Riyadat an-Nafs

This was a camel burger from Cafe Clock, a great little restaurant, mostly for foreigners, in the old medina of Fas.

I had camel twice this trip. On another occasion I tried a camel Tanjia. They do like camel meat in Morocco, and I recall someone telling me it’s one of the leanest meats. There is a camel meat butcher right opposite the Cafe Clock, so it’s possible you’ll be staring at the head of the camel you were just eating.

I am thankful to Allah for allowing me to eat camel meat because it makes another aya of the Qur’an applicable to me. In surat Ya Sin, and probably other places as well, it says:

“Can they not see how, among the things made by Our hands, We have created an’aam they control. And subjected them to them, that some they ride, and some they eat. And in them they have other benefits, and from they drink. Will they not give thanks?”

In almost every translation you find, you will see an’aam translated as livestock or cattle. And that is mostly correct. If you look at the Tafseer Jalalayn, it will say: “They are camels, cows, and sheep”.

But it starts with camels because that’s what the word an’aam is used for the most. So the most correct usage for it is camels, and that’s how it’s explained in most tafseers.

So I wanted to eat camel meat, so that I can thank Allah for this blessing, as in the aya.  It’s similar to lamb, but has its own distinct taste, and it’s as if it has its own spicy feeling to it, like it’s been naturally spiced by the desert. Anyway, you try it yourself and let me know!

Had some Ostrich kebabs as well, which were incredible.

I was riding in what they call “collective taxis” from Fes to Meknas, and there was a woman in the car with her teenage nephew. She was from Meknas, and I think she said her brother was director of education in the area or something like that. She was complaining to me, among other things, of how television is corrupting the younger generation. She said movies and shows from Egypt and Lebanon are very negatively influencing the young boys and girls, and that one of her daughters insists that she wants to go be part of Star Academy, an Arab mixture of American Idol and Big Brother or something like that.

And yet, despite these negative influences coming from the “East”, she still told me she wished there were more Eastern scholars teaching religion in the Moroccan schools and universities. I asked her why, since Morocco has great scholars, and she replied that the scholars of the East are much better in the way they talk. More captivating, perhaps.

On my last day in Morocco, I was in the house of my Usul teacher, and my Fiqh teacher was also there. There was a third Moroccan man as well, a friend of my teacher who was fixing his computer for him, and they were all talking with great excitement about some shaykh who was to give a talk that night in Fes’s al-Majlis al-Ilmi.

I asked them who he was, and they said his name was Abdullah al-Muslih, and that he was from Saudi Arabia. They were really surprised that I didn’t know him, and said he always appears on Islamic television stations like Iqra and others, either speaking about the miracles of the Qur’an (scientific, etc), or giving fatwas, and that all Moroccans love him. “It’s like that person you told me about, who told you she wanted more scholars from the East. The Moroccans love the scholars of the East. You should be there early to get a seat because they will all be taken fast.”

And so I decided to go check out this Saudi shaykh that’s so popular with the Moroccans.

The Majlis al-Ilmi of Fas is in the same building as the infamous Yusuf ibn Tashfin Mosque in the modern part of the city. The mosque’s fame comes from the fact that the Friday khateeb there is not afraid to speak out against the goverment, and so he attracts a certain crowd of people, including many Salafis who you will find dressed in a very “Eastern” (aka Saudi) way, despite the fact that it is no closer to the Sunna than the traditional Moroccan dress.

I went to the mosque and found a shaykh giving a lesson exposing certain Shia beliefs, especially from the writings of Khomeini. Morocco has very recently closed down the Iranian Embassy on their lands because it has been successful in spreading Shiism in different parts of Morocco, so this might be part of an effort to reverse that.

Having already prayed my Maghreb and Isha together as a traveller, I left the mosque when they began their Isha to make sure I get a seat in the hall next door for the talk. As soon as the doors were opened, people started rushing like a mad flood, and the entire place was completely packed in seconds. I was the third or fourth person in line when the doors were opened, and yet only managed to get a seat on the third row because of the rush of people all around. There were also a great number of seats outside the hall, who watched the talk on a television screen, and someone had to ask the men who had taken up some of the seats on the women’s side of the hall to leave.

