When to remain silent and when to speak!

"Refrain except from good speech."
- Prophet Muhammad PBUH -

"Silence is the best state, except under three conditions: you must not keep silent in the face of bad gossip attacking your heart; you must not keep silent in directing your heart to the remembrance of Allah; and you must not keep silent when the vision inside your heart orders you to speak."
- Ala'uddin al-Bukhari al-Attar qaddasALLAHU sirrah -

"Speech is like a medicine, a small dose of which cures but an excess of which kills. As a man's wisdom increases, so his desire to speak decreases."
- Sayyidina 'Ali bin Abi Talib karamALLAHU wajahu -

The Importance of Sufism in an Era of Globalisation

By Sidi Mounir Qadiri Boutchichi (Morocco)

It is hardly necessary to remind ourselves that industrialisation and technological development have enabled us to explore new dimensions and to reach a high level of scientific and social knowledge. Globalisation, communication and innovation have had an impact on our day-to-day lives in more than one way. Nevertheless, one question, which imposes itself, is, ‘Are we happy?’

Whatever the answer, we need to remind ourselves that material and technological achievements have unfortunately been detrimental to our spiritual consciousness. Consequently, we have lost our identities, since we have become truly machines of consumption, feeding the desires of our bodies, but always to the detriment of the true desires of our souls and hearts. This has led us to a ‘spiritual void’, resulting in a state of human disequilibrium. The manifestation of such disequilibrium can be witnessed through the social crisis that characterizes our societies today, which includes family breakdown, drugs, social distrust, hate, hypocrisy, stress and other diseases, all of which are driven by a dangerous spiritual thirst in our hearts and souls.

Into all these insoluble social dilemmas that have kept arising in our societies and amongst our people, comes ‘Sufism’, which specializes in the healing and purification of an essential part of our human creation – ‘the heart’. Sufism focuses on the heart because it is the ‘commander’ of all our behavioural senses and it is the source of all the intentions and reactions of the mind and body. It is also the mirror of our personalities and it is the only place where our Creator, Allah, looks. The Prophet Muhammad, GOD’s peace and blessings upon him, said, “Know that Allah does not look at your face, nor does He look at your body, but He looks at your hearts.�?

Such is the importance of the heart, that Sufism has concentrated all its educational efforts on opening this heart, enlightening its darkness and making it soft after being hard, closed and blind. Sufi spiritual masters, may GOD be pleased with them, as specialists in the ‘medicine of hearts’ (tib al-koloub), orient the hearts of their companions to Allah and reconnect them to their original state of purity and light. “Hearts become softer with the remembrance of Allah.�? Qur’an.

To emphasize the importance of remembrance and invocation of Allah, the Prophet, GOD’s peace and blessings upon him, said, “The example of those who remember Allah and those who do not is like the living and the dead.�?

Remembering Allah in the Sufi path is supported by some necessary educational methods, varying from the companionship of a spiritual master to individual and collective invocation and meditation. Companionship (sohbet/company) of a spiritual master (Shaykh Nazim) is very important in purifying the heart, putting it into communication with Allah after it has been blind without any connection.

Sufism, in purifying the heart, ensures your ‘spiritual safety’, thus protecting you from the various desires of the ego (annafs/al hawa) and of evil. When you feel this state of spiritual safety, you become more productive in your social life, more balanced in your actions and behaviour, looking at yourself and the outside world with the eyes of your open heart. Experience has taught us how Sufism has changed people throughout history by purifying their hearts, connecting them with their GOD and changing them radically from bad to excellent elements of society.

Another question we may ask is how Sufism fits into this new age of Internet and globalization. Before giving an answer, let us correct some misconceptions that have for one reason or another been attributed to Sufism. Some people think that Sufism is simply a philosophy or a culture identified with the early centuries of Islam. Others think that Sufism finished with Imam al-Junayd, Jala-Din Rumi and Ibn Arabi. One may also imagine Sufism as a path encouraging people to isolate themselves or to push themselves towards extremism. Others imagine it is all about poetry and secular dancing. Contrary to all these misconceptions, Sufism is still alive in these times and giving its people their spiritual dimension. Today, only Sufism is capable of holding the torch of the way of peace, the way of good character, and the way of balance and communication with everybody from all over the world.

