned back from the path by the Lord. You should have no doubt that you will lose your goal and intention in these situations. On the other hand, if you continue on the path in spite of the bitterness or sweetness, enduring fatigue and fighting hardships, you should have no doubt that you will be included in the decree of fawzan azima (great success).

Certain sages have asked, in the realm of dreams, “O Lord, what is the way of reaching You?” It [the answer] has been granted. Leave your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) right away and then come. Hz. Musa (The Esteemed Moses), peace be upon him, said to his wife, who was having labor pains, “I see fire there. Maybe I can bring fire or meet someone and ask if I can find a midwife for you.” When he went further, he was addressed, “O Musa, you are in a sacred valley. This is not a place to think of your wife or your nafs. Take off your shoes.” You too, when you enter the sacred valleys of mosques, take off those enemy [adverse] shoes [meaning also nafs and desires] because in salat [formal Islamic prayer] the servant is talking to his Master, exalting Him and making supplication. Then you need to think what kind of hal (state of being; situation; status) you should be in and what kind of munaajaa (supplication; humble appeal) you must make. You have to know what kind of adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation) and attitude you have to assume in order to converse with the person in whose presence you are. [This is true in general, also. If you are in Italy, there is one kind of adab. If you are in Germany, there is another. If you are talking to the principal of a school, that is a different thing; in the mosque it is different; if you are talking to the Pope, it is different. You have to know what kind of adab and attitude to have, so that you can communicate with this person.] This is blessed nearness in the Presence [of Allah].

It is not correct to be busy with family and nafs exclusively. I cannot say to ignore them completely, go to a mountain all by yourself and never pay attention to them. But what I say is that whatever effort you spend for your family, you must make even this a service in the cause of nearness to Allah. You also must take care of your body and give it comfort, because you have to deal with the Lord with contentment. [What our Pir (spiritual ancestor; head of a Sufi tariqa or order) is saying is that if you are sick or abuse your body, how can you talk to Allah nicely?] The sacred worship is such a great quality that it will not accept partnership. [Our Pir is not saying that you should not work for your family. Everything depends on your intention, your concept and your attitude. Why are you working? To feed your family. Why are you feeding your family? Because it is your family and this will please Allah. That’s the right attitude. You have to take care of your family so that they won’t need somebody else. This is your job; you do this for Allah’s sake. Then, for taking care of the family, making money becomes sacred. That also becomes worship because you are doing it for Allah. What we are saying is to do everything for Allah; always deal with Allah. Allah gave you this body, Allah gave you these people to take care of. They’re an amanat (trust; guardianship) for you, so what must you do? Go to work, take care of them, take care of yourself. For Allah’s sake do this.]

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Sharia and Nasiha: Comply with Adab

The path you intend to take openly and secretly has to be upon sharia (Islamic canonical law). Whoever acts like this will be among those desired by Allah. There are ulama (people of knowledge; scholars; plural of alim) and fuqaha (plural of faqih), people who are qualified to make judgment upon religious jurisprudence. You may advise people with judgment in sharia, but you have to be careful that you also act with what you preach; do not act as if you are sifting flour, only to give the fine flour to others and end up with the bran for yourself. When you are using your tongue, use it with respect, with wisdom. Let malice and envy not reside in your hearts. Otherwise you will fall into the judgment of “ata muruunan naasa bilbirri wa tansawna anfusakum.” (“You advise others to do good, but you yourselves forget to do it.”) (Baqara 2:44)

O khawass (chosen people)! O awaam (common people; general populace)! In reality you are all one nation. “Innad dina indallahil Islam.” (“In the presence of Allah, religion is Islam.”) This is what you belong to. Do not fall into the circle of “yuriduuna liyutfiuu nurallahi bi afwahihim.” (“They [Unbelievers] wish to put out Allah’s Nur (Light) with their sayings.”) (Saff 61:18) Do not fall into this.

In your attitude and actions you should not have qahr (overcoming force; overpowering demeanor), cruelty, abuse or pride. You should not insinuate that you are better or higher than someone else. You need adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation) and kindness in the path of nasiha (advice) and giving sermons. The scent of the prime sunna (way or exemplary actions of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) is here. When our Prophet, peace be upon him, wanted to admonish somebody for some shortcoming, he would address the issue in a general setting but would not mention the offending person’s name. I swear that this kind of teaching gives salvation to hearts. What can we say to the person who claims superiority over people and wants to dominate them? O poor person! Turn away from this. Some people’s so-called obedience is in the outer form only. Their hearts have not bowed down. When reality is distinguished from the hal (state of being; situation; status), the heart will turn away from you and you will be under its feet.

You people who want to be superior and to dominate others cannot avoid the danger of falling into istidraj, Allah’s gradual lure into sin as a trial, because you want to follow your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). In truth, divine jealousy will not put up with this.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

I want you to learn about istidraj. Do you remember when Moses went to his people with the Ten Commandments? They had made an idol of a bull and Jibril (the Archangel Gabriel), peace be upon him, made the bull emit a howling sound. The people praised the idol. Allah tested his people here. Allah had previously shown them several miracles, but when this bull gave a howling sound, they left all that they had been shown and followed the idol. This is istidraj. Allah did this on purpose to see if they were stupid enough to follow such ignorance. This is also from the Fatiha (the first sura [chapter] of the Qur’an):

Bismillah er Rahman er Rahim

In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

Alhamdu lillahi Rabbil alamin

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds

Er Rahman er Rahim

The Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate

Maliki Yaumid Din

Master of the Day of Judgment

Iyyaka na’ budu wa iyyaka nasta’in

You (alone) we worship and You (alone) we ask for help

Ihdinas siratul mustaqim

Show us the straight path

Siratallazina ’an ’amta alayhim

The path of those whom You have favored

Ghayril maghdubi alayhim walad daalin

Not the path of those who earn your anger, nor of those who go astray

“Ihdinas siratul mustaqim” (“Show us, guide us to, the straight path”) “Siratallazina ’an ’amta alayhim” (“The path of those whom You have favored”) “Ghayril maghdubi alayhim walad daalin” (“Not the path of those who earn your anger, of those whom You lead to Your wrath, nor of those who go astray”) That refers to istidraj. We’ve had many examples in the tariqa (Sufi order). Shaytan just took some people away; they went with their nafs. If somebody is feeding your nafs and you go after it, thinking that Allah is okay with that, then beware. This can be istidraj; Allah may be luring you to see if you are stupid or wise.

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Amri bil Ma’ruf wa Nahyi Anil Munkar

Hazreti Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, professed that the condition of amri bil ma’ruf wa nahyi anil munkar (enjoining righteousness, or what is fair and equitable, and forbidding indecency, or what is morally repugnant) is the best of jihad (struggle). Whoever criticizes and opposes the condition of a people who create fitna (troublemaking; discord; divisiveness) and strives in this, doing so for Allah’s sake, will earn Allah’s forgiveness. [In other words, one should oppose troublemakers.] The one who performs the assignment amri bil ma’ruf wa nahyi anil munkar may become a khalifa (appointed representative).

The people of sunna (way or exemplary actions of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him) give the following simile or metaphor in this subject: Suppose someone in a boat is trying to punch a hole in the bottom of it. When asked why he is doing this, he says that he needs water. If this man is allowed to act as he wishes, everybody in the boat will drown. If someone tries to stop him, everyone, including him, will be saved.

A person who sees something wrong and does not show opposition to it will be a partner in the crime. A person who is listening to ghayba (backbiting) and not objecting to it is doing nothing but joining the ghayba himself. This rule is valid for all of the sins that sharia (Islamic canonical law) asks us to avoid. Intermingling in these situations is likewise a sin, unless one does not hesitate to oppose them. In these circumstances, it is an Islamic assignment to act responsibly. This is, in a way, getting accounts straight regarding Islamic law.