Now about shaykh Abdullah al-Muslih: It turns out every little bit of excitement about him from the people of Morocco is fully justified. He was absolutely amazing and terrific. And probably to the dismay of some of the Saudi wannabe’s, the shaykh began by praising highly the scholars of Morocco and the “blessed city of Fas”, humbly calling himself the student of the Moroccan scholar who introduced him. Later, when discussing the language of the Qur’an, he would quiz their memorization of the Afliyya of Ibn Malik, which as he said, was exported to the East from the West, and would make them feel proud of their heritage.

When the woman from Meknas said that the scholars of the East could talk better, she was definitely right in his regard. He was absolutely charming with his humility and his smile, and his presentation, and we all just loved him. He showed us some incredible scientific miracles of the Qur’an and Hadith, and kept talking about how the Prophet Muhammad, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, had the veils of the ghayb removed from him, and that’s why he said all these miraculous things. I was surprised to hear that from a Saudi shaykh, but given the miracles that he saw in the hadith, of course he should realize that. He seemed to have so much love for the beloved Messenger, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and always referred to him as the beloved, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

And he gave us stories of his meetings with some of the world’s greatest scientists and doctors and their reactions when he quoted to them certain hadiths containing scientific miracles.

And mashaAllah, he had to keep reminding some people that many of the scientific views of today are theories, and that we shouldn’t try to find an Islamic basis for them in the Qur’an because they might be wrong, and he personally thought we should put the Big Bang theory under our feet, because it contradicted his understanding of a certain aya of the Qur’an, and Allah knows best. The point is that he wasn’t trying to prove the Quran by science, and was not dazzled by Western science as other people are, but instead knew its limitations and that it’s based on theories that could be right and could be wrong.

Someone at the end asked him about the Qur’anic account of the Jewish control of Jerusalem and how they were/will be defeated there twice. Most of the ancient mufassiroon explained these ayaat as speaking of historical events that already ended before the advent of Islam, but the shaykh showed how a careful analysis of the language of the ayaat shows that such explanations are wrong. He therefore concluded that the first time was that of the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem.. and as for the second time, there was no need to go there so he simply said: “wassalam!”

You’ll find that Moroccans are always asking about Palestinians, and they have very strong emotions towards them. I felt that last year, when I stayed in Morocco for five weeks. Everytime I told someone I’m originally Palestinian they would say, “Ohhh. Palestinians are the real men!” One Fassi girl even told me she wished she could go fight there with them.

So that night, besides that man who asked that question, about “our heroic brothers and their struggle in the ribaat of Palestine”, I also noticed one sister walking very proudly with a Palestinian kufiyah around her shoulders, saying “Jerusalem is ours”.

And so, the Moroccans have very strong emotional connections to what they call the East. They love their scholars, and they feel very strongly about Palestine, but some do complain of the negative effects of Eastern television. Not just Star Academy, but also other negative influences like the sheesha, etc, are all blamed on television from Egypt and Lebanon. And of course the Shiism from Iran is another Eastern influence they don’t appreciate.

But finally, I just want to say: May Allah bless shaykh Dr. Abdullah Al-Muslih, and grant him success in all his travels and research and endeavours. Here is a link to the website of the Commission on Scientific Signs of Qur’an & Sunnah, which he heads:

www.nooran.org/En/ENSecG.htm

Wassalam.

I arrived back in London last night, alhamdulillah.

Bought a lot of utoor from there, some for me and some for a friend who asked me to get him some.

I bought Oud from two different sellers who are excellent. One of them I was told about by a friend of a friend that I might in Fez. His name is Muhammad al-Amrani, and he has some truly wonderful stuff. If only he wasn’t closed yesterday morning because it was Friday, I would have bought from him a lot more stuff.

I bought from him Oud and a  “Royal Oud Mix” that are amazing. I never bought Oud before, so this is new for me. He also had a lot of other great stuff. One of my friends wanted to buy something for his sister, so he made us smell two beautiful scents for women, one called Sultana, and the other, which my friend bought, was made from the essential oil of Raihan (Sweet Basil). It was fantastic. I should have bought some, just because the herb is used to symbolize the sweetest and most beautiful of scents in the Quran and Hadith.

