Category Archives: Spirituality

Uwais al-Qarani (May Allah be pleased with him)

Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Raheem

by Shaykh Muhammad Sa’id al-Jamal ar-Rifa’i

from his book, The Children Around the Table of Allah

In a Hadith Qudsi recorded by the Companion Abu Hurayra, may Allah be pleased with him, the Prophet Muhammad (s) said speaking from his Lord:

“Allah, Exalted and Mighty is He, loves of His creation the God-fearing, the pure in the heart, those who are hidden, and those who are innocent, whose face is dusty, whose hair is unkempt, whose stomach is empty, and who, if he asks permission to enter to the rulers, is not granted it, and if he were to ask for a gentle lady in marriage, he would be refused, and when he leaves the world it does not miss him, and if he goes out, his going out is not noticed, and if he falls sick, he is not attended to, and if he dies, he is not accompanied to his grave.”

They asked him, “O Messenger of Allah, how can we find someone like that?” He, (s), said, “Uwais al-Qarani is such a one.” They asked him, “and who is Uwais al-Qarani?” He, (s), answered, “He is dark skinned, wide shoulder, and of average height. His complexion is close to the color of earth. His beard touches his chest. His eyes are always looking downwards to the place of prostration, and his right hand is on his left hand. He weeps about himself with such a flow of tears that his lips are swollen. He wears a woolen garment and is know to the people of the heavens. If he makes a promise in the Name of Allah, he keeps it. Under his left shoulder there is a white spot. When the Day of Resurrection comes and it is announced to the slaves, “Enter the Garden,” it will be said to Uwais, ‘Stop and intercede.’ Allah, Mighty and Exalted is He, will then forgive them to the same number as are the people of Rabi’a and Mudhar. (These are the two tribes that Uwais, (r), belonged to). So, O Umar and O Ali, if you can find him, ask him to intercede for you. Then Allah will forgive you.”

Ten years passed by which they inquired about him, but without being able to find him. In the year 21H./644CE, the same year that Umar ibn al-Khattab (r), became the Second Righteous Caliph after the Prophet’s death, (s), Umar (r) went to the Mountains of Abu Qubays (mountain overlooking Makka) and called in his loudest voice, “O people of the Yemen, is there anyone up there called Uwais?”

An old shaykh with a long beard stood up and replied, “We do not know who this Uwais is about whom you ask, but my brother’s son is called Uwais. But he is too unimportant to be asked about, and too poor and submissive that he should be raised up to your level. He is our camel-herder, and he has no standing amongst our people.” But Umar again asked him if he knew Uwais.

The man answered, “Why do you ask about him, O Commander of the Faithful, for by Allah there is not one of us who is more foolish and more needy than he.”

Umar, (r), then wept and said to him, “You are so, but not he. For I heard the Messenger of Allah. (s), say, “Those who enter the Garden through Uwais, asking for forgiveness for them, are the people of the tribe of Rabi`a and Mudhar.” Umar, (r), asked him where he could find him, and was told, “On the Mount of `Arafat.”

Umar and Ali, (ra), then went quickly to Arafat where they found Uwais praying under a tree with camels grazing around him. They approached him and greeted him, saying, “As-salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmut Allahi wa Barakatuh.” Uwais cut his prayer short, and when he had finished it, returned their greeting. They asked him, “Who are you?” He replied, “A herdsman of camels and a hired workman for a tribe.” They said, “we do not ask you about your tending of animals, nor about your being a hired worker, but what is your name?” He answered, “Abdullah.” They said, “All the people of the heavens and the earth are the slaves of Allah, but what is the name in which your mother named you?” He said, “O you two, what do you want from me?” They said, “The Messenger of Allah (s) once spoke to us about Uwais al-Qarani. He gave us a description of the bluish-black color of his eyes, and he told us that he has a white mark under his left shoulder. So please show us if you have this mark, for then it is you for whom we are searching.”

Uwais then bared his left shoulder, and they saw a white mark. They then embraced him and kissed him and said, “We declare that you are Uwais al-Qarani, so ask for forgiveness for us and May Allah forgive you.”