Because Sufism is interacting with each generation, adapting itself to all its needs and expectations, it is said that the Sufi is “the son of his time�? (assoufiy ibn waqtih). Looking back in history to early Sufi paths, spiritual education (tarbia rouhiya) was known to be based upon long retreats (khalawat) and detachment from the day-to-day material life. Examples of this picture are Imam Ghazali and Rabia al-Adawiya. Early spiritual masters imposed on their disciples (muridin) a number of conditions that had to be met, in order to test their motivation and commitment to following the Sufi path.

Today, however, Sufism accepts without condition people with different levels of knowledge. Everybody, Muslim and non-Muslim, is welcome to the Sufi path, as long as they want to purify and enlighten their hearts and souls. This is exactly what is meant by the ‘University of Sufism’. There is a Sufi saying: “Do not hate a Jew or a Christian, but your own ego (annafs) that is between your sides.�?

It is the new era of Sufism now which is based on flexibility, love and beauty. It is easier to follow now than before but this does not mean that it has lost its value. The addition of flexibility to spiritual education has attracted the hearts of disciples from all over the world. Today, Sufis are more integrated into their social lives. They can enjoy the Sufi experience without it affecting their social rhythm or losing their social identities. One aspect of the Tariqa Qadiriyya Boutchichiyya, as explained by its spiritual master Sidi Hamza, is that the retreat of the Sufi is inside the heart (alkhalwat fi al-qalb). Sufis do not need to isolate themselves in order to find their way to GOD. On the contrary, they can participate in their social activities as much as they can without affecting their beautiful spiritual experience, providing they are ‘happy in their hearts.’

Another aspect of Sufism today is manifested in the companionship of the spiritual master. In the past, disciples seeking spiritual knowledge and purification spent a long period of their lives searching for the right master to follow. Today, the spiritual master himself is looking without condition for new disciples.

While explaining aspects of the Tariqa, Sidi Hamza said that the path is based on ‘beautification then detachment’ (at-takhliya ba’da at-tahliya). The meaning of this important aspect is that the Sufi first tastes the sweetness (tahliya) of the remembrance of GOD (dhikr) then moves to another stage of purifying the heart and detaching it from its darkness and diseases (takhliya). Sidi Hamza may Allah be pleased with him, gave a beautiful explanation of this aspect: “Stability of Allah’s love inside the heart, then moving to the practice.�? In the past, however, the Sufi needed to purify his heart before entering the path and following the master.

Sufism is a universal spiritual school where thousands are purifying their hearts each day, learning the love of Allah and connecting with their origins. The Tariqa, with its disciples all over the world, is a living example of good character, love, social bonding and spiritual blessings.

We need to look after our hearts in order to attain happiness and spiritual equilibrium. Sufism is all about good character and good manners.

To discover Sufism, it is up to you to take the first step to drink from the sources of divine love. It is like honey - you cannot enjoy its sweetness if you do not taste it. In order to taste it, you have to go through the experience and companionship of the spiritual master. This latter is the guide of hearts - he makes you remember GOD and he teaches you how to love infinitely and passionately.

Principles of the Naqshbandi Sufi Order

Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani coined the following phrases which are now considered the principles of the Naqshbandi Sufi Order:

1. Conscious Breathing ("Hosh dar dam")

   Hosh means "mind." Dar means "in." Dam means "breath." It means, according to Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani (q), that

   "the wise seeker must safeguard his breath from heedlessness, coming in and going out, thereby keeping his heart always in the Divine Presence; and he must revive his breath with worship and servitude and dispatch this worship to His Lord full of life, for every breath which is inhaled and exhaled with Presence is alive and connected with the Divine Presence. Every breath inhaled and exhaled with heedlessness is dead, disconnected from the Divine Presence."