What is essential here is giving counsel and advice softly and kindly, without showing harshness or claiming superiority. In Khabar (the Book; the News), it is said that those who enjoin righteousness softly should also forbid the wrong softly and kindly. Otherwise, they should refrain. It is related that a waiz (preacher), when giving a sermon [preaching advice] about Khalifa Mamun of the Abbasid Dynasty, ¹ used threatening and insulting words. The khalifa in return said to him, “Ya Hu! (O you!) Show some kindness and softness in your words, because Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) sent a servant, who was much higher in degree than you, to a rebel much worse than me and ordered him to speak kindly.” “And speak unto him a gentle word, that maybe he will heed or fear.” (Ta Ha 20:44)

With the same order, Musa (Moses) and Harun (Aaron), peace be upon them, were ordered to speak gently in giving the message to Pharaoh. But, on the other hand, this does not mean that the preachers and advisers must be gentle at all times. Their kindness should not be taken for granted. For people whom kind words do not affect, they can also use harsh words. Otherwise, we would be giving Shaytan (Satan) a chance, because if this door is open, then the door for holding someone responsible for his deeds and calling him to account will be closed. [Here I am defining ma’ruf as that which is approved by canonical law and munkar as that which is unlawful by canonical law.] “Perform amri bil ma’ruf even if you cannot do all of the ma’ruf deeds, and perform nahyi anil munkar even though you cannot avoid all of the unlawful deeds.” [from a hadith sharif, an honorable tradition or saying of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him] The order to us from our Prophet, peace be upon him, is like this. The key to the door of endless happiness is to obey Allah’s Rasul (Messenger). We must adorn ourselves always with his akhlaq (manners; habits) in speaking, working and in any condition. With this adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation), your inner realm finds satisfaction.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

A lot of ahli sharia (people of Islamic canonical law) want to do this amri bil ma’ruf wa nahyi anil munkar, but they are doing it all wrong, as we have pointed out, and as our Prophet, peace be upon him, Hz. Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, and our Pirs (spiritual ancestors; heads of Sufi tariqas or orders) have said. If you are going to do this, you have to be soft and kind. You should not be looking around, trying to find somebody’s mistakes so that you can correct them. This is not your job. Don’t do this.

If you happen to be in a situation where some wrongdoing occurs, you must show your resentment against the injustice; if someone is doing good in your presence, you have to encourage him. Tell him that you are pleased with this good deed, or if he needs help, help him to do good. We have to show this in our actions.

We cannot go around checking each other’s shortcomings and looking for mistakes. This is not the right way. Don’t do this. Perform amri bil ma’ruf wa nahyi anil munkar according to your means and station. For example, if you are the president of a country, you can do it with your hands, with the power that is vested in you. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, said, “When something is wrong, if you can correct it with your hands, do so; if you cannot, then do it with your mouth; if you cannot do it with your mouth, by talking, then try to change it with your heart.” These are the guidelines. Don’t go to extremes; don’t fall into fanaticism. Mind your own business and use your heart. For Sufis, the heart is most important.

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned using the heart as the last resort because it is the hardest way to change a situation. But when you are with Allah, when you are at that place spiritually, you can change things with your heart; you don’t have to do anything else.

Shaykh Taner’s Responses to Student Questions

Student: Is it true in every situation, even among nonbelievers, that we should forbid indecency and enjoin righteousness?

Shaykh: Of course, because this is a community matter. As a community and as a race we are responsible to Allah. If something wrong is happening in your community and you are not doing anything about it, you will also get the punishment that the community will suffer. What can you do? You cannot start shooting people or telling people what to do, but if it is a common wrong, you have options, especially in the United States. Everybody can write to the newspaper; everybody can write to his or her congressman saying this is wrong. During wartime, for example, many people are out there protesting the war. But you don’t go around checking your neighbor for what’s right or what’s wrong. If you see your friend doing something wrong, your friend can take the criticism, and you may tell him. But that’s it. Don’t try to be anyone’s boss. Don’t force anybody to do anything, just oppose the unjust action.

This is also giving education. How do you teach good manners? By encouraging good manners. If you keep encouraging a small child when he does well, he tends to do that good thing more. At the same time, when you discourage what he is doing wrong, saying, “No, no, no,” isn’t that how he learns what’s right and what’s wrong?

There are laws now, and most countries apply these laws; the laws already tell you what’s wrong. The police catch you and there’s a consequence for disobeying the law. The police can do this; if you are not the police, don’t act as if you were. But from your heart show some opposition, or if you can do something, do it the right way.

Student: How do you promote good manners?

Shaykh: You promote good manners by doing just that. Each time your child does something good, say, “Good, good, Allah loves you, I love you; you are doing well.” Each time he does something wrong, say, “No, no, no.” This is how you do it.

Reward good behavior. Even animals respond to rewards. The most cherished reward for animals is love. When the dog does something right, reward it with love. The whole of the matter is love. When you see a person do something good, show a smiling face and express your love—his or her heart will be pleased.

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Mujahada: Striving Against Your Nafs

I struggled against my nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature). I realized on the paths I followed that there are no better deeds acceptable to the Divine than the ones done in accord with the sunna (way or exemplary actions) of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

It is related that Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq) the Most High told Musa (Moses), peace be upon him, “O Musa, you must approach Me with entities that do not exist within My treasures and ask for My nearness with them.” Musa said, “O Lord! What can possibly be missing in your treasures?” Upon this, the Divine address was heard, “My treasures are full of azamat (greatness; grandeur) and jabarrut (compelling power), but there is no humility, broken-heartedness nor poverty. I am very close to the broken-hearted. O Musa, no one can earn closeness to Me better than with these things.” Those who earn nearness to Allah undoubtedly respect Allah very much and they have very good adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation).

To obey Allah’s orders rightfully is for hope of attainment of His nearness. To avoid Allah’s prohibitions is for fear of Him.

It is impossible to attain nearness to Allah without showing effort or doing good deeds. You cannot go on the path of Allah with nafs and desire or whim, because nafs will degrade you, even at your first step.

Know that all of your property, your nafs, your nasab (family lineage), ilm (knowledge; science), riches, sons, daughters, miracles, virtues, good deeds and whatever else comes to mind are nothing but memories. You will attain Divine nearness if you praise and thank your Master and respond to Him with humility and poverty. If you respond to Him with ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance) and takabbur (vanity; pride) you will be wronging yourself.

Those who are tactful thank and praise Allah all of the time. These people say, “Allah has granted us ilm, I have been blessed by inspiration and talent from Allah.” They do not say, “I am better than you, greater than you,” or “I am more honored than you.” These kinds of words and claims are produced by the nafs when it is in the lower levels. These words are produced by the language of the stupid.

Allah the Most High says in Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an), “washkuruu lii wa laa takfurun.” (“Be thankful to Me and do not be ungrateful.”) (Baqara 2:152)

Those who have tact do not claim any superiority over others. What are you bragging about? Your father? Your father is Adam, peace be upon him, and most of his children are unbelievers. Some of the children of the prophets are like this. Are you bragging about your ilm? Shaytan (Satan) has read all the pages of existence. What kind of situation is he in? Are you proud of your riches? Qaruun (Korah, Pharaoh’s slave-driver) was stricken with the affliction of having a lot of riches, and then met with oblivion.

On the other hand, let us examine these incidents:

Ibraham (Abraham), peace be upon him, was spared from burning in the fire because he depended on Allah.

Musa, peace be upon him, won over Pharaoh by admitting to Allah his poverty.

Yunus (Jonah), peace be upon him, saved his honor and name through niyya (intention; direction of will) by saying to Allah, “La ilaha illa anta subhanaka inni kuntu minaz zalimeen.” (“There is no God save You! Be You glorified! Lo! I have been a wrongdoer.”) (Anbiya 21:87) Again, by surrendering to the divine decree and by his obedience, his trust in Allah proved right.

Prophets, messengers, awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali), siddiqs (truthful, loyal ones), salihs (sinless pure ones; sincere ones) are all in this way.

If you consider yourself an alim (person of knowledge; scholar) but in fact are ignorant, and call yourself one who has reached Haqq but in fact are in separation, do not blame anyone else.

I cannot tell you to leave the means of making a living or to stay away from trade and crafts. This is your livelihood. Only observe Allah’s rights and wrongs when doing these things.

Again, I cannot tell you to ignore your family and relatives, only to make sure that they do not take your focus away from Allah. I cannot tell you not to dress well; I only urge that you do not do this to show off or claim superiority against the poor who cannot do that. Do not dress up to flaunt your body. This may lead you to falling into the pit of vanity. Otherwise, act basically according to the ayat (verse of the Qur’an), “Qul man harrama ziynatallahillati akhraja li ibadihi wattayyibati minal rizq” (“Say, who forbids adornments and good nourishment that Allah produced for his servants?”) (A’raf 7:32). It is not forbidden to dress well and eat delicious food, but it is advised that you do not focus on them and fall into ghafla.

