Tip
Leave a reply
Category Archives: Z. Mustahebbat
Muraqaba
Shaikh al Mashaikh Haji Imdadullah mohajir Makki (Allah have mercy on him) instructed,
‘Sit as you sit in the jalsa of salah.
Bow your head forwards towards the knees.
Cleanse your heart (& imagination) from all other than Allah.
Be in the presence of Allah.
Recite أعوذ بالله و بسم الله and three time الله حاضري، الله ناظري، الله معي.
Then contemplate on its meaning.
That Allah is present, watching and is with me.
Put significant effort in this imagination until no awareness remains of other-than-Allah. Even the awareness of his/her own self vanishes.
If this contemplation and knowledge disappears very rapidly (after a session) then muraqaba is deficient.
(It must be acknowledged that) Initially one has to force one’s self to do the muraqaba. Then with persistent effort a time comes when returning back (to being neglectful of this imagination) becomes impossible.
However, one reaches this state gradually. Therefore, one should not abandon the effort due to initial hardship.’
Dhiya al Quloob, page 35
1st Rabi II 1435/1st February 2014
Stages of remembrances & lataif
Hakim al Umma Mawlana Ashraf Ali Thanawi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘As there are different levels of imagination (when making remembrance of Allah) therefore, to make it concise, clear and to classify them into five stages I use an example;
1. Remembrance is made of a Beloved who is neither present (in front of the the one making dhikr) nor he is aware(that he is being watched). He is absent (from his imagination) and (he is) unaware (of it).
2. Remembrance is made of Him who is in front but faraway and can not be visualized clearly.
3. Remembrance is made of Him who is in front and closer. He can be visualized clearly.
4. He is very close. Observing Him is engrossing. To extent that due to overwhelming love one becomes unaware on himself.
5. This engrossment progress to the stage that one becomes oblivious of this unawareness.
Now I apply the technical known names for theses stages;
1. This is ‘dhikr’. This is because there is only remembrance (of the name) in it.
2. This is ‘hudur‘ (being in presence). This is because the One being imagined is in front and present.
3. This is ‘mukashafah‘ (unveiling). The close proximity of the One being imagined leads to perfect sense of being in the presence and complete unveiling of the details.
4.This is ‘shuhood‘ or ‘mushahidah‘ (witnessing). Technically witnessing is the epitome of hudhur. This leads to overwhelming affection, infatuation and rapture. It is also known as ‘fana‘ (annihilation) because of these engrossing emotions one in unaware of himself.
5. This is ‘mu’ainiah‘ (viewing). This is because it is a hudur that exceeds the technical limits of shuhud. One is oblivious of his unawareness and therefore it is also known as ‘fana ul fana’.
(Applying this further on the schema of ‘lataif‘)
1. The action of latifa al qalb is dhikr (remembrance)
2. The action of latifa al ruh is hudur.
3. The action of latifa al sirr is mukashafah.
4. The action of latifa al khafi is shuhud, mushahida and fana.
5. The action of latifa al akhfa is mu’ainah and fana ul fana.
Some of the spiritual masters are of the opinion that remembrance (of Allah) must be done in the specified manner to the extent that these five lataif become active individually. That is they perform their actions.
Other (spiritual) masters opine that remembrance (of Allah) should be done only with (latifa) al qalb to the extent that all the actions (of other lataif) happen. There is no need at all to talk about the specific actions of lataif. They consider focusing on lataif in detail to be a veil. Also, in the Prophetic saying only qalb has been mentioned in this context. Moreover, even those who engage in activating these lataif (individually) acknowledge that there is a interconnection between these lataif. Therefore, making remembrance via al qalb eventually affects and activates the other lataif. This is because these lataif are like mirrors that reflect into each other.’
Bawadir al Nawadir, page 565-6
Pledge of allegiance
Sayyedina Walid bin Abbad bin Samat (Allah be pleased with him) said,
‘I pledged allegiance to the Prophet of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him), swearing:
To pay attention to whatever he said; and to carry out whatever he commanded, whether it be difficult or easy, bearing grief or bringing comfort.
If somebody says something that should be contradicted , I will not contest against him.
In all circumstances I shall speak the truth and I will not be afraid of anyone who blames me for something.’
A Mine of Meaning, page 182
Summum bonum
Shaikh Ma’ruf al Karkhi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘When Allah decides the highest good for an individual the door to performance of virtuous deeds are opened and the doors for argumentation are shut closed for him.’