   Ubaidullah al-Ahrar (q) said, "The most important mission for the seeker in this Order is to safeguard his breath, and he who cannot safeguard his breath, it would be said of him, 'he lost himself.'"

   Shah Naqshband (q) said, "This Order is built on breath. So 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."

   Shaikh Abul Janab Najmuddin al-Kubra said in his book, Fawatih al-Jamal, "Dhikr is flowing in the body of every single living creatures 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 the same Hah (ALLAH). The people of Sufism say that the absolute unseen Essence of Allah Exalted and Almighty is expressed by the last letter vowelized by the Alif, "Ha." It represents the Absolutely Unseen "He-ness" of the Exalted God (Ghayb al-Huwiyya al-Mutlaqa lillah 'azza wa jall). The first Lam is for the sake of identification (ta^crif) and the second Lam is for the sake of emphasis (mubalagha).

   Safeguarding your breath from heedlessness will lead you to complete Presence, and complete Presence will lead you to complete Vision, and complete Vision will lead you to complete Manifestation of Allah's Ninety-Nine Names and Attributes. Allah leads you to the Manifestation of His Ninety-Nine Names and Attributes and all His other Attributes, because it is said, "Allah's Attributes are as numerous as the breaths of human beings."

   It must be known by everyone that securing the breath from heedlessness is difficult for seekers. Therefore they must safeguard it by seeking forgiveness (istighfar) because seeking forgiveness will purify it and sanctify it and prepare the seeker for the Real Manifestation of Allah everywhere.

2. Watch Your Step ("Nazar bar qadam")

   It means that the seeker while walking must keep his eyes on his feet. Wherever he is about to place his feet, his eyes must be there. He is not allowed to send cast his glance here or there, to look right or left or in front of him, because unnecessary sights will veil the heart. Most veils on the heart are created by the pictures which are transmitted from your eyes to your mind during your daily living. These may disturb your heart with turbulence because of the different kinds of desire which have been imprinted on your mind. These images are like veils on the heart. They block the Light of the Divine Presence. This is why Sufi saints don't allow their followers, who have purified their hearts through constant Dhikr, to look at other than their feet. Their hearts are like mirrors, reflecting and receiving every image easily. This might distract them and bring impurities to their hearts. So the seeker is ordered to lower his gaze in order not to be assailed by the arrows of devils.

   Lowering the gaze is also a sign of humility; proud and arrogant people never look at their feet. It is also an indication that one is following the footsteps of the Prophet (s), who when he walked never used to look right or left, but used to look only at his feet, moving steadfastly towards his destination. It is also the sign of a high state when the seeker looks nowhere except towards his Lord. Like one who intends to reach a destination quickly, so too the seeker of Allah's Divine Presence is moving quickly, not looking to his right or his left, not looking at the desires of this world, but looking only for the Divine Presence.

   Imam ar-Rabbani Ahmad al-Faruqi (q) said in the 295th letter of his Maktubat:

   "The gaze precedes the step and the step follows the gaze. The Ascension to the high state is first by the Vision, followed by the Step. When the Step reaches the level of the Ascension of the Gaze, then the Gaze will be lifted up to another state, to which the Step follows in its turn. Then the Gaze will be lifted even higher and the Step will follow in its turn. And so on until the Gaze reaches a state of Perfection to which it will pull the Step. We say, 'When the Step follows the Gaze, the murid has reached the state of Readiness in approaching the Footsteps of the Prophet, peace be upon him. So the Footsteps of the Prophet (s) are considered the Origin of all steps.'"

   Shah Naqshband (q) said, "If we look at the mistakes of our friends, we will be left friendless, because no one is perfect."

3. Journey Homeward ("safar dar watan")

   It means to travel to one's homeland. It means that the seeker travels from the world of creation to the world of the Creator. It is related that the Prophet (s) said, "I am going to my Lord from one state to a better state and from one station to a higher station." It is said that the seeker must travel from the Desire for the forbidden to the Desire for the Divine Presence.