Clean and tidy up your hearts. This is much better than concentrating on outer garments. Allah’s gaze is not at your garments, but into your heart.

Do not fall into the bala (calamity; misfortune; trial) of vanity; know that pride and haughtiness are invitations for destruction. There is no way to the proximity of Allah for those who see everyone else lower and themselves higher. We are all poor creatures of Allah. Our beginning is a secretion considered a pollutant and our end is a rotting corpse, also considered a pollutant. The honor of our materiality is with aql (intelligence; mind; the power of understanding and discrimination). Aql is considered aql if it can take its nafs under control and keep it from transgressing the limits; otherwise it cannot be called “aql.” It happens like that with gemstones as well. A person without aql is left in a state of impurity without a gem in him, and this way he cannot proceed to a spiritual level or deserve a maqam (station; spiritual level).

What aql is supposed to do is save a person from ananiya (egotism). If it cannot save him from false claims, that aql loses its level of highness.

Knowing that we are created from earth and will go back into earth, the course we should take has to be one that befits the “between the beginning and the end” condition we are in. The divine preacher is present in each Muslim’s heart. If a person does not have preaching and advice from himself to himself, he will not benefit from advice given to him by anyone else. How can the one who is unaware benefit from admonishment?

Please get your share of the advice that I am giving. “Whoever hides what he knows of the beneficial ilm will have a bridle of fire put on him on Judgment Day.” Because I overpowered my nafs, it did not transgress. My person is happy now. When you, too, overpower your nafs and stop worrying about money, ancestral lineage, honor, property and possessions, you will be happy as well. My appeal to you is that if you do not check your nafs in every breath, you will not be added into the book of Insan-i-Kamil (True or Mature Human Being in the intended sense by Allah).

When Allah sees that one of His servants is fit for love, He shows him his state of incompleteness and puts compassion and softness for all creation in his heart. He gets him used to being generous, his hand to giving and his heart to being merciful. To make him abhor his nafs, He shows him its indecencies and makes his nafs lowly in his eyes.

Arifs (knowers in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostics) are in a constant state of melancholy, while the common people are joyful. But they [arifs] never fall into grief and they live a surrendered life. They speak less, cry a lot, laugh little and they want nothing but their real Beloved. They value nothing or hold nothing in importance except the annihilation of their indecencies and sins.

Second Reading with Commentary by Shaykh Taner

I struggled against my nafs. I realized on the paths I followed that there are no better deeds acceptable to the Divine than the ones done in accord with the sunna of the Prophet, peace be upon him. [What did he do? He followed Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. Is this wise? Yes. Why? Because Allah said in Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an), “There is a good example for you in the Prophet.” (Ahzab 33:21) He never said there is a good example in his wives. This is a very important issue, because Allah said that the Prophet’s wives should keep themselves behind the curtain and the veil. Many Muslims think they should do the same. No, you shouldn’t do the same, because this injunction was especially for the Prophet’s wives. Are you the Prophet’s wife? No. Then behave yourself. You may do it, but don’t think that you have to do it. You don’t have to do it because the Prophet’s wives are not the examples for you; the Prophet is the example for you. For man or woman, the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the example.]

It is related that Haqq the Most High told Musa, peace be upon him, “O Musa, you must approach me with entities that do not exist within my treasures and ask for My nearness with them.” Musa said, “O Lord! What can possibly be missing in your treasures?” Upon this, the Divine address was heard, “My treasures are full of azamat and jabarrut, but there is no humility, broken-heartedness nor poverty. [Poverty doesn’t mean that you don’t own anything; it means that you know that all power belongs to Allah and that you have nothing. Broken-heartedness means that you want Allah and you are not getting close, or that you are being beaten by your nafs. That’s why you are not happy. Or that you give love and you don’t get love. This is broken-heartedness.] I am very close to the broken-hearted. O Musa, no one can earn closeness [nearness] to Me better than with these things.” Those who earn nearness to Allah undoubtedly respect Allah very much and they have very good adab. [Good adab is very important, because it shows humility and obedience.]

To obey Allah’s orders rightfully is for hope of attainment of His nearness. To avoid Allah’s prohibitions is for fear of Him. [For Sufis, this is fear of losing His nearness. Why do we fear? We fear that He may not love us; that we won’t be close to Him. Of course, the unbelievers should fear that they will be in hell. You can be in paradise and be in hell, too, if you are a Sufi.]

It is impossible to attain nearness to Allah without showing effort or doing good deeds. [That is why this fight against your nafs is very important.] You cannot go on the path of Allah with nafs and desire or whim, because nafs will degrade you, even at your first step. [It will shame you. That is the quality of nafs.]

Know that all of your property, your nafs, your nasab, ilm, riches, sons, daughters, miracles, virtues, good deeds and whatever else comes to mind are nothing but memories. [What happened yesterday? Every second is becoming a memory.] You will attain Divine nearness if you praise and thank your Master and respond to Him with humility and poverty. [In other words, show that you have no power; acknowledge your powerlessness.] If you respond to Him with ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance) [Allah is talking to you and you are unaware] and takabbur, you will be wronging yourself. [You are not going to be hurting Allah; you will be hurting yourself.]

Those who are tactful thank and praise Allah all of the time. These people say, “Allah has granted us ilm, I have been blessed by inspiration and talent from Allah.” They do not say, “I am better than you, greater than you,” or “I am more honored than you.” These kinds of words and claims are produced by the nafs when it is in the lower levels. [They especially don’t say, “I am the biggest shaykh (Sufi teacher). All shaykhs should obey me.”] These words are produced by the language of the stupid.

Allah the Most High says in Qur’an-i Kerim, “washkuruu lii wa laa takfurun.” (“Be thankful to Me and do not be ungrateful.”) (Baqara 2:152)

Those who have tact do not claim any superiority over others. What are you bragging about? Your father? Your father is Adam, peace be upon him, and most of his children are unbelievers. [So why would you brag about your father?] Some of the children of the prophets are like this. [for example, Noah’s children] Are you bragging about [or with] your ilm? Shaytan has read all the pages [every book] of existence. What kind of situation is he in? Are you proud of your riches? Qaruun was stricken with the affliction of having a lot of riches, and then met with oblivion. [Forty mules carried just the keys for his treasures. When the wise ones said, “Be thankful for what Allah gave you,” he retorted, “Allah didn’t give this to me, I earned this because of my knowledge,” because he was an alchemist. At that point, Allah opened the earth and Qaruun, along with all of his property and treasures, went down into the earth.] Are you bragging about your power? What good did Pharaoh’s might do against the wrath of Allah? [Nothing. How about the power of Nimrud against Abraham? Allah sent one lame mosquito against his whole army. One mosquito took care of Nimrud.]

On the other hand, let us examine these incidents:

Ibrahim, peace be upon him, was spared from burning in the fire because he depended on Allah. [Jibril (Gabriel), peace be upon him, came into the fire and asked Abraham, peace be upon him, “Do you need anything? Allah sent me to ask you.” Abraham replied, “Does Allah know I am here?” “Yes.” “Then I don’t need you.” Abraham was spared from burning in the fire because he depended on Allah.]

Musa, peace be upon him, won over Pharaoh by admitting to Allah his poverty. [How did he show his poverty, his helplessness? Allah told him, “You are going to be the messenger. Go to Pharaoh.” Musa said, “How can I go? I cannot even speak correctly.” His tongue had been burned. “I am poor, I cannot do this. Send my brother to help me.” Musa showed his helplessness there. Allah relented and sent his brother to help him.]

Yunus, peace be upon him, saved his honor and name through niyya by saying to Allah, “La ilaha illa anta subhanaka inni kuntu minaz zalimeen.” (“There is no god save You! Be You glorified! Lo! I have been a wrongdoer.”) (Anbiya 21:87) [He didn’t want to be a prophet; he wanted to run away because nobody believed, so he got onto a ship and the ship wouldn’t move. His shipmates threw him into the water and a fish swallowed him. In the fish’s stomach he said, “There is no other god, I praise You; verily, I have become one of those who do wrong.”] Again, by surrendering to the divine decree and by his obedience, his trust in Allah proved right. [And he was saved.]

