Riyadat an-Nafs

Shaykh al-Islam Ahmad b. al-Mubarak al-Lamati asked the Knower, the Guide, the Master, shaykh Abd al-Aziz ad-Dabbagh, about some of the causes that bring about man’s seperation from his Lord.

The twentieth one that was mentioned by shaykh al-Dabbagh was: “Differentiating between the four caliphs- God be pleased with them- i.e. Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali- God be pleased with them one and all!”

He said: “The meaning of differentiating is that you love one of them but you detest another one, as the Kharijites and the Rafidites do. Now differentiating this way is a cause of being cut off from God- He is mighty and glorious- because each one of the caliphs inherited a particular quality from among the Prophet’s qualities- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam – and (therefore) loathing a caliph amounts to loathing the Prophet- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam! That’s why it’s a cause of being cut off from God.”

Al-Lamati says: And I asked him: Then what’s the particular quality in Abu Bakr- God be pleased with him-?

He replied: “The quality of faith in God- He is mighty and glorious! Faith in God the Sublime on the part of the Prophet- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam- is of a special nature. If it were placed upon the people of the earth, the Companions or anyone else, they’d dissolve. Abu Bakr- God be pleased with him- inherited a small amount of this characteristic in accordance with what his body could support. Yet no one in the Prophet’s religious community- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam- is a match for Abu Bakr in this respect and no one even comes close to him- neither among the Companions, nor among others who’ve received the great illumination. For the Prophet- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam- attained secrets about divinity, higher truths about God’s lordliness, and subtle points of divine knowledge (‘irfaan), to an extent that can’t be described or supported, and he spoke to Abu Bakr about the oceans into which he delved- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam! Thus Abu Bakr ascended to the said place of ascent….”

He said- God be pleased with him: “As for the particular quality that was in Umar- God be pleased with him- it was the quality of giving good advice to the believers, looking after them and preferring them above himself, organizing the affairs of their armies and whatever was of benefit to the common people and the elite among them. And this was a particular quality among the qualities of the Prophet- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam- and Umar- God be pleased with him- inherited it to the extent that his body could support it.

As for the particular quality that was in Uthman- God be pleased with him- it was the quality of kindness, compassion, and the bond of kinship, and this is one of the Prophet’s particular qualities- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam! Uthman inherited it to the extent that he could support it.

As for the particular quality that was in Ali- God be pleased with him- it was the quality of courage which was one of the Prophet’s particular qualities- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam! Ali- God be pleased with him- inherited it to the extent that he was able to support it.

And it’s the same with all the Companions- God be pleased with them! Each one of them inherited something from the Prophet- salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam- and hating a Companion, whatever Companion it might be, is is a cause of being cut off from God- He is mighty and glorious!”

————–

Pure Gold form the Words of Sayyidi Abd al-Aziz al-Dabbagh, translated by John O’Kane and Bernd Radtke. Pg 537-8.

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

Allah Most High and Transcendent revealed in his Noble and Holy Book:

“Allah and His Angels yusalloona (do salaat) on the Prophet, oh you who believe, do salaat on him and sallimoo tasleema (send greetings of peace) ” (Q 33: 56)

When this verse was revealed the Companions asked: “Oh Messenger of Allah, as for the salaam, we know it, but how do we do salaat on you? So he, salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam said:

“Say: Allahumma sallee ‘alaa Muhammad wa ‘alaa aali Muhammad”

(Oh Allah: do Salaat on Muhammad and on the family of Muhammad)

(Narrated by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, an-Nasaa’i, and al-Darimi).

——————————————————————————————————–

Shaykh Ahmad ibn Idris was asked: “What is the as-salaat al-batraa’ (The Cut-Off Salaat)”?

He said: To do salaat on him, salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam, without his family, because this removes from it the baraka (blessing). Because he who does one salaat on him (the Prophet), Allah does ten salaats on him (the person) (as narrated by imam Muslim and others). And likewise with his family, ten salaats come back to him from each one of them, no matter how great in number they reach (the family and descendants of the Prophet). “But among you are those who are niggardly, and whoever is niggardly is niggardly against his own soul” (Q 47:38).

