Hazrat Baba Najam Ahsan sahib ra, khalifa (mojaz e sohbat) of Hazrat Hakeemul Ummat ra said;
“Love is not to have any self opinion.”
That is, to have absolute submission!
Zikir e Ahsan ra, page 180-1
Category Archives: B. Praise worthy morals
Lowering one’s gaze
Hakeemul Ummat Hazrat Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi ra said commenting on the verse 30 of surah Noor: (Tell the believing men to lower their gaze and be modest. That is purer for them. Lo! Allah is aware of what they do.) :
“Lowering one’s gaze is a major component of the teachings of sulook.
(That is, not seeing anything that Shariah commands impermissible to be seen).”
Masail us Sulook min Kalam Malik ul Mulook, page 375
Jihad
Discussing the ayah:
و جاهدو فى الله حق جهاده :الحج 78
Hakim al Umma Mawlana Asharf Ali Thanwi (Allah have mercy on him) enumerates the different types of stuggles (mujahida) encountered in tasawwuf.
“Jihad bin Nafas. That is, to purify it by fulfilling the rights of one’s own self and abandoning the (extravagant & sinful) pleasures.
Jihad e qalb. That is to cleanse the qalb/heart (of all impurities and whatever that is other than Him] and detach it form all the attachments of both the worlds (i.e. here & hereafter).
Jihad e ruh. That is, to achieve fana (annihilation) of the self (desires, suggestions, planning, expectations, etc).”
Masail us sulook min kalam Malik ul mulook, page 364
Sincerity & Durood
Maseehul-quloob Hazrat Mawlana Maseehullah Khan sahib ra adviced his mureedeen:
“For growth, development and permanence of niyyah (intention that everything being done is solely for Allah SWT’s pleasure via Sunnah method) holdfast to recitation of blessed durood (salawat).
My routine in zikir-e-lisani (remembrance via tongue) is to recite durood all the time.”
Islah afroze bayyanat, page 199
Disgusted by Tawheed
Hazrat Hakeemul Ummat Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi ra mentioned in relation to the verse 45 of surah al-zumar (39):
و اذا ذكر الذين من دونه اذا هم ستبشرون
[45. When Allah, the One and Only, is mentioned, the hearts of those who believe not in the Hereafter are filled with disgust and horror; but when (gods) other than He are mentioned, behold, they are filled with joy! ]
“Similar to it is the condition of some ignorant claimant of tasawwuf. That is, at the mention of pure/authentic tawheed they are sickened. And (are delighted to) do istigatha (calling for help) with awliya.”
Masail us Sulook min Kalam Malik ul mulook, page 468
Tawheed is one of the essential muqamat (stations) in Tasawwuf.
Sheikh! I have nothing new to tell you.
Hazrat Haji Mohammad Farooq sahib ra said;
“Some individuals say that nothing comes to our mind when we are informing the Sheikh (directly or via mail) about our condition.
Abba-ji (Hazrat Mawlana Maseehullah Khan sahib ra) used to say that this may be due to two reasons. That are;
Either, the person has completed all the muqamats (stations), (that is, understood and practically removed all blame worthy moral traits from and acquired all praise worthy traits in one’s self.) and is in no need (of further instructions regarding changing states).
Or, he is not punctual with his mamoolat (wird). That is, he does not do the zikir (prescribed). If he was engaged in the zikir he would have received ahwal (states/thoughts regarding these praise/blame worthy moral traits). (These require reassuring or reconstructive instructions from the Sheikh.) ”
Islah afroze bayanat, page 484
Lessons from al-Kahaf
Hakim al Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) has mentioned the following lessons that can be learned from the story of our masters Prophet Musa and Khidhir (Allah’s peace be upon them):
1. Desirability of travel for a student (to pursue his learning).
2. To have respect (adab) when dealing with scholars and shuyuk.
3. To abandon criticism of scholars and shuyuk
4. To find an excuse for their apparently unclear actions, dealings and speech.
5. To fulfill the pact (ahed) made with them.
6. To apologize for any thing committed against them.
7. To keep provision for the way while traveling. It is not against tawakul (reliance on
Allah)to do so.
8. To ascribe forgetfulness and other disliked things to Shaytan. It is from adab not to
attribute them to Allah.
9. For a scholar to refuse teaching a subject to a student whom he thinks is incapable of
understanding it.
10. To give preference to Allah’s command in every thing.
11. For a guide to put some essential criteria to be fulfilled, for his followers.
12. To condone forgetfulness.
13. Three attempts to be sufficient enough to be counted as repetition.
14. Boat ride to be permissible.
15. The ruling to be on the evident matters. Until one comes to know the reality.
16. Asking for food to be permissible, in case of absolute necessity.
17. Not to give up chivalry. Even if it is for those who do not deserve it.
18. To take monetary retribution for worldly tasks done.
19. The condition for being in need to persist even if tools for earning or possession of
insufficient funds exist.
