Shaikh Haji Shakeel Ahmed (Allah preserve him) said,
‘We must be compassionate in calling others to the Islamic ways.
We should address ourselves first and then the others.
Please, remember the principle that a dai’i (one who invites others) never insults, criticizes, denigrates, humiliates or mocks the audience.’
Jeddah, al-Azizia 30th May 2012, bayan after maghrib
Shaikh Haji Shakeel Ahmed (Allah preserve him) said,
‘Develop the habit of reminding yourself every now and then that Allah is watching me. Say in an audible voice ‘Allah! Allah! Allah!’.
It is to firmly establish and cultivate this state that Allah made it essential (wajib) for us to visit His house (masjid) five times a day and practice it in salah.
We should strife to establish this in our daily life. An easy way is to set a reminder in our mobile phone that alerts us every 15 minutes that Allah is watching me.’
Jeddah, al-Azizia 30th May 2012, bayan after maghrib
Shaikh Haji Shakeel Ahmed (Allah preserve him) said,
The trustworthy and truthful messenger of Allah Prophet Mohammed (Allah bless him and grant him peace) told us that wudhu is a weapon of a believer.
In reality it is a spiritual hidden armament against the ploys of lower self (nafs) and Satan.
We should be vigilant in maintaining it.
Unhealthy habit of chewing pan, smoking cigarettes and drinking carbonated drinks makes it difficult to maintain wudhu most of the time. We should abandon them.
Moreover, the Prophet (Allah bless him and grant him peace) himself stayed in the state of wudhu most of the time. We should emulate his blessed sunna.’
Jeddah, al-Azizia 30th May 2012, bayan after maghrib
In Mathnawi Mawlana Jalal uddin Rumi (Allah have mercy on him) gives an excellent example to encourage us to give up all that is sinful right now.
The sinful desires are like seeds of a humongous, foul smelling, full of thorns and fruitless tree. If one follows them and commits the sin it is like watering the seed. It germinates and grows in the middle of a path. If one continues to follow his desires the seedling gets nutrition. It becomes a sapling and eventually a tree.
The leaves, branches and roots spread. And the tree is firmly ‘rooted’.
Being in the middle of a path it is a major obstacle.
Removing it now is not easy. It requires special equipment and expertise.
It would have been very easy to remove the seedling.
The roots sink deep in to the ground. They engulf or entrap the things around making the removal even more difficult and messy.
Similarly, by giving into sinful desires we nurtures the lower self (nafs) and it becomes stronger each day. We may fool himself ourselves with lame excuses, like it is lesser of the two evils, or it is a norm to do these things nowadays, or it is a phase it will pass, or I will give it up after I graduate or get married or have children, etc.
We procrastinate.
With each passing day the tree of sinful desires (nafs) grows strong, whereas as the sinful individual gets older, loosing the mental sharpness, the emotional vigor and the physical strength as part of the natural aging process..
We have to be wise and not delay. It is easier to give up sins right now.
A seeker informed sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) about the extra time he had available daily and requested for advice on how to utilize it appropriately.
Sayyidi wa sanadi said,
‘Do two things in this time.
Firstly, perform excessive remembrance of Allah.
On request for further elaboration on what specific form of remembrance would be appropriate for him. Sayyidi said,
‘Perform the ‘dowazdah tasbih‘. And if you already do this in morning (as the usual daily routine prescribed for seekers) then repeat it again in this spare time.’
The second thing to do is to read the biographies of the pious predecessors meticulously. High light and mark the beneficial passages for future review.
Start with the Sawanih e Qasimi of Shaikh Mawlana Qasim Nanotawi written by Professor Mawalan Anwarul Hasan Sheirkoti (Allah have mercy on them) if you can get hold of it. It is difficult to keep focused in the one written by Mawlana Manazir Hasan Gillani (Allah have mercy on him). Then read Tazkirat ur Raheed, Tazkirat ul Khalil, Ashraf us sawanih and Arwah e salasa.’
Holiday Inn Salam, Jeddah, 15th May 2012, after esha
‘Arif-billah Dr Abdul Hayy ‘Arifi (Allah Have mercy on him) said,
‘People wrongly assume that by observance of excessive worship, like supererogatory salah, excessive remembrance or recitation of Holy Quran, they will gain pleasure and proximity of Allah.
In our everyday life the pleasure and proximity of Allah is obtained by being patient and responding with humility and good character when unexpected comes from those who are dear and near.
The real examination is when the curt comments and the sarcastic attitude of friends and family break your heart or make your blood boil.
Being patient, controlling one’s anger and responding with humility and good character will make you move closer to pleasure of Allah.