Manaqib wa Ahwal Shaikh Ma’ruf Karkhi rehmatullah aleh, Ibne Jawzi Ra, page 111
Make effort for good deeds
Shaikh Ma’ruf al Karkhi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘Pray salah with congregation even if you have to walk a mile to do so
Pray Juma even if you have to walk two miles.
Visit the sick even if you have to walk three miles.
Be in a Janazah even if you have to walk four miles.
Greet those returning from Hajj or Umrah even if you have to walk five miles.
Visit those fighting in the way of Allah (mujahid) even if you have to walk six miles.
Deliver charity to the needy even if you have to walk seven miles.
Reconcile people even if you to travel eight miles to do so.
Visit the blood relatives and close friends even if you have to travel nine miles.
Fulfill the needs of your family members even if you have to walk ten miles to do so.
Help your brother even if you have to walk eleven miles to do so.
Visit another Muslim because of Allah even if you have to walk twelve miles to do so.’
Manaqib wa Ahwal Shaikh Ma’ruf Karkhi rehmatullah aleh, Ibne Jawzi Ra, page 105
Q&A: Amal e Qurani and magic
Question
There are many salafis here in the uk who accuse Moulana Ashraf Ali Thanvi (Allah have mercy on him) of magic in his book remedies from the holy Quraan. What answer should be given to them? Please provide some proof or evidence as well .
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh.
In A‘māl e Qur’ān of Hazrat Mawlānā Ashraf ‘Alī Thānawī, he extracts remedies and solutions from the Holy Qur’ān for a wide variety of problems. The book is a collection of verses of the Qur’ān, along with procedures for their application, which Mawlānā found to be effective in producing certain results by the will of Allāh Ta‘ālā.
The Qur’ān contains shifā’. Allāh Ta‘ālā says:
وننزل من القرآن ما هو شفاء ورحمة للمؤمنين
“And We send down from the Qur’ān that which is a remedy and mercy for the believers.” (Qur’ān, 17:82)
Salat e janaza
An individual inquired, ‘Alhumdulillah, in this summer vacation I had the opportunity of offering few salat e janaza (prayers for the dead) led by you. I noticed that the gap between the first and second takbir is much longer than it takes to complete thana. Is it because of recitation of sura e Fatiha as Mawlana Anwar Shah Kashmiri (Allah have mercy on him) used to do?
Sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) smiled and acknowledged,
‘Yes. I do recite sura e Fatiha as has been reported to be the practice of our master Abdullah bin Abbas (Allah be pleased with him). According to the Hanafi scholars (fuqaha) it can be recited as a supplication (dua).’
Haram sharif, mataf, behind Rukun-e-Yamani, Makkah al mukkaramah. After esha, 24th November 2013
The differences
.
An individual reported how differently the takbirat in salah are done and how lax religious leaders are regarding keeping a full beard here.
Sayyidi wa sanadi Shaikh Mufti Taqi Usmani (Allah bless him with a long, healthy and productive pur-‘afiyet life, Amin!) replied,
‘These are differences in etiquette (aadaab).
There should be no prohibition (nakeer) on the issues that are differed upon by the Imams (mujtahideen).
An individual inquired that these days in our communities (Pakistan-India) first thing by which we judge an individual’s religious persuasion is their appearance (beard, dress, etc.). Is this correct?
Sayyidi wa sanadi strongly disapproved of it. He said,
‘All things must be kept at their level (fiqh hierarchy).
It is grossly incorrect to judge others. Some issues (that Hanafis consider wajib) are not even makruh e tahrimi according to other Imams.’
Haram sharif, mataf behind Rukun-e-Yamani, Makkah al mukkaramah. After esha, 24th November 2013
#2: Turn to Allah
Sayyidi wa sanadi Shaikh Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah bless him with a long, healthy and productive life, Amin!) continued,
The second thing is to be vigilant in turning to Allah (asking for assistance) all the time. That is, while walking or being busy in something or resting, in short whenever there is any need one should turn towards Allah and ask for assistance. One has to develop this habit.
For example, right now when we depart the masjid we should ask Allah for an appropriate ride. Once in the ride we should ask Allah that we reach our destination safely without any traffic problems. If feeling hot we should ask Allah to alleviate it. If feeling cold we should ask Allah to provide warmth. On entering our home we should ask Allah that we find all the family members safe and sound. In summary we should persist in turning towards Allah asking for assistance in all our activities.
