Beloved Hajra (R.A)

Zamzam Well

Assalamu Alaikum,

Thousands of people run around searching for water in many places on earth. But what was the difference with Hajra(R.A) (Hagar in English usage) that her search between Safa and Marwa was so special to her Lord?

 

Those who search for water search for mere that

But Hajra’s quest was for her Lord’s help.

She was in need, She had asked and of course,

She was restless in her search for the Beloved’s reply.

She searched in Safa, in Marwa and in between,

She walked, then ran to and forth, again and again.

Her lord did reply and how! She finally had to say Zam Zam!

 

Hajra(R.A)’s search was not for mere water but for Allah’s help! There is a difference between searching for water and searching to find out how Allah’s help is coming after asking Him for the help. The difference is emphasized by none other than Allah and imitating her action is an integral part of Hajj!

Her external acts seem very worldly, but the state of her heart and intention of her acts were purely in union with her Lord. Allah loved her longing and faith so much so that He made it a means for forgiveness for all His servants who imitate her run between the two mounts. Allah replied to her prayer in abundance till eternity and right at the feet of her thirsting son!

Meanwhile many a people who search for mere water die with or without getting it..

Mercy Manifested..

Assalamu Alaikum,

A female leopard hunts a pregnant female baboon. While the leopard was dragging the baboon, the baboon delivers a baby. Leopard leaves the hunted mother and starts taking care of the newborn baboon. Watch this amazing video from National geographic.

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah  (Choicest blessing and peace be upon him) said, “Allah has divided mercy into one hundred parts; and He retained with Him ninety-nine parts, and sent down to earth one part. Through this one part creatures deal with one another with compassion, so much so that an animal lifts its hoof over its young lest it should hurt it”.

[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

Ya Rahman, we are all blessed with your Mercy.

Describing Oneself

Assalamu Alaikum Dear Readers,

Many often we are confronted with this question: “Describe Yourself”. And we all know how difficult a question it is to answer.

There are two ways you can describe yourself. One is with respect to the external factors. And the other is with respect to the emotions you experience. You can write down the tags that you can think of yourself and classify it into two buckets. Just write down whatever that comes to your mind one after the other, without ‘thinking’ and being judgmental .

I described myself with respect to the external factors, and it followed this pattern:

Name, profession, place of origin, date of birth, income etc..

Then described myself with respect to how I felt, and tag cloud looked something like this:

Seeker, Weak, Lucky, Guided, Sinner, Forgiven, Loved, Happy, Ignored, Accepted, Bachelor,  Writer, Friend, Friendless, Sad, Depressed, Desperate, Angry, Lonely, Optimistic, Careless,  Insensitive, Empathetic, Bold, Stupid, In-calculative, Spendthrift, Chaotic, Grudger, Impatient, Tender, Loving, Lovable, Caring, Young, Mature, Immature, lustful, Tired, Unforgiving, Creative, …

(You can see positive and negative emotions and even conflicting tags, but they all fit in in different contexts.)

It is the second category that constitutes a life for any person, no matter who he is. And when Allah asks you to “Describe Yourself”, it is this category He is looking into.

When we inspect who we are, do our tags match with those of our Prophet whom we say we follow?

Honesty and Hypocrisy

Assalamu Alaikum,

This is a part of an article I had come across in http://www.tasawwuf.org some years back. The lesson impressed me instantly and made me appreciate the profound thinking of the great Masters of tasawwuf. You can read the full article here

Maulana Jami on the Path (of Tasawwuf)

It is recorded in the tradition of the Shaykhs that Jami once said, when asked about hypocrisy and honesty:

“How wonderful is honesty and how strange hypocrisy! I wandered to Mecca and to Baghdad, and I made a trial of the behavior of men.

When I asked them to be honest, they always treated me with respect, because they had been taught that good men always speak thus, and they had learned that they must have their eyes downcast when people speak of honesty.

When I told them to shun hypocrisy, they all agreed with me.

But they did not know that when I said ‘truth’, I knew that they did not know what truth was, and that therefore both they and I were then being hypocrites.

They did not know that when I told them not to be hypocrites they were being hypocrites in not asking me the method. They did not know that I was being a hypocrite in merely saying, ‘Do not be hypocrites’, because words do not convey the message by themselves.

They respected me, therefore, when I was acting hypocritically. They had been taught to do this. They respected themselves while they were thinking hypocritically; for it is hypocrisy to think that one is being improved simply by thinking that it is bad to be a hypocrite.

The Path (of Tasuwwuf) leads beyond: to the practice and the understanding where there can be no hypocrisy, where honesty is there and not something which is man’s aim.

It cannot be any more relevant in this era of  ‘spirituality’ fad where everyone knows what to speak to get clapping from the audience.

May Allah make our hearts sincere in our approach unto Him.

Regards,

Abdul Muneer P.K.

