Hasan al-Basri, radiallahu anhu, said that Sufism was a reality without a name and that in his time it had become a name without a reality.

This sahabi was the first of our shaykhs who took from Sayyiduna ‘Ali, radiallahu anhu, a man that had sat on the knee of the Rasul, sallallahu alayhi wa sallim. In saying this he was indicating a change that had happened in a very short space of time, but what I find significant is that he talks of a reality that existed among the sahaba, a quality of existence and knowledge that did not have a form or language of its own; it was not codified; it was the very substance of everyday life. So these people were not Sufis; they were Muslims; Muhajireen, Ansar, Bani this and Bani that, Arabi, Ajami’. The description of the ahlus-Suffa’ was that of men who did not work but stayed next to the Prophet’s house in order to learn from him and in that you see them as part of society, only functioning in a unique way, but not outside of it. The reality of Ihsan, that shaykh Hasan al-Basri was talking about cannot, of course, disappear or re-appear but its manifestation in doctrine and practice indicates a more general change in society. Continue reading “Miskῑn”

There are very few Muslims today who have lived under an amir or khalifah ruling according to the Book and Sunnah. Most of the Muslim lands had been overrun by the colonising kuffar ending with the suspension of the Khilafah in Istanbul in the early 20^th century.

The battlefields have long been cleared, the Muslim populace subjugated, imprisoned or killed, and the future puppets sent back to the Kafir heartland for education and preparation for the next stage of imperial domination. Once everything was in place the lands were handed back to the people, puppets installed and ‘independence’ granted, while the ownership of wealth and real power lay squarely with the old masters.

Nothing has really changed since then except that now the people are being subjugated, imprisoned and killed by their own family at their own expense, all in the way of ensuring the flow of oil, minerals and other commodities to their former and in fact, current oppressors. Continue reading “FORWARD TO MADINAH”

To understand the modern world you have to consider that you are living in a lunatic asylum. What governs the affairs of today are varying levels of psychosis. The madness of the insane is increased by confirmation of their insanity. Some of the cleverest and articulate of people are clinically mad and are master manipulators, to the extent that they have even redefined sanity/insanity.

To understand this there must be sanity, and this is very difficult to maintain within an institution for the insane. Part of the difficulty is the acceptance of all that is presented at face value, when, of course, nothing is as it seems. We all know this; we know politicians are liars and slaves to the wealthy; we know the police are not there to protect us; we know that the financial system is totally corrupt and partial; yet we accept this as the way things are and do nothing about it. Continue reading “No Strength, No Will”

Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, created this world as a means. All that is, was and shall be upon it will cease to exist, in some cases almost as soon as it came into being and in others their non-existence is unknown to all of mankind. He tells us, subhanahu wa ta’ala, that the creation of the heavens and earth is greater than the creation of man and nothing comes into existence without His will and command but with purpose and void of caprice. Everything created is a clue and an indicator of its creator and this it its purpose.

Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, tells us on the tongue of his prophet, Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa sallim, that He was a hidden treasure and desired to be known. He is the Light of the heavens and the earth, so in relation to His creation (if that can be said), He declares that He is its light. He also says that He created it ‘bi ‘l-Haqq, (with Truth), so we can take from His own words that He is its reality and it reflects that truth. The universe does not lie about itself or its Creator. This is important because there are those who say that truth is relative, which it is not, as we would have no access to certainty. Truth belongs to Allah and it is there for all to see, but most do not because of their own mound of rubble. It is inestimably precious and like all treasure it must be sought. Remember that the revelation of a secret is in the hands of its keeper and not its seeker. Continue reading “Sink or Swim”

The occasion of the birthday of Shaykh Dr. Abdalqadir as-Sufi brings along with it the celebration of his inheritance from Shaykh Muhammad ibn al-Habib and Shaykh Muhammad al-Faytouri by the idhn of Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala, and His Rasul, sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallim, as their confirmed successor in the Qadiri-Shadhili-Darqawi tariqah.

It is the annual opportunity for his fuqara to join him in praise of Allah and His Rasul, expecting from Him, subhanahu wa ta’ala, a filling of the hearts with lights, forgiveness and a raising of their stations in respect of His pleasure and a heightening of His Rasul’s love and concern for them. Continue reading “The Mawsim of Shaykh Dr. Abdalqādir as-Sūfi”