Be vigilant in being thankful to Allah for all the blessings you have, however, small they might be. Repeat it verbally, ‘all praise is for Allah’ (Alhumdulillah).
If one does these things then every moment of his time is accounted as being in the remembrance of Allah.
May Allah facilitate this for all of us by His mercy and benevolence. Amin!
Attending Fiqh Academy session, Riyadh, KSA after Friday prayers, 11/22/2013
Abundant remembrance of Allah
O you who believe, remember Allah abundantly, [33:41]
and proclaim His purity at morn and eve.[33:42]
Sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah bless him with a long, healthy and productive life with ‘afiyet, Amin!) said,
‘It must be remembered that if the tongue is not immersed in vocalization of remembrance of Allah the heart (qalb) will never be habitable (to the remembrance of Allah).
This is because the remembrance of Allah by vocalization via tongue is like the first step. If an individual does not climb it, then how can he reach the (real) remembrance, (that is) with the heart.
Therefore, the first step in developing a sustainable relationship with Allah is the remembrance with tongue (dhikr e lisani). This must never be abandoned.
Dhikrullah kay fadhail, page 11
In this discourse Shaikh mentions the various methods of remembrance prescribed by the Sufis, including the dowazdah tasbih that is staple dhikr of Ashrafiya path.
It usually takes 30 plus minus 5 minutes . It is preferably done after tahajjud or fajr salah in solitude with as much concentration as possible.
This is the kickoff.
Sparing time for islah
In the booklet ‘Manual for those seeking islah‘, sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah grant him a long, healthy and productive life with ‘afiyet, Amin!) wrote,
‘For the above mentioned tasks one will have to spare at least an hour daily, though it may be in multiple sittings. If one feels mentally ready for them and can ensure that insha Allah I will do them then only request should be made to this lowly writer for service (of guidance in islah). Otherwise, please excuse me.’ Page 4
It is common practice nowadays that individuals attend the spiritual discourses of a Shaikh and read his books or those recommended by him.They improve somewhat in their outwardly actions and following of Sunna. They consider themselves seekers (talibeen e islah) and pride themselves to be associated with a particular Shaikh.
However, they rarely ask the Shaikh individualized spiritual advice for betterment of their morals and remembrance of Allah. Even if they do this than it is mostly random, disorganized and poorly abided with. Similarly those who are associated with a Shaikh for years are content with the initial tasbihats for remembrance of Allah. They do not yearn for more. As a result they do not progress spiritually. That is, they lack good moral characteristics, persist with the blame worthy ones and do not achieve the state of perpetual remembrance of Allah.
As instructed above one has to take islah seriously and spare time for it. The above mentioned hour is for a beginner, a novice. So what about the intermediate and advanced salik?
Slips of the sincere
Sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah bless him with a long, healthy and productive life, Amin!) spoke briefly about the common problem of the slips of a sincere seeker on this path (sulook).
Below is a discussion on this issue from that discourse and teaching of our pious predecessors,
It is often a case that a sincere salik has been trying his best effort and also making supplications to Allah to keep him firm on pious actions and save him from involvement in sinful. But after weeks or months of being successful a dreadful moment comes and he fails and falls into sinful.
On realization of his mistake he is perplexed and disheartened. Thoughts like, ‘this path is not for me’, ‘I’m a failure’, ‘Divine help did not come’, ‘all the effort and supplications went wasted’, etc. plague his mind.
An individual can be so dejected, especially after multiple such episodes that he abandons all the effort and becomes totally heedless. May Allah save us all from this calamity. Amin!
However, a salik consults his Shaikh. He is instructed to repent, reaffirm his determination and move forwards. Moreover, it is emphasized not to ruminate and go into a root cause analysis of the incident.
A sincere salik must trust his Shaikh. As a result this slip becomes a stepping stone for further progress.
