“It is seen that tasawwuf, at its early stage, was
planned by Indian Jews. It was adopted from the ancient Greeks. For this
reason, they [mutasawwifs] disunited and broke Muslims into groups.”
Also Maudoodi, a Pakistani lâ-madhhabî, disseminates
the above-quoted words in his book The Revivalist Movement in Islam. Heretical people, in order to attain their desires and selfish
advantages, put on attire which is deemed valuable and virtous in the society.
It is not difficult for wise, learned people to recognize such corrupt men and
to distinguish them from the good. But an ignorant person believes them and,
regarding those who have put on the attire of mutasawwif as real sufists,
thinks that the superiors of tasawwuf were also like these “false sufists” and
attempts to blame the great authorities of tasawwuf. Muslims should be able to
distinguish the truth from falsehood and should not blame the great men of
tasawwuf.
Imâm Muhammad Ma’sûm al-Fârûqî (rahmat-Allâhi ta’âlâ
’alaih), who was a specialist in tasawwuf, great ’âlim and leader of the
awliyâ’ of his time, wrote in the fifty-ninth letter of the second volume of
his Maktûbât:
“All the outward and spiritual perfections have been
attained through Muhammad Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). The orders
and prohibitions, which are outward, have been transmitted to us through the
books written by our a’immat al-madhhâhib. And the hidden knowledge pertaining
to the heart and soul have been conducted through the great men of tasawwuf. It
is written in the Sahîh of al-Bukhârî that Abu Huraira (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’anh) said, ‘I filled two cups from
Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). I have explained the contents
of one of them. You would kill me if I disclosed the other.’ It is also written
in the Sahîh of al-Bukhârî that when ’Umar (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’anh) died, his son ’Abdullâh (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh) said that nine-tenths
of knowledge had died and, seeing that the listeners were confused, added that
he meant not the knowledge of fiqh but the knowledge of knowing Allâhu ta’âlâ.
All the paths of tasawwuf come from Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’alaihi wa sallam). The superiors of tasawwuf have attained the ma’ârif
emanating from the blessed heart of Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’alaihi wa sallam) through their rehbers in every century. Tasawwuf was not
made up by Jews or mutasawwifs. Indeed the terms fanâ’, baqâ’, jadhba, sulûk and sair-i ilâ’llâh, which
were used for attainments on the way of tasawwuf, were first used by the great
leaders of tasawwuf. It is written in Nafâkhât that Abu Sa’îd
al-Harrâz (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh) was the first one who used the terms fanâ’ and baqâ’. Then ma’ârif of tasawwuf came from Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). The names for these ma’ârif
were given later. It is written in many books that, before he was notified of
his Prophethood, he had performed dhikr by heart. Tawajjuh
(thinking deeply) towards Allâhu ta’âlâ, the dhikrs of nafî (negation) and
ithbât (affirmation) and murâqaba (mediation) existed during the time of Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) and the as-Sahâbat al-kirâm
(radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anhum ajma’în), too. Although the above terms had not been
heard from Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam), his frequent
reticencies showed that he had those ahwâl (pl. of hâl, spiritual state). He
declared, ‘A little
tafakkur is more beneficial than the ’ibâdât of a thousand years.’ ‘Tafakkur’ means ‘(exercise of) discarding absurd thoughts and
meditating on the Reality.’ Khidir (’alaihi ’s-salâm) taught ’Abd al-Khâliq
al-Ghunjdawânî (rahmat-Allâhi ta’âlâ ’alaih) that mutasawwifs should perform
dhikr by repeating the kalimat at-tawhîd.
“Question: If the ma’ârif of tasawwuf had come from Rasûlullâh, there should not have been any differentiation. Contrarily, there are
various branches of tasawwuf. Why are the ahwal and ma’ârif in each of them
different?”