Prophets, messengers, awliya, siddiqs, salihs are all in this way. [If you are one of these, please surrender, accept your fate. You got the job, you have to do it whether you like it or not. At least try to enjoy it. At least save face, saying, “Yes, I want to do it.” Only Allah knows your heart.]

If you consider yourself an alim but in fact are ignorant, and call yourself one who has reached Haqq but in fact are in separation, do not blame anyone else.

I cannot tell you to leave the means of making a living or to stay away from trade and crafts. This is your livelihood. Only observe Allah’s rights and wrongs when doing these things.

Again, I cannot tell you to ignore your family and relatives, only to make sure that they do not take your focus away from Allah. I cannot tell you not to dress well; [You can dress up, because Allah says, Who can stop them? Nobody. You have permission from Allah to dress well and to eat well. That is why our tariqa (Sufi order) eats well. We are a good-cooking tariqa.] I only urge that you do not do this to show off or claim superiority against the poor who cannot do that. Do not dress up to flaunt your body. This may lead you to falling into the pit of vanity. Otherwise, act basically according to the ayat, “Qul man harrama ziynatallahillati akhraja li ibadihi wattayyibati minal rizq” (“Say, who forbids adornments and good nourishment that Allah produced for his servants?”) (A’raf 7:32). [You may eat and dress nicely and enjoy Allah, and also thank Allah.] It is not forbidden to dress well and eat delicious food, but it is advised that you do not focus on them and fall into ghafla.

Clean and tidy up your hearts. This is much better than concentrating on outer garments. Allah’s gaze is not at your garments, but into your heart.

Do not fall into the bala of vanity [liking yourself]; know that pride and haughtiness [conceitedness] are invitations for [self-] destruction. There is no way to the proximity of Allah for those who see everyone else lower and themselves higher. We are all poor creatures of Allah. Our beginning is a secretion considered a pollutant and our end is a rotting corpse, also considered a pollutant. The honor of our materiality [corporeality] is with [due to] aql. [This will answer a lot of questions about fitra (the nature and purpose of things)]. Aql is considered aql if it can take its nafs under control and keep it from transgressing the limits [that Allah decreed]; otherwise it cannot be called “aql.” It happens like that with gemstones as well. A person without aql is left in a state of impurity without a gem in him, and this way he cannot proceed to a spiritual level or deserve a maqam (station; spiritual level).

What aql is supposed to do is save a person from ananiya. If it cannot save him from false claims, that aql loses its level of highness. [We do not say anywhere that aql is really a “high” thing; it is not.]

Knowing that we are created from earth and will go back into earth, the course we should take has to be one that befits the “between the beginning and the end” condition we are in. [What is the beginning? Earth. What is the end? Earth. What’s in-between? You. So what must you do? Act accordingly. You are between the beginning and the end.] The divine preacher is present in each Muslim’s heart. [The divine preacher is your conscience. For me, this is the energy of Muhammad, peace be upon him. If he is not in you, you are not a believer. It is because of him that you are a believer. Allah says in Qur’an-i Kerim that he is closer to you than your own selves are.] If a person does not have preaching and advice from himself to himself, he will not benefit from advice given to him by anyone else. How can the one who is unaware benefit from admonishment?

Please get your share of the advice that I am giving. “Whoever hides what he knows of the beneficial ilm will have a bridle [muzzle] of fire put on him on Judgment Day.” [This is an honorable hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet, peace be upon him)] Because I overpowered my nafs, it did not transgress. My person is happy now. When you, too, overpower your nafs and stop worrying about money, ancestral lineage, honor, property and possessions, you will be happy as well. My appeal to you is that if you do not check your nafs in every breath, you will not be added into the book of Insan-i Kamil.

When Allah sees that one of His servants is fit for love, He shows him his state of incompleteness and puts compassion and softness for all creation in his heart. [When Allah wants to love you, then you start seeing your incompleteness. That’s what happens on the Sufi path. Our job is to show you. Every time you get onto a new level, you see your incompleteness. The miracle is that you still love your Shaykh. I don’t know how this is happening, because he keeps showing you what you are lacking. This is from Allah. But somebody has to do it, and that is your Shaykh.] He gets him used to being generous, his hand to giving and his heart to being merciful. To make him abhor his nafs, He shows him its indecencies and makes his nafs lowly in his eyes. [So know your nafs. When you do something bad, know why it is bad. It is bad because it is from your nafs, as you can see. That’s why you move to Allah. Why did you make that mistake? Because you didn’t surrender. How can you get back to the level you were on before? Go back to surrender.]

Arifs are in a constant state of melancholy, while the common people are joyful. But they [arifs] never fall into grief and they live a surrendered life. They speak less, cry a lot, laugh little and they want nothing but their real Beloved [which is Allah, of course]. They value nothing or hold nothing in importance except the annihilation of their indecencies and sins.

Additional Commentary by Shaykh Taner

This fight against your nafs is the one that is necessary for your advancement towards Allah. This will show your sincerity, that you really want Allah. That’s why we need the nafs and that’s why we need this fight and we need this fight to be fierce. So don’t be afraid if you have a tough nafs. Good! Just fight tough.

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Being Cautious of Dunya
or
How to Defend Yourself Against Material Life

I advise you to be cautious of dunya (the material world). You must know that this world is an illusion and whatever is here does not last long. The favors given to the people of dunya are to be used for the world, and those given to the people of the hereafter are for the hereafter.

Dunya is a liar. It smiles at the people who show attention to it. You have to stay away from it in order to have peace. Do not tend towards dunya, even if it favors you, because dunya is a traitor, a liar; it stabs you in the back while smiling in your face. It is as flexible as a snake but equally dangerous with its poison. The ones who recognize themselves as mortals recognize the Master as immortal and do not favor dunya. In dunya, there is no wafa (loyalty) or baqa (everlastingness). When we look at the state of dunya, what we see is weakness and abasement before us, and our end is death and the grave.

Dunya is such a world that it feeds what is in its arms, and then eats what it has fed. When we look at earth with a critical eye, we see that the earth, stretched under our feet like a carpet, is composed of the organs of the nations that have passed before us. What we are stepping on is not actually soil, but it is the cheeks, faces and lips of our ancestors. This is what dunya is, and its inhabitants are the same. Our situation is this: “Fa’tabiru ya ulul absar.” (“Those who see should take heed.”)

Second Reading with Commentary by Shaykh Taner

I advise you to be cautious of dunya. You must know that this world is an illusion and whatever is here does not last long. [That’s why it is an illusion.] The favors given to the people of dunya are to be used for the world, and those given to the people of the hereafter are for the hereafter. [In other words, if you keep asking Allah to give you favors, Allah saves most for the hereafter, because if He gives them to you in this world, they will leave you. This world and its favors are not permanent. Be patient—Allah is going to reward you in the hereafter. But because the hereafter is not now, we are impatient. Of course, we want it now because we are stupid and ignorant. “When, then?” we say. Allah replies, “In the hereafter I will take care of you.” “While You’re taking care of this evil guy now, I have to wait for the hereafter? How is this going to work?” Well, you know the answer: “Yes, I can give it to you now if you want, but in the hereafter, what will happen? This is going to end here.” So Allah doesn’t pay too much attention to our whining and groaning and complaining, because He knows the future and He saves most of His favors for you in the hereafter.]

Dunya is a liar. It smiles at the people who show attention to it. You have to stay away from it in order to have peace. Do not tend towards dunya, even if it favors you, because dunya is a traitor, a liar; it stabs you in the back while smiling in your face. It is as flexible as a snake but equally dangerous with its poison. The ones who recognize themselves as mortals recognize the Master [Allah] as immortal and do not favor dunya. In dunya, there is no wafa or baqa. When we look at the state of dunya, what we see is weakness and abasement before us, and our end is death and the grave.

Dunya is such a world that it feeds what is in its arms, and then eats what it has fed. [Just as when you buy a lamb and feed it, fatten it and then eat it. Dunya does that to us. It fattens us, then the earth eats us.] When we look at earth with a critical eye, we see that the earth, stretched under our feet like a carpet, is composed of the organs of the nations that have passed before us. What we are stepping on is not actually soil, but it is the cheeks, faces and lips of our ancestors. This is what dunya is, and its inhabitants are the same. Our situation is this: “Fa’tabiru ya ulul absar.” (“Those who see should take heed.”)