He answered, “I cannot even forgive myself, nor one of Adam’s children. But there are on land and in the seas believing men and women, Muslim men and women, whose invocations to Allah are answered.” They replied, “Surely this is so.” Then he said, “O you two, you know about me and I know about my state, but who are you?”

Ali, (r), answered, “This is the Commander of the Faithful (al-amir al-muminin), Umar ibn al-Khattab, and I am Ali ibn Abu Talib.”

Uwais stood up straight and said, “As-salaamu alaikum ya ‘amir al-mumminin. And you, O Ali, may Allah repay you with goodness for this Community (Ummah).” They said, “May Allah repay you for yourself and your goodness.”

Then Umar, (r), said to Uwais, “Your place is here until I return to Madinah, and may Allah have mercy upon you. Then I will bring you help from my provision and some of my clothes. This has been the meeting place between you and me.”

But Uwais, (r), answered him, “O Commander of the Faithful, there will be no other meeting place, in the knowledge of Allah, between you and me, but this one. So tell me, what should I do with your provision, and what should I do with your clothes? Do you not see that I am wearing a woolen gown and a woolen wrapper, so when do you see me tearing them? Or do you see that my sandals are worn out and torn? When do you see me out wearing them? Between your hand and mine there is a higher barrier which cannot be crossed by a weighty person, So leave these things, and Allah will have mercy upon you.”

When Umar, (r) heard these words, he struck the ground with his stick and shouted out at the top of his voice, “O would that Umar had not been born by his mother, and that she had been sterile!”

Then Umar (r), returned to Al-Madinah, and Uwais (r), herded his camels back to his tribe.

Not long after this, Uwais left his work as a herdsman and went to Kufah where he continued in his bondsmandship until Allah, Glory be to Him took him back to Himself.

When Umar ibn al-Khattab, (r), heard that Uwais wanted to go back to Kufah, he said to him, “Where do you want to go to?” Uwais said, “to Kufah.” Umar, (r), then said, “Shall I write a letter for you to its Governor?” Uwais replied, “I would rather be with the people who are near to my heart.”

In a sahih hadith of Muslim, it is recorded that Umar (r) said, “I heard the Messenger of Allah, (s), say, “Uwais ibn ‘Amir will come with a number of the people of the tribe of Mudar from the region of Qarn as if he had a sickness on his skin. He had a mother to whom he was most perfectly devoted, and if he asked anything of Allah it would be granted to him. If you meet him, ask him to ask forgiveness for you.”

It was said of the Companion ‘Alqama ibn Marthid, (r), that he said, “Asceticism is specially associated with eight people, one of whom is Uwais al-Qarani. His family thought that he was mad, and they built him a room near the door of their house. Days would pass by when they would not see him, and his food was what he took from plants and herbs of the earth which he would sell to buy food for himself.

Also the Companion ‘Amar ibn Saif, (r) said, “When a man once asked Uwais al-Qarani, ‘How did you begin the morning and how did you finish the evening?”‘ He (r) answered, ‘I began in the morning by loving Allah, and I finished the evening in praising Him. Do not ask about the state of a man who, when he wakes up in the morning thinks that he will not see the evening, or when he is alive in the evening thinks that he will not wake up in the morning. Death and its mentioning and remembering does not leave the believer any space for happiness.’ For, as he then said, “In Allah’s Eyes, Exalted is He, what a Muslim possesses does not gather any silver or gold, for one should only be doing what is permitted and avoiding what is forbidden, and whatever does not have leave a believer with a single friend. When we ask them to do what is permitted they insult us, and in that they are helped by the unbelievers and sinful people. By Allah they have thrown terrible things at me, but O Allah I will not leave them until I show them the right way.”

One of them said, “A number of people had spoken to me about Uwais al-Qarani, so hearing that he was then living in Kufah, I went there to find him, for I had no other desire except to see him. I found him sitting by the shore of the Tigris, and I recognized him by the description that I had been given of him. A thin man looked at me, and I stretched out my hand to greet him, but he did not return my greeting. I felt discouraged but I asked him, “Are you Uwais:”

His clothes were poor, and he seemed to be in a state of unwrapped isolation, for it was this state of his which led the ignorant people to say about him that he was mad and deranged. But I knew that his ascetic and surrendered state was that of the true faqir, who does not listen to those who say that such a state is contrary to the Sunnah. Such people are ignorant of the true Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah, (s), which is to leave the material world and the business of creation, and to draw near to one’s Lord; to leave all bonds which are other than to Allah, Exalted and Mighty is He.”

