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The Sufi Way Naqshbandi Al-Haqqoni Batam - Kepulauan Riau - Indonesia, The first eight principles are from 'Abd ul-Khaliq Ghujduwani (d. 1220). The final three principles were added by Baha ad-din Naqshband (d. 1389). 1. Awareness in the Breath / Awareness in the Moment (Hush dar dam) \\\\\\\\\"Every breath which is exhaled from within must be exhaled with awareness and presence of mind and so that the mind does not stray into forgetfulness.\\\\\\\\\" Baha ad-din Naqshband said: \\\\\\\\\"The foundation of our work is in the breath. The more that one is able to be conscious of one's breathing, the stronger is one's inner life. It is a must for everyone to safeguard his breath in the time of his inhalation and exhalation and further, to safeguard his breath in the interval between the inhalation and exhalation.\\\\\\\\\" As the seeker becomes occupied with the exercise of the moment (i.e. remembering the breath), he turns his attention from remembering the past and thinking of the future, and focuses on each breath until it is expired. Sa'd ud-din Kashghari added: \\\\\\\\\"Hush dar dam is moving from breath to breath so there is no heedlessness but rather there is presence, and with each breath that we take should be the remembrance of the Real.\\\\\\\\\" Sheikh Abdul Janab Najmuddin al-Kubra said in his book, Fawatih al-Jamal: \\\\\\\\\"Dhikr (remembrance of God in the breath) is flowing in the body of every single living creature by the necessity of their breath -- even without will -- as a sign of obedience, which is part of their creation. Through their breathing, the sound of the letter 'Ha' of the Divine Name Allah is made with every exhalation and inhalation and it is a sign of the Unseen Essence serving to emphasize the Uniqueness of God. Therefore it is necessary to be present with that breathing, in order to realize the Essence of the Creator.\\\\\\\\\" The name Allah, which encompasses the ninety-nine Names and Attributes, consists of four letters, Alif, Lam, Lam and Hah (ALLAH). The people of Sufism say that the absolute unseen Essence of Allah Exalted and Almighty are expressed by the last letter vowelized by the Alif, \\\\\\\\\"Hah.\\\\\\\\\" It represents the Absolutely Unseen \\\\\\\\\"He-ness\\\\\\\\\" of the Exalted God (Ghaib al-Huwiyya al-Mutlaqa lillah 'azza wa jalla) in which the mystic loses his separate identity with every \\\\\\\\\"hah\\\\\\\\\" in his breath. The first Lam is for the sake of identification (tacrif) and the second Lam is for the sake of emphasis (mubalagha). The soul has long been thought to be in the breath. \\\\\\\\\"For the early thinkers the soul was visualized sensuously as a breath-body.\\\\\\\\\" Awareness of the breath makes us aware of the soul and the inner body, inner self, which belong to the moment. In the path of the Khwajagan awareness in the breath is a very great principle. Those in this path regard it a great transgression to become unconscious of the breath. 2. Watch your Step! (Nazar bar qadam) Direct yourself constantly towards the goal. Sa'd ud-din Kashghari added: \\\\\\\\\"Looking upon the steps means that the seeker in coming and going looks upon the top of his feet and thereby his attention is not scattered by looking at what he should not look at.\\\\\\\\\" When the beginner's attention is taken by shapes and colors outside of himself, his state of remembering leaves him and is ruined, and he is kept from his _object_ive. This is because the beginning seeker does not have the power of the \\\\\\\\\"remembrance of the heart,\\\\\\\\\" so when his sight falls upon things, his heart loses its collectedness, and his mind becomes scattered. Watch your step can also refer to watching circumstances, feeling when the right time for action is, when the right time for inaction is, and when is the right time for pause. Some have said that Nazar bar qadam is an _expression_ which refers to the wisdom inherent in one's natural disposition. Fakhr ud-Din Kashifi added: \\\\\\\\\"Nazar bar qadam may be alluding to the seekers traveling through the stages of breaking from existence and putting behind self-love.\\\\\\\\\" Of these three interpretations, the first refers to beginners' use of this aphorism, the second refers to those in mid-progress on the Way, and the third to the Attainers. 3. The Journey Home (Safar dar watan) Your journey is towards your homeland. Remember you are traveling from a world of illusion to a world of reality. The wayfarer travels from the world of creation to the world of the Creator. The Journey Home is the transformation that brings man out of his subjective dream state, so that he can fulfill his divine destiny. From the Rashahat-i 'ayn al-hayat: \\\\\\\\\"[The journey home refers to] that traveling which the seeker makes within his human nature. In other words, travel from the qualities of humankind toward the angelic qualities, moving from blameworthy qualities to laudable ones.\\\\\\\\\" Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi (d. 1624) said: \\\\\\\\\"This blessed _expression_ [traveling in the homeland] means traveling within the self. The source of its results lies in putting the final [practice] at the beginning, which is one of the characteristics of the Naqshbandi Way. And although this [inner] traveling can also be found in other tariqas [schools of Sufism], [in those] it is found only in the end after the 'traveling on the horizons' [referring to the Qur'anic verse (41:53): 'We will show them Our signs on the horizons and within their selves until they know He is the Real'].\\\\\\\\\" \\\\\\\\\"Traveling on the horizons\\\\\\\\\" is traveling from place to place. At the beginning of the journey it can mean leaving home to find a guide or teacher. Also it happened in former generations that when the wayfarer had become established in a place, got accustomed to it and become familiar with its people, they took on traveling in order to break down habit and comfort and cut themselves off from renown. They would choose travel in order to experience complete emptying. It means traveling within oneself, looking at oneself, examining oneself and one's reactions, and how they act upon one. This reflects the stress that the Naqshbandi path puts on the inner states, stages, processes. Be an external resident and let your heart travel. Traveling without legs is the best kind of travel. 4. Solitude in the Crowd (Khalwat dar anjuman) There are two kinds of retreat. One is the outward kind in which the seeker, far from people, sits alone in his cell until he comes into contact with the spiritual world. This result comes about because the external senses withdraw themselves and the inner senses extend themselves to signs from the spiritual world. The second kind of retreat is the hidden one, where the seeker is inwardly witnessing the secrets of the Real while he is outwardly surrounded by people. Khalwat dar anjuman is of this second type of retreat: outwardly to be with people, inwardly to be with God. In all your outer activities remain inwardly free. Learn not to identify with anything whatsoever. Khwaja Awliya Kabir, one of the deputies of 'Abd ul-Khaliq Ghujduwani, explained khalwat dar anjuman as follows: \\\\\\\\\"'Retreat within the crowd' is that state when one is so constantly and completely absorbed in divine remembrance that 'one could walk through the market-place without hearing a word.'\\\\\\\\\" They are with their Lord and simultaneously they are with the people. As the Prophet said, \\\\\\\\\"I have two sides: one faces my Creator and one faces creation.\\\\\\\\\" 'Abd ul-Khaliq Ghujduwani himself was known to say: \\\\\\\\\"Close the door of the formality of sheikhhood, open the door of friendship. Close the door of khalwat (solitary retreat) and open the door of sohbat (companionship).\\\\\\\\\" Baha ad-din Naqshband said in this connection: \\\\\\\\\"Our path is in companionship. In [physical] retreat there comes fame and with fame comes calamity. Our welfare lies with the assembly and its companionship, on condition that [self-] negation is found in one another.\\\\\\\\\" When Baha ad-din reached Herat on his journey to Mecca, the Amir Hussein arranged a gathering in his honour. At the assembly the Amir asked him, \\\\\\\\\"Since with your Presence there is neither audible dhikr, nor voyaging, nor audition of special music and poetry, what is your path?\\\\\\\\\" He answered, \\\\\\\\\"The pure words of the tribe of 'Abd ul-Khaliq Ghujduwani, which are 'retreat within the crowd,' and we follow in their Way.\\\\\\\\\" \\\\\\\\\"What is retreat within the crowd?\\\\\\\\\" the Amir asked. \\\\\\\\\"Outwardly to be with the people while inwardly to be with God,\\\\\\\\\" said Naqshband. The Amir expressed surprise and asked whether this was actually possible. Baha ad-din replied that if it were not possible God Most High would not have indicated it in a Qur'anic verse which describes those who are not distracted from the remembrance of God even while in the marketplace: \\\\\\\\\"Men whom neither business nor profit distracts from the recollection of Allah\\\\\\\\\" [24:37]. This is the way of the Naqshbandi Order. Ahmad Faruqi Sirhindî, Mujaddid-i-alf-i-thani (the Renewer of the second millennium), said: \\\\\\\\\"Retreat within the crowd is derived from traveling in the homeland since if traveling in the homeland is properly accomplished, then retreat within the crowd will properly occur. The seeker within the diversity of the crowd travels in his own land, and the diversity of the horizons finds no way into the meditation cell of his inner self. This treasure will manifest with difficulty at the beginning and with no difficulty in the end. And in this tariqa it is the portion of the beginning while in other paths it is at the end. This is so because the treasure is derived from traveling within the self (with presence in the moment), which is at the beginning of this path, while traveling on the horizons takes place simultaneously. This is the opposite of the other paths which make the traveling on the horizons the beginning and the traveling within the self the end.\\\\\\\\\" In the words of al-Kharraz: \\\\\\\\\"Perfection is not in exhibitions of miraculous powers, but perfection is to sit among people, sell and buy, marry and have children; and yet never leave the presence of Allah even for one moment.\\\\\\\\\" In constant communion with the Beloved within, a stranger to the world. Those endowed with such beauty are rare indeed in this world. 5. Remembrance (Yad kard) Concentration on Divine Presence. For the Naqshbandiyya remembrance is practiced in the silent dhikr. Keep God, the Beloved, always in your heart. Let your prayer, dhikr, be the prayer of your heart. According to Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar, \\\\\\\\\"the real meaning of dhikr is inward awareness of God. The purpose of dhikr is to attain this consciousness.\\\\\\\\\" The purpose of the dhikr is to keep one's heart and attention entirely focused on the Beloved in love and devotion. The dhikr is not just repeated as words, but is in the heart. Remembrance of the tongue becomes remembrance of the heart. Abdu'l-Qadir al-Jailani said: \\\\\\\\\"At the first stage one recites the name of God with one's tongue; then when the heart becomes alive one recites inwardly. At the beginning one should declare in words what one remembers. Then stage by stage the remembrance spreads throughout one's being -- descending to the heart then rising to the soul; then still further it reaches the realm of the secrets; further to the hidden; to the most hidden of the hidden.\\\\\\\\\" 6. Returning, Going Back (Baz gasht) Travel one way. The return to God. Single-minded pursuit of divine truth. Remember that you belong Somewhere and your goal is to attain Reality. The meaning of baz gasht is the return to Allah Exalted and Almighty by showing complete surrender and submission to His Will, and complete humbleness in giving Him all due praise. The reason, mentioned by the Holy Prophet in his invocation, ma dhakarnaka haqqa dhikrika ya Madhkar (\\\\\\\\\"We did not Remember You as You Deserve to be Remembered, O Allah\\\\\\\\\"), is that the seeker cannot come to the presence of Allah in his dhikr, and cannot manifest the Secrets and Attributes of Allah in his Dhikr, if he does not make Dhikr with Allah's support and with Allah's remembrance of him. As Bayazid Bistami (d. 874) said: \\\\\\\\\"When I reached Him I saw that His remembering of me preceded my remembrance of Him.\\\\\\\\\" The seeker cannot make dhikr by himself. He must recognize that Allah is the one making Dhikr through him. \\\\\\\\\"Beloved, you and your approval are my purpose and desire.\\\\\\\\\" This attitude will rid one of impure thoughts and distractions. It relates to the path of absorption. One Sufi was concerned that he was not sincere, and was ashamed. So his sheikh took him to a Sufi who was on the path of absorption, and this sheikh told him that absorption, not hair-splitting, would free him from his problem. The wayfarer realized that in his worry about his dishonesty and shame, his wants and needs, he had been focused on himself, separating himself from his Beloved. According to Khwaja Ahrar, the saying \\\\\\\\\"returning\\\\\\\\\" means that we have within us the goal of our striving. The seeds of transformation are sown in us from above and we have to treasure them above all possessions. 7. Attentiveness (Nigah dasht) Struggle with all alien thoughts. Be always mindful of what you are thinking and doing, so that you may put the imprint of your immortality on every passing incident and instance of your daily life. Be watchful. Be aware of what catches your attention. Learn to withdraw your attention from undesirable _object_s. This is also expressed as \\\\\\\\\"be vigilant in thought and remember yourself.\\\\\\\\\" Nigah means sight. It means that the seeker must watch his heart and safeguard it by preventing bad thoughts from entering. Bad inclinations keep the heart from joining with the Divine. It is acknowledged in the Naqshbandiyya that for a seeker to safeguard his heart from bad inclinations for fifteen minutes is a great achievement. For this he would be considered a real Sufi. Sufism is the power to safeguard the heart from bad thoughts and protect it from low inclinations. Whoever accomplishes these two goals will know his heart, and whoever knows his heart will know his Lord. The Holy Prophet has said, \\\\\\\\\"Whoever knows himself knows His Lord.\\\\\\\\\" Sa'd ud-Din Kashgari said: \\\\\\\\\"The seeker must, for one hour or two or whatever he is capable of, hold onto his mind and prevent thoughts of other [than God] entering.\\\\\\\\\" Another de_script_ion from the Munahej ul-Sair has it that: \\\\\\\\\"[Nigah dasht is the] guarding of the special awareness and presence which have resulted from the noble dhikr, so that remembering of anything other than the Real does not find its way into the heart/mind.\\\\\\\\\" Yet others have written that nigah dasht also applies to the time of the dhikr itself: \\\\\\\\\"Nigah dasht is when the seeker at the time of the dhikr holds his heart/mind upon the meaning of LA ILAHA ILLA 'LLAH so that thoughts do not find entrance into his heart, because if thoughts are in the mind then the result of the dhikr, meaning presence of the heart/mind, will not manifest.\\\\\\\\\" It has also been said, \\\\\\\\\"Nigah dasht is an _expression_ meaning the prevention of the occurance of thought at the time one is occupied with [repeating] the fragrant sentence [of LA ILAHA ILLA 'LLAH].