20. Being angry (that is displaying it) is impermissible (haraam).
21. Hiding wealth by burying it in the ground (for protection) to be permissible
And many more lessons can be learned.
Hakim al Umma adds; this incident proves that the best way for islah (reformation) is through physical demonstration (actions) not merely by (admonition via) speech.
Masail us sulook, pages 328-9
Speech & Writing, Reflect the Inner states
Hazrat Mawlana Shah Wasiullah Khan saheb ra, a senior & exceptional khalifa of Hakeeul Ummat ra said;
“People judge the integrity of an earthenware, that is it broken or intact, by its noise (resulting from tapping on it). Similarly, we (the ahlullah) deduce from a salik’s way of talking and writing some information about his qalbi (inner) states.”
Halaat e Muslehul ummat ra, page 51
Ikhlas
Maseehul Quloob Hazrat Mawlana Maseehullah Khan sahib ra advised:
“For a salik it is most appropriate to renew the ikhlas (sincerity) before each and every action.”
Islah afroze bayanat, page 196
Plead guilty!
Proprietor of Nauratan Jewellers, narrates that once I visited Hazrat Arif-billah Dr Abdul Hayy Arifi ra. I was in hurry, time was running short. I requested for a brief nasiha (advise).
Hazrat ‘Arifi ra told me to always remember the fact that, in the judicial system of this world if you plead guilty you are held responsible and punished. Sometimes fined or even jailed.
Whereas, in the court of Allah SWT if you plead guilty, accept your shortcomings and sins, repent sincerely you are forgiven and set free of the humiliation of any punishment. Moreover you are rewarded in most instances for returning back to Allah SWT.
What is husun e ikhlaq? How to acquire it?
Sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani sahib db said:
“In reality ikhlaq (moral character) is a condition/state of the heart.
Its manifestation is by our limbs and other body parts.
That is, in one’s heart there is aspiration for benefiting and loving the whole creation of Allah SWT. Even, if they are enemies or infidels. This is a result of reflecting that all this has been created by my Lord, Allah SWT and therefore I must love them and deal with them in a good manner.
Firstly, these feeling arise and then actions are done accordingly.
For example, a smile that arises after such feeling is not an artificial smile to win over others’ liking. It is an essential and logical reaction to one’s feelings.
These morals can neither be acquired by reading books nor listening to spiritual discourses alone.
To acquire them it is essential to stay in the company of a mentor and a musleh (Sheikh).
The true goal of tasawwuf and all this Sheikh-mureed relationship is to develop the praise worthy morals and to get rid of the blame worthy morals from one’s self.”
Khandani huqooq o faraiz, page 188
When to repent & start good actions?
Right now.
At this moment.
At once.
Right away.
This minute.
Without delay.
Straightaway.
As soon as possible.
Immediately.
Sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani db said:
“Do not procrastinate.
Putting off repentance and good actions for future is the deadliest weapon in the armamentarium of Nafs & Shaytan.
Do not let them deceive you!”
Repentance: The Third Condition
Sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat Mawlana Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah SWT preserve him and allow us to benefit from him abundantly. Ameen!), said:
“The third condition for true repentance is to have firm resolve and determination never ever to commit this sin in future again.
These are the three conditions necessary for true repentance. Without any one of them the repentance can not be complete.”
Islahi Majalis, volume 5, page 237
Repentance: The Second Condition
Sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat Mawlana Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah SWT preserve him and allow us to benefit from him abundantly. Ameen!) while elucidating the conditions essential for true repentance, said:
“The second condition necessary for sincere repentance is that one immediately leaves that sin. Without this repentance can never be complete.
It is not possible to commit a transgression and repent form it at the same time. There is no form of such repentance.”
Islahi Majalis, volume 5, page 237
Repentance: The First Condition
Sayyidi wa sanadi Hazrat Mawlana Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah SWT preserve him and allow us to benefit from him abundantly. Ameen!) while elucidating the conditions essential for true repentance, said:
“The first condition necessary for sincere tauba (repentance) is that one has remorse for all the sins committed. That is, one feels ashamed of and acknowledges the transgressions done.
If this acknowledgement of transgression, acceptance of wrongdoing, and feeling ashamed and sorry for it is not there and moreover if one justifies his defiant action, how can this be real repentance. Therefore, not to consider a transgression a sin is an extremely dangerous thing. Allah SWT save every Muslim from it. Ameen!
In short, the first condition for repentance is feeling remorseful.
That is, O Allah SWT! I committed a big mistake.
I accept full responsibility and plead guilty.
Please, forgive me!”
Islahi Majalis, volume 5, page 236