The best of invitations

Bismillah.

Shukran lillah for my mother. She has several good habits I wish to follow. She always make an extra effort to visit those who are about to leave for hajj and give a small token of sadaqah to them.

Several years ago, she and her friend Mami went to the airport to send off a neighbor who was leaving for Makkah. Hand in hand they walked towards the departure terminal. That was when Mami confided in her, "Maznah, I really wish to go for hajj, but I don't have the means to go." 

Mami was a woman who lived a hard life. As a single mother she raised her children with much difficulties. She hardly wore new clothes and  avoided attending kenduri (wedding celebrations) because she didn't have much to offer to the hosts. Despite the hardships she had been suffering after her husband's demise, Mami was one who laughed a lot. She was always jovial.

"Of course you can, if you have the niyyat to go for hajj, if Allah wills it, you'll get there," said my mother. "But you know me Maznah. I don't have any income."
"But He can provide in unexpected ways," my mother tried to console Mami.

About a year later, when we were back in Penang, we heard people talking about the good news - Mami was going for hajj! How did the miracle come about?  Mami's son-in-law had booked his mother for hajj that year but she became ill so Mami got the ticket!

p/s O son, there can be miracles when you believe. I pray to Allah Al Kareem so that whoever wishes to perform hajj this year will get an invitation. Bi-iznillah. 

Ibn Arabi, Rumi, Attar & Shakespeare

Bismillah.

When my Beloved appears
With what eye do I see Him?
With His eye, not with mine,
For none sees Him except Himself.
(Ibn Arabi)

I lost my world, my fame, my mind
The Sun appeared, and all the shadows ran
I ran after them, but vanished as I ran
Light ran after me and hunted me down
(Rumi)

How long then will you seek for beauty here?
Seek the unseen, and beauty will appear.
When the last veil is lifted
Neither men nor all their glory will be seen again
The universe will fade - this mighty show
In all its majesty and pomp will go
And those who loved appearances will prove
Each other's enemies and forfeit love
While those who loved the absent, unseen Friend
Will enter that pure love which knows no end
(Attar)


'A lover', said the hoopoe, now their guide
'Is one in whom all thoughts of self have died;'
Those who renounce the self deserve that name;
Righteous or sinful, they are all the same!
Your heart is thwarted by the self's control;
Destroy its hold on you and reach your goal.
Give up this hindrance, give up mortal sight
For only then can you approach the light.
If you are told: "Renounce our Faith", obey!
The self and Faith must both be tossed away;
Blasphemers call such action blasphemy -
Tell them that love exceeds mere piety.
Love has no time for blasphemy or faith,
Nor lovers for the self, that feeble wraith.
(Attar)

Ibn Arabi, Rumi and Attar, as we know are Sufis who write mostly about their Lord, referring to Him as the Beloved, the Sun, the Light and the Friend. They dwell on the Godly Being from their perspectives as a seeker who should give himself up if he truly wish to witness or arrive at the object of the seeking - God.

Ibn Arabi admits that he is not in a position to see his Beloved with his own eyes. While discounting his own existence, he affirms his belief that only Allah has the capacity to witness Himself. This explains the Prophetic hadith Ariftu Rabbi bi Rabbi meaning 'I know my Lord by my Lord'. Ibn Arabi is saying that he cannot know or see his Lord with his own capacity, neither knowledge nor eyesight. 

Rumi too speak of self-annihilation. He dismisses his world, fame and mind. He likens himself to a shadow which cannot possibly exist when the Sun engulfs his entire being. That is because an object will only have shadow when it is distant from the source of light.

Attar speaks about seeking the unseen and the absent. He questions those who seek and love that which is apparent. He warns them of the pitfall. Behind the veils of the apparent is a more meaningful love and true beauty which is unseen and absent. One who regards himself as a lover must renounce himself and refrain from controlling his affairs in order to reach his goal - the Beloved (God). Attar even disregard the role of faith because love is above and beyond it. The kind of love which he refers to is also above piety and self-love.

Ibn Arabi, Rumi and Attar, either with simile or metaphor, all allude to God. The one common prevailing theme as expected from a Sufi is self-denial and affirmation of God, reflecting the ultimate maxim for all Muslims, be they Sufis or not - the shahadah - La ilaha illAllah.