***

Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari was asked: “What is meant by as-salaat al-batraa’ (The Cut-Off Salaat) ?”

He said: It is the one in which no salaat is done on the family of the Prophet, salla Allahu alayhi wa aalihi wa sallam.

And it happened that I was once writing a book, and the scribe was too lazy to write wa ‘alaa aalihi (“and upon his family”), so when the scribe slept, he saw sayyidna al-Husayn radi Allahu ‘anhu holding out to him an apple and saying to him: “Say ‘wa ‘alaa aalihi‘  so that I would give you the apple.”

***

This is the blessed month of Sha’ban, the month in which we strive to increase the salawaat that we do upon the Prophet, so don’t forget to include his family in the salaat!

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

There are some people whom Allah loves so much, that just at the mention of their name, mercies and blessings descend! Just like mention of the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa  aalihi sallam, or reciting the Qur’an, their names are a source of great blessings.

Imam al-Haakim relates in Tarikh Nisabur Ali al-Rida, son of Musa al-Kaadhim, entered the city of Nisabur on a white mule, and as he traveled through the market, he was spotted by the two imams Abu Zar’a and Abu Muslim at-Tusi,  surrounded by a great number of the people of ‘Ilm and Hadith. So they said to him: Oh great sayyid, son of the sayyid imams, by the right of your pure fathers, and your noble predecessors, show us your blessed face, and narrate to us a hadith from your father from your grandfather that we would remember you by.

It is said that when he revealed his face, the people were either crying, screaming, or rubbing their faces in the sand, and the noise became really loud, so the great imams of knowledge shouted: Oh people! Stop crying and shouting, and let us hear from this shaykh a hadith that you remember him by!

So Imam Ali al-Rida said:  My father Musa al-Kaadhim related to me from his father Jaafar al-Saadiq, from his father Muhammad al-Baaqir, from his father Ali Zayn al-Abideen, from his father al-Husayn, the martyr of Karbalaa, from his father Ali al-murtada, may Allah ennoble his face, who said:

I was told by my beloved, the apple of my eye, Muhammad the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, who said: I was told by Jibreel alayhi assalam who said: I was told by the Lord of Power, High and Transcendent who said:

“ ‘La ilaaha illa Allah’ is My fortress. He who has said it has entered My fortress, and he who has entered My fortress has become secure from My punishment.”

Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal said: “If this isnaad is read over a crazy person, he would wake up (i.e. be cured) with the permission of Allah Most High”.

Why the isnaad? Because of all these blessed names.

***

Likewise, Shaykh Saleh was relating in one of his lessons the story of the blessed Companion of the Messenger of Allah, ‘Imran bin Husayn, may Allah be pleased with him. The story, narrated by Imams Muslim and al-Haakim tell us that he was sick with a very very strong sickness that kept him lying on his bed for thirty years, not able to stand up or sit up. There was a hole in his bed, and another hole under it in the ground, for what came out of him.

A friend of his came in and cried. So sayyidi Imran said to him: What makes you cry, brother?

So he said: Because I see you in this enormous state.

So he said: Don’t cry, for I love what Allah Majestic and Powerful loves. Then he said:

Shall I tell you something, perhaps Allah Most High would benefit you with it, but don’t tell anyone about it until I die? The angels visit me to make me feel better, and they greet me and I hear their greetings.

So when telling this story of this great companion, who must have had such a high rank in the eyes of Allah as to be tried with such a great trial, shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari said:

“At his mention, supplications are answered.”

So, at the mention of all these great men, people so beloved to Allah, make du’as, as His mercies and blessings are descending upon you just for reading their names. And then send them the thawab of the Faatiha.