Speaking of female scents, the next seller had some great smelling scent called Zambak. Alhamdullillah I discovered this place, because it was great. The seller even told me that shaykh Hamza Yusuf buys some things from him. I was intrigued by the name “Zambak”, an Arabic word whose meaning I couldn’t recall. Turns out it’s Lily. Though it works for men and women, I think it’s probably more suited for women. Here’s what Attar Bazaar says about it:

“Richly captivating, this scent helps promote recall of very pleasant events of the past, especially of childhood years.”

He sold me some Cambodian Oud, which is very dark and powerful. Rare stuff. Then I bought from him some Violet, which I’ve been meaning to get for a while.

Here’s what Attar Bazaar has to say about it:

—-

Hakim Avicenna ranks violet very high in the floral realm. The fragrance seems poised between Heaven and earth, reminding one of an azure sky at sunset, or the impossible depth of the center of the ocean. Conveys a high sense of self-worth. Promotes sleep and relaxation. Mildly cooling and moisturizing, violet is excellent to wear in desert climates.

(www.attarbazaar.com)

—–

Also bought from him some Moroccan Rose for my friend, which is not bad, and some attaar in Meknas gave me a gift of a small vial of Narcissus (Daffodil) scent as well.

All this should last me a pretty long time, and it was quite cheap… but if anyone you know is going to Fez any time soon, please let me know, as I need to get more Oud for my friend in Jordan who regretted not buying more, and some Raihan.

Back in Tetouane from the trip to Jabal Alam to visit mawlana Abdessalam ibn Mashish  and then Chefchaouen, and after writing my previous post and getting some rest, my friend and I set off to have dinner at the same restaurant we ate in last night, which is in a tiny street called Zawiya, named after the Qadiri zawiya next door.

On a side note: Whoever first thought of sprinkling cinnamon on orange slices is an absolute genius!

After coming out, we found a taxi waiting in the main square, looking at a map of Morocco. I opened the door and said, “are you waiting for someone”? He didn’t hear me correctly and, while I got into the front seat, he said “did you say you want to go to the Hammam (turkish bath)?” I repeated what I said so he smiled and said “no no I was waiting for you”. So we laughed and I told him to take us back to our hotel.

Immediately I realized this man was different.. He was unlike any other Moroccan I have seen in my life, including my 5 weeks that I spent here last summer and the week I’ve spent so far this time around. I met all kinds of Moroccans, the good and the bad, but even with the good ones, and the shuyukh, and people from famous and important shurafaa families, I hadn’t quite met someone with his demeanor.

I’m not that good with vocabulary so I’m not sure I can describe him properly, but he was just so nice, humble, quiet, and the kind of person who didn’t seem to have any kind of ego or I-ness or presence with other people. I’m not sure how to describe it better, but it’s like he’s the kind of person that you could abuse or walk all over and he would just take it in patiently and not say a word, out of politeness. Of course that’s not what sets him apart from Moroccans, but I just can’t describe to you what was so un-Moroccan about him.

I was so struck by his manners and character, from the first 5 seconds of seeing him, that I just had to know everything about him. Are you from Tetouane itself? Yes.

Really? Do you know where your ancestors come from originally? From Spain or Morocco?

- My ancestors come from Spain.. they were from the Muslims in…

- What’s your family name?

- Bin Ajiba

- Bin Ajiba? Like the great mufassir?

- You mean Sidi Ahmad ibn Ajiba? He’s my grandfather! (ancestor). He said that with obvious joy in his face at mention of his great ancestor.

- You’re a descendant of the great shaykh?

- Yes, I was even born in the same area he was born in!

I thought sidi Ahmad ibn Ajiba must be a Hasani sayyid but I wasn’t sure, so I said:

- Where does the family originally come from? Were they Spanish converts or originally Arab/Berber?

- No they’re Arabs, they were from the Arabs who came from the Hijaz.

- Are you ashraaf?

- Yes.

- MashaAllah!

So we began talking about his ancestor and how I saw in Chefchaouen today a street named “Sidi Ahmad ibn Ajiba” and a Kuttab (Qur’an school) called “Sayyidi al-Arabi ad-Darqawi” (the founder of the Darqawiyya order and the shaykh of Ibn Ajiba). Then I told him about Fons Vitae publishing translations of his autobiography and parts of his great tafseer. He told me that just three days ago he had gone to visit the zawiya in which his ancestor would spend his time in dhikr and writing.