“Answer: This difference is due to the difference in men’s abilities and the
conditions they are in. For example, though there may be a specific remedy for
a disease, the prognosis and
medical treatment varies with the patient. It is like
the difference between photographs of a person taken by different
photographers. Every perfection has been taken from Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). There have been small
differences due to power and manner of reception. Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) taught the ma’ârif, secret
sciences, to his companions in different degrees. As a matter of fact, he
declared in a hadîth sharîf, ‘Tell
each person as much as he can understand!’ One day while he was imparting some subtle knowledge to Hadrat Abu
Bakr, Hadrat ’Umar came in and Rasûlullâh changed his way of expression. When Hadrat ’Uthmân
joined in, he did the same again. When Hadrat ’Alî came, he changed the way of
his expression again. He spoke in different ways suitably with their talent and
nature (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ anhum ajma’în).
“All paths of tasawwuf originated from Hadrat Imâm
Ja’far as-Sâdiq (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh), who was joined to Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) with two lineages, one of which
was his paternal way, which reached Rasûlullâh through Hadrat ’Alî
(radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh). The second line was his maternal grandfather’s
pedigree, which was related to Rasûlullâh through Hadrat Abu Bakr (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh).
Because he descended maternally from Abu Bakr as-Siddîq and also received faid
from Rasûlullâh through him, Hadrat Imâm Ja’far as-Sâdiq said, ’Abu
Bakr as-Siddîq gave me two lives.’ These two ways of faid and ma’rifa that Imâm
Ja’far as-Sâdiq had did not commingle or intersect. Faid has been flowing
through Hadrat Imâm to the great Akhrâriyya guides from Hadrat Abu Bakr, and to
the other silsilas (chains) from Hadrat ’Alî.”
[On page 122 of the book, it is written:
“Rasûlullâh had told Huzaifat ibn al-Yamân the names of munâfiqs
on their way back from the Tabuk Battle. Huzaifa did not tell these names to
anyone lest disunity should arise. As it is obvious, there was no secret
knowledge of Huzaifa, as the sûfî heretics claim. For, Islam is unhidden and
has no secret knowledge.”
In this passage, he alleges that the knowledge of
tasawwuf was invented by Jews. However, on page 30, it has been said:
“Most of the sahâbîs did not know the knowledge Rasûlullâh had intimated to Mu’âdh ibn Jabal. Rasûlullâh had told Mu’âdh not
to tell it to anybody. Then, it is permitted to conceal knowledge for good and
advantageous reasons.”
It is obvious that the Wahhâbite book lacks coherence.
Every part of this book of five hundred pages is full of such similar
incongruous, foolish lines. Quoting hundreds of âyats and hadîths, the writer
throws dust into eyes and, because he does not know anything about the sciences
of tafsîr and hadîth, goes astray by making up meanings with a swift pen and
tries to mislead readers.]
Muhammad Ma’sûm (rahmat-Allâhi ta’âlâ ’alaih) wrote in
his sixty-first letter of the second volume:
“The most valuable and most beneficial thing in this world
is to attain the ma’rifa of Allâhu ta’âlâ, that is, to know Him. Allâhu ta’âlâ
can be known in two ways. In the first one, one can know Him as the scholars of
Ahl as-Sunna (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ) communicated. The second one is the
understanding of the great men of tasawwuf. The former knowledge can be gained
as a result of study and meditation. The second one is attained through kashf
and shuhûd of the heart. The first one pertains to knowledge (’ilm), which
originates from wisdom (’aql) and intelligence, while the second one pertains
to a spiritual state (hâl) which originates from the origin, the reality. In
the first one, there exists an ’âlim as a mediator. In the second, mediation of
the ’ârif comes to an end, because becoming an ’ârif of something means being
lost in that thing. This is expressed well in the verse,
Descending and ascending does not make you
closer,
To get closer to Haqq means to cease
existing!