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

One time one of shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari’s students came to him with a problem: He had two job options, each with its pros and cons, and wanted the shaykh to tell him which is best. The shaykh had no reason to listen to all the pros and cons that the student was about to tell him, because for him there was one simple critereon that settled the matter. So he asked: “Which job is nearer to sayyidna al-Husayn?”

And that was it.

Having come back to Jordan… I can defintely feel the effects of being farther away. May Allah forgive me for my shortcomings, and keep me in the company of the pious!

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

When I was in Cairo recently I went to one of the closest companions of Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari. He was much younger than the shaykh, so alhamdulillah he’s alive and well to teach us about shaykh Saleh and his life and teachings. I had two matters that I had been thinking alot about and needed answers to: sleeping and eating.

I knew that saykh Saleh didn’t sleep at all at night, or at least I thought that was the case. He had a large alfiyya, a one-thousand bead rosary, and he would walk back and forth across the courtyard of the noble Azhar Mosque, with the rosary dragging behind him on the floor as he glorified Allah all through the night, or at least for long portions of it.

As for eating, all I knew was what I read somewhere, that he lived on a piece of bread and a piece of cheese. But I wanted to know: what this what he ate every day? What about the thareed he had made for the dhikr days, and when he had guests? And how many times did he eat this piece of bread and cheese? Just once a day, or more?

So I went to the shaykh’s companion, whose name is Sayyid Musa (Sayyid being his first name) and asked him: Tell me about shaykh Saleh’s sleep.

So he said: The shaykh would usually sleep on his right side, with his head resting on the inside of his right hand. And sometimes he would sleep on his back. And he used to say: Sleeping on the back is the sleep of the Prophets, sleeping on the right is the sleep of the awliya, sleep on the left is the sleep of the kings, and sleep on the front is the sleep of the non-believers.

When he talked about sleeping on the left as being the sleep of kings, sidi Sayyid made a gesture with his hands to show that it was because of how much they ate. This reminded me of what I read online, the advice of a swimming pool lifeguard that sleeping on the left is better for digestion. Looking it up online now, it seems to be the advice of many physicians. But since Muslim believers don’t go to sleep on full stomachs, they don’t need to sleep on the left, and should sleep on the right, which is the sunna.

And as for sleeping on the stomach, it was prohibited by the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, who said it was the sleep of the people of the Fire. The Messenger would tell his companions to sleep on their right side, and he himself would go to sleep on his right side, but would sometimes be seen lying on his back. Shaykh Babikr once told us that even if you have a hard time sleeping on your right side at first, try to at least begin your sleep by lying on the right.

I just found this quote online that says almost exactly what shaykh Saleh said:

Sleeping on one’s back is the sleep of the prophets, who contemplate the creation of the heavens and earth; sleep on the right side is the sleep of scholars and worshippers; sleep on the left is the sleep of kings to digest food; and sleeping on one’s face is the sleep of devils and the unbelievers.

(From a commentary on Imam al-Barkawi’s al-Tariqa al-Muhammadiyya)

(qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?HD=1&ID=3914&CATE=111)

Then I asked him when the shaykh slept. So he said: The shaykh would always sleep after Dhuhr prayers. That was the regular time where he had to sleep, except of course on Fridays, because he had his famous tafseer lesson right after the Jum’a prayer. As for the night, the shaykh never slept at night.

It is of course sunna and the recommendation of the Prophet, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, to have an afternoon nap. But this nap was Shaykh Saleh’s only sleep, besides the different times when sleep might overtake him, and he would have visions of the Prophets and awliya.

Then I asked him how the shaykh ate. He said that on some days, he would eat really well: a nice, full meal. But on other days, he would barely eat anything at all. Many times, he said, they would just give him sugar cane juice, mixed with an old Egyptian equivalent of Seven Up. And the shaykh would say to his closest companions, “They think I’ve eaten a whole sheep, when I’ve not had anything to eat at all!”