\\\\\\\\\" Abdul Majid Il Khani said that the meaning of preserving the heart/mind from incoming thoughts is that they lose their hold on the mind. In this connection Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar said: \\\\\\\\\"The meaning of preserving the mind [from thoughts] is not that the seeker can avoid thoughts at the beginning [of his attempts], but rather that thoughts do not disturb the attendance and presence [required for the dhikr]. [Thoughts] can be likened to straw which has fallen onto moving water and yet the water is not prevented from its course. 'Abd ul-Khaliq Ghujduwani said: \\\\\\\\\"It isn't so that thoughts never enter the heart/mind, but rather that at times they do and at times they do not.\\\\\\\\\" His statement seems to be supported by Khwaja 'Ala al-Din al-'Attar who reported: \\\\\\\\\"Succeeding with thoughts is difficult or even impossible. I preserved my heart for twenty years from thoughts, after which they would still appear but they then found no hold there.\\\\\\\\\" 8. Continued Remembrance / Perpetual Invocation (Yad dasht) Constant awareness in the presence of God. \\\\\\\\\"The complete experience of divine contemplation, achieved through the action of _object_ive love.\\\\\\\\\" Those on the path maintain that when inner love is always present in one's dealings with the world, then one has achieved this mindfulness. This is the last stage before transformation is completed. The seeker becomes aware that his loss of \\\\\\\\\"self\\\\\\\\\" will be compensated by _object_ive love. The humiliation (abnegation of self) that leads to this stage ceases to touch the seeker for he discovers the unlimited joy that Truth will bring. Yad dasht refers to the durability of the awareness of the Real in the path of \\\\\\\\\"tasting\\\\\\\\\" (living in the multiplicity of illusion). In the Rashahat-i 'ain al-Hayyat it is stated: \\\\\\\\\"Some have said that this is a perceiving/witnessing which is the domination of witnessing the Real in the heart through essential love.\\\\\\\\\" Ubaydullah Ahrar said: \\\\\\\\\"Yad dasht is an _expression_ meaning the durability of the awareness of the Glorious Real.\\\\\\\\\" He said further: \\\\\\\\\"It means presence [with God] without disappearance.\\\\\\\\\" Regarding the use of the term for the period of the dhikr itself it has been said: \\\\\\\\\"Yad dasht is that which the dhakir (person practicing dhikr) during the dhikr maintains [fully the meaning of] negation and affirmation in his heart in the presence of the Named.\\\\\\\\\" Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar has described the principles four through eight as following each other in this manner: \\\\\\\\\"Yad kard (Remembrance) refers to the work of invoking/remembering. Baz gasht (Returning) means turning to the High Real in the manner that when saying the fragrant sentence of the dhikr the seeker follows this in his heart with \\\\\\\\\"God you are my true goal!\\\\\\\\\" and nigah dasht (Attentiveness) is the holding on to this turning [to the Real] without words. Yad dasht (Recollection) means constancy/firmness in [the holding on of] nigah dasht (Attentiveness).\\\\\\\\\" 9. Awareness of One's State of Mind / Time (Wuquf-i-zamani) Baha ad-din Naqshband said that this consciousness is the maker and guide of the disciple. It means to be attentive to one's state of mind at any given moment and to know whether it is a cause for giving thanks or for repenting. It means: To keep account of one's temporal states. To distinguish presence, huzur, from absence, ghaflat. Baha ad-din described this as \\\\\\\\\"self-possession\\\\\\\\\" or \\\\\\\\\"mindfulness.\\\\\\\\\" He added that one should always be grateful when one returns to a state of presence. In wuquf-i-zaman the seeker remains constantly aware of his changing states. Baha ad-din Naqshband explained: \\\\\\\\\"Wuquf-i-zamani is the work of the traveler on the Way: to be attentive of his state, and to know whether it is a cause for giving thanks or for repenting, to give thanks while feeling spiritual elation, and to repent while in spiritual dryness or contraction.\\\\\\\\\" He also stated: \\\\\\\\\"The foundation of the work of the seeker has been established in the awareness of time [exercise] as seeing at each moment whether the perceiver of breaths is [breathing] with presence or with forgetfulness.\\\\\\\\\" Maulana Yaqub Charkhi, in his Explanation of the Names of Allah, said: \\\\\\\\\"Khwaja [Naqshband] instructed that in the state of qabz (contraction) one should seek God's forgiveness, whereas in the state of bast (expansion) one should offer thanks. Close observation of these two states constitutes wuquf-i-zamani.\\\\\\\\\" Wuquf-i-zamani of the Naqshbandi path is equivalent to the term \\\\\\\\\"mohasseba\\\\\\\\\" (keeping account of/close observation) used by other Sufis. Jami, in the Resalah-i-nuria, said:\\\\\\\\\"Wuquf-i-zamani is a term meaning the keeping account of the times one passes in [a state of] dispersal (tafriqah) or collectedness (jam'iyyat).\\\\\\\\\" 10. Awareness of Number (Wuquf-i-adadi) An _expression_ meaning the observation of the number of individual repetitions of the dhikr. Jami said: \\\\\\\\\"Wuquf-i-adadi is the observation of the number of dhikrs and of whether this [observation] yields results or not.\\\\\\\\\" According to Baha ad-din Naqshband, \\\\\\\\\"The observation of the number of repetitions of the dhikr of the heart is for gathering thoughts/mental activity which are scattered.\\\\\\\\\" According to Khwaja 'Ala al-Din al-'Attar, \\\\\\\\\"The important thing is not the number of repetitions but rather the composure and awareness with which one makes them.\\\\\\\\\" According to Baha ad-din Naqshband, this awareness is the first stage of entry into the spiritual world. This could also mean that for beginners, reading about the achievements and states of consciousness demonstrated by those advanced in this practice would be helpful, since in reading about another's state of nearness, one acquires a certain quality of inner inspiration. For advanced disciples, this technique, which facilitates the initial stages of acquiring inner intuition and inspiration, brings a consciousness of the unity of diversity: This diversity and proliferation is all but a show, The One is manifest in the all. Diversity, if you look with open eyes, is naught but unity. No doubts for us, though there might be in some minds. Though appearance is in numbers, the substance is but one. (It should be noted that inner inspiration, that understanding which brings the practitioner and people on the path closer to higher teachings, comes through divine grace and is not due to mind discoveries. \\\\\\\\\"Knowledge comes from grace. The difference between divine inspiration and divine knowledge is that divine knowledge comes through internalizing the light of the Essence and the divine attributes, while divine inspiration is gained through receptivity to inner meanings and those types of instructions which manifest within the practitioner.\\\\\\\\\") 11. Awareness of the Heart (Wuquf-i-qalbi) The heart becomes aware of God. This marks the awakening of divine love. The individual becomes aware that his existence is an obstacle to his final transformation and he no longer fears to sacrifice it because he sees for himself that he will gain infinitely more than he loses. Wuquf-i-qalbi has been described as having two meanings. One is that the seeker's heart in the midst of the dhikr is conscious and aware of the Real. On this point Khwaja Ubaydullah Ahrar said: \\\\\\\\\"Wuquf-i-qalbi is an _expression_ meaning an awareness and presence of heart toward the Most High Real felt in such a manner that the heart feels no need of anything except the Real.\\\\\\\\\" This meaning is similar to that of yad dasht. Heart consciousness means heart's resting with the Beloved, as if nothing and no one else existed. The other meaning is that there is awareness of the heart itself. In other words, the seeker during the time of the dhikr is attentive to the cone-shaped heart which is the \\\\\\\\\"seat of subtlety,\\\\\\\\\" and prevents it from becoming unaware during the saying of the dhikr. Baha ad-din Naqshband did not consider it necessary to hold the breath during the dhikr as is done in some tariqas, even though he considered that practice to have its benefits; nor did he consider essential the wuquf-i-zamani and wuquf-i-adadi (awareness of time and awareness of number). But according to the Qodsîyyah he considered \\\\\\\\\"the observance of wuquf-i-qalbi the most important and necessary because it is the summary and essence of the intention of the dhikr.\\\\\\\\\" Like an expecting mother-bird, sit watchfully on the egg of your heart, Since from this egg will result your drunkenness, self-abandoned, uproarious laughter and your final union., Berapa banyak orang yang hidup di dunia ini ? Tidak terhitung jumlah jalan menuju TUJUAN kita Hanya SATU tujuan TUJUAN itulah yang membawa kalian ke sini. Pertanyaan-pertanyaan dibawah ini sering di utarakan oleh mereka yang baru mengenal Nasybandi: Q : Bagaimana saya dapat memulainya ? A : Hubungi kelompok Nasybandi terdekat. Ada banyak kelompok Nasybandi dihampir semua negara, ada yang besar ataupun kecil, jumlah tidak ada pengaruh, bergabung dengan kelompok itulah yang penting. Q : Seperti apakah kelompok Nasybandi itu ? A :Kelompok Nasybandi yang baik akan sangat menarik, ada rasa santai di dalamnya, hangat dan mengundang secara terbuka. Selama dzikir, kalian diharapkan hanya duduk, menikmatinya tanpa khawatir tidak mengerti arti dibalik kata-kata yang diucapkan. Semua akan tiba pada waktunya. Kalian akan mengalami kehangatan dan kekeluargaan dengan mereka yang berada dalam komunitas. Kalian mungkin juga akan menemui orang-orang dengan berbagai masalah-masalahnya baik secara fisik ataupun mentalnya,ini adalah konsekuensi dari proses mengenali nafsu. Belajar sabar dan bijaksana adalah bagian dari latihan. Q : Seperti apakah sebenarnya melihat Sheik Nazim secara pribadi ? A : Ada yang bilang " Luar biasa", "Dia seperti manusia biasa", "Seperti seekor singa", "Seperti kakekku" –itu semua tergantung bagaimana Sheik Nazim mengijinkan anda untuk melihatnya, dan seberapa besar nafsu menutup antara anda dengan beliau. Q :Orang-orang macam apakah yang ada pada Nasybandi ? A : Pria, wanita, tua, muda, hitam, putih, besar, kecil,Guru, ibu rumah tangga, pemusik, orang-orang biasa yang biasanya bergabung karena kebutuhan mendesak dalam diri untuk mencari Kebenaran dan Persatuan. Q : Saya merasa tidak cukup baik bergabung dengan kelompok seperti ini... A : Tidak mengapa, kita semua tidak cukup baik…. Bahkan sebenarnya itu tanda yang bagus jika anda merasakannya, maka datanglah, anda akan disambut. Q : Mengapa anda malah mendorong orang untuk hadir dalam kelompok ini? Yang saya baca di buku-buku sufi, bahwa kelompok-kelompok sufi yang asli susah untuk dimasuki. A : Memang benar ! pintu kami kadang sedikit seret, butuh diasah sedikit (bercanda ). Allah telah menuntun anda untuk membaca ini, jadi anda sudah mempunyai undangan, silakan masuk. Q : Adakah perbedaan antara Islam dan sufi ? A : Tidak ada sama sekali. Q : Saya suka belajar sufisme, namun bagaimana jika saya tidak puas dengan sheik Nazim? A : Bersabarlah ! Sebuah hubungan dengan sheik tidak terjadi begitu saja. Banyak sheik sufi di dunia ini, seorang sheikh yang benar adalah yang pertama mendorong anda untuk mencoba guru lain jika anda tidak dapat membangun sebuah hubungan dengannya, paling baik adalah bersabar dan tidak mengharap terjadi hubungan yang begitu cepat. Q : Saya sudah bertemu Sheik Nazim dan tidak merasakan suatu "hubungan" dengan beliau. Apa yang harus saya lakukan ? A : Bersabarlah! Ada yang merasa langsung "dekat", namun yang lain harus membangun hubungan beberapa waktu lamanya. Hubungan seperti ini akan meningkat dan menyusut begitu anda belajar untuk mengontrol nafsu. Sheikh sudah mengetahui bahwa anda adalah muridnya (bahkan sebelum anda dilahirkan)dan paham keadaan dalam diri anda, beliau gunakan pengetahuan ini untuk menolong anda membangun hubungan dengannya Q : Apakah saya harus beribadah seketika itu juga? (Pertanyaan dari seorang yang baru masuk islam ) A : Tidak. Ini sebuah konsep yang salah bahwa muslim baru harus melaksanakan ibadah seketika itu juga, hal ini tidak akan berhasil. Berdasar pengalaman, mereka yang langsung diajari sholat 5 waktu dengan cara yang umum digunakan, mereka akan meninggalkan agama Islam dengan cepat atau mungkin menjadi tipe "sersan mayor" yang sangat ketat. Kedua hasil itu tidak diharapkan. Butuh waktu sebelum para pemula itu membangun kecintaan, kepercayaan, waspada dan disiplin agar mampu sholat dan dzikir dengan cara yang rutin dan bertahan. Akan lebih baik bila mengikuti dzikir dulu seminggu sekali dan bergaul dengan mereka yang punya kesamaan tujuan. Kami mengikuti ajaran Nabi tentang mereka yang baru menjadi Muslim, agar membiarkan mereka sendirian beberapa waktu. Dalam 3 tahun pertama seorang pemula tidak usah diajari apapun untuk memberi keleluasaan bagi hidayah memasuki hatinya. Ketahuilah, jika Allah telah menunjukkan seseorang menuju agama-Nya, bisa dipastikan Dia juga mampu mengajarinya lewat ilham. Orang yang mendapat hidayah lewat ilham mungkin akan merasa susah menerima ajaran-ajaran secara konvensional. Akan sangat kontra produktif karena hal ini mengabaikan apa yang sedang Allah kirimkan pada hatinya dan yang Dia minta untuk dipelajari. Allah-lah Yang Maha Tahu. Sheik kami mengikuti cara Nabi Muhammad saw, dan kami mencontoh beliau dengan mengaplikasikan metode memberi pengajaran yang tidak langsung. Dari pengalaman kami, metode ini sangat berhasil. Metode umum lain hanya akan terbatas hasilnya. Kaum muslim senang memberi instruksi pada muslim baru, tanpa pernah mengenali bahwa hal ini berasal dari nafsu mereka sendiri. Q : Apa yang akan saya dapat dalam mengikuti Jalan / tareqat ini ? A : Akses menuju Samudera, Samudera Cinta, Samudera Pengetahuan, Samudera Keindahan, Samudera yang berisi Jagad Raya, Samudera yang tidak berbatas, Potensi tak terbatas yang meluaskan cakrawala anda, akses menuju Tuhan Pencipta Samudera-samudera ini. Surga begitu indahnya dan tidak sedikitpun akan tercemar dan lelah walaupun di huni selama milyaran tahun. Tuhan menunjuk para pembimbing untuk menunjukkan pada anda bagaimana menggapai Kekayaan- Nya. Jika anda menginginkannya, anda akan menemukan satu dari pembimbing-Nya dan ikutilah dia. Q : Bagaimana saya bisa mendapat akses untuk semua ini? A : Belajarlah untuk mengontrol ego, untuk itu anda butuh seorang pembimbing. Q : Mengapa harus lewat agama ? A : Anda kira manusia begitu saja dibuang di dunia ini? Kita dikirim di dunia ini untuk belajar, berkembang, menjadi sesuatu, sesuatu yang berharga dan lebih mulia dari siapa kita saat ini. Kita bukan dibuang disini dan ditinggalkan bersama keperluan-keperluan pribadi. Kita telah diberi banyak hikmah dan jalan untuk menjadi seorang hamba Tuhan yang terhormat dan mulia. Orang yang terpilih membutuhkan seorang pembimbing untuk menunjukkan bagaimana melakukannya. Q :" Sebagai seorang ilmuan saya tak percaya hal-hal yang tak masuk akal ini. A : Jika anda seorang ilmuwan sejati, tak ada cara lain kecuali percaya, jelas sekali bahwa anda bukan orang yang sesuai, karena untuk menjadi ilmuwan sejati, anda harus butuh pembimbing untuk menunjukkan apa yang tidak anda percayai. Q : Jika tidak ada perbedaan antara Sufisme dan Islam, mengapa harus ada 2 nama ? A : Pada satu titik dapat dikatakan bahwa Islam adalah sebuah kumpulan praktek, latihan, hukum, dan rekomendasi bagaimana kita sebaiknya menjalani kehidupan ini. Namun kita juga butuh seseorang untuk menjelaskan BAGAIMANA menggunakan berbagai praktek itu, urutan-urutannya dan kapan seharusnya dilaksanakan. Inilah mengapa Sufisme disebut sebagai jalan atau jalur menuju Tuhan melalui Islam. Anda butuh seorang pembimbing yang telah menjalani jalur itu. Penuntun yang mengetahui metodologi dan cara-cara bagaimana menerapkannya. Q : Saya sudah Muslim dan tidak butuh seorang pembimbing. A : Anda amat bangga pada diri sendiri! jelas sekali anda bukan orang yang sesuai, bagaimana