   The Naqshbandi Sufi Order divides that travel into two categories. The first is external journeying and the second is internal journeying. External travel is to travel from one land to another searching for a perfect guide to take and direct you to your destination. This enables you to move to the second category, the internal journey. Seekers, once they have found a perfect guide, are forbidden to go on another external journey. In the external journey there are many difficulties which beginners cannot endure without falling into forbidden actions, because they are weak in their worship.

   The second category is internal journeying. Internal journeying requires the seeker to leave his low manners and move to high manners, to throw out of his heart all worldly desires. He will be lifted from a state of uncleanness to a state of purity. At that time he will no longer be in need of more internal journeying. He will have purified his heart, making it pure like water, transparent like crystal, polished like a mirror, showing the realities of all matters essential for his daily life, without any need for external action on his part. In his heart will appear everything that is needed for his life and for the life of those around him.

4. Solitude in the Crowd ("khalwat dar anjuman")

   "Khalwat" means seclusion. It means to be outwardly with people while remaining inwardly with God. There are also two categories of seclusion. The first is external seclusion and the second is internal seclusion.

   External seclusion requires the seeker to seclude himself in a private place that is empty of people. Staying there by himself, he concentrates and meditates on Dhikrullah, the remembrance of God, in order to reach a state in which the Heavenly Realm becomes manifest. When you chain the external senses, your internal senses will be free to reach the Heavenly Realm. This will bring you to the second category: the internal seclusion.

   The internal seclusion means seclusion among people. Therein the heart of the seeker must be present with his Lord and absent from the Creations while remaining physically present among them. It is said, "The seeker will be so deeply involved in the silent Dhikr in his heart that, even if he enters a crowd of people, he will not hear their voices. The state of Dhikr overcomes him. The manifestation of the Divine Presence is pulling him and making him unaware of all but his Lord. This is the highest state of seclusion, and is considered the true seclusion, as mentioned in the Holy Qur'an: "Men whom neither business nor profit distract from the recollection of God" [24:37]. This is the way of the Naqshbandi Order.

   The primary seclusion of the shaykhs of the Naqshbandi Order is the internal seclusion. 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." Shah Naqshband emphasized the goodness of gatherings when he said: Tariqatuna as-suhbat wa-l-khairu fil-jam^`iyyat ("Our Way is Companionship, and Goodness is in the Gathering").

   It is said that the believer who can mingle with people and carry their difficulties is better than the believer who keeps away from people. On that delicate point Imam Rabbani said,

   "It must be known that the seeker at the beginning might use the external seclusion to isolate himself from people, worshipping and concentrating on Allah, Almighty and Exalted, until he reaches a higher state. At that time he will be advised by his shaikh, in the words of Sayyid 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.'"

5. Essential Remembrance ("yad kard")

   The meaning of 'Yad' is Dhikr. The meaning of 'kard' is the essence of Dhikr. The seeker must make Dhikr by negation and affirmation on his tongue until he reaches the state of the contemplation of his heart (muraqaba). That state will be achieved by reciting every day the negation (LA ILAHA) and affirmation (ILLALLAH) on the tongue, between 5,000 and 10,000 times, removing from his heart the elements that tarnish and rust it. This dhikr polishes the heart and takes the seeker into the state of Manifestation. He must keep that daily dhikr, either by heart or by tongue, repeating ALLAH, the name of God's Essence which encompasses all other names and Attributes, or by negation and affirmation through the saying of LA ILAHA ILLALLAH.

   This daily dhikr will bring the seeker into the perfect presence of the One Who is glorified.

   The Dhikr by negation and affirmation, in the manner of the Naqshbandi Sufi Masters, demands that the seeker close his eyes, close his mouth, clench his teeth, glue his tongue to the roof of his mouth, and hold his breath. He must recite the dhikr through the heart, by negation and affirmation, beginning with the word LA ("No"). He lifts this "No" from under his navel up to his brain. Upon reaching his brain the word "No" brings out the word ILAHA ("god"), moves from the brain to the left shoulder, and hits the heart with ILLALLAH ("except The God"). When that word hits the heart its energy and heat spreads to all the parts of the body. The seeker who has denied all that exists in this world with the words LA ILAHA, affirms with the words ILLALLAH that all that exists has been annihilated in the Divine Presence.