Haram ibn Hayyan continued his account of this meeting by saying, “Then I addressed him saying, ‘May Allah have mercy upon you, O Uwais, and forgive you, How are you?’ “Then my voice halted. For I could not speak my heart which was moved with deep gentleness towards him when I saw his state and that he had started weeping. I found myself also weeping. “Then Uwais said to me, ‘May Allah greet you. How are you my brother, ibn Hayyan, and who showed you the way to me?” “I answered him, ‘It was Allah.” “He said, ‘There is no God but Allah, praise be to our Lord. If it is the Wish of Allah, a thing is done. So this is Allah’s Wish.” I said, ‘How did you know my name, and my father’s name? For my name was Haram ibn Hayyan.’ Uwais said, ‘The Knower told me, for my soul knows your soul when my self talks to your self.’ For the believers know each other in their love for Allah, even if they never met; and when they come to our resting place, they know each other even if they come from somewhere far distant. “I said, ‘Tell me about the Messenger of Allah, (s).’ “Uwais said, ‘I have never seen the Messenger of Allah face to face and I have never been in his presence, but I would give my life for him. But I do not like to talk about that.’ “I said to Uwais, ‘Recite me some verses of the Book of Allah, so that I may hear it from you and so that I may learn them by heart from you. For know that I love you in Allah.’ “Uwais took my hand, and said, ‘I seek refuge in Allah, the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing, from the accursed shaytan.’ Then he recited, ‘We created not the heavens and the earth and what is between them for mere play.‘ (44:38) . Then he sighed a deep sigh, and I looked at him with they eye of Love, for he had become absent.

“A little while later he said to me, ‘O son of Hayyan, your father has died and soon you will die, going either to the Garden or the Fire. My brother and friend Umar ibn al-Khattab has died.’ I said to him, ‘May Allah forgive you, but Umar has not died.” “Uwais said, ‘Yes, and the people have announced his death, and so has Allah, Mighty and Exalted is He, and He has announced my own death. For you and I are both of the dead.” “Then he prayed upon the Prophet, (s), and murmured some short invocations. “Then he said, ‘This is what I leave you, the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Prophet, (s), and you should always remember death, and this should never ever leave your heart for a moment. And warn your people when you go back to them, and say to the whole Community, ‘Do not forsake the people, for if you do, you will forsake your religion without being aware of it, and you will enter the Fire. So pray for me and yourself.’

Then Uwais, (r), said to me, ‘O Lord this is a claim, for he loves me in You, and he has visited me because of You, and permit me to see his face in the Garden, and make him enter the Home of Peace, and protect him in this world, as long as he is alive. Keep him from the material world (dunya) through the walking on the Path, and make him to be thankful for the blessings YOU give him, and give him goodness from me.’

Then he, (r) said, ‘As-salaamu alaikum wa Rahmutullahi wa Barakatuh, for I will not see you after this day. May Allah have mercy upon you, but I do not like to be known, and I love to be solitary, for I am in deep anxiety when I am with people. So do not ask about me, and do not call upon me, but know that you are in my heart even if I do not see you nor you see me. Mention me and pray for me, for I will mention you and pray for you, if Allah, Exalted is He, so wishes. So go away from here.’”

Haram ibn Hayyan said, ” I deeply wanted to walk with him for an hour, but after that he did not allow me anymore, so I left him and I started to weep, and he also wept.

I kept watching him until he went into a road…After that I asked about him, and I called to him, but no one could tell me anything about him. But then, after a week or so had passed by, I saw him once or twice in my sleep. Uwais said, ‘The Messenger of Allah died,’ but he did not say, ‘The Messenger of Allah, sall-Allahu `Alayhi wa sallam,’ although he said it about the Prophets before him. By this he meant that the grace of the Messenger of Allah is well known, and he is known for the perfection of his honor, and he does not need to be praised by people.”

