Islam's Enemies |
To understand others is to have knowledge,
To understand oneself is to be enlightened
To conquer others require strength,
To conquer oneself is even harder
His Eminence advises his disciples to seek contact with him so that he could put them in touch with the caravan of knowledge. His wise utterances regarding how we can spread the true message of Islam are through simple practice and action. Actions of ours with full participant in social life from the street bazaars to corporate boardrooms will automatically promote peace, tolerance, understanding, respect, and harmony both among Muslims and non-Muslims in all spheres of life.
The Messenger of Almighty Allah, Hazrat Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) is the Universal and Last Prophet. Islam means peace and submission to the will of God. It is incumbent therefore upon every Muslim to always preach such noble injunctions about peace and how to achieve it. He emphasizes us to follow these principles globally so that whatever we may do, we shall contribute to the best of our capacity and ability, to the cementing of fraternal, cultural and spiritual ties between our fellow countrymen of and those abroad.
Love in every instance the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace), but also love those who manifest love for the beloved Prophet. It is also important to keep away from those who show enmity to the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace). His Eminence stressed that where there is love, there should be contact and where there is contact there should necessarily be action. We must follow our Spiritual Masters with as much love as we can muster; then our garden will always bloom. Love and respect shown to the Lovers of Allah is much appreciated by Almighty Allah indeed. This is type of love is unbounded.
We must learn forgiveness. To please everyone in this world is most difficult. Everybody has, in some way or other, some argument to follow therefore; it is essential for one to ask for an apology. Likewise, the other person has to accept forgiveness. Imam Ahmad Raza Khan Qadiri (may Allah be pleased with him) instructed, "Avoid the mistakes of your brothers, and don't check them or rebuke them for small mistakes to satisfy your egotism, and don't crash your unity, because unity is blessings from Allah the Beneficent."
Everything must be done with a sincerity of purpose added to our expressions of love, spirit, and peace-mindedness. Any principle of Islam cannot stand by itself without love, sincerity, and service. Therefore, it is incumbent upon every one of us to think about his duty with sincerity of purpose because without sincerity we cannot pretend to be dutiful. To practice what one professes and not merely indulge in slogans and mere talk.
This great Saint and mystic embodies greatness in simplicity and stresses his disciples to be the same. Greatness lies in simplicity.
Kindness and shown magnanimity must be shown to one and all, humans and other creatures. Every person is special, unique and deserves kindness. As you adopt this attitude you will have meaningful relationships with everyone you meet, and even a casual exchange will enrich both you and the other person.
We must try to keep the mind free from pointless discursive thoughts, idle fantasy and needless worry-for these are a constant drain and a form of mental self-pollution. We have to surrender from our illusions or opinions in order to be awake and receive knowledge, and real knowledge is given and not acquired.
His Eminence speaks softly and cautiously in order not to hurt the feelings of others. This act of humility and sincerity of purpose causes attraction.
Control the ego’s insatiable desires. Quiet the ego and calm the mind so that the subtle energies of the body can be cultivated to a higher level of awareness. Then the mind and heart can see its true role in the larger order of things and work harmoniously to keep the balance.
His Eminence is a man of great culture, the way he walks, sits, greets, talks to and smiles at people, his tact shown in discussions, his patience listening to others, creates a unique cultured personality. We must show gentle refined noble manners as the Masters of the Path has shown us for centuries.
Most human beings strive for a name and fame. He humbly declares he has no thirst for publicity. However he acknowledges that he has received a great 'treasure' from Almighty Allah through the mediation of the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace), Sayyiduna Sheikh Abdul Qadir Jilani (may Allah be pleased with him) and Imam Ahmad Raza Khan (may Allah be pleased with him).
In every of our actions, whether for our own benefit or for that of religion or society, we must be guided by or have drawn our source of inspiration from certain established principles. As far as we Muslims are concerned, we have the best and complete example set by our beloved Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace) whose imprints must be embedded in both our minds and hearts. Our guidance and salvation should come from His way of life.
His Eminence advises his followers to search the company of those you remember Allah, so much so, till their last breath, they may still continue to sing the praise of Allah. His Eminence advised the invocation and remembrance of Almighty Allah’s name, as he is nearer to us than our jugular vein. To strengthen our contact with the beloved Prophet Muhammad (Allah bless him and give him peace), Hazrat Abdul Qadir Jilani (may Allah be pleased with him), Imam Ahmad Raza Khan (may Allah be pleased with him) and other great Spiritual luminaries.
One of the most important aspects of Tasawwuf, which His Eminence uses to permeate to his disciples, is constant contact and love (muhabat), or "Tassawur-e-Shaikh" with one's Pir (Spiritual Guide). Continuous practice of 'Tassawur-e-Shaikh' leads one to build a firm contact with ones Spiritual Guide which would prevent the disciple from doing wrong and get help in times of adversity. Like seeing a policeman at the time of committing an offence would deter one from doing the crime, in the same way, by continuously being aware of your Pir's spiritual presence, externally and internally, the disciple is prevented from committing a sin.
His Eminence related how the companions of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) were required not to speak in a tone higher than that of the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). The companions would sit with utmost deference in a Circle of the beloved Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) and a companion stated that he did not have the courage to look at the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) in the face despite having spent several years in the Prophet’s (Allah bless him and give him peace) company. We are reminded of the anecdote of a disciple, a would be Sufi master, who expressed that he attended the court of his spiritual master for seven long years, yet he did not have the strength of character to touch the thongs of his masters sandals.
Etiquette and Adab - Imam Ahmad Raza (may Allah be pleased with him) reminded his followers to pay 'attention to detail'. He entered a Mosque with the right foot first and he exited it with his left. When sitting, he never stretched his legs out in the direction of the Kaaba. He urged his followers the importance of having the right intention (niyat), for a deed would be rewarded accordingly.
Inner Purification - His Eminence stresses discipline work on our human weaknesses: hatred, vengeance, jealousy, greed, rancor, pride, superiority complex, exploitation of man by man, lack of compassion and understanding and respect for others. Inner purification can easily disappear by bad character and animalistic behaviour. Harmful acts and attitudes such as gossiping, judging others, slandering, envy, backbiting and anger slow our spiritual progress.
In a poem, his Eminence mentions that that days are going by and by, and once gone, they can never come back. Every minute is being spent in the valley of death. What is unfortunate is that time is not being spent in a successful manner. He laid emphasis on the temporary character of our sojourn in this world and invited us to ponder over the purpose of our creation. It we do not establish proper contact and do not accomplish our mission well, we are worthless. Death is life’s only certainty. Most people fear and loathe death and go through life as though death does not exist and life continues forever. The mystics shatter this common illusion by viewing life as a dream and death as an awakening.
He prays for peaceful co-existence among all of us, for mutual co-operation and love between each other. Has not the beloved Prophet said: "All humans are equal by birth, mans excellence does not lie in his race, color or wealth, but in his virtue." The Kingdom of Almighty Allah is the silent life, the life-inseparable, eternal, self-sufficient, and all-powerful. The wise contemplates this life. It is the face of this life we long to see. It is the ocean of this life the mystics long to swim in.