kalau ada seorang guru yang menunjukkan bagaimana agar menjadi lebih rendah hati ? Q : Qur'an dan akal pikiran adalah pembimbing saya. A : Selamat, anda telah berhasil, jelas sekali kalau anda tidak butuh seorang pembimbing. Namun jika ingin mengetahui apa yang akal pikiran anda tidak ketahui dan tidak akan pernah mengetahui-Nya, maka anda butuh seorang pembimbing. Q : Mengapa saya harus menyerahkan diri pada pembimbing yang tidak saya kenal ? A : Ayah dan ibu yang membimbing anda sejauh ini, mereka mengajari anda berbicara. Guru-guru di sekolah mengajari anda agar pandai membaca. Anda telah dibimbing dan diajari sepanjang hidup anda. Anda telah diajari, dikondisikan, dicuci otak oleh banyak orang dan berbagai sistem, secara sadar atau tidak. Untuk mendapatkan perkembangan, baik cepat atau lambat anda harus percaya pada seseorang. Dengan kata lain, untuk menunjukkan pada anda ada apa dibalik dunia yang sempit dan terkondisi ini, maka anda butuh seorang pembimbing. Q : Saya tidak suka semua hukum-hukum dan praktek-praktek ibadah (Pertanyaan dari Muslim Baru) A : Maka jangan dilakukan. Tidak seperti ego manusia, Tuhan bukan tiran, lakukan sesuai yang anda senangi. Q : Saya mengikuti aliran "new age", mirip sekali dengan jalan sufi. A : Mereka tidak seperti jalan/ tareqat Sufi. Cobalah rekomendasikan disiplin diri, mereka akan lari menjauh. Atau katakan bahwa aliran mereka "tidak bagus" maka mereka akan sangat terusik. Q : Siapa yang harus saya pilih untuk menjadi pembimbing ? A : Seseorang yang telah diberi otoritas, bukan seseorang yang menganggap dirinya punya wewenang. Kenali orang itu sebagai seseorang yang tidak merujuk pada dirinya sendiri, namun merujuk pada mereka yang lebih tinggi dari dirinya. Anda mungkin menyaksikan pembimbing yang anda pilih dengan membandingkan metode-metodenya dengan metode tradisional yang digunakan ribuan tahun oleh para Nabi dan orang-orang suci. Materi-materi pelajaran nya ada dimana-mana. Tiap agama, walaupun sangat kuno dan sudah tercemar mengandung hikmah-hikmah tak ternilai. Pembimbing Hakiki (Tuhan ) andalah yang menunjukkan para pembimbing untuk anda, dan para pembimbing itu merujuk pada Nabi saw, dan Nabi mengikuti apa yang diajarkan Allah. Wa min Allah at Tawfiq, A short Association, because now our egoes are pleased that we just had a delicious dinner with every kind of Allah Almighty's favors, so many n'imat [favors] granted us through the doctor's generosity. And we are first thanking Dr. Akmal Khan; we must first say "Thank you" to you, to your family, and as you are giving your generosity to me and to my followers, Allah Almighty should reward you and your ancestors, blessing them and giving hidayat [guidance] for your descendants. May Allah bless everyone that is coming here, from far distances or near ones, and Allah Almighty rewards everyone according to their intentions. Allah Almighty is always looking at our hearts, what are our intentions. And we are saying, "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem, bismillahi-r-Rahmani-r-Raheem."1 We are escaping from Shaytan to Allah, to hide us. We are asking His divine shelter and His divine protection because it is so difficult for us to defeat Shaytan, because our egoes are also always going with Shaytan. If our egoes were not going with Shaytan, it would be easy, but our egoes and Shaytan are from the same characteristic. Shaytan was the first rebellious one toward Allah; in the Divine Presence, the first one who was rebellious was Shaytan, not anyone else before him. And he did his worst for his Lord, while it was right to do his best for his Lord, Allah Almighty, and Shaytan was cursed and kicked out of Heaven to earth. And our egoes are also never accepting to be servants. Our nafs -- that means ego -- is never happy to be a servant to Allah Almighty. Therefore, the same characteristic in Shaytan is with our egoes. And when our egoes are with Shaytan, it is like a man and woman coming together and bringing forth a baby; nafs, our ego and Shaytan, when coming together, must give a birth to an evil, there must be an evil born. Therefore, Allah Almighty, through His first Message to mankind, through the first man and first prophet, Sayyidina Adam, was advising His servants, "Don't give a chance that Shaytan approaches you." If you are giving that chance to him, sharr, evil, must come; a sin must must be there. A sin is born; when Shaytan and our ego go together, a sin quickly comes. Therefore, Allah Almighty is teaching, from the first prophet up today, that you must ask a shelter from Him from Shaytan. Therefore we have been ordered to say "Audhu bil-Lahi min ash-Shaytani-r- Rajeem." "Audhu bil-Lahi min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem" -- that means we are weak ones. We aren't able, by ourselves, to defeat him, to throw him away. Therefore we must ask divine help: "O our Lord, give us a shelter from Shaytan." And Shaytan is everywhere and with everyone. No one is going to be without Shaytan; not any place, even holy places, where Shaytan is not there -- everywhere. Only one place that no Shaytan is in; the only place that Shaytan is forbidden to be there, that is in K'abah. Shaytan can't enter inside it -- no. He can't be there, or quickly he will be burned. Instantly he will be turned to be ashes; he can't come inside it -- prohibited. And also at the grave of the Prophet, turbatu-Rasool,2 (SAWS), inside it, he can't be there, instantly burning and turning to ashes. But in every other place you can find so many shaytans, and also with you, coming with you, even sleeping with you, eating with you, walking with you. 2 When you are sleeping, he is sitting, not sleeping. Not sleeping and he is waiting for you, so that he may see you when you are waking up. If he sleeps, you may make wudhu and pray, but he is looking at you, if you are waking up and says, "Sleep, sleep. It is still dark. Don't get up. You must sleep. Still a long time to morning." Every time you are begin to wake up he says, "There is still a long time before adhan.3 Sleep, sleep well." Yes? Is it not so? Therefore, every time a person is waking up, Shaytan is saying to him, "Don't get up. Sleep. It is so beautiful to sleep. Rest. Even now you are not resting; you are working too much and not resting, taking no pity on your own self. Sleep!" Therefore, Shaytan is everywhere and with everyone. Never leaving you, always coming, saying to you, "I am your bodyguard; trust in me. I am guiding you to an excellent situation. Come with me, follow me." "Follow me"; writing on his back and saying to everyone, "Follow me, follow me." Just as it is written on some cars in an airport, "Follow me," similarly Shaytan is going in front of everyone, man and women, writing and saying, "Follow me" -- and not only writing "Follow me" but also with a microphone in his hand saying, "Please follow me! Follow me! Don't look right and left but just follow me. I am with you always," and people are running after him, day and night. Therefore we must say, "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem. O our Lord, we can't do anything with Shaytan if You do not help us." When you are saying "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem," he is jumping from here to a distance, but then, slowly, slowly, slowly running, approaching you. When you are saying "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem," it is like kicking a football, kicking him, "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem" and throwing him away. Therefore, any time that you are feeling yourself in a bad situation and not able to take control of yourself, you must say "'Audhu bil-Lah min ash-Shaytani-r-Rajeem, 'audhu bil-Lah. . . . " At least seven times you can say it, and he is going to be tired, running away. Yes. And we are saying "Bismillahi-r-Rahmani-r-Raheem." If Allah Almighty does not help us, we can't do anything. "Bismillahi-r-Rahmani-r-Raheem" means, "O my Lord, I am helpless, I am weak, and I am asking Your support, divine support. I am in need of Your blessings, I am in need of Your mercy, I am in need of Your favors. O my Lord, please grant me, please support me, to be able to do something, something for You." Not something for anyone else. If you are doing something for anyone else, it is going to finish and vanish, but everything that you are doing for Allah, it is for you forever. It is impossible for it to be taken away, Allah Almighty keeping it in His treasures. When you are in need, at that time of most need for ourselves on the Day of Resurrection, we should ask help and He should give it to us. Therefore, you must try to be with Allah, and whoever is with Allah, Allah Almighty, in every second, every minute, every hour, every day, every week, every month, every year, He will be supporting, and no one will come to Sheikh Nazim to say, "O sheikh, pray for me because my business is getting bad, getting no more profit. Please pray to Allah for me." Yahu, I am saying, "Allah is closer to you than I am. Why are you not saying it to Him?" Allah is closer to His servants than themselves. "Wa 'alamu anna Llahu yahulu baina-l-marri wa qalbihi"4 -- this holy verse is saying that Allah Almighty is coming in yourself and coming in your heart. And you can't reach your heart; Allah is closer than you to your heart. No one can imagine how close He is to you. It must be so, because He is the Creator. He is the Creator, and He creates what you are thinking and for what you are thinking and for what you are working and what is your purpose and what is your aim; He knows before you know it. I am saying, "Why are you not asking from Allah, coming to me and saying to me that 'Pray for me,' while between you and Allah Almighty there is nothing." You can say, "O my Lord"; you can say, "Ya Rabb, ya Rabb, ya Rabbi," and He is just reaching to you or He is just with you, because you can't stand up without Allah's Power; if His power does not go through your whole body, even through cells then you cannot function, cannot be alive. Cells must be alive with Allah Almighty's power or even the smallest cell can't be alive in your blood, in your brain, in your skin, in your flesh, in your organs. Every cell must be with its Lord and must glorify its Lord. Therefore, we must try to reach a state that by praying we are able to reach Allah Almighty's Will -- that means, what He is asking for me, for you, for anyone else, and if you understanwhat is His will for you, then not to object to it, not to reject or object to Allah Almighty's Will, and then you should be happy. Try to be with Allah Almight's Will. Don't put your will in the place of your Lord's Will, or don't put your will against the Will of your Lord. Whoever puts his will in opposition to the Will of Allah, he is going to fall into an endless depression. Mostly depression is coming from that point, because you want something and Allah Almighty wants something else. And even if all mankind is going to insist on one purpose, they can't change it, they can't make their will to precede or subjugate Allah's Will. If Allah Almighty says "No," no one can make it "Yes." If He says "Yes" for something, even if all nations say "No," it must transpire as He wills. Therefore, that is the most keen knowledge, keen treatment for depressed people. Depressed people must know that what they are saying "Yes" to is not going to be or what they are saying "No" to is not going to be. They must learn that only Allah Almighty can say "Yes;" in spite of all mankind saying "No!" If He says "Yes," that must be. If all mankind says "Yes" and Allah Almighty says "No," it is going not to be. That must be taught to everyone, because depression is increasing day-by-day, and it is a kind of punishment from Allah Almighty that His servants are not using their will and their minds for their actions; they are acting without using their minds and wills, and every time they are making mistakes. Even a simple mistake harms people. What if you make an mistake, every time, every moment, every hour, every day coming against the Will of Allah, and your will makes mistakes? But now it is the time of atheist people; they are saying "No God." Astaghfirullah5 -- no God but Allah! Allah is God. And they are not teaching about God in schools -- it is forbidden in schools to be taught about Allah, and they are saying, "If anyone wants to know something about their Lord, there is the church. Go in and learn there." They are so proud of not putting it into the curriculum of students; they are saying, "If you want to ask about God, go. There is a church. This is something that you can believe or not believe -- it doesn't matter." Put a symbol there -- in the midst of universities, as a symbol, a symbol of mystery. I saw in Cambridge and Oxford, in universities, huge cathedrals, but they are not putting at the beginning of every knowledge the knowledge that leads us to Allah, to God. Therefore, their teachings are harmful and with no result, making people depressed, because if a person says "There is No Allah, no God," that means he is in a situation where there is no any support from any direction and then he can fall down. Therefore, governments must change their educational policies, to put knowledge about Allah as the first lesson for little children all the way up to academic studies. They must say first, "In the name of Allah, All-mighty, All-Merciful, who created us, who granted us to be His servants." As long as they do not put this, they are going to be in suffering, with no peace, and fighting continuing. May Allah forgive us. Therefore, O people, listen and try to act, try to believe, try to act according to your beliefs. Don't let Shaytan come to you so you can follow him. Shaytan is in Hell, and anyone following Shaytan is just going to fall into Hell. And the Prophet is in Paradise; whoever wants to follow him, he should reach the Prophet in Paradise. May Allah cause us to be in Paradise with His prophets, with His awliya (saints) and anbiya (prophets) and with pure ones, and may He change this world to take away devils and to make us among His sincere servants so that we should reach happiness and contentment and pleasure from Allah Almighty., "Salafis" accuse us of deviation and heresy because we sit and recite dhikr -- loud or silently -- together: the kalima al-tayyiba, and astaghfirullah, and the Fatiha and other Suras, and salawat on the Prophet, and la ilaha illallah, and Allah's beautiful Names. Some of them object because it is loud and they claim it should be silent; object because it is silent and they claim it should be loud; others object because it is in a group and itshouldbe individual; others because they claim our emphasis on dhikr is excessive and we should raise funds or study or hold conferences or make jihad instead; others object because some people are affected by the dhikr so as to sway or move this way or that instead of sitting still, so they want everyone to sit absolutely still; others because we sometimes perform dhikr in dim surroundings rather than in a glaring light; others yet object to reciting the name ALLAH by itself and claim it is an innovation, so that we should only say: YA Allah. Finally, they also accuse us of innovation and misguidance because we use dhikr-beads which we carry in our hands. What is the position of Ahl al-Sunna on all these points? DHIKR IS THE GREATEST OBLIGATION AND A PERPETUAL DIVINE ORDER Dhikr of Allah is the most excellent act of Allah's servants and is stressed over a hundred times in the Holy Qur'an. It is the most praiseworthy work to earn Allah's pleasure, the most effective weapon to overcome the enemy, and the most deserving of deeds in reward. It is the flag of Islam, the polish of hearts, the essence of the science of faith, the immunization against hypocrisy, the head of worship, and the key of all success.There are no restrictions on the