The Path Of Wilaya

Bismillahi Rahmani Raheem, Assalamu Alaikum.

Abu Yazid Al Bistami (ra) said, “I was twelve years the blacksmith of my self, and five years the polisher of the mirror of my heart, and for one year I was looking in that mirror and I saw on my belly the girdle of unbelief. I tried hard to cut it and I spent twelve years in that effort. Then I looked in that mirror and I saw inside my body that girdle. I spent five years cutting it. Then I spent one year looking at what I had done. And Allah opened for me the vision of all creations. And I saw all of them dead. And I prayed four takbiras of janaza (funeral prayer) over them.”

He also said: “If the Throne and what is around it and what is in it were placed in the corner of the heart of a Knower, they would be lost completely inside it.”

I am writing the following primarily for people in the Naqshbandi Tariqah, it will make the most sense to them because they are aware of these things.

When Allah takes a person as His wali He begins by removing them from this world over time until they are completely detached from it, in this way after many years Allah revealed to us recently, that we achieved what nabi Sulaiman (as) achieved in detachment, which Allah taught to the Ummah in the Quran, it was something we had been praying for and working towards for many years:

“Then he said: “Bring them (horses) back to me.” Then he began to pass his hand over their legs and their necks. Al-Hasan Al-Basri said, “He said, `No, by Allah, you will not keep me from worshipping my Lord again.”

Allah then dresses His wali with what He wants to dress Him with and reveals to Him His final place in this life and the Akhira, afterwards, Allah then brings them back into this world so they can be amongst people.

The following is from my Maarifah of this, from what Allah revealed to me at the end of the path/tariqah.

Allah says in the Quran: “Truly, We did offer Al Amanah (the trust or moral responsibility) to the heavens and the earth, and the mountains, but they declined to bear it and were afraid of it (being responsible for it). But man bore it. Verily, he was unjust (to himself) and ignorant (of its results).” (33:72)

Allah in this creation has only revealed a small portion of His reality to it, enough for us to begin to know Him, in the above verse Allah tells us the universe is not good enough to carry His responsibility, but man carried it.

Man is the only one to know it, not even the Angels will know it who were not asked by Allah, the Mala’ikah are responsible for carrying out the consequences to actions in the universe but they do not live or experience those consequence’s themselves.

Only creatures who are being judged have some portion of the Amana upon them and of them man is the only one created in Allah’s image, the only one capable of knowing the responsibility for all actions properly and from that Know Allah properly.

The universe declined the Amana, trust, responsibility for actions because it knew it would allow anything to occur in it and be unable to account for any of it, so it feared what Allah asked it.

Allah asked it because like Man is was created in His image, the universe is created to be His image so Allah could be seen, the universe has capacity to carry the trust but it couldn’t.

The aim of creation is to know Allah, because of this fear of the universe Allah can only be known in this life to a small extent. The aim of the Akhirah is to know Allah properly, on the day of Judgment Allah will start this by revealing of Himself up to the shin, this is analogy for how much of the whole Allah will reveal, the aim though is to see Allah’s face.

That will happen over time and for it to happen the universe of the Akhira will not be like the universe of our time, in the Akhira the universe must be able to carry the trust, Amannah, responsibility like man so it can reveal Allah with Haq for man.

Recently we wrote about why man must experience life even though Allah knows Him:

“Allah knows you but you need to show what you are to everything else Allah created so you can exist with it, with Haq. Allah is Allah because His qualities exist in the universe with Haq, He deserves them and you can test them if you wished (to see if they are real), we need to also “deserve” our qualities in existence as well. How will the Mala’ikah know how to see you, treat you, if they do not witness what you are. If Allah simply told them that is Iman on their part, not haq so you would be missing a part of reality in you because you have not “deserved” your qualities.”

Allah will not ask less of the universe than us, it must be able to know the face of Allah with haq so it is able to show it with Haq.

In the next life it will be a more developed universe than this simple one, man can not travel on this journey if the first step he takes has no Yaqeen in it, if the Iman he gives is not on solid ground, so the universe can not avoid the trust Allah asked it to bear in this life.

The universe was afraid in this life because Allah’s creations sinned and it could not account for these crimes which it allowed to occur. In the next life the people of Sin will be locked up in Jahanam which no one will be able to escape, so the universe will be safe from crimes being committed in it, from creatures being able to corrupt its Mizan, balance, so it will have Iman and salam.

Because of that Man will have the certainty, Yaqeen, He needs, that nothing will manipulate His reality ever again (like sihr), in order to take this Journey to Allah.

“Indeed, those who deny Our verses and are arrogant toward them – the gates of Heaven will not be opened for them, nor will they enter Paradise until a camel enters into the eye of a (small) needle (Until a man is able to escape the inescapable gravity of a black hole, this is what that analogy refers to). And thus do We recompense the criminals.” (7:40)

Rasul Allah (saws) reached Sidrat al muntaha, the furthest limit and his heart was tested inside Jannah, if Jannah is what think it is the prophet’s heart would not have been tested, it would have been impossible for Iblis to rebel and for Adam to forget Allah and make the mistake.

These are all signs that the universe is capable taking man to where he needs to be to see the higher realities of Allah, they are all sings the step mans needs to take is not on firm ground, there is no Yaqeen in it, Rasul Allah (saws) reached the distance of two bows length carrying the burden of the universes nature, He (saws) reached it despite its inability to be Yaqeen in itself.

Then he approached and came closer, And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer; So did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His Servant- (conveyed) what He (meant) to convey. The (Prophet’s) (mind and) heart in no way falsified that which he saw. Will ye then dispute with him concerning what he saw?