Additional Commentary by Shaykh Taner

What our Pir (spiritual ancestor; head of a Sufi tariqa) is trying to do here is motivate you not to pay attention to dunya, because it is illusion. Don’t be after the illusion. Let me give you an example. There is a game we play called Monopoly. This dunya is like that. In Monopoly, you have these hotels, you buy and sell, you even fight during the game—I got you, you got me—It’s the same thing here. Everything seems real, but it’s all for a purpose. What is that purpose? Wake up! This is my explanation: All the phenomena that are happening in the world, all of this buying and selling and fighting is to test your reaction and your action. What are you showing to Allah? Are you sincere? Are you making an effort to reach Allah? Are you making an effort to obey Allah? Are you making an effort to avoid sins for fear of Allah and for the good pleasure of Allah? Are you sincere in this?

These days they train pilots and drivers on simulated screens. Dunya is just like this, and Allah is the trainer: Let Me see how you’re going to feel about this situation. But this is the wrong way; you should be feeling like this, so I give you another chance, another try. How will you do this time? How about the next time? You should be more patient, more generous, more tolerant, more loving each time these things happen. Is it happening?

This is your school. This is a school that is built in a virtual reality situation, testing and teaching you how to behave, how to feel, what to learn, how to understand, what to understand, how to praise Allah at the end with this understanding. It is the school where you learn to appreciate and be thankful to Allah, and to love Allah. That’s what our Pir Ahmed er Rifai is trying to tell you.

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Khawf and Rija

Fear of Allah is the beginning of wisdom. Those who know the greatness and power of Allah should fear Allah in that proportion. At the same time, they should not lose hope of His mercy, trusting His generosity and favor.

You must always strike a balance between khawf (fear) and rija (request; hope). Khawf is the heart’s fearing Allah for the sins it knows. On the other hand, rija is the heart finding contentment with the beautiful promises of Allah. For the servant who has truly surrendered, hope and request have to be equal to fear; if they were weighed, they should weigh the same.

On Judgment Day, Allah will manifest such grace and generosity that even the cruel, the unbeliever and Shaytan (Satan) will receive mercy. Know that, as it is said, “Allah forgives sins and accepts repentance.” It is also said that He is, “shadidul iqab.” (“He is tough on sins.”) Therefore, we should approach Allah’s door with repentance, asking for forgiveness, and go into His presence with good deeds that He likes.

It is certain that everyone, sooner or later, will be in His presence and return to his origin. In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) it is acknowledged, “We created you from earth, return you to it, and bring you forth from earth again.” (Ta Ha 20:55)

What a pity that ghafla (heedlessness; ignorance) is pulling us into the dangers of uncharted waters. We are in the sea of wishes, in the ship of oblivion, with the sail of greed and the wind of coveting, fighting the treacherous waves, and going into the depths of the end.

Second Reading with Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Fear of Allah is the beginning of wisdom. [We define this fear as knowing that Allah is bigger than you and that He is able to do all things. You can get hurt, and you know this.] Those who know the greatness and power of Allah should fear Allah in that proportion. [The ones who know Allah more deeply fear Allah more. You may ask, “Where is the love?” Love is there. Why do we Sufis fear Allah? We are afraid that maybe Allah will not love us—that is our fear. Maybe we are doing something to put up barriers between ourselves and Allah and His love. In reality, we do this constantly. When should we fear Allah? When we are not with Him. When should we love Allah? When we are with Him. For Sufis, the greatest fear is this: If we are not with Allah, who are we with? When we are with our nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature), we should be afraid. When we are with Allah, there is no fear or grief. Allah says this. As Sufis, we fulfill this in our lives.] At the same time, they should not lose hope of His mercy, trusting His generosity and favor. [that Allah is generous and gracious]

You must always strike a balance between khawf and rija. Khawf is the heart’s fearing Allah for the sins it knows. [This is the knowing in the heart that it has sins. How are we going to meet our Lord like this? That is the fear, not because Allah is able to destroy you or hurt you. How can we face Allah with all of our sins? That is what the heart is afraid of.] On the other hand, rija is the heart finding contentment with the beautiful promises of Allah. [When Allah says certain things, the heart feels good. What are these promises made by Allah? I will forgive you, I will overlook your sins, I will take care of you, and so forth. This makes the heart feel good.] For the servant who has truly surrendered, hope and request have to be equal to fear; if they were weighed, they should weigh the same.

On Judgment Day, Allah will manifest such grace and generosity that even the cruel, the unbeliever and Shaytan will receive mercy. [That is how great Allah’s mercy is. Allah feels this love for all of His creatures, including Shaytan.] Know that, as it is said, “Allah forgives sins and accepts repentance.” It is also said that He is, “shadidul iqab.” (“He is tough on sins.”) [He is shadeed—tough, severe.] Therefore, we should approach Allah’s door with repentance, asking for forgiveness, [“I am sorry, forgive me.”] and go into His presence with good deeds that He likes. [What did you prepare to go to Allah’s presence with? We should go to Allah’s presence with good deeds that He likes. That is why in our tariqa (Sufi order), service is very important. Service, service, service. Because in service there is selflessness. There is opposition to your nafs and there is love of Allah. Allah sees that you are striving for Him, and because of this, He accepts you in His presence.]

It is certain that everyone, sooner or later, will be in His presence and return to his origin. [Don’t doubt that you are going to be in Allah’s presence. But will Allah be smiling at you or will He be angry with you? That is the problem. Which way will it go?] In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) it is acknowledged, “We created you from earth, return you to it, and bring you forth from earth again.” (Ta Ha 20:55)

What a pity that ghafla is pulling us into the dangers of uncharted waters. We are in the sea of wishes [desires], in the ship of oblivion, [We are in uncharted waters where there is no hope] with the sail of greed [greed is taking us in this ship called “oblivion” through the sea of desires] and the wind of coveting, fighting the treacherous waves, and going into the depths of the end.

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Ilm-i Wahbi: Knowledge Given by Allah

Allah the Most Excellent bestows the power of understanding upon any of His creation [He chooses]. Likewise, He taught the wisdom of Qur’an to our Rasulu Akram (Noble Messenger; Muhammad, peace be upon him) and thus He enlightened the people. He is the means between the servant and his Lord. “Kama arsalna fikum rasulan minkum yatlu alaykum ayatina wa yuzakkikum wa yuallimukum ulkitaaba wa alhikmata wa yuallimukum maa lam takuunuu ta’lamuun” (“Even as We have sent unto you a messenger from among you, who recites our ayats (verses of the Qur’an; signs) to you, he makes you advance and teaches you the Book and hikma (wisdom), and teaches you that which you did not know.”) (Baqara 2:151)

The Prophet, because he is our means of guidance, is addressed with, “Wa innaka latahdi ila siraatan mustaqeem” (“You verily guide them to a straight path.”) (Shura 42:52)

Allah reveals in the ayat, “innaka la tahdi man ahbabta wa lakinn Allaha yahdi man yashaa” (“You cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whomever He wants”) (Qasas 28:56) that He alone is the Guide. But Allah the Most High chooses whomever He wants to be the means of guidance. And He chose Muhammad, peace be upon him, to be the prime means of guidance and teaching. He gave Muhammad, peace be upon him, His knowledge and set him as an example to others who want to be guided.

As in guidance, also in teaching and training, Allah the Most High uses the Prophet, peace be upon him, as a means and Himself as the main teacher. This fact is mentioned in the following ayats:

“Wa yuallimukum maa lam takuunuu ta’lamuun” (“And [he] teaches you that which you did not know.”) (Baqara 2:151)

“Wa allamnahu min ladunna ilman” (“and had taught him knowledge from Our Presence.”) (Kahf 18:65)

“Allamal insaana maa lam yaalam” (“Teaches man what he knew not”) (Alaq 96:5)

“Khalaqal insaana, Allamahul bayaan” (“He created man and taught him utterance.”) (Rahman 55:3-4)

All of the above show that the ilm (knowledge; science) of Allah is from His attribute of The Infinite Before, and this can be written in the hearts of those people of taqwa (piety; cautiousness for fear of offending Allah).

Again: “Bal huwa ayaatun bayyinaatun fi suduuril lazeena utul-ilm” (“It [The Qur’an] is a clear ayat (sign) in the hearts of those who have been given knowledge.”) (Ankabut 29:49)

According to this proclamation also, the Qur’an that was sent to Muhammad, peace be upon him, was taught to him by Jibril (Gabriel), peace be upon him. Jibril’s teaching means Allah’s teaching. Angels receive directly from Allah without means and thus they become the outer means, the outer confirmation, between Allah and the prophets. Likewise, prophets become the means between the angels and us. Allah is the teacher of all and He is the one who guides and reveals all.