modality, frequency, or timing of dhikr whatsoever. The restrictions on modality pertain to certain specific obligatory acts which are not the issue here, such as Salat. The Shari`a is clear and everyone knows what they have to do. Indeed, the Prophet said that the People of Paradise will only regret one thing: not having made enough dhikr in the world! Are not those who are making up reasons to discourage others from making dhikr afraid of Allah in this tremendous matter? Allah says in His holy Book: "O Believers, make abundant mention of ALLAH!" (33:41) And He mentions of His servants "Those who remember their Lord standing, and sitting, and lying on their sides" (3:191), in other words at all times of the day and night. He said (3:190-191): "The creation of heaven and earth and the changes of night and day are signs for people who have wisdom: -- consider who is described as having wisdom -- Those who remember (and recite and call) Allah standing up, sitting, and lying on their sides." `A'isha said, as narrated by Muslim, that the Prophet mentioned/remembered Allah at all times of the day and night. The Prophet said: "If your hearts were always in the state that they are in during dhikr, the angels would come to see you to the point that they would greet you in the middle of the road." Muslim narrated it. Imam Nawawi in his Sharh sahih muslim commented on this hadith saying: "This kind of sight is shown to someone who persists in meditation (muraqaba), reflection (fikr), and anticipation (iqbal) of the next world." Mu`adh ibn Jabal said that the Prophet also said: "The People of Paradise will not regret except one thing alone: the hour that passed them by and in which they made no remembrance of Allah." Narrated by Bayhaqi in Shu`ab al-iman (1:392 #512-513) and by Tabarani. Haythami in Majma` al-zawa'id (10:74) said that its narrators are all trustworthy (thiqat), while Suyuti declared it hasan in his Jami` al-saghir (#7701). Dhikr is, therefore, something of tremendous importance. Abu Hurayra said that the Prophet said, Peace be upon him: "The earth and everything in it is cursed, except for dhikr and what attends dhikr, and a teacher (of dhikr) and a student (of dhikr)." Narrated by Tirmidhi who said it is hasan, Ibn Majah who said the same, Bayhaqi, and others. Suyuti cites it in al-Jami` al-saghir from al-Bazzar's similar narration from Ibn Mas`ud and he declared it sahih. Tabarani also narrated it in al-Awsat from Abu al-Darda'. Meanings of Dhikr The word dhikr has many meanings. It means: - Allah's Book and its recitation; - Prayer; - Learning and teaching: The author of Fiqh al-sunna said: Sa'id ibn Jubayr said, "Anyone engaged in obeying Allah is in fact engaged in the remembrance of Allah." Some of the earlier scholars tied it to some more specified form. `Ata said, "The gatherings of dhikr are the gatherings where the lawful and the prohibited things are discussed, for instance, selling, buying, prayers, fasting, marriage, divorce, and pilgrimage." Qurtubi said, "Gatherings of dhikr are the gatherings for knowledge and admonition, those in which the Word of Allah and the sunnah of His Messenger, accounts of our righteous predecessors, and sayings of the righteous scholars are learned and practised without any addition or innovation, and without any ulterior motives or greed." - Invocation of Allah with the tongue according to one of the formulas taught by the Prophet or any other formula; - Remembrance of Allah in the heart, or in both the heart and the tongue. Loudness in dhikr Bukhari narrated that Abu Huraira (r) reported that the Prophet (s) said, "If My servant mentions Me in himself, I will mention him in Myself. If he mentions Me in a group, I will mention him in a group in My presence." We understand from this hadith that to mention Allah in a group indicates loud dhikr. Some scholars determined from this that using loud dhikr is permitted. Bukhari narrated in his book of hadith, that Ibn 'Abbas (r) said, "In the time of the Prophet (s) the people used to raise their voices in Dhikr." Bukhari narrated in his book of hadith, that Abu Ma'bad (r), the freed slave of Ibn 'Abbas (r), said: "Ibn 'Abbas told me, 'In the lifetime of the Prophet (s), it was the custom to celebrate Allah's praises aloud after the obligatory congregational prayers.'" Ibn 'Abbas (r) continued, "When I heard the Dhikr, I would know that the congregational prayer had ended." Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi related that as-Sa'ib (r) preported that the Prophet (s) said, "Jibril came to me and ordered me to order my Companions to raise their voices in takbir." Silent Dhikr Imam Ahmad narrated, "Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet (s) said that Allah says, 'I am with my servant when he remembers Me and by his remembrance of Me his lips move." Commenting on this hadith, Imam Nawawi said, "Allah is with the one who remembers Him and calls Him in his heart, and calls Him on his tongue, but we must realize that the dhikr of the heart is more perfect. The rememberer made dhikr of the tongue in order to reflect the occurrence of the dhikr in his heart. When the love of Allah and His Remembrance overwhelms the heart and the spirit, the tongue is moved and the seeker brought near." "That is why our Naqshbandi masters have chosen the dhikr of the heart. Moreover, the heart is the place where the Forgiver casts his gaze, and the seat of belief, and the receptacle of secrets, and the source of lights. If it is sound, the whole body is sound, and if it is unsound, the whole body is unsound, as was made clear for us by the chosen Prophet (s). "Something that confirms this was narrated on the authority of cA'isha (r): 'Allah favors dhikr above dhikr seventyfold (meaning, silent dhikr over loud dhikr). On the Day of Resurrection, God will bring back human beings to His account, and the Recording Angels will bring what they have recorded and written, and Allah Almighty will say: See if something that belongs to my servant was left out? The angels will say: We left nothing out concerning what we have learnt and recorded, except that we have assessed it and written it. Allah will say: O my servant, I have something good of yours for which I alone will reward you, it is your hidden remembrance of Me.' Bayhaqi narrated it. Dhikr in Assembly and in a Circle Ibn `Umar reported, "The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, `When you pass by a garden of paradise, avail yourselves of it.' The Companions asked, `What are the gardens of Paradise, O Messenger of Allah?" The Prophet, peace be upon him, replied, `The assemblies of dhikr. There are some angels of Allah who go about looking for such assemblies of dhikr, and when they find them they surround them.'" [Quoted from Fiqh us-Sunnah compiled by As-Sayyid Sabiq, vol. 4, ch. 6.] From Abu Hurayra, the Prophet said that Allah Most High said: "I am as My servant thinks of Me and I sit with him when he remembers Me. If he mentions Me in himself I mention him in Myself. If he mentions Me in a gathering I mention him in a better gathering." (Al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, and Ahmad) Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri and Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet, peace by upon him, said, "When any group of men remember Allah, angels surround them and mercy covers them, tranquility descends upon them, and Allah mentions them to those who are with Him." Narrated by Muslim, Tirmidhi, Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and Bayhaqi. Types and frequency of Dhikr Dhikr involves muraqaba or meditation, through which one reaches the state of ihsan or excellence, wherein a person worships Allah as if he is actually seeing Him. - The gatherings for dhikr are gatherings of angels, and gatherings without dhikr are gatherings of Satan. - By virtue of dhikr, the person doing dhikr is blessed, as also the person sitting next to him. - In spite of the fact that dhikr is the easiest form of worship (the movement of the tongue being easier than the movement of any other part of the body), yet it is the most virtuous form. - Dhikr is a form of Sadaqa -- charity. Abu Dharr al-Ghifari said: "The Messenger of Allah said: "Sadaqa is for every person every day the sun rises." I said: "O Messenger of Allah, from what do we give sadaqa if we do not possess property?" He said: "The doors of sadaqa are takbir (i.e. to say: Allahu Akbar, Allah is Greater); Subhan Allah (Allah is exalted high); al-hamdu lillah (all praise is for Allah); La ilaha illallah (there is no god other than Allah); Astaghfirullah (I seek forgiveness from Allah); enjoining good; forbidding evil.... These are all the doors of sadaqah from you which is prescribed for you, and there is a reward for you even in sex with your wife." Narrated by Ahmad and Ibn Hibban, and there is something of similar effect in Muslim. The required amount of dhikr is as much as possible Allah ordered that He should be remembered abundantly. Describing the wise men and women who ponder His signs, the Qur'an mentions: "Those who remember Allah standing, sitting and on their sides," (3:191), and "Those men and women who engage much in Allah's praise. For them has Allah prepared forgiveness and a great reward." (3:191, 33:35) Dhikr with the name "ALLAH" Allah said in His Book: "And mention the name of your Lord and devote yourself to Him with a complete devotion" (73:8). Qadi Thana'ullah Panipati said in his Tafsir Mazhari (10:111): "Know that this verse points to the repetition of the name of the Essence (ism al-dhat)," that is: "Allah." The same meaning is intimated also by the end of verse 6:91 in Surat al-An`am: "Say ALLAH. Then leave them to their play and vain wrangling." The Prophet said: "The Hour will not rise before Allah, Allah is no longer said on earth." And through another chain: "The Hour will not rise on anyone saying: Allah, Allah." Muslim narrated both in his Sahih, Book of Iman (belief), chapter 66 entitled: dhahab al-iman akhir al-zaman "The Disappearance of Belief at the End of Times." Imam Muslim placed the hadith under the chapter-heading of the disappearance of belief (iman) at the end of times although there is no mention of belief in the hadith. This shows that saying "Allah, Allah" stands for belief. Those who say it show belief, while those who don't say it, don't show belief. Therefore those who fight those who say it, are actually worse than those who merely lack belief and do not say "Allah, Allah." Dhikr "hu", "hayy", "haqq" - "Hu" and "Hayy" are a pronoun and name of Allah Almighty in the Qur'an according to ayat al-Kursi: Allahu la ilaha illa HU AL-HAYY al-Qayyum (2:255) Allah! There is no god except HE, the LIVING the Self-Subsistent - "Haqq" is one of the names of Allah in the hadith in Bukhari and Muslim enumerating the ninety-nine Names (see below). Furthermore, the Prophet prayed to Allah with the following invocations: (a) "Labbayka ilah al-Haqq" [At your command, O the God of Truth]. It is narrated in the book of Hajj in al-Nasa'i's Sunan, and in the book of Manasik in Ibn Majah's. (b) "Anta al-Haqq" [You are Truth]. Bukhari and Muslim. - Allah said: "Wa lillahi al-asma' al-husna fad`uhu biha" : To Allah belong the Most beautiful Names, so call Him with them (7:180). These names are not confined to ninety-nine, as Nawawi explicitly stated in his commentary on the hadith in Bukhari and Muslim whereby the Prophet said: "Inna lillahi ta`ala tis`atan wa tis`ina isman, mi'atan illa wahidan, man ahsaha dakhala al-jannat...": "There are ninety-nine names which belong to Allah, one hundred less one, whoever memorizes (or recites) them enters Paradise..." - The Prophet used to call Allah by ALL His Names: "Allahumma inni ad`uka bi asma'ika al-husna kulliha": O Allah, I invoke You with all of Your beautiful Names. Narrated by Ibn Maja, book of Du`a; and by Imam Malik in his Muwatta', Kitab al-Shi`r. Dhikr in Dim Surroundings - Allah said to the Prophet: "Wa min al-layli fa tahajjad bihi nafilatan laka" : "And some part of the night awake for it, a largess for thee" (17:79), and He said: "Lo! the vigil of the night is a time when impression is more keen and speech more certain." (73:6). The superiority of prayer at night is knows in all books of hadith and fiqh because of the elimination of worldly distractions at that time. That is why Imam Ghazali wrote on that topic: "The root of thought is the eye... He whose niyyat (intention) is fine and who aims high cannot be diverted by what occurs in front of him, but he who is weak fall prey to it. The medicine is to cut off the roots of these distractions and to shut up the eyes, to pray in a dark room, not to keep anything in front which may attract attention and not to pray in a decorated place. For this reason, the saints used to worship in dark, narrow and unspacious rooms." Ihya' `Ulum al-Din, Book of Salat. Movement during dhikr We have already mentioned above the version of the hadith of Muslim whereby the Prophet praised the mufarridun or those who are single-minded in their remembrance of Allah: Nawawi said: Another narration has: "They are those who shake or are moved at the mention or remembrance of Allah (hum al-ladhina ihtazzu fi dhikrillah), that is, they have become fervently devoted and attached to His remembrance." Imam Habib al-Haddad said in Key to the Garden (p. 116): Dhikr returns from the outward feature which is the tongue to the inward which is the heart, in which it becomes solidly rooted, so that it takes firm hold of its members. The sweetness of this is tasted by the one who has taken to dhikr with the whole of himself, so that his skin and heart are softened. As Allah said: "Then their skins and their hearts soften to the remembrance of Allah" (39:23). The "softening of the heart" consists in the sensitivity and timidity that come as a result of nearness and tajalli [manifestation of one or more divine attributes]. Sufficient is it to have Allah as one's intimate companion! As for the "softening of the skin." this is the ecstasy and swaying from side to side which result from intimacy and manifestation, or from fear and awe. No blame attaches to someone who has reached this rank if he sways and chants, for in the painful throes of love and passion he finds something which arouses the highest yearning.... The exhortation provided by fear and awe brings forth tears and forces one to tremble and be humble. These are the states of the righteous believers (abrar) when they hear the Speech and dhikr of Allah the Exalted. "Their skins shiver" (39:23), and then soften with their hearts and incline to dhikr of Him, as they are covered in serenity and dignity, so that they are neither frivolous, pretentious, noisy, or ostentatious. Allah the Exalted has not described them as people whose reasons have departed, who faint, dance, or jump about. Hadiths on the Virtues of Dhikr Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet said: "When a servant of Allah utters the words la ilaha illallah (there is no god except Allah) sincerely, the doors of heaven open up for these words until they reach the Throne of Allah, so long as its utterer keeps away from the major sins." (Narrated by Tirmidhi, who says it is hasan gharib. al-Mundhiri included in al-Targhib 2:414) Abu Hurayra also reported that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said, "Renew your faith." "How can we renew our faith?" they asked. The Prophet replied: "Say always: la ilaha illallah." (Narrated by Ahmad with a fair chain of authorities) Jabir reported that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: "The best remembrance of Allah is to repeat la ilaha illallah and the best prayer (du'a) is al-hamdu lillah (all praise belongs to Allah)." (Narrated by Nasa'i, Ibn Majah, and Hakim who declared its chain sound) Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet said: "There are two phrases that are light on the tongue but heavy on the scale of rewards and are dear to the Gracious One. These are: subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi, "Glorified is Allah with all praise to Him," and subhan Allah al-`azim, "Glorified is Allah, the Great." (Narrated by Bukhari, Muslim, and Tirmidhi) Abu Hurayra also reported that the Prophet said: "I love repeating: subhan Allah, wa al-hamdu lillah, wa la ilaha illallah, wallahu akbar: "Glorified is Allah, and Praise be to Allah, and There is no God but Allah, and Allah is most Great," more than all that the sun shines upon." (Narrated by Muslim and Tirmidhi) Abu Dharr reported that the Prophet said: "Shall I tell you the words that Allah loves the most?" I said: "Yes, tell me, O Messenger of Allah." He said: "The words dearest to Allah are: subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi "Glorified is Allah with all praise to Him." (Narrated by Muslim and Tirmidhi) In Tirmidhi's version, we also find the following: "The words most dear to Allah which He has chosen for His angels are: subhana rabbi wa bi hamdihi subhana rabbi wa bi hamdihi, "Glorified is my Lord with all praise to Him, Glorified is my Lord with all praise to Him!" Jabir reported that the Prophet said: "Whoever says: "Glorified is Allah, the Great, with all praise to Him" will have a palm tree planted for him in Paradise." (Narrated by Tirmidhi, who said it is hasan) Abu Sa`id reported that the Prophet said: "Perform the enduring goods deeds (al-baqiyat al-salihat) more frequently." They asked, "What are these enduring good deeds?" The Prophet replied: Takbir [allahu akbar], Tahlil [la ilaha illallah], Tasbih [subhan allah], al-hamdu lillah, and la hawla wa la quwwata illa billah. (Narrated Nasa'i and Hakim, who said its chain is sahih.) `Abd Allah ibn Mas`ud reported that the Prophet said: "During the Night Journey I met Ibrahim who said to me: O Muhammad, convey my greetings to your Community, and tell them that the Paradise is of pure land, its water is sweet, and its expanse is vast, spacious and even. And its seedlings are: subhan allah: Glory to Allah wa al-hamdu lillah: and Praise to Allah wa la ilaha illallah: and there is no god but Allah wallahu akbar: and Allah is greatest. (Narrated by Tirmidhi and Tabarani whose version adds: "There is no power nor strength save through Allah.") Samura ibn Jundub reported that the Prophet said: "The dearest phrases to Allah are four: subhan Allah, wa al-hamdu lillah, wa la ilaha illallah, wallahu akbar: "Glorified is Allah, and Praise be to Allah, and There is no God but Allah, and Allah is most Great," There is no harm in beginning them in any order you choose while remembering Allah." (Narrated by Muslim) Ibn Mas`ud reported that the Prophet said: "If anyone recites the last two verses of Surat al- Baqara at night (2:285-286), they will suffice for him." (Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim). That is, these two verses will bring him a reward equivalent to that of a night prayer, and will safeguard him from any hurt during that night. Ibn Khuzayma in his Sahih mentioned it under the chapter "The Recitation of the Qur'an Equivalent in Reward to a Night Prayer." Abu Sa`id al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet asked: "Can anyone of you recite a third of the Qur'an during the night?" The Companions considered this difficult and they said: "Who among us can do so, O Prophet of Allah?" Thereupon the Prophet said: "Allah, the One, the Eternally-Besought [i.e. surat al-Ikhlas] is a third of the Qur'an." (Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim) Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet said: "Whoever says: la ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lah, lahu al-mulku wa lahu al-hamd, wa huwa `ala kulli shay'in qadir -- There is no god but Allah, alone, without partner. His is the sovereignty, and His the praise, and He has power over everything -- a hundred times a day will have a reward equivalent to the reward for freeing ten slaves. In addition, a hundred good deeds will be recorded for him and a hundred bad deeds of his will be wiped off, and it will be a safeguard for him from Satan that day until evening, and no one will be better in deeds than such a person except he who does more than that." (Narrated by Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Nasa'i and Ibn Majah) In the version of Muslim, Tirmidhi, and Nasa'i, we find this addition: "Whoever says: subhan Allah wa bi hamdihi -- Glorified is Allah with all praise to Him -- a hundred times during a day, will have all his sins wiped off even if they were as numerous as the foam on the surface of the sea." Istighfar Anas reported that he heard the Prophet saying that Allah says, "O son of Adam, whatever you asked Me and expect from Me I forgave -- respecting that which you owed to Me -- and I don't care (how great this was). O Son of Adam, even if your sins pile up to the sky and then you seek My forgiveness I will forgive you, and O son of Adam, even if you have an earthful of sins but you meet Me without associating any other thing with Me I will forgive you." (Narrated by Tirmidhi who said it is hasan sahih.) `Abd Allah ibn `Abbas said: "If one supplicates without fail for forgiveness from Allah, He finds a way out for him to get out of every distress and difficulty, and gives him sustenance through ways utterly unthought of." (Narrated by Abu Dawud, Nasa'i, Ibn Majah, and Hakim, who said its chain of authorities is sound.) Juwayriyya bint al-Harith, one of the wives of the Prophet, reported that one day the Prophet left her apartment in the morning as she was busy observing her dawn prayer in her place of worship. He came back in the forenoon and she was still sitting there. The Prophet said to her: "You have been in the same place since I left you?" She said: "Yes." Thereupon the Prophet said: "I recited four words three times after I left you and if these are to be weighed against what you have recited since morning these would outweigh them, and these words are: subhan allahi wa bi hamdihi `adada khalqihi wa rida nafsihi wa zinata `arshihi wa midada kalimatihi "Glory to Allah and praise to Him to number of His creation and to the extent of His pleasure and to the extent of the weight of His Throne and to the extent of ink used in recording words for His Praise." (Muslim and Abu Dawud) Ibn `Umar reported that the Prophet told them, "A servant of Allah said: ya rabbi laka al-hamdu kama yanbaghi li jalali wajhika wa li `azimi sultanik. My Lord! All praise belongs to You as much as befits Your Glory and Sublime Majesty. This was too much for the two angels to record. They did not know how to record it. So they soared to the heaven and said: Our Lord! Your servant has said something which we don't know how to record. Allah asked them -- and, of course, He knew what the servant had said: What did My servant say? They said: He said: My Lord! All praise belongs to You as much as befits Your Glory and Sublime Majesty. Allah said to them: Write it down as My servant has said until he should meet Me and I reward him for it." (Narrated by Ibn Majah) Abdullah ibn `Amr ibn al-As said: "I saw the Prophet counting the glorifications of Allah on his right hand's fingers." (Narrated by Tirmidhi who said hasan gharib, Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, and Ahmad.) Yusayra bint Yasir reported that the Prophet commanded them (the Emigrant women) to be regular in remembering Allah by saying tahlil (la ilaha illallah) and tasbih (subhan allah) and taqdis (allahu akbar) and never to be forgetful of Allah and His Mercy, and to count them on their fingers, for the fingers will be questioned and will speak. (Narrated by Ahmad, Tirmidhi who said it is gharib, Abu Dawud, and al-Hakim. Shawkani in Nayl al-awtar 2:316 said that Suyuti declared sound (sahih) its chain of transmission.) Use of prayer-beads (masbaha, sibha, tasbih) Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas reported that once the Prophet saw a woman who had some date-stones or pebbles which she was using as beads to glorify Allah. The Prophet said to her, "Let me tell you something which would be easier or more excellent for you than that." So he told her to say instead: subhan allahi `adada ma khalaqa fi s-sama', subhan allahi `adada ma khalaqa fi al-ard, subhan allahi `adada ma khalaqa bayna dhalik, subhan allahi `adada ma huwa khaliq, Allahu akbaru 'adada ma khalaqa fi al-sama', Allahu akbaru 'adada ma khalaqa fi l-'ard, Allahu akbaru 'adada ma khalaqa bayna dhalik, Allahu akbaru 'adada ma huwa khaliq, al-hamdu lillahi `adada ma khalaqa fi al-sama', al-hamdu lillahi `adada ma khalaqa fi l-'ard, al-hamdu lillahi `adada ma khalaqa bayna dhalik, al-hamdu lillahi `adada ma huwa khaliq, la ilaha illallahu `adada ma khalaqa fi al-sama', la ilaha illallahu `adada ma khalaqa fi al-ard, la ilaha illallahu `adada ma khalaqa bayna dhalik, la ilaha illallahu `adada ma huwa khaliq, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi `adada ma khalaqa fi al-sama', la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi `adada ma khalaqa fi al-ard, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi `adada ma khalaqa bayna dhalik, la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi `adada ma huwa khaliq. "Glory be to Allah as many times as the number of what He has created in Heaven, Glory be to Allah as many times as the number of what He has created on Earth, Glory be to Allah as many times as the number of what He has created between them, Glory be to Allah as many times as the number of that which He is creating." and then repeat all of the above four times but substituting "Glory be to Allah" by: - "Allah is the most great" in the first repetition, - "Praise be to Allah" in the second repetition, - "There is no god but Allah" in the third repetition, and - "There is no change and no power except with Allah" in the fourth repetition. (Narrated by Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi who said it is hasan, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban in his Sahih, al-Nasa'i, and al-Hakim, who said it is sahih according to the criterion of Muslim. Dhahabi concurred.) Safiyya bint Huyayy the Prophet's wife said: The Prophet came in to see me and in front of me there were four thousand date-stones with which I was making tasbih [counting subhan Allah]. He said: "You make tasbih with so many! Shall I teach you what surpasses your number of tasbih?" She said: "Teach me!" He said: "Say: Subhan Allah `adada khalqihi -- Glory to Allah the number of His creation." Narrated by Tirmidhi who said it is gharib, and both al-Hakim and Suyuti declared it sahih. Allah says in His Holy Book to His Holy Prophet, "Remind people, for reminding benefits them." The reminder of Muslims has various forms, public and private. A public form of this reminder is the adhan. The masbaha or sibha or tasbih, or prayer-beads, has had since the earliest Companions the function of a private reminder. It is for that reason that the tasbih was called by them mudhakkir or mudhakkira -- "reminder," and there is a narration traced to the Prophet whereby he said: ni`ma al-mudhakkir al-sibha: "What a good reminder are the prayer-beads!" Shawkani narrates it from `Ali ibn Abi Talib as evidence for the usefulness of prayer-beads in Nayl al-awtar (2:317) from Daylami's narration in Musnad al-firdaws with his chain, and Suyuti cites it in his fatwa on prayer-beads in al-Hawi li al-fatawi (2:38). The statement propagated nowadays by "Salafis" whereby counting dhikr on beads is an innovation, is undoubtedly false. The use of beads for counting dhikr is definitely established as a practice allowed by the Prophet and a Sunna of the Companions. This is proven by the sahih hadith of Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, who related that the Prophet once saw a woman using some datestones or pebbles (nawan aw hasan), and did not prohibit her to use them. This hadith is found in Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, Nisa'i, Ibn Maja, Ibn Hibban, and Hakim. Dhahabi declared it sahih. Another sahih hadith to that effect was related by Safiyya, who was seen by the Prophet, Peace be upon him, counting "Subhan Allah" on four thousand date stones. This hadith is found in Tirmidhi, Hakim, and Tabarani, and was confirmed as sahih by Suyuti. It is also related from the Prophet's freedman, Abu Safiyya, that a mat would be spread for him and a basket made of palm leaves brought which was filled with pebbles with which he would make tasbih until mid-day. Then it would be taken away, and then brought back after he had prayed, and he would make tasbih again until evening. This is narrated in Ibn Hajar's Isaba (7:106 #652) with his chain, who says that Bukhari narrates it [in his Tarikh], as well as al-Baghawi through two chains. Shawkani cites it, as seen below. Shawkani said in Nayl al-awtar (2:316-317): The Prophet justified the counting of dhikr on the fingers by the fact that the fingers will be questioned and will speak, that is, they will witness to that effect. It follows that counting tasbih on them, because of this aspect, is better than using dhikr-beads or pebbles. But the two other hadiths [of Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas and Safiyya bint Huyayy] indicate the permissibility of counting tasbih with date-stones and pebbles, and similarly with dhikr-beads because there is no distinguishing factor between them in the Prophet's stipulation to the two women concerning it, and no disapproval of it. As for directing to what is better: this does not negate permissibility (la yunafi al-jawaz). There are reports to that effect. It is related in Hilal al-Haffar's monograph through Mu`tamar ibn Sulayman from Abu Safiyya the Prophet's freedman that a mat would be spread for him and a basket made of palm leaves brought which was filled with pebbles with which he would make tasbih until mid-day. Then it would be taken away, and then brought back after he had prayed, and he would make tasbih again until evening. Imam Ahmad narrates it in Kitab al-zuhd [with his chain]. Ahmad also narrates from al-Qasim ibn `Abd al-Rahman that Abu al-Darda' had a bag filled with date-stones and that whenever he prayed the noon prayer he would bring them out one by one and make tasbih on them until they were finished. Ibn Sa`d in his Tabaqat narrates [with his chains] that Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas used to count tasbih on pebbles, and that Fatima bint al-Husayn ibn `Ali ibn Abi Talib used to make tasbih with a thread stringed with knots, and that Abu Hurayra made tasbih with a string of pebbles (al-nawa al-majmu`). `Abd Allah the son of Imam Ahmad narrated in Zawa'id al-zuhd that Abu Hurayra had a thread stringed with one thousand knots and that he would not sleep until he had counted tasbih on them. al-Daylami narrates in Musnad al-firdaws through Zaynab bint Sulayman ibn `Ali, and from Umm al-Hasan bint Ja`far from her father from her grandfather from `Ali, and it is traced back to the Prophet: "What a good reminder are the prayer-beads!" Suyuti related reports with their chains in his monograph on the subject entitled al-Minha min al-sibha and it is part of his collected fatwas. He says towards the end of it: "It is not related from any one of the Salaf nor the Khalaf that it is forbidden to count tasbih on the sibha (dhikr-beads). On the contrary, most of them used to count tasbih on it, and they did not consider it disliked." The Indian hadith scholar Zakariyya al-Khandlawi similarly relates in his book Hayat al-sahaba that Abu Hurayra said: "I recite istighfar (formula of asking forgiveness) 12,000 times daily" and that, according to his grandson, he had a piece of thread with 1,000 knots and would not go to sleep until he had said subhan allah (Glory to Allah) on