Qadiri Naqshbandi, Qutb Allah, Rami Al Boustani Al Rifai | ‏بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ ‏يُؤْتِى ٱلْحِكْمَةَ مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَمَن يُؤْتَ ٱلْحِكْمَةَ فَقَدْ أُوتِىَ خَيْرًۭا كَثِيرًۭا ۗ وَمَا يَذَّكَّرُ إِلَّآ أُو۟لُوا۟ ٱلْأَلْبَبِ|Bi.isim.Allah@outlook.com
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Khas Muhammad Shirwani

I weep and he makes me happy.
I become sober and He makes me drunk.
I am rescued and He drowns me.
One time He befriends me,
another time He lifts me.
Another time He fights me
until I become angry.
One time I am playful with Him,
one time I accompany Him,
Another time I avoid Him,
another time I speak to Him.
If you say He is happy you
will find Him angry,
Or if you say He is obligated,
you will find He decides

Abdul Karim Jili

He was the Wisest Scholar of his time, Adorned with the Arts of Science, dressed in the Robes of Piety and Patience, enlightened with the Essence of Certainty and supported with the Firmness of Faith. He knew Truth from Falsehood. He was Unsurpassed in Eloquence and Clarification. He was a Master of This Way and the First in this Association (Jama`at). He was the Champion of the Knowers and the Signpost for the Seekers.

His speeches were exemplary and exquisite in their eloquence. His proofs and examples were metaphors that clarified elevated concepts to make them accessible to the people. All were overwhelmed by his eloquence. If he passed through a city in Daghestan, the people would line the streets to see him. Writers used to attend his association for the sake of his eloquent literary language, jurists for his legal rulings, philosophers for his logic, speakers for his clarity, and Sufis for his Manifestation of the Truth.

He was born in Kulal, a district of Shirwan, south of Daghestan, on the 1st of Muharram, a Monday, in the year 1201 H./1786 C.E.

He was tall and very fair. His beard was of mixed color, black and white. His eyes were black. His voice was high-pitched.

He was one of the Pious, Prayerful Jurists. He followed and taught the Shafi`i School. He memorized Shafi`i’s “Kitab ul-Umm” (The Mother of Books). He was able to give judicial decisions (fatawa) at the age of twenty years. He was respected by all in his city. He received his first teachings in Tasawwuf from his family.

From His Sayings

He said, “Our Way is controlled by the Qur’an and the Sunnah.”

“I have met, from the Naqshbandi Order, four types of saints, and of each type, thirty exemplars; but in the end I chose to follow Shaikh Isma`il ash-Shirwani.”

“Allah didn’t send anything to this Earth except as a lesson for His servants to learn from.”

They asked him, “Who is the Knower?” He answered, “The Knower is the one who knows your secret without your speaking.”

He said, “We didn’t take Sufism through speeches and flashy words or by saying, ‘Our shaikh said this and our shaikh said that.’ We took Sufism by being hungry and leaving dunya behind and by disconnecting ourselves from everyone.”

He was asked, “What is the difference between the Seeker (murid) and the Sought (murad)?” He replied, “The Seeker is the one who acquired knowledge through his activities and his learning. The Sought is the one who receives knowledge through revelation and inspiration. The seekers move and walk, but the Sought flies, and what a great difference between the one who walks and the one who flies.”

“Sincerity between Allah and His Servants is not witnessed by anyone, neither the angels to write it, nor the devil to corrupt it, nor desire to destroy it.”

“Even the Trustworthy (Siddiq) changes his opinion more than forty times during a single night, although he is Trustworthy. The Witness (al-Mushahid) is firm in his view for forty years.”

The one who is in the “State of Witnessing” of the Divine Presence, sees Reality. He will achieve the three stages of witnessing: Knowledge of Certainty (`ilm al-yaqin); Vision of Certainty (`ayn al-yaqin); Reality of Certainty (haqq al-yaqin). The knowledge that he attains will be received directly from the Divine Presence, which never changes. Therefore the People of Witnessing are firm in their decisions, which come from Reality and not from the opinion of the mind.

He said, “A person cannot be called a wise servant until nothing appears in him that Allah dislikes.”

“The Naqshbandi Sufi Order is based on four characteristics of behavior: -don’t speak except when asked; -don’t eat except when weak with hunger; -don’t sleep except when overcome by fatigue; -and don’t keep quiet when you are in His Presence (i.e. ask incessantly from Allah).”

“The purity of the heart depends on the purity of the Dhikr and the Dhikr’s purity depends on the absence of any hidden shirk (worshipping Allah with another).”

“The speech of Prophet  is from the Divine Presence and the speech of Sufis is from Witnessing (mushahada).”

“The way of the Sufis to Allah is by struggle against their selves.”

“The State of Unique and Sincere Oneness is reached when the servant goes back from the End to the Beginning, and he becomes as he was before he existed.”

“The knowledge of Oneness (tawhid) has been veiled from the eyes of the External Scholars since long ago. They can only talk about its outer shape.”

“What causes the heart to feel happiness and peace when it hears a beautiful sound? It is a consequence of Allah’s having spoken to the spirits when they were atoms in His Presence and having asked them, ‘Am I not Your Lord?’ The sweetness of His Speech became imprinted on them. Thus in this world, whenever the heart hears anything of Dhikr or music, it experiences happiness and peace, because these are a reflection of that sweetness.”

About His Miracles

For twenty years he did not eat except once a week. His daily practice of remembrance (wird) consisted of 350 rak`ats of prayer.

Shaikh Ahmad al-Kawkasi said, “One time I was travelling from the city across the forest to another city on important business. On my way snow was falling heavily, and a great wind was blowing. Then the snowfall cleared, and in its stead rain poured down, making all the roads like rivers. I had no choice but to pass through that forest. I entered the forest as night was approaching and got lost in the middle. The skies were pouring rain, night was overtaking me, the flood was increasing, and I didn’t know where to go. I came to a river running through the woods. The flood made that river like an ocean, full of waves. The bridge over it was wrecked, but I had to cross. The river was raging, rising higher and higher, until it reached up to my legs, and then reached up the legs of my horse. I feared drowning for myself and my horse. I raised my hands and asked my Lord, “O Allah, help me in this difficulty.” Immediately I heard a voice behind me saying, “O Ahmad, why are you calling me and bringing me from my house?” I looked and I saw Shaikh Khas Muhammad behind me, but he was huge. He said, “Hold my hand and cross the river with me.” I felt fear. He said, “When you are with Us you must not feel fear.” Then we crossed the river. He walked on the river, and I was walking with him on the water. We crossed to the other side. He said, “Now you are safe,” and he disappeared. When I reached my destination and went to the mosque, I saw him sitting there. I asked him, “How did you come?” He said, “O Ahmad, for Us there are no boundaries. We can be anywhere and everywhere at any time.”

His Jihad

Benningsen and Wimbush describe the influence of Shaikh Isma`il ash-Shirwani and his khalifs in Daghestan thus: “The Naqshbandiya tariqat was to play a very important role in Caucasian history. Iron discipline, total dedication to its ideals, and the strict hierarchy on which it was based explain the epic resistance of the Caucasian mountaineers to Russian conquest – -a resistance that lasted from 1824 to 1855– in which not only all the leaders of the movement but also the local authorities (na’ibs) and the majority of the fighters were Naqshbandis. It can be said that the nearly fifty-year-long Caucasian wars made an important contribution to the material and moral ruin of the Tsarist empire and hastened the downfall of the Russian monarchy. “The brotherhood achieved another deep and long-lasting result: it transformed the half-pagan mountaineers into strict orthodox Muslims, and introduced Islam into the animist areas of upper Chechnia and among the Circassian tribes of the western Caucasus.”… “The subsequent massive migration of the Caucasian Muslims to Turkey did not destroy the Naqshbandiyya in Daghestan and Chechnia; its roots had spread too wide and too deep.”

Khas Muhammad died on the 3rd of Ramadan, a Sunday, in the year 1260 H. / 1844 C.E. while returning to Daghestan from pilgrimage to Makkah. He was buried in Damascus. He passed the authority of the Tariqat to his successor, Sayyiddina ash-Shaikh Muhammad Effendi al-Yaraghi (q), according to the will of their common shaikh, Sayyidina Isma`il ash-Shirwani (q).

 

Ismail Muhammad ash-Shirwani

I spoke about Myself.
Those who heard me said: ‘See how he boasts!’
How could I compare the Real to the other-than-Real,
When one drop, one atom of Him fills the two worlds?
The part is the All, and the All is here.
In Him the two worlds are lost–the soul
and the one she quickens.
There is the Sun, here, the ray.
Whoever saw a ray separated from the Sun?
The sufi is entirely there, only his trace is here.
And the trace is never separated from the All

Al-Ansari al-Harawi, Munajat

He was an Imam of Spiritual Power. He was one of the Masters of Sufism. He was the Owner of the Throne of Guidance, and the Focus of Divine Outpouring. He was a Tower of the Unseen Secrets of the Divine Essence. Through him mankind was guided on the Path of Heavenly Knowledge and by means of him they became distinguished. He was a beacon for his time. He was the Imam for whose elevated knowledge the people bore witness. In his century he was the Sufi to whom all eyes turned.

Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani (q) was the one to bring the Naqshbandi Order to Daghestan. He was the one to establish jihad against the cruel Russian occupation and to revive the religion of Islam in his country after it had been almost eradicated.

He was born on a Tuesday, the 7th of Dhul-Qi`da of the year 1201 H./1787 CE. in Kurdemir, in the Khanate of Shirwan, in Caucasia. He had a very strong and well-built body and he was tall. He had a very light complexion. His eyes and beard were black. He had a high-pitched voice.

He received his education in Shirwan through his father, who was one of the greatest scholars of his time, ash-Shaykh Anwar ash-Shirwani. He educated young Isma`il in the memorization of Qur’an, which Isma`il memorized entirely by the age of seven. He then spent time memorizing the seven different readings. At the age of nine he began learning Jurisprudence and the Science of Prophetic Narrations from Shaykh Abdur Rahman ad-Daghestani. At that young age, he was able to give the evidences from Qur’an and Hadith for almost any question of fiqh (jurisprudence).

One day he was struck by a powerful Heavenly influence which made him lose awareness of himself completely and brought him into a State of Self-Effacement. This state, in which he was lost to himself, impelled him to wander in search of the Reality he could see in his heart. Then one day he had a vision, in which a voice told him, “You must direct yourself towards Delhi, where you will learn from it scholars and its Shaykhs. Allah May grant you the good fortune to meet with the successors of Shaykh `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi.”

That vision kept appearing to him, until he reached the age of seventeen. He said to his father, “I want to go become one of the followers of `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi.” His father was very fearful to let him go to such a far-off country, but he finally relented and gave permission for his son to travel. Isma`il set out on foot for Delhi, walking day and night without conveyance. He took one year to reach Sayyidina `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi (q) in Delhi.

He stayed in the Shaykh’s Khaniqah, learning from him. He was in his service for several years. In 1224 H./1809 AD he met Mawlana Khalid (q) when the latter came to India to meet Shaykh `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi (q) and to take the tariqat from his hand. Shaykh Isma`il used to carefully observe the behavior of Mawlana Khalid with Shaykh `Abdullah. He was very impressed by the manner and sincerity with which Mawlana Khalid served the Shaykh. Shaykh `Abdullah once looked at Sayyidina Isma`il and said, “Your secrets are with Shaykh Khalid. When he returns to his country you will follow him.”

When Mawlana Khalid returned to his country of Sham in 1225 H., Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani went back to Daghestan to say farewell to his parents. On his journey back to Daghestan he stopped in a city where he found the people standing in the desert with their hands raised in du`a, asking Allah to send them rain. They had not seen rain for a whole year. When they saw him and glimpsed the piety in his face, they asked him, “Can you ask Allah to shower rain on us.” He raised his hands in du`a. The clouds gathered and the wind began to blow. It started to rain and continued to rain for seven days without stopping.

When he reached Daghestan, he asked his parents’ permission to move to Greater Syria (Sham ash-Sharif). However, he stayed in Daghestan for a long period of time. While he was there people came to him constantly to learn from his teachings.

From His Sayings

He said,

“If a person devotes himself to Allah, Almighty and Exalted, the first benefit he will receive will be that he will no longer be in need of people.”

“The sweet smell of the lovers of God will arise from them and spread. Even if they try to conceal it they will not be able to, wherever they come from and to whereever they go.”

“Whoever hears wisdom and does not apply it is a hypocrite.”

“The company of the heretics is an illness and the medicine for it is to leave them.”

“Allah, Almighty and Exalted, has said that whoever is patient with Us will reach Us.”

“Allah provides his servants with the sweetness of His Dhikr. If one thanks Allah and is happy with that, He will provide him Familiarity with Him. If he is not thankful and happy with that, He will take the sweetness from the dhikr and leave it only on his tongue.”

“Allah expresses familiarity with His Servants by means of showing them His saints.”

“Sufism is Purity, it is not a description. It is a Truth without an end, like a river of red roses.”

“Tasawwuf is to walk with the Secrets of Allah.”

“Whoever prefers the company of the rich over that of the poor, Allah will make his heart to be dead.”

“For the Knower there is a time when the Light of Knowledge will shine on him. It makes him see the Wonders of the Unseen.”

“Whoever proclaimed he is Hearing, and yet he doesn’t hear the Dhikr of the birds and the sounds of the wood and the applause of the wind, is a liar.”

He was asked about human beings. He said, “There are four kinds of people and ghosts. On them Allah’s Will is pouring forth.”

He spent many years in Daghestan. Then he had a vision in which Shaykh `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi (q) ordered him to move to Sham and to stay there and serve Shaykh Khalid al-Baghdadi (q). He traveled to Sham walking from Daghestan to Kuman, from Kuman to Azerbaijan and on to Tiflis. From there he went to Tabriz, then to Amad, Aleppo, Hama, and Homs. He finally arrived in Damascus, the center of Syria, after one year of travel.

In Syria, he immediately went to meet his Shaykh. From Marja in the city center where he had arrived, there was no easy way to go up the mountain, which overlooks all of Damascus, where his Shaykh’s Khaniqa was located. He walked from Marja to that mountain in two hours, until he arrived at his Shaykh’s door. As he entered his Shaykh was waiting for him. He said, “We received the news of your arrival. Welcome.”

