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Despite innumerable handicaps Hazrat Shaikh ul
Islam by the dint of his labour, became, an acknowledged teacher of
Quran, Fiqh Hadith and Arabic literature and all their subjects.
Hazrat has himself referred in his famous Qasida the extent of
knowledge acquired by him. He says “I acquired knowledge to such
an extent that I became a Qutab and reached perfection through the
grace of Allah”.
Once Ajami swore that he would divorce his wife if he could not, for
a short time, be engaged in worshipping Allah in such a manner that
none else on earth could do likewise. The learned men of Iraq were
questioned as to what the man was to do, so that he might not have
to divorce his wife. No one could devise a suitable plan. The
question at last was referred to Hazrat and he said that such a
person should instead go to Mecca and get the Mutafe Ka’aba
vacated and make seven circuits around it. In this manner also could
his vow be fulfilled, because no one on earth at that time will be
engaged in worshipping Allah in that manner in that holy spot.
One of his Murids, during the course of a discussion between
dervishes said Hazrat Shaikhul Islam Ghousul Azam was bestowed with
the superior spiritual rank than Hazrat Ba-Yazid Bustami, He was so
confident about his assertion that he swore that if his assertion
was wrong he would divorce his wife. Divorcing one’s wife was
considered the greatest penalty for any wrong committed, as such a
course would deprive the person concerned of the blessings of a
truly married life.
He came and narrated to him about his vow regarding his superiority
over Hazrat Ba-Yazid Bustami. He questioned his Murid the wisdom of
taking oath to divorcing his wife, lest he went wrong. The Murid
replied that it was due to his extreme love and reverence for his
Shaikh that he could not accept the superiority of anybody else.
Hazrat then replied “you need not divorce your wife. Your belief
on my superiority over shaikh Ba-Yazid is borne our by the following
facts.
i Hazrat Ba-Yazid Bustami had not under taken preaching of
the faith and had not rendered any service towards Fiqh and had
given any Fatwas; Whereas I had done; all these.
ii “He had not reach that stage of spiritual advancement
and perfection in a married state to comply with Sunnah, whereas I
have done so.
“There are many other points of distinction but for the purpose of
our oath he said, “I confine to these two reasons only”.
Questions on the law of Shariat were addressed to him from all parts
of the Muslims World and he would answer them promptly. Saiyidena
Ghousul Azam devoted his time to many religious works, of which the
following are known.
‘AL GHUNYA LITIALIBIN.
Comparison of “Sunni” laws with those of other schools of Muslim
law mainly relating to prayer. Fasting, Haj, Zakat and such other
subjects.
‘AL FATH RABBANI A collection
of 62 sermons delivered by him during the period 545-546 Hijri
‘FATUH AL GHAIB’. A
collection of 78 sermons on various subjects complied by the Shaikh’s
son, Seyed Abdul Razak, followed by his dying deposition and his
pedigree from his father and mother’s sides. (An English
translation of this by Maulvi Aftab-ud-Din Ahmad has been published
by Maktaba Nawai Waqat Lahore, West Pakistan) Extracts of this
translation appear in the chapter on Preaching and Teaching in
particular and the other chapters in general.
‘HISB: BASHAIR AL KHAIRAT’.
A collection of mystical prayers.
and held and plat the Hazrat’s foot on his (Ali Bin Hiti’s)
neck. All other persons present there stepped forward and bent down
their necks.
When Saiyidena Ghousul Azam made this declaration, the Walis all
over the World heard it spiritually and they too bent down their
necks simultaneously in submission and in acknowledgement of His
superiority and leadership. Three hundred Walis and 700
Rijal-il-Ghaibs (hidden persons) some of whom while dwelling on
earth could even fly about in the air, also bent down their necks.
On this declaration the Walis of the World saw with their spiritual
eyes the flag of the rank of “Qutub” planted in front of him
with the crown of “Ghouse” placed on his head. They also saw him
making the aforesaid declaration, donning a robe, which denoted a
higher spiritual rank. The robe, embroidered with flowers,
symbolised Shariat and Haqiqat. As he was making the declaration,
divine halo appeared to shine from the heart of Ghous-ul-Azam.
When the Walis had bent their necks acknowledging Hazrat’s sole
suzerainty, their hearts too appeared to glow brilliantly than
before; signifying that their knowledge and status had become higher
on account of their submission and acknowledgement. Sultanul Hind
Khawaja Moin-ud-din Chishti was at the time in a cave in the hills
of Khorasan, when he too heard this declaration with his spiritual
ears. He said that the feet of the Ghous-ul-Azam were on his eyes
and head as well. For this particular submission; Hazrat Khawaja
Miunuddin became the spiritual head of India (vide “Tafrith-ul-Khatir”).