I thought, subhanAllah, there was something so special about his character, such goodness, and at the same time he was not only a shareef, but  is descended from an enormous Sufi and scholar of the recent past. I remember reading something about how three of Ibn Ajiba’s shuyukh were talking, so one of them said: ” I asked Allah to make him like al-Junayd”, so the other said, “And I have asked Allah to make him like al-Ghazali!”. So the third shaykh said, “Then I will ask Allah to make him like both of them at the same time!”

Anyway, we got to the hotel, and I asked him to make dua’s for us, but he was so ashamed that he just smiled and lowered his head, and drove off with that big smile coming from such a kind, kind face. And now I regret not asking him for his number, and maybe asking him to drive me to his ancestor’s tomb, about 35km away from here. But anyway, alhamdulillah. That was a beautiful little encounter.

Alhamdulillah, yesterday’s post about reading the commentary on the Burda by Imam al-Bayjuri led me to remember about a website of another great Azhari imam that I had only heard about, and link it, which in turn led me to check it out. I was looking at his books, and found a book about non other than Shaykh Abdessalam bin Mashish. Turns out that the shaykh’s name could also be spelled Bashish with a B, and that’s the spelling that shaykh Abdel Haleem Mahmoud chose throughout his book.

So I downloaded it and stayed in the hotel lobby for hours at night, reading it. I had planned to go visit him this morning. And so this morning we went, and I continued reading it all the way until we reached him, may Allah be pleased with him and benefit us from his visit. The words of shaykh Abdel Haleem had such an effect on me, that I felt that my soul was cleansed by them.

MashaAllah the road there was amazing, but instead of re-inventing the wheel and writing about it, here’s a link: muridslog.blogspot.com/2008/07/searching-for-saints-in-northern.html

I haven’t read the whole thing myself, just what parts my eyes were pulled to. Read especially the paragraph that begins with “The Sheikh of our Sheikh, Moulay Sulayman, said in one of his poems, ‘To yearn is to arrive.’” And the one after it. They sum up everything!

We then spent some time in Chefchaouin and came back to Tetouine. I just arrived back here, and am in the hotel lobby for using the internet. Should head off to the room. Wassalam!

There is a small Qadiri Zawiya in Tetouane in which entire families of descendants of shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani and shuyukh of the Qadiri tariqa are buried. Like the one in Fas that has the son of shaykh Abd al-Qadir, both use every possible space and corner to bury shuyukh and their families. But this one is much larger, functioning also as a mosque with very vibrant colors (lots of green, yellow and red, if I recall correctly).

Arrived late here today, so haven’t had time to see much of the city.

I spent some of my time on the train from Fez to Tangiers reading from a small book that I bought in the famous Bennani Bookstore behind the Qarawiyyin Mosque: the commentary of the ّfamous Shaykh al-Bayjuri, who was Shaykh of the Azhar from 1847-1860, on the Burda of Imam al-Busiri. Maybe I’ll get the time to summarize and translate at least the parts I read today, which are truly beautiful. That would be the commentary on the first 6 or 7 lines of the poem, I can’t remember now.

Speaking of great Shaykhs of the Azhar, here is a link to a website dedicated to the great Abd al-Haleem Mahmoud, shaykh of the Azhar from 1973-1978: (www.abdel-halim.org/). You can download many of his absolutely priceless books.

wassalam

NZ

Yesterday we went to the Northern Tower of Fas, built by the Saadi dynasty, which has been converted into a great little Weapons Museum. One of the last pieces they have, and for me the crown jewel of the place, is a very large green silk flag that was made in the Hijaz in the year 1900, and sent as a gift to the Sultan of Morocco. Because of the darkness of the place I couldn’t phtograph it, but I’ll try to describe it. On the top-right corner was a circle in which the name of Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala was written, and on the bottom right corner another circle with the name of the Prophet Muhammad, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

Then on the top center another circle that said “Abu Bakr” and on the bottom center a circle saying “Umar”. Finally, on the top left corner a circle with “Uthman” and on the bottom left a circle with “Ali”.

Inside this frame of circles there was a large Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim in the Middle, under which it had the following line of the Burda of Imam al-Busiri:

ومن تكن برسول الله نصرته

إن تلقه الأسد في آجامها تجم

And he whose victory is because of Rasool Allah

If he were to meet lions in their dens they would fear him.

Sayyidi Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari explained it saying:

“Meaning: Victory comes to him from Allah, because of his love of Rasool Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.”