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, is assigned to give people the message and to explain it, and his decrees are for the zahir (outer). Allah the Most High, on the other hand, kept the batin (inner) in His custody. In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) the ayat, “wa anzalna ilaykaz zikra litubayyina linnaasi ma anuzzila ilayhim” (“and We revealed the zikr (remembrance; Sufi ritual remembrance of Allah through repetition of the divine names or attributes) unto you so that you may explain to people that which has been sent down for them”) (Nahl 16:44), points to the assignment of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in giving the message.

And the ayat, “Yuridullahu liyubayyina lakum wa yahdiyakum sunanallazina min qablikum wa yatuuba alaykum, wallahu Aliimun Hakiim” (“Allah wants to explain to you and to guide you with the sunna (way; exemplary actions) of those before you, and to turn to you in mercy. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise”) (Nisaa 4:26), points to Allah’s part of the explanation and guidance. There can be no doubt that these outer actions of the Prophet, peace be upon him, are from Allah.

I want to give you this example to make it clear and stress the point, so that you will not fall into shirk (attributing partners to Allah). A book is incapable of writing itself. Knowledge is spread by books, but knowledge belongs to the author. Contemplate that. If the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the book, Allah is the Writer. If the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the means, Allah is the Doer.

Second Reading with Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Allah the Most Excellent grants power of understanding upon any of His creation [or “creatures” He chooses. I use the word “creation” because you never know what Allah is going to do. He may give understanding to a tree, too. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, talked to a tree and I talked to a tree and a spider. You can do that.] Likewise, He taught the wisdom of Qur’an to our Rasulu Akram and thus He enlightened the people. He [Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him] is the means between the servant and his Lord. “Kama arsalna fikum rasulan minkum yatlu alaykum ayatina wa yuzakkikum wa yuallimukum ulkitaaba wa alhikmata wa yuallimukum maa lam takuunuu ta’lamuun” (“Even as We have sent unto you a messenger from among you, who recites our ayats to you, he makes you advance and teaches you the Book and hikma, and teaches you that which you did not know.”) (Baqara 2:151)

The Prophet, because he is our means of guidance, is addressed with, “Wa innaka latahdi ila siraatan mustaqeem” (“You verily guide them to a straight path.”) (Shura 42:52)

Allah reveals in the ayat, “innaka la tahdi man ahbabta wa lakinn Allaha yahdi man yashaa” (“You cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whomever He wants”) (Qasas 28:56) that He alone is the Guide. But Allah the Most High chooses whomever He wants to be the means of guidance. And He chose Muhammad, peace be upon him, to be the prime means of guidance and teaching. He gave Muhammad, peace be upon him, His knowledge and set him as an example to others who want to be guided. [What Ahmed er Rifai Hazretleri (His Excellency [Turkish spelling]) is trying to say is that it is Allah who guides. There is no question about that. But how does the Prophet, peace be upon him, figure into this? He is the means; that is how Allah guides. He uses him to guide. The means is not the source of guidance; Allah is the source of guidance. But He chose Muhammad, peace be upon him, to act as guide. “He gave him His knowledge and set Muhammad, peace be upon him, as an example to others who want to be guided.” The critical phrase is “who want to be guided.” Do you want to be guided? Then you will be guided. Allah is sending the means to guide you. You have to hold onto the means, but don’t think that the means is guiding you. It is Allah always; the subject is Allah—finished. There is only one “I” there, and that is Allah. Everything is done by Allah. But how? That is the part we are trying to explain; that is the part that, if you don’t understand, you fall into shirk. Allah is the Doer. He does it through His creatures, through His servants whom He chose for His service. They can be in the angelic form, they can be in the jinn (unseen being) form, they can be in a body like ours or in the form of a tree. But who is the one who is really guiding? It is Allah who is guiding. Who is the one who is really helping through your Shaykh? It is Allah who is helping. I am able to do nothing. I cannot even help myself. But through me Allah can help somebody way overseas or on the other side of the universe. That’s Allah who is doing it, but I am the means.]

As in guidance, also in teaching and training, Allah the Most High uses the Prophet, peace be upon him, as a means and Himself as the main teacher. This fact is mentioned in the following ayats:

“Wa yuallimukum maa lam takuunuu ta’lamuun” (“And [he] teaches you that which you did not know.”) (Baqara 2:151)

“Wa allamnahu min ladunna ilman” (“and had taught him knowledge from Our Presence.”) (Kahf 18:65)

[So when you hear “ilm-i ladun” it means this: “Allah teaches you from His Presence.” You have to learn this terminology: ilm-i ladun. In other words, you cannot find this in books; Allah teaches you directly. This is what I’m trying to tell you. The heart, the heart, the heart. Clean your heart; open your heart, so that Allah can teach you directly, too. The subject matter of haqq al-yaqin (sure knowledge received in the heart directly from Allah) is ilm-i ladun.]

“Allamal insaana maa lam yaalam” (“Teaches man what he knew not”) (Alaq 96:5)

“Khalaqal insaana, Allamahul bayaan” (“He created man and taught him utterance.”) (Rahman 55:3-4)

All of the above show that the ilm of Allah is from His attribute of The Infinite Before, and this can be written in the hearts of those people of taqwa [those who are careful that they don’t offend Allah].

Again: “Bal huwa ayaatun bayyinaatun fi suduuril lazeena utulilm” (“It [The Qur’an] is a clear ayat in the hearts of those who have been given knowledge.”) (Ankabut 29:49) [This means not only our Prophet, peace be upon him, but all people who have been given knowledge.]

According to this proclamation also, the Qur’an that was sent to Muhammad, peace be upon him, was taught to him by Jibril, peace be upon him. Jibril’s teaching means Allah’s teaching. Angels receive directly from Allah without means and thus they become the outer means, outer confirmation, between Allah and the prophets. Likewise, prophets become the means between the angels and us. Allah is the teacher of all and He is the one who guides and reveals all.

Our Prophet, peace be upon him, is assigned to give people the message and to explain it, and his decrees are for the zahir. Allah the Most High, on the other hand, kept the batin (inner) in His custody. In Qur’an-i Kerim the ayat, “wa anzalna ilaykaz zikra litubayyina linnaasi ma anuzzila ilayhim” (“and We revealed the zikr unto you so that you may explain to people that which has been sent down for them”) (Nahl 16:44), points to the assignment of the Prophet, peace be upon him, in giving the message.

And the ayat, “Yuridullahu liyubayyina lakum wa yahdiyakum sunanallazina min qablikum wa yatuuba alaykum, wallahu Aliimun Hakiim” (“Allah wants to explain to you and to guide you with the sunna of those before you, and to turn to you in mercy. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise”) (Nisaa 4:26), points to Allah’s part of the explanation and guidance. There can be no doubt that these outer actions of the Prophet are from Allah.

I want to give you this example to make it clear and stress the point, so that you will not fall into shirk. A book is incapable of writing itself. Knowledge is spread by books, but knowledge belongs to the author. Contemplate that. If the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the book, Allah is the Writer. If the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the means, Allah is the Doer.

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The People of Zahir and Batin

You have to respect alims (people of knowledge; scholars) and fuqaha (plural of faqih, a person who is qualified to make judgment upon religious jurisprudence) as you do awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) and arifs (knowers in the spiritual or inner sense; gnostics), because the road is one. These people have been the heirs of the zahir (outer) world of sharia (Islamic canonical law). They have taken the job of explaining the rules of sharia to the people, and reaching Allah depends on the application of these rules. No benefit is obtained from ibada (worship) or mujahada (struggling) unless they are in accord with sharia.

For that reason, you should not ignore huquq (laws of the ulama [plural of alim]). You have to have good assumption for all. The thing is, the people of taqwa (piety; cautiousness for fear of offending Allah) are the ones who act with their knowledge. Our Prophet, peace be upon him, has said, “For those who act with their ilm (knowledge), Allah the Most High teaches them ilm that they do not know.” As well, “The ulama are the inheritors of the anbiya (prophets; plural of nabi).” These are the honored ones among the people who demonstrate the right path, the path of Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq).

