Alchemy!

Shaykh Mawlana Mohammad Manzur Nomani* (Allah have mercy on him) wrote to a disciple,

‘Considering his action to be of inappropriate standard to be presented to Allah, crying on it and making repentance for the shortcomings in it makes a deficient act of worship worthy of acceptance.’

Meyray Shaykh meyray Hazrat Mawlana Mohammad Manzur Nomani ra by Shaykh Qutubud-deen Mullah db, page 42

*Author of Ma’arif ul Hadith, an authority on deviant sects (especially Baraelwis) and editor of monthly Al-Furqan was a khalifa of Mawlana Abdul Qadir Raipuri. He also benefitted from suhba of Shaykh Mawlana Wasiullah Allahabadi.  He was born in 1323H/1905 and passed away in 1417 H/1997. Allah have mercy on them all. Amin!

He gave ijazet e bayah to two individuals only. Al-Haaj Qutubud-deen Mulla in Balguam, Karnataka,  & Hafiz Mohammad Iqbal in Gonda, UP. May Allah preserve them.Amin!

وَذَرُواْ ظَاهِرَ الإِثْمِ وَبَاطِنَهُ

 

Shaykh Shah Wasiullah Allahabadi (Allah have mercy on him) said,’

These days people have restricted the religion to some external things, like clothes, external appearance of religious individuals, prayers and fasting, etc.  With these they consider themselves to be perfectly religious individuals. Whereas, from within they are just like the open or closeted sinners. They have their sinful morals (ikhlaq), dealings (ma’amlaat) and corrupt life style (ma’sharet). Even then they consider themselves to be religious. This is very strange, indeed. 

It is difficult to draw the attention of individuals towards the rectification of the inner self these days.

Initially an individual tries not to reveal his inner self (batin) to his mentor (Shaykh).However, if by virtue of his intuition the Shaykh recognizes the inner self’s corruption then this individual does not acknowledge it upfront and his lower self (nafs) tries to avoid (the blame).

However, when with proofs and examples of speech and actions committed by this individual over time it is shown to him that his inner self is as the diagnosis done previously only then he acknowledges it and pays attention towards its rectification.’

Taharet e qalb, page 81

Knowledgeable hypocrite speakers

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It is narrated from Sayyidina Umar (Allah be pleased with him) that Prophet of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said,

‘The worst thing I fear for my Ummah are the hypocrites who are knowledgeable speakers.’

Allama Munawi (Allah have mercy on him) said, this is the person who is expert in knowledge and can easily speak at lengths but by his heart (qalb) and actions he is an ignorant with corrupt beliefs. However, with his cunning speech he can misguide the public.

Taharat al-Quloob, page 42-3

This is an eye opener for all of us.

[Hypocrisy: a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.]

We need to check ourselves first, whether we are in this category.

Also, it gives as the clear direction that we should not be misled by speeches alone. The most important thing to see is the action of the speaker.

Is it in conformity with the teachings of Quran and Sunna, as done by our pious predecessors?

If not then it must be clear that ostentatious traditional garb (beards, turban, jubba, tasbih, etc.) or verbose heartrending stories or superb vernacular or expertise in contemporary marketing techniques (like stylish and sleek power point presentations, projectors, top of the line sound system, online state of the art setup, etc.) will not be spiritually beneficial at all.

Moreover, there is a greater chance that the speaker’s hypocrisy will be transferred to us.

Allahuma hafizna!

A considerable research, companionship and sincere advice from pious knowledgeable individuals is required to ascertain the sincerity of a speaker to benefit from him spiritually.

wa tawfiqi ila billah!

Companionship of innovator (bidati)

Shaykh Mawlana Karamat Ali Jaunpuri  (Allah have mercy on him) [d.1290H/1873CE] said,

‘The calamities resulting from being in the company of an innovator (bid’ati) surpass those of being with the infidel (kuffar).

The worst factions among the innovators are those who have hatred for the blessed Companions of the Holy Prophet (blessings and peace from Allah be upon him).’

Irshad us Slaikeen,page 20

Company of the pious

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Shaykh Abdul Haq muhadith Dehlawi (Allah have mercy on him) [d. 1052H/1642CE] said,

‘The most superior form of worship is being in the company of pious (ahl-Allah) and sitting with those who are closer to Allah.

This is because by observing their steadfastness, firm resolve and complete devotion a special motivation and determination develops in the spiritual seeker. This eases the hardship of worship and makes bearable the spiritual struggle which are a necessary component of traveling on this path (tareeq).

Moreover, the observation of their magnificently graceful demeanor (jamal) creates a light in his heart that dispels the darkness of doubts and suspicious (whispering) which are the cause of being far and veiled (from the Truth).’