Now, after this flag was woven, it was sent to the Noble Chamber of the Prophet, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and  “blessed by his tomb”, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam. I guess by that they mean that it was placed on it for a while to gain blessings.

If only I could have gotten a good picture of it I would have placed it permanently on my home page somehow.

But here is another beautiful picture taken by my travel companion, from the complex in which Mulay Ismail of Morocco was buried. He will start uploading his pictures in a couple weeks inshaAllah from his trip, so do check his site for a taste of our visit to Morocco, and he already has many pictures from our previous trips together (Egypt, Syria, Scotland, and different places in Jordan): (mgsblade.deviantart.com/)

(Copyright B.T. Tabbah, 2009)

I specifically requested that he take this picture for me. All four walls of an entire courtyard in the complex had this line going through their middle, with only two words repeated over and over again: “Al-’Izzu lillah“, meaning:

Glory belongs only to Allah.

This was in Meknas, our next destination that day. From there we got on a bus headed to the little mountain top town of Mulay Idris Zarhoun, in which the founder of Morocco, Mulay Idris I, is buried. MashaAllah. Such a beautiful, beautiful little town, surrounded by so much greenness and beauty… and at its heart is the serene and blessed complex in which Mulay  Idris I resides. That is now my favorite part of Morocco. Then we spent half an hour in the Roman ruins of Volubulis, on top of a hill 4 km away, and returned to Fas.

wassalam.

والحمد لله رب العالمين على نعمه كلها

اللهم صلّ وسلم وبارك على سيدنا ومولانا محمد خير البرية

وعلى آله في كل لمحة ونفس عدد ما وسعه علم الله

Assalamu alaykum,

After a beautiful two days in Casablanca and Rabat, my friend and I have arrived at the city of knowledge: Fas.

It was very quiet today, a Friday, with the vast majority of shops closed, and the main souk area sealed off.

We went to a small Qadiri zawiya on the Tal’aa Kabira to give our salams to sidi Ibrahim, the son of Shaykhul Islam, sayyidi al-qutb Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani. After the Mongols destroyed Baghdad, the great shaykh’s sons dispersed in the lands to spread their father’s tariqa, and sidi Ibrahim and his sons came to Morocco, where he died.

Then we continued down, and visited the founder of this blessed city, the descendant of the Prophet salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and the “patron saint” of Fas (to use a Christian expression): Mulay Idris II. I asked him to pray to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala to protect us in his city. InshaAllah tomorrow we will go give our salams to his father, Mulay Idris I in the Roman city of Volubulis.

After that, we prayed in the beautiful old Qarawiyyin Mosque, and then headed to the zawiya of sidi Ahmad Tijani. We said our salams, and sat to listen to their dhikr, or wazifa. In the Tijani tariqa, they have a wazifa to recite every Friday from after Asr all the way until Maghreb, although they take about a half hour break.  They sat in long lines, opposite each other, just like in the Jaafariyya Ahmadiyya Muhammadiyya, and kept repeating Laa ilaaha illa Allah as well as a Tijani formula of salaat on the Rasool, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

I thought of the hadith qudsi in Bukhari and Muslim of the roaming angels that look for circles of dhikr and Allah says to them when they find a group: “I am making you witness that I have forgiven them.” And the angels say, “O my Lord, someone was there who did not belong to that group, but came for some other need.”

So Allah the Most Generous says: “They are the people whose sitting companion is not of the wretched”, meaning that just by sitting with them, Allah will make him one of the people of bliss and happiness, in this life and the next, and he will also have all his sins forgiven.

I asked Allah to make me one of those people, who are forgiven for sitting with those people of dhikr gatherings.

Then, even though there are no extra prayers to be done after Asr, I prayed two rak’ats there, because sidi Ahmad Tijani was given good tidings that whoever prays any prayer in his zawiya, that salaat will be accepted by Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala, and I thought to myself that on the Day of Judgment, at least I’ll have one salaat on my scale of good deeds.

And of course, I remembered you all in my dua’s, those who asked me to.. And I am requesting your du’as always.

والحمد لله رب العالمين على نعمه كلها

اللهم صلّ وسلم وبارك على سيدنا ومولانا محمد خير البرية

وعلى آله في كل لمحة ونفس عدد ما وسعه علم الله