He said he remembered one particular day when the Shaykh gave a lesson straight after Fajr, all the way until Dhuhr. Then, he expected the shaykh to go rest if only for 15 minutes, or freshen up, but he prayed where he was and continued teaching until Asr. He prayed and then continued teaching until Maghreb, and likewise until Isha! He taught non-stop from Fajr until Isha, without eating a single thing!

I’m not sure but I think I remember him saying that was on the day of the mawlid of sayyidna al-Husayn, as Shaykh Saleh believed that the best way to celebrate the mawlid of the Prophet- Salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam- or any other mawlid, was by lessons of ilm.

SubhanAllah!

May Allah allow us to follow closely the way of the Prophet Muhammad, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and his companions, and those who followed them with ihsaan until the Yawm al-Deen.

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

(radi Allahu anha.)

Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari says:

فإسم المصطفى في الدين ركن ** وجاحده أضلّ الجاحدينا
فإن تشهد له تعرف بنيه ** وإلا كنت كذابا لعينا
أتشهد للنبي ولست تعطي ** بنيه حقهم وُدّا مكينا

The name of the Mustafa is a cornerstone of the religion

And he who denies that is the most astray of all deniers

So if you bear witness to him, then you know his sons

or else you’re an accursed liar!

Do you bear witness to the Prophet and yet not give his sons

their due right: a strong, firm love?

Many people do not know sayyida Zainab, the granddaughter of the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam. So here’s a little something about her, a little drop from her ocean:

لآل البيت عـز لا يـــــــــزول     وفخر لا تحيط به العقــــول
كفاكم يا بني الزهراء فخرًا      إذا ما قيل جدكم الرســـول

For the Ahlul Bayt is glory that shall never fade

And pride that intellects can not encompass

Enough pride it is for you, sons of al-Zahraa,

When it is said that your grandfather is the Messenger of Allah!

Her Lineage

She is the best of mankind in grandfather and grandmother, father and mother, brothers, and paternal and maternal uncles and aunts.

Her grandfather is the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, who is the best of all creation, including the Prophets, Messengers, and all other creation.

Her grandmother is sayyida Khadija, the first to enter Islam, and the first Mother of the Believers, for whom the angel Jibreel alayhi assalam descended to the Messenger of Allah and said: “Offer her greetings of peace from her Lord, the Exalted and Glorious, and on my behalf, and give her glad tidings of a palace of jewels in Paradise wherein there is no noise and no toil.” So she replied: “Allah is Peace, and from Him is Peace, and upon Jibreel be peace!”

And she said about herself: “No woman of Quraish has tasted what I have tasted of bliss. Nay, no woman in this world was given what I was given: It is enough for me in my world that I am the wife of the Beloved, the Mustafa, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, and it is enough for me in my afterlife that I am the first believer and the Mother of the Believers.”

And her mother is sayyida Fatima al-Zahraa, the sayyida of all the women of the world, and the daughter of the sayyid of all creation, who said about her: “Fatima is a piece of me, Allah is angry when she is angry, and is pleased when she is pleased”.  And in another hadith: “An angel who had never before visited me asked my Lord’s permission to visit me and gave me the good tidings that Fatima is the sayyida of the women of my ummah, and that al-Hasan and al-Husayn are the sayyids of the youth of Paradise”.

As for her father, he is the emir of eloquence, Ali ibn Abi Talib- may Allah be pleased with him and ennoble his face- and it is enough pride of his that he was raised by the hands of Allah’s Messenger, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

As for her brothers, they are the imams, the grandsons, sayyidna al-Hasan and sayyidna al-Husayn, the sayyids of the martyrs, and the sayyids of the living, about whom the Messenger of Allah said: “Al Hasan and al-Husayn are the sayyids of the youth of Paradise”.

As for her maternal uncles: they are al-Qasim, AbdAllah, and Ibrahim, the sons of the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

And her maternal aunts are: Zainab, Ruqayya, and Umm Kulthum, the daughters of the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

Her paternal uncle is Jaafar ibn Abi Talib, who flies with his two wings in Paradise.