Shaykh Khalid immediately placed him in seclusion for a long period of time. In that seclusion he taught him what he needed in order to reach perfection, then he gave him the power of this Tariqat. He ordered all his followers to listen to him. He said,

“This is my Khalif. He is like the dome of a mosque, the dome of the Mosque of the Prophet . From him the secret of this tariqat is going to spread back to Daghestan. From there I can see its light shining forth through seven generations of Shaykhs. Every one of these seven Shaykhs will represent the highest powers of the Divine Presence. Through them there will be great support against the army of Ignorance which is going to overwhelm the area of Daghestan.”

“From among the people of Daghestan there will be one warrior who will be living in the time of three great Shaykhs of this tariqat and he will be supported by them. He will lead the fight against this army of Ignorance.” Then he said to his followers: “Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani is the best of all scholars in this time, and I raised him up to be one of the perfected saints. He will guide you and guide everyone after me. He is going to be the Knower that spreads the secret of this Tariqat another time in the territories of the Caucasus. This Imam is going to be the First to sit on my Throne and he is going to be the Trustee of whatever I have, to spend in Allah’s Way. And his duty is to look after my children.”

Shaykh Isma`il served his Shaykh and kept his company. He travelled with him and lived with him in his house for fifteen years. He was given the Absolute Khilafa and he was given permission to guide seekers, al-irshad. He directed people to the best of his knowledge, until his fame spread throughout Sham, Iraq, Persia, Armenia, Turkey, reaching the land of Daghestan.

Shaykh Khalid assigned him to teach and train people in the Mosque of Al-Addas in Damascus. He used to count and evaluate the action of every seeker, one by one, and present it to his Shaykh, Mawlana Khalid. Whatever question he was asked by murids, he would present to the Shaykh. Then the Shaykh would give an answer or ask Shaykh Isma`il to give a religious ruling (fatwa).

Shaykh Majid al-Khani reported, “Shaykh Ismail used to say to us, ‘I am a polished mirror. Whatever Hazrat Mawlana Khalid has engraved on me I have reflected it to you.’ And he never saw himself higher than us.”

Shaykh Majid al-Khani said, “When Shaykh Khalid passed away, Shaykh Isma`il cried. He was shaking, but despite this, he was firm, like a mountain, steadfast. He made all the followers of the Shaykh come together and testify in unison that they would hold fast to the Rope of Allah. He renewed their energies and took the sadness from their hearts. He gave them respect and he praised them and blessed them. He taught them the best way of worship and prepared them to receive Elevated Spiritual Knowlege. He took control of guiding the seekers in place of his Shaykh and he kept it as it had been. He said, “Don’t you know that  Hazrat Mawlana Khalid was of the people of Allah and that those people never die? They are with us in every moment and in every second.”

He left for Daghestan after some time and reached there very quickly. In his zawiya in Daghestan he met Shaykh Khas Muhammad. Seeing in him the light of this Order, he told him, “You are going to be one of my successors.” Eventually he passed the Secret of the Order to him, as well as two other great saints of Daghestan, Shaykh Muhammad Effendi al-Yaraghi and Sayyid Jamaluddin al-Ghumuqi al-Husayni.

During his sojourn in his home-country, Shaykh Isma`il spread the tariqat throughout Daghestan and encouraged his people to fight the Russians, who were opposed to religion and the spiritual life. His followers were soon everywhere, and many of them became active in the war against the Russians. They were tireless in spreading the Naqshbandi Order throughout Daghestan until every city and every house was known to be Naqshbandi.

Imam Shamil ad-Daghestani ash-Shashani and Mullah Fawzi Muhammad, the leaders of the movement against the Russians, were among his followers. For 36 years, under his directorship and the directorship of his immediate successors in the lineage, they defended their country from the oppressive Russian onslaught.

From His Miraculous Powers

It is said that one day Shaykh Isma`il (q) was in a mosque and he observed a poor person who did not eat, did not drink and did not sleep. He approached him and asked him, “What do you desire?” He said, “I desire hot bread and some food.” Shaykh Isma`il raised his hands in supplication and said, “O Allah, here is your servant who hasn’t eaten in three days. Please send him what food You would like for him.” He hadn’t finished the du’a before a man entered the mosque saying, “My wife became ill and I made an oath that I would feed the poor so that she might be blessed. I have brought some hot bread and some food to feed the hungry.”

One of his followers in Daghestan narrates: “Shaykh Isma`il said to himself one day, ‘O my ego, I am angry with you. I am going to throw you into difficulties.’ He went into the mountains of Daghestan and lay down at the mouth of a cave in which were two lions. They did not move and we, who had followed him, were very surprised. Then the male lion approached him with a big piece of meat in his mouth and sat down, far away, not approaching but only watching him. Then the lioness approached with some meat in her mouth. She began to cry and roar. The male approached the female and made her stop her crying. They sat for a while watching the Shaykh. Then the male lion took his two young cubs and gave them to the mother, while he approached Shaykh Isma’il. He sat down beside him, staying until the Shaykh left.”

One day Shaykh Isma`il passed by a village. When some people of the village saw him and recognized him all the people came running out to meet him. The Shaykh of the village came and said, “O Shaykh Isma`il, please come and teach us.” He said, “O Abu Said, Allah has two ways of teachings: the Common Way and the Special Way. The Common Way is the way you and your companions are on. As for the Special Way, come with me and I will show you.” They followed him until he came to a river. He said, “This is the Way of Allah,” and he walked across the water to the other side. Walking away, he disappeared.

Shaykh Abdur Rahman ad-Daghestani relates:

“One day I was sitting amongst a large group of people. We saw Shaykh Isma`il approaching wearing a woolen cloak and on his feet were new shoes. I said to myself, ‘That Shaykh Isma`il is a real Sufi Shaykh. I am going to go to him and ask him a difficult question to see if he can answer it or not.’ I approached him and he saw me. As I drew near he said, ‘O Abdur Rahman, Allah said in the Holy Qur’an to avoid bad thoughts. Don’t try to question me. That is not good behavior.’ I said in my heart, ‘What a miracle! That is a great miracle! How did he know my question and how did he know my name? I must follow him and ask him more.’ I ran after him but I couldn’t find him.

“One day I saw him in a village. He was standing and praying and his eyes were full of tears. When he had finished, I ran towards him and it came to my heart to ask his forgiveness for what I had done last time. He looked at me and said, ‘Read to me the Qur’anic verse, wa innee la-Ghaffaran liman taaba wa amana wa `amila salihan thumma-htada [20:82] (‘Without doubt, I am He that forgives again and again, to those who repent, believe, and do right–who, in fine, are ready to receive true guidance.’) Then he left. I thought to myself, ‘Surely he is one of the abdal (“Substitute-saints”); that is the second time he has addressed the thoughts in my heart.’

“Later that same day, on my way home, I passed by that village again and I saw him standing by a well, with a cup in his hand. He wanted to drink from the well. While I was watching him the cup fell into the well. Then I saw him raise his hands and recite this du’a, ‘O Allah, I am thirsty for water and water is my only food. O Allah, You Know my heart and you know that I am thirsty.’ By God, not a second had passed before the water in the well rose up until it reached the top and was flooding out of the well and with it the cup. He took the cup and drank, then he made ablution and prayed four rak’ats. Then he put sand in the cup, put some water in with the sand and stirred it with his finger. He then sat and ate from the mixture. I came and said, ‘O Shaykh Isma`il, let me eat with you. What are you eating, dirt?’ He replied, ‘O Abdur Rahman, keep good thoughts of Allah.’ He gave me the cup. I put it in my mouth and it was water and honey. I swear by God that I never in my life drank anything so delicious. Many days passed after that and I didn’t need to eat or drink, I felt so satisfied from the sweetness of that single cup.”

Shaykh Muhammad ad-Daghestani said, “One time I went out to see Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani. I kissed his hand and I asked to accompany him on his travels. I travelled with him for two days. In that time I never saw him drink or eat. I became extremely hungry and thirsty and I became very weak from continuous walking without food or drink. I said, ‘O my Shaykh, I am so weak.’ He said, ‘Are you thirsty or hungry?’ I said, ‘Yes, both.’ He said, ‘Then you are not worthy of my company. Close your eyes.’ I closed my eyes and when I opened them I found myself at my home.”

He died on the 10th of Dhul-Hijjah, a Wednesday, of 1255 H. / 1839 C.E. He was buried in Amasya.

He passed his secret to his three khalifs who were all among his students. This multiple succession was similar to that in the time of Sayyidina Shah Naqshband, when he passed the secret of the Order to many khalifs; but is different from that time, in that Shah Naqshband passed the main secret to only one, Sayyidina `Ala’uddin al-Attar, whereas Shaykh Isma`il passed it to all three: Shaykh Khas Muhammad ash-Shirwani, Shaykh Muhammad Effendi al-Yaraghi al-Kurali, and Sayyid Jamaluddin al-Ghumuqi al-Husayni.

Sayyidina Isma`il Shirwani informed his three khalifs of a prediction for their futures: “I am passing to each of you the secret of the Tariqat, at the same time, by Order of the Prophet , and by the orders of Sayyidina `Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani, and the Imam of the Tariqat, Shah Naqshband, and my Shaykh, Khalid al-Baghdadi, and through the spiritual presence of Sayyidina Uwais al-Qarani. Each one of you will carry the secret of this Golden Chain with the same power, but your ascension to the Throne of Guidance will be in sequence, and each of you will keep the relations with the other as I say now: directly after me the authority of that secret will be in the hand of Shaykh Khas  Muhammad ash-Shirwani; then it will be in the hand of Muhammad Effendi al-Yaraghi al-Kurali; then it will be put in the hand of Sayyid Jamaluddin al-Ghumuqi al-Husayni.”

 

Khalid al-Baghdadi

He praises me, and I praise Him; He serves me, and I serve Him; By my existence I affirm Him; And by my determination I deny Him; It is He who knows me, when I deny Him; Then I discover Him and contemplate Him.

Ibn Arabi, Fusus al-Hikam

He was the Scholar of Scholars and the Saint of Saints and the Knower of Knowers and the Light and the Full Moon of this Order in his time. He was the Keeper of the Secrets of Realities and the Realities of the Secrets. His secrets moved into every human being just as the soul moves into the body. If the Prophet  had not been the Seal of Prophecy his words would have been revelation. He spread the knowledge of both Islamic law and Tasawwuf. He was a mujtahid (authority) in Divine Law (shari`a) and in Divine Reality (Haqiqat). He was the Scholar of the Perfect Saints and He was the Saint of the Perfect Scholars. He achieved all the spiritual and the worldly knowledge. He learned the branches and the trunk. He was the Center of the Circle of Qutbs in his time and he was the means of merging the ends with the beginnings and the beginnings with the ends. He was the Reviver of the 13th Century of the Hijra.

The Universe was proud of his existence. He was born in the year 1193 H./1779 CE. in the village of Karada of the city of Sulaymaniyyah in Iraq. He was raised and trained in that city, where there were many schools and many mosques and which was considered the primary educational city of his time. His grandfather was Pir Mika’il Chis Anchit, which means Mika’il the Saint of the six fingers. His title is `Uthmani because he is a descendant of Sayyidina `Uthman ibn `Affan , the third khalif of the Prophet . He studied the Qur’an and the explanation of Imam Rafi`a according to the Shafi`i school.

He was famous in poetry. When he was fifteen years of age he took asceticism as his creed, hunger as his horse, wakefulness as his means, seclusion as his friend, and energy as his light. He was a traveler in Allah’s World and he achieved all the kinds of knowledge available in his time. He studied with the two great scholars of his time, Shaykh `Abdul Karam al-Barzinji and Shaykh Abdur Rahim al-Barzinji, and he read with Mullah Muhammad `Ali . He returned to Sulaymaniyyah and there studied the Sciences of mathematics, philosophy, and logic. Then he came to Baghdad and studied the Mukhtasar al-Muntaha fil-Usul, an encyclopedia of the Principles of Jurisprudence. Then he studied the works of Ibn Hajar, Suyuti, and Haythami. He memorized the commentary of the Qur’an of Baydawi. He was able to find solutions for even the most difficult questions in jurisprudence. He memorized the Qur’an according to the fourteen different ways of recitation, and became very famous everywhere for this.

The Prince Ihsan Ibrahim Pasha, the governor of Baban, tried to persuade him to look after the schools in his kingdom. However, he refused and moved to the city of Sanandaj, where he studied the Sciences of mathematics, engineering, astronomy, and chemistry. His teacher in these disciplines was Muhammad al-Qasim as-Sanandaji. After completing the study of the secular sciences he returned to the city of Sulaymaniyyah. Following the plague of 1213 H/1798 AD., he took over the school of his Shaykh `Abdul Karam Barzinji. He taught the modern sciences, verifying the most delicate equations of astronomy and chemistry.

He then entered seclusion, leaving everything he had studied behind, coming to Allah’s door with all kinds of pious actions and much dhikr, both loud and silent. He no longer visited the sultans, but kept to himself and to his murids, until the year 1220 H./1806 AD. when he decided to make the Pilgrimage and to visit the Prophet . He left everything and went to Hijaz through the cities of Mosul and Yarbikir and ar-Raha and Aleppo and Damascus, where he met its scholars and followed its Shaykh, the master of both the ancient and the modern knowledge and the teacher of hadith, ash-Shaykh Muhammad al-Kuzbara. He received authorization in the Qadiri Tariqat from Shaykh al-Kuzbari and his deputy, Shaykh Mustafa al-Kurdi, who travelled with him until he reached the city of the Prophet . He praised the Prophet in Persian poetry in such a way that people were astonished at his eloquence. He spent a long time in the City of the Prophet . He reported:

“I was looking for someone of rare piety in order to take some advice when I saw a Shaykh on the right-hand side of the Blessed Gravesite (Rawdatu-sh-Sharifa). I asked him to give me advice, counsel from a wise scholar to an ignorant person. He advised me not to object when I enter Makkah to matters which might appear to be counter to the Shari`a, but to keep quiet. I reached Makkah, and keeping in my heart that advice, I went to the Holy Mosque early on the morning of Friday. I sat near the Ka’ba reading Dala’il al-Khayrat, when I saw a man with a black beard leaning on a pillar and looking at me. It came to my heart that the man was not showing the proper respect to the Ka`ba, but I didn’t say anything to him about the matter. “He looked at me and scolded me, saying, ‘O ignorant one, don’t you know that the honor of the heart of a believer is far more than the privilege of the Ka`ba? Why do you criticize me in your heart for standing with my back to the Ka`ba and my face to you. Didn’t you hear the advice of my Shaykh in Madinah who told you not to criticise?’ I ran to him and asked his forgiveness, kissing his hands and feet and asking him for his guidance to Allah. He told me, ‘O my son, your treasures and the keys to your heart are not in these parts, but in India. Your Shaykh is there. Go there and he will show you what you have to do.’ I didn’t see anyone better than him in all the Haram. He didn’t tell me where to go in India, so I went back to Sham and associated with its scholars.”