The former is related to the ’ilm al-khusûlî (knowledge attained by studying), and the latter to
the ’ilm al-khudûrî (knowledge attained through revelation). In the
former the nafs has not given up disobedience, while in the latter the nafs has
perished and is always with al-Haqq. In the former, îmân and ’ibâdât are in a
superficial form, because the nafs has not become a believer yet. A hadîth
qudsî declares, ‘Be at
enmity with your nafs! It bears enmity against Me.’ Îmân of the heart mentioned above is called the ‘îmân al-majâzî’ (metaphoric belief), which may go away. In the
latter, because there is no quality of being human left and because the nafs
itself has become a believer, îmân is protected from being lost, so it is
called the ‘îmân al-haqîqî’ (real belief). In this stage ’ibâdât are real. The
metaphor may be lost, but the reality will not cease existing. This real belief
is referred to in the hadîth
ash-sharîf, ‘Oh
my Rabb! From You, I want
îmân the end of which is not disbelief,’
and in the 136th âyat of the Sûrat an-Nisâ, ‘Oh Believers! Believe in Allah and His Rasûl.’
Imâm Ahmad ibn Hanbal (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ), in
order to attain this ma’rifa, although he was at a high degree in knowledge and
ijtihâd, ran to be in the service of Hadrat Bishr al-Hâfî (rahimah-Allâhu
ta’âlâ). When he was asked why he kept close to Bishr al-Hâfî, he answered, ‘He
knows Allah better than I do.’[1]
“Al-Imâm al-a’zam Abu Hanîfa (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ)
gave up the work of ijtihâd in his last years. He attended Hadrat Ja’far
as-Sâdiq’s (rahimah-Allahu ta’âlâ) suhba for two years. When he was asked why
he had done so, he answered, ’Nu’mân[2]
would have perished if it weren’t for those two years.’ Although both the imâms
[Abu Hanîfa and Ahmad ibn Hanbal] were at ultimately high grades in knowledge
and ’ibâdât, they went to the superiors of tasawwuf and attained ma’rifa and
its fruit, îmân al-haqîqî. Was there another ’ibâda more valuable than ijtihâd?
Was there a deed superior to teaching and disseminating Islam? Leaving these
aside, they clung to, embraced the service of the superiors of tasawwuf, and
thus attained ma’rifa.
“The value of a’mâl (deeds) and ’ibâdât is measured
with the degree of îmân. The brilliance of ’ibâdât depends on the amount of
ikhlâs. The more perfect îmân becomes, the more ikhlâs is attained, and deeds
become all the more glorious and acceptable. The perfection of îmân and
completion of ikhlâs depends on ma’rifa. Since ma’rifa and real belief depend
on the attainment of fanâ’ and death-before-death, the perfection of îmân is as
much as one’s fanâ’. It must be for this reason that it was declared in a hadîth ash-sharîf that Hadrat Abu Bakr as-Siddîq’s (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’anh) îmân was superior to all other Muslims’ îmân: ‘ ’Abu Bakr’s îmân, if weighed against the
îmân of all my umma,
[1] The Wahhâbite book, on page 109, writes, “Imâm Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Hanbal’s pedigree links on to that of Rasûlullâh’s at Nizar ibn Mu’âdh. He was the most superior scholar of his time in fiqh and hadîth. He was at a very high level in warâ’ and in following the Sunna. He was born in Baghdad in 164 and died there in 241 A.H.” It is written in Farîd ad-dîn al-Attâr’s (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) Persian Tadhkirat al-awliyâ’ that Ahmad ibn Hanbal attended the lectures of many mashayikhs, for example, Dhu ’n-Nûn al-Misrî’s and Bishr al- Hâfî’s (150-227). A crippled woman sent her son to Imâm Ahmad and asked him to pray for her. The Imâm performed an ablution (wudû’) and salât and prayed. The son found his mother welcoming him at the gate when he returned home. She recovered her health through the blessing of Imâm Ahmad’s prayer.
