The writings of the venerated persons

Bismillah.

This is a reminder to ourself as is each and every posting. It is Allah who makes our hearts inclined towards the names and the sayings of the venerated persons. These great people are alive, they are able to come to us and make themselves known. We were heedless yet they appeared to us, somehow. They are real. "There are people just by saying their names, your heart becomes alive. There are also people, by mentioning their names your heart becomes dead" said Shaykh Ninowy in one of his lectures. It is true. Sometimes I think we are so pathetic that the great venerable people from the past had to come to our rescue even if it's through their simple sayings. Imagine if they had been self-centered with accumulating knowledge and keeping it to themselves? Imgine if they had been silent and let their wisdoms unheard?

Alhamdulillah wa shukrulillah for the righteous and the pious of His servants from the past and present whose very beings and sayings are able to save, inspire and illuminate us to a certain degree.

We learned from Tarbiatul Ushaq (The Training of Divine Lovers) by Maulana Syed Mohammad Zauqi Shah (1877 - 1951) about the etiquette while reading the writings of venerated persons. He said: "The reader should have done his wudhu, should not be reclining and what is most important, he should tune himself with the soul of the writer and should make himself receptive as the words of such persons are a result of their ecstacies (hal). If these writings are read under such conditions they reproduce the same ecstacy or state. If you tune yourself to the spirituality of these great people, they too turn towards you. This is what happens in the soul world, just as it happens in this very world. If you call out to a person at a distance, he will at once turn towards you. If that person says he is busy, even then he will have turned towards you. These great persons have an eye with the glance from which one gains."

May Allah forgive us, we do not simply quote these venerated people for show or to indicate that we know something. We know nothing. We are not worthy enough to be associated with these great people. All we have is respect, awe and love for them. We only wish to be good and do good by learning from them although we are not able to do as much or reach their state, at least Allah knows of our intention of wanting to be good and that we try. All we can do is to keep trying. InshaAllah.

Refrerence: page 109 of Tarbiatul Ushaq

Publisher credit: A.S Noordeen