all of these knots. According to her grand-daughter through Imam al-Husayn, Fatima also used to count her dhikr on a thread with knots. Mawlana Zakariyya continues, "It is well-known that many other Companions of the Prophet, Peace be upon him, used beads in their private devotions, such as Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas himself, Abu Safiyya the slave of the Prophet, Abu Sa`d, Abu Darda', and Fatima, May Allah be pleased with them all. Stringing or not stringing the beads together does not make any difference." It is well-established that counting dhikr is a Sunna of the Prophet, Peace be upon him. He himself advised his wives, `Ali, and Fatima to count tasbih (subhan allah), tahmid (al-hamdu lillah), and takbir (allahu akbar) thirthy-three times each before going to bed at night. Ibn `Amr relates that he saw the Prophet, count the times he said subhan allah on his right hand. This does not mean that it is not allowed to use the left also, as the Prophet simply said: "Count [the dhikr] on your fingers." Imam Suyuti recounted in one of his fatwas entitled al-Minha fi al-sibha (The profit derived from using dhikr-beads) the story of `Ikrima, who asked his teacher `Umar al-Maliki about dhikr-beads. `Umar answered him that he had also asked his teacher Hasan al-Basri about it and was told: "Something we have used at the beginning of the road we are not desirous to leave at the end. I love to remember Allah with my heart, my hand, and my tongue." Suyuti comments: "And how should it be otherwise, when the prayer-beads remind one of Allah Most High, and a person seldom sees prayer-beads except he remembers Allah, which is among the greatest of its benefits." As for Albani's statements against the prayer-beads, his rejection of the hadith ni`ma al-mudhakkir al-sibha (see his Silsila da`ifa #83), and his astounding claim that whoever carries dhikr-beads in his hand to remember Allah is misguided and innovating, then we direct the reader to their refutation in Mahmud Sa`id's Wusul al-tahani bi ithbat sunniyyat al-sibha wa al-radd `ala al-albani (The alighting of mutual benefit and the confirmation that the dhikr-beads are a Sunna, and the refutation of Albani). As for the idea that the prayer-beads come from Buddhism or Christianity, it was one of the Hungarian scholar Ignaz Goldziher's (fl. 1897 CE) legacies to orientalism. Invoking blessings on the Prophet (salawat) Allahumma salli `ala muhammadin wa `ala ali muhammadin wa sallim. O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad and upon the Family of Muhammad, and grant them peace! We have already expounded elsewhere on the fact that there is no such thing as invoking too much salawat on the Prophet and that we should be clear of anyone who makes such a claim. We will only mention here some evidence on this topic by way of a reminder. Abu Hurayra reported that the Prophet said: "If people sit in an assembly in which they do not remember Allah nor invoke a blessing on the Prophet, it will be a cause of grief for them on the Day of Judgment." (Narrated by Tirmidhi, who graded it hasan.) The author of Fath al-`allam said: "This hadith proves that it is incumbent on one to remember Allah and invoke blessings on the Prophet while sitting in an assembly, for whether we take the words "cause of grief" to mean torment of fire or any other chastisement, obviously a punishment is incurred only when an obligatory act is neglected or a forbidden act is committed, and here it is both the remembrance of Allah and the invoking of blessings on His Prophet that are apparently incumbent." Excerpts on the remembrance of Allah from `Abd al-Rahman al-Sufuri's (d. 894) NUZHAT AL-MAJALIS WA MUNTAKHAB AL-NAFA'IS (The Pleasant Gatherings and the Select Precious Matters) Allah, the Exalted, said: "Verily in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest!" (13:28). If it is asked: How is the meaning of this verse reconciled with that of His saying: "They only are the true believers whose hearts feel fear (wajilat = tremble or shake) when Allah is mentioned" (8:2), the answer is that in the latter the purpose of Allah's mention is to bring to mind His greatness and the intensity of His vengeance against those who disobey Him. This verse was revealed at a time when the Companions had a disagreement concerning the spoils of the battle of Badr. Therefore the mention or the remembrance of what is fearsome became appropriate. As for the former verse, it concerns whoever Allah guided and who has turned to Allah with love. Therefore the mention of Allah's mercy became appropriate. The two meanings of fearsomeness and mercy are reunited in Surat al-Zumar: "Allah hath now revealed the fairest of statements, a Scripture consistent, wherein promises of reward are paired with threats of punishment, whereat doth creep the flesh of those who fear their Lord, so that (thumma = and then) their flesh and their hearts soften to Allah's reminder (or: to the celebration of Allah's praises; or: to Allah's remembrance)" (39:23), meaning, to Allah's mercy and generosity. The Prophet said: "He who remembers Allah much, Allah loves him," and he said: "The night that I was enraptured to my Lord I passed by a man extinguished within the light of Allah's Throne. I asked, Who is this, and is he an angel? I was told No, and I asked again, Is it a Prophet? I was told No, and I said, Who then? It was said: This is a man who, while he was in the world, his tongue was constantly moist with the mention of Allah and his heart was attached to the mosques." On the authority of Mu`adh ibn Jabal, the Prophet said that Allah said: "No servant of Mine mentions me in himself except I mention him in an assembly of My angels, and he does not mention Me in an assembly except I mention him in the Highest Company." On the authority of Abu Hurayra who said that while on the road to Mecca the Prophet passed on top of a mountain called Jumdan, at which time he said: "Move on, for here is Jumdan which has overtaken the single-minded." They said: "What are the single-minded (mufarridun)? He said: "The men and women who remember Allah much" (33:35). Muslim related it. The version in Tirmidhi has: "It was said: And what are the single-minded? He replied: Those who dote on the remembrance of Allah and are ridiculed because of it, whose burden the dhikr removes from them, so that they come to Allah fluttering!" Al-Mundhiri said in al-Targhib wa al-tarhib (The encouragement to good and the discouragement from evil]: "The single-minded and those who dote on the dhikr and are ridiculed for it: these are the ones set afire with the remembrance of Allah." The Prophet said: "The-one-who-mentions-or-remembers-Allah among those who forget Him is like a green tree in the midst of dry ones"; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah among those who forget Him, Allah shows him his seat in Paradise during his life"; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah among those those who forget Him is like the fighter behind those who run away"; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah among those who forget Him, Allah looks at him with a look after which He will never punish him"; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah among those who forget Him is like a light inside a dark house"; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah among those who forget Him, Allah forgives him sins to the amount of every eloquent and non-eloquent speaker," that is, the number of animals and human beings; "The one who mentions or remembers Allah in the the marketplace, will have light in every hair of his on the Day of Resurrection." The Sufis say that: - dhikr has a beginning, which is a truthful application;1 - it has a middle, which is a light that strikes; - its has an end, which is a piercing difficulty; - it has a principle, which is purity; - it has a branch, which is loyalty; - it has a condition, which is presence; - it has a carpet, which is righteous action; - it has a peculiar characteristic, which is the Manifest Opening [cf. 48:1]. Abu Sa`id al-Kharraz2 said: "When Allah desires to befriend a servant of His, He opens the door of dhikr for that servant. After the latter takes pleasure in dhikr, He opens the door of proximity for him. After that, He raises him to the meetings of intimacy and after that he makes him sit on a throne of Oneness. Then He removes the veils from him and He makes him enter the abode of Singleness and unveils Majesty and Sublimity to him. When the servant beholds Majesty and Sublimity, he remains without "he". He becomes extinguished, immune to the claims and pretensions of his ego, and protected for Allah's sake." Someone else said: "Dhikr is the medicine (lit. tiryaq = triacle) of the sinners, the familiarity of the estranged, the treasure of those who practice reliance, the repast of those who possess certitude, the adornment of those who are connected, the starting-point of knowers, the carpet of those brought near Him, and the intoxicant of lovers." The Prophet also said: "Remembrance of Allah is firm knowledge of one's belief, immunity from hypocrisy, a fortress against satan, and a guarded refuge from the fire." It was mentioned by al-Layth al-Samarqandi. Ibn al-Salah was asked about the measure by which the servant is estimated to be among "those who remember Allah much". He said: "If he perseveres in the forms of dhikr inherited in the Sunna morning and evening and in the various times and occasions, then he is of those who remember Allah much." Musa said: "O my Lord! Are you near, so that I may speak to you intimately, or are you far, so that I may call out to you?" Allah inspired to him: "I am sitting next to the one who remembers Me." He said: "O my Lord, we are sometimes in a state of major impurity and we hold You in too high regard to dare remember You at that time." He replied: "Remember me in every state." Ghazali mentioned it in the "Ihya". (`Abd al-Rahim ibn al-Hasan) al-Isnawi (al-Shafi`i, 1305-1370 CE) said in his Alghaz (Riddles): "A man in a state of minor impurity is forbidden from certain forms of dhikr, as illustrated by the nullification of the act of worship incurred when entering such a state during the Friday sermon, because ritual purity is a condition for its validity." Someone related in Qushayri's Risala (Treatise on tasawwuf) that he entered a jungle and found a man remembering Allah while attended by a huge beast. He asked: "What is this?" The man replied: "I have asked Allah to empower one of His dogs to watch me in case I became heedless from remembering Him."... Six Benefits of Dhikr (Remembrance of Allah) 1. The Ranks of Dhikr One of the commentators of Qur'an said concerning Allah's saying: "But among them are some who wrong themselves and among them are some who are lukewarm, and among them are some who outstrip others through good deeds, by Allah's leave" (35:32) that they are respectively the rememberer by tongue, the rememberer by heart, and the one who never forgets his Lord. Ibn `Ata' Allah6 said: "The one who utters the Word of Oneness needs three lights: the light of guidance, the light of sufficiency, and the light of divine help. Whoever Allah graces with the first light, he is immune (ma`sum) from associating a partner to Allah; whoever Allah graces with the second light, he is immune from committing great sins and indecencies; and whoever Allah graces with the third light, he is protected (mahfuz) from the corrupt thoughts and motions that typify those given to heedless actions. The first light belongs to "the ones who wrong themselves," the second to "those that are lukewarm," and the third to "the ones who outstrip others through good deeds." Al-Wasiti7 was asked about the remembrance of Allah, may Allah have mercy on him. He said: "It is the exiting from the battlefield of heedlessness into the outer space of direct vision (mushahada) on the mount of victory over fear and intensity of love." One of the special attributes of the remembrance of Allah is that it has been placed in direct correspondence with Allah's own remembrance of us. Allah the Exalted said: "Remember Me, and I shall remember you" (2:152). Musa said - peace be upon him: "O my Lord, where do you dwell?" He replied: "In the heart of my believing servant."8 The meaning of this is the heart's rest brought about by His remembrance. Something like this will be mentioned in the last chapter on love (mahabba) insha Allah. Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya9 said - may Allah be well pleased with him: "Verily the angels lower their gaze in the presence of the rememberer of Allah, just as the people lower their gaze before lightning." 2. Remittance of Sins Through Dhikr It is related that a servant of Allah will join the gatherings of dhikr with sins the like of mountains and then rise and leave one such gathering with nothing left of them to his name. This is why the Prophet called it one of the groves of Paradise when he said: "If you pass by the groves of Paradise, be sure to graze in them," and someone said: "What are the groves of Paradise?" to which he replied: "The circles of dhikr." It will be mentioned again in the chapter on Allah-wariness (taqwa) insha Allah. `Ata' said - may Allah the Exalted have mercy on him: "Whoever sits in a gathering in which Allah is remembered, Allah will remit for him ten evil gatherings of his." Abu Yazid al-Bistami was told - may Allah be well pleased with him: "I have entrusted you with a secret for which you shall render Me an account under the Tree of Bliss (shajarat tuba)," whereupon he said: "We are under that tree as long as we remain in the remembrance of Allah."10 It is related on `Ali's authority - may Allah be well pleased with him - that Allah manifests Himself (yatajalla) to the rememberers during dhikr and the recitation of Qur'an. The Prophet said: "No group gathers and remembers Allah seeking nothing other than Him except a caller from heaven calls out to them: "Arise forgiven, for your bad deeds have been turned into good ones!"" Abu al-Darda' said that the Prophet said: "Allah verily will raise on the Day of resurrection people bearing light in their faces, carried aloft on pulpits of pearl, whom the people will envy. They are neither prophets nor martyrs." Upon hearing this a beduin Arab fell to his knees and said: "Show them to us (ajlihim), O Prophet of Allah!" - that is: "describe them for us." He replied: "They are those who love one another for Allah's sake alone. They come from many different tribes, countries, and cities. They gather together for the remembrance of Allah the Exalted, remembering Him." Someone said concerning Allah's saying with reference to Sulayman -- peace be upon him: "I verily will punish him with hard punishment" (27:21) that it means: "Verily I shall drive him far from the gatherings of dhikr"... Al-Junayd said -- may Allah be well pleased with him -- concerning Allah's saying: "And (He is the One) Who causeth me to die, then giveth me life again" (26:81), that this means: "He causes me to die with heedlessness (of Him), then He causes me to live with remembrance (of Him)." Al-Hasan al-Basri said -- may Allah have mercy on him: "No people sit remembering Allah the Exalted with one of the people of Paradise in their midst except Allah grants him to intercede for all of them." 3. Dhikr of the Frogs Dawud said - peace be upon him: "I shall praise Allah with a kind of praise that none among his creatures ever used before." Thereupon a frog called out to him: "Do you pride yourself before Allah for your praise, while for seventy years my tongue has been moist from remembering Him, and I have eaten nothing in the past ten nights because I kept busy uttering two words?" Dawud said: "What are these two words?" The frog replied: "O Praiser of Thyself with every tongue, O remembered One in every place!" It is related in Nuzhat al-nufus wa al-afkar [The Recreation of Minds and Thoughts] that an angel once said to Dawud: "O Dawud, understand what the frog is saying!" whereupon he heard it saying: "Glory and praise to You to the farthest boundary of Your knowledge!" Dawud said: "By the One Who made me a Prophet, verily I shall sing my Lord's praise in this way." The commentators have said that the frogs' words are: "Glory to the King, the Holy One!" (subhan al-malik al-quddus) while al-Baghawi has: "Glory to my Lord Most Holy!" (subhana rabbi al-quddus), and of `Ali's words - may Allah be well pleased with him - is "Glory to the One Who is worshipped in the abysses of the sea!" 4. Dhikr of the Prophet Jonah `Ali said - may Allah be well pleased with him: "In the time of Jonah - peace be upon him - was a frog which had lived past the age of four thousand years. It never rested from glorifying Allah. One day it said: "O my Lord, no-one glorifies You like I do!" Jonah said: "O my Lord, I say what it says!" and he said: "Glory to You by the number of times each of your creatures says "Glory to You," and glory to You by the number of times each of Your creatures does not say "Glory to You," and glory to You according to the expanse of Your knowledge and the light of Your countenance and the adornment of Your throne and the reach of Yours words!" 