[2] Hadrat al-Imâm al-A’zam’s name was Nu’mân.
would weigh more,’ for he was the most advanced of all the Umma in
fanâ’. The hadîth ash-sharîf, ‘The
one who wants to see a walking corpse must look at Abu Quhâfa’s son,’ confirms this.
All the Sahâbat al-kirâm (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anhum ajma’în) had attained to
the degree of fanâ’. The preference of Abu Bakr as-Siddîq’s fanâ’ in this
hadîth shows that his degree of fanâ’ was very high.”
Imâm Muhammad Ma’sûm (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) declares
in the 106th letter of the second volume:
“Repeat the beautiful word ‘Lâ ilâha illa’llâh’ many, many times! Perform this dhikr with your heart!
This blessed word is very beneficial in clearing the heart. Everything but
Allâhu ta’âlâ is annihilated when half of this beautiful word is uttered, and
the existence of the true ma’bûd (who is worshipped) is announced when the
remaining half is said. And sair and sulûk, that is, advance on the way of
tasawwuf, are for attaining these two. It was declared in a hadîth sharîf, ‘The most
valuable word is Lâ ilâha illa’llâh.’
Do not be in the company of many people! Worship much! Cling tightly to Rasûlullâh’s Sunna! Avoid bida’ and men of bida’ very much! Both the good and the
wicked can do good deeds, but solely the siddîqs abstain from bad things.
“You question whether it is malign for the wayfarer on
the way of tasawwuf to wear very expensive clothes obtained in a halâl way. The
things in the hands or on the body of the one whose heart has attained to the
degree of fanâ’ and has no interest in anything except Allâhu ta’âlâ do not
prevent his heart from the dhikr. His heart has no relation with his exterior
organs. Even his sleep is not an obstacle to his heart’s work. It is not so
with the one who has not been able to attain to the degree of fanâ’, and his
exterior, visible organs, do have a connection with his heart. However, it
cannot be said that his wearing new, expensive clothes is an obstacle to his
heart’s work. Great guides of Islam, the imâms of Ahl al-Bait, al-Imâm al-a’zam
Abu Hanîfa and ’Abd al-Qâdir al-Jîlânî (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ) wore very
expensive clothes. The books Khazânat ar-riwâya, Matâlib al-mu’minîn and Dhahîra report that Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallâm) wore a jubba (long gown with
full sleeves) which was worth a thousand dirhams of silver. He was seen
performing salât wearing a jubba worth four thousand dirhams. Al-Imâm al-a’zam
Abu Hanîfa (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) advised his disciples to wear new and
valuable clothes. Hadrat Abu Sa’îd al-khudrî was asked what his opinion about
changes and new
practices in eating, drinking and dressing was. He
said that all were means to show Allâhu ta’âlâ’s favour when they were done
with halâl money and not for ostentation or with hypocricy.
“Love for anything other than Allâhu ta’âlâ is of two
kinds. The first kind is the love for a creature through the heart and body and
the desire to obtain it. Such is the love of the ignorant. It is for the
purpose of redeeming the heart from this love that one endeavours on the way of
tasawwuf. Thus, solely the love for Allâhu ta’âlâ remains in the heart and one
gets redeemed from occult polytheism. It is thus seen that tasawwuf is
necessary for a person to ged rid of accult polytheism. It is a means to attain
the îmân ordered in the âyat, ‘O Believers! Do believe!’
The divine order in the 120th âyat of the Sûrat al-An’âm, ‘Give up the sins which are performed
overtly with the organs or with the heart!’ shows that it is necessary to unfasten the heart from its interest in
everything but Allâhu ta’âlâ. What kind of goodness could be expected of a heart
in love with something other than Him? In Allâhu ta’âlâ’s sight, there is no
value or importance in a soul that yearns for someone other than Him.