For those in doubt it should be clarified that there is not the
slightest tinge of egoism in the aforesaid declaration. Hazrat had
completely mastered his lower self and by his conduct, sermons and
writings to wean mankind from all low desires and passions, he could
not have for a moment think of self exaltation. It was the
manifestation of Divine will that he was obliged to make this
declaration so that the Walis in particular and the mankind in
general may know to whom to turn for guidance in spiritual
advancement.
The stages of spiritual advancement and Human conciousness are
divided into three categories rising upward in the scale of
evolution.
i. Nafs Ammara.-Un-ruly animal self.
ii. Nafs Lawwama.-Struggling moral self.
iii. Nafs Mutmainna.-Composed Allah realised self
In the first stage “Ammara” man is animal-like, restless with
bestial urges, impatient of restrictions and indifferent to any
pricking, of concience. By a systematic course of religious
training, of which obedience to command and Prohibitions is the
chief feature, he develops a sense of propriety and impropriety and
repents for falling into error each and every time. This if THE “LAWWAMA”
state That. State which begins with a faint dawning of the moral
scnse and ends in a complete surrender of the animal ego in man, is
the third and the highest stage viz “Mutmainna”. The struggle
between the lower and the higher self having now ended, the pilgrim
enters a condition of perfect peace, of purity, of rectitude and of
knowledge. To indicate the experience starting from the thresh old
of this stage, further on, the Sufis have coined three more terms.
‘FANA’.
A COMPLETE SUBJUGATION OF THE ANIMAL SELF.
At this stage, man ceases to be disturbed by an urge of desire. The
only urge left in him, is prayerful surrender of his whole being.
‘BAQA’. This means a restoration of the self to a new
consciousness this time not of the flesh, but of the spirit. The
urges of the self are no longer from animal passions, but from the
controlled spiritual region of Allah, invariably beneficial to
humanity and creation. ‘LIQA’. This is the stage wherein man’s
spiritual knowledge rises to such a high pitch that the rewards for
his faith, sincerity and devotion no longer remain a matter of
belief, but becomes a palpable certainty and an experience, as if he
had undergone them already. His faith in Allah reaches a point
wherein it appears to him that he is seeing Him face to face. Such a
man becomes free from all fears of the nature and from all sorrows
of the present and past.
In such a state, man is free from all hesitation and obscurity of
judgement and doubts and misgivings. In this state, the devotee
feels tinted by the attributes of Allah in the manner of a piece of
iron, eventually the colour transforming to that of fire if retained
there at long enough. In moments of commotion such a man’s
feelings assimilate Divine powers, so much so, that this rapture
produces the pleasure and blessings of Allah or his displeasure
brings in the wrath and curse of Allah. Events seemingly contrary to
the laws of nature occur through his action. Having received such
powers from Allah, he could even possess a power of creation. He
could create events and even determine the course of history.
After a pilgrim had entered the state of Fana which in the language
of the Quran is called ‘ISTI-QAMA’, the next two stages of BAQA
and LIQA follow as a matter of course. The reason is that, when a
person becomes completely void of attachment to creation and desires
and personal will, he automatically enters the state of BAQA.
As long as a man is not confirmed in the state of “Fana” self
annihilation and his surrender to Allah does not become a
spontaneous act, he cannot be deemed to be in the state of “BAQA”;
which requires that all acts of devotion and surrender should become
natural acts, not needing any effort. When such a state is attained,
the man feels that all that belongs to him are really Allah’s.
While other people of the World may enjoy the satisfaction of their
personal desires, such a person would relish the worship and
remembrance of Allah.
Thus, when the pilgrim is confirmed in this state of “BAQA” and
it becomes the warp and woof of his very being, a light would appear
to descend from heaven and the mist of uncertainty would altogether
be lifted from his heart, and filled instead with sweet feelings of
love never experienced before. This would be accompanied frequently
by a highly pleasant shower of divine communication diffusing a
heavenly sweet aroma and atmosphere of coolness like that of spring
breeze.
At this stage, the devotee would become so immersed in ecstacy that
he would be prepared to sacrifice his all for the sake of Allah even
his honour and very life. His heart becomes so much filled with
light Divine that it would appear as if he is experiencing the
effect of the rays of the midday sun within his bosom, and as if
Allah himself had descended on his heart with all His glory. These
are the signs of the state of “LIQA”. It should also be
remembered that, while attainment of FANA” is the result of Human
effort, the two higher stages of “BAQA” and “LIQA are the
gifts of Allah proceeding from His grace.
The pilgrim’s spiritual struggle takes him up to the stage of “FANA”
only. Thereafter, Divine grace takes him by the hand and carries him
to the higher planes.