Some said that when night came, Uwais, (t) would say, “This night is for prostrating.” Then he would prostrate until morning. And also when night came he would distribute the food in his house to the poor, and he would say, “O Lord, if someone dies this night out of hunger, excuse me, and if someone dies naked, excuse me.”

Abdullah ibn Salma, the Companion, (t) said, “We went to Azerbaijan in the company of our Master Umar ibn al-Khattab, (r), and Uwais was with us. On our way back he became ill and we carried him, but he did not last long and he died. We went to bury him and found a grave that was already dug. Water was available and everything was ready to receive a dead body. We washed him, put him in a shroud, prayed over him, and then we left. Some of us said that we should go back and mark the grave so that we would be able to find it later. So we returned to the place, but there was no trace of the grave to be found.”

May Allah be pleased with him, and for he himself alone was equal to an entire Ummah (Community).

 

 

 


© 2012 As-Sunnah Foundation of America

Forty Ahadith on “Whosoever…”

Excerpted from
Al-Jami` al-Saghir min Hadith al-Bashir al-Nadhir
Compiled by: Imam Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (`alayhi ‘r-Rahmah)

Translated by: Muhammad Husayn al-Qadiri

  • Whosoever harms a believer has harmed me, and whosoever harms me has harmed Allah. [Al-Tabarani in Al-Awsat]
  • Whosoever fears Allah, Allah will make everything fear him, and whosoever does not fear Allah, He will make him fear everything. [Al-Hakim]
  • Whosoever loves for the sake of Allah, hates for the sake of Allah, gives for the sake of Allah and withholds for the sake of Allah then his faith has been completed.
  • Whosoever loves a group of people, Allah shall resurrect him with them. [Al-Tabarani in al-Kabir]
  • Whosoever loves al-Hasan and al-Husayn has indeed loved me, and whosoever hates them indeed hates me. [Ahmad in al-Musnad]
  • Whosoever performs hijamah (cupping) on the 17th, 19th or 21st of the (lunar) month then it is a cure for every disease.
  • Whosoever ties the Ihram of hajj or Umrah from al-Masjid al-Aqsa then he will be just like the day his mother gave birth to him. [Abd al-Razzaq in his Musannaf]
  • Whosoever looks after an orphan shall be with me in Jannah, just like this (joining his forefinger and middle finger together). [Al-Tirmidhi]
  • Whosoever revives these four nights then Jannah is binding upon him; the night of al-Tarwiya (8th of Dhu al-Hijjah), the night of al-`Arafah (9th of Dhu al-Hijjah), the night of al-Nahr (10th of Dhu al-Hijjah) and the night of al-Fitr (1st of Shawwal). [Kanz al-`Ummal]
  • Whosoever brings infertile land to life, for him is a reward therein, and if a creature eats from it, that shall be charity for him. [Ahmad in al-Musnad]
  • Whosoever revives my Sunnah has loved me, and whosoever loves me will be with me in Jannah. [Al-Tirmidhi]
  • Whosoever frightens a believer then it is a right of Allah that He shall not save him from the frights of the Day of Resurrection. [Al-Tabarani in al-Awsat]
  • Whosoever takes another’s piece of land unjustly, he will be made to sink down the seven earths on the day of resurrection. [Al-Bukhari]
  • Whosoever does not perform khilaal (pass wet fingers in between the fingers and toes in wudu and ghusl) using water, Allah shall pass fire through them on the Day of Resurrection. [Al-Tabarani in al-Kabir]
  • Whosoever has love for his (Muslim) brother in his heart and does not reveal it to him then he has betrayed him. [Kanz al-`Ummal]
  • Whosoever takes intoxicants then Allah shall not accept forty days of his prayers. [Al-Tirmidhi]
  • Whosoever builds a Masjid seeking by it the pleasure of Allah, Allah will build for him likewise in Jannah. [Al-Bukhari]
  • Whosoever removes harm from the Masjid, Allah shall build for him a house in Jannah.