You are burning in the flame

Assalamu Alaikum,

From nothing you become sad,
From nothing you become happy,
You are burning in the flame,
But I will not let you out
Until you are fully baked,
Fully wise, and fully yourself.

—Rumi(R.A.)

Purification, Allah, it is never easy. Allah,  make it easy for this weakling..

Layers of knowledge and Understanding.

Assalamu Alaikum ,

Three people, one totally blind the second a colour blind and the third with normal sight live in the same place. But no matter how much you talk to the blind, he cannot understand the concept of ‘seeing’. You can never make him understand what a ‘colour’  or ‘shade’ is. A colour blind person cannot understand colours, but he can understand shades. The normal people see things normally. So three different people ‘sees’ the world differently.

Even though they live at the very same place, one is living in a different world from the other. Think of the case when a blind person suddenly gets sight or a colour blind person gets the ability to see colours. Even though at the very same place, it wouldn’t be same any more for them. In fact it will be nothing like what they perceived or imagined before. They will be joining the ‘world’ of the third man thereafter.

This is the difference we get to experience when Allah opens up our heart and gives us a new ‘sight’ (which is why we we call ‘insight’). There are so so many layers of knowledge, awakening and enlightenment which gets revealed one after the other. And it is a supreme pleasure when Allah opens it. They form to be the new guidance and the new light with which you can live in the hitherto unknown ‘world’.

And at such moments I feel the rush of communicating it to others but I’m completely stuck. I know for sure that even if I speak out, they will not pick it up.

—-

When a family goes to watch a romantic movie, different people pick it up differently. For a child, he has his own understanding of the love portrayed in that movie. And for his mind, that is a complete understanding.. But grown up people are influenced in a totally different way.
It is of no use for a grown up man to try to convey the message of it to a child. The child’s understanding is going to be totally different. See how knowledge is protected!! Even if you try your best, you cannot transfer it to everyone. Allah will raise that child, cause changes in his body and heart and then he himself will start knowing those things!

It is the same way in spiritual understandings too. Thus Allah holds full copyright over his secrets!!  Such knowledge will reside only in the hearts which Allah chooses. May Allah include us all among such people.

The great Shaikh Abdul Qader Gilani (R.A.) (also called Ghousul A’zam) had said ” Allah has opened for me seventy doors within each knowledge. And each of the doors are as wide as to include the sky and the earth.”

Ali (R.A.) told,”If I were to write down my understanding of Al-Fathiha, it would be bulkier for seventy camels to carry it.” See, Al-Fathiha is after all a very small chapter in Qur’an with only seven verses. What is there in it which if you write down will be running into tons of pages? That was the knowledge residing in the heart of Ali (R.A.).

Our Prophet (S.A.) had once recited Bismi (meaning: In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. ) in prayer  twenty times where as it is recited normally only once. Each time it was recited at a different level, with a different state and understandings.

Where are those meanings? For us the entire Qur’an, let alone Fatiha, is only one small book.

Regards,
Abdul Muneer P.K.

An understanding about Deen..

Today an interesting definition of Deen occured to me. Eventhough actually it is nothing original or new, it still is a fresh understanding for me.

Deen is not about any ritual or observations, although they form a part of it at the external layer.. Deen is the way you think- about yourself, about the world outside, about God. Deen is the way your thoughts form on every moment, on every breath. and on every response to the inputs from the world outside. Deen lies not on your body and costumes, it lies on your thouhts. If that is right for you, all your actions will fall in place, otherwise everything will go in vain and nothing will go right.

may Allah bless all with the right understanding..

To the seeker of Islam..

Be informed O seeker of Islam
That this fruit is not available in the market.
Fruits of this type that you may find there are
Either rotten or poisoned with pesticides.
And if you manage to find one that is neither,
You’ll quickly realize it is made of wax.
It is impossible to find it in the market
Because the Gardener never gives it to be sold.

This fruit comes from an exalted tree which has its
Roots firm on the ground and branches in the Heaven
And giving its fruits on all seasons
With the permission from its Gardener.
O seekers of this fruit, approach the tree first
And ask the permission from the Gardener.
Come snow, thunder or sand storm,
This fruit will suffice all your needs.

On humanity and being religious..

Salaams to dear readers, This post forms part of an email conversation between me and one of my friends. After typing a reply, I thought it could be a good reading for everyone. So I am pasting it directly here..

“I am more of a spiritual person than a religious person.” – nowadays the term ‘religious’ has become a misnomer which people can take in any way.. “Spiritual” is the right word. I have read a similar reply from A.R.Rehman in one of his interviews in The Hindu. When he was asked if he was a religious person, he told he would describe himself as spiritual rather than religious as that word has come to have wrong implications these days.