5. The Plagues of Egypt The frog in a dream represents the righteous person. The frog poured water over Ibrahim's fire - peace be upon him - to help put it out. As for a multitude of frogs, they represent punishment. The Exalted said: "So We sent them the flood and the locusts and the vermin and the frogs and the blood -- a succession of clear signs. But they were arrogant and became guilty" (7:133). Al-Razi said: "... The nation of Pharaoh said to Musa - peace be upon him: "Whatever signs you bring us, to us it is nothing other than mere magic and we shall not believe in you." Musa invoked Allah against them, and Allah sent down the flood upon them day and night. They sought help from Pharaoh, who sought help from Musa, who sought help from Allah. Allah then withheld the rain from them and sent down the winds. The earth grew vegetation and fruit in over-abundance. When they saw this they said: "Is this what we were anxious about? It is a great good for us!" and they disbelieved again. Allah then sent the locusts upon them, and they ate up all the vegetation until hardship became extreme and the sun was covered by the swarm of locusts. They sought help from Musa who sought help from his Lord. Allah then sent a wind which hurled the locusts into the sea. At this they said: "Whatever is left from what we had planted is enough for us," and they disbelieved again. Allah then sent the lice upon them. Sa`id ibn Jubayr said this is the maggot which issues from wheat. Tha`labi said it is a kind of tick. `Ata' al-Khurasani said it is the well-known lice, and it was also said that it means mosquitoes, and also wingless locusts. They did not leave a single green leaf except they ate it, and something like smallpox smote the bodies of the people. They sought help from Musa who sought help from his Lord. Allah sent a hot wind which burnt the lice. They still did not believe, so Allah sent upon them a swarm of frogs as thick as a pitch-dark night. The frogs entered their plantations, their food, and their beds cubit by cubit. They sought help from Musa again, and he sought help from his Lord. Allah caused the frogs to die and he sent down rain which carried them to the sea. They still disbelieved. Allah then sent down blood upon them so that their rivers ran red with blood. It is also said that Allah inflicted a state of permanent nosebleed upon them. For seven days they drank blood. Then they said: "O Musa, if you remove the filth (al-rijz) from us verily we shall pledge our belief for you." [Cf. 7:134: "If thou removest the terror from us we verily will trust thee and will let the Children of Israel go with thee."] Sa`eed ibn Jabir said that the "filth" (or "terror") was a sixth kind of punishment which is the plague, while others said that it is an expression for the five kinds already mentioned. Al-Razi said - and this is the strongest opinion: "Wahb said that they underwent each affliction for a period of forty days." 6. Lengthening the Pronounciation of LA ILAHA ILLALLAH Ibn `Abbas said -- may Allah be well pleased with him and his father -- that the Prophet said: "The day Allah created the heavens and the earth he created an angel and ordered him to say: "There is no god except Allah alone" (LA ILAHA ILLALLAH). The angel lengthens his delivery as he utters it and will not rest from this until the trumpet is blown." One of the Companions said that whoever says: "No god except Allah" and lengthens his pronounciation intending thereby to magnify Allah, Allah will remit four thousand grave sins for him, and if he did not commit four thousand, Allah will remit the difference for his family and neighbors. It is related in the hadith: "Whoever says "No god except Allah" and lengthens his pronounciation intending thereby to magnify Allah, four thousand of his sins are struck thereby from the register of his sins." Hence it is praiseworthy to lengthen one's pronounciation upon uttering it, as Nawawi said, may Allah the Exalted have mercy upon him. The Prophet also said: "Whoever lengthens his pronounciation upon saying "No god except Allah," Allah will make him dwell in Paradise in the Abode of Majesty by which he has named Himself when He said: "There remaineth but the countenance of thy Lord of Might and Glory" (55:27), and Allah will grant him to behold His gracious countenance." Anas ibn Malik said - may Allah be well pleased with him - from the Prophet: "O human beings! Whoever says "No god except Allah" in astonishment at something, Allah creates from each letter of his utterance a tree with as many leaves as the days of this world, each leaf asking forgiveness for him and praising Allah on his behalf until the Day of judgment."... It has been related that this phrase has on the side of Iblis the effect which a gangrenous sore would have on the side of a human being. al-Qadi `Iyad11 relates in the "Shifa" from Ibn `Abbas that written on the door of Paradise is the inscription: "There is no god but Allah alone, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah: Whoever says this, I shall not punish him." I saw the following account as part of the explanation of Allah's saying: "And speak (O Musa and Aaron) unto him (Pharaoh) a gentle word" (20:44): Musa said: "O Lord, how can a word be gentle?" Allah replied: "Say to him: "Would you like a good compromise? You have followed your own self for four hundred and fifty years; follow our intent but for one year, and Allah will forgive you all your sins. If not one year, then one month; if not, one week; if not, one single day; if not, one single hour. If you do not (wish to humor us) for all of an hour, then say in a single breath: "There is no god but Allah" so that I shall be able to bring peace to you." After Musa conveyed the message, Pharaoh gathered his armies and said to them: "I am your Most High Lord!" (79:24) At this the heavens and the earth shook and pleaded before Allah the Glorious and Exalted that Pharaoh be put to death. Allah said: "He is like the dog: only the stick is good for him. O Musa, cast your staff" (cf. 7:117, 27:10, 28:31). Musa cast his staff (which became a huge snake) and the magicians (of Pharaoh's court) immediately submitted. Pharaoh fled to his bedchamber. Musa said: "If you don't come out, I shall order it to enter where you are." Pharaoh said: "Give me a little respite." Musa answered: "I have no permission to respite you." But Allah the Exalted inspired to him: "Respite him, for verily I am the Clement, I do not hasten to punish." Pharaoh began to relieve himself forty times a day while previously he would relieve himself only once every forty days. Musa gave him a respite. When the day came Pharaoh exceeded his bounds and rebelled. Allah therefore "seized him and made him an example for the afterlife and the former" (79:25); that is, He punished him with drowning because of his former word ("I am your Most High Lord") and He punished him with Gehenna because of his latter word, when he said: "I know not that ye have a god other than me" (28:38). Ibn `Abbas said: "This is the former word, while the other came later, and between them lay forty years." I saw mentioned in the book Zumrat al-`ulum wa zuhrat al-nujum (The Array of the Sciences and the Brightness of Stars) from the Prophet: He said: "Gabriel told me: "I stood in wait before Allah at the time Pharaoh said: "And what is the Lord of the Worlds?" (26:23) whereupon I outstretched two of my wings to smite him with punishment, but Allah the Exalted said: "Wait, O Gabriel! He hastens to punish who fears the lapse of time." It was also mentioned in that book that when Pharaoh said: "I am your Lord the Most High" (79:24) Gabriel wanted to shake the earth from under his feet, but when he sought permission from his Lord the Exalted He did not give it to him and ordered him to ignore Pharaoh instead. Al-`Ala'I12 said in his explanation of the sura of the Story (al-qasas) that Iblis entered Pharaoh's presence as the latter was in the bath and said: "O Pharaoh, I enticed you with every transgression, but I never told you to claim absolute Lordship!" Then he gave him forty lashes and left him in anger. Pharaoh said to him: "O Iblis, should I take back this claim?" He replied: "It would not be right for you to take it back after making it." A group of the disbelievers of Quraysh gathered among whom was the Pharaoh of this Community -- Abu Jahl -- at Abu Talib's house during the latter's last illness. Abu Jahl said to him: "You know what has taken place between us and your brother's son. Therefore obtain what is rightfully ours from him and what is righfully his from us before you die." Abu Talib called the Prophet and said: "O my nephew, these are the nobility of your people, so leave them be and they shall leave you be." He replied: "Do they agree to obey me if I ask them to say but one word?" Abu Jahl said -- may Allah curse him: "Nay, we shall obey you if you ask us to say ten!" The Prophet then said: "Say: La ilaha illallah," whereupon they said: "Are you asking us to reduce all our gods to only one? Truly you are asking us for the strangest thing!" and they dispersed. Abu Talib said: "O Muhammad, you have asked them for nothing excessive." That is: You have not asked them for anything difficult. Concerning Allah's saying: "Judge aright between us and be not unjust (lit. do not exceed the proper bounds)" (38:22) -- that is: Do not swerve in your judgment -- the Prophet hoped that his uncle would profess Islam, so he said to him: "Say it (the phrase: There is no Allah but Allah alone), so that I will be permitted to intercede for you on the Day of the rising." Abu Talib replied: "Were it not that people -- that is: the Quraysh -- might think that I said it out of fear (of death), indeed I would say it." More will be said about this matter in the section on the Prophet's miracles insha Allah. Al-Razi said in his explanation of the sura of Cattle (al-an`am): "Abu Talib said: "Ask me to say other than this because your people hate it." The Prophet replied: "I will never say other than this even if they were to dislodge the sun from its place and put it in my hand." They said: "Then stop cursing our gods, otherwise we will curse you and Him Who orders you to do this," whereupon Allah's saying was revealed: "Revile not those unto whom they pray beside Allah lest they wrongfully revile Allah through ignorance" (6:109). If it is said: "To curse the idols is among the most meritorious acts of obedience to Allah; why then did Allah forbid it?" The answer is: Allah forbade it because cursing them might lead to the gravest of transgressions -- exalted is Allah far above the saying of wrong-doers -- namely cursing Allah and His Messenger, and it is an obligation to take precautions against it., Dhikr is the means by which Stations yield their fruit, until the seeker reaches the Divine Presence. On the journey to the Divine Presence the seed of remembrance is planted in the heart and nourished with the water of praise and the food of glorification, until the tree of dhikr becomes deeply rooted and bears its fruit. It is the power of all journeying and the foundation of all success. It is the reviver from the sleep of heedlessness, the bridge to the One remembered. The shaikhs strive to remember their Lord with every breath, as the angels are always in the state of dhikr, praising Allah. One of our shaikhs said, "I remembered You because I forgot You for a moment, and the easiest way for me is to remember You on my tongue." If the seeker will mention his Lord in every moment, he will find peace and satisfaction in his heart, he will uplift his spirit and his soul, and he will sit in the Presence of his Lord. The Prophet (s) said in an authentic hadith mentioned in Ahmad's Musnad, "The people of Dhikr are the people of My presence." So the gnostic is the one who keeps the dhikr in his heart, and leaves behind the attachments of the lower worldly life. Mention of Dhikr in the Qur'an Dhikr is mentioned in many places in the Holy Qur'an, and in most verses, what was meant by the word dhikr is tasbih, glorifying; takbir, exalting; tahmid, praising; and praising and praying upon the Prophet (s). Allah said in Surat al-Baqara, 152: "Remember Me and I will remember you." [2:152] He said in Surat ali cImran, 41, "...and remember your Lord much and glorify Him in the evening and in the early morning." And again, 191, "Those who remember Allah while standing, sitting, and lying on their sides..." [3:41, 191] He said in Surat al-Racd, 28, "Those who believe, and whose hearts find their rest in the remembrance of Allah--for, verily, in the remembrance of Allah hearts do find their rest." [13:28] And He said in Surat al-Ah zab, 35, "...and men who remember Allah much and women who remember Him..." And again, 41,42, "O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance; and glorify Him morning and evening." [33: 35, 41-42] There are many, many other verses of Qur'an mentioning dhikr. Imam Nawawi said in his book, "Futahat ar-Rabbani cala-l- Adhkar an-Nawawiyya," vol. 1, p. 106-109, "All scholars of Islam have agreed on the acceptance and permissibility of Dhikr by heart and by tongue, for the adult men and women, for children, for the one who has ablution, and for the one without ablution; even for the woman during her menses. Moreover, dhikr is allowed by all scholars in the form of tasbih, tahmid, takbir and praising and praying for the Prophet (s)." Dhikr polishes the heart and is the source of the Divine breath that revives the dead spirits by filling them with the Blessings of Allah, decorating them with His Attributess, and bringing them from a state of heedlessness to the state of complete wakefulness. If we keep busy with Dhikrullah, happiness and peace will be granted to us. Dhikr is the key to happiness, the key to joy, and the key to Divine Love. Mention of Dhikr in the Sunnah According to Bukhari, Abu Musa al-Ashcari related that the Prophet (s) said, "The difference between the one who makes dhikr and the one who doesn't make dhikr is like the difference between the living and the dead." Tirmidhi narrated from Anas (r) that the Prophet (s) said, "If you pass by the Paradises of Heavens stay there." They asked, "Ya Rasul-Allah, what are the Paradises of Heavens?" He said, "The associations of Dhikr!" Bukhari narrated in his book from Abu Huraira that the Prophet (s) said, "Allah, Almighty and Exalted, has angels who seek the people of Dhikr. If they find the people of Dhikr they encompass them until they reach the first heaven. And Allah asks his angels, 'What are my servants doing?' The angels say, 'O Allah, they are praising You and glorifying You and they are making Dhikr.' Allah says, 'Did they see Me?' The angels answer, 'No, they didn't see You.' Then Allah asks, 'How would it be if they were to see Me?' The angels reply, 'O Allah, if they were to see You, they would be making more praise of You and more glorification of You and more Dhikr of You.' And Allah asks 'What are they asking for?' The angels say, 'They are asking for Your Paradise.' Allah asks, 'Did they see My Paradise?' The angels answer, 'No, Our Lord.' Allah continues, 'How would it be if they saw My Paradise?' The angels reply, 'They would be more attracted and more eager to reach it.' Then Allah asks them, 'Of what are they afraid?' And the angels say, 'They are afraid of hellfire.' and Allah asks, 'How would it be if they saw my Hellfire?' and they reply, 'They would be running more and more away from it and asking more and more protection from it.' Then Allah said,' I am making you all My witnesses: that I am forgiving them of all their sins.' Then one angel asked, 'O our Lord, there is among these people one who is not from them, he came only to ask for something from one of them.' Allah said, 'Those are my beloved ones who are making My Dhikr. Anyone who comes into their circle will be forgiven, and I am forgiving him.'" In Bukhari and Muslim it is narrated from Abu Huraira that the Prophet (s) said, "As my servant thinks about Me so will I be for him. I am with him if he will remember Me. If he calls on Me in himself I will call him in Myself, and if he calls on Me in a group of people, I mention him in a better group in My presence. If he approaches Me one handspan, I will approach him one arm's length; if he approaches Me one arm's length, I will approach him by a cubit; if he comes to Me walking, I will come to him running." Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah narrated on the authority of Abi Darda that the Prophet said, "Do you want me to tell you of your best deeds, and the most honored and praised and sanctified to Your Lord, and the highest in its reward; better than spending gold and better than meeting your enemy and cutting their necks in the jihad?" They said, "Yes, Ya Rasulallah." He said, "Dhikrullah." The Prophet (s) said, "Everything has its polish and the polish of hearts is dhikrullah." Mu'adh bin Jabal (r) said, "Nothing saves you from Allah's punishment except Dhikrullah." There are many, many other hadith about the benefits and blessings of Dhikr such that it is impossible to quote all of them here. From the Sayings of Imams and Scholars about Dhikr Ibn cAbbas (r) said "Allah, Almighty and Exalted, put a limit on all the obligations that He ordered human beings except for Dhikr. For it there is no limit." Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya said in his book, Al-Wabil as-Sa'ib, p. 52, "There is no doubt that the heart oxidizes, just as copper and silver oxidize. Its polishing is the dhikr, which will make it like a white mirror. The oxidation of the heart is due to heedlessness and sin. Its polishing is by means of two actions: repentance and dhikr. If someone's heart is cloudy, the reflections of images will be unclear, he will see falsehood as truth and truth in the image of falsehood (batil). When there is too much oxidization on the heart, the heart will be darkened, and in the darkness the images of the Truth and Reality never appear. The best way to polish it is through Dhikrullah." Ibn cAta'illah as-Sakandari said, "By Dhikr you leave behind heedlessness and forgetfulness, and you keep your heart Present with Allah, Almighty and Exalted. The best way to approach His Presence is by reciting the name 'Allah,' in the heart or on the tongue, or by reciting any of His Names." [Miftah al-Falah, p. 4] Abul Qasim al-Qushayri said, "Dhikr is the strongest support in the way of Allah, 'Azza wa Jall. No one can reach the Divine Presence except by continuing to recite Dhikr." [Risalat al-Qushayriyya] Mulay al-cArabi ad-Darqawi said, "Do not say, 'I am nothing'; neither say, 'I am something.' Do not say: 'I need such and such a thing'; nor yet: 'I need nothing.' But say: 'Allah,' and you will see marvels." [Letters of a Sufi Master] We see from what has been mentioned that all guides and perfect shaikhs advised the seeker in the Way of Allah to make continuous dhikr in all states of their lives and to keep the company of the people in associations of Dhikr. We see that the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah of the Prophet (s) and the scholars are all in accordance on this matter. The Types of Dhikr Dhikr can be can be done both silently or aloud. The Prophet (s) encouraged people to do both kinds. Among the scholars of shari'ah and the Sufi shaikhs, some preferred the loud dhikr and some preferred the silent dhikr. Loud Dhikr Bukhari narrated that Abu Huraira (r) reported that the Prophet (s) said, "If My servant mentions Me in himself, I will mention him in Myself. If he mentions Me in a group, I will mention him in a group in My presence." We understand from this hadith that to mention Allah in a group indicates loud dhikr. Some scholars determined from this that using loud dhikr is permitted. Bukhari narrated in his book of hadith, that Ibn 'Abbas (r) said, "In the time of the Prophet (s) the people used to raise their voices in Dhikr." Bukhari narrated in his book of hadith, that Abu Ma'bad (r), the freed slave of Ibn 'Abbas (r), said: "Ibn 'Abbas told me, 'In the lifetime of the Prophet (s), it was the custom to celebrate Allah's praises aloud after the obligatory congregational prayers.'" Ibn 'Abbas (r) continued, "When I heard the Dhikr, I would know that the congregational prayer had ended." Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi related that as-Sa'ib (r) preported that the Prophet (s) said, "Jibril came to me and ordered me to order my Companions to raise their voices in takbir." It is narrated by Bukhari and Muslim and mentioned by Jalaluddin as-Suyuti, from other collections, that 'Ali bin Abi Talib (r) said, "I asked the Prophet (s) one time, 'O Messenger of Allah, guide me to the shortest way to Allah's Presence, and the easiest way to worship, and the best way for Allah, Almighty and Exalted. The Prophet (s) said, 'O 'Ali, you have to be continuously making Dhikrullah, silently and aloud.' I replied, 'O Prophet (s), all human beings are making dhikr. Give me something special.' The Prophet (s) said, 'O 'Ali, the best of what I, and all prophets before me, said is, la ilaha illallah. If all the heavens and earth were placed on one side of the balance and la ilaha illallah were placed in the other, la ilaha illallah would be heavier. Judgment Day will never come as long as there are people on this earth saying la ilaha illallah.' Then I said, 'How should I recite.' The Prophet (s) said, 'Close your eyes and listen to me reciting la ilaha ill-Allah three times. Then you say it three times and I will listen to you.' Then the Prophet (s) said it and I repeated it in a loud voice." In the narration of Imam Ahmad and Tabarani this hadith is continued, describing how the Prophet taught his Companions the dhikr. "'Ibada bin Samit said that the Prophet (s) said, 'Is there any stranger among you?' And we said, 'No, Ya Rasul-Allah.' He said, 'Close the door.' Then he said, 'Raise your hand and repeat after me La ilaha illallah' We raised our hand and said, la ilaha illallah. Then the Prophet (s) said, 'Praise be to Allah that He sent me to this world with this kalimah, and He ordered me with it, and He promised me the Paradise with it, and He never changes His Promise.' Then the Prophet (s) said, 'Be happy! Allah has forgiven you.'" Jalaladin as-Suyuti mentioned in an article called "Natijat al-Fikr fi Jahri-dh-Dhikr," the Benefits of Loud Dhikr, twenty-five authentic hadiths which mention doing loud dhikr. Silent Dhikr Allah mentioned in Surat al-Acraf, 205, "And remember thy Lord in thy self with humility and fear, and without loudness of speech, in the mornings and evenings; and be not of the neglectful." [7:205] Imam Ahmad narrated, "Abu Huraira reported that the Prophet (s) said that Allah says, 'I am with my servant when he remembers Me and by his remembrance of Me his lips move." Commenting on this hadith, Imam Nawawi said, "Allah is with the one who remembers Him and calls Him in his heart, and calls Him on his tongue, but we must realize that the dhikr of the heart is more perfect. The rememberer made dhikr of the tongue in order to reflect the occurrence of the dhikr in his heart. When the love of Allah and His Remembrance overwhelms the heart and the spirit, the tongue is moved and the seeker brought near." Sheikh Amin al-Kurdi said in The Enlightenment of Hearts (Tanwir al-Qulub) p. 522: "The dhikr by tongue, which combines sounds and letters, is not easy to perform at all times, because buying and selling and other such activities altogether divert one's attention from such dhikr. The contrary is true of the dhikr by heart, which is named that way in order to signify its freedom from letters and sounds. In that way nothing distracts one from his dhikr, as the poet says: With the heart remember Allah, secretly from creation, wordlessly and speechlessly. That remembrance is best of all: out of it flowed the sayings of the saints. "That is why our Naqshbandi masters have chosen the dhikr of the heart. Moreover, the heart is the place where the Forgiver casts his gaze, and the seat of belief, and the receptacle of secrets, and the source of lights. If it is sound, the whole body is sound, and if it is unsound, the whole body is unsound, as was made clear for us by the chosen Prophet (s). "Something that confirms this was narrated on the authority of cA'isha (r): 'Allah favors dhikr above dhikr seventyfold (meaning, silent dhikr over loud dhikr). On the Day of Resurrection, God will bring back human beings to His account, and the Recording Angels will bring what they have recorded and written, and Allah Almighty will say: See if something that belongs to my servant was left out? The angels will say: We left nothing out concerning what we have learnt and recorded, except that we have assessed it and written it. Allah will say: O my servant, I have something good of yours for which I alone will reward you, it is your hidden remembrance of Me.' Bayhaqi narrated it. "Also on the authority of cA'isha: 'The dhikr not heard by the Recording Angels equals seventy times the one they hear.' Bayhaqi narrates it.", Wahai manusia! Islam adalah haqq, ia adalah agama yang haqq. Karena jika ia batil, maka tak akan ada orang yang berada di sini. Seribu lima ratus tahun yang lalu, perintah ini diberikan: ibadah haji. Dan jika kalian tidak dapat menunaikannya (orang-orang yang tidak berangkat haji), pergilah dan rayakan dengan shalat ied, dan lihat, begitu banyak orang akan melakukannya. Ada banyak orang yang mengatakan bahwa ‘Islam terbelakang, ia berasal dari zaman kegelapan.’ Itu jelas tidak benar! Islam bagaikan matahari, bersinar bagaikan matahari sejak hari pertama hingga hari terakhir (kiamat). Jagalah iman kalian dan perkuat iman kalian. Dan bagaimana kalian membuatnya agar lebih kuat? Dengan ibadah dan perbuatan baik. Dan Allah akan bertanya, “Bukankah kalian mempunyai dua menit untuk salat dua rakaat untuk-Ku? Aku telah memberi kalian berbagai hal dan kalian tidak memikirkan Aku sekalipun dalam 24 jam, untuk salat dua rakaat untuk-Ku—sesuatu yang hanya memakan waktu dua menit?” Di pagi hari, basuhlah tangan dan wajah kalian, juga kaki kalian dan salatlah dua rakaat. Mereka datang kepada saya dan mengatakan, “Syekh Efendi, pekerjaan kami memburuk!” Bagaimana hubungan kalian dengan Allah .? ‘Tidak baik.’ Jika kalian mengkhianati diri kalian dan Allah ., itu adalah buruk, itu tidak baik. Itu artinya segala sesuatu akan menjadi buruk. “Syekh Efendi, tolong doakan kami!” dan Allah . mengatakan, “Mengapa Aku harus memberinya, apakah ia mengingat-Ku? Tidak. Lalu mengapa Aku harus memberinya? Jika Aku memberinya lebih banyak, ia akan lebih kehilangan kepalanya.” Jadi, shalatlah! Jangan biarkan satu hari lewat tanpa sujud. Ketika kita salat sebelum pergi di pagi hari, berkah lebih banyak datang pada hari itu. Orang yang rezekinya habis, akan meninggal. Tetapi jika kalian hidup, rezeki kalian akan datang, dan ada malaikat yang khusus membawakan berkah. Dan malaikat itu melihat apakah seseorang salat atau tidak. Jika ia salat, malaikat akan memberikan berkah, jika tidak, ia akan mengambilnya kembali…malaikat akan membawa pergi berkah itu. Jika kalian tidak ingin bisnis kalian memburuk, kalian harus mempunyai hubungan yang baik dengan Allah .. Semoga Allah memberi kita tobat yang benar, memohon ampun dengan jalan yang benar. Hari ini adalah hari di mana kalian berkurban dengan arah ke kiblat dan mengucapkan ‘Bismillaah, Allaahu Akbar,’ dan kemudian kalian menyembelih hewan kurban kalian. Dan setelah itu kalian salat dua rakaat sebagai tanda syukur kalian. Segera setelah kalian memotong pembuluh darah dan saluran udara (tenggorokan—penerj.) hewan itu, kalian harus meninggalkannya. Jangan memotong lebih dalam lagi. Kalian harus meninggalkan hewan itu selama dua atau tiga menit, itu adalah haknya untuk bergerak, dan semua darah akan keluar. Jika kalian memotong di tempat yang salah, hewan itu tidak banyak bergerak, sehingga seluruh darah tetap berada di dalam tubuhnya dan ini tidak baik untuk manusia. Kalian berhak mengambil sepertiganya, dan kemudian bagikan duapertiganya lagi kepada orang miskin. Dan untuk itu Allah . akan melindungi kalian dan anak-anak kalian dan rumah tangga kalian, karena pengorbanan itu. Dan Allah akan menyingkirkan masalah dari kalian. Jika kalian tidak berkurban di hari Iduladha, kesulitan akan datang dan menyebabkan kalian menghabiskan sepuluh kali lipat lebih banyak daripada uang yang seharusnya kalian gunakan untuk berkurban satu hewan kurban. Allah akan membuat kalian membayar sepuluh kali lipat lebih banyak! Mungkin seseorang menyenggol mobil kalian, kecelakaan terjadi, kalian mengeluarkan uang lebih banyak. Jangan berpikir karena kurban ini uang kalian akan berkurang, atau jika kalian mengeluarkan sedekah, uang kalian akan berkurang. Berikan, dan jangan biarkan tangan kalian bergetar ketika memberikannya. Banyak kesulitan yang akan Allah . hindarkan dari kalian. Jadi berikanlah dengan tulus. Dan sekarang kita semua berkumpul di sini untuk melaksanakan salat Iduladha. Dan kita berniat untuk salat. Apapun yang kami katakan dalam khotbah, saya katakan itu di sini, jadi kita tidak menahan orang terlalu lama, saya membuat khotbah yang singkat. Semoga Allah . meninggikan derajat Nabi suci .. Wahai Tuhan kami, jangan biarkan orang-orang yang berusaha membuat nama beliau turun! Buatlah mereka pergi dan lindungilah kami dari musuh-musuh Islam dan lindungilah kami, wahai Tuhan kami, juga keluarga kami dan jangan biarkan kami bersama orang-orang yang jahat, kumpulkanlah kami bersama orang-orang yang baik. Berhati-hatilah dengan anak-anak kalian, dengan generasi muda, karena generasi muda ini penting. Jangan biarkan mereka melakukan perbuatan- perbuatan yang buruk di masa sekarang ini. Banyak sekali hal buruk yang dilakukan orang sekarang ini: narkoba, alkohol dan benda-benda lain, semua kotoran terburuk dari barat dibawa ke sini. Ketika kalian datang pada mereka dengan kebiasaan kalian, mereka melihat, ‘apa yang kalian bawa ke sini?’ apa yang mereka bawa? Hanya hal-hal yang buruk, yang membuat orang kehilangan jalan baik mereka dan belajar tentang benda-benda yang buruk dan jahat ini. Kita harus berdoa agar Allah . tidak menempatkan kita dengan orang-orang yang jahat. Tetapi semoga Dia menuliskan nama-nama kita bersama orang-orang yang baik. Hidup bersih, dan ketika kalian meninggalkan dunia ini, meninggal dengan bersih. Allaahumma shalli `alaa sayyidina Muhammadin Nabiyyil ummiyyi wa `ala alihi wa shahbihi wa sallim.