There are four varieties among men, One is who has no tongue and no
heart, and he is a man of ordinary position, dull and lowly, who
does not count with Allah and one who has nothing good him. He and
people like him are like chaff which has no weight, unless Allah
covers then with His mercy and guides their hearts towards faith in
himself and moves the organs of their body in obedience to Himself.
Beware that you do not become one of them nor entertain them nor yet
stand among them. These are the people of chastisemont and wrath of
Allah; they are the inhabitants of Fire and its inmates. Let us seek
refuge of Allah from them.
You should, on the contrary, endeavour to be equipped with Divine
knowledge and to be among the teachers of good and guides of
religion. So beware that you should approach and invite them to
obedience to Allah and warn them sinning against Allah. You will,
then be a fighter in the cause of Allah and will receive the rewards
of the Prophet and the messengers of Allah. The Holy Prophet (may
peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said to Hazrat Ali “If
Allah gives guidance to one person through your guiding him, it is
better for you than that on which the sun rises”.
The other kind of person is he who has got a tongue but no heart; he
speaks wisdom, but does not act according to it. He calls people to
Allah but himself flees from him. He abhors defects in others but he
himself persists in having similar defects in himself. He shows to
others his piety, but contends with Allah by committing major sins.
When he is alone, he is like a wolf in clothes. The Prophet has
warned and said “The thing to be most afraid of and which I am
afraid of in respect of my followers is the learned men who do evil”.
We normally seek the refuge of Allah from such learned men. So you
should keep away from such a man and turn away from him, lest you
should be misled by the sweetness of his talk contaminated by the
fire of his sin, which will consume you, and the filth of his heart,
which will smother you.
There is a third category of man who has a heart but no tongue but
he is true believer. Allah has screened him away from his creation
and hung around him His curtains to provide him and insight into the
blemishes of his ownself, and enlightened his heart to make him
aware of the mischief in mixing up with people and of the evil of
talking and speaking and in ensuring safety in silence and
retirement in a corner in keeping with what the prophet (peace and
blessing of Allah be upon him) said, “Whoever kept silent attained
salvation”. Surely the service of Allah consists of ten parts,
nine of which are in the silence”. Thus this man is a friend of
Allah in his secret, and is protected and possessed of safety and
abundant intelligence. He is the companion of the Beneficient Allah,
and is blessed with his favours.
So mind you, you must keep company with such a man and with him and
endear yourself to him by fulfilling the needs which he may want. If
you so do, Allah will love you and choose you and include you in the
company of His pious servants and shower His blessings, if it
pleases Him.
The fourth category of man is one who is invited to the World
invisible, clothed in dignity, as it is related in the Hadeeth. “Whoever
learns and acts upon his learning and imparts it to others, is
invited to the World invisible and made great”. Such a man is
possessed of the knowledge of Allah and his sign; and his heart
becomes the repository of the rare secrets of His knowledge kept
hidden from other to be released only to those whom He has selected.
He is drawn towards Himself and expands his heart for the acceptance
of these secrets in order to make him a worker in His cause to
invite Allah’s servants to the path of virtue and to act as a
warner against chastisement of evil deeds as a guide and accepted
intercessor who verifies the truth of others.
Such a person achieves culminating point of perfection among mankind
and there is no station above this, excepting that of prophethood.
Therefore, it is your duty to be aware that you do not oppose such a
person and be averse to him or to keep away from him. Do not be
hostile to him or avoid accepting him. Be attentive to what he says
and admonishes.
When you find in your heart any hatred or love for a person, examine
his actions in the light of the book of Allah and the practice of
the Prophet. Then, if these are not in accord with these two
authorities, be happy to seek refuge in Allah and His prophet. But
if his actions are in accord with them but you are opposed to him,
then realise that you are opposed to your law desires. You are
hating him on account of your low desire unjust to him on account of
your hatred towards him and thereby rebelling against Allah, the
Almighty the Glorious and His Prophet and opposing both the Quran
and Hadith.
Turn therefore towards Allah repenting for your hatred and ask Him
for love for that man and the others and from the friends of Allah
and His Walis and the pious among His servants. You would then
please Allah.
Make your life after death your capital investment and your worldly
life its profit. Spend your time, first of all, in acquiring your
life after death. Then if any surplus time is left, spend it in
acquiring worldly life, and in seeking your livelihood. But do not
make your wordly life your capital investment and your life after
death, your profit, trying
to utilise any surplus time left, to obtain your life after death by
fulfilling obligations of five prayers, like putting different
things all together in a single melting pot, and thereby upsetting
the order of various obligations and the intervals of fulfillment
lying between them you become so exhausted and agitated, you resort
to sleep neglecting your duty of prayers, like a dead body at night
and make use of the day to serve your animal self and desires, and
Satan. It is tantamount to your selling you’re hereafter in
exchange for your worldly life, having become a slave of your animal
self.