“The second kind of love is that in which solely the
organs’ love or wish is involved. The heart and soul, having already been
devoted to Allâhu ta’âlâ, know none but Him. This sort of love is called the
‘mail tabi’î’ (instinct). This love is only of the body. It does not smear the
heart or soul. It arises from the properties and needs of substances and energy
in the body. Love of this kind for creatures might exist in those who have
attained fanâ’ and baqâ’ and in the awliyâ’ (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ) of high
status. In fact, it exists in all of them. Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ
’alaihi wa sallam) liked cool and sweet sherbets. The hadîth ash-sharîf, ‘I was
allowed to like three things of your world,’ is widely known. The books of Shamâ’il write that Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) liked clothes called ‘al-burd al-yamânî ’ that were made of cotton and linen.
“When the nafs is honoured with fanâ’ and attains
itmi’nân (tranquillity), it becomes similar to the five latifas, namely the
qalb (heart), rûh (soul), sirr (mystery), khafî (the secret) and akhfâ (the
most secret). And at this state of the nafs, jihâd is made only against the
evil desires of the substances and thermal and kinetic energy of the body. A hadîth sharîf declares, ‘What is
perceived through the sense organs affects [those who have] clean hearts and also cleansed nafses.’ The effect on
other people can be inferred accordingly.
“You ask whether it is permissible to eat what the
following people might offer or to go to their houses: bid’a-committer,
bribe-taker, cheater (fraud), sinner. It is better not to eat and not to go. In
fact, it is necessary for those who are on the way of tasawwuf to avoid them.
It is permissible in case of necessity. It is harâm to eat something which is
known to be harâm. It is halâl to eat anything known to be halâl. If it is not
known whether it is halâl or harâm, it will be better not to eat it.
“Question: ‘Is tasawwuf a bid’a? Was it invented by Jews?’
“Answer: It is one of the orders of Islam to try to know Allâhu ta’âlâ and, for
this purpose, to look for and obey a rehber who knows and teaches the way of
tasawwuf. Allâhu ta’âlâ declared, ‘Look for a wasîla to attain to Him!’ The disciples’ receiving faid and ma’rifa from the
rehber has been done and known by every Muslim since the time of Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). It is not something introduced
later by leaders of tasawwuf. Every rehber has held on to the rehber who has
guided him. This chain of attachment goes back up to Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam). The chain of connection of the
superiors of the Akhrâriyya reaches him through Hadrat Abu Bakr (radî-Allâhu
ta’âlâ ’anh). And chains of other branches reach through Hadrat ’Alî
(radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh). Can this be called a bid’a? Although such terms as
murshid and murîd were introduced later, names or words are of no particular
importance. Even if these words did not exist, their meanings and the hearts’
attachment would exist. [The Wahhâbite book, too, says that not words but
meanings should be taken into account.] The common fundamental job of all branches
of tasawwuf is to teach how to do the dhikr, which is a command of our
religion. The silent performance of a dhikr is more valuable than the vocal. ‘The dhikr that the hafaza angels cannot
hear is seventy times as valuable as that which the hafaza hear,’ was declared in a hadîth sharîf. The
dhikr commended in the hadîth
ash-sharîf is that performed by the qalb
(heart) and the other latîfas. It is written in valuable books that Rasûlullâh performed dhikr by the qalb before he was notified of the prophethood.
Saying that tasawwuf is a bid’a and that it was made up by Jews is like saying
that it is a bid’a to read the hadîth book of al-Bukhârî or the fiqh book Al-hidâya.”