  • Whosoever removes a harmful thing from the path of a Muslim, then Allah shall write for him a reward, and for whom He writes a reward, he will be entered into Jannah. [Al-Tabarani in al-Awsat]
  • Whosoever makes an error or commits a sin, thereafter feels remorseful, then that (remorse) shall compensate for it. [Al-Bayhaqi in Shu`ab al-Iman]
  • Whosoever dedicates forty days for the sake of Allah, the wellsprings of wisdom shall appear from his heart to his tongue. [Abu Nu`aym in al-Hilya]
  • Whosoever calls the Adhan for seven years seeking reward; Allah shall write for him freedom from Hell. [Al-Tirmidhi]
  • Whosoever calls the Adhan for one year not seeking any (worldly) reward, shall be summoned on the Day of Resurrection. He will stand on the Door of Jannah and it will be said to him, ‘Intercede for whom you wish’. [Ibn `Asakir]
  • Whosoever commits a sin knowing he has a Lord who if He wishes can forgive or punish him then it is a right upon Allah to forgive him. [Al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak]
  • Whosoever displays to people fear (of Allah), greater than he really has, then he is a hypocrite. [Kanz al-`Ummal]
  • Whosoever pleases his (Muslim) parents has pleased Allah, and whosoever angers his parents has angered Allah. [Kanz al-`Ummal]
  • Whosoever increased his knowledge (of religion) and did not increase his detachment from the world has not but distanced himself from Allah. [Al-Daylami in Musnad al-Firdaws]
  • Whosoever performs ablution in extreme cold conditions will obtain double the rewards. [Al-Khatib in al-Tarikh]
  • Whosoever can, should die in Madinah, because I shall intercede for the one who dies in Madinah. [Ahmad in al-Musnad]
  • Whosoever can benefit [by incantation (al-ruqya)] his brother should do so.
  • Whosoever can protect one’s religion and one’s honour using his wealth should do so. [Al-Hakim in al-Mustadrak]
  • Whosoever amongst you can cover his believing brother using the edge of his cloak should do so. [Al-Daylami in Musnad al-Firdaws]
  • Whosoever makes haste shall err. [Al-Tirmidhi]Whosoever seeks forgiveness of Allah after each prayer by praying three times:أَسْتَغَفِرُ اللَّهَ العَظِيْمَ الَّذِيْ لَا إِلٰهَ إلَا هُوَ الحَيُّ القَيُّوْمُ وأَتوْبُ إِلَيْهِ Astaghfirullah al-`Azheem al-Ladhi La Ilaha Illa Huwa al-hayyu al-Qayyumu wa Atoobu Ilayhi his sins will be forgiven, even though he tried to run away from the army. [Ibn al-Sunni in `Amal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah]
  • Whosoever seeks forgiveness on behalf of believing men and women, Allah shall write for him a good deed (equal to) each believing man and woman. [Al-Tabarani in al-Kabir]
  • Whosoever seeks forgiveness twenty seven times in a day for the believing men and women then he will become from those who are answered and by whom the dwellers of earth are given sustenance. [Al-Tabarani in al-Kabir]
  • Whosoever begins his day with goodness and ends it with goodness then Allah says to the Angels, ‘Do not write the (minor) sins between the two’. [Kanz al-`Ummal]
  • Whosoever listens to music will not be allowed to hear the sound of al-Ruhaniyyin. It was asked, ‘Who are al-Ruhaniyyin?’ He (SallAllahu `Alayhi wa Sallam) said, ‘The reciters from the people of Paradise’. [Al-Tirmidhi]
  • Whosoever completes the recitation of the Quran in the morning, the angels pray for him till the evening. And whosoever completes the recitation of the Quran in the evening, the angles pray for him till the morning. [Abu Nu`aym in al-Hilya]
  • Whosoever carries for my people forty ahadith, Allah will resurrect him on the Day of Judgement as a Jurist and a Scholar. [Ibn `Adi in al-Kamil]

 

 


© 2012 As-Sunnah Foundation of America

The Risala of Shaikh Wali Raslan (ra) on the Affirmation of Oneness (Tawhid)

The Risala of Shaikh Wali Raslan

In the Name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the All-Compassionate!