For indeed he saw him at a second descent, Near the Lote-tree beyond which none may pass: Near it is the Garden of Abode. Behold, the Lote-tree was shrouded (veiled in a veil of nameless splendour….Here the prophets heart was tested with the splendours of the universe…and)

(His inner) sight never swerved (from the path of Allah), nor did it go wrong! (Even in Jannah)

For truly did he see, of the Signs of his Lord, the Greatest! (53:8-18)

You can understand this reality by understanding the following, in the akhira a woman who does not love her husband more than everything else in Jannah is not married, I heard Rasul Allah (saws) say ‘people of the lowest Jannah will struggle with this’.

Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri Narrated:

We said, “O Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)! Shall we see our Lord on the Day of Resurrection?” He said, “Do you have any difficulty in seeing the sun and the moon when the sky is clear?” We said, “No.” He said, “So you will have no difficulty in seeing your Lord on that Day as you have no difficulty in seeing the sun and the moon (in a clear sky).” The Prophet then said, “Somebody will then announce, ‘Let every nation follow what they used to worship.’ So the companions of the cross will go with their cross, and the idolators (will go) with their idols, and the companions of every god (false deities) (will go) with their god, till there remain those who used to worship Allah, both the obedient ones and the mischievous ones, and some of the people of the Scripture. Then Hell will be presented to them as if it were a mirage. Then it will be said to the Jews, “What did you use to worship?’ They will reply, ‘We used to worship Ezra, the son of Allah.’ It will be said to them, ‘You are liars, for Allah has neither a wife nor a son. What do you want (now)?’ They will reply, ‘We want You to provide us with water.’ Then it will be said to them ‘Drink,’ and they will fall down in Hell (instead).

Then it will be said to the Christians, ‘What did you use to worship?’ They will reply, ‘We used to worship Messiah, the son of Allah.’ It will be said, ‘You are liars, for Allah has neither a wife nor a son. What: do you want (now)?’ They will say, ‘We want You to provide us with water.’ It will be said to them, ‘Drink,’ and they will fall down in Hell (instead). When there remain only those who used to worship Allah (Alone), both the obedient ones and the mischievous ones, it will be said to them, ‘What keeps you here when all the people have gone?’ They will say, ‘We parted with them (in the world) when we were in greater need of them than we are today, we heard the call of one proclaiming, ‘Let every nation follow what they used to worship,’ and now we are waiting for our Lord.’ Then the Almighty will come to them in a shape other than the one which they saw the first time, and He will say, ‘I am your Lord,’ and they will say, ‘You are not our Lord.’ And none will speak: to Him then but the Prophets, and then it will be said to them, ‘Do you know any sign by which you can recognize Him?’ They will say. ‘The Shin,’ and so Allah will then uncover His Shin whereupon every believer will prostrate before Him and there will remain those who used to prostrate before Him just for showing off and for gaining good reputation. These people will try to prostrate but their backs will be rigid like one piece of a wood (and they will not be able to prostrate). Then the bridge will be laid across Hell.” We, the companions of the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “O Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)! What is the bridge?’

He said, “It is a slippery (bridge) on which there are clamps and (Hooks like) a thorny seed that is wide at one side and narrow at the other and has thorns with bent ends. Such a thorny seed is found in Najd and is called As-Sa’dan. Some of the believers will cross the bridge as quickly as the wink of an eye, some others as quick as lightning, a strong wind, fast horses or she-camels. So some will be safe without any harm; some will be safe after receiving some scratches, and some will fall down into Hell (Fire). The last person will cross by being dragged (over the bridge).” The Prophet (ﷺ) said, “You (Muslims) cannot be more pressing in claiming from me a right that has been clearly proved to be yours than the believers in interceding with the Almighty for their (Muslim) brothers on that Day, when they see themselves safe.

They will say, ‘O Allah! (Save) our brothers (for they) used to pray with us, fast with us and also do good deeds with us.’ Allah will say, ‘Go and take out (of Hell) anyone in whose heart you find faith equal to the weight of one (gold) Dinar.’ Allah will forbid the Fire to burn the faces of those sinners. They will go to them and find some of them in Hell (Fire) up to their feet, and some up to the middle of their legs. So they will take out those whom they will recognize and then they will return, and Allah will say (to them), ‘Go and take out (of Hell) anyone in whose heart you find faith equal to the weight of one half Dinar.’ They will take out whomever they will recognize and return, and then Allah will say, ‘Go and take out (of Hell) anyone in whose heart you find faith equal to the weight of a particle, and so they will take out all those whom they will recognize.” Abu Sa’id said: If you do not believe me then read the Holy Verse:–

‘Surely! Allah wrongs not even of the weight of a particle but if there is any good (done) He doubles it.’ (4.40) The Prophet added, “Then the prophets and Angels and the believers will intercede, and (last of all) the Almighty (Allah) will say, ‘Now remains My Intercession. He will then hold a handful of the Fire from which He will take out some people whose bodies have been burnt, and they will be thrown into a river at the entrance of Paradise, called the water of life.

They will grow on its banks, as a seed carried by the torrent grows. You have noticed how it grows beside a rock or beside a tree, and how the side facing the sun is usually green while the side facing the shade is white. Those people will come out (of the River of Life) like pearls, and they will have (golden) necklaces, and then they will enter Paradise whereupon the people of Paradise will say, ‘These are the people emancipated by the Beneficent. He has admitted them into Paradise without them having done any good deeds and without sending forth any good (for themselves).’ Then it will be said to them, ‘For you is what you have seen and its equivalent as well.'” (Bukhari)

“[And this will be] a reward for what they did [in life]. No empty talk will they hear there, nor any call to sin, but only the tiding of inner soundness and peace.” (56:24-26)

Shaykh Rami Al Rifai.