Halaat Muslih al-Ummat ra, page 328

The spiritual light

In the final chapter of his primer on Hanafi fiqh Shaykh Qadi Thana’ullah Panipati (Allah have mercy on him) [d. 1225 H/1810 CE] said,

‘The spiritual light of Islam or the Messenger of Allah, may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, should be sought in the breasts of the true ascetics so that that light may be kindled in your own heart.

When this light enters you, you will be able to recognise, through your faculties of discernment, all good and evil.

One becomes a stranger in this temporal world and is transported to the next world through one’s constant remembrance of Allah.

One begins to seek the company of others who cause one’s love for this world to decrease, and one’s love for Allah and the next world to increase.’

Essential Islamic Knowledge: A Handbook of Hanafi Fiqh, page 256

The tarbiyah!

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Shaykh Nizamuddin Aurangabadi (Allah have mercy on him)[d 1142 Hijri/1730 CE] in his instruction to the disciples’ (murideen) used to stress particularly  on thorough following of the Shaykh and maintaining proper etiquette (adab) with him.

He used to tell them that Shaykh Naseeruddin Chirag Dehlawi (Allah have mercy on him) sometimes even did beat his murid (as part of their spiritual training). But none of them abandoned him. However, now the state has come that ‘if a Shaykh utters a single word (reprimanding), the murid develops a strong aversion to the Shaykh.”

Tarikh Mashaikh Chisht, voume 5, page 166-7

جس كو ھو جان و دل عزیز اس كی گلی میں جاے كیوں

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Delayed correspondence

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Shah Kaleemullah Shahjahanabadi (Allah have mercy on him) [d 1142H/1729CE] wrote to a murid,

‘Excuse for delayed (reply to islahi) correspondence from our side is acceptable and explainable. However, if it is from your side then it is unacceptable and unexplainable.’

Maktubat e Kaleemi, letter 5, page 9, via Tarikh Mashaikh Chisht, voume 5, page 112

Ijazet

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Mawlana Kalim Siddiqqui (Allah preserve him), khalifa of Sheikh al-Hadith Mawlana Zakariya mohajir Madani and Mawlana Sayyid Abul Hasan Ali Nadawi (Allah have mercy on them) said,

‘In reality the ‘ijazet’ (permission to take murid & instruct others) from the pious are of three types.

Firstly, the permission is granted trusting an individual who has the capabilities to guide and do reformation of others. This is the real ijazet. It is given to the very special and selected individuals.

Second type is when seeing the poor religious state of an area Shaykh gives permission to a relatively more religious person to work for inviting and guiding others in that specific area.

The third type of ijazet is what individuals like us hold. That is, because of it he will abstain from sins. The Shaykh thinks that considering himself to be a mojaz and khalifa he will stay away from sinful activities.’

Arghaman, monthly, June 2010, page 28

Anger at husband!

The wife of a very close murid (and khalifa) wrote,

‘I have the spiritual illness of anger. This is particularly so for my husband. At times I become very angry at him. Later I regret it and sometimes even cry.’

Hakim al-Umma Hadhrat Mawlana Ashraf ‘Ali Thanawi (may Allah have mercy on him) replied,

“To become angry, especially in intimate relationships, is beyond one’s control.

However, to act inappropriately because of these feelings remains within one’s volition.  The only way this control can be achieved is by being patient and accommodating. This has to be done with firm determination even if it is hard on the lower self (nafs).

Use the following tips to strengthen your determination,

1. Contemplate on your status. That is, I stand at a lower level (in this relationship).

2. Remind yourself of the past remorse on actions done when you were angry.

3. Involve yourself in some other activity immediately.

4. Move away from the scene, so that you do not see each other.

5. Remind yourself that you may jump the limits of justified anger and be held (by Allah) for this.

Keep these instruction-note handy at a place where you can see it at the time of being angry.”

Zikr e Jalil ra, page 90-1

A pure or partial hypocrite!

 

 

عن عبد الله بن عمرو رضي الله عنهما قال: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : “أربع من كُنَّ فيه كان منافقاً خالصاً.  ومن كانت فيه خَصلة منهن كانت فيه خصلة من النفاق حتى يدعها: إذا ائتُمِنَ خان، وإذا حدّث كذب، وإذا عاهد غدَر، وإذا خاصم فجر” متفق عليه

The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said,

“Whoever has the following four (characteristics) will be a pure hypocrite and whoever has one of the following four characteristics will have characteristics of hypocrisy unless and until he gives it up.

1. Whenever he is entrusted, he betrays.

2. Whenever he speaks, he tells a lie.

3. Whenever he makes a covenant, he proves treacherous.

4. Whenever he quarrels, he behaves in a very imprudent, evil and insulting manner.”

(Sahih Bukhari & Muslim)

We have to see ours daily activities in light of this hadith and judge the stage of hypocrisy we are in.