Praise be to Allah.

Now then, know that the whole of you is covert polytheism [shirkun khafiyyun] and your realization-and-affirmation-of- Oneness [tawhid] will not become evident to you until you exit from you[rself]. Provided you are sincere, it will be disclosed to you that it is He, not you, so you must ask forgiveness for you. And whenever you encounter [any form of it], your own polytheism [shirk] will be evident to you. You must therefore renew, in every hour and at every moment, an affirmation-of-Oneness [tawhid] and a faith [iman]. And whenever you become detached from them your faith will increase; and whenever you become detached from you, your certitude [yaqin] will increase.

O prisoner of desires and formal acts of worship, O prisoner of stations and revelations! You are deluded and you are preoccupied with you. Where is your preoccupation with Him to the exclusion of you? He is Present and Attentive, “and He is with you wherever you may be,” in this world and the hereafter. When you are with Him, He screens you from you, and when you are with you, He screens you from Him. Faith is your separating from them, and certitude is your separating from you. When your faith has increased, you will be transported from state to state; and when your certitude has increased, you will be transported from station to station.

The Sacred Law [Shari’a] is for you, until you seek Him from Him for you; and the Reality [Haqiqa] belongs to Him, until you seek Him through Him for Him, beyond when and beyond where, for the Sacred Law does have limits [hudud] and modes [jihat], but the Reality has neither limit nor mode. One who lives with the Sacred Law [alone] is given the privilege of striving [mujahada] and one who lives with the Reality is given the privilege of grace [minna]. How great is the contrast between striving and grace! One who lives with striving is existent [mawjud], while one who lives with grace is extinct [mafqud]. Practices are linked to the noble Law [Shar’]. As for total trust in the Lord [tawakkul], this is linked to faith [iman], and the realization-and-affirmation-of-Oneness [tawhid] is linked to illuminating disclosure [kashf].

People wander astray from the Lord of Truth because of the mind, and from the hereafter because of passion. For, when you seek the Lord of Truth with the mind, you lose the way, and when you seek the hereafter with passion, you stumble and slip. The believer sees by the light of Allah, and one who has direct knowledge [al-’arif] beholds Him by it. “As long as you are with you, We command you. Then, once you have been rendered extinct to you, We take charge of you.” For He does not take charge of them until after their annihilation [in Him]. As long as you continue, you are a seeker [murid]. Then, when He has made you extinct to you, you are one who is sought [murad]. The most lasting certainty is your absence from you and your presence with Him. What a big difference there is between what is at His command and what is because of Him! If you are at His command, worldly means will be subservient to you. And if you are because of Him, the whole universe will be submissive to you.

The first of the stations is patience in obedience to His will (Exalted is He). The one in the middle is contentment with His wishes (Exalted is He), and the last is that you come to be in accordance with His purpose. [Practical] knowledge [‘ilm] is the way of action, and action is [the way of] knowledge. And knowledge is the way of experience [ma’rifa]. And experience [of Allah] is the way of unveiling [kashf]. And unveiling is the way of extinction [fana’]. “You have not become fit for Us as long as there is still within you any remnant of anything apart from Us, so when you have set everything else aside, We shall render you extinct. You have now become fit for Us, and We have entrusted you with Our secret.” When there does not remain with you any self-motivation, your certitude will be perfected, and when there does not remain any existence of yours, your realization-and-affirmation-of-Oneness [tawhid] will be perfected.

The people of the inner are with certainty [yaqin], and the people of the outer are with faith [iman]. So when the heart of the master of certainty is stimulated in response to anything other than Allah, his certainty is deficient, and when no notion ever occurs to him, his certainty is perfect. And when the heart of the master of faith is stimulated in response to anything other than the divine command, his faith is defective, and when it is stirred by the divine command, his faith is complete. The sin of the people of certainty is unbelief [kufr], and the sin of the people of faith is falling short. The dutiful servant is diligent, and the lover is totally trusting, and he who knows by direct experience [al-’arif] is calm and serene, and he who is found is lost.