Shakespeare in Sonnet 130, speaks about the lack of beauty in his mortal beloved. He does not compare his love with a distinct Supreme Being i.e. God. Instead, he loosely compares her with the winning characteristics of the sun, coral, snow, roses and music. There are no higher ideals behind the simile and metaphor of such comparisons. It is also absent of thought provoking philosophy beneath the somewhat negative assessment of the woman. It is a straight forward description of his preference for a better kind of beauty and love. In his comparison, he, the man still exists while lamenting about what is lacking in the other party, his mistress who is supposed to be more beautiful, desirable and love-able.

By contrast, Ibn Arabi, Rumi and Attar all talk about a relationship of a non-existent lover with the one and the only present Beloved -- a 'no-I' but 'only Thou' relationship.

Wallahu a'lam.

William Shakespeare - Sonnet 130

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun

Coral is far more red than her lips red

If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun

If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head 

I have seen roses damask'd red and white

but no such roses see I in her cheeks

And in some perfumes is there more delight

Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks

I love to hear her speak, yet well I know

That music hath a more pleasing sound

I grant I never saw a goddess go

My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground

And yet by heaven, I think my love as rare

As she belied with false compare.

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Dedicated to my niece - hope I have answered your questions. InshaAllah.

Heart of the matter

Bismillah.

O son, I wish to remind myself and you that we are in the business, meaning we busy ourselves with polishing the heart. It's not a business of sharpening the brain because the brain has a tendency to look at things with logic alone, hence the brain likes to argue and weigh things according to its make-believed intelligence. He is the Supreme Intelligent - Al Aleem, Al Hakim. We know nothing, we are not claiming we know something significant.

I sincerely hope that this space does not come across to anyone as though I know something 'better' than they do. As you are aware, I merely copy what I read and hear, and write what is reflected in the mirror of my heart.

We learned about the piece of flesh namely the heart, that if it is good then the rest of the body will be good (including the brain/intellect). We learned about the heart being the dwelling place of Allah so we try to empty it of everything else save Allah (and love for Rasulullah s.a.w). So we are in the business of emptying the heart. This is of course nothing new to many of us. In fact, some of the readers/visitors may find it amateurish of us to be repeating this point. Really this space is not for those seeking "intellectual" stuff because we have got nothing to offer in that aspect.

All we try to do is purify our intention, we try to make it sincere, we are not even claiming that we are sincere. Our guides constantly remind us to make our intentions sincere. We just hope that the chambers of our heart are vacant for His manifestations as we let Him be whatever He wishes to be through us. So that our wish is in fact His wish, that we only wish for whatever He wishes.

We also hope that whatever that is written from the heart finds its place in the heart bi-iznillah. It is He who creates us and our actions. Only He is capable of teaching and He guides whomever He wills.

We rely on the barakah of the habaib and shuyukh whom we've been privileged to meet. We are only a bunch of ignorant seekers who is needy of their barakah and guidance. We remain poor so that He may continue to enrich us with knowledge and wisdom through His warisatul anbiya, the heirs of the prophets, the blessed ulama. InshaAllah.

Until we are invited to the next majlis 'ilm, we shall read whatever comes to our hand. InshaAllah.

Rabbi zidni 'ilma.

Rabbi habli hukman wa al hiqni bis solehin.

Prophet's prayer for Ibn Abbas

Bismillah.

O son, today we learned this du'a from watching telly - a simple but important du'a. It's a well-known du'a to many people but I wish to record it here for you. And I thank Allah shukran lillah for He has made it easy to memorize so many meaningful du'a ever since I re-embraced Islam. Alhamdulillah indeed.

According to the Ustaz in the tv program, it's a du'a Prophet Muhammad s.a.w had recited for Ibn Abbas so he could master the Qur'an with much ease and excellence.

If you were to recite it for yourself say it this way:

Allahumma faqihna fiddin

wa ‘allimna ta'aweel

If you wish to recite it for someone else say:
Allahumma faqihhu fiddin wa ‘allimhu ta'aweel

Apparently, there is an extended version of this du'a but we present it exactly as we've heard it InshaAllah.
Rabbi zidni 'ilma.



Note:
Correct me if I am wrong, replace faqihna with:
Faqihhu - for one's son
Faqihha - for one's daughter

Multiplicity in Unity

Gong Xi Fa Cai | Happy Chinese Lunar New Year

Bismillah.