And her paternal aunt is Umm Haani’ daughter of Abi Talib.

Her Marriage:

She married her cousin Abdallah the son of Jaafar ibn Abi Talib, famous for his great generosity and love of the poor, and begot from him her children: Jaafar, ‘Aun, Ali, Umm Kulthum, and Umm Abdallah. And Allah has blessed her in her son Ali and her daughter Umm Kulthum, and made from them great and pure descendants who filled the Earth with knowledge and noble manners.

May Allah be pleased with Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari who said about her:

رضينا يا بنى الزهرا رضيـــنا             بحبٍ فيكمو يرضى نبـينا

رضينا بالنبى لنا إمامـــــــــاً             وأنتم أله وبكم رضـــــــينا

وبالسبط الحسين كذا أخوه             وحيدر ثم زين العابديــــنا

وزينب من لها فضلٌ سمىٌ              سلالة أحمد فى الطيبينا

لها نورٌ يضئ كمثل شمسٍ              من المختار نشهده مبيناً

لها جودٌ لها كرمٌ وعطـــــفٌ             حَوَتْ فضلاً يُرى للمنصفينا

أمير المؤمنين أبوكِ حقــــاً              علىٌّ ساد جيش العارفينا

وأمك بضعة المختار طـــــه             محببةٌ إلى الهادى نبـينا

Among her du’as to Allah are:

يا عماد من لا عماد له ويا ذخر من لا ذخر له. ويا سند من لا سند له يا حرز الضعفاء ويا كنز الفقراء ويا سميع الدعاء يا منج الغرقى ويا منقذ الهلكى. يا محسن يا منعم يا مجمل يا متفضل.
أنت الذي سجد له سواد الليل وضوء النهار وشعاع الشمس وحفيف الأشجار ودوي الماء يا الله.
الهم إني أسألك يا عالم الأمور الخفية ويا من الأرض بعزته مدحية ويا من الشمس والقمر بنور جلاله مشرقة مضيئة يا مسكن رعب الخائفين. يا من حوائج الخلق عنده مقضية.
يا من ليس له بواب ينادى ولا وزير يؤتى، ولا يزداد على الإلحاح إلا كرمًا وجودًا، أعطني سؤلي إنك على كل شيء قدير

Her Birth:

She was born in al-Madina al-Munawwara, in the 5th year of the Hijra, in the month of Sha’ban, and caught the last 5 years of the life of the Messenger of Allah, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

More of her Du’as:

يا من لبس العز وتردَّى به. سبحان من تعطف بالمجد وتكرم سبحان من لا ينبغ التسبيح إلا له جل جلاله. سبحان من أحصى كل شيء عددًا.
اللهم إني أسألك بمعاقد العز عن عرشك ومنتهى الرحمة من كتابك وباسمك الأعظم وكلماتك التامات أن تصلي على سيدنا محمد وعلى آل بيته الطاهرين وأن تجمع لي خيري الدنيا والآخرة برحمتك يا أرحم الراحمين

Her Courage:

She led the battle after the martyrdom of her brother sayyidna al-Husayn, with bravery that surpassed all the great events and calamities, causing everyone to marvel at the strength of her faith and her certainty in Allah alone. She stood amongst all the events, in the toughest conditions, with nothing but her faith in Allah, so He made her tongue speak the most eloquent words, spreading courage and trust in those with her, and criticizing and warning those who fought against the Ahlul Bayt, and was able to save what was possible of the situation, and to rescue sayyidi Zayn al-Abidin son of al-Husayn from the hands of the aggressors, and thus preserve the lineage of al-imam al-Husayn, and his descendants.

Her Personality

She was famous for her love of the Noble Qur’an, spending most of her time with it, and she was learned in the different matters of the religion.  She was of utmost beauty in her manners and image, and was always known as the Lady of Hayaa‘ (modesty/shame), for she lived her life according to the Islamic manners, upholding the pure Shari’a, and all the people agreed that none of the people saw her until the events of the death of her brother al-Husayn caused her to emerge. And when she emerged from her tent people described her as the sun when it rises.