He then returned to Sulaymaniyyah and continued his teachings of self-denial. He was always looking for someone to show him the way. Finally, there came to Sulaymaniyyah the Shaykh Mawlana Mirza Rahimullah Beg al-M`aruf, known by the name of Muhammad ad-Darwish `Abdul `Azim al-Abadi, one of the khalifs of the spiritual pole, Qutb al-A`zam, `Abdullah ad-Dehlawi (q). He met with him and gave him respect and asked him about the perfect guide to show him the way. He told him, “There is one perfect Shaykh, a Scholar and a Knower, showing the seeker the way to the King of Kings, expert in this delicate matter, following the Naqshbandi Way, carrying the Character of the Prophet , a guide in the Knowledge of Spirituality. Come back with me to his service in Jehanabad. He had told me before I left, ‘You are going to meet someone, bring him back with you.’” Shaykh Khalid moved to India in 1224 H./1809 AD. through the city of Ray, then Tehran, and then some provinces of Iran where he met the great scholar Isma`il al-Kashi. Then he travelled to Kharqan, Samnan, and Nisapur.

He visited the Master of the Mother of all Tariqats in Bistam, Shaykh Bayazid al-Bistami, and he praised him in his grave with a very eloquent poem in Persian. Then he moved on to Tus, where he visited as-Sayyid al-Jalal al-Ma’nas al-Imam `Ali Rida, and he praised him with another Persian poem that made all the poets of Tus accept him. Then he entered the city of Jam and he visited ash-Shaykh Ahmad an-Namiqi al-Jami and praised him with another Persian poem. He then entered the city of Herat in Afghanistan, then Kandahar, Kabul, and Peshawar. In all these cities the great scholars with whom he met would test his knowledge in the sciences of Divine Law (shari`a) and Divine Awareness (ma`rifat), and those of logic, mathematics, and astronomy. They found him like a wide river, flowing with knowledge, or like an ocean without shore. Then he moved on to Lahore, where he met with Shaykh Thana’ullah an-Naqshbandi and asked for his prayers and his du`a. He recalled:

“That night I slept in Lahore and I had a dream in which Shaykh Thana’ullah an-Naqshbandi pulled me with his teeth. When I awoke I wanted to tell him the dream but he said, ‘Do not tell me the dream, we know it already. That is a sign to move on to my brother and Shaykh, Sayyidina `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi. The opening of your heart will be by his hands. You will take initiation in the Naqshbandi Order.’ Then I began to feel the Shaykh’s spiritual attraction. I left Lahore, crossing mountains and valleys, forests and deserts until I reached the Sultanate of Delhi known as Jehanabad. It took me one year to reach his city. Forty days before I arrived he told his followers, ‘My successor is coming.’”

The night he entered the city of Jehanabad he wrote a poem in Arabic, recounting his year of travel and praising his Shaykh. Then he praised him with a Persian poem which surprised everyone with its eloquence. He gave everything that he was carrying with him and all that was in his pocket to the poor. Then he was initiated by his Shaykh, `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi (q). He served in the zawiya (mosque-school) of the Shaykh and made rapid progress in the struggle against his self. Five months had not passed when he became one of the People of the Divine Presence and the Divine Vision. He took permission from Shaykh `Abdullah to return to Iraq. The Shaykh gave him written authority in five tariqats. The first was the Naqshbandi Order, or the Golden Chain, the subject of this book. The second was the Qadiri Order through Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi’s Shaykh Shah as-Sakandar and thence to Sayyidina `Abdul Qadir Jilani, al-Junayd, as-Sirra as-Saqati, Musa al-Kazim , Ja`far as-Sadiq , Imam al-Baqir , Zain al-`Abideen , al-Husayn , al-Hasan , `Ali ibn Abi Talib , and Sayyidina Muhammad .

The third Tariqat, as-Suhrawardiyya, traced its silsila (chain) similarly to the Qadiriyya until al-Junayd, who went back to Hasan al-Basri and thence to Sayyidina `Ali  and the Prophet . He also gave him authority in the Kubrawiyya Tariqat, which had the same lineage as the Qadiriyya but through Shaykh Najmuddin al-Kubra. Finally, he was granted authority in the Chishti Tariqat through a line that went back from `Abdullah ad-Dahlawi and Jan Janan to Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi and then through many Shaykhs to Shaykh Mawrad Chishti, Nasir Chishti, Muhammad Chishti, and Ahmad Chishti to Ibraham ibn Adham, Fudayl ibn al-`Iyad , Hasan al-Basri, Sayyidina `Ali , and the Prophet . He gave him authorization to teach all the Sciences of  Hadith, Tafsir, Sufism, and the Daily Practices (awrad).

He memorized the Books of the Ithna `Ashari (Twelve Imams), the source-books for the knowledge of the descendants of Sayyidina `Ali . He moved to Baghdad in the year 1228 H./1813 AD. for the second time and he stayed in the school of Ahsa’iyya Isfahaniyyah. He filled it up with the knowledge of Allah and His Remembrance. Then some of the jealous people wrote against him to the Sultan, Sa`id Pasha, governor of Baghdad, criticizing him. They accused him of unbelief and other things that cannot be repeated. When the governor read the letter, he said, “If Shaykh Khalid al-Baghdadi is not a believer, then who is a believer?” He had his envious enemies thrown out of his presence and jailed. The Shaykh left Baghdad for some time and then returned again for a third time.

He returned to the same school, which had been renovated to welcome him. He began anew to spread all kinds of spiritual and heavenly knowledge. He unveiled the secrets of the Divine Presence, illuminating the hearts of the people with the lights that Allah gave to his heart, until the governor, the scholars, the teachers, the workers, and people from every walk of life counted themselves among his followers. Baghdad in his time was so famous for his knowledge, that it was called, “the Place of the Two Knowledges,” and “the Place of the Two Suns.” Similarly, he came to be known as “He of the Two Wings” (dhu-l-janahayn), an allusion to his complete mastery of the external and the internal knowledge. He sent his khalifs everywhere, from Hijaz to Iraq, from Sham (Syria) to Turkey, from Iran to India and Transoxania, to spread the way of his forerunners in the Naqshbandi Order. Wherever he went people would invite him to their homes, and whatever home he entered that home would become prosperous. One day he visited the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem with many of his followers.

He reached the Dome of the Rock and his khalif, `Abdullah al-Fardi, came out to meet him with a large crowd of people. Some of the Christians asked him to enter the Church of Kumama to bless it with his presence. Then he continued on his way to al-Khalil (Hebron), the City of Ibrahim the Father of all Prophets , and he was welcomed by all people. He entered the Mosque of Ibrahim al-Khalil and he took the blessings of its walls. He went again to Hijaz to visit Baitullah (the Holy Ka`ba) in the year 1241 H/1826 AD. A large crowd of his khalifs and murids accompanied him. The city of the Holy Mosque with all its scholars and saints came out to meet him and all took initiation from him. They gave him the keys of the two Holy Cities and they considered him to be the Spiritual Shaykh of the Two Holy Cities. He circled around the House, but in Reality the Ka`ba was circling him. After his pilgrimage and visit to the Holy Prophet , he went back to Sham ash-Sharif (Blessed Syria).

He was so well-respected by the Ottoman Sultan, Mahmud Khan, that when he entered Sham a huge celebration was held and 250,000 people welcomed him at the gate of the city. All the scholars, ministers, and Shaykhs, the poor and the rich came to take his baraka (blessing) and to ask for his prayers. It was a celebrated day. The poets sang its praises and the rich fed the poor. Everyone was equal before him when he entered the city. He revived the Spiritual knowledge and the external knowledge and spread that light for which people, both Arabs and non-Arabs, came and accepted the Naqshbandi Order at his hand. In the last ten days of Ramadan of the year 1242 H./1827 AD. he decided to visit Quds (Jerusalem) from Damascus. His followers were very happy and he said, “Alhamdulillah, we will do it if Allah gives us life, after Ramadan, in the beginning of Shawwal.” That was an indication that he might be leaving this world.

In the first days of Shawwal, the plague began to spread quickly in the city of Sham (Damascus). One of his followers asked him to pray for him to be saved from the plague, and added, “And for you also my Shaykh.” He said, “I feel shy before my Lord, because my intention in coming to Sham was to die in this Holy Land.” The first one to die from the plague was his son, Bahauddin, on the night of Friday and he said, “Alhamdulillah, this is our way,” and he buried him on the Mount of Qasiyun. He was five years and some days old. That child was fluent in three languages, Persian, Arabic, and Kurdish, and he used to read Qur’an. Then, on the 9th of Dhul-Qi`da, another son, Abdur Rahman, passed on. He was older than his brother by one year. Mawlana Khalid (q) ordered his murids to re-open the grave to bury his second son.

He said, “From my followers so many are going to die.” He ordered them to dig many graves for the many followers, including his wife and his daughter, and he ordered them to water the area. Then he said, “I am giving the authority to succeed me in the Naqshbandi Tariqat to Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani.” He said this the year of his death, 1242 H./1827 AD. One day he said, “I had a great vision yesterday: I saw Sayyidina `Uthman Dhun-Nurayn  as if he were dead and I was praying over him. He opened his eyes and said, ‘This one is from my children.’ He took me by the hand, brought me to the Prophet , and told me to bring all the Naqshbandi followers of my time and after my time up to the time of the Mahdi , and he blessed them. Then I came out of that vision, and I prayed Maghrib with my followers and my children. “Whatever I have of secrets I have given to my deputy Isma`il ash-Shirwani. Whoever does not accept him is not from me. Don’t argue but be of one mind and follow the opinion of Shaykh Isma`il. I guarantee that anyone of you who accepts and follows him will be with me and with the Prophet .”

He ordered them not to cry on his behalf, and he asked them to slaughter animals and feed the poor for the love of Allah and the honor of the Shaykh. He asked them to send him gifts of reading from Qur’an and recitations of prayers. He ordered them not to write anything on his grave except, “This is the grave of the stranger Khalid.” After `Isha‘ he entered his house, called his family, and advised them, “I am going to pass on Friday.” They stayed with him all night. Before Fajr he got up, made ablution, and prayed for a while. Then he entered his room and said, “No one may enter my room except those I order to do so.” He lay on his right side, facing the Qiblah, and said, “I have been struck by the plague. I am carrying all the plague which has descended on Damascus.” He raised his hands and prayed, “Whoever the plague touches, let it strike me instead and spare everyone in Sham.” Thursday came and all his khalifs entered. Sayyidina Isma`il ash-Shirwani asked him, “How are you feeling?” He said, “Allah has answered my prayer. I will take all the plague from the people of Sham and I alone will die on Friday.”

They offered him water, but he refused and said, “I left that world behind to meet my Lord. I have accepted to carry the plague and relieve those in Sham who are infected. I will pass on Friday.” He opened his eyes and said, “Allahu haqq, Allahu haqq, Allahu haqq,” the oath of initiation into the Naqshbandi Tariqat, and he read ayats 27-30 from the Quranic Chapter al-Fajr: “O soul in complete rest and satisfaction! Come back to thy Lord–well pleased and well pleasing. Enter thou among My Devotees! Enter thou My Heaven!” Then he gave his soul to His Lord and he passed on, as he had predicted, on the 13th of the Islamic month Dhul Qi’da, 1242 H./1827 AD. They carried him to his school and they washed him with water full of light. They shrouded him while all of them made Dhikr, especially Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani, Shaykh Muhammad, and Shaykh Aman. They read Qur’an around him and in the morning they carried him to the masjid in Yulbagha. Shaykh Isma`il ash-Shirwani asked Shaykh Aman `Abdin to pray the funeral prayer for him.

The mosque was unable to accommodate all the people who attended. It is said that more than 300,000 people prayed behind him. Shaykh Isma`il promised those who could not pray in the mosque that he would pray janaza on him a second time at the grave. Those who washed him took him down into the grave. The next day, Saturday, it was as if a miracle had happened in Sham, the plague immediately stopped and there were no further deaths.

 

Abdullah ad-Dahlawi

Is it not sad enough that I beg You ceaselessly,
As if I were far from You, as if You were absent?
I ask for Your charity without greed, and I see none
Who is as poor as I, and who desires You like I desire You.

Abu-l-Hasan Nuri

He was the Summit of Knowers and the King of the Perfect Guides, the Revealer of the Knowledge of the Religion and the Revealer of the Secret of Certainty; the Verifier of the State of Perfection, Shaykh of all Shaykhs of the Indian Subcontinent, the Inheritor of the Knowledge and Secrets of the Naqshbandi Order. He is known as the Unique Diver and Swimmer in the Ocean of Oneness; the traveler in the Desert of the Ascetic State; the Qutb of all orders and the Red Sulfur (“Rarest of the Rare”) of All Truth.

He perfected himself and adorned himself with the best ethics and manners. He lifted himself up to the High Heavens of Spiritual Knowledge and adorned himself with its stars. He became the foremost in every science. He grew to be a full moon and he saw his light coming from the Sun of his teacher, until his teacher accepted to train him formally and to care for him.

The Shaykh supported him by means of his spiritual power and raised him to the highest blessing he had attained, until he attained the state of the Certainty of Truth and the state of the Furthermost Lote Tree. Then he sent him back to this world, until he became as we said before, the guide for every human being. He was given permission to give initiation in the Naqshbandi Order. He supported the sharaca, upheld the sunnah, and revived the Truth of five tariqats: Qadiri, Suhrawardi, Kubrawi, Chishti and Naqshbandi. He passed the secrets of and authority of all five Tariqats to his successor, and through him to all subsequent Shaykhs of the Golden Chain. He raised all his murids to the exalted stations of the abdal (Substitute-Saints) and awtad (Pillar-Saints).