Muhammad Ma’sûm al-Fârûqî (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ)
wrote in the 36th letter of the second volume of his Maktûbât:
The leader of the tasawwuf way (school) named Khwâjaghân
is ’Abd al-Khalîq al-Ghunjdawânî (rahimah-Allâhu
ta’âlâ). The jadhba (attraction) of qayyûmiyya peculiar to this way came to him
from Hadrat Abu Bakr as-Siddîq (radî-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’anh). And he taught the way
of obtaining this jadhba. This way is called wuqûf-i ’adadî and
consists in the dihkr
khafî, which again comes from Hadrat
Abu Bakr. The second way, named jadhba mâ’iyya, begun
with Bahâ’ ad-dîn al-Bukhârî (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ). ’Alâ ad-dîn al-’Attar
(rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ), the qutb of his time, established the conditions for
the attainment of this jadhba. These conditions were called the Tarîqa-i ’Alâ’iyya. It has been reported that the shortest way [that makes
one attain in the least time] is ’Alâ’iyya.”[1]
Muhammad Ma’sûm (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) wrote in the
158th letter of the second volume:
“For attaining sa’âda (salvation), two things should
be achieved. Firstly, the bâtin, that is, the heart, should be rescued from
being fond of cretures. Secondly, the zâhir, that is, the body, should be
embellished by holding fast to the al-Ah’kâm al-Islâmiyya (the Rules of Islam).
These two blessings are easily attained in the suhba of the masters of
tasawwuf. It is difficult to attain them by other means. In order to be able to
hold fast to Islam, to carry out ’ibâdât easily and to keep away from the
prohibitions, the nafs has to become fânî (resign itself). The nafs has been
created as ferocious, disobedient and arrogant. Unless is saved from these
evils, the reality (haqîqa) of Islam does not occur. Before resignation or
tranquility, there is the surface or appearance of Islam. After the tranquility
of the nafs, the reality of Islam occurs. The difference between the appearance
and the reality is similar to that between the earth and the sky. The followers
of the appearance attain to the appearance of Islam while those of the reality
attain to the reality of Islam. The belief of the ’awâm (the laity,
ignoramuses) is called îmân
majâzî (figurative belief). This
belief may be defiled and vanish. The belief of the khawâs (scholars, the people
of the reality) is protected from fading away and from being spoilt. This real
belief is indicated in the order, ‘Oh the Believers! Believe in Allah and His Prophet!’ in the 135th
âyat of the Sûrat an-Nisâ.”
[1] It is also called the Ahrâriyya because ’Ubaid-Allâh al-Ahrârî (rahimah- Allâhu ta’âlâ), who passed away in Samarkand in 895 (mîlâdî 1490), disseminated the way of his master ’Alâ ad-dîn al-’Attâr.
Muhammad Ma’sûm (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) wrote in the
16th letter of the third volume:
“Statements such as, ‘Everything is Him. The word
Allah is the name of everything. It is like the name Zaid indicating human
being; whereas, each of his organs has a different name. Then, where is Zaid?
He is nowhere. And Allâhu ta’âlâ is seen in every being. Therefore, it is
permissible to call everything Allah. Beings are all appearances. Their
annihilation is also a kind of appearance. In reality, there is nothing that
becomes non-existent,’ express not believing in the One Being but in many
beings, and this is not compatible with what the superiors of tasawwuf have
said. By such statements, Allâhu ta’âlâ is claimed to be in the material world,
meaning that He is not a distinct being and needs His creatures for His
existence and for the existence of His attributes. He is likened to the
existence of compounds which are in need of the existence of elements. And this
is disbelief in Allâhu ta’âlâ and is frank kufr (unbelief). It is necessary to
believe that the existence of Allâhu ta’âlâ is distinct from the existence of
the material and spiritual worlds. In other words, the Wâjib (the Indispensable
Being, the Creator) and the mumkin (the dispensable, the creation) are two
distinct beings. There is distinction in every case where there is dichotomy.
If someone argues, saying, ‘If the ’âlam (everything other than Allâhu ta’âlâ)
existed in reality, then there would be no dichotomy. The existence of the
’âlam is in appearance,’ we answer that the Really Existent Being does not
unite with the imaginary one. That is, one cannot say, ‘Everything is Him.’ If,
by saying so, one means to say, ‘Everything is non-existent; He is the only One
who exists,’ then it is correct. Yet, it would have been expressed not plainly
but figuratively. It is similar to one’s saying, ‘I saw Zaid,’ upon seeing
Zaid’s image in the mirror [or on the television screen]. Saying these not in
the figurative sense but in the plain sense is like saying ‘lion’ to a donkey.