It is related in several sources that when she passed by al-Husayn’s body she shouted:

“Yaa Muhammadaaah! (Oh Muhammad!), here is al-Husayn, out in the open, covered in blood, his body parts torn! Ya Muhammad! Your daughters are captives, and your descendants killed!”

This caused everyone, friend or foe, to cry.

Her Moving to Egypt

After the battle she went from Kufa to the Hijaz, and then she decided to move to Egypt. When glad tidings came to Egypt of her advent, its entire population came out to welcome her, led by the ruler of Egypt of the time, Maslama bin Makhlad, and with him all the scholars and leaders and important people, all walking barefoot with their heads down, out of respect and honor. She entered it in the beginning of Sha’ban, the year 61 A.H. The ruler gave her his own house to live in, and she spent the rest of her life in Egypt, praying, fasting, and reading the Qur’an, and she stayed in her home, not leaving it, until she met her Lord, on the night of the 14th of Rajab, of the year 62 A.H.

Her house became a shelter for the weak and needy, so that she became known as Umm al-’Awaajiz (mother of the weak and aged). And the ruler of Egypt and his men would hold their sessions in her house, under her supervision, so that she became known as Ra’eesat al-Deewaan (the Chief of the Council). Another of her titles was “the ‘Aqeela of Bani Hashim”, ‘aqeela meaning: the noble and precious lady, honored in her house and among her people.

May Allah be pleased with Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari who said about her:

أزينب أنت فى الدنيا كشمس          لها نور يضئ ولا يغيب

ومن جاء المقام إليك يشفى          بإذن الله أنت له الطبيب

فمن بركات جدك كنت ذخراً            وقلب الزائرين هنا يطيب

ومن وصل المقام رآك أهلاً              أباً أماً وعطفك ذا عجيب

بجاه المصطفى خير البرايا            يجئ الخير والفتح القريب

سألت الله يمنحنى بعفــوٍ            فيا نعم الإله هو المجيب

Oh Zainab, you are in this world a Sun,

that has a light illuminating, but never sets

He who comes to to you in the maqaam is healed,

By Allah’s permission you are for him the doctor

For your grandfather’s blessings you became a reservoir,

and the heart of the visitor here is soothed and pleased

He who has reached the maqaam sees you as family,

as a father and a mother, your compassion is wonderous

By the Mustafa’s high rank, the best of creation,

Good and Opening will quickly come

I asked Allah to grant me forgiveness,

What a great God He is, He is the One who answers.

A literal example of this healing that can come to her visitors, because of her du’as to Allah to bless her visitors, is the following story of the great hadith scholar of his time, the servant of the Sunna, shaykh Abd Rabbuh Suleiman al-Qalyoubi:

http://riyada.hadithuna.com/i-was-told-by-a-relative-1/

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

Salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam.

Shaykh Saleh al-Jafari was asked:

“Is there a special du’a to see the Prophet- Salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam- while sleeping?”

He said:

In the tariqa Ahmadiyya [Muhammadiyya] is a du’a to obtain this honor, and it is:

اللهم إني أسألك بنور الأنوار الّذي هو عينك لا غيرك

أن تريني وجه نبيك سيدنا محمد صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم كما هو عندك. آمين

This du’a is said 100 times before sleeping.

But our shaykhs, may Allah be pleased with them- taught us that it is not from adab to request his vision, salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam, without action. Instead, we should act first upon the Shari’a and do a lot of salaat and salaam on him, with a lot of longing for him. So if the Prophet- Salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam- saw in you the ahliyya (capability/ability, worthiness) to see him, he would come to you without any calling or du’a.

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

Interesting analysis of the effects of madeeh poetry by an Indian professor of Persian literature:

He says it has  “character-building power”, and says,

“The Prophet’s character [salla Allahu alayhi wa sallam], as determined in the na’t poetry, presents to the world an ideal example of submission to and harmony with God’s Will.