He was born in 1158 H./1745 AD. in the village of Bitala in the Punjab. He was a descendant of the Family of the Prophet . His father was a great scholar and ascetic trained in the Qadiri Taraqat by Shaykh Nasir ad-Din al-Qadiri, who had been trained by Khidr . Before he was born, his father saw in a dream Sayyidina cAli, the fourth khalif, telling him, “Call him by my name.” His mother saw in a dream a pious man telling her, “You are going to have a boy. Call himcAbdul Qadir.” Then his father and his mother saw the same dream in which the Prophet  told them, “Call him cAbdullah.” Because the Prophet’s order took precedence over any other suggestion, he was named cAbdullah Shah GhulamcAli.

He memorized the Qur’an in one month due to his genius. He educated himself in external and spiritual knowledge, until he became the highest of the scholars. As a youth he went many times to the desert, making dhikr there for months at a time, subsisting on whatever food he could find. One time he stayed 40 days without sleeping and without eating a morsel of food. His dhikr didn’t stop. His father’s Shaykh ordered his father to bring his son to him to initiate him in the Qadiri Tariqat. The same night that he reached the Shaykh’s house the Shaykh died. His father told him, “We would have gladly given you the Qadiri Tariqat, but now you are free to find whatever Way suits you.”

He kept company with the Shaykhs of the Chishti Tariqat in Delhi, among them Shaykh  Dia’ullah, Shaykh cAbdul cAddad, khalif of Shaykh Muhammad Zubair, Shaykh Mirdad, Mawlana Fakhruddin, and many others, until he reached the age of twenty-two. He came by himself to the khaniqah of Shaykh Jan Janan Habibullah (q). He asked his permission to enter the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi Order. Shaykh  Habibullah said to him, “It is better for you to be with those orders that have taste and compassion, for in our Tariqat there is nothing except to lick the stone without any salt.” He said, “That is my highest goal.” Shaykh  ababullah accepted him and said, “May Allah bless you. Stay here.”

He said, “After I received the knowledge of the hadith and memorized the Qur’an and learned its interpretation, I stood in the presence of my Shaykh. He gave me initiation into the Qadiri Tariqat with his holy hand. He also gave me initiation into the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi Tariqat. I was in the presence of the circles of Dhikr and in his company for 15 years. Then he gave me the authorization to guide and train murids.

“I was hesitant at first, because I was afraid that Sayyidina cAbdul Qadir Jilani (q) would not give me permission to teach in the Naqshbandi Order. I saw him in a vision one day during my period of hesitation, sitting on a throne. Shah Naqshband (q) entered. Immediately he stood up and he put Shah Naqshband on the throne and he remained standing in his presence. It came to my heart that this was a sign of respect for Shah Naqshband. He said to me, ‘Go to Shah Naqshband. The goal is Allah. Whatever Path you choose you can reach Him.’”

He said, “I was living on income from a piece of property that I owned. I gave it away for Allah’s sake. After that I faced many difficulties because I had no income. I was left with only an old mat to sleep on in cold weather and a small old pillow on which I rested my head. I became very weak. I locked myself in my room and said to myself, ‘O my Self, this is your grave. I am not going to open that door for you. Whatever Allah provides for you, you may take. You are going to live here without food and without anything but that mat and that pillow. Your food is going to be water. O my spirit, your food is going to be Dhikrullah.’ I stayed in that state 40 days, growing very weak, when Allah sent someone knocking at my door. He served me with food and provided me with clothes for 50 years.”

He said, “When I locked the door of my room and I said what I said, Allah’s Care reached me. One day a person came to me and said, ‘Open the door.’ I said, ‘I don’t want to open it.’ He said, ‘Don’t you need me?’ I said, ‘No, I need Allah, Almighty and Exalted.’ At that momment I experienced a vision in which I was raised up to Allah’s Presence and it was as if I spent one thousand years in His presence. Then I returned and He told me, ‘Open that door.’ After that I never experienced any difficutly.”

People came to him from everywhere. His fame reached as far as Byzantium, Iraq, Khorasan, Transoxiana, and Syria. His fame reached North Africa. He sent his khalifs and deputies everywhere on the order of Sayyidina Muhammad . Among them was Sayyidina Khalid Baghdadi (q). He reached people through dreams and guided people in far countries. They travelled to him from great distances, telling him, “You called me to you through my dreams.”

His khaniqah used to feed 2,000 persons every day and it was always full. He never kept any food for the next day. Out of modesty he never slept extending his feet, because he was afraid of extending his feet towards the Prophet  or any saints or the Divine Presence. He never looked in a mirror. If a dog entered his house to eat he would say, “O Allah, who am I to be a means between You and Your Lover? And who am I to feed them when You are feeding me and you are feeding them? O Allah, I am asking for the sake of your creation, this one, and everyone who comes asking me for mercy, send me Mercy for their sake and bring me nearer to You and help me to hold fast to the Sunnah of the Prophet  and to accept what you have prescibed and to leave what you have prohibited.”

He said, “One time Ismacil al-Madani came to visit me, by the order of the Prophet . From his country, the Hijaz, he had travelled thousands of miles. He had brought with him some of the relics of the Prophet  and he gave them to me as a gift. I put them in the Great Mosque in Delhi.”

He said, “One time there came to me the King of Nabdilkahand, and he was wearing the clothes of the unbelievers. When I saw him I was angry with him and said to him, “You cannot sit in my presence in such clothes.” The king said, “If you are condemning me so much I will not come to your association.” The Shaykh said, “That is better.” He stood up angrily to go. When he reached the door, something happened to him, no one knew what. He threw off the clothes of the unbelievers and came running back and kissed the hand of the Shaykh and took initiation (baycah) from him and became one of his loyal followers. They asked him later what happened. He said, “When I was going out, I saw the Shaykh coming in through the door with the Prophet , while he was inside! That is what made me run back to him.”

He slept very little. When he awoke for Tahajjud (late-night) prayers he would awaken everyone to sit with him for contemplation and reading the Qur’an. Every day it was his practice to read one third of the Qur’an and then pray Fajr prayer with the group. Then he would sit in the circle of Dhikr and Contemplation until sunrise. He would pray Ishraq and then he would give a talk. He would sit to recite hadith and read commentaries on the Qur’an. He would pray  Duha (Late Morning Prayer) and then sit to eat with all his followers. He ate little and after he ate he would read religious and spiritual books and write some letters. After Dhuhr (Noon Prayer) he would sit and recite tafsir and hadith until cAsr time. AftercAsr he would speak about Sufism and its distinguished lunminaries, such as al-Qushayri, or Ibn ‘Arabi or Shah Naqshband (q). Then he would sit in a circle of Dhikr until Maghrib. After Maghrib he would sit in the private circle of his followers. Then he would eat dinner and pray cIsha. After cIsha he would spend the night in dhikr and contemplation. He would sleep for only one or two hours, then he would wake for Tahajjud.

His mosque was too small for his followers, as it would only hold 2,000 people. So he used to recite dhikr for his followers by turns, each time filling the mosque.

Whoever gave him a donation he would first pay the zakat from it, according to the school of Imam Abu Hanifa, without waiting for the passage of a year, because to give the zakat immediately is better than to give voluntary charity. He would use what remained for preparing food and sweets for the poor and for the needs of his zawiya and for his own needs.

Some people would steal from that money and he would not reprimand them, but would leave them for Allah. One day a man stole a book from him and then returned to sell it back. He praised him and gave him the money. One of his followers said, “O my master this is from your own library and it has your signature in it.” He said, “Don’t backbite, that is between him and Allah.”

He always sat on his knees, never cross-legged or with legs extended, but keeping respect for the Prophet  and he died in this posture. He concealed what he gave in charity. He never showed how much he gave nor to whom. He wore old clothes. If he was given new clothes, he would sell them and buy many old clothes with its price. He said, “Better for many to have some clothes than for one to have fine clothes.”

His association was like the association of Sufyan ath-Thawri, a companion of the Prophet : never was a loud voice raised, nor did backbiting occur, nor were worldly affairs discussed. Nothing was heard in it except spirituality and religion.

One day, the Shaykh was fasting and one of his followers spoke harshly about the king of India. He told him, “What a pity for me, I lost my fast.” They told him, “O our master, you didn’t do anything, the one who spoke is responsible.” He said, “No, the speaker and the listener partake of that sin equally.”

He loved the Prophet  so much that whenever he heard his holy name he would shake and faint. He was meticulous in following the Prophet  in his actions and in keeping his Sunnah.

The Words of His Perfection and the Perfection of His Words

He said,

“The Naqshbandi Order is built on four principles: keeping the Presence of Allah; divine inspirations; attraction; and disregarding whispers.”

“Whoever asks for Taste and Yearning is not really asking for the Reality of the Divine Presence.”

“The Seeker must be fully aware of how he passes every single moment. He must know how he prayed; he must know how he read the Qur’an; he must know how he read the Hadith; he must know how he read the Dhikr; he must know how much darkness he received from doubtful food.”

“Food is of two kinds; one is to satisfy the self and the second is to nourish the self. The first kind is not acceptable, but the other is accepted because it provides the strength needed to fulfill your obligations and to keep the Sunnah of the Prophet .”

“Just as asking for  alal (permitted things) is an obligation on every believer, so too is the rejecting of  halal an obligation on every Knower: the Knower, the Sufi, is the one who rejects the dunya (Lower World) and the akhira (Next World), even though they are  alal. He accepts nothing but Allah, Almighty and Exalted.”

“It must be understood by everyone that the Prophet  is the Summation of all Perfections. The appearance of his perfection in every different century and time has been according to the preparedness and state of that century and that time. That is why the appearance of his perfection in his lifetime and the time of his Companions was in the form of Jihad and struggle and dacwah (Calling to Religion). His appearance to the saints in later centuries through his holy Presence was in the form of Self-Effacement, Anniliation, Taste, Compassion, Emotion, Secrets of Oneness and all other spiritual states. That is what has appeared to the hearts and on the tongues of saints.”

“For us the night of hunger is the night of Ascension. The night of hunger is the night of desire for Allah.”

“Baycah (Initiation) is of three categories: the first is for the intercession of the Shaykhs; the second is to repent from sins; the third is to adhere to, to connect with and receive the lineage.”

“All the perfections of a human being except the Prophetic appeared in Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi (q), and the Prophetic Perfection appeared in Sayyidina Shah Naqshband (q).”

“Men are of four categories: those who are barely human because all they ask for is the dunya; those who ask for the Hereafter; mature humans who ask for the Hereafter and for Allah; special humans who ask only for Allah.”

“The souls of human beings will be taken by the Angel of Death, but the souls of the Elect cannot be approached by any angel; Allah Himself takes them with His Holy Hand.”

“The Divine Mind is the mind which knows its way to its goal without a mediator, and the Earthly Mind is the mind which needs to see its way by means of a guide and a saint.”

“Whoever wants to serve, he must serve his Shaykh.”

From His Visions

He said concerning his visions,

“One time I had a vision in which I saw al-Mir Ruhullah, one of the followers of Jan Janan Habibullah (q), saying to me, ‘The Prophet  is waiting for you.’ I moved in that vision to the place where the Prophet  was waiting. He hugged me and by that hug I changed to be like him. Then I changed to be like the picture of my Shaykh, Jan Janan  Habibullah. Then I changed to be like Amar Kulal (q). I then changed to be like Shah Naqshband (q), and then I changed to be like cAbdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani (q). Then I changed to be like Sayyidina Abu Bakr as-Siddiq , the Friend of the Prophet .”

“One time I had a vision near to the time of cIsha prayer in which I saw the Prophet  coming to me and telling me, ‘I have advice for you and your followers; never sleep before cIsha.’”

“One time I had a vision that I was asking the Prophet , ‘You said, ‘Whoever sees Me sees the Truth.” He said, ‘Yes, and he will see Allah, Almighty and Glorious.’”

“One time I had a vision in which I saw the Prophet  coming to me and he was saying to me, ‘Never leave off reading Qur’an and doing dhikr, you and your followers, and always send its reward as a gift to me; by this you will derive great reward.”

“One time I had a vision and I said to the Prophet , ‘I am very afraid of hellfire.’ He said to me, ‘Whoever loves us never enters the fire.’”

“One time I had a vision and I saw Allah, Almighty and Exalted, speaking to me. He said to me, ‘Your face is the face of the Sultan of Saints, and you are that one.’”

“I saw in a vision Shah Naqshband (q) come to me, hug me and enter my clothes. We were one. I asked him, ‘Who are you?’ He answered, ‘Shah Baha’uddin Naqshband, and you are me and I am you.’”

One time he was by the sea and the waves were raging and he saw a ship sailing. It was in danger of foundering, but as soon as he looked at it, the ship stopped tossing and the sea became calm.

One time one of his followers, Shaykh Ahmad Yar, was travelling for business in a caravan. The caravan stopped to rest. He slept and saw his Shaykh in a dream saying, “Go immediately away from here, there are robbers who are about to attack.” He awoke and told the people but they refused to believe him. He left by himself and the robbers came and killed everyone.

One day Shaykh Zul Shah set out to visit Shaykh cAbdullah from very far away. He got lost on the way. A man came to him and pointed him in the right direction. He asked the man who he was. He answered, “I am the one you are going to visit.”

Shaykh Ahmad Yar said, “Once, Shaykh cAbdullah went to give his condolences to a pious lady whose daughter had died. She and her husband were serving him. He told the woman and her husband, ‘Allah is going to give you a son in the place of your daughter.’ She said, ‘I am sixty years and I have passed childbearing age, and my husband is 80 years old. How is it possible that we could have a child?’ He said, ‘Don’t ask how Allah can do that! It is His blessings to you and my blessings to you.’ Then he went out and made ablution and came to the mosque and prayed two rakcats. Then he raised his hands in duca (invocation) and said, ‘O Allah grant them the child as you promised me.’ Then he turned to me and said, ‘That du’a has been accepted.’ Later, the woman gave birth to a son.”