   The seeker repeats this with every breath, inhaling and exhaling, always making it come to the heart, according to the number of times prescribed to him by his shaikh. The seeker will eventually reach the state where in one breath he can repeat LA ILAHA ILLALLAH twenty-three times. A perfect shaikh can repeat LA ILAHA ILLALLAH an infinite number of times in every breath. The meaning of this practice is that the only goal is ALLAH and that there is no other goal for us. To look at the Divine Presence as the Only Existence after all this throws back into the heart of the murid the love of the Prophet (s) and at that time he says, MUHAMMADUN RASULULLAH ("Mu ammad is the Prophet of God") which is the heart of the Divine Presence.

6. Returning ("baz gasht")

   This is a state in which the seeker, who makes Dhikr by negation and affirmation, comes to understand the Holy Prophet's (s) phrase, ilahi anta maqsudi wa ridaka matlubi ("O my God, You are my Goal and Your Good Pleasure is my Aim.") The recitation of this phrase will increase in the seeker the awareness of the Oneness of God, until he reaches the state in which the existence of all creation vanishes from his eyes. All that he sees, wherever he looks, is the Absolute One. The Naqshbandi murids recite this sort of dhikr in order to extract from their hearts the secret of Oneness, and to open themselves to the Reality of the Unique Divine Presence. The beginner has no right to leave this dhikr if he doesn't find its power appearing in his heart. He must keep on reciting it in imitation of his Shaykh, because the Prophet (s) has said, "Whoever imitates a group of people will belong to them." And whoever imitates his teacher will some day find this secret opened to his heart.

   The meaning of the phrase "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. That is the reason the Holy Prophet mentioned in his invocation, ma dhakarnaka haqqa dhikrika ya Madhkur ("We did not Remember You as You Deserve to be Remembered, O Allah"). 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 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 recognise that Allah is the one making Dhikr through him.

7. Attentiveness ("nigah dasht")

   "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 (s) has said, "Whoever knows himself knows His Lord."

   One Sufi shaikh said, "Because I safeguarded my heart for ten nights, my heart has safeguarded me for twenty years."

   Abu Bakr al-Qattani said, "I was the guard at the door of my heart for 40 years, and I never opened it for anyone except Allah, Almighty and Exalted, until my heart did not know anyone except Allah Almighty and Exalted."

   Abul Hassan al-Kharqani said, "It has been 40 years that Allah has been looking at my heart and has seen no one except Himself. And there is no room in my heart for other than Allah."

8. Recollection ("yada dasht")

   It means that the reciter of Dhikr safeguards his heart with negation and affirmation in every breath without leaving the Presence of Allah Almighty and Exalted. It requires the seeker to keep his heart in Allah's Divine Presence continuously. This allows him to realize and manifest the Light of the Unique Essence (anwar adh-dhat al-Ahadiyya) of God. He then casts away three of the four different forms of thoughts: the egoistic thoughts, the evil thoughts, and the angelic thoughts, keeping and affirming solely the fourth form of thought, the haqqani or truthful thoughts. This will lead the seeker to the highest state of perfection by discarding all his imaginings and embracing only the Reality which is the Oneness of Allah, 'Azza wa Jall.

   `Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani had four khalifs. The first was Shaikh Ahmad as-Siddiq, originally from Bukhara. The second was Kabir al-Awliya ("the Greatest of Saints"), Shaikh `Arif Awliya al-Kabir (q). Originally from Bukhara, he was a great scholar in both external and internal Sciences. The third khalif was Shaikh Sulaiman al-Kirmani (q). The fourth khalif was `Arif ar-Riwakri (q). It is to this fourth khalif that Abdul Khaliq (q) passed the Secret of the Golden Chain before he died on the 12th of Rabi`ul-Awwal 575 H.