There are many lessons learned from the mistakes of the sincere seekers. They are mentioned below. However, they should not be used for rationalization of sinful activities. This discussion is about those who are sincere in their intention and effort but rarely slip. They include,
- Their remorse is more genuine, intense and sustained and it leads to immediate repentance
- The resulting repentance is more sincere
- It leads to increased connection with Allah
- There is increased reliance on Allah and being His slave (abdiyet)
- They appreciate (shukr) the blessing of Allah in giving them an opportunity to acknowledge their mistake and repent
- They appreciate (shukr) the blessing of Allah in the form of the Shaikh’s guidance who encourages them and pulls them out from depths of despair
- They see the flimsiness of their own effort and actions so they trust in Allah
- They become aware of their true self and are not delusional of self piety (ujub)
- They do not look down upon other fellows or consider themselves to be better (kibr)
- Their reaffirming of determination and enthusiasm to move forwards is much more
- Their effort in doing good actions and avoiding sinful is increased (or at least not decreased than before)
- Their supplications asking Allah for assistance are increased and become more heartfelt leading to further increase in connection with Allah
- They become more aware and experienced of detecting the hidden traps and deception of nafs and Satan and work to avoid them
- They excessively seek refuge (istiaza) in Allah from all that leads to Allah’s displeasure
And many others.
These are the mistakes that sometimes outweigh pious deeds!
(Ramadhan 1434, post-dhuhr talks, paraphrased)
Sunna prior to Fajr salah
In the discussion about offering the two rakah Sunna salah prior to Fajr once iqamah has been called, sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Mohammad Taqi Usmani (Allah preserve him) said,
‘The authentic saying of Imam Abu Hanifa (Allah have mercy on him) and dhahir al rewaya is also that with two criteria being fulfilled it is permissible to offer this salah. Firstly, it is expected that one complete rakah (of the fardh salat al fajr) will be attainable. Secondly, that they must be offered out side the mosque.
Imam Mohammad (Allah have mercy on him) said that even if not one complete rakah only the last sitting (qaida al akhira) is expected to be attainable than also it is permissible to offer these Sunna .
Imam Mohammad (Allah have mercy on him) added further to the first criteria but not to the second one (that is to offer it outside the mosque).
Imam Tahawi (Allah have mercy on him) added to the second criteria. He said offering them outside mosque it is permissible, however, inside the mosque is also permissible provided it is far away from the rows of the congregational salah and in an isolated spot.
From all this discussion it is clear that the prevalent practice of offering this salah immediately behind the congregation or few rows away is not permissible according to any of the madhahib.
The predominant (viewpoint) is to follow the original way (madhab) of Imam Abu Hanifa (Allah have mercy on him). The Hanafi researches have given preference to this. However, Allama Shami (Ibne Abideen) keeping in consideration the feeble Muslims has given fatwa according to Imam Tahawi (Allah have mercy on them).
Whereas, our Hanafi researchers, that include respected (Shaikh Anwar) Shah (Kashmiri, Allah have mercy on him) do not agree. They stick to the original madhab of Imam Abu Hanifa (Allah have mercy on him). That is, one rakat is expected to be attainable and it is offered outside the mosque.
Another issue to be acknowledged is that the permissibility Imam Tahawi (Allah have mercy on him) gave for offering this salah in mosque was during an era when loud speaker were nonexistent and there was no clash between the recitation of the Imam and one offering his salah in an isolated corner. Nowadays when the recitation in (congregational) salah is being relayed on the loud speaker I have doubts about the permissibility of offering this (Sunna) salah in mosque. This is because there is clash of recitation in this situations. It is, therefore, best to offer it outside the mosque.’
Im’anul Bari, volume 3, page 416-7
Importance of daily recitations
Shaikh Wasiullah Allahabadi (Allah have mercy on him) said,
‘The pious elders have said, تارك الورد ملعون
It means that the individual who (intentionally) leaves his daily recitations (wird) is accursed.
This is because offering extra (nafil) salah or recitations (awrad) in the beginning (of sulook) is not as detrimental than to initiate and then stop them.
This is extremely bad. Allah’s alienation is for such an individual. This results in the individual becoming absolutely incompetent. He can neither follow the Deen properly nor achieve any worldly success.
Therefore, one should not initiate extra (routine) pious actions, like tahajjud or recitations. If he does initiate them then he should have a firm intention of doing them all his life. Otherwise misfortune will engulf him.
It is mentioned in Tabqat e Kubra (page 142) that on the day the murid leaves his wird the Divine help is cut off from him.’
Wasiyet ul ehsan, Talifat e Musleh al Ummat ra, volume 5, page 56-7
Shara’iah,near Jara’nah, Makkah al mukarramah