One day a woman who was a relative of Mir Akbar cAli and a follower of the Shaykh became ill. Mir Akbar cAli came to the Shaykh and asked him to pray to Allah to take the sickness away, but the Shaykh refused to make that invocation.. Mir Akbar cAli insisted. The Shaykh said, “It is impossible, because that lady is going to die in fifteen days.” Mir cAli went back and two weeks later the woman died.

One time in the region around Delhi there was a drought, and no crops were able to grow. The people were desperate. On one particularly hot day Shaykh cAbdullah went out to the yard of the mosque and, with the sun beating down, said, ‘O Allah I will not move from here until You shower us with rain.’ He hadn’t finished his invocation before the sky filled with clouds and it began to rain. That rain continued for 40 days.

He said, “I would like to die like my Shaykh, Mirza Jan Janan Habibullah, as a martyr. But I remember that after he passed the people suffered a drought for three years and there was much killing and troubles because Allah was angry with those who had killed him. Therefore, O Allah, I do not ask to die that way, though I would like it, but I ask you to take me to You.”

He passed away on the 12th of Safar in the year 1241 H./1825 CE. He died with the book of Narrations of the Prophet ,  Jami`  at-Tirmidhi, in his hands. He was buried next to his Shaykh in Jan Janan Habibullah’s khaniqah in Delhi.

He left many books, including Maqamat an-Naqshbandiyya, Risalat al-Ishtighal bi Ismi-l-Jalal, Manahij at-Tahqiq, and Minatu-r-Rahman.

 

Shamsuddin Habib Allah

My eyes never beheld anyone more beautiful than you;
No woman gave birth to one more handsome,
Born faultless as if it was your wish.

Al Burda.

He was the Sun of Eternal Happiness. He was the Beloved of Allah, Almighty and Exalted. He was the Spirit of the People of Truth, and he was the Essence of the Spirit of the People of Taste. He was the Kacba of the Godly and one of the Flags of the Noble Messenger. He elevated the Knowledge of the Religion of Muhammad . He revived the Way of the Naqshbandi Order.

He was born in 1113 H./1701 AD in India. From his childhood the light of Guidance and the Traces of Piety shone from his forehead. His features (mazhar) were molded with the Manifestation of heavenly beauty (tajalli-l-jamal). He was famous, like the Prophet Yusuf , for his beauty, and everyone loved him because he represented beauty. That is the attribute of God, about whom the Prophet  said: “God is beautiful and he loves beauty,” and it is also the attribute of the Prophet , about whom Anas  said, “Your Prophet  was the most beautiful in appearance and had the best voice of all prophets.” Because of this, Sheikh cAbdur-Ra’uf al-Munawi said, “The Prophet  has no partner in his beauty.”

When Shaykh Mazhar (q) was nine years of age, he saw Sayyidina Ibrahim , who gave him miraculous powers through spiritual transmission. At this age, if anyone mentioned Abu Bakr as-Siddiq  in his presence, he would see him appear with his physical eyes. He was also able to see the Prophet  and all the Companions of the Prophet  as well as all the Shaykhs of the Naqshbandi Order, especially Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi.

His father raised him and educated him in all branches of religious knowledge. At a young age his heart was attracted to the spiritual light coming from his Shaykh, as-Sayyid Nur Muhammad. His Shaykh opened the eyes of his heart and fed him from the nectar of the flower of the Hidden Knowledge. The Shaykh took him out of the state of self-awareness and lifted him up to the Highest Stations, which produced in him great astonishment and caused him to faint. When he awoke, he accompanied Shaykh Nur Muhammad in further ascension. The Shaykh allowed him to observe the Mysteries of the Hidden World and gave him gifts from his miraculous Powers and Stations.

One look of his Shaykh opened in him the Nine Points, the loci of the Naqshbandi Secrets. From the knowledge of the nine points, he delved into the secrets contained in the five of the more powerful points, until his Shaykh authorized him to “activate” the Nine Points at any time and to use them. Then he brought him back down to be in his presence and only in his presence. He brought him up and down, from one stage to another, and enveloped him with his light and protected him with his gaze, until he achieved the ultimate perfection and awakened himself from Ignorance.

He stood fast in serving his Shaykh with complete truthfulness. He continued to progress by entering seclusions in the desert and in the jungle on the orders of his Shaykh. In these seclusions, his only food was grass and the leaves of trees. During his period of asceticism in the desert and jungle, he wore only what would cover his nakedness. One day, after many of these seclusions, he looked in the mirror and didn’t see himself; he saw his Shaykh.

At this stage the Shaykh authorized him to guide Allah’s servants to their destinies and to the Straight Path, and he put him on the Throne of Succession, and by him the Sun of Guidance ascended the Tower of Happiness.

When his teacher passed away, he continued to visit his grave and for two years he received whatever lights and knowledge his master was able to transmit to him from his grave. Then he was ordered through his spiritual connection to his Shaykh to connect himself with a living master.

He reached the Door of the perfect Saints of his time, Shaykh Muhammad Afzal, Shaykh  Safi  Sacdullah, and Shaykh Muhammad cabid. He attached himself to Shaykh Shah Kalshan and to another Shaykh by the name of Muhammad az-Zubair. He used to attend the session of Shaykh Muhammad Afzal, one of the khalifs of the son of Muhammad Macsum (q). He visited and studied with Shaykh cAbdul Ahad and received from him knowledge of the Prophetic hadith. During this class, whenever the Shaykh would mention a hadith, he would disappear through Self-Effacement, and a vision would come to him in which he would find himself sitting with the Prophet  and hearing the hadith directly from the Prophet . He would correct any mistakes that might occur in the Shaykh’s narration of the hadith, and was acknowledged as a genius in the science of hadith.

He kept the company of these Shaykhs for twenty years. He progressed further and further in the States of Perfection, until he became an Ocean of Knowledge. He rose in the Firmament of the Qutbs until he became the Qutb of his time, shining like the sun at high noon. Shaykh Muhammad Afzal said, “Shaykh Mazhar Habibullah was given the state of Qutb and he is the central pivot of this tariqat in this time.”

His spiritual perfection attracted people from all reaches of the Subcontinent. In his presence, each seeker would find what he needed, until through his blessing the Indian Subcontinent became like a Kacba encircled by flocks of angelic beings.

In his noble person were combined the power of four tariqats. He was a master of the Naqshbandi, Qadiri, Suhrawardi and Chishti Orders. He used to say, “I received the secrets and knowledge of these orders from my Shaykh, Sayyid Nur Muhammad Badawani, until I attained a very distinguished power in these Orders. He lifted me from the Ibrahamic Stage to the Muhammadan Stage, which caused me to see the Prophet  sitting in my place, while I was sitting in his. Then I disappeared and I saw him sitting in the two places. Then I saw him disappearing and I saw myself sitting in both places.”

Following are some sayings of Shaykh Mazhar (q):

“Once I was sitting in the presence of Shaykh Muhammad cAbid and the Shaykh said, “The two suns at the two ends met, and if their lights were combined and spread throughout this universe, they would have burned everything.”

“Shaykh Muhammad Afzal was much older than I but he used to stand up for me when I entered, and he used to say to me, ‘I am standing in deference to the high lineage that you possess.’”

“This whole world and the entire universe is in my hand, and I can see everything in them, just as clearly as I can see my hand.”

He had innumerable miraculous experiences and numberless visions about the Heavenly world as well as the lower world.

Once he traveled with some of his followers without any food or provision. They walked and whenever they got tired they sat. The Shaykh would call them and say, “This food is for you,” and tables of food would appear in front of them.

One day during the trip there was a terrible storm and the wind was blowing everything in its path. It was freezing and everyone was shivering because of the cold. Their situation worsened until it appeared that they were going to die in that frozen desert. Then Shaykh Mazhar raised his hands and said, “O Allah make it surround us but not be upon us.” Immediately the clouds lifted from around them, and though the freezing rain continued to fall one mile away, around them the temperature rose to a comfortable level.

He said, “One time I visited the grave of Shaykh Muhammad Hafiz Muhsin. I disappeared from myself and in a vision I saw his body. It had suffered no decomposition, and his shroud was still perfectly clean except for a patch of dirt on one part by his feet. Through my spiritual power, I asked him about that. He said, ‘O my son I will tell you a story. One day I took a stone from the garden of my neighbor and put it in a hole in my garden, and I said to myself, ‘in the morning I will return it to him,’ but I forgot. As a result of that action, the dirt has appeared on my shroud. That one action has tainted my shroud.’”

He said, “As long as you are lifted upward in piety you will be lifted up in sainthood.”

One day he became angry at a tyrant and he said, “A vision came to me in which I saw that all Shaykhs, from Abu Bakr as-Siddiq  up to the Shaykhs of today, were unhappy with that tyrant.” The next day the tyrant died.

A man came to him and said, “O my master, my brother has been jailed in another village. Please pray to Allah to save him.” He said, “O my son, your brother has not been jailed, but he has done something wrong and tomorrow you will receive a letter from him.” It turned out to be just as he described.

He informed his followers of great tidings and some jealous people refused to accept what he said. He said, “If you don’t believe me let us bring a judge. We will each tell him our point of view and let him judge between us.” They said “We don’t accept any judge except the Prophet , and on Judgment Day we will ask for his judgement in this matter.” Then he said, “There is no need to wait until the Judgment Day. We will ask the Prophet  to give his Judgment now.” He entered a deep state of contemplation in his heart and was told to read the Fatiha. This he did, and immediately the Prophet  appeared to everyone and said, “Al-Mazhar  Habibullah is right and all of you are wrong.”

About Creation

He said, “Existence is an Attribute of Allah alone. This world is a mere shadow of realities existing in the Divine Presence. The reality of all possible creations (haqa’iq al-mumkinat) results from the action of the Divine Attributes and Qualities on the Void (cadm). The Real Existence of all that manifests in physical creation is confirmed as a light in the Divine Presence.

“Everything that appears in the physical creation is a mere shadow of the luminous reality projected by the Divine Qualities upon the void of non-existence. The World of the Divine Attributes (sifat) is the Origin of the Well-springs of the Created Universes (mabadi’ tacayyunat al-aclam). Because all physical creation arises from a combination of Allah’s Divine Qualities and the Void, creation thus partakes of two origins of opposite nature. From the nature of the void of non-existence and nothingness arises the dense qualities of physical substance that in the sphere of human action produce darkness, ignorance and evil. From the Divine Attributes comes Light, Knowledge and Good. Thus the Sufi, when he looks at himself sees all that is good in him as a light from the Divine that is reflected on him, but that is not of him. A simile for it would be a borrowed suit of fine clothes with which one is beautifully dressed but that does not truly belong to him and for which he deserves no credit. Conversely, he sees himself as base substance, full of darkness and ignorance, with a nature worse than that of an animal. With this dual perception he loosens his attachment to the attractions of the self and effaces himself, and turns in repentance (tawba) towards the Divine Source of all Good. With this turning, Allah fills his heart with love and yearning for the Divine Presence. As Allah said in a Holy Hadith, “If My servant approaches Me by one hand’s length I will approach him by one arm’s length; and if he comes to Me walking I will come to him running.”

Shortly before his death Shaykh Mazhar (q) was in a state of great emotion and intense love of God. He experienced a great unhappiness at having spent so long in this transient world. He spent his last days in intense contemplation and, when asked, he would always say that his state was that of Annihilation and Existence in Allah Sublime and Exalted. He increased his dhikr in his final days, and as a result of the intense light of attraction generated thereby, thousands and thousand of seekers entered into the tariqat. Each new day would bring three thousand new people to his door, and he would not let one of them go without meeting him. Finally, he became so exhausted that he scheduled only two times a day to meet with people.

One day, one of his followers, Shaykh Mullah Nasim, asked permission to travel and visit his parents in his homeland. He said, “My son, if you want to go you may, but I may not be here when you return.” This reply went from one mouth to another, shaking the hearts of people, as it indicated that his era was ending. With tearful eyes, and broken hearts, people all around the Punjab began wailing and crying. His house was full and no one knew what was going to happen when he was gone. Then he took a paper and wrote to one of his successors, Mullah Abdur-Razzaq, “O my son, I am now over eighty and my life is coming to its close. Remember me in your prayers.” He sent him that letter and he sent many others the same letter.

Thanking Allah for His Favours he said, “There is nothing left in my heart of anything that I have wished to achieve or to reach that remains to be accomplished. There is nothing for which I have asked Allah that I did not receive. My only remaining desire is to leave this world and be in His Presence continuously. Allah gave me everything, except permission to go to Him. I am asking Allah to take me to Him today, before tomorrow. But I don’t want to go to Him as an ordinary person. I want to go to him, as Allah described in the Holy Qur’an, as a martyr who is always alive. So, O Allah, make me a martyr in this world and take me to you as a martyr. This kind of death will bring happiness to my heart and will cause me to be in the presence of Your Prophet  and of Ibrahim  and of Musa , and with all your 124,000 prophets; and to be with all the Companions of the Prophet, and to be with al-Junayd (q) and the master of this Order, Shah Naqshband (q), and with all the masters of the Tariqat. O Allah, I want to combine the witnessing of physical martyrdom with spiritual death in the State of Witnessing, in the State of Annihilation.”

It was Wednesday evening, the seventh of Muharram, of the year 1195 H/1780 CE. His servant came to him and said, “There are three men at your door. They want to visit you.” He said, “Let them enter.” When they entered, he came out of his bedroom and greeted them. One of them said to him, “Are you Mirza Jan Janan Habibullah?” He answered, “Yes.” The two said to the third, “Yes, he is the one.” One of the men took a knife from his pocket and stabbed him in the back, piercing his kidney. Because of his age, he was unable to withstand the severity of the blow and he fell to the ground. When it was time for the Fajr prayer, the King sent him a doctor. He sent back the doctor and said, “I don’t need him. As for the men who stabbed me, I forgive them, because I am glad to die as a martyr and they came as an answer to my prayer.”

He passed from this life on Friday. When the day reached its middle, he read the Quranic chapters Fatiha and Ya Sin until cAsr time. He asked his followers, how many hours were left until sunset. They told him, “Four hours.” He said, “It is still long until the meeting with my Lord.” He said, “I have missed ten prayers in my life, all in these past two days, because my body is full of blood and I have been unable to raise my head.” They asked him, “If a sick person is in such a weak condition, is he obliged to pray with movements of his eyes and his forehead or to postpone his prayer?” He answered, “Both ways are correct.” He waited with patience for the sunset, and he died. It was the night of cAshura, 1195 H./1781 AD.