You are commanded to ride your animal self and discipline it, to
exercise and traverse on it towards the paths of safety. Thus is the
way to life eternal and submission to its Lord. But you act
otherwise by succumbing to its urges and handing over to it, its own
reins to follow its low desires and enjoyments. You thereby allign
yourself with its passions and miss the best things of this life and
of the hereafter. You enter on the Day of judgement the poorest of
men and a great loser.
On the other hand if you correctly, traverse the path of the
hereafther as your capital investment you will gain in your wordly
life as well as in the hereafter. Your destined portion of this
world’s life would have come to you with all its pleasantness and
you would have been secure and respected. Thus, the prophet has
said, “Surelly Allah gives facility in this World’s life on the
intention pertaining to the hereafter, whereas the felicity of
hereafter is not given on the intention pertaining to this world’s
life”. Intention for the hereafter is submission to Allah because
such intention is the very soul of Allah because such intention is
the very soul of service.
So when you obey Allah with obstinacy both in life and in seeking
the abode of hereafter, you are among the choosen ones of Allah
loving Him and yearning for the life hereafter. Paradise and
nearness to Allah will be your reward. The world will be at your
service and the portion allotted to you therein will in full measure
because everything is subordinate to its Creator and Master. But if
you become engrossed in worldly life and turn your face away from
the hereafter; The Lord will be displeased with you. You will lose
the hereafter and the world will be disobedience to you in that you
will encounter trouble and difficulty in obtaining your allotted
portion that emanates from Allah. The truth of the saying of the
Prophet "The world and the hereafter are two co-wives. If your
please any of the hereafter are two the other become angry with you
establishes itself Allah the Mighty Glorious says “Surcly there
are among you, who desire this world’s life and some other are
among you, who desire the hereafter”. Safety lies in following the
book of Allah and the practice of the prophet, and destruction, in
what is besides them. With the help of these two, the servant of
Allah rises towards the state of “Wilayath”.
IT IS INCUMBENT ON A BELIEVER THAT HE SHOULD
FIRST FULFIL THE OBLIGATROY DUTIES. WHEN HE FULFILS THEM, HE SHOULD
OBSERVE “SUNNA” THE PRACTICE OF THE PROPHET. IT IS ONLY WHEN HE
HAS COMPLIED WITH THESE,THAT HE SHOULD EXTEND TO OBSERVE OPTIONAL
AND EXTRA DUTIES. SO WHEN, ONE HAS NOT PERFORMED HIS OBLIGATORY
DUTIES, BUT ENDEAVOURS TO OBSERVE “SUNNA,” IT WILL BE
FOOLISHNESS AND STUPIDITY. IF HE OBSERVES “SUNNA” AND “NAFAL”
OR SUPEREROGATORY DUTIES BEFORE HE HAS PERFORMED HIS OBLIGATORY
DUTIES, THESE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FROM.
His example is like that of a man who is asked by the king to serve
him. But he does not go to the king but stays to serve the chief,
who is under the king, and his power and sovereignty. It is reported
by Hazrat son of Abu Talib (Allah be pleased with him) that the Holy
Prophet (peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) said, “THE
INSTANCE OF A MAN WHO SAYS SUPEREROGATORY PRAYERS WHILE HE IS IN
ARREARS WITH REGARD TO HIS OBLIGATORY PRAYERS, IS LIKE THE INSTANCE
OF A PREGNANT WOMAN WHO CARRIES THE BABY WITH HER BUT WHEN SHE
APPROACHES THE TIME OF DELIVERY, ABORTION TAKES PLACE. THUS SHE NO
LONGER REMAINS PREGNANT NOR DOES SHE BECOME A MOTHER. ‘SIMILAR IS
THE CASE OF THE PRAYING MAN FROM WHOM ALLAH DOES NOT ACCEPT
SUPEREROGATORY PRAYERS SO LONG AS HE HAS NOT PERFORMED HIS
OBLIGATORY PRAYERS. It is similar to the business of a man
who thinks that he can not have any profit, unless he has first laid
his hand on the capital, similar to the supererogatory prayers of
one, which will not be accepted unless he has first fulfilled to his
obligatory prayers.
Similar is the case of one who discards the Sunna but takes to
supererogatory Prayers outside the obligatory duties. Among the
obligatory duties the discarding of unlawful things, of associating
any thing with Allah, of taking exception to His dispensation and
decrees, of responding to people’s voice and following their
wishes and of turning away from the commandment of Allah and from
obedience to Him. The Prophet (peace and blessing be upon him) has
said “No obedience is due to any man where sinning against Allah
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