Some of the people of tasawwuf (the Sufi method; Sufism) claim they are ahli batin (people of inner knowledge) and that the ulama are ahli zahir (people of outer knowledge). Do not follow this idea. Islam is such a religion that the batin is in the zahir and zahir is an envelope for the batin. Thus they have completed each other and become one. If there were no zahir, there would not be any batin within. If there were no batin, there would be no need for zahir. If there were no body, there would be no heart. The heart is the nur (light) of the body.

Before everything, it is necessary to approve with the heart and act with the accepted procedures. You may have good intentions and cleanliness in your heart while you lie, cheat and commit adultery. What good has your clean heart earned for you? On the other hand, if you do all of the ibada, such as salat (formal Islamic prayer) and fasting, but have not cleansed your heart and your nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) of fasad (duplicity; corruption), fitna (troublemaking; discord; divisiveness), unreasonable desires and lust, what good will you get from your deeds?

It is your bid’a (innovation) to try to separate zahir and batin. Do not be of those who enjoy the good taste of ilm but leave the acting with it for its bitterness. You gain nothing unless you taste that sweetness and this bitterness. Furthermore, this bitterness makes you earn the everlasting sweet taste. The human is promised a reward according to his deed. “Inna la nudii’u ajra man ahsana amala” (“We do not waste the earnings of those who do good deeds.”) (Kahf 18:30). Ikhlas (purity; sincerity) has to be for the good deed that Allah the Most High has assigned. It must not be for dunya (the material world) or akhira (the hereafter). By really believing, obeying His decrees and asking for His goodwill in any condition, utterance or deed, we must not neglect having good dzan (benefit of the doubt; the assumption that Allah is acting in our best interest) towards Allah.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Allah the Most High explains Himself through people and His other creations, and He is not limited. Allah says in Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) that He is the Outer (Zahir), the Inner (Batin), the Former (Awwal) and the Latter (Akhir). People from many walks of life study and enjoy these categories or dimensions, and they share their findings with others. Your job is to listen to all of them and find balance. A Sufi must have both zahiri and batini knowledge because Hz. Abdul Qadir Geylani, may Allah bless his high secret, says, “A bird needs to fly with two wings.” Don’t look down on either zahiri alims or batini alims. They all have their purpose.

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Respect and Love for Anbiya, Awliya and Ashab

The most honorable ones of the human race are the anbiya (prophets; plural of nabi). And among these, the most honorable is our Prophet Muhammad Mustafa, peace be upon him. After these, the most honorable of the people are the ahli bayt (family of the Prophet) and the chosen sahaba (companions) of the Prophet [sahaba-i kiram]. After them are the tabi’un (followers of the companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him).

It is a must to show the proper respect to all of these people. The same respect is due to our Prophet, peace be upon him, comparable to his honor, because he is the means and connector between the Creator and the created. He is Allah’s beloved and His messenger. He is akmal (the most highly evolved and mature of the created beings), and he informs us about Haqq (The True; Allah’s name or attribute Al-Haqq), leads us to Haqq and invites us to Haqq. Whoever connects to [binds with] the Prophet through such high qualities also binds himself with Allah. In a hadith (tradition or saying of the Prophet) the Prophet, peace be upon him, says, “Even the airy [desirous] nafs (egoistic self; man’s animal nature) must comply with the regulations I brought. Those of you who do not do this cannot be mu’mins (believers).”

It is a matter of adab (manners; the correct way to act in any given situation) to show respect for the ashab (companions), who have been honored to be included in the sohbets (fellowships; spiritual discourses) of Rasulu Akram (Noble Messenger; Muhammad, peace be upon him). It is not proper to use foul language or have ill assumptions about them because of some of the events that occurred in their time. They should be acknowledged favorably, as they deserve.

Hearts are enlightened with the love of the ahli bayt. In Qur’an-i Kerim (The Generous Qur’an) it is decreed, “qul laa asalukum alayhi ajran illal mawaddata fil qurba.” (“Say, I ask of you no wage except love for [my] relatives.”) (Shura 42:23)

For whomever Allah wishes to succeed in doing good (khayr), He lets them assume the conditions that are the basis of this quality. He lets them love the ahli bayt and regard them well in every respect. This is so because of the jurisdiction of the Prophet, peace be upon him. The one who loves Allah also shows love for His Messenger and the ahli bayt.

It is also necessary to remember the generous, chosen awliya (saints; protecting friends [of Allah]; plural of wali) with respect and goodness. You should not try to attribute the superiority of one over another of them. [This is not your job.] Allah has graced them with different levels. No one is privy to these levels. Avoid such a situation for the sake of adab.

“Nahnu awliyaaukum fil hayaati d-dunya wa fil akhirati” (“We are your protecting friends in the life of this world and the hereafter.”) (Fusilaat 41:31) The reference here is to the awliya. Be closer to them and you will receive their blessings. They are the party of Allah. They love with and through Allah. For them, there is no fear on Judgment Day. In Qur’an-i Kerim it is proclaimed, “Ala inna awliyaa Allahi laa khawfun alayhim wa laa hum yahzanuun.” (“Lo! Verily the friends of Allah are [those] on whom fear [comes] not, nor do they grieve.”) (Yunus 10:62)

You must stay away from showing enmity against the awliya. Enmity against them is the same as enmity against Allah. In a divine book ¹ it is written, “Anyone who abuses or wrongs My awliya will actually be as if he is declaring war against Me.” [Avoid being an enemy of the awliya. For those who show enmity toward My awliya it is as if they are declaring war against Allah.] Allah watches out for His awliya.

If you ask the awliya to help you, do not assume this help is from them. If you do, it will be shirk (attributing partners to Allah). The help is always from Allah; awliya are the means. For the love of them, Allah is helping you. Your request must be from Allah, for the love of these people. If a prophet shows some supernatural phenomenon, it is called mu’jiza (miracle) and if it is shown through the awliya, it is called karama (generosity). Honorable awliya are afraid of showing karama.

Awliya are like bridges on the road to Haqq. People go towards Allah by passing over them. They are the owners of sincere, pure deeds and they are the people of purity and sincerity. Allah has saved them from the attachments of maa siwa Allah (other than Allah) and has honored them with nearness to Him. There are no veils over their hearts. They abstain from revealing the divine secrets that they have been allowed to see. They are in constant contemplation and zikr (remembrance [of Allah]). “Rijaalullaa tulhiihim tijaaratun wa laa bay’un ’an zikrillah” (“[Those] whom neither merchandise nor sale beguiles from remembrance of Allah”) (Nur 24:37) These are the people mentioned here.

I advise you that, after you learn the religious responsibilities, you should be in the sohbets of these exalted people. They possess the delight of truthfulness, the pleasure of loyalty, and yearning for the Mawla (Master; Allah). The likes of these qualities cannot be attained by studying lessons, but by being in the presence of the shaykh (Sufi teacher) who possesses the knowledge of hal (state of being; situation; status) and the knowledge of qawl (utterances; words; wisdom). Awliya take and make use of wisdom wherever they find it; they are not particular about where it comes from. They do not discriminate as to who said it, even if an unbeliever narrated it, and thus they say, “yatafakkaruuna fi khalkissamaawaati wal ardi rabbana maa khalaqta hadha batilan” (“They contemplate the creation of the heavens and earth (and say) ‘You did not create these for nothing.’”) (Aali ’Imran 3:191)

Make sure that the shaykh you want a connection with is kamil (mature). The nature or incomplete hal of the shaykh manifests, batin to batin (inner to inner), subliminally, in the murids (students; ones who long) or dervishes (Sufi initiates of a certain level). If the shaykh is mature, the murid will be mature and will advance and reach his destination. If the shaykh is incomplete or lacking, he causes the murid to be incomplete and not reach the goal. For that reason, you shaykhs, make sure that you do not transfer any incompleteness to those who connect [take biat: (Turkish spelling] initiation)] with you.

A person’s traces manifest themselves after he is gone. As long as it is not against the religious laws, if someone starts a good deed and acts with it, not only does he get sawwab (or thawwab; credit; reward for good deeds rendered) for it, he also gets the sawwab of others who come after him and do the same. On the other hand, if someone starts a bad deed, he gets the sins of those who follow him in doing this deed, in addition to his sins for doing that bad deed in the first place. This reality is mentioned in an honorable hadith.