[Similarly, it is incorrect to say that the sound from a radio or a loudspeaker
is the voice of the speaker.] A lion is different from a donkey. It cannot be
written in words that the two are the same one. The superiors of tasawwuf who
taught Wahdat al-wujûd did not say, ‘The Real Being is in the creatures. He
does not exist separately’; they said, ‘The creatures are His manifestations,
appearances.’ Muhyiddîn ibn al-’Arabî and his followers (rahimahum-Allâhu
ta’âlâ) said ‘Hama-ûst,’ that is, ‘everything is Him,’ in this sense.
“The statement, ‘The ’âlam has come as such, and so it
will go
on,’ implies that the world is qadîm (eternal).
Believing such is kufr and is a denial of the fact that the ’âlam will become
non-existent. The Qur’ân
al-karîm openly declares that everything
will be annihilated. Among those who say that they believe in the annihilation
and resurrection of human beings, there are some who say. ‘[The bodies of]
human beings are made of earthen material. They transform into earth [water and
gas] after death. These materials are transferred to plants, and then to
animals, and, by being eaten by human beings, are transformed into flesh, bone
and semen; thus other human beings come about. This is how the resurrection or
re-creation of human beings takes place.’ [Of course, the transformation of
substances as mentioned here is true. Such is Allâhu ta’âlâ’s Divine Rule. But]
saying that this is how human beings are re-created means a denial of Qiyâma
(Doomsday), Nashr (Resurrection) and Hashr (assembling for the Judgement). It
has been openly stated in the Qur’ân
al-karîm and the Hadîth ash-sharîf that the Last Day will come, that he dead will rise
from their graves, that all living beings will be assembled in a large square,
that the deed-books will be brought forward, that there will be reckoning, that
the Balance will be set up, and that the Believers will pass the Sirât Bridge
and go into Paradise while the unbelievers will fall into Hell to remain in
eternal torture. The denial of that day is unbelief, apostasy and atheism.
“Statements such as, ‘The well-known salât (ritual prayers) has been ordered for ignorant people. The worship for the pure, exalted human beings is dhikr and tefekkur (contemplating Allâhu ta’âlâ). All particles of the human body and everything are always busy with dhikr and worship. This is the way it is, even if man does not comprehend it. Islam has been sent for those with little wisdom. Thus, their mischief-making has been prevented,’ are the words of the very ignorant with little wisdom. Our Prophet (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) declared that salât is a pillar of Islam. He said, ‘He who performs salât has constructed the building of his faith. He who does not perform salât has demolished his faith. Salât is the mi’râj of the Believer.’ He felt at ease and peace in salât. The closeness in salât cannot be found in anything else; it was declared in a hadîth sharîf: ‘The curtain between Allah and man is removed only during salât.’ Every perfection can be reached by following al-Ah’kâm al-Islâmiyya (The Rules of Islam). He who departs from these rules, that is, the orders and prohibitions, deviates off the right track. He cannot attain to happiness. The Qur’ân al-karîm and the Hadîth ash-sharîf order that these rules should be followed. The right path is that shown by the Qur’ân al-karîm and the Hadîth ash-
sharîf. Other paths are the paths of devils. ’Abdullâh
ibn Mas’ûd said, ’Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam) drew a
straight line. He said, “This
is the only right path that leads man to the pleasure of Allâhu ta’âlâ.” Then, drawing slanting lines to the right and left of
this line [like branches of a fishbone], he said, “And these are the paths of devils. The
devil one each path calls one to it.”
Then he recited the âyat al-karîma, “This is My right path. Come to [follow] it!” ’
“The teachings revealed unanimously by prophets
(’alaihimu ’s-salâm) and conveyed to us by the ’ulamâ’ of Islam cannot be
destroyed by the imagination of any one. It is unbelief and atheistic to say
that the Rules of Islam are intended for the retrogressive. May Allâhu ta’âlâ
protect both us and you from believing such words! Âmîn.”
