“Those who say that great men of tasawwuf can
penetrate and see into their disciples’ hearts, know what is in their hearts
and direct their hearts to wherever they wish are liars. And those who believe
them are, in fact, disbelievers in Allah and prophets. Anything
worshipped other than Allah is called ‘wasan.’ Graves or tombs, too, are
wasans. For example, the greatest idol of Egyptians is Ahmad al-Badawî. Just as
his name is not well-known, so there is no superiority, knowledge or ’ibâda of
him that is well-known. As-Sahawî reports from Ibn Hayyân that once he [Ahmad
al-Badawî] entered and urinated in a mosque and went out without performing
salât. People think of this man as capable of disposition in both worlds and of
extinguishing conflagrations and saving ships in storms. They think of him to
be a deity, a god, and say that he knew the secret, could hear from far away
and make wishes fulfilled. They prostrate on the soil of his tomb. Likewise,
people in Amman and Iraq worship ’Abd al-Qâdir al-Jîlânî. Muhyiddîn ibn
al-’Arabî was the greatest disbeliever on the earth.”
The superiors of tasawwuf recognize those for whom
Allâhu ta’âlâ has willed guidance and bliss and whom He has determined to save
from torture. They will act as wâsitas for their enlightenment. Meeting the
awliyâ’, knowing those distinguished,
great men and imploring them are also by Allâhu
ta’âlâ’s preordaining and favour. Allâhu ta’âlâ endows bliss and intercession
on those Muslims to whom He willed guidance in the eternal pasts, by giving
them the lot of reading the books written by the scholars of Ahl as-Sunna and
great leaders of tasawwuf. And He makes those for whom He has wished heresy and
perdition fall into the Wahhâbî trap; by reading their misleading books and
vile lies, they will be led into Hell. The Wahhâbite book attacks Muslims with
filthy slander about Allâhu ta’âlâ’s above-mentioned beloved ’ulamâ’ and great
awliyâ’. Even if there might be some vile words and actions incongruous with
Islam among a few ignorant, heretical people who make their faith a means for
worldly advantages, it does not justify his attempt to calumniate all Ahl
as-Sunna by pointing to such people; it is like blaming Prophet
’Îsâ (’alaihi ’s-salâm) because Christians worship him.
Ahmad al-Badawî (rahimah-Allâhu ta’âlâ) was one of the
great awliyâ’ and was the khalîfa to Shaikh Barî, who was one of the superiors
of tasawwuf and the khalîfa to ’Alî ibn Nu’âim al-Baghdâdî, who was a great
walî educated by Ahmad ar-Rifâ’î (rahimahum-Allâhu ta’âlâ), a possessor of
karâmât and a sharîf. Ahmad al-Badawî, who was a sharîf, too, passed away in
Egypt in
[1] Mir’ât al-Madîna, p. 1049.