 

as-Sayyid Nur Muhammad al-Badawani

Hear, O faqir: every time I was lacking something, great or small, and turned away from it in turning towards my Lord, I found it there in front of me, thanks to the power of Him who hears and knows. We see that the needs of ordinary people are filled by paying attention to them, whereas the needs of the elect are filled by the very fact that they turn away from them and concentrate upon God.

“He who by remembering Me is distracted from his petition, will receive more than those who ask

Mulay al-Arabi ad-Darqawi

He was a descendant of the Prophet . His light was powered by the Heavenly Station. He poured into the confused hearts of his time, peace and happiness, until he became the Appearance of every Favor and a Means to Allah Almighty and Exalted, for every person in his time. Through him God has renewed the Divine law, sharica and the spiritual reality, haqiqa, like the full moon on a dark night. How many a Sunnah that had been discarded did he revive and how many innovations that had been instigated did he remove?

He was born in 1075 H./1664 AD. He was raised in a blessed house, quenching his thirst for external and internal knowledge at the fountain of the Naqshbandi Order from his early childhood. He received the blessings of his Shaykhs, and they were proud of his progress. He continued to advance his state until, in the country of India, he became a shining Lamp. Visitors came to him from everywhere receiving from him both the blessings of his secrets and the blessings of his ancestors. He sat on the Throne of the Tariqat following his master, and he was like a beacon guiding by his light all those seeking in the Way. He left behind him a celebrated name, and how could it be otherwise when the Prophet Muhammad  was his ancestor? He was a Branch of the Tree of Prophetic Knowledge and a Descendant of the Pure Family of the Prophet . It is no wonder that he became the Qiblah of the Saints and his threshold became the goal of all people of God.

He was so pious that he spent most of his time reading and studying the adab (ethics and character) of the Prophet  and the character and good conduct of saints. His strict adherence to the Form and Intent of the Prophet  in all his actions is illustrated by the following incident. One day he entered the bathroom with his right foot, which is contrary to the prescription of the Prophet . It resulted in his being constipated for three days, because he had strayed from the propriety in the Sunnah in that single step. He asked Allah’s forgiveness, and Allah relieved him of his distress.

He began his life in a state of Self-Effacement. He remained in that state for fifteen years. During this period he was always in the state of Self-Effacement, and he was never out of that state except during the ritual prayers. When he prayed he would return to self-awareness and perform the prayers. He would then return to that state. He was careful to eat only from earnings made by the sweat of his brow. He ate only bread he baked himself, and he ate it only in very small pieces. He spent all his time in meditation and contemplation. When the bread was finished, he would return to prepare more, then he would return to contemplation and meditation. From his excessive contemplation, his back became bowed. He was in the service of his Shaykh for many years. He also served Shaykh Muhammad Muhsin, son of the great narrator of hadith of his time, Shaykh cAbdul Haqq, one of the khalifs of Muhammad Macsum (q), until by means of his service, he reached a high state of perfection.

He used to say, “For the past thirty years the thought, ‘How am I going to make a living’ never came to my heart. The subject of provision never came to my heart, but I ate when I felt the need.” He never ate from the food of a proud person. He said, “The food of proud rich people contains darkness.”

If he borrowed a book he would read it in three days, because he said, “The reflection of the darkness and ignorance of the owner of the book will be reflected on me.” He was very careful in such matters. His khalif, Sayyidina Habibullah (q), used to cry when he remembered him, and he would say to his followers , “You did not see that holy person. If you had been in his time it would have renewed your faith in Allah’s power that He had created such a person.”

Sayyidina Habibullah also used to say, “Shaykh Nur Muhammad al-Badawani’s visions were extremely detailed and incredibly precise. He used to see with his heart better than anyone can see with his eyes. He told me one time when I was in his presence, ‘O my son I see in you the traces of adultery. What have you done today?’ I said, ‘O my Shaykh when I was coming to you my eyes saw a woman on the street.’ He said, ‘Next time take care to protect your eyes.’”

Shaykh Habibullah said, “One time as I was on my way to the Shaykh, I saw an alcoholic on the street. When I came to the Shaykh he told me, ‘I am seeing in you the traces of alcohol.’ I realized from this that everything in this life is reflected from one person to another, and the character of one person is reflected on another. That is why we have to keep ourselves very clean at all times, and always keep company with the people of Allah.

Shaykh Habibullah said, “One day a lady came to him and said, ‘O my Shaykh, a spiritual being (jinn) kidnapped my daughter and I have tried by every means to get her back, but it has been to no avail.’ He meditated on that matter for about an hour. Then he said, ‘Your daughter will come tomorrow around the time of afternoon prayers, so now go and rest.’ The lady said, ‘I was so eager for that time to come, and for my daughter to appear, that I could hardly rest. At the exact time the Shaykh had mentioned, I heard a knock at the door, and in walked my daughter. I asked her what had happened. She said, ‘I had been kidnapped and taken to the desert by a jinn. I was there in the desert and just now a Shaykh came and took me by the hand and brought me here.’”

Shaykh Nur Muhammad al-Badawani died in the year 1135 AH/1722-23 CE. He passed the secret of the Golden Chain to his successor, Shaykh Shamsuddin Habib Allah Jan-i-Janan al-Mazhar.

 

Muhammad Sayfuddin al-Faruqi al-Mujaddidi

The sound of the flute is the image of God’s call to man.
“We were all part of Adam and heard those melodies in Paradise.
“Though water and clay have covered us with doubt, we still remember something of those sounds.
“But since they are mixed with the dust of sorrows, how should these high and low notes produce that joy?

Rumi, Mathnavi

He was a Reviver of this Order and a Reviver of the true path of the Sunnah. He derived great spiritual benefit from his great ancestor, Sayyidina `Umar al-Faruq radiya, and from his grandfather, Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi (q). With the blessings of the Prophet salla he was able to spread this order far and wide.

He was born in 1055 H./1645 AD. He was raised in the home of his father, Muhammad Ma’sum, and he was nursed with the milk of the knowledge of his father, his grandfather and his blessed ancestors. During his father’s life he sat on the Throne of Guidance and he followed the footsteps of his precedessors. His house became a light for the scholars of the religion, who came like moths from all around. As his subtle knowledge grew, his fame rose ever higher in the heavens, reaching the orbits of the Knowers, until he was able to decipher the Symbols of Hidden Knowledge and to open the Treasure of Heavenly Affairs. He spread the external and internal knowledge, and he joined together the Beginners and the Adepts, and he taught the Knowledge of Taste (dhawq).

On the orders of his father he moved to the city of Delhi to spread the knowledge of the sharica and the light of the  araqat. The Sultan himself, Muhammad Alamagir, became his student, and consequently the people of the Court, the Sultan’s ministers, and all the princes became his followers. With the support of the Sultan, it was not long before the entire kingdom accepted him. He embodied the Sunnah of the Prophet salla and inspired love for the sharaca throughout the nation. By means of the deep knowledge which filled his heart, he hoisted high the flag of Islam and removed the traces of ignorance and tyranny from the kingdom.

Through the blessings of Shaykh Sayfuddan’s companionship, Allah made the Sultan succeed in all his affairs and prevented harmful and unlawful conduct from occurring in the realm. The Sultan banished tyrants and oppressors. He kept the company of the Shaykh, following him as a student. Through the Shaykh’s encouragement, he was able to memorize the Holy Qur’an. He spent his late night hours fulfilling the obligations of the  araqat, reciting the Dhikr, while his daylight hours he spent looking after the affairs of his kingdom.

The Shaykh endeavored to eliminate all forms of misery and tyranny from the kingdom by means of the Sultan, and achieved tremendous success, until the whole of India was living in peace. He achieved such a position of reverence, that all sultans and princes would stand in his presence out of respect for him.

One day a man was standing with the other princes and Sultans in the presence of the Shaykh, and an insinuating whisper came to his heart, saying, “That Shaykh is so arrogant.” The Shaykh looked at him and said, “You are right, because my Pride is from Allah’s Pride.”

Once a man denied the truth of the Shaykh’s words. That night he saw a dream in which a group of men came and attacked him. They beat him and beat him, asking “How dare you deny the speech of the Shaykh when he is the Lover of God?” He awoke to find himself in severe pain. He hastened to the presence of the Shaykh and asked his forgiveness.

In his khaniqah (center for retreat), every day around 6,000 seekers slept and ate from the food he was providing.

One day he heard from his neighbor’s house the sound of the ney (bamboo flute). He was so enchanted by the sound of it that he fainted. When he came to he said, “Do you think that I am empty of compassion and emotion? No, those who listen to the ney and feel no compassion and emotion are empty. But when we hear something beautiful, we are so touched that we are immediately transported to the Divine Presence.”

To the saints, God’s call is heard without any admixture of the “dust of sorrows” and that is why they faint when they hear it.

One day a leper came and asked him for his supplication that he be healed. He blew on him and immediately the disease disappeared.

Shaykh Muhammad Sayfuddin died in 1095 AH/1684 CE and he was buried in the city of Sirhind. He passed on the secret of the Golden Chain to Grandshaykh Nur Muhammad al-Badawani.

Muhammad al-Masum

In the Place of refuge my heart sought refuge,
shot with enmity’s arrows.
O Mercy of God for His slaves, God placed His trust in you
among all inanimate forms.
O House of my Lord, O light of my heart, O coolness of my eyes,
O my heart within!
O true secret of the heart of existence, my sacred trust,
my purest love!
O Direction to which I turn from every quarter and valley,
From subsistence in the Real, then from on high,
from self-extinction, then from the depths!
O Kacba of Allah, O my life, O path of good fortune,
O my guidance!
God sheds His light on your court, and something of His light
appears in the heart.

Ibn `Arabi, al-Futuhat al-Makkiyyah.

He is The Rope of Allah (cUrwat-il-Wuthqa), the Pious Guide who combined in himself the Shari`a and  Reality (haqiqat) and he showed the difference between Ignorance and True Guidance. He was born in the year 1007 H. He was educated by his father from the special knowledge of saints. He sat on the Throne of Guidance in the Naqshbandi Way after the passing of his Shaykh, at the age of 26 years. He became famous everywhere. His name was known on every tongue, and kings acknowledged his greatness in his time. People were flocking to him from everywhere.

He was a saint from his childhood. He never accepted to nurse in Ramadan. He spoke on the Knowledge of Oneness at the age of three by saying, “I am the earth, I am the heavens, I am God… I am this, I am that.” He memorized the Qur’an in three months at the age of six. He was trying through his heart to learn the true knowledge, Sharacat and  aqaqat and he reached the high state of these knowledges. He was considered at the age of 17 years to be the greatest scholar of his time. He was very truthful in all his Legal decisions (fatawa). He accepted neither innovation nor licenses.

His father Sayiddina Ahmad al-Faruqi, testified when he was young that a very great power would appear in him. One time he said to his father Sayiddina Ahmad al-Faruqi, “I am seeing myself as a life that is moving in every atom of the atoms of these universes. And these universes are taking light from it as the earth takes light from the sun.” His father said, “O my son, that means you are going to be the Qutb (Spiritual Pole) of your time. Remember that from me.”

He said to him one time, “you have been molded from the residue of my residue, which was the the residue of the Prophet’s clay .”

He said, “I have poured into my son Muhammad Masum everything that I have been given.”

He said, “the Perfect Knower that is honored to exist in the State of the Complete Existence will witness and observe the Beauty of Allah in the mirror of this universe and he will see himself in everything. This universe will be him and he will be this universe. He will see himself moving in every individual of this universe, encompassing the Whole in the Part and the Part in the Whole.”

 From His Miracles

One time one of his deputies, Khwaja Muhammad as-Siddiq was travelling on top of a horse. His feet slipped from the horse and he was dangling from one stirrup. The horse was running so that he was expecting to die. He remembered at once to say, ‘O my Shaykh support me.’ As soon as he said ‘O my Shaykh support me.’ he saw his Shaykh appear, take the reins of the horse and stop it.

One of his followers said, “I fell into the sea and I didn’t know how to swim. I called out his name and he came and took me out.”

One time he was sitting with his followers in his khaniqah (spiritual center for retreat, prayers and meditation) and they began to see water pouring from his hands and his sleeves. They were surprised and they asked him, “What is this, O our Shaykh.” He said, “just now one of my murids was on a ship, and that ship was in a storm and was sinking. He called me and I immediately reached my hand and saved that person from drowning.” We recorded the time of that event and some months a merchant came among us. We asked him about that event and he said, ‘Yes, at that time my Shaykh came and saved me.’”

It happened at that time that one magician used to build a fire, and he would enter it and it would not burn him. There arose a great confusion among the people and it made a great fitna (dissension). So the Shaykh made a very great fire in the city and he told the magician, “Enter my fire!” and the magician was afraid. Then he told one of his murids, “Enter my fire, and while you are walking into it say LA ILAHA ILLALLAH.” That murid entered and it was cool and peace for him as it had been for Sayyidina Ibrahim

[21:69] when he was thrown in the fire. When the magician saw this, he immediately converted and spoke the shahada: ash-hadu an la ilaha illa-l-Lah, wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan rasalu-l-Lah.

One Shaykh Abdur Rahman at-Tirmidhi said, “I came with my brother to visit Shaykh Muhammad Masum (q). He gave everyone a gift from his clothes except me. When we returned to our country I was very sad, because I didn’t receive anything from him. After a while a rumor spread throughout the city that the Shaykh was coming to visit the city. All the people went to welcome him and I went with them. I saw the Shaykh coming on a white horse. He looked at me and said, ‘Abdur Rahman, don’t be sad, I have tested you and I have saved for you my special robe (jubba) which I inherited from my father, Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi (q). I took it from him and put it on me. Immediately everything disappeared and my Shaykh appeared in front of me: in every atom and every particle, he was appearing. I reached a state of immense happiness and I entered the Divine Presence.”

One day a blind man came to him and asked him, “Please pray for me that Allah restore my vision to me.” He rubbed his saliva on his eyes and told him, ‘Go to your house an don’t open your eyes until you get there.’ He reached his home and opened his eyes and he was seeing.

They told him “There is someone who is cursing the caliphs of the Prophet .” He became upset, and in his hand was a knife with which he was cutting a watermelon. As he cut the watermelon, he said, “As I cut this watermelon, I am cutting the neck of that one who is cursing the caliphs of the Prophet .” Immediately that man died.