There is no rest for a dutiful servant, and no movement for a lover, and no resolve for one who knows by direct experience, and no being found for one who is lost. Love is experienced only after certainty, and when the lover is sincere in his love, his heart must be empty of all that is apart from Him. And as long as it retains any trace of love for anything but Him, he must be lacking in love.

One who takes delight in misfortune, co-exists therewith, and one who takes delight and rejoices in prosperity co-exists with it, so when He makes them extinct to them, the enjoyment of misfortune and prosperity departs. As for the lover, his breath is wisdom [hikma], and as for the loved one, his breath is power [qudra]. Formal acts of worship are for the compensations, and love is for the nearnesses. [In the words of Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He)]: “I have prepared for My righteous servants that which no eye has ever seen, of which no ear has ever heard, and which has never occurred to any human heart. When they wish for Me, I give them that which no eye has ever seen and of which no ear has ever heard.”

When He has made you extinct to your passion by decree, and to your self-will through knowledge, you will become a servant with undivided loyalty, with neither passion nor will of your own. Then the veil will be lifted for your benefit, so that servitude will vanish away into Oneness, for the servant will be annihilated and the Lord (Almighty and Glorious is He) will remain. The whole of the Sacred Law [Shari’a] is constriction, and the whole of knowledge [‘ilm] is expansion, and the whole of direct experience [ma’rifa] is dalliance and playful teasing. Our method is love, not labor, and annihilation, not perpetuity. When you enter into work, you belong to you, and when you enter into love, you belong to Him. The worshipper looks to his worship, while the lover looks to his love. When you have come to acknowledge Him, your breathing will be through Him, and your movements will belong to Him, but if you are ignorant of Him, your movements will be your own.

The formal worshipper [‘abid] has no rest; and the ascetic [zahid] has no appetite; and the champion of truth [siddiq] has no dependent reliance; and he who is endowed with direct experience [‘arif] has neither might nor strength, neither choice nor will, neither movement nor rest; and he who is existent [mawjud] has no existence. When you have come to be on familiar terms with Him, you will be estranged from you. “If someone is preoccupied with Us for his own sake, We shall make him blind. But if someone is preoccupied with Us for Our sake, We shall give him sight.” When your passion has faded away, the door of the Reality [Haqiqa] will be unveiled for your benefit, so that your own will is annihilated and Oneness [Wahdaniyya] is unveiled to you and then you will realize that it is He, not you.

If you surrender to Him, He will draw you close, but if you argue with Him, He will keep you at a distance. If you draw near through Him, He will bring you close, but if you draw near through you, He will keep you at a distance. If you seek Him for your own sake, He will burden you, but if you seek Him for His sake, He will pamper you. Your nearness to Him is your separation from you, while your distance is your sticking with you. If you come without you, He will accept you, but if you come through you, He will exclude you.

The worker is hardly likely to be free of attachment to his labor. So be one of the sort disposed toward grace [minna], not one of the sort disposed toward work [‘amal]. If you know Him, you will come to rest, but if you are ignorant of Him, you will be agitated. So the point is that He should be and you should not be. As for the common folk, their works are suspect, and as for the élite, their works are good deeds, and as for the élite of the élite, their works are degrees of spiritual progress. Whenever you shun your passion, your faith is reinforced, and whenever you shun your own essence, your realization-and-affirmation- of-Oneness [tawhid] is reinforced.

Creatures are a screen and you are a screen, but the Lord of Truth is not one to be secluded, and He is concealed from you because of you, and you are concealed from you because of you. So separate from you, and you shall witness Him.

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Shaikh Wali Raslan ad-Dimashqi (raa) was a contemporary of Shaikh ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, may Allah be well pleased with them both, and is said to be one of the Shaikhs who bowed his head when the Ghawth made his famous pronouncement (my foot…).

This posting was shared by Ruslan Moore (Al-Baz Publishers).

This is his Rislala, called the ‘Risala f’it-Tawhid’ and deals with both shirk khafi (hidden shirk) and the Oneness of Allah (tawhid) as it pertains to the suluk. It is actually very short, only 5 pages, though in the book there are two lengthy commentaries, one of the by Shaikh al-Islam Zakariyya al-Ansari (d. 926 AH).