almiskeenah

The Awali district (previous entries 1,2,3 ) to the south east of Masjid Nabawi , adjacent to Jannatul Baqi till now exudes an ambience of piety. Partly due to the existence of such old architecture, but also because so many true lovers of the Beloved SallAllahu alaihi wasallam choose to live there, and have been for ages. Masha’Allah.

Alhumdulillah I have been blessed to sit at the feet of some of these Mubarak souls and recently visiting them once again.

This photo, which is to adorn the cover of the upcoming publication by Peter Sanders depicts one such Wali who is of the Abdul Qadir Jilani lineage. He was a Khadim in Masjid Nabawi for decades and shares amazing stories of life and conditions during the times before the modernization of the Haramain. Camel journeys taking several weeks from Makkah to Madinah for a few riyals. Nights spent filling and carrying water barrels on his back to be distributed in the Masjid. He reminisces of times when money, greed and power were not the driving forces behind Umrah and Ziyarah to convey blessings and greeting to our Beloved Rasul SallAllahu alaihi wasallam. His advice to all when in the Prophet’s City is to try to accompany every breath with Salawat and to turn the gaze to the Green Abode, or for brothers to seek the vision of the Mubarak Hujrah as much as possible. He speaks ever so gently and softly about the need for a loving role between husband and wife, emphasizing the importance of the husband’s diligence in being ‘the shepherd of his flock’. And he shares deeper spiritual accounts of his intimacy with Rasulullah SallAllahu alaihi wasallam, and the Sahabah RadhiAllahu anhu, as well as poignant mysteries from his Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jilani Rahmatullah alaihi. SubhanAllah!

I include the inspirational Seventy-Seventh Discourse of Abdul Qadir Jilani Rahmatullah alaihi from his Futuh al-Ghaib, Revelations of the Unseen acknowledging the link between him and this Wali of Awali.

‘Be with Allah, the Mighty, the Glorious, as if no creation exists. And be with the creation as if there is no self in you. And when you are with Allah, the Mighty, the Glorious, without the creation you will get Him and vanish from every other thing, and when you are with the creation without yourself you will do justice and keep the path of virtue and remain safe from the hardships of life. And leave everything outside the door while you are entering in your solitude and enter therein alone. And when you have done so, you will see your friend in your solitude with your inner eye and will experience what is besides the creation and then your self will vanish and in its place will come the command of Allah and His nearness. And at this point your ignorance will be your knowledge and your distance will be your nearness and your silence will be your remembrance of Allah and your bewilderment will prove friendship. O you man! There will be nothing left at this stage excepting the Creator and the created. So if you have adopted the Creator, then say to the rest:

Surely they are my enemies but the Lord of the Worlds is my friend. (26:77)

Whoever has tasted it has come to know it.

He was asked: “How can one in whom the bitterness of bile predominates taste sweetness?” In reply he said: “He should with an effort to keep away the sensual desires from himself. O you man! When a believer does a good deed his animal self changes into his heart (that is in response to the dictates of the heart) And the self attains the consciousness of the heart; then this heart changes into a secret; then the secret undergoes another change and becomes annihilated; then the annihilation passes through another transformation and becomes another existence.” He further observed: The friends have an access through every door. O you man! The annihilation (self effacement0 is to deny all creation and transform your nature into the nature of the Angels; then vanishing from the nature of the Angels and then getting back to the first way; and then your Lord will water you as much as He likes and cultivate you as much as He likes. If you want this stage you should adopt Islam and then submission to the decree of Allah, and then acquire the knowledge of Allah and then realize Him and then exist in Him, and then you get such an existence you will wholly belong to Him. Piety is a work of an hour and abstemiousness of two hours and knowledge of Allah is a work for all times.’

While the following stirring Salawaat is from his Al-Fath ur Rabbani, The Endowment of Divine Grace:

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

O Allah! O You Who know my inability to praise You,

I ask of You – for the sake of the most perfect of all those who praise You,

(that is, Sayyidina Muhammad),

to whom You unveiled the realities of Your Names and Your Attributes,

and the subtleties of the emanations of Your Essence,

so that he came to know You in a manner befitting Your Perfection,

and whom You thereupon inspired with Your praises

as You inspired none other than him,

as You will inspire him many times more

on the Day when his uniqueness will be manifested,

(that is, on the Day of Judgement),

when his glorious character will be manifested in all its glory,

(I ask of You, O Allah!)

to bestow upon him,

who is more precious than any other being,

such blessings and salutations that befit Your most Sanctified Perfection,

and let the noble blessings and peace You confer upon him,

encompass the whole of his physical being as well as his essence,

as well as everything that pertains to him

in the world of creation and in the world of the Divine Command,

so that, O our Lord, You leave out none of

Your Prophets, Your Messengers, Your Angels and Your righteous servants,

but include them all

within the compass of Your Tremendous Grace.

Sallu ‘ala’r Rasul

Allahumma Salli wa Sallim ‘alayh.

JUMA’AH MUBARAK!

All good is from Allah Ta’ala whereas mistakes are from this humble speck. May Allah Ta’ala Bless all readers, bringing you all closer to Him and His Rasul SallAllahu alaihi wasallam.  May He accept our humble efforts and grant us the capacity to be good and do good. Ameen.