He said,

“When I was in Hajj, I saw the Kacba hugging me and kissing me with great compassion and emotion. Then Allah unveiled to me in a vision, lights and blessings coming out of myself, and increasing and increasing; until they filled up all the deserts, then all the mountains, then the oceans; they then filled up all the universes and they entered every atom of these universes. Then all these atoms were drawn back to the love of the Essence of the Kacba. I saw many spiritual beings, among them angels and saints, all of them standing in my presence as if I was their sultan. Then I received a written letter delivered to me by an angel, and written on it was ‘from the God of Heavens, Universes and all Creation, I am accepting your pilgrimage.’

“Then I continued my travel to visit the Madinat’il-Munawwarah, the City of the Prophet . I entered the city of the Prophet  and I went to visit him at his tomb. When I directed my face to his face, I saw the Prophet  coming out of his grave, and he hugged me and kissed me. Then I saw myself in a state, where my heart was as if combining with his heart, my tongue with his tongue, my ears with his ears, until I was not seeing myself, I was seeing the Prophet  and when I looked at the Prophet  I was seeing myself. That vision took me to the station of Ascending to where the Prophet  had ascended in the Night of Ascension. I received there all the knowledge that the Prophet  wanted me to receive.

“Then I moved toward the two grand caliphs of the Prophet . As soon as I was in the presence of Sayyidina Abu Bakr, I saw on my shoulders a red robe. Then when I moved on to Sayyidina cUmar  I saw a yellow robe on my shoulders. When I was leaving I saw a green robe dressed on my shoulders, which I knew was from the Prohet . Then I saw a vision that Allah unveiled from me all the veils that were on my heart, and I saw that all that Allah had created from the Station of the Throne (cArsh) to the Station of the Earth was in need of the Beloved Muhammad , and he was the center of all light that moves in every atom.”

“What the Prophet gave me at that moment, if I were to say it, they would cut my neck. Then I found that every prayer on the Prophet  and every praise of Prophet  and every poetry that was written for the sake of the Prophet, was as if it was for me. Then I saw all these universes, from the Station of the Throne to the Station of the World, had been enlightened and were shining with my light. When the time came to go back to my country I was on my last visit to the Prophet  and I was crying in the farewell state and I saw the Prophet  come out of his maqam (station). He dressed me with dresses that have never been seen before and he put on my head a crown. That Crown came from the King of Kings, from the Divine Presence, decorated with every kind of Jewels, whose description cannot be described in this world. And I knew that Crown and those dresses had been given to me from the Dresses of Allah Almighty and Exalted, which He gave to His Prophet  in the Night of Ascension and which the Prophet  had kept for me and adorned me with on that night.”

Shaykh Muhammad Masum was a Miracle of Allah’s Miracles and a Light that Allah showered down on this world in order to guide by it humanity. It is said that he has given initiation into this tariqat to more than 900,000 people and that he had 7,000 deputies, and each of them was a saint. That is because in one week’s association he could bring his follower to the state of Annihilation and, in one month, to the State of Subsistence. It is also said that he could bring his follower to the State of Existence in one single sitting in his association.

He died on the 9th of Rabi al-Awwal 1079/1668 CE. He passed the secret of this Order to Sayfuddin al-Faruqi al-Mujaddidi.

 

Rami Al Rifai

“I saw myself in a wide green garden, more beautiful than I could begin to understand. In this garden was a young girl. I said to her, “How wonderful this place is!”

“Would you like to see a place even more wonderful than this?” she asked.

“Oh yes,” I answered. Then taking me by the hand, she led me on until we came to a magnificent palace, like nothing that was ever seen by human eyes. The young girl knocked on the door, and someone opened it. Immediately both of us were flooded with light.

Only Allah knows the inner meaning of the maidens we saw living there. Each one carried in her hand a serving-tray filled with light. The young girl asked the maidens where they were going, and they answered her, “We are looking for someone who was drowned in the sea, and so became a martyr. She never slept at night, not one wink! We are going to rub funeral spices on her body.”

“Then rub some on my friend here,” the young girl said.

“Once upon a time,” said the maidens, “part of this spice and the fragrance of it clung to her body — but then she shied away.”

Quickly the young girl let go of my hand, turned, and said to me:

“Your prayers are your light;
Your devotion is your strength;
Sleep is the enemy of both.
Your life is the only opportunity that life can give you.
If you ignore it, if you waste it,
You will only turn to dust.”

Then the young girl disappeared.

Rabi’ah al Adawiyya

 

سُوۡرَةُ الشَّرح
بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

أَلَمۡ نَشۡرَحۡ لَكَ صَدۡرَكَ (١) وَوَضَعۡنَا عَنكَ وِزۡرَكَ (٢) ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنقَضَ ظَهۡرَكَ (٣) وَرَفَعۡنَا لَكَ ذِكۡرَكَ (٤) فَإِنَّ مَعَ ٱلۡعُسۡرِ يُسۡرًا (٥) إِنَّ مَعَ ٱلۡعُسۡرِ يُسۡرً۬ا (٦) فَإِذَا فَرَغۡتَ فَٱنصَبۡ (٧) وَإِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ فَٱرۡغَب (٨

Shaykh Rami Al Rifai.

Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi

If God causes one to approach Him,
He reveals Himself to him as the object of his desire, without his knowing,
As the fire of Moses, which he saw through the eye of his need,
And who is the Divinity which he did not recognize.
If thou understandeth my words
thou knowest that thou hast need of the apparent form:
If Moses had searched for something other than the fire
He would have seen Him in that, and not inversely.

Ibn Arabi, Fusus al-Hikam

He was the Pearl of the Crown of the Knowledgeable Saints. He was the Treasure of Those who Came Before and of Those who Came After. In him were combined all their favors and generosity. He was the Sinai of Divine Manifestation, the Furthermost Lote Tree of the Unique Knowledge, and the Fountain of the Hidden Prophetic Knowledge. He was the Genius of Scholars and he was the Sultan of the Earth, which smiled when he was born and was honored by his existence. He was the perfect Perfected Guide. He was the Caller to Allah’s presence, the One Qutb and the Unique Heavenly Imam. He was the Reviver of the Second Millennium, Sayyidina wa Mawlana (our Leader and Master) ash-Shaikh Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi, ibn ash-Shaikh cAbdul Ahad son of Zainu-l-cAbidin son of cAbdulhayy, son of Muhammad son of Habibullah, son of Raficuddin, son of Nur, son of Sulayman, son of Yusuf, son of cAbdullah, son of Ishaq, son of cAbdullah, son of Shucayb, son of Aad, son of Yusuf, son of Shihabuddin, known as Farq Shah al-Qabidi, son of Nairuddin, son of Mahmud, son of Sulayman, son of Mascud, son of cAbdullah al-Waci al-Asghari, son of cAbdullah al-Waci al-Akbar, son of Abdu-l-Fattah, son of Ishaq, son of Ibrahim, son of Nair, son of Sayyidina cAbdullah (r), the son of Amir al-Mu’minin, the khalif of the Prophet , Sayyidina cUmar al-Faruq (r).

He was born on the day of cAshura, the 10th of Muharram in the year 971 H., in the village of Sihar Nidbasin. In some translations it is called Sirhind in the city of Lahore, in India. He received his knowledge and education through his father and through many shaikhs in his time. He made progress in three tariqats: Suhrawardiyya, Qadiriyya, and Chistiyya. He was given permission to train followers in all three tariqats at the age of 17 years. He was busy in spreading the teachings of these tariqats and in guiding his followers, yet he felt that something was missing in himself and he was continuously searching for it. He felt an interest in the Naqshbandi Sufi Order, because he could see by means of the secrets of the other three tariqats that it was the best and highest. His spiritual progress eventually brought him to the presence of the Ghawth and Qutb of his time, ash-Shaikh Muhammad al-Baqi, who had been sent from Samarqand to India by the order of his shaikh, Muhammad al-Amkanaki. He took the Naqshbandi Order from the shaikh and stayed with him for two months and some days, until Sayyidina Muhammad al-Baqi opened to his heart the secret of this tariqat and gave him authorization to train his murids in the Order. He said about him, “He is the highest Qutb in this time.”

The Prophet  predicted his advent in one of his hadith when he said, “There will be among my nation a man called Silah. By his intercession many people will be saved.” It was mentioned in the collection of Suyuti, Jamc ul-Jawamic. What confirmed the truth of this hadith is what Imam Rabbani wrote about himself: “God has made me the Silah between the two Oceans.” Silah means “connection.” So he meant that God had made him a connection between the two oceans — the two knowledges, external and internal. Shaikh Mir Husamuddin said, “I saw the Prophet  in one of my dreams standing on the minbar(pulpit) and praising Shaikh Ahmad as-Sirhindi. The Prophet  was saying, ‘I am proud and happy with his presence among my Nation. God has made him a reviver of the religion.’”

Many saints predicted his advent. One of them was Shaikh Ahmad al-Jami (q). He said, “After me will appear seventeen men of the People of God, all of whom are named Ahmad and the last one among them will be at the head of the millennium. He is going to be the highest of them and he is going to receive the state of Unveiling. He is going to revive this religion.”

Another to predict his advent was Mawlana Khwaja al-Amkanaki (q). He said to his khalif, “A man from India is going to appear. He will be the Imam of his century. He will be trained by you, so hurry to meet him, because the people of God are awaiting his arrival.” Muhammad al-Baqi (q) said, “That is why I moved from Bukhara to India.” When they met he told him, “You are the one whose appearance the shaikh Muhammad Khwaja al-Amkanaki predicted. When I saw you I knew you were the Qutb of your time. When I entered the region of Sirhind in India, I found a lamp which was so big and so bright that its light reached up to the heavens. Everyone took from that lamp’s light. You are that lamp.”

It is said that the shaikh of his father, Shaikh cAbdul Ahad, who was a shaikh of the Qadiri Order, had been given a jubba (cloak) from his shaikh which had been passed down from the Ghawth al-Azam, Sayyidina cAbdul Qadir al-Jilani (q). Sayyidina cAbdul Qadir had said about it to his successors, “Keep it for that one who is going to appear at the end of the first millennium. His name is Ahmad. He is going to revive this religion. I have dressed him with all my secrets. He combines in himself both the internal and external knowledge.”

The Seeking of the Kings and the Kings of Seeking

Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi said,

“Let it be known to you that the Heavenly Guardians attracted me because They wanted me to be attracted, and They facilitated for me the passage through time and space (at-tayy) in the different states of the seeker. I found that God is the Essence of all matter, as it had been said by the People of Sufism. Then I found God in all matter without incarnation (hulul). Then I found God together with all matter. Then I saw Him ahead of everything and then I saw Him following everything. Finally I reached a state where I saw Him and I saw nothing else. This is what is meant by the term, Witnessing the Oneness, which is also the state of Annihilation (fana’). That is the first step in Sainthood, and the highest state in the Beginning of the Way. This vision appears first on the horizons, then secondly in the Self. Then I have been lifted to the station of Subsistence (baqa’) which is the second step in Sainthood.

“This is a station which many saints did not speak about because they did not reach it. All of them speak about the station of Annihilation, but following that state is Subsistence. In that state I found all creation another time, but I found that the essence of all these creations is Allah, and Allah’s Essence is the Essence of Myself. Then I found Allah in everything, but in reality in myself. I was raised to a higher state, to find Allah with everything, but in reality He was with myself. Then I was lifted to see Him preceding everything, but in reality He was preceding myself. Then I was lifted to a state where He was following everything, but in reality He was following myself. Then I saw Him in everything, but in reality He was in myself. Then I saw everything and I didn’t see God. And this is the end of the Stations by which They had brought me back to the beginning. In sum, they lifted me to the Station of Annihilation, then to the station of Existence, then they brought me back to be with people, in the Station of the common people. This is the highest state in guiding people to the Presence of God. It is the perfect state of guidance, because it matches the understanding of human beings.”

He said, “I accompanied today one who has reached the End of Ends, the Qutub of all Creatures, the Perfect Man, Shaikh Muhammad al-Baqi. Through him I received incredible blessings, and by his blessing I was granted a power of attraction that allowed me to reach every human being that Allah had created. I was honored to attain a station that combines the state of the Ending with the state of the Beginning. I achieved all the states of Seeking and I reached the Ending, which is the meaning of ‘Reaching the name of ar-Rabb’ (the Sustainer), by the support of the Lion of God, Asadullah, cAli ibin Abi Talib, May God ennoble his face. I was raised up to the state of the Throne, which is the Reality of the Truth of Muhammad, by the support (madad) of Shaikh Shah Baha’uddin Naqshband. Then I was lifted even higher, to the state of Beauty, which is the state of the Truth of the Muhammadan Qutbs, by the support of the Prophetic Holy Spirit.

“I was supported by Shaikh Ala`addin al-Attar, from whom I received the states of the Greatest Spiritual Poles (al-qutubiyyati-l-cuzma) from the Presence of Muhammad . Then Allah’s Heavenly Care attracted me and I ascended to a State that is beyond that of the Qutubs, the Special Original State. Here the support of al-Ghawth al-Aczam, Abdul Qadir Jilani (q) pushed me up to the State of the Origin of Origins. Then I was ordered to come back down, and as I was descending I passed by all 39 tariqats other than the Naqshbandiyya and the Qadiriyya. I looked at the states of their shaikhs and they greeted me and saluted me and they threw on me all their treasures and all their private knowledge, which unveiled to me realities which had never been unveiled to any person in my time.

“Then on my descent I met Khidr , and he adorned me with the Heavenly Knowledge (cilmu-l-ladunni) before I reached the state of the Qutubs.”

“Abu Dawud said in an authentic hadith that the Prophet  said, ‘Allah will send at the beginning of every century someone by whom the religion will be revived,’ but there is a difference between the Reviver of the Century and the Reviver of the Millennium. It is like the difference between one hundred and one thousand.”

“In a vision, the Prophet  gave me good tidings: ‘You are going to be a spiritual inheritor and Allah is going to give you the authority to intercede on behalf of hundreds of thousands on the Day of Judgment.’ He bestowed on me with his holy hand the authority to guide people, and he said to me, ‘Never before have I given that authority to guide people.’”