Let us know that our asar (or athar; production; traces; deeds) will be a testament to our state of being and that we will be judged by what we left behind.

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Divine Truths, Realities and Facts

The people of hal (state of being; situation; status) [those who live and act with what they learn, not those who only talk] say, “Your Lord makes you exist and then makes you non-existent again. He makes you work and indulge in attaining those things He showed you. Furthermore, He puts you into so many kinds of difficulties along the way. First, He submerges you into grace, then showing His Jalal (Power) and Azamat (Greatness; Grandeur), He annihilates you.”

When you feel His Jalal and Azamat, your condition may not be one of shukr (gratefulness), surrender and contentment in every matter of importance. These qualities are not a result of your jihad (struggle; striving) and ghayra (endeavor; fervor; vigilant care). They are special favors from the Lord. They do not come because of your knowledge, but are endowed to you. You do not deserve these qualities; they are favors to you.

The personal characters of human beings are, on the outside, equal. Differences come about through Allah’s granting of virtues in proportion to the deeds performed. Whatever happens, it is due to the power of Allah.

Commentary by Shaykh Taner

Hz. Ahmed er Rifai is summarizing his book here. These are his final words to you, so that you will not fall into vanity, thinking that you are doing good, even if you are. If you are a true Sufi who has reached fanafillah (ending in Allah; being absorbed in Allah), you know in reality Who is doing the doing. Your only good deed is that you surrendered and strove for this. Actually, it is your willingness and your intention to strive and to surrender that counts.

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Advice from Hz. Ahmed er Rifai

It is advisable for you to stay away from some manners and to make others your own:

Being jealous is wanting people not to have what Allah has given them.

Being conceited is thinking that you are better than others and/or above others.

Lying is saying things that do not exist and trying to use that for your own benefit.

Backbiting is talking badly about humanity.

Greed is not being able to get your fill of worldly life.

Wrath is boiling your blood for vengeance [getting heated up and wanting revenge].

Hypocrisy is acting superficially and being two-faced.

Cruelty is following your nafs’ lust and pleasure.

Try to diet to clean your soul [don’t eat too much], to change a bad day and bad situation to a good day and a good situation. [If you don’t diet, your nafs will be dominant; you can exchange this for a better day if you diet.]

Time is a sword. If you do not pass your time with good and beautiful actions, it will cut you. You will be judged according to your actions.

Being on friendly terms with Allah is the greatest of wealth. Being on friendly terms only with things that are going to die and with people whose hearts are dead is the greatest poverty.

One should not complain to Allah. A wise and mature person does not complain to Allah. The actions of wise people are for Allah’s good pleasure. They do not want anything from Him for their nafs.

1 “There is no god but God, and Muhammad is His messenger.”

1 Kalimat Tawhid: La ilaha illa ‘llah Muhammader rasullullah (There is no god but God, and Muhammad is His messenger.)

2 Also known as ruhu revani.

1 Beyazid al-Bistami [Turkish spelling]: Abu Yazid al-Bistami (804-874 C.E.) Early Persian Sufi who spoke first about annihilation in God (fanafillah) and is remembered often by his ecstatic saying, “Subhanee” or “Glory to Me,” illustrating his own complete annihilation into Allah.

2 Yahya bin Mu‘az (Mu‘adh) Razi (830-871 C.E.): a Sufi who taught in the area of Balkh and Nishapur. According to al-Qushayri, he emphasized hope and the doctrine of mystical gnosis.

1 Revani (fluid; flowing; going easily) and seyrani (traveling; moving; going in-between) are used interchangeably.

1 Hazreti (The Esteemed [Turkish spelling]) Ali: The cousin, son-in-law and close companion of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

1 Hz. Umar: Companion of the Prophet who, after the Prophet’s death, became the second of the Four Righteous Caliphs following Abu Bakr.

2 ahli suffa: people of the veranda who wore wool; those who never left the protction of the Prophet’s mosque in Medina. They lived in poverty while waiting for his teachings and wore rough woolen clothing. Also known as ashabi (companions) suffa.

1 Ashabi suffa: companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him, who were known as “people of the veranda” and wore rough woolen clothing.

2 Majma’: a book extant during the time of the author, likely to be a 12th century commentary on the Qur’an.

3 wali: saint; spiritually advanced person; protecting friend [of Allah]

1 Mustafa is another name for Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.

2 See footnote p. 21.

3 Shaqiq al-Balkhi (d. 810 C.E.): A student of Ibrahim ibn Adham (d. 777 C.E.), the ruler of Balkh who gave up this position and, stressing poverty and asceticism (zuhd), became an exemplary Sufi. Al-Balkhi is noted to have given counsel to Harun al-Rashid (d. 809 C.E.), the fifth Abbasid Caliph.

4 The word “Islam” means submission [to the will of Allah]. Having an Islamic nature is acknowledging that God is the sovereign Being. In the Holy Qur’an, Allah stresses that it is belief in Him that matters, not the religious labels that men have adopted on their own. Allah says: “Lo! Those who believe, and those who are Jews, and Christians, and Sabaeans—whoever believeth in Allah and the Last Day and doeth right—surely their reward is with their Lord” (Baqara 2:62)

1 See footnote p. 20.

1 The tawhid names are Al-Wahid (The One), Al-Ahad (The Unique; The One Who Has No Likeness) and As-Samad (The Source; The Receiver of Requests).

1 Rabi’a al-Adawiyya (717-801 C.E.) One of the early saints of Islam, a precursor to those who would later be called Sufis. She led an ascetic life rooted in poverty and self-denial, teaching that repentance is a gift from God. She is most importantly credited by way of poems and anecdotes of her life with the earliest formulations of Divine Love.

1 Translator’s note: When believers make the required hajj, they are going to unity with Allah on the corporeal plane. The hajj of tariqa is the analogous journey toward profound spiritual union with the Beloved.―Shaykh Taner Ansari

2 The first “name” or zikr is the declaration of faith, “La ilaha illa ‘llah.”

3 The teferruat names are those that describe in finer detail the attributes of Allah. They are Hayy, Qayyum, Qahhar, Wahhab, Fattah and Wahid.

1 Junayd al-Baghdadi (830-910 C.E.): one of the early Sufis of 9th century Baghdad who upheld a public “sober” display of Sufi teaching in contrast to an expressly ecstatic, or “drunk,” one as exemplified by al-Hallaj or Abu Sa’id Abi’l Khayr. He is attributed many sayings regarding, among others, fanafillah and the struggle against the nafs.

1 afaki: (Turkish spelling) objective or impartial; in dreams, authentic spiritual information as opposed to random or meaningless imagery, as in anfusi dreams.

2 Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (1058-1111 C.E.) is most noted for his explication of how Sufism fits into the other Islamic sciences, i.e., fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and kalam (Islamic scholastic theology), in his text Ihya Ulum al-Din.

3 See footnote p. 20.

4 See footnote p. 94.

1 Translator’s note: The second group refers to sects in existence during the time of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Geylani, whose practices were considered errant and/or heretical. Since their activities do not pertain to the present time, passages concerning them were not included in this translation.—Shaykh Taner Ansari

1 Hasan al-Basri: (642-728 C.E.) Considered one of the generation of tabi’un or successors of the sahaba. Al-Basri is recognized as one of the earliest models of Sufism, having been a great ascetic and open advocate for justice and unity among the early Muslims.

1 Imam Muhammad al-Shafi’i (768-820 C.E.): A great Islamic legal scholar who was a key figure in establishing the foundations of jurisprudence (fiqh) in Islam. His teaching emphasized the authority of the Prophet’s example, and led to the development of a science for authenticating hadiths (traditions or sayings of the Prophet, peace be upon him).

2 Hazreti (The Esteemed [Turkish spelling]) Ali: The cousin, son-in-law and close companion of the Prophet, peace be upon him.

3 Qur’an-i Kerim is an adaptation of Kur’an-i Kerim, the Turkish pronunciation of Al-Qur’an Al-Karim.

1 Khalifa Mamun: (786-833 C.E.) The seventh Abbasid Caliph, he is known for greatly expanding the creative and cultural horizons of the Muslim world. He brought translation and the study of science and philosophy to new heights, making Baghdad the intellectual center of the world at the time.

1 The saying is a hadith qudsi: holy hadith, wisdom that Allah imparted to the Prophet, peace be upon him, apart from that recorded in the Qur’an.