But in the true sense what is religion other than the connection we have with Almighty? What is it other than the bondage and relationship enjoyed between Almighty and His friends. And how are we going to experience it if we put aside the world we live in?

take away your face which gives you your identity to the world
take away your body which always works for you as your most loyal servant
take away your heart which always beats so that you may live take away your parents through whom you came and grew up
take away your friends who fill your life with joy and comfort
take away your job through which you earn your bread

take away the air you breath and the water you drink
take away the rivers, the mountains and the seas which controls the weather
take away the earth, the sky and all the heavenly bodies

take away all that you got from creations
take away all the creations together
If you do so, then where is the connection left between you and God?

Allah says in Qur’an, “East and the West belongs to Allah”. Again He says “wherever you turn your eyes, you will see My Face”. We should be able to see His face on any one regardless of he is a Muslim or a Hindu. We should be able to see his face on all that you can see and percieve.

Ahmad Kabir Rifai(May Allah be pleased with him) was a great saint of Islam. Once while walking with his disciples he heard a cry of a dog. When looked back he saw a badly wounded dog fighting with its infections. One of the disciples had thrown a stone or something and that was what made it cry at that time. He stopped there and asked his disciples to proceed. He took the dog with his hands (notice that dogs are considered dirty, but that doesn’t stop you from helping it) and walked back to his home. He cleaned it, applied medicines and took care. Once it regained its health, he took it and dropped at the place where he had originally found it, as that was the most familiar place for it and it would be more comfortable there.

Ahmad Kabir Rifai(May Allah be pleased with him) did this out of his love towards Allah, not out of any fascination for the dogs. The verses from Qur’an that were mentioned above had got into his life. He loved Allah so much so that all His creations became his too. May Allah make us too like such great people.

But the majority is not like that. Allah says, “they have eyes but they see not, they have hearts but they percieve not”. Islam lets you see that which we see not. If u had truly understood the beauty of islam, u wouldn’t have said “My religion is Humanity first and then Islam“. You would have found that the latter is more than enough a word for the former.

You and I

Assalamu Alaikum,

Ramazan Mubarak to all my dear readers.

Yesterday I came across a column by Farrukh Dhondy. He mentions about an Iftar party hosted by the Mayor of London. Here are some excerpts..

“The poor mayor of London, knowing nothing of this developmental formation, invited “Muslims” to an Iftar party where he and they would break the fast of the day together (The name Farrukh Dhondy itself is misleading 🙂 – The Blogger)

I go to the session with my friend Mahmood Jamal, who has been invited to read poetry after dinner.

Mahmood has serious credentials. He is compiling the Penguin book of Sufi verse (though that may not be its final title on publication) and he is of the opinion that of all Islamic art, architecture being the body, poetry is its soul. He has ancestral pedigree too. His grandfather is the Islamic scholar Bari Miah of the Firangi Mahal in Lucknow, and he numbers several serious Islamic scholars among his relatives.

At the dinner Mahmood finds himself seated next to the mayor on his right and the head of the “Muslim Council”, one Abdul Bari, on his left. Ranged before him at the other tables are the stalwarts of the fundamentalist interpretations of the faith, men and women who have worked their way into this assembly as representatives of the Muslim groups of Britain.

The dinner finishes and the time comes for Mahmood to read his poems. He begins in fine and traditional form with a praise of the Almighty, a Hamd, and then a tribute to the Prophet, a Naath.

He then recites from his translations which I reproduce roughly here:

“It was a dark night

The gates to the Ka’aba and temple were locked,

And yet the door to repentance was open

The taverns were alive with light”

There was an uneasy silence. Mahmood gauged the tenor of disapproval in the audience. He unrelentingly went on to recite a poem by Mansur Hallaj, the famous Sufi martyr, who declaimed “I am the truth”. Anathema to the fundos.

Then he read Jalaludin Rumi in his own translation.

……

“Mahmood continued reading. Here is his own poem You & I:

You want to speak of War

I want to speak of Peace.

You say Punish

I say Forgive

You speak of God’s Wrath

I speak of His Mercy

Your Quran is a Weapon

My Quran is a Gift

You speak of the Muslim brotherhood

I speak of the brotherhood of Man

You like to Warn others

I like to Welcome them

You like to speak of Hell

I like to speak of Heaven.

You talk of Lamentation

I talk of Celebration.

You worship the Law

I worship the Divine.

You want Silence

I want Music

You want Death

I want Life

You speak of Power

I speak of Love.

You search out Evil

I warm to the Good

You dream of the Sword

I sing of the Rose petal

You say the world is a Desert

I say the world is a Garden

You prefer the Plain

I prefer the Adorned

You want to Destroy

I want to Build

You want to go Back

I want to move Forward

You are busy Denying

I am busy Affirming

Yet there might be one thing

on which we see eye to eye

You want Justice

So do I.

The mayor, the white entourage and the young Muslims who had never heard any such thing, applauded the reading to the rafters. The fundos sulked. After the reading Mahmood was surrounded by young Muslims, all invited there as clients of the fundo organisations, who had never been subject to this mainstream version of philosophical Islam. They wanted to know. Why had this beauty of their religion been denied them? Why had they not been told?