Sayyid ’Abdulhakîm Effendi (rahmat-Allâhi ta’âlâ
’alaih), who was the mujaddid of the fourteenth century of the Hegira, the
refuge of the lovers of al-Haqq, the treasure of the zâhirî and bâtinî
knowledge, the indisputable proof of awliyâ’, the master of ’arîfîn, the leader
of muhaqqiqîn, the elect of ’ubbâd, the guide of râsikhîn, the apple of
Muslims’ eyes, the expert in tasawwuf, the heir of Rasûlullâh (sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam), and whose books are documents
and whose speeches were full of wisdom, wrote very concisely the definition,
history, subject and terminology of tasawwuf in his Turkish work Ar-riyâdu ’t-tasawwufiyya[1]
. He wrote in the preface:
“Since there is no superiority more honourable and
more valuable than having attended the suhba of our Prophet
(sall-Allâhu ta’âlâ ’alaihi wa sallam), those who had attained to that honour
were called the Sahâba. Those who came after them were called the Tâbi’ûn because they followed (tâbi’) them in practice, and those who followed
them were called Atbâ’
at-Tâbi’în. After them, those who
excelled in religious affairs were called zuhhâd and ’ubbâd. Thereafter, bida’ increased and every group called their leader zâhid
and ’âbid. Those who were in the group of Ahl as-Sunna protected their hearts
from ghafla (forgetfulness of Allâhu ta’âlâ) and secured the obedience of their
nafses to Allâhu ta’âlâ. This state of theirs was called
[1] Published by the Harbiyye Mektebi Matbaasý in Istanbul in 1341 (1923 A.D.)
tasawwuf while such a Muslim was called a sûfî (Persian
Sôfî). These terms were first used at the end of the second century of the
Hegira. The first one who was called a sûfî was Abu Hâshim Sûfî of Kûfa
(rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ). He was engaged in irshâd (enlightenment, initiation)
in Damascus and passed away in 115. He was the ustâdh (master) of Sufyân
ath-Thawrî (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ), who passed away in Basra in 161 (
“The men of tasawwuf have been honoured with a branch
of knowledge in addition to that of the other scholars of Islam. This knowledge
of theirs is the expression of the dhawq resulting from their combating with
their nafses. When the branches of knowledge were begun to be transferred from
the heart to written form, the superiors of the men of tasawwuf also began
writing on this branch of knowledge. Hâris ibn Asad al-Muhâsibî (rahimah-Allâhu
ta’âlâ), who passed away in Basra in 241 (
“As it is seen, the beginning of tasawwuf goes back to
the beginning of the prophethood (nubuwwa, risâla). The knowledge of tasawwuf is
the product of understanding the realities of the heavenly religions. The
ma’rifas of Wahdat
al-Wujûd, which is a part of
tasawwuf, should not be confused with the wahda which was
deduced by the Buddhists and the Jews through reason and austerities. The
former consists of the ma’rifas comprehended through dhawq while the latter
consists of the fancies produced by the mind. The heedless who have not tasted
this dhawq think that the two are the same.”
[Allâhu ta’âlâ declares in the Sûrat adh-Dhâriyât, “I have
created genies and men so that they should perform ’ibâda [for Me].” And ’ibâdât, in its turn, will cause qurb and ma’rifa. This means to say that men are commanded to become awliyâ’, which is possible by observing the nâfila (supererogatory) ’ibâdât together with the fard ones and keeping away from the holders of bid’a. The duties practised on the way of tasawwuf are the ’ibâdât which are nâfila. Ikhlâs, which is a condition for the acceptance of the fards, is attainable by doing these duties. The above-given information clearly shows that the Wahhâbîs’ statement, “Tasawwuf has been adapted from Jews and ancient Greeks,” is an atrocious lie and slander.]