Praise be to Allah who plants the seed of tolerance in our hearts, that we could co-exist with the non-Muslims harmoniously InshaAllah. If Allah had willed, He could have made us one people, but we are different and we appreciate the multiplicity in unity, that we are all His creations.

It's a holiday in Malaysia as the country observes the chinese lunar new year. It warms my heart that a simple greeting to a long lost chinese friend could mean so much to her. She said my wishes make her year! O son, see how generous people can be in expressing their appreciations.

These lovely peony pictures were taken at a mall in KL today, it's a symbol of love in the chinese tradition. Pray Allah plants the seed of love in our hearts - love towards all mankind.

Ask for the best of bounties

Bismillah.

O son, yesterday we learned about the need to have husnul zan towards the Lord, that the better man is one who thinks better of His Lord. If for any reasons you think He is not that generous, than that's what He is and certainly that's not the case, Subhanallah, and He is annoyed by one who does not have certitude in Him and His magnificence. We should therefore, have confidence in Him and His abilities to grant anything, anything at all, so ask for the best of bounties as did Shaykh Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi in his wednesday morning prayer.

Bismillahirahmanirahim

O My Lord,

Grant me complete gnosis and universal wisdom, so that there remains nothing knowable [in the universe] without me coming to know the subtle threads of its intricacies, which are spread throughout existence. By this may I drive away the darkness of created things which prevent the perception of the realities of [Your] Signs, and by this may I dispose freely over the hearts and spirits, kindling true love and friendship, right conduct and guidance. 

O Forgiving One! O Veiling One! O Preserver! O Protector! O Defender! O Benefactor! O Truly Affectionate One! O Graciously Indulgent One! O Most Subtle and Benevolent! O Most Mighty and Invincible! O Flawless, Boundless Peace!

Forgive me, veil me and preserve me. Protect me and defend me. Bestow upon me beneficence, affection and indulgene. Be benevolent to me, make me invincible, and grant me peace and security.

Take me not to task for the baseness of my actions, and do not requite me for the evil of my works. Correct me without delay through Your complete Benevolence, and purify me with the Purity of Your universal Compassion. Do not let me stand in need of any other than You! Protect me and absolve me. make my whole affair righteous and proper [to You].

There is no God but You! Glory be to You, indeed I have been of the oppressors. You are the Most Merciful of the mercifiers!

May the blessing of God be upon our master Muhammad, and upon his family and companions, salutations to them all. Peace be upon the messengers. And praise be to God, Lord of the universes.

Excerpts from: The Daily Prayers/Al Awrad al-yawmiyya

Purchase 'The Seven Days of the Heart' by Anqa Publishing

Translator credit: Pablo Beneito & Stephen Hirtenstein

Whatever suits you best

Bismillah.

O son, someone asked how to cleanse the heart. We are afraid we are not in a position to advise anything more than what we ourselves practise. And our practice is not only little but unconstant as we too struggle to apply what we have learned, that we could scrub the rusts in the heart by doing zikrullah and going to majlis 'ilm InshaAllah. Of course we all know the Prophet's hadith about cleaning the heart by remembering death and reciting the Qur'an. 

We understand that one who is trying to revert to the practices of Islam may feel overwhelmed by the amount of obligatory duties. Not many of us can confidently say they perform solat out of love and gratitude, not because it is compulsory therefore do it with a heavy heart.

So how best do we reach out to Allah? The answer is really up to the individual. This morning we came across a relevant story about Jesus and John the Baptist. It is from the discourses of Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi in Fihi ma Fihi.

"Jesus laughed a lot. John the Baptist wept a lot. John said to Jesus, "You have become mighty secure from God's subtle deceits to laugh so much."

"You," replied Jesus "are mighty heedless of God's subtle and mysterious favor and grace to weep so much!"

One of God's saints who was present at this exchange asked God which of the two was more exalted in station. The answer he got was to this effect: "The one who thinks better of me," that is "Wherever my servant thinks of me, I am there. I have a form and image for each of My servants. Whatever each of them imagines me to be, that I am. I am bound to images where God is; I am annoyed by any reality where God is not. O my servants, cleanse your thoughts, for they are my dwelling places. Now try yourself and see what is more beneficial to you - weeping, laughter, fasting, prayer, or retreat. Adopt whichever of these suits you best and causes you to advance more."

Wallahu a'lam.

May Allah guides us to Him. He is the best Teacher. He grants hikmah to whomever He chooses.

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Publisher Credit: Treshold Books & SA Majeed