The most part of na’tia poetry is related to the moral and spiritual values which are directly concerned with the training of the individual and the collective self of man…. ”

- Annemarie Schimmel, And Muhammad is His Messenger, pg. 178

On occasion of this quote, I post a translation of a famous line from Imam al-Busiri’s burda, which is also found in the same chapter (“Poetry in Honor of the Prophet”) of Schimmel’s book:

Like a flower in tenderness and like the full moon in glory,

Like the ocean in generosity and like Time in grand intentions.

كالزهر في ترفٍ والبدر في شرفٍ ***  والبحر في كرمٍ والدهر في هِمَمِ

I also found in that chapter these two beautiful lines by the great poet Jami:

“When you eat dates, kiss their kernels, for

The kernels of the dates of Medina are the beads of the angels’ rosary!”

SubhanAllah, I was so impressed by those lines that this morning I dreamt that I was in front of the maqam of Imam al-Husayn, and a blessed man dressed in green came and sat next to me, with really bright white rounded prayer beads, as if made of ivory but shining with light, and said: These are made from the kernels of the dates of Madina.

More lines of love, now by Shibli:

“Any house in which you dwell

Does not need any lamps!”

As part of imam al-Qushayri’s commentary on the Light Verse (24:35), he says:

“The light of the heart: it causes a continuous state of agitation which does not allow one to remain lazy. He connects his travel in the day with travel at night by the use of his reflection, and God nourishes him by the light of success so that no obstacle to his spiritual effort: of love of leadership, or the inclination to evil, or indulgence, can hold him back.

Then when the state of his forgetfulness becomes apparent to him, and he is able to see clearly his situation, knowledge will most certainly be obtained. Then he will continue to increase in certainty upon certainty based on what he sees in the his interacting with the states of contraction (qabd) and expansion (bast).

The reward and compensation is in the increase of unveiling upon the increase in effort, and the obtainment of ecstasy (wajd) when performing the litany (wird).”

- based on the translation of Kristin Zahra Sands, Sufi Commentaries on the Qur’an in Classical Islam, p. 130, with several corrections and changes.

Then she says:

“Al-Qushayri breaks through the common understanding of the metaphor of light here by focusing on its qualities of energy and movement. Rather than accepting the simple equivalence of light as guidance, he gives the unusual image of light as something agitating the heart.” (p. 131)

نور القلب: ثم موجبه هو دوام الانزعاج فلا يذره يعرِّج في أقطار الكسل، فيصل سَيْرَه بِسُراه في استعمالِ فكرِه، والحقُّ يمده: بنور التوفيق حتى لا يصده عن عوارضِ الاجتهادِ شيءٌ من حُبِّ رياسةٍ، أو ميلٍ لسوءٍ، أو هوادة. فإذا أسفر صُبْحُ غفلته،واستمكن النظر من موضعه حصل العلمُ لا محالة. ثم لا يزال يزداد يقيناً على يقين مما يراه في معاملته من القبض والبسط، والمكافأة والمجازاة في زيادة الكشف عند زيادة الجُهْد، وحصول الوَجْدِ عند أَداء الوِرْد.

So increase the light of your heart by any means possible, until you reach this state of agitation that pushes you forward so that no obstacle can hold you back. One way (possibly the easiest way) is to be in the company of the blessed. Shaykh Saleh al-Jaafari says:

من جاور السعداء يسعد يا فتى ** وتراه من أنوارهم يتورّع

And:

ومن أنوارهم نارت قلوبٌ ** رأيناهم ببعدٍ مظلمينا

The first line roughly means that he who resides near the people of felicity will be felicitous, and you see them becoming more wary of sinning because of their lights.

And the other line in another poem says about visiting the Ahlul Bayt:

“And from their lights, hearts have been lit *** which, when they were far, we saw them in a state of darkness”.