Only an individual who is cognizant that he/she will be accountable before Allah for his/her actions can do this.
This is taqwa.’
Audio:Mp3 CD # 2
Shaikh Shahab uddeen Suharwardi (Allah have mercy on him) wrote,
‘For a slave of Allah there is no spiritual station or state or enlightenment that waives from him the observance of decorum (a’adab) of Shariah.’
Awarif al-Ma’arif (Urdu translation), page 455
Qutub e ‘Alam Shaikh Rasheed Ahmad Gangohi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘The end result of all forms of remembrances (adhkar), spiritual exercises (ashgal) and meditations (muraqabat) is awareness of being in the presence of Allah all the time.’
Aap beeti via Zaad us Salikeen, page 803
It is essential to appreciate that this is not the creation of an abstract idle thought but an actual experience that brings a change in the behavior and actions of the individual.
That is, ehsan as mentioned in Hadith e Jibraeel (Allah’s peace be upon him)
Hakim al Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘Time can only be managed effectively by doing everything as scheduled and not being overwhelmed by indulgent kind and polite behavior (ikhlaq & murawwat).’
Ashraf us Sawanih as quoted in Zaad us Salikeen, page 757
That is, not following one’s schedule by trying to please and fulfill the non-urgent impositions of family, friends and others.
Sometimes overwhelming humility, politeness and kindness leads to this entrapment. (How insignificant I am? And how worthless my schedule is, as compared to pleasing a fellow Muslim?)
Hakim al Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘In regards to the issue of mawlid there is a delicate discussion that need not be mentioned to lay public (for it is difficult for them to comprehend it). It is that, people do it (mawlid) considering it to be an act of worship (ibadah). For it (mawlid) to be so (an act of worship) requires documentation (from Sunna, Fiqh). This documentation has not yet been established. Those who advice against it do so based on this.
The lay people do not understand this and subsequently conclude that these people stop them from remembering the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace).
(To elucidate further) Hakim al Umma gave the example that suppose if someone was to recite ‘Mohammed’ ‘Mohammed’ (Allah bless him and give him peace). Then it has to be investigated that is this (recitation) considered to be a act of worship or not? (If he considers it to be an act of worship) Then there is no proof of it.
Mazeed al-Majeed, page 13
This delicate point is indeed seldom appreciated, even by scholars.
The crux of all discussion to proof the validity of celebrating mawlid is on historic incidents. That is, such and such major Shaikh, grand Mufti or erudite scholar did it. These only establish the cultural events observed at that time.
Shaikh Dhunun al Misri (Allah have mercy on him) said,
Three things are sign of having a (special & close) relationship with Allah. They are;
1.Turning to Him all the matters
2. Asking everything from Him
3. Trying to get close to Him all the time.
Urdu translation of al Kaukab al duriyu fi manaqib Dhunun al Misri, by Ibn al Arabi (Allah have mercy on them), page 79
Mawlana Qamar uz Zaman Allahabadi (Allah preserve him) said,
‘To achieve real prosperity (sa’adet) three things are required,
1. To protect one’s heart from involvement in things that result in wasting time and corruption of the heart itself.
2. Following Sunna meticulously in all matters.
3. To acquire the ‘nur‘ of ‘following the Sunna’.
——The initial two are achievable by effort (ikhteyari), whereas the last one can not be achieved by effort alone (ghair ikhteyari). It is a gift bestowed by Allah.’
Al-Ifadat al-Ahsaniya, page 254
*P.S. Photo:The mata’af expansion 2012.
Then why do we see otherwise in ourselves?
That is, in spite of performing religious actions ( e.g. salah, tilawat, dhikr, etc) for so many years the same mistakes are repeated, the outward beauty and inward concentration does not increase. Perfection remains a mirage.
Shah Wasiullah Allahabadi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘An action has to be done properly to be beneficial in this world and in hereafter.’
Majmua’ talefat e Mulih al-Ummat ra, volume 2, Sa’adet e haqiqi, page 323,
Foremost , what is going to be practiced must be established properly. The method must be correct.
It is futile to expect perfection when the thing initiated is done incorrectly and then repeated similarly manifolds. The obvious result of this mistake would be perfection in repeating the the mistake itself.
It for this reason our shuyukh stress on learning the basic religious (fiqhi) text (Bashishti Zewar/Thamar) thoroughly upfront on the path of sulook.
Arif billah Dr Abdul Hayy Arifi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘Read the book: Uswa e Rasool e Akram (sallalaho aleh e wasalam). It is a manual for your daily life.’
Sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) reinforces this in his instruction to the spiritual seekers.