“The knowledge that is emerging from me is coming from the state of Sainthood, but I am receiving it from the Light of the Prophet Muhammad . Saints are unable to bring forth such knowledge, because it is beyond the knowledge of saints. It is the Knowledge of the Essence of this Religion and the Essence of the Knowledge of Allah’s Essence and Attributes. No one before has spoken about it and Allah has granted me to be the one to revive the religion in its second millennium.”

“Allah unveiled to me the Secrets of the Unique Oneness and He poured into my heart all kinds of Spiritual Knowledge and its refinement. He unveiled to me the Secrets of the ayats of Qur’an so that I found beneath every letter of the Qur’an an ocean of knowledge all pointing to the High Essence of Allah Almighty and Exalted. If I were to reveal one word of the meaning of it they would cut off my head, as they did to Hallaj and to Ibn ‘Arabi. This is the meaning of the hadith of the Prophet , in Bukhari, narrated by Abu Huraira (r), “The Prophet  poured into my heart two kinds of knowledge, one of which I have revealed and another which if I were to reveal they would cut my throat.”

“Allah, Almighty and Exalted, has shown me all the names of those who are entering our Tariqat, from the day of Sayyidina Abu Bakr (r) to the Day of Judgment, both men and women, and all of them are going to enter Paradise, with the intercession of the shaikhs of the Tariqat.”

“Al-Mahdi will be one of the followers of this Tariqat.”

“One day I was in association with my followers doing dhikr and it came to my heart that I had done something wrong. Then Allah opened to my eyes, ‘I have forgiven anyone who sits with you and anyone asking intercession by means of you.’”

“Allah has created me from the residue of His Prophet .”

“The Kacba was always coming and making tawaf (circumambulation) around me.”

“Allah Almighty and Exalted said to me, ‘Anyone for whom you pray janaza (funeral prayer) will be forgiven, and if anyone mixes earth from your grave with the earth of their grave, they will be forgiven.’”

“Allah said, ‘I have given you special gifts and perfections which no one will receive other than you until the time of the Mahdi.’”

“Allah gave me an incredible power of guidance. Even if I direct my guidance to a dead tree, it will become green.”

One great shaikh wrote to him asking, “The states that you reached and you are speaking about, did the Sahaba receive them, and if they did, did they receive them at one time or did they receive them at separate times?” He answered, “I cannot give you an answer unless you come into my presence.” When the shaikh came, he immediately unveiled to him his spiritual reality and cleaned the darkness of his heart until the shaikh fell prostrate at his feet and said, “I believe, I believe! I see now that these states were all revealed to the Sahaba simply by looking at the Messenger .”

One time in the month of fasting, Ramadan, he was invited by ten of his murids to break fast with them. He accepted the invitation of each of them. When it came time to break the fast, he was present at each of their houses, breaking the fast, and they saw him in each of their houses at the same time.

One time he looked at the sky and it was raining. He said, “O rain stop until such and such hour.” It stopped until the exact time he had said, after which it started raining again.

One time the King ordered that a man be executed. That man came to Shaikh Amad and said, “Please write a stay of execution for me.” He wrote to the Sultan, “Don’t execute this man.” The Sultan was afraid of Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi and pardoned the man.

One time a murid made intention to visit Shaikh Ahmad al-Faruqi (q). On his way he was invited to be the guest of a man who disliked the shaikh. The murid, however, didn’t know this. After dinner, the host began reviling the shaikh. As he went to sleep that night, in his heart he was saying, “O Allah, I came to visit the shaikh, not to hear someone curse the shaikh. Forgive me.” Then he slept and when he awoke he found that the man had died. He went quickly to the shaikh and began to tell him the story. Sayyidina Ahmad al-Faruqi raised his hand and said, “Stop! There is no need to tell me what happened. I am the one who caused it.”

He said,

“I was authorized to give Tariqat in three tariqats: Naqshbandi, Suhrawardi and Chistiyya.”

He was so famous that the scholars of external knowledge in his time became jealous of him. They went to the king and told him, “He is saying things that are not accepted in the religion.” They pushed the King until he put him in jail. He stayed in jail for three years. His son, Shaikh Sayyid, said, “He was under very intense security in jail. Guards surrounded his room on every side. Yet every Friday he would be seen in the big mosque. No matter how much security he was under, he would disappear from prison and appear in the mosque.” From this they knew they could not put him behind bars and therefore they released him.

He wrote many books, one of the most famous of which is the Maktubat.

In it he said,

“It must be known that Allah has placed us under His Obligations and His Prohibitions. Allah said, ‘Whatever the Prophet gave you, take it, and whatever he prohibited you, leave it.’ 

[59:7] If we are going to be sincere in this, we have to attain to Annihilation and the love of the Essence. Without these we cannot reach this degree of obedience. Thus we are under another obligation, which is to seek the Way of Sufism, because this Way will lead us to the state of Annihilation and the love of the Essence. Each Order differs from the other in its states of perfection; so too does each Order keep the Sunnah of the Prophet  and have its own definition of what that entails. Every order has its own way of keeping the Sunnah of the Prophet . Our Order, through its shaikhs, requires us to keep all the commands of the Prophet  and to leave all the things he prohibited. Our shaikhs don’t follow the easy ways (rukhas) but insist on keeping the difficult ways. In all their seeking they keep in mind the verse of Qur’an, ‘Men whom neither business nor trade will divert from the Remembrance of Allah’ [24:37].

“In the journey leading to the unveiling of the Divine Realities, the seeker moves through various stages of knowledge of and proximity to His Lord:

– “Moving to Allah is a vertical movement from the lower stations to the higher stations; until the movement surpasses time and space and all the states dissolve into what is called the Necessary Knowledge (cilm ul-wajib) of Allah. This is also called Annihilation (fana’).

– “Moving in Allah is the stage in which the seeker moves from the station of Names and Attributes to a state which neither word nor sign can describe. This is the State of Existence in Allah called Baqa.

– “Moving from Allah is the stage in which the seeker returns from the heavenly world to the world of cause and effect, descending from the highest station of knowledge to the lowest. Here he forgets Allah by Allah, and he knows Allah with Allah, and he returns from Allah to Allah. This is called the State of the Farthest and the Nearest.

– “Moving in things is a movement within creation. This involves knowing intimately all elements and states in this world after having vanished in Annihilation. Here the seeker can achieve the State of Guidance, which is the state of the prophets and the people following the footsteps of the Prophet . It brings the Divine Knowledge into the world of creation in order to establish Guidance.

“The entire process is like threading a needle. The thread seeks the eye of the needle, passes through and then proceeds down to where it began. There the two ends meet, form a knot and secure the entire thread. They form a whole, thread, eye and needle, and any material they catch is sewn into the fabric of the unity.”

“It must be known to everyone that the Naqshbandi shaikhs chose to guide their murids first through the movement from Allah, travelling from the higher states to the lower. For this reason they maintain the common veils over the spiritual vision of the murid, removing the veil of ordinary consciousness only at the final step. All other tariqats begin with the movement to Allah, moving from the lowest states to the highest, and removing the common veils first.”

“It is mentioned in the Hadith of the Prophet , ‘Scholars are the inheritors of the prophets.’ The knowledge of prophets is of two kinds: knowledge of laws and knowledge of secrets. The scholar cannot be called an inheritor if he does not inherit both knowledges. If he takes only one knowledge he is incomplete. Thus the real inheritors are the ones who take the knowledge of the laws and the knowledge of the secrets, and only the saints have truly received and protected this inheritance.”

He left behind him many more books. He died on the 17th of Safar 1034 H. at the age of 63. He was buried in the village of Sirhind. He was a shaikh in the fourtariqats: Naqshbandi, Qadiri, Chisti and Suhrawardi. He preferred the Naqshbandi, because he said, “It is the Mother of all tariqats.”

He passed the secret of the revered Golden Chain to Shaykh Muhammad Masum.

 

Allah Said

قُلْنَا يَا نَارُ كُونِي بَرْدًا وَسَلَامًا عَلَىٰ إِبْرَاهِيمَ
وَمَكَرُوا وَمَكَرَ اللَّهُ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَاكِرِينَ
وَاجْعَل لِّي وَزِيرًا مِّنْ أَهْلِي
هَارُونَ أَخِي
وجنود الملاًئِكة أجمعون
الله كامل
وَأَلْقَيْتُ عَلَيْكَ مَحَبَّةً مِّنِّي

الله كامل + ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

 

Allah Said

النَّبِيُّ أَوْلَىٰ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ مِنْ أَنفُسِهِمْ وَأَزْوَاجُهُ أُمَّهَاتُهُمْ وَأُولُو الْأَرْحَامِ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلَىٰ بِبَعْضٍ فِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُهَاجِرِينَ إِلَّا أَن تَفْعَلُوا إِلَىٰ أَوْلِيَائِكُم مَّعْرُوفًا كَانَ ذَٰلِكَ فِي الْكِتَابِ مَسْطُورًا
وَإِذَا وَقَعَ الْقَوْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ أَخْرَجْنَا لَهُمْ دَابَّةً مِّنَ الْأَرْضِ تُكَلِّمُهُمْ أَنَّ النَّاسَ كَانُوا بِآيَاتِنَا لَا يُوقِنُونَ
أهل الله كامل + ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

Wa Lilahil Mathalal Aalah

اللَّهَ شَيْئًا وَسَيُحْبِطُ أَعْمَالَهُمْ 

فَإِنَّهُ علَم السِّرَّ وَأَخْفَى
الَّتِي كُنتُمْ تُوعَدُونَ
وَجَعَلْنَاهُمْ أَئِمَّةً يَدْعُونَ إِلَى النَّارِ وَيَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ لَا يُنصَرُونَ
وجنود الملاًئِكة أجمعون
فَاسْتَجَابَ لَهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ أَنِّي لَا أُضِيعُ عَمَلَ عَامِلٍ مِّنكُم
يغلبون حم لا ينصرون حم عصق

Al Muqatta’at

الم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن

Rasul Allah (saws) said about us (q), “This is the way of the perfect Saint!!!!”

[بِسْمِ اللهِ] اللَّهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنَ الْخُبُْثِ وَالْخَبَائِثِ

أَعُوذُ بِكَلِمَاتِ اللَّهِ التَّامَّةِ مِنْ كُلِّ شَيْطَانٍ وَهَامَّةٍ وَمِنْ كُلِّ عَيْنٍ لَامَّةٍ

Copyright 2010 - 2100 Shaykh Al Islam Qutb Allah Rami Al Boustani Al Rifai | Powered by Al Rahman Al Raheem | دابة الأرض Dābbat al-Arḍ | 2 Esdras 13:50 "And then he will show them verily many wonders"| وجنود الملاًئِكة أجمعون | حكيم النس | حكيم الله | الحرب كامل | الله كامل | ʾالم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن | الم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن | الم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن | الم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن الم الم المص الر الر الر المر الر الر كهيعص طه طسم طس طسم الم الم الم الم يس ص حم حم حم عسق حم حم حم حم ق ن وَإِذَا بَطَشْتُم بَطَشْتُمْ جَبَّارِين | وَلَمَّا جَآءَ مُوسَىٰ لِمِيقَتِنَا وَكَلَّمَهُۥ رَبُّهُۥ قَالَ رَبِّ أَرِنِىٓ أَنظُرْ إِلَيْكَ ۚ قَالَ لَن تَرَىٰنِى وَلَكِنِ ٱنظُرْ إِلَى ٱلْجَبَلِ فَإِنِ ٱسْتَقَرَّ مَكَانَهُۥ فَسَوْفَ تَرَىٰنِى ۚ فَلَمَّا تَجَلَّىٰ رَبُّهُۥ لِلْجَبَلِ جَعَلَهُۥ دَكًّۭا وَخَرَّ مُوسَىٰ صَعِقًۭا ۚ فَلَمَّآ أَفَاقَ قَالَ سُبْحَنَكَ تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَأَنَا۠ أَوَّلُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ | A.Z.A.T.A.A.A.D.A.S.A.M.M.M.J.O.V.S.A.F.J.S.A.G.G.M.D.E.T.S.S.J.F.A.M.E.V.Z.C.M.A.M.K.L.G.F.F.V.Z.J.F.B. B.A.L.M.M.I.S.A.D.J.R.F.N.Z.S.E.M.E.F.S.G.E.V.T.Z.M.B.E.K.J.J.L.A.M.G.V.W.M.A.S.L.C.M.L.B.K.K.C.Y.K.B.N. A.E.B.L.P.A.H.J.R.C.C.L.T.C.R.U.A.C.S.K.A.S.K.V.E.N.A.K.A.U.S.Z.A.P.L.E.M.A.A.C.D.I.N.A.O.H.I.F.K.M.Y.S.K. B.M.S.J.D.A.J.A.I.H.A.H.R.E.T.F.B.T.W.Z.A.W.T.W.Y.G.A.P.M.O.V.A.A.A.L.L.B.E.C.S.L.E.C.C.B.C.T.W.R.Q.D.A. W.G.G.M.I.M.L.T.B.R.U.M.S.C.A.A.40297104 🧿 M.B.L.E.K.S.B.A.B.O.L.A.P.E.I.D.C.M.D.M.M.A.J.J.P.K.A.B.A.M.R.W.A.C.V.A.R.P.A.A.T.A.A.V.J.S.D.B.S.A.J. A.A.I.S.V.P.V.A.A.P.L.H.M.O.R.M.S.D.W.J.C.S.S.M.M.R.S.F.S.T.B.M.E.R.C.S.F.A.M.P.K.S.J.R.M.M.E.M.M. M.K.O.D.L.R.I.M.W.N.B.S.D.K.M.G.C.M.M.A.G.E.T.Z.S.M.K.M.L.E.M.A.I.T.L.E.R.O.M.D.L.E.T.W.J.C.J.A.E G.I.O.S.O.E.E.L.A.K.V.B.P.S.M.T.W.C.F.T.L.H.T.T.C.Y.S.L.C.B.T.C.T.S.R.S.R.C.C.H.S.S.T.K.B.L.M.R.D.W.O.Y. A.B.M.M.M.J.Y.A.W.H.A.C.S.R.I.Q.I.W.E.T.P.S.Z.Q.L.M.P.A.M.S.